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April 22 Where do I go from here!
It's been a while (over a year) since I last posted to this blog. And a lot has happened in that timeframe. I almost gave up on all things I wanted most because I just became so overwhelmed. I was thinking of deleting my PhD journey blog because I just wasn't blogging about my journey like I attended. In part because my objective was a little ambitious. With so little time between work, school, part-time business and life in general, I couldn't keep up the momentum of posting daily or weekly.
So with a new focus and direction, I plan to blog after each quarter (during the break) to give an update on my journey.
For know, let me post a quick status update. Last year I changed jobs (April 2007) as well as my PhD program. I'm now pursuing a PhD in Information Technology specializing in Information Technology Education. Long story short it's been a challenge but I'm still in there.
I'm currently enrolled in TS8306 - Advanced Topics in IT with Dr. Goldberg. This is Week 3 and we have a massive literature review project due in Week 10. My topic is designing usability into virtual environments and I have a lot of research to do.
Well that's about it for now. I'll post after the Spring quarter to give everyone an update on TS8306 and my thoughts about the course.
Peace! Norris February 11 Slow Down- End of 1st Course / Halfway thru 2 Other CoursesWhew! Friday was the last day of class for ED8004 - Societal and Cultural Change which started the first week of December. Also, I just received word today that my final grade for ED8004 was an A. With colloquium and trying to manage my two other courses (ED722 & ED8111), I certainly had my doubts about pulling an A. I would often ask myself, what was I thinking taking on a three course load. Trust me, I do not plan to register for three courses again. It's not that I can't handle the load because I'm also getting A's in my two other classes as well but I basically spent almost every waking hour besides actual work hours doing school work. All day Saturday and Sunday (10 hrs each day) and several hours each day during the week. I do have a life and a family so I'm planning on scaling back to 2 courses each quarter. Plus, I plan to take the certification for Dreamweaver 8 next month and Microsoft Windows Vista Certification in April. I certainly don't want to make the mistake of not smelling the roses while on this magnificent journey. Cheers! Reflection on Colloquium- Track 1
At Capella, doctoral learners are required to attend three (3) residential colloquiums throughout their program. Last week, I attended my first track in Atlanta. The conference began on Sunday and ended Thursday afternoon. Since, this was my first track I had no idea what to expect nor did I have any goals. I knew I had to attend so I might as well do here while it was here in Atlanta. To be honest, if it was up to me I might not have attended but in the end I'm glad I went. I guess the reason why I hate attending events like these is because I always feel like the outcast. So many people attended this colloquium (over 900 people in fact) from various programs. One can almost feel like your in an Army of ants. I won't bore you all with my daily schedule and highlights of the day. However, I will say that attending colloquium was a very rewarding and challenging experience. I learned a great deal about myself and how important it is to build connections (network). I no longer feel like an outcast. My goals and hopes for the next colloquium (track 2) is to continue building connections because essentially that's what these things are all about. ~Norris January 02 At the Halfway Point of my first PhD Course It's hard to believe we are five weeks into our first PhD course and at the halfway mark. This 10 week course length is a major adjustment for me; like I mentioned before in prior posts, I just completed my Masters in Education a few months ago (November 2006) from AIU (American InterContinental University) Online. Each quarter at AIU consisted of two 5 week terms. We took one class per term so the workload was pretty intense and often required a weekly discussion board post and individual project assignment. The pace was fairly quick and at times I wondered if five weeks was good enough to learn the subject matter. Before enrolling at Capella, I knew I would be able to easily adjust to a 10 week course. An extra five weeks of study to learn more seemed ideal to me. I'm not entirely sure yet but for some reason the motivation and rush has dissipated. Also, discussion boards aren't graded each week and assessed at the end of the course. This could be partially due to the holiday season that was upon us or maybe because the course to some degree is moving at somewhat a slow pace. I guess I like to perform under pressure and when there's no pressure to overcome I become bored, unmotivated. This is also true in the workplace. When things get slow and quiet I become bored and begin to look for that next challenge elsewhere. My only hope for future coursework at Capella is that classes are more geared around gradable components so I can gauge my performance on a weekly basis. As I continue my graduate studies as a PhD learner, I feel no different than when I was working on my master’s degree. I still have much to learn and master however I must keep in mind that I'm not only trying to master the art of Instructional Design but the art of research as well. One of my weaknesses I must continue to work on is in my writing and research skills. If I am to aspire to write scholarly research and someday be published, I must improve upon my writing and research skills. So far this course has been a very rewarding experience that has allowed me the opportunity to evaluate the transitions in my life and learn how transitions have affected my peers as well. It has been truly a pleasure to read each and every discussion board post detailing major impacts in their lives. I've always enjoyed Sociology courses and ED8004 - Societal and Cultural Change is basically a sociology course for educators. Another adjustment that I'm going thru is dealing with the lack of synchronous (real-time) interaction with my instructor and classmates. At AIU, participation was conducted asynchronous using threaded discussions and synchronously over a live web conference that met twice a week to discuss the subject matter and ask any questions. Instructors used voice over IP (VOIP) to communicate to the class while students asked questions via text in the virtual classroom. The whole experience simulated a traditional classroom environment that really enhanced the course. Based on this experience, my goal was to overcompensate by making sure I logged in to the course everyday to read and responded to discussion board posts. Yet, at times I still yearn for some synchronous (real-time) interaction online. December 10 Week 1 of ED8004 (Societal and Cultural Change)The first week in ED8004: Societal and Cultural Change was surprisingly manageable. No assignments were due however we had three detailed discussion board (DB) posts ranging about 200-500 per words for each post. And then we had to respond to at least two other student postings. In the first DB post the class had to introduce ourselves, articulating our hopes and fears for this course. The second DB post required us to be more insightful and discuss at least two transitions that made a significant impact in our lives. And lastly the third DB post involved researching various social changes and discuss how social change affected individuals and provide at least one example of social change to support our argument. Since we are all going through some sort of transition in our lives I think Capella was on point to require this course to be the first course on the journey to a PhD. This week has allowed me the opportunity to examine my own transitions whether they were personal, professional or social. After reading other classmates postings, I see that many of us have gone thru similar transitions at some point in our lives. A good example is divorce either directly (spousal divorce) or indirectly (parents divorced) it has affected us which really depicts a social change from 40-50 years ago. Week 2 starts today (Sunday) so stay tuned... It's going to be an interesting week learning and reading about McDonaldization and Disneyization. December 02 Off to a Good StartMy first class (ED8004) entitled Societial and Cultural Change starts Monday, December 4, 2006. Online classrooms at Capella are usually available several days before the official start date so I decided to take the opportunity to get a feel for the course, its assignments, and other requirements. At first glance, at the syllabus I could really tell this course was going to be pretty intense but in a good way. The course description is as follow: "Understanding the impact of social and cultural differences, diversity, and change is a fundamental competency of educators. This is a foundation course for doctoral learners that introduces themes that persist throughout the degree program. Societal and Cultural Change prepares learners to lead in the field of education by addressing theories of change and strategies of the change agent. A broad array of theories and readings cover the spectrum of social changes and its effect on education. As a result, learners understand the complexity of a diverse classroom population and the impace of social movements. Assessments of learning consists of the evaluation of the depth of learner's abilty to analyze, synthesize, and think critically in relation to course content and interpretation of research material. Learners also demonstrate the ability to conceptuatlize original thought in relation to course content." This seems like a very interesting and fun course about individual and social change. This couse should be a refreshing switch from other graduate courses I've taken in the past. Source: Capella University Course Catalog 2005-2006 November 07 Break Time (Sort of)I just received my final grade for my last graduate course at AIU and I'm happy to say I received an A (96%). It's a good feeling when you maintain an overall 4.0 grade point average (GPA) over the course of the entire graduate program. Trust me it wasn't easy. Although, it involved many hours of researching, writing papers, and blood, guts, and tears (just kidding), I am so pleased I gave it my all (100% effort). Now, it's time for a break, at least a 3 week break anyhow, to reflect, reassess, and contemplate my purpose and role in the universe. :) For relaxation and total escape from reality, I'll spend a few hours each day, playing Grand Theft Auto Vice City (my graduation present to myself) on my PSP, head back to the gym everyday after work to workout (it's been almost 2 mos since I last went), and finish reading Before You Quit Your Job by Robert Kiyosaki. So, you most likely won't see a blog post here until after my break. Cheers! October 22 Prelude to my PhD JourneyWelcome! I'm Norris and this blog will document my road to achieving a PhD in Education specializing in Instructional Design for Online Learning (IDOL) at Capella University. Before I actually begin my first PhD course at Capella Univerity starting December 4, 2006, I would like to discuss why I decided to pursue a PhD, why I chose Capella University, and my goals and aspirations. Why a PhD? Currently, I am completing my last quarter at American InterContinental University (AIU) in a Masters in Education in Instructional Technology for which will be completed November 4, 2006. So why won't I just stop at a Masters degree. Well for one, I have a thriving thirst for knowledge and although I can obtain this knowledge through self study and practice it is my belief that I can learn so much more in a learning environment where I can collaborate and share knowledge amongst my peers and leaders in the field of Instructional Technology which is not only rewarding but exhilarating. Secondly, I wish to earn the credentials of a doctorate degree to provide myself and my family with opportunities and options available to most PhDs. Why Capella University? I chose Capella University for seveal reasons:
Goals and Aspirations Having the credentials to be a leader as well as a educator is one my life long goals. I believe with my 10+ years experience in web development and usability interface design that I will be able to make a considerable contribution to field of Instructional Design and online learning. This may come thru owning my own elearning company or administrating classes online at some university. Or Both. Learning is a part of life and I continue to learn as long as there is air in my lungs. So time to begin my journey to attaining a PhD and see where this roller coaster ride takes me. In my blogging of this journey, I hope you find this blog very inspirational and insightful. Ready, Set, Go! Norris |
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