Wikis & Wikipedia

I have made a Wiki on Wikispaces, which I will use for an assignment in a campus course.  I have expanded on my original myth lesson plan.  Instead of designating several groups to create their own myth, I think I would like to try asking one group to create an oral myth.  After that is created, I'd like to work off that single oral myth to have other groups create other aspects of that myth that naturally develop within religions.  From that oral myth, a group will develop rituals and religious practices based on the myth, which will be named, "The Developers".  Then after the rituals are set and practiced, another group, called "The Writers", will compose a written version of the myth.   Lastly, a group, called "The Painters" will create a visual interpretation of the myth, either in the form of a painting, skit, short film, etc.  Feel free to check out the wiki I have created for student use during this processs.

Below is the Wikipedia page regarding Henry Ford Community College, where I work...very hard...especially in providing high quality online learning experiences for students at our College. What shocked me, is that there is no explanation about our wonderful distance education classes and programs offered on this entire page. So, I felt the need to add some. I have to say that it was difficult to stick to "encyclopedia" type writing as I wanted to add all kinds of opinions about our classes and programs. I stuck to the basics suggested in the Wikipedia tutorial, but am glad there is at least a reference to it now.

Below is my entry.

CEP 811 - UDL Guidelines Checklist

I have used my lesson plan titled "Defining 'Myth' in the Academic Study of Religion" as the platform for incorporating the UDL Guidelines and have written notes in this Google Doc, as to which guidelines are already present in this lesson, which guidelines I hope to incorporate, and which cannot be included. 

I found that many of the UDL guidelines to occur naturally in the lesson, which was was a pleasant discovery.  I plan to include as many of the guidelines that didn't surface in my lesson plan, as I can by retro fitting the lesson.  I think it is important to conduct such analysis of lessons, so that instructors keep these design elements in mind as they move forward and progress.  The more I use the UDL Guidelines, the more naturally they will manifest in my lessons without struggle, which will benefit all the learners I encounter.

CEP 811 - UDL Discussion Forum Post

I agree that often times curriculum is not flexible and poses barriers that may inhibit positive learning experiences. You might think I am crazy, but I think this problem goes way back to the roots of our education system. Prior to the formalized schooling, when students learned, they were often in an apprenticeship type learning environment, wherein the job of the teacher was to teach only one or a few students at one time. Individualization was intrinsic within the apprentice system because the teacher could know the student and how he learned best. When we decided to mass educate our students, it became difficult to differentiate learning styles, areas of intelligence, and individual skills. Therefore, we expect the students to meet the expectations of the curricula, instead of the curricula meeting the expectations of the students. When the curriculum is static, students not only have to learn the material, but also how to deviate from their natural inclinations for learning, meaning students often need to go against the manner in which their own brain works. This is a barrier because a good deal of energy of the student is then put toward fighting his own DNA, which takes away from the energy that can be put forth toward real learning. Without flexibility in the lessons themselves, some portion of the student body, struggles to just understand the material based on how it is presented, leaving less time to internalize the lesson itself.

The benefits of analyzing the curriculum for strengths and weaknesses rather than focusing on a student's strengths and weaknesses, is that adjusting the curriculum is actually much easier than trying to "adjust" all the students. The curriculum is actually less complex in nature than a person's mind and abilities. Constructing a curriculum that doesn't lower standards for students, but makes it much more accessible to all types of learners is a task that takes less time and effort than attempting to get students to conform to a certain method of learning. Why would we want to do that anyway? If all of us think alike, than there will be nobody to be innovators who think critically and creatively in the world. The benefits of analyzing the curriculum and making some minor adjustments to be inclusive to all learners will certainly produce more successful students than trying to change the physiology of the students to make them understand a non-living and less complex curriculum. I would also like to take the time here to argue that if an instructor has trouble adjusting the curriculum, then maybe that instructor doesn't understand her curriculum very well. When I began teaching, a very wise colleague shared with me the idea that a teacher should be able to explain the same concept in at least three different ways. If a person knows her content well, then this isn't really a problem.

I guess the challenges to this approach is that our system is engrained in our very lifestyle. It is the model we have been using for education for a very long time, it is regulated by the states and depends on outside sources for funding. With all kinds of people trying to control it, education itself becomes difficult to morph because there is so much more involved in its survival than the success of students. Having said that, I do think that individual teachers can make a lot of change to the curriculum on an individual level, which may not change the very infrastructure of our education system in the U.S., but can have a big impact on the success and happiness of students. All students will benefit from a teacher striving to make her lessons universal.

MERLOT commentary-CEP811

The presentation that I chose to review is an tutorial called "Sacred Stories" authored by the British Library and submitted by Susan Frey.  I chose to review this tutorial because it applies to my field and will be something that I will use in most courses that I run in the future.  This tutorial utilizes Flash to present to the viewer six sacred texts, and myths within those texts, that are narrated and use moving elements applicable to the myth.  This is an important way to present sacred myths, as most of them were created with the intention of being read aloud and the creators of this tutorial have included many small elements that contribute to the authenticity of the myths.

The MERLOT Material Detail can be viewed on the MERLOT site.  And the British Library's "Sacred Stories" tutorial can be enjoyed in its entirety.

Quality of Content:

This tutorial definitely provides valid concepts and models.  The look of the texts seem quite authentic and ancient, lending itself to the proper setting of ancient texts that were collected and printed in books as soon as that convenience was available to humanity.  The stories narrated in the tutorial are presented accurately and without commentary beyond the text itself, leaving the viewer to discern the meaning and application.  Additionally, the tutorial presents myths that are educationally significant as many of them are myths that are expressed within basic courses to give a taste and relate the basic foundation of a particular religion.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching-Learning Tool:

When it could be used:  I would use this tutorial in two stages of the learning process, namely "explanation" and "demonstration".  Some of the myths would be appropriate to introduce a particular religion and establish an understanding of some basic concepts, within the "explanation" stage.  In this stage, it is helpful to get a sense of the religion and how it presents concepts and life lessons to its practitioners, through myth, as a means of understanding what the religion deems crucial to its lifestyle.  I would also use this tutorial in the "demonstration" stage, as it can be used to reinforce some dimensions of religions after some basic knowledge has been attained.  The myths can help a learner internalize important symbols, historic events, cultural attributes, and the like, that cannot necessarily be gleaned from merely reading about a myth in a textbook.

Learning objectives:  After they have viewed some of the myths, students should be able to identify some symbols present in the myths, which will serve to deeper the learner's continued exploration of the particular religion.  Also, the learner should be able to use some previously gained knowledge of the religion and apply it to the myth adding depth to their current understanding.  They should also be able to list and describe the most important messages conveyed by the myths.

Characteristics of target learners:  The target learners are those that are formulating an understanding of religions as institutions tasked with the charge of providing a framework for appropriate lifestyle, a collection of sacred texts providing insight and setting the context of the lifestyle, a community of like-minded individuals, a place to perform worship, etc.   The learners need to gather bits of information from a variety of religious sources in order to form a well-rounded understanding of these complex religious institutions.  My classes are comprised of advanced students in high school as well as traditional  and non-traditional college students. 

Presentation of material:  The tutorial does provide students a better understanding of this material than that on a static page through the use of animations, which bring the learner into the environment in which the text was written.  Drawings typical of the era and culture are moving with the narration of the myth helping the setting of the myth to accompany the story, which isn't necessarily picked up by the learner in reading a particular myth off a traditional page.

Integration:  This tutorial can very easily be integrated into the curriculum of all four courses that I run in world religion.  I would not have to alter or explain any elements of the tutorial in terms of content.  It applies directly to our course of study.

Variety of uses for learning goals:  I think this tutorial can be used as an assignment by itself; to be used as the starting point for an in-class discussion or a discussion board online; as a supplement to the regular workload to provide additional insight and context; as well as in class to demonstrate a particular religious ideology.

Identify learning goals:  The teaching and learning goals were not identified in the tutorial itself, however, as a user, ideas for how to promote learning through the use of this tutorial flooded my mind, once I made my first click.

Writing learning assignments:  I believe that I could write many assignments utilizing this tutorial for content.  The animations are very pleasing to the eye, the instructions are clear and the narration is articulated well.  I wouldn't have to give too much description to students on how to use the tutorial and could focus all instructions on how to carry out the assignment itself.  I could ask learners to focus on culture, symbols, circumstance, characters, plot, etc., meaning that many kinds of assignments could be built around this tutorial.

Ease of Use:

The instructions are minimal, but absolutely sufficient, which is important as to not complicate the activity.  The user does not get trapped in the material and has complete control over all movements throughout it.  If the reader gets "lost" in the material, it is only from getting very involved with the content, not because the system of the tutorial leads the learner through a labyrinth of button paths.  The tutorial is flexible as students can easily jump from one text to another and one myth to another with one click.  As stated above, the instructions are two sentences and adequate, so there is little chance that any documentation, technical support or instruction will be required by the instructor for students to successfully navigate this tutorial.  The material presented is familiar to students because some general knowledge has been obtained regarding these religious texts prior to an assignment being required.  It is presented in an attractive way because the animations give context to the myth itself.

Personal Learning Reflection

I have learned that there are many more people out there that feel the same way as I do about technology in our curriculum.  This alone was worth the experience of taking CEP 810.  Aside from that, I have learned many specific technologies and have envisioned how I will use them in my classes.  I have a list going with ideas on how to create lessons using technologies I was introduced to in this course.  The idea that there is a proper tool for every job, has been reinforced throughout this course and I will continue on my path of finding appropriate technologies for lessons in order to create meaningful assignments that will build students’ 21^st century skills.

Both my campus and online sections have always integrated the internet, but this course has taught me to not fear going beyond my basic uses.  I will certainly be more creative in my uses going forward, especially in assignments that require shared documents and collaboration.  Throughout this semester, I have realized that I would like to execute more collaboration outside the classroom, not just in group work on campus.

The assignment that I feel exemplifies good teaching with technology was the SIG Presentation.  As a student, I learned a good deal from this experience.  I gained some knowledge about Learning Management Systems, including situations that inhibit student learning using an LMS, which was valuable, but also, I learned that collaboration outside the classroom, never having sat in a room with three other teammates, could still produce a desired product.  The process of the four of us working on a single project, having never met in person, was a learning experience that I will transfer to my students.  It exemplified the fact that technology can be educational, even when the teacher does not have her hands in the project.  That assignment gave practical experience, not just information.  That is good teaching.

It is funny, when I went back to review my Personal Growth Plan in order to write this assignment, I specifically listed blogs and RSS feeds as some technologies that I wanted to become fluent in, so that I could lead students down this path as well.  It is funny because blogs and RSS feeds seem like the most basic of technologies that I have learned in this course.  That is one goal I have definitely met.  Also, I wanted to become more fluent in educational technologies in general so that I could help students to practice what they will need to know for their future, namely 21^st century skills.  Through my own struggles through some technologies, I have also felt I met this goal, but feel that I have to keep learning more.  I have used not only blogs and RSS feeds, but Diigo, Google Docs, Prezi, and Popplet, but I have been introduced to many other technologies that I will pursue in order to meet my goals.

I have some new specific goals, but my overall mission has not changed.  I want to become fluent in technologies so that I can provide my students with the experience of developing 21^st century skills while learning about world religions.  And, I want to be rid of the Learning Management System forever.  But, I have made some smaller goals to help me reach the grand goals.  I’m going to finish the MAET Certificate Program at Michigan State University, which will certainly prove beneficial.  I’m hoping to deepen my knowledge of educational technologies while at the same time applying what I have learned in my courses.  My specific goals are to test some of the new assignments using technologies that I have recently learned and that are on my ever growing list of “assignment ideas”.  I think as I begin using these technologies in practical ways, I will gain a deeper understanding of how to grow myself.

Personal Technology Plan

I have created a Personal Technology Plan in response to the assignment given in CEP 810.  I really wanted to use Prezi because I have never used it before, therefore, there are two dimensions to my Personal Technology Plan.  There is a presentation format as well as a written format.  The Prezi format is not comprehensive enough to meet all the requirements of the rubric for this assignment, which is why the written format accompanies it.

The presentation form is a Prezi on You Tube. 

Personal Technology Plan

My vision for education in the future isn’t one that is brings technology to education, but one that brings education out of technology. I envision an educational environment in which technology and education aren’t sisters, but are one. Instead of just attempting to plop technology into our educational system, we need to pull out our educational experiences from technology. This doesn’t mean we need to have an iPad on every student’s lap at every moment, but we need to really use what we have to enhance learning. My vision for the future of education is that there is no longer a sense of “technology” being separated from education, just as there is no real sense that paper and pencils are independent of schools today. We don’t have to have the discussion with principals of K-12 schools, or administrators of higher education institutions, that paper and pencils will be needed in order for learning to happen. I envision a time when this will be the case with technology. In my mind, it shouldn’t exist as a separate dimension that we need to incorporate into our educational system, it should be synonymous with it.

Included in this vision is a seamless experience for students in which they can have access to course material while on campus, at home in front of their laptops, or at the local coffee shop. I’d like the educational experience to be available whenever and wherever a student is ready to receive it. If the moment strikes in an intriguing conversation over mochas and lattes at Starbucks with friends, then students should be able to grab some reliable information from a course site and use it to enhance their own teaching moment. I think that much of the course content can be digested later when one leaves class and thinks about it within the real world. Why deny students the ability to use critical thinking skills because they aren’t sitting at a desk in a classroom, or in front of their laptops in the library. It might be argued that the most substantial learning happens when the student is out in the real world applying the concepts in real time and in real, perhaps spontaneous, conversations.

All this is great, but is it realistic, at least in my workplace? Well, it can be for me. I have the freedom to develop my own class as long as it follows our Course Master. The Course Master only delineates what type of material needs to be covered in a course, not how it needs to be delivered in the classroom. As long as I am providing meaningful assignments to my students, I have the freedom to use whatever methods I deem adequate for students to learn the content of the course. I also have some support from our Instructional Technology Department, which strives to provide emerging technology and help in executing lessons and assignments for class.

This seems to be my new mission. I am hoping to set forth on the journey to carry out my mission to use emerging technology to enhance the learning of world religions and to make the experience seamless for students. This is a dreamy and lofty goal. Yes, I have the freedom to carry it out in my own class, but there is a pitfall. There isn’t a good deal of support from colleagues in this area. Many of my colleagues don’t feel the need for technology in the classroom, beyond pre-made Power Point slides. I can just imagine what will happen when I tell one of these colleagues that I am actually going to allow cell phone use in my next face-to-face classroom. They may just send in the Dean to observe me…and he really doesn’t like cell phones to even rear their digital heads in class. And so, I sit here asking myself how I will build a bridge over this pit so that I don’t fall in. I will probably quietly experiment for a semester or two. Then, when I am confident that techniques are actually working, I will begin to let it be known that technology isn’t the enemy, it is the catalyst to learning in the 21st century. I will continue on the journey, despite the possible pitfalls, because I feel that it is only fair, and therefore, my responsibility, to prepare students to get a job when they graduate. If they don’t practice 21st century skills, they won’t be able to demonstrate to possible employers that they can engage in 21st century business, which means, they didn’t receive from the educational institution what they expected. That is a disservice to students.

I teach both campus classes as well as online classes, without consistency. I always have at least one online class, but that may be combined with campus classes one semester and then all online classes the next. I actually like this. It keeps my mind fresh. I feel that I learned a good deal about teaching once I began teaching online and feel that I am a better campus teacher because of it. This is because I learned a completely different way of teaching students course material and realized that I am more comfortable, and effective, as a “facilitator” than a “teacher”. When I am employing technology in the campus sections, I am doing so with this idea in mind. I ask myself how I can help students learn about world religions while gaining 21st century skills. Even when the course is 100% on campus, I use the LMS. Of course, grades are kept there so that students understand the responsibility of keeping track of their own grades, but so is information about our class, such as test dates, final exam dates, assignment dates, announcements about current units of study, links to websites and documents that I have shown in class, as well as discussion boards used for test study. I feel that this gives them a sense of responsibility, accessibility and connection to content, as well as a sense of community outside of class on campus.

During a campus class, I currently use You Tube videos to give real life examples of rituals, religious structures, and the like. I also use websites for photos and illustrations during class and also as supplemental reading material to provide some depth to the course textbook. I have just a couple of Power Point presentations, which are used just as a broad overview of a topic. They contain less than 10 slides as I use them sparingly. And, I have assigned digital stories to the class as a Final Project option.

Beginning in the Winter 2012 semester, I plan to enhance student learning using a good deal more technology in campus classes, some created by me and some that will be assigned to be created by the students. I have some ideas as to how to create some Prezi presentations covering some of the more complex concepts that I cover in class because I would like to present another format for learning that content. Prezi presentations appeal to me for these particular concepts because they will be effective for both visual and auditory learners, as I will add audio using Camtasia, as well as connect the pieces of the concept to the concept as a whole. I plan on assigning a Popplet assignment to students in which they will investigate a certain event in religious history and connect it to other events, rituals, symbols, etc., of religions. I like that the Popplet software can be used to join together boxes. I think this would be a good way to conceptualize how events in history influence religious institutions and how those influences become influenced by other events, illustrating the religion is dynamic, not static.

Currently in online classes, more technology is used by me than in campus classes, mostly due to the venue, which of course is the computer. Outside of the LMS itself, I use You Tube videos, video from DVDs, audio clips for pronunciation of words, websites from numerous sources as well as the written word. Traditional textbooks are used in those classes for at least half of the required reading material.

Like in the campus classes, I will employ Prezi presentations to cover the same concepts as discussed above for campus classes, but will begin that in the Fall 2012 semester. The same exact presentations will serve both venues. I will also require students to create Popplet assignments as described above. And, I think I will hold some Adobe Connect sessions for office hours as well as student presentations. I’d like to get some synchronous group meetings going in online classes, so I will require some student presentations to be given via Adobe Connect. I don’t want to introduce too many new elements into the class all in one semester, lest I get too bogged down, so I will save this idea for the Winter 2013 semester.

My ultimate goal for online classes is to find a way to conduct my online sections without using the LMS. I will be working in the Instructional Technology Department this summer and I am hoping to gain some ground in this regard. I want to start collecting the content for a course in pdf to get it ready to place it in a digital magazine. I want my course to run like an interactive magazine so that it blends traditional elements of the college experience with emerging technology. This will allow students access to their content from mobile devices at any time and any place that they would like to learn.

How should I execute all of the above? I have a plan. Firstly, I’m going to continue to build my skills and expose myself to as much educational technology as I can. I am going to accomplish this goal in two venues starting the first week of May, 2012. The first venue is the esteemed Michigan State University wherein I will continue along the track to attain the MAET Certificate. I will take CEP 811 beginning in May and will take CEP 812 in the Fall 2012 semester. Then, I will consider applying to the Educational Technology M.A. program at MSU.

Concurrently with CEP 811, I will be working in the Instructional Technology Department at Henry Ford Community College, and hope to deepen my experience with educational technology there. I have certain projects slated for my semester there, but I plan on also working on transforming one of my classes into a digital magazine thereby dropping the LMS altogether. I don’t expect to be able to finish this project in the summer, but am hoping that if all works well, I can have a digital magazine course prepared to run in the Winter 2013 semester.

Also, during my semester with the Instructional Technology Department at HFCC, I expect to gain some knowledge of new technologies as well as get some additional experience in applying them to real courses. I will be running a training session for instructors on how to bring technology into both online and campus classes. This training session will focus on technologies that bring innovation and communication to established courses. I expect to gain some additional knowledge about employing technologies to various disciplines.

Overall, I would like to keep my focus on technology. I want to learn about as much educational technology as is possible because I am very passionate about providing students with a quality learning experience, which I don’t believe can happen unless they are exposed to 21st century skills in all fields. Most courses do incorporate critical thinking skills, naturally, but I believe that all courses should begin integrating some level of technology, so that students can be prepared for life beyond college. I don’t think technology for the sake of technology is good, but technology for the sake of a proper and fulfilling education, is just right.

Creative Commons Participation Assignment {Session 5}

"The Ka'ba" in Mecca, Saudia Arabia

Photo by:  Muhammad Mahdi Karim

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kaaba_mirror_edit_jj.jpg

 I would use the above image in my Comparative Religion course, WR 131. In the final unit of that course, we study the religion of Islam and one of the most important elements of that unit is an understanding of the most sacred structure in all of Islam. It is the Ka'ba, which serves as the point at which all Muslim prayer is directed. The Ka'ba carries great historic and religious value and I would include this photo as an illustration of how it is circumambulated during the holy pilgrimage to Mecca. Images of this sort are important to give students a sense of the living nature of religion and how ancient rituals and structures contribute to the sense of community that religions provide to practitioners.

Here is the photo that I licensed through Creative Commons.  It seems like it has nothing to do with my world religion courses, but I have titled it "Free Will?"  I would use it as a jumping off point to discuss a most mind-boggling issue of whether religions really support the idea of humans having free will, or not.  It would work well in my Introductory to the Study of Religion course, WR 130. http://www.flickr.com/photos/79088041@N07/7080727387/