This past weekend, our class took a turn for me. A good turn. I know my classmates "see" each other on Tuesday nights as a whole group (or at least who ever is available) and get a chance to interact, but this weekend, my small group set up a Google Hangout. Well, I should say Bryan set it up. We were on line with each other for a couple of hours. Really digging into the portfolios one at a time. It was a little nerve wracking going into it, but very quickly it became comfortable, kind, genuine feedback. Cindy's reflection photo was pretty cool along with the explanation of where the portraits came from and how that picture was taken. Having a new set of eyes to suggest moving items, changing a background, suggesting increasing the visual appeal of some pages because they didn't keep pace with the others and comments on blogs was very helpful. We checked out the sites on a multitude of devices. There was relationship building. We got to say hello to a few of each other's kids and talk about life outside of school. I'm glad we set aside the time to see how many different ways we could complete the same assignment. Not one of us did exactly the same thing, yet we were all showcasing our work from the same classes. There's that choice, ownership and voice for you (Harapnuik, Thibodeaux, and Cummings, 2018).
It's been interesting getting a chance to look at other eportfolios, both from this program and beyond. The "finished" DLL portfolios can be a bit overwhelming for me to look at right now. They are bursting at the digital seams and here I am just getting started. Am I going to have something that robust by the time I graduate? I've been really apprehensive about the upcoming class and the amount of reading, lit review and innovation plan that are headed my way. Some of the portfolios helped ease the stress about individual assignments. I don't like roller coasters at all, but I feel like we've been chugging along to the top of a hill and the ride is just now getting ready to start. I'm just hoping I can hang on. Tonight, I actually found the ePortfolio of a fellow Allen teacher. Wild! I don't know her well and I had no idea she went through this degree program. I'm definitely looking forward to connecting with her.
I've noticed some things I like and other things I don't care for in the example eportfolios. There were some pathways to get to assignments/projects that were difficult to navigate. There were some links that didn't work. That may be related to the importance of making sure our work is stored someplace that is truly ours and doesn't disappear if we change organizations. There was A LOT of creativity and self expression/representation. I've realized that I enjoy looking at the simple designs. I like looking at the clean lines and classic details of the all white background. But, on the flip side, I prefer making things that are colorful. I'm torn. Is is time to rework my colors? Time will tell. The beauty of a digital portfolio is changing colors and layouts is much easier than taking apart a physical scrapbook.
UPDATE 9/25 - I may have received a little feedback regarding my blog posts being a little less than visually stimulating. More pictures! What? More pictures? So I spent the day stewing just a little if I am being perfectly honest. What pictures am I going to add? They need to be relevant. If I felt that a graphic really spoke to me, wouldn't I have added it already? Plus, I've already got a couple of videos, a bitmoji, a photo of the infamous Pebbles the fish, and a cover photo carefully selected from my personal library (Buttercup the cat) or the wonderful world of free images available through Wix on each post. I asked my kiddo to send me some art. If I am going to post pictures, I want them to be unique and meaningful. As I type this I, she sends a text, with this photo of a recent painting:
She recently attended a friend's birthday party at one of those painting studios. We knew that this party would be a little different than some others she has attended because she would be allowed to CHOOSE what she wanted to paint instead of everyone doing a personal take on the same project. She was concerned about using acrylics which are not her favorite medium. I'm not 100% sure why they don't rank high on her favorite art supplies list, but I am guessing she prefers other media that she is more comfortable with. E's painting reminds me of and was inspired the 1971 book by Dr. Seuss, The Lorax. The environmental message coupled with the scathing review of gross consumerism pull at her heartstrings. My kid is pretty awesome (I might be ever so slightly biased) and is learning about history, economies, and cultures and is making great connections to what she sees and hears in her little sliver of the world. I see kindness and love in her present and maybe throw in some activism in her future. Am I reading too much into her painting? Probably, maybe. But I see her VOICE and OWNERSHIP in her work. She utilized a time of celebration to ask questions and learn a few new techniques and color mixing tips in an AUTHENTIC environment where she was able to paint for joy and self expression. So this is me taking back a whole lot of my sass. Sometimes it take a swift virtual kick in the tail to remind you as Dr. Harapnuik says "It's about learning."
References
Harapnuik (2018). It's about learning: Creating significant learning environments. Retrieved from http://www.harapnuik.org/
Harapnuik, D., Thibodeaux, T., & Cummings, C. (2018). Choice, Ownership, and Voice through Authentic Learning. Retrieved from https://gallery.mailchimp.com/1bdbac4d4fbdff334a642eb11/files/8b18ae2a-8696-4d58-9b80-192f4cc6624c/COVA_eBook_Jan_2018.02.pdf
Seuss, Dr. (1971). The lorax. New York: Random House.
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