Practicum: Week 2

An eye-opening week...

This "first" week of practicum has been interesting to say the least. Planning is actually a weak point for me. I tend to do better just diving in and then editing. I've tried to force myself to actually do the "plan:" outline, plotting, etc. I just keep getting frustrated. By the end of the week, I finally decided that I should do things my way, rather than a prescribed way that works for others.

Progress Report
August 28-September 3, 2017

I did a lot of brainstorming this week. Considering what all I need to include, what platform to use, the best way to setup the training- in general, just some of the nuts and bolts of a training course for High School Equivalency Proctors and Trainers at ACC. 

Here are the basics I decided on:

1. I explored several platforms including Wix, Blackboard Course Sites, Moodle, and Canvas for my course. At the moment, I am leaning towards Canvas. To be honest, this is a matter of it being familiar and having the option for privacy for the course. I also like the ease of designing in Canvas. (And I think I'm slightly scared of trying something new this semester...) 

2. I will divided my course into two main modules: HiSET and GED. Each will then be divided into two sub-modules: Proctor and Administrator. I considered dividing the course into Proctor and Administrator with the two test types as the sub categories, but I felt that this could get confusing. HiSET and GED have very specific guidelines that do not apply to the other, so a clear distinction is important. Additionally, this will allow for Proctors and Administrators to focus on one test at a time.

3. One thing I originally planned was to create a syllabus. Would a training course need a syllabus? Or would it be more of an agenda? An outline? Are these concepts synonymous? I'm not sure. A syllabus feels wrong, superfluous, for some reason. 

4. I actually have several pages of "brainstorming." Notes that to anyone else would like mindless brain-spewing.  I felt like I had not really accomplished anything this week, but as I am typing this out, I feel like I did actually get somewhere. I made some decisions and began working toward my goal. Small steps, but steps forward nonetheless.

Practical Practicum Planning
September 4- September 10, 2017

For this week, I am going to work the way I work best: I'm going to dive in the middle and work outward. That's how I write, it's how I "plan," it's just how I work. It is probably counter-intuitive to most to start designing/creating, and then create a plan, but I never claimed to be like everyone else. I will write my objectives this week (I actually forgot about that), but the basic shell of my training course will be created this week. The actually process of design is how I will create my plan. If that makes any sense? IT may only make sense to me, but hopefully the end result will make sense to others!

Final Thoughts

In our coursework, we have often discussed differentiation and personalization of instruction. I think we can forget that we have to personalize for ourselves as instructors as well. I tried to force myself into a particular pattern, one that I thought would be expected of me, and I just experienced frustration and disappointment. Creating an outline FIRST was the way I was taught an online course was made. And I will have an outline, but, for me, it does not work to create it first. I work a bit backwards, I suppose. 

This is giving me further insight and empathy into some of the difficulties my students may face. If I have difficulty forcing myself into a particular mold, I cannot expect to shove my students into molds in which they do not fit either. Learning takes place where the student is, not where the teacher thinks they should be.

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