Class Reflection Questions

Have the linked courses been beneficial to you and if so how? If not, why not?
I like the linked course because I do not have to drive to campus as often during the week especially since I live in Katy. I also appreciate that I am still receiving six semester hours of credit even though I am only in class for four hours, but the time I spend online completing assignments more than makes up for the two hours I am not in class.

Have the digital photo/storytelling assignments been worthwhile in helping you learn the technology skills presented?
During each of the assignments I was presented with a new skill in technology that I was not previously familiar with. Prior to taking this course, I did not even know how to use Blogger, much less consider creating a personal blog for myself. Many of the skills are necessary in today’s classroom in presenting lessons to students in a creative and innovative way. In addition, the technology skills will help me to better relate to students who are experts with technology, and create lessons incorporating many of the skills I learned in this class. I think the final project puts all of the pieces we have learned throughout the semester together in a worthwhile manner.

Have the digital photo/storytelling assignments been worthwhile in helping you learn the popular culture content?
Here I feel a little torn because while I see how the digital photo story assignments can be used to learn the popular culture content, I felt sometimes the connection was slightly forced. No doubt, technology must be included in the classroom, and is integral to popular culture, but for some of the assignments I would not necessarily have chosen to work with the theme for Cam’s class, and would have rather been allow3ed to choose something unrelated to the theme presentations.

Do you think that the linked course pairing helped you connect technical skills to content area knowledge? If so, how and if not, what do you think did not work?
I think the digital photo story can be connected to any content area, and should be incorporated into the classroom. Teachers can use digital stories they themselves create, but I also think as was suggested in Dr. Robin’s course, we take the time to introduce the students to the technical skills involved in creating a digital photo story. I think students would benefit from the entire process including the story boards and the story circles, so students are able to improve their writing and technical skills as well as master the content.

Would you be interested in taking other linked courses if they were offered and would you recommend this pair of linked courses to other students?
I would take linked courses in the future, and would recommend these courses to other students because both Cam and Dr. Robin provide a wealth of learning tools for the classroom. I already plan on taking a set of linked courses in the spring combining another social studies course with a technology course.

Is there anything else you can suggest that you feel would improve the digital photography/storytelling half of the linked course pair?
I think maybe both courses should consider combining a little more of the online assignments or maybe I was just under the impression when I signed up for the class many of the assignments were for both classes. However, I discovered only one assignment counted for both classes, and I spent a great deal of time working online.

One option under consideration is to have a linked pair of courses where the content area course would be offered as a traditional 3 hour per week face-to-face course and the digital photo/storytelling course would be offered online, or mostly online. Please discuss your reaction to this idea and provide any questions or comments you have on this topic.
I like the idea more than the way the class is offered right now. I would have rather sat in Cam’s class for three hours but avoided the online component, and then worked on Dr. Robin’s class all online. I have taken online courses in previous semesters, and one of my professors would have weekly chats where all of the students were to log in and discuss the material for that week. I do not think this class could be done entirely online because some of the material is easier to learn when Dr. Robin is explaining it in person, and would like to see a hybrid course where it is offered mostly online and the students meet maybe every third week.

Do you have any other comments that you would like to add?
I enjoyed the class, and have learned many more technical skills, and now want new programs for my own computer, so that I can include many of the skills we learned in the class in a social studies classroom setting.