Final Reflection!!

Final Reflection 

Even though I have been working in education for a quite a few years now, I was not well versed or had previously analyzed the conception of curriculum, or connected these approaches to philosophies of education.  I have gained deeper insight into curricular frameworks and have been able to apply this knowledge to a familiar context, my place of practice. The interconnectedness of curricular frameworks is the key aspect in my learning. I will look at curriculum with fresh eyes from now on. Pedagogy is the way we engage our students and curricular activities should empower our students to be become self regulated learners. Integrated approach to curriculum planning and assessment means keeping an open mind, challenging myself to try a new approaches, or encourage my colleagues to try a new approaches; evaluate and re-evaluate my vision related to planning curriculum, and seek methods to enhance the student learning experiences.

Initially, I had difficulty navigating the course, but I did become more comfortable with it as time went on and I got into the groove of things. I enjoyed working with my partner Scott, as we managed to have each other’s backs during times when we each needed it the most. For that I am grateful. I also enjoyed reading my colleagues blogs and wished I had more time to check out everyone’s professional community as I know this would have enhanced my own learning even further and introduced me to excellent resources. At first I was discouraged about my own professional community, but other avenues opened up and I managed to discovered “healthy debate” which I will continue to follow.

I found the course to be extremely rich with information and overwhelming at times, but reading my colleagues comments and discussions helped me to stay on track and I am grateful for my learning cohort. I feel self actualized at the end of this journey as this and PME 833 are my final courses in the PME program. I look forward to getting some sleep now! Good Luck to all of you on your journeys. It has been a pleasure learning with you!

Comparison to Terra’s Professional Community

Terra,

I have a natural affinity to the presentation that you have created for your professional community. Obviously, the similarities begin with our passion for adult education particularly health education, and our determination to enhance vocational outcome-based education to reflect the needs of an evolving health care system and prepare learners for the future.

Our professional communities are both concerned with responding to the needs of our patients not only for treatment but, preventatively through health promotion and prevention. Challenging the status quo and our current beliefs about teaching and learning sets the stage for innovative instruction. Engaging our colleagues in collaborative inquiry will identify issues in curriculum and establish program vision and education philosophy. Dental Programs are part of the allied health cluster; therefore, both professional communities are interconnected and share common interests. CAAHP and your program community are both concerned with preparing high quality health care professionals that respond challenges facing our health care system.

I think one difference in our professional communities is that CAAHP is involved from more of a macro level with a boarder academic school perspective compared to your community, which is program specific. As an administrator, I am committed to supporting educators as they work collaboratively on instructional design projects. I try to be actively involved with the working team and support all activities related to curriculum planning. My job is to support faculty in providing rich learning experiences for our students. Another difference would be the level of interaction amongst our communities. I think communication among members of CAAHP will be sporadic compared to your group.

Your professional community focuses on the specifics of assessment and your presentation prompts dialogue related to assessment that enhances learning. As the associate dean, it is my job to listen to student feedback and engage program faculty in analysis and critical reflection. Keeping the lines of communication open with faculty is extremely important in supporting integrated planning, instruction and assessment so that we can continually improve and keep up with the changing needs of our students and prepare them for the health care system of our future.

I like the way you presented the information and interjected thought provoking questions that will intrigue your colleagues and prompt ongoing dialogue. This approach fosters collaboration and team building while placing students at the center of our focus.

Great presentation!

Eva

Connecting to Professional Communities

Well, this is our last Blog post in PME 810.... 

This week we have been busy trying to connect "out in the world." I hope to hear from my community at some point, however, I have subscribed to the Healthy Debate newsletter and have participated in the Healthy Debate blog. 

Healthydebate.ca healthydebatenewsletter@gmail.com via sendgrid.net to me Hello! Hurray! You've subscribed to our site. We need you to activate your subscription to the list(s): Healthydebate News by clicking the link below: Click here to confirm your subscription. Thank you, The team!

Here is the link to my Journal Page for this week!!

Module 5 Journal Page Link

Here is the screen shot of my post and the link to to healthy debate webpage. 

Eva's blog post on Healthy Debate-Scroll to the bottom to view my post

Allied Health Programs- Dental Hygiene Pharmacy Technician, Dental Assisting, Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant, Pharmacy Assistant, Paramedics, Advanced Care Paramedics, Dental Office Admin...

Allied Health education is grounded in vocational education with prescribed learning outcomes that ensures consistency from programs within educational institutions. College programs prepare students to write their regulatory exams and/or certification exams and enter competently into practice. Vocational education must continue to move away from teacher focused curriculum to student centred curriculum that incorporates interconnected teaching approaches. Pragmatism and reconstructionism frameworks encourage and develop critical reflection and the attitude to continue to learn (Hill, 1994). Advocacy for patients, empathy, adaptability, and ethical decisions making are essential skills and values for health care professionals. Ongoing professional development and a commitment to life long learning are key aspects to health care education. Competency profiles and outcome based education are measures adopted by a health professions to better regulate itself in the context of patient safety (Anderson, 2012). Curriculum and assessments must align education to practice.  Although we strive to graduate competent and confidence health professionals, it is tricky to define competence. 

From a curriculum perspective, the development of competence in health programs depends on experiential learning. Experiential education is underpinned by  theory of pragmatism where the role of the teacher is to facilitate learning and create an environment where experiences are valuable to the learner (Dewey, 1977). Eduction experiences that are valuable promote further learning. Health care is dependant on continuing education and commitment to ongoing development its healthcare professionals. Pragmatic educators believe in problem based learning and action based education but tend to be more concerned with the education rather than the training (Hill, 1994).  The synthesis of knowledge and application of that knowledge to real world experiences in simulation or during practicum is critical for students in health programs. Experiential learning fosters the development of attitudes which according to Dewey (1974) are what  really counts in the future. Reconstructionistic curriculum connects to the pragmatic approach and plays a significant part in experiential learning. Reconstructism takes pragmatism one step further by encouraging vocational education to be a change agent in society (Ozmon & Craver, 1986). Competence is based on questioning judgments, challenging assumptions and probing deeper, upholding legal and ethical responsibilities and demonstrate professionalism. 

Allied health programs consist of diverse learners that include traditional  and non-traditional students, international and domestic students, students that come with broad knowledge and experiences. It is up to the educator to draw from conceptions of curriculum learners that will develop  individual knowledge, skills and attitudes of a health care professional but the only way to do that is to examine what competence really means, how do we teach it? How do we evaluate it? 




References

Anderson, M. B. (2012). The question of competence: Reconsidering medical education in the twenty-first century. Cornell University Press.
Ozmoo, H. A., & Craver, S. M. (1986). Philosophical foundations of education (3rd ed.). OH: Merill
Publishing Company.
Hill, A. M. (1994). Perspectives on philosophical shifts in vocational education: From realism to pragmatism and reconstructionism. Journal of Vocational and Technical Education, 10(2), 37-45.

Journal on the Foundations and Principles in My Context of Practice

Hi everyone,

Please follow the link below to my journal page that discusses my connection to CAAHP

Journal Page

Planning, Instruction, and Assessment Approaches in Different Curricular Designs

Hi everyone,
This week we took a deeper dive into the different conceptions of curriculum related to educational philosophies and curriculum design. We have expanded our knowledge and understanding of curriculum design by examining approaches to planning, instruction, and assessment in ways which will enhance student learning experiences. Please visit our slide show and let us know how these approaches fit into your practice. 

Module 3 Planning, Instruction, and Assessment Approaches in Curricular Designs

                                 http://blog.scientix.eu/2014/07/inquiry-based-learning-science-education-and-the-maltese-situation/

Philosophical Foundations of Education and Curriculum Design Planning

HI Everyone,

We have created my visual representation for Module 2 using Google Slides. We have included a few short video clips that helped me to understand the concepts and identify the interconnectedness between conceptions of curriculum, philosophical foundations, and curriculum design.

Engaging in this activity has really enhanced my learning!
Please follow the link Below:

Philosophical Foundations of Education and Curriculum Design

Conceptions of Curriculum Module 1

Conceptions of curriculum are described by different authors to help us understand the impact each approach has on learning. Self-actualization, technology, social reconstruction and academic rationalism seem to be the four dominant orientations that appear across the readings and continue to be used. Feminist pedagogy is discussed by Pratt (1994) but seems to have been dropped.

The main conceptions of curriculum are grounded in assumptions related to curriculum patterns that help us to understand the nature and purpose of curriculum (Al Mousa, 2013). Conceptions are used to analyze curriculum frameworks and help educators take a multifaceted approach to examining and developing curriculum. The literature supports the idea of a blended and connected approach to curriculum design which consists of using more that one conception to support student learning, development, and, personal and professional growth. 

Curriculum as technology involves outcome-based education and focuses on process. This approach is concerned with developing a technology of instruction when the focus is on the presentation of material and less on the learner (Eisner & Vallance, 1974). Standardized testing is valuable to use when curriculum is required to meet certain skills especially for emergency protocols that need to be mastered and assessed.  When learning precise technical skills, students are fixated on getting competencies signed off which can overshadow the development of other skills needed to be a good clinician. Technology emphasizes methods of achieving clear objectives (McNeil, 2006). This approach serves a purpose in health education but requires other approaches that will develop well-rounded health care professionals.

Humanistic curriculum, self-actualization, and individual fulfillment involve individualism and personal growth. Pratt (1994) stresses the development of the individual personal and fulfillment through education that nurtures self-concept. This means that educators need to provide experiences where learners make personal meaning from their learning. Curriculum is seen as liberating process that sees learners develop good character and demonstrates good work qualities (McNeil, 2006). This approach requires the educator to take the approach of nurturer, mentor or guide where students feel safe to make mistakes and learn from those mistakes that result in significant and meaningful learning.

Health care education also requires academic rationalism where students are trained to think. Academic rationalism prepares students for life by developing critical thinking, hypothesizing, synthesizing and researching (McNeil, 2006). Engaging students in problem solving will help prepare them for real world experiences.

Social reconstruction relevance focuses on social change. This orientation concentrates on the needs of society over individual needs and introduces students to problems within societies (McNeil, 1996). What better way to introduce social issues related to health care especially with the aging population and the need to examine the social determinants of health? These are just a few examples of how the conception of curriculum enriches the teaching and learning experience.

                                           https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/importance-healthcare-education-wound-healing-james-calder

Health Care education requires authentic, innovative curriculum that supports the practice and development of critical thinking skills, self-regulated learning, appreciation and concern for others, along with meeting  specific skills-based learning outcomes. Health care education is governed by licensing and accrediting bodies and it is easy to get fixated on ensuring that our curriculum checks all of the boxes located on competency profiles and meets all of the standards.  Educators need to facilitate the development of problem solving skills, appreciation for diverse perspectives, respect for others, self reflection, practice ethical decision making, and interdisciplinary collaboration that will prepare learners for the rapidly evolving health care profession.

Al Mousa, N. (2013). An examination of cad use in two interior design programs from the perspectives of curriculum and instructors, pp. 21-37 (Master’s Thesis).

Eisner, E., & Vallance, E. (Eds.). (1974). Five conceptions of the curriculum: Their roots and implications for curriculum planning. In E. Eisner & E. Vallance (Eds.), Conflicting conceptions of curriculum (pp. 1-18). Berkeley, CA: McCutchan Publishing.

McNeil, J. D. (2006). Contemporary curriculum in thought and action (6th ed., pp. 1-13, 24-34, 44-51, 60-73). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. 

Pratt, D. (1994). Curriculum perspectives. In D. Pratt, Curriculum planning: A handbook for professionals (pp. 8-22). Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace College Publisher.