I can honestly say that this has been a very practical and useful journey for me. The concepts of COVA and CSLE are not something that I was unfamiliar with. I didn’t use those words, but It did it in my room all the time. When I first started teaching, I got rid of the desks in my room right away and took the drafting tables that were being tossed out. I wanted space to work and collaborate. It has always been something that I did. I was the same way with technology. I wanted tech that helped my learners get where I knew they needed to be. It wasn’t about the device, but the opportunity it provided. The problem was that I was not always good at explaining it to my learners or to others. That has changed.
Four years ago, I changed things in my engineering program to change our programming languages. I started teaching my learners iOS app development with Swift. It wasn’t about the language itself. It was more about what the language and apps offered my learners. The language has a very simple and easy to understand syntax. If you want to print something, you simply say print(“Hello, world.”). In other languages, this can take up to six lines of code and use a slew of strange code words. With Swift, the language gets out of the way and we work on logic instead. At the same time, with apps, I am able to have my learners focus on solving authentic problems for real users. They have to focus on the end user, not themselves. This has always been a challenge for me with other projects. They want to only do things they enjoy in ways they understand. That all changed. We work on problems for our community. In that, they learn coding, working on teams, designing for others, understanding project management, and so much more. For myself, I have changed as well. In years past, people liked what they saw in my room, but always said, “I can’t do that in my school or classroom.” It wasn’t because I was doing something so secret. I just could not explain it very well. I am now able to better articulate why we are doing app development, why we are using Swift, and what they need to look for so they can derive the most benefit for themselves. Each learner has a different goal for after high school. They are all able to take away something unique and special. My journey over the last 18 months has helped me to better articulate my program to my learners and other teachers. I am also able to help other teachers implement similar programs in their schools. It has been rewarding to spread what I have learned to others.
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About 3520This course is the capstone course in the DLL program. I am reflecting on, adjusting, and making plans for the next steps in my Innovation Plan and personal growth. Innovation Plan Links
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