I do…now.
I think it’s very important to know my “why” as I progress through this program because my why is what is going to give me focus when contributing to my ePortfolio. As pointed out in the e-book, COVA (Harapnuik and et. al., 2018), without knowing why I am creating the content, it doesn’t feel meaningful and I know that when the program is over, I most likely will not have taken ownership over my projects or my ideas and the ePortfolio will be a place where I have just dumped my work in order to get a grade.
I was very intrigued by the ideas presented in the article, “Do I own my Domain if you Grade it?” (Rikard, 2015). I started out in 5305 using a wordpress.com free account because I thought once the class was over I wouldn’t need my ePortfolio. As I started putting my work and ideas in it from 5302 and 5305, I started to feel differently about it. As I started talking to coworkers and administrators about my master’s program, I shared my ePortfolio with them. I had taken complete ownership over my work and my ideas without realizing it. I just switched my domain name over to a registered name so that I have complete control over how I use my ePortfolio.
The article “The Web we Give Kids” (Watters, 2015) made me reflect on my district’s new initiative on Cybersecurity. It was a mandatory initiative to teach a lesson to grades K-12 and teacher would earn a digital badge. It was as if teachers had been asked to teach on Sunday. No one saw the need for it and felt it was extra work. I agree with the article, we are not preparing our students for the web-based world they live in. My district is trying and the innovative idea is there, but without teachers seeing the relevance and buying into why kids need to be taught cybersecurity, few wanted to take the time to teach it. I think we can do much better teaching our kids about their digital footprint.
References
Harapnuik, D., Thibodeaux, T., & Cummings, C. (2018). COVA -Choice, Ownership, and Voice Through Authentic Learning (0.9) [E-book]. Creative Common License.
Harapnuik, D. (2019, May). Who owns the ePortfolio. Harapnuik. http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=6050Harapnuik.org, https://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=7050.
Rikard, A. (2015, August 10). Do I own my domain if you grade it? EdSurge. Retrieved February 4, 2023, from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-08-10-do-i-own-my-domain-if-you-grade-it
Watters, A. (2015, July 15). The Web We Need to GIve Students. brightthemag.com. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://brightthemag.com/the-web-we-need-to-give-students-311d97713713
Blended Elementary 