“To find yourself, think for yourself.” ~ Socrates
It took me some time to completely embrace the COVA approach. Maybe because I’m a slow learner, or maybe because I question everything. The voice part of COVA is the one that took me the longest to understand it. According to Bal (2018), “’Voice and choice’ has become a buzzword over the past few years, yet implementation is generally underwhelming” (para. 5). Theoretically, I could understand the concept of COVA, but it was difficult for me to put it into practice. It was not until the EDLD 5313 course “Creating Significant Learning Environments” that I started using this concept efficiently. By this time, I had already watched many videos of Dr. H., and seeing how he constantly related his children’s anecdotes to the academic issues, I thought this guy is really proud of his kids, but at the same time, I asked myself, why does he do that? It was a bit annoying for me, but when I was writing my learning philosophy, I realized that like Dr. H. I did not have to write for my instructor but myself and my audience. Finally, I understood that my voice is conveyed through my ePortfolio, documents, and other presentations that I share with my audience (Harapnuik, Thibodeaux, & Cummings, 2018).
When, for the first time, I was given the freedom and responsibility to choose and acquire my own learning through authentic projects, I had ambivalent feelings. In a way, I was attracted to the COVA concept, and on the other hand, I did not know how to put it into practice. Like many of my colleagues, I expected step-by-step instructions on how to develop our assignments. Most of us were not ready to take ownership of our learning through authentic projects. During one of our sessions with Dr. H., some of my colleagues, in a way, demanded this kind of guidelines, and Dr. H. told us that that was not the way the program was designed. Then, I did some research to find out how other universities were teaching. I found that one of the most popular courses in Harvard University was taught similarly than our courses. Therefore, I changed my perspective about education, adjusted my learning parameters, and I totally involve myself into COVA and CSLE.
During my first interview with Dr. Thibodeaux, she asked me what I wanted to do with my study of digital learning. My answer was that I wanted to stay in my classroom and put my new knowledge to the benefit of my students. In the last interview with Dr. Thibodeaux, she asked me if I had any idea of what my innovation plan would be? At that time, I was clueless about what I wanted to do. I vaguely wanted to create something related to bilingual education. My intention was and still is, to develop a bilingual blended learning method, but I have not found enough data to support my plan as such. I learned about various modalities of the blended learning methodologies, and I experimented with some of them to create a standard platform with which I can be able to teach any content.. For example, this is a course that I developed in Schoology (Access Code 2C6K9-2Q59N). When the DLL program required me to promote change in my organization, I realized that I was not prepared to make that change, and I also found resistance to change in the administrators and colleagues. I moved out of a school district, and the pattern repeats in my new school. That’s why I’m looking for another school where I can implement my innovation plan. Once I have the experience and see the change in my classroom, I will lead by example.
Once one is indoctrinated with the COVA approach and the CSLE concepts, and one understands the benefits, there is only one way to impart instruction, and that is the COVA + CSLE way. It has been a long, and to some extent tortuous, the path of this master’s program. I have had many positive and negative experiences, both academic, professional and personal. The failures and achievements were amalgamated to mold me as an educator. I know that there will be many innovations in education and technology, and some changes will be good others not so good, but we must be prepared for the advances that the future holds for us to use these innovations as catalysts to create meaningful learning environments.
References
Bal, I. (Apr 18, 2018) Why is it so hard to teach K-12 educators how to personalize learning? EdSurge. Retrieved from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-04-18-why-is-it-so-hard-to-teach-k-12-educators-how-to-personalize-learning?utm_content=bufferc878e&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=EdSurgeBuffer
Harapnuik, D., Thibodeaux, T., & Cummings, C. (2018). COVA: Choice, ownership, and voice through authentic learning. [PDF File].v
