What is your biggest takeaway from the 703 class? What’s been your favorite part of the class? Where did you struggle and what did you do to push through your struggle? How do your skills in transliteracy relate to the TPACK model?
My biggest takeaway from the 703 class is that it is ok to try something new. I'm not going to lie, the idea that we had to create a documentary, and we were the first class to do so, freaked me out. I really struggled with this because there were no examples of past videos. We were the first! What really helped me to guide my video and structure my questions was the drawing we made about our study and journey. This really made me think back and reflect on everything that has happened in the last 11 months. Once I had the time to sit down, look at these different story maps that I created, it all began to fall together. I recorded myself and then began the process of editing. To be honest, I wasn't looking forward to making the video, but I really enjoyed it. Much more than I thought I would have. So thank you for pushing all of us. I want to see how I can add creating videos into my job. To push through I set small goals for myself. As I slowly reached these goals, I felt less and less stress. After some time, I didn't need those small goals as I was feeling more confident and less anxiety. My skills in transliteracy relate to the TPACK model because I now know not only how to use resources digitally, but I have been able to see how much it does for a student because I've been that student. I learned more by interacting with and creating a video than I did by writing another paper. I came away with so much more than I have by taking a test or writing a paper. It is important for educators to remember, there are so many different ways to demonstrate ones knowledge, that we all need to think outside the traditional box and offer students different opportunities to share what they know. I think this is how we see more academic engagement and growth.
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I haven’t had a chance yet to be in front of the camera, but I already know that the experience will be uncomfortable for me. I have never felt comfortable in front of a camera. I don’t mind the recording, it's the watching myself part that I’m not a fan of. Knowing that I will have to watch what I am recording makes the recording uncomfortable for me. To overcome this I will just move forward and push through. My desire and internal drive to complete what I have begun, will help me to push through and complete this work. I think students feel the same when they are given presentation assignments. I know they all don’t like to present their own projects, even when it is in a group setting and ample time to practice is allotted. I go to students and ask about their progress. For those students who share their stress and worry, I remind them to work through it with them to find a way they feel comfortable presenting. I had one student who was mute at school, and we found a way for her to present in class. I think teachers need to work with their students and come up with solutions to the students' fears and concerns.
The quote “Things get easier with practice,” really struck a chord with me. This is how I feel about everything. My first time doing anything is scary, but each time it gets easier and easier. The first day of school is always stressful, but it got less and less stressful each year I taught. This is because I had more practice every year. The first day of school nightmares eventually disappeared as I grew more and more comfortable with each year. I am deep in the pit right now when it comes to creating the documentary. I know I will dig my way out, but I am exhausted. Life has drained me of my energy resources and I feel like I am barely able to keep my head above water with everything that I have to do. The shining light is that daycare opens on July 1st and summer school ends on July 3rd. Once summer school ends and my son is in daycare, the time and energy to dedicate to a well done video will be available to me. I am looking forward to it and I’m doing what I can at this point to not get too far behind. I can infuse a growth mindset by reminding myself that this experience will only provide me with even more knowledge then I had at the beginning of this program. I used Adobe Draw to help make my Logo. It was the first one I drew, but it was the one I kept coming back to. I liked Adobe Draw because it was easy to use and intuitive. I’m not someone who does much with drawing apps, so this was a new experience for me. When I sent my logo to my computer somehow a black background appeared. Not sure how that happened, but I actually like it more. I really liked how the different pencils gave different strokes. It was like playing with different paint brushes on a canvas. (yes I am that person at those painting nights that goes a bit rouge with the brushes.) I had my 1 ½ year old play with Adobe Draw as well, and I ended up saving some of the drawings he made. It was like a way cleaner version of finger painting for us. I like this because it made my homework a joint venture. I was on my phone playing with ideas while he was playing his own games with his trucks, and he eventually came over to me and insisted on trying it. So I let him, secretly hoping his young mind would create something amazing for my logo. While l didn’t get my amazing logo from him, I did save what he made. While the artwork isn’t amazing, the memory of him on my lap laughing and playing around with the lines is what I think of when I look at his work. 1) How does transliteracy change your current thoughts on the content you deliver?
Transliteracy is “a fluidity of movement across a range of technologies, media and contexts" (Sukovic, 2016).[1]” This changes my current thoughts on content I deliver because it is a reminder that knowledge and understanding can be presented in a variety of ways. It doesn’t just have to be with words on a computer screen or on a piece of paper. Different students may be able to express themselves and what they know through different mediums. Teachers need to remember this when giving assignments, especially those that summarize a complex unit. While writing an essay has a place and time. It is also important that students know how to share their learning through other forms. 2) How do you see the incorporation of transliteracy teaching methods increasing student inclusion and engagement? Not all students love to write. (me included) When presented with writing an essay my brain would freeze and I would sit and stare at my computer screen and pray that words would develop the longer I sat there. As a result I would wait until the last minute to complete my written assignments. I’m sure I’m not alone with this struggle. When provided with an opportunity to share my knowledge on a topic through a variety of methods I feel empowered and my buy in or interest in an assignment skyrockets. I’m sure our students are the same. They need opportunities to show what they know through a variety of mediums. When a teacher provides students with the opportunity to choose a way to express themselves, the buy-in, and therefore effort is greatly increased. Also, students who are English Language Learners will have an opportunity to share what they know, even with their limited knowledge of the English language. 3) How does sketchnoting fall into the transliteracy category and how was it for you to process information in this way? How might you use this in the classroom? Sketchnoting falls into transliteracy because the students are sharing their own journey with pictures and words. Students are able to express their own journey through pictures, not just words. It was fun for me to process my journey through the Innovative Learning program with pictures. I worked on it one day, then came back the next day and added to it. I enjoyed the process and it was something different than just writing papers. I would use this in the classroom to have students share their own experiences with their learning. It would be interesting to have the students actually examine their own learning experiences. This may be a way for them to be more reflective in their learning. Also, I would love to do this with a staff. Staff meetings can be dry and bringing this in may help teachers participate and really think through their own personal learning journey during a training. This would be a great way to summarize a PD time.
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