Navigate 2.1.4

Lecture Capturing resources are valuable in both the face-to-face and online classroom.  Many times, I have posted a video on a specific problem I have noticed my students struggling with as their News Announcement for the week.  I usually use an app called Explain Everything because I have found it to be the most user-friendly and you can rewind if you make a mistake! I have also used screen capturing tools like Screen-Cast-O-Matic to record how to use an online calculator for students.  As I've said, I have flipped my face-to-face classroom and this has helped to enhance my teaching methods tremendously!

Navigate 2.1.3

Many prominent universities are now offering free open courses, for instance you can learn Multi-Variable Calculus through MIT! While some are offering commercial classrooms, like Johns Hopkins University.  The benefit of the open courses are obviously the cost and access to information for all people.  However, a drawback might be that they are not updated as regularly.  Another issue with open courses is that there is no facilitator for students to be held accountable to.  For a person who wants to continue learning this might be an awesome option, but if you are trying to get course or school credit, this could raise an issue.  Because these sites post all of their assessments with keys, how can schools accurately assess if a student has learned what they should have?  So while open courses are great for continuing learning for one's leisure, they may not be the best option for students attempting to earn credit!

Navigate 2.1.2

I've created many recorded synchronous sessions using Adobe Connect.  I don't find the WhiteBoard tool to be totally user-friendly so I usually use a WhiteBoard app on my iPad and then screen share to show students how to do problems.  Here is a link to one of my recorded sessions:
1/25/16 - Inverse Functions: http://gavirtualschool.adobeconnect.com/p5q0a21z8wd/

Another issue I have run into with Adobe Connect is remembering to press Record - but I guess that is a user error!

Navigate 2.1.1

Synchronous learning is critical to student success in an online learning environment.  Currently, Ga Virtual utilizes Adobe Connect to manage synchronous learning sessions with students.  However, there are many delivery methods available out there.  Blackboard Collaborate and Adobe Connect are fairly similar.  They offer a White Board feature and allow teachers to share documents and pictures with students.  Both have polling features, but Blackboard does require students to download a file to their computers in order to be able to participate in the session.  To me, Google Hangouts is more of a social media tool rather than a learning system because it does not have a whiteboard feature built in. From what I've learned through exploring the sites, Cisco WebEx and GoTo Meeting seem to be similar in that they might be best used for business collaborations rather than student learning.

Navigate 1.1.3

Our Learning Management System, BrightSpace, does many important things for us! Our LMS does the following:

• houses the content for students to access
• allows students to be assessed through quizzes and tests
• gives students the opportunity to participate in discussions
• upload assignments to the dropbox
• email the teacher and ask questions
• and many more..! 

Through researching the difference between a LMS and a LCMS does the same things, but allows the content to be shared and updated easily between courses.  This would be helpful for instructors when they find a mistake in a course because then the mistake could be updated once and fixed for everyone right away! Hopefully, BrightSpace, will find a way to make the content sharing more fluid in the future! 

Navigate 1.1.2

As I have worked with Ga Virtual, it has been nice to explore different roles within the GaVS environment.  I have worked as an instructor, a reviewer and also a developer.  Developing has been the most challenging, but rewarding role I've held.  I like development because I enjoy creating content and thinking about how students will best learn new topics.  However, it can also be challenging because you don't get to "test" it out on students prior to them starting the course and the content being finalized! This insight into development gave me more understanding of the inner workings of Ga Virtual.

Online teachers utilize the SIS to access student information, records and keep track of important communication.  Teachers use the LMS to access the pre-made content, grade student work and facilitate student learning.

Administrators use the SIS to monitor student progress and teacher communication, as well as accessing student information and records.  Administrators also monitor teacher instruction via the LMS by looking at things like News Announcements and management of grading policies.

Facilitators use the SIS to monitor students progress and check in with students at their face-to-face school to help monitor their progress and encourage them to work hard!

The Development Department is built of the SME who writes the content and the development expert who puts it into BrightSpace and makes it look awesome!

All of these people are there to help students succeed and learn!

Navigate 1.1.1

This past school year, in my face-to-face classroom I "flipped" the classroom.  So my students watched videos I made for homework and answered questions embedded (use EdPuzzle.com) and then we spent our entire class period practicing those skills.  The videos I made would be an example of asynchronous learning since students could do them at any time, while our class time might be seen as synchronous learning since we were all together (although not necessarily online!).  It would be very cool to do synchronous sessions rather than recorded videos but I believe that scheduling that would be challenging for me (because I want to go home and relax!) and for my students who are highly committed after school.  I have considered offering some sort of synchronous review session time for students but have not found the right forum to make it work!

The great thing about asynchronous learning is that students are able to access it at their own pace and at their own time.  The awesome thing about synchronous time is that students are able to ask the instructor questions! Ga Virtual offers students a nice blend by giving them a self-paced course but then also offering weekly synchronous sessions!