Gina Bennett

Yes, participants; I *know* the MicroCourse is over but I just couldn't resist posting this opportunity for any of you who are still subscribed to this forum.

This wonderful opportunity was posted this morning in the Creative Commons Open Education (CC-OPENEDU) group:

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Greetings Fellow Educators!

Trent Online would like to invite you to join us in pursuing the Ontario Extend Empowered Educator Micro-Certification this spring. Ontario Extend is a professional learning experience from eCampusOntario which helps educators build on the skills needed for teaching in a digital age. There are 6 modules that make up the Empowered Educator framework: Teacher for Learning, Technologist, Collaborator, Curator, Experimenter, and Scholar. Each module comes with a badge. Once you complete them all you are awarded the Empowered Educator micro-certification!

The heart of the program is in the work that you do to provide evidence of your learning. Throughout the modules, you are asked to create a variety of authentic products that aid in your teaching. You create visual syllabi, empathy maps, and plans for leveraging new technology. You curate open educational resources for your subject area. And, perhaps most importantly, you enhance your professional learning network.

We are running the experience in the form of a mOOC (a medium-sized Open Online Course). What that means is that any one in the world is invited to join us for the adventure. Its openness also means that you are welcome to join us for as little or as much of the experience as you like. Even if just to check it out and say hi, we would love to have you along for as much of the ride as you’d like.

Please add your name to the growing list of those interested in participating in the Spring 2021 Ontario Extend mOOC by filling out the form here.

Sincerely,

Kristine, Stephanie, Christian and Terry

(The Trent Online Extend mOOC Team!)

Carol, you have posted an AMAZING self-reflection/learning plan. Please don't apologize for the "lack of completion" - the whole BCcampus MicroCourse concept is based on the understanding that most people working in postsecondary are busy & prone to taking on too much in their professional lives. That's why we don't expect any more than 5-7 hours of participation over the entire week, & when we suggested that participants post a draft plan, we really meant DRAFT. Anything at all, really ;-)

I'd like to respond especially to a couple of your points:

• "My current work has taken me into a new world that I wish to learn more about ... I am a bit overwhelmed at the amount and depth of new knowledge I feel I need to 'conquer'"
• This reminds me of how I felt, re-joining the work force after 12 years away (raising a child with disabilities). I was ecstatic to start a great job at a small college but I felt overwhelmed by the environment & by my new colleagues, who seemed so much "smarter" (& better dressed!) than I. It just takes time. It sounds like you are undergoing what Jack Mezirow calls a "disorienting dilemma," leading (eventually) to a "transformative" learning experience. No doubt the students you work with will be familiar with the experience, on some level -- this may well serve to deepen your already well-developed empathy & compassion. 
• "I want to learn more about the internationalization/interculturalization of higher education, especially interculturalization at home that empowers international and multilingual learners in English-dominant institutions. (vs. deficiency lens)... I want to learn how that (the above) fits into bringing inclusivity in higher education"
• I love your focus on something OTHER than a deficiency lens which indeed appears to be the dominant one when we attempt to "integrate" students from the non-dominant culture. In this regard I've found "appreciative inquiry" to be a useful (& soul-restoring!) approach. You've definitely hit on a strong need here & I'll be interested to see what you develop.
• "I need to meet and connect and form strong network with professionals interested in SOTL and Internationalization of higher-ed" 
• You are connecting with BCcampus so you've already taken a big step towards finding a great networking community. I'd like to give a shout-out to the Education Technology Users Group (ETUG) -- in my experience, a fantastically supportive, informal, & FUN community. The name "Education Technology" is no longer 100% accurate since the group's focus is much broader (including a great deal of interest in SOTL & all types of educational innovation). 

hi Judy,

I remember being impressed when reading your Intro post to see the huge variety of interests & experiences you've had while teaching:

You sound like a true generalist who thrives on intellectual adventure! Given your broad experience, have you ever considered curriculum development or instructional design? I expect you'd be very good at it. 

A more immediate possibility: given your very first goal (Learn how to quickly find relevant useful resources) & your interest in web-questing, you might enjoy this free course "Power searching with Google". I really enjoyed & benefited from it -- the teacher, Dan Russell, is entertaining & he also offers a weekly search challenge called "Search ReSearch". It's kinda fun & I usually pick up a few new search tricks each time I try the challenge.

Gina

hi Danna,

Completing your M.Ed. will certainly fill most of your PD time for the duration, I'm sure. But I think you have some very realistic & broadening additional projects in the mix:

• staying in contact with the bigger BC postsecondary scene via BCcampus events (& sharing with classmates) will ensure that you stay abreast of provincial opportunities & directions
• having a role in the Hairstylist program will give you hands-on experience in the development of OERs & how they can contribute to Trades training
• it's great to see that you've included some personal goals as well - we don't always remember how important it is to actually write these down.

All the best in the year ahead!

Gina

Welcome, Kāshā! I love your job title (Learning Transformational Specialist-Indigenization). Transformation really is at the heart of learning, isn't it?

It sounds like your current teaching assignment is VERY challenging: teaching a course that is:

• designed for face-to-face but delivered at a distance
• an ABE English course, which naturally entails a fair bit of personalized interaction
• ... to a learner audience in a vastly different time zone.

How's that going, anyway???

As you can see, this MicroCourse is largely wrapping up today but all the materials are here & Sylvia & I will be monitoring the forums over the weekend as well so feel free to interact as much as you are able & send any questions our way.

Gina