Wrapping Things Up...

My final thoughts on this course that I definitely came away with some understanding of how some form of blended learning could be fit in and appropriate for differentiation for certain groups of students. I also enjoyed creating a lesson that could be taught via online learning, so that I had the opportunity to make things that I already have fit into an online learning situation, and not have to start from scratch. I also was happy to talk more one-on-one with Kris and find out some answers of how this could work with younger students. That was one thing that hung over my head for most of this course, so I was grateful to get a better picture of what was realistic and appropriate.

The Future...

I have mixed feelings about online learning. I can see great potential, but at the same time, have a lot of questions. For the most part, I see much more blended learning occurring versus straight online learning. I can see huge benefits and possibilities for blended learning to help meet learning needs for all students, but still see a need for face-to-face teacher time. There are so many students who need instant clarification and assistance on things, and an online learning situation is a lot of work and comes with high expectation for individual responsibility and adjustment. I also wonder how a strictly on-line education would be possible for students who come from families who have working parents and how it all works. Where do the kids go during the day? When is the work done? What if they can't afford computer(s) and other services/materials? Once I have those pieces, I may have a different understanding for the whole process and how it can completely fit.  Until then, I will continue to feel as though online learning opportunities within a traditional school building and environment may be a reasonable direction.

Formative Assessment Tool

As my class has been working through the roles of a literature circle, I wonder if Voicethread could be used in place of the typical worksheets that individuals fill out to carry on a group discussion and show their comprehension?  I could see using Voicethread as a tool to have students share their thoughts on a certain role by setting up slides and having the students comment their thoughts on their role and have other students comment back on the original comments.  This could be a nice way to "hear" all the group discussions without being there.  I don't think it would be something I would do all the time, but it could be an interesting way to spice things up and have more "contact time" with the students, even though it may be at a later time.  Then, individuals could be pulled as needed for extra instruction.

Being an Online Educator

This was a bit of a frustrating blog post for me.  Not because it is difficult, but I have no interest in being an online educator, so I would much rather be putting my time into something that I could possibly take away for my classroom.  Yes, "Never Say Never," but I would much rather be asked to look at my students and think if I could see any of them benefiting from online education vs. the traditional setting.  Even though that may not be an option right now for them or myself, it could be something to keep in mind for the future and help me think about my instruction for them and if I could integrate some sort of online experience.

Delivering Instruction

Because I was curious to see how much I actually knew about these three delivery methods, I choose to compare and contrast all three formats (blended, online, face-to-face). Once I got 5 minutes into it and started writing things in the spaces, I found the answer to how much I really understood about their differences.



The face-to-face instruction contrast space actually gave me the hardest time.  Obviously, I am fairy familiar with face-to-face instruction, but I felt like I include a lot of technology in my teaching. This made me really think about the "how" it is used, so that I really understood the difference.  Face-to-face uses technology to enhance and assist.  Blended uses it to guide, instruct, enhance, and assist, all depending on the learning situation.  Online, of course, relies on technology to guide, facilitate, and provide a lot of the instruction. Looking at learning this way, blended seems to be the much more balanced and student friendly method for students.  So now that we see this, what do we do about it?

A New Beginning...

After the first meeting of our new course, I find myself going away from it much more refreshed about my level of comfort compared to the last course.  I am hoping that there are things taken from this course since I don't see myself ever teaching an online course…but never say never, right?  It will be interesting to see what I end up taking away from it to apply to my standard classroom.

Not Sure What To Say...

The majority of my feelings stay the same about the current material that we are covering.  I am trying to have a positive attitude about why we are even taking this course, but still don't understand WHY we are taking this course.  It isn't to say that I am not aware of how this could be used…but just because it can be, doesn't mean that I will be. When in the world am I actually going to use this stuff?

When our group originally met for our weekly guided practice, we were quite stumped about using a z-score table.  However, with persistence, we did figure it out and got through the work. That definitely made me feel better about being able to get the stuff done.  However, I still have to go back to, if I only understood how this would be used or where I would use it, it might make it easier to actually understand.  I try to get my students to connect to what we are doing by pulling in real examples that they may see, or analogies so that they can compare and put into perspective, what we are talking about.  I don't mean to be rude or harsh about the instruction.  I think the removal of pressure to have the week's work perfect for our grade is very nice and helps me stay more calm about what I need to do, but just because the scores relate to a spelling test, doesn't help me see where that works into my brain and classroom.