When I was going to school (both high school and college), there was pretty much a similar path that people studying journalism would continue upon. If they wanted to become writers, they took their lumps (both physically, metaphorically and financially) by working for a low-level newspaper and eventually working their way up. My classmates who were more interested in making some financial hay went the route of advertising or public relations. That pretty much covered all of our career options. Towards the end of my run at the University of Minnesota, a strange but still novel idea of the Internet began to emerge. It was ugly and not a whole lot more useful than spending several hours in the basement of the Wilson Library, but the Gopher browser was at least a start.
It was a long road for me from journalist and editor, to teacher and eventually to ‘online educator’ but the last part is still being written. A couple years ago my interest in what could be accomplished teaching in an online environment got the best of me and I began working with the directors at Minnesota Online High School. Slowly, at first, I began to see the possibilities and the challenges of teaching with this medium. The advantages include not having to deal with classroom disruptions and endless staff meetings. It also forces you to think about how to leverage technology to instruct and reach kids the same way that you would if you were in front of them. The negatives include missing out on the relationships that inevitably build with your in-class students. Not that you can’t develop on-line relationships, but it’s just different.
I’m finishing up my second year as an online instructor and don’t feel as though I’ve hit my stride yet. I’ve got a lot of material to cover still and I want to keep honing the craft. I’ve appreciated the opportunity that MNOHS has given me to learn on the fly. Like I said before, this chapter of my life is still being written.
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