Found below is a Powtoon video that I created, summarizing the key points on Technologists Module of eCampus Ontario’s open PD modules. Here is the link to the module itself.
https://extend.ecampusontario.ca/technologist-scenario/
I have to admit, for each of the 2 past multimedia reflections that were assigned to us and posted on this blog, I attempted to use Powtoon. However, I gave up after a creating a couple slides because I deemed it too difficult of a
process. For this reflection I was determined to start and finish a full reflection using this media. It took me a couple hours just to get myself accustomed to the program. There are still many options on the task bar that I am not sure of what they do, but once I figured out how the basic aspects of it worked I got faster at creating my slides. I cannot say I particularly enjoyed working with Powtoon, nor am I extremely happy with my finished product. But I worked very hard on it, and as it was my first time I expected this type of outcome. In the future, if I use Powtoon again, I will have to explore all of its functions more in depth in order to create a better video as a whole. While creating this Powtoon it was difficult for me to find a good balance of pictures and words, without being overbearing. I also struggled with giving the video more of a flow, unfortunately I think it ended up being choppy. A limitation to Powtoon that I experienced was that you can only make a 3 minute video for free, anything above this requires a purchase. I understand that they have to make money, but it defers me from using the program at all. Overall, my experience making the Powtoon was a difficult one. However I am proud of myself for sticking with it even though the finished product isn’t exactly what I had hoped for it.
As I journeyed through the Technologist Module, there were many things that I did not know. Honestly, this is not surprising, as I accept the fact I am not extremely knowledgeable in integrating technology into the classroom except for what I have learned throughout this semester. I was aware of digital literacies, however the design thinking approach was new to me. I think that it is a perfect guide to follow when integrating technology into the classroom. It is an in depth step by step process to integrate technology, but at the s
ame time it is easy to follow and uses terminology that is easy to understand. The five steps to design thinking are empathize, define, ideate, prototype and connect. To summarize, empathize is getting the perspective of your students. Define refers to understanding the challenge that the students are experience, which the technology will be used to solve. Ideate involves selecting a tool and using the SECTIONS model to evaluate if the tool will be effective. Prototype discusses working with the tool and testing it out. Lastly, it is important to connect the tool back to the curriculum and course outline. Overall, when choosing a technology and/or program, it is important that it touches upon the students needs and that it connects with the course.
Another very positive aspect of doing the Technologist Module are the Extend activities that it offers after each section in order for the participant to get more engaged and gain some experience with the design thinking approach. For example, on the “Define” tab of the module, the Extend activity directs the participant to come up with a student challenge and add it to a Padlet. Where other challenges are posted and ideas can be shared. Another example is under the “Empathy” tab, where the Extend activity encourages the participant to create an empathy map where it provides instructions on how to do so and an empathy map template.
During my placement this year, I did not integrate technology into the classroom as much as I would have liked. This is because I struggled to make it relevant to what we were doing. If I had something like the design think
ing approach to follow, it may have helped me in using more technologies and programs that directly related to my course and curriculum. Some of the technologies that I did use included tools such as Kahoot and Google Slides. I realize now that these were simple substitutions and did not reach the higher levels of SAMR such as modification or redefinition. I struggle with the thought of reaching these levels, however by following the design thinking approach I think that I could do this more comfortably. I will use this approach in my future classrooms in order to make sure that I am using the right technologies and programs for the job, so my students can benefit. The Technologist Module offered an extensive list of programs that can be used in the classroom, which is extremely beneficial to me as I always find myself using the same ones. Overall, participating in the module was a huge success and I am looking forward to applying what I learned to an actual classroom.