Capstone Video

My final project for ETEC561...
http://screencast.com/t/QnT1c6uniPga

Section 7: New Direction in Instructional Design and Technology

This section of the textbook addresses new directions and emerging technologies for IDT.  For your final post, reflect on how you might apply each of the following in your current or future position in the IDT field:

Distributed or e-learning environments
I believe that e-learning can be a great tool for teachers to attend workshops or conferences.  This fall, the K-2 teachers in our district were involved in a 2 day video conference about a new reading intervention.  This was a way for the teachers to receive the training without the presenter being physically with us.  We were also able to interact with the presenter and ask questions, as she talked and showed instructional videos.  I feel that this could be a useful tool in the library.  One thing I would love to do is to have an author share their experiences and answer questions with students through the use of technology. 

Reusable design or learning objects
In my current position as a kindergarten teacher, I have created a Notebook file for use with the SMARTboard.  The file is used each day for circle time/calendar time.  Instead of having a physical calendar in the room, we manipulate the calendar on the SMARTboard each day.  There are pages that the students write the date and track the weather on.  The file also contains song files and activities, such as counting, days of the week, months of the year, etc. that we use each day.

Rich Media
I use rich media in my classroom for many of my lessons.  When I begin most of my lessons, I try and find some type of video, whether it’s a clip from YouTube or something on Safari Montage, which will hook the students into the lesson. Young children get really excited about songs and videos and don’t even realize they are learning while they are having fun! 

Emerging instructional technologies, such as artificial intelligence, cybernetics, Web 2.0, virtual worlds, electronic games, etc.
An example of using emerging instructional technologies in my current classroom would be through virtual field trips.  Currently, our kindergarten classes are looking into doing a virtual field trip with the Ft. Worth Museum of Science & History.  This type of field trip would allow the students to experience the museum without the cost of transportation or admissions.  There would still be a fee for the “trip”, but it would be less costly than going on a real field trip.  I would consider many of the apps on the iPad as electronic games.  The students play these “games”, but they are actually learning!

Week 6: Getting an IDT Position and Succeeding at It

Begin your post for this week with some background: what is your current job, what program are you enrolled in, what brings you to that program, and what do you expect when you graduate (change jobs? obtain a promotion?)
I am currently a Kindergarten teacher for Cedar Hill ISD.  I have been teaching for the past 16 years (5^th grade Math, 3^rd grade, Kindergarten and Pre K).  As a young child, I always knew I wanted to be a teacher and work with children.  After years in the classroom, and the love of reading and books, I have decided it’s finally time for a change.  I am currently pursuing my Masters of Educational Technology/Library Science through TAMC.  My goal after graduating with my Masters Degree is to get a job as a school librarian, preferably in an elementary school.

Next, describe the kind of work you want to do and the type of organization or institution in which you want to work. Use the WorkMatrix in the chapter titled “Getting a Job in the Business and Industry” to help organize your thoughts. Do you most desire first, second, third or fourth level service? Or would you rather design or develop instruction? What features of work are important to you? What economic sector do you want to work in?
Because my text book edition does not have the WorkMatrix, I was not able to thoroughly investigate it and see what each level means.  But, from reading a few of the other blogs, I feel that I must be in the 1^st level of service (teaching, delivering, and training).  I want to continue working with students, preferably elementary aged students after graduating with my Masters Degree.  I would love to help teachers incorporate technology into their lessons and share information with them. But, I am not a person who likes to stand up in front of my peers and give presentations!

Based on these intentions, explain what you need to learn. What skills and qualifications do you need? Will you obtain the skills you need in the required courses in your program? What electives might you need to take to help you develop skills specific to your aspirations?
I will need to graduate with my Masters Degree and pass the certification test to become a school librarian.  This is my second semester as a graduate student, so there are many more courses that will help me develop my library skills and technology/media integration.  I am looking forward to learning and gaining new knowledge over the next year of school.

Finally, what organizations would best support your continued learning after you graduate? Do you think you would benefit from joining these organizations before graduating? Explain why or why not?
I think there are a several organizations that will best support my continued learning after graduation.  I will most likely join the Texas Library Association.  I will be able to keep up to date on many issues that librarians in Texas are encountering.  Another organization that I most likely will join is the American Association of School Librarians.  I hope to look into joining at least of one these organizations in the spring.  By joining while I am still in school, sometimes there is a discount!  Plus, I will be able to gain that much more information in my hopeful field.

Section 5: Trends and Issues

Chapters in Section V identify trends and issues in IDT in various contexts: business & industry; military; health care education; P-12 education; and post-secondary education. Select at least 3 of these 5 contexts and compare/contrast the IDT trends and issues. Then explain how they are similar or different from the IDT trends and issues in the context in which you work.

I teach in a PK-4^th grade school, so I chose to compare/contrast military, health care education and business & industry. 

In the business & industry area, there are instructional design team members working together.  Depending on the size of the companies and/or size of the projects will determine what team members they each have.  Businesses can now communicate through online tools which are now inexpensive and efficient.  The designers must develop cross cultural training.

Working in a military environment is challenging and provides great opportunities for growth.  The instructional designer in the military field requires skills that go beyond basic information learned in any class setting.  Military instruction has certain procedures that are uniform across the board, they are very consistent.  The instructional designer working with the military must encourage lifelong learning.  There should be opportunities for continued learning whether you continue in the military or leave the service.  The military has the same funding/budget constraints that are present in P-12 schools today.

The health care education is the leader in instructional design methods.  Methods are rapidly changing in the medical field.  These employees must participate in training seminars and simulations to be up to date, having the best knowledge to help their patients.

I believe that available resources and time are concerns across the board.  I also feel that having enough funding for training that is needed is a concern for all areas.

Section 4: Human Performance Technology

Chapter 14 discusses the concept and evolution of human performance improvement. Several sections of chapter 14 present a variety of non-instructional solutions to performance problems. Identify a performance problem in your area of work and identify non-instructional solutions that may help solve the problem.

I feel an example of a performance problem on our campus would be the use of SMARTboards.  Several classrooms on our campus have these interactive boards, but they are not being used to their full potential.   There have not been any trainings on how to use them and many teachers feel like they will “break” them if they try and do much on them besides use them to project from the computer.

Chapter 15 presents performance support systems. Define performance support systems and explain how a performance support system might (or might not) help solve the problem you identified above.

Performance Support Systems (PSS) provide different levels of access to support information and tools when needed.  PSS goes beyond technology and focuses on providing support when and where the performer needs it.
An example of how PSS could help with the problem would be to offer different levels of trainings.  Begin with teaching the teachers all of the things that a SMARTboard could be used for.  Then instruct them on the basics of using the board and where different things are located on the system.  Teachers need to be taught how to make their own notebook lessons or activities to use.

Chapter 16 explains knowledge management: the way we manage information, share that information, and use it to solve organization problems. Organizations, such as schools, accumulate a great deal information/data, which must be organized in a way that we can make sense of it in order to use for making decisions. What knowledge would help solve the problem you identified above and how would that knowledge need to be collected and managed to help facilitate problem solving?

One thing that would help greatly with the implementation of SMARTboards across the campuses would be to offer district wide training or meetings on how to effectively use them.  The trainings do not necessarily need to be conducted by the district technology staff, but by staff that have SMARTboards and can offer ideas or sample lessons/activites that are useful in the classroom.

Chapter 17 describes types of informal learning. What informal learning experiences have you participated in at your organization? Could those informal learning experiences be shared with others? Could the knowledge gained in those settings be codified and managed? And should it be managed or should the informal experiences be replicated or broadened for others?

One information learning situation that I participated in was sharing how I used the SMARTboard in my Pre K classroom.  One afternoon Pre K teachers from the district came to my room to see many of the notebook files I had made and used with my students.   I shared how to make files  and explained the different areas of the SMARTboard and informed them of ways to use the SMARTboard effectively in a Pre K classroom.  I feel this informal meeting was very beneficial to the other teachers as SMARTboards were installed in their rooms.

Section 3: Evaluating, Implementing and Managing Instructional Programs and Projects

Chapter 10 discusses evaluation in instructional design and provides you with two evaluation models, the CIPP and Kirkpatrick models for evaluation. Search for at least two other models used for evaluation and summarize these models. Describe how you would use them to evaluate your instruction.

Another model for evaluation is the ADDIE method.  ADDIE stands for Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation and Evaluation.  This method is used to ensure that the evaluation phase is used in response to each of the other phase.  Evaluation should not just be at the end of the process or lesson, but it should be throughout all of the phases.    When using this method within the classroom, the instructor should ensure that the learner is actually meeting all of the standards and that the goal is actually being met.

The Kemp model focuses on the learner’s perspective rather than the content.  The Kemp model consists of nine elements in a circular motion.  They are: identifying the instructional problems and specify goals, examine the learner characteristics, identify subject content and analyze task components, state instructional objectives, sequence content, design instructional strategies, plan and delivery of the instructional message, develop evaluation, and selecting  resources.  This model does not have a predetermined starting point; therefore, the instructor can begin at any point.  This main focus of this model is that the learner’s needs and goals are the strengths. 

 Reflect on what other questions that instructional design evaluation should address besides whether the instructional design leads to comparable amounts of learning and learner satisfaction as traditional methods. What else would be useful to know?

I feel some important questions would be “Are the students learning what they should be learning?”, “Are the students going to be able to transfer this knowledge to life situations?”, “Is this method easy to use?”, “Do I have the technology or necessary resources to implement?”.

Chapter's 12 & 13 focus on project management and how to manage projects when resources are scarce. You have been assigned to develop a series of professional development sessions focusing on technology use in the classroom for teachers during a time of economic decline. How will you use Situational Leadership to facilitate this project and manage scarce resources?

 In today’s world, when technology is everywhere, we need to be teaching our students how to effectively use technology.  Unfortunately, many districts are going through rough economic times and do not have the resources to do this effectively.  Scarcity is when the demands exceed the supply.  One way many districts, including the one I am currently working in, are getting around the lack of resources is implementing BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). 
For professional development sessions, I would first find out what types of training the teachers would feel most beneficial.  I would also use any technology that is already on the campus and train teachers how to use those resources.  Many times there are resources already on campus, that either teachers do not know are there or do not know how to use properly.
By using the situational leadership approach, the first phase would be to instruct those teammates who are inexperienced or unsure.  The second phase is where the team is still learning but gaining confidence.  As the instructor, you are explaining, clarifying decisions, and rewarding improvements.  The third phase is focusing on the results and rewarding your teammates for their improvements.  The last phase is where you, as the instructor, steps back and monitors what the team has learned.  The most important part of situational leadership is how you communicate with your teammates.

Section 2: Theories and Models of Learning and Instruction

1. Epistemology (the study of what and how we come to know) is discussed in multiple chapters in this section. Distinguish epistemology from instructional methods or theories. What are the differences between theories, methods, or models of learning and epistemologies or underlying beliefs about ways of knowing?

According to our book, “Epistemology is the branch of philosophy addressing knowledge—how we know, what it means, etc.” 
Behavioral learning theory is when a behavior is observed before and after instruction.  If there is no change in behavior, then the intervention is considered to have not been effective.  Behavioral learning influenced instructional feedback. I believe this is something that is done in most classrooms. 
Cognitive information processing theory is the internal process of the learner that explains learning.  This is basically recalling information from memory.
Schema theory is the knowledge of information in our long-term memory.  This is information that we get through experience and learning.
Situated learning theory is theory of learning though social or cultural situations.  The participation in community practices can be individually, community-wide, or organizationally.  Learners learn by doing.
Gagne’s theory of instruction has five major categories: verbal information, intellectual skills, cognitive strategies, attitudes and motor skills.
Constructivism is learning from doing.  Learners are actively engaged, set their own goals and regulate their learning.

2. Chapters in this section present two contrasting epistemic stances: positivist and relativist. However, a third stance, the contextualist or hermeneutical, is also widely recognized. This stance falls somewhere between the strictly objectivist/positivist beliefs about knowing and the purely subjectivist/relativist stance. While designers and educators with a positivist stance generally apply behaviorist principles to the design and development of instruction, those with either a contextualist or relativist epistemological framework employ constructivist theories and methods. However, relativists ascribe to radical constructivist approaches, while contextualists draw upon social constructivist theories and models. Based on what you’ve read about positivist and relativist epistemologies, as well as behaviorist and constructivist approaches, try to more fully describe a contextualist epistemology. How might it differ from either a relativist or positivist stance, and how might social constructivism differ from either behaviorist or radical constructivist approached to learning and instruction?

Contextualist epistemology seems to be pretty much in the middle of realists and positivist.  The knowledge we gain through experience and/or exposure is a relativist stance.  The knowledge we gain from facts is a positivist stance.  When we gain knowledge through facts and experience it is contextual stance. 
Social constructivism uses partners or groups to gain knowledge.  Radical constructivists use more self-discovery and independent work.
  

3. Differing epistemic stances lead to differing approaches to learning and instruction, and ultimately to problem-solving. Explain differences in problem-solving when approached from behaviorist and constructivist perspectives. How do the approaches differ in both the nature of the problem to be solved and in facilitating the problem solving process? Finally, what effect might these differences have on learner motivation?

Behaviorists are interested in the effects of reinforcement on behavior.  They are not concerned so much with the “why” of the behavior because they know why the behavior is the way it is.  The constructivists focus on understanding how to solve a problem.  This approach is more hands-on and real world.  I feel that many learners prefer the real word and hands-on approach.  As a current kindergarten teacher, the students are motivated for the reinforcers or rewards.     But, I also feel that students prefer hands-on activities in the lower grades.