What an Experience This Has Been

     As we near the end of the first of a series of four classes for certification for online teaching, I am pleased with what I have learned thus far. Of course, there have been challenges but I was able to overcome them. At times I felt a little overwhelmed but never gave in. Persistence was in my favor.  Who would have thought that I would have been able to build my own e-portfolio check it out http://lorac7.wetpaint.com it was easy to build and edit. I enjoyed working with the e-portfolio more than I did the wiki. Only thing is that I was very skeptical about given my e-portfolio my regular name. The internet has enough information about me without me giving it more. It is easy to direct someone to my e-portfolio without using my name. If I decide to use it for more than school purposes I can easily edit the title.

     Using theories is not new to me because my profession uses theories as its framework. Cognitivism learning is one of the online theories that is used most frequently in nursing. On learning.theories.com expresses cognitivism as being the metaphor of the mind as computer: information comes in, is being processed, and leads to certain outcomes. That sounds like critical thinking which equates to the nursing process. Assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation are the steps of the nursing process. That process can be compared to the metaphor of cognitivism information going in results in plan of care beginning developed, put into action, and then evaluated.

     As we move to a patient centered care model, humanism which is learning that is student centered and personalized, and the educator’s role is that of a facilitator sounds much like it. Adjusting to patient centered care model was met with challenges the same as adjusting to student centered learning. Humanist aligns with the practice of holistic nursing care both of which believe that the person should be treated as a whole. Online, teaching reflects humanism because the instructor is truly a facilitator of learning.

     The seven principles of good practices in undergraduate education speak to developing relationships with students and the level of communication and feedback and needs to happen. Time of task and respect for talents and diversity of learning takes me back to prior learning this semester. If I were to address this in my online teaching I would have to include readings and activities, perhaps even some exploring of other websites to help drive the understanding of the lesson. Seven principles also mention the advantages of group learning. To facilitate this in my classes I will utilize small discussion groups that have assigned times and to be either in chat room or live classroom. They will have an assigned topic and questions to answer I will be present in the session only as a coach not to lecture.

    

         Group processes aren’t not easy online. Connecting with the team members or just getting them to respond is difficult. I am a visual /verbal learner so feedback on a regular basis in a group project is important to me. I am also a serious learner and like to get my assignments done in a timely manner which is not good for me in group projects. The study of text – static images and multimedia for a group project was a good assignment and called for collaboration that was limited.  http://www.nytimes.com/ is a great example of text- static images. It has a great variety of articles where the text and images appropriate. It makes reading the newspaper on line more eloquent than having the paper in your hand. I looked at multimedia as being the websites that has lots movement and interactive activities going on. However, text and static image are part of multimedia as well. The website that has an abundance of multimedia pages is http://www.youtube.com/ . The group developed a wiki and my role in it was writing the introduction and having input in the wording of the rubric. The wiki is also on wetpaint.com. and can be viewed at http://group2wiki.wetpaint.com/ .

     I signed up for instant message (IM) in class but never used it. When I was online and was able to be on there for a while there wasn’t anyone on line.  I have used instant messaging to chat with my friends. It will probably be a good tool to use for group projects. The problems I have found with instant messages are that everyone doesn’t speak the same language.  If IM is used for the classroom there needs to guidelines set to assure that everyone understands the language.

    I read the five expectations an online student can have of their instructor. I know that one area that requires the most development is the technological aptitude. I have learned so much regarding the functionality of blackboard and even something’s on the internet that I would have otherwise never explored. The wealth of information and ways the internet can be used to assist learning is flabbergasting. As an online instructor I will make work diligently at giving my students feedbacks in a timely manner, I will set scheduled times for consultation as well as use a course question location on the discussion board. Emailing and instant messages will also be an option of communication. 

     I am looking forward to moving on to the next course. I believe taking these courses will help me to be as effective as an online instructor as I am as a traditional instructor. As I previously, mentioned in my blog my greatest concern was relationship building with my students. Taking this beginning has helped me to overcome that concern simply because of techniques I have learned in this class that will help me to construct relationships with my students. Farewell for now stay tuned to share with me my continuation of learning to teach online.

Middle of Semester

      Six weeks into the semester and I am still here. That is a good sign. The beginning of learning on-line teaching has had its challenges. Overall there have been good experiences, with each lesson and my learning has been enhanced. The session began with explaining the differences in levels of on line learning. I was excited when I created my avatar that was the first time I attempted to do something like that. Normally I would have had one of my daughters help me do it, but this time I followed the instructions and completed it by myself. YEAH ME. Making my own blog was fun as well. Some people in the class had blogs or were used to reading blogs and maybe even commenting on them.   I had not done any of that. So the experience was new to me. I had fun doing it but realized later that I could have been more creative with me.  Constructivism and high touch high tech was very interesting to learn about. Within this module I learned some tips on how to use both concepts in the online environment. Then we explored both learning and teaching styles. Within the learning style disabled persons and online learning and teaching was divulged. My thoughts on the differences of online learning were correct. It is always good to validate your thoughts.         

     Next we ventured into learning styles. I was pleased to find out that I am not a visual/verbal learner. For many years I considered myself to be a tactile/kinesthetic learner. I had to have things in front of me and touch them in order to really grasp the concept. That made my journey to be a nurse a little difficult at times. Thank God I made and no longer need to touch things or have hands on activities to understand. During the learning style lesson there was a component about persons with disabilities and how they fit into on line learning. Unfortunately most of us in the class had not thought about the disabled in the on line learning environment even though each of our classes at GSU have a statement regarding persons with disabilities. The things we take for granted is an understatement. It was wonderful to learn that they have the same opportunities as others. We read a compelling story about a blind woman that not only mastered on line learning but she is an instructor and took the same certification class I am now in to teach online classes. I admire her courageousness and not letting her disability keep her from fulfilling her dreams. We also watched a video on youtube where the man instructed the viewer how on the blind can benefit from usage of the computer and tools they use as their eyes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TXuWzcwioU Good example of learning styles

     Then we moved onto teaching styles. I had no idea what teaching I am. I know that I enjoy building relationships with my students and be an ever present resource in their cell phones even when they are done with my class. My scores ranged from 1.1 to 4.8 which make me a well-rounded instructor. How exciting that is to me. Since teaching is second in line of my passions in my career of nursing it is important to me to not only be an effective teacher but a teacher that understands what the students are going through and present information to them in a format that that would best achieve that. When reviewing learning styles we were challenged to describe how we would teach to the different learning styles. Since my teaching style is well rounded I shouldn’t have a hard time reaching the various learning styles. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITmxpe5wjJo This video was a sign of the times and shows how far we have come with teaching styles. It would make the student of today laugh at what we endured then as opposed to know.

    The part of this section I liked the least was the group project. It was so difficult trying to communicate with the team members online. I was not satisfied with the end product because I am used to putting out excellent products not god ones. I was named the team captain however, I backed down when another member of the team seemingly took charge, which is something I should have never done. What I learned from this first of all if I am in charge I identified early how we are going to communicate and set deadlines for assignment sections to be completed. Then I check on the team members daily to see if I can be of some assistance to them. If I am not the team leader I will do my part of the assignment and have it ready before the deadline so each team member will time to review and give me feedback. The hardest part of team projects to me is having people in the group that are not true team players and do not take constructive criticism well. We made and through and to be perfectly honest I am not looking forward to the next one. But I will do my part and be a great team member.

   And finally this first segment introduced us to live classrooms and they can be utilized. I found in my readings that the live classroom or synchronous environment will be a great process for team members to use. Unfortunately, the technical elements need to be tested each time before the assigned session. I found this to be a problem for me. Sometimes for whatever reason I can get into the classroom and other times I can’t. It can however, be available tool if all group members can be on line at the same time. Archived sessions are ok but don’t allow for members to ask questions. Speaker sessions are also good for synchronous or live classroom settings.

     Overall this first half of class has been very good. I look forward to completing and moving on the next session. One thing about me when I decide to do something I press on until it is done. I really like the online environment so I am going to figure out ways to get acquainted with my students so I can still give them that special touch side of me that I love to share.

    

Why I chose the challenge of Online Learning and Teaching

As I sit back and reflect on life and my career I would have to honestly say I never saw myself to be where I am today. I definitely didn't see myself pursing a different avenue in my career. I was quite content with nursing leadership until eight years when I was asked to teach clinicals in a nursing program. I had no idea that my passion for teaching was as strong as it was. With each new semester I was met different challenges and experiences that continued to grow my passion. It didn't help any that my students constantly told me how pleased they were with my teaching style and the fact that I cared about how well they did not only in my class but in all their classes.

So here I am today pursing another degree and looking to expand my horizons even more. The question arises why or why not online? Why online is simple, people live very diverse and busy lives and traditional school does not always allow the opportunity for continuing education or advance degrees. Why not would have to be   personal convictions as to why one feels that online classes aren't for them. My first experience was with hybrid classes this time last year. I enjoyed the set up of my classes and the fact that I didn't have to go to class every week. Then I experienced a total online class and I didn't like it. Not because I couldn't do the work but because I had become accustomed to structure in my classes and that class lacked structure,

The reason I am taking Intro to Online Teaching is two fold. One because I like the idea of having options and the other is because I want to learn as much as I can in order to give my students a well rounded learning experience and be able to be creative in doing so. I understand online learning to be self learning through guided instruction and assignments to facilitate the learning process. Where online teaching is more of a facilitating learning the assignment of readings and activities to assist the learner in understanding the content. I also see the online teacher as a resource person that is available to the learner by several vehicles. I look forward to this class and all it has to offer and then moving forward through the series.Also taking this class will assist me with my classes that are either hybrid or online. I am not one of those people that think online learning is easy. To be successful at online you have be disciplined and dedicated otherwise you will fall behind in your studies. Fortunately, I am both and I work very hard at getting the most out of all my classes. My philosophy is in order to teach well you have to be a willing and efficient leaner.