Instructional+Design+Reflection

* What benefits do you see in educators knowing how to design and implement online learning?

The benefits for universal training in designing and implementing online learning are obvious. The No. 1 benefit is access to courses for all students who can't come to campus. I've had many students out of school for a couple of months after pregnancy or for other medical issues. The way it works now is to type out a list of assignments (often bookwork) for that student to complete during his or her extended absence. That student always returns far behind the others in the class, having had a completely different learning experience (if any) while trying to keep up at home. Online learning (assuming students had access at home) would eliminate that gap, and if all teachers were trained and able, then all students should be able to return to school after an extended absence without being significantly behind.

*How will you professionally use your course that you designed?

I'll be able to use the course that I designed for this assignment as soon as school starts in the fall. I teach photography to both beginning students and second-year students. Unfortunately, I only have a few second-year students, so they are placed in the same section as my beginning students. The first-year students get a mix of direct instruction and individual and group activities. They require a lot of attention – so much so that it's hard to offer instruction to my second-year students. With an online course completely set up beforehand, I can assign my second-year students to work through it at a flexible pace, and that way they can achieve the goals I need them to meet to demonstrate mastery. This is a nontraditional use of online learning, but I think it would fit my situation perfectly. I know that my campus's Web mastering teacher uses a similar CMS to Schoology to organize and present her lessons, and it works well for her.

* Will you integrate online learning in your role as a teacher/staff developer There is no reason not to integrate online learning, but there are plenty of reasons to implement it. One of the most obvious reasons is that it makes it easier to differentiate lessons for different types of learners. Instead of having to offer information several different ways in a live classroom setting, instead, students can be offered instruction several different ways. For instance, in our Lamar coursework, there are readings, lectures, online videos, supplementary Web sites, PowerPoints, discussions, Web conferences, and more. These different offerings will cater to every type of learner at least once per lesson. It's also incredibly easy to offer supplemental or enrichment lessons and activities in online learning. If a student finds the lesson not challenging enough, or wants to learn more about a subject, there is no limit to the extra activities, readings, or resources a teacher can offer.

*What questions do you still have about online learning? One question I still have about online learning is that I wonder if there are any formal qualifications you need to teach online. A district I'm interested in working for offers certification in online teaching for teachers with core certifications or certification in required electives such as speech and health. Can any certified teacher be an online instructor in Texas? And if not, where are the requirements for special training posted? It seems that there are special skills needed, such as leading an online discussion, but where are they enumerated? My current district does not offer any classes online, which I'm afraid shows a lack of foresight. I'd like to know why, especially since training for staff is slowly being offered online by the district, and training from the state (such as for TAKS administrators) is increasingly offered online.

* What will you do with this new learning? I am going to spend the summer redesigning my curriculum using the Understanding by Design method. I have always known that backward design was the best way to organize my material, but I lacked the concrete methods to help me do it. I know that a small amount of work at the front end will relieve me of so much of my workload during the school year, and the benefit to my students will be immeasurable. I'm also going to investigate the CMS available to me. I know that my district offers Moodle, so I may move the material I created over to that system. Since I've already adopted cloud computing with Google Docs and other Web-based tools that let me have all the materials I create at my fingertips, it will fit in with my philosophy to have all my curriculum available to me anywhere, any time.