Always a Fork

Written by Trista Teuscher

July 20, 2014

 

       When I started the Educational Technology program (MAET) at Michigan State, I didn’t realize the fork in the road I was taking. I had been going to school for so long, that it only made sense for me to keep going. In one of my last undergraduate courses, my instructor Jill Warner was also a graduate of the Educational Technology program and had praised it enough for me to look into. I had a lot of choices to make, but I made the decision to continue my own education at MSU, along with starting a career teaching. At that time, I didn’t realize the impact that decision would have on my future as an educator, but looking back at the growth I have made, I can’t imagine taking any other path.

 

       In my first summer, I had Teaching for Understanding with Technology with Amy Pietrowski and Ben Rimes. This was quite a fabulous experience, even though at the time it just seemed like a lot of work when I wanted to be going to the beach! I signed up for so many new programs and websites within this course I couldn’t keep them all straight. I was introduced to Twitter, Google Docs, Google Hangout, Prezi, Dropbox, Blogspot, Weebly, and most importantly, I learned and expanded my professional learning network (PLN). Being in a small school in a small town “up north” in Northern Michigan, I miss out on having a large network of fellow teachers and collaborators within my everyday life. However, having access to educators around the world via Twitter and Facebook has opened up a whole new perspective on collaboration for me. For example, I wasn’t sure how to save all of my students work on laptops that we shared with other students around the school. We were always using different laptops and we didn’t have money to purchase flash-drives for everyone. I tossed this question out on Twitter and within a few hours I had been given multiple options of how to solve this problem in my own classroom! There are so many people out there willing to help, offer feedback, and provide support. I rarely go a day without scrolling through Twitter and reading what some of my favorite educators have to say.

 

       In the following fall semester, I took a bit of a different course. In Learning Science with Technology, an elective course, I wanted to change my mind and switch courses after the first week! First of all, there was a lot of reading involved. I was completely into that. There were also some big assignments that required me to do an experiment. I didn’t really understand the purpose behind all of this… until the end. When I was putting one of the big assignments together, the reasoning finally clicked. The learning wasn’t about the actual experiment at all. It was about comparing, contrasting, and evaluating the different types of learning we had done throughout these experiments, while using technology. By the end of this course, I was familiar with virtual science experiments, and am now an advocate for them in my own teaching. Yes, I do like hands on science, but sometimes it is just not feasible.

 

       Another take away from this class was the concept of “inquiry science”. I didn’t really understand what this was prior to this course, let alone expect my own students to follow this model. However, it is now the way I prefer to teach! Many students (and parents) think that learning is checking everything off a to-do list or completing a couple worksheets, or rote-memorizing how to spell a couple words. In my opinion, this is not learning. That is simply following directions and practicing a few times. Learning is about the journey. Inquiry based science (also called problem based) takes a problem or overall objective and allows students to find a way to solve it. It allows for creativity, brainstorming, trial and error, discovery, and student engagement. When I did an activity using this model this year in my own classroom, I was floored with the response I received from my students. This is what I think science should be, mainly because it is realistic to the real world. One skill I try to encourage in my classroom is for students to be “problem solvers” and this is my response to frequent questions they may have. It may be anything from not having any pencils left in the cup to not being able to build a skyscraper model perfectly on the first attempt. In both cases I would have the same response, “What options do you have to solve this problem?” I know that I have gotten a large number of eye rolls, but this is very similar to this course that I took. I was ready to throw in the towel after the first week, but in the end I was appreciative of what I had learned. Similarly, I know these students will build character and learn how to be independent learners through inquiry based learning.

 

       

 

 

 

 

 

       

 

       

 

 

       When thinking back about courses that influence my learning throughout this MAET experience, I cannot imagine leaving out CEP 815, Technology and Leadership with Josh Rosenberg and Luke Rapa. I think back to this course frequently as I strive to become a leading technology educator in my building and in education in general. I remember one article and assignment we focused on about leadership styles. As a new teacher, I thought I fell into the diplomat category according to the Seven Transformations of Leadership written by David Rooke and William Torbert and published in the Harvard Business Review. A diplomat has tendencies to avoid conflict, which is why I think this is similar to me in my first few years of teaching. I have always been a people pleaser and try to tell people what they want to hear. However, looking at the overall picture, I don’t think that people can fall into just one category. Sure, I like to avoid conflict, but sometimes I act as an expert when helping other teachers solve problems (especially technology problems) and sometimes I even make an opportunistic choice.

 

       With my goal of wanting to be a technology leader, I think it is important that I am familiar with the characteristics of the different leadership styles. Although I am not in a “leadership” role in my current school, as I come to the end of a road in this program, I am more determined to become a leader sooner rather than later. To be a leader in my current school, I do not need to have a fancy title. I can be an effective leader with my actions. When I do get the chance to become a leader with a fancy title, I will be revisiting Rooke’s and Torbert’s article on the Seven Transformations of Leadership regularly in order to reflect and evaluate my own effectiveness as a leader.

 

       I was recently motivated by a class this past semester that may direct me into something new. I completed the Teaching Students Online course as a requirement for the MAET program. I have taken many online courses before, but this intrigued me because I was able to learn the “behind the scenes” part of teaching online. I am actively pursuing job opportunities in the realm of virtual teaching. I have a personal connection to online education because I was able to finish both my Bachelor degree and Master degree because of online courses. I am a single mother who lived with family while trying to finish my college education. The closest university is two hours away, making it difficult to attend class. Because of off-site locations through Spring Arbor University and an online master degree program through Michigan State, I was able to become a teacher with a master degree in Educational Technology in just a few short years.

 

       With my love for virtual education, I see myself in the role as a teacher. I know there is a lot of controversy surrounding the effectiveness of online classes, but my experiences allow me to be an advocate for and this course encouraged me to become an effective online teacher. In saying this, there are always choices to make. I could become a full-time or part-time virtual teacher or I can be an adjunct instructor with K-12 schools or I could continue my education and teach at the collegiate level in time. Whatever path I may choose, virtual teaching is something I see in my future and this course helped bring that out for me. I would call it a game-changer for me!

 

       Lastly, I have to mention the capstone course for the MAET program that brought it altogether. Never would I have spent the time to reflect on what I have learned throughout this program. Like most (because it was drilled into my head as a younger student) I like to check those boxes off and move on to the next thing. The capstone course encouraged me to reflect on my last two years as a Michigan State Student. Without this course, I would have checked the boxes needed for graduation and continue on with life, not putting much thought into the forks in roads. I am thankful for the opportunity to pause and remember the accomplishment and achievements that have been made as well as the bright future that I have in front of me when realizing everything that I have gone through.

 

       I hear the thoughts that go through people’s minds when I tell them that my master program through MSU was all online. I know they are thinking, “Well that must be easy!” They also have this look on their face that tells me they don’t know anything about online learning. Little do they know that online courses are not any easier than face-to-face courses. In fact, it takes more organization and dedication. I know that the online classes at MSU have opened up my PLN to a world beyond what any face-to-face program could have offered me.

 

       The capstone course acts as a finale to the program. I have spent this summer remembering, reflecting, and looking forward to what’s next. There is always a fork in the road. There is always a choice to make or a direction to go. While I am still to figure out what they next path will be, one thing I know for sure is that I have grown as a learner, leader, and teacher in the past two years as a student of the Michigan State Educational Technology program.

 

       Life is about making choices. Here I am at the next fork: What’s next?