How to Succeed in the ADL Program

Focusing on the Bigger Picture

Image created by Samara Marin using Copilot 2024

The easiest aspect of the Applied Digital Learning program for me is looking at the bigger picture. Knowing where I am going to go every step of the way helps me make decisions when it comes to the smaller steps. This is how I plan my lessons in my day-to-day classroom. First, start off with the biggest picture and see which classes I need to take in order to graduate by looking at either my degree plan or the ADL Program Map.

The program map won’t change, so I need to make sure I know that. Once I familiarize myself with that I need to ensure I look at what will pertain to myself as an individual student. That is when I understand that I should look at the content area of my course page for whichever EDLD course I am currently in and keep up with the weeks. If I have any questions I ask my professors for the class. So, in order to succeed I need to treat the ADL courses similarly to the way I treat my classes outside of these courses so they fit my schedule.

This is very similar to how I survived the school year as a teacher. I have the six units on my year at a glance on the TEKS resource system. The big picture for my year at a glance is unit 1 is interacting with literature (annotating), unit 2 is poetry/plays, unit 3 is analyzing informational/ argumentative texts, unit 4 is composing informational/argumentative texts, unit 5 is when we view texts across genres (and STAAR), and unit 6 is the research paper unit. This is my bigger picture as a teacher; every year these units don’t change.

Just like in my teaching career, if I focus too much on one aspect of the curriculum I will lose sight as to how all of the pieces fit together. Each piece is meant to fit with the next in order to build on my students’ knowledge. So, I can assume that the ADL program is doing the same with my knowledge using what I learned in the previous course to build on the next. That being said while looking at the program as a whole I still need to keep track of what I am doing now in my current EDLD 5303 course.

Once we see how all the pieces fit, the choice is the ours.

Image created by Samara Marin using Copilot 2024

In order to mad the program make sense in my head I have to keep drawing parallels to how I treat my students. In my classroom, the one question I want to avoid at all times is “how will I ever use this outside of class.” Creating significant learning environments using Choice, ownership, voice, and authentic learning opportunities has always been the easiest way to do this for my students. While I have to teach the content I am given TEKS, but I have learned over the years that when students are given options they are more willing to learn. Even if they are not given options, if we explain how they what they are learning will work for them in the real world they are more willing to complete the assignment given to them.

This is how I currently feel about the ADL program. Once I see the overall picture I am now seeing how having a choice in what I create is going to help me succeed in the program. The blog posts that were not on the list of mandatory posts came easier to write one of which was Evolution of Images in my Blog. Seeing my own learning journey with COVA is showing me how my students in the classroom can benefit from this concept as well . Being given the opportunity to learn through an authentic learning opportunity is also assisting with shifting my focus. I can see how helping my students work through projects will help with their learning instead of just having them complete worksheets, and even if we complete worksheets having them discuss their worksheets may give them a better perspective of their answers instead of just awaiting a grade.

Constructivist Theory

Image created by Samara Marin using Copilot 2024

Finally, while looking through How to Succeed in the ADL Program there is one concept that keeps popping out to me. The constructivist theory is one that I find to be important to learning and teaching in general. Many teachers often wonder why students do not understand the concept the way the teacher expects them to. This is simply because many students come to class with different levels of knowledge and different knowledge in general.

Every year I have at least one student who has the entire timeline of WWII memorized while another student knows how to complete an oil change on most cars. (I teach high school) I can not assume what the students know and do not know, if I want them to know something I should expect to teach it to them. As a student in the program, I should also expect to read what I am given in the program. If it is mandatory reading material it is there because the instructor is attempting to construct my knowledge of a specific topic and wants me to discuss it with my peers.

As an English teacher, my favorite part of teaching is building background knowledge of books. Often students learn more from their peers who love history or the knowledge of symbols in other cultures than they do from myself. So in order to succeed in the program just like I expect my students to lean on each other’s background knowledge, I need to lean on my classmates.