Teaching to Designing

This week I received the Blog master and social butterfly badges. To earn these badges, I had to create my blog as well as comment and communicate with others. I look forward to expanding my blog, learning about new ed tech, and learning from others in this course. Can you remember the first website or forum where you began to feel connected with others who shared your interests?

Teaching is not always easy. Thankfully there are online communities that offer teachers a place to connect with their peers. According to studies, many teachers visit online professional communities to find new ideas for lessons. Teachers can share resources and information about what’s working for them. Education continues to change and grow as we learn new ways to help students learn. Online communities are a great way to learn from others and network. Here are a few reasons we love being a part of online communities as teachers. We Can Find Support  Not only can you ask fellow teachers questions. You can receive support from others who understand your unique situation as a teacher. Becoming a teacher can be isolating. Most people haven’t had the experiences we have had in our classrooms. It’s nice to have a group of teachers who you can connect with. If you’re looking for support try posting on an online teaching community. You’ll instantly feel better after connected with othe...

Staudt Willet, K. B. (2024). Early career teachers’ expansion of professional learning networks with social media. Professional Development in Education , 50 (2), 386–402. https://doi.org/10.1080/19415257.2023.2178481   As a teacher in my 3rd year of teaching, I found myself relating to this article   Early career teachers’ expansion of professional learning networks with social media  a lot. My first two years of teaching were rough. I didn’t receive much support my first couple years and found myself creating my own little support system of people I follow on social media, other teachers I’ve networked with online, and educational articles/videos just trying to discover what works and what doesn’t. One thing that stuck out to me from reading this article is how early career teachers essentially have to teach themselves how to teach while also learning how to balance the classroom, plan lessons, communicate with parents/guardians, and develop into their teacher role. Soc...

My most used app is TikTok, and I spend about 2 hours and 38 minutes a day on it. What about you? What’s your most used app, and how many hours do you spend on it? Also—how can we make that time more useful instead of just endless scrolling? Maybe learning something new, following educational creators, or creating instead of just consuming? Drop your screen time in the comments!

 Students may spend hours online each day. Does that mean they have strong digital skills? I was reading some research that said most college students feel comfortable endlessly scrolling on social media. But far fewer feel confident posting original content or professionally networking or leveraging digital tools in impactful ways. This made me sit up and take notice about how crucial digital literacy is in the classroom. As someone who will soon be an instructional designer, I’m beginning to understand that there is a difference between using technology and digitally literate. Dennen, V. P., He, D., Shi, H., & Adolfson, D. (2023). College students, networked knowledge activities, and digital competence: Implications for online instructors. Online Learning, 27(4), 122-143. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v27i4.4046   

 

Prior to reading this article The Mystery of The Digital Natives by Pasqualina Sorrentino, I had always heard that younger generations were considered “digital natives”. They know technology better than their older counterparts because they have grown up with it their whole lives. However, after reading this article I found it fascinating that many researchers do not believe this to be true. The article talked about how age is not the only determining factor of digital literacy. Experience, access, education, confidence, and opportunity all have greater effects on digital competence than just growing up with technology around you. What really stuck with me from this article was the argument that there is a “digital divide” and it does not revolve around generations. Just because you were born into a generation that grew up with technology does not mean you are proficient with it. Same goes for the older generations. This article opened my eyes to a new perspective on technology. Do yo...

Hi Everyone,   I’m new to instructional design and learning systems. As an elementary teacher, I am somewhat familiar with technology that supports instruction such as Google Classroom and Canva. I’m interested in learning more about how to incorporate digital tools into the classroom more creatively. As far as instructional design goes, I want to gain knowledge on how to create interactive content that engages learners in meaningful learning versus simply pushing out content. I’m also curious about instructional design and technology as it applies to the real world (edtech, online courses, training, digital learning environments).  In terms of career goals, I hope to gain skills that allow me to work remotely in either instructional design or learning experience design from a large tech company or company that needs design work. What skills are most important when trying to design interactive learning experiences?