Subrena Thompson

MEDT 7462 – Assessment of Student Learning

July 15, 2018

Assessment of Student Learning

Introduction

Knowledge has always been power, and any good work cannot be without it. I am

sure that I am not the only student that felt that this course was overload with knowledge

and beneficial for future endeavors. There is nothing more rewarding for me than learning

and applying new skills in educational activities. Although there is no guarantee of

substantial outcomes, involving the different strategies that demonstrated throughout the

course can ensure that of active learning. During the session, I was able to research and

engage the essential internet tools, applications, and resources for the multimedia projects

and assignments.

Section 1

At the start of the course, Internet Tools, Resources, and Issues in Education, I was

under the impression that I would be applying some internet components. During the

previous eight weeks, I have researched and studied various internet tools, applications,

and resources that I have never know existed. Numerous educational technologies are

available for just about anything or anyone to access.

The majority of my occupation is working on the computer and access the internet. I

would categorize myself as a proficiency user of the computer and the internet. For the

duration of the course, I have expanded my knowledge and understanding of the many

different internet tools and applications that I have used before and the ones that are

available for farther usage. Several of the apps discussion in the several of the posting in

1
the course was current and simplified. A few of the internet tools that I located and

researched was outdated and no longer active. The author of the book, Screenwise, Dr.

Devorah Heitner speak of this, “App-specific tactics are only helpful as long as that app is

around or until the app changes its setting (Heitner PhD., 2016, p. 145)”! The skills that I

did gain from the different types of tools and resource, allow me to become more familiar

with and to use for many reasons. The applications and internet tools that I routinely use

on a day-to-day basis are mostly writing software, email, and internet tools.

Section 2

There are some challenges in completing the different course activities, the primary

matter is course is during the summer semester, a nine week sequence. The limited time

frame becomes an obstacle for me including other factors. There are a few factors that

either intensified or restricted my progress in the course; internal and external.

The internal factor that was somewhat significant is my employment with the

technical college, including my student relationship and experiences, became an excellent

reference for me to allocate a bulk of my exercises, discussions, and projects. The other

internal factor that was not as supportive of during the course activities is the old

technology setup and devices used for the course.

The external factors that seemed to be the collaboration between my course peers

was a total advantage for me. The discussions assignments was a large part of the peers’

interaction and their viewpoints. The other external factors were the hardest for me was

the insufficient time spent with my family time spent since I began this summer course.

During my reading of the text, Wired Child, the author mention how vital family time is,

“There is no doubt tough choices for parents to make when considering the demands of

work and family…Kids need undistracted quality time with us…Spending time together as a

family is made easier by putting time on the books (Freed PhD., 2015, pp. 122, 24)”. This

2
relates back to what I mentioned earlier in this section, regarding the course time limit for

course completion.

Section 3

Now that the course has on the edge of completion, I felt that I have gain a great

deal of knowledge from both texts and the coursework. The course activities focus on

various internet tools, the applications’ understandings, and how to use the resources.

Throughout the course text, Screenwise, Dr. Heither often indication how important it is to

become tech literacy, “It’s time to become a screenwise parent, someone who approaches

technology not with fear but from a place of empowerments; someone who is comfortable

with not knowing everything, and who will jump right in and learn; someone who is aware

of the risks technology can bring, but is in control of the tools (Heitner PhD., 2016, p. 62)”.

Being a parent of two teenage boys, becoming digital literacy.

The other lesson that is valuable in my profession, the course provide is educational

strategies that can be used in the classroom and for professional development that train

educators and interest learners. Dr. Richard Freed, author of the book, Wired Child,

explains his insight on technology, “Widely used technologies are purposefully designed to

be accessible and simple to understand that’s how companies profit from them (Freed PhD.,

2015, p. 181).” This stands true for education and the illustration of how technology can be

a constructive force for students.

Section 4

I first would like to mention that the course was well-informed giving me different

insights on internet tools, applications, and resources. I submitted several projects that I

felt would have been improved. The fact that this was a summer course, our time was

minimum. My first project, I missed the due, and I had to submit my plan the next day by

3
email. Being that I do check my distance learning course daily, I seem to overlook that due

day.

During my research of the internet tools and applications, I seem to become

consumed with all of the new and unknown internet resources that are on the web. With

that said, I would change the structure of the discussion, allowing only one or two replies,

because it got to be a little perplexing on who posted what from the original posting.

My Project 5 is not complete, so I can relate this to that project, but the other four

projects somewhat required similar data. I think that it should have been the full range of

requested questions because I seem to be writing the same thing more often in the

projects. I know that there are a lot of articles available but limited in the information

requested. The projects were somewhat a little repetition. The only change possible is to

restructure the project instructions and requirements.

The only other possible change that I think would do is to exempt specific internet

tools and applications, like that of Google Doc and social media apps. The class research

should be on apps and tools that they are not familiar with or have used. I like the

response to new learning mention in the book, e-Learning and the Science of Instruction,

“All of these processes required an active learner-one who selects and processes new

information effectively to achieve the learning result (Clark & Mayer, 2011, p. 116).”

During my search for internet tools and or applications, that selected ones that I have not

used or accustomed too.

Section 5

On the course syllabus, the description of the course lists that it will provide an

overview and the study of various Internet tools, resources, and issues, as related to

education. In which, I know that I had gained knowledge and became aware of the

numerous internet tools, applications, and resources available. From my project

4
instructions, I found that there was again a lot of similar requested information. I had to

use several different sites, before I could figures out what resources I would be using for my

projects.

Within all four project, each related to seeking information but different category.

On Project 1 and 2, both requested the indication of internet tools and or applications. That

was a challenging assessment for me. I was unsure of what was required and to provide. I

stuck with what I know, so had to settle for what I know. I felt that I was double-dealing

because I was familiar with one or both of the resources. Then again, I was able to provide

a personal experience with using the tools and or applications. Which lead ampler

observable resources, ensuring significant information for educators, parents, and learners.

Conclusion

Overall, the course was knowledgeable and supplied me with a lot of information on

the different types of internet tools, applications, and resources available. Being that I

somewhat computer literate, made it vital for me all through the course. I feel that the

course directions and or instructions made the course successful. I truly enjoy the course

and became educated on quite a few internet tools, applications, and resources.

5
 References

Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2011). e-Learning and the Science of Instruction. San

Francisco, CA, United States of America: Pfeiffer Wiley.

Freed PhD., R. (2015). Wired Child : Reclaiming Childhood in a Digital Age. North

Charleston, South Carolina, United States of America: CreateSpace Independent

Publising Platform.

Heitner PhD., D. (2016). Screenwise : Helping Kids Thrive and Survive in Their Digital

World. Brookline, MA, United States of America: Bibliomotion, Inc.