It’s hard to believe my first semester in the IP&T program is done. Starting the program three and a half months ago, I could never have imagined how perfectly this program would align with all of my interests. To be surrounded by faculty members and peers who have the same passion for teaching & learning and the sincere desire to help others has been such a blessing. I am so grateful for the growth I have experienced personally and academically in this short time.

I wanted to highlight some of the key concepts I took from this semester and tried to pick only one from each course, otherwise the list would be infinite. It was hard to decide, but as I reflect back on my courses these were the resources or phrases I found myself referencing frequently. Please keep in mind this list is very narrow and I learned so many things beyond what is included:

IPT 520: Foundations of Instructional Design & Technology
Okay, this class I may have broken my own rule and included more than one resource. But, in my defense, because it is an intro class to the field, I was introduced to a lot of new concepts.

• Behaviorism, Cognitivism, Constructivism: Comparing Critical Features From an Instructional Design Perspective by Ertmer & Newby
  Prior to entering this program, I had no clue what any of those terms above meant. This article was a succinct summary that helped me a lot.
• Designing for Learning: Interest, Motivation, & Engagement by Jarvela & Renninger
  I applied for this program because I am passionate about education and know it can be a transformative learning experience for all students. We as instructors need to tailor our teaching to actively engage our students. Jarvela & Renninger wrote an excellent article outlining the differences between interest, motivation, & engagement and what we can do to help our students.
  There’s no free access to this chapter, but it can be found in The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences.
• Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us by Daniel Pink.
  The economist in me can’t help but love this, and my IP&T side can’t help but think of what this means for my teaching philosophy.

IPT 564: Intro to Instructional Design

We had the opportunity to choose from a couple of different grande enhancements for Dr. Gibbons’ class. I don’t think I am a particularly creative person which has always prevented me from taking on anything that required “thinking outside the box” or might expose my lack of creativity. I found a book called Creative Confidence by Tom & David Kelley and asked if it could be used as one of my grade enhancements. What a great decision! This might sound cheesy, but this book changed my life. It was essentially a 300 page pep talk with real-life examples of how far a little innovation can go.

Creativity is not something you either have or don’t have and that’s your lot in life; it is a talent that can be developed.

Here’s the TED talk by David Kelley, founder & chairman of IDEO and the d.school at Stanford University.

IPT 629: Intro to Research in Education

“Every inquiry is a seeking. Every seeking gets guided beforehand by what is sought.”

Dr. Yanchar made this comment the first day of class; a quote from Heidegger, one of his favorites. I don’t know exactly why, but this phrase shaped my thinking in that class and my approach towards conducting research & analyzing others’ research. Dr. Yanchar went on to say that you end where you begin with method; you won’t get anything out of a method that you don’t put into it. The issue then is deciding what goes into it.