5318 and 5320 are my final classes in the ADL program. The past year in this program has flown by. I walked into the program a "Nervous Purvis" (see what I did there?), but I’m walking out a "Confident Kim". I have made much progress over the last year and look forward to applying my newly learned skills throughout my future as a learner.
The grades I am giving myself for the classes are as follows:
5318: 95%
5320: 94%
5318 Assignments:
I determined the final score of 5318 due to my effort during the course.
During the designing of my course for my innovation plan, I tried my hand using a new LMS, Canvas. I spent quite a bit of time getting to know the platform and what it could do regarding design. I reached out to my main group and to others in the DLL group on GroupMe to get advice on how to navigate the tools to maximize the effectiveness of my course design. Collaborating with others provided a deeper level of understanding than I would have had otherwise. I am learning to become more vulnerable and rely on others to get the job done. I am learning that not only does it help to do things more quickly but combining the experience and knowledge of others creates a fully developed product that meets the needs of diverse learners. Using a new LMS and needing more support than in past classes caused me to contribute and collaborate more than in previous courses. In relation to my group and classmates, I reached out more and showed more growth in an area that I have been working on improving. In past courses, I had the goal of improving my vulnerability and I feel as though the nature of this course helped me to do just that. I am proud of the progress I have made in this area.
5320 Assignments:
I determined my final score for 5320 based on areas of contribution comparatively for these eight weeks to previous sessions. This session I have spent time sharing tips and notes with my classmates, reviewing their work, giving feedforward, and responding in detail on all discussion boards in a reflective manner. I feel that I have made progress with contributions on public forums and have tried to respond to more posts than I have in the past. For example, if I had previously only responded to one or two other posts, I tried to respond to at least 3 this session.
Key Contributions:
· Checked GroupMe daily to share in discussions and support classmates
· Provided feedforward on GroupMe and on discussion boards frequently
· Reflected on feedforward and made revisions to ePortfolio and projects based on suggestions from classmates and professors
· Watched or attended all class meetings for both 5318/5320
· Read class readings and watched all videos for each class
· Voluntarily researched sources outside of course suggestions to share
· Reached out to new members of the ADL community for support
· Met all deadlines in course calendars for both 5318/5320
· Checked emails and responded to all in a timely manner for both courses
· Applied coursework ideas and shared them with friends, family, and co-workers to contribute to extended community learning
· Checked 5318/5320 discussion boards and responded to classmates
· Sent multiple reminders for due dates of assignments and discussion boards
· Supported teammates with advice on the technology used
Supporting Contributions:
· Took a shared leadership role in our core group along with Karin Stateler and Stephen Lewis
· Reached out to classmates and offered support as needed
· Reviewed and provided feedforward for links that were shared in larger GroupMe (Mamta, Andrei, Chastity, Kelven, Illeana, Erika, Pedro, Rachel, Jasmin, Andrea, Barry, Karin, Stephen, Danielle, Jackie, Jacob, Veronica)
Areas for Improvement:
· Continue to work on a Growth Mindset regarding feedforward
· Reaching out for support from others as needed
I am so proud of the progress I have made over the course of this program and in 5318/5320. I want to continue learning to always think with a growth mindset and accept any feedforward as a positive area for improvement. I also want to continue working on my vulnerability and on taking chances in the workplace. I can continue to grow in these areas by working on my confidence levels and taking steps to speak up and share my ideas with others. I can ask for help and advice when needed. I plan to practice these skills until they become habits.
Stephen Lewis and Karin Stateler are my main collaboration group in the ADL program. This journey ending is a bit bittersweet. I will dearly miss working with them daily, but I know they are friends for life. The bond that was formed during this past year was not only that of a successful collaboration group but one of friendship. I have mentioned in previous contribution writings that they are supportive, and this session was the height of that support. These eight weeks were extremely difficult for me due to the sickness and death of an immediate loved one and the unexpected, sudden death of our family pet a few weeks later. I mention those things because the difficulty of completing a master’s program while working would normally be overwhelming but add in those events and it easily becomes too much to bear. My team kept me going through the difficulties and is one of the main reasons I was able to stay focused and continue working through the assignments. There were days that I could not focus and reach out to our group I was always met with an encouraging word, offers of support, and a shoulder to lean on. I will always be grateful for being a part of “the three amigos”.
After this program ends, I will keep some of the relationships here that I have made in the ADL program, and I will make new ones. I hope to continue the contribution and collaboration skills that I have learned in this program and take them into all areas in the future of my work. I have found lifelong friendships and have become a lifelong learner through this ADL program at Lamar.
