Communicating effectively

Communication is very important when working on a project. A I have learned in any project in life when the project manager communicates everything goes smoothly. As Portny reminds us, “To successfully launch a project, everyone associated with the project must understand the roles and responsibilities” (Portny & Mantel, 2008). If team members do not understand their role in a project the project, it may fail.That is why it is important to be clear what everyone’s role is.

In this week’s activity I viewed a message in multiple ways. I viewed the message by text, audio, and face-to-face. The reason I did this in more the one way was so that I could analyze and understand the delivery of each message. I read the text, listened to the voicemail over and over again, and tried to pay attention to the speakers tone. My interpretation of the messages changed for each message. I found this interesting because they saying “it’s not what you say, but how you say it” came into play for me.

I felt like this activity was meant to show me how words can have power. It also showed me the many modes of getting messages across and how it can be understood by the other party. 

References:
Portny, S., Mantel, S., & Meredith, J. (2008). Project Management: Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling Projects. Danvers: John Wiley & Sons.

Learning from a Project “ Post-mortem”

    One of the most recent projects that I was involved in had to deal with creating a document that placed students that I taught in classes that I thought they would benefit from for the next school year. As a group member I was in charge of coming up with the best way to do this. I had no idea that there were so many ways to complete this task. I ended up creating an excel spreadsheet, but the process took forever.
    Another team member had to make sure that all teachers put this information into the spreadsheet by the deadline, but that quickly failed. Due to the load of work that teachers have the work was not completed in time. Teachers felt like this was just another thing to do on top of what they were already being asked to do. I believe that if teachers were asked to come to a meeting where all they had to do was put this information in they wouldn't feel like they had to make time for this. This would help the teacher get one more thing completed.
    This project may have helped the scheduling process for students and for administration, but it caused chaos and a decreased moral for the teacher. As a result, many teachers were unable to complete the on time which in return caused the schedules to be a whole week late at the beginning of the new school year.

Reflection

     My experience in this course has been a very rewarding one. I never thought that I would be able to create a course online with the direction of an instructor, but I was able to. This course has taught me to take into consideration my audience and my learning resources.

      Everyday many students are considering online education. This way of schooling is becoming very popular to the society that we live in. Ten to twenty years from now I see online education getting more complex. I think that people will need to have prior experience in order to be successful in a distance education course. I say this because as an educator I am noticing how schools are beginning to incorporate technology into the classroom. A program called Bring your own device (BYOD) is being used to encourage students to become familiar with using technology to find resources online.

      As a future instructional designer, it is important that I am familiar with the kinds of technology that I will help my students to use for educational purposes. Making meaningful learning experiences for students makes it possible for them to enjoy their learning and to become an expert in the area of their specialty. In other words, if I don’t care for my students education as an instructor I will fail them as an expert in my area.

      Distance education is progressing every year. It is needed in order to give others easy access to receiving an education online. The use of the internet helps students to become better learners and instructors to become better deliverers. Distance education will continue to be the mode of deliverance for the majority of students in today’s world. It will help alleviate the pressure of the face-to-face classroom.

Face-to-face classroom --- Blended Classroom

  Everything doesn’t always happen the way that it was envisioned to happen. Sometimes there are different ways of doing things, but you have to be open to change if it comes your way. This could happen because it needs to match the time we are living in or to keep up with the demands of a new crowd of individuals. Whatever it may be the new plan needs to be well thought out.

  This week in the course that I am taking the scenario says “A training manager has been frustrated with the quality of communication among trainees in his face-to-face training sessions and wants to try something new. With his supervisor’s permission, the trainer plans to convert all current training modules to a blended learning format, which would provide trainees and trainers the opportunity to interact with each other and learn the material in both a face-to-face and online environment. In addition, he is considering putting all of his training materials on a server so that the trainees have access to resources and assignments at all times.” With change will definitely come new results it’s just a matter of if it will be beneficial. Whether they will be good ones or bad, there will still be some information to show success or failure.

  Starting a class that was already set up one way, to change it to something totally different is a not an easy task, especially if you are changing it because the old method wasn’t working. Changing the presentation, delivery, instructors, content, and maybe even learning materials will require a well thought out approach, because the end result must be a better way of teaching the material.

  The instructor must understand and realize that he or she is no longer giving the information, but is now the sole source of information for all and must be prepared to handle such a task. According to an article by San Diego State University “many ‘ingredients’ can comprise a blended learning model, including instructor-delivered content, e-learning, webinars, conference calls, live or online sessions with instructors, and other media and events.” So some key elements should definitely be considered like:

·         Professional development

·         Technology infrastructure

·         Funding

  So that means that when changing from face-to-face into a course that solely be online the instructor must know that most students will be successful. Successful how, you may ask. Well the instructor needs to know if all students are able to use the technology, he or she must be well informed about what technology they are going to use, and be ready to invest his time to teach according to each students learning style.

  First, the instructor may need to give learner surveys so that he can learn how the students learn best. He will also need to find ways to motivate students to and other trainers to interact more when either in the face-to-face classroom or in the blended classroom. He also need s to know if the company is willing to purchase software of technology to access information on the server.

Preplanning

  This is the most important part of the beginning this change. This manager needs to know how he will divide the students, how to choose what material he will teach, and will everyone be happy about the change. Eduviews writes “A study by Susan Lowes, Ph.D., at Columbia University describes another dimension to the efficacy of blended learning. This research found that teachers’ instructional practices are transformed by learning how to teach online, because they develop new skills and build pedagogical strategies using technology. The research also reported that online teaching improves practices in both virtual and face-to-face settings. Further, 75% of the teachers in this study said that teaching online had a positive impact on their face-to-face teaching.” Will this be the results that will be gained for this manager?

  Will the course encourage communication? We all know that we communicate, because we have a reason to talk. Will the presentation of the course and the instructors inspire communication? Will those who do not like to communicate join in on discussions to give their contribution to any discussions they may be posted. Edudemic talks about ideas for better communication in an online course. Here are a few prompts to keep in mind to encourage conversation:

10 Prompts to Stimulate Conversation

• Share personal stories of overcoming
• Be understanding when things come up
• Set clear action plans for failing students
• Use video chat to explain information
• Read an entire email before responding
• Ask students for their proposed solutions
• Don’t forget about the A students
• Contact your boss for assistance
• Allocate more time for needy students
• Ask if you have answered adequately
• Don’t criticize the school, course, or leaders

References

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2009). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (4th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

http://www.edudemic.com/encouraging-better-online-student-faculty-contact/

https://www.blackboard.com/resources/k12/Bb_K12_WP_BlendedLearning.pdf

Technology is being used for our everyday lives. There are so many different kinds to choose from that research has to be done to know which one will be of use for the kind of end result that an instructor may want. With any instructional activity heavily invested in technology for the delivery of content, the choice of types of tools is important (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2012, 204). This leads to instructors having to think creatively to design instruction that will allow their students to interact while learning material.

There are so many questions that one might ask themselves when trying to choose the right kind technology for distance learning. It is important that there be work done on the front end to ensure that the technologies that will be used will benefit all learners. Technology used in distance learning should be considered as a tool to deliver the instruction and not as a method (203). You have to plan how you would use the technology to present information to your learners and you also have to learn how to use the technology so that you can get the best end product. Using the distance education technologies should not limit the choice of strategies used by instructors, but should open new possibilities for those wishing to enrich their teaching (Smaldino, Lowther, & Russell, 2011; Westbrook, 2006).

The example that I chose to focus on is example 2 interactive tours. It reads “A high school history teacher, located on the west coast of the United States, wants to showcase to her students new exhibits being held at two prominent New York City museums. The teacher wants her students to take a "tour" of the museums and be able to interact with the museum curators, as well as see the art work on display. Afterward, the teacher would like to choose two pieces of artwork from each exhibit and have the students participate in a group critique of the individual work of art. As a novice of distance learning and distance learning technologies, the teacher turned to the school district’s instructional designer for assistance. In the role of the instructional designer, what distance learning technologies would you suggest the teacher use to provide the best learning experience for her students?” In this case there are two things that need to be accomplished. The first is the teacher would like for the students to take a tour of these two museums and interact with the curator. A virtual field trip combined with video conferencing equipment would be one of the best kinds of technologies to use for this part of the assignment. Not only are the students able to tour the museum, but they can also ask the tour guide “curator” questions pertaining to this assignment.

Next, it says that the instructor would like for the students to critique two art pieces. This can be obtained from the museums website or sent as a picture file to the teacher to display for his or her students. This could be used as a collaborative assignment where students could be put into groups and maybe linked to have a video conference with a New York City school that was able to view the display. This is a great interactive piece for high school students to hear viewpoints of students from another side of the country. A well-designed distance education course can be as easy to deliver as a traditional face-to-face course (205).

References

Education world. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech071.shtml

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

Video conferencing for education. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.ivci.com/education-video-conferencing.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8BSzQG2Ti0

Wk1

When I first started in a distance learning course I said to myself "this is going to be the hardest thing that I ever do in my life." That was about 6 years ago. To me the thought of distance learning made me cringe because I didn't think it was possible to learn without a teacher in front of me. Every time I logged in for class I had the hardest time staying motivated and getting myself together in order to finish assignments. My personal observation for this course is that it will teach me how to appreciate the luxury of learning from a distance. I hope to gain a lot of knowledge on how to teach a course from a distance to a group of learners from all age groups. Upon reading the information for this class I learned many things. One of those things is that distance education is becoming more world-wide. Because of the availability or access to internet that the world has been experiencing, everyone now has the chance to learn from a distance. Anywhere in the world now, you can be given a quality education from a great teacher. This has given many an opportunity to receive diplomas or degrees. Distance education has a major and varied impact worldwide (Simson, Smaldino, Albright, and Zvacek). In the United States in particular the ability to receive an education from a distance is always advertised. This has changed my feelings of distance learning. I have begun to feel that distance learning is the new way of giving those who are unable to go into a school building to learn a chance to learn. This is also done at the students pace or when the student is able to complete the assignments. This has taken off some of the load and self-esteem issues that people have suffered with which makes me happy to be a part of such a wonderful concept of learning that will bring in a brighter future. There are many hopes that I have for distance learning. One being that I hope it is able to help children in other countries to be educated by teachers in the states. In many countries students are unable to receive the quality education that students who are born in the states receive "free education." This would allow these students more options for higher education and even allow them to attend school here as well. To conclude, my experience with distance learning then and now has changed dramatically. From being terrified of it, to wanting it to help others it has become the way to get an education nowadays. Resources Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

Designing for Distance

T.H. White once said in The Once and Future King “The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn.” This is true when thinking about educating yourself through an online course. The course that I chose to analyze on its effectiveness as an online distance course is the Exposing Digital Photography Computer Science E-7 course through the Open Culture website. This course is designed to teach students about the terms and use of digital cameras. The instructor states that students are “not required to own a digital camera, but if you do, one with a manual mode and an option for RAW is recommended” (Exploring Digital Photography). According to what I have learned over the past few weeks I understand that a good distance education course should be able to do certain things for the students who are participating in the course. One of the things that I will focus on is that a good distance course should have a website that can be easily navigated through. This Computer Science E-7 course has just that. Once you enter the website on the left hand side you have an introduction from the instructor along with his email address if you need to contact him. He also gives students a brief look into what the course is about along with some other information you will need to know for the course. The instructor then puts on the right side of his website, links to his lectures. Students also have resources linked to the lectures. Some of these resources include links, slides, and videos. In these the instructor goes into great detail about the materials needed or used for digital cameras. This is a great way of having students connect to the course. Morrison, Ross, and Kemp state that “When the learners have an understanding of the reasons why they are participating in a particular type of instructional activity, they are better able to use that experience to expedite their own learning (Teaching and Learning at a Distance Foundations of Distance Education). A lot of times instructors focus so much on how to make their website so “pretty” that they forget that there must be a certain flow in order to keep students from playing a guessing game or getting frustrated when looking for what they need.

Distance Learning then and distance learning now

  When I first started in a distance learning course I said to myself "this is going to be the hardest thing that I ever do in my life." That was about 6 years ago. To me the thought of distance learning made me cringe because I didn't think it was possible to learn without a teacher in front of me. Every time I logged in for class I had the hardest time staying motivated and getting myself together in order to finish assignments. My personal observation for this course is that it will teach me how to appreciate the luxury of learning from a distance. I  hope to gain a lot of knowledge on how to teach a course from a distance.
  Upon reading the information for this class I learned many things. One of those things is that distance education is becoming more world-wide. Because of the availability or access to internet that the world has been experiencing, everyone now has the chance to learn from a distance. Anywhere in the world now, you can be given a quality education from a great teacher. This has given many an opportunity to receive diplomas or degrees. Distance education has a major and varied impact worldwide (Simson, Smaldino, Albright, and Zvacek).
  In the United States in particular the ability to receive an education from a distance is always advertised. This has changed my feelings of distance learning. I have begun to feel that distance learning is the new way of giving those who are unable to go into a school building to learn a chance to learn. This is also done at the students pace or when the student is able to complete the assignments. This has taken off some of the load and self esteem issues that people have suffered with which makes me happy to be a part of such a wonderful concept of learning that will bring in a brighter future.
  There are many hopes that I have for distance learning. One being that I hope it is able to help children in other countries to be educated by teachers in the states. In many countries students are unable to receive the quality education that students who are born  in the states receive "free education." This would allow these students more options for higher education and even allow them to attend school here as well.
  To conclude, my experience with distance learning then and now has changed dramatically. From being terrified of it, to wanting it to help others it has become the way to get an education nowadays.

Week 8

“In the world that we live in today technology has taken over, even in education. "Adults want to go back to school, but because of the burdens of life it has become hard for an adult to further their educations.

This course learning theories education has opened my eyes into a different side of education that I never could understand.  My distance learning experience has been a real eye opener from learning about how the brain functions; reflect on how I learn, to constructivist learning theories. I was able to understand that tin order for the brain to retain information there are certain steps that the brain needs to go through. This was very important to me, as a special education teacher, because it helps me to plan differently when designing a lesson plan for my students.

Next, I can finally say that I understand how I learn. I was forced to seek this out, but I am grateful that I had to. If one is not aware of how he or she learns, then studying will be in vain. I was able to analyze why it was always so hard for me as a child to retain information and why I did not like school; now I know that I just never learned the way the teacher expected me to learn material. That is why engagement is so key in an online course. No matter what the material is that a teacher is going to go over, the information should “blow students minds.” This course gave me reasons to think and want to ask others questions. The connection between learning theories, learning styles, educational technology, and motivation level all follow one another. In order to teach others you must get to know the learning theories then the styles of learning  to make sure you are teaching to all learning styles. Next, you must use technology to add on to the educational experience since technology is taking over . Last, you have to be motivated to learn the material eager to accomplish the goals you set for yourself retaining information gone over in a class or during a course all has to deal with that persons motivation to want to learn that information. This course has left me with better understanding of education and how we take in the information that we store in our minds to create an interactive learning environment.

week 7

When you get older you also get a little wiser.  An unknown author states that “We all understand learning styles to be an individual's natural or habitual pattern of acquiring and processing information in learning situations. A core concept is that individuals differ in how they learn. The idea of individualized learning styles originated in the 1970s, and has greatly influenced education. “

The process of trying to figure out how it is that I learn kept me puzzled for a little while. Now my view on it has definitely changed. I no longer think that I learn by looking at notes that I wrote and going home to review the information. I have learned that I miss key examples while trying to keep up with lectures. The ways that I have noticed that I learn is through: repetition, notes, technology and doing something hands on to help me understand fully what is being taught. I had to continuously work at different ways to help me retain information/material without studying the information. Well in the long run I learned that I am not only one learning style, but also all three.  Everyone has their own way of learning new material and I happen to be one of those people that require all three learning styles being addressed during a lesson.

The role of technology in my learning is the promotion of applying my skills or what I’ve learned interactively. Having technology as a component in my learning gives me an opportunity to show mastery on the new skills that I have acquired, and It also helps to see the material visually. Visual stimulation works for me because it helps me to see how things come together. Some people don’t need to see what is being lectured or explained, but sometimes bringing in some form of technology adds a special component, interactive learning.

References:

http://www.learningforward.org/docs/default-source/commoncore/the-role-of-technology-for-teacher-and-student-learning.pdf

    
Now that you have had the chance to view my think map let's talk about how the social networks that I am involved with help me to learn. I have three specific social learning networks that I subscribe to just because I want to expand my knowledge on specific things.

I will begin with teachertube. I love this sight because it helps with activating or even some review lessons. Every time I begin to plan a new lesson I log on to this site and begin browsing so that my students can feel a little less intimidated when the material is being taught. The nest social network would be Pinterest. I know you are thinking to yourself, but that is not a social network. For me though, it is different. I seek out the people who posted certain things that I want to know about for my classroom. I log on to check out hands on activities for my student’s to get them showing me mastery on a specific topic. There are times when teachers have even posted the way that they assess their students when you click on their link. They talk to you about their lesson from beginning to end. Teachers even tell you sometimes what they found the most difficult to do with the lesson.

Lastly, I love edmodo. This social network is a great learning tool for me. I get to see how other curriculums are getting lessons together and talking about ways to engage your students in order to aide in the process of students understanding the material. This social network helps me because not only am I able to view lesson teachers have used, but they also post video’s and handouts that were used during the lesson. Using the internet to learn shows how connectivism is definitely working for those of us who learn by research.

Connectivism

 

Connectivism- Thinking Map

https://bubbl.us/?h=1a82ed/34e59b/17M6nIEs/9Dow

Please click on the link above to see my think map of the social networks. This think map shows how the theory works for me.

 We are now going to begin talking about the the issues with information processing this week. I want to understand a little more about how the brain processes information which causes us to learn. I bumped into http://good-college-admission-essay-examples.blogspot.com/2013/09/information-processing-theory.html this site give me an overview of how information is processed in the brain. "The Information Processing supposition has quintuplet working(a) characters that include sensation, perception, sensory render, working memory, and bulky-term memory. by the piece of these regions provides something different." When I begin to read this information I feel overwhelmed, because I am not sure what this really means. I begin to read a little further and I begin to understand that the brain can only take in so much. Even though the brain controls a lot of organs in our body it continues to be a work in progress. Now you are probably thinking to yourself “what does she mean by that?”

Well I am talking about how information in the brain is processed. The brain is not taught much, but it processes information just like a computer and it bring it whenever you need it. In my exploring to find out how information is processed I ran into an article about the brain, after all you can’t talk about processing without knowing anything about the brain. I stumbled on a blog that did just that http://blog.bufferapp.com/10-surprising-facts-about-how-our-brain-works here we learn ten surprising facts about the brain. One in particular that I found interesting is that it is impossible for our brains to multi-task. “Multi-tasking is something we’ve long been encouraged to practice, but it turns out it’s actually impossible. When we think we’re multi-tasking, we’re actually context-switching. That is, we’re quickly switching back-and-forth between different tasks, rather than doing them at the same time.” This quickly made me think about inside of my classroom and how frustrated my students are when I give them notes to take while teaching a lesson. I did not seem to understand why they would get so upset or shut down sometimes until I bumped into this. It all makes sense now; one thing at a time can be processed if we give it enough time to enter our brains.

I hope this was informational for you.

Langevin http://www.langevin.com/blog/ has recently caught my eye because of all the wonderful things I see going on, let's take a peak and see what is going on. This blog gives a wealth of information educators. It is an online support for those educators who feel like they need extra something something to take them where they need to be in order to be the best. This blog helped me to find icebreakers, activating strategies, and accommodations for students who need accommodation. I believe that this blog would be a great resource for a new teacher. In it the teacher would be able to be directed in a way that would take some time for an individual to explain. I would also use this blog for tips on lesson planning.

I think that it is very important to know who are teaching. When you are able to identify the audience then you can equip yourself with what’s necessary to teach. Teaching material does not come as something you can do the same way every time, because of the way we are learning that learning takes place in each individual we are beginning to understand more that not every person learns the same way. This blog site is a great place to begin a journey, because it help you to find may ways to support all types of learners without making it seem  as if the work will become a gruesome task.

I enjoyed reading the blogs. The information given was very straight and to the point for all that read, especially when it came to the pointers that were being given. It helped me to see how important a very well and thought out lesson can help students who are struggling to learn. Many times our students do not like to ask questions so it helps to have a lesson that might hit on any questions students may have later.  

The area of instructional design is a very interesting area to become familiar with because as educators we must begin to find ways to come up with lessons that will engage all learners and give them accommodations. There are three sites that I chose to follow blogs on in order to better understand the process of learning and comprehend the different ways that learning takes place. The first site that was chosen was http://www.learnlets.com this blog explores the brain and its role in learning. This blog seemed very interesting. Upon first glance the blog site seemed to talk about the history of learning, but with further investigation this site showed the function of the brain in learning and what is affected when learning happens. Usually curiosity would stop here for most, but in order to begin to understand the dynamics of learning one must begin to explore learning types.

Constructivism is form of learning through the use of one taking ones learning into ones hand. The learner makes himself/ or herself responsible for their own learning. This blog explores the different theories that have been researched about learning. The different scholars who came up with different ways into looking at the brains processes of learning and working on ways to identify this type of learner. In this blog http://constructivist-education.blogspot.com/ not only does its readers learn more about the process this learning type, but readers also get to see what areas of the brain are working if this type  of learning is determined. Which would lead one to wonder how technology fits into learning in this day and age where it seems as if everything you want to know is just a click away.

Lastly, a blog that would deal with the way people are leaning today, using technology. According to the blog it is very helpful for educators whereas it gives many resources on how to incorporate technology into the classroom. It explains a new way of teaching in school using a technique called Common Core. This way of teaching on http://edutopia.com has to deal with tricking students to think critically. Students are forced to give more evidence based answers which goes against the ways that learning was explained in the past. This blog gives a wealth of information especially to those who are looking to understand how they can reach all learning styles within one lesson.

These blogs will begin to put the majority of educators who are looking for better ways to understanding learners in the classroom closer to our goal. We will be able to plan a lesson that keeps all of our students engaged.