Moving On and Looking Back

Once again it was great to be involved in our Skype session this morning and be able to share my apprehension and anxiety among friends who are in the same boat!  If I'm honest, I'm not sure if I feel any less scared at the prospect of Module Two, but at least I have the comforting thoughts of Adesola's encouraging metaphor of the black box - I just wonder if I'll ever find my way to the end!

We spoke about so many things this morning with a cross-over between modules 1 and 2, it's amazing how much was covered in just over an hour.  One of the topics raised was about the actual learning process and getting to grips with everything in Module 1. Jamie pointed out that it's important to accept and appreciate ones' personal learning style and not to worry if this is different to others. In tandem with this, it's also important to accept and appreciate ones' fears and potential blocks to learning.  Myself being a perfect example of this as I write my first blog of module 2 and try to understand the content and expectations of the handbook.  When I don't quite get to grips with something, I seem to mentally clam up and can think of nothing other than the mind gremlin that tells me I can't or won't be able to do it.  This then blocks any form of thought process and prevents me from moving on.  To any new Module 1, who may be feeling the same trepidation, I discovered that my reflective journal became a sanctuary for off-loading negative thoughts and blockages.  Taking time out to record, process and break down what I actually needed to do in order to move on, provided an element of calm to my apprehension.  Just as Mary said that the books are steadily becoming friends, they also help in providing clarity and promote more positive and productive 'thinking and doing'.  I appreciate that reflective journals don't necessarily work for everyone, but in addition to balancing reading and completing each task, I found that recording all the highs and lows of the journey was invaluable to my personal development and summary of each event.  I have no doubt that I will be doing a lot of reflective writing as I embark on module 2.  I also find the blogs really helpful, and I would like to improve my own commitment to this by writing more regularly.

Books that I found to be helpful during module 1 were:

• The Work-Based Learning Student Handbook by Ruth Helyer
• The Study Skills Handbook by Stella Cottrell
• A Handbook of Reflective and Experiential Learning, Theory and Practice by Jennifer A Moon.

I would really like some suggestions of helpful reading material to get going with on Module 2?

Before I sign out of this blog, I would like to point you to Jamie's blog (he beat me to it), he has recorded essential information that was discussed earlier today which is extremely helpful and encouraging.  Thanks Jamie.

Question? does anyone know how we can set an email alert for each persons new published blog and/or comment?