Sunday, October 31, 2010

Balancing Work & Life

It has been interesting to follow the Work/Life Balance forum in the ISWO course. In some past cohorts the participants have struggled with how to get the work done and to also get life in. While there is some of that, this time, it seems that the conversation reveals that most people feel they are doing alright in this area.

Some report that they have been very busy people for a long time and have had to learn how to be super organized and to stay on track. One tip that comes from this group is to identify when (what time of day or week) is the best time for you to do certain tasks. When are you the most productive writer, reader, brain-stormer, meeting participant, etc. and try to schedule activities during those times.

Some discuss finding a good two-way flow or rhythm for moving easily between work and other activities. This one intrigues me from a personal improvement perspective. For many years I loved the rhythm that I had in public school teaching: Work, give, do all you can for 9+ months and then pack it all up, walk away, and do something entirely different for 2 months before coming back, refreshed and excited to plan and begin the next school year.

That approach doesn't work so well in other settings. I need to find a different rhythm that provides the same rejuvenation.

Friday, October 22, 2010

ISWO First Week

Preparing the ISWO course site and preparing to facilitate a session is a big job. Even though many activities and readings are constant from one offering to another we spend a lot of time thinking about what went well last time and what didn't... what might be out-of-date and what new things we should try. And then when we see the individual responses to the registrations survey we think about ISWO in terms of this particular group and make additional modifications.

Every time I facilitate ISWO and read about the participants, I get scared - maybe it's excitement or nervousness - but I have this sort of panic feeling of "My god these people have such wonderful experiences, rich backgrounds and credentials and many of them are long-time instructors! What are we going to be able to teach them?!"

Then, I watch the first week unfold and realize - once, again - how much people learn from each other when given an environment and a little bit of structure. Participant who have very impressive resumes not only share what they know but also are able to zero in on the nuggets that others offer. We all 'teach' each other. It's always what I intend to happen... what I hope will happen - it's just a relief and vary exciting to see it happen, yet another time.

I've been particularly impressed, this time, with participants' ability to do sort of the meta-cognitive thing. They are able to participate in an activity and at the same time begin thinking about it in terms of what teaching/learning strategies are embedded in the activity... what it is trying to model - and, immediately, begin thinking about how to use/adapt it to their own teaching.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Finding the blogging habit

Okay, so in May I decided to try blogging along with my ISWO colleagues. I had what I thought was a great idea: to read a book and blog about it as I read various chapters. I guess life got in the way because I stopped posting.

Then, I thought I would blog on the new, soon-to-be-launched MyRRU site - thinking it would be a way to discuss issues of common interest with the instructors and other colleagues that I work with. The launch is delayed so I'm going to use this blog at least through this ISWO session.

Two things are on my mind, lately: 1) We have a visually impaired student just beginning courses and I'm learning a lot about accessibility... and have a lot more to learn! and; 2) The CTET Instructional Designers had a discussion about how to help some instructors realize the potential of online environments instead of considering them second best.

The latter seems especially relevant to ISWO and as we progress through the four weeks I want to capture some of what you are contributing in a form that can be shared with others. The is an extraordinary group and I think your ideas may help others.