A Transition to a Modern Educator
It is important for me to reflect on my time in the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET) Program and share my professional growth. My journey has been a unique experience and one I am very grateful for. Before I jump into what I’ve learned I think it’s important to include how I obtained my current position. I am an academic specialist at Michigan State University for the Veterinary Nursing Program (VNP). For this position I needed a previous bachelor’s degree, and no previous educational experience was required. When I began this position, I had two previous science degrees and knew nothing about the world of education. But I did have one small advantage. Just five years prior I graduated from the very same program. While I had no idea what to expect when I took this new career path, I felt this experience would give me a sense of familiarity with my colleagues and courses.
Since beginning my position as an academic specialist I’ve realized that I can teach any course I’m asked to in our program. I don’t struggle with knowing the content to deliver, but how to deliver the content most effectively. Using my experience as a student in the program, I can also remember learning experiences that were dull and seemed meaningless. So using memories and current curiosities, I decided to earn my master’s in the MAET Program because I needed more knowledge on how to be the best educator I could possibly be.
My present outlook on education and how I define myself professionally have completely changed from where I stood before beginning my master’s degree. Admittedly, I was naïve and lacked current educational knowledge. Before my master’s program I knew about student-centered and teacher-centered classrooms. I understood the difference, but I had a hard time seeing the benefits of student-centered teaching and learning and struggled to grasp how I might utilize more of these methods in my own personal classes.
I’ve been asked to reflect on my master’s journey while also including at least three courses that impacted me. I realize that the three courses I’ve chosen strengthen my argument for student-centered learning using three very different but necessary aspects. Student-centered learning is a modern theory of learning that puts students in charge of their own learning, giving them an active role in how they wish to learn. Dr. Christopher Harrington and Dr. Kristen DeBruler define a student-centered learning environment as one where “teachers and students work collaboratively to co-create a learning plan or pathway that best suits the needs of each individual learner” (Harrington & DeBruler, 2019). On the other hand, teacher-centered learning follows more traditional roles of learning, where teachers provide what to learn and how students are to learn it. During my time in the program, I’ve grown to appreciate several key components of student-centered learning. These include recognition of a variety of learning theories; modern teaching methods, such as utilization of 21st Century skills and technology; and the importance of a personable instructor. I will use experiences from three specific master’s courses to further explore these components.
While I certainly learned how to deliver powerful learning experiences during my time in my master’s program, I also needed to feel confident about the definition of learning. This brings me to my first influential master’s course, CEP 800 Learning in School and Other Environments. This course was centered around what it means to learn inside and outside school environments. One of the most fascinating concepts I learned during my master’s journey was what defines learning and understanding. At first glance, these terms may seem easy to define, but when I take time to really reflect on these words, they begin to become more complex. This course focused on the difference between these two terms and introduced multiple learning theories through application.
Learning and understanding are not the same. We can all learn, but it is the ability to transfer this knowledge to a different context that defines understanding (Bradford et al., 2000). In this course we touched on different theories of learning such as learning through past experiences, interactions with others, and conditioning. We were asked to write our own theory of learning as we worked through the course. While this assessment was useful for applying all the knowledge I gained, one assessment stands out. We were asked to create a habit. Habit development described by Charles Duhigg (2012) is another theory of learning. It is said that once a habit is formed, this automatic routine allows for further learning. I worked all semester to create a habit, a robust weekly running schedule, to ultimately reach my habit goal of running 15 miles. The intent was to see if I personally developed a habit and ultimately recognized this as a process of learning. The assessment was meaningful because I was able to apply this important theory of learning to something personal and begin to see how I learn effectively. Understanding different theories of learning is just one important aspect of student-centered learning. Through this course I gained a greater awareness of the various ways we can learn, and that individuals can have learning preferences. Professionally, I now recognize what students have previously learned and do my best to offer opportunities to use other theories of learning.
The second component of student-centered learning is utilization of modern teaching and learning methods. My next course highlighted the modern skills that student-centered learning should be centered around. The course, CEP 810 Teaching for Understanding with Technology, was the first course I took, and it left quite an impression on me. I vividly remember taking this course for several reasons. It set the tone for the program and what was to be expected of me. I remember driving from my cabin in northern Michigan to a town with Wi-Fi service that would enable me to complete my assignments. I had to adjust quickly to a new, busy schedule and work on my time management. These “going back to school” feelings mixed with loads of new content made for a memorable experience. As I think about the new content and knowledge I gained in this course I now view it as an introduction to what I would learn throughout the program. We touched on many important methods, ideas, and theories of teaching and learning that I would later expand upon in future courses. But overall, I remember that this course introduced and concentrated on 21st Century learning skills.
Through the creation of a lesson plan, I learned about the importance of 21st Century learning which focuses on three skills: collaboration, communication, and creativity. At the core of student-centered learning, students are encouraged to work together, think critically, and use unique and creative strategies to learn and transfer their knowledge. It was during this course that I was introduced to educational technology. The use of technology to enhance these 21st Century skills is extremely popular in the modern educational world, but it can be tricky to implement them successfully. In this course I recall learning that not all forms of technology aid in teaching and learning. This was established during an activity in which I tried to use alternative kitchen utensils to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which proved to be ineffective. As an educator I need to first concentrate on the learning objectives and what it is that I want my students to understand. Utilizing a certain form of technology in my courses should only be because it will solidify the content to my students and aid in the facilitation of deeper understanding. My ability to appreciate educational technology and use it only as a vessel to further understanding is certainly a professional development since the start of my master’s program.
One last vital aspect to student-centered learning that I’ve grown to value during my master’s journey is the presence of a passionate instructor who facilitates learning. The last course that left an unexpected impact on me was my final course of my master’s program, CEP 822 Approaches to Educational Research. And unlike the others previously mentioned, this course was less about the content I learned but more about the experience I had with the instructor and the course design. This course was centered around educational research. I identified an educational problem then gained insight on the issue through performing extensive research and ultimately designed my own educational research experiment using qualitative and quantitative methods. My instructor, Dr. David Wong was incredibly enthusiastic, vibrant, and approachable. I have learned throughout the MAET Program that a meaningful connection between students and educators is paramount to student success. While this course was online, Dr. Wong checked in weekly with candid videos. These online videos outlined that week’s expectations and tasks, provided witty humor and added a personal touch to the virtual course. Because of Dr. Wong, I now include a weekly video if my students are learning asynchronously. These simple videos keep students on track, engaged, and give a personal connection between me and my students.
It was obvious that Dr. Wong was passionate about his job, but he also worked hard to create learning experiences that set his students up for success. As with student-centered learning, I took charge of my own learning during this course. I chose what I wanted to learn about, but I was not left alone in this process. My experimental design assignments were formatted in a way that guided my learning. My instructor created templates that facilitated our learning, ensuring that we understood the purpose, objectives, and goals of each aspect of the assignments and left areas for instructor comments and feedback. By providing this basic framework or format for our assignments, he was able to ensure we understood our tasks and could better manage our work and progress.
In conclusion, I now comprehend individualized, student-centered. While the topics of education and educational technology seemed daunting and overwhelming at the start of my master’s degree, I can now create modern educational experiences that work best for all my students and their learning needs. This process isn’t always easy, but I’m personally challenging myself to continue to grow, improve, and finetune these professional skills. The three essential takeaways from my master’s program are the importance of learning and understanding, the consideration of different learning methods, and my relationship with my students. My teaching experiences should always help my students foster a deep understanding and ability to use knowledge in multiple different environments. They should be given opportunities to work collaboratively or individually with tools, resources, and technologies that strengthen their understanding of course content. And as the instructor, I should always set clear expectations, show passion and enthusiasm, be readily available, and facilitate my students’ learning to the best of my abilities.
References
Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (Eds.). (2000). How people learn: brain, mind,
experience, and school. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press. Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/9853/chapter/1.
Duhigg, C. (2012). The power of habit: Why we do what we do in life and business. New York, NY: Random House.
Harrington, C., & DeBruler, K. (2019, October 22). What exactly is student-centered learning? [online blog]. Retrieved from https://michigan virtual.org/blog/what-exactly-is-student-centered-learning/.
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