Etmoocing: the action of being a part of the #etmooc community.

Part of this week’s assignment is to blog about my experience with the course. I’ve clicked on the links, I’ve read the wikis, I’ve drank the kool-aid. I’m in. But to be completely honest, I’m completely overwhelmed. When I got the list of blogs for the course members, I kept scrolling down the list, and I scrolled some more. Wow, it’s a lot of people. If I watch all of the videos, read all of the tweets, and follow all of the hyperlinks, then I’ll lose my job. I simply do not have time for everything, but I can’t quit you either. Etmooc, you need to help me help myself.

Your best source so far? Dave Cormier’s  Success in a MOOC. I almost skipped the hyperlink on the word “declare” but I’m glad I didn’t. His advice to 1] orient, 2] declare, 3] network, 4] cluster, and 5] focus when you are in a MOOC is great. I’m definitely in the “orient” phase.

I’m not sure how much time I’ll get to spend on the other four phases, and I worry about that. In addition to my normal teaching load, I am trying to help other teachers learn about technology for their teaching. These are highly skilled professional adults who are faced with the challenge of integrating technology into their classroom. Or, in some cases, they are putting their classes online for the first time. They are in a position that I haven’t been in for almost a decade. I remember being terrified. I remember messing up a lot. Being overwhelmed by this new form of learning is a great reminder of what they are going through. Maybe, just maybe, etmooc, you’ve come into my life at the right time.

Etmoocing may be 2013’s best new word (even if it makes the English teacher in me cringe).