After taking two online self-assessments, I feel confident that I have the necessary skills to perform in an online environment. While I answered the questions correctly, there are definitely areas for improvement I plan to address, particularly in the areas of time management. Establishing a dedicated workspace and appointed time during the week for working on projects will be very beneficial in keeping me on track. My motivation for taking the Leading Edge course is to be able to create the best environment for students to gain knowledge and expertise by enhancing current knowledge and learning new skills.

One challenge, as I see it currently, in an online environment is creating the energy that a group working together in a face-to-face class affords. An understanding of how to foster connection, communication and collaboration online is a skill I am interested in developing. One of my personal learning goals for this course is focused on creating an effective forum for productive discussions. It seems that “discussion” may be at the heart of online learning. Sharing ideas and new learning openly and honestly can enlighten everyone and vitalize the group. Also, discussions that encourage learners to consider alternative ways of thinking about strategies and assessing students’ knowledge is a powerful means of changing behavior and increasing the quality of education. I am interested in learning how to create a forum that fosters that kind of sharing.

In addition, another one of my learning goals is to explore the best technology tools that match the learning objectives of the course. With Web 2.0 tools ever increasing, I would like to look at different kinds of software applications and innovative technologies that are best suited to develop critical thinking skills. I have some experience producing podcasts and video, but I have not used the online digital sharing resources to a large extent and would like to incorporate those into an online class.

I am exploring Go2Web20; it is a directory that enables people to stay up to date with new services that are created every day. There are links and descriptions of applications, which make this exploration very efficient. Check out the site:  Go2Web20

I am looking forward to learning and experimenting with new strategies and applications to better facilitate online courses.