My ETEC Reflections
Spring 2014~
This was my final semester in the ETEC Master's program. All that remained was to complete my master's project and present my findings at the annual TCC online conference. I was glad I had already developed my website because I was able to focus all of my efforts on completing my usability study. I was also fortunate to not experience any serious setbacks with my study. I would definitely recommend performing a pilot study to test out one's interview tasks and equipment before actually attempting any study interviews. My pilot study with a family member really helped me to perfect my interview questions and to become more comfortable with the screen recording equipment and its various recording settings. I appreciated all the support and feedback I received from my ETEC classmates and especially from my critical friend Ritsuko. Ritsuko really helped me to format and organize my research paper. Her help was truly invaluable for me to produce a paper I could be proud of. Finally, the 2014 TCC conference seemed like a daunting challenge at the outset, but I think I did okay considering this was my first conference presentation. It was nice to see so many of my classmates, ETEC professors, and alumni in attendance. It was definitely a memorable experience and a fitting conclusion to my three year master's program. |
Fall 2013~
ETEC 687 was sort of a precursor for ETEC 690 (the final class for my Master's program). All of the assignments in ETEC 687 helped to prepare me for completing my final project next Spring. Perhaps the most difficult part of ETEC 687 was coming up with a project that would not require Hawaii Department of Education research approval. With the help of my instructor (Dr. Leong) and my cohort peers, I was able to develop a project that will be both useful and interesting for me, in my role as a high school librarian and Senior Project Coordinator.
Needless to say, I am looking forward to starting my final project, which will be a usability study on a Weebly website I created, to support the Senior Project program at my school. Hopefully, all goes well and ETEC 690 will be an enjoyable close to my Master's program.
ETEC 687 was sort of a precursor for ETEC 690 (the final class for my Master's program). All of the assignments in ETEC 687 helped to prepare me for completing my final project next Spring. Perhaps the most difficult part of ETEC 687 was coming up with a project that would not require Hawaii Department of Education research approval. With the help of my instructor (Dr. Leong) and my cohort peers, I was able to develop a project that will be both useful and interesting for me, in my role as a high school librarian and Senior Project Coordinator.
Needless to say, I am looking forward to starting my final project, which will be a usability study on a Weebly website I created, to support the Senior Project program at my school. Hopefully, all goes well and ETEC 690 will be an enjoyable close to my Master's program.
Spring 2013~
ETEC 647e allowed me to experience a variety of online presentation technologies that I never used before. We were required to participate in group activities every week, which was somewhat frustrating, because we had a new group for each activity. The topics were interesting, for the most part, but the time commitment needed to complete the group activities was quite demanding. An interesting assignment was the creation and maintenance of a blog page. It was fun and I continue to use a blog for communicating with students about assignments and due dates.
We also learned about new developments in communication and educational technologies which were amazing! 3D printers, interactive wearable technologies, Augmented Reality, and more were covered in our class discussions. I believe they all hold great promise for the future of learning, information sharing, and creative innovation. Guest speakers also provided valuable insight on how various technologies are being integrated into their work environments as well.
ETEC 647e allowed me to experience a variety of online presentation technologies that I never used before. We were required to participate in group activities every week, which was somewhat frustrating, because we had a new group for each activity. The topics were interesting, for the most part, but the time commitment needed to complete the group activities was quite demanding. An interesting assignment was the creation and maintenance of a blog page. It was fun and I continue to use a blog for communicating with students about assignments and due dates.
We also learned about new developments in communication and educational technologies which were amazing! 3D printers, interactive wearable technologies, Augmented Reality, and more were covered in our class discussions. I believe they all hold great promise for the future of learning, information sharing, and creative innovation. Guest speakers also provided valuable insight on how various technologies are being integrated into their work environments as well.
ETEC 651 was an unusual course, in that, it wasn't like anything I was expecting. The course focused on using a 3D animation program called Blender. It was an amazing program that allowed users to create animated 3D objects. The software was somewhat difficult to master, even with hours of use, but I really enjoyed using it. I don't think I will be using Blender again, in my capacity as a librarian. Still, as a former art major, I found the creative process very exciting, despite the frustration that often accompanied Blender's use. Neat stuff! Check out my interpretation of the Starship Enterpise and some photos of the project design below.
Fall 2012~
ETEC 620 was a fun class. I enjoyed the creative activities. Learning about the design process was an eye-opening learning experience. I guess I never really thought about how the graphics used could negatively affect the effectiveness of a presentation or graphic product. Working with iBook Author was a somewhat frustrating experience because we could not get the content to look the way we wanted, due to the limitations of the software. Hopefully, the next version will be more user friendly and flexible.
ETEC 647 was very interesting. I am new to mobile technology, so being able to create a lesson using mobile tech as an instructional tool was very cool. While the results were not quite what we hoped for, they were a great starting point for integrating mobile devices into content instruction. I also learned about a neat interactive tool called "Socrative." Socrative is a great mobile app for increasing learner engagement through interactive questioning. I think this is something that could easily be used in classrooms.
ETEC 620 was a fun class. I enjoyed the creative activities. Learning about the design process was an eye-opening learning experience. I guess I never really thought about how the graphics used could negatively affect the effectiveness of a presentation or graphic product. Working with iBook Author was a somewhat frustrating experience because we could not get the content to look the way we wanted, due to the limitations of the software. Hopefully, the next version will be more user friendly and flexible.
ETEC 647 was very interesting. I am new to mobile technology, so being able to create a lesson using mobile tech as an instructional tool was very cool. While the results were not quite what we hoped for, they were a great starting point for integrating mobile devices into content instruction. I also learned about a neat interactive tool called "Socrative." Socrative is a great mobile app for increasing learner engagement through interactive questioning. I think this is something that could easily be used in classrooms.
Summer 2012~
ETEC 612 was my first experience taking a distance education course. It was interesting to learn about the issues and perspectives surrounding distance education programs and about the emphasis on learner interactions and collaboration to build a sense of community among the different learners.
I also used Twitter for the first time. While it was exciting to finally use this social media tool, I am still unsure about its value as a collaborative tool to inspire meaningful discussion. I've used Inspiration software before and I appreciated the opportunity to create a concept map for my learning module.
My background in psychology and Special Education exposed me to concepts like learning styles and multiple intelligences. But, ETEC 612 helped me to consider their implications within the online, or distance education, context. I did not realize how much time and planning went into developing a distance education class because of the need to address learner diversity and varying levels of technical knowledge with online tools.
We also reviewed the type of students best suited for distance education courses. My score on the learner survey indicated that I am a good candidate for this learning environment. ETEC 612 was an excellent learning experience and I would definitely take another distance education class, if given the opportunity.
ETEC 612 was my first experience taking a distance education course. It was interesting to learn about the issues and perspectives surrounding distance education programs and about the emphasis on learner interactions and collaboration to build a sense of community among the different learners.
I also used Twitter for the first time. While it was exciting to finally use this social media tool, I am still unsure about its value as a collaborative tool to inspire meaningful discussion. I've used Inspiration software before and I appreciated the opportunity to create a concept map for my learning module.
My background in psychology and Special Education exposed me to concepts like learning styles and multiple intelligences. But, ETEC 612 helped me to consider their implications within the online, or distance education, context. I did not realize how much time and planning went into developing a distance education class because of the need to address learner diversity and varying levels of technical knowledge with online tools.
We also reviewed the type of students best suited for distance education courses. My score on the learner survey indicated that I am a good candidate for this learning environment. ETEC 612 was an excellent learning experience and I would definitely take another distance education class, if given the opportunity.
Spring 2012~
Whew...this semester was very writing intensive! It was hard for me to keep all the writing assignments straight because I had to work on many of them simultaneously (e.g., the Instructional Module for ETEC 613 and the literature review and action research idea paper for ETEC 611).
The instructional module made me realize how much planning goes into creating an effective module. The review and rewriting process was very helpful, but was also very demanding and time consuming.
The action research idea paper helped me to start thinking about a possible research idea for my Master's project. Participating in the TCC conference was also helpful to see what will be expected of me when I am ready to present my research findings. Very exciting!
Whew...this semester was very writing intensive! It was hard for me to keep all the writing assignments straight because I had to work on many of them simultaneously (e.g., the Instructional Module for ETEC 613 and the literature review and action research idea paper for ETEC 611).
The instructional module made me realize how much planning goes into creating an effective module. The review and rewriting process was very helpful, but was also very demanding and time consuming.
The action research idea paper helped me to start thinking about a possible research idea for my Master's project. Participating in the TCC conference was also helpful to see what will be expected of me when I am ready to present my research findings. Very exciting!
Fall 2011~
This semester was a lot of work, but I was able to gain experience with many communication and productivity tools I have never used before (e.g., Dropbox, Google+, Google Documents, Google Hangout, Blackboard Illuminate, and i-Movie). While the technology is not perfected yet, the possibilities seem limitless. I just hope many of these tools continue to be open source, or at least remain affordable.
Working with students from Japan was also a first for me. I was a little hesitant about the assignment at first, but it turned out to be a positive experience due to the enthusiasm and positive attitude of my team members.
I enjoy creating media content and don't mind spending a lot of time working on those assignments. I just wish I were more proficient with the various technologies to be able to get the final product to turn out the way I envisioned it. I've used Windows Movie Maker and Weebly before. I chose to use i-Movie for the collaborative video to gain experience using a different media tool.
The Front-End Analysis for ETEC 600 was a daunting task that required me to work within a small group to complete. I learned much from the assignment. Especially, that there is a systematic way to address system inefficiencies or blocks to a system's effectiveness. With this new knowledge, I hope I can improve my decision making and problem-solving abilities to be a better educator and Library Media Specialist. I look forward to the challenges ahead of me as I continue my journey in the ETEC program.
This semester was a lot of work, but I was able to gain experience with many communication and productivity tools I have never used before (e.g., Dropbox, Google+, Google Documents, Google Hangout, Blackboard Illuminate, and i-Movie). While the technology is not perfected yet, the possibilities seem limitless. I just hope many of these tools continue to be open source, or at least remain affordable.
Working with students from Japan was also a first for me. I was a little hesitant about the assignment at first, but it turned out to be a positive experience due to the enthusiasm and positive attitude of my team members.
I enjoy creating media content and don't mind spending a lot of time working on those assignments. I just wish I were more proficient with the various technologies to be able to get the final product to turn out the way I envisioned it. I've used Windows Movie Maker and Weebly before. I chose to use i-Movie for the collaborative video to gain experience using a different media tool.
The Front-End Analysis for ETEC 600 was a daunting task that required me to work within a small group to complete. I learned much from the assignment. Especially, that there is a systematic way to address system inefficiencies or blocks to a system's effectiveness. With this new knowledge, I hope I can improve my decision making and problem-solving abilities to be a better educator and Library Media Specialist. I look forward to the challenges ahead of me as I continue my journey in the ETEC program.