Mindset, skillset, toolset
When we design learning, we are always considering how best to enable knowledge acquisition for learners. In the context of the Digital Technologies curriculum, there are some specific aspects of knowledge that we need learners to acquire. While knowledge is a vital part of developing understanding, it is not the only aspect of learning that we can make explicit. In the Elemental Learning Design Model, we also talk about the skillsets, mindsets and toolsets that learners can develop. While great teaching has always included the development of skills, it is often implicit in the learning activities we have designed. By making this type of learning explicit, it becomes much more transferable between topic areas, subject areas, year groups, and even school and work.
Collaboration is a prime example. We often design collaborative learning, but do we focus on how and how well learners collaborate and where else they can improve the skill of collaboration? When we talk about a 'resilience mindset', is this seen as something we can improve and work on as learners? When we learn how to use a spreadsheet, is the application of this tool seen as unique to maths and science or can we use a spreadsheet to make art or analyse literature? By breaking down the artificial barriers between learning areas, we empower learners to build their learning toolboxes and apply their learning in many different situations.
This table illustrates some examples of the mindsets, skillsets and toolsets you may come across in lesson exemplars on this site and in your own learning design. The Australian Curriculum General Capabilities provides an excellent framework from which we can draw elements of mindset and skillset; this table gives a small number of examples.
