Final Reflections for the Semester

I can't believe the course is almost over...and just in time. I'm ready to spend more time with my family, exercise again and watch the Daily Show, Colbert Report, Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow every night until IT 5670 starts up...man, I'm really looking forward to that.

I spent the last 20 minutes (I'm a slow reader) reading through every post since September. I must say, I'm not a bad writer and it was a good reminder/review of what I've learned this semester.

First - music is powerful. It should be considered whenever and wherever possible when designing instruction. I need to find a way to incorporate it into my EdWeb.

Second - the collaborative nature of this class provided learning experiences far beyond my wildest expectations. Kudos to Jackie and Patrick for designing the class around our Social CIV.

Third - both texts have been fantastic. I can't say I was thrilled with Horton until I re-read chapters 2-4 (Absorb, Do, Connect activities) and it started to make much more sense. These activities are essential to good instructional design. The Williams text on the other hand I loved from page one. Simple and incredibly effective. I'm looking forward to using her text as a guide for the design of my EdWeb next semester.

Fourth - I'm now an "active" reader and love it. Thanks to all who provided examples!

Fifth - Kolb's Model of Experiential Learning and our CIVs will be with me no matter where I go from here (professionally, not personally)...like Horton and Williams, they are essential resources for great instructional design.

Finally - I really thought that Jackie and Patrick have been amazing instructors and have done a masterful job designing this course. Thanks for all of your positive, constructive feedback. I'm looking forward to working with you again next semester.

As promised, no post is complete without mentioning my life here in the San Francisco Bay Area or the NY Giants. And since the Giants looked miserable this weekend against the Eagles (don't worry, they still clinched the NFC East), I thought I would post a few pics of my family at the new California Academy of Science. It is truly inspiring!













Cam viewing one of the many tanks in the aquarium section.



















Erica and Parker at the rainforest exhibit.

Unit 11 Reflections

We're in the midst of Unit 11 and I think it best to post my thoughts now before I forget what I want to write.

I had a huge "Ah-ha" moment about a week ago while thinking about the design portion of our EdWeb document. I realized that I should be creating an online course to teach middle school students basic web design skills using HTML. This after agonizing over every little detail of my EdWeb document especially the learning objectives for my old topic. Needless to say this puts me behind a bit, not to mention all the extra work for Patrick and Jackie who need to review v2 (a brand new topic) of my EdWeb doc. I'm happy that I made the switch primarily because I think the topic is much more relevant and more exciting to design and develop.

Much like Unit 10, I've learned more and more about Bloom's Taxonomy and writing learning objectives which is incredibly helpful, not only for this project but for my everyday work life. I've already started the design portion of the EdWeb document and hope to finish it in the next few days after taking part in a few of the Unit 11 discussions.

My G-Men are still winning but some off-field antics could end up to hurt them (not to mention send one or more players to jail). You can check out the story just about anywhere, but it is always entertaining to read it at the NY Post.














The Giants beat Washington this past Sunday, 23-7 and look to knock-off NFC East rival Philly this coming Sunday. Definitely without Burress and possibly without star middle linebacker Antonio Pierce. That would hurt!

Unit 10 Reflections

Unit 10 seems so, so long ago...maybe because I had so much trouble creating learning objectives for my original EdWeb idea. It took me three days to write decent objectives but I must say, I learned quite a bit in the process. I learned more about Bloom's Taxonomy and Kolb's Model of Experiential Learning then I ever thought possible, and that is a positive, because I find these educational models/theories fascinating. I also spent a lot of time re-reading Horton chapters 2-4 (Absorb, Do, Connect activities) and the second time around it makes much more sense to me.

As I stated in an earlier post, I think the William's text is fantastic. I'm using an online resource, based on her book, with my 6th grade Digital Design class where we focus on basic web design using HTML coding. The students thought it was a very valuable resource. Here it is and I will also post it to the class Delicious page.

The typography discussion we had was enlightening...I felt like I was able to get a real sense of someone's personality based on the font face selected for the given words in the assignment. Great activity.

On to other important things...since my last post, the Giants have gone undefeated. Here are some scores:

NYG - 30, BAL - 10
NYG - 37, ARI - 29