A System for Learning
Mar 25, 2016
A System for Learning
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Our Manifesto
LEGO® Education
LEGO System for Learning
The Digital and Creative Era
Delivering Learning Experiences
For the Sciences and the Arts
LEGO Education in Practice
Conclusion
Bibliography
ContentsContentsContents
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We believe children must be supported to be:
•SystematicallyCreativeLearners•ActiveLearners•CollaborativeLearners
ChildrenbecomeSystematicallyCreativeLearnersthrough:• Learningbycombininglogicandreasoningwithplayfulnessand
imagination.• Learningbymasteringatoolandgivingformtothoughts.• Learningbycombining,exploringandtransformingideasandobjects.
ChildrenbecomeActiveLearnersthrough:• Learningbyconstructingthingsintherealworld,andinthisway
constructingknowledgeintheirminds.• Makingtheirmarkandexpressingtheiroriginalityinthelearning
environment.• Feelingownershipandtakingcharge,beingproactiveandinternally
driven.
ChildrenbecomeCollaborativeLearnersthrough:• Learningfrominterpretedexperiencesandexplanationsofother
people,includingpeersandexperts.• Learning through reflecting upon an experience, discussing why
andhowthingsworkedintheaccomplishmentofagoal.• Helpingeachothertolearn,eachaccordingtotheirability,through
thesharedlanguageofLEGO®bricks.
Our Manifesto
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LEGO® EducationLearningisattheverycoreoftheLEGOGroup’smostheartfeltvalues,and thecompany’s education division has invested manyyears incooperation and research with child development specialists andteachingprofessionalstobuildarichunderstandingofwhatittakestoprovidetrulyeffectivelearningexperiences.
While teaching to curriculum subjects and assessment throughexamscoresmaycontinuetodominatepoliticalagendas,researchintoeffectivelearningtechniquesandagrowingunderstandingoftheneedsof21stcenturylearnersshowthatindividualsbenefitmorebyapplyingknowledgeasameanstoexpandtheirunderstandingthan they do by simply acquiring knowledge in order to passexaminations.
Thefocusofeducationandtheroleofeducatorsarechanging.Twenty-firstcenturylearningisaboutprovidingchildrenwithopportunitiestoexperimentwiththeirsurroundingsasaformofproblemsolving.Itisaboutcreativityandcollaboration,motivationandself-direction.Itisaboutimprovisationanddiscovery,andinteractingwithmeaningfultoolsthatexpandmentalcapacities.
New technology; computers, digital information and onlinecommunication,arehelpingtoexpandthewayweacquireanduseknowledge,andthistooispavingthewayformoredynamicandeffectiveteachingandlearningexperiences.
LEGO®Educationhasbeencreatingsolutionsforkindergartensandclassroomsfor30years.TheskillsandtechniquesthattheLEGOSystemforLearningembodiesmeetmanyoftheneedsof21stcenturylearners.
LEGOEducationsolutionsenablestudentstobeactive,creativeandcollaborative solution-seekers. In this way their instinct to learn isstimulated, and they are motivated to apply their learning in newcontexts,whichmeansthattheyembarkonaself-directedlearningprocess.
LEGOstudentsuseLEGObricksanddigitaltoolstosolveproblemscreativelyandtoexcelatworkingwithothersandthinkingcritically.Byworkinginthisway,theydeveloptheirunderstandingandabilityto retain knowledge of keycurriculum concepts, and therefore dowellinschoolandonhigh-stakestests.
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LEGO® System for Learning
Systems are essential for learning because they are used by themind to generate meaning from the endless onslaught of stimulifromtheoutsideworld.Theyhelpustomakesenseofthingsandtobuildknowledgeandunderstanding.
Throughsystemswealsochannelcreativityintoideasorartefactsinawaythatcanbeunderstoodandvaluedbyourselvesandothers.Theyhelpustoexpressourselves.
Systemsthatallowustobuildknowledgeandunderstanding,aswell asexpressit,arecrucialforlearning.WecallthisSystematicCreativity: the abilityto think creativelyand reason systematically. It is aboutmaking sense of, and leveraging, human experience. It is markedbyastrongpushtoputimaginationandcreativityattheserviceofknowledgeandreasoning.
TheLEGO®Systemforlearningisuniquebecauseitprovidesendlessopportunitiestomakesenseofthingsandexpressnewideas.
Hands-onlearningThe effectiveness of hands-on learning, for example throughconstruction,hasbeenwelldocumentedformanyyears.Todayneuroscienceisabletodocumentevenmorepreciselyhowphysicalandactiveinvolvementinexperiencesstimulatesthebrainandimprovesthequalityoflearning.
Thereisagrowingrecognitionthatpeopleprimarilythinkandlearnthroughexperiencestheyhavehad,ratherthanthroughabstractcalculationsandgeneralisations.Westoreourexperiencesinmemoryandusethemtorunsimulationsinourmindstoprepareforproblem-solvinginnewsituations.Thesesimulationshelpusformhypothesesabouthowtoproceedinthenewsituationbasedonpastexperiences.
Itisdifficulttostoreandreflectuponabstractthoughts,asthebraindoesnothaveamemorableexperiencetoretainandworkwith.
LEGO® System for Learning
And yet a significant proportion of teaching efforts still rely ondeliveringknowledgeinthisdisconnectedway.
WhiletheLEGOSystemforLearningcannotsolveallofthechallengesthat educators face, it is a fact that building representations ofideas,problems,andknowledgewithLEGObricksanddigitaltoolsprovides students with an experience that is concrete and withlearningthatismemorable.
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The Digital and Creative Era
New technologies have brought easy access to knowledge andgreater opportunities for collaboration and creativity. As JamesPaul Gee emphasises in Learning Games, technology easesinformationsharing,co-creationandthecrossingofnewandmoredistantborders,notjustgeographically,butalsobetweenphysicaland digital realms. Digital interfaces give us new ways to expressourselves, new ways to research ideas, new ways to experiment.Theyallowustotakeriskssafely,tomakeandremake,torepurpose,recycleandtradeinwayswecouldbarelyhaveimaginedjustafewdecadesago.
Young people’s combination and recombination of LEGO® bricksandmodels,bothphysicallyanddigitally,nurturesnon-linearformsof learning, where they move between rule acquisition and rulemodification, between the familiar and the foreign. By working inthisway,studentsgainopportunitiesto immediatelyreflectonthechoicestheymake,tointuitivelyorcollaborativelymodifytheirideas,andtocollectivelyachievebetterresultswiththeirclassmates.
These developments and opportunities are changing the wayteachingandchildcareprofessionalsviewtheirroles.Asonenewlyqualifiedteachersaid:“Iwaslookingatallthesetoolsandthinking,‘How can I get good at using them in order to teach?’But then IrealisedthatwhatIneededtodowastogivethemtothechildrenandletthemlearnbyusingthem.”
4C s
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Delivering learning experiences through a framework
LEGO®Educationteachingresourcesembodya‘FourC’frameworkthroughwhichstudentsarefreetoexperimentandexploreinordertogainnewknowledge.
AllLEGOtasksaredesignedtodeliveralearningexperiencethroughthisframework.ThesuccessoftheFourCprocessisalsodependentontheroleofthefacilitatorinenablingstudentstoachieveastateofFlowandtoworkcollaboratively.
FlowToachieveastateofFlow,abalancemustbestruckbetweenthechallenge of the task and the skill of the performer. If the task istooeasy,itleadstoboredom;butifitistoodifficult,itonlycreatesanxiety,andFlowcannotoccur.Aneducator’sgreatestresponsibilityistofacilitatethelearningprocessinawaythatallowschildrentostaywithinsuchabalance.Inthiswaytheircreativityandengagementnaturally flourish and Flow can be experienced. This is true of theentireFourCprocess.
Byprovidingopen-endedtasksandextensionideas,LEGOEducationresourceshelpstudentstoachieveandmaintainastateofFlow.
CollaborationAcknowledging collaboration is about recognising that while welearnonanindividualbasis,weneedothersinordertodevelopandcomplete our learning. Collaboration is about personal leadershipand mastering the dynamics of teamwork. Learning to engageeffectivelyindialoguewithpeers,sharingideas,andbuildingontopofcontributionsbyotherswhilecreditingtheoriginator,areessentialskillstomasterinallthephasesoftheFourCsmodel.
Beingcollaborativeinvolvesbuildingtrustandempathy,andbuildingstrongbondswithotherswhilstremainingtruetoone’sownidentity.Collaboration entails sharing ideas and feelings through dialogue,andlearningtonegotiatedifferences.
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ConnectConnect ConnectLearnersarepresentedwithachallengeortaskthatisopen-endedandthatplacestheminthepositionofsolution-seekers.Theactiveengagementofstudentsalwaystakesitsstartingpointinquestionsaskedbythelearnersthemselves,therebybuildingonthestudents’owninitiativeandinterests.IntheConnectphasethefacilitatorencourageslearnerstoaskquestionsandexploreideasaroundthetaskbeforetheygetstarted.Theircuriosityisawakened,andthetaskiswithintheirreach.Itbuildsonexistingknowledgeandareasofinterest.
ConstructConstructConstructEveryLEGOtaskinvolvesabuildingactivity.Activelearning(orlearningbydoing)involvestwotypesofconstruction:whenchildrenconstructartefactsintheworld,theysimultaneouslyconstructknowledgeintheirminds.Thisnewknowledgethenenablesthemtobuildevenmoresophisticatedartefacts,aprocesswhichyieldsyetmoreknowledge,andsoon,inaself-reinforcingcycle.Toconstructwithotherscollaborativelyextendsthislearningevenfurther.Solutionsthatwecreatetogetheraregenerallybetterthanthoseweareabletocreateasindividuals,duetotheopportunitiesmadeavailablebytheprocess.
ContemplateStudentsaregiventheopportunitytoconsiderwhattheyhavelearnedandtotalkaboutandshareinsights they have gained during the Construct phase. In the Contemplate phase everyone isencouragedtoaskfacilitatingquestionsabouttheprocessandlearningsofar.Facilitatingquestionsaredesignedtohelplearnersgainawarenessoftheprocesstheyareinandexplorenewwaystogoaboutfindingsolutionstothetaskthathasbeenset.
ContemplateContemplate
EveryLEGOtaskendswithanewtaskthatbuildsonwhathasjustbeenlearned.Thisphaseisdesignedtokeepthelearnerin‘astateofFlow’.TheFlowstateisanoptimalstateofintrinsicmotivation,whereapersonisfullyimmersedinwhatheorsheisdoing.
ContinueContinueContinue
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LEGO®Education solutions lend themselves to both thesciencesandthearts.
LEGOroboticsandmechanismssolutionstapintoScience,Technology,EngineeringandMathematics(STEM)subjectsand allowstudents to engagewith these subjectsauthentically.PracticingSTEMintheclassroomcallsforproblem-andproject-basedlessonsaswellasconsiderablesocialinteraction;allowingstudentstorefineoneanother’sideas,toarticulatetheirownandtoachievenewandvaluableinsights.
Other solutions, such as LEGO play themes,LEGOEducationWeDo™andLEGOEducationBuildToExpress are powerful tools whichchildren can use to express emotions andresponses to nature, poetry, literature andconcepts in the humanities such as citizenship.Workingtogethertobuildsharedexpressionsoftheirhopesforsocietyandculturehelpschildrentodevelopconfidenceandself-esteem.
For the Sciences and the Arts
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LEGO® Education in PracticeHerearesomeexamplesofLEGO®resourcesinuseineducationalcontexts:
SecondarymathematicsstudentsareaskedtofindawaytoaccuratelycontrolthespeedatwhichaLEGOrobotmovesbyloggingthedistanceit travels over a period of time at varying speeds. The computersoftwareincludesadataloggingcomponent,sothatwhentherobotmoves, data is gathered and stored in a way that allows students toanalyseandinterpretitlater.Theyarethenabletocalculatepreciselyhowfar,howfastandforhowlongarobotshouldtraveltocarryoutaspecifictask.
PrimaryandmiddleschoolphysicsstudentsbuildLEGOmodelsanduse them to examine techniques such as capturing wind energy fortransport or transforming energy by gearing down and conceptssuch as forces and wind resistance.They practice making accurate predictionsandmeasurements,recordingobservationsandfindings.
A class of 10-year-olds uses the LEGO Education BuildToExpressmethod to talk about caring for the environment.The children buildmodelsthatmetaphoricallyrepresenttheir ideasandunderstanding.Thisisaskilltheyhavebeentrainedinandisadeliberatedeviationfrom the more traditional use of LEGO sets to reconstruct real-worldobjects.Themethodimprovestheirabilitytoreflectontheirthoughtsandparticipateinconstructivedialogue.
Agroupof4-year-oldsuseLEGO®DUPLO®brickstobuildthecaterpillarsShorty and Stretch.They find things in the room that are“longer than”,“shorterthan”and‘exactlythesamelengthas’theircaterpillarfriends.Thentheybuildtheirowncaterpillarsandusethemtoinventcaterpillarstories.
Eachyear,childrenaroundtheworldformteams(representingschools,clubs and families) to build and programme robots to complete aroboticschallengeusingLEGO®MINDSTORMS®sets.Teamscompeteinregional,nationalandinternationalcontests.TheFIRSTLEGOLeaguechallenge includes a research project on a given subject. In 2009teamsresearchedtransportation.Theyidentifiedthesafestandmostefficientwayspossibletoaccesspeople,places,goodsandservices.Team performance is measured on the quality of the research, therobotdesign,theteam’sprogrammingskillsandtheabilityoftheteamto work together.Today the FLL involves more than 150,000 childrenaged9to16worldwide.
InallofthesecontextstheuseofLEGOmaterialsconsistentlyhelpstofostercollaboration,imagination,resourcefulness,andequality.Wheneveryone is building with LEGObricks,theyareonalevelplayingfield,sharingtheirworldviewsinthesameinternationallanguage.
Conclusion
Twenty-first century learning is about providing children withopportunitiestoexperimentwiththeirsurroundingsasaformofproblemsolving;itisaboutimprovisationanddiscovery,constructingdynamicmodelsofrealworldprocessesandinteractingwithmeaningfultoolsthatexpandmentalcapacities.Itisaboutbeingactive,creativeandcollaborative.
Educatorsnolongerneedtobeartheburdenofteachingpredominantlythroughknowledgedissemination,butmustinsteadbecomecreatorsandleadersofeffectivelearningexperiences.
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Conclusion Bibliography
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Edwards,David:Artscience – Creativity in the post-Google generation, HarvardUniversityPress,2008
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Pink,Daniel:A whole new mind,MarshallCavendish,2008
Rogers,Carl(1967):‘Theinterpersonalrelationshipinthefacilitationoflearning’,inKirschenbaum,H.andHenderson,V.L.(eds),The Carl Rogers Reader,HoughtonMiflin,1989
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