1. I am not an academic, and this is my first foray in the use of technology in education. I really struggled in selecting which technology to include, because I really have not used any in the past. Every artifact in my repository was developed in the past couple of weeks. I decided to try to create artifacts to better understand the process required to use the technology, and its utility in promoting Universal Design for Learning principles.
2. All the courses taught by the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at UF (as part of the MS in Anatomical Sciences Education program) consisted of Modules divided into Subunits, with each Subunit composed of 3 videos delivered asynchronously. At the end of each subunit, the learner has the option to take a 10-item quiz. The 3 videos often included 2 videos with unique content and 1 summary video, except for the videos in Cell Biology, wherein all 3 videos depicted unique content.
This experience heavily informed my selection on which technology to focus on - Ed Puzzle and Google Forms. Both allows for asynchronous mode of content delivery with the ability to actively guide the learner while consuming content, and providing the instructor with opportunity for formative assessment.
Prior to taking this course, I sometimes wondered how to teach Anatomy or Pathology using a flipped classroom. Ed Puzzle is one way to do this. It is an answer to my question that I did not know about. I actually sent an email to my former Anatomy Professor to let her know about Ed Puzzle and how it can enhance her course significantly, with very minimal effort or deviation from what she is already doing.
3. This project forced me to meaningfully reflect on technology in higher education. The technology needs in K-12 is very different to the technology needs in higher education. This difference coincides with normal human growth and development. The ability for self-regulation in a 5-year old is different from the ability for self-regulation in a 16-year old, and is different in the ability for self-regulation in a 30-year old. This normal development in the ability to self-regulate is thus reflected in the selection of technology, in the amount of effort and resources the technology affords to maintaining engagement. K-12 technologies were designed for maximum engagement and participation.
4. When deciding which technology to adopt, the creator will have to prioritize between 3 factors – time, utility, and aesthetics (from the perspective of a creator). Different situations will require differing prioritization. But, the creator also has to view the technology from the user’s perspective. Their prioritization will also have to be taken into consideration when adopting technology for the user’s full engagement and participation. The time necessary to navigate the technology cannot be so much that it takes away from the time necessary to understand concepts and develop work-products (when necessary). Of particular concern is the engagement of learners who are non-technology natives, non-traditional students who might be taking my course towards a second or third career. The principles and guidelines of the Universal Design for Learning strive for inclusivity and full engagement of students, each with a unique combination of resources. For inclusivity and student engagement, user-friendliness will be a primary consideration when I am deciding what technology to adopt. Everything has a learning curve, but there is a point when the learning curve can become a hindrance.
5. “Death by PowerPoint” has created a negative connotation on the technology. I feel that PowerPoint definitely has advantages over other technologies when it comes to preparing lectures. Some technologies have embedded cameras which allows for recording a video response, like FlipGrid and EdPuzzle. The advantage of PowerPoint is that you can modify each, individual slide. You do not have to record a response from beginning to end. Although FlipGrid and EdPuzzle affords the ability to edit and cut a video recording, it allows the creator to do this by cutting and editing what looks like a film strip. Deciding where and when to cut requires looking at each frame. With PowerPoint, editing involves cutting or removing an entire slide, or modifying an individual slide.
The ability to cut or edit slides is useful when asked to teach related courses, with somewhat similar content. The ability to mix and match slides to suit the content required in a specific university course or continuing education lecture is immensely advantageous. The versatility of PowerPoint is front and center in this repository. I have used the video I developed using PowerPoint in Ed Puzzle, Flipgrid, Google Sites, Google Forms, Kinovea, Hyperdocs and Genial.ly. I was able to use it without any complications or barriers.
6. I have been a member of the American Physical Therapy Association since 1997. I have also been a member of the Academy of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy since then. I regularly read the Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy, and one of the services I appreciated when I logged in to the journal was that it allowed users to create folders and save journal articles. When the Journal switched publishers, this service stopped, and I lost all the Journal articles I have saved. I included Microsoft Edge in my selection because this browser allows you to do this for any type of content. The ability to save and curate content promotes life-long learning. It provides the practitioner a trove of evidence they can use to justify their treatment philosophy and the basis for how they practice. It provides the practitioner visual “feedback” on how they have evolved and grown over time. And, because it is a browser from a major software company, the chances of it “going away” is smaller and because it is being used on a daily basis, and not just visited occasionally, warnings to save archived content will be received in a timely manner.
In addition to the ability to curate and save content for life-long learning, MS Edge also has the most normal-sounding free text-to-speech functionality. With Edge, there is no need to download an add-on for this service (and most free apps require premium service for a normal-sounding voice).