Portfolio EDUC5105

The end is near! Sometimes I find that I have more thoughts and questions at the end of a course than the beginning. However, I don't think that that is a negative thing. I think that it means I have considered different thoughts and ideas, and am open to seeing where those lead. Throughout this course I feel as though my perspective has broadened and I have another lens from which to look through while planning and designing learning opportunities. Artifact #5:PechaKucha Video The PechaKucha Presentation was new to me and put me a little outside of my comfort zone. I encountered some technical difficulties with uploading and formatting which was so frustrating, especially when I thought I would be done in a few simple clicks! However, I suppose there is a lesson to learn. I quickly wanted to give up. I can be a good problem solver and critical thinker in many situations, however, when it comes to technology, I get instantly frustrated. I imagine this is on some level how my st...

This week we spent some time discussing the the role of facilitator in education. In my job I see myself as a facilitator, but haven't previously thought much about how to be a strong facilitator and how that looks in different contexts. I think it would be difficult to transition to teaching fully online as it is a totally different dynamic and you don't typically get the same types of relationships you do when you see your students on a regular basis. We were asked to reflect back on our previous online learning experiences. When I took a few minutes to think about it, I realized I have done a lot more online courses than I have realized. Most of the online courses I have done have been related to education, though there were a few that were not. The ones that weren't related to education had similar formats-- read, listen, and/or watch something, complete a multiple choice quiz, and go on to the next level and continue until all levels are complete. I suppose that serv...

This week we switched to an "uncourse" model, which was new to me. This is my second to last course, so it threw me for a little loop at first until I realize I needed to check into their forums more frequently. It gave us the opportunity to drive our learning and focus on topics that were of interest to us. Through these discussions, we made an activity design. Our task this week was to design a web based learning experience that fit our teaching context. Building on last week, we had to ensure that it was meaningful, memorable, and motivational. I took some time to consider what I could do to make an activity that was meaningful, memorable, and motivational for my groups that I work with who are all working at different levels and have diverse abilities. Since I am currently in the middle of a week of IPP meetings, that was at the forefront of my brain. As appropriate and possible, we like to have our students participate in their meetings as it is a valuable experience...