Digital Learning Workshop-Learning by Doing

          The course I have designed  stems from my Professional Learning Plan I created in another class. With the exception of the initial web conference, it is 100% online and asynchronous. Since this pandemic has forced school districts to rethink their approach to meaningful lesson delivery, developing a Digital Learning Workshop seemed the best way to help teachers and staff develop the skills necessary to thrive in a blended environment. I have developed 5 modules for this course, with plans to add more as I continue to gather information on teachers' digital learning needs. Most modules are chunked into 2 assignments.  The first learning activity is basically a tutorial of a Google app such as Google Docs. In the second activity, teachers will apply their new skills to transform one of their lessons into an activity that both face-to-face students and virtual students can complete. I have incorporated a variety of tutorial videos for learners to watch as they work through the initial assignments. These videos are also there for them to review as they begin building their digital lessons.  Their assessments will the completion of each lesson, and will be graded based their inclusion of a set of required skills. In a way, they are formative since they will be required to use a standard set of skills within the activities. 

       As I read Chapter 6 of our book, Bates (2015) explains the difference between technology and media. I found it helpful because it helped me recognize that I am using technology to provide my learners with modules that will help them differentiate their lessons and teaching methods through the use of various media platforms. Furthermore, Bates said it best when he said, "we need to know how best to design and apply media (rather than technology) to facilitate learning (Bates, 2015)." This statement resonated with me, since my big goal for this year has been to go paperless. I have experimented with many different digital learning apps and extensions in order to find ones that work well for me and my studentse in order to utilize our Chromebook technology on a greater scale. This is the very reason I utilized apps such as Padlet and Flipgrid for the module reflection pieces. I want my learners to experience different ways to give and receive feedback, so they can take those apps back to their classrooms and incorporate them into their own lessons. 

            Since learners will be creating their own e-portfolio with Google Sites in Module 4, I would say that activities for my course fall somewhere between constructivist and connnectivist (Bates, 2015). I know that teachers are busy and don't want to waste their time doing busy work. Therefore, I want my learners to actively engage with the material to not only create something they can use with their

classes, but also share their with fellow teachers in their respective content areas. Sharing lessons is a great way for teachers to collaborate with their teams to build a pool of activities that all can use. For example, one teacher may create a Google Slides presentation introduce a unit, while another teacher creates a HyperDoc that contains links to videos, websites, and a variety of activities that will help their students gain a deeper understanding of that unit. 

             As I have continued to build this course, I have made several adjustments to ensure that I have chunked the learning into meaningful increments that do not overwhelm learners with too much information at once. For example, once I began outlining Module 2 Google Slides and Peardeck, I have recognized that, in order to teach both apps properly, I need to chunk the information further by creating a separate module for PearDeck. I have no doubt that I will continue to make adjustments as I progress through the remaining modules in the course. Furthermore, because a lot of teachers are still not comfortable with my LMS, I felt it necessary to build a tutorial on Google Classroom. I want my learners to be comfortable using Google Classroom as they work through the other modules, especially those who may come from a district that uses another LMS like Schoology or Canvas. 

Bates, A.W. (2015). Teaching in a digital age: Guidelines for designing teaching and learning. Retrieved January 30, 2021from https://opentextbc.ca/teachinginadigitalage/