Class Reflection: Engaging e-Learning
Hello class,
Wow, that summer went fast! This course was the first course I have taken in over 10 years and to say I was a little rusty being a student was an understatement. I knew I always wanted to go back to further my education, but when I found this technology certificate through St. Francis I knew it was an excellent opportunity because of our schools move to 1:1 instruction next year. I was worried that taking this course first would be an issue, but it was the only one available so I signed up and now can say that it was one of the most beneficial courses I have taken in my graduate work.
My bachelors degree is in animal science, and teaching you could say is a third career for me. When I went back to get my masters in education I was extremely excited to learn about the profession and how I would get the opportunity to share about the amazing biodiversity on the planet with thousands of students. Honestly, I don't remember much from my graduate work, and don't use that much of it in my teaching today, minus the fact that I needed the degree to teach... Times change and teaching methods change so quickly that I often joke at the beginning of each year, "I wonder what new methods we will buy into for one year this year".
I feel already that I won't say the same thing about this technology certificate that I embarked on this year. I struggled with this first class, but really learned a lot about technology in the classroom. I don't think I will ever teach a full online course, but am excited to bring my classroom towards a blended learning environment. With every student having a chrome book next year, it really opens up a lot of opportunities for instruction. There are also some new responsibilities as an educator that I need to think about as well!
One of the biggest things this class made me think about for the years to come is digital citizenship. Utilizing technology in the classroom comes with a lot of responsibilities for both the teacher and the student. This course did a nice job of teaching us to make new material for our course but also understand that when used properly, there are a lot of really good open-educational resources that can really enhance the curriculum. I think utilizing both will help me get students to engage in the material online both inside and outside of the classroom.
My favorite part of this class was being pushed to create multimedia resources that I can actually use next year in the classroom. I look forward to making many more screencasts and am excited about students using them as both previews and reviews for important curriculum material. I am also excited about the amount of class time I could get to do more labs and activities if some of the lecture material can be viewed outside of the classroom. For this class I also ventured into online assessments. I have never tried those before, and look forward to using them for the first time next year. It could make assessing students easier for both the student and the educator, not to mention the obvious environmental advantages of using less paper.
I really enjoyed this class and thank you fellow educators for all the brilliant posts, ideas, and replies over the 8 modules. I look forward to continuing my professional development with two courses in the fall, this time I will sign up earlier so I can choose which classes I take.. Sometimes people take graduate coursework just to move up on the pay scale, but what is great about this certificate so far is that I will be able to use what I learn and apply it in my classroom. That is what has made this semester such a valuable experience and makes me look forward to the classes I have ahead.
Take care,
Jim Nielsen
Wow, that summer went fast! This course was the first course I have taken in over 10 years and to say I was a little rusty being a student was an understatement. I knew I always wanted to go back to further my education, but when I found this technology certificate through St. Francis I knew it was an excellent opportunity because of our schools move to 1:1 instruction next year. I was worried that taking this course first would be an issue, but it was the only one available so I signed up and now can say that it was one of the most beneficial courses I have taken in my graduate work.
My bachelors degree is in animal science, and teaching you could say is a third career for me. When I went back to get my masters in education I was extremely excited to learn about the profession and how I would get the opportunity to share about the amazing biodiversity on the planet with thousands of students. Honestly, I don't remember much from my graduate work, and don't use that much of it in my teaching today, minus the fact that I needed the degree to teach... Times change and teaching methods change so quickly that I often joke at the beginning of each year, "I wonder what new methods we will buy into for one year this year".
I feel already that I won't say the same thing about this technology certificate that I embarked on this year. I struggled with this first class, but really learned a lot about technology in the classroom. I don't think I will ever teach a full online course, but am excited to bring my classroom towards a blended learning environment. With every student having a chrome book next year, it really opens up a lot of opportunities for instruction. There are also some new responsibilities as an educator that I need to think about as well!
One of the biggest things this class made me think about for the years to come is digital citizenship. Utilizing technology in the classroom comes with a lot of responsibilities for both the teacher and the student. This course did a nice job of teaching us to make new material for our course but also understand that when used properly, there are a lot of really good open-educational resources that can really enhance the curriculum. I think utilizing both will help me get students to engage in the material online both inside and outside of the classroom.
My favorite part of this class was being pushed to create multimedia resources that I can actually use next year in the classroom. I look forward to making many more screencasts and am excited about students using them as both previews and reviews for important curriculum material. I am also excited about the amount of class time I could get to do more labs and activities if some of the lecture material can be viewed outside of the classroom. For this class I also ventured into online assessments. I have never tried those before, and look forward to using them for the first time next year. It could make assessing students easier for both the student and the educator, not to mention the obvious environmental advantages of using less paper.
I really enjoyed this class and thank you fellow educators for all the brilliant posts, ideas, and replies over the 8 modules. I look forward to continuing my professional development with two courses in the fall, this time I will sign up earlier so I can choose which classes I take.. Sometimes people take graduate coursework just to move up on the pay scale, but what is great about this certificate so far is that I will be able to use what I learn and apply it in my classroom. That is what has made this semester such a valuable experience and makes me look forward to the classes I have ahead.
Take care,
Jim Nielsen
Jim,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your reflection. It carried many of the same sentiments that I posted in mine. I think as we move forward, digital citizenship is going to be a big priority while the 1:1 technology takes off. Hopefully, it will be a smooth transition. I also agree, that I did not know what to expect, but was pushed and challenged, which has grown me in how I am planning my lessons for this coming school year. I can't wait to use the tools that I created through this class!