Erica Cedillo
Dr. Harrison
EDLD 5317
March 15, 2026
EDLD 5317 Compilation & Contributions to Learning
One initial expectation that I had coming into this course was that it would mainly focus on learning about different digital tools. I pictured us spending a lot of time diving into apps, platforms, and all sorts of classroom technology. Of course, we did spend some time learning about media production and digital learning environments but I realized quickly that this course was about so much more than that. It was not about learning about the different tools themselves but how to use those tools to reinforce worthwhile learning. That was a game changer for me because it changed the way I looked at technology in education. Rather than viewing technology as something that can be easily plugged into a lesson as another resource, I now see how it can enhance learning if used correctly. The more weeks that passed by the more I truly understood how impactful technology can be when used purposefully to share ideas, tell stories, and connect with others.
Each assignment throughout the eight weeks allowed me to explore my role as an educator and leader. Writing the publication, completing the media project, and adding to my ePortfolio allowed me to reflect on my own experiences and think about how they can benefit others. When I take most classes, I am writing solely to get the professor to see what I learned. But this class felt different because we were encouraged to think outside of the box and consider others who may be interested in our ideas. I realized that just because we come up with innovative ideas as educators doesn’t mean they have to stay within the four walls of a classroom or as part of a course assignment. Educators can share their ideas and experiences and become part of the larger discussion on learning, education, and leadership. That was something that stuck with me because I recognize how crucial it is to have and project a clear voice when advocating for student centered change especially in CCMR.
However, when I took EDLD 5304 at the same time it allowed me to see another piece of the puzzle. Where this class allowed me to think about how to create and share ideas, EDLD 5304 focused more on how those ideas actually become actionable change within a school or district. It made me think about the leadership skills and communications that need to happen in order for an initiative to get off the ground. I think by taking the two courses at the same time everything sort of came together for me in a way that felt very applicable. One course taught me how to communicate and share my vision and ideas while the other allowed me to learn about how to strategize to turn that vision into reality. Learning about both sides of the process has helped me gain a better understanding of what innovation and leadership look like in education.
Something that I will never forget learning in this course is that technology should never be the center of meaningful learning. Technology should always be used as a tool to support and strengthen learning. This idea was repeated throughout the readings and discussions. Just because you “tech-ify” a lesson does not make it automatically beneficial to student learning. Using technology in the classroom should always be done with a purpose of helping students dig deeper, think critically, and make connections. Many educational scholars such as John Dewey talked about how learning should be experience-based and connected to students’ lives and interests (Dewey, 1938). I like this quote because that is essentially what we talked about throughout the entire course. When you use technology with purpose, it becomes part of the learning experience. It allows students to explore, collaborate, and learn with greater depth instead of being a distraction.
What Is Working Well
Preparing to publish my ideas was one of my biggest successes this course. Previous course assignments we would write were just to share our thoughts with the professor. Having this course focus on digital publishing and creating media really made me consider readers that would find my work. Completing tasks and writing around my innovation in the Digital Career Exploration and Mentorship Program served as the foundation for many assignments throughout this course. Writing about it repeatedly helped me solidify my thoughts and allowed me to better communicate the value of career exposure and mentorship students need.
The last success I would like to highlight was when I connected how technology and learning design go hand-in-hand. Many Constructivist theorists like Vygotsky discuss how learning is social and takes place through collaboration and communication with others (Vygotsky, 1978). Digital spaces have the ability to foster these connections when they are designed with intention. Technology should do more than just present content. It should create opportunities for learners to discover, connect with others, and apply what they are learning.
Areas of Growth or Improvement
Something I would like to improve on is having confidence in my voice as a professional. Throughout the course I sometimes found myself overthinking my writing. I caught myself trying to make my writing sound “professional” or like something you would find in academic journals. When I was at my best with writing it was when I focused on being myself and sharing real experiences from my role in CCMR. Time management is something else I would like to improve on. Between work obligations, school and family I sometimes found it difficult to balance it all. If I could give myself advice for the future it would be to start assignments ahead of time. This would allow me more time to revise my ideas.
The last thing I want to improve on is creating meaningful digital communication. Creating media projects and publishing digitally allowed me to see how impactful these resources can be for spreading ideas. Schank explains how experiential learning can help a person make meaningful connections with the information they are learning (Schank, 2011). Rather than having students memorize facts, meaningful learning happens when they can experience things firsthand. This resonated with me as I developed my publication and media project for this course.
Assignment Highlights
The publication outline helped me organize my thoughts and identify my key takeaway. Having to write an outline forced me to focus on the purpose of my article and better explain how my innovation plan will impact student success.
Writing my rough draft was difficult at first because I was trying to include too many details. My learning community gave me great feedback on how to narrow my focus. I also received feedback that helped improve the flow of my article. This step reminded me how beneficial it can be to collaborate and receive feedback from others.
This was my favorite assignment because I was able to share my ideas in a new format. Creating something visual and audio to showcase my innovation allowed me to step outside of my comfort zone. When developing my media project, I thought about how others might consume the information. Papert believed technology could promote better learning when students got to “drive” their education through exploration and discovery (Papert, 1993). This assignment tied back to that idea by allowing me to use media as a tool to communicate.
Putting the finishing touches on my publication was exciting. I enjoyed doing additional research and connecting my ideas to theory while also keeping the article grounded in my personal experiences working within CCMR. Completing this assignment allowed me to see how my profession could align with academics to help improve schools career readiness programs.
My Collaborative Discussion Group
My collaborative discussion group helped me learn throughout the course. Reading what my classmates wrote helped me learn about different aspects of digital learning. It was nice to hear how everyone took things we learned in class and connected them to their professional settings. Giving feedback to my classmates also allowed me to become a better learner. According to Fink there are 6 categories of learning, one being human dimension which allows us to understand and asses ourselves and others (Fink, 2013). Providing my learning community feedback helped me better understand some of the course concepts.
Something I really enjoyed about my group was the atmosphere everyone created. We all encouraged each other while giving constructive feedback. If I could change anything about my group I would have liked to collaborate in real time, our schedules never syncronized well as we all had busy schedules.
Connecting Learning
I decided to take EDLD 5317 alongside EDLD 5304: Leading Organizational Change. These classes allowed me to see how communication and leadership play a role in implementing innovation. In EDLD 5304 I created a plan to help support the implementation of my innovation project in CCMR. This allowed me to take what I learned from EDLD 5317 and apply it to my workplace. I learned about different frameworks that could help me guide my school through change. Some of these frameworks included The Six Sources of Influence and the 4 Disciplines of Execution. EDLD 5304 allowed me to understand how I could lead change while EDLD 5317 allowed me to see how I could share that change. These classes go hand in hand. You can have the best plan for innovation but if it’s not properly communicated it will fail. On the flip side you can have excellent communication skills but if you do not have a solid plan your efforts will not produce results.
Final Reflection
This course allowed me to grow as a professional and better understand how technology and digital platforms can be used. One thing I will take away from this class is that digital tools should be used to support learning. Technology is not the be all end all of education, if we use it to make meaningful connections with others it can become a powerful tool. I feel this class helped me improve my ability to communicate ideas and thoughts. It also allowed me to reflect on my practice and how I can share my vision to help students succeed. Lastly, this course opened my eyes to how digital platforms can be professional outlets to share and display our work. What stuck with me the most was realizing that we have a voice in education. By sharing our story and ideas with others we can create change. When educators start working together to share their knowledge and expertise, we are able to learn from each other and grow as professionals.
References
Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. Macmillan.
Fink, L. D. (2013). Creating significant learning experiences: An integrated approach to designing college courses (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass.
Papert, S. (1993). The children’s machine: Rethinking school in the age of the computer. Basic Books.
Schank, R. (2011). Teaching minds: How cognitive science can save our schools. Education Futures.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.