To Infinity and Beyond...

In the beginning...

When I registered for this class I was not sure what to expect. The title and course description don’t always match the content of the course. I was expecting to read about using search engines, automated computer systems, online sources to help catalogue- things like that. I was pleasantly surprised when I logged on and saw the course outline! Web 2.0 was a term that I had heard being talked about, but I never really paid much attention to. The tools that we would be investigating were, for the most part, things I had heard of, but never really thought of researching to find out how to use them in the school.

I was relieved to see that many of my classmates also had some apprehension about the up-coming assignments and tools and that I wasn’t the only one wondering what exactly a wiki was. I was looking forward to learning some practical applications that I could use in my day-to-day life. Many of my previous classes dealt with evaluating the library, organizing materials, and other concepts that, as a librarian I was comfortable with. I was ready for something that seemed to be a bit more challenging and to have actual skills that I could use; I was ready to leave my comfort zone!

Low Points:

One of the most difficult areas for me, during this course was the amount of time I had to spend reading articles and websites. It is not the readings themselves, but there just seemed to be so much information out there and it was very time consuming to read everything and then decide if and what I could use from the articles or the sites for the discussions and the blog entries. I think more than one person stated in the discussions that they felt a bit overwhelmed. I was used to doing my course work on one or two days of the week- like when I was on-campus as an undergrad. I found that Jenn’s suggestion to look at blogs one day and discussions on another day to be really helpful. I tried to look at the class blogs on Tuesday or Wednesday and the discussions on other days. Once I got into this routine it was more manageable and less daunting for me.

I did have problems with my podcast. That was the only low point for me in terms of the actual tools we were looking at. I did this assignment on my brother’s laptop, which went back to Winnipeg with him the day after I posted my blog. I was visiting my parent’s for winter break in February. The first link that I put on my blog didn’t work and I had to rush around and try and find a different way of getting it out into the ether. Luckily, my mother took me to her work in the evening and we sorted it out. Considering that when I deal with technology, there is usually a major kink or bug I have to work out, only having this hiccup was not too bad.

High Points:

The highlight of the course for me is the experience and confidence that I have gained by using these tools. For the first time since I started teaching, 6 years, ago I am really re-evaluating my instruction, evaluation and delivery of course material for me and my students. I am trying to think of how to incorporate these new tools I have learned into my teaching for next semester. I have found that through this process, I am also re-evaluating the content and assignments that I give. I think it is very easy to get into a routine and want to stay there- especially for teachers. I feel that many of us have the motto, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” I am breaking it and then re-assembling it to be something that has the same core, but a different aesthetic. I think that I have become fired-up and I’m ready for change.

I also feel quite “cool” because when the students are talking about SNS or Flickr, I know what they are talking about and I can interact with them and discuss these tools with some knowledge. I still think that students are the best teachers for me when it comes to technology. They are a wonderful resource and I find when I ask them to help me- they feel quite proud and knowledgeable. To quote Martha Stewart, “it’s a good thing.”

I’ve also “met” some fantastic people through this course and it has been really nice. Cindy and I were put together for the wiki assignment and have been messaging each other since then. We’ve also had a couple of really good Scrabble games going on Facebook! She seems to beat me- quite badly- every time, but there is always the next game! I have enjoyed reading everyone’s blogs. Even though I put the readings under my low points, I found the links that others have found to compliment their postings to be fantastic and I have spent a lot of time reading their links as well.

The End...

In coming to the end of the course I feel very confident and ready to use what I have learned. As I said in one of the last blog posts, I think that I will continue with my blog- maybe not every week- but I am putting it on my new library website for my staff to have a look at and comment on. It is going to be part of my Professional Growth Plan for 2008/09 to keep it up and continue with my own learning.

Good luck to everyone and I hope to be able to work with you again in future classes or to read your blogs in the future.

Watch this space because it will be changing!!

I have a signature on my email that contains the following quote. I would like to sign off with it as I think it sums up how I feel about this course and my educational philosophy:

“Who dares to teach must never cease to learn”- John Cotton Dana

Katie