Capstone Learnings 510
Learning Outcomes for OLTD
#1 Become familiar with common terms, definitions and elements related to online
environments
#2 Demonstrate basic competency with design and implementation within a variety of online
learning environments and tools
#3 Plan learning opportunities most suitable to the strengths and challenges of a variety of
environments
#4 Develop and design intentional learning activities suitable for the appropriate
environment and the learner
o Incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles
o Select strategies and resources appropriate for environment, learners and learning
outcomes
#5 Understand, design and commit to student success in online learning environments
o Design inclusive learning environments
o Share engagement strategies and tips
o Engage in mentoring and coaching with educational partners
o Work with families and students to establish effective learning plans
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
#8 Create assessment and evaluation methods/tools most suitable to the strengths and
challenges of online environments
#9 Scaffold digital citizenship from K-12 to professional level of educators
o Consider responsibility, accountability and civility in online environments
#10 Integrate current cognitive learning and brain-based learning theory
o Examine current research around best practices and emerging practices
#11 Develop practical and technical skills in all phases of concept, development, design, implementation, etc.
#12 Develop skills to optimize learning experiences through personalization
o Based on characteristics, needs, stages of development, current 21st Century
personalized learning mandates, etc
environments
#2 Demonstrate basic competency with design and implementation within a variety of online
learning environments and tools
#3 Plan learning opportunities most suitable to the strengths and challenges of a variety of
environments
#4 Develop and design intentional learning activities suitable for the appropriate
environment and the learner
o Incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles
o Select strategies and resources appropriate for environment, learners and learning
outcomes
#5 Understand, design and commit to student success in online learning environments
o Design inclusive learning environments
o Share engagement strategies and tips
o Engage in mentoring and coaching with educational partners
o Work with families and students to establish effective learning plans
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
#8 Create assessment and evaluation methods/tools most suitable to the strengths and
challenges of online environments
#9 Scaffold digital citizenship from K-12 to professional level of educators
o Consider responsibility, accountability and civility in online environments
#10 Integrate current cognitive learning and brain-based learning theory
o Examine current research around best practices and emerging practices
#11 Develop practical and technical skills in all phases of concept, development, design, implementation, etc.
#12 Develop skills to optimize learning experiences through personalization
o Based on characteristics, needs, stages of development, current 21st Century
personalized learning mandates, etc
Artifact #1 - 501 - Mary O'Neil - Weebly Website
LO #2 - Demonstrate basic competency with design and implementation within a variety of online
learning environments and tools
LO #11 - Develop practical and technical skills in all phases of concept, development, design, implementation, etc.
http://andrewflearnsonline.weebly.com/
This was site was the home base for many of our key thoughts and reflections throughout this course. It houses most of the blogging components from our OLTD courses plus many of the artifacts from these courses.
This website played a crucial part in covering many of the learning outcomes associated with this program. I feel that it helped "demonstrate my basic competencies" by allowing for a place to house my blog comments. Documenting our thoughts on any given topic and then having others respond to those thoughts was a major part of this course. It also gave us a place in which to write our initial thoughts, our 'framework on education' so that we could look back at it later and reflect on what we have learned.
In terms of designing and implementing, I was very thankful for the re-introduction to blogging as I had moved away from it in my teaching having had limited success in previous years. My familiarity with Weebly recently led me back into student blogging and I have had some amazing and even emotional experiences with my students' work.
LO #2
To me this is obviously one of the key outcomes of our program. Basically it involves being introduced to new programs, becoming comfortable with those programs and then taking that expertise and comfort level into the classroom be it online or f2f. As mentioned above, the constant use of Weebly over the last two years allowed for little hesitation when deciding on an appropriate blogging tool/portfolio piece for my students and obviously for myself. In terms of a 'variety of online learning environments', I had no idea how much I did not know before this course. I considered myself to be fairly 'techie', however, my comfort levels and competency levels were severely stretched many times throughout this course.
_
learning environments and tools
LO #11 - Develop practical and technical skills in all phases of concept, development, design, implementation, etc.
http://andrewflearnsonline.weebly.com/
This was site was the home base for many of our key thoughts and reflections throughout this course. It houses most of the blogging components from our OLTD courses plus many of the artifacts from these courses.
This website played a crucial part in covering many of the learning outcomes associated with this program. I feel that it helped "demonstrate my basic competencies" by allowing for a place to house my blog comments. Documenting our thoughts on any given topic and then having others respond to those thoughts was a major part of this course. It also gave us a place in which to write our initial thoughts, our 'framework on education' so that we could look back at it later and reflect on what we have learned.
In terms of designing and implementing, I was very thankful for the re-introduction to blogging as I had moved away from it in my teaching having had limited success in previous years. My familiarity with Weebly recently led me back into student blogging and I have had some amazing and even emotional experiences with my students' work.
LO #2
To me this is obviously one of the key outcomes of our program. Basically it involves being introduced to new programs, becoming comfortable with those programs and then taking that expertise and comfort level into the classroom be it online or f2f. As mentioned above, the constant use of Weebly over the last two years allowed for little hesitation when deciding on an appropriate blogging tool/portfolio piece for my students and obviously for myself. In terms of a 'variety of online learning environments', I had no idea how much I did not know before this course. I considered myself to be fairly 'techie', however, my comfort levels and competency levels were severely stretched many times throughout this course.
_
Artifact #2 - 501 - Mary O'Neil - Slidedeck Podcast - eLearing Sucks
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
This assignment was in response to a slidedeck podcast entitled 'eLearning sucks'. In this audacity audio presentation, Laura Mann and I created a script in google docs and then proceeded to interview students and our own kids, then record our separate thoughts into audacity. I then took the two files and edited them into a conversation complete with sound effects and music.
As related to outcome #7, this was one of the first opportunities we had to really look at the ups and downs of eLearning and what that term entailed. During this exercise we were able to take points from the presentation itself, but we were also able to lend our own ideas and thoughts on the subject. In terms of using google docs and audacity it allowed both of us to explore the capabilities of these two tools for use in our own practice. There is much to be said for critiquing a piece with another person. You are reminded that there are many other ways to view a subject based on different perspectives.
For me, the greatest outcome this exercise hit was one that is not included here and that would involve something along the lines of building camaraderie and trust between my cohort of peers.
LO #7
As mentioned above, we certainly had many opportunities to assess both written pieces as well as physical programs. What sticks out for me were the opportunities to assess items with others. I was very thankful for the opportunity to share some of the work that I have done with my students and then have others provide their thoughts on that work. For me, that has traditionally been a hard thing to do and I feel that I was personally able to open up a bit more to constructive criticisms in the best interest of my students. This also applied in instances such as the writing of my OLTD 510 Lit. review. I found myself just this morning wishing that I had Marieke or Laura reviewing my writing. It was a very odd sensation that reminded me of the power of working together.
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
This assignment was in response to a slidedeck podcast entitled 'eLearning sucks'. In this audacity audio presentation, Laura Mann and I created a script in google docs and then proceeded to interview students and our own kids, then record our separate thoughts into audacity. I then took the two files and edited them into a conversation complete with sound effects and music.
As related to outcome #7, this was one of the first opportunities we had to really look at the ups and downs of eLearning and what that term entailed. During this exercise we were able to take points from the presentation itself, but we were also able to lend our own ideas and thoughts on the subject. In terms of using google docs and audacity it allowed both of us to explore the capabilities of these two tools for use in our own practice. There is much to be said for critiquing a piece with another person. You are reminded that there are many other ways to view a subject based on different perspectives.
For me, the greatest outcome this exercise hit was one that is not included here and that would involve something along the lines of building camaraderie and trust between my cohort of peers.
LO #7
As mentioned above, we certainly had many opportunities to assess both written pieces as well as physical programs. What sticks out for me were the opportunities to assess items with others. I was very thankful for the opportunity to share some of the work that I have done with my students and then have others provide their thoughts on that work. For me, that has traditionally been a hard thing to do and I feel that I was personally able to open up a bit more to constructive criticisms in the best interest of my students. This also applied in instances such as the writing of my OLTD 510 Lit. review. I found myself just this morning wishing that I had Marieke or Laura reviewing my writing. It was a very odd sensation that reminded me of the power of working together.
Artifact #3 - 502 - Randy Labonte - To Skinner With Love
#1 Become familiar with common terms, definitions and elements related to online
environments
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
This is probably my favourite artifact. In this piece we were asked to compare the benefits and downsides of both f2f teaching and online learning while considering the works of theorists such as Skinner and Downes. Kind of ironic how in the end we conclude that there are benefits of both and now Marieke and I are doing a joint Master's project on blended learning. As you will see it is a take on 'To Sir With Love' filmed with possibly the worst camera ever. I think somehow we still managed to pull off a decent product. At least it made us both laugh out loud when we watched it again more recently.
This was a good experience for Marieke and I. She has spent the last few years in DL and I have only ever taught in the classroom. So though we were obviously pretending not to know about the others' world and debate our sides of things, we actually did learn a bit about each other's world. In terms of the outcome above, it was very interesting taking the theory from the various scholars and relating it to our practice. It made us take a second look at whose theories and ideas we were playing out in the real world. This was a much more effective way for me to assimilate the theories than simply reading about them as we had done in our education degrees.
LO #1
At first it seemed a bit redundant to relive the theories and terms that we all thought we were fairly familiar with, however, once I started to see that there were actual differences between teaching in DL and teaching f2f, I realized that those same theories and terms can have different meaning in different contexts. This outcome was far more important than I would have originally given it credit for. I think we spent a great deal of time, in several courses, deconstructing what some of the terms and definitions actually meant so that we would have a clearer understanding of where to go from there. In the case of my Lit. Review I spent my whole paper trying to define the phrase blended learning and in the end decided that I didn't really care what it meant, it was what I was going to do with it that counts.
environments
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
This is probably my favourite artifact. In this piece we were asked to compare the benefits and downsides of both f2f teaching and online learning while considering the works of theorists such as Skinner and Downes. Kind of ironic how in the end we conclude that there are benefits of both and now Marieke and I are doing a joint Master's project on blended learning. As you will see it is a take on 'To Sir With Love' filmed with possibly the worst camera ever. I think somehow we still managed to pull off a decent product. At least it made us both laugh out loud when we watched it again more recently.
This was a good experience for Marieke and I. She has spent the last few years in DL and I have only ever taught in the classroom. So though we were obviously pretending not to know about the others' world and debate our sides of things, we actually did learn a bit about each other's world. In terms of the outcome above, it was very interesting taking the theory from the various scholars and relating it to our practice. It made us take a second look at whose theories and ideas we were playing out in the real world. This was a much more effective way for me to assimilate the theories than simply reading about them as we had done in our education degrees.
LO #1
At first it seemed a bit redundant to relive the theories and terms that we all thought we were fairly familiar with, however, once I started to see that there were actual differences between teaching in DL and teaching f2f, I realized that those same theories and terms can have different meaning in different contexts. This outcome was far more important than I would have originally given it credit for. I think we spent a great deal of time, in several courses, deconstructing what some of the terms and definitions actually meant so that we would have a clearer understanding of where to go from there. In the case of my Lit. Review I spent my whole paper trying to define the phrase blended learning and in the end decided that I didn't really care what it meant, it was what I was going to do with it that counts.
Artifact #4 - 502 - Randy Labonte - Final Assignment
#4 Develop and design intentional learning activities suitable for the appropriate
environment and the learner
o Incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles
o Select strategies and resources appropriate for environment, learners and learning
outcomes
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
In this final assignment for OLTD 502 I decided to use it as a vehicle to begin my plans for my final Master's project. Considering that, for a time, I completely forgot about this paper, it was quite funny to come back to it and realize that it was exactly what Marieke and I have decided to follow through with for our MEDL. In this assignment we were asked to 'challenge ourselves, promote change and in some form or another integrate our ideas for our final Masters project.
The bulk of this project contained the three lesson plans that I outlined for getting my class going in Elluminate. I had had little success in getting people to join me in my online classes on Fridays and decided that perhaps a few lessons in the f2f environment might make them more at ease. This was an easy fit into learning outcome #4. It obviously involves the design and development of activities for the DL environment. The use of technology and Elluminate's functionality easily fit in to the UDL principals. I really liked that this lesson had a blend of using the f2f to promote and facilitate the online/home component. This is exactly what I am after when trying to promote and foster the success of the 'blended' classroom.
LO #4
Throughout this program we were asked to design or re-design lesson plans with the intent of delivering them to students in a DL environment. At first, this just seemed like taking the old paper lesson and putting a tech spin on it. I think that most of us realized along the way that it was more than just about the technology. I think that in order to realize the true difference between teaching 'within the walls' and teaching online it is important to have a critical look at the lesson(s) you are delivering. One needs to really think about the learner, and the parents of the learner, on the other side. Do they have easy access to the information that they need (resources, criteria, contact info, etc.) Does your lesson involve access to programs requiring permission forms and are they accessible to PC as well as Mac platforms. This was just one of the many ways that we were gradually introduced to the skill-set needed for successful online teaching.
environment and the learner
o Incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles
o Select strategies and resources appropriate for environment, learners and learning
outcomes
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
In this final assignment for OLTD 502 I decided to use it as a vehicle to begin my plans for my final Master's project. Considering that, for a time, I completely forgot about this paper, it was quite funny to come back to it and realize that it was exactly what Marieke and I have decided to follow through with for our MEDL. In this assignment we were asked to 'challenge ourselves, promote change and in some form or another integrate our ideas for our final Masters project.
The bulk of this project contained the three lesson plans that I outlined for getting my class going in Elluminate. I had had little success in getting people to join me in my online classes on Fridays and decided that perhaps a few lessons in the f2f environment might make them more at ease. This was an easy fit into learning outcome #4. It obviously involves the design and development of activities for the DL environment. The use of technology and Elluminate's functionality easily fit in to the UDL principals. I really liked that this lesson had a blend of using the f2f to promote and facilitate the online/home component. This is exactly what I am after when trying to promote and foster the success of the 'blended' classroom.
LO #4
Throughout this program we were asked to design or re-design lesson plans with the intent of delivering them to students in a DL environment. At first, this just seemed like taking the old paper lesson and putting a tech spin on it. I think that most of us realized along the way that it was more than just about the technology. I think that in order to realize the true difference between teaching 'within the walls' and teaching online it is important to have a critical look at the lesson(s) you are delivering. One needs to really think about the learner, and the parents of the learner, on the other side. Do they have easy access to the information that they need (resources, criteria, contact info, etc.) Does your lesson involve access to programs requiring permission forms and are they accessible to PC as well as Mac platforms. This was just one of the many ways that we were gradually introduced to the skill-set needed for successful online teaching.
Artifact #5 - Kim Peplar - 503 - Online Communication Philosophy of Online Communication (Pre, during and post)
#5 Understand, design and commit to student success in online learning environments
o Design inclusive learning environments
o Share engagement strategies and tips
o Engage in mentoring and coaching with educational partners
o Work with families and students to establish effective learning plans
For this artifact I am submitting three pieces as one. In the first piece we were asked by Kim Peplar to formulate our initial philosophies on online communications. It was to be in the form of an APA style paper. This in itself was a large task for me as I had not previously, as far as I could recall, written an APA paper. For the second piece we were asked as a team to run a seminar for our peers. For the third piece our task was to revisit our initial paper and revise our thinking to demonstrate our learning over the course of the course. For this I chose to create a powerpoint version of my APA paper.
This outcome is an easy fit with this assignment. What I have learned over the past two years of schooling, and ten months in a distributed learning environment, is that there are few things more important for student success than the proper handling of communication. A critical part of the learning, and connection to this outcome was the presentation to our peers through the Elluminate session. The seminar put on by Justin Mark and myself covered several of the points in the above outcome. We had to design a lesson together to present to our peers while also keeping in mind how we would relate it to connecting with our students. It was a very beneficial learning exercise for both of us, not just for the content but also in the use of the technology, and provided a great deal of fodder for the final reflection.
LO#5
Developing inclusive learning environments in the online world is just as important, if not more so, in the online world than in the f2f classroom. Learning how to do this is either something that takes years of trial and error or can be majorly expedited through the mentoring of those who have done this before. If you do not 'hook' your students right away in the online environment and provide them a safe and easily accessible place to thrive, you will lose them very quickly. It is not like the regular classroom where the student pretty much has to come back the next day and deal with the challenges at hand. In the online environment it is much easier to check-out. The best way to combat this it to have a well-planned well organized setting in which students feel comfortable and appreciated.
o Design inclusive learning environments
o Share engagement strategies and tips
o Engage in mentoring and coaching with educational partners
o Work with families and students to establish effective learning plans
For this artifact I am submitting three pieces as one. In the first piece we were asked by Kim Peplar to formulate our initial philosophies on online communications. It was to be in the form of an APA style paper. This in itself was a large task for me as I had not previously, as far as I could recall, written an APA paper. For the second piece we were asked as a team to run a seminar for our peers. For the third piece our task was to revisit our initial paper and revise our thinking to demonstrate our learning over the course of the course. For this I chose to create a powerpoint version of my APA paper.
This outcome is an easy fit with this assignment. What I have learned over the past two years of schooling, and ten months in a distributed learning environment, is that there are few things more important for student success than the proper handling of communication. A critical part of the learning, and connection to this outcome was the presentation to our peers through the Elluminate session. The seminar put on by Justin Mark and myself covered several of the points in the above outcome. We had to design a lesson together to present to our peers while also keeping in mind how we would relate it to connecting with our students. It was a very beneficial learning exercise for both of us, not just for the content but also in the use of the technology, and provided a great deal of fodder for the final reflection.
LO#5
Developing inclusive learning environments in the online world is just as important, if not more so, in the online world than in the f2f classroom. Learning how to do this is either something that takes years of trial and error or can be majorly expedited through the mentoring of those who have done this before. If you do not 'hook' your students right away in the online environment and provide them a safe and easily accessible place to thrive, you will lose them very quickly. It is not like the regular classroom where the student pretty much has to come back the next day and deal with the challenges at hand. In the online environment it is much easier to check-out. The best way to combat this it to have a well-planned well organized setting in which students feel comfortable and appreciated.
Artifact #6- 504 - Avi Luxenburg - Learning Mangement Systems - Part 2 and 3 in a 5 part series on LMS's
#2 Demonstrate basic competency with design and implementation within a variety of online
learning environments and tools
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
This was a five part series meant to mimic the stages of an APA essay complete with Abstract. Unfortunately, one of the programs used was pulled from service and the D2L housing in which it was encased had to be pulled down my Avi. The abstract was actually a cartoon version of Avi in the text-to-speech program Xtranormal. He waxed poetic about the author (me) and gave a brief overview of this paper.
This course was instrumental in familiarizing myself and others with two types of LMS programs, then proceeding on to look at ways to deliver without those systems. Having us create courses in those programs was definitely a productive way of 'demonstrating our basic competencies' as mentioned above. It was equally important in helping us 'critically evaluate' what system would work for us and why?
LO#2
I like the wording of these two outlines as it forced our professors, as it would me, to think about not just having us dabble or play with programs, but to prove that we could navigate, create and then assimilate into our own practices. One of the strengths of this program was the amount of hands on work that we were able to accomplish. By being a mentor in one of Avi's Moodle courses I was able to learn way more about the program, due to the challenges that my peers faced, than I ever had on my own. I also realized that my 'boredom factor' with Moodle was due more to how I was using it than the actual program itself.
learning environments and tools
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
This was a five part series meant to mimic the stages of an APA essay complete with Abstract. Unfortunately, one of the programs used was pulled from service and the D2L housing in which it was encased had to be pulled down my Avi. The abstract was actually a cartoon version of Avi in the text-to-speech program Xtranormal. He waxed poetic about the author (me) and gave a brief overview of this paper.
This course was instrumental in familiarizing myself and others with two types of LMS programs, then proceeding on to look at ways to deliver without those systems. Having us create courses in those programs was definitely a productive way of 'demonstrating our basic competencies' as mentioned above. It was equally important in helping us 'critically evaluate' what system would work for us and why?
LO#2
I like the wording of these two outlines as it forced our professors, as it would me, to think about not just having us dabble or play with programs, but to prove that we could navigate, create and then assimilate into our own practices. One of the strengths of this program was the amount of hands on work that we were able to accomplish. By being a mentor in one of Avi's Moodle courses I was able to learn way more about the program, due to the challenges that my peers faced, than I ever had on my own. I also realized that my 'boredom factor' with Moodle was due more to how I was using it than the actual program itself.
Artifact #7 - 505 - Alec Couros - Sample blog post
#12 Develop skills to optimize learning experiences through personalization
o Based on characteristics, needs, stages of development, current 21st Century
personalized learning mandates, etc
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
Due to the fact that 50% of our program consisted of blogging our thoughts in our Weebly site, I thought it only appropriate to include at least one sample from my blogging experience. The topic of my blog is based on a week of looking at the concept of sharing our work with others. Looking back at it I do think that it is a good sample of my writing and my thinking, however, what made it memorable to me was Ben's response. - cue video
In watching a video, shared by our professor Alec Couros, Dean Shareski is very clear in identifying and thanking all of the people who helped him gain the knowledge and skills that he has accumulated over the years. In order to 'optimize' and 'personalize' as mentioned in the outcome above, we need to gather, assimilate and then personalize any given resource so that it reflects who we are and what we believe as educators. This original link was an example of me finding a piece of text online (which I shared with my class as a body break during a Socials class) and challenging others to take it and make it their own. Sadly, but hilariously, only Ben took me up on making his own copy. I was blown away that he actually took the time to do this. It was another example to me of how we build off of each other's skills and enthusiasm.
LO#12
'Skills to optimize learning experiences' is such a grand and vague phrase, but it truly does take place one step at a time. It was through devices such as the blog, and more importantly peoples' responses to our blogs, that we were able to process many of the available learning experiences. We may have collectively scoffed at the many requests to re-visit the work of theorists as well as our own philosophies, but in order to better understand ourselves, our students and our future together I think that they were necessary and beneficial tasks.
http://andrewflearnsonline.weebly.com/blog
o Based on characteristics, needs, stages of development, current 21st Century
personalized learning mandates, etc
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
Due to the fact that 50% of our program consisted of blogging our thoughts in our Weebly site, I thought it only appropriate to include at least one sample from my blogging experience. The topic of my blog is based on a week of looking at the concept of sharing our work with others. Looking back at it I do think that it is a good sample of my writing and my thinking, however, what made it memorable to me was Ben's response. - cue video
In watching a video, shared by our professor Alec Couros, Dean Shareski is very clear in identifying and thanking all of the people who helped him gain the knowledge and skills that he has accumulated over the years. In order to 'optimize' and 'personalize' as mentioned in the outcome above, we need to gather, assimilate and then personalize any given resource so that it reflects who we are and what we believe as educators. This original link was an example of me finding a piece of text online (which I shared with my class as a body break during a Socials class) and challenging others to take it and make it their own. Sadly, but hilariously, only Ben took me up on making his own copy. I was blown away that he actually took the time to do this. It was another example to me of how we build off of each other's skills and enthusiasm.
LO#12
'Skills to optimize learning experiences' is such a grand and vague phrase, but it truly does take place one step at a time. It was through devices such as the blog, and more importantly peoples' responses to our blogs, that we were able to process many of the available learning experiences. We may have collectively scoffed at the many requests to re-visit the work of theorists as well as our own philosophies, but in order to better understand ourselves, our students and our future together I think that they were necessary and beneficial tasks.
http://andrewflearnsonline.weebly.com/blog
Artifact #8 - 505 - Alec Couros - Summary of Learning
#9 Scaffold digital citizenship from K-12 to professional level of educators
o Consider responsibility, accountability and civility in online environments
#1 Become familiar with common terms, definitions and elements related to online
environments
This is another one of my favourite pieces from the program. It is a bit lengthy, and I felt sorry for making Alec sit through it, but I truly did learn a lot from pouring through the selection of videos that I used. I definitely used up some overtime on this one but something about it felt very rewarding engaging. I will let the intro speak as to what it is about.
The majority of this course had to do with copyright and sharing be it legally or illegally. To me, the terms responsibility and accountability were a key components in both this assignment as well as this course. I was very taken with the idea of a mash-up and how we are allowed to take written works from published authors and weave them into our essays, yet we are not allowed to take slices of video or music, without permission, and create a new product of our own.
LO#9
Many of the concepts and videos provided in this course were full of legal speak or were simply too long or complicated for primary and even intermediate classes. However, the concepts of 'what you make belongs to you' and 'don't say something online what you would not say in person' are ideas that can be easily communicated and instilled in children even before they reach our classrooms. Alec's expertise in the world of Twitter and his introduction of goggle+ as a learning environment were huge in our learning experience of relating and responding to each other. I like that the word scaffold is included in this outcome as it is supremely important to phase students through the world of technology. I have seen teacher after teacher botch online exercises because they went too hard too fast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZAvPNcMlco
o Consider responsibility, accountability and civility in online environments
#1 Become familiar with common terms, definitions and elements related to online
environments
This is another one of my favourite pieces from the program. It is a bit lengthy, and I felt sorry for making Alec sit through it, but I truly did learn a lot from pouring through the selection of videos that I used. I definitely used up some overtime on this one but something about it felt very rewarding engaging. I will let the intro speak as to what it is about.
The majority of this course had to do with copyright and sharing be it legally or illegally. To me, the terms responsibility and accountability were a key components in both this assignment as well as this course. I was very taken with the idea of a mash-up and how we are allowed to take written works from published authors and weave them into our essays, yet we are not allowed to take slices of video or music, without permission, and create a new product of our own.
LO#9
Many of the concepts and videos provided in this course were full of legal speak or were simply too long or complicated for primary and even intermediate classes. However, the concepts of 'what you make belongs to you' and 'don't say something online what you would not say in person' are ideas that can be easily communicated and instilled in children even before they reach our classrooms. Alec's expertise in the world of Twitter and his introduction of goggle+ as a learning environment were huge in our learning experience of relating and responding to each other. I like that the word scaffold is included in this outcome as it is supremely important to phase students through the world of technology. I have seen teacher after teacher botch online exercises because they went too hard too fast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZAvPNcMlco
Artifact #9 - 506 - Julia Hengstler - Summary - Final Paper
#6 Undertake engagement with environments through online facilitation for effective
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
#1 Become familiar with common terms, definitions and elements related to online
environments
This course on Social Networking and the policy behind working in online environments was a challenging one, however, it came just at the right time for us as a school, in particular the Fine Arts eCademy team at NIDES. This paper focuses on two things: a summary of our learnings as related to the pillars of Knowledge; Skills and Training; and Guidelines and Policy; as well as addressing our opinions on being classified as an Eagle or an Ostrich.
In terms of relating to the learning outcomes this was an overdose in terms of 'becoming familiar with common terms and definitions'. It took me several months to digest the impact and intricacies of the legalities behind creating an online environment for my students. In relation to outcome #6 I believe that these new 'rules' have made us really think about the worth of each program that we choose to bring into the fold. We have to, and are now more able to, assess the dangers and benefits of each program and decide if it is really worth our time.
LO#6
I have connected with this outcome in terms of the technicalities behind creating these environments. The other component to this outcome involves the social aspects of building trust and and making sure both parents and students feel safe in asking questions and providing their feedback and opinions. In the DL or blended community, building rapport and establishing relationships can be the determining factor to a program's success.
learning
o Moderation and mediation
o Understand how to build rapport and manage groups
- establish relationships with learners and families
- build teacher to student rapport
- engage in building learning communities and communities of practice
#1 Become familiar with common terms, definitions and elements related to online
environments
This course on Social Networking and the policy behind working in online environments was a challenging one, however, it came just at the right time for us as a school, in particular the Fine Arts eCademy team at NIDES. This paper focuses on two things: a summary of our learnings as related to the pillars of Knowledge; Skills and Training; and Guidelines and Policy; as well as addressing our opinions on being classified as an Eagle or an Ostrich.
In terms of relating to the learning outcomes this was an overdose in terms of 'becoming familiar with common terms and definitions'. It took me several months to digest the impact and intricacies of the legalities behind creating an online environment for my students. In relation to outcome #6 I believe that these new 'rules' have made us really think about the worth of each program that we choose to bring into the fold. We have to, and are now more able to, assess the dangers and benefits of each program and decide if it is really worth our time.
LO#6
I have connected with this outcome in terms of the technicalities behind creating these environments. The other component to this outcome involves the social aspects of building trust and and making sure both parents and students feel safe in asking questions and providing their feedback and opinions. In the DL or blended community, building rapport and establishing relationships can be the determining factor to a program's success.
final_paper_andrew.docx | |
File Size: | 29 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Artifact #10 - 507 - Jennifer Batallas - Cloud Computing - Goanimate Analysis
#3 Plan learning opportunities most suitable to the strengths and challenges of a variety of
environments
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
In this exercise we were asked to critically assess a cloud-based program. In the past I have used Xtranormal.com (a text-to-speech program) with my students but in retrospect I was probably breaking a few infractions along the way. Replacing Xtranormal is Goanimate. This was my chance to have a good look at the behind the scenes legalities as well as experiment with the program itself.
Yes the obvious outcome is that I was critically assessing this program but the reason that I chose to evaluate the program is its huge impact and functionality for struggling readers and writers. My class this year completely dove into my school account in Bitstrips.com. Some students used the format for multiple assignments. I believe this program has even more potential. The ability to log on anywhere and everywhere added to the 'fun' factor of creating comic-book movies is a vehicle that has amazing potential for both online and f2f environments. Teachers can make tutorials for students, students can make tutorials for other students, and so on.
LO#3
It is easy to read this outcome as planning for the physical environment of either the classroom or the online, and I am sure that that is what it is intended for, but I also think it should apply to the strengths and challenges of different students as in the UDL philosophy. We have learned a great deal in these past two years about the challenges that face the online teacher. Planning for an Elluminate session for example can be very different depending on who you have attending, how formal the meeting is, and what you would like the students to take away with them. The presentation mode, complete with student sessions and breakout rooms has to be well thought out. On the other hand, an information session may just be very informal and off-the-cuff.
In terms of student strengths and weaknesses, we have learned many different programs, be them text-to-speech, voice recognition and the like, that make learning a great deal more interesting and engaging for many of our struggling students.
environments
#7 Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
In this exercise we were asked to critically assess a cloud-based program. In the past I have used Xtranormal.com (a text-to-speech program) with my students but in retrospect I was probably breaking a few infractions along the way. Replacing Xtranormal is Goanimate. This was my chance to have a good look at the behind the scenes legalities as well as experiment with the program itself.
Yes the obvious outcome is that I was critically assessing this program but the reason that I chose to evaluate the program is its huge impact and functionality for struggling readers and writers. My class this year completely dove into my school account in Bitstrips.com. Some students used the format for multiple assignments. I believe this program has even more potential. The ability to log on anywhere and everywhere added to the 'fun' factor of creating comic-book movies is a vehicle that has amazing potential for both online and f2f environments. Teachers can make tutorials for students, students can make tutorials for other students, and so on.
LO#3
It is easy to read this outcome as planning for the physical environment of either the classroom or the online, and I am sure that that is what it is intended for, but I also think it should apply to the strengths and challenges of different students as in the UDL philosophy. We have learned a great deal in these past two years about the challenges that face the online teacher. Planning for an Elluminate session for example can be very different depending on who you have attending, how formal the meeting is, and what you would like the students to take away with them. The presentation mode, complete with student sessions and breakout rooms has to be well thought out. On the other hand, an information session may just be very informal and off-the-cuff.
In terms of student strengths and weaknesses, we have learned many different programs, be them text-to-speech, voice recognition and the like, that make learning a great deal more interesting and engaging for many of our struggling students.
Artifact #11 - 508 - Greg Lewis - Minecraft Screencast
#11 Develop practical and technical skills in all phases of concept, development, design,
implementation, etc.
#8 Create assessment and evaluation methods/tools most suitable to the strengths and
challenges of online environments
We were asked in this exercise to use Screencastomatic, or some other screencast program to summarize our learnings as well as evaluate a particular program using the rubric that our team created. I began by outlining my journey through surviving the first night in Minecraft then go on to evaluate a lesson created in Minecraft entitled Hunger Games Minecraft.
I have been able to fluff my way through many an online or program based lesson. I usually only need to learn a few basics before I turn the reins over to the students and then I simply sit back and learn from them. In this case however, in think that 'developing practical and technical skills' was an extremely important exercise. In this case, it gave me a greater understanding for the game and all that it has to offer. Learning by trial and error is a huge part of this game and is just not something you experience when watching a ten-year-old fly through the game. Sure there is the huge amount of vocabulary and crazy amount of materials (I think my vocabulary is faltering here), but there is also the mindset and skill-set of learning how to work with others and/or finding what you need to know on the internet via youtube or chat groups.
LO#11
As mentioned in the paragraph above, in some learning environments it is almost detrimental thinking that you need to know everything about a particular topic before you feel ready to teach it to students. I have seen many a program not even attempted due to teacher anxiety from the need to know it all. However, in the DL or online learning environment I have learned that there is a certain level of knowledge, planning, and technical skill required in order to make a lesson run smoothly. Yes one can fumble their way through an Elluminate session and ask for the patience of their audience, but, it can also create the perfect opportunity for student boredom as well as teacher anxiety.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVRcD188LIQ
implementation, etc.
#8 Create assessment and evaluation methods/tools most suitable to the strengths and
challenges of online environments
We were asked in this exercise to use Screencastomatic, or some other screencast program to summarize our learnings as well as evaluate a particular program using the rubric that our team created. I began by outlining my journey through surviving the first night in Minecraft then go on to evaluate a lesson created in Minecraft entitled Hunger Games Minecraft.
I have been able to fluff my way through many an online or program based lesson. I usually only need to learn a few basics before I turn the reins over to the students and then I simply sit back and learn from them. In this case however, in think that 'developing practical and technical skills' was an extremely important exercise. In this case, it gave me a greater understanding for the game and all that it has to offer. Learning by trial and error is a huge part of this game and is just not something you experience when watching a ten-year-old fly through the game. Sure there is the huge amount of vocabulary and crazy amount of materials (I think my vocabulary is faltering here), but there is also the mindset and skill-set of learning how to work with others and/or finding what you need to know on the internet via youtube or chat groups.
LO#11
As mentioned in the paragraph above, in some learning environments it is almost detrimental thinking that you need to know everything about a particular topic before you feel ready to teach it to students. I have seen many a program not even attempted due to teacher anxiety from the need to know it all. However, in the DL or online learning environment I have learned that there is a certain level of knowledge, planning, and technical skill required in order to make a lesson run smoothly. Yes one can fumble their way through an Elluminate session and ask for the patience of their audience, but, it can also create the perfect opportunity for student boredom as well as teacher anxiety.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVRcD188LIQ
Artifact #12 - 509 - Avi Luxenburg - BYOD Presentation
#8 Create assessment and evaluation methods/tools most suitable to the strengths and
challenges of online environments
#5 Understand, design and commit to student success in online learning environments
o Design inclusive learning environments
o Share engagement strategies and tips
o Engage in mentoring and coaching with educational partners
o Work with families and students to establish effective learning plans
Several times along our journey we were asked to deliver student led seminars. In this particular seminar Justin Mark proposed an interesting task. He stated that he was, in the near future, going to have to present to his staff on the positives and negatives of BYOD. This simple google drive presentation was my response to that task. It was a product that in the end I was quite proud of. Justin asked if he could use it for his presentation and Avi proposed that I use it for my final assignment in the course.
Yes there are several examples of rubrics that we created along the way, however, the 'assessment and evaluation tools' as mentioned above that I found most useful were the ones that involved us critiquing actual programs (as in 508) and/or methodologies such as BYOD. This particular presentation is garnered more towards f2f schools but could equally be applied to the online environment. BYOD for example saves all sorts of challenges in the online world such as having to send students particular software and then not worrying about updating the software down the road.
LO#5
One of my favourite parts of this program were the amount of hands-on activities and opportunities to try out programs for ourselves. Having the chance to asses and evaluate these programs allowed us the chance to decide if they were relevant and appropriate for our current setting.
In terms of assessing student work, by investigating these programs we were able to see what types of tracking each program offered of student achievement be it the actual rubrics and grading system in D2L or the ability to customize the grade level as in Sumdog.com.
challenges of online environments
#5 Understand, design and commit to student success in online learning environments
o Design inclusive learning environments
o Share engagement strategies and tips
o Engage in mentoring and coaching with educational partners
o Work with families and students to establish effective learning plans
Several times along our journey we were asked to deliver student led seminars. In this particular seminar Justin Mark proposed an interesting task. He stated that he was, in the near future, going to have to present to his staff on the positives and negatives of BYOD. This simple google drive presentation was my response to that task. It was a product that in the end I was quite proud of. Justin asked if he could use it for his presentation and Avi proposed that I use it for my final assignment in the course.
Yes there are several examples of rubrics that we created along the way, however, the 'assessment and evaluation tools' as mentioned above that I found most useful were the ones that involved us critiquing actual programs (as in 508) and/or methodologies such as BYOD. This particular presentation is garnered more towards f2f schools but could equally be applied to the online environment. BYOD for example saves all sorts of challenges in the online world such as having to send students particular software and then not worrying about updating the software down the road.
LO#5
One of my favourite parts of this program were the amount of hands-on activities and opportunities to try out programs for ourselves. Having the chance to asses and evaluate these programs allowed us the chance to decide if they were relevant and appropriate for our current setting.
In terms of assessing student work, by investigating these programs we were able to see what types of tracking each program offered of student achievement be it the actual rubrics and grading system in D2L or the ability to customize the grade level as in Sumdog.com.
Artifact #13 - 510 - Randy Labonte - Literature Review - Blended Learning Project
#10 Integrate current cognitive learning and brain-based learning theory
o Examine current research around best practices and emerging practices
This is the Lit. review for our upcoming MEDL. It is basically me finding out what research exists on Blended Learning and what makes it successful.
Of course our program was full of various articles and references to the appropriate categories, however, this particular piece is more relevant to what I am doing going forward in to the Master's program. In terms of the current research this exercise gave us a bit more practice in the professional 'journal' department but I can't say that helped in the 'current' department. It is rather ironic that the term best practices is highlighted here as it is one of the key comments in this paper.
LO#10
Of course it was important for us to get caught up on current findings and research, however, what I think is even more important here is that we were provided many of these resources by our professors and trusted peers. What that means is that they were vetted by others and it saved us countless hours trying to sift through what is current, valid, and relevant. As I mentioned earlier, many of our tasks were to incorporate our findings into our projects be them lesson plans, blogs or essays. This helped to turn the theories into practice and gave us a better understanding of how they were related to Distance Learning.
Link to Paper google docs.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ph1YvmOWg_kybU3ygeSzWWr2poDG7wJLGZf2kn6zdoA/edit?usp=sharing
SD71 Portal
http://www.learn71.ca/
o Examine current research around best practices and emerging practices
This is the Lit. review for our upcoming MEDL. It is basically me finding out what research exists on Blended Learning and what makes it successful.
Of course our program was full of various articles and references to the appropriate categories, however, this particular piece is more relevant to what I am doing going forward in to the Master's program. In terms of the current research this exercise gave us a bit more practice in the professional 'journal' department but I can't say that helped in the 'current' department. It is rather ironic that the term best practices is highlighted here as it is one of the key comments in this paper.
LO#10
Of course it was important for us to get caught up on current findings and research, however, what I think is even more important here is that we were provided many of these resources by our professors and trusted peers. What that means is that they were vetted by others and it saved us countless hours trying to sift through what is current, valid, and relevant. As I mentioned earlier, many of our tasks were to incorporate our findings into our projects be them lesson plans, blogs or essays. This helped to turn the theories into practice and gave us a better understanding of how they were related to Distance Learning.
Link to Paper google docs.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ph1YvmOWg_kybU3ygeSzWWr2poDG7wJLGZf2kn6zdoA/edit?usp=sharing
SD71 Portal
http://www.learn71.ca/