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2.1. Embedding collaborative learning into lesson design

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I'm Ligita and live in Kaunas of Lithuania. I currently work a head of pre-school department at Karalius Mindaugas vocational training center.  I'm married and have two sons. I love communicating with children and teaching them. In adition, I love reading books and travelling in Europe with my family.

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I've been working teacher for 13 years with students 2-12 years old.
I using computers in kindergarten become means lots of new skills to learn. Here are the types of things that helps kindergartners be successful, basic skills needed and tips for teaching kindergarten students.
Me teaching young students how to think what makes sense when using a computer is extremely important in addition to using it to teach content like math or using skills in the computer lab.
I really enjoy learning new tools and other collaborative work with different colleagues from diferent counties.

Therefore, we have always learned to share ideas :)

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The Pre-school Education Department was established in spring 2013 and its activity is based on the implementation of an innovative model “Education of Christian Values”. Pre-school education is provided to children 1 to 6 years old.
The purpose of the model is to establish opportunities for young families to coordinate learning, work and full-rate education possibilities for their children by educating the Christian values based on St. Ignatius of Loyola pedagogical paradigm. The aim is to educate not only cognitive, health, social, communication competencies of pre-school children, but also to enhance the importance of artistic competency with the support of specialists and paying a particular attention to the religious competency – education of Christian values.

The education process is oriented to a child, does not restrict the educator, allows the creative organisation of activities and ensures an active participation of the family.

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1.1. WHAT IS COLLABORATIVE LEARNING?
The learning objectives for this module are:

1. Understanding the full meaning of collaborative learning, and that it requires more than simply putting students in groups.
Collaborative learning is based on the view that knowledge is a social construct. Collaborative activities are most often based on four principles:

The learner or student is the primary focus of instruction.

Interaction and "doing" are of primary importance

Working in groups is an important mode of learning.

Structured approaches to developing solutions to real-world problems should be incorporated into learning.

Collaborative learning teams are said to attain higher level thinking and preserve information for longer times than students working individually.  Why is this so?
Collaborative learning teams are said to attain higher-level thinking and preserve information for longer. But why is this so? Groups tend to learn through discussion, clarification of ideas and evaluation of others’ ideas. Information that is discussed is retained in long-term memory. It is widely accepted that we learn approximately 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we see and hear, 70% of what we discuss, 80% of what we experience and 95% of what we teach others. Collaborative learning is vital for enhanced learning in the classroom and pupils who demonstrate lower levels of achievement improve when working in diverse groups.

Moreover, collaborative learning contributes to the development of specific skills, including (Jacques & Salmon, 2007):

Leadership competences

Self-evaluation

Listening skills

Presentation skills

Skills of persuasion & negotiation

Team working skills

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1.1. WHAT IS COLLABORATIVE LEARNING?

2. Appreciating the key benefits collaborative learning can bring to students and the specific skills it helps develop.

Today's teachers are preparing students for life and work in future world where many of the jobs they will take up as yet do not currently exist. So as technology constantly reshapes the digital age... we must question the value of continuing to use the 20th century industrial model of education practice. Here is a range of new ways to look at educational practice.

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1.1. WHAT IS COLLABORATIVE LEARNING?

3. Appreciating how collaborative learning can be facilitated by a flexible, interactive classroom, and also through project-based learning.
Increasingly recognized as an essential soft skill, collaboration leads to success in education, work and responsible adulthood. It is critically important to start teaching the 21st-Century skill of collaboration as young as possible—ideally in early elementary school and kindergarten. One way to develop these skills is through Project-Based Learning (PBL).
I teach in the STEAM group-oriented project class at kindergarten. One of the goals in my class is to teach students how important it is to work together. "My challenge is to teach abstract, inexhaustible collaborative skills.

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1.1. WHAT IS COLLABORATIVE LEARNING?

4. Creating a personal Learning Diary to log learning activities, reflections and resources from the course. (done)

Today’s technology offers so many options for educators and students that deciding on where to begin can be overwhelming. To get started, think about one new approach that could be the catalyst for positive change in your classroom. In looking at your learning environment, what could benefit your students the most? One area that I immediately thought I could improve upon was classroom collaboration.

How do you find tools to help meet these needs? Resources are everywhere: books, blogs, social media like Twitter chats, Voxer groups, your PLN, or even conferences, EdCamps and similar professional development opportunities. But even with all of these resources available, it still comes down to taking a risk and trying something new.

Personalized learning (PL) tailors learning for the strengths, needs, and interests of every student—including enabling student voice and choice in what, how, when, and where they learn—to provide flexibility and supports which ensure mastery at the highest standards possible. Personalized learning is the structuring of schools, classrooms, and instruction so we can better respond to the individual needs of students, instead of expecting students to fit the current mold or adapt to structures that may not be successful for them. Many of our teachers implement elements of personalized learning in their classrooms right now. The core four elements include:

Integrated Digital Content: digital content that allows for a differentiated path and pace
Targeted Instruction: instruction aligned to specific student needs and learning goals
Data Driven Decisions: frequent data collection that informs instructional decisions and groupings
Student Reflection and Ownership: ongoing student reflection that promotes ownership of learning

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5. Reflecting in our Learning Diary on two learning activities and whether they require a low or high level of collaboration from students.
STEAM
In the project of the school where the collaborative learning is inserted,  is involved the collaboration between teachers. The planning is of the discipline, however we meet, every week, to find common points, we develop scenarios of interdisciplinary learning. We learn from each other on all levels. If one of us explores an application that will have an interest in collaborative learning, it passes information to others. Obviously, not all teachers have the same passion for ICT, but all strive to use them. In classes with a small number of students and with students with some maturity is easier than in large classes and with students, still very dependent on teachers and with little practice in active methodologies.