Aloha and welcome to the Professional Learning Network for Tri-Campus Blended Learning Project!
What Is This Thing Called PLN You Speak of?
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This Professional Learning Network (PLN) is an essential part of the training process for anyone involved in blended learning here at Kamehameha Schools. Rather than asking faculty and staff to engage in a one-sided, direct instruction type of training where participants are simply told what they should know and do, this PLN hopes to foster more connections within our own group of KS colleagues. The PLN’s overall purpose is to grow our collective knowledge by creating a space where we can share insights, ideas, and resources and learn from each other. As you progress through this training process, remember that we each have our own unique and valuable perspectives, so please a’o aku, a’o mai.
Why Are We Doing the PLN Now?
With the pilot course for the Tri-Campus Blended Learning Project just months away from implementation, the summer months offer a perfect opportunity to deepen our understanding of blended and online instruction, improve our teaching in this environment, and learn where to go for support when we need it. Through participation in this Professional Learning Network, we will gain the basic knowledge, skills, and best practices necessary to begin teaching in the blended environment. We will also learn the pedagogical theory behind successful blended instruction and get tips on how to request technical support if we ever get stuck.
So What Do We Have to Do Already?
The Tri-Campus Blended Learning Project Professional Learning Network is designed to be as simple to use as possible. In short, all we have to do is check in with the PLN once or twice a week to see what people are sharing. About once a week, there will be a new post published about some aspect of blended in online learning. Participants are expected to digest each post and any links or resources that go along with it. After some reflection, each participant will submit their own post with their thoughts and share any of their own resources related to this topic. If you are stuck on what to do or what to post, check the resource section of the PLN for helpful checklists for instructors and administrators and rubrics with guidelines for excellent submissions. During all this connecting, contributing, and collaborating on blended and online learning takes place, the PLN participants are also encourage to share their lesson plans for the coming school year.
Ready to Get Started?
Now that we know what a PLN is and what this one is for, let’s dive right in and submit our first post! Since we are only just beginning, stick to the basics with the first submission. Introduce yourself to the rest of the PLN, and let us know at least three of your goals for teaching in the online and blended environment. To help kick start your thinking, check out this rubric containing some good topics and questions for goal-setting.
After you post, please be sure to check back and reply to some other posts. Remember our Professional Learning Network is only as good as we make it!
Aloha, hope I’m posting in the right place. My name is Malia Panglao, KS Maui Campus, and will be teaching blended HAP in the spring. Three of my goals for the blended HAP course are:
1. making the course as relevant, and enjoyable, as an entirely traditional, face-to-face course
2. assuring the the students’ learning experiences are authentic and meaningful for them and that they get the most out of it
3. finding a way to easily incorporate online with face to face learning so that it is complementary and not contradictory; so that it ‘flows’
Hi Malia,
Mahalo for sharing. Those are some great goals you have, and they are very important to the success of both the course itself and the students within the course. 🙂 I think a nice place to start is slowly integrating the online content in sort of a “flipped classroom” model, reserving a bulk of your face-to-face time for active learning. But, I’m sure you already figured that one out! Looking forward to seeing how this first pilot goes. Thank you for participating!
Aloha Malia,
I like that you’re focused on making student learning relevant, authentic and meaningful. I know that those were goals when we worked on designing the class with Justin. However, the terms “relevant, authentic, and meaningful” will always vary according to the individual students in the class. I’m excited to see how the course will be utilized and even transformed once it is in the hands of students and teachers. Let us know if there’s anything we can do to help you move in that direction.
Mahalo!
Aloha mai kākou
Iʻm Yuki from KS Hawai’i.
My first post did not go through, I guess.
So here are my goals.
1. Provide enough time and support for students so that they donʻt feel like they are “unfortunate ones” to be the pilot of this project.
2. Provide easy navigation and simplicity for assignments and project.
3. Create a learning environment that students look forward to go home, do the online portion and come back excited.
Thanks!!!
Hi Yuki!
I think that you make a great point about working hard to make sure that the students are excited and feel positive about this pilot project. I think that like you said, as long as you make yourself available to support them so they do not feel like they are just thrown into it it should be a great experience- students love technology and the accessibility it can provide! By planning ahead and looking at the big picture of how you want to integrate your online and face to face components we should be able to meet both your and Malia’s goals smoothly! I look forward to working with you both! Please let me know how I can best support you as you begin the year.
Mahalo,
Kassia