Wow! These past 16 months have been some of the best, but super crazy months of my life. I started the Digital Learning and Leading program in August of 2020 after having the 2019-2020 school year end with 9 weeks of digital learning due to the Coronavirus. For my school district, we went from being off for spring break to going full online without preparation. I had wanted a master’s for quite some time after not finishing one in mathematics ten years ago or longer. I decided I wanted to learn more about teaching and learning digitally, so I started looking into different programs. I ultimately decided on Lamar’s program. 

 

I’ll admit, it wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be, but I have learned so much. 

• I have learned that I can do hard things if I keep a growth mindset. There were several times in the program where I felt overwhelmed, especially when first starting or when there were assignments due every weekend of a five week course. 

• I have learned that having a good support group does wonders. I need to get my husband a shirt that I’ve seen that says “I survived my wife’s masters degree.” He has been my rock at home and made sure that I got the quiet I needed for classes or just trying to get things done. My family and friends have been awesome in supporting me and cheering me on. A huge shoutout goes to my girls in my cadre group. Robyn, Jennifer S., Talor, Kristen, and I have been together through almost everything since the third class of the program. Robyn and I actually got together in the first class since we’re both high school math teachers with similar innovation projects. We all come from different perspectives of school size, age groups, and subjects, so we could help each other see things that could be changed for the better on assignments.

• I have learned that I have the potential to be a leader in my school even though I have absolutely no desire to be a principal or anything like that. I want to create a change in my school so that my students can learn from significant learning environments where they get choice, ownership, and voice in what they are doing. It won’t be easy, but now I have the tools to help get started.

 

Right now, I stand at the end of one adventure, and the beginning of another. I really want to take this master’s degree and all the information that I have learned and try to become a technology instructional coach or something like that that can help teachers utilize technology in their classes. Maybe help them set up a blended learning rotation model, help get ePortfolios into the hands of students so that they can showcase their work in their own ways, and assist teachers in recording videos of lessons so they can flip their classroom. The possibilities are all there, I just have to reach for it. 

 

A lot of things have ended up working for me. I may not have thought they would at certain stressful times, but I’ve made it. I think that offering the classes now in an eight week format makes things a little less hectic especially since you don’t have to go accelerated unless you want. Having done eight of my ten classes as five week courses, I can tell you that sometimes it was too intense especially since I teach full time also. I can’t say that I would do things much differently, except maybe not procrastinate on assignments sometimes. I’m usually pretty good at being a little ahead most of the time. Those few times almost got me though. I might have changed my innovation subject to something more capable of being done in my school, but I got invested in learning about flipped classrooms. I know that there is some potential in the idea. I just need to find the right opportunity to implement it. 

 

Overall, I have had a good experience. I have some new friends, and I have learned from some great professors. Here’s to finally achieving my master’s!