Topic 5: Lessons Learned – Future Practice

Reflection time!

This week’s theme nudges our group to question some core ideas like why we have been still on this road, what we have learned and where we are headed. The end is near and we have been one of the most intact ONL groups so far it seems (so we have been told). We definitely have earned a pat on the shoulder! Go Group 10!

Our last webinar have made me realize certain things. As a part of ONL community, we have advanced to being trusted team members, rather than just individuals with the shared interest in online learning. We have built a community of inquiry (and hopefully some sort of community of practice too), and added an invaluable element into our PLNs. On the other hand, apart from our current identities in the course as online learners, we have been informed about practices in online teaching environments. We were lucky to have the discipline residents, who gave the group fresh ideas by sharing their invaluable experiences from their own teaching settings. A well-known secret is that those residents have actually been each and every one of us! All that being said, I would like to nominate Ilkin as the MVP of our group! =) (Many thanks for sharing your experiences with us.)

The teaching assignments he was tasked and were having problems with were so relatable that such cases showed us the importance and immediate effect of the stakeholders’ decisions on our professional lives. In a sense, instead of one scenario every topic week, in some we had two. They were actually not part of the rocket science, rather just thoughts and implemented decisions that needed long over due tweaking, and we could offer constructive feedback and solutions. Nevertheless, it was Ilkin himself who have come up with the thought provoking questions in the first place as well as perfect solutions afterwards.

On a personal level, even if I, as a learner, have previously experimented and participated in many online learning courses and platforms, I haven’t felt this much comfortable in any of them. Nevertheless, I was very scared at first. To begin with, ONL was not a requirement for me, rather an endeavor I had signed up personally and voluntarily, even if I literally had to wedge my way into ONL as an institutional learner. So, thank you very much Tore! =)

At the beginning, I had my doubts. Many actually, but some dispersed along the way. I have always thought myself (somehow) proficient enough in basic ICT tools. However, since there are new ones popping up everyday, they have become somehow scary and disturbing for me. So in an online networked course, I would be expected to make use of many new ones that I have never heard before. More importantly, what disturbed me most was what I could have possibly brought onto the table that would offer a chance to learn together with the team I would be part of. I must say that I have never been so pleased to have been so wrong. This course has taught me that it was also me, just like any participant, in those scenarios. Therefore, all the solutions we have offered were actually results of many tried and tested friendly advice that were proposed by many kindred souls, me being one of them.

That being said, I would name the biggest strength of Group 10 as having the best facilitators, Anne and Annika, our lighthouses. Thanks to you we have always been sure that you would keep us on the track when we got lost, and sure we did! =)

So this journey has reminded me (again and again) that with the right community learning is more enjoyable and more inclusive. Our diversity, personal and discipline wise, has become our strength. We as a group, have developed both at individual and group levels. Even if we have always cherished our Devil’s Advocate (guess who?! =), we welcomed the skepticism he offered since it made us think before we head right into uncharted territories in our PBL journey.

Frustration was another thing we all had throughout the course, albeit with varying amounts. In the end, I have learned to acknowledge, define, embrace and practice it in my own terms. But just as the saying goes, practice makes perfect and I have a long way ahead!

I personally believe what we have had here is an edible sized chunk of the future education. Therefore, I am very happy and feel privileged to have participated in one of the earliest and first-hand experiences.

Thanks ONL Team!
Hope to be a long time member of this community of inquiry!

Anyone interested in the ride? 😉

Group 10 PBL Artefact for Topic 5

Topic 5: Lessons Learned – Future Practice