As this semester concludes, I am left reflecting on my work this semester, what I have learned, and what I still have to work on.
On my work...
I am very pleased with the way my project turned out. There have been some bumps in the road (especially my site not loading on Showcase night) and challenges to overcome, but at the end of the day, I am leaving this course with a finished product that is good enough to share. And, in fact, has already been shared! I am thrilled that I created an artifact that is useful to the teachers at my school and has put me on the right track to reaching my goal of becoming an LSTC. It was a lot of work; there were moments when I thought the project would never be complete.
On what I have learned...
Of course, I have learned some new tools. I have learned to be patient with technology, and I have learned that EITS can be your best friend (or your worst enemy). I have learned that sometimes, computers really do have a mind of their own. I have learned that friends and colleagues can be your greatest asset, and networking is key in life. I have learned (and reinforced) exactly what I want from my future career endeavors, and by listening to Ann Cravens speak, I have learned more of what I need to do to get there.
On what I still need to work on...
Dreamweaver. My LSTC told me 2 weeks ago that the #1 tool I need to learn is Dreamweaver. I took the (somewhat) easy way out this semester by using Muse, but apparently I'll need to get back to the basics before I leave the program.
All-in-all, this has been a very productive semester. Truthfully, the Studio has frustrated me a bit. Often, I felt lost and as if I had no real guidance, but looking back, I see that this was all to allow me the freedom to learn what will be useful to me. Next go-around, I do hope for a bit more structure (as I am a very structured personality who thrives with goals, deadlines, and assignments) while also still allowing the flexibility for self-guided learning. I know that is a difficult balance to achieve, but between Dr. Rieber and Dr. Kopcha, I am confident it will be a success! Thank you for a very interesting semester, and I am looking forward to next fall for another Studio experience!
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Monday, December 5, 2011
Journal 8
Oh my goodness.. I completely forgot about my journal posting for last week! In my defense, my house flooded (3/4 of the flooring destroyed), so I've been working on getting that fixed. PLUS, I got engaged last weekend, so I've been a mess starting to get things planned.
As far as my project goes, I feel very confident. I have already shared the tutorials with the staff at my school, and it has been very well-received! My LSTC actually posted a link to the tutorials on the county's LSTC message board, and my TST shared the link with another school that she works with. Teachers at my school have expressed how helpful the videos are, and one teacher very excitedly came up to me to tell me that she FINALLY learned how to create a table! I'd say that's a success.
To determine the successfulness of the project, though, I really need to send a follow-up survey to the staff, similar to the survey I sent at the beginning of the project to assess the needs of the school.
I did, however, find out this week that OnMyCalendar is changing pieces of their interface shortly, so I will have to re-do some of my videos to make them continue to be relevant. I guess that's a fact of life in instructional design; just as you feel confident in your training, something is bound to change that impacts your instruction. That just means I need to stay up-to-date and continue learning on a daily basis.
On the Dress Rehearsal day, I really enjoyed the time we spent having the 2nd timers look at our projects and give feedback. I had some great feedback and some even better suggestions, so it was quite the enjoyable experience! I felt even more confident after that experience that I had actually created something useful.
All in all, the past few weeks have been very successful in terms of my project! I'm looking forward to showing off my finished project tomorrow!!
As far as my project goes, I feel very confident. I have already shared the tutorials with the staff at my school, and it has been very well-received! My LSTC actually posted a link to the tutorials on the county's LSTC message board, and my TST shared the link with another school that she works with. Teachers at my school have expressed how helpful the videos are, and one teacher very excitedly came up to me to tell me that she FINALLY learned how to create a table! I'd say that's a success.
To determine the successfulness of the project, though, I really need to send a follow-up survey to the staff, similar to the survey I sent at the beginning of the project to assess the needs of the school.
I did, however, find out this week that OnMyCalendar is changing pieces of their interface shortly, so I will have to re-do some of my videos to make them continue to be relevant. I guess that's a fact of life in instructional design; just as you feel confident in your training, something is bound to change that impacts your instruction. That just means I need to stay up-to-date and continue learning on a daily basis.
On the Dress Rehearsal day, I really enjoyed the time we spent having the 2nd timers look at our projects and give feedback. I had some great feedback and some even better suggestions, so it was quite the enjoyable experience! I felt even more confident after that experience that I had actually created something useful.
All in all, the past few weeks have been very successful in terms of my project! I'm looking forward to showing off my finished project tomorrow!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)