Category: Weekly Learning Reflections

March 25, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

Let’s Play!

Today’s guest lecture with Heidi James from SD61 was completely out of my league! Apparently I have some gaming to catch up on. Not sure how anyone else is feeling, maybe we should all head over to YouTube together?!?

While breaking into the world of Minecraft will be another vertical learning curve for me, game-based learning, and the gamification of education is not. Game-based learning is where the playing of the game is the learning experience, while gamification can be thought of as adding game components to traditional instructional methods. I have always incorporated games into teaching wherever possible and think there is a place for games in every subject at every grade level. Games can be used to introduce a unit, access prior knowledge, deepen understanding, demonstrate core competencies, act as an assessment tool….the possibilities are limitless. I also feel that both game-based learning and gamification can be a powerful tool in reducing academic anxiety often found in traditional learning.

Online gaming, and hosted sites like Minecraft, take things to another level. I didn’t even know that there was an educational version of Minecraft!  Our guest speaker explained some of the many different ways she has used minecraft to connect with students and their learning, but in the same breath she said that she has to fight really hard to have access to the game and that the district seems to repeatedly take that access away. I came away from the lecture a bit conflicted about how I felt about online gaming with students. I suppose a classroom-hosted site would be somewhat different that a global platform, but I certainly still have some questions around privacy and safety.

Regardless of my feelings at the moment, students seem very passionate about the minecraft world, and as I get ready to head into a middle school practicum, I better start brushing up!

March 19, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

My Struggle with Tech

In this week’s lecture we had a guest speaker for BCEdAccess speaking to our cohort about the importance to tech availability to learners and their families. Not just those with developmental or learning challenges, but inclusion for all learners. They are an amazing advocate group with a strong voice for learners and their families. While we were presented with list after list of tech and programs, I could feel the apprehension rising over Zoom. All these programs are amazing, but how do we actually use them?

Throughout this course I have really been struggling with having name after name given to us, but then never shown the actual program or learned what type of learner would benefit from which type of tech. I consider myself lucky that I have had experience with some of the platforms mentioned, but certainly not all of them. I would really like the chance to be able to actually see what these programs look like. I am also concerned that mentor teachers and administrators may have a certain level of assistive tech experience expectations of us as recent graduates, and at the moment, I just don’t feel that I do. I completely understand that if I walk into a classroom and have a student that relies on the use of a technology system or tool that I am not familiar with training will be offered, but I was really hoping to have experienced some of the more common applications within this course.

I think that tech and more importantly access to tech for all learners is incredibly important and I want to be able to weave those tools seamlessly into a classroom, but to be honest, right now that seems like a overwhelming struggle and I am not quite sure where to start.

 

Photo by DJ Johnson on Unsplash

March 9, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

To Blend or Not to Blend?

I find it quite timely that we have just had a lecture on learning design as the BC Provincial Government announces the planned return to face-to-face learning for post-secondary institutions in the fall. As a member to the UVic Education “Zoom Cohort”, it feels like a bit of a slap in the face to our educational experience. Almost like, “Thank god that is over, now we can get back to normal learning!”.

Who is to say that our online learning experience couldn’t be normal moving forward? Would I have chosen a 100% online program if given another option, probably not, but it might be the best choice for the person in the next zoom square over. Why not let learners at least have the choice and allow them the agency to choose what is the best learning modality for them?

Face to face learning and online learning have traditionally been thought of as two separate entities. In today’s tech saturated world, there is no reason why the two of these can’t be blended together to create a multi-access learning experience. It was suggested in lecture that most students prefer this model, so how do educators take their pedagogy and make it flexibly for different learning modalities?

This pandemic has been a long road for everyone, and the whole world is ready to get back to “normal”, but what does that look like in education moving forward? In our PDP cohort being online has allowed for colleagues to be apart of the program from their home communities throughout the province. The cost of moving, lack of available accomodation, or the unavailability of desired programs in a local area are just a few of the barriers that could prevent an individual from pursuing their goals. By creating more flexible modalities for learning, those barriers start to break down. Personal circumstances may change part way through a program, if there was the option for a student to continue in their program through a multi-access modality (online synchronous and asynchronous, open resources, face to face) they could continue with their learning with less disruption in a way that works for them. I am very interested in a particular masters program and UBC, but the full-time face to face delivery model is a barrier for me at the moment. If that program was to offer a multi-access design, I would apply in a heartbeat.

All of this thinking can also be applied to the K-12 model. While the needs, and therefore the design might look different in an elementary, middle, or high school, the principles are the same. Learner’s voice and choice has a space in learning design. Having said all of that, how do I as a pre-service teacher begin to design for flexibility? That is a really big question, and at the moment, I don’t have the answer.

 

Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

March 7, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

Into the Pool of Inquiry we go!

 

The past few lectures we have had the pleasure of learning from 2 inspiring educators both currently teaching in Victoria. Jeff Hopkins is the principal of the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry (PSII) and Trevor Mackenzie is an inquiry based high school teacher in SD61 who shares his dedication to inquiry based teaching with educators around the world.

It was so refreshing to speak to educators that are currently in the classroom and so passionate about their teaching practice. I have always leaned towards an inquiry approach when working with youth, and while I may have dipped by toes in the pool, there is so far to go and I am excited to deepen my understanding of the inquiry process.

Jeff Hopkins stressed the importance of “process over product”, and the importance of self-regulation in agency in student learning and to think about the intention of the curriculum. If we teach to the intention, we can’t go wrong. Inquiry based learning has a process, and most students are not ready to leap right into the deep end. As pre-service teachers, we need to learn to watch for readiness followed by opportunities to introduce students to the inquiry cycle. Jeff also introduced the idea of multi-year planning when it comes to curricular content and the amazing opportunities that can be created for students when teachers come together to plan as a staff.

Trevor Mackenzie suggested that as new teachers, we may have a lot of “unlearning” to do around our own education and any biases we may hold before we can dive into inquiry. His presentation was full of ideas, values, and strategies to put into practice all stemming from a constructivist approach. Trevor challenged us to think about what our values are and do they seem to line up with the ideals of an inquiry based classroom? Trevor’s website is overflowing with any resource you could possibly want to create an inquiry based  classroom.

The underlying theme for both speakers was the importance of relationships. If you don’t know your students, you will have no idea what they are passionate about, where the talents lie, or what they truly wonder about. There is a certain level of risk involved with inquiry, and if students do not feel like they are in a psychologically safe environment, they won’t be willing to take that deep dive with you.

I walked away from both of these presentations full of energy and ideas, and perhaps more importantly, confirmation for me that inquiry based learning will be the grounding of my teaching philosophy. I have a lot of learning ahead of me.  I started by ordering both of Trevor’s books and can’t wait to dive into the inquiry pool.

 

Photo by Marija Zaric on Unsplash

February 23, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

What the heck is a PLN and do I need one?

In this course we have been introduced to so many new programs, platforms, and networks that it has been hard to keep them all straight. As I take the time to explore everything, I can see that some of these new tools will stick (like my new love of Trello), while others may not find a way into my professional practice. In multiple lectures I kept hearing the term “PLN”…”as you develop your PLN”….”when you are creating your PLN”….”this would be someone to include in your PLN”…what the heck is a PLN?

PLN stands for Personal Learning Network, and yes, I definitely need one. It can be thought of as creating a circle of like-minded professionals. The field of education seems to have chosen Twitter as its platform of choice.  As a pre-service teacher, I can begin to create my PLN by following leaders in the field, school districts, individual schools, master teachers, tech innovators, fellow pre-service teachers, and anyone else that aligns with my developing teaching philosophy.

By creating a PLN, I can start to create my education digital footprint. I am able to see what other districts are passionate about, and grow my network as I make new connections. Through creating a PLN and developing my digital footprint, that may put me in a more advantageous position when it comes to interviewing for teaching positions, as my professional learning and areas of interest will be visible to potential schools and administrators.

I also really like the idea of having a social media platform that is solely dedicated to my professional practice. I have shied away from Twitter in the past, but I appreciate that I am able to open my Twitter feed knowing that I am there to learn from others, and won’t be prompted to take a survey to find out what Disney princess I am.

 

Photo by Marvin Meyer on Unsplash

January 26, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

Giving Credit Where Credit is Due

This week we dipped our toes into the vast ocean of intellectual property and learning design. Most of us seemed familiar with the term “copyright” and what that means, but then the idea of “copyright vs. copyleft” was thrown around, and to be honest I am still not exactly sure what that means?  As a post-secondary student working through my second degree, I am very aware of the importance of crediting the work of other people, but I had no idea how much change there has been in this area with the growing movement to create a more openly-sourced, accessible, shared learning environment not just at the post-secondary level, but at all learning levels.

In lecture we were introduced to Creative Commons. I have heard the term while being at UVic, but to be honest, I thought it was a UVic run platform for sourcing resources. I had no idea until Friday what it actually was! Creative Commons is actually a platform created to enable the sharing of ideas/materials/images/knowledge etc. in a free, open, and legal way, ensuring that credit is given to creators through the licenses they provide. There are many different license types, and each one represents what you can or can’t do with the intellectual property you would like to use. I can also easily create a license to share and protect my own work through the “Share your work” tab. The website is full of information, and a tad overwhelming when you first open it, but it is so well organized and easy to navigate. I am easily able to go to where I need to to find what I am looking for.

The next important shift I need to make in my practice is photo attributions. Like Valerie said in lecture, students in K-12 are essentially taught to swipe images left, right and centre from Google, and that really is not the best practice to be teaching.  I knew from a computer science course that images from Unsplash were free to use without attribution, but it is so easy to give that credit, so why wouldn’t I? Moving forward I will ensure that any photos I post (even my own) in my blog, or anywhere, will follow best practice for attributions.

The learning curve for me is still almost vertical in this course, but I have already learned so much, and am starting to understand the importance of a course like this in our program.

Photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash

 

 

January 20, 2021 EDCI 336, EdTech, Reflection, Weekly Learning Reflections Post a Comment

What the heck just happened?

 

To say that the learning curve this week has been steep could be the biggest understatement of 2021 so far! While I am actually quite excited about this project, managing all these platforms is so new to me, and taking over my life at the moment. I am sure that I will get the hang of things, but right now the frustration levels are high and the productivity levels are low. I am very appreciative to have my learning pod to lean on for advice and support, and profs that seem available and accessible when things go sideways…and they will!

I found our first class completely overwhelming. There was so much information coming at us and I found it almost impossible to follow along. I went for a hike with the dogs after class to clear my head and while that improved my mental state, it didn’t really help provide any clarity around what to do next with this course. After spending some time working through all the resources we have, and our first learning pod meeting, I think that I have taken a baby step forward in my understanding. I am sure that things are going to start making more sense as we go, and I have promised myself that I will reach out for help when I get stuck rather than struggling on my own.

This is going to be quite the learning journey and I am curious to see where it takes me!

Here’s to hoping I get it eventually

Photo by Nigel Tadyanehondo on Unsplash