Throughout this course we will be required to update our experiences with creating an LMS for out implementation plans. I imagine that it will be a simple process that will take a lot of time because of the amount of content we will have to upload and work on. It seems like it will be a fun process, so ready or not, here I go!
Week 1: As I updated my previous AVID website, I was so excited to announce to my students that I was implementing and online platform for them to use this year in AVID. I was able to gather all of my lesson plans, but those were lengthy, so I condensed my information into a calendar with 30 days (six weeks) and with all the activities and assignments we will be participating in. So far, this process is making me smile. I love that I can upload things so easily into Canvas. Week 2: I am still exploring Canvas and all that it has to offer, and I really like the setup up and navigation options. I originally decided to make each week a module and quickly decided against it. The information seemed overwhelming. I switched my decision last minute to create Six Weeks modules, and I think this decision was better because it gave the course a better flow. Week 3: This may have been a mistake! I am unable to really make the course work for this content. AVID is a class where I am teaching them how to be successful in other courses. There are no quizzes or exams. There are group projects, but I feel like that defeats the whole purpose of an LMS to only be catered to turning in projects. Help me please!!! Week 4: As I assumed myself, feedback from my professors provided the same information that I already suspected. This week I started at square 1. An unbelievable process. I chose to switch the content that I was going to use. I teach a dual credit course called Successful Coaching where I also ease my high school students into online learning environments so college is not a shock. I have created a new course for my professors to critique and hopefully this week will be a little better on the feedback end. Week 5: A Time of Reflection Reality Bytes Designing and creating an online course seemed as though it would be a simple task to complete and get a quick check-off on my list of things completed in this program; however, a harsh realization set in very quickly once all the elements each week were presented through readings, videos, and what my peers were writing about in the discussion boards. Although my ideas were excellent, a plan to implement meaningful content into an online forum with middle school students was the set back. So many questions became my roadblock and detour to success in generating my course. I would like to take a little reflection journey with words, which I am usually limited on, through the last 5 weeks of this course and the moment I learned that reality bytes; however, it can be fixed with patience and guidance through all the resources available in this course! Conspiracy Instructional Design Theories As educators, we want a miracle anecdote for the content that we teach. A guided training, with engaging materials, assessments that are powerful, and a perfect platform to provide all these essentials to every student. The perfect course seems like a conspiracy theory, until you evaluate the elements of each instructional design theory to create a course that meets all the criteria. Tony Bates stated, “The issue here is not who was right, but that we all have implicit beliefs about the nature of knowledge, what constitutes truth, how that truth is best validated, and, from a teaching perspective, how best to help people to acquire that knowledge” (Bates, 2015). In our week 1 discussion post, I initially stated that I think all theories are needed in effective teaching and instructional design; however, after developing my course, I applied more Cognitivism, Constructivism, and Connectivism theories over Behaviorism. Behaviorism is only a small portion of my course in the introduction phase that focuses on learning rules and procedures so the learning process can unfold. When demonstrating how to properly use Canvas and interact with the discussion board in a meaningful way, behaviorism takes place. When students begin using the LMS, I will continue to use positive reinforcement for this theory to take a small place in my implementation. Cognitivism highlights the role that environmental conditions play in advancing learning and the learner is an active participant in the process. I found an article written by Sarah Sincero titled Cognitive Learning Theory that helped me dissect cognitivism deeper so it would be easy to explain to my colleagues and students if questions arise about certain activities. The following was each component:
Through cognitivism, my students will be able to cope with the online conditions of my course, as well as adapt to change and be able to self-regulate assignments when they have the option of voice and choice while creating their projects (Sincero, 2015). Constructivists see learning as a lively process; learners construct new ideas and concepts based on their background knowledge. The project outlines I used for my course are designed to give students basic information on what needs to be incorporated into the project. The students then get to create whatever type of presentation they deem fit to show facts and competency of the unit. They will design their presentations based off prior knowledge and experiences to help them produce the best explanation of the assignment possible. This theory takes place in majority of my instructional design. According to Merriam & Webster, what sets connectivism apart from theories such as constructivism, is the view that "learning can reside outside of ourselves, is focused on connecting specialized information sets, and the connections that enable us to learn more are more important than our current state of knowing" (Merriam and Webster 1828). This theory is enforced in my course through making external connections through the projects and discussion boards. Students will be able to make connections between different contents and previous experiences to design and produce assignments for my class. As you can tell, all instructional design theories played a major role in the creation of my course and will keep guiding my decisions as an educator attempting to be innovative in the classroom. What Plan? Ohhh UbD Plan! I used my UbD plan by viewing the curriculum that I am required to teach. When I began designing my plan, I focsued on the overall learning goals that needed to be met by the end of the first 30 days of Unit 1. Using the UbD template really pushes me to think of the content standards, objectives and desired results I want my students to embrace. The purpose of a UbD is to help guide the formation of lesson plans that allow for students to scaffold information and work through analyzing evidence on their own with little instruction from me. At the end of a lesson, constructed properly using the UbD model, students are able to know and students will be able to complete a skill. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) can also be used to assess current practices, to stimulate discussion with colleagues, and used to lead a deeper understanding of how UDL can be effectively applied in the classroom in a practical way. (Meyer, 66) http://erobersondll.weebly.com/my-blog/understanding-by-design Technology is LIFE! Don Knezek provided an amazing video, Perspective: Teacher Skill in a Digital Age, explaining how students, more than less, are capable of producing a meaningful lesson using technology over teachers. This video was an eye-opener because I know that my students are advanced when it comes to using technology, but regarding producing content that involves rigor that educators are unable to do, is inspirational. He also explains that it is acceptable to learn from your students, in fact, they love teaching teachers something they do not know. I have never been fearful of asking a student how they produced excellent work, or what app they chose to use because I was unaware of it. They love it! When teaching and learning is happening on both ends, it makes the classroom a less scary, boring, “have to do” place, and becomes an atmosphere where that knowledge is power and spread amongst everyone in the room no matter the title of the individual. Lesson Learned When creating your instructional design, you must know the curriculum and how you can turn online learning into student-centered learning, while still maintaining the integrity of the content but also allowing freedom of expression in their presentation of knowledge. Design, implementation, and authenticity take time so do not rush this process. Creativity and innovation should be a key ingredient when creating projects, videos, readings, and assignments. This course has been enlightening in many aspects and because of this, I am currently still redesigning, adding, updating, and re-wording sections of my Canvas course to make the information something they WANT to know about. Resources Bates, A.W. (2015) Teaching in a Digital Age: Guidelines for designing teaching and learning (Chapter 2). Retrieved from https://opentextbc.ca/teachinginadigitalage/ Merriam, & Webster. (1828). Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Retrieved August 18, 2017, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/connectionism Meyer, A., Rose, D. H., & Gordon, D. (n.d.). Universal Design for Learning. Retrieved August 19, 2017, from http://udltheorypractice.cast.org/reading?15&loc=chapter4.xml_l1969949 Perspectives: Teacher skills in a digital age (2:48) Published by: ChangSchool 01>2011 YouTube URL: https://amara.org/en/videos/R3sGzvS202Kq/info/perspectives-teacher-skills-in-a-digital-age/ Sincero, S. M. (n.d.). Cognitive Learning Theory. Retrieved August 18, 2017, from https://explorable.com/cognitive-learning-theory
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Erica RobersonEager learner who loves to challenge the minds of today's youth and figure out ways to keep them interested and engaged in the learning process. Archives
December 2017
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