About three years ago I got the idea to create an online repository to collect all the great teaching ideas in the ALS department. Since face to face sharing time is limited, as is inservice, I thought it would be a good place to post and exchange ideas. It fed in nicely with my ambitions to create a comprehensive hybrid/online curriculum, and it could be used to get new instructors up and running with tried and true syllabi, lesson plans and resources.
Many people contributed lessons and resources to the site, but I fear that it languishes. Why is it difficult to maintain such a community? Is it because there simply aren't enough of us to make it viable, or perhaps we already know what we like to use in the classroom? Maybe I was not a fervent enough cheerleader for the fledgling site and it has suffered because of it.
I do not cry over its stagnation, or even think about it much. It serves as a good lesson in understanding how and why ideas pass between professionals and whether or not such an exchange is needed. I joined the Digital Co-Lab this term because I get the restless feeling of wanting to improve and break out, to be held accountable to others in order to improve myself. I think it is this kind of sharing and conversing that makes us redefine for ourselves what works and what needs to be improved. I don't want to be one of those instructors like my undergrad European lit instructor who came into class with notes about Madame Bovary that he wrote thirty years prior. We get older and our students stay the same age. To improve in our ability to reach them and to instruct, we don't have to fill our classes with technology that adds no educational value, that distracts and entertains; instead, we need to see what new ideas and technology we can use to improve the possibility that our students will meet the objectives of the class and be prepared for what is next.
I have a link to that little wiki I started a few years ago in the side bar, but if you would like to take a tour, you can also click HERE.
Jared - You did a kindness for the ALS community and that has a ripple effect. This kind of teacher sharing is not the norm in all departments - you helped to reinforce the collaborative habit.
ReplyDeleteI followed your footsteps to create a reading wiki that probably saw less use than your model, if there was any at all.
I wouldn't assume it was your lack of cheerleading or effort that made the difference. Teachers aim at different points along the way to the end objectives, and so teaching tools so useful to one may not carry others along their path.
Then there's the time to find, evaluate and weave in pre-made materials, which is not insignificant, and the creative satisfaction that comes from making your own materials.
So while I like to share and be a part of a teaching community that shares, I am not surprised that repositories get sporadic use and attention. Thanks for being a model collaborator!
Thanks Alice for taking the time to comment. You of all people have been seemingly tireless in your projects and attempts to connect with students, and honestly, you've been quite an example to the rest of us. Good luck this coming year!
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