Deepthi Marasinghe Arachchige

Completing the AEA-based self-assessment in LDT 506 helped me see my current position as an evaluator more clearly. I would place myself at a 3 out of 6. I would not rate myself lower because I already have some foundational skills related to evaluation, especially in collecting structured feedback, interpreting responses, and attending to context. At the same time, I would not rate myself higher because I still have significant experience gaps in leading a full evaluation process, coordinating multiple stages, and facilitating across cultural and power dynamics. The clearest pattern in my self-assessment is that I am stronger at reading a situation than steering one. I am more comfortable analyzing, interpreting, and understanding context than coordinating a whole process or facilitating people through it. One surprise from the self-assessment was that I had entered with a narrow view of evaluation as mainly technical and data-focused, but the frameworks showed me that evaluation is a...

  When I think about the future of online and blended learning, I do not imagine just better platforms or smarter tools. I imagine institutions making intentional, courageous design decisions. As someone preparing to lead the development of online learning, my vision is shaped both by my experiences in Sri Lanka and by what I have studied in this program. In Sri Lanka, I witnessed how quickly institutions moved online during times of disruption. Lectures were uploaded, recordings were shared, and LMS platforms became central. But interaction, feedback, and purposeful design were often limited. At the time, it felt like innovation. Now I understand it was mostly digitization. As Ko and Rossen (2017) argue, moving a course online requires more than transferring content; it requires thoughtful instructional design. That realization has fundamentally changed how I think about leadership in online learning. In ten years, I believe online and blended learning will look like integrated ...

  Online and blended learning, to me, are not merely delivery formats or simply “online classes.” They are evolving learning experiences shaped by context, access, and purpose. Having worked in academic administration and learning support in Sri Lanka, I have seen firsthand how these approaches can expand access to education while also revealing structural challenges that influence how learning actually happens. I especially observed that major shifts toward online and blended learning accelerated after the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced institutions to rethink traditional teaching and learning models.    Looking ahead, I believe the future of online and blended learning lies in learner-centered, flexible, and context-aware design. Institutions must move beyond simply digitizing content and instead focus on creating meaningful learning experiences that reflect learners’ real circumstances. My experiences in Sri Lanka have shown me that technology alone does not improve l...

  At the beginning of this semester, when I wrote my first WOL post, I saw myself moving confidently from the Early Majority toward becoming an Early Adopter. I had already come a long way from being part of the Late Majority during the pandemic, when technology felt intimidating, and I depended heavily on others for support. But as this course began, I was still unsure how far I could stretch myself with truly emergent technologies, especially those developing at a speed that often feels overwhelming. Now, at the end of the semester, my perspective has shifted even more. After exploring Generative AI, big data, 3D printing, microlearning, microcredentials, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR), I feel ready to position myself fully in the Early Adopter stage. This course opened doors to technologies I didn’t even know existed before. What once felt intimidating now feels exciting, and the confidence I have gained has completely transformed my mindset as a future learnin...

When I first began reflecting on Everett Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations Theory, it felt natural to look back and trace where I once stood and where I am now on the adoption curve. This theory explains how people and organizations adopt new ideas, products, or technologies over time, moving from innovators to laggards. Reflecting on my own journey, especially during the pandemic, made it easier to identify my place on this curve. Over the past few years, I have traveled from being part of the Late Majority, to confidently moving into the Early Majority, and now striving to become an Early Adopter in the field of Learning Design and Technologies. Where I Was If I travel back to the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, I can clearly see myself fitting into the Late Majority category. At that time, I was working at a private university, managing a postgraduate program. My main responsibilities included scheduling classes, communicating with students and lecturers, booking classrooms, m...

  When I look back on the past few weeks of developing my eLearning module, it feels like I’ve completed an incredible journey that merged creativity, patience, and technical discovery. From the first assignment to the final product, every stage taught me something new about instructional design, technology, and myself as a designer. Building Confidence and Laying the Foundation My journey began with the talking-head video, the very first time I appeared on camera as the subject matter expert (SME). Recording that short introduction was more than just an assignment; it was an exercise in confidence. Speaking directly to my future learners made me think deeply about tone, pacing, and authenticity. It reminded me that a designer is not only a creator of learning experiences but also a facilitator who connects with learners through voice and presence. That early experience helped me tremendously later in the module when I had to script my narration. Because of that initial confidence,...