Our group (Group 3: YESNet: J. Chrona, M. Gallant, S. Turner, T. Walsh) designed a rubric that would be used to select a learning management system (LMS) for the Yukon Ministry of Education. The hope is to develop blended secondary courses that are relevant from an Aboriginal perspective.
We decided to use Bates’ (2014) SECTIONS model since according to him, there is very little literature out there on how to choose the appropriate technologies for teaching. His SECTIONS model clearly breaks down 8 important criteria for people to use for this matter. Each of our group members chose two criterion to work on so the distribution of work was fair. The two criterion that I was tasked with was, “Teaching and Media Selection” and “Interaction”. It was really helpful to discuss as a group on Skype so we could each put our two cents in. As we were discussing Teaching and Media Selection, I didn’t think to include synchronous and asynchronous communication. However my group members pointed this out and I agreed that this was important to have. Working collaboratively in a synchronous environment, such as our group did, helped me to look at things differently in a broader context.
One main point that I was overlooking at first was to include the Aboriginal perspective. I was more concerned at how our group should break down the selection of the LMS. I should have been much more mindful to include this topic and let it be the basis for our rubric since I took last term ETEC 521- Indigeneity, Technology and Education. Nevertheless, I was quick to point out that the Aboriginal perspective is just as important as the selection of the LMS.
Throughout the MET program, I’ve encountered many online projects, in which all of them were communicated through Google Docs. This is the first time for me having multiple group meetings over Skype and I liked how we all worked in a team effort. Previously, I felt it challenging to read over everyone’s comments on Google Docs to see who changed what and when; with Skype we could all talk about our thoughts at that moment and work together.