Flight Path Revisited:
Revisiting my ‘Flight Path’ was a great way of bringing this course to an end. This gave me the opportunity to see where I started and to realize how much I have learned. I did not even realise how many skills I have gained over the last three months. Not only have I achieved the goals I had outlined in my Flight Path but I have also gained many other skills that I did not even set out to achieve. One of my main goals for this course had been to gain more experience with LMS tools such as Moodle. Not only did I get to learn how to create a Moodle site by myself, but I got to see my peers’ sites and learned so much from them as well. This process of creating a site was a means of discovery through hands on learning. I learn the best when I actually play around with a tool and find ways of manipulating it. Hence, I believe my exposure to tools such as Moodle in this course, have been very advantageous. The actual process of working with them and manipulating them was the biggest learning experience. As I had suspected Moodle turned out to be a lot less restrictive than other tools I have used. The teacher is the creator and has control over what is added to the shell, how it is presented, and how it looks.
This course has given me the opportunity to engage with many different tools and find ways to adapt the digital material I create to cater to all types of learners. It has equipped me with some additional tools to use with my special needs students. In fact, I was pleased to see that one of the tool kits focussed on accessibility for all students with differing needs. Being exposed to tools that help to curtail resources to the needs of learners is a valuable resource and I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to enhance this ability. The course has broadened my ability to find ways of being mindful and cognisant of these students needs when I am creating resources.
eLearning Toolkit:
The eLearning toolkit is a fantastic resource. I liked how each kit was divided into individual sections with a specific focus. They were set up in a great manner in which the tools were introduced and explained, and examples were given. We were also given the opportunity to work with the tools and then a chance to reflect on them. This allowed us to familiarize ourselves with the tool by understanding its background and use. Furthermore, we got to see it in action before learning how to work with it. This was a great way of gaining exposure to new tools and to learn new functions for tools we already knew how to use. This also gave us the opportunity to revisit or to look at tools we were already familiar with in a different manner. For example, looking at the terms and conditions of some Social Media sites made me realize that sometimes we just find tools and begin to use them without really understanding what the tool is about and what using the tool may entail. All the learning I achieved and the realizations I came to, using the eLearning toolkits, made me believe that these tools served many purposes and were a valuable component of this course.
ETEC565 Experience:
Overall, I have found ETEC 565 to be a useful course. I found it to be very hands on. We did not simply learn about tools that can be used in an educational setting. Rather, we learned about them and then learned how to use them. The learning process was not based on being spoon-fed about how to work with different tools. It was more of a process of discovering how to use tools. We were given examples, but a lot of the learning was based on the effort we put into working with the tools. In my opinion, this type of learning is the most valuable because watching someone use a tool uses only one means of learning i.e., observation. Whereas, working on something by yourself through manipulation, research, and trail and error is a multifaceted means of learning. The individual is observing, trying, experiencing, etc, and all these factors lead to deeper learning that the learner actually understands and can relate to.
This course exposed me to a lot of new tools that I now have knowledge about and will be able to use with my students. For example, creating the digital story was an amazing learning experience. The website provided in the module to introduce us to different resources for creating digital stories was extensive. It was great viewing all the examples of tools that could be used to create stories. Going through these different tools sparked so many ideas in my mind for ways to incorporate these into my teaching. The story I created is one that I will actually be able to use with my students and the knowledge I gained with the program will make it easier for me to create more stories and to teach my students how to create stories.
I found that the SECTIONS model that was introduced and revisited throughout the course was a basis for everything we learned in the course. Everything could be related to this model. This model was useful for anything we worked on or created during the course. It will continue to be a resource that can be used as a means for assessing the tools and content we use in our teaching practices.
Next Step with Educational Technology:
One of the main reasons I decided to do my master in Education Technology was because of the observations I had made of youngsters around me. All the kids I have worked with and observed over the years have been part of the Net Generation. They live, breath and eat technology. It is a part of them. Hence, the way they learn and the way they understand the world is all linked to technology. I felt that the biggest asset I could have as an educator, was a background in understanding the way these children think; a background in understanding the psychological components that have been studied in relation to the way they process information; and a background in actually working with and using technological learning tools that can be used with them. Although the MET program has allowed me to gain exposure to all of these components, my journey is not over yet. I have completed six courses out of ten. I believe my last four courses will help me to move forward in my quest to learn more about technologies and learning.
I hope to continue to gain exposure to more technological tools and to content that explains these tools, as I believe this will be something that can be transferred into my teaching. The knowledge and know how I gain through this program becomes practical knowledge and ability that can be used in the classroom. It can be further enhanced as I work with it and gain more experience. Hence my learning and self-development in a technological capacity, does not end with this program. Rather, this program opens the doors and helps me begin my journey that will be perpetuated with the way in which I choose to move this learning forward through my practices throughout my life.
Currently, I intend to take some of the tools I have leaned how to use and incorporate them into my teaching. I want to make my teaching practices as engaging as possible. I believe this can be achieved by making them interactive and conducive to the world my students live in.