Authentic Intellectual Work/Authentic Instruction & Assessment

 As we look into integrating technology with instruction ,we are going to take a deeper dive into discussing important aspects of doing so. What is authentic instruction?Authentic instruction/Authentic intellectual work(AIW) are frameworks that help educators use and design curriculum and assessments that enhance student learning by implementing lessons and instruction that is meaningful to students' everyday lives. We will answer three questions today that help clarify what AIW and authentic instruction is, components of AIW and authentic instruction, and give a specific example of these being used in a discipline or content area. 

1. What is the nature of Authentic Intellectual Work?  How does it differ from traditional approaches to instruction and assessment?

When considering the Triple E framework Kolb discusses the "the three elements that are key to creating authentic enhancement in a learning task with technology" (Kolb, 2020, p.61). The elements are located below:

• "Supporting students learning at a higher cognitive level
• Making the learning concepts easier for students to understand (providing scaffolds and supports)
• Adding value to the learning goals in ways that traditional tools could not easily do" -(Kolb, 2020, p. 61)

AIW is discussed by Fred M. Newmann, M. Bruce King, Dana L. Carmichael as having the following elements in the AIW framework:

• "Criteria-Construction of Knowledge
• Disciplined inquiry 
• Value beyond school" -(Newmann, King, and Carmichael, 2007, pgs 13-16).

As you can see these frameworks differ from other approaches by encouraging educators to build on student's prior knowledge, enhancing critical thinking skills and allowing students to gain value in their knowledge by making it meaningful to their everyday lives. These aspects of AIW and Triple E allows us to answer our next question.

    2. Discuss the components of Authentic Intellectual Work and provide deep consideration of at least one component by including a discussion of empirical (research-based) evidence.

    We have been introduced to the components of AIW and Triple E frameworks: Enhancing critical thinking skills, supporting student learning by building on prior knowledge, and adding personal value to the information we want our students to learn. Each component works together to help achieve the desired goals of AIW and Triple E instruction but let's look closer at why it is important for students to receive information that adds value to learning goals that can benefit them far beyond their school years.

    By adding instruction and lessons that add value to students learning, as educators, we are establishing a functional problem solving society once students leave our classroom. Equipping our students with functional critical thinking skills makes them better communicators, problem solvers, and valued members of society. We also understand that educational philosophy is deeply rooted in maintaining a free and functional society. "From Aristotle to Jefferson to Dewey to contemporary political scientists, the argument for democracy assumes that citizens are capable not only of basic literacy, but also of exercising principled and reasoned judgment about public affairs."(Newmann, King, and Carmichael, 2007, pg 22).

    Now that we understand why the components for AIW is so important what does it look like in practice? Especially in an early childhood classroom?

    3. Describe a specific example of authentic intellectual work in a discipline or content area.

We will discuss the content area of science-specifically considering the oklahoma teaching standard Earth systems-Use and share observations of local weather conditions to describe patterns over time. Oklahoma is known for weather, implementing the components of AIW in instructing students of their local weather has the ability to enhance this lesson to real and meaningful knowledge. Empowering students to understand how the weather works around them and being able to make predictions of climate related information in our state definitely helps add value to this lesson beyond the classroom. Students will be able to build on prior knowledge of their own experiences with weather, and gain the ability to think about the weather at a higher cognitive level than what they began with.

Now we will discuss AIW by looking into the following:

Part 2: 2017 National Education Technology Plan Update

-The 2017 NETP is not explicitly connected to the Authentic Intellectual Work Framework. What opportunities do you see within the first section "Learning:Engaging and Empowering Learning Through Technology" to connect technology integration practices with the components of authenticity? Describe an example in the plan or develop your own example aligned with this technology plan that supports students to engage in authentic intellectual work.

We will use the previous example of AIW in relation to the Oklahoma Kindergarten Science standard of weather. While we already discussed how this particular standard can be aligned to instruct students with the goals of AIW we will now look into implementing technology that can support these goals and what that may look like. Some basic technological tools that can help students engage in AIW when learning about the weather is a weather thermometer, rain gauge, wind sock, barometer, anemometer, and weather chart. Some of these items can even be made in the classroom, further enhancing AIW components of learning. In addition implementing a weather forecaster in the room and providing students with voice recording devices, microphones etc. can also be used to support AIW in weather related learning. Having students watch various weather related and school appropriate videos and construct stories and dialogue about their own weather experiences is also beneficial to meeting AIW components. Each of these examples helps align AIW with the 2017 NETP section of Learning"Engaging and Empowering learning through technology because they help meet the goal of NETP which states the following "GOAL: All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences in both formal and informal settings that prepare them to be active, creative,knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally connected society."

Finally we will discuss Part 3 : Triple E Framework

What connections do you notice between the AIW framework and Kolb's deep dive into one of the Es. How does the example you developed above support, engagement, enhancement, or extension?

As discussed previously AIW and Triple E have similar components in building on students prior knowledge, enhancing critical thinking skills and allowing students to gain value in their knowledge. Our weather related instruction example can be assessed for meeting AIW and Triple E components by looking at a Triple E rubric. Did the technological tools provided in our example aid students in developing or demonstrating a more sophisticated understanding of the content? Did the technology create scaffolds to make it easier to understand concepts or ideas? Did the technology create paths for students to demonstrate their understanding of the learning goals in a way that that they could not do with traditional tools? Yes our weather related example used technology that gave students more understanding, by creating and using the anemometer, and windsock students will gain knowledge of wind related information concerning directions, speeds, etc. Weather thermometers help scaffold students understanding of weather temperatures, and to conclude once the weather lessons and investigations are completed students will have gained value in their weather related knowledge.

Sources and References:

Authentic Instruction and Assessment: Common Standards for Rigor and Relevance in Teaching Academic Subjects. (2007). 

Kolb, L. (2020). Learning First, Technology Second in Practice. International Society for Technology in Education.

National Educational Technology Plan - Office of Educational Technology. (2023, June 29). Office of Educational Technology. https://tech.ed.gov/netp/

Oklahoma State Department of Education |. (n.d.). Oklahoma State Department of Education. https://sde.ok.gov/