Michele Brannon-Hamilton ePortfolio

The Quest

I chose the metaphor of a quest to symbolize my journey through the Master of Educational Technology Degree (MET) because it best describes my search for knowledge and understanding in the mysterious world of technology.

Traditionally, a quest is a search or journey to find something. I began this degree with the objective of combining my love of writing, education and technology. I believed integrating my three interests would lead me to a new and exciting career as an expert in a new area of education. I borrowed the idea of a never ending story because I believe in the pursuit of lifelong learning.

As with any journey, first you need to know where you are going and what you want to achieve. Therefore, I gathered my tools, skills and previous knowledge in preparation for my journey.

The Preparation

You must begin a quest with a foundation, a set of skills to guide you through challenges and decisions. Therefore, I gathered together a collection of tools I had acquired throughout my life including the following:

• problem solving skills
• a little bit of html coding
• research skills
• well-defined writing ability
• a healthy dose of curiosity
• a positive attitude and an open mind
• a new laptop with a high speed wireless connection and a printer

 To this, I soon added:

• a few required textbooks
• links to new knowledge
• the theory of adult education and
• the principles of good teaching

I began my journey in ETEC 520 Planning and Managing Educational Technology  which turned out to be a formidable place to start. It was here, I learned how to make decisions based on knowledge, understand the needs of others and plan the various phases of my technological journey. Also, I learned how to decide which tools to take and how my decisions could affect others along the way.

Two thirds of the way through my journey, I began extensive training in the art of research when I signed up for ETEC 500 Research Methods. It was here, I perfected my research skills by learning to discover, understand, analyze, synthesize and evaluate the wisdom of others.