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| "Ripple Effect" courtesy of Katherine Barton
Like a drop of water sending ripples in every direction,
this class has inspired professional growth with potentially far reaching consequences. Each week’s topics have led to exploration in
a half dozen directions and have inspired actions which I hope will have
lingering effects not only on my own understanding, but in the lives of my
colleagues and the students I teach.
From others in this class and through my own research I have been inspired to make new book purchases (thanks to Darrel for his post talking about the importance of non-fiction), to find new ways to reach out to staff members (Hannah's post on strengthening relationships and raising awareness of what TLs can do for their school was awesome), and to pursue new avenues of professional development (I've discovered some great TL pod-casts and web pages which have been leading to a variety of new ideas in both the classroom and library.) I loved weeks two and three of the blog posts because I have added many new links to my own personal learning network and am excited to try many new ideas and to share my learning with others at my school. I'm also incredibly excited to support other teachers and staff members in the development of their own personal learning networks.
"Learning Networks" courtesy of Ed Tech Team
Another take-away for me from phase two is that even someone as technologically challenged as I am can become proficient at managing and creating digital content. Prior to this class I had never written a blog, linked to another page on the internet, or embedded video or images. I had never posted anything to YouTube and the prospect of using our school district portal to manage group discussion or student assignments seemed daunting. I am now effectively doing all these things. I am using our school portal to promote reading by having students create on-line book talks for books they are enjoying and other students are commenting on these posts. I am taking photos of students reading these books and have created a bulletin board collage. In turn, these students have been recruited to take photos of other students and staff members to showcase the good books they are reading!
I appreciate that this class is structured in such a way as
to model many of the principles of 21st century learning. Very
frequently instructors leading professional development on BC’s new curriculum do
not practice what they preach. It is
often a case of “Do as I say” not “Do as I do.” University classes often fail to model the methods
and principles they wish to teach. While
the first portion of this course helped me to map out a topic of inquiry and led
me through the inquiry process, this second phase of the course has helped me
to further practice inquiry while using digital technology and
communication. I’ve watched our
instructor model the role of being a facilitator rather than an “expert” as I
was encouraged to set goals, inquire, and learn from my classmates and other
experts in our topics of study. I also
appreciate that reflection has been built into this course, another important
aspect of 21st century learning. Learning occurs through reflection
on experience rather than through experience in and of itself.
What I
most hope to implement in my own teaching and in my role as a TL is new curriculum methodology and 21st century principals
of learning. I wish to help
students become active agents in their own learning through the careful
structuring of lessons to encourage goal setting, inquiry, sharing of
expertise, and self-reflection. I wish to act more as a facilitator and supporter than as the “expert” in the room. As well as teaching ITC skills and digital literacy skills I would like to help students recognize that they have the ability to drive their own learning. I would like to help them to recognize that they are each already part of a personal learning network and they have the ability to foster their own learning networks to help them accomplish their own goals and aspirations.
Work Cited
Barton, Katherine. "Making a Difference - What's Your Ripple Effect?" Web blog post. Bartoninsights.com, April
2016. Web. Accessed 03 November 2018. Beck, Darryl. "Fostering Reading Cultures in Schools." Web blog post. Mr. B's Blog. kidstonkotany.com, 7 October 2018. Web. Accessed 10 October 2018.
Bleckner, Melaine. "Self-Reflection - Powerful Questions to Ask Yourself." Ask_angles.com. n.d. Web. Acessed
04 November 2018.
"Personal Learning Networks for Educators - 10 Tips." edtechteam.com, 1 April 2012. Web. Accessed 04
November 2012. Wilson, Hannah. "Start Spreading the News." Web blog post. Hannah'slearninglibrary.blogspot.com, 19 October 2018. Web. Accessed 20 October 2018. |
Comments
It sounds like you have gotten as much out of this course as I have! I feel the same about so many of your reflections. This course has allowed us to practice and become adept at using technology while following our own inquiry topics. I love that we have been encouraged to learn about inquiry in the classroom by following that same learning model as adults. We all can see how much more effective our learning has been when we are allowed to choose our own topics. It is great to read about all the ways you are already applying your learning from this course. You are doing so many great things. Keep up the amazing work.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Karla, on all of your successes. If this is your first attempt at blogging, it's pretty amazing. I would have to agree with everything you wrote about our instructor and about how I have learnt so much from reading my peer's blogs. Some days I feel a little cognitively overloaded but, I just bookmark it and know I will go back to it when some space in my brain frees up! Thank you for sharing your personal growth. You are inspiring!
ReplyDeleteWell done reflection post that captures your new learning, understanding and confidence going forward knowing that, if you don't know it yet, you can always go and explore and learn as much as you need to. Thank you for the kind feedback on the design and pedagogy of the class, I am glad that you are finding it demonstrative and personally useful, as thats the goal! I hope that your growth continues and your sharing of your experiences and explorations continues. Great look back at all your progress and excellent honest reflection on your growth.
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ReplyDeleteTake 2..A great reflection! It's so great that we've had a group that shares so many good resources. I have already bookmarked at least 10 sites that I will use to help shape the changes we are making in our library. So many gems that have been shared amongst the "Wolves"...Also, well done taking a risk with technology! It can be so much fun, and it's awesome that you want to pass this learning on to your students.
ReplyDeleteI think we are lucky to have all us wolves being on top of this course, but to all understand that what we put into the course we are getting out even more! We have all been in courses in the past that are still requiring loads of reading not necessarily applicable to being a TL or some assignment that is really just for the sake of having an assignment to hand in. Karla, you are so right in noting that this course is modeled how we can be as TLs in our own schools. We are all appreciating what you mentioned about the value of this course and the value of reflecting back. It is easy to end up down rabbit holes of learning when you have an interest in the topic and the opportunity to follow your own wonderings. I enjoy reading your posts Karla, as they are insightful and how you write and reflect it is obvious you are on your own journey of learning to be a great TL and not just for the sake of taking a course.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Rehteah, and everyone else for all of the kind feedback. Like Rehtaeh mentioned, it is great to be able to learn from each other and to be part of a group which is keen to share what they are learning.
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