Assignment 9 MIS

Identify an information environment of your choice and write an essay to address the following questions: (3000 words)

• What should be your role within this environment?
• How can the principles of information organization and representation help you in performing this role?
• What are the challenges facing you in performing the role? How will you address these challenges?


Introduction

Information technology (IT) has affected our life profoundly – one can work, do shopping and keep in touch with far-away relatives with an inexpensive personal computer. IT has had a major impact on education as well. Firstly,
it has highlighted the importance of continuous IT education that makes it possible to use changing technology. Secondly, IT has introduced new tools for educators and students to be used in the learning process. Thirdly, there
has been an explosion in teaching and learning with new technology. The pace of technological change continues as ever smaller, portable computers are being introduced that make it possible to connect anywhere and anytime. However, it can be argued whether technology is being utilized so that it facilitates learning in the best possible way.
Here we look at the role of information technology in education and continue discussion with a modern learning environment, here called a meta-learning environment. A meta-learning environment is defined as a platform for studying and it should integrate technology into the learning process.The focus of this article is on adult education and distance learning. In this setting mastering the technology and the "media mix" are challenges for all involved in the learning process. Technology can be utilized in education in several ways. This continuum starts
from information delivery and ends with cognitive tools. Information delivery means that technology is used primarily to
access and deliver information that is categorized and stored into digital format. For example, a library system may be considered as an information delivery system. Cognitive tools refer to adaptive technology or systems that are developed to support and improve the learning process . However, the difference between information delivery oriented systems and cognitive tools is not very clear.

For example, Reeves claims that the World Wide Web (WWW) is a cognitive tool because it focuses on creating
knowledge and should therefore not be considered as an information delivery system alone. Both information delivery systems and cognitive tools are part of the learning environment and the learning process. The difference between concepts learning environment and learning process is the same as with words teaching, studying and learning. The learning environment is defined as a place to study, an environment for the learning process.Today many learning environments take advantage of information technology and are built to a WWW-format or they connect to the Internet using a WWW-interface. As a result, a single computer connected to the Internet and running a WWW-browser can be used for ubiquitous access. It is clear that the learning material must be organized within a meaningful structure.

In modern, computer-based learning environments the navigational logic relies on links that bind information together so that it makes sense. This navigational support is also called logistics . Ideally, the logistics system recognizes
the user and delivers only the content that the user needs. The logistics system of a computer-based learning environment may also be seen as an intelligent agent or tutoring system and in a broader sense
it is a human interface to the system. Therefore, the usefulness of the modern learning environment depends
on the navigational logic and the interface to the system. Advances in technology provide new tools for educators and students to be used in the learning process. Today students need to be skilled computer users and able to deal with different types of media in order to study effectively. However, technical expertise alone is not enough – one must know what to study, where to find information, what to do next etc. Therefore special attention is needed to orientate students to use technology so that they learn to study in a modern learning environment.
In this study the focus is on adult students. It is also likely that some adult students may not be familiar with computers and information technology. In addition, they have not been in school for several years and therefore may
not be used to studying. Consequently, adult students need advice and help in both using modern technology in studying, and in the studying itself. Here we argue that a meta-learning environment can help students in the learning
process. A meta-learning environment is defined as a platform for studying and it should integrate technology and resources so that they empower the learning process. In this article we look at the development of a learning environment using the meta-learning environment approach. The theoretical contribution is in the recognition of key dimensions of the meta-learning environment. They provide a promising framework for developing learning environments in the digital age.

What is Meta-Learning?
Definition:
Metalearning in education Originally described by Donald B. Maudsley as "the process by which learners become aware of and increasingly in control of habits of perception, inquiry, learning, and growth that they have internalized". Maudsely sets the conceptual basis of his theory as synthesized under headings of assumptions, structures,change process, and facilitation. Five principles were enunciated to facilitate meta-learning. Learners must: (a) have a theory, however primitive; (b) work in a safe supportive social and physical environment; (c) discover their rules
and assumptions; (d) reconnect with reality-information from the environment; and (e) reorganize themselves by changing their rules/assumptions.

The idea of metalearning was later used by John Biggs to describe the state of ‘being aware of and taking control of one’s own learning’. You can define metalearning as an awareness and understanding of the phenomenon of learning itself as opposed to subject knowledge. Implicit in this definition is the learner’s perception of the learning context, which includes knowing what the expectations of the discipline are and, more narrowly, the demands of a given learning task. Within this context, metalearning depends on the learner’s conceptions of learning, epistemological beliefs, learning processes and academic skills, summarized here as a learning approach. A student who has a high level of metalearning awareness is able to assess the effectiveness of her/his learning approach and regulate it
according to the demands of the learning task. Conversely, a student who is low in metalearning awareness will not be able to reflect on her/his learning approach or the nature of the learning task set. In consequence, s/he will be unable to adapt successfully when studying becomes more difficult and demanding.

Meta learning is the dynamic process whereby a system manages to dissolve limiting dynamics such as point attractors and limit cycles that impede effective action and evolve liberating and creative dynamics represented by complex attractors whose trajectories in phase space, by never repeating themselves, can portray creative and innovative processes.These trajectories have a fractal nature, hence their complex order in which highly creative processes are possible. High performance teams are able to "meta learn" and this differentiates them from the
inability of low performance teams to transcend their limiting behaviors that impede innovation and creativity (Losada, 1999; Losada & Heaphy, 2004; Fredrickson & Losada, 2005).

The meta learning model was derived from thousands of time series data generated at two human interaction laboratories in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Cambridge, Massachusetts. These time series portrayed the
interaction dynamics of business teams doing typical business tasks such as strategic planning. These teams were classified into three performing categories: high, medium and low. Performance was evaluated by the profitability of the teams, the level of satisfaction of their clients, and 360-degree evaluations. The meta learning model comprises three state variables and one control parameter. The control parameter is connectivity and reflects the level of attunement and responsiveness that team members have to one another. The three state variables are inquiry-advocacy,
positivity-negativity, and other-self external-internal focus. The state variables are linked by a set of nonlinear differential equations Losada, 1999; Fredrickson & Losada, 2005; for a graphical representation of the meta learning model see Losada & Heaphy, 2004. When connectiviy is low, there is preponderance of advocacy and self orientation and more negativity than positivity. When connectivity is high there is a dynamical equilibrium between inquiry and advocacy as well as internal and external focus and the ratio of positivity-to-negativity is at least 2.9. This ratio is known as the, because it separates high from low performance teams as well as flourishing from languisning in individuals and relationships; Waugh & Fredrickson, 2006; Fredrickson, 2009.