A rubric for my AR (K.O.)

I am using two "rubrics" for my Action Research. The first one is based off of the Universal Design Rubric and the second one I built into a survey for each participant to complete based on their instincts or opinions (to understand their perceptions)that will be completed before the 2nd cycle begins at the beginning of March. I chose to modify the UDL syllabi because it will provide me with added data and I'm officially in data hoarding mode!!! The second rubric starts with a section about required elements for syllabi according to the campus Academic Senate policy and then moves into sections about style & structure, tables, images & graphics, and color use in a Yes/No format on basic guidelines.
I am completing the first rubric alone for each syllabus whereas the second one will be completed twice so that I can compare my scores to those based on the personal perceptions of each participant.

The second cycle is the shortest since it is the intervention which is completing designated training and beginning to make necessary revisions to their syllabi. Revisions must be completed by our second face-to-face meeting that will be spread across about six weeks.


More blogs to follow shortly...

AR Happy News-K.O.

I am relieved to say that I now have IRB approval at my University but I am still extremely concerned that it will be less than easy to "recruit" participants who are willing to partake in my AR. I realize that I am not asking for a large amount of time but a mid to high level of personal investment/interest is definitely necessary to focus on improving accessibility.
I am also stumped as to how the invitation should be worded and more so when it should be sent out. I don't imagine that it would be valuable to do before the winter break but I'm wondering if it would be better to send it the week before Spring semester (the week before our midpoint meeting).
I have the survey created but I need to write the email invitation that it will be included with so for now I will focus on my AR Plan and attempt to ask about my concerns tonight in class.
I am also hoping to speak with my mentor this week but I fear that it won't be until Thursday and I would like to have submitted my AR Plan by then but she should be able to provide insight about what & when to send the survey and thus begin my Action Research!!


Now if only I could find a platform for my website. I own a domain but want to step up from the previous Google site I created prior to the program. I know there are lots of options but which should I choose?

Cog Tools Reflection- 11 (Paulo Freire's Educational Theory)

Paulo Freire's Educational Theory

Theory of Value

Key Questions: What knowledge & skills are worthwhile learning? What are the goals of education?

Education should raise the awareness of the students so that become subjects, rather than objects, (as in the banking model) of the world. This is achieved by teaching students to think democratically, continually questions, & critically view everything they learn

Theory of Knowledge
Key Questions: What is knowledge? How is it different from belief? What is a mistake? What is a lie?

Knowledge is a social construct. Freire discussed two types of knowledge: practical and reflective. Beliefs are shaped into knowledge by discussion & critical reflection

Theory of Human Nature

Key Questions:What is a human being? How does it differ from other species? What are the limits of human potential?

The elite naturally believe that they are better & anything else is naturally inferior

Theory of Learning

Key Questions: What is learning? How are skills & knowledge acquired?

Focused on the banking theory previously mentioned in the previous posts. Students must construct knowledge from knowledge they already possess. Teachers must learn how the students understand the world so that the teacher understands how the student can learn. Learning is a process where knowledge is presented to us, then shaped through understanding, discussion, and reflection. 

Theory of Transmission

Key Questions: Who is to teach? By what methods? What will the curriculum be?

Teaching is political and must be a democratic process to avoid teaching authority dependence. The student must construct knowledge in meaningful ways The teachers must become learners & the learners must become teachers.

Theory of Society

Key Questions: What is society? What institutions are involved in the educational process?

Freire asserts that educational institutions and more directly, the instructors who teach in them, will influence the views and beliefs of their students with their own views and beliefs and this can lead to disenfranchising less privileged students.

Theory of Opportunity

Key Questions: Who is to be educated? Who is to be schooled?

Freire had a deep desire to provide greater opportunity for the poor & oppressed people of the world, especially in Brazil.

Theory of Consensus
Key Questions: Why do people disagree? How is consensus achieve? Whose opinion takes precedence? 

Disagreement can ultimately lead to growth & consensus; thus it should be conceived as normal and expected. Freire cautions when opinions are silenced in the name of control and order.


I will now spend an unknown number of days trying to wrap my head around these theories in hopes of better understanding them.

Cog Tools Reflection-10 (Pedagogy of the Oppressed)

Recap: This book was originally written in 1968 in Portuguese and translated to English in 1970.

In his book, Freire:

1. proposes a new relationship between student, teacher, and society
2. provides a rationale for a pedagogy of the oppressed & exposes historical teaching methods ("banking education")
3. identifies dichotomies such as the student-teacher dichotomy and colonizer-colonized dichotomy
4. explores how oppression has been justified & how to overcome it through a mutual process (oppressors-oppressed distinction)
5. writes, "Freedom is acquired by conquest, not by gift. It must be pursued constantly and responsibly. Freedom is not an ideal located outside of man; nor is it an idea which becomes myth. It is rather the indispensable condition for the quest for human completion".
6. freedom is the result of praxis or informed action (when a balance between theory & practice is achieved)
7. rejects the banking approach to education; claimed that it results in the dehumanization of students & teachers
8. advocated for a more world-mediated (mutual) approach to education in which people are incomplete; people must be aware of their incompleteness & strive to be more fully human

• conscientization: consciously shaping the person & society (a term first coined in this book)

This book is considered the beginning of his unparalleled exploration. In order to fully understand his lifetime contribution to education it is advice that you look at the entirety of his writing rather than only this one book. In fact, he critically revisited the main arguments of this book in his book entitled Pedagogy of Hope (written in the 1990s) and in a moment of reflection & self-regulation is quoted saying, "If I was the same that I was 40 years ago, I would be profoundly disappointed. But at the same time, if I was nothing of what I was 40 years ago, I would be profoundly sad."

Friere was heavily influenced by Frantz Fanon & Karl Marx. He rejected traditional education as "official knowledge" that intends to oppress. He also ignored the traditional standards of Western education (Dewey, Rousseau...)

Cog Tools Reflection- 9 (Freire)

I am not sure what kind of information is needed on my theorist so I will be sharing a series of posts about Paulo Friere that are by no means entirely comprehensive but serves more as an overview.

Paulo Friere (1921-1997) is known as an author, educator, and philosopher but also as a strong advocate for critical pedagogy (CP). He is credited with authoring one of the "foundational texts" on CP entitled Pedagogy of the Oppressed which was originally written in Portuguese and then translated into English is 1970. His first book was Education as the Practice of Freedom.

Banking Model of Education: the concept that the student is an empty account to be filled by the teacher

• comparable to John Locke's tabula rasa or blank slate principle
• Dewey was strongly critical of the transmission of mere facts as the goal of educations (as we all remember so fondly) 

It has been said the Freire updated this concept and ultimately laid the foundation for what became known as critical pedagogy by placing it is context with current theories and practices of education.

Critical Pedagogy (CP): a social movement and philosophy of education that combines education with critical theory, which stresses the reflective assessment and critique of society and culture by applying knowledge from the humanities and social sciences.

• going beneath the surface meaning to understand the deep meaning
• a continuous process of "unlearning", "learning", and "relearning", "reflection" "evaluation" and the impact these actions have on students particularly those that are believed to be historically and continually disenfranchised by "traditional schooling" 

"These varying moral perspectives of what is 'right' are to be found in what Dewey has referred to as the tensions between traditional and progressive eduction"

**Disclaimer: Dewey really is everywhere!!

My next post will highlight Freire's book, Pedagogy of the Oppressed.

Cog Tools Post- 8

I have been browsing the EDUCAUSE website and perusing articles when I came across one entitled, "Why MOOCs are like Farmville" by Timothy M. Chester and I was intrigued at the thought of such a comparison but also because I never played Farmville and I have taken a couple MOOCs. Has anyone else read it?

I realize the context of these was towards MOOCs but I see them as relevant to higher ed also.
Nonetheless, here are a few takeaways:

Changes to the class lecture:
Old-school: Teacher = content creator and Students = content subscribers                                             
New-school: Teacher + Students = creators and subscribers

"In this new world, learning becomes less about the dissemination of knowledge and more about the process by which knowledge and innovation are created".

Instructors are no longer the "gatekeepers" but instead are stewards and facilitators of learning

How can technology be harnessed to deepen learning? How to redefine rigor and achievement? How to make learning affordable?

At the end of the post, Chester states the way to solve the key questions mentioned in the post by "...rolling up our sleeves and thinking and acting quite a bit differently. That is going to require administrators like myself to do things that we would rather avoid - taking cost out of the system - by setting priorities, separating the must have from the wants and nice to haves, and creating a culture where we advance our careers not by building new things and consuming more resources, but by being very good stewards of what we have. If we can figure how to do all of those things -- we will truly change higher education for the better".

It is spectacular to be in a program where I am a creator, investigator, etc... and I definitely think this program serves as a facilitator to learning.

What do you think? Leave a comment below if you'd like.

Cog Tools Reflection-7 (Influences)

The farther we get in the program, particularly in this strand, the more I realize how influential it (Cog Tools) is when I think of my current and future family. Of course I've always had beliefs and ideologies but I've never really been one to openly share or feel opinionated enough to interject my views in conversations partially because I believe everyone has a right to their opinion and I am not an argumentative person but also because I didn't quite know how to express my views in the best way so it was much easier to simply listen. Now, however, I find that I am more willing to engage in conversations that I can constructively contribute to because I have a response and I know what I want to say.
Developing a personal learning theory, identifying a community of practice, and the other assignments have opened my eyes and mind to experiences that I overlooked. I don't know if anyone else is feeling a shift like this but I am thankful to have the opportunity to stretch my limits, collaborate with my fabulous cadre mates, and forge a new path into my future.

My AR Plan Reminder

The purpose of this post is to force me to keep my AR Plan at the forefront of my memory, rewrite my notes somewhere they can't easily be lost/is more readily available, and potentially be even remotely helpful to my fellow cadre mates.... so here goes!!

AR Plan Structure: the 1st draft does not need to be specially formatted
1st draft is due Friday, December 5th

Purpose: write a phrase or a couple lines, "The purpose of my AR is to... "

• most likely taken from force field analysis and/or logic model

Problem: write a paragraph description about the problem you are trying to solve or the situation you are attempting to improve

• "The problem that I want to solve is...." OR "The situation that I want to improve is..."

Research question: write a sentence defining/stating your research question

• likely also to be found in the logic model 

Background Research: this is where your lit review saves the day!!

• can be a list of helpful resources 
• a brief summary of lit review
• short paragraph of what you've learned from the resources

Role of the Researcher: related to the CoP section mentioned on the AR Plan template

• your role in your research environment (i.e. workplace, etc...)

My Actions: Cycle 1- the research question is...

• a paragraph description of the action you will take or have already taken

Artifacts Collected: a list of what you will be collecting during this cycle

• i.e. attendance, survey data, etc..

Evaluation: a paragraph or two analyzing this cycle

• "I will evaluate the outcomes of this action by...

Plan: Cycle 2

• what you hope or plan will be your second cycle 
• dependent on the outcomes of Cycle 1
• what actions will you take in the next cycle?

REMINDER: Be sure to consider and address, How will I measure the success?

1st draft is due Friday, December 5th

Author's Note: I will likely be comparing completion rates, building a rubric :-/, asking participants to evaluate sample syllabi
Invitation/survey >> Guided practice >> f2f meeting with me >> evaluate own syllabi

Cog Tools Reflection-6

I would definitely have to say that the Community of Practice project has been my favorite so far. I know it has been several weeks since but it is something I still think about and one has definitely changed my way of thinking and understand for the better. I was initially very concerned about what CoP to choose but I was thrilled to know that my Gaming example fit the criteria. I cannot say that the phrase Community of Practice was one that I understood but now I find myself trying to identify other examples throughout my day and work week.

As someone who doesn't feel connected to others as much as I perceive them to be connected to one another knowing that I can at least say I a part of the gaming CoP makes me feel less isolated. I would like to feel more connected but it has always been a struggle for me. Getting feedback from Bill was equivalent to having a preschooler come home with new art to hang on the fridge... yes, I was tempted to proudly display it but I didn't. I was still quite excited to share the news with Adrian.

It has been surreal to feel a shift in my thinking but still feel like I can't quite put my finger on exactly how it is changing but I think I might have a better grasp of why it is changing so I know I will figure it out eventually. For now, I will continue to grow and explore as I develop my own theories of life and learning.

Another A.R. Update (K.O)

I realize that the following statement may be perceived as a melodramatic but I already feel deep in the throes of AR even while realizing that this is only the beginning. Every day the last few weeks I have continued to learn more about the background about my topic area and the more I learn the more I realize that there is a severe disconnect. Prior to my investigation I had heard tidbits related to the disconnect but I did not expect the need to be this high.

I have officially and finally submitted my IRB application at my University hopefully there won't be a need to revise at all or at least only a little. Once I know that everything is set at CI I will be able to progress with a clear conscious but in the meantime I will work on my AR Plan.

I am struggling more with finalizing my Lit Review despite only needing to add one item because I cannot get the answers I need because my inquiries go unanswered (going on at least 3 months now). Including more facts and local context was something I intended to include in the first draft but did not have the information so I only hope I have it before the second one is due.

I definitely have many concerns about my research but I'm hoping they all fall under the expected/out of my control category. It's rough for me to realize that my research is largely dependent on the willingness of faculty volunteering their time to participate. I know I will be actively a part of the process but that is only so valuable without participants!!

Cog Tools Reflection 4

Among the many things we are learning is the experience is very important in education (learning).

Hopefully this post will embody the theme of the importance of experience.

I have been thinking a lot about my professional hopes and my desire to be within the group of recognized voices of Ed. Tech and Instructional design but more so about how to empower other women to join the Ed. Tech. field and encouraging women to strive/pursue leadership positions.

Of course I have plenty of questions.
How do I get there.... included in this specialized group?
How do I build a circle of women on a similar "track" as I so that we can support one another?
Will there ever be a day where women within these professions, both "tenured" and incoming unite for critical inquiry, networking, promoting lifelong learning & user-driven innovation... ?

All the while, I find myself searching for answers, resources, and information as to how to become a strong women in this community but unable to find the results no matter how many searches I conduct. I am hungry for information but even more so for guidance from the women blazing the trail ahead of me so that I can do the same for future generations of women.

While I enjoy my work and I could not ask for a better mentor and a few other influential women I do not feel that I am experiencing enough. I would like to be able to hear from female leaders within our community and that an event like this would facilitate a great conversation for the cadre.

This is a topic that needs to be discussed more just as it is for recruiting women into STEM and applies not only to women and mothers but also fathers of daughters also.

I hope you will join me in my disruptive behavior... I have set my sights high and I'm looking for backup.

Kristi's A.R. update

Progress Report:

I have met with an IRB board member at CI to ask questions about the application as well as further clarification. This meeting was very helpful to answer my specific questions so that I complete the application correctly and appropriately. While I am not certain if this is a necessary step in my AR I would prefer to complete it and have my application expedited or exempt rather than not complete one and risk unknown ramifications. I completed the online re-certification process and have 95% of my application complete but I am held up on completing the procedures question because I am still working on formulating the questions for my survey(s)/interview. It is bizarre to be thinking about the questions for the end of the research before my research has technically begun.
I am pretty confident in my pre-survey but still want to do testing to ensure that the navigation is correct.

I have already made what seems like so many revisions to what I shared via logic model and force field analysis.

I am going to focus on improving accessibility of syllabi through increasing the use of the existing online training that CI offers. I will only be interacting with faculty. (I considered both students and faculty for quite a while).

Field of Action: Accessibility (Accessible syllabi)

Problem: low numbers viewing online training on accessibility

I am struggling to fully develop my project when I am not confident about how many faculty will respond to my invitation for participation.

My "Trailer"

Alright... here goes nothing

I must admit that I had a lot more fun with this than I expected once I devised my "medium" of choice and shook off the usual trepidation when Bill gives us a deliverable.

This is by no means a piece of cinematic genius but look at what I used to bring it to life!!!

And yes I built everything on my own :-D  .... but I thought fondly of the purple team.

Hopefully by the end you are singing and/or at least dancing. No judging here!!

Without further adieu...

CogTools Reflection- 3 (K.O)

Today was a long but seemingly productive day; it was mostly quiet in the studio today which enabled me to make great strides on several projects for my mentor. We actually had a chance to have several conversations today which was quite surprising because usually we rely on texts until a formal time is set to discuss anything and everything that either of us needs addressed during the time we are both available. I'm not sure if I was inspired by this class (Learning Theories) or perhaps the questions I answered for my annual review but regardless of what the motivation was I took the opportunity to express my interest in attending more conferences. It has been something that has been on my mind for the last few months but I hadn't said anything because I didn't think there was a chance of anything happening. Jill was very excited to hear of my expressed interest and reasoning for this request and now there is the potential of going to not one but two conferences in Spring 2015. I'm also being recommended as a proposal reviewer for the first one and may even be submitting a proposal to present with Jill at the second one. Mind you this is huge accomplishment for me and I am excited to explore these new opportunities with fervor and gusto (or whatever I can muster that isn't dedicated to this program *wink*).
Currently I have attended one conference as a moderator and another one with my colleague. While I realize the traveling isn't always the most enjoyable, I am still reveling in the thought that Jill and Berman (CIO) think that I am ready to present and being so new to this field still find value in conferences (I'm not burned out). I knew the goal was always to "learn to fly" but now that it is so much closer I am beside myself and I can't help but realize how much I've grown since January 2012.
As I have said before, I do not often think about what I do, why I do it, or even how I do it; I know it needs to be done and I get it done. I work diligently to offer high-quality support to the CI community as part of a small team that has begun to make much larger waves in the higher education community than I ever could have imagined. I am blessed.

Now if only I could extract my personal learning theory in the same manner as I did this post... but this is a tougher nut to crack but I know it's in my mind somewhere I just have to be patient until it is ready to bloom to conscious life.

Kristi's A.R. update (9/15)

Today I met with the Assistive Technology Specialist because I wanted to explain my action research project and ask him more questions on accessibility. I know that he will be a great resource and supporter during the process. We both agreed that it is important for all faculty to have a base knowledge and understanding about accessibility. Improving the accessibility of syllabi is a worthy topic to tackle at our University.

Towards the end of our meeting he showed me some of the computer programs and tools that students use such as audio recorders to record a lecture and replay it later that has the ability to have various folders that can be programmed for each course the student is taking or a program called Kurzweil, a text to speech reader that is useful for documents, PDFs, and other materials that also allows the student to highlight passages and then sort out those highlights as an outline of important information.

He was very supportive of my idea of incorporating a focus group of students within the Disability Resource Programs (DRP) community.

I am working on arranging my next meeting with the Campus ATI Manager.

Kristi's A.R. Update (9/8)

In an effort to learn more about accessibility and how to better frame my action research I decided that I wanted to meet with individual ATI committee members in hopes of gaining a further understanding on how to phrase my research question and how I could best affect change.

My first meeting was with the campus web supervisor. I wanted to see what his experience with requests for accessible material. We spoke a lot about last minute faculty requests that come in because a specific student will be enrolled in the course. While he primarily deals with web accessibility it is not uncommon for him to be asked to help when needed.

I don't know when I will be speaking with him next except perhaps when it comes to syllabi for online courses. One meeting down, another one on the 15th.

Kristi's Action Research- Logic Model

I decided that in lieu of writing about my logic model I would make a quick video instead:



I realize that this is just a start and there will be plenty to "update" along the way. Please feel free to add comments and feedback.

CogTools Insight-1

"People don't weigh more when they learn not are their heads any bigger. Size of brain doesn't reveal anything about extent or experience or depth of knowledge." -Smith, The Book of Learning and Forgetting, p. 51

Two lines and twenty-seven words that have struck me deeper than expected. These sentences embody what I will refer to as simplistic poignancy in which the words/terms are simple but put together they are both touching and saddening when I think of all the young girls who think it is more important to focus on their outward appearance than on the pursuit of knowledge and learning. Some may scoff but I have witnessed it and experienced what it's like to be an outlier of this group prior to adulthood but frankly still occurs now but doesn't hurt nearly as much. I am not by any means bashing beauty. The female form is equisite in my mind but that doesn't mean that I am not concerned about the level of importance that is placed on most young girls shoulders and at such an early age. I am not including girls that play dress up but more so the ones that couldn't imagine leaving the house with "nothing on" their faces. Surely I am not the only that feels this way.

I couldn't say why I never felt the need to associate in this "club" perhaps it was because I had enough going on in my life and just living another day was my aim. I am not a member of many women's "clubs" and I am fine with that; makeup and fashion will likely forever elude me but experience and knowledge will not. I have never understood the process of  beauty (applying makeup or picking out just the right outfit) but I like to think I understand the process of learning and if not I'm well on my way in doing so.

I have spoken with young girls who also worry about their weight but as this quote says a person's weight doesn't not change when they learn so why is learning cast aside or bashed? Learning is healthy and crucial to empower girls and women alike. 

This quote also made me think more inwardly because I don't feel as "smart" as I used to and I don't have an explanation but it has been in the forefront of my mind regularly. I credit this to the fact that I have been contemplating ways of improving my professional image without compromising who I am. Perception is such a finicky thing particularly for someone like me that doesn't feel I should have to change my appearance for the sake of others to realize that I am no longer a student worker.
I have felt "on the road less traveled" in the sense that this learning path is a different experience than learning in a traditional classroom. There is a sense of mystery as I voyage into the new, unexplored realm of formal learning with an informal feel or informal learning alone. Don't get me wrong, I am very excited to be on this journey of discover and "re-definement"..... all aboard!!!