PERSONAL LEARNING REFLECTION

I believe that all of the labs, shared activities, and assignments have been beneficial towards my development in becoming an educator. Initially, I felt some reluctance in working with group members whom I did not know due to previous experiences, but this too has helped to shape my schema and has broadened my horizon in terms of my thought patterns. I feel that there have been five concepts which have really influenced my training in this program which are blogging, PLN, copyrighting information, Google docs, and the collaboration Group 6 SIG project.  I must admit that I was not familiar with the utilization of these programs prior to entering this course, and learned so much from not only myself, but my group members, and have now began using each one on a daily basis, as well as keeping in touch with SIG Group 6.

I felt a great deal of anxiety the first week of the class due to not knowing what the expectations of an online class would be. I was also concerned with getting back into school after a 7 year hiatus, and figuring out how I would balance working full time and taking courses online. By the second week, I became more acclimated with maneuvering around Angel, but was still overlooking the labs. The third week of the course I worked extremely hard, and ensured that all labs and assignments were current and up to date. I currently feel very comfortable and confident contacting instructors and classmates for directions and help with any questions I have regarding the new technology learned. The tools that I feel will be utilized the most in my work as a means of communication will probably be Skype and Google docs.

My future in Educational Technology will be fun, exciting, innovative, and most importantly beneficial to my students and the entire learning community.  Initially, I was sure that I planned to teach at the collegiate level, but after learning about all of the other avenues that I could possibly take I’m somewhat undecided. I now have an interest in working with elementary, middle or high school students to expose their minds to engineering principles early on in their academic careers. Until I solidify my plans, my ideals for integrating technology will have to be blogged and documented for future use.  As I transition into the Master's Program in January I will continue to focus and mature my teaching skills for teaching at the collegiate level.

There are (3) main goals I have for integrating technology Listen Show Do LSD (Listen, Show, Do) covers most ways that people learn new information. It is a good idea for learners to explain in detail what the new software, project, and technology are about when incorporating new ideas using the same material. The second step is to inform the learner how to use the product, and explain the products functions and capabilities. The final step is for the community of learners to actually do the work.

Listen, Show, Do!!!

 

I believe that the LSD (Listen, Show, and Do) concept is applicable to any task or project, and will increase learner’s confidence and mastery of the materials. This formula also incorporates repetitive learning which has been shown through research as a strong predictor of student achievement. Looking at the video, you must first listen to the educator/instructor to see what is needed to complete the CAD model. After completion of the video, learners will review the video a second time to allow the teacher to show you how to create the model. If students are fast learners they can skip to the Do portion of the video and attempt to apply what has just been learned. Through integrating the internet into technology, you can create the above video to help as a visual for your teaching audience.

The internet is a super highway to all kinds of information and learning. It would be nearly impossible for teachers and instructors to stay current with the latest advances in technology without access to the internet. The RSS feeds play a valuable and time saving role because it allows information to come to you as it is updated. The most beneficial assignment I turned in would be my SIG proposal. This assignment covered everything that we have learned thus far in the program. It’s a free form paper that grouped like minded individuals to collaborate and share valuable information that will last a lifetime. The technology that will be utilized through this assignment to create our virtual library will be outstanding! Each member of my group has a technical background, and there were no ends to our creative production on how we wanted to create our virtual library. I believe that these tools will be a valuable resource for the entire computer science learning community.

I am right on track with meeting my goals to becoming a more computer savvy educator. I met my goals by asking questions, reading the assigned readings, watching the videos, doing all homework and labs, and each day trying to apply a new skill learned through experimenting with programs during my downtime. I am in the process of coming up to speed with my future students, and my updated goals include having a better direction in deciding what my educational passion will be; an instructional unit, technology, and/or instructional strategy. I plan on going through the Master’s Program in Educational Technology while finishing the Certificate portion early next year so that I can obtain an internship to find out which sector of education fits me best.