APPLIED DIGITAL LEARNING JOURNEY&BLOG
Innovate, Teach, Iterate
ADL Journey and Synthesis
Don't make change too complicated. Just begin.
Project Based Learning, Meet Blended Learning
It began with an innovation plan, an eportfolio, COVA, and a growth mindset. I'm leaving with an authentic plan to make a change in my learning community and beyond. It's not the end, it's the beginning of a new way of teaching and learning. Heutagogy has changed my pedagogy. Becoming a self-determined learner who thrives when given choice, ownership, voice, and authentic learning experiences is a gift the ADL program will keep on giving long after the diploma is hung on the wall.
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Educators today are tasked with developing lifelong learners who can survive and thrive in a global knowledge economy – learners who have the capability to effectively and creatively apply skills and competencies to new situations in an ever-changing, complex world (The World Bank, 2003; Kuit & Fell, 2010). I am up for the task.
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ADL Courses
The first class impacted the entire learning journey. In 5305, I had to choose an innovation plan to research, design, implement, and present to stake holders within my organization. My innovation plan is Project Based Learning, Meet Blended Learning. Choice and autonomy were the foundation of this course. This is when I realized that this learning experience would be different and that I would walk away with an authentic experience that I could use to make change for other learners. Powerful.
Researching blended learning and writing a literature review equipped me with the knowledge to write an innovation plan.
Eportfolios are an organizational blessing to learners. A hub to showcase work to reflect and share is something I will always have from this learning experience. This is where the blogs began. Designing this website was frustracting at times and then got easier when I became more familiar with how to use WIX and the design elements of Canva. However, it was more enjoyable than frustrating. It truly is an opportunity for self expression, to use your voice, and creativity.
The power of yet. In 5302, I learned to embrace a growth mindset by taking on the new challenge of being a self-directed learner and working through the uncomfortableness of it using positive self-talk and dropping the comparison game. I enjoyed writing a growth mindset plan to use with students. I love seeing students use a growth mindset in their own learning. In this course, I also reflected on my professional learning communities and how impactful they are to growing as an educator.
This course taught me how to be a self-differentiated leader to create organizational change. I began with my Why statement and created a plan for exucuting my innovation plan using the 4 Disciplines of Execution. My current district offered a PD course on creating WIGs and meeting goals based on this book we studied. I was thankful to have the background knowledge and to learn how I could use this outside of my innovation project as well.
We read Crucial Conversations, which gave me tools for talking when the stakes are high. Regulating emotions during conversations is key. The books required in this course are books I will refer to time and time again to move goals and projects forward.
In 5313, I read A New Culture of Learning which is about embracing change to create learning environments that harness the intelligence and eagerness of the twenty-first century learner. Incorporating play and inquiry in the classroom unleashes the power of imagination. When students are enjoying learning and using new digital tools, its a magical shared experience. Student-centered learning should be the only kind of learning. I created a learning philosophy and used the Ubd model to create lessons for a course.
In 5389, I developed a professional learning plan to support teachers when implementing blended learning into their classrooms. I learned the importance of creating PD that supports educators while they are implementing new practices into their classroom.
When teachers have ongoing support rather than a one and done presentation, they are more successful advancing the practice and in turn, student learning is increased.
In order for teachers to committ to an instrucional appoach they must be supported. The biggest takeaway from this course is to offer ongoing support when offering PD to educators. It goes along way.
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In 5317, I shared ideas for using digital resources to enhance the learning environment. I wrote an article for publication, Finding the Right Balance: Connecting PBL with Blended Learning. I also created a podcast as a media pitch for the article. This was one of my favorite courses and it gave me the opportunity to hone my writer's craft.
This is the course I looked forward to the most. I was excited to create a blended course for others to use. Before I designed a blended course, I read Teaching in a Digital Age: Guidelines for Designing Teaching and Learning.
This book enables instructors to help students develop the knowledge and skills they will need for a digital age and thinking attitudes that will bring them success.
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I'm excited to design more blended learning courses using the framework I learned in this course. Instructional design is an area of interest for me. I want to design courses that help students connect the dots on their own.
Research is an enjoyable endeavor with information at your finger tips. I learned so much. Thank you, 5315. Through research, I garnered useful information from other educator's research on blended learning. Then I developed an action research plan. I'm looking forward to collecting data this spring as I put my action research plan to work.
Part of the capstone reflection was to consider how the COVA approach and the significant learning environment in the ADL program aided in the learning process.
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Here you will find a summary of how I will apply the COVA approach to creating significant learning environments that provide my learners with choice, ownership, voice, and authentic learning experiences.
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The goal of my innovation plan is to increase student engagement and achievement. By giving students choice and ownership in their learning lies the opportunity for a magical, transformational learning experience.
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I believe we can create significant learning environments by combining project-based learning with blended learning.
To find out where I am in the implementation phase of my innovation plan, please read about it in this blog post.
Reference
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Blaschke, L. (2012) .Heutagogy and lifelong learning: a review of heutagogical practice and self-determined learning. The International Review of Research In Open and Distance Learning. Retrieved from chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ979639.pdf
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