Online Grad School November 30, 2008

One of the parents of a student works for U of I in distance learning.  I ran into her at a school function and was telling her about my experiences at CTER.  She was so excited to hear my enthusiasm and asked to quote me.  Of course I agreed.  I want more people to understand the benefits of online learning.  Rita mentioned in her blog that the conversations online in Elluminate generate much discussion and thought.  I agree that I am constantly challenged my discussions on Tuesday night.  In terms of being a teacher in this technology advanced world, online education teaches me skills that are so valuable.  I remember learning about Blackboard through my district.  And I tried to implement it into my classroom.  But it wasn’t until I became a student and used moodle to learn of assignments, submit my work and discuss topics with classmates that I began to understand the breadth of how I could use Blackboard in my own classroom.  As Rita mentioned, in our current class we’ve gotten the opportunity to lead a class discussion.  This opportunity has reinforced new skills we’ve learned and let us put into practice all of this new technology.  And leading a discussion online is very different than in a classroom.  That opportunity could not have been created in a physical classroom setting.

There are so many instances in the past year and a half where I’ve watched a video on Youtube for class then shared it with my co-workers.  The blogs, websites, videos etc. are all forms of media that draw my attention.  I am much more invested than when I highlight an article or textbook.  And it’s much easier to share information on the computer by posting a blog or sending an email.  By going to school online, and accessing materials for class online, the topics at hand are available 24-7 as opposed to attending class once a week for a few hours.  The discussions are on going, ever changing and constantly challenging the concept of education today.

I’ve learned about some fun technology that I will be using in my classroom.  I conducted my first webquest, and created my first instructional video.   A challenge that came with the instructional video was how to submit it.  Had I attended a physical classroom, we probably would have saved it to a CD or used our own computers to present the videos in class.  But the challenge of online class has been to get the technology to work for me as a student.  I think you learn more when you struggle with the technology.  And I can relate better to my students because I’ve experienced some of the same struggles that they experience when trying to get the computer to perform the task you want.

I would say another benefit of online learning was getting me over my fear of the internet.  I was afraid of posting personal information online for anyone to see.  Now I think it’s a wonderful resource for communication and learning.  If I create something that I think is a good lesson, I am more than happy to post and share it for others to benefit from as well.

I still have one more class to take.  But I think that online grad school has been a very positive experience.  And I can say that I think I learned more online than I would have in a physical classroom.