Revision and Reflection are Allowing me to Learn!

I have been working on some of the video tutorials for my portfolio.  I am enjoying making the videos about technology and how technology can, and I would say needs to be used to, support Project Based Learning.  The creation of the videos could not be possible without the readings, research and thought that I have put into the topic of "how can technology support PBL," As I have been making the videos, a lot of revision and reflection has taken place.  I would sometimes revise a script, edit a video, recapture part of my screen shots and occasionally start all over.  I have so far created three video tutorials for this project, with the rest coming pretty soon.  I am enjoy the making of the videos because I am passionate about discovering how technology works best in education and I enjoy providing resources to help other teachers. The creation of the videos is the learning process in that I can now really put theory to practice in the creation of artifacts for an audience.

For the videos, I have been attempting to find out what tools and resources to include in the videos and which ones to not include.  I am trying to find resources that can be used by both the teacher and the student.  I am also trying to include resources that have multiple uses and tie into several of the 8 Essentials of PBL.  My favourite online tool right now has to be Blendspace.  Here is an example of a Blendspace that I have made for a workshop I will be giving on "Using Technology to Support PBL" at the Edifide Teachers Convention in a couple of days. Blendspace helps the teacher to manage the information and resources that students will need as they work on a project.  With its grid set-up, Blendspace organizes the online learning space.  To create a Blendspace the owner of the space quickly and easily drags and drops in resources from YouTube, Google, Vimeo, Flickr, EduCreations, Dropbox, Google Drive, bookmarks for links, or they can upload their own resources and multimedia files.  For the student, Blendspace can help them organize the videos, websites and resources that they are working on - it can be a digital notebook.  Blendspace can also be used as a digital portfolio tool allowing students to post their findings, creations and it can be easily shared with others.

While I am currently working at completing both the written portion of my Masters Portfolio and the video tutorials, I am finding that the two components really drive each other.  The theory aspect of having a rationale for using technology provides a necessary grounding that the foundation of the practical videos need.  

I am currently in the Revision and Reflection stage of my portfolio.  I must admit that it feels great to be able to say that because if you look at the 8 Essentials of PBL, as modeled by the Buck Institute for Education, in the following diagram, then you can see I am on the home stretch.  One of the challenges that I have recently experienced in my work is that I am looking at each essential separately rather than looking at all of the essentials as a collective process. This has put up some temporary roadblocks for me as I cannot see this topic ever being completed - which has been a really big struggle for me! It is my hope that in the next 3-5 weeks that I can complete my work - even though this area of work will likely never be finished due to its ever changing nature.