Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Katherine Pisana

Katherine Pisana

Katherine Pisana, California, USA, Continuing, Higher, Adult, Educational Technology

I’m what Gilly Salmon (2002) calls the ‘Nomadict e-Moderator’: “E-moderators are as mobile as their students. Many are portfolio e-moderators, working for several educational institutions and providers, all over the world, at any one time. They work for institutions that provide them with the best support for their mobile working lives.

They have not only a highly developed awareness of the ways in which traditions of learning and expectations vary in different cultures but also the ability to work across discipline and levels of education… They can relate well to students without needing to meet with them. They focus on promoting the concepts of ownership of the learning process, active learning, independence… self-motivation and a level of autonomy.”

But, to put it more simply, I’m a teacher. I’m also a student. The only way I think we can be good teachers is to always be students. To consciously to be part of the audience so that we can remember why we’re here in the first place. To observe the world, to watch others’ journeys and vicariously learn through them, to digest and process information, turn it into knowledge… and eventually manifest wisdom.

Virtually Scholastic
In 2004 I fell into the world of educational technology while working for a university in the UK. This blog is a collection of my observations and a documentation of my evolution since that journey began. I’ll share discoveries with you of tools that I find interesting and relevant to my work.

I’ll provide feedback on how technologies add value (or not!) from a personal level as well as from a professional standpoint. I’ll also include the occasional story meant to ease the hearts of those in similar shoes (you’re not the only one!!).

Perhaps I’ll also inject an anecdote or two to stimulate the minds of those who are interested, and… of course, to inspire myself through the art of reflection.

Further Information: LinkedIn

Theme: elearning, accessibility of education, budget, economy, employment, case study, community, connection, eModerator, learning, technologist, librarian, mentor, teacher, tutor, learning object, multimedia, open source, lesson plan, curriculum, RLO, repository, tools, training, video