ED5302 - 95/100 ED5305 - 45/50.
ED5302 and ED5305 are the first two courses I have taken in the ADL program, and while the workload was challenging at times, I am glad that these two courses were paired together. The last time I took classes was in 2003, when I graduated with my undergraduate degree from Abilene Christian University (ACU), and in 2011, when I received my training to be a teacher. All of those classes were in person and it was a bit of adjustment to online classes only. The Zoom meetings during COVID made the class meetings online more familiar, and the course material built off of each other beautifully. This structure is exactly what made taking both courses together so beneficial. At times when I needed clarification on a concept, the other course provided the answers, and when it did not, the collaboration and discussion posts from my classmates helped fill in the gaps.
Getting Started...
Starting the course, I quickly gravitated toward individuals who were actively engaging during the class Zoom meetings. There was a GroupMe created for us to communicate as an entire group. With GroupMe, we exchanged ideas, had regular check-ins, and discussed progress on current or upcoming assignments. We would collaborate on assignments to exchange feedback and work together to make corrections. Joseph Perrone and even set up an additional zoom meeting for preparation of the literature review. I was on a family cruise to Iceland that week, so I was in Copenhagen (where the cruise started) that evening and had to be up at 1 am to meet at Joe's time due to the time change. We discussed our approach to completing the literature review. Since I committed to not missing a Zoom Meeting, I bought internet access on the cruise and had to be awake at 3 am for the Zoom meeting for 5305 and 5302. Joe made sure to inform everyone in the Zoom meeting that I was currently on a cruise, and I talked about it for a while during the Zoom meeting for 5302, right after most members we talking about their 4th of July plans. In juggling spending time with family on the cruise and completing my literature review, I had to take time every night and work on the paper for a few hours each night for the entire week. During the cruise, my Mother-in-law fainted and had to be taken to the hospital in the Faroe Islands (it was such a small island I wasn’t sure they even had a hospital). It was a few days of uncertainty, but eventually, my Mother and Father-in-law were allowed back on the cruise but they had to fly to the next port in Iceland. During all the uncertainty, I emailed Dr. Harapnuick and asked for a few more days, but I was able to get the Literature Review turned in by the original due date. In addition to GroupMe, I created an email thread with Paige Shaw, Melissa Richards, Nadia Flores, Khelia Olison Williams, and myself. The email thread was used to preview and comment on each other's Innovation Proposal, Innovation Outline and Growth Mindset. The GroupMe and the email thread collaboration became a lifeline, especially when you work full time and balance other life responsibilities. Each of the GroupMe members, Joseph Perrone, Melissa Richards, Paige Shaw, Khelia Williams, Faith Lopez, Sonia Rodriguez, Jelisa Davis-Sphus, Ennija Armour, Desiree Lopez, Leah Strannemar, Patty Bittner, Patricia Hamilton, and I all work in different aspects of education, which helped pull in different perspectives. An added benefit is that Paige Shaw has already taken 5302, so she held a depth of knowledge and advice to give the group, not to mention best practices and ideas for assignments.
ED5302
In ED5302, Concepts of Educational Technology, the foundation of the course is built around the concept of understanding growth versus fixed mindsets, beginning with the creation of a Growth Mindset Plan to implement with our students. With that implementation, we also reflected on what we found important in our learning journey, created a Learning Manifesto, and were able to share some of that knowledge with other individuals in our field or with similar interests through the Professional Learning Networks we joined. Towards the end of the course, we worked on creating our own ePortfolios, which will continue to grow and evolve throughout this program.
ED5305
In ED5305, Disruptive Technology in Education, the foundation of the course centers around our Innovation Plan. In the Innovation Plan we looked at areas within our current organization that would benefit from a disruptive form of innovation. We first created an Innovation Proposal to share with our employers. To support our plan we looked at the research and composed a Literature Review that serves as evidence for the necessity and purpose behind our proposal. Lastly, we created an Implementation Outline as a timeline that serves as a road map for our Innovation Plan.
Throughout both courses, the videos and articles assigned within the modules by Dr. Harapnuik and Dr. Harrison were crucial to understanding and discussing the ideas and, finally, being efficient in implementing these components yourself. In addition to the weekly readings and videos I watched for each course, I also read the required book for 5305, Blended, and used the discussion questions in the back of the book to deepen my understanding in what I read. For 5302, I read Mindset and was able to grasp what it means to have a proper understanding of growth mindsets. In addition, I read COVA by Dr. Harapnuk and Dr. Thibodeaux. This additional book gave me great insight into the components of and the desired result of this course. To stay on top of assignments and ensure authentic engagement, I completed all assignments before the due dates and participated in every discussion board post for both classes. I also attended all live Zoom sessions with both Dr. Harapnuik and Dr. Harrison. To keep a growth mindset, I even refined a few assignments according to Dr. Harapnuik's video feedback recommendations.
Reflection
Reflecting on these past eight weeks, I gave each assignment and discussion my best effort, was open and receptive to feedback, was comfortable with making mistakes, and made revisions according to Dr. Harapnuikl’s feedback. The growth mindset made me aware of the mentality I must have throughout this program and use any setbacks as a learning experience. The Choice, Ownership, Voice, and Authentic Learning (COVA) approach equipped me with the tools to accomplish some of the ideas that I saw as an obstacle in my last few years as a high school teacher. As I move through the program, I will work to incorporate many of the ideas brought to my attention and strive to become a more effective educator. I am excited to see what is ahead in the next set of classes and how each class comes together to connect everything in this program!
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