Where has the time gone!

So here we are, only a couple of weeks before the deadline for the first essay and I find myself a little unprepared to say the least.  I thought that it would probably be a good idea to try and put down some kind of account as to how I have spent the time up to this point... after all that is the reason for this blog!

I have done nothing.  Yes, I am indeed afraid that that is the truth.  As a defense I would state that I do not consider myself to be lazy, or even unmotivated in this course, but I have found it difficult to set aside sufficient time to work on this course whilst performing my normal duties within my various jobs.

I offer no excuse, there is none other than a shortage of time.  I think that it is a case of value and I have not been able to place a high enough value on the completion of this essay above that of my responsibility to earn a living.  I fear that this I do indeed find myself in a similar predicament to that of the students in my classes and as such I find that I am learning something at least!

Today is the day though, this is where I will begin to tackle this eassy properly and aim to have it done within the week...

first collaborative task

Well, the first collaborative task went well.  It came across effectively and the participants seemed to enjoy what was going on and on the whole we received a great deal of positive feedback.  

Our task focussed on the learner characteristic of 'motivation' and in order to work within this area we tried to create a light hearted and fun task. As a result, the group dynamic was very positive and indeed creative.

The task required the participants to use mind maps to solve certain problems that had been posed to them such as ' how would you take an elephant dancing'?  These strange and difficult problems called for creative and unusual suggestions for methods to solve the problem and in turn the task of learning how to use a mind map was guided with fun and creativity.

Although the task was a success, the group dynamic within the team that I had been placed in was not.  There were four in our team and three of the members worked and communicated consistently but the same could not be said for one other in the team who seemed to offer very little in the way of concepts or work.  I think that it is probably quite clear how this affected the running of the task and it is sufficient to say at this point that I would not allow this to occur in future collaborative teams that I work in during this course.

In the working environments that I am used to this situation could not go on, however, with the various other restraints and responsibilities that any participant has upon them whilst undertaking a course like tqfe, it is difficult to focus on this as something that must be dealt with and unfortunately it is easier to simply 'get on with it' and finish the task.  Nevertheless, in this manner, one of our members passed this collaborative task without writing a single slide, preparing a single learning material or directing a single element of the live task and this cannot be right.

However, in order to finish the entry on a more positive note, it is important for me to state that I enjoyed the task and that due to the majority of individuals that I worked with, it was a relatively easy and enjoyable task to undertake!

why the title

i think that it is probably quite important to give some explanation as to the chosen title of my blog for my tqfe course.

it is a question that i am posing to myself and to anyone else out there doing the same thing... your comments are most welcome!  

it is pertinent to state that i have not answered this question as yet and do not intend to do so until it is over... i merely pose it at the outset of this reflective account of my time involved with it.

this blog will therefore stand as a collection of entries which will, in the end, contribute to an informed account on the positive and negative aspects of being a learner in tqfe.

first post

well this is the first post of this reflective account of my time in the tqfe course.  herein will contain various comments and thoughts about my experience as part of this teaching qualification.

today, we had the presentations of the first groups in our cohort.  they were all very professional and i thought that it was a good sign that the other members had seemed to engage so completely in the process of creating a group activity.  it would be very interesting to hear the thoughts about how these groups actually performed together!

our group is pretty strong and that instills some confidence for me regarding our up-coming activity/presentation.  i guess it would be safe to say that i have been lucky to be placed with some other very professional individuals and i do value this as i have had quite a bit of experience working in groups in the past and without organisation and structured planning it can be a nightmare.  some very good progress made today though... encouraging.

i am now about to go along to my interview with carole where i will be able to describe how i am approaching the unit and to be able to get some feedback on my plans for my first assignment... looking forward to this as it will be great to have some specific information on my plans.

trying to make sure that the issues i am identifying to research are both appropriate to my own professional practice and also interesting on a personal level so as to keep this whole process both engaging and productive.

we will see....