Lots of Ideas Floating Around

There have been a lot of talks about witness learners, metaphors, and learning in an online community. First, let me say, "My name is Terasita and I am a witness learner." Even in f2f courses I was the student that stayed quiet as long as possible. However, many of my teachers would not let me stay this way becuase they felt my voice needed to be heard. I thank them for this encouragement. However, now, I feel like I need to be quiet to be able to understand and absorb the information. I try to get a gauge of the entire course prior to participating. Unfortunately, this means I miss the bus, a lot. Its not as though I think that I am going to learn through some type of osmosis, that just logging in will provide me with the information that I need from the course.

On another note, the instructor has the class looking at metaphors a lot. Metaphors are a hard thing to explain and to create. But this allowed me to think outside of myself and see what my experience is in the course.

Theories

In a reading this week, there was a lot of the mention of theories and how they can aid in teaching. I remember when I first started teaching and I was left alone in the classroom to do what was expected of me. Amazingly enough, I just relied on how I was taught. I did not look into theories, I did not study the best techniques, I just taught. Thank goodness for administrators and in-services. Of course while I was there, I hated having to sit through these tortuous events, but now I see the benefit of this. They were actually helping me by explaining theories in a way that I could relate to them.



Although I was not able to talk the talk while teaching, while I am studying I am finally able to understand the concepts that I was being told to apply in the classroom. I think that were I actually in a classroom now, I would understand what was going on. I would be able to reflect on how I was teaching and what my students were actually getting from the lesson.

February was Eventful

There is a lot to discuss about February. Of course, it will be slightly difficult to go back and reflect, but that is the best I can do. I can honestly say, that I thought about DE so much this month, based on so many theory readings. However, lets start at the beginning. I ended my precious job in accreditation this month. It was actually getting quite interesting since the organization was JUST venturing into how to accredit distance education institutions. I would have enjoyed staying araound just to hear the conversations surrounding this debate, but unfortunately, I would not have been part of the debate. So, now, I am in auditing, similar to accreditation, but more on the compliance side of education. It all sounds the same, but there are small differences. I no longer work with educational institutions but now I get to see how organizations and other businesses handle training outside of education. They look fo very similar ideas and outcomes, however, (again with words) the terminology is different.

On the school side, it has been a very theory heavy month. In the beginning, there is a strong need to understand the basics. At one point, it was very overwhelming.

Spring 2010 - Late Start

So, I am getting a late start this term. The reflective journal was beneficial last term, and per an assignment for a course this term, I am going to continue. Although I am late, I have learned somethings about myself during this late process. It is best to admit to the problem and move forward from there. I have admitted that I am late, and am moving on.

Since the term is approximately three weeks underway, I have noticed a theme that I started to think about last term, words. Maybe its more than words but the terminology that is used in DE. In both courses this term, the introductions were both geared towards familiarizing the students/learners with the terms and the uses in the course with respect to DE. The terms started with two terms that I think are very relevant to DE, media and learning/education. Outside of the DE conversation, the two terms do not pose such a huge hurdle, but when looking at it from a DE perspective, there are many potential answers in regards to the definition.

The language of DE has appeared to taken on a world of its own. I have noticed that students are no longer referred to as students, but rather as learners, and instructors are also known as course facilitators. Truthfully, it is hard to maintain political correctness with the classroom (or should I should classroom environment?). At any rate, I have pushed through the late post, and will continue to maintain my learning journal. In addition to this, I will also continue to update my wiki, once I remember the password (or is it access entry key?).

Making up for lost time,
Terasita

Reflections of Blog Exercise

When I first started teaching, my assistant principal always told me to be reflective of each day in the classroom. This exercise led me to focus on how I could be more productive on the processes that I performed each day. In a distance education program, there is a large amount of time spent alone with your studies. This allows the student to reflect on what is being learned. I appreciate this reflective opportunity and find blogs and wikis as a wonderful outlet for this process.

For this particular assignment, the reflective process allowed me to sort of slow down with the hustle and bustle of the course. I was able to take a step back and focus on what was going on. I am a distance learner studying about the processes and procedures of a distance education program. When I realized this, it was if I was in some type of twighlight zone episode. All of the theories, practices and technologies I was experiencing as I read.

The reflective blog process was very productive and enligtening. One minor suggestion is to have one or more guided questions for the reflective process. Of course the freedom was great, but its also nice to have your hand held every once in a while.

Tea

Review of Blog

I have held a couple of different positions in an educational setting. I admnistered courses for a post secondary/continuing education institution. I taught face-to-face in a public school setting. I now am part of an accrediting body for postsecondary proprietary institutions. All these positions have helped me to undserstand the educational process from various perspectives. Additionally, the readings and teachings within my current program of study are a complement to the knowledge that I gained while experiencing these different systems.

The information from this program (although I am still in the early stages) has allowed me to see a connection regarding why certain functions are performed. The theory is beginning to match with reality. I think that going forward I will use my prior experience in an educational setting to help understand the processes within a distance education environment, for example in the development of infastructure of a distance education system.

It appears that in a distance education setting, it is best trying to duplicate the processes of traditional education. However, in doing so, certain areas may surface that had not previously been addressed in a traditional educational setting.

Terasita

Course Design

One of the reasons that I joined this program was because I thought that I could have the option of designing curriculum. I figured I taught before and part of my job then was to design the curriculum. How difficult could this possibly be? Well, it appears that curriculum design, especially as it relates to distance education is a bit more cumbersome than what I experienced when I taught.

There are several different approaches to curriculum design depending on the method of delivery. Generally, correspondence courses are developed with a smaller group, at times one person, and the created material is edited or reviewed by another or group of people to ensure that the finished product satisfies the needs of the course. The "Course Team" approach as mentioned by Moore and Kearsley, consistents of many different team members ranging from subject specialists, designers, editors, producers, and can be even more. Although this sounds like the team for a movie production, these resources can be utilized effectively, especially if one is attempting to duplicate the classroom environment (where generally all of these tasks are completed by the one instructor). The first design team, known as the author editor approach may seem a bit more streamlined but the main focus on more so on the information than it is on the student. The course team approach is focused on the information, but also on ensuring that the student is able to comprehend the course materials and if this means providing the information in a variety of methods, then so be it. Additionally, it provides a system of checks and balances which ensures that one viewpoint is not delivered throughout the entire course (picture a monotous lecture with a slide presentation).

However, the course team model reminds me of an approach that I see in my work life. I am tasked with reviewing postsecondary institutions and upon review we (my team and I) are tasked with researching how curriculum is developed. I have noticed that for institutions that have multiple campuses around the country, they have used a method similar to that of the course model approach. The institution will hire subject matter specialists, course designers, technologists, and any others necessary to create a standard curriculum for a program of study. Instructors are then viewed more so as facilitators that are to present the information to the students and provide any additional help that they may need during the process. However, if an instructor feels that the course is missing a crucial component, they are then able to provide a review back to the institution, suggesting the information that needs to be included within the curriculum. I know that this is not a distance education course, but it is using one of the methods of curriculum design for a distance education course to its benefit.