Final Reflections

I am thankful to have had the opportunity this semester to reflect upon what I've learned and the work I've completed in the MET program thus far. My MET journey isn't over quite yet, as I have one course remaining, and I am excited to finish the journey with a course in literacies, which I hope to study further in a PhD program.

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For my first online learning experience, I have felt surprisingly connected to my classmates, encouraged, and supported by them and my professors, and like I have engaged in authentic social-constructivist learning. I've had the opportunity to learn alongside folks from different contexts - from classroom teachers to corporate trainers to entrepreneurs who have created their own teaching and learning spaces - in Canada and all over the world, and they have expanded my worldview and perspective of teaching and learning.

 

The program has been a rewarding experience, mostly because it's helped me escaped the bounds of thinking about teaching and learning through a K-12 or postsecondary lens to imagining all of the informal learning spaces that exist or should exist. I've also gained a lot by experimenting with different ICT tools to find creative or engaging ways to leverage them to enhance teaching or learning instead of defaulting to something I've used before because it's easy or just kind of fits. I've spent a lot of time as an educator and student trying to fit a square peg into a round hole and trying to conform. MET has given me the incredible opportunity of abandoning conformity in pursuit of own interests, and I've grown confidence in my strengths and what makes me me in the process. I have met each one of my goals of Immersion, Definition, and Progression, and hope to continue to use them as guideposts in my future learning endeavours.

 

Thank you to each one of my classmates, groupmates, and professors for your role in my growth in the program and a special thanks to advisor David Vogt, admin David Roy, and my professor Dr. Leah MacFadyen and groupmates Aimee, Carlo, and Kevin for their exceptional scholarship and leadership during this ePortfolio project. You have been endlessly encouraging, supportive, patient, and kind. I also could not have done this without the love, support, and encouragement of my wonderful partner and my personal cheerleaders Natalie, Kirsten, my sister, my mother, and my niece who keeps asking me why I'm still in school and when I'm going to get a job! 

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-Mel