My ADL Journey
As the sun sets on my ADL journey, I think about the person I was when I first began the program. I was a person that didn't have long-term goals, other than retirement. I was too comfortable where I was in life, even though I hadn't accomplished much. If I could say something to the old me it would be, "What's wrong with you? Wake up, learn, and make a difference!".
Now, I am a person that is eager to learn every day. I feel like the ADL program has opened my eyes to a whole new world of learning. I am more comfortable taking on challenges and developing and creating with digital tools. I am a self-directed learner and will use my newly acquired skills to make a difference in my learning community and organization. I have evolved into a better, smarter me and am excited for what's to come.
Take a look at my ADL learning journey below.
Authentic Innovation Plan (5305)
This course is where all the learning began. I learned that without a disruption, major organizational changes cannot be made. In this course, I was challenged to develop a plan to create change in my organization. Blended learning intrigued me and I knew that this is what my organization desperately needed. I began by creating an Innovation Plan with my collaborative group and colleagues, Erika Peña and Veronica Balli. We delved deep into the literature around blended learning and developed a Literature Review to help back up our innovation plan. We then had to plan when and how we would implement blended learning and develop an Implementation Outline.
I piloted blended learning in my dyslexia lab at Victor Fields Elementary School to give students the opportunity to engage in a student-centered personalized learning environment. With increased personalization and teacher support, students have the opportunity to become more successful, motivated, and engaged learners. My colleagues and I are still working on implementing blended learning campus-wide.
Apply Educational Technology - ePortfolios (5303)
In this course, I had the opportunity to get creative and use my voice in my very own ePortfolio and Blog. I am currently using my ePortfolio for ADL coursework, but I've already started creating a page for Dyslexia, which will house all things Dyslexia, such as tips, tricks, and strategies. I've also created a page for my resumé because I plan on using my ePortfolio when applying for future opportunities.
My ePortfolio is still and probably will always be a work in progress. I continue to watch WiX how-to videos to stay up to date with new techniques and creations.
Learning Mindset (5302)
Having a growth mindset toward learning new things has changed the way I see failures, setbacks, and making mistakes. I now see them as opportunities to learn. In this course, My collaborative group and I created a Growth Mindset Plan to implement in our organization. After reflecting, I developed my Learning Manifesto, which embodies my beliefs about learning. In becoming a self-directed, lifelong learner, something I have learned in this course is that there is always someone to learn from. I was inspired to join a few professional learning networks that have encouraged me to learn something new every day.
Leading Organizational Change (5304)
In this course, my Blended Learning Implementation Team and I learned how to go about creating change in our organization despite the whirlwind of our daily lives. In leading change, we'll need to capture the hearts of our stakeholders, create influence, manage crucial conversations, and execute our innovation plan.
Veronica and I have already started capturing hearts and influencing others by sharing our classroom activities via Twitter. Our colleagues are noticing us and are wanting to learn more about the changes we've made.
Creating Significant Learning Environments (5313)
In order for our learners to thrive, we must give learners the most authentic classroom experiences by creating significant learning environments (CSLE). In this course, I created my learning philosophy and used it as the foundation when updating our Growth Mindset Plan and also aligning our goals, assessments, and activities for our 4th-grade Poetry Unit, which offers students choice, ownership, and voice through authentic learning opportunities (COVA). We made sure to include technology as a tool for learning as it has become a staple in everyday life.
Today, my students are thriving in the dyslexia lab. They are more independent as they are in control of what they are learning every day. Since my students have dyslexia, they still need a lot of support and small group lessons, however, learning is at their own pace.
Professional Learning Plan (5389)
It was in this course that I realized how much I love creating! We had the opportunity to create an effective professional learning plan for the teachers in my organization. Our goal was to create a PD that taught our teachers all about our innovation plan in a Go & Show Blended Learning Way. We also wanted to make sure to create a significant learning environment for them so they could experience what our students would experience. The ADL Program has taught me to use my voice to create change and I look forward to the day I am able to share this PD with my colleagues.
Resources - Digital Environments (5317)
We have had the opportunity to use several different digital learning tools throughout our coursework. I have been challenged to seek out new tools as well as perfect the use of ones I had already been using and teach others along the way. As a thought leader in this course, our task was to share an aspect of our innovation project with the educational world. It never occurred to me before this course that I too could share my voice about my experiences without being an expert. Realizing this, my team and I decided to write an article entitled Blended Learning: Closing Gaps with Adaptive Digital Programs. We implemented adaptive programs in our blended learning environment and we're eager to share the impact it had on student achievement and motivation.
Assessing Digital Learning (5315)
In this course, we created an Action Research Plan. Since we were simultaneously taking 5317, we decided to work smarter and base our research and publication article around the usage of adaptive digital programs. We assessed whether the usage of adaptive programs during the 2021-2022 school year helped close learning gaps, leading to higher motivation and student growth. We also revised our Literature Review to include our new research.
Instructional Design - Blended Learning Course (5318)
In this course, I developed a 5-week blended learning course for my 2nd grade Dyslexia students. When constructing this online course, I wanted to make sure I created a significant learning environment and that it allowed students to have choice, ownership, and voice in their learning. I chose a component of the adaptive digital program we use called Lexia Core5 and created lessons, assessments, and activities based on that. I love how I'm able to apply what I'm learning in the ADL Program to my classroom. It has truly come full circle for me. Developing this course has also made me realize how I can make Lexia Core5 better for all students and I plan on contacting the developers of the program to share my thoughts. Who knows, maybe there is a new job opportunity for me.
CSLE+COVA Capstone - Synthesis of ADL (5320)
As I come to the end of my ADL journey, I reflect on all the learning I immersed myself in. There are a lot of components that go into creating change and now I feel better prepared to use my voice in my organization to make change happen. This program has jumpstarted my learning journey. It has laid down a foundation of meaningful connections and has inspired me to learn more moving forward. I can definitely say I am a digital learner and now with all the tools in my ADL toolbox, on my way to becoming a digital leader.
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Thank you Dr. Harapnuik, Dr. Sue, Dr. Bellard, Dr. Grogan, Dr. Meeuwse, and Dr. Still for your guidance and support during my learning journey. Thank you for coaching me into becoming a lifelong digital learner and change leader.
Dr. H, this is a really great program.
