Flight Path
Katie’s Flight Path Through ETEC 565
My introduction to teaching with technology began about five years ago. As a good friend meandered his way through the MET program, he determinedly brought me along for the ride. The timing was perfect – I was feeling up to a new challenge and looking to ignite new sparks in my classroom. Around the same time, I was invited to design a tutorial/provincial exam preparation project for my district’s on-line school. This experience introduced me to the possibilities that exist and whetted my technological appetite.
In my face-to-face teaching role, I get a kick out of designing alternative assessment-type projects for secondary math students, publishing and presenting workshops with colleagues. Now, with several MET courses under my belt, I’m developing single and multiple class activities that incorporate technology. To date, I’ve created web-based activities centered on applets and simulations and used graphing calculators in conjunction with classroom based rangers.
These activities incorporate elements of Constructivism, allowing learners to construct meaning while providing appropriate scaffolding, and subscribe to multiple learning styles and preferences. Learners generally have a more meaningful experience and retain the concepts over a longer time period, essentially reducing the amount of spiralling I need to work into the class.
My first short-term goal is to continue replacing text-based lessons with technology-based lessons. Web-based applications have few logistical hurdles at my school and are relatively easy to implement as are applications based on graphing calculators. My second short-term goal is to set up a wiki with the purpose of supporting students and parents. I would like this wiki to be rich and interactive, with links to various resources. This goal also manifests itself as a long-term goal where I would like to incorporate the wiki use into classroom life.
To accomplish these goals, I need to move past the novice stage of designing a wiki. At an elementary level, I would like to become confident in making links to a variety of existing resources (and more fully understand the copyright issues with doing so) and also in creating rich multimedia resources (of which I have little experience as well). My goal for ETEC 565 is to come out the other side in August with a solid skill set in a limited area. I have minimal experience working with a variety of social and software applications but haven’t mastered the applications to a deep enough level to take the lead on my own. In the next year or so, I have an eye towards engaging in e-learning through my district’s on-line school. Having the skill set to work through Moodle and communication technologies will certainly be an asset.
I like to think about what my students will “get” out of using a piece of technology. Will the technology add to their experience? I have no shortage of great ideas but lack the skill set to co-ordinate it all to bring it to life. This is where I hope ETEC 565 will come into play.