This week in my CEP 810 class, our assignment was quite interesting. I can honestly say it was so interesting, I struggled with it a bit. We were tasked with finding something that we wanted to learn about, and then document that learning, along with the networking tools used to engage that learning.
Before I divulge what I have chosen for my project idea, I have to explain the struggle that lead me to choose. When I became a teacher 5 years ago, I made a promise to myself that each year, I would pick something new to learn. My first year it was laying flooring, the second was using presentation devices during lessons, the third year Spanish (basics), last year I learned the ukulele, and that brought me to this year. Now tasked with an assignment, I found choosing a subject to be hard. # 3 in James Paul Lee’s features list of well-designed experiences for newcomers, he shares that “the newcomer cares emotionally about the outcome of the action. It matters” (Lee, 2013, page 3). His list he shares in Digital Media and Learning is very informational and can be found here. Specifically thinking about #3 though, something that matters to me is that as a teacher, I stay well balanced emotionally and physically. So, I have chosen to learn about the art of meditation.
I really think the reason I struggled so much in finding a topic of learning is because when using youtube, along with other digital networking forums the possibilities are endless. Will Richardson says it best by explaining “The Internet has delivered an explosion of learning opportunities for today’s students, creating an abundance of information…” (Richardson, 2012). Meditation is something I can use and continually grow with. In just googling meditation for beginners, my search results yielded over 1 million videos. The first video being a 1-30 days to meditation guide. I also flagged some amazing blogs that will be helpful during this time, one of them being The Conscious Life. During this time I hope to learn the steps towards meaningful meditation, and discover its health benefits. As well as, getting some relaxing time in, which let’s be honest all teachers could use.
As James Paul Gee describes almost any interest can be sought out in technology, he goes on to explain further that, “some people on these sites gain a real passion for this interest, put in thousands of hours of practice, and become real masters of the domain—often better than credentialed experts” (Gee, 2013, Page 15). In the next weeks I will be documenting my learning into the tranquil art of meditation. Check back in to view my progress, and maybe you can learn a few things about meditation as well.
Bibliography
Gee, J. P. (2013). Digital Media and Learning: A Prospective Retrospective. Retrieved September 15, 2016, from jamespaulgee.com: http://jamespaulgee.com/pdfs/Digital%20Media%20and%20Learning.pdf
Jbittersweet. (2015, April 1). How to Meditate-Meditation for Beginners-Day1. Retrieved September 15, 2017, from Youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4fRZU5oEMI
Ho, Wee Pang, (2009-2017). How to Meditate for Beginners. Retrieved from The Concious Life, https://www.theconciouslife.com/how-to-meditate-a-guide-for-beginners.htm
Daly, J (2012, September 14). Why School? TED ebook author (Will Richardson) rethinks education when information is everywhere. Retrieved from http://blog.ted.com/why-school-ted-ebook-author-rethinks-education-when-information-is-everywhere/
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