Final Blueprint on Learning Communities

Jakarta International School

Grade 6 Joang’45 Museum Visit

Jakarta, Indonesia

Part I. Contextual Factors and Generative Topic

In 2011, Joang’45 Museum (http://museumjoang45jakarta.net/) developed a location-aware Android and iPhone-based Augmented Reality (AR) application and became the first museum in Indonesia that used AR to help visitors access information in a more engaging way. Currently there are still not many museums in Indonesia that implement this technology as a tool to educate and entertain visitors. In August 2016, the application was updated and heavily publicized. The museum display and artifacts are dedicated to the history of Indonesia’s fight for independence from Japan and subsequently The Netherlands around 1945-1950. The building was built in the 1920’s and is a historic site as it housed many of the activities leading to the fight for independence.

The Grade 6 students of Jakarta International School, which comprise of mostly international and some local students, will visit the museum as part of the Social Studies’ Indonesia unit to explore an important time in Indonesia’s history. Students will use the iPad with Internet access to take a tour of the museum and view the physical and digital representations of the museum’s collections and exhibits, which comprise of paintings, photos, diorama, and other artifacts in order to better understand the situations and conditions surrounding the fight for Indonesia’s independence.

Part II. Design Components

1.     Understanding goal:

• Students will understand the conditions and influencing factors leading up to the fight for Indonesia’s independence around 1945-1950.
• Students will understand how the Japanese occupation during World War 2 became a turning point in the histories of the countries in Asia, specifically in Indonesia, Singapore and The Philippines.

Understanding performances:

• Class discussions on students’ initial knowledge on the subject.
• Describe the worldwide and local conditions and factors around 1945-1950 that contributed to the rise of the fight for Indonesia’s independence.
• Identify and describe three (3) artifacts that have historical significance to events surrounding the fight for Indonesia’s independence.
• Identify four (4) people of the youth generation who occupied Joang’45 building during the Japanese occupation and their roles surrounding the fight for Indonesia’s independence.
• Write a substantial document that presents and analyzes the conditions and influencing factors leading up to the fight for Indonesia’s independence around 1945-1950.
• Compare and contrast how the Japanese occupation during World War 2 became a turning point in the histories of the countries in Asia, specifically in Indonesia, Singapore and The Philippines.

2.     The overarching learning or design theory used to design this blueprint is the Teaching for Understanding Framework (TFU) using Augmented Reality (AR) on mobile devices.

Context, generative topic, understanding goal, understanding performances, and ongoing assessments follow the guidelines for the TFU framework described in Chapter 5: “Teaching and Learning for Understanding,” by David Perkins and Chris Unger, from Instructional-Design Theories and Models: A New Paradigm of Instructional Theory (3rd ed., p. 91–114).

This blueprint also took into consideration the design of a lesson plan that reflects the characteristics of the use AR in teaching and learning described in Chapter 59: “Augmented Reality Teaching and Learning” by M. Dunleavy and C. Dede, from The Handbook of Research for Educational Communications and Technology (4th ed.). AR is primarily aligned with situated and constructivist learning theory. Situated learning stresses that learning is dependent upon the quality of the social interaction within the learning context. Constructivist learning theory outlines 5 conditions that are needed to enhance learning: (1) Embed learning within relevant physical environments, (2) Make collaborative social negotiation integral to the learning experience, (3) Provide multiple perspectives and multiple modes of representation within the environment and contextualizing them within a problem-based narrative, (4) Provide self-directed and active learning opportunities, and (5) Support and facilitate metacognitive strategies within the experience.

Mobile, wireless design affordances are important considerations too as they can be used as mindtools to support students’ deeper connections of their experiences with authentic practices and knowledge construction. As described in Land, S. M., Smith, B. K., & Zimmerman, H. T. (2013), Digital Photography: Mobile technologies as tools for augmenting observations and reflections in everyday informal environments (pages 214-228), mobile devices could serve as tools for reflecting on real-world experiences or authentic problems with the potential of enhancing the likelihood for discovering the relevance of how and why knowledge is useful.

The learning communities’ activities support both individual development and collaborative construction of knowledge that advance the collective knowledge and skills. Students share knowledge and skills among members of the community from different groups within a class and groups from other countries. Their learning process is made visible and articulated through the production of a Google Doc and blogs.

3.     Lesson plan:

• Before the museum visit, teacher provides supplemental reading materials to provide background and context for the activity. This is followed by class discussions to gather students’ perspectives and initial impression on the subject (messing around).
• Teacher assigns students in groups of 3 (there will be a total of 6 groups of 3).
• Each group uses 1 school-supplied iPad and downloads the appropriate app for the museum’s AR.
• Each group receives 1 different clue in the form of a picture of a diorama.
• Each group will take a tour through the museum to locate the diorama assigned to them.
• When the group locates the corresponding diorama, they will use the iPad with internet connection to Bolt 4G Ultra LTE units to access the respective AR in order to get a detailed description and view the documentary movie relating to the event.
• Each group will walk around the museum to locate three (3) artifacts that have historical significance to the diorama assigned to them. Take a screen capture of the artifact and access the artifacts’ respective ARs to view their historical significance.
• Each group will identify four (4) people who were part of the youth generation who occupied Joang’45 building during the Japanese occupation and their roles surrounding the fight for Indonesia’s independence.
• This completes the museum tour.
• Members of a group take on different roles to take notes of the conditions and influencing factors contributing to the fight for Indonesia’s independence using a template that the teacher shares on Google Drive. Conduct additional research as necessary. Make sure students properly reference the additional materials (assessment: formative).
• Members of a group collaboratively work on a Google Doc shared on Google Drive to write a substantial document of at least 300 words describing and analyzing the diorama, the three (3) artifacts that have historical significance to diorama assigned to them, and the four (4) people who were part of the youth generation and their roles surrounding the fight for Indonesia’s independence (assessment: formative).
• Publish the finished document on the class blog (assessment: summative).
• Teacher provides the links to classes in sister schools in the region who belong to EARCOS (The East Asia Regional Council of Schools), specifically in Singapore (Singapore International School) and The Philippines (International School Manila), whose students are learning the effects of the Japanese occupation during World War 2 in their respective countries (this was prearranged, preselected, organized and agreed upon between the teachers involved).
• Each group gives comments on two (2) blogs of the groups in each of the other two (2) countries, and compares and contrasts how the Japanese occupation during World War 2 became a turning point in the histories of these countries (assessment: summative).
• Edmodo will be setup to facilitate and encourage informal communications in building a learning community between the students in Jakarta, Singapore, and The Philippines.
• Complete questionnaire/survey for their opinions regarding activities/applications.

Part III. Reflection

This blueprint is an enhanced blueprint that I used for Module 8 of this LDT527 course to include understanding goals, understanding performances and activities that reflect a learning communities’ approach. The biggest challenge is finding a museum in Jakarta that incorporates AR technology in its display with the purpose of amplifying students’ engagement. According to the information I found on the internet, Joang’45 Museum has this ability, but in my most recent visit, I found that the museum has removed this technology and no explanations were given as to why and when or if it would be re-installed.

Beyond this issue, there is also the challenge in finding the classes in Singapore and The Philippines who could/would work together on this project.

Another important aspect is to provide the rubric for the formative and summative assessments (which is not included in this blueprint). Not being a class teacher, I have not implemented this plan and put it to test so I’m not sure of what other potential challenges could present themselves.