Maker Experiment #3 - Reflection

As I wrap up my final week of CEP 811: Adapting Innovative Technologies to Education, I've reflected on the work and tasks I've been assigned: exploring the 'maker culture'; repurposing & creativity; learning theories; instructional design; experience design; universal design for learning; scholarship of teaching and learning; design evaluation.  While I did engage and experiences some of the newer technologies, I found this course was more about making use of existing technologies and materials as well taking into consideration past and current 'best practices' to create a true 21st Century learning environment.

Professional Assessment & Evaluation
My favorite part of my experience has been playing with my chosen Maker Kit, the littleBits Starter Kit, and seeing how the science of electricity and creative technology melded together.  It was so much fun to sit down with this product and experience it for the first time and even better to see the delight of my five year old's face when he created his first circuit.  I cannot wait to bring my littleBits into my classroom next year.  I have already shared these little treasures with my grade level team.  We have hacked out a plan to share my kit and some of the extensions I have purchased amongst the six of us for our electricity unit.  The scientific inquiry experiences that this Maker Kit will bring to my classroom and my students will be priceless.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the littleBits will be largely based on student self-assessment and their synthesis of the littleBit components work, connect, and operate as units.  The biggest part of the effectiveness evaluation will be formative assessment, which will allow me to adjust how the Maker Kit is being used and implemented within my curriculum.  In the grade scheme of my electricity unit and the standards I am responsible to teach, circuitry is only a small chunk of it.  However, I can, and will, align these experience learning projects with the CCSS in the area of ELA, since I plan on incorporating student blog posts as one form of self-assessment and reflection. 

Personal Assessment & Evaluation

"As adult learners, we are most interested in your growth -- and you will be evaluated on the basis of how far you go, not on the basis of where you started." -MAET statement on evaluation

I feel that I have grown significantly as both a professional educator and as a student through this course.  Many of my personal educational philosophies were justified and expanded upon through the research and assignments I completed these last eight weeks.  As a 'younger' teacher, technology has been a major part of my life from a very early age and I have always been one of the 'techies' on my school staff.  My comfort level and desire to learn more about educational technology was the main reason I chose to pursue a degree in the MAET program through MSU.  So while my technology foundation may not have grown through this course, I definitely feel as though I have built several structurally-sound columns that enable me to be a more effective 21st Century educator. 

Two areas that I enjoyed exploring and learning about the most were Instructional Design and Experience Design.  Both of these topics fit right in with the Responsive Classroom model that I adopted in my classroom a few years ago to create and foster a positive learning environment for my students.  The research and knowledge gained from these two topics have changed the way I view my classroom and pushed me to change the format and function of my classroom space.  I plan on redesigning my classroom to be a more flexible and dynamic space to allow for more movement and flow during the learning process. 

Although my graduate experiences with educational technology have just begun, I am very excited with where I will go professionally and personally.  I hope to continue to be a educational technology leader within my PLN and school district.  The confidence I now have with digger deeper into technology integration will enable me to be a more effective and engaging teacher for my students.