a Black diamond runs. These are the trails that get your heart pumping, that push you to the edge (in good ways and bad). The whole way down you're being challenged, and more often than not, you hope you can get to the bottom without injury or worse. These trails push you to show your skill and earn your decent. They prove that you're as good of a rider as you thought you were, and ultimately contribute to badge you can proudly wear proclaiming you're an expert. When you finally reach the bottom, you scream out with exhilaration, I MADE IT!
ETEC 500 - Research Methodology in Education
As an inquiry based teacher, I think one of the most important things for any learner is the ability to ask meaningful questions and to use a variety of resources and tools to help you try to collect information and to find an answer. To me, this is why taking a course like this is so important. Although this was a required course of the program, there is a certain amount of pride one feels when surviving a course like this. It wasn’t easy, but in the end it made me feel like a better student. I survived some very dense academic readings, completed literature reviews and did a lot more math that I expected. This course allowed me to do some deep research into an area of particular interest of mine: The ability of students to be able to do multitask while completing studies and using technology. I have used knowledge gained from the research for this course countless times in my own classroom, with my 10 year old students. Although they may not always like what I have to say, I can tell them it was based on rigorous academic research. |
ETEC 511 - Foundations of Educational Technology
The focus of this course was on investigating the cultural-historical, ecological-natural, ethical-personal, existential-spiritual, socio-political and technical-empirical dimensions of technology with implications for curriculum and instructional design. I would also say that it was hands down the most difficult MET course I took during the entirety of the program, for several different reasons. The readings were more challenging than any I’d come across again over the next several years, I had difficulty connecting with and finding commonalities amongst myself and my classmates, many of whom were not traditional k-12 classroom teachers, and I found myself working on a major project that to this day means very little to me. The silver lining of this course was a solo project where we got to research a topic of personal interest, that was connected to one of the weekly discussion topics. I chose researching into the SAMR model as framework that allows for deep, authentic and meaningful technology integration in today’s classrooms. This project encouraged me to question how I personally use technology to benefit my students, and how to view technology more than just a gimmicky tool. |
ETEC 521 - Indigeneity, Technology and Education Although this course did not necessarily directly relate in so many ways to me in my context or in my classroom, I would say that hands down it had the most impact on me as a learner and it would be the one course I think all future MET students should take. Most importantly, for the first time, I was forced to think about technology in terms of it being culturally biased, and although I don’t teach in Canada or work with indigenous students, I do work with students from all different backgrounds, cultures and religions as an international school teacher. I came face to face with conversations about privilege, rights, styles and the future of education. I was really forced to evaluate my own biases and preconceived ideas about what was culturally relevant to the kids I teach now, and in the future. I feel as though this course offered me so many perspectives on teaching and learning in general, that it can’t help but contribute to all three of my learning goals. I cannot say enough how much I enjoyed this course and how important it is for all educators to take this course. |
ETEC 512 - Applications of Learning Theories to Instruction
This course was both challenging and important, and has ultimately helped me to develop a teaching philosophy that is supported by relevant learning theories. Although there are certainly some theories that I more heavily lean towards, I came to learn through readings and discussions that many theories come with sound research and that no educator needs to be tied to only one idea of how children learn best (behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism. As an inquiry based teacher, I found a lot of reassurance when reading about Piaget constructivist theories, which are often characterized by active engagement, inquiry, problem solving, and collaboration with others. Further, the theory goes on the describe how rather than being a dispenser of knowledge, the teacher is a guide, facilitator, and co-explorer who encourage learners to question, challenge, and formulate their own ideas, opinions, and conclusions (Weegar & Pacis, 2012). Understanding one concept in particular, Lev Vygotsky’s ‘Zone of Proximal Development’, helped me to realize that a well designed learning environment constantly pushes the envelope to keep the learners performing just outside of their comfort zones, thus promoting a growth mindset. The beauty of technology integration in the classroom is that the zone of proximal development is now at the fingertips of so many educators and learners in the form of so many different types of technologies. “Helping students to understand that their intelligence is not fixed but rather is plastic, as growth mindsets encourage them to do, can have a dramatic effect on their learning gains. Doing so within their zone of proximal development could go even further toward assisting them in reaching their maximum potential as learners” (More Than Mindsets, 2014). |