• Tell us a bit about yourself, your experience, and your goals for this course (or, perhaps, the MET, as a whole).

For the past 12 years, I have been a high school teacher of several different subject areas. I received my BFA from Emily Carr University, and my BEd. from UBC, specializing in art education. Since a young age, my passion has been focused on Fine Arts and Graphic Design. It is only until recently, that I’ve had the opportunity to teach the subject area in which my academic training and passion is based. Teaching courses such as Computer Studies, Information Technology, Photography, Drafting, Special Education and other courses in which I don’t have formal training in, has encouraged me to be a Learner on the job. With so much content to cover and learn, it’s impossible to be a master of everything. One solution has been to educate as a lead-learner, if I do not know an answer to a student’s question, the student and I spend the time researching the solution. This activity helps build strong rapport with students as well as the next time I’m asked the same question, I’ll know the answer.

• Explain what you want to learn about learning environments, creating engaging and exciting content with rich media, meaningful assessment strategies, social software, and more.

Prior to the shift to online and hybrid learning models caused by Covid, I had not utilized Learning Management Systems in my courses. During the pandemic, I had the opportunity to explore some of the many possibilities the platform can do to enhance student’s learning. Many students saw improvements in organizational skills, increased engagement in activities  and meeting deadlines and handing in work on time.  Now that we have returned to in-person education, I utilize LMS’s in all my classes, specifically Microsoft Teams.

A challenge that I have encountered in my subject area is promoting collaboration. Fine arts and graphic design has the potential to involve teamwork, but it is often quite an individualized process. I feel that LMS’s can help promote collaboration in the creative process, and connect students. I want to explore how to better utilize the platforms to promote collaboration between my students, along with myself and colleagues.

• We would like you to reflect upon how you might inform your own learning goals in this course, in light of the competencies listed in the standards, the principles and the view on faculty in 21st century.

When first reading the course outline for ETEC 524, I was excited for the opportunity for “hands-on experiences” and the chance to create something that I will use in my own practice. I feel that I am in a very privileged situation. Being both a student and a teacher, has allowed me to implement many of the concepts and techniques I have learned about in the MET program into my own classroom. This teacher/student dynamic will allow me to reflect first hand through techniques outlined in International Society for Technology in Education (2017) in the Collaborator section. Discussions with my students, observing how strategies are received and whether or not I enjoyed the process are all reflective processes in which I intend to utilize. This will likely be in the form of conversations, surveys and observations.

• How can ETEC 524 help you become a digital-age teaching professional? What are the key skills and approaches that you feel you need to develop to meet your goals?

As mentioned in the previous section, as a full-time teacher and parent, time is a sparse commodity, so having an opportunity to research and design resources in which I can utilize in my own practice would be ideal. 

When first integrating LMS’s into our classrooms during COVID, employers provided educators with virtually no training or time to learn these platforms, and more so how to properly utilize them into our specific courses. I would thoroughly appreciate an opportunity to properly research the use of LMS’s in the digital art or fine art classroom, with a focus on collaboration.

• Look at the course schedule and the range of topics we’ll be exploring together and think about what areas are most important to your own goals in becoming a digital-age teaching professional.

I am definitely interested in several areas of this course. Two sections which stand out are Mobile Technologies (in my context) and Assessment Tools. These are two areas in which I could very much improve.

• Estimate what resources you might need to master these technologies as a novice professional.

Firstly, I appreciate that we are utilizing WordPress to create our e-portfolios. Submitting work through a portfolio seems more applicable than submitting individual files to separate assignments. So WordPress is essential.

Also the use of an LMS would be helpful for experimenting with various strategies. I use Microsoft Teams at work, but would also be interested in further exploring Canvas or other Educational based Learning Management Systems.

References

Comeaux, P. (2002). Communication and collaboration in the online classroom : examples and applications / Patricia Comeaux, editor. Anker Publishing Company, Inc.

Glǎveanu, V. P., Ness, I. J., & Saint Laurent, C. d. (2021). Creative learning in digital and virtual environments : opportunities and challenges of technology-enabled learning and creativity. Routledge.

International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2017). Standards for teachers. 
Retrieved from https://www.iste.org/standards/for-educators