A change in perspective

As I was sitting here listening to Dr. Monaghan, I was thinking about my first class in ETEC. My first class was video editing with Dr. Monaghan. This was back when he was in charge of the ETEC program and Dr. Leh hadn’t come to CSUSB yet. We started making animated gifs using MS paint and a free program named Giffy. After that we started video editing where we had to create a lesson using a VHS camera and bring in the tapes to practice editing. We would load the tape into a VCR that connected to the computer and saved on a Zip Disk. As we edited the video we discussed how the videos could be packaged so that other people could see it. At that time the Internet was very static and there was not much on it. I couldn’t have imagined 12 years later that I would be listening to Dr. Monaghan discuss how teachers could connect with students online.
As I listened to Dr. Monaghan, I was impressed with the structure of support that the professors have from the school now. As we move more towards online classes, there needs to be a structure that allows teachers to have support to coordinate, provide structure and have direct support for the technology and get the best out of the class for the students and instructors. It is important to have that set up so that teachers can be willing to create classes and provide a structured meaningful curriculum for the students. I had a teacher sit down with me this week and look at a class I created on Moodle. We talked about the structure of the class as well as the materials that were posted. He thought it was great but he was unsure how he could use it for his Language Arts class. I told him that I would help him set up his class when he was ready because I know he could do it with support.
It was very insightful when Dr. Monaghan was talking about the future of online classes because of the changes that online classes will cause. The research states that the results show that the material and structure is better than face to face classes. I am currently reading the report that was mentioned to see what else was said. The use of asynchronous structure works well for college students but how well would it work for students that are used to the traditional classroom? I think the use of social networking and continuing the class work long after the class is done. Researchers discuss how teachers and students need to create their own Personal Learning Network (PLN) to share and discuss topics. As an instructor, you are always thinking about how to make it better and share ideas. I know I have signed up for a Twitter account that has me following 190 teachers and professors that talk about the different tools that are out there and discuss current trends and research. It is very insightful. I have also joined several Nings which are groups that allow people to have discussions and share different ideas. It is great. As you learn more from people you find that you have more in common with people and find it easier to share ideas.
Talkshoe was a great way to conduct the discussion. Thank you Dr. Newberry for being the moderator of the discussion asking our questions and contributing your insight. Talkshoe was a great format for the night with the phone discussion recorded and a chat on the computer. It was nice not having to drive up to CSUSB and fight the parking and blah food at break. It was great to hear Dr. Monaghan discuss how classes have changed since my first ETEC class and show us what the future will look like. I wonder what people will think when they look back at this class in 12 years and see how things have changed.

Link for 25 Social Networks for Teachers and Students

Week 2

Hi everyone,
Happy DRY weekend.  It has been quite a week.  I am glad that the rain is done for a few days.  I have to say that I have enjoyed reading the text.  Yes I know that sounds strange but the book is well written.  It did a nice job explaining the differences between one and two way communication and allowed me to take the time to reflect on the abilities of Moodle.
Talkshoe was a new experience for me on Thursday.  I like the fact that it is web-based so I can log on anywhere.  It is a great resource for listening to a presenter or instructors.  I like the idea that the students can text and could call in to talk to Dr. Newberry if we wanted to.

Here are my responses to the 4 questions for the week.  I will post comments tomorrow evening .

Week 1

Greetings all,


My name is Chris Fisher and I am in the process of finishing my Masters in Instructional Technology and earn an Elearning certificate. After learning about the Elearning certificate, I realized that this is the future of technology. I am a Middle School technology teacher and I realized long ago that I need to stay current with the new technologies because it is the way to engage my students and try to keep them current. I have many students who believe that using the computers involves myspace and searching for music and youtube. There is so much more out there and I want to show them what is also out there. My class is mostly set up with the students completing projects independently by reading directions on web pages. This has worked well in the past but now I realize students need to learn how to be more self motivated and be willing to complete more assignments outside the traditional classroom.

My previous experience with online classes has been varied. I was in the program 10 years ago and we created an online class using webct. I found it to be difficult to create projects and the software wasn’t there to help. I have also helped with an online class for the JASON Project but it was mostly helping with the discussion board and it was not that rewarding. This is my third term coming back to the ETEC program and all of my classes have been pretty much on line. I have created blogs that have been posted and responded to. I have participated in discussion boards. Skype was a great resource because I was able to interact with the different students and discuss different topics. Last term I created a Moodle class for my students and tested it the first 3 weeks of this trimester. That was a great experience. Now I am ready to learn more.

Interactions:

Learner-Content:

Connecting with the content is always a challenge. This class has a textbook so that will be interesting to see how the text written in 2005 will interact with the technology of today. I understand that the methods are the same but the technology has driven many of the changes on how things are done. I like the format of podcasts and transcripts as well as questions put forth by the instructor. The use of blogs is very important because it gives me a chance to reflect on what is being said. I do like discussions with other students and instructors about the content. The use of videos has been great resource to share the content. I have been researching a lot of information on youtube when I need some help with the content or computer software. I have also used Twitter to discuss ideas about content with different people.

Learner-Instructor:

Discussions with the instructor are very important. I know when I did the Moodle class with my students I focused on how I would like to interact with the students and respond to their needs. I liked the format of podcasts because they had the chance to hear my voice and relate to me. I used blogs with my students and had them post their assignments on Moodle to be graded and I could post comments. Even though we were in the same class, I had them participate in chats. I told them I was not in the class and the only way they could communicate with me was through email or using the chat. That was powerful for me because I could see how the use of words needed to be focused to relay their message to me and I had to answer it concisely to help them.

I am looking forward to talkshoe because I know I have used Skype and that helped because we were able to ask questions and discuss.

Learner-Learner:

I think learner-learner interaction is important to help us learn and discuss what is being shown. I have responded to blogs and discussion boards. I like the format of Skype with the chats and discussions. Last month I started using Twitter and have been interacting with many of the people that I met at a conference. Twitter allows me to ask questions and see what other people are thinking and sharing different links. I have also signed up for several Ning groups and trying to figure out how that works. It is exciting to interact with other educators and see what other people are dealing with and researching.