Summer Break

I have 8 weeks off for summer break, and I've already blown through 5 1/2 of them! Yikes! I have two classes this fall and so I am trying to read ahead and get a jump on the fall load. There are 8 books to cover in 15 weeks which doesn't seem like a lot until I sit down to read. Reading for school is a slower process than reading for pleasure, and even after all of the years of school I still don't remember this.

Progress on the online faculty development course has stalled as the start of the fall semester for work is rapidly approaching. There are several tasks that must be completed before 8/23: design the assessment/evaluation process, develop an online mentoring program for new faculty members, and finish finding instructors for the last few sections. However, I have determined that all of this design/development will be good for one of my "big picture" goals: to get an article published in a peer-reviewed journal. I have targeted The Journal of Faculty Development as the best venue for my work. It seems ridiculous that someone of my low academic pedigree and inexperience would shoot for this goal, but you've got to start somewhere. I find that if I don't regularly think about my big picture goals I get overwhelmed with all of the minutiae of my daily work.

Resources

I am developing my first online training course for affiliate faculty. The only resource I have available to me (right now) is the Rapid eLearning Blog and a couple of books I ordered from Amazon. My goal through this process is two-fold: 1) create a great course and 2) create a great list of resources for future reference and to share with my co-workers (see blog roll to the right).

Where I'm At, Where I'm Going

Where I'm At:

• Master's in Adult Education (completed in 2004)
• Doctoral student in Adult Education (started fall 2009)
• Director of Faculty Development at not-for-profit university specializing in adult education
• Teacher in the Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction program

Where I'm Going:

• About to develop my first e-learning course for affiliate faculty
• Developing a professional development seminar on critical thinking skills
• Starting second year of my doctoral program in 6 weeks