Written Refective Assignments

#1 Reflection Assignment

I feel that this course has opened a window that I didn’t know existed!  I took this course in 2019; however, the structure was more operational and less reflective.  The readings, especially Technology is not Pedagogy (Morris 2020) and Making Disability Part of the Conversation: Combatting Inaccessible Spaces and Logics (May 2016), provided wonderful insight and learnings.  I took this course to brush up on the applications and platforms available for online learning.  The lectures and readings have truly challenged my one-dimensional and operational thinking of online development and course delivery. 

In my current role as an administrator and occasional instructor, I have been seeking new opportunities to support our students, as well as trades faculty.  The students I serve traditionally return to school to improve their employment opportunities.  Most courses and programs we offer in the Regional Centres and the School of Trades and Technology are vocational and mostly trades-based.  Quite often, components of the courses have online and virtual modules, both synchronous and asynchronous.  Many students have learning barriers and especially need help with the online elements.  I am more aware of the ethical aspects of online learning and using Technology. Honestly, I had never thought about the ethics of online teaching and how it may impact a student’s rights and learning.  This indeed was an “ah ha” moment.

The lecture by Jamie on September 27 about her experience and accessibility was so powerful.  I thought about it for the remainder of the week. It made me think of all the students who lost their confidence to continue, left school, and may never reach their full potential.  Jamie shared that she had a supportive, caring family.  What about those who do not have anyone advocating or guiding them?  It saddens me greatly that many students may have had a traumatic experience during their education that changed their future trajectory.  When Brenna shared the theory of Ethics of Care, it truly resonated with me.  This theory aligns well with my personal values.

I plan to use these lectures and stories to help develop my online content and format.  I feel this course will help me look at online Technology from a different perspective, one that leads from the point of view of inclusivity, accessibility, care, and student success.  I know that this is just the tip of the iceberg, and I look forward to the remainder of the course.

#2 Reflection Assignment

During the first three weeks of Technology for Teaching and Learning, I gained a new comprehension of how accessibility for online learners must be considered

when developing courses.  Another key takeaway is our ethical responsibility to ensure that our students’ data and work are kept safe and not exposed their work to online for-profit platforms.  As we moved through the lessons, the information shared was practical and applied.  I appreciated the pace, flexibility, and stories shared, which included each of the instructor’s experiences and how they applied technology to their teaching.  I found the learning environment to be one I would like to emulate in my teaching and knowledge-sharing practice. 

Although most of my day-to-day responsibilities are primarily administrative in nature, I now find myself considering different approaches to communicating information, while using technology, in an engaging format while also considering accessibility.  This course has provided me with a greater comprehension of understanding what the end user needs to understand the information being shared and that there are multiple ways to communicate the information. This course has also encouraged me to reflect not only on how our students process information but also on how my colleagues and stakeholders learn and interpret information.  For example, I am working with an Indigenous association that provides supports, including education and wage subsidies, to Indigenous clients. My department provides mainly trades training, and other external stakeholders provide the wrap-around supports.  We collaborate on course deliverables and the services that the students will need to create the best student experience and success. I feel that a WordPress site, that can be shared externally, could provide an excellent resource that is easily updated, has greater flexibility, and is more engaging than a website or an email containing text and PDF attachments. 

I found that I gained further insights and understanding from the other participants taking the course.  Although we all work in various faculties and departments, our goals are to provide students with the best possible experience and to recognize that many acquire knowledge and feel connected through different modalities of learning.  The show-and-tell exercise on the final day provided even further personal learning and insight into how technology can be used in teaching and providing information.  As I begin to consider retirement from TRU in the next few years, I am excited to gain as much knowledge as possible to use in my “next big thing”.