4. Think Critically & Reflectively

Competency 4: 
Think Critically and Reflectively

Think Critically and Reflectively describes how I am able to describe an initial observation based on my personal understanding then make reflective changes to that observation after learning more about it. This competency also demonstrates how I am able to see a broader perspective in Education Technology and Education as a whole using critical thinking and personal reflection.

Narrative

Sub-competency 1: 
Develops a personal vision of inclusive educational practice

In my EDCI 66000A Learning Design and Technology Seminar, I had the opportunity to develop a personal vision for my educational goals and future practice by reflecting on why I am pursuing a Master’s degree at Purdue. To me, developing a personal vision statement was equally as important as completing any of my LDT coursework because it helped me discover my “why”. In my reflection, I wrote about a TED talk by Simon Sinek who explained why successful organizations are so successful (Sinek, 2009). Sinek stated, “people don’t buy what you do, but rather why you do it”. As I read my reflection for this course, I found this statement to be profoundly true. I believe by answering this question you can help reveal the true purpose of whatever it is you plan to do.

EDCI 66000A Initial and Final Reflection

Sub-competency 2: 
Describes the relationship between Educational Technology and the broader field of education

EDCI 51300 presented another reflection opportunity to describe how my definition of Education Technology changed after the 8 weeks of coursework. In my revised definition, I wrote:

Learning Design and Technology can best be defined as the learning processes, design skills and technology systems used to facilitate learning, improve performance, share information and advance the education of people in the workplace, traditional and non-traditional educational settings.

What this exercise revealed to me was that the field of Educational Technology and the broader field of education is constantly changing. It is a vibrant and growing field and is continuously shifting to meet the needs of the learner. For example, in my reflection, I wrote about the dynamic relationship between learning and technology to meet the needs of learners no matter where they are located. This technological capability is what enabled me to complete my undergraduate and keeps me engaged even more so today with my graduate studies.

EDCI 51300 Initial and Final Ed Tech Definitions

Sub-competency 3: 
Critically evaluates theory and practice

In my EDCI 53100 final project, I created a training package on the Engineering Design Cycle for my robotics club. This provided me with an opportunity to evaluate the learning theories that I found to be beneficial to my students and apply it in practice for my design. In my experience over the past 8 years, I have learned that robotics is a very hands-on learning program. Because of this, I learned in this course that constructivism and situated learning theories are a great fit for my learning programs. Oftentimes, many of my students don’t realize just how much they are learning because they are having so much fun with the hands-on activities.

The research of learning and cognition shows that students learn best by doing. Robotics is a highly social and adaptive learning experience where team members adapt to new challenges, perceive new ideas, conceive new challenges, and achieve learning goals and outcomes together. The Tennessee Robotics Club program has provided a great resource for my students to grow and learn in an environment where learning becomes social, discovered and experienced (Driscoll, 2005). It’s been very rewarding both personally and professionally to watch my team adapt to new challenges each year, perceive new ideas, and achieve positive learning outcomes together. This is just one example of how I am now able to critically evaluate learning theories and apply them in my course designs.

EDCI 53100 Training Package

Competency Reflection

Critical thinking and reflection are valuable practices for all walks of life. I enable it all of my learning designs professionally and I encourage my students to do in my STEAM outreach programs. By reflecting upon where you are and what you want to become, it helps create a vision of a future you that has yet to be born.

References

Driscoll, M. (2005). Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.

Sinek, S. (2009, September). Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action [Video File]. Retrieved from: https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action
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