![]() This blogfolio includes posted entries of academic and professional reflections regarding teaching and learning with technology as explored in the ITD 645 course. Reply comments from Team Members' posts are also included, along with a link to our Group 4 Team Project website: https://group4itd645.weebly.com/. What have you learned in this class? I have learned not only new technological tools and utilities offered for 21st century classrooms, teachers and learners alike, but also a new perspective in shifting the mindset from a traditional classroom where the teacher is “Sage on the Stage” to “Guide on the Side.” My undergrad degree in Secondary Education was over 32 years ago, and though my public teaching experience was brief, web technologies and other digital resources were simply not available. The Common Core, ISTE, P21, CAEP, and AECT provide the framework teachers need to subscribe to be successful in today’s classroom. Though currently a remote Project Manager/Senior Talent Manager implementing construction management software (of which a large portion of my job is training), the lack of standards in designing courses and student assessments are truly a handicap. Oftentimes in the corporate world for software, the goal is implementation and getting your customer to production. Training services are often not part of the contract the agency wishes to include, which is troublesome and puts the project at high risk. The ending result is that I hold workshops for collaboration in setting the system up, and through some testing conventions, find a way to educate and train the users without structured guidelines. What happens as they prepare to go live to production, they realize the need formal training after all, and it is the rushed after-thought that can compromise quality instruction. This course helped emphasize that accountability for learning must be an integral part of the shared learning experience and such tools exist for making those very crucial elements work. When I received my teaching certification, the only rigors of technology in the classroom was for PL 94-142, or “Least Restrictive Environment” for ensuring classrooms accommodated students will all types of disabilities and made reasonable accommodations so they could fully integrate with other non-disabled students. The level of sophistication of assistive technologies that exist today for special needs children is profound, much of it within settings of a regular computer. My Group 4 Team members, all public schoolteachers, were great examples of 21st century teachers as they have lived and worked in a world with more technology than myself. I am appreciative of the opportunity to share and work with them, reading their Blog posts, and pulling together for our assignments. It was amazing and insightful to hear their perspectives as real-life teachers using technology today, a view I do not get to observe often. I have carefully surveyed the concept in Chapter 10 where the author paints the scene of walking through the society and classroom conventions from many decades ago. The outdated schema of a school year, dividing children by age and grade level, and students being objects to ‘assemble’ together with one-way directional learning from the teacher to achieve a level of ‘completeness’ is truly a mark of the one-size-fits-all does not fit anymore. Furthermore, the observation that “It is less important to have the right answer and increasingly important to frame the right question…” given the amount of knowledge available from technology turns the role of teacher to facilitator. Admittedly, I was the old “Sage on the Stage” but have quickly maneuvered to the supporting change agent on the side in my corporate and public service jobs. What especially strikes me as profound from this course is not only the amount of resources and technologies available for teaching and learning, it is the ongoing role of “champion” teachers must advocate for their schools and students, and there are groups and forums dedicated not only to the partnership but also to shared resources and support. What an exciting road ahead! Discuss all learning tools used in this class individually on 1) how do you like the tool, 2) how helpful is it, and 3) will you use it in your own teaching? Will you integrate these technologies into your classroom? Why or why not?
Illustrate your strong and weak points
What are your future learning goals?
My future learning goals are the competencies expressly covered in this course, as after I complete my Ph.D, I would like to return to the classroom after 32 years or tutor full time. I need to learn how to navigate the standards and expectations for a 21st century classroom and further develop the intellectual capacity to find and apply appropriate technology for my students. Public education is where I started, and the place where I want to end my career journey. Therefore, acquiring the necessary skills and approach to do so are my goals over the next several years during my program.
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![]() Reflection #3: Consider your level of educational technology literacy as you complete this course. How competent do you believe you are in order to teach in a technology-rich environment? Over these past several weeks studying and applying Technology and Learning with Technology, I have gained tremendous exposure and insight into not only how to approach setting the stage for my classroom, but also the new perspective I need to embrace as a teacher. Though an instructor for adults, working with my Group 4 Team members on our projects has proved a valuable and gainful exercise. Our “13 Colonies” topic could be any topic or concept, since the key focus was to employ various technological tools and methodologies for student learning. I have had a new mindset shift in thinking differently as a teacher: to become more the facilitator and change agent for collaborative learning, and less the director of one-way communications for knowledge transfer. Unlike my Group 4 Team members, my adult learners are often intimidated by technology and dig in their heels in having to learn new systems, so my challenge is a little different. With the creative interactive technologies we have used in this course, such as Google Slides, Edupuzzle and Quizizz, I can better assemble curricula that often is dry in delivery into something engaging and more stimulating. My students know the business wherewithal of the ‘what’ we are covering in the software class; they just need to learn the ‘how’ in the new web-system and be able to prove competency. Using some quizzes and interactive assessments will be a tremendous help in gauging their understanding and application of the system, instead of simply walking through the functionality and expecting them to practice and follow along in their own sandbox site. I feel confident in my competency to teach in a technology-rich environment given new techniques and allowing my adult learners ownership in their own learning from each other in collaborative ways. What other opportunities would you search for to become even more proficient in the use of technology in the classroom? Other opportunities I would search for becoming more proficient in the use of technology in the classroom would center on focusing on ISTE Standard #1-Leader, and #7-Analyst (model for colleagues the identification and adoption of new digital resources and learning tools; demonstration of competency, forming assessments, and using assessment data to guide progress). Currently, there are no teaching and learning standards or models when implementing our software for adult learners, and these recommendations are instrumental in success. By not having standards in delivery of training outside of Zoom, we do not have data that evaluates effectiveness of the training. An oversight that companies often do when a signed contract only provides the wording “training will be provided to navigate the new software.” As diligent 21st century teachers, the wording should theoretically read “training, knowledge application and practice, and support will be provided to ensure learners can apply the new software concepts independently in the system.” ![]() Reflection Question # 1: Assume that one of your students tells you that an enrichment class at your school has developed a website and that every student’s name and picture will be available on the website as a talent directory. What concerns do you have about this discovery and how would you approach your colleague and your school to address these concerns? The concerns I have over publishing the names and pictures of minor students on a talent directory website involves several factors. First, have the parent been notified first of the project and given opportunity to agree to consent or opt out of their child’s participation? Second, is the website internal and restricted to school officials, parent, and students, or is it public on the internet? The book clearly states that “Even with parental permission, it is critical to avoid sharing any information about a child’s identity or location on the Internet. Such disclosure can jeopardize that child’s safety.” (Duffy, Judy Lever, and McDonald, Jean. Teaching and Learning with Technology. Sixth edition. Florida: Pearson Education, 2017. The COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) requires website owners or webmasters to adhere to specific requirements before publishing information about children under the age of thirteen, most specifically acquiring parental permission before doing so. I would address my colleague immediately and ask if they were familiar with COPPA, CIPA (Children’s Internet Protection Act), and its amendment, the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act. If not, then explaining these mandates and boundaries would be the first thing I would educate them on. Then, I would recommend pulling down the website immediately until contacting the school administrators. If so, I would give them opportunity to produce the consent forms’ documentation from parents allowing the names and pictures of their children to be on a website. At any rate, the school administrators should be made aware of the website and the presence of parental consent (or lack thereof) so any legal ramifications can be quickly resolved. As a follow up, I would recommend the colleague communicate and educate her students in the enrichment class some of the issues involved with their talent directory website. The teacher could show some videos from NetSmartz’s website (such as Online Enticement) to explain how posting their names and pictures could open up an exploitative situation for them. Additionally, there are videos and presentations for Online Safety in English and Spanish. The more students know how and when to protect themselves, the better their internet and web experiences will be. This Week's Team Reflection: This week was very quiet and straightforward with the Group 4 Team: we had our 'regular' weekly meeting in TEAMS on Tuesday and quickly divided up assignments. Everyone independently completed their projects quickly and our group texting conversations have been on the quiet side. We always aim to have our work done by noon on Saturdays for the rest of the team to review, and then we make any needed changes from there. Luckily, no changes or rewrites on anything have occurred, which I know makes all of us feel confident and relieved. As for the difference between Kahoot and Quizizz in watching the video, the main characteristics appear to be one of cosmetic user-interface than anything, other than the technical observation that Quizizz can be slower from an internet perspective. I have used Kahoot in my work for light-weight engagement of activities, is very simple to use, and is more straightforward than the individual in the video gave credit to. However, the Quizizz created for our team project this week was also an intriguing new tool that seemed to lend itself to a more academic and visually appealing use for its audience (children, in particular), and having their attention and engagement for online assessment is key in helping children learn and grow. I will apply the following technologies in my classroom, especially for new students to our Construction Management System and understanding our company, Infotech Inc. and our connection with AASHTO: the Thinglink makes a wonderful multi-dimensional visual with hot spots and popups to share layered content. I will create an organizational diagram of AASHTO, Infotech, the PUG (AASHTOWare Project Users Group), and DOT agencies and insert various points to teach students where and how the joint software development process works and the responsible members in each subgroup and committees. Additionally, a Scoop.it with not only industry-specific software innovations in construction management can be collected, but also relevant articles and newest trends from FHWA and AASHTO as well. ![]() Reflection Question #1) Have you had any a) distance education or b) blended course experiences? Try to remember what were the benefits and the disadvantages of that experience. If you have not had either type of course, try to imagine what it would be like and what characteristics of it you would like and which ones you would not. Why? Distance Education Experience: My first experience with distance education was for my MS HCD at USM where I took just one asynchronous class using BlackBoard. The benefits in the completely online class were the flexibility of access to all course materials, the LMS’ online resources and chat with peers, and very straightforward instructions and postings from the instructor several times a week communicating ideas and feedback to students. Another benefit was that the teacher allowed separate breakout rooms in BlackBoard so team members had their own ‘space’ to collaborate on projects. I was travelling for my job heavily during that time and the online tools and postings from my teammates helped me feel connected, though I was in different time zones. The disadvantages of distance education include the skills needed to participate in the LMS system, lack of the human interaction and voice components to organic learning, and a sense of being alone in your own orbit. The experience left me feeling somewhat as if I was in my own vacuum, though the teacher did reach out to the class and each individual on a regular basis, and that was key for my learning. For many types of learners, the lack of physical interaction and human presence can leave them feeling disconnected, difficult to concentrate and focus on assignments, and shy to reach out to ask questions for clarification or seek guidance from others. As strange as it may sound, there can be a strong sense of vulnerability in a distance education experience. Blended Course Experience: My experience with blended course education also comes from my MS HCD program, where the bulk of my classes had the three-day onsite with follow up BlackBoard sessions each week, combining elements of both face-to-face and online learning. The benefits of this arrangements enabled alternative interaction tasks and projects, the psychological ‘grounding’ in meeting your instructor and peers face-to-face instilling a sense of relationship and comradery, and gaining independence learning new tools for learning and submitting assignment, both solo and with your project teams. The disadvantages in blended courses included thorough preparation and creativity from the teacher, a strong grasp of technical troubleshooting in cases where things are going sideways in the LMS or network, and interaction time with students. We had one troublesome weekly BlackBoard session where the files for presentation would not load in the browser, and swapping control from the teacher to each student was hanging up. Class ran over that night, and not all students were able to present their material. I was never available during the posted hours where my teachers would be online in BlackBoard for a chat, so email had to suffice. Characteristics of both that I like and ones that I do not like: The qualities of both distance learning and blended learning that I like is the one-stop shop is the continued use of an LMS (now Canvas), and the flexibility of timing in my schedule to work on schoolwork and with my project team. I work two jobs and am in school, recently married and have just moved to MS, so having the materials available to me at any time is priceless. I am enjoying using new technology and features our project team is working on. I am learning a lot from Group 4 with their experiences being current schoolteachers with younger generation students. The only quality that I do not like is strictly with distance learning, and it is the isolation factor for me. I went back to school in my late 40s and my whole career up to the last 3.5 years had been a face-to-face classroom teacher. Working from home as a remote employee was not my first choice, but I left MDOT to go home to NC to take care of my terminal father, though extensive US travel was involved. I am used to distance teaching and learning by now but it is not my preferred choice. Especially since the restrictions of COVID-19, we are all in a situation of information overload – lots of digital communication, online information, streams of data, and other technical din it is hard to separate out prioritization of timing to get schoolwork done when everything else in your day-to-day life is coming at you electronically. Thankfully, my Group 4 team members group text often during the week, and those strong ties of communication help reinforce our joint efforts. Their sense of humor and the fun we have is an encouraging factor, too. We are all in this together! Project Learning Reflections this week: This week definitely shows we have our team communication and delegated assignments working smoothly. These were more fun and creative tasks that each of us enjoyed crafting into academic materials. The course website and padlet were priceless to have online where various authors could edit and craft - this was a timesaving feature. Our Google Drive and new team 'email address' keep our content together and up to date. Also this week, we were diplomatic in distributing the load around so that the same person(s) do not have to do the bulk of heavy lifting, something that is always a factor in team projects wondering if others can or will volunteer to take on a task. There is an unspoken accord that we have each other's backs and are pulling together for the greater good. I will integrate the following technologies into my classroom, though not specifically for instruction (teaching), but instead for students to collaborate and learn together how to adjust the configurations, code tables, and agency options the software provides based on their business rules they've chosen. It's called "DITL" - a Day In the Life testing scenarios. Once an agency has their Construction Management System nearly complete, I have a series of 150 business-driven test cases that walk through the chronology of a DOT contract from start to finish. Each student on the agency team is logged in as a unique role (like Project Manager, Accounting) and through the series of data entry, they validate correctness of any settings and configurations, or, if an error is thrown or they should be able to do or see something they are not able to. The Padlet will especially lend itself to keeping up with each anomaly as they occur, and we can classify them as a UI fix, bug, role/permissions issue, and so forth. The Edpuzzle feature will be a great tool for new students in orientation just learning the software, especially covering the overview and fundamentals. ![]() Reflection Question #4: What are the challenges you faced with when integrating Web resources into classroom teaching and learning? When I first started at the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) years ago as an Information Systems Outreach Training Analyst, there were excruciating limitations for allowable network protocols, use of the web, connectivity limits, and other resources for training users across the state. I was fresh from the fallout of the telecommunications giant WorldCom/MCI, where many employees ended up in MS state agencies, and were used to leveraging one of the most savvy and robust networks in the world. However, at MDOT, Internet was not allowed beyond the district offices, bandwidth was so slow that only certain personnel had email, and on timesheet day, the network was blacked out for three hours so payroll could be processed. I had to have elevated privileges on the network in order to use search engines for teaching content and view training videos, as the Websense application was strictly enforced. We were implementing a new Construction Management System, and I introduced the idea of Windows Live Messenger to train and support users in small groups using the shared desktop view and allowing each student in turn ‘remote control’ of each section so they could practice and learn as a team. My network operations director and CIO had to champion a special request to the MS Information Technology Services (ITS) to open the applicable ports on the statewide network in order to do this. It was a game-changer for our agency, and truly opened up a completely new avenue for teaching, learning, and support. It still took time to craft and hone the incorporation of web resources into our headquarters’ and district offices’ training rooms, such as SMART boards, wireless networks, faster LANs, and dedicated training laptops for the room. As time went on, keeping up with ever changing and expanding tools and resources for the web was a challenge, but our IS Outreach Training Group were the main stewards in helping identify and deploy these tools. As business applications moved from the Citrix network to web-based, the integration of new class formats became more flexible and stable, and users were eager and quick to learn the new content. Any resolution suggestions? The introduction of SharePoint Enterprise at MDOT in 2003 facilitated getting over the hurdle of web-based resources in the classroom with the use of Team Sites. Instructor could publish files, students could submit assignment to libraries, share training calendars, receive email notifications based on workflow events or date parameters, among other collaboration tools. Users could access information at any time, post questions on the teacher’s My Site, and access one another’s’ shared libraries for resources. As the chapter section mentioned, this environment changed an educator’s role in teaching and learning to more of a facilitator and guidance role. I will try the use of Wikis in the near future, as I learned in watching the Wiki video that the History tab can be used for monitoring each students’ direct content input and edits. In following actual usage and editing, I can be proactive in coaching someone who is falling behind, or is not participating to the expected level of engagement. Creating automated reports, email notification triggers from scheduled processes, and other technical parameters should make the challenges of time-management for student monitoring and teacher intervention better. ![]() My Learning Experiences In working with my team members this week, I was intrigued but not surprised how the online technology tools of Google allowed me to quickly absorb our 5th grade content about the Southern Colonies. I have mostly taught adults and don't have any children, so it's been quite a while since I've revisited elementary school curriculum. The 13 Colonies topic held my attention and presentation flow reinforced the concepts on subject-matter I have long since forgotten. I can imagine this powerful range of technology for younger learners can keep their attention and provide a variety of learning styles through PowerPoint, Google Docs, and the Podcast. Though we divided up the projects, each of us had something to contribute to each teaching tool, structure, content, and presentation. I have never listened to a Podcast before Luke's teaching session, and it lended itself to auditory learning that reinforced Amelia's Lesson Plan and Derrick's storyboard. As a team, we were faster this week using collaborative tools and didn't have as many revisions as our first project. Thus, the experience we are gaining with each other as teachers is evident, as we frame the scope of each projects' objective, and help one another with teaching and learning the nuances of each tool. I will integrate the following technologies in my classroom the go beyond just the Zoom meetings and review of each software component's processing: online surveys will help me better gauge the familiarity of the modules so I can best target the learning around the gaps of what they need to know. Lesson plans and Introductory PowerPoint slides will also draw the parameters of the course and expectations of what the students will learn and apply before moving forward with advanced software exercises. The storyboard will lend itself to illustrating the more difficult concepts with the software and troubleshooting, from a business layer and data perspective. Finally, podcasts will help in recording common FAQs students often have with the software, and a podcast for each module's section will break down the layers of abstraction for students, and also enable them to revisit the content anytime they have a need to. ![]() This week Group 4 collaborated together to come up with our vision of the 21st century classroom and write a grant proposal justifying our financial requests acquiring the necessary equipment and technology to make the objectives happen. While we all tried the WeChat piece, it was quickly abandoned, and instead we decided to group text each other for our initial planning phase. Towards the end of the week, I created a Google Drive and shared it with the team to upload their documents, files, and images for us to piece together. We had two TEAMS meeting to review the draft architecture I came up with as an outline to follow, and the meeting today was for final writing assignments and editing. Email was used at the end to distribute the final copy. We all participated in the project, and carefully worked around everyone's schedule, knowing that some had more bandwidth to contribute to the content than others. Admittedly, my initial grant outline seemed too much and overwhelming. In reflecting with the team, I agreed we shouldn't go too far out of scope and create more work for us than what time really permitted. It was challenging trying to follow updates for the assignment, and clarifications that added more details, but overall, we all were interpreting things the same and were on the same page for the project's duration. It was wonderful getting to hear everyone's voice and have conversation for our project as too much can get lost in translation with brief text messages. This was a good team project to start working with others on, and we all now have a good sense of each other's communication and writing styles, preference for meetings or calls, and other family-life balance issues, too. Being considerate and patient while keeping the eye on the ball propelled us in the right direction! I learned a lot about my team members and where they are in their career, and hope I provided a unique insight and contribution as well. We believe our grant for Shepherding Students' Learning Styles into the 21st Century is robust and viable, and are proud of our teamwork together on this first assignment. I will integrate this website technology in my own classroom by having a unique website for each course and in addition to posting the artifacts for class (handouts, diagrams) I would also post the recordings from our workshops together, and other demos where I illustrate and narrate complex sections of the software. Furthermore, as the book mentions about the benefits of online social media for learning, I would embed a chat utility like Slack my students could connect with me and their classmates for conversation, discovery, and obtaining assistance for questions and guidance. ![]()
![]() Reflection Question #1: Consider how technology has helped you to be productive and complete tasks. Examine the physical requirements for using your favorite technologies. I had extremely terrible eyesight as a child, one that went undiagnosed for a long time, as my twin sister did not have such challenges. Eventually glasses attempted to correct my vision, though my schoolwork was never affected by it. I was slow to embrace computers when they came on the scene in my twenties after college, since the screen flicker bothered my eyes, my astigmatism blurred colors, and depth perception was zero. I got corrective LASIK surgery when I was 31 and finally had 20/20 vision, something I was never even close to. The world of online technical graphics, presentations, videos, multimedia, and especially animation unfurled for me. I love using PowerPoint and Camtasia to create detailed visual training curriculum for my adult students, who have appreciated seeing abstract business software systems presented in a user-friendly, lively way, particularly in cause-and-effect linear scenarios. How might physical disabilities hamper your use of those preferred technologies and impact your personal productivity? One of my first jobs after college was a job placement and training program for blind people into competitive employment. I never had any clients that used technology at that time (few even knew Braille), but instead we re-engineered job tasks to make reasonable accommodations. I learned quite a bit about kinesthetic and auditory learning mechanisms to help them learn their jobs. However, in my personal and professional opinion and experience, it would be isolating having my corrected vision deteriorate, or never have been corrected at all. PowerPoint slides would be a smeary blur and frustrating to follow, especially if there was no voice narration to go along with it. As a teacher, what can you do to mitigate these challenges for students with special needs? For those students with special needs regarding vision and hearing, I would use computer settings in the Ease of Access to change magnification, text display, high contrast/colors, voice narration, and dictation for those with visual impairments. Other solutions could be VoiceOver, Window-Eyes, Zoomtext, Kurzweil system, and Braille Lite. For deaf or low hearing students, I would try computer settings for closed captions and volume adjustment (with headphones), and Bookshare for those with hearing impairments. All attempts would be made to find the most appropriate fit for each child that would enhance their learning and growth opportunities. ![]() Question #2: Recall a class where presentation software, such as PowerPoint, was used. Did you enjoy the experience? A memorable classroom experience using PowerPoint to convey the material was during a weeklong PMP certification “boot camp” in Atlanta. It was four days of extremely intense and detailed information, the goal being you took the exam on the last day. My instructor’s PowerPoint had animation and slide transitions tying each element as a building block for the next topic. She presented color-coding for each chapter’s topic and then applied the shades of the topic’s color in other areas where overlap and interdependency came into play. The pacing, flow, graphics, and repetition of summary slides made digesting the layers of complexity much easier, as it was broken down into smaller bite sized pieces. Was it easy to take notes? My instructor had handouts of the PowerPoint slides in outline form with three slides per page and lines provided by each slide for note taking. The thumbnails and corresponding real estate for text made it simple to study in the hotel room in the evenings and visually connect the still shot images with my notes. Did you stay focused on the presentation, or did your attention drift into other thoughts? Her presentation was amazingly riveting, especially given the dry content of the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge). The PowerPoint had several diagrams, block models, high quality graphics, and other well-crafted geometry balanced in such a way that it held your attention. The reinforcement of the “color wheel scheme” made it easy to memorize and follow. Could the presentation have been modified to make it more interactive, more interesting? How? I truly do not think of anything I would have modified to the PowerPoint presentation that would have added any value or relevance. It did not need embedded videos or music, as that probably would have been too distracting. Select a grade level and subject matter that you would most want to teach. How would you use three different types of academic software to teach a specific topic? Explain why you selected these three academic software packages. My undergrad degree is in English Education and I completed teacher certification for Secondary (high school) level. I briefly taught 10th grade English before moving to another city, but if I went back into that field again, I would use the Authorware software to teach dramatic literature, from which the icons would display information, ask a question of the student, store the answer, and provide animation of the storyboard graphically along a timeline ‘flowchart’. I would use the Writing Challenge app for creative writing skills. A game-based platform, Writing Challenge sends prompts to the student to build characters, dialogue, create settings for the story, and generate new ideas in a systematic fashion. Finally, I would use the WhiteSmoke software to reinforce English grammar and writing styles. As a desktop plug-in or web platform, students simply start writing and WhiteSmoke evaluates and shows corrections above the typed line. It checks for punctuation, style, spelling, and the part I like best is the translator piece. This would be very helpful for students where English is their second language and learning to write with Translator assistance instantaneously would be most beneficial. ![]() Question #1: How many of the digital technologies discussed in this chapter have you used? I have used all of the digital technologies listed in Chapter 4 except document cameras, eBook readers, and Clickers. Have you used them in an educational setting or elsewhere? For work, I use Wireless Connectivity: WIFI, WIMAX, Bluetooth, Cloud Computing, Touch screens, Electronic whiteboards, Data projectors, Audio devices, Digital cameras, Video conferencing systems, and Tablets. For school I use Scanners, Wireless Connectivity: WIFI, WIMAX, Bluetooth, Cloud Computing, Video conferencing systems, and Tablets. For what purposes did you use them? For my Infotech Project Management/Training Instructor work activities, I use virtual classroom and meetings/workshop connectivity with participants in various states using video conferencing systems, cameras and electronic whiteboards. For onsite engagements with government agencies, I take pictures of the flip charts and whiteboards of Action Items, Parking Lot, and To-Research Tasks and share the images with administrative staff to log into applicable spreadsheets for the project team. For my MS DOT Work Project Management/Training Instructor work activities, I deployed construction management software to DOT Field Operations staff on tablets with touch screen (no typing needed) that synchronized data records and transactions to the cloud. We used video conferencing, cloud computing, and audio devices after Hurricane Katrina for the MS DOT’s Mississippi Emergency Operations Center for incident management and collaboration with other applicable state agencies aligned in the response effort. For my Graduate Student work activities, I used the Blackboard LMS for online participation in classes and submittal of assignments. Did they facilitate the purposes? The technologies facilitated the communications, data sharing, and learning processes for both work and school quite effectively, but with a caveat: network connectivity had to be robust, consistent, and stable for successful execution. When internet connectivity was completely down after Hurricane Katrina, the MS DOT resorted to a satellite back up network, which required a specially configured room with appropriate hardware at headquarters. To help mitigate any network connectivity issues, I consistently send attachments and encourage saving the files locally of what we are going to be working on just in case internet goes down and the session reduced to voice-only collaboration. As for touch screens, I have used a Smart Board as an instructor but was only partially successful in getting others to stand up and participate in writing and editing content with their fingers on the panel. I use a scanner to create digital images of hand-written notes or digitizing paper content for schoolwork or other personal files when I only have a hard copy of something. Like most people, I use flash drives and external drives quite often to transfer or share files, as in the recent event of my wedding where we copied the Zoom recording to flash drives and shared them with family as a memento. ![]() Reflection Question #3 This chapter described how proper planning ensures success in teaching and learning. Describe two activities (not educational in nature) in which you have been involved in the past which were NOT successful due to lack of planning. The first scenario: A Project Manager is onsite trying to facilitate a workshop on data migration at an agency without having first mapped out the scope of the workshop and expectations. The users were not prepared to address elements at a deeper level of execution, and not all the proper stakeholders were present to help qualify acceptable results. The team had to fly back home early with a very disgruntled customer. The second scenario: At a Construction Conference a presenter attempted to share results of a project using a new software tool but couldn’t present any evidence of results that looked meaningful, answer tactical planning questions about their project set up, nor articulate ways for how others could use the new software tool. What lessons can you draw from those experiences that will help motivate you to plan for instruction? The first scenario illustrates how the lack of planning caused obscurity in what to do and how to do it, including the measures of success for the customer. Instead, the PM simply expected an informal “stream of consciousness” discussion in hopes explicit details and tactics would be unearthed. The DID Step 2: ‘Standards-Aligned with Performance Objectives’ is a motivating process for my planning for instruction as a lesson learned from this scenario. Additionally, using Bloom’s taxonomy illustrating the levels of thinking to help create these Performance Objectives would be well worth exploring, especially ones that address some of the higher levels (revised levels: Creating, Evaluating, Analyzing) – the information and qualified players the PM and team really needed to have at their workshop, but instead wound up with superficial information and unfulfilled deadlines from the team, representative of Performance Objectives from Bloom’s lower levels - (Remembering, Understanding, and Applying). The second scenario illustrates how the lack of planning caused the agency to completely lose sight of any gainful application of the new software tool, but instead focused on showcasing the software technology at a conference just because it was new and novel, but not necessarily beneficial. Technology sometimes does take center stage without any examination as to its purpose, with ambiguous ties to support any solution. The Design-Plan-Act: step 4 ‘Identify & Select Technologies’ emphasizes the lesson that “…the instruction drives the selection and integration of technology.” This experience motivates my planning to ensure the shiny new piece of software or technology in and of itself is not the goal, not should be the focus, but to discern that “Planning as a foundation and the role of technology [is] within the planning process…” ![]() Reflection Question #1 Identify a favorite teacher in elementary or secondary school. Describe three teaching or learning strategies that this teacher employed to meet your own learning needs that were significant in helping you learn. My high school Latin teacher was my favorite teacher and had her for three of the four years of the foreign language requirement. She was a seasoned teacher with twenty or more years and was a known icon in the school for her creativity and unusual conventions in the classroom. Her style was anchored in the cognitive perspective Learning theory, where she saw “…learning as a mental operation that takes place when information enters through the senses, undergoes mental manipulation, is stored, and is finally used.” This cognitive perspective “emphasizes review and application.” Her teaching strategies consisted of visualization, direct instruction, and cooperative learning. For example, for Visualization all textbooks and handouts had detailed graphics, and she used overhead projectors to illustrate grammar elements. For Direct Instruction, she employed a clear and consistent methodology outlining new concepts, vocabulary, and grammar: then spoke each word or phrase. Additionally, she used music and songs from the radio to reinforce the study. We all had to write, recite, and then sing the language. This yielded very amusing results but certainly reinforced the content. The final teaching strategy of Cooperative Learning consisted of students in groups that would translate a passage and assume the passages’ character roles to act out the scene while speaking in Latin. Audience members could help with any corrections and keep score, then the groups would switch places. The competition was fierce. Why do you think they were effective for you? My Latin teacher’s instructional strategies were effective for me because she took into consideration the variables of activity (environmental factors) affecting learning to make dry and obscure content meaningful and engaging (and fun!). My personal learning style is visual and auditory, so the artwork in the textbooks, background music and singing, and drama elements were aligned well. In addition, Gardner’s Theory of multiple intelligences outline a Musical component, one of which truly speaks to me as I had studied piano and violin from a young age, and still to this day use music to help my brain deconstruct layers of abstraction in my work. I have taken the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and am an ‘ESTJ’ Cognitive style – Extrovert (outer world of persons), Sensing (perception based on real objects), Thinking (decision based on objectively analyzing facts), Judging (Lives in planned, controlled way). My Latin teacher’s interwoven application of her teaching strategies from a cognitive perspective fit my profile in addressing the senses, analyzing, and manipulating the processes, and finally executing the results with repetition. ![]() Reflection Question #2: What standards do you feel are most relevant to your teaching and to your content area and that will challenge you the most? What strategies will you employ to become familiar with these standards so that you can more easily address them in your classroom? Relevant Standards The ISTE standards for educators are the most relevant to my teaching efforts in the business systems software arena for adults in the civil engineering and transportation sectors. Though currently a Senior Talent Manager, I was a Project Manager specifically focused in implementation and training of a complex construction management system to users that often were using paper forms to process their work. Thus, replacing their manual processes with software was a change management and tactical difficulty in and of itself. However, it was the delivery of completely online training in virtual classrooms that exists as the biggest challenge when physical travel was not possible, and now in the light of COVID-19, is at a complete stand still. Finding the right technical execution conventions to teach software through software is a daunting task. The Video “Teachers as Facilitator for 21st Century Learners” provided commentary that the organic process of collaboration amongst students unfolded naturally and provided a synchronicity between fellow students and the teacher. The takeaway observation was that technology in the classroom shifted the focus from the teacher “having all the answers,” to students exercising problem-solving together. This is an area I have practiced in some of my virtual classrooms where students team up with another and teach the content to the rest of the class – in the video presenter’s “driver seat.” Though time-consuming, students enjoy showing what they have learned and can apply to their peers, as well as driving home the learning objectives from a true source of legitimacy, their own fellow co-workers. Expanding on this shared collaboration and creativity using applicable standards and methodology challenges me the most but is also the most rewarding of experiences. Strategies to Employ From the ISTE website https://www.iste.org/standards/for-educators, the ISTE standard for educators 1 Learner-1a “Set professional learning goals to explore and apply pedagogical approaches made possible by technology and reflect on their effectiveness” is a standard I need to embrace for continued online training for my students. The ISTE’s EdTekHub offers resources to understand and employ the ISTE standards, of which participating in the ISTE Standards Community will greatly improve my navigation into this new territory for me. This open network of discussions will be a relevant starting point to facilitate the next steps for my own understanding and integration into my own teaching. Webinars available to website members will be a key resource for incorporating tools and techniques for my own teaching. Moreover, the network of other academic professionals in my field of civil engineering/construction management will provide valuable opportunities and insight into best practices I can try as a remote instructor. Another element of my work involves a new project to help evaluate and implement an LMS. The fundamentals found in the LinkedIn Learning video: “Inclusive Instructional Design” by Samantha Calamari will be most instrumental, specifically the portions on evaluating eLearning platforms, and the ADDIE model to facilitate the project. Our internal project team use SCRUM for software development projects, but the Assessment, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation lifecycle are going to be a more effective strategy for this LMS initiative. Therefore, the ISTE Standards for educators is a logical starting point in this journey to become a better teacher knowing when and how to harness the best technology for my students. Hello from Central, SC! My name is Melissa Queen-Lomas and I am just starting my PhD in HCD at the Gulf Park campus - a dream come true. My husband and I will be moving to Long Beach, MS in the middle of June. I am a Graduate Assistant for Dr. Heather Annulis and very excited about the scope of work.
My undergrad degree is in Secondary Education; my master’s is in HCD (Human Capital Development). I am a certified PMP. Working experiences: I worked for the NC Division of Services for the Blind & Deaf performing competitive job placement and training for clients, constructed and administered a telecommunications training program for Engineering and Field Operations at SkyTel/WorlComm, practiced as Project Manager and Academic Lead for the MS DOT's Information Systems Division, engaged as a Project Manager for Infotech, Inc. specializing in deploying Civil Engineering software throughout the US, and currently a Senior Talent Manager at the same company. Having been an HCD practitioner all my career, I am looking forward to the immersion on the scholarly side - there is always something new and exciting to learn! Learning experiences (number of classes you took online): Having been a remote employee for over three years with Infotech, and thirteen years as a PM with the MS DOT, I have taken well over a hundred online classes. Any technology software skills you have (e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Concept Mapping, publisher, PDF, 2.0 tools or any other online free tools): Microsoft: Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Publisher, Visio, OneNote, Project, OneDrive, Teams, SharePoint (administrator and designer) Adobe Acrobat Notepad ++ (xml editor) Subversion Google Suite (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Email, Calendar) Google Drive InfoPath WebEx Zoom Google Hangouts Cisco Jabber Skype Slack Camtasia UltiPro (HCM) PeopleSoft (HCM) LinkedIn Learning (administrator) Kahoot! (administrator) JIRA SalesForce QuickBooks Trello DropBox Blackboard Canvas Qualtrics (designer) SurveyMonkey (designer) Microsoft Dynamics (ERP) NetSuite (ERP) OpenAir (ERP) Epicor (ERP) SAP (CRM) Nintex (BPM) SharePoint workflow Designer (BPM) And dozens of corporate and government business applications (network, standalone, cloud) How familiar you are with them? Have you used them before this class? For what purposes have you used them? How comfortable are you with each of these programs? For each of the above, I am very familiar and comfortable with these tools having utilized them in various jobs ranging from software development lifecycle, customer-service issue tracking, HR management, project management, team collaboration, web design, business process management, software support tracking, financial management, process analysis, data analytics, and marketing/communications outputs. Use of electronic communication tools (e.g., email, discussion board, listserv, chat). If you have used these tools, how do you like them, and why? As a remote employee working from home for the past couple of years, electronic communication tools are key instruments in my toolbox: my company’s main source of internal communication and collaboration are Slack channels for chats. I have used discussion boards for project teams across the US, and email is the foundation for nearly everything. I also must mention mobile applications and texting is becoming more a part of my workspace, too. I do like these tools because of the integration touch points with other business systems, the convenience of instant communications or processing, and the accessibility to stay in touch no matter my physical location, as I used to travel two weeks out of the month and staying connected was very important. Familiarity with new technology tools used in education (e.g., blogs, podcasts, video clips, Wikis). Have you ever heard or used them before? If you did, how have you used them? I have not used blogs, podcasts, or Wikis from an academic perspective, but I have created and used video clips with narration software tutorial programs. How you integrated technologies in your teaching? I have mostly used online virtual classroom tools for remote teaching. |