End of Course Reflection

Even today at the end I feel as if I've been exposed to yet more.  Just when I thought I was cresting the hill of new learning, I have started to back slide.  Well, not really.  I imagine this course as a steep uphill climb.  Slowly I am ascending my learning curve.  At times it has been easy to keep up.  At others, it is all I can do to comprehend.  I am an active learner.  I need to practice.  I've been practicing several with several tools and am beginning to feel like I am grasping them.  These would be plateaus or a decrease in the incline on my uphill climb.  Today, I felt as if I lost my footing and tumbled backwards.  Of course I did not.  The afternoon presentations were, again, new information and I had to slow the pace, take notes, really listen, and try to allow new content to enter.  Just as a hiker feels euphoria when they reach the top and can stop to enjoy the view, I, too will be able to feel success.  These successes will come slowly as I continue to practice embedding new tools into my instructional practices.  Perhaps this course is better than a hike.  If all goes well, I'll have many opportunities to breathe the clean, crisp air above the cloud of frustration and figuring things out, and enjoy repeated moments of pride for having made it to the top and becoming an expert able to share with my colleagues rather than only one trip to summit.