top of page
This site was designed with the
.com
website builder. Create your website today.Start Now

EPORTFOLIO

Reflection

 

Being assigned an LMS unit build could not have come at a more perfect time me; and given that I have a sudden need to change and modify assignments in alt. education, using Canvas was a terrific way for me to practice making such changes and gain experience building upon the limited knowledge I already had.

 

I particularly liked the ability to fine-tune content according to the needs and learning mandates of our students. For example, in order to provide additional clarity within my instructions I color-coded links to specific categories, something I already do in my classroom. Having this additional level of structure works exceptionally well for my clientele.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The option of creating checkpoint quizzes is also suitable for this group. Many students are often so keen to move on and progress that they’ll try to skip the learning phase entirely; however, with a mandatory pass needed and built right into a quiz, students are gently reminded to go through all the steps. Additionally, if they forget where to get the information, Canvas allows the instructor to create visual reminders and a link back to the relevant lesson.

Artifact #1 - LMS UNIT BUILD

Specific Learning Outcomes:

 

 

  • Demonstrate basic competency with design and implementation within a variety of LMS and non-LMS environments and tools.

  • Develop skills to optimize learning experiences through personalization based on characteristics, needs, stages of development, current personalized learning mandates, misconceptions etc.

Reflection

 

At first I found the idea of piecing together an entire unit from scratch, using only non-LMS tools quite challenging. However, it soon became apparent that I already had a good grasp of how to proceed, as I seem to rely on these tools quite often. It seemed to be just a matter of structuring my repertoire into an organized sequence of well-planned pedagogical stages.

 

It also helped to have a team working on this prior to making an individual effort; making the course Wiki beforehand was a wonderful resource for this assignment, as each group had already researched the best tools for a specific category. Because we were assigned the task of finding tools for assessment, I did not focus as heavily on this section during the initial stages of my toolkit build. After a quick perusal of “5-star tools,” I began to sort my tools into categories.

 

Throughout my efforts, I noticed the importance of making the tools relevant to both the task at hand (assessment, engagement, gradebooks, etc.) and the specific learning outcomes. For example, using Wix or Weebly is valuable because it:

 

a) Supports students working with technology and expressing their views

 

b) Generates engagement through creative interaction with the content

 

c) Is accessible from anywhere, meaning students do not necessarily have to be in the classroom in order to demonstrate their understanding

 

I also began to reflect on why we were even doing this and quickly realized the answer:

 

Quite simply, no open-source LMS build will be good enough to act as a

standalone platform.

 

Thus, we were developing the tools we needed to supplement  our LMS builds; and together, the combination of an LMS (like Canvas) and non-LMS (web 2.0) tools makes for an impressive unit build indeed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Artifact #2 - Non-LMS Toolkit BUILD

Specific Learning Outcomes:

 

 

  • Demonstrate basic competency with design and implementation within a variety of LMS and non-LMS environments and tools.

  • Develop skills to optimize learning experiences through personalization based on characteristics, needs, stages of development, current personalized learning mandates, misconceptions etc.

  • Create assessment and evaluation methods/tools most suitable to the strengths and challenges of LMS and non-LMS environments.

bottom of page