Evidence #5 Reflection: Weebly Seminar: "Too Much Information"
OLTD 503 Outcome Addressed: Develop and design intentional learning activities suitable for the appropriate environment and the learner
I chose the Weebly site that my partner, Kris, and I set up for our seminar about "Too Much Information" as my piece of evidence because it directly relates to the above stated outcome in that my partner and I designed a Weebly site to house all of the readings and assignments for our seminar on "Information Overload" in one place. We thought that housing all activities on helped with reducing “overload” with having to go to many places to access what needed to be read and done. All of the activities were asynchronous, which also reduced the feeling of having to be on line at a particular time. Also, our main final assignment was very learner focused in that it encouraged students to come to their own conclusions about what works best for them. Our students needed to write comments or ideas on the “Wallwisher” site we set up. This site was set up in a less formal format than other discussion forums. Discussion posts were set up so that students could write anywhere on the board.
I found that I was losing direction and had to regroup. My partner and I did achieve our goal to not overload our students by making sure that the activities and readings were kept short and simple. Our students learned how to keep themselves from being overwhelmed and used the suggestions we provided, and also provided some of their own strategies/ideas for the rest of the group. Another part of the seminar that I think was important was where our students were as far as their social connections and comfort levels. The way we set up our “Weebly” site would probably not have been as effective if we had done this activity at the beginning of the OLTD program, as we would not have had the same feeling of belonging as a social group.
It has also made me realize that I also need to make sure that I don’t get overwhelmed and lose direction when I am planning activities for my students. I have also realized that where students are in their social connections and comfort levels around sharing needs to be assessed in order for them to fully internalize their learning.
Weebly picture retrieved from: gadgets.ndtv.com
OLTD 503 Outcome Addressed: Develop and design intentional learning activities suitable for the appropriate environment and the learner
I chose the Weebly site that my partner, Kris, and I set up for our seminar about "Too Much Information" as my piece of evidence because it directly relates to the above stated outcome in that my partner and I designed a Weebly site to house all of the readings and assignments for our seminar on "Information Overload" in one place. We thought that housing all activities on helped with reducing “overload” with having to go to many places to access what needed to be read and done. All of the activities were asynchronous, which also reduced the feeling of having to be on line at a particular time. Also, our main final assignment was very learner focused in that it encouraged students to come to their own conclusions about what works best for them. Our students needed to write comments or ideas on the “Wallwisher” site we set up. This site was set up in a less formal format than other discussion forums. Discussion posts were set up so that students could write anywhere on the board.
I found that I was losing direction and had to regroup. My partner and I did achieve our goal to not overload our students by making sure that the activities and readings were kept short and simple. Our students learned how to keep themselves from being overwhelmed and used the suggestions we provided, and also provided some of their own strategies/ideas for the rest of the group. Another part of the seminar that I think was important was where our students were as far as their social connections and comfort levels. The way we set up our “Weebly” site would probably not have been as effective if we had done this activity at the beginning of the OLTD program, as we would not have had the same feeling of belonging as a social group.
It has also made me realize that I also need to make sure that I don’t get overwhelmed and lose direction when I am planning activities for my students. I have also realized that where students are in their social connections and comfort levels around sharing needs to be assessed in order for them to fully internalize their learning.
Weebly picture retrieved from: gadgets.ndtv.com
Evidence #5: Weebly Seminar on "Too Much Information"
http://janecandkrisseminar3.weebly.com/
Evidence #6 Reflection: Recap of Seminar
OLTD 503 Outcome Addressed: Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
I chose the recap powerpoint as my piece of evidence because it directly relates to the above stated outcome in that my partner and I designed a Weebly site to house all of the readings and assignments for our seminar on "Information Overload" in one place. The recap gives a good representation of how we felt our seminar went. It was a good reflection on our seminar.
The recap powerpoint helped me to see how difficult it was to develop an on line seminar. The amount of hours spent to developing a comprehensive and enriching seminar about a topic was “overwhelming”. I found that having to analyze our seminar gave me a much better insight into the things that went well and the things that did not go very well. I don't think I would have realized where I could change things if I hadn't done a re-cap of our seminar. I don't think I would be as aware of the good and the not so good about our seminar.
Having to recap our experience has helped me to realize that sometimes it is important to take a step back and analyze what I am doing and articulate it in such a way as to help me see what I have done well and what I need to change. This experience has helped me to further understand how important it is for me to make sure that the lessons/activities that I provide for my students are really comprehensive and should enable them to reflect on their own experiences that they can share with others
Recap picture retrieved from: www.heritagepreservation.org
OLTD 503 Outcome Addressed: Critically assess and evaluate resources for best practice in online learning
I chose the recap powerpoint as my piece of evidence because it directly relates to the above stated outcome in that my partner and I designed a Weebly site to house all of the readings and assignments for our seminar on "Information Overload" in one place. The recap gives a good representation of how we felt our seminar went. It was a good reflection on our seminar.
The recap powerpoint helped me to see how difficult it was to develop an on line seminar. The amount of hours spent to developing a comprehensive and enriching seminar about a topic was “overwhelming”. I found that having to analyze our seminar gave me a much better insight into the things that went well and the things that did not go very well. I don't think I would have realized where I could change things if I hadn't done a re-cap of our seminar. I don't think I would be as aware of the good and the not so good about our seminar.
Having to recap our experience has helped me to realize that sometimes it is important to take a step back and analyze what I am doing and articulate it in such a way as to help me see what I have done well and what I need to change. This experience has helped me to further understand how important it is for me to make sure that the lessons/activities that I provide for my students are really comprehensive and should enable them to reflect on their own experiences that they can share with others
Recap picture retrieved from: www.heritagepreservation.org