Experiencing Free and Open Source Courses

Experiencing Free and Open Source Courses

            I have previously enrolled and completed a free course from Ed Web on Electronic Technology Tools Integrated in Literacy Lessons.  The next course I will be completing with Edweb is Mathematics Meets Technology presented by Emily Fitzpatrick.  She is a teacher in Orangeville District Secondary School.  These courses are entirely free and even count towards professional development.  The design of this course is completed through live video streaming, online chat, and discussion board that allows for all attendees to share information, ask questions, and make comments.

            The presentation of material with clearly organized and share via the live video format.  It was different from face-to-face learning, in some respects.  I could not see the expressions of my fellow attendees and the course had a set time frame that was strictly adhered to be the presenters. Once the online class is completed, I had the option to complete a short assessment.   After taking the assessment, Ed Web ask for your mailing information and they send you a certificate of completion.  

            The course offered a rich learning experience through the free resources, expert teachers, and master lesson plans shared.   It was great that the presenters went over the top ten lessons provided by professional teachers, each one varying in grade level targeted and content area.  I especially enjoyed the information on how to utilize free digital libraries in the classroom.  The directions to free website with free books was incredibly helpful, since all schools are on a budget and making the budget stretch further is important. 

            The Ed Web course provide instructional strategies on groupings, methods for introducing materials, and quality resources to utilize.   Some of the educational theories found in the course design included primarily Constructivism, since it build on previous knowledge. This lesson aided in scaffolding a teacher’s experience with lesson planning and technology with new concepts for instructional methods.

            This course provided methods for dealing with the challenges and benefits online learning in K-12 education presents.  The benefits are the hundreds of free and professional resources available for educators to utilize in and out of the classroom.   As well as, the challenge of passwords, usernames, and limits on the number of accounts a school may use for free.  This requires additional work in maintaining students’ personal information and tracking which books are being read and when the books will be available to other students.  I will definitely be taking further courses with Ed Web and have recommend it to several of my fellow educators already.   Overall, the online class by Ed Web was helpful, insightful, and professionally created for educators.  Yet, best of all it was free to use, did not require specialized computer programs, and extremely user friendly.