Ongoing ruminations on instructional design and how to deliver rich, effective content to students across a broad spectrum.
My (Long) Life with Blackboard
As we begin to examine Learning Management Systems (LMS), I decided to start with the one I know best, Blackboard. I first met Blackboard as an undergrad at the University of New Orleans. It was the first LMS I had ever worked with. In this post I look at the affordance and constraints of this ubiquitous LMS.
Power to the People: Google Classroom
After spending some time with Blackboard, I took some time to look at the most popular, free LMS option available: Google Classroom.
Necesito un Momento para Pensar: I need a minute to think (about formative assessment)
A brief blog post reflecting on the relationship between assessments as learning and my experience trying to learn Spanish over an extended stay in Spain.
Could an Identity Safe Environment Improve Student Achievement?
A reflection on stereotype threat and how different learners may be experiencing the learning environment differently.
A Chrome Hack that Can Help At-risk ADHD Students
High contrast mode is an easy way to help learners with ADHD stay focused when working on a computer or Chromebook.
Michael Phelps, Flat Earthers, & Home Depot Employees
This is the final reflection that I wrote for my Teaching for Understanding with Technology course at Michigan State. In it I explore the importance of accessing quality information, as well as the need to think subversively.
Jazz Musicians, Chess Masters, and Cyber Teachers
For the first week of CEP 810, I have been asked to write an essay about learning and differences between how experts and non-experts learn, based on our reading from National Research Councils report How People Learn: brain, mind, experience, and school. As I read about learning and the differences between how experts and non-experts learn, I was reminded of a challenge that I had early in my music career and how the advice I got from experts comported with the authors’ findings. What I learned is that experts learn by chunking information together and looking for the underlying structures of what they are learning. It is the same way that jazz musicians learn hundreds of tunes. You can read the full essay here.