CEP 810 Personal Learning Reflection

My experience in CEP 810 was very timely!  Before I took this course, I had an “idea” of what Web 2.0 was, but really didn’t understand the concept and its consequences fully.   So not only do I have a much more solid understanding of the opportunities in education offered by Web 2.0, but I have explored many of these tools within the context of my teaching.  

When I looked back at my personal learning goals, I planned on a) learning about and practicing new technology, b) to consider how it might be useful in all aspects of the foreign language teaching methods I have learned and used, and c) to make a point to use what works for me as an educator.    I believe that I have achieved these goals as a learner.  

My learning grew largely through  simply exploring new applications through labs and then applying them to my subject through sharing assignments.  I really took advantage of the Atomic Learning Labs tutorials, and I am a huge fan of the topics in “Plain English” created by Lee and Sachi LeFever of the Common Craft Show.  I shared several of their tutorials and will probably seek them out again and again as I learn new technologies. 
One small regret that I had was not choosing Wikis for the group work project.  I was really excited about the potential to use them, that is, once I learned what they were from the project my peers did!  Google Earth was an interesting project to work on as well, but I really see a lot of use for Wikis in my teaching future.  I was happy to have the opportunity to learn from others in the class.  

Some things I learned about effective teaching strategies when integrating technology is to slooooowwww down and really evaluate the tool, perhaps by looking at the learner, the subject, the teacher, and the context, like we did in our group projects. Some tools will have value in one area but not in others, and thus decisions will need to be made about what tools are worth the time investment to pursue.  For example, Google Earth was excellent for students, and some content, but not really for connecting teachers.  Thus, if I really felt that I needed to connect with more teachers in my personal learning network, Google Earth would not be the tool to do so.  

The assignment that I felt really exemplified good teaching with technology was my Personal Learning Plan.  I hesitate to say this, because it was a very “one-way” presentation type of product.  Also, I had issues with the timing in the presentation and the slides were not moving forward very well with my speaking.  Still, I was proud of the presentation and the use of technology.  One goal I have for the future is to create robust grammar presentations with this tool that I can share on my future school’s CMS, Merlot, Wikis, etc.  I need to learn more about making these presentations interactive so learners can self-assess.  And, I’d like to check out Lynda (the tool my instructor mentioned that is available to MSU staff!).

Overall, I do believe I met my established goals in my Personal Growth Plan in this course.  I gained much more than I outlined in my goals however and my students will benefit from it.  I do have some new goals.  I’d like to continue reflecting on my personal learning network and check in to make sure it is healthy and effective.  I’d also like to continue to learn more about some specific tools we covered, such as Wikis, blogging, and Google Docs.  I’d like to take the time to create Spanish learning tools to share as well.  And, I plan to model appropriate referencing of copyrighted materials and to use and contribute to Creative Commons.  I plan to continue my learning through CEP 811 and 812.  Long term goals include teaching in the high school classroom again and putting my learning into practice!  From there I will be able to self-reflect and establish new goals.  

Many thanks to my peers and instructor for helping to make this learning experience so enjoyable and empowering!