reflections

These are the my reflections made over the course of creating my project. Click the links to the right to see individual reflections. My final reflection on this course as a whole is below.

See also the Work Contract and Project Charter.

Final Reflection

An Open Letter to Master's of Internet Technology Students Looking to Take EDIT 6190

So, you're thinking about taking a Studio class, huh? Well, be warned: as Sebastian Fiedler states, EDIT 6190 really is a "very different course." Self-Organized Learning is a much different experience than your typical lecture, and if you think project management is difficult, trying manage your own project for half a semester won't be a walk in the park either.

However, EDIT Studio can be a very rewarding class as well. We've heard about ownership of a project being a positive in the work environment, but how many classes have you taken that allow this kind of project experience? Determining your own creation and seeing it through to the end is much more satisfying than "finishing assignment 12 by Sunday night."

Additionally, you will learn more in creating a personally meaningful project than you would merely fulfilling assignments on a weekly basis; plus, this gives you the opportunity to complete a project back to front, starting from a blank slate and ending with a complete product.

Now, is EDIT Studio for everyone? As I implied in the first paragraph, probably not. You need some heavy duty will power to stay on target and make sure you don't get behind on work. However, having a class that has somewhat flexible deadlines will be handy, when you need it to be, and there is a strong support community in the Studio to help you out when you need it.

I think that my EDIT 6190 experience was a lot of effort, but well worth it.

References

Fiedler, Sebastian (1999). The Studio Experience: Challenges and Opportunities for Self-Organized Learning. Athens, GA: The University of Georgia, Department of Instructional Technology [On-line]. Available: http://it.coe.uga.edu/studio/fiedler.html

Kafai, Y. & Resnick, M., (1996). Introduction. In Y. Kafai & M. Resnick (Eds.), Constructionism in practice: Designing, thinking, and learning in a digital world (pp. 1-8). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.