Section VIII adresses new directions and emerging technologies for IDT. From the 3 you selected, reflect on how you might apply them in your current or future position in the IDT field. What learning goals or objectives could the technologies you selected help learners foster? Could the technology facilitate attainment of that learning goal better than traditional instruction? Why or why not?
Currently in my classroom I use e-learning environments, learning objects, and rich media. As in every case there is always room for improvement and learning new techniques. Below are the three technologies I focused on for this weeks discussion:
E-learning Environments
Since my class is a technology based class, our classroom environment has been fostered around a program called Schoology. In Schoology, I have created an open forum for students to form discussion forums, respond to questions, turn in work, and take exams. A favored benefit of this program is the availability of it. It fosters much like my online masters program classes. Students have undeniable access outside of site construction issues. Another upside to using this program is that I can grade work or the program can grade work and that grade is transported to an online grade book. This grade book aligns with our campus grade book so my students have an up-to-date grade instead of waiting till progress reports/progress reports. In using Schoology, I can provide my students information easier and efficiently.
Reusable Design or Learning Objects
This year our district has incorporated Google Drive. This tool has been so beneficial to my class because it allows for my students to have so many resources at their fingertips. Students can keep their work in one central location and never have to worry about having to have a usb. Google Drive is somewhat of a online usb, but also allows for users to create documents. The documents format is ideally like Microsoft. You can create a document (word), presentation (powerpoint), or spreasheet (excel).This is also a good area for my students to collaborate on work. When we begin group projects students can give access to others and this allows for real-time editing of all member. This application is interchangeable because it does not require much instruction due to its relevance to other programs used in class.
Rich Media
Rich Media is crucial in my classroom. When I first began teaching I had a lot of teacher led instruction. I was just beginning so I was working off of how school was for me....WRONG WRONG WRONG! Not only did I realize that I would have a hard time learning what I was teaching, my students were struggling even more. I realized I needed to put myself in my students shoes. By incorporating video, animation, and visuals my classroom involvement and grades dramatically increased. It was like a whole new classroom. As stated in this weeks reading from the book, visuals provide two opportunities to learn: they hear it and then they see it. This allows for more investment in new knowledge. Especially in dealing with technology, students need to be able to see it and understand how it works. At the beginning of my class my students begin with, "Mrs. Martin, this whachta-ma-call-it is broken" and transition to using the correct terminology after they complete their internet scavenger hunt assignment. I always hear during that assignment, "Oh, I knew what that was!"
By incorporating e-learning environments, learning objects, and rich media, they facilitate attainment of learning goals better than traditional instruction. Lets face it, it takes a lot for students to learn. It has to be meaningful and inclusive to them. The best way I have found for my students to learn is letting them interactive with new information and allowing them to be hands-on. This really allows them to put two and two together and further understand, rather than listening to a person instruct them on new material while they are off in lala land wondering what they are going to do when they get done with school.
Section XV focuses on issues related to instructional design, rather than new technologies: professional ethics, diversity and accessibility, the nature of design, and providing instructional guidance. For each of the technologies you selected above, discuss what ethical issues using the technology might present. Does the technology enhance accessibility and accommodate diverse learning needs? How and /or can you design instruction using that technology? How much guidance would instruction with that technology require? What kinds of guidance would be necessary?
In incorporating elearning environments, learning objects, and rich media, I am attempting to differentiate my classroom. This is crucial in connecting with my students and helping to make them successful. When dealing with ethical issues, I need to keep in mind is that I am reaching all members of my classroom. Is material understandable from all types of learning styles. Just because a solution works well for the majority of the class, doesn't mean it will work for all of the class, the main goal is reaching ALL students. I also need to consider is it going to personally help my students in their growth. When finding materials to present to my students on our classroom online, is it fair-use (copyright)? Just as I teach my students to give credit where it is due, I need to model the same. When approaching information that I present, I have to think of all of my students. Am I posting a discussion that my limited english proficiency students can understand. I have worked with a monitored language proficiency student a few years ago and he worked so hard to try and be normal. He wanted nothing more than to fit in, but had a hard time reading certain levels of reading. To solve this problem, I always found some type of youtube video that aided in the material so I could work with him and anyone else in my classroom to build a better understanding. I made the video as a supplement to my classroom, but really geared it towards his needs. When using materials in class, I have to decide what is the overall goal. Sometimes I need the material to be designed to solve a problem so I can advance my students beyond the knowledge level and into the application level. Not everything I present to my students is broaden their knowledge, times I am pushing my students to enhance. As my Father as always said, "It is not the quantity you have, but the quality!" I would rather my students have a deep understanding of limited topics in my class than a base knowledge of a lot of things. This creates a problem when making material meaningful. When discussing topics such as meaningful, you have to consider the gap between your students. You never want material too high or too low. If you are missing this group of students, then students are easy to not be interested. This is why I strategically group students of higher thinking skills with those that may not be on the level they need to be. This allows for minimal guidance from myself because my higher level student is assisting and reiterating learning to a student who is lower. I have incorporated a buddy system in my classroom, where students group up into 2-3 students and view the same material, but have talk time about the topic. This builds knowledge because interpretations of all students are heard. In my classroom, I really lean on technology to aide the learning process. On many occasions I try to give information written, video, and step-by-step with pictures. This way I can reach everyone while getting the same message across.
E-learning environments, learning objects, and rich media are incorporated in my classroom from day 1 and utilized almost everyday. By incorporating Schoology at the beginning and using it daily, there leaves little room during the year to issues with user involvement. The learning objects I mentioned above, Google Drive, give little guidance because it is something they have used almost their entire school time, Microsoft Office. Rich media is incorporated into our e-learning environments and Google Drive to differentiate instruction and build meaning to lessons being taught.
Showing posts with label ETEC 561. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ETEC 561. Show all posts
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Getting an IDT Position and Succeeding at It
Based on this week's readings, you'll reflect on where you are, where you want to go, and what you need to learn or do to get there. Begin your post for this week with some background: what is your current job, what program are you enrolled in, what brings you to that program, and what do you expect when you graduate?
In May of 2009, I graduated from Texas A&M University in College Station. During this time, the economy was doing very well and job were scarce. I had always wanted to be a Buyer for Neiman Marcus. Due to the economic situation, NM had put a the assistant buyers program on freeze till further notice. I was crushed! So I went on a few interviews to find the next best thing and ended up working in the Investor Relations Department at Sysco foods. I realized this was not for me and geared my focus towards going back to school. On one of my days off I went to see a very close friend in her classroom. I had so much fun that day that I came back the next day to help her out. I started thinking about it and decided that I wanted to be in education. I applied for an alternative certification program and by the end of the summer I was certified and ready to go. I went on two interviews, one of which didn't even feel like an interview. Needless to say, I am still working at that school. Currently, I am an 8th grade teacher, teaching Digital Design and Media Production and Math Intervention. I am in my 5th year of education and couldn't have picked another path. Since I have been a teacher I have devoted myself to my students. I have sponsored a business organization where my students have advanced to Nationals 4 years in a row and I have also been the yearbook adviser for 4 years. After never saying no to anything my Administrators have asked me to do, my Principal recently brought me in his office to ask about my future. We discussed trying the Principal route, but I had also had my eyes set on a Program Director. He agreed that both would be a great fit for me and wanted me to apply for a position. I was incredibly honored that he thought of me for the position and so I did. There was only one problem, I did not meet the requirements. My principal suggested that I still apply for the position because they may work with me if I am pursuing a graduate degree. From that meeting I applied and began to get serious about furthering my education. Clearly I didn't get the position, but was told by the hiring Director that I would be a great fit and to see them once I had met the requirements. So, August 2014 I began my first semester in graduate school. I am pursuing the Educational Technology Leadership Masters Degree. I choose this degree because I am a firm believer in incorporating technology into instruction. Although I have a couple of different end careers that I want to end up in, this degree fit very well for those positions. According to my plan, which seems to change every other week, I am hoping to graduate in 2015. With my degree, I am hoping that I can start moving up the ladder. Currently, the positions that I want to move into require at least 18 hours of graduate work, which I will have by May, and a Principal certification, which I plan on taking my test in January. Ideally, I would like to be a Program Director of Career and Technology Education. I realize that this field is limited within my district, so I would not mind trying out being a Principal while I wait. On the other hand, I do have a back-up plan. When I first got into education, I said that I was not going to do it forever. I figured I would teach while I still enjoyed it, but thought that I wouldn't be energized forever in teacher kids. I had said that I was going to be a curriculum developer for a big corporate company to create their training programs for their employees. Little did I know that I would love my job so much. So I decided to do something along the lines of that and geared my attention towards a Program Director.
Describe the kind of work that you want to do and the type of organization or institution in which you want to work. Use the WorkMatrix in the chapter titled "Getting a Job in Business and Industry" to help organize your thoughts. Do you most desire first, second, third, or fourth level service? Or would you rather design or develop instruction? What features of work are important to you? What economic sector do you want to work in? Based on these intentions, explain what you need to learn. What skills and qualifications do you need? Will you obtain the skills you need in the required courses in your program? What electives might you need to take to help you develop skills specific to your aspirations?
My ultimate career goal is a position as a Program Director of Career and Technology Education. I like the idea of giving teachers the tools they need to be successful in their classroom (level 1). I also like that I would be able to create the curriculum for this department. It is very important for the environment be that of innovation and collaboration amongst professionals. I have worked closely with this group and I love the atmosphere they have. All Directors work hard to promote student growth. I really do enjoy my district, so I would prefer to stay with my district.
In order to move to this position, I need to advance my education by obtaining my masters and principals certification. I believe it is important that I need to be able to communicate with members of the district at all levels; understand incorporate state and national standards; listen to teachers and other stakeholders to their concerns and ideas to make them valuable to the education process; problem solver to overcome obstacles; and open-minded in order to see other views and interpretations. I believe these are obtainable and graduate school will benefit me because it will provide me with more information and the ability to think on different levels. While in graduate school, the required courses for my program are great for building a solid foundation. As well as studying design & development, research, and evaluation. I also believe that some of the electives I can take will be beneficial as well. Some courses that I am interested in are geared towards the strategic planning for technology integration; building web-sites; and game and simulations for learning.
Finally, what organizations would best support your continued learning after you graduate? Do you think you would benefit from joining those organizations before graduating? Explain why or why not?
I am currently apart of TCEA (Texas Computer Educator Association). I do find this program beneficial because I receive updates on the newest technology as well as the conferences that TCEA is affiliated with. A conference that I do attend yearly is the Technology and Curriculum Conference of Aldine (TCCA). At this conference, I attend many sessions about the newest technology as well as sessions on iPad apps. Another conference I attend yearly is the Texas Career Education Conderence (TCEC). This conference covers the same type of sessions as TCCA, but is on a much larger scale with more vendors. These conferences are very informative and beneficial for my classroom. I also think that this conference also provides sessions that assist with me farthing my career and allows me to collaborate with other professionals. I believe it is very important to be involved in organizations at all levels of your career. Whether you are in graduate school, teacher, or even Administration. Technology and education are consistently enhancing, so being involved really allows you insight and to date with the newest innovates. From this section, I found many organizations interesting. The following organizations listed below are the organizations I would be interested in:
Although each of these organizations publishes to journals, the following journals are some that I would consider subscribing to.
In May of 2009, I graduated from Texas A&M University in College Station. During this time, the economy was doing very well and job were scarce. I had always wanted to be a Buyer for Neiman Marcus. Due to the economic situation, NM had put a the assistant buyers program on freeze till further notice. I was crushed! So I went on a few interviews to find the next best thing and ended up working in the Investor Relations Department at Sysco foods. I realized this was not for me and geared my focus towards going back to school. On one of my days off I went to see a very close friend in her classroom. I had so much fun that day that I came back the next day to help her out. I started thinking about it and decided that I wanted to be in education. I applied for an alternative certification program and by the end of the summer I was certified and ready to go. I went on two interviews, one of which didn't even feel like an interview. Needless to say, I am still working at that school. Currently, I am an 8th grade teacher, teaching Digital Design and Media Production and Math Intervention. I am in my 5th year of education and couldn't have picked another path. Since I have been a teacher I have devoted myself to my students. I have sponsored a business organization where my students have advanced to Nationals 4 years in a row and I have also been the yearbook adviser for 4 years. After never saying no to anything my Administrators have asked me to do, my Principal recently brought me in his office to ask about my future. We discussed trying the Principal route, but I had also had my eyes set on a Program Director. He agreed that both would be a great fit for me and wanted me to apply for a position. I was incredibly honored that he thought of me for the position and so I did. There was only one problem, I did not meet the requirements. My principal suggested that I still apply for the position because they may work with me if I am pursuing a graduate degree. From that meeting I applied and began to get serious about furthering my education. Clearly I didn't get the position, but was told by the hiring Director that I would be a great fit and to see them once I had met the requirements. So, August 2014 I began my first semester in graduate school. I am pursuing the Educational Technology Leadership Masters Degree. I choose this degree because I am a firm believer in incorporating technology into instruction. Although I have a couple of different end careers that I want to end up in, this degree fit very well for those positions. According to my plan, which seems to change every other week, I am hoping to graduate in 2015. With my degree, I am hoping that I can start moving up the ladder. Currently, the positions that I want to move into require at least 18 hours of graduate work, which I will have by May, and a Principal certification, which I plan on taking my test in January. Ideally, I would like to be a Program Director of Career and Technology Education. I realize that this field is limited within my district, so I would not mind trying out being a Principal while I wait. On the other hand, I do have a back-up plan. When I first got into education, I said that I was not going to do it forever. I figured I would teach while I still enjoyed it, but thought that I wouldn't be energized forever in teacher kids. I had said that I was going to be a curriculum developer for a big corporate company to create their training programs for their employees. Little did I know that I would love my job so much. So I decided to do something along the lines of that and geared my attention towards a Program Director.
Describe the kind of work that you want to do and the type of organization or institution in which you want to work. Use the WorkMatrix in the chapter titled "Getting a Job in Business and Industry" to help organize your thoughts. Do you most desire first, second, third, or fourth level service? Or would you rather design or develop instruction? What features of work are important to you? What economic sector do you want to work in? Based on these intentions, explain what you need to learn. What skills and qualifications do you need? Will you obtain the skills you need in the required courses in your program? What electives might you need to take to help you develop skills specific to your aspirations?
My ultimate career goal is a position as a Program Director of Career and Technology Education. I like the idea of giving teachers the tools they need to be successful in their classroom (level 1). I also like that I would be able to create the curriculum for this department. It is very important for the environment be that of innovation and collaboration amongst professionals. I have worked closely with this group and I love the atmosphere they have. All Directors work hard to promote student growth. I really do enjoy my district, so I would prefer to stay with my district.
In order to move to this position, I need to advance my education by obtaining my masters and principals certification. I believe it is important that I need to be able to communicate with members of the district at all levels; understand incorporate state and national standards; listen to teachers and other stakeholders to their concerns and ideas to make them valuable to the education process; problem solver to overcome obstacles; and open-minded in order to see other views and interpretations. I believe these are obtainable and graduate school will benefit me because it will provide me with more information and the ability to think on different levels. While in graduate school, the required courses for my program are great for building a solid foundation. As well as studying design & development, research, and evaluation. I also believe that some of the electives I can take will be beneficial as well. Some courses that I am interested in are geared towards the strategic planning for technology integration; building web-sites; and game and simulations for learning.
Finally, what organizations would best support your continued learning after you graduate? Do you think you would benefit from joining those organizations before graduating? Explain why or why not?
I am currently apart of TCEA (Texas Computer Educator Association). I do find this program beneficial because I receive updates on the newest technology as well as the conferences that TCEA is affiliated with. A conference that I do attend yearly is the Technology and Curriculum Conference of Aldine (TCCA). At this conference, I attend many sessions about the newest technology as well as sessions on iPad apps. Another conference I attend yearly is the Texas Career Education Conderence (TCEC). This conference covers the same type of sessions as TCCA, but is on a much larger scale with more vendors. These conferences are very informative and beneficial for my classroom. I also think that this conference also provides sessions that assist with me farthing my career and allows me to collaborate with other professionals. I believe it is very important to be involved in organizations at all levels of your career. Whether you are in graduate school, teacher, or even Administration. Technology and education are consistently enhancing, so being involved really allows you insight and to date with the newest innovates. From this section, I found many organizations interesting. The following organizations listed below are the organizations I would be interested in:
- Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE): This one caught my eye because it is international so collaboration on a large scale takes place. As well as the involvement of different professionals caught my eye. This organization also is appealing because it has an online career center, which could be beneficial during graduate school and any level of your career, and a digital library with access to thousands of journal articles and conference proceedings.
- International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI): This organization would be a great source for keeping up with the application of human performance technology. Human performance is identified in theorist so keeping up with new discoveries attracts me to this organization.
- Society for Applied Learning Technology (SALT): This organization focuses on instructional technology. I like this because it is geared towards a wide-range of instructional technologies across the board and not just educate specific.
Although each of these organizations publishes to journals, the following journals are some that I would consider subscribing to.
- Cognition and Instruction: This journal publishes articles on cognitive investigations of instruction and technology. This is would be a good journal to subscribe to because the focus of cognition is a key element in education.
- Computers in Human Behavior:This journal addresses human interactions with computers and psychological impact of computer use on individuals, groups, and society. This would be a good journal to keep up with because it focuses on the relationship of computers and different types of groups.
- Journal of Interactive Media in Education: This journal is an open review where readers can communicate with the author on their findings. Articles consist of theory, research, and practice of interactive media in education.
- Journal of Research on Technology in Education: This journal publishes on research studies, system or project descriptions and evaluations, syntheses of literature, and theoretical or conceptual positions that relate to educational computing. This journal is unique that it is aimed towards international audience and focuses on the evaluation process which is key in education to make sure what is being used is beneficial and meeting organization goals.
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Trends & Issues Various Settings
Chapters in Section V identify trends and issues in IDT in various contexts: business & industry; military; health care education; P-12 education; and post-secondary education. Select at least 3 of these 5 contexts and compare/contrast the IDT trends and issues. Then explain how they are similar or different from the IDT trends and issues in the context in which you work.
The three contexts I chose to focus on are business and industry, military training, and health care education. I think that in all contexts of these diverse areas, they face many similarities. Each of the contexts all focus on solving issues that are current and focus on problem-based learning atmospheres. Problem-based learning has become widely used across all contexts because it provides the most real-life experience and solutions to those issues. Another commonality is that all three specialties focus on a diverse group of individuals. The US within itself has become more diverse as a population, it is common to have a cross-cultural make-up in a given organization (meaning a company, service perspective, or class). With that being said, as the instructional designer, we must understand our audience when creating IDT and understand the material delivered is sensitive to all stake-holders. The main goal of each of the three contexts I focused on is effective learning.
Although the business and industry, military training, and health care education face similar trends, they also face different types of issues within the same spectrum. The first issues is that of funding for such IDT. Business and industry tend to have less constraints than that of the military and health care. Business and industry are funded from within, where as military is funded by the government, and health care has been affected by the rising costs of healthcare and managed care. In the business and industry spectrum they are focused with the pressure to provide "better, faster, and cheaper" and this drives the type of instruction. In the military and healthcare spectrum, they are focused on learning communities that are more difficult to assimilate. The environments in which each of these contexts work in vary differently in the way that business and industry are more organized and military and healthcare are more of reactive environments. Which leads to the main difference in each of these contexts is the end goal: profits, security, and education.
I work in the middle school level of education so I do experience some of these trends and issues. I too have to work with real world instructional design. It is important for my students to have access to technology because they learn better when they are focused on (i.e. learner-centered). While focusing on my students, as an educator I have to recognize that all students are not the same learner. This is important to understand because in order for my students to learn, the material has to be meaningful to them as well as adjusted to their learning styles. Every time I prepare a lesson, I have to keep in mind the diverse groups of students that I teach and apply that to my lesson. I also have to take into consideration that I work in a Title 1 school so the socioeconomic background of my students must be taken into consideration as well. Nothing shuts down a student faster than when they are limited, but still expected to perform at the same level as everyone else. A prime example of this would be for me to assign homework and demand that it be typed and submitted online. By knowing my students, I need to give students options for turning in their work as all of my students do not have internet at home, let alone a computer.
When looking at issues in comparison to the contexts I reviewed, education is funded by the government. This becomes an issue because as an educator, we are required to produce a quality education regardless of funding and availability to resources. In my area, we do receive special funding because of our status of Title 1. This does allow us to have special funds outside of what we are given to further assist our students educational needs. A lot of the time these funds are used to buy more technology to help our students learning experience become more meaningful. So the instructional design is benefited because of this type of funding.
Chapters in Section VI discuss global trends and issues in IDT. As the world's population grows exponentially, we face unprecedented challenges that have implications for learning. How and can we prepare our youth to address the problems of living in a world with 9 billion people when the earth's resources cannot sustain that many? Does our current education system, curriculum, and instructional practices help learners foster the complex problem-solving skills necessary to tackle these issues? Are there methods and practices used in European and Asian countries that we should use here in the US? Why or why not?
After reading these chapters, I noticed a universal commonality...continuous learning. Currently, we understand so much more thanks to innovation and technology advancements, just to name a few. If we focus on long-term solutions, instead of quick-fixs, we could really be successful in regards to problem solving. A main feature that must be present is complete buy-in from all stakeholders. If all invest, then we could work together to create great solutions. When working with continuous learning, it is important to continuously improve and modify because what may be true yesterday, could be very different today. I believe we have began to really focus on problem-solving skills with our students by the use of performance-based activities. This is vital because it takes away the rote questioning and gives real-world experiences meaning. I believe that this does provide a gray area in the sense of state testing. State testing, in my view use to be a joke. I felt that a student didn't really apply advanced skills except basic knowledge and understanding, we missed the application process. As we have moved to more "applied" scenarios in testing, I believe we are moving in the right direction. If we could come together and collaborate on a larger scale, then just imagine what could be produced. I do believe that e-learning communities are important because what you learned in high school has changed and we need to continuously update our knowledge. E-learning should comprise of not only updating your knowledge, but fostering an area to collaborate with other individuals in the same field.
I do believe each of the countries I viewed in these chapters did have something right. In Japan, the late night talks between older and newer teachers fostered time for growing. I see this as vital to instructional design and because collaboration and feedback from others is how we create and learn. If we are continuously visiting the evaluation cycle, then improvement and advancement will prevail. Also, the fact that teachers are very competitive creates an internal motivation that should be present in instructors to provide the best education possible. It is also important to note that teachers are the instructional designers within their content. Who knows better about the subject matter than the teacher. In Korea, the government is supportive in e-learning and instructional design. So much to the point of providing funds to help establish such a community of learning. This is very important because the government is recognizing that this needs to occur and supports learners advancement. An important factor to note is that Japan and Korea are very centralized in the way of culture. Whereas, in Europe and the US, there are many different cultures within these areas. I believe this makes these countries unique because they cater to cross-cultural issues and have experience with working with more culturally diverse issues and have a greater chance at solving-problems.
As in Japan and Korea, instructional design was present, but not to it's fullest. We need to make sure that when creating environments of e-learning, we are not "dumbing down" material. I like Helen Parkhurt's "Dalton's Plan" in the fact that education is geared towards a students aptitudes and abilities. This is important because this is geared towards learner-centered ideas and really relates to individual learners. I also found that J. S. Bruner had great ideas that it is you can teach anything to anyone at any time as long as you continue to reinforce basic ideas, until the learner forms a complete concept. To continue, his idea of "spiral curriculum" holds intuition and creative thinking to be of high importance in learning. This is important because every student has the ability to learn, we just need to reiterate and continuously keep evaluating the way we teach and create a circular way of revisiting knowledge of learning.
The three contexts I chose to focus on are business and industry, military training, and health care education. I think that in all contexts of these diverse areas, they face many similarities. Each of the contexts all focus on solving issues that are current and focus on problem-based learning atmospheres. Problem-based learning has become widely used across all contexts because it provides the most real-life experience and solutions to those issues. Another commonality is that all three specialties focus on a diverse group of individuals. The US within itself has become more diverse as a population, it is common to have a cross-cultural make-up in a given organization (meaning a company, service perspective, or class). With that being said, as the instructional designer, we must understand our audience when creating IDT and understand the material delivered is sensitive to all stake-holders. The main goal of each of the three contexts I focused on is effective learning.
Although the business and industry, military training, and health care education face similar trends, they also face different types of issues within the same spectrum. The first issues is that of funding for such IDT. Business and industry tend to have less constraints than that of the military and health care. Business and industry are funded from within, where as military is funded by the government, and health care has been affected by the rising costs of healthcare and managed care. In the business and industry spectrum they are focused with the pressure to provide "better, faster, and cheaper" and this drives the type of instruction. In the military and healthcare spectrum, they are focused on learning communities that are more difficult to assimilate. The environments in which each of these contexts work in vary differently in the way that business and industry are more organized and military and healthcare are more of reactive environments. Which leads to the main difference in each of these contexts is the end goal: profits, security, and education.
I work in the middle school level of education so I do experience some of these trends and issues. I too have to work with real world instructional design. It is important for my students to have access to technology because they learn better when they are focused on (i.e. learner-centered). While focusing on my students, as an educator I have to recognize that all students are not the same learner. This is important to understand because in order for my students to learn, the material has to be meaningful to them as well as adjusted to their learning styles. Every time I prepare a lesson, I have to keep in mind the diverse groups of students that I teach and apply that to my lesson. I also have to take into consideration that I work in a Title 1 school so the socioeconomic background of my students must be taken into consideration as well. Nothing shuts down a student faster than when they are limited, but still expected to perform at the same level as everyone else. A prime example of this would be for me to assign homework and demand that it be typed and submitted online. By knowing my students, I need to give students options for turning in their work as all of my students do not have internet at home, let alone a computer.
When looking at issues in comparison to the contexts I reviewed, education is funded by the government. This becomes an issue because as an educator, we are required to produce a quality education regardless of funding and availability to resources. In my area, we do receive special funding because of our status of Title 1. This does allow us to have special funds outside of what we are given to further assist our students educational needs. A lot of the time these funds are used to buy more technology to help our students learning experience become more meaningful. So the instructional design is benefited because of this type of funding.
Chapters in Section VI discuss global trends and issues in IDT. As the world's population grows exponentially, we face unprecedented challenges that have implications for learning. How and can we prepare our youth to address the problems of living in a world with 9 billion people when the earth's resources cannot sustain that many? Does our current education system, curriculum, and instructional practices help learners foster the complex problem-solving skills necessary to tackle these issues? Are there methods and practices used in European and Asian countries that we should use here in the US? Why or why not?
After reading these chapters, I noticed a universal commonality...continuous learning. Currently, we understand so much more thanks to innovation and technology advancements, just to name a few. If we focus on long-term solutions, instead of quick-fixs, we could really be successful in regards to problem solving. A main feature that must be present is complete buy-in from all stakeholders. If all invest, then we could work together to create great solutions. When working with continuous learning, it is important to continuously improve and modify because what may be true yesterday, could be very different today. I believe we have began to really focus on problem-solving skills with our students by the use of performance-based activities. This is vital because it takes away the rote questioning and gives real-world experiences meaning. I believe that this does provide a gray area in the sense of state testing. State testing, in my view use to be a joke. I felt that a student didn't really apply advanced skills except basic knowledge and understanding, we missed the application process. As we have moved to more "applied" scenarios in testing, I believe we are moving in the right direction. If we could come together and collaborate on a larger scale, then just imagine what could be produced. I do believe that e-learning communities are important because what you learned in high school has changed and we need to continuously update our knowledge. E-learning should comprise of not only updating your knowledge, but fostering an area to collaborate with other individuals in the same field.
I do believe each of the countries I viewed in these chapters did have something right. In Japan, the late night talks between older and newer teachers fostered time for growing. I see this as vital to instructional design and because collaboration and feedback from others is how we create and learn. If we are continuously visiting the evaluation cycle, then improvement and advancement will prevail. Also, the fact that teachers are very competitive creates an internal motivation that should be present in instructors to provide the best education possible. It is also important to note that teachers are the instructional designers within their content. Who knows better about the subject matter than the teacher. In Korea, the government is supportive in e-learning and instructional design. So much to the point of providing funds to help establish such a community of learning. This is very important because the government is recognizing that this needs to occur and supports learners advancement. An important factor to note is that Japan and Korea are very centralized in the way of culture. Whereas, in Europe and the US, there are many different cultures within these areas. I believe this makes these countries unique because they cater to cross-cultural issues and have experience with working with more culturally diverse issues and have a greater chance at solving-problems.
As in Japan and Korea, instructional design was present, but not to it's fullest. We need to make sure that when creating environments of e-learning, we are not "dumbing down" material. I like Helen Parkhurt's "Dalton's Plan" in the fact that education is geared towards a students aptitudes and abilities. This is important because this is geared towards learner-centered ideas and really relates to individual learners. I also found that J. S. Bruner had great ideas that it is you can teach anything to anyone at any time as long as you continue to reinforce basic ideas, until the learner forms a complete concept. To continue, his idea of "spiral curriculum" holds intuition and creative thinking to be of high importance in learning. This is important because every student has the ability to learn, we just need to reiterate and continuously keep evaluating the way we teach and create a circular way of revisiting knowledge of learning.
Tuesday, September 16, 2014
Human Performance Technology
Identify a performance problem in your area of work and identify non-instructional solutions that may help solve the problem.
A performance problem is an issue that occurs in the work area that prevents something to fall out of place and have issues meeting a goal. From my experience, an example of a performance problem occurred when we alter our campus schedule. Earlier this week we had to shut down campus for intervention testing. This process allowed groups of students to come through the labs and test for 45 minutes in Reading and will do the same testing on Wednesday for Math. The previous Friday we had a brief meeting discussing how the process would take place. As I was preparing my lab, I was given a lot of last minute information. This information consisted of writing the directions on the board. As I was writing the directions it stated to open a specific icon on the desktop. This icon was not on the desktop because it had not been communicated to the computer lab teachers that we needed to download something. Another instance, as I was preparing my students to take the test someone knocked on my door to tell me they needed headphones. This was another issue because headphones had not been handed out to our labs yet for the year. A non-instructional solution to this issue could have been to meet with the lab teachers separately. Also, the teacher that was in charge of the testing was a first-year teacher. On our campus as a first-year teacher you are assigned a mentor to work with so it is a smooth transition. He and his mentor should have met prior to Friday to make sure all of the bases were covered.
Define performance support systems and explain how a performance support system might (or might not) help solve the problem you identified above.
A performance support system is some type of aid whether it be electronic, print, or a person that can provide immediate assistance in a time of need. An example of this according to my scenario above would be our google drive system. Our school district has invested in google to make information easily available. Google drive is what the teacher in charge of testing could have used to share this information. Some may think this would be time consuming, but it is really nice because everyone has access to it at all times, it is even accessible on our cell phones. This would have been a more reliable source of communication rather than speaking to teachers and not reaching very single teacher. I almost refer the issue to a game of telephone. The more it gets passed on/ or doesn't get passed on, the less information is received.
What knowledge would help solve the problem you identified above and how would that knowledge need to be collected and managed to help facilitate problem solving?
The knowledge that would have helped this scenario out was that the testing teacher should have known more about the lab set-up process and implementation. In education I have learned to NEVER just wing it, often times you find yourself in a bit of a pickle and other issues arise. If he would have come to our labs on a day or two before testing, we could have gone through the scenario of testing day and by questions from us, the computer teachers, we could have guided him in including the correct information to us. (It is almost as if he was being a information hog, as referred to in the book, and didn't even know it.) This way we would have known that the icon was not on the desktop and headphones needed to be accessed. This is a type of tacit knowledge because we would experience the situation and walk through the process to inform all of us. We could ask questions to him to guide the communication as well as he could have asked us questions in regards to what he needs to know going forward with computer labs. Going forward I would suggest that meeting with those who are directly affected to gather information and create the process for implementation before training the staff so that all information is consistent and communicated consistently.
What informal learning experiences have you participated in at your organization? Could those informal learning experiences be shared with others? Could the knowledge gained in those settings be codified and managed? And should it be managed or should the informal experiences be replicated or broadened for others?
An informal learning experience occurred last school year when all I thought I was doing was being a seen adult, I actually learned somethings. Our Principal and Assistant Principals were all out at a conference for three days. During these three days, I prepared for the worst, prayed for the best, and hoped we survive. We thought that if our students found out that they were gone for three days our campus would turn into chaos. An idea was brought up that if we gear our attention to the teachers then they wouldn't notice the absence of our administration. The idea was that during your conference period you were assigned to another classroom for 30minutes. So at all times of the day teachers were going in and out of rooms. Where the informal learning experience came into play was the interaction with students in a different atmosphere. I began noticing students act one way in one class and another way in other rooms. This was a learning process for me because I was able to see different ways to intervene with students. For example, I had a student who could never stop talking. I mean it was in her DNA that she must talk at all times. In this classroom the teacher had my talkative student sitting towards the front of the classroom and utilized her in the instruction process. This teacher had given her some queues to use to ask more question which stemmed more group collaboration and used her talking skills in a positive way. In turn, in other situations I may have had a positive experience with a student in my class and shared my process with that teacher. So this became a learning process for both of us. Lastly, for those students who I may not have had in class, but were either being very disruptive or causing issues in class I was able to go work with that student one-on-one. This allowed the teacher to continue on with their lesson and myself getting to work with this student to getting back on track.
From this experience, we have used this information and really expanded our communication on campus as far as students we share with other teachers. Not all students are going to learn from every teacher, so if another teacher has insight to help hopefully we can be more beneficial in the future. We also participate in a campus-based program called ARK, Adults Relating to Kids. In this program we meet monthly to discuss what is going on in our classrooms. What is beneficial is that we are grouped by grade level so this really assists in communicating experiences with students. This has become a learning community where we can share the experience, let loose any frustrations, and then collaborate on some alternative ways to work with that student or what has worked for that student in another classroom.
From the outcomes that I have seen with my students after having this knowledge, I believe that it should be continued. The fact that when our Administrators were off campus not one student recognized it because they were focused on the new teacher representation. Yes, it does take up time from planning, but the overall benefit was well worth more value than the 30 minutes of my conference period missed. As well as the ARK meetings should be continued because it is a time to reflect, share and collaborate on solutions to issues that could easily be solved from your peers.
A performance problem is an issue that occurs in the work area that prevents something to fall out of place and have issues meeting a goal. From my experience, an example of a performance problem occurred when we alter our campus schedule. Earlier this week we had to shut down campus for intervention testing. This process allowed groups of students to come through the labs and test for 45 minutes in Reading and will do the same testing on Wednesday for Math. The previous Friday we had a brief meeting discussing how the process would take place. As I was preparing my lab, I was given a lot of last minute information. This information consisted of writing the directions on the board. As I was writing the directions it stated to open a specific icon on the desktop. This icon was not on the desktop because it had not been communicated to the computer lab teachers that we needed to download something. Another instance, as I was preparing my students to take the test someone knocked on my door to tell me they needed headphones. This was another issue because headphones had not been handed out to our labs yet for the year. A non-instructional solution to this issue could have been to meet with the lab teachers separately. Also, the teacher that was in charge of the testing was a first-year teacher. On our campus as a first-year teacher you are assigned a mentor to work with so it is a smooth transition. He and his mentor should have met prior to Friday to make sure all of the bases were covered.
Define performance support systems and explain how a performance support system might (or might not) help solve the problem you identified above.
A performance support system is some type of aid whether it be electronic, print, or a person that can provide immediate assistance in a time of need. An example of this according to my scenario above would be our google drive system. Our school district has invested in google to make information easily available. Google drive is what the teacher in charge of testing could have used to share this information. Some may think this would be time consuming, but it is really nice because everyone has access to it at all times, it is even accessible on our cell phones. This would have been a more reliable source of communication rather than speaking to teachers and not reaching very single teacher. I almost refer the issue to a game of telephone. The more it gets passed on/ or doesn't get passed on, the less information is received.
What knowledge would help solve the problem you identified above and how would that knowledge need to be collected and managed to help facilitate problem solving?
The knowledge that would have helped this scenario out was that the testing teacher should have known more about the lab set-up process and implementation. In education I have learned to NEVER just wing it, often times you find yourself in a bit of a pickle and other issues arise. If he would have come to our labs on a day or two before testing, we could have gone through the scenario of testing day and by questions from us, the computer teachers, we could have guided him in including the correct information to us. (It is almost as if he was being a information hog, as referred to in the book, and didn't even know it.) This way we would have known that the icon was not on the desktop and headphones needed to be accessed. This is a type of tacit knowledge because we would experience the situation and walk through the process to inform all of us. We could ask questions to him to guide the communication as well as he could have asked us questions in regards to what he needs to know going forward with computer labs. Going forward I would suggest that meeting with those who are directly affected to gather information and create the process for implementation before training the staff so that all information is consistent and communicated consistently.
What informal learning experiences have you participated in at your organization? Could those informal learning experiences be shared with others? Could the knowledge gained in those settings be codified and managed? And should it be managed or should the informal experiences be replicated or broadened for others?
An informal learning experience occurred last school year when all I thought I was doing was being a seen adult, I actually learned somethings. Our Principal and Assistant Principals were all out at a conference for three days. During these three days, I prepared for the worst, prayed for the best, and hoped we survive. We thought that if our students found out that they were gone for three days our campus would turn into chaos. An idea was brought up that if we gear our attention to the teachers then they wouldn't notice the absence of our administration. The idea was that during your conference period you were assigned to another classroom for 30minutes. So at all times of the day teachers were going in and out of rooms. Where the informal learning experience came into play was the interaction with students in a different atmosphere. I began noticing students act one way in one class and another way in other rooms. This was a learning process for me because I was able to see different ways to intervene with students. For example, I had a student who could never stop talking. I mean it was in her DNA that she must talk at all times. In this classroom the teacher had my talkative student sitting towards the front of the classroom and utilized her in the instruction process. This teacher had given her some queues to use to ask more question which stemmed more group collaboration and used her talking skills in a positive way. In turn, in other situations I may have had a positive experience with a student in my class and shared my process with that teacher. So this became a learning process for both of us. Lastly, for those students who I may not have had in class, but were either being very disruptive or causing issues in class I was able to go work with that student one-on-one. This allowed the teacher to continue on with their lesson and myself getting to work with this student to getting back on track.
From this experience, we have used this information and really expanded our communication on campus as far as students we share with other teachers. Not all students are going to learn from every teacher, so if another teacher has insight to help hopefully we can be more beneficial in the future. We also participate in a campus-based program called ARK, Adults Relating to Kids. In this program we meet monthly to discuss what is going on in our classrooms. What is beneficial is that we are grouped by grade level so this really assists in communicating experiences with students. This has become a learning community where we can share the experience, let loose any frustrations, and then collaborate on some alternative ways to work with that student or what has worked for that student in another classroom.
From the outcomes that I have seen with my students after having this knowledge, I believe that it should be continued. The fact that when our Administrators were off campus not one student recognized it because they were focused on the new teacher representation. Yes, it does take up time from planning, but the overall benefit was well worth more value than the 30 minutes of my conference period missed. As well as the ARK meetings should be continued because it is a time to reflect, share and collaborate on solutions to issues that could easily be solved from your peers.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Evaluating, Implementing & Managing Instructional Programs & Projects
Search for at least two other models used for
evaluation and summarize these models. Describe how you would use them to
evaluate your instruction. Reflect on what other questions that instructional
design evaluation should address besides whether the instructional design leads
to comparable amounts of learning and learner satisfaction as traditional
methods. What else would be useful to know?
When looking at
instructional design the most “common sense” question to me is did my students
actually understand. It seems so basic, but in order to understand they have to
be able to use it. I have to design my class to involve and create excitement
so they will have motivation to appreciate the material. I guess I would say
that a question that needs to be asked during instructional design is, how involved where the students; what was their level
of enjoyment?
You have been assigned to develop a series of professional development sessions focusing on technology use in the classroom for teachers during a time of economic decline. How will you use Situational Leadership to facilitate this project and manage scarce resources?
The situation leader is a person that must adapt his or her leadership style to the individuals he or she is in charge of leading. As an example, teachers are like situational leaders. We must must adapt to the ways that our students learn in order for our students to learn. According to Dr. Paul Hersey's model presented in the book, there are four phases of situational leadership based on three factors: the amount of guidance and direction a leader gives; the the amount of socioemotional support a leader provides; and the readiness level followers exhibit in performing a specific task, function, or objective.
If I were creating a training session during a time of economic decline, I would really focus on the participants and the overall objective. I know that when I go to staff development I tend to get bored, feel as though I am in a lecture that will never end, and think that this doesn't apply to me. From what I have experienced, I would try and incorporate that. I would start out the training as direct with information and observe how involved the participants are. This will allow me to adjust to how I need to present information. Since it is a time of economic decline I would get to know what the participants currently know and what resources they have access to. The last thing you want to do is sit through instruction that has nothing to do with your classroom or training on technology that you do not have. Once I know this information, I can take it a step further and really enhance what they already know. This is also a good time to create an environment that isn't teacher versus participants, but an environment where we are working together. I would incorporate activities where participants group together and share their experiences so they can build as well as feel comfortable because they are getting feedback as well as new ideas. I think it is so important for the leader to be involved in these activities because the leader can guide the participants and assist when needed. The overall goal that I would incorporate in this training is a positive attitude, communication skills and my willingness to help. I would also continuously remind them that I am here as a resource for them and beyond those sessions I am still available. This will allow the participants to leave the session and feel comfortable because if they have questions after they leave or forget something I am still a resource that they can have access to.
A
key factor to Peter Rossi’s Five Domain Evaluation Model is one that I believe
needs to be at the top when it comes down to deciding which evaluation model to
use. This factor is that of situational factors as I see them. This model
focuses on what will work for that specific organization by what is needed
locally, resources available and type of program. Anytime a new program is
implemented it needs to be tailored to the specific organization for a
successful outcome. Not all organizations are the same, let alone their overall
goal. This is why I believe each organization should be viewed individually
instead of similar organizations grouped together. For example, in my district
we have recently changed our appraiser system. When I first joined my district
we participated in PDAS. I did not have much experience with PDAS because it
was being phased out as I was coming in, but from what I experienced it was an
unfair measure of performance because no one classroom is identical to the
other. Therefore, different appraisers viewed classrooms differently and really
didn’t allow differentiation based on subject matter. Currently, we are
utilizing the INVEST appraisal system which has four specific domains that
focuses on the different parts that make up a classroom. What is unique and
what I find to be the best part is that each curriculum has specific components
in each domain that relate to their subject matter. This is beneficial because
in a technology class, obviously technology was used during instruction and
students had access. This is not comparable to a Math class where they may have
2-3 computers and students are limited to availability to reinforcement
activities on the computers.
The
way I could use Rossi’s Five Domain Evaluation Model is when I am looking at
what ways to implement learning of photoshop. Now, I will say this, I have been
teaching for four years and I think only two years, back-to-back, did I use the
same method. When teaching such a tedious program, I really have to focus on
keeping my students involved. In order to keep my students involved I try to
work with images and corrective techniques that have a “wow” factor outcome
(needs). I could teach my students, and I have done this previously, by giving
them step-by-step instructions with pictures and let them work at their own
pace. I have found this method of teaching doesn’t retain value to my students
and if ever asked to complete those processes in a test, they were not very
successful (impact). What I have found that works best is by modeling a few
steps at a time, reviewing what my outcomes are when completing these steps,
and then letting my students perform the same tasks as I am repeating them as I
walk around the classroom. To take this a step further I have implemented
vocabulary games, such as bingo and categories, so my students have more time
to work with the terminology. Terminology has always been an obstacle to
overcome because when taking a summative assessment of photoshop, I believe students
were lost when it came down to vocabulary. Compared to previous years, the most
recent school year had to be my most successful year with photoshop in my
classroom. Time is a factor because it tends to slow the lessons down when
going through the process of I show the steps, we review outcomes, and they
perform. I would have to say that the student success rate of retained
knowledge and the quality of work that is produced in their final project
outweighs the time factors tremendously because when students take pride in
their work, they truly win.
Michael
Patton’s Utilization-Focused Evaluation is quit interesting because it focuses
on what I would see as common sense. As it states in the book, “Evaluation
process and findings are of no value unless they are used.” I interpret this as
why would you evaluate something and not use it? A unique factor of this
evaluation is that it is an all-inclusive approach. Users understand what the
evaluation process produces and continuously work for the better of the
organization. By involving the actual users and giving them a voice, this can
empower as well as promote by-in to new approaches. The way I could implement
this evaluation in my classroom is by using my previous example of the process
of teaching photoshop. In order for my students to begin working on their final
project in photoshop, I have to make sure they are prepared to work
individually. While this is a long section of our class, I have to make sure
that what was learned early on is still remembered in their minds. This is
where repetition is key. Next, I have to make sure there are no barriers or
obstacles to overcome. One obstacle I am faced with yearly is catching students
up when they miss a lesson or two. It’s not like I can send them home to work
on it at home as the program is expensive. I also have to make sure that my
students are motivated to stay focused on the activity. In order to keep
student involvement I allow my students to pick the topic of their collage so
they can work with images of their choosing. From this previous year, I have
noticed that students became the teacher for this specific activity. It was
exciting to see their eagerness to help each other out when they needed a
little reminder. As they worked through the collage they were implementing
process of enhancement and having to decide if it worked well with the overall
quality they were trying to produce or did they need to try something else.
This assignment forced my students to create something they were proud of as well
as continuously use the processes they learned early on in the year.
You have been assigned to develop a series of professional development sessions focusing on technology use in the classroom for teachers during a time of economic decline. How will you use Situational Leadership to facilitate this project and manage scarce resources?
The situation leader is a person that must adapt his or her leadership style to the individuals he or she is in charge of leading. As an example, teachers are like situational leaders. We must must adapt to the ways that our students learn in order for our students to learn. According to Dr. Paul Hersey's model presented in the book, there are four phases of situational leadership based on three factors: the amount of guidance and direction a leader gives; the the amount of socioemotional support a leader provides; and the readiness level followers exhibit in performing a specific task, function, or objective.
If I were creating a training session during a time of economic decline, I would really focus on the participants and the overall objective. I know that when I go to staff development I tend to get bored, feel as though I am in a lecture that will never end, and think that this doesn't apply to me. From what I have experienced, I would try and incorporate that. I would start out the training as direct with information and observe how involved the participants are. This will allow me to adjust to how I need to present information. Since it is a time of economic decline I would get to know what the participants currently know and what resources they have access to. The last thing you want to do is sit through instruction that has nothing to do with your classroom or training on technology that you do not have. Once I know this information, I can take it a step further and really enhance what they already know. This is also a good time to create an environment that isn't teacher versus participants, but an environment where we are working together. I would incorporate activities where participants group together and share their experiences so they can build as well as feel comfortable because they are getting feedback as well as new ideas. I think it is so important for the leader to be involved in these activities because the leader can guide the participants and assist when needed. The overall goal that I would incorporate in this training is a positive attitude, communication skills and my willingness to help. I would also continuously remind them that I am here as a resource for them and beyond those sessions I am still available. This will allow the participants to leave the session and feel comfortable because if they have questions after they leave or forget something I am still a resource that they can have access to.
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