Putting It All Together

The last two weeks I have embarked upon a new educational journey.  I have started the Pathway Program.  This is a unique online educational program sponsored by BYU Idaho. As part of this program I will be taking one religion course and one academic course each semester for three semesters in the coming year – September to July.  Along with the two online courses each semester, I am also required to attend a local student gathering every Thursday night during the semester to review and discuss the weekly lesson materials.  A senior missionary couple facilitate these gatherings and once the students are oriented, the class discussions are led by a different student each week – referred to as the Lead Student. Once I successfully complete these three semesters, I will have the option to matriculate into the BYU Idaho online degree programs.  This one year program is the only gateway to this distance learning opportunity to ensure the students are committed and prepared.  It gives the students a foundation and solid start with group support for the first year before continuing into an online degree program on their own.

When I first heard of this program I thought it was primarily for those who had not had the opportunity to finish college and needed a second chance.  I thought because I already had a bachelor’s degree it wouldn’t be for me.  I went to an informational meeting out of curiosity and also out of duty as a member of my ward’s Relief Society Presidency.  While there, I found out it is so much more than that and can meet the needs of a whole variety of types of people that want to continue their education.

It has always been a goal of mine to continue my education.  I thought I would do this through a master’s degree program someday in the future.  As the years have passed I have not found the right opportunity, university, finances, and timing to pursue that goal.  When I attended the informational meeting for the Pathway Program, I immediately knew this was the right opportunity for me.  The flexibility and affordability were just what I needed.  I came to the realization that I didn’t need a master’s degree but that I just wanted to round out my education into some new areas of study.  Through the Pathway Program I can do this either by taking selected courses or by pursuing a second bachelor’s degree with or without a minor.  I am also excited to take courses in an environment where individuals’ religious beliefs are celebrated and acknowledged as a core aspect of each person.  It is also an environment where students are encouraged to seek guidance and assistance from a higher power in order to become the best they can be.

So for this first semester – Fall 2015 – I am taking one religion course and one academic course.  The religion course is FDREL121 – The Book of Mormon Part 1.  In this course, we will be studying the first half of the Book of Mormon and in the process learning how to study the scriptures in a deeper way both for better understanding and for better guidance in our lives.  The academic course is GS120 Life Skills.  I assumed ahead of time that I might be a bit bored with this class.  Certainly as a college-educated middle age adult with many years of employment experience and life experience as a wife and mother, I certainly had plenty of life skills.  However, in just two weeks I have been pleasantly surprised to find this course to be both fascinating and challenging.

One of the weekly assignment for the religion course I am taking is called “Putting It All Together.”  We have learned this last week about BYU Idaho’s Learning Model which consists of three steps: Prepare, Teach One Another, and Ponder/Prove.  Their learning model is based on the idea that we learn the most ourselves when we teach others.  This weekly assignment, Putting It All Together, is due at the end of the week after we have prepared, after we have attended our Thursday night gathering and discussed the concepts with other students, and after we have pondered the concepts.  At that point, we are asked to “teach others” by sharing with others what we have learned that week through either a blog, written essays, podcasts, or other similar methods.  I have chosen to use this blog to share what I have learned.