Reflections

Author Contributions

Vanessa's contribution

The metaphoric expression there's always light at the end of the tunnel [circa 1800] is still applicable to today. Let me make the connection for you. I would like to share with you my motivations for completing this ETC 645 project which dealt with assessing and designing online professional development PD activities by integrating online constructivist strategies which are needed to facilitate the development of an online community of practice (ETC 645 course syllabus). Indeed, that is a mouthful which is also a metaphor.

So, what were my motivations for finishing this project?

Sometimes it becomes hard to approach a problem when you really do not know where or what angle to take. Much of what I was learning in the course was being implemented simultaneously in my learning experience. Let me explain in this "reflection" which is a journal activity that I learned in another course. Constructivist learning theory is one of the foundational learning theories alongside Behaviorism and Cognitivism. Constructivists believe that the learner has to interpret information and the world according to their personal reality. For example, I was interpreting this assignment according to my personal reality. Furthermore, constructivists believe that the learner acquires knowledge by observation, processing, and interpretation; then they personalize that information into personal knowledge (Anderson, Ch. 2). In other literature shared in this course, I read that learning takes place within the context of the learner. This context can vary for every single individual in the course especially if they all have different cultures, different zip codes, experiences, and such. They will all hold a different perception of the world, and also the assignments and projects. This will in turn influence how they approach problems.

With that being said, I approached this project with my own inclinations and through my cultural lenses. I also brought what cognitive skills and content knowledge I developed over the years. A little about that through my teaching experiences which also has an impact here. Teaching started around age 20 when in my undergraduate year I mentored an under-privileged youth at the same time I snuck in my niece "Jae" on campus so that we can all have lunch in the cafeteria. I guess my point here is inclusion, and always wanting to provide an experience for all. I took this mentoring into my first teaching experience when I hired to teach English 10. With little teaching experience all I could stand on were the content of my undergraduate courses. From this, I gave my best teaching and enrolled in undergraduate education courses to learn the history and foundations of education. Regardless, those early teaching experiences were filled with loud and chaotic organization which I always hoped to improve. I am a contributor and like I mentioned I wish that administration would have been more cohesive instead of abrasive. After seven consecutive years, I left to pursue graduate studies in Education. With the hope of returning to the classroom, I always went back to where I had experiences so that I could collect authentic and real-time data for my studies through surveys and interviews. At that time, I worked hard completing studies at two different universities so that I could learn more about Educational Technology and so that I could make an impact on the way I taught students. Unfortunately, the process took a different turn as it was quite difficult to get back a full-time teaching job.

I could expand this summary of my past for several pages if I had to. But I would like to share a point with you. I would rather keep busy at doing something that I love rather than continue to complain. Of course, it is not easy when you are intentionally left out or excluded from the profession that you prepared yourself for. It is like bumps in the road that jolt your car when you drive. You have to keep yourself on course and not veer off the road and keep driving to your destination. Admittedly, I hate the isolation of it sometimes. Great thing that I know how to self-regulate my emotions because I cannot afford to stay angry nor isolated because I do not have a job. For that reason, I knew I had to return to academics even though I did not know how that would turn out. It is always good to choose something that you are interested in to keep the momentum. So why focus on the negative of a situation when you have the power to turn it around. Looking back at my early teaching experience, I probably mostly heard the voices that had little faith in me; my focus was on them and being accepted. If the point is not made clear as yet, then you have to put yourself first by taking care of your needs and emotional well-being. Then and only then can you be of service to others like the students who need your attention. The so-called education system that was once my job focused a lot on exclusion. It becomes hard to be a part of something that is not in your core.

Anyway, back to the assignment. I observed, and I interpreted all of the readings so that it could make sense one day. And it did. With that being said, I just wanted to share and reflect on how I applied learning theory to my experience with a project that I had to complete.

Now that the project is complete, what do you do next?

The reason why people are noted as exceptional, at times is because of the hard work they do. In reality, this makes for a lot of competition. But the way my lenses view it there is a lot of deception in competition, by that I mean people are not always genuinely competing [ and there is lot of fair competition, just so you know]. At times some want power and want to dominate the field. But I believe in being a hard worker in whatever I pursue. I worik hard regardless of how others choose to view it. Some people [smart people] know hard work and they acknowledge it. It is always a great feeling when you have made an impact. And then comes the point where you have to move on to do something else.

The way that I should move forward from this point is to learn how to teach with rigor. I feel this will be my entry point for tomorrow. Allow me to use another metaphor. If I were to come up with a recipe for rigor, I would need to use the right ingredients to bring a "rigorous" dish to the table. This is no ordinary dish, so I need to shop for specialties. As I do my shopping for the answer to this big question over the next couple of weeks, I ponder where do I find rigor and how do I use it in all aspects of my planning? I know that it will make an impact on my future. And why rigor? Because to me the project was a rigorous exercise, and such work stretches and reshapes your cognitive structures. You have to maintain that structure and make the next moves to accommodate the further acquisition of knowledge. Rigor has always been present but at the same time pieces of it were missing from my educational journey. With this perspective, then I am ready for the next chapter, with the big interview and dream job.

That's all.