EDLD+5368+Instructional+Design+Reflections


 * What benefits do you see in educators knowing how to design and implement online learning?
 * With as much as we now know about the brain, learning styles, and the students of today, we cannot teach in the traditional ways anymore. Educators need to be able to offer several options for student learning. Online learning appeals to an array of learners. The flexible timing of online courses allows for students to hold down jobs, participate in more than one class, communicate with others at all hours, digest the information at their own pace, and much more. Educators who can offer a variety of instructional methods are going to appeal to more students and more potential employers. 
 * It’s important that educators can communicate digitally with the students of today. Online coursework is efficient and effective for a number of reasons. First, online courses allow for the teacher to upload all of the course material at the beginning of the session. The students are able to access the materials and complete the work at a pace and within a schedule that suits their own needs. This is one of the significant reasons many students are drawn to online courses. Second, accessing course assignments digitally suits the learning styles of many of today’s learners. Reading electronically is nearly as common as reading pages of books. A student can access multiple texts simultaneously and does not have to carry heavy and cumbersome textbooks. Online materials are easily updatable and can be compared to other sources easily. Finally, online learning allows a teacher to bring together students from all over the globe. Valuable discussion is facilitated that grows learning because of the diverse population of online students. 
 * How will you professionally use your course that you designed?
 * My course is designed to be an introductory course for teachers who do not have much knowledge about 21st century learning. It facilitates access to some of the best online resources for this area. I would like for it to help build a foundational understanding of the needs of today’s learners. I think it can easily be tailored to meet specific needs of groups that want to learn more about current research and its implications. I would like to supplement the course with additional websites, texts, and video. There is a great deal of information available concerning 21st century learning and I feel confident that I could develop several more assignments that lead students through a reflective process. The ultimate end, of course, is that the knowledge is then applied to classrooms. I’d like to create some self-assessments that classroom teachers could use to guide themselves through a transformation to a 21st century classroom. 
 * Will you integrate online learning in your role as a teacher/staff developer?
 * I am interested in exploring this avenue more. I don't think online learning can ever completely replace in-person instruction, nor should it. But I do think it can be an outstanding supplement and/or follow up to my staff development sessions. I hope to soon be taking on a new position as a seminar leader for first year teachers. We will come together two evenings a month for professional development sessions. The supervisors of the new teachers tell me that the new teachers crave more frequent contact and support with their leaders. I think the structure of an online course might fulfill this need. I could upload the session materials ahead of time so that the participants could read ahead and be prepared to more fully contribute to our meetings. Afterwards, I could open discussion boards that allow the conversation and reflection to continue beyond our meeting time. The more I think about it, the more this seems like a great idea that will benefit all. 
 * What questions do you still have about online learning?
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt;">As someone who hopes to develop my own consulting business, I worry about my lack of knowledge about hardware, system requirements, connectivity issues, etc. I am not particularly interested in these aspects of technology, but I wonder if I should work on gaining some experience with them. I worry about not being able to troubleshoot or answer questions about these types of things. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt;">
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt;">Additionally, I wonder about students whose learning style requires interpersonal interactions or very tactile experiences. The online coursework can be very abstract. How can an online course accommodate those with learning differences or disabilities? <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt;">
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif;">What will you do with this new learning?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">A deeper understanding of the backward design model will enhance my instruction significantly. I was familiar with the concept prior to this course, but having the opportunity to read the research and actual model was enlightening. As I mentioned previously, I am hoping to grow into new roles in my career very soon. Everything I have learned and practiced in this course will be readily applied. In fact, this knowledge probably makes me more marketable so that I have an even better shot of getting these great positions. <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt;">