Now wrapping up the first half of the Fall semester, I’ve had the opportunity to take two courses in the Applied Digital Learning master’s program: EDLD 5302 – Concepts of Educational Technology and EDLD 5304 – Leading Organizational Change. These courses challenged me to reflect on my learning manifesto, mindset, and innovation plan, as well as to develop my leadership, communication, and execution skills.
A Focus on the Learning
In EDLD 5302, I explored the concepts of growth mindset, learner’s mindset, and my learning manifesto. I believe this course has helped me become more aware of my strengths and areas for improvement as a learner, as well as to adopt a more learner-centric approach to learning and instructional design. Furthermore, in EDLD 5304, I continued to develop my Technology-Enhanced Project-Based Learning innovation plan by clarifying the “Why” behind it, creating an influencer strategy and a plan using the 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX), and learning how to have crucial conversations while being a self-differentiated leader. I enjoyed the readings in both courses and have even recommended a few of the books to family members.
I think that what I’ve learned in these courses will help me to be more focused and intentional as I continue to roll out my innovation plan. I have a:
- clearer sense of why I am pursuing this innovation plan and how it aligns with my learning philosophy and mindset.
- better understanding of who the influencers are in my context and how I can engage them in my innovation plan.
- more structured and disciplined way of executing my innovation plan using the 4DX model.
- improved confidence and skill in having crucial conversations with others who may have different views or concerns about my innovation plan.
What’s Been Working and Areas of Growth
The semester was not as tasking as the previous one because I was not balancing the creation of my ePortfolio with the other schoolwork. However, it was still challenging and rewarding in many ways. One of the factors that contributed to my success in both courses was the collaboration with my peers Yagaira Alaniz and Hilda Rodriguez. We set up a recurring/standing meeting time for Thursdays at 6 p.m. and occasionally met online using Microsoft Teams. We also communicated frequently through email, Blackboard messages, and text messages. We had a live Microsoft document where we kept track of meeting notes, upcoming items, and ideas for how to complete assignments. Lastly, we also worked together to review assignments and provided constructive feedback and feedforward throughout the semester.
In relation to contributions to the EDLD 5302 and EDLD 5304 learning communities as a whole, I was able to post in all discussions on Blackboard and comment on other posts as well. As with the previous courses from the summertime, I enjoyed being able to read the posts of my peers which contained varying perspectives and unique ways of interpreting the readings, videos, and resources.
As for areas I can grow, I think I could have reached out to more peers in our courses to expand my learning community. I would have also liked to explore more tools and platforms for creating and sharing educational content as I continue to refine my innovation proposal. Given this, I would score myself a 95/100 for EDLD 5302 and a 99/100 for EDLD 5304.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, I am grateful for the opportunity to take these courses and to learn from my instructors and peers. In these past eight weeks, I feel that I have gained a lot of knowledge, skills, and insights that will help me in my innovation plan and beyond. I look forward to applying what I’ve learned in my current and future contexts, as well as continuing to learn from others and myself in the semester to come.
