First, I would like to thank everyone who replied to my last post, “Equity In On-Line Learning.” The quote from the Yukon News gave me pause, which is why I wanted to share it. I would also like to share this TedTalk as it helps to reframe the word “disabled”

I have reflected on my Early Learning course and how I can make it more accessible and equitable for my students. I appreciate the Sections model from the Bates (2019) and will use it as a guide in critiquing my course.

STUDENTS:

The students in my courses are adults, women and culturally diverse.  They also all live in rural Yukon communities. The learning styles of the students are varied. Some students are very confident and engage in the learning. Some students are very hesitant and will not turn on their camera. Some students were not successful when they were students and it is emotionally hard for them to join. Just showing up is a risk. I think about those students when thinking about accessibility and equity. The students need to be pass the course so they can continue with their employment. The young children in their care need educators who are trained and able to meet their needs. I must ensure the course material is accessible to the students. The best way to achieve this is to make connections and build a relationship with them. This, of course, takes time. It also takes a suite of tools in my teaching toolkit.

EASE OF USE:

This section of the model focuses on how easy is it for the educator and students to use the technology. I have to use Moodle, there is no choice with this platform. How I choose to use it is up to me. The issue of reliability considered in this section. I also have no control over that, and neither do the students. We can connect to the Internet and meet through Zoom or we can’t. It is quite rare that there are issues with connectivity, which is positive.

COSTS:

Most of my students join the synchronous classes from their home. The students pay for their Internet access. Some students can not join from their home and they go the YukonU campus in their community. They do not have to pay to use the Internet if they chose to go to the campus. Most communities do not have unlimited Internet use and Internet packages can be expensive. It also depends on how many people live in each household and how much the Internet is used. This was a bigger issue during COVID when kids had to use online learning for school. Some of my students would run out of data and overage charges are expensive.

TEACHING FUNCTIONS:

This section required me to reflect on the use of Moodle; is it good or not so good for teaching. Moodle is a tool and it is as good as how the educator chooses to use it. My goal with online teaching in to create relationships and connections in spite of the barrier of the computer screen. I use breakout rooms and interactive apps like Jamboard as much a possible. Power point presentations or long blocks of the class with me talking are to be avoided as much as possible.

INTERACTION:

I have found that students are more likely to engage with the large group (and turn on their camera) if they first have made connections with small groups of students. I am always looking for ways to do this piece better. Classes such as this one helps as I am shown new teaching functions, and how to use them to improve the way I use Moodle. This aids accessibility as hopefully the classes are more engaging and interceding for the students.

ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUES:

The short answer to this section is yes! My learning institution only uses Moodle. I am often given a sandbox with the shell of my course already in it. I add information and move topics around to best suite my teaching and the students learning.

NETWORKING:

This section asks if their are opportunities to network with experts and community members. The students and I met though Zoom for our courses and there are many opportunities to network with others. The networking would not be possible without Zoom because of the distances between communities in he Yukon. In this regard, learning has been enhanced because of technology.

SECURITY AND PRIVACY:

This section poses the question if the technology is safe for the instructor and students to use. I sure hope so! I enable the waiting room function so I can control who enters the Zoom meetings. Beyond this, I have no control. I do not know if my learning institution uses a cloud service provider and if so, which one. I hope the information is stored in Canada but I have never asked. I am thinking that I should!

CONCLUSION:

Bates (2019) suggests that educators start with their intuition when thinking about technologies to use in their teaching. He also suggests keeping an open mind. I agree with him on both points. It is very easy to fall into a rut when teaching, particularly when teaching the same course over and over. It is also very challenging to keep up with technology as it changes so quickly. There always seems to be a new app to try. My goal is to keep my mind open and choose technology that will build relationships and create connections with my students.

I appreciate that we discussed this topic in class. I was intentionally being aware of equity and thought I was teaching equitably. As Katia talked, I realized I was missing a significant point. I am not learning disabled; my position is different. I can not possibly assume what it is like to access technology with a disability, as I do not have that perspective. For example, I did not realize that the drag-and-drop function would be difficult for some people to manipulate. On the surface, the function makes it easier to use technology, not harder.

I had to check and see if the Yukon has a Disabilities Act. It does not.

The Yukon Human Rights Commission helps:

As does the city of Whitehorse, for those who live in Whitehorse:

The Department of Education is another story. Check out this news story as it explains the latest controversy regarding students on IEP’s. This is a snapshot of the issue:

I am currently teaching a Summer course to some pre-service teachers in the YNTEP program at Yukon University. It about teaching Mathematics in Elementary Schools. We are talking about equity in Mathematics and using the text “Mathematical mindsets: unleashing students’ potential through creative math, inspiring messages, and innovative teaching” by Jo Boaler.

While the discussion centers around ways educators can make math equitable for all students, I believe her strategies can be applied to all students for every subject. These are her equitable strategies:

1. Offer all students high-level content
2. Work to change ideas about who can achieve in mathematics
3. Encourage students to think deeply about mathematics
4. Teach students to work together
5. Give girls and students of color additional encouragement to learn about science and math
6. Eliminate (or at least change the nature of) homework

Reference: Boaler, Jo (2016). Mathematical mindsets: unleashing students’ potential through creative math, inspiring messages, and innovative teaching. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

I will end with this quote from a story in the Yukon News, ““Whether it’s 10 minutes before you die or 10 years as you’re getting older, you will be disabled. So it’s not something that just the disabled community needs to get behind, it’s something that every human being that lives in the Yukon needs to get behind.”

This is my 2nd post, as I didn’t completely understand the assignment. Think of this as my official submission.

Introduction to the lesson:

The topic is attachment styles. Attachment is the theory that young children must develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver for social and emotional development. Psychiatrist and psychoanalyst John Bowlby formulated the theory, further developed by Marie Ainsworth.

It is very important that Early Learning Educators (ECE’s) are familiar with the concept of attachment. As I said in my previous post, ECE’s need to be able to assess their own interactions with children to provide the best possible environment. Some children do not develop a secure attachment with a trusted adult, and challenging behaviors can be seen. It is important ECE’s recognize the behavior for what it is and respond to the child warmly, caringly and appropriately. In addition, ECE’s are often a source of support for families and can share information and strategies with parents.

Lesson Learning Objectives:

The introduction to the class on attachment is as follows:

This week we will think about attachment.  We will look at attachment theories and consider their practical implications for children.  We will also examine the possible limitations of these theories and worldviews that may lead us to consider multiple attachment perspectives.

Module Lesson Plan:

As this is a synchronous class, the students and I discuss the concepts together. In the previous class, the students were to read two articles on the theory of attachment. One article is the Western perspective of John Bowlby. The second is an Indigenous Framework for understanding attachment. I begin the class with a discussion of the two articles.

We review the concept of attachment with the Attachment theory (video) resource. We move to the Jamboard activity where the student’s complete show what they know about attachment and what they would like to know. I like using Jamboard as it is a way to complete an interactive group activity in real-time. This often leads to a discussion on attachment styles that the student’s have observed with the children in their care.

Next we discuss the “Circle of Security” model as it relates to attachment in an Early Learning setting. Breakout groups are used and then the students and I have an break from class. That is a lot of information and it usually takes around 90 minutes to cover it.

The class would resume with the Lumi videos. I would put the students in breakout groups for the first Lumi video. I think this would work, I won’t know until I try. I would use the second Lumi video as an informal formative assessment. The students would not be marked on how many questions they answered correctly. Formative assessment would be the reflection activity.

The class would end with time to complete the reflection assignment. I like to be in a zoom meeting with the students as they begin an assignment. I can help if there are any questions and it gives the students an opportunity for shared learning.

Rational for Lumi:

When I posted my first Lumi video, I wrote how I would use it in an asynchronous class; to help a student who may have been absent from the synchronous class. In this post, I wrote how I would use it when the students and I are in the class together.

I made a second Lumi video, to use as the informal assessment. I would use the second video in both synchronous and asynchronous classes. The link for the second video is below:

https://app.lumi.education/run/9UhG4f

It was much easier to make the second Lumi video. Practice helps!