Why Am I Here? LDT 502

Why Am I Here?

I began this journey into graduate school to accomplish a life-long goal of attaining a Master’s degree in Education. I’ve been in the classroom for many years, crafting kinesthetic activities and hands-on learning opportunities for students. Along the way, COVID threw a curve ball and I immediately had to rethink the direction of my lesson planning. While creating online science lessons for middle school students (many of whom were sheltering in place), I recognized the necessity of rich, technologically-driven, accessible learning opportunities for all students: including those with disabilities. That realization brought me to the Learning Instructional Design and Technologies program at ASU. Combining my love for creating curriculum with innovative technologies within the classroom, I am now focused on honing my skills.

The short term goal I hope to accomplish by the end of LDT 502 is to learn more about the constructivist theory and how to implement best practices in my middle school science classroom. The constructivist emphasis on designing “authentic” learning tasks—tasks that reflect the complexity of the real-world environment in which learners will be using the skills they are learning—has had an effect on how instructional design is being practiced and taught (Reiser, 2001). 

Utilizing a hands-on approach to learning that also connects real-world scenarios to the content is crucial for students to foster a love of learning and responsibility for their learning. Learning more about the historical context of constructivism will help me create these lessons. My mentor teacher is excellent at organically creating this type of learning environment. I plan on investing time in his classroom: observing and practicing his approach. I also hope to attend PLC meetings where we are able to discuss theory and craft lessons.

A medium term goal I would like to accomplish by the midpoint of the program is to choose two technological tools to implement in my science classroom that could assist students with disabilities access the concepts and content. The first would be to utilize VoiceThread as a discussion tool for students. Using assistive technology is an asset for students in order to help them increase their comfort with innovative technology. The second tool would be JamBoard: an application available in the Google Suite for Education. This tool allows for more creativity when brainstorming ideas for projects, studying for assessments or creating content for the classroom website. It is my hope that I am able to practice using these tools and become proficient by the middle of the program. I worked with another graduate student in a previous course creating a plan to practice use and implement the technology within our classrooms. She was very organized and detailed and offered amazing insight on how to familiarize ourselves with these tools. I plan on reaching out to her and leaning in on her expertise in this area. 

Finally, by the end of the LIDT program at Arizona State, my hope is that I am able to collaborate with Dr. Jonte C. Taylor and co-author an article for the Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities, documenting the feasibility of creating Professional Development Opportunities for General Education teachers in the areas of assistive technology for science concepts and content. Dr. Taylor is an expert in his field and is passionate about accessibility of inquiry-based learning for all students. I, too, am passionate about this. 

Reiser, R. A. (2001). A history of instructional design and technology: Part II: A history of instructional design. Educational Technology Research and Development, 49(2), 57–67. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02504928