EDLD 5304 – 95/100
EDLD 5317 – 95/100
These classes are flying by! I am over halfway done with my Master’s Degree in Applied Digital Learning at Lamar University, and the end will be here before I know it! The classes I took this session were EDLD 5304, Organizational Change and 5317, EdTech Publication.
In EDLD, Organizational Change, we focused exactly on that – changes in our organization. We started with the importance of capturing the hearts and minds of those in our organization and dove deep inside ourselves to find our ‘why’ for creating change in the first place. We then read the book, Influencer by Joseph Grenny and Kerry Patterson. This book mapped out six sources of influence that leaders can use to rally their team members into creating change: personal motivation, personal ability, social motivation, social ability, structural motivation and structural ability. We also created our own strategy to influence others in our organization to make needed changes. Moving forward, we read The 4 Disciplines of Execution by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey, and Jim Huling. This book was extremely helpful in learning how to get the intended goal and changes executed successfully. The four disciplines in the book are: focusing on the wildly important goal, acting on the lead measures, keeping a compelling scoreboard, and creating a cadence of accountability. Using these four disciplines of execution, we created a plan to use in our own organization that will help change a person’s behavior and set actions to move towards our goal. Our final assignment was reading Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler. This book focused on the importance of having conversations even in the times that are tough. We reflected on the characteristics of crucial conversations and how being self-differentiated leaders will set you apart from the rest.
In EDLD 5317, EdTech Publication, our main focus was different types of media that would engage our audience. Through the many articles and videos watched, we learned the importance of knowing our audience no matter the type of media output used. In this class, we started with creating an article for possible publication. Naima Bagot, one of my core group members and I worked on our article together and wrote about using ePortfolios in the high school classroom. We then exchanged articles for peer review with two new classmates, Nicole Bright and Sabine Mixon, which was extremely helpful. Our article was submitted to eLearn Magazine for possible publication. The other project we got to work on was creating a podcast. Working with my core group members, we recorded two different podcast episodes. I edited the audio clips together and added intro music before submitting. This project was really fun to work with and was exciting as we all were trying something new and out of our comfort zone.
These two classes, EDLD 5304 and EDLD 5317 really tied together with content. The information discussed in 5304 was used as the topic of conversation for the assignments in 5317. All of the books we read in 5304 connected in a cohesive manner. We were also able to take the information we have learned in our previous courses and apply them to our current courses as well.
In both courses, EDLD 5304 and EDLD 5317, I completed all of the required assignments and material. I completed assignments on, if not before, the assigned deadline, and when I was given critiques, I went back and fixed what was suggested. For the discussions, I posted in a timely manner and responded with comments and advice on other classmates’ posts. I did miss a few of the live meeting sessions due to working late, but I always went back to watch the recorded version in the shared drive provided.
My core group of classmates includes Naima Bagot, Herman Bibbs, and Rosa Felsen. Most of us were connected in the first session of courses, and have continued our collaboration throughout this course. We have a Group Me chat where we share assignments and ideas on the courses we are taking. We also meet occasionally on Wednesday evenings to discuss assignments and give further clarification as needed. I share my assignments with my group and appreciate any and all feedback from my group members. Any assignments or work that is shared with me in my group has also received my feedback as well.
In my last session of classes, one thing I wanted to do differently was more engaged in the outside conversations my group was having. I struggled the last session due to working late and being overwhelmed with the amount of ‘stuff’ going on in my life. I was definitely more engaged this session and communicated more than I had before. One goal for my next session of classes is to attend all of the live sessions. This set of courses challenged me with the amount of outside work I had to complete for my teaching job, so I am hopeful that next month will allow more time.
Overall, I am very pleased with my time management throughout this session of courses and the overall retention of knowledge. I am learning so much in this ADL program and I can’t wait to see what is in store for me next!