"Learn everything you can, from anyone you can; there will always come a time when you will be grateful you did."
Sarah Caldwell
Team
Alyssa Malveaux
Theresa Hall
Valerie Regalado
Maria A. Lopez
My ADL journey has been so enjoyable that I cannot believe I am finishing the fourth round and closing the door to another course. Usually, when we start something new, the excitement is at the beginning, and then it slows down. However, the more I move forward in this program, the more engaged I am. The COVA philosophy plays a vital role in this motivation. With my choice in selecting projects, I have control of my learning and go as deep as I wish. Since every course complements each other, I connect my pieces of knowledge instead of collecting them and everything in one place, my ePortfolio.
Reading the book Action Research Improving Schools and Empowering Educators by Dr. Craig A. Mertler made me realize how essential this type of research is and how I have been informally doing it all the time in my classroom to improve my practice. However, conducting action research most formally challenged me and made me step out of my comfort zone. Research is an interactive process requiring effective planning and design; after the required readings and participation in the weekly discussions, I created my action research online with the support of the template documents Dr. Meeuwse provided. The hardest part was deciding what to measure and formulating my research question to keep it neutral. I changed the focus of my research at least three times, but I always had the support of my peers.
The second challenge was starting my literature review, but I really enjoyed reading, evaluating, and comparing sources once there. My last task, the action research plan, was easier than I anticipated since I used the information from the previous two assignments. To make my project more organized, I added a timeline to inform when I will collect and analyze the data and report the results. Moreover, I created the forms for the surveys and interviews. This part was a little challenging since I wanted to formulate the best questions to collect better data. Connecting all my assignments on my compilation page was a fun part I always enjoyed.
I enjoyed working with Alyssa Malveaux, Theresa Hall, and Valerie Regalado. I have worked with both for most of my courses, so we constantly communicate. I created a group using the app GroupMe, which allows us to support each other during the assignments or to reinforce our knowledge. We conversed frequently, offering encouragement and assignment reminders to keep each of us accountable during these busy weeks. I recognize that collaboration has made a big difference in my learning. Giving feedforward to my peers enhanced my understanding of the topics. Reflecting on the feedforward received from my instructors and teammates and making improvements when necessary allowed me to grow during these past eight weeks.
The discussion forum also contributed to a better understanding of the topics; I participated in all forum discussions by expressing my insights and replying to others. It is clear that my digital skills improved during this course; I tried different apps that other peers shared during discussions.
Looking back on these past eight weeks, I gave each assignment and discussion my best effort, was open and receptive to feedback, and was comfortable with making mistakes and improving my innovation plan. Throughout this course, the assigned weekly readings and the suggested articles and videos were critical components in understanding and engaging with the material. To ensure my engagement with the material was authentic, I completed all assignments before the due dates and participated in every discussion board post. I also attended the live Zoom sessions, and eight reflection posts were added to my ePortfolio. There is always room for improvement, and I must be more careful in editing my work.
References
Mertler, C. A. (2019). Action research: Improving schools and empowering educators (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.
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