First Impressions and Expectations about the class and the course (e-Journal entry #1)

The first step on EDS151 class towards the journey of a thousand miles.

I was filled with mixed and opposite emotions upon logging into EDS151 for the very first time, knowing that this subject would mark the finale of my stay here in UPOU, as it is one of the last subjects I need to take before permanently bidding goodbye to my virtual classes and saying hello to the real world as I take up LET (hopefully this year). It has been almost 8 months, 2 days and few hours since the very first time that I had logged into UPOU portal, and it has been a rewarding learning experience ever since.

My few months of stay here in UPOU have witnessed first impressions that don’t always last (both good and bad ones), of hopes that turned into disappointments, of dismays that turned into inspirations, and vice versa. Now that I have learned my lesson, I intend to be cautious about carefully dissecting my first impressions. Here are few of them:

First impressions about the FIC (Prof. Roja L. Rivera):
1. Accomodating and approachable – This is my first time having an FIC who gives study tips to her students at the onset of the class. Most of the FIC’s I had were strict and too much straight to the point. No sugar coating. Most of them were also accomodating and approachable, but few would pro-actively extend effort as to giving technical and even non-technical support to the students as the way EDS151 is being introduced.

2. Hands on and student-centered – I admire how an FIC could actively follow-up on most, if not all, of her students’ posts. Yes, it is an expectation that being in an online class would mean less intervention from teachers and more student self-effort, but having an FIC who actively find time to solicit student consensus and post timely responses (even in an asynchronous set up), makes being in an online class a bit easier and motivating.

First impressions about the class/classmates:
1. Lively and interactive- I know it is a sad reality that most of us fail to maximize our online responses as we are impeded by time, family and work priorities (as most of us have full time jobs to attend to). But I am glad to see familiar names in our class list, making me think that there would still be more lively class threads and discussions.

2. Informative – I have never been disappointed with this first impression as most of the student (teacher) posts found in UPOU are worth reading. In fact, most of the time, I find it easier to learn from my classmates’ works/posts than from the reading materials provided, as the former are simpler, more concised and reflective than the latter.

Expectations from the class, classmate and myself:
1. The class – I am always hopeful to find lasting learning experiences from the class (student-student interactions, discussions, etc.) that would serve as my take-away from UPOU, as I step out of my virtual class and towards the real world of being a teacher. I expect the class to be upbeat, constructive, and lively. I expect to have more audio-visual materials rather than plain pdf read-outs, which facilitate greater retention of information. I also expect to have more attainable deadlines as the deliverables could require not only plain text but usage of other media and applications. I expect to be adept in the usage of different instructional resources upon going through the course.

2. Classmate – I guess most would agree that being in a virtual class gives us lesser chances of finding friends out of our online classmates than it is with a normal class, as online interactions are sometimes too formal and restricted by class protocols. Nevertheless, I hope that the intellectual exhanges in the portal could facilitate more friendly interactions among classmates.

3. Myself – I have always been a victim of cramming despite all preparations I have been doing. I realized how self-discipline and time-management could strongly salvage one from struggling with extension grades and completion requests. I thought being in an online class would make it easier for me to serve two Gods (school and full-time-work), but the deadliest deadlines and death defying deliverables proved me wrong. Having learned my lesson, I intend to finish all deliverables in time and beat cramming tendencies (fingers and toes crossed).
What are your ideas about instructional media resources, educational technology, and instructional/teaching materials? The following reflect my (initial) personal ideas for the said subjects:
1. Instructional media resources – Places or portals that serve as rich depot of teaching/instructional materials (i.e. internet, library, t.v., etc.).

2. Educational technology – Technology driven instruction. Teachers of this generation face the challenge of adapting their pedagogical skills with the rapidly advancing technological climate. Old-school teaching is challenged by constant educational changes, especially in a technologically-driven generation that we have now. Traditional books and references are seemingly replaced with the ones being easily accessed online, chalks-and-black boards are devalued by power point presentations, hand written projects are made obsolete by computerized ones, and even the manner from which we acquire education is made flexible by technology. Traditional face-to-face class is now redefined by the creation of open universities. Thus, educational technology reflects our usage of technology to uplift traditional way of delivering education.

3. Instructional/teaching materials – Materials (audio-visual aids, presentation utilities, etc.) that allow better delivery of the teaching-learning process.
How do you think this course will help you become better teachers?
It has been once said that an effective teacher is one who could facilitate fruitful learning despite only being armed with plain chalk and black-board. While I agree with this, I also acknowledge that our learning needs are dragged by time and technological changes and challenges. The learners of this generation are swamped with too much technological attractions (online games, cell phones, social networks: fb, twitter, etc.) that compete with how they experience traditional learning. Their interests are harder to trigger and their attention span easily declines. Thus, delivering contents through traditional instruction would less likely be productive. I therefore believe that enhancing skills for “instruction” through uplifting knowledge of instructional media/resources would definitely open outlets towards being a more effective teacher.

What is your commitment to this class? What are you willing to do for you to have an abundant and a deep learning from this course?
As I have learned it the hard way from my previous courses, I am much committed on beating deadlines and promptly delivering quality outputs (deliverables). I have always been up for any challenges. Yes, there might have been rough times, of not meeting expectations and of patience and persistence being shot dead by time and other priorities, but I am now stretching my stress-threshold to its limits’ limits. I intend to do advanced reading, be attentive with FIC’s and classmates’ posts, and render more presence on the online discussions.

As king Solomon once said, “There’s a time for everything”. As we all again put our time-management skills and self-discipline into their greatest test of fire, I am optimistic that all these hopeful impressions, expectations and committments could find their fruitful accomplishment in God’s perfect time.

Many Thanks!
-Jeff

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