ETEC 565A: Special Course in Subject Matter Field
Stephen R. Hawkins-Bogle
August 5, 2011
Flight Path Précis
My flight path in ETEC 565A has been most enjoyable and challenging, and has lived up to my expectations for a course intended to encourage exploration of educational technologies. To prepare for this reflection I perused my original flight path where I outline my learning goals for this course. Without knowing the true content of this course, I based my learning goals on the technologies we explored including web publication, learning management systems (Moodle), online communication systems, community and collaboration tools, multimedia, and social media. My overarching goal within each of these concepts is to learn how to best use the technology to support learning, and I would affirm that this has been the outcome of my learning in ETEC 565A.
The flight path that unfolded during my journey through ETEC 565A resulted in unintended outcomes, hidden from any course syllabus or expectation, and surpassed my original expectations. I credit this unfolding and building of knowledge to the learning community that has been cleverly facilitated by our instructor and course designer, John Egan. An expectation of this course is that we contribute to the learning community with quality and high frequency. The result is an active learning community who support the learning and inquisitions of others. This final reflection of my flight path of ETEC 565A follows the course’s learning modules and activities therein.
E-Learning Toolkit
The active learning community of ETEC 565A provides a great portal for knowledge building and synthesis. Some of the tasks assigned during this journey are straightforward while others require investigation and inquiry. Our instructor did not provide the answers for every query and some students may feel frustrated by this constructivist approach. However, considering the outstanding contributions of most students, answers to our questions were quickly analyzed on discussion threads. We also have access to the E-Learning Toolkit, a UBC wiki that has been built upon by many to answer the sort of technological queries assigned in this course. My own use of the wiki is limited as I am a hands-on, investigative learner who seeks additional assistance only when needed. However, I did find the toolkit useful when I was having difficulty with Moodle, particularly when I couldn’t find solutions to queries in the discussion forums. This wiki is an important social medium allowing for co-construction of knowledge resulting in an instant published product. It resonates with the knowledge building power of Wikipedia, and should be recognized as an academically reviewed source of information.
Course Reflections
Module 1: Selecting and Using Learning Technologies: Theoretical Frameworks
This module assisted me greatly with ideas and tools to select appropriate educational technologies. I perused the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) for Teachers (2008) where I gleaned articulate competency statements regarding educational technology use by educators. These standards resonate greatly with my educational technology philosophy, and they informed meetings I attended with the technology committee, senior administration and principals and vice-principals in our school district (SD #28). Standard three and four cite responsibility to model good use of educational technology and reference digital citizenship; these standards align well with the moral stewardship standard (BCPVPA, 2010) detailed in my professional growth plan. I particularly enjoy the SECTIONS framework (Bates & Poole, 2003) for selecting and using technology as it provides a structured theoretical rationale.
Our assigned tasks for this learning module include setting up our electronic portfolio blog and completing our initial flight path. This course has taught me the value of creating documents that exist in the “cloud” of internet storage, and my weblog is a great way to gain first hand practice. Online internet storage is not only an efficient way to save work, but is also an effective and potentially collaborative manner to share and build knowledge. I will continue to access these free spaces in the internet to find effective, efficient, and collaborative ways for my students to share their learning.
Module 2: Presentation Tools: Spaces, Places and Platforms for Learning
I am near the end of my 9th course in the MET program and I have spent a considerable amount of time navigating my way through the Vista WebCT learning management system (LMS). I appreciate the readings and activities in this learning module because they provide me with a greater scope of understanding of learning platforms (LP), and equip me to make more informed decisions when selecting and designing LPs. The creation of my Moodle LMS proposal is a meaningful and authentic learning experience. I am interested in the direction my school district is taking with technology initiatives, and the skills I have acquired creating the proposal could be called upon in the future. During this learning module I collaborated with a group of classmates to design a learning platform evaluation rubric. Our group interacts with a high level of social responsibility and collaboration. This experience built upon the community of learning that exists amongst everyone in ETEC 565A, and assisted me greatly with defining criteria for selecting a LP.
Module 3: Interaction and Assessment Tools
During module three, I explored readings and activities that focus on online interaction and assessment tools. The question I have been exploring throughout my journey in the MET program asks what is good use of technology in education, and how can assessment for learning (AFL) be incorporated in the design of technology enhanced learning environments (TELE). It is without question that effective use of formative assessment increases the standard and rate of learning for students (Black & Wiliam, 1998). While the SECTIONS framework (Bates & Poole, 2003) provides useful selection criteria for educational technologies, I feel the criteria do not provide enough emphasis on how technologies can incorporate formative assessment. In Towards a Theory of Online Learning, Anderson (2008) grounds a theory of online pedagogy in the foundational centres of learning including learner, knowledge, community, and assessment. This focus aligns strongly with AFL where student ownership of learning is the premise and ultimate goal. Incorporating Anderson’s theory with the SECTIONS framework and principles of AFL has supported my investigation of good use of technology in education.
Dialogue and activities in this module include an analysis of online interaction and assessment tools that can be used effectively in LPs. Discussion of asynchronous and synchronous digital tools were analyzed for their ability to engage with students, support instructor/student feedback, and develop of a community of learning. This analysis assisted my selection of interactive tools for my Moodle LMS, culminating in a learning environment with a good ability to utilize formative assessment instruction. I also created a LMS Evaluative Quiz during this learning module whereby I attained practical knowledge of how to build a summative assessment tool that can be used in a LP. As mentioned before, the authentic nature of this activity will undoubtedly inform my future design of TELEs.
Module 4: Social Media
In my original flight path, I state that social media in education is something I am interested in learning more about. Our children are immersed in a social, digital world that is not virtual at all, but rather, an important part of their reality. Rather than restricting our students’ access to social media in schools, educators need to embrace this important technology. Not only is social media an important tool for knowledge building and collaboration, it can be used effectively for formative assessment, publishing, and to provide students with instruction on netiquette, privacy, and copyright. Wesch’s (2007), A Vision of Students Today, is a clarion call to educators to move from conveyors of knowledge to facilitators of communities of learning. For our digital story assignment, I told my story of coming to terms with my sexuality. I told this story through a glog with the intention that my story could inform social teaching in a classroom. Telling such an important story to the world through social media was an important reflective journey where I considered my own issues of privacy and vulnerability in a social forum. Perhaps digital story telling will be an important cultural method our children of the net generation will utilize to share their stories with future generations.
Module 5: Multimedia
Our final learning module, Multimedia, provides insightful readings and spurred dialogue that stresses the importance of multimedia in a TELE. I akin multimedia to multiple modes of learning whereby using multimedia supports a differentiated approach to instruction and builds inclusiveness in the learning environment. There are many audio, video, textual, and graphical tools available, but they may not all support deep learning. These are tools, albeit important in a teacher’s toolkit, but if not used in a proactive and reflective manner, multimedia can fall flat for learning. My overarching question in the MET program is what is good use of technology in education? I believe good use of technology requires a dynamic and reflective inclusion of the instructor. Multimedia affords many great advantages over the static tools of days past (e.g., chalkboard, text books, overhead projector, etc.), but without purposeful blending of best instructional practice, it will fail to serve our learners.
Future Flight Paths
My flight path in ETEC 565A has been a valuable journey that has significantly informed my quest to discover what is good use of technology in education. I have completed my Moodle LMS and I believe it represents the five modules of learning that took place in this course. The hands-on constructivist approach that was used so well in this course will undoubtedly inform how I design future technology enhanced learning environments. Throughout this course, I received ongoing feedback to move my learning forward from the entire learning community, not just my instructor. This is the premise of AFL and it greatly informs my philosophy of educational technology. I am looking forward to my graduating project (ETEC 590) in the MET program, and I am eager to continue the journey of utilizing technology to support learning.
References
Anderson, T. (2008). Towards a Theory of Online Learning. In: Anderson, T. & Elloumi, F. Theory and Practice of Online Learning. Athabasca University. Accessed online 15 June 2011 http://www.aupress.ca/books/120146/ebook/02_Anderson_2008_Anderson-Online_Learning.pdf
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.
Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (1998). Inside the black box: Raising standards through classroom assessment [Electronic version]. Phi Delta Kappan, 80(2). 139-44. 32
Leadership Standards for Principals and Vice Principals in British Columbia: http://www.bcpvpa.bc.ca/node/18
National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers: http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm
Wesch, M. (2007) A Vision of Students Today (& What Teachers Must Do). Accessed online 5 July 2011. http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2008/10/a-vision-of-students-today-what-teachers-must-do/