Synthesis reflection
May 15th, 2009 by Michele Brannon-Hamilton
Introduction
One of the most important components of this class has been the reflection process in which we have been asked to think about what we do and why we do it. In many other classes, students are told what to read, write and create. Without hesitation, they follow the rules and instructions to obtain marks. Yet, does this blind adherence to achieve what is required really constitute learning? As I have taken each step along the creation of this portfolio, I have stopped to ponder why and I have been asked to explain myself using evidence to back up my choices. I believe it was in the process of explaining that I learned the most. The following paragraphs are a final reflection on my e-portfolio creation.
Flight Path
I started this journey with my eyes closed because I didn’t know what I wanted to do or where I was headed. Now I feel like I’m soaring high and the possibilities are endless. I’ve only taken 3 courses; yet, I have gained an enormous amount of knowledge in the field of educational technology particularly in the area of pedagogy and choosing technology. Also, I began this journey trying to fit technology, education and writing together into a career without really knowing how I would combine these areas. Since I began, I have decided I want to write articles about educational technology, train other educators, join the educational technology department at the college where I work and become a professor. I’ll probably figure out a way to do it all.
Ironically, I left the literacy field because I felt they failed to understand the importance of educational technology even though it was very clear to me and somehow I have used this belief in most of the papers I have written for my ETEC courses. Each course gives me new ways to incorporate educational technology into the literacy field and each article I read helps me build my argument. I realize there is still much to learn in the field of educational technology and I am looking forward to learning more. Perhaps the most valuable knowledge I have gained thus far is the knowledge that students in MET are trained to collaborate, create and communicate within a community of experts. Even at the end of this journey, I will stay connected to the MET community so that I will always be part of this knowledge community.
Furthermore, I mentioned in my flight path that I found Chickering and Gamson’s Seven Principles article very valuable. I still believe this to be true and now include Chickering and Ehrmann’s Implementing the Seven Principle’s as equally important. In fact, I have already used both of these articles in another course to substantiate my use of technology in a classroom. These articles guide me in choosing technology for the classroom by putting pedagogy first. In the future, I will adhere to these principles when choosing tools for the literacy classroom.
Toolkit experience
Traipsing through the toolkit was an enlightening and sometimes frustrating experience. I devoured the information and even copied each section to peruse later. I learned a lot about how specific technology can be used in the classroom.
I found the structure of the toolkit very helpful because each section included descriptions, background information, examples and activities. I found it useful to read and understand what I was going to do before I actually tried any of the activities. Of course the most interesting part was experiencing the tools hands on. I copied many of the links to use again at a later date and I found the directions in each unit invaluable.
Equally important was the reflection exercise at the end of each toolkit unit. Sometimes it is easy to get caught up in the excitement of using fancy new technology without rhyme or reason. The reflections gave me an opportunity to remember why I was using the technology. Also, I was able to look at the advantages and disadvantages of each tool before deciding what I really needed to achieve my educational goals. Also, I realized it was alright to not choose some of the technology.
As for using the tools themselves, I found creating a learning management system the most valuable exercise because I can use a LMS effectively in a literacy class. I chose Moodle because it was free, easy to use, intuitive and adaptable. Also, I was able to create exercises for learners that would engage those with visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learning styles.
The communication tools section was very informative. For example, I understand the difference between synchronous and asynchronous tools; therefore, I will use this knowledge to choose the proper communication tools for my class. On a personal level, I enjoyed creating the digital story the most but I’m not sure how I would use it with literacy learners at this time. Perhaps the higher level learners could work in pairs to create personal stories.
One tool I did not enjoy using was the wiki. I appreciate the theory behind collaborating and creating with a team of people; however, I found the experience frustrating and disorganized. I didn’t like the way everyone could add their information to the wiki in different ways. I wanted to reorganize everyone’s posts which would not be conducive to the group creation of knowledge. Also, I found the wiki chat tool annoying because the discussions were not threaded like in a discussion forum. I would hesitate to use wikis in the literacy classroom for the same reasons. Literacy learners can become frustrated easily and would probably find a more structured tool more beneficial.
Sections Analysis
When creating my portfolio I considered the elements of Bates and Poole’s SECTIONS framework in the following ways:
Literacy classes are very learner centred; therefore, I considered the needs of the students before creating my LMS. Literacy learners need instructors to teach meaningful course content in engaging ways by teaching to visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning styles. I was able to engage visual learners with images and text, engage auditory learners with the chat tool and engage kinaesthetic learners with hands on activities and discussion forums.
I chose Moodle because it was free as well as easy to set up and manipulate. I believe students will find it user friendly and easy to manoeuvre around. The text displays clearly on the page and the discussion and chat tools are easy to learn. Moodle is already used in some literacy programs and there is training and support for literacy practitioners from people who understand the needs of literacy students. This also suggests that Moodle is not just a novelty because it is already accepted in the literacy community.
There are many advantages to using Moodle. Instructors can use Moodle to interact with their students. Students can use resources and activities to collaborate, create and communicate with other learners. Instructors can use quizzes and discussion threads to assess students and provide feedback. Disadvantages include time and training. Students and instructors need initial training before they can use Moodle in the classroom. Instructors also need time to develop and use Moodle’s resources and activities effectively. Once they become familiar with the technology, instructors can create and edit courses quite quickly.
Overall, I found the communication, collaboration and assessment tools in Moodle very useful for literacy instructors and learners. Learners can also access the material online at home which helps them overcome transportation and time barriers to adult learning. Overall, Moodle and the tools I used in it adhere to the criteria set out by Bates and Poole’s SECTIONS framework.
Applying Sections to my Own Experiences
Students
I think using Moodle and WordPress was very beneficial to me as a student because it gave me a chance to use the tools in an engaging, hands on way instead of just reading about it. These are great tools for visual and kinaesthetic learners. I thought creating the blog was beneficial because it forced me to get into the habit of reflecting on all the activities I completed instead of completing them and moving on. This tool encouraged students to really think about the uses, advantages and disadvantages of the tools they chose to use in their LMS.
Ease of Use
I found Moodle and WordPress very user friendly after the initial frustration of getting started. I have a little Moodle experience so I was glad to tread on familiar ground with the guidance of the toolkit and the assistance of everyone in class. I found WordPress very easy to set up, use and change around. I did have some difficulty with adding the references in APA style but once I found the html code for hanging indents, I was all set. I did get very frustrated trying to add charts to my blog page and will need to figure this out for future courses. Overall, I found Moodle and WordPress had many advantages and very few disadvantages.
Cost
Moodle and WordPress were both free which means I can use them in the classroom and in my personal life. The only cost was my time setting things up but now that I have some experience that factor will change.
Teaching and Learning
I found Moodle and WordPress useful for all types of learners because it has the capacity to reach visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learners. Both tools were good choices for this course because the tools followed the pedagogy we learned: create a community for your students that teaches students to learn, collaborate, practice and create.
Interactivity
Both Moodle and WordPress allow for interactivity by providing places for feedback and discussions. However, I found that I used the class discussion board instead of the feedback forms in WordPress. I would use it a lot more in my own class if with students by making the comments a requirement of the course.
Organization
Moodle and WordPress were very organized and easy to set up. I found it simple to add resources and lessons to Moodle and move things around to suit my needs. I did struggle with adding images and links on my Moodle splash page but once it was explained to me by a helpful student in class, I was able to accomplish what I wanted. I like the structure of WordPress and loved that I could pick a theme that suited my personality. The post section was easy to use and I liked the pages with headings that we set up so readers could find information with ease.
Novelty
WordPress was a novelty for me, one that I had wanted to try for ages but did not find time for earlier. I had a little experience with Moodle. Overall, I think both programs are more than novelties in the technological world. Moodle has gained popularity in the school system and the literacy environment because it’s free and easy to use. As a freelance writer, I have seen blogs gain popularity in the business and educational worlds.
Speed
I found it easy and quick to set up resources and activities in Moodle except maybe the quizzes which take quite a bit of time to put together. However, Moodle quizzes allow users to keep a repository of questions so it will get faster to create a test with time. Also, the backup feature in Moodle will allow users to save the shell of their courses to use time and again. WordPress was very simple and quick to set up. The only real time factor is adding blogs and answering discussion questions.
Overall, I found Moodle and WordPress very useful and will use them when teaching literacy because they suit both the needs of the teacher and the students.
Lessons Learned
Throughout this course, I learned the importance of placing pedagogy before technology. I will try to incorporate interaction, collaboration, creation and communication into my lesson plans. I also learned the importance of evaluation, assessment and feedback as well as how to consider issues like security, privacy and copyright. Overall, I was surprised at how much I learned in a short time.
Conclusion
As I go forward in my journey, I will take the knowledge I have gained and add more along the way. For example, the most frustrating experience in my portfolio creation was adding the multimedia chart to my blog. I discovered that I have a knowledge gap in the area of digital media. Therefore, I need to learn how to upload photos and use a program like Photoshop. I am also very uncomfortable using online images for fear of violating copyright law. Therefore, I need to research this area more in order to understand what I can and can’t use.
Furthermore, I have some web design experience but would like to learn more about html so I can manipulate my material on blogs and in the LMS with ease. I would also like to learn how to use Dreamweaver so that I can create material on my laptop and then upload the information without coding issues. As I move forward in my journey, I will use the frameworks I learned in this class to evaluate the tools I use in my literacy classroom. I will also build my knowledge by remaining part of the MET learning community since I believe the collaborative aspect of this program to be invaluable.
References
Bates, A.W. & Poole, G. (2003). A Framework for Selecting and Using Technology, In A.w. Bates & G. Poole, Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education (pp.75-108). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.</p> Retrieved July 2009 from http://www.batesandpoole.ubc.ca/chapter-4.html
Boyes, J., Dowie, S. & Rumzan, I. (2005). Using SECTIONS Framework to Evaluate Flash Media. Innovate Journal of On line Education, 2(1). Retrieved online July 2009 from http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=55&action=login
Chickering, A.W. & Gamson, Z.F. (1987). Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education. American Association for Higher Education Bulletin, 39 (7), 3-7. Retrieved online 12 May 2009 from
http://www.aahea.org/bulletins/articles/sevenprinciples1987.htm