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Networked Professional Learning

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All good things must come end, or so they say. But is this really the case? Or is this only the beginning? EC & I 831 was a fantastic opportunity to connect with like-minded professionals from around the province and around the world. This course afforded me the chance to quickly and easily network with other educators regularly. Not only were we able to “meet” once a week using Blackboard Collaborate, but we were also able to connect using Twitter, EC & I 831 Blog Hub, and our Google+ plus community.

One of the biggest things I will take from this course is the ability to use Twitter for educational purposes. It is hands down one of the most amazing professional development tools out there. It is easier than ever to connect with people who have the same teaching areas and/or interests as you. There is also an abundance of general information about education- including tweets from educational professionals, and links to research, newspaper articles, etc. Twitter made it possible for me to contact people like Sue Waters and Simon McKenzie, who are literally across the world. Twitter allows this instantaneous communication that is so powerful. Sue was amazing resource as I worked to develop my personal blog using Edublogs, as well as when I created my class blog using the same site. I truly felt that while I was only one of her over 16,000 followers, I was still worthy and important to her.

Blogging has been a valuable experience for me. I started the semester by having my Grade 10 students set up personal blogs, and I was using my blog as a model for them. I soon found out that blogging would be an important part of this course, and so the focus of my blog changed from personal to professional. I blogged regularly about Learning, EC & I 831, and my Final Project.

Google+ was a new one for me, as I was not familiar with this social networking tool. I would describe it as being a more professional “Facebook”. Google+ was a way for classmates and I to share thoughts, questions, and information with each other. While I must admit that the amount of information shared on this site was a bit overwhelming, I did try to post and comment relatively regularly.

At the beginning of this journey, I chose the title “Learning Something New Everyday” for my blog. This statement was particularly true over the past 3 months, as the learning curve has been very steep. It is important for all people to continuously try to better themselves through education and training, especially professionals. EC & I 831 allowed me to learn to become a more networked professional. Thank you to Dr. Alec Couros and the rest of my classmates for the opportunity.

 

Project-Based Learning

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Well once again time got away from me, and it has been a week and a half since I reflected on my work with my Grade 10 students on our advertising campaign simulation.

For those of you who did not read my initial post, I am working with students to create advertisements that warn against the dangers of distracted driving. The advertisements will be submitted to the Just Drive! Contest sponsored by Allstate Insurance. I was fortunate to be able to work with our Division Learning Technologist Jim Swan on the project, and he brought with him a class set of iPads for our use (yes, we are one of the last remaining schools on the planet that does not have any iPads available for student use). He spent 2 classes with the students- one describing the project, and the second introducing students to the technology. Students were able to choose from creating an image, a song, or a video. The tools we chose to show were iMovie (link is to an 8 minute tutorial on iMovie for the iPad), Adobe PhotoShop Touch, and Garage Band. Students were given a quick lesson on each of the apps, and then asked to decide the direction they would take with the project.I chose to let students work alone or with a partner of their choice on this project. I made this decision with great deliberation, and I was quite pleased with the choices they made.

Students had 4 class periods to work independently on their projects. It never ceases to amaze me how much work these “independent” work periods are for the teachers. I seemed to be pulled in a million different directions and bombarded with questions each and every period. I kept trying to remind myself of the learning that was taking place.

I am always surprised at how exhausting yet rewarding Project-Based Learning can be! When I debriefed the project with Jim, we discussed how students need to be deprogrammed from their need to be so reliant on the teacher. Most students rely heavily on teachers to provide them with ideas, direction, and answers. Very few are what I would consider independent learners. I was amazed that students would wait 15 minutes to ask me a question, when their answer could have been found almost immediately with a quick Google search. I wondered to myself, when do we become independent learners? When I have a question, I find the answer myself, and I really want to work with my students to try and do the same. It is such a valuable life skill.

My question then is, how can we encourage our students to be more independent in their learning? How can we take the onus off of the teacher to be in control of the learning?

Reflections of the Early Stages

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Well, my project got “off the ground” so to speak on Monday. Jim and I spent the first full period introducing the project, showing sample videos, and exploring the Just Drive! Canada website. We looked at last years winners and realized that this is something that is definitely within reach for our talented, enthusiastic group of Grade 10’s!

For some reason, I always have a bit of nerves when I introduce Project Based Learning– it seems like there is so much information to share, and there is such a delicate balance between giving students all of the information they need and not totally overwhelming them. I try to remind myself that students will figure things out as they go, and they are capable of great things without me directing them every step of the way. Jim helped to remind me of that. Essentially, I need to become more comfortable with relinquishing “control” over when and how students learn. I need to embrace the notion that students do not have to be taught to learn- something that I agree with wholeheartedly.

My reflections on the challenges of PBL relate closely to our session with Sylvia Martinez on “Invent to Learn- Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom”. Sylvia is an active promoter of the importance of play and “tinkering” in learning, and her background in Science and Engineering was obvious as she maneuvered her way through various demonstrations with ease. Sylvia shares her “Thoughts about empowering students through technology” on her Generation YES Blog. There were three statements that Sylvia made that really stuck with me. They were:

– the importance of having students work to solve problems vs just giving them ready made knowledge

– that learning occurs when a new experience makes connections to existing knowledge

– to not be afraid to step out of your comfort zone if it can help a student’s learning experience; i.e. a teacher’s anxiety should not be a barrier to student’s learning

Sylvia also shared with us some “cool” tools that can be used to support the message behind invent to learn. She demonstrated both Makey Makey and Sparkfun Inventors Kit. Watching Sylvia confidently demonstrates the wonders of these things, I went back and forth between being totally in awe and being totally overwhelmed! As someone who has never been “into” tinkering and inventing things, this type of learning leaves me looking for the “right answer”. However, as she was playing with these amazing learning tools, I could see their potential in the classroom. I could pick out students from each of my classes who would totally excel at the type of learning Sylvia was showing. I must admit, I felt a bit sad as I realized that I do not give enough opportunities for making, tinkering, and engineering in my classroom. But, there is no time like the present, and it is never too late to try something new. One of my goals for this school year is to step out of comfort zone, ensuring that my anxiety doesn’t interfere with the learning opportunities of my students.

Are there things you shy away from because of your comfort level?

Are you always willing to try new things, or do you tend to stick with the tried and true?

 

 

Connected Learning

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EC & I 831 is course through the University of Regina that focuses on Social Media & Open Education. While I take the class for credit towards my MEd, the class is open to the world! Using Blackboard Collaborate, we “meet” each Tuesday night from 7:00-8:30. Last night we were fortunate to have Dr. Alec Couros spend the entire 90 minutes with us discussing “Networked and Connected Learning”.

Importance of an online identity. It is more important than ever to ensure to “declare yourself online”. Dave Cormier discusses the idea of an online presence in his educational blog. Once your online identity has been established, it is important to expand your PLN . Personal Learning Networks are valuable in every profession, but I would argue that they are exceptionally important in education. Recently, I have heard many teachers state that Twitter is the most valuable professional development tool that they have! On a more personal level, things such as a Photo-a-Day and the 365 project are fun ways to develop an online identity, while also documenting important family and life events. These types of tools can not only help with the development of a digital identity, but also with the creation of a digital legacy.

Change in technology. It was interesting to brainstorm the changes in technology that we have seen over time. I see myself as being on the border of being “old school” and “new school”, and I must confess that there were technologies mentioned that I had never heard of! In addition to discussing some of the many ways that technology has changed education (Creative Commons, MOOCs, Tube Chop, You Tube Education , Ted Ed), we also discussed the importance of educators making their learning visible. Through the completion of this course and the creation of these blogs, participants in this course are taking a step towards making their learning visible. As the title of my blog suggests, I am a firm believer in the importance of lifelong learning, and benefits in “Learning something new everyday”.

How are you making your learning visible?

 

 

Community

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What is your most memorable meal?

There I was at my kitchen table- tea in one hand, Twitter in the other, Blackboard Collaborate open, earphones in, all ready for another exciting EC & I 831 class.

Did he really just ask what my most memorable meal was?? Am I in the right class? Why are we talking about meals? I thought this class was all about technology, open education, and social media? Why the heck are we talking about eating??

So who was this guy, and where was he going with this seemingly ambiguous question? He was Rick Schwier a professor in Educational Technology and Design out of the University of Saskatchewan, and I soon discovered that his question about a memorable meal was not about the meal at all, but rather about the community that was involved.

I have never doubted the importance of community, and I am a firm believer in the necessity of having people who love and support you around. What is new to me however, is the idea of these vast, authentic, online communities that exist. Prior to this school year, my online community consisted of my Facebook page and a few friends who followed me on Twitter. My online community has now expanded to include educators from around the world, and I am able to connect and collaborate with people from all over with the click of a button. I am no longer using Twitter as a way to find out which talk show Snooki will be on, but rather to meaningfully connect with others.

There is no substitute for a hug from a child or a coffee break with a colleague, but online communities have their place in education as well.

Are your online communities more important than other communities in your life?

As a society, are we becoming too reliant on our place in online communities?

community

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Learning as we go…

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Learning is fun. Yes, it can be exhausting at times, but it is fun. And it should be fun. I have never understood people who are not excited at the opportunity to learn something new. I have always loved learning- I was the little girl who would rush home from school just to “play” school with my sister and our friends. So what have I learned this school year??

1) No matter how long you have been teaching, you will always get “First Day of School” butterflies.

2) The excitement of seeing a brand new group of students in their new outfits with their new school supplies never gets old.

3) It is important for everyone in a school community to always be learning- we cannot expect from our students what we are not willing to do ourselves.

4) Letting grade 7’s catch and feed bugs to the class turtles is a great illustration of predator-prey relationships and food chains.

5) People of all ages love The Duck Song

EC&I 831

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Technology

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May we always keep our common sense…

It is hard to believe it has been a week since EC&I 831 made its debut in my life. I must admit that at about 9:00 p.m. on that very night I was afraid my brain may explode from the sheer amount of information I had taken in! I was definitely feeling overwhelmed, yet somehow comforted by many of my classmates shared concerns (hey, misery loves company right??). In fact, I felt like I maybe a leg up on some, as I was already fairly proficient with Twitter and had just started up a blog. But as I started to thinking about all the things I wanted and needed to learn, the panic set in again. Where does a week go?? Now here I sit on Tuesday afternoon (thank goodness for preps!), thinking about how to make my digital presence, and how to introduce myself to the rest of you.

Who am I?

As my tagline suggests, my 4 most important roles in life are as a teacher, student, mother, and wife (in no particular order). I have a BSc from the U of S and a BEd (MEAD program) from the U of R. I have been teaching in rural SK since 2005, and I have taught everything from Grade 2-12. I can’t wait until I get to teach Kindergarten (someone really needs to develop a sarcasm font). In a perfect world I would teach high school Science, but as any of my rural colleagues know, you have to be very flexible in small schools. I started my MEd (Educational Administration) in January 2012, and this is my 5th class.

I am married (Danny) and have 2 children (Karlee, 4 and Jaxon, 2). We live on a farm with some sheep, 3 dogs, and a horse. When I am not at school, I like going to Rider games, running, gardening, and playing with my kids.

What do I want to learn?

I want to learn to use technology in a meaningful, productive way. To move beyond computers as a word processor/research device. To teach students how important it is to collaborate and share and be good digital citizens. We have the ability to connect with people around the world within seconds, and I want to bring that experience to my students (as soon as I learn how :)).

I am always ready, willing, and able to try new things, but I am guilty of getting caught up in the busyness of everyday life and sticking with the tried and true. This course is a good opportunity to network with other like minded individuals and keep each other motivated to “Learn something new everyday”.

We should all be more like children- forgiving, carefree, and full of questions.

The two most important people in my life.

The two most important people in my life.

I love this crazy life!

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Wow. Ever had one of those weeks when you look back and think- well that was crazy??!! Not crazy in an insane asylum way… just crazy in a super busy, million things going on kind of way. That’s just the way life seems to be in a Saskatchewan September (although I am quite sure that this busyness in not unique to Saskatchewan). Harvest is in full swing, school is back in session for another year, and the bountiful garden is full of produce that needs to be picked and preserved for the long winter that lies ahead. Add to that volleyball, cross country, and football teams that are practicing hard and getting ready to compete (if they haven’t already). Karlee is trying her hand (feet?) at dance for the first time this year and will also be taking preschool starting next week. I am doing my 5th Masters class through the U of R- and am very excited to be learning more about Social Media and Open Education.

Cheers to living a “crazy tragic, sometimes almost magic, awful beautiful life”.

Getting Back into Routine

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The first day of school has come and gone, and it sure doesn’t take long for summer to be a distant memory. We have been back at school for 2 days now, and in some ways it feels like we never left. Once all of the first day jitters are behind you, it is easy to fall back into routine. Speaking of routine, I am off to bed- 5:30 a.m. comes early!