Hi everyone, my name is Jennie, and this is my 7th course in the MET program (starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel). I live and work in Vancouver. I am an academic advisor, and currently helping UBC switch our student system to Workday.
As I do my work everyday, I realize how important technology is now in education, and we really want to and should be making changes with the advancement of technology. If we want our student administrative systems to be mobile-friendly for course registration, why shouldn’t we explore ways to make our classroom and learning more mobile-friendly and accessible? Ultimately, I am interested to make education anywhere, anytime experience for all, while maintaining a pleasant and effective learning experience.
Looking forward to learning more in this course. In my spare time, I like to go hiking. Made my way to St. Mark’s Summit just last weekend!
Hi Jennie!
Happy to see you in another course!! We are almost there we can see the light!
Yes!! We are almost there 😀
Hi Jennie,
Nice to e-meet you! I’m curious to know why is UBC switching to Workday? What is the current system?
Looking forward to learning together!
Hi Catherine! It is nice to e-meet you too. UBC is switching the system because the previous student support system is very old. It is working well but the university has been exploring new and better technologies that can support everyone better. UBC celebrated its 100th birthday in the recent years, and changing better systems is part of our goal in the new century. 🙂 I am sure it will be chaotic when Workday goes live though haha.
Hi Jennie,
That is an amazing photo! I really like your point about “why shouldn’t we explore ways to make our classroom and learning more mobile-friendly and accessible?” because it actually makes me think of all of the accessibility features already built into mobile devices. For example I remember helping a visually impaired student last semester turn on some of the accessibility features on her cellphone that she wasn’t aware were there, and it doesn’t even have to be accessibiliy features. We also realized she could use the camera/zoom on her phone as a magnifying glass (and I’m sure there is an app for that) to help her better see her assignments. I think you hit on a great point, about mobile learning also being a form of accessible learning.
Hi Sarah, thank you! Nice to meet you. I completely agree with your comments. Honestly I find there are many things as educators, we may not know, and thus we are not supporting students to their fullest potential. And as you know, though we say we should pay attention to context and support every learner, this is easier said than done. Hoping to learn more in this course with you so we can take baby steps to something better everyday!
Hi Jennie!
What a fabulous view – it looks like you had good weather too. I used to hike more when I lived in Scotland, and really should make more of an effort to get out into the (semi) wilds of Vancouver.
Hi Andrew, thanks! I was lucky haha, we had good weather but as you can see, it is a little bit smoky. Hikes in Scotland must be beautiful. I don’t blame you for not hiking that much here, I mean most of the good ones are kind of tough. Every year I hike something like this I tell myself never again. And if I ever return to do it I tell myself that again as I make my way come back down. It is brutal. Yet I never learn…