MY DECADE OF MISTAKESFour Things I Did Wrong as an OL Teacher

Alyson IndrunasDirector of eLearning & Instructional DesignEverett Community CollegeIGNIS WebinarFebruary 5, 2015

Presenter’s Ethos: You’ve Been Warned

Google Doc. Invitation

1. Are you so comfortable with Collaborate that you could teach somebody else how to use it?

2. Do you live to multi-task?

3. Do you bomb chat windows with ideas when you attend webinars?

If you answered NO to any one of these questions, stay here. The Google Doc. will be there later. Sip your coffee. Listen.

If you answered #YessyYesYes!! then click on the link Alissa will provide in the chat.

#TrueConfession

I have several degrees from WA state. AA, BA, MA, M.Ed.

My adjunct era is beautifully summarized in more optimistic terms than I can tell it by Josh Boldt. (Linked on the Google Doc.)

Vitae’s “How I Got Out: One Adjunct’s Journey From Freeway Flyer to eLearning Director”

10 Years Ago…

“We need people to teach online, and nobody else wants to do it. I’m getting desperate. Interested?”

“Just put all of your handouts online and write lectures to connect them. Shouldn’t take that long. You’re a writing teacher, right?”

Five Years Later…

I never got bumped as an adjunct. “Bumped” is a euphemistic scheduling term that we use to describe being outranked. None of the full-timers wanted to teach online when I started, and many to this day still do not.

I was very lucky during an unlucky era. It’s tough to get a foot in the door at some institutions. See Hint For Adjuncts on Google Doc.

Two years ago…

Now…

Note the multi-tasking smile.

The ungodly high heels.

C’est moi!

Reflecting On Work

Really. This is more like it.

How *Most* Teachers Feel About Educational Technology

Mistake n.

1. an action or judgment that is misguided or wrong.

Used in a sentence:“Thinking I have all the answers for improving OL education is a mistake.”

Synonyms: error, fault, inaccuracy, omission, slip, blunder, miscalculation, misunderstanding, oversight, flub, goof

Where I Started

I Had A Lot To Learn

Mistake #1: Oversight

Solution #1: Be Creative

Try course redesigns in three week or unit chunks. In one year, you’ll have an entire course.

Split the labor with a like-minded colleague and accept that you compete in the same job market.

Find a cool full-timer who is bored of the departmental drama.

Work together in a Canvas master course. Ask your eLearning Director.

Collaborate with a librarian.

Always remember, you’re not alone. Ask Jen,Alissa, or anyone at the SBCTC. They can helpyou connect with other teachers.

Mistake #2: Error in Practice

“I signed up for your hybrid class, Ms. Indrunas, because it seems like your OL students hate you.” ~Former rateyourprofessor.com Researcher

I decided to start anew, to strip away what I had been taught.~Georgia O’Keefe

Mistake #2: Fault

Mistake #2: Inaccurate Perspective

Solution #2

Establish a personal learning network.

Show your students how you use the Internet to research.

Guide them in your discipline through eFlood of information on the Internet.

Think of your students as citizens and not just people you’ve been hired to teach.

Be honest with them.

Mistake #3: Miscalculation

Mistake #3: Goof

Solution #3

It’s okay to say: Someday, just not today.

Do one thing to improve.

Always take the time to look around to connect with like-minded people.

If you do one thing experimental, do it in one section.

Take note of what’s difficult and make friends with somebody who has figured it out.

Mistake #4: Blunder

Always remember you’re the content expert.

You are providing the materials for studentsto create their own meaning.

You can give them patterns to practice.

Mistake #4: Misunderstanding

Solution #4

Put your students to work!

Have them make checklists of the activitiesthat you would like them to do each week.

Ask that they share their study guides.

Use what they write in your teaching. Creatingone short recording summarizing their contribution to the course goes along way.

Share with them why you love your disciplinewhen they discover a “new thought” that excites you.

Don’t miss the joy and fun of learning.

Thank you, IGNIS!

Alyson Indrunasaindrunas@everettcc.eduTwitter: @AlysonIndrunasBlog: https://spokeandhub.wordpress.com/

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