Sam Coulter

The motivator section was what I learned the most from. I try to keep my students motivated, but I liked they included the bit about sensitivity to the flow of the class as a whole. Its easy to focus on individual movtivation or collective motivation, but a balancing act to do both!

I learned quite a bit about diverse teaching methods. I definitely see when I've implemented some of them, but I'd love to include methods like the assigned questions and catch-up techniques in my classes. I think it'd benefit my students and make for a more comfortable and engaging learning environment.

I think the VR module was the most intersting element I learned about. I think it'd greatly benefit my field if there were simulations students could work with. We focus on a printing course in my program, and due to expenses, setting up an offset press for demonstrations wouldn't be cost effective, and its difficult for all students to engage when really only the press operator can get up close with the equipment. A simulation would be fantastic for this, and be much better for students to learn on their own time instead of trying to see around their peers… >>>

I was most surprised to learn about ways to develop good online research habits in students. I have extensive experience with both print and digital research methods, so it was second nature to me, whereas my students are still learning or just starting to. I will be implementing the three methods when approching online information (who benefits from a. statement, question the source, look for obvious statements). I have my students write a research paper on the historical and cultural features of a color, so I'll definitely be including this in my assignment details, and research other methods for approaching… >>>

I think we naturally consider communication from a audio or written perspective, so it was interesting to learn about new literacy and visual literacy specifically. In graphic communications, visual literacy is a massive component of successful design, and more than ever connectivity is a standard educational element. I'd love to teach my students about how connectivity and literacy are connected, hopefully to propogate further investigation and interest in literacy skills.

I thought the most enlightening information was the "don't make assumptions about what adult students know or understand." I teach college students, and even the most advanced students are still learning. Proofreading is big in my courses, so I make sure I explain an error so my students can understand why and how they made a typo or grammatical error so they can avoid them in the future. I always provide explanation to grades or when students lose points, so they can see where they can improve for the next assesment.

I'd love to encourage my students to reflect and create goals for themselves. As many of us know, self-motivation is key to success in any setting. Without it, we get mired or discouraged. I like the idea of learning about student goals and working on them throughout the semester. Watching students progress and succeed is the best part of the job, so having students commit to something specific to their learning would be a great way to facilitate student success further!

I learned quite a bitfrom this module! I'm most interested in working with assistive technology in my future courses and making my class more inclusive and accessible through technology. I also look forward to employing the methods to motivate students to make and track their own goal progression. Autonomy is the way of the future, and I think giving students the opportunity to set a realistic goal is a great way to engage them and demonstrate what it's like to be in the field and real world where you need to be self-motivated.