Personal Reflection and Thanks.
Before I began the ETEC program, computers and I were not friends. Despite a background in the sciences, I did not approach the computer as a scientist. Whenever my computer acted out, as it was wont to do, I’d run through some computer voodoo, rituals acquired through back alley word of mouth: turn it on and off, unplug it and plug it back in, take the battery out and wipe it on your T-shirt.
Equally mysterious to my family--mainly my children--was my decision to apply to the ETEC program. Most people get advanced degrees in fields that they are good at, and enjoy doing. Why, then, would I get a degree in something that I was so apparently unskilled at?
However, I knew that embracing technology would make me a better educator. I also learned long ago that a task becomes more enjoyable as you get better at it. I’ve observed that most people can learn most things, given enough time and the right help. More than any particular tech skill, the teachers in the ETEC department helped me to remember this dictum that I knew deep down, but rarely applied to myself.
In summary, here are some things I learned in my three years in the program:
1. When you keep the end in mind, you’ll find more than one way to accomplish what you have set out to do. In tech lingo, this means: find a workaround when you run into an obstacle. If the computer isn’t responding to your commands, there probably is another way to do it. This is really true with complex applications like Photoshop. The designers have given you a front door, a back door, and a left or right side door as well.
In the past, when I ran into a roadblock, I might have tried to do the same sequence of keystrokes over and over again, hoping that somehow it would “take”. This act of tunnel vision reinforced the misbelief that I just wasn’t “good with technology”. However, as I watched my tech savvy peers, I learned to trust my observations when something clearly wasn’t working, and to move on and try something else.
2. I learned to apply my prior training in the scientific method. Whenever you are conducting an experiment, you change only one variable and keep a control group. In a sense, learning new applications is like conducting little experiments to see how the system responds. My old computer self moved sliders and clicked on buttons without moving sliders back to neutral. My new computer self approaches computer learning more methodically—if I test one variable, I move back to neutral before I test another variable.
3. Dream Big. It is o.k. to think beyond your personal limitations because you are part of a team. Someone else might have skills that you don’t, and they can help you develop these skills.
4. On the other hand, go ahead and adapt your project to the skills that you do have. This is a variation of the first dictum—keep in mind the end goal. How can you get there, given who you are?
5. Give yourself time. Be patient with yourself.
Ironically, most of these lessons address the human element, more than the technology. In fact, what excites me most about technological advances is that it has the potential to make learning more human. At the core of learning is the relationships that develop between people, the stories we tell, and the attention we can give to each other. Technology can help connect us in these ways.
I have many people to thank for my progress over the past three years. I've received financial support from Mr. and Mrs. Frueling, who gave me a scholarship in my second year, and the ETEC Department, who gave me a scholarship in my first year. I am also so grateful to the Institute of Teacher Education and director Donna Grace, who provided me with a graduate teaching assistantship.
I want to thank all of the ETEC professors who have not only invested time in developing engaging curriculum, but who have also shown such kindness and patience. They are models of great teachers. The ETEC ohana, particularly my cohort, and in particular, my critical friends Gavon, Jon, and Bruce, who have provided encouragement and honest feedback. My husband, Robert and his unwavering support, and my children, Eliot, Madeline, and especially my youngest son Sam, who has gently accommodated my calls for help.
Mahalo nui loa!
Photo header of Byodo-in Temple in Kane'ohe, Hawai'i. Taken in the fall, 2011.
Equally mysterious to my family--mainly my children--was my decision to apply to the ETEC program. Most people get advanced degrees in fields that they are good at, and enjoy doing. Why, then, would I get a degree in something that I was so apparently unskilled at?
However, I knew that embracing technology would make me a better educator. I also learned long ago that a task becomes more enjoyable as you get better at it. I’ve observed that most people can learn most things, given enough time and the right help. More than any particular tech skill, the teachers in the ETEC department helped me to remember this dictum that I knew deep down, but rarely applied to myself.
In summary, here are some things I learned in my three years in the program:
1. When you keep the end in mind, you’ll find more than one way to accomplish what you have set out to do. In tech lingo, this means: find a workaround when you run into an obstacle. If the computer isn’t responding to your commands, there probably is another way to do it. This is really true with complex applications like Photoshop. The designers have given you a front door, a back door, and a left or right side door as well.
In the past, when I ran into a roadblock, I might have tried to do the same sequence of keystrokes over and over again, hoping that somehow it would “take”. This act of tunnel vision reinforced the misbelief that I just wasn’t “good with technology”. However, as I watched my tech savvy peers, I learned to trust my observations when something clearly wasn’t working, and to move on and try something else.
2. I learned to apply my prior training in the scientific method. Whenever you are conducting an experiment, you change only one variable and keep a control group. In a sense, learning new applications is like conducting little experiments to see how the system responds. My old computer self moved sliders and clicked on buttons without moving sliders back to neutral. My new computer self approaches computer learning more methodically—if I test one variable, I move back to neutral before I test another variable.
3. Dream Big. It is o.k. to think beyond your personal limitations because you are part of a team. Someone else might have skills that you don’t, and they can help you develop these skills.
4. On the other hand, go ahead and adapt your project to the skills that you do have. This is a variation of the first dictum—keep in mind the end goal. How can you get there, given who you are?
5. Give yourself time. Be patient with yourself.
Ironically, most of these lessons address the human element, more than the technology. In fact, what excites me most about technological advances is that it has the potential to make learning more human. At the core of learning is the relationships that develop between people, the stories we tell, and the attention we can give to each other. Technology can help connect us in these ways.
I have many people to thank for my progress over the past three years. I've received financial support from Mr. and Mrs. Frueling, who gave me a scholarship in my second year, and the ETEC Department, who gave me a scholarship in my first year. I am also so grateful to the Institute of Teacher Education and director Donna Grace, who provided me with a graduate teaching assistantship.
I want to thank all of the ETEC professors who have not only invested time in developing engaging curriculum, but who have also shown such kindness and patience. They are models of great teachers. The ETEC ohana, particularly my cohort, and in particular, my critical friends Gavon, Jon, and Bruce, who have provided encouragement and honest feedback. My husband, Robert and his unwavering support, and my children, Eliot, Madeline, and especially my youngest son Sam, who has gently accommodated my calls for help.
Mahalo nui loa!
Photo header of Byodo-in Temple in Kane'ohe, Hawai'i. Taken in the fall, 2011.