Blog Journal #9

In high school, I participated in distance learning through Florida Virtual School. I also participated in distance learning in college during Covid19. I enjoyed distance learning because when I was in high school, it allowed me the opportunity to enroll in honors courses that were not offered in person. I was able to complete assignments at my own pace. I could choose my learning environment. I think that while I liked the idea of working at my own pace, it did not actually work for me because I would often procrastinate. I did ot like distance learning because it felt isolating. I enjoyed leaving my house and walking to class every day. Learning in person keeps me accountable because I know I will see my teacher and have to turn in assignments. As a teacher, I can create activities for students to collaborate with each other, so they do not feel so alone. For example, I could plan a virtual lunch or coffee hour for students to connect.

Open educational resources (OER) are educational resources which anyone can access. Students often use them to gain access to textbooks they may not otherwise be able to afford. However, educators can use them too. Click here for an open educational resource on assessing linguistically diverse students. This resource provides information on assessment practices and examines how we can make assessments more inclusive to linguistically diverse students.
In the first powerpoint assignment, I learned how to create a voice over for the lesson. I did not like that when I would play a video, there would be an echo. I liked this assignment because it could be helpful for teaching students certain concepts if you are away. In the interactive powerpoint assignment, I learned how to create a virtual escape room. I appreciated that the images I added had alt text. However, the assignment took a very long time because there was not a straight forward accessible method of adding hyperlinks. In addition, it was a tedious process to add the action buttons and link them to different slides. Despite the challenges, I am proud of my work.