The 2nd chapter in the BlendKit reader provided research on motivation of learners. I was particularly drawn to the comments of Kirschner et al, who argued that the degree of instructor presence and support is critical to successful constructivist activities. The authors of the BlendKit reader correctly observe that the “concern of minimal guidance… is compounded by the growth of online content created by amateurs” (p. 26). The differentiation between the types of “roles of the instructor” in the new networked world seem to me to be slight variations on the same theme. Cultivating intrinsic motivation is the key; achieved by finding the optimal level of guidance for each student. That can likely be facilitated via technology in personalized learning environments and machine learning, but the importance of the human element on both the teaching and learning side cannot be underestimated.

I’m just starting out with the Canvas.net course BlendKit 2017. This course covers instructional design strategies for blended or “hybrid” courses. It is always good for me to keep up on the latest developments in order to support faculty. The course calls on students to actually create a course. I’m considering using financial literacy as a course topic. There are a lot of staff here in the UC who have questions on retirement, investing, etc. I find it interesting and would like to share what I know. It is truly needed in our institution.