Janet Kelly L20261945
October 30, 2011
Web conference reflection for 6 pm conference
This was one of our final conferences in this last course of our Lamar Academic Partnership Program. We discussed the e-portfolio requirements and graduation questions. Pertinent to me was the need to post our comprehensive exam file to TK20 and to give a link to our wiki as well in TK20. We also discussed the due date for our work. The official date is November 7, but the soft date is November 14, when we must turn in all of our work.
One question arose about the validation summary report -Appendix G. This new form requires us to enter our internship activities and reflections on those activities. Since many of us had been diligent in reflecting monthly on our activities, we questioned the need to re-write those into the form.
Dr. Abernathy clearly stated that we could place the link to the appropriate reflection into the space for the reflection – Praise God!
She also said she would work with those of us who are behind – like me! I will not get internet service in my new home until next Tuesday, which seems like an eternity. I am working off a hotspot.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
EDLD 5370 Week 4, Part 4.6
5370 Week Four assignment. Part 4.6
Reflection on ISTE Standard VIII
Janet Kelly L20261945
October 30, 2011
Self –Assessment
Standard eight requires that technology facilitators promote a vision for technology that all the key players within a school share. They must also translate this vision into achievable goals and implement plans to reach those goals. I did not realize that technology leaders were expected to display this level of leadership. Often the vision for technology comes from the superintendent or the school board who desires to stay ahead of the rest. It seems most districts have a hodge podge of requests for technology based on the latest trip to a conference. Technology facilitators discern the best course of action when faced with this myriad of requests.
During my internship activities, I had several opportunities to share the school’s technology plan, district plan and history of technology in schools with a member of our education foundation, Trish D. Our education foundation is a great partnership with the schools. It’s goal is to raise funds to purchase technology, new curriculum, and fund innovative ideas in the schools.
I also participated in professional development for TX-VSN that demonstrated the use of the website and program that allows for teacher websites that are assessable only to students with a pass code. This site allows for power point lessons, podcasts, and video lessons secretly placed on internet for student access and review.
Learn as a Learner
To implement Standard eight in my internship, I needed to find ways to interact with others who are in positions of making technology decisions that effected schools. I was able to accomplish this through relationships with teacher and school board and education foundation friends. Attending meetings where we discussed campus needs and bond election technology requests helped me understand the need to contribute to the shared vision of a school’s technology future. I also participate in our bond election Facebook page.
One activity I did to “conduct an evaluation of a school technology environment” (Williamson & Redish, 2009) was to interview the counselor and testing coordinator at Riviera ISD. This district is very rural, so in-house staff handles troubleshooting issues or it is given a long timeframe for resolution.
Through our Skype group, I was able to comment and contribute to two other bond elections within the state. Both of those elections were victories. In addition, in creating our Public Service Announcement during the course Multimedia and Video Technology, we were able to educate the public about the purpose of bond elections for school districts and why they are becoming so commonplace.
Lifelong Learning Skills
In our course, School and Community Relations, we learned about the necessity to relate school partnerships with those organizations and individual whose service links “practices to school goals” (Sanders & Lewis, 2005, p. 56). Finding business partnerships that desire to promote technology in the schools by supplementing or supporting a particular device or software is fulfilling Standard eight’s requirements that technology leaders “examine issues related to hardware and software acquisition and management” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 191) Providing technology through community partnerships is also important.
Research proves that student achievement increases when parents, schools, and communities work together. It is also evident that such partnerships are most effective when school cultures foster levels of involvement that go beyond passive participation, nurture mutually respectful relationships, and provide adequate tools and resources for parent involvement programs that work. (Adams, 2011, slide 2)
I have learned that not only is it important to show students the benefits of technology to education, it is also imperative that parents and community partners benefit from this classroom technology and help support it and provide for it.
Bibliography
Adams, N. (2011). EDLD 5326 School community relations: Week 2 Promoting family involvement. Beaumont: Lamar University.
Sanders, M., & Lewis, K. (2005). Building bridges toward excellence: Community involvement in high schools. The High School Journal, 88(3) , 1.
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Reflection on ISTE Standard VIII
Janet Kelly L20261945
October 30, 2011
Self –Assessment
Standard eight requires that technology facilitators promote a vision for technology that all the key players within a school share. They must also translate this vision into achievable goals and implement plans to reach those goals. I did not realize that technology leaders were expected to display this level of leadership. Often the vision for technology comes from the superintendent or the school board who desires to stay ahead of the rest. It seems most districts have a hodge podge of requests for technology based on the latest trip to a conference. Technology facilitators discern the best course of action when faced with this myriad of requests.
During my internship activities, I had several opportunities to share the school’s technology plan, district plan and history of technology in schools with a member of our education foundation, Trish D. Our education foundation is a great partnership with the schools. It’s goal is to raise funds to purchase technology, new curriculum, and fund innovative ideas in the schools.
I also participated in professional development for TX-VSN that demonstrated the use of the website and program that allows for teacher websites that are assessable only to students with a pass code. This site allows for power point lessons, podcasts, and video lessons secretly placed on internet for student access and review.
Learn as a Learner
To implement Standard eight in my internship, I needed to find ways to interact with others who are in positions of making technology decisions that effected schools. I was able to accomplish this through relationships with teacher and school board and education foundation friends. Attending meetings where we discussed campus needs and bond election technology requests helped me understand the need to contribute to the shared vision of a school’s technology future. I also participate in our bond election Facebook page.
One activity I did to “conduct an evaluation of a school technology environment” (Williamson & Redish, 2009) was to interview the counselor and testing coordinator at Riviera ISD. This district is very rural, so in-house staff handles troubleshooting issues or it is given a long timeframe for resolution.
Through our Skype group, I was able to comment and contribute to two other bond elections within the state. Both of those elections were victories. In addition, in creating our Public Service Announcement during the course Multimedia and Video Technology, we were able to educate the public about the purpose of bond elections for school districts and why they are becoming so commonplace.
Lifelong Learning Skills
In our course, School and Community Relations, we learned about the necessity to relate school partnerships with those organizations and individual whose service links “practices to school goals” (Sanders & Lewis, 2005, p. 56). Finding business partnerships that desire to promote technology in the schools by supplementing or supporting a particular device or software is fulfilling Standard eight’s requirements that technology leaders “examine issues related to hardware and software acquisition and management” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 191) Providing technology through community partnerships is also important.
Research proves that student achievement increases when parents, schools, and communities work together. It is also evident that such partnerships are most effective when school cultures foster levels of involvement that go beyond passive participation, nurture mutually respectful relationships, and provide adequate tools and resources for parent involvement programs that work. (Adams, 2011, slide 2)
I have learned that not only is it important to show students the benefits of technology to education, it is also imperative that parents and community partners benefit from this classroom technology and help support it and provide for it.
Bibliography
Adams, N. (2011). EDLD 5326 School community relations: Week 2 Promoting family involvement. Beaumont: Lamar University.
Sanders, M., & Lewis, K. (2005). Building bridges toward excellence: Community involvement in high schools. The High School Journal, 88(3) , 1.
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
5370 Week Four Assignment, Part 4.5
Self –Assessment
Because access to technology is an important part of its implementation in schools, technology facilitators need to be aware of all the procedures, policies, and procurement plans available in schools. Standard seven requires facilitators be cognizant of these needs and ready to help create and maintain technology for administration and instruction. This standard “focuses on the managerial and technical tasks associated with providing educators and students with high-quality access to technology” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 148).
During my internship, I had the privilege of attending a meeting of campus instructional technologists where the discussion centered on a future bond election of November 2011. Technology is a large portion of that bond. Boerne ISD is a chapter 41 district required to make Robin Hood payments in the millions from their Maintenance and Operation (M&O) part of the budget. The Interest and Shrinking (I&S) portion of the tax funds are not subject to Robin Hood payments therefore it is wise to push those purchases into the I&S tax fund and this includes technology. This bond election includes upgraded Wi-Fi, new computers and phones, Smart boards, LCD projectors, infrastructure and new computers for older campuses.
My only contribution to this meeting after listening to all the viewpoints was that I thought they should prioritize what they needed and not pare down the list. Several other groups would be paring down the requests and they knew it would be reduced. I thought they should go for it all and see what they got. New information I learned was seeing what a school needs, what factors are driving up the costs and how schools try to control those expenses.
Learn as a Learner
To learn about Standard seven for my internship, I attended meetings planning for the technology portion of the bond election. I also contacted Kathy Alvarez and Laurien Monaghen to ask about how their districts handle technology support issues for teachers and students. Because I am not a school employee, I had no opportunity actually to fix a computer issue, but I did go vote YES in the bond election.
I also learned from my Skype group how their district implemented technology. Especially from Shannon C., who is both a teacher, testing coordinator and the school technologist. She discussed aspects of her job with the group and the frustrations faced.
Lifelong Learning Skills
The lifelong learning I have gained in promoting technology development and procurement has been through my conversations with those that deal with these issues daily. I do understand the need for bond elections to procure technology upgrades. Because of this, I will participate in future bond elections whenever I can.
Through the content of the course Information Systems, I also learned the most productive technology choices for advancing technology use in a schools and how to choose a student information system. During this course, I learned about using network software packages for managing student information and data storage. I interviewed our district’s technology director, Steve Stewart, who explained the components and factors necessitating the purchase of new student data software last year. We also discussed mass storage of student data and the benefits of our proximity to the new data storage facility made retrieval, professional development and troubleshooting help more efficient. This year I have learned to use that software as a parent and it is wonderful. One article I thought was most practical was “How to Buy a Student Information System”. Richard Hoffman writes about how the CIO of Prince George’s County Public Schools, Wesley Watts, systematically and deliberately controlled the process of selecting the next software program for data management. Hoffman writes that the district desired a program that had easy “reporting, school-to-parent communication, scheduling, attendance, and enrollment” changes (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3). “The district’s overarching goal: accessing real-time, accurate data across the board” (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3)
During my Lamar program, I also analyzed the district’s technology five-year plan and compared it to the state and national plans.
Because Lamar Academic Partnerships is an online program, I was able to use distance and online learning extensively from May 2011 until now. Although practitioners and teachers of online courses have a high concern for connecting with students through various forms of interaction, this is not a problem within the Educational Technology Department (Beldarrain, 2006). Students in this program had multiple opportunities to interact with professors during web conferences, email, texting, cell phone calls and through the EPIC course ware. I also was able to help a student sign up for online courses through Texas Tech University.
Bibliography
Beldarrain, Y. (2006). Distance education trends: Integrating new technologies to foster student interaction and collaboration. Distance Education , 139-153.
Hoffman, R. (2006, July 17). How to buy a student information system. Retrieved April 24, 2011, from School CIO: http://www.schoolcio.com/ShowArticle.aspx
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Because access to technology is an important part of its implementation in schools, technology facilitators need to be aware of all the procedures, policies, and procurement plans available in schools. Standard seven requires facilitators be cognizant of these needs and ready to help create and maintain technology for administration and instruction. This standard “focuses on the managerial and technical tasks associated with providing educators and students with high-quality access to technology” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 148).
During my internship, I had the privilege of attending a meeting of campus instructional technologists where the discussion centered on a future bond election of November 2011. Technology is a large portion of that bond. Boerne ISD is a chapter 41 district required to make Robin Hood payments in the millions from their Maintenance and Operation (M&O) part of the budget. The Interest and Shrinking (I&S) portion of the tax funds are not subject to Robin Hood payments therefore it is wise to push those purchases into the I&S tax fund and this includes technology. This bond election includes upgraded Wi-Fi, new computers and phones, Smart boards, LCD projectors, infrastructure and new computers for older campuses.
My only contribution to this meeting after listening to all the viewpoints was that I thought they should prioritize what they needed and not pare down the list. Several other groups would be paring down the requests and they knew it would be reduced. I thought they should go for it all and see what they got. New information I learned was seeing what a school needs, what factors are driving up the costs and how schools try to control those expenses.
Learn as a Learner
To learn about Standard seven for my internship, I attended meetings planning for the technology portion of the bond election. I also contacted Kathy Alvarez and Laurien Monaghen to ask about how their districts handle technology support issues for teachers and students. Because I am not a school employee, I had no opportunity actually to fix a computer issue, but I did go vote YES in the bond election.
I also learned from my Skype group how their district implemented technology. Especially from Shannon C., who is both a teacher, testing coordinator and the school technologist. She discussed aspects of her job with the group and the frustrations faced.
Lifelong Learning Skills
The lifelong learning I have gained in promoting technology development and procurement has been through my conversations with those that deal with these issues daily. I do understand the need for bond elections to procure technology upgrades. Because of this, I will participate in future bond elections whenever I can.
Through the content of the course Information Systems, I also learned the most productive technology choices for advancing technology use in a schools and how to choose a student information system. During this course, I learned about using network software packages for managing student information and data storage. I interviewed our district’s technology director, Steve Stewart, who explained the components and factors necessitating the purchase of new student data software last year. We also discussed mass storage of student data and the benefits of our proximity to the new data storage facility made retrieval, professional development and troubleshooting help more efficient. This year I have learned to use that software as a parent and it is wonderful. One article I thought was most practical was “How to Buy a Student Information System”. Richard Hoffman writes about how the CIO of Prince George’s County Public Schools, Wesley Watts, systematically and deliberately controlled the process of selecting the next software program for data management. Hoffman writes that the district desired a program that had easy “reporting, school-to-parent communication, scheduling, attendance, and enrollment” changes (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3). “The district’s overarching goal: accessing real-time, accurate data across the board” (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3)
During my Lamar program, I also analyzed the district’s technology five-year plan and compared it to the state and national plans.
Because Lamar Academic Partnerships is an online program, I was able to use distance and online learning extensively from May 2011 until now. Although practitioners and teachers of online courses have a high concern for connecting with students through various forms of interaction, this is not a problem within the Educational Technology Department (Beldarrain, 2006). Students in this program had multiple opportunities to interact with professors during web conferences, email, texting, cell phone calls and through the EPIC course ware. I also was able to help a student sign up for online courses through Texas Tech University.
Bibliography
Beldarrain, Y. (2006). Distance education trends: Integrating new technologies to foster student interaction and collaboration. Distance Education , 139-153.
Hoffman, R. (2006, July 17). How to buy a student information system. Retrieved April 24, 2011, from School CIO: http://www.schoolcio.com/ShowArticle.aspx
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Web Conference - October 22 & 23, 2011
EDLD 5370 Final Internship Week Three
Web Conference Reflection
Saturday, October 22, 2011 and Sunday, October 23, 2011
Saturday
The Saturday conference discussed the future changes to the Educational Technology Leadership program. We also discussed APA and the use of a variety of resources in our reference lists. Dr. Abernathy said we could use our coursework products placed online as resources.
Sunday
This Sunday at the web conference, Michelle asked a question about the reflection portion of the Validation Summary Report. Dr. Abernathy clarified that these need to be reflections over reflections. In addition, in terms of grading, our weekly grades are just to help us understand the corrections we need to make. Professors review our work at the end in a formal grading event. Several students shared their plans for attending graduation in Beaumont. Dr. Abernathy shared restaurant suggestions with the group.
Web Conference Reflection
Saturday, October 22, 2011 and Sunday, October 23, 2011
Saturday
The Saturday conference discussed the future changes to the Educational Technology Leadership program. We also discussed APA and the use of a variety of resources in our reference lists. Dr. Abernathy said we could use our coursework products placed online as resources.
Sunday
This Sunday at the web conference, Michelle asked a question about the reflection portion of the Validation Summary Report. Dr. Abernathy clarified that these need to be reflections over reflections. In addition, in terms of grading, our weekly grades are just to help us understand the corrections we need to make. Professors review our work at the end in a formal grading event. Several students shared their plans for attending graduation in Beaumont. Dr. Abernathy shared restaurant suggestions with the group.
5370 Week Three Assignment Part 3.4
Janet Kelly ET 8027/Cohort 13
October 22, 2011
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.4: Reflections on Course-Embedded Assignments for EDLD 5366 Digital Graphics, Animation and Desktop Publishing.
Self–Assessment
During the course Digital Graphics, Animation and Desktop Publishing, I created a newsletter on social networking for teachers. I had never learned about the four components of design, CRAP – content, repetition, alignment and proximity, before taking this course. I have since been able to use it in a variety of ways. When I created a Facebook PowerPoint for sixth graders, I utilized these techniques as I created my slides. I had also never thought about creating a newsletter based on what people want to read. To me, a school newsletter is about giving essential information to the community to keep stakeholders informed. We learned that to make the newsletter meaningful, we need to find out what people want to know. The article Planning Newsletters stated “Before investing the time in producing a newsletter, consider designing a survey to find out what parents want” (Lamb, 2005). I now try to consider this insight as I plan future newsletters I create.
We also through our assignments learned how to model digital-age work to our students. By creating the newsletter, personal logo, and animation, we now have a skill set we can exemplify to our students. And thus, we have fulfilled ISTE”S standard to “plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 44).
Learn as a Learner
My Skype friends were helpful to me in both answering questions about mechanics and content for my newsletter. I also enjoyed making an animation for Christmas using the program Scratch. My son learned the program with me and he still calls me to the computer to see his animations (usually some form of transforming robot). Whenever the coursework asked me to learn a new program, I found that my initial product took about fifteen hours of computer time (Kelly, The nativity, 2010). The second product from that program would take about half that time. This was true of learning the animation program.
As a learner, I would like to have to have more patience in learning new programs and this may require a change in approach. For example, I recently acquired a new android phone. It has many capabilities on it, but I keep trying just to figure it out. If I had watched You Tube demonstrations on it weeks ago or even read the manual, I would far more advanced in my use. “Just in time” learning is good, but having a little prior knowledge is even better.
Lifelong Learning Skills
One of the things that I learned creating the newsletter on social networking was from the content of my newsletter. This was to be very selective in who I chose to be my online friends. Since my husband served as superintendent in the district, I was very cautious about befriending teachers. However, since he has resigned to become a superintendent in another district, we are all friends now. It has been a lot a fun to get to see their personal lives.
In learning about personal branding, we found that it is important to create our own online identities. In the online article Personal Branding 101, the author writes “…it is crucial to monitor and define our online identities. We need to start thinking of those Google results as our resume and clean up anything that doesn’t belong there” (Schawbel, 2009).
One the future challenges I see is the need to keep on top of social networking privacy issues. Through the topic of my newsletter, I became aware of the social and human issues surrounding social networking as “technologists must understand the emerging issues and shape technology use for the common good” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 123). This could be a topic for a future newsletter. I also would like to master the creation of borders in my future newsletters. I do think my newsletter was informative and I shared it my Instructional Technologist friends (Kelly, Techlearner 7, 2010).
In the future, I plan to create a new logo. I think it would be beneficial to make one for use on stationery and email signatures. It was fun to make the logo and now that I am educated on logo design, I would like to make one that is more personal. I am a letter writer would love to add this to my correspondence.
Bibliography
Kelly, J. (2010). Techlearner 7. Retrieved Oct 2011, 22, from Wikispaces.com: http://techlearner7.wikispaces.com/file/view/DIGITAL+SOCIAL+WISDOM+newsletter+for+EDLD+5366+full+text+pdf+submission.pdf
Kelly, J. (2010). The nativity. Retrieved Oct 2011, 22, from Techlearner 7: http://techlearner7.wikispaces.com/EDLD+5366+Digital+Graphics%2C+Animation+and+Desktop+Publishing
Lamb, A. (2005). Planning newletters. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Eduscapes: http://eduscapes.com/sessions/publishing/planning.htm
Schawbel, D. (2009). Personal branding 101: How to disco
ver and create your brand. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from mashable: http://mashable.com/2009/02/05/personal-branding-101/
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
October 22, 2011
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.4: Reflections on Course-Embedded Assignments for EDLD 5366 Digital Graphics, Animation and Desktop Publishing.
Self–Assessment
During the course Digital Graphics, Animation and Desktop Publishing, I created a newsletter on social networking for teachers. I had never learned about the four components of design, CRAP – content, repetition, alignment and proximity, before taking this course. I have since been able to use it in a variety of ways. When I created a Facebook PowerPoint for sixth graders, I utilized these techniques as I created my slides. I had also never thought about creating a newsletter based on what people want to read. To me, a school newsletter is about giving essential information to the community to keep stakeholders informed. We learned that to make the newsletter meaningful, we need to find out what people want to know. The article Planning Newsletters stated “Before investing the time in producing a newsletter, consider designing a survey to find out what parents want” (Lamb, 2005). I now try to consider this insight as I plan future newsletters I create.
We also through our assignments learned how to model digital-age work to our students. By creating the newsletter, personal logo, and animation, we now have a skill set we can exemplify to our students. And thus, we have fulfilled ISTE”S standard to “plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 44).
Learn as a Learner
My Skype friends were helpful to me in both answering questions about mechanics and content for my newsletter. I also enjoyed making an animation for Christmas using the program Scratch. My son learned the program with me and he still calls me to the computer to see his animations (usually some form of transforming robot). Whenever the coursework asked me to learn a new program, I found that my initial product took about fifteen hours of computer time (Kelly, The nativity, 2010). The second product from that program would take about half that time. This was true of learning the animation program.
As a learner, I would like to have to have more patience in learning new programs and this may require a change in approach. For example, I recently acquired a new android phone. It has many capabilities on it, but I keep trying just to figure it out. If I had watched You Tube demonstrations on it weeks ago or even read the manual, I would far more advanced in my use. “Just in time” learning is good, but having a little prior knowledge is even better.
Lifelong Learning Skills
One of the things that I learned creating the newsletter on social networking was from the content of my newsletter. This was to be very selective in who I chose to be my online friends. Since my husband served as superintendent in the district, I was very cautious about befriending teachers. However, since he has resigned to become a superintendent in another district, we are all friends now. It has been a lot a fun to get to see their personal lives.
In learning about personal branding, we found that it is important to create our own online identities. In the online article Personal Branding 101, the author writes “…it is crucial to monitor and define our online identities. We need to start thinking of those Google results as our resume and clean up anything that doesn’t belong there” (Schawbel, 2009).
One the future challenges I see is the need to keep on top of social networking privacy issues. Through the topic of my newsletter, I became aware of the social and human issues surrounding social networking as “technologists must understand the emerging issues and shape technology use for the common good” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 123). This could be a topic for a future newsletter. I also would like to master the creation of borders in my future newsletters. I do think my newsletter was informative and I shared it my Instructional Technologist friends (Kelly, Techlearner 7, 2010).
In the future, I plan to create a new logo. I think it would be beneficial to make one for use on stationery and email signatures. It was fun to make the logo and now that I am educated on logo design, I would like to make one that is more personal. I am a letter writer would love to add this to my correspondence.
Bibliography
Kelly, J. (2010). Techlearner 7. Retrieved Oct 2011, 22, from Wikispaces.com: http://techlearner7.wikispaces.com/file/view/DIGITAL+SOCIAL+WISDOM+newsletter+for+EDLD+5366+full+text+pdf+submission.pdf
Kelly, J. (2010). The nativity. Retrieved Oct 2011, 22, from Techlearner 7: http://techlearner7.wikispaces.com/EDLD+5366+Digital+Graphics%2C+Animation+and+Desktop+Publishing
Lamb, A. (2005). Planning newletters. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Eduscapes: http://eduscapes.com/sessions/publishing/planning.htm
Schawbel, D. (2009). Personal branding 101: How to disco
ver and create your brand. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from mashable: http://mashable.com/2009/02/05/personal-branding-101/
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Week Three 5370 Part 3.3
Janet Kelly
October 22, 2011
Cohort 13 / ET 8027
EDLD 5370
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.3
Reflections on assignments in EDLD 5326 School and Community Relations
Self–Assessment
The knowledge I gained during the course School and Community Relations was mainly in the area of federal requirements. I really had no idea that the parent training classes held at the schools were part of No Child Left Behind, I just thought it was a nice thing the schools did for parents. Usually they planned a light dinner before the event as an incentive for attendance.
I did always know that stakeholders and their knowledge of the schools is an important facet of public education today. This will become even more important in the coming months as voters listen to those who think schools waste money and those who do not understand the way the legislature funds schools. “Such involvement is valued as a means to generate both needed resources to support school improvement efforts and students” learning, as well as community support for educational expenditures and school referendums” (Sanders & Lewis, 2005, p. 1).
During this course, we created a community outreach program to help students. I chose to write about a program that would have the goal of evening out the playing field for students that are economically disadvantaged. In some ways, my proposed project would monitor the digital divides between the haves and have nots and facilitate the “equitable access to technology resources for all students” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 135)
Learn as a Learner
To complete this assignment, I looked at programs already in place. I chose aspects of the programs I was familiar with and came up with a program called “Kids First”. Reflecting on how I did this assignment, I think that in the future I would look more into the research associated with an endeavor like this one. I think I may find I would tweak the program a little.
This course did not require as much interaction in terms of collaborating with colleagues other than the discussion board. However, as always, my Skype group was great for helping understand assignment expectations. Many were already familiar with NCLB’s requirement for parenting classes and presentations on the school’s AEIS report (Public Education Network, 2002).
Lifelong Learning Skills
One of the lessons that will stay with me in seeing how community relations were at one time a nice thing to do and how they have morphed into a requirement for schools. I do also see the need for the site-based decision making that must occur in schools. School staff, parents, and community leaders all need to work together to create a learning environment that has the most success for the most students. In our School Community Relations lecture series, Dr. Adams spoke “as teachers and schools work to close that achievement gap, it is also important to focus on closing the ‘parent involvement gap’ that exists as well” (Adams).
Bibliography
Adams, N. EDLD 5326 School community relations week 4: Parental involvement among diverse groups. Beaumont: Lamar University.
Network, P. E. (2002). Using NCLB to improve student acheivement: An action guide for community and parent leaders. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from publiceducation.org: http://www.publiceducation.org/pdf/nclb/nclbbook.pdf
Sanders, M., & Lewis, K. (2005). Building bridges toward excellence: Community involvement in high schools. The High School Journal, 88(3) , 1.
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
October 22, 2011
Cohort 13 / ET 8027
EDLD 5370
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.3
Reflections on assignments in EDLD 5326 School and Community Relations
Self–Assessment
The knowledge I gained during the course School and Community Relations was mainly in the area of federal requirements. I really had no idea that the parent training classes held at the schools were part of No Child Left Behind, I just thought it was a nice thing the schools did for parents. Usually they planned a light dinner before the event as an incentive for attendance.
I did always know that stakeholders and their knowledge of the schools is an important facet of public education today. This will become even more important in the coming months as voters listen to those who think schools waste money and those who do not understand the way the legislature funds schools. “Such involvement is valued as a means to generate both needed resources to support school improvement efforts and students” learning, as well as community support for educational expenditures and school referendums” (Sanders & Lewis, 2005, p. 1).
During this course, we created a community outreach program to help students. I chose to write about a program that would have the goal of evening out the playing field for students that are economically disadvantaged. In some ways, my proposed project would monitor the digital divides between the haves and have nots and facilitate the “equitable access to technology resources for all students” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 135)
Learn as a Learner
To complete this assignment, I looked at programs already in place. I chose aspects of the programs I was familiar with and came up with a program called “Kids First”. Reflecting on how I did this assignment, I think that in the future I would look more into the research associated with an endeavor like this one. I think I may find I would tweak the program a little.
This course did not require as much interaction in terms of collaborating with colleagues other than the discussion board. However, as always, my Skype group was great for helping understand assignment expectations. Many were already familiar with NCLB’s requirement for parenting classes and presentations on the school’s AEIS report (Public Education Network, 2002).
Lifelong Learning Skills
One of the lessons that will stay with me in seeing how community relations were at one time a nice thing to do and how they have morphed into a requirement for schools. I do also see the need for the site-based decision making that must occur in schools. School staff, parents, and community leaders all need to work together to create a learning environment that has the most success for the most students. In our School Community Relations lecture series, Dr. Adams spoke “as teachers and schools work to close that achievement gap, it is also important to focus on closing the ‘parent involvement gap’ that exists as well” (Adams).
Bibliography
Adams, N. EDLD 5326 School community relations week 4: Parental involvement among diverse groups. Beaumont: Lamar University.
Network, P. E. (2002). Using NCLB to improve student acheivement: An action guide for community and parent leaders. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from publiceducation.org: http://www.publiceducation.org/pdf/nclb/nclbbook.pdf
Sanders, M., & Lewis, K. (2005). Building bridges toward excellence: Community involvement in high schools. The High School Journal, 88(3) , 1.
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
EDLD 5370 Week 3 part 3.6
Janet Kelly
ET 8027/ Cohort 13
October 22, 2011
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.6: Reflections on Technology Facilitator Standard VI: Social, Ethical, Legal, and Human Issues
Self –Assessment
Standard Six is one of the few standards that has to do with our attitude toward technology. Are we loose with it or do we desire to manage it in such a way as to let in only the good? Technology facilitators need to be “techies” who understand the social consequences of student communication and student work being done on and published through technology. This Standard is one that I was familiar with prior to beginning the Lamar Academic Partnerships program. Our schools are very proactive in teaching students to have a clean online presence. One the most enjoyable internship activities I completed was preparing and presenting a talk to sixth graders on how to have manners online and especially how to protect students’ privacy. It is amazing how many young students are already online in one of these venues, and they all had to lie about their age to make an account.
We also learned about appropriate behavior for teachers in our Human Resources coursework. After reviewing the footage of a mock ARD committee, we created a scenario plan to communicate with the parent the needs of the student and the progress made. Utilizing technology to communicate with the parent was an important part of this assignment. I learned how important that communication can be when emotions are high.
Learn as a Learner
To find activities where I could “shape technology use for the common good” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 123), I spoke with a teacher and asked her how I could help her to teach kids about the social aspect of being online. We came up with the presentation time, worked with a second teacher, and found on open spot on their calendar. I also created a flyer for students to promote a safe and healthy use of using the internet and to remind them of the basic rules of being online – such as working on secure sites and only posting event messages in past tense. I also gave them information for websites that teach about online safety and suggestions for parents for whole house internet filtering.
All the feedback I received for my talk was positive. In my opinion, I should probably have changed up my power point slides a little, as I found myself talking in a slightly different direction in front of the students. I did renew my friendship with her and she just held a going away dinner for me last week, which was very sweet.
To help a student use technology resources to empower a learner struggling in reading, I also downloaded a text to speech program called Verbose Text to Speech (Verbose, 2011). He is able to use this program for understanding directions to assignments and for building fluency in his reading. This was to fulfill “technology facilitators must consider how to use digital-age learning tools to empower students with different learning abilities” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 134).
My favorite activity overall for my internship program has been the mentoring activities I have done. The 2011 Horizon Report states, “Mentoring and preparing students for the world in which they will live is again at the forefront” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, 2011, p. 4). This mentoring relationship allowed me to promote the safe use of technology in regards to family life through several avenues including video, gaming, and cell phone use.
Lifelong Learning Skills
In reflecting on what I have learned on social, ethical, legal and human issues in regards to technology, I think the realization for the future is of the need to be vigilant is the most important lesson. Because of the constant change in technology services and resources, educators must keep up with the changes not only to protect students, but also to understand new exposure risks. Cyber bullying is both real and difficult for parents and educators to grasp the amount of harm done to a student before retaliation occurs.
By participating in a Thinkfinity course on social networking, I was able to learn about another avenue for colleague interaction through the Verizon website for educators (Thinkfinity.org, 2011). This venue allows teachers to post their favorite links and teaching tools and share their own creations with others. The professional learning communities established on the site are across the globe and allow for true cross-culture learning. In addition, it is free, which is very important at this time of diminishing education funds.
Bibliography
(2011). Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Verbose: http://www.nch.com.au/verbose/index.html
(2011). Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Thinkfinity.org: http://thinkfinity.org/
Johnson, L., Adams, S., & Haywood, K. (2011). The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition. Austin: The New Media Consortium.
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
ET 8027/ Cohort 13
October 22, 2011
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.6: Reflections on Technology Facilitator Standard VI: Social, Ethical, Legal, and Human Issues
Self –Assessment
Standard Six is one of the few standards that has to do with our attitude toward technology. Are we loose with it or do we desire to manage it in such a way as to let in only the good? Technology facilitators need to be “techies” who understand the social consequences of student communication and student work being done on and published through technology. This Standard is one that I was familiar with prior to beginning the Lamar Academic Partnerships program. Our schools are very proactive in teaching students to have a clean online presence. One the most enjoyable internship activities I completed was preparing and presenting a talk to sixth graders on how to have manners online and especially how to protect students’ privacy. It is amazing how many young students are already online in one of these venues, and they all had to lie about their age to make an account.
We also learned about appropriate behavior for teachers in our Human Resources coursework. After reviewing the footage of a mock ARD committee, we created a scenario plan to communicate with the parent the needs of the student and the progress made. Utilizing technology to communicate with the parent was an important part of this assignment. I learned how important that communication can be when emotions are high.
Learn as a Learner
To find activities where I could “shape technology use for the common good” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 123), I spoke with a teacher and asked her how I could help her to teach kids about the social aspect of being online. We came up with the presentation time, worked with a second teacher, and found on open spot on their calendar. I also created a flyer for students to promote a safe and healthy use of using the internet and to remind them of the basic rules of being online – such as working on secure sites and only posting event messages in past tense. I also gave them information for websites that teach about online safety and suggestions for parents for whole house internet filtering.
All the feedback I received for my talk was positive. In my opinion, I should probably have changed up my power point slides a little, as I found myself talking in a slightly different direction in front of the students. I did renew my friendship with her and she just held a going away dinner for me last week, which was very sweet.
To help a student use technology resources to empower a learner struggling in reading, I also downloaded a text to speech program called Verbose Text to Speech (Verbose, 2011). He is able to use this program for understanding directions to assignments and for building fluency in his reading. This was to fulfill “technology facilitators must consider how to use digital-age learning tools to empower students with different learning abilities” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 134).
My favorite activity overall for my internship program has been the mentoring activities I have done. The 2011 Horizon Report states, “Mentoring and preparing students for the world in which they will live is again at the forefront” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, 2011, p. 4). This mentoring relationship allowed me to promote the safe use of technology in regards to family life through several avenues including video, gaming, and cell phone use.
Lifelong Learning Skills
In reflecting on what I have learned on social, ethical, legal and human issues in regards to technology, I think the realization for the future is of the need to be vigilant is the most important lesson. Because of the constant change in technology services and resources, educators must keep up with the changes not only to protect students, but also to understand new exposure risks. Cyber bullying is both real and difficult for parents and educators to grasp the amount of harm done to a student before retaliation occurs.
By participating in a Thinkfinity course on social networking, I was able to learn about another avenue for colleague interaction through the Verizon website for educators (Thinkfinity.org, 2011). This venue allows teachers to post their favorite links and teaching tools and share their own creations with others. The professional learning communities established on the site are across the globe and allow for true cross-culture learning. In addition, it is free, which is very important at this time of diminishing education funds.
Bibliography
(2011). Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Verbose: http://www.nch.com.au/verbose/index.html
(2011). Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Thinkfinity.org: http://thinkfinity.org/
Johnson, L., Adams, S., & Haywood, K. (2011). The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition. Austin: The New Media Consortium.
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
EDLD 5370 Assignment 3.5
Janet Kelly L20261945
October 22, 2011
Cohort 13 / ET 8027
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.5: Reflections for Technology Facilitator Standard V: Teaching, Learning, and the Curriculum
Self –Assessment
Learning about how technology can enhance and improve both my personal productivity and professional practice was the most practical application of the program for me. Even if I do not take a techie job in a school district, I will be able to use this knowledge in my daily life.
During the program, I conducted research through interviews and survey about the productivity program Eduphoria: Aware (Eduphoria, 2011). Through this investigation, I was able to see the areas of strength in the program, and the deficiency of training in some areas. Some educators utilized the program fully, but some did not know about program features available to them. The Instructional Technology director will use this information as she plans for future training.
Learn as a Learner
One of the best ways I was able to indentify technology resources and evaluate them was to attend the TASA/TASB conferences with my husband. Booths of technology vendors promoting their wares fill the bottom floor of the convention center. Stopping and talking to each about their programs and hardware advances is a great way to see what is out there and how it works in education. My only problem with this approach is that my husband is nearby, and since he is a superintendent the vendors hone in on him and try to give him the “hard sale” when I am the one asking all the questions. After attending these conferences, I would share with my mentor and others, some of the new technology products available for educators.
Lifelong Learning Skills
One of the opportunities to show a teacher advanced features of productivity tools came at a church picnic. I found a teacher that was struggling to take her adult education program lesson online. Her goal was to get it online so that adult students in other programs around San Antonio could access the lesson from the internet. From what I learned in my Lamar program courseware, I was able to help he take her PowerPoint and use Authorstream to create a slide show that she uploaded to Teachertube or YouTube. I also spoke with her about creating a class wiki so that students could access her class online.
A lifelong skill that I have acquired while participating in the Lamar Academic Partnerships program is to use technology “to participate in online collaborative curricular projects and team activities to build bodies of knowledge around specific topics” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 113). I loved working with my team to create a website teaching about rocks and erosion called Rockin’ with Technology (Wilson, Kelly, Bullock, & Fruge, 2010). This activity taught me how to use Google sites and set up, embed, upload and collaborate on the webpage.
Bibliography
(2011). Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Eduphoria: http://www.eduphoria.net/default.aspx
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Wilson, J., Kelly, J., Bullock, L., & Fruge, V. (2010). EDLD 5366: Team TNT. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Rockin' With Technology: https://sites.google.com/site/edld5364teamtntprojectsite/home
October 22, 2011
Cohort 13 / ET 8027
Week 3 Assignment, Part 3.5: Reflections for Technology Facilitator Standard V: Teaching, Learning, and the Curriculum
Self –Assessment
Learning about how technology can enhance and improve both my personal productivity and professional practice was the most practical application of the program for me. Even if I do not take a techie job in a school district, I will be able to use this knowledge in my daily life.
During the program, I conducted research through interviews and survey about the productivity program Eduphoria: Aware (Eduphoria, 2011). Through this investigation, I was able to see the areas of strength in the program, and the deficiency of training in some areas. Some educators utilized the program fully, but some did not know about program features available to them. The Instructional Technology director will use this information as she plans for future training.
Learn as a Learner
One of the best ways I was able to indentify technology resources and evaluate them was to attend the TASA/TASB conferences with my husband. Booths of technology vendors promoting their wares fill the bottom floor of the convention center. Stopping and talking to each about their programs and hardware advances is a great way to see what is out there and how it works in education. My only problem with this approach is that my husband is nearby, and since he is a superintendent the vendors hone in on him and try to give him the “hard sale” when I am the one asking all the questions. After attending these conferences, I would share with my mentor and others, some of the new technology products available for educators.
Lifelong Learning Skills
One of the opportunities to show a teacher advanced features of productivity tools came at a church picnic. I found a teacher that was struggling to take her adult education program lesson online. Her goal was to get it online so that adult students in other programs around San Antonio could access the lesson from the internet. From what I learned in my Lamar program courseware, I was able to help he take her PowerPoint and use Authorstream to create a slide show that she uploaded to Teachertube or YouTube. I also spoke with her about creating a class wiki so that students could access her class online.
A lifelong skill that I have acquired while participating in the Lamar Academic Partnerships program is to use technology “to participate in online collaborative curricular projects and team activities to build bodies of knowledge around specific topics” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 113). I loved working with my team to create a website teaching about rocks and erosion called Rockin’ with Technology (Wilson, Kelly, Bullock, & Fruge, 2010). This activity taught me how to use Google sites and set up, embed, upload and collaborate on the webpage.
Bibliography
(2011). Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Eduphoria: http://www.eduphoria.net/default.aspx
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Wilson, J., Kelly, J., Bullock, L., & Fruge, V. (2010). EDLD 5366: Team TNT. Retrieved Oct 22, 2011, from Rockin' With Technology: https://sites.google.com/site/edld5364teamtntprojectsite/home
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Week Two Assignment Part 2.6 5370
Week 2 Assignment, Part 2.6 Technology Facilitator IV:
Self–Assessment
Learning about Standard IV, that technology facilitators “apply technology to facilitate a variety of effective assessment and evaluation strategies” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 90) has given me the most new thought about what job I would like in the future. Data to me is fun, and figuring out interesting and beneficial trends in data is an important part of education today.
During our action research class, I selected the topic of data for my project. With my mentor Julie Turner, we decided that the study of the program School Objects: Aware would be an interesting topic to me and a help to her. She was in the beginning year of training teachers to use this data desegregation program and wanted to know how the teachers were using the program and if it was functioning correctly for them.
I gained new information in that I had not understood that the federal and state government requires schools to keep such a huge amount of data on students. Because of the emphasis on standardized testing; testing scores, reports and trends are all needed information for administrators. School must make data driven decisions. I had often heard my superintendent husband talk of data decisions over the past twenty years in his position, but I now understood better what the sources of data were and how schools used them.
My personal experience with using student data for this Standard IV has tweaked my mind about what I think I might like to do in the future.
Learn as a Learner
Learning about how students are assessed today using technology was interesting to me. We often think about teaching using technology to provide a varied approach and meet every student learning style. However, assessing student work through technology allows for even more opportunities for students to convey their learning gained. Testing students for knowledge gained has been a standard for educators for centuries. However, in Chapter 7 of Rose and Meyer’s online book, the authors point out that the medium and methods used to evaluate students greatly affects the accuracy of student assessment. Rose and Meyer (2002) state, “the precision and accuracy of an assessment tool is reliable only to the extent that extraneous factors are removed from the equation” (Barriers to Accurate Assessment section, para.4).
This is true for my student who has auditory processing disorder. When first given the IQ test, a traditional verbal test, this student scored a low average 87. When this same student received a non-verbal IQ test, his score jumped to 101. This shows the traditional assessment tool was inadequate for showing the true level of intellectual skill available to the student.
The discussion board was helpful to my performance in meeting the activities required for Standard IV. Several colleagues gave me suggestions for programs and methods that I could investigate in assessment.
As always, my cohort Skype group was awesome as we learned about assessment through technology.
Lifelong Learning Skills
What I gained from learning about standard IV is students are not limited in the way they can express and show how much they have learned on a given topic. Tests, quizzes, and essays are good. However, photo story projects, wikis, blogs and homemade movies might be better at times. High stakes testing has clouded the assessment horizon. As it states in an ETS article, "the goal is to discover what students know and can do, not to create tricky questions" (Educational Testing Services, 2003).
Personally, I would like to look further into the creation of video memory files that document events and life stories. I am sure someone has already created this type of product, but I would like to use what I have learned to synthesize my children’s lives in digital form. My cohort friends and I plan to attend graduation with some walking and some heckling. It would be a fun event to document.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from CAST: http://www.cast.org/teaching everystudent/ideas/tes/
Services, E. T. (2003). Linking student assessment with student learning. Retrieved March 20, 2010, from ETS: http://www.ets.org/media/tests/TOEFL_Institutional_Testing_Program/ELLM2002.pdf
Self–Assessment
Learning about Standard IV, that technology facilitators “apply technology to facilitate a variety of effective assessment and evaluation strategies” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 90) has given me the most new thought about what job I would like in the future. Data to me is fun, and figuring out interesting and beneficial trends in data is an important part of education today.
During our action research class, I selected the topic of data for my project. With my mentor Julie Turner, we decided that the study of the program School Objects: Aware would be an interesting topic to me and a help to her. She was in the beginning year of training teachers to use this data desegregation program and wanted to know how the teachers were using the program and if it was functioning correctly for them.
I gained new information in that I had not understood that the federal and state government requires schools to keep such a huge amount of data on students. Because of the emphasis on standardized testing; testing scores, reports and trends are all needed information for administrators. School must make data driven decisions. I had often heard my superintendent husband talk of data decisions over the past twenty years in his position, but I now understood better what the sources of data were and how schools used them.
My personal experience with using student data for this Standard IV has tweaked my mind about what I think I might like to do in the future.
Learn as a Learner
Learning about how students are assessed today using technology was interesting to me. We often think about teaching using technology to provide a varied approach and meet every student learning style. However, assessing student work through technology allows for even more opportunities for students to convey their learning gained. Testing students for knowledge gained has been a standard for educators for centuries. However, in Chapter 7 of Rose and Meyer’s online book, the authors point out that the medium and methods used to evaluate students greatly affects the accuracy of student assessment. Rose and Meyer (2002) state, “the precision and accuracy of an assessment tool is reliable only to the extent that extraneous factors are removed from the equation” (Barriers to Accurate Assessment section, para.4).
This is true for my student who has auditory processing disorder. When first given the IQ test, a traditional verbal test, this student scored a low average 87. When this same student received a non-verbal IQ test, his score jumped to 101. This shows the traditional assessment tool was inadequate for showing the true level of intellectual skill available to the student.
The discussion board was helpful to my performance in meeting the activities required for Standard IV. Several colleagues gave me suggestions for programs and methods that I could investigate in assessment.
As always, my cohort Skype group was awesome as we learned about assessment through technology.
Lifelong Learning Skills
What I gained from learning about standard IV is students are not limited in the way they can express and show how much they have learned on a given topic. Tests, quizzes, and essays are good. However, photo story projects, wikis, blogs and homemade movies might be better at times. High stakes testing has clouded the assessment horizon. As it states in an ETS article, "the goal is to discover what students know and can do, not to create tricky questions" (Educational Testing Services, 2003).
Personally, I would like to look further into the creation of video memory files that document events and life stories. I am sure someone has already created this type of product, but I would like to use what I have learned to synthesize my children’s lives in digital form. My cohort friends and I plan to attend graduation with some walking and some heckling. It would be a fun event to document.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from CAST: http://www.cast.org/teaching everystudent/ideas/tes/
Services, E. T. (2003). Linking student assessment with student learning. Retrieved March 20, 2010, from ETS: http://www.ets.org/media/tests/TOEFL_Institutional_Testing_Program/ELLM2002.pdf
Week Two Assignment Part 2.5 5370
Week 2 Assignment, Part 2.5 Technology Facilitator III
Self–Assessment
Before I began the Lamar Academic Partnerships master’s program, I was unsure about all that a technology facilitator did. I have a friend in this position, and she enjoys her work very much. As I have worked through the ISTE standards in my internship, I believe Standard III most encompasses what I previously thought this position entailed.
Using technology to help with planning the curriculum to help maximize student learning was the topic of a former professor of mine, Dr. Mike Burger, at Texas A&M University. He tried to sell his software program back in 1987. This was at a time when the first resource websites for research were introduced, and you had to be a formal member of the library association to get access to published papers.
The new information that I have gained concerning addressing students’ needs is that we need to have technology readily available as they live in the “net” generation. The influx of information available to students creates new learning objectives – goals that students learn to be responsible digital citizens, and are able to collaborate, communicate, and think critically. In the book, Web 2.0 - New tools, new schools, the authors state, “constructivism views learning as a process in which the learner actively constructs or generates new ideas or concepts based upon current and past knowledge. With a constructivist approach to learning, students build on what they already know and what they learn…. Teachers encourage students to think about what they already know about a topic, search for new information, and collaborate with others to solve realistic problems and derive new understanding” (Solomon and Schrum, 2007, p. 38). I understand better how this is a critical understanding for teachers today.
Learn as a Learner
The approach that I took to fulfill my internship for Standard III was to seek out students and teacher friends to create opportunity to practice. Since I am not employed, I had to be resourceful to get things accomplished. Some of the internship activities completed for Standard III include showing a student how to create a Wordle poster, helping a parent enroll and participate in the Texas Virtual Network for their child, and teaching a student how to create a blog to place their artwork out on the internet.
In addition, as stated in our book Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, “Applied effectively, technology implementation not only increases student learning, understanding and achievement but also augments motivation to learn” (Pilter, 2007, p. 3). Motivating students is a key ingredient for a successful learning experience.
Lifelong Learning
Although I have had a late start, earning my master’s degree in my forties has been an exercise in lifelong learning skills. Receiving a degree through an online program has made the degree even more valuable to me because the need for online learning is only going to grow exponentially in the future and now I am ahead of the game. I agree with education blogger David Warlick who states, “The question becomes, ‘What do children need to be learning today, to be ready for an unpredictable future?’ ...and the answer is simple. The best thing we can be teaching our children today, is how to teach themselves” (Warlick, 2011, para. 8).
I definitely believe collaboration with my cohort colleagues on the discussion board was very helpful in giving me a fuller grasp of how we integrate technology into the curriculum. These advisors gave me ideas for my internship activities. I also volunteered to teach a lesson on social networking for a sixth grade teacher, and this friendship led to an opportunity to add technology components to her lesson on rocketry.
In the future, I hope I can continue to utilize available content on the web to learn new things. I will incorporate technology more easily into my children’s lives as I show them ways to use technology to help them learn more effectively. I will try to keep up with the latest technology trends in education. I have to wonder, what will the 2012 Horizon Report say?
Works Cited
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0: new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
Warlick, D. (2011, Feb 15). Cracking the "native" information experience in Hong Kong. Retrieved Feb 22, 2011, from David Warlick: http://davidwarlick.com/wordpress/
Self–Assessment
Before I began the Lamar Academic Partnerships master’s program, I was unsure about all that a technology facilitator did. I have a friend in this position, and she enjoys her work very much. As I have worked through the ISTE standards in my internship, I believe Standard III most encompasses what I previously thought this position entailed.
Using technology to help with planning the curriculum to help maximize student learning was the topic of a former professor of mine, Dr. Mike Burger, at Texas A&M University. He tried to sell his software program back in 1987. This was at a time when the first resource websites for research were introduced, and you had to be a formal member of the library association to get access to published papers.
The new information that I have gained concerning addressing students’ needs is that we need to have technology readily available as they live in the “net” generation. The influx of information available to students creates new learning objectives – goals that students learn to be responsible digital citizens, and are able to collaborate, communicate, and think critically. In the book, Web 2.0 - New tools, new schools, the authors state, “constructivism views learning as a process in which the learner actively constructs or generates new ideas or concepts based upon current and past knowledge. With a constructivist approach to learning, students build on what they already know and what they learn…. Teachers encourage students to think about what they already know about a topic, search for new information, and collaborate with others to solve realistic problems and derive new understanding” (Solomon and Schrum, 2007, p. 38). I understand better how this is a critical understanding for teachers today.
Learn as a Learner
The approach that I took to fulfill my internship for Standard III was to seek out students and teacher friends to create opportunity to practice. Since I am not employed, I had to be resourceful to get things accomplished. Some of the internship activities completed for Standard III include showing a student how to create a Wordle poster, helping a parent enroll and participate in the Texas Virtual Network for their child, and teaching a student how to create a blog to place their artwork out on the internet.
In addition, as stated in our book Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, “Applied effectively, technology implementation not only increases student learning, understanding and achievement but also augments motivation to learn” (Pilter, 2007, p. 3). Motivating students is a key ingredient for a successful learning experience.
Lifelong Learning
Although I have had a late start, earning my master’s degree in my forties has been an exercise in lifelong learning skills. Receiving a degree through an online program has made the degree even more valuable to me because the need for online learning is only going to grow exponentially in the future and now I am ahead of the game. I agree with education blogger David Warlick who states, “The question becomes, ‘What do children need to be learning today, to be ready for an unpredictable future?’ ...and the answer is simple. The best thing we can be teaching our children today, is how to teach themselves” (Warlick, 2011, para. 8).
I definitely believe collaboration with my cohort colleagues on the discussion board was very helpful in giving me a fuller grasp of how we integrate technology into the curriculum. These advisors gave me ideas for my internship activities. I also volunteered to teach a lesson on social networking for a sixth grade teacher, and this friendship led to an opportunity to add technology components to her lesson on rocketry.
In the future, I hope I can continue to utilize available content on the web to learn new things. I will incorporate technology more easily into my children’s lives as I show them ways to use technology to help them learn more effectively. I will try to keep up with the latest technology trends in education. I have to wonder, what will the 2012 Horizon Report say?
Works Cited
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0: new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
Warlick, D. (2011, Feb 15). Cracking the "native" information experience in Hong Kong. Retrieved Feb 22, 2011, from David Warlick: http://davidwarlick.com/wordpress/
Week Two Assignment Part 2.4 5370
Week 2 Assignment, Part 2.4: Reflections on Course-Embedded Assignments for EDLD 5364 Teaching with Technology
Self-Assessment
During our course EDLD 5364 Teaching with Technology, our cohort became good friends. The creation of a wiki together and the delegation of tasks amongst us over miles and miles of Texas were new for me. Our group scenario team included Julia Wilson, Lynne Bullock, Vicki Fruge and myself. Our team leader was Julia who is a current 5th grade science teacher. She was great at leading our group and coming up with snazzy ideas to “wow” our fictional classroom teacher in the scenario. She also had oodles of material available readily for the rest of the group to use in creating our UDL (Universal Design for Learning) lessons. We chose to create lessons surrounding a unit of earth science that covered weathering, erosion, earthquakes and the rock cycle.
Prior to this course, I had never heard of the UDL approach to teaching or the CAST organization. Although I realized teachers today had many students with varying abilities in their classrooms, I began to understand how enormous the expectations are for teachers and how important the appropriate use of the technology in the classroom has become.
Reflecting together about our experience making an electronic book was helpful to the others because we each had a slightly different perspective on how we would create our books. We each had to contribute to make our Rockin’ site function, but we were able to delegate according to strengths and preferences. In addition, I had only created one wiki prior to this assignment. I learned many new things about the Google wiki, as opposed to the Wiki space’s wiki I had already formed.
Learn as a Learner
As this was my first experience with the UDL, I found the organization interesting. Applied Special Technology (CAST) advances individualized goals through a variety of media and individualized curriculum embedded with flexible supports (Rose & Meyer, 2002). In my UDL lesson, students completed a lab and then they were to create a Photo Story of the lab following a rubric. They could do the minimum requirements or they could expand of the rubric to do a longer and more elaborate Photo Story. “Specific, criterion-referenced rubrics let students know exactly what is expected of them” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 30). In creating the Photo Story, students engage in higher-level thinking. In the book, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, the authors state, “the most engaging learning comes from having the student create the presentation or movie themselves as a part of the learning process” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 104). This progression of expectations based on the student’s interest and motivation is an idea I had not contemplated recently.
To approach this assignment, I utilized the energy and availability of my children. I wanted to create a Photo story myself to see if this was a feasible assignment that the students could accomplish. We think our Photo story turned out great and was fun to make. To assess my work, I submitted my Photo story, UDL lesson and electronic book to the Google site, and let my colleagues review and analyze it.
My interaction with my fellow students was crucial for the success of my assignment and the whole Google site. We created a sub - Skype group from Cohort 13. We also had one video call during the time of the course. The discussion board mainly dealt with our readings for the week, but the web conferences are usually the place to go to get clarification on what is expected of the master’s students in the Lamar program.
Lifelong Learning Skills
Reflecting of what I have gained about learning, I would first have to say the realization of the large expectations on teachers to provide diversified teaching to each student still shocks me. With my own seven children, each with their strengths and weaknesses, it challenges me mentally to keep up with who is doing what and who is asking for what. I cannot imagine doing that with a class of twenty-five or more. The second thing I gained is the understanding of how productive a wiki can be in the classroom setting. Allowing students to upload documents and creations to a group wiki is a great way to diversify teaching and allow for student creativity.
My collaboration with my cohort colleagues will be a positive memory and encourage me in my future learning to seek out online communication to stay up-to-date on what is going on in my coursework or field.
Thinking on future activities, I am interested in finding more online book programs such as the UDL one that allows for the creation of electronic books. I believe some students I know would benefit from this approach to reading.
Works Cited
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from CAST: http://www.cast.org/teaching everystudent/ideas/tes/
Self-Assessment
During our course EDLD 5364 Teaching with Technology, our cohort became good friends. The creation of a wiki together and the delegation of tasks amongst us over miles and miles of Texas were new for me. Our group scenario team included Julia Wilson, Lynne Bullock, Vicki Fruge and myself. Our team leader was Julia who is a current 5th grade science teacher. She was great at leading our group and coming up with snazzy ideas to “wow” our fictional classroom teacher in the scenario. She also had oodles of material available readily for the rest of the group to use in creating our UDL (Universal Design for Learning) lessons. We chose to create lessons surrounding a unit of earth science that covered weathering, erosion, earthquakes and the rock cycle.
Prior to this course, I had never heard of the UDL approach to teaching or the CAST organization. Although I realized teachers today had many students with varying abilities in their classrooms, I began to understand how enormous the expectations are for teachers and how important the appropriate use of the technology in the classroom has become.
Reflecting together about our experience making an electronic book was helpful to the others because we each had a slightly different perspective on how we would create our books. We each had to contribute to make our Rockin’ site function, but we were able to delegate according to strengths and preferences. In addition, I had only created one wiki prior to this assignment. I learned many new things about the Google wiki, as opposed to the Wiki space’s wiki I had already formed.
Learn as a Learner
As this was my first experience with the UDL, I found the organization interesting. Applied Special Technology (CAST) advances individualized goals through a variety of media and individualized curriculum embedded with flexible supports (Rose & Meyer, 2002). In my UDL lesson, students completed a lab and then they were to create a Photo Story of the lab following a rubric. They could do the minimum requirements or they could expand of the rubric to do a longer and more elaborate Photo Story. “Specific, criterion-referenced rubrics let students know exactly what is expected of them” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 30). In creating the Photo Story, students engage in higher-level thinking. In the book, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, the authors state, “the most engaging learning comes from having the student create the presentation or movie themselves as a part of the learning process” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 104). This progression of expectations based on the student’s interest and motivation is an idea I had not contemplated recently.
To approach this assignment, I utilized the energy and availability of my children. I wanted to create a Photo story myself to see if this was a feasible assignment that the students could accomplish. We think our Photo story turned out great and was fun to make. To assess my work, I submitted my Photo story, UDL lesson and electronic book to the Google site, and let my colleagues review and analyze it.
My interaction with my fellow students was crucial for the success of my assignment and the whole Google site. We created a sub - Skype group from Cohort 13. We also had one video call during the time of the course. The discussion board mainly dealt with our readings for the week, but the web conferences are usually the place to go to get clarification on what is expected of the master’s students in the Lamar program.
Lifelong Learning Skills
Reflecting of what I have gained about learning, I would first have to say the realization of the large expectations on teachers to provide diversified teaching to each student still shocks me. With my own seven children, each with their strengths and weaknesses, it challenges me mentally to keep up with who is doing what and who is asking for what. I cannot imagine doing that with a class of twenty-five or more. The second thing I gained is the understanding of how productive a wiki can be in the classroom setting. Allowing students to upload documents and creations to a group wiki is a great way to diversify teaching and allow for student creativity.
My collaboration with my cohort colleagues will be a positive memory and encourage me in my future learning to seek out online communication to stay up-to-date on what is going on in my coursework or field.
Thinking on future activities, I am interested in finding more online book programs such as the UDL one that allows for the creation of electronic books. I believe some students I know would benefit from this approach to reading.
Works Cited
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from CAST: http://www.cast.org/teaching everystudent/ideas/tes/
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Week Two Assignment Part 2.3 5370
Week 2 Assignment, Part 2.3: Reflections on Course-Embedded Assignments for EDLD 5362 Information Systems Management
Self–Assessment
In the course EDLD 5362 Information Systems Management, I gained a greater understanding of the enormous information kept on students. I also gained knowledge of how important it is to protect that information. Just today, the San Antonio Express News had the front-page headline “SAISD website exposes students’ personal info” (Kastner, 2011, p. 1A). The website listed student social security numbers, phone numbers, birth dates, addresses and reasons why the district considers them potential dropouts. How embarrassing for that district and as well, student information managers who read that article, I am sure, went over their own website to check on it.
Previously, I did not realize the amount of information kept on students. I did know that most districts so not hold onto paper discipline records from one year to the next. Now that everything is kept in a software program, behavior patterns among students will emerge.
Learn as a Learner
The approach I took to complete this assignment was to interview two central office administrators – the technology director and the assistant superintendent for finance. Each had different perspectives on the costs analysis of the future purchase of a new student information system called ITCCS – Internet-based Texas Computer Cooperative Software. Just seeing how they looked at the topic differently was interesting. The technology director was excited about the back up possibilities and the close proximity to Region XX, which would allow for easy access to troubleshooting and professional development opportunities. The assistant superintendent for finance could quote me the cost - $150,000 per year. I had the opportunity to interview the technology director who answered many questions about the upcoming switch to this new information system. Since the new school year has started, I use this system now to keep track of my four sons in public school. I can get text alerts for attendance, tardies, failing grades and missing assignments. The forty-five minute interview with the technology director enhanced my performance on this assignment. He was able to answer all my questions needed for my courseware and helped me to understand how it all worked and how I would benefit as a parent.
The iTCCS program is new to our district this fall. Professional support for implementation will need to be strong for the first year. “The support needs for a new SIS are intense. Implementation normally requires more than a full year of focused effort on the part of the district. After the initial installation and conversion process, there are periodic events in the school year – grading periods, semester schedule changes, and end-of-year processes – that can present challenges for the SIS” (McIntire, 2004, para. 14). Teachers need these skills taught in “just in time learning” to meet these challenges during the year.
I posted my newfound information on my blog and took the time to explain it better to other parents and teacher friends. The only negative I have heard about this program after its implementation is from teachers. The old program would highlight a failing grade when they inputted it in the program. This one does not, so they find that they do not see their mistakes as easily.
Lifelong Learning Skills
In thinking about this coursework for EDLD 5362, I believe the understanding I received concerning the importance of the software features set will enhance my future learning. It seems even the smallest characteristic can make a program not user-friendly and annoying. My Skype group was also very helpful with this assignment as we talked about all the different programs our districts employ. I also will remember that it is essential to choose software that is specific to your state, so that your reports are readily available. This new program changes as Texas’s reporting requirements change. What a relief for those who turn in those reports. Richard Hoffman wrote in his article How to Buy a Student Information System how Information Officer Wesley Watts desired a district program that had easy “reporting, school-to-parent communication, scheduling, attendance, and enrollment” changes (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3). “The district’s overarching goal: accessing real-time, accurate data across the board” (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3).
In the future, I hope to look into the possibility of combining two school software programs. It seems redundant to me that each district must have a SIS program for reporting to the state and keeping up grades and attendance. Yet, districts must purchase another software program, like School Objects: Aware, to keep track of data associated with standardized testing. It seems to me this is a worthy goal of the future.
Works Cited
Hoffman, R. (2006, July 17). How to buy a student information system. Retrieved April 24, 2011, from School CIO: http://www.schoolcio.com/ShowArticle.aspx
Kastner, L. (2011, October 15). SAISD website exposes students' personal info. San Antonio Express News, p. 1A.
McIntire, T. (2004, May 15). Student information systems demystified. Retrieved April 24, 2011, from Tech & Learning: http://www.techlearning.com/article/13878
Self–Assessment
In the course EDLD 5362 Information Systems Management, I gained a greater understanding of the enormous information kept on students. I also gained knowledge of how important it is to protect that information. Just today, the San Antonio Express News had the front-page headline “SAISD website exposes students’ personal info” (Kastner, 2011, p. 1A). The website listed student social security numbers, phone numbers, birth dates, addresses and reasons why the district considers them potential dropouts. How embarrassing for that district and as well, student information managers who read that article, I am sure, went over their own website to check on it.
Previously, I did not realize the amount of information kept on students. I did know that most districts so not hold onto paper discipline records from one year to the next. Now that everything is kept in a software program, behavior patterns among students will emerge.
Learn as a Learner
The approach I took to complete this assignment was to interview two central office administrators – the technology director and the assistant superintendent for finance. Each had different perspectives on the costs analysis of the future purchase of a new student information system called ITCCS – Internet-based Texas Computer Cooperative Software. Just seeing how they looked at the topic differently was interesting. The technology director was excited about the back up possibilities and the close proximity to Region XX, which would allow for easy access to troubleshooting and professional development opportunities. The assistant superintendent for finance could quote me the cost - $150,000 per year. I had the opportunity to interview the technology director who answered many questions about the upcoming switch to this new information system. Since the new school year has started, I use this system now to keep track of my four sons in public school. I can get text alerts for attendance, tardies, failing grades and missing assignments. The forty-five minute interview with the technology director enhanced my performance on this assignment. He was able to answer all my questions needed for my courseware and helped me to understand how it all worked and how I would benefit as a parent.
The iTCCS program is new to our district this fall. Professional support for implementation will need to be strong for the first year. “The support needs for a new SIS are intense. Implementation normally requires more than a full year of focused effort on the part of the district. After the initial installation and conversion process, there are periodic events in the school year – grading periods, semester schedule changes, and end-of-year processes – that can present challenges for the SIS” (McIntire, 2004, para. 14). Teachers need these skills taught in “just in time learning” to meet these challenges during the year.
I posted my newfound information on my blog and took the time to explain it better to other parents and teacher friends. The only negative I have heard about this program after its implementation is from teachers. The old program would highlight a failing grade when they inputted it in the program. This one does not, so they find that they do not see their mistakes as easily.
Lifelong Learning Skills
In thinking about this coursework for EDLD 5362, I believe the understanding I received concerning the importance of the software features set will enhance my future learning. It seems even the smallest characteristic can make a program not user-friendly and annoying. My Skype group was also very helpful with this assignment as we talked about all the different programs our districts employ. I also will remember that it is essential to choose software that is specific to your state, so that your reports are readily available. This new program changes as Texas’s reporting requirements change. What a relief for those who turn in those reports. Richard Hoffman wrote in his article How to Buy a Student Information System how Information Officer Wesley Watts desired a district program that had easy “reporting, school-to-parent communication, scheduling, attendance, and enrollment” changes (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3). “The district’s overarching goal: accessing real-time, accurate data across the board” (Hoffman, 2006, para. 3).
In the future, I hope to look into the possibility of combining two school software programs. It seems redundant to me that each district must have a SIS program for reporting to the state and keeping up grades and attendance. Yet, districts must purchase another software program, like School Objects: Aware, to keep track of data associated with standardized testing. It seems to me this is a worthy goal of the future.
Works Cited
Hoffman, R. (2006, July 17). How to buy a student information system. Retrieved April 24, 2011, from School CIO: http://www.schoolcio.com/ShowArticle.aspx
Kastner, L. (2011, October 15). SAISD website exposes students' personal info. San Antonio Express News, p. 1A.
McIntire, T. (2004, May 15). Student information systems demystified. Retrieved April 24, 2011, from Tech & Learning: http://www.techlearning.com/article/13878
Week Two Assignment Part 2.2 5370
A Forward Vision for Technology in Education
As a future education worker, I do believe that I need to stay abreast of the latest technology innovations to keep current. Knowing what are the up and coming technology trends is very important. The 2011 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition discusses the technology that has the most impact right now and will advance quickly in education. This report covers cloud computing, game based learning, mobiles, open content, learning analytics and personal learning environments (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011). These technologies are meeting expectations from parents and educators as the value of creativity is increasing as a means for our nation to stay ahead of India and China in our economy (Pink, 2006). In addition, as the cost of education rises, these technologies provide ways to meet individual learning needs, which include independent study, distance learning, and mentoring relationships (Johnson, Smith, Levine, & Haywood, 2010).
In my desire to fulfill my position goals, as a student working on an online master’s degree, I learned about professional development committees through our varied projects requiring collaboration and collective learning. I also partcipated in the webinar introducing professional learning communities on the Texas Virtual Network. In addition, part of my field based activities included participating in a Verizon Thinkfinity class and joining the included professional learning community. I now understand the dynamics and requirements for distance learning and the need for independent study skills. With many distractions in our lives, family and children, volunteer work and jobs; it is difficult to finish an advanced degree – especially one you complete in your home.
As a educational leader in technology, I hope that I can motivate students through the use of technology in new ways. “The NMC Horizon Report: 2011 K-12 Edition examines emerging technologies for their potential impact on and use in teaching, learning, and creative expression within the environment of pre-college education” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011, p. 3). I believe this creative expression will be the key ingredient to helping students stay motivated in pursuing further education. Allowing for creative use of technology in the classroom allows for balance and diversification to meet the needs of different kinds of learners.
I participate in mentoring programs and hope to continue in this role. I see a need for mentors to help students navigate the waters of the information sea on the internet. “Sense-making and the ability to assess the credibility of information are paramount” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011, p. 4)and because of this, “mentoring and preparing students for the world in which they will live is again at the forefront” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011, p. 4). Helping to create balanced, well-rounded students with a good dose of common sense is the role of a mentor.
By participating in this program, I have been able to fulfill my desire to become more up-to-date in my technology knowledge. I see the classroom of the future as one where students learn wherever and whenever they want. This is something my laptop and I have experienced. I agree with the Horizon Report when it says the mobile students often believe that faster is better (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011).
I plan to take advantage of the open content available on the internet for my students as I move back into the education field. What a wonderful way to motivate students! Learning in depth about topics of great interest allows students to pursue their dreams and test out new ideas for their future.
Works Cited:
Johnson, L., Adams, S., & Haywood, K. (2011). The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition. Austin: The New Media Consortium.
Johnson, L., Smith, R., Levine, A., & Haywood, K. (2010). 2010 Horizon report: k-12 edition. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.
Pink, D. (2006). A whole new mind: Why rightbrainers will rule the world. New York, NY: Riverhead Trade (Paperbacks).
As a future education worker, I do believe that I need to stay abreast of the latest technology innovations to keep current. Knowing what are the up and coming technology trends is very important. The 2011 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition discusses the technology that has the most impact right now and will advance quickly in education. This report covers cloud computing, game based learning, mobiles, open content, learning analytics and personal learning environments (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011). These technologies are meeting expectations from parents and educators as the value of creativity is increasing as a means for our nation to stay ahead of India and China in our economy (Pink, 2006). In addition, as the cost of education rises, these technologies provide ways to meet individual learning needs, which include independent study, distance learning, and mentoring relationships (Johnson, Smith, Levine, & Haywood, 2010).
In my desire to fulfill my position goals, as a student working on an online master’s degree, I learned about professional development committees through our varied projects requiring collaboration and collective learning. I also partcipated in the webinar introducing professional learning communities on the Texas Virtual Network. In addition, part of my field based activities included participating in a Verizon Thinkfinity class and joining the included professional learning community. I now understand the dynamics and requirements for distance learning and the need for independent study skills. With many distractions in our lives, family and children, volunteer work and jobs; it is difficult to finish an advanced degree – especially one you complete in your home.
As a educational leader in technology, I hope that I can motivate students through the use of technology in new ways. “The NMC Horizon Report: 2011 K-12 Edition examines emerging technologies for their potential impact on and use in teaching, learning, and creative expression within the environment of pre-college education” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011, p. 3). I believe this creative expression will be the key ingredient to helping students stay motivated in pursuing further education. Allowing for creative use of technology in the classroom allows for balance and diversification to meet the needs of different kinds of learners.
I participate in mentoring programs and hope to continue in this role. I see a need for mentors to help students navigate the waters of the information sea on the internet. “Sense-making and the ability to assess the credibility of information are paramount” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011, p. 4)and because of this, “mentoring and preparing students for the world in which they will live is again at the forefront” (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011, p. 4). Helping to create balanced, well-rounded students with a good dose of common sense is the role of a mentor.
By participating in this program, I have been able to fulfill my desire to become more up-to-date in my technology knowledge. I see the classroom of the future as one where students learn wherever and whenever they want. This is something my laptop and I have experienced. I agree with the Horizon Report when it says the mobile students often believe that faster is better (Johnson, Adams, & Haywood, The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition, 2011).
I plan to take advantage of the open content available on the internet for my students as I move back into the education field. What a wonderful way to motivate students! Learning in depth about topics of great interest allows students to pursue their dreams and test out new ideas for their future.
Works Cited:
Johnson, L., Adams, S., & Haywood, K. (2011). The NMC horizon report: 2011 K-12 edition. Austin: The New Media Consortium.
Johnson, L., Smith, R., Levine, A., & Haywood, K. (2010). 2010 Horizon report: k-12 edition. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.
Pink, D. (2006). A whole new mind: Why rightbrainers will rule the world. New York, NY: Riverhead Trade (Paperbacks).
web conference - October 15, 2011
I attended the Saturday, October 15, web conference with Dr. Abernathy speaking and Dawn Kirkland, the IA, also in attendance. Some questions arose about APA since the IA hold told one person in our Skype group that all the citations had to be direct quotes. According to Dr. Abernathy, this is not correct. Scholarly writing does allow for both paraphrasing citations and direct quote citations. In addition, questions arose about how to submit our class reflections, since many of us had followed the advice from the very first web conference – not to write about each of the class activities. We had followed the Professor’s directions to reflect on the reflection, but received failing grades because we did not list out all the class activities. This is still a little unclear, but at this point I will do what the grader wants. It was also clarified that our field based activities need to match up with our internship plan.
There was also a doorbell, FEDEX man, talk of taxes and ibuprofen and pain meds. Personally, I take them all, but not for too long or too much. I just change them up enough to avoid the bad effects.
There was also a doorbell, FEDEX man, talk of taxes and ibuprofen and pain meds. Personally, I take them all, but not for too long or too much. I just change them up enough to avoid the bad effects.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
5370 Week One Assignment, Part 1.6 corrected
Week One Assignment Part 1.6 corrected
Self-Assessment
As I reflect upon the knowledge gained under Standard II, I believe this standard contains the most practical use for me. Although I have been out of the classroom for many years, I have seven children. Each is unique in personality and learning style. I now have one college graduate, two in college at Texas A&M, and four in public schools. The need to differentiate learning in the classroom is huge, just based on my own children. This is a daunting task for teachers, and technology is the most cost effective way to accomplish this task. For my internship, for this standard I took a lesson on rocketry for sixth graders and added components of technology for the lesson. I also attended the annual TASB/TASA conference where many vendors market technology resources. This a great place to identify resources and evaluate them for appropriateness in our school.
Learn as a Learner
Standard II, “Educational technology facilitators plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 6) is practical to me. In addition, I love all things practical! I do have to say that the assignments in this area, such as creating a goggle site on earth science and video stories were very time consuming at first. I spent about ten hours on my first attempt and then half as much time on my next try. I gained many gray hairs, but these were all good skills to have and use in the future.
Lifelong Learning Skills
This standard and all that I learned about it in my coursework would definitely help me as a lifelong learner. I especially appreciated all that Dr. Abernathy taught concerning open source software. Before her teaching, I would have been too chicken to use it. I do believe these software opportunities will continue to be developed. In the future, I will know to look for these sources to accomplish the tasks before me. Learning about how to manage technology resources will be an important skill in my future work. Whether I teach at the community college level or just work in a school office, managing student learning through technology and identifying instructional design principals within the realm of technology are important skills.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Self-Assessment
As I reflect upon the knowledge gained under Standard II, I believe this standard contains the most practical use for me. Although I have been out of the classroom for many years, I have seven children. Each is unique in personality and learning style. I now have one college graduate, two in college at Texas A&M, and four in public schools. The need to differentiate learning in the classroom is huge, just based on my own children. This is a daunting task for teachers, and technology is the most cost effective way to accomplish this task. For my internship, for this standard I took a lesson on rocketry for sixth graders and added components of technology for the lesson. I also attended the annual TASB/TASA conference where many vendors market technology resources. This a great place to identify resources and evaluate them for appropriateness in our school.
Learn as a Learner
Standard II, “Educational technology facilitators plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 6) is practical to me. In addition, I love all things practical! I do have to say that the assignments in this area, such as creating a goggle site on earth science and video stories were very time consuming at first. I spent about ten hours on my first attempt and then half as much time on my next try. I gained many gray hairs, but these were all good skills to have and use in the future.
Lifelong Learning Skills
This standard and all that I learned about it in my coursework would definitely help me as a lifelong learner. I especially appreciated all that Dr. Abernathy taught concerning open source software. Before her teaching, I would have been too chicken to use it. I do believe these software opportunities will continue to be developed. In the future, I will know to look for these sources to accomplish the tasks before me. Learning about how to manage technology resources will be an important skill in my future work. Whether I teach at the community college level or just work in a school office, managing student learning through technology and identifying instructional design principals within the realm of technology are important skills.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
5370 Week One Assignment, Part 1.5 corrected
Self-Assessment
As I reflect on the knowledge I have gained throughout this curriculum, Standard I is where I started in knowledge gained. “In TF/TL Standard I: Technology Operations and Concepts, technology facilitators and leaders ensure that their colleagues possess the fundamental understanding and skills needed to operate specific technologies and understand the concepts associated with technology use.” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 17) My previous experience with educational technology was learning to write Disc Operating System code and make rudimentary Artificial Intelligence teaching programs. I later taught computer applications to high school students, but that curriculum from 1990 pales to just the information received in this degree. I know that the students I taught then are now beyond me in my technology abilities because they are now my friends on Facebook. During my internship for my masters program, I was able to assist the technology director by attendance at her training sessions for the new student data system program Aware. I also was able to share websites with sixth, eighth and twelfth grade science teachers for use with simulations and teaching. Sharing with teachers new information I had learned in my masters courses, along with my wiki, electronic book and blog were also an enjoyable and beneficial activity for my field based activities.
Learn as a Learner
Collaboration and experimentation were both important avenues to success. I previously knew subject matter related to hardware, software, care, and maintenance of computers. The new areas for me centered on the use of cloud computing. I had not ventured much into the “cloud” even though I knew of some activities and opportunities available. Learning this standard through internship activities and course assignments opened up new learning for me. I did find it hard to get used to utilizing the open-source software on the web. Previously, I had run into too many viruses and malware, which made me shy away from their use. Now, I feel differently – that I can successfully choose software that is safe.
Lifelong Learning Skills
Learning about the new available software programs through my classes opens up many future opportunities for me. How the educational environment uses these tools is critical for future educational work and learning. So many new capabilities from video technology to podcasts to animation are available now for use. I had not tried to create anything in these areas prior to my Lamar classes. My experiences in my masters’ coursework give me the ability to be a lifelong learner in the “cloud”.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
As I reflect on the knowledge I have gained throughout this curriculum, Standard I is where I started in knowledge gained. “In TF/TL Standard I: Technology Operations and Concepts, technology facilitators and leaders ensure that their colleagues possess the fundamental understanding and skills needed to operate specific technologies and understand the concepts associated with technology use.” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 17) My previous experience with educational technology was learning to write Disc Operating System code and make rudimentary Artificial Intelligence teaching programs. I later taught computer applications to high school students, but that curriculum from 1990 pales to just the information received in this degree. I know that the students I taught then are now beyond me in my technology abilities because they are now my friends on Facebook. During my internship for my masters program, I was able to assist the technology director by attendance at her training sessions for the new student data system program Aware. I also was able to share websites with sixth, eighth and twelfth grade science teachers for use with simulations and teaching. Sharing with teachers new information I had learned in my masters courses, along with my wiki, electronic book and blog were also an enjoyable and beneficial activity for my field based activities.
Learn as a Learner
Collaboration and experimentation were both important avenues to success. I previously knew subject matter related to hardware, software, care, and maintenance of computers. The new areas for me centered on the use of cloud computing. I had not ventured much into the “cloud” even though I knew of some activities and opportunities available. Learning this standard through internship activities and course assignments opened up new learning for me. I did find it hard to get used to utilizing the open-source software on the web. Previously, I had run into too many viruses and malware, which made me shy away from their use. Now, I feel differently – that I can successfully choose software that is safe.
Lifelong Learning Skills
Learning about the new available software programs through my classes opens up many future opportunities for me. How the educational environment uses these tools is critical for future educational work and learning. So many new capabilities from video technology to podcasts to animation are available now for use. I had not tried to create anything in these areas prior to my Lamar classes. My experiences in my masters’ coursework give me the ability to be a lifelong learner in the “cloud”.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
5370 Week One Assignment, Part 1.4 corrected
Self-Assessment
The course Leadership for Accountability covered a large portion of the educational topics discussed today. Although I had read AEIS results on our schools, I did not understand the scope of the information held within it. As well as how much it played into the campus improvement plan and the school ratings. I also had never created a personal vision of leadership. I believe this new information received will be very useful to me. I now understand all those charts and understand how some do not understand them and criticize schools as a result. Specifically, I analyzed the AEIS report for my elementary school and determined that Fifth grade science needed attention. My coursework required that I develop an action plan for addressing this need and a professional development day to equip teachers. In the article, Student Achievement through Staff Development, the authors start”from the premise that training needs to enable people to learn new knowledge and skills and to transfer these into their practice” (Joyce & Showers, 2003, p. 2).
Learn as a Learner
To learn this material, I analyzed the data and research the information given to me. Interviewing members of the campus improvement plan helped me gain insight in the workings of this committee. It is much more than planning how to spend the PTO fundraising money. I did well in this course in my grades and enjoyed what I learned. It was very helpful in understanding how the federal government is influencing the functioning of schools today. Learning about the Eduphoria product Aware helped me understand the need for data disaggregation software that is user friendly. The Aware program promises to be technology that “supports data disaggregation, provides data access, and generates useful data displays” (Ronka, Lachat, Slaughter, & Meltzer, January 2009, p. 18).
Lifelong Learning Skills
The many interviews conducted concerning the Campus Improvement Plan helped me forge some new friendships. I also took much advice from the members of my Skype group who all participate in some way on this committee. I do hope someday to participate as a member of a CIP, quite possible as the parent representative. Planning a professional development day was also a fun and productive activity. Our class work also required us to come up with a plan for monitoring progress and altering the path taken if results were not achieved.
Joyce, B., & Showers, B. (2003). Student acheivement through staff development. National College for School Leadership , 1-5.
Ronka, D., Lachat, M., Slaughter, R., & Meltzer, J. (January 2009). Answering the questions that count. Educational Leadership , 18-24.
The course Leadership for Accountability covered a large portion of the educational topics discussed today. Although I had read AEIS results on our schools, I did not understand the scope of the information held within it. As well as how much it played into the campus improvement plan and the school ratings. I also had never created a personal vision of leadership. I believe this new information received will be very useful to me. I now understand all those charts and understand how some do not understand them and criticize schools as a result. Specifically, I analyzed the AEIS report for my elementary school and determined that Fifth grade science needed attention. My coursework required that I develop an action plan for addressing this need and a professional development day to equip teachers. In the article, Student Achievement through Staff Development, the authors start”from the premise that training needs to enable people to learn new knowledge and skills and to transfer these into their practice” (Joyce & Showers, 2003, p. 2).
Learn as a Learner
To learn this material, I analyzed the data and research the information given to me. Interviewing members of the campus improvement plan helped me gain insight in the workings of this committee. It is much more than planning how to spend the PTO fundraising money. I did well in this course in my grades and enjoyed what I learned. It was very helpful in understanding how the federal government is influencing the functioning of schools today. Learning about the Eduphoria product Aware helped me understand the need for data disaggregation software that is user friendly. The Aware program promises to be technology that “supports data disaggregation, provides data access, and generates useful data displays” (Ronka, Lachat, Slaughter, & Meltzer, January 2009, p. 18).
Lifelong Learning Skills
The many interviews conducted concerning the Campus Improvement Plan helped me forge some new friendships. I also took much advice from the members of my Skype group who all participate in some way on this committee. I do hope someday to participate as a member of a CIP, quite possible as the parent representative. Planning a professional development day was also a fun and productive activity. Our class work also required us to come up with a plan for monitoring progress and altering the path taken if results were not achieved.
Joyce, B., & Showers, B. (2003). Student acheivement through staff development. National College for School Leadership , 1-5.
Ronka, D., Lachat, M., Slaughter, R., & Meltzer, J. (January 2009). Answering the questions that count. Educational Leadership , 18-24.
Week One Assignment, Part 1.3 corrected
Self–Assessment
During EDLD 5306, the first course of my program, each student took several self assessments including the Kersey Temperament sorter, the Multiple Intelligence Inventory, a leadership skills assessment and a technology literacy self assessment. I found that my temperament is a guardian – someone who is service oriented and is characteristically loyal. In the book the Five Love Languages of Children, a guardian would be a person who showed love through “acts of service” (Chapman, 1997, p. 94)
Prior to taking this test, I would have thought my personality was more of a problem solver as in trying to repair items mechanically. I am inclined to do many of these tasks alone, but I am not strong willed in my desire to achieve. If I were, it would not have taken me twenty-four years to finish this degree.
I enjoyed the tests because I had not thought about my aptitudes or skills in many years. When I think of being a stay-at-home, I realize that I do naturally use my aptitudes in my day. I can recognize also when I am misunderstood and why.
EDLD 5306 also required that I look into the STaR chart for one of our schools and several data documents that are used for databased decisions in schools. I learned that schools data fills schools and the most important skill is figuring out what data is important. “As we become increasingly overwhelmed by information, we must work hard to decide which information we are going to ignore” (Warlick, 2007, p. 21).
We also compared the national Technology Plan with the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology. This was interesting as the national plan seemed to follow what Texas as already accomplished. We also looked at the changing roles of teachers and students as technology is integrated into the classroom. And we learned about the essential support needed from administrators so that technology is smoothly integrated into the classroom. During the course, we demonstrated both ISTE standard I and standard II by creating a PowerPoint presentation analyzing our campus STaR chart. This included Technology Facilitation Standard I – “Educational Technology facilitators demonstrate and in-depth understanding of technology operations and concepts” and Standard II – “Communicate research on the use of technology to implement effective assessment and evaluation strategies” (Redish & Williamson, 2009).
Our cohort each created our own wiki and many joined each other’s wiki for collaboration. We also formed a tight knit Skype group.
Learn as a Learner
To complete the assignment, I answered all of the needed questions for the assessments. I then analyzed the results and compared them to the given results and measures. This course allowed me to critically analyze my current knowledge of the subject matter and identify areas of strength and target weaknesses. I have always been a visual learner. I remember where I see things and recall their placement later. These assessments helped me to reflect on how I learn and have learned over the years.
One thing that I have learned throughout the courseware is the valuable insight I can receive from my cohort friends. We communicate on Skype frequently and will meet at graduation. Creating an Animoto video in this course was a great way to introduce ourselves to our colleagues and it was fun too. I had never put pictures to video before.
Lifelong Learning Skills
During this course, the knowledge I received from reviewing the way that I learn helped me throughout the courseware. For example, my strength in visual learning reminded me that I would do better remember lecture material if I first printed off the lecture script and then read along with the speaker. Underlining important facts and marking on the script helped me find and remember when taking midterms and finals.
The cohort 13 Skype group was an essential part of my masters experience. Not only have they become my friends, they were greatly helpful in course content that I was not familiar. They quickly knew the website I needed to look at to find information and could tell me if I misunderstood the assignment, which saved me hundreds of hours. I also enjoyed the discussion board strategy on throwing ideas out there and seeing where they landed. Obviously, anyone working in education cares about students, but often our opinions of how education and technology go together is different. This educational activity was informative. The articles by Mark Prensky were thought provoking, not because I agreed with what he said, but because I often did not, and thus needed to effectively articulate my disagreement on the discussion board. But I did agree with this Prensky quote, “Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.” (Prensky, 2001, p. 2)
Works Cited
Chapman, G. &. (1997). The five love languages of children. Chicago: Moody.
Prensky, M. (2001, Sept/Oct). Digital natives, digital immigrants part 1. On the Horizon , 2-6.
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection , pp. 20-21.
During EDLD 5306, the first course of my program, each student took several self assessments including the Kersey Temperament sorter, the Multiple Intelligence Inventory, a leadership skills assessment and a technology literacy self assessment. I found that my temperament is a guardian – someone who is service oriented and is characteristically loyal. In the book the Five Love Languages of Children, a guardian would be a person who showed love through “acts of service” (Chapman, 1997, p. 94)
Prior to taking this test, I would have thought my personality was more of a problem solver as in trying to repair items mechanically. I am inclined to do many of these tasks alone, but I am not strong willed in my desire to achieve. If I were, it would not have taken me twenty-four years to finish this degree.
I enjoyed the tests because I had not thought about my aptitudes or skills in many years. When I think of being a stay-at-home, I realize that I do naturally use my aptitudes in my day. I can recognize also when I am misunderstood and why.
EDLD 5306 also required that I look into the STaR chart for one of our schools and several data documents that are used for databased decisions in schools. I learned that schools data fills schools and the most important skill is figuring out what data is important. “As we become increasingly overwhelmed by information, we must work hard to decide which information we are going to ignore” (Warlick, 2007, p. 21).
We also compared the national Technology Plan with the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology. This was interesting as the national plan seemed to follow what Texas as already accomplished. We also looked at the changing roles of teachers and students as technology is integrated into the classroom. And we learned about the essential support needed from administrators so that technology is smoothly integrated into the classroom. During the course, we demonstrated both ISTE standard I and standard II by creating a PowerPoint presentation analyzing our campus STaR chart. This included Technology Facilitation Standard I – “Educational Technology facilitators demonstrate and in-depth understanding of technology operations and concepts” and Standard II – “Communicate research on the use of technology to implement effective assessment and evaluation strategies” (Redish & Williamson, 2009).
Our cohort each created our own wiki and many joined each other’s wiki for collaboration. We also formed a tight knit Skype group.
Learn as a Learner
To complete the assignment, I answered all of the needed questions for the assessments. I then analyzed the results and compared them to the given results and measures. This course allowed me to critically analyze my current knowledge of the subject matter and identify areas of strength and target weaknesses. I have always been a visual learner. I remember where I see things and recall their placement later. These assessments helped me to reflect on how I learn and have learned over the years.
One thing that I have learned throughout the courseware is the valuable insight I can receive from my cohort friends. We communicate on Skype frequently and will meet at graduation. Creating an Animoto video in this course was a great way to introduce ourselves to our colleagues and it was fun too. I had never put pictures to video before.
Lifelong Learning Skills
During this course, the knowledge I received from reviewing the way that I learn helped me throughout the courseware. For example, my strength in visual learning reminded me that I would do better remember lecture material if I first printed off the lecture script and then read along with the speaker. Underlining important facts and marking on the script helped me find and remember when taking midterms and finals.
The cohort 13 Skype group was an essential part of my masters experience. Not only have they become my friends, they were greatly helpful in course content that I was not familiar. They quickly knew the website I needed to look at to find information and could tell me if I misunderstood the assignment, which saved me hundreds of hours. I also enjoyed the discussion board strategy on throwing ideas out there and seeing where they landed. Obviously, anyone working in education cares about students, but often our opinions of how education and technology go together is different. This educational activity was informative. The articles by Mark Prensky were thought provoking, not because I agreed with what he said, but because I often did not, and thus needed to effectively articulate my disagreement on the discussion board. But I did agree with this Prensky quote, “Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.” (Prensky, 2001, p. 2)
Works Cited
Chapman, G. &. (1997). The five love languages of children. Chicago: Moody.
Prensky, M. (2001, Sept/Oct). Digital natives, digital immigrants part 1. On the Horizon , 2-6.
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection , pp. 20-21.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Week One Assignment, Part 1.4
EDLD 5370 Final Internship
Week One Assignment, Part 1.4
Self-Assessment
The course Leadership for Accountability covered a large portion of the educational topics discussed today. Although I had read AEIS results on our schools, I did not understand the scope of the information held within it. As well as how much it played into the campus improvement plan and the school ratings. I also had never created a personal vision of leadership. I believe this new information received will be very useful to me. I now understand all those charts and understand how some do not understand them and criticize schools as a result.
Learn as a Learner
To learn this material, I analyzed the data and research the information given to me. Interviewing members of the campus improvement plan helped me gain insight in the workings of this committee. It is much more than planning how to spend the PTO fundraising money. I did well in this course in my grades and enjoyed what I learned. It was very helpful in understanding how the federal government is influencing the functioning of schools today. Learning about the Eduphoria product Aware helped me understand the need for data disaggregation software that is user friendly. The Aware program promises to be technology that “supports data disaggregation, provides data access, and generates useful data displays” (Ronka, Lachat, Slaughter, & Meltzer, January 2009, p. 18)
Lifelong Learning Skills
The many interviews conducted concerning the Campus Improvement Plan helped me forge some new friendships. I also took much advice from the members of my Skype group who all participate in some way on this committee. I do hope someday to participate as a member of a CIP, quite possible as the parent representative. Planning a professional development day was also a fun and productive activity. I wish I had an educational product to market at one of the big conventions.
Works Cited
Ronka, D., Lachat, M., Slaughter, R., & Meltzer, J. ( 2009). Answering the questions that count. Educational Leadership, 66(4) 18-24.
Week One Assignment, Part 1.4
Self-Assessment
The course Leadership for Accountability covered a large portion of the educational topics discussed today. Although I had read AEIS results on our schools, I did not understand the scope of the information held within it. As well as how much it played into the campus improvement plan and the school ratings. I also had never created a personal vision of leadership. I believe this new information received will be very useful to me. I now understand all those charts and understand how some do not understand them and criticize schools as a result.
Learn as a Learner
To learn this material, I analyzed the data and research the information given to me. Interviewing members of the campus improvement plan helped me gain insight in the workings of this committee. It is much more than planning how to spend the PTO fundraising money. I did well in this course in my grades and enjoyed what I learned. It was very helpful in understanding how the federal government is influencing the functioning of schools today. Learning about the Eduphoria product Aware helped me understand the need for data disaggregation software that is user friendly. The Aware program promises to be technology that “supports data disaggregation, provides data access, and generates useful data displays” (Ronka, Lachat, Slaughter, & Meltzer, January 2009, p. 18)
Lifelong Learning Skills
The many interviews conducted concerning the Campus Improvement Plan helped me forge some new friendships. I also took much advice from the members of my Skype group who all participate in some way on this committee. I do hope someday to participate as a member of a CIP, quite possible as the parent representative. Planning a professional development day was also a fun and productive activity. I wish I had an educational product to market at one of the big conventions.
Works Cited
Ronka, D., Lachat, M., Slaughter, R., & Meltzer, J. ( 2009). Answering the questions that count. Educational Leadership, 66(4) 18-24.
Week One Assignment, Part 1.6
EDLD 5370
Week One Assignment Part 1.6
Self-Assessment
As I reflect upon the knowledge gained under Standard II, I believe this standard contains the most practical use for me. Although I have been out of the classroom for many years, I have seven children. Each is unique in personality and learning style. I now have one college graduate, two in college at Texas A&M, and four in public schools. The need to differentiate learning in the classroom is huge, just based on my own children. This is a daunting task for teachers, and technology is the most cost effective way to accomplish this task.
Learn as a Learner
Standard II, “Educational technology facilitators plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 6) is practical to me. In addition, I love all things practical! I do have to say that the assignments in this area, such as creating a goggle site on earth science and video stories were very time consuming at first. I spent about ten hours on my first attempt and then half as much time on my next try. I gained many gray hairs, but these were all good skills to have and use in the future.
Lifelong Learning Skills
This standard and all that I learned about it in my coursework, would definitely help me as a lifelong learner. I especially appreciated all that Dr. Abernathy taught concerning open source software. Before her teaching, I would have been too chicken to use it. I do believe these software opportunities will continue to be developed. In the future, I will know to look for these sources to accomplish the tasks before me.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Week One Assignment Part 1.6
Self-Assessment
As I reflect upon the knowledge gained under Standard II, I believe this standard contains the most practical use for me. Although I have been out of the classroom for many years, I have seven children. Each is unique in personality and learning style. I now have one college graduate, two in college at Texas A&M, and four in public schools. The need to differentiate learning in the classroom is huge, just based on my own children. This is a daunting task for teachers, and technology is the most cost effective way to accomplish this task.
Learn as a Learner
Standard II, “Educational technology facilitators plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 6) is practical to me. In addition, I love all things practical! I do have to say that the assignments in this area, such as creating a goggle site on earth science and video stories were very time consuming at first. I spent about ten hours on my first attempt and then half as much time on my next try. I gained many gray hairs, but these were all good skills to have and use in the future.
Lifelong Learning Skills
This standard and all that I learned about it in my coursework, would definitely help me as a lifelong learner. I especially appreciated all that Dr. Abernathy taught concerning open source software. Before her teaching, I would have been too chicken to use it. I do believe these software opportunities will continue to be developed. In the future, I will know to look for these sources to accomplish the tasks before me.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Week One Assignment, Part 1.5
EDLD 5370
Week One Assignment Part 1.5
Self-Assessment
As I reflect on the knowledge I have gained throughout this curriculum, Standard I is where I started in knowledge gained. “In TF/TL Standard I: Technology Operations and Concepts, technology facilitators and leaders ensure that their colleagues possess the fundamental understanding and skills needed to operate specific technologies and understand the concepts associated with technology use.” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 17) My previous experience with educational technology was learning to write Disc Operating System code and make rudimentary Artificial Intelligence teaching programs. I later taught computer applications to high school students, but that curriculum from 1990 pales to just the information received in this degree. I know that the students I taught then are now beyond me in my technology abilities because they are now my friends on Facebook.
Learn as a Learner
Collaboration and experimentation were both important avenues to success. I previously knew subject matter related to hardware, software, care, and maintenance of computers. The new areas for me centered on the use of cloud computing. I had not ventured much into the “cloud” even though I knew of some activities and opportunities available. Learning this standard through internship activities and course assignments opened up new learning for me.
Lifelong Learning Skills
Learning about the new available software programs through my classes opens up many future opportunities for me. How these tools are used in the educational environment is critical for future educational work and learning. So many new capabilities from video technology to podcasts to animation are available now for use. I had not tried to create anything in these areas prior to my Lamar classes. My experiences in my masters coursework give me the ability to be a lifelong learner in the “cloud”.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Week One Assignment Part 1.5
Self-Assessment
As I reflect on the knowledge I have gained throughout this curriculum, Standard I is where I started in knowledge gained. “In TF/TL Standard I: Technology Operations and Concepts, technology facilitators and leaders ensure that their colleagues possess the fundamental understanding and skills needed to operate specific technologies and understand the concepts associated with technology use.” (Redish & Williamson, 2009, p. 17) My previous experience with educational technology was learning to write Disc Operating System code and make rudimentary Artificial Intelligence teaching programs. I later taught computer applications to high school students, but that curriculum from 1990 pales to just the information received in this degree. I know that the students I taught then are now beyond me in my technology abilities because they are now my friends on Facebook.
Learn as a Learner
Collaboration and experimentation were both important avenues to success. I previously knew subject matter related to hardware, software, care, and maintenance of computers. The new areas for me centered on the use of cloud computing. I had not ventured much into the “cloud” even though I knew of some activities and opportunities available. Learning this standard through internship activities and course assignments opened up new learning for me.
Lifelong Learning Skills
Learning about the new available software programs through my classes opens up many future opportunities for me. How these tools are used in the educational environment is critical for future educational work and learning. So many new capabilities from video technology to podcasts to animation are available now for use. I had not tried to create anything in these areas prior to my Lamar classes. My experiences in my masters coursework give me the ability to be a lifelong learner in the “cloud”.
Works Cited
Redish, T., & Williamson, J. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every k-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Week One Assignment, Part 1.3
Self–Assessment
During EDLD 5306, each student took several self assessments including the Kersey Temperament sorter, the Multiple Intelligence Inventory, a leadership skills assessment and a technology literacy self assessment. I found that my temperament is a guardian – someone who is service oriented and is characteristically loyal. In the book the Five Love Languages of Children, a guardian would be a person who showed love through “acts of service” (Chapman, 1997, p. 94)
Prior to taking this test, I would have thought my personality was more of a problem solver as in trying to repair items mechanically. I am inclined to do many of these tasks alone, but I am not strong willed in my desire to achieve. If I were, it would not have taken me twenty-four years to finish this degree.
I enjoyed the tests because I had not thought about my aptitudes or skills in many years. When I think of being a stay-at-home, I realize that I do naturally use my aptitudes in my day. I can recognize also when I am misunderstood and why.
EDLD 5306 also required that I look into the STaR chart for one of our schools and several data documents that are used for databased decisions in schools. I learned that schools data fills schools and the most important skill is figuring out what data is important. “As we become increasingly overwhelmed by information, we must work hard to decide which information we are going to ignore” (Warlick, 2007, p. 21).
Learn as a Learner
To complete the assignment, I answered all of the needed questions for the assessments. I then analyzed the results and compared them to the given results and measures. This course allowed me to critically analyze my current knowledge of the subject matter and identify areas of strength and target weaknesses. I have always been a visual learner. I remember where I see things and recall their placement later. These assessments helped me to reflect on how I learn and have learned over the years.
One thing that I have learned throughout the courseware is the valuable insight I can receive from my cohort friends. We communicate on Skype frequently and will meet at graduation. Creating an Animoto video in this course was a great way to introduce ourselves to our colleagues and it was fun too. I had never put pictures to video before.
Lifelong Learning Skills
During this course, the knowledge I received from reviewing the way that I learn helped me throughout the courseware. For example, my strength in visual learning reminded me that I would do better remember lecture material if I first printed off the lecture script and then read along with the speaker. Underlining important facts and marking on the script helped me find and remember when taking midterms and finals.
The cohort 13 Skype group was an essential part of my masters experience. Not only have they become my friends, they were greatly helpful in course content that I was not familiar. They quickly knew the website I needed to look at to find information and could tell me if I misunderstood the assignment, which saved me hundreds of hours. I also enjoyed the discussion board strategy on throwing ideas out there and seeing where they landed. Obviously, anyone working in education cares about students, but often our opinions of how education and technology go together is different. This educational activity was informative. The articles by Mark Prensky were thought provoking, not because I agreed with what he said, but because I often did not, and thus needed to effectively articulate my disagreement on the discussion board. But I did agree with this Prensky quote, “Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.” (Prensky, 2001, p. 2)
Works Cited
Chapman, G. & Campbell, R. (1997). The five love languages of children. Chicago: Moody.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants part 1. On the Horizon , 2-6.
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection , pp. 20-21.
During EDLD 5306, each student took several self assessments including the Kersey Temperament sorter, the Multiple Intelligence Inventory, a leadership skills assessment and a technology literacy self assessment. I found that my temperament is a guardian – someone who is service oriented and is characteristically loyal. In the book the Five Love Languages of Children, a guardian would be a person who showed love through “acts of service” (Chapman, 1997, p. 94)
Prior to taking this test, I would have thought my personality was more of a problem solver as in trying to repair items mechanically. I am inclined to do many of these tasks alone, but I am not strong willed in my desire to achieve. If I were, it would not have taken me twenty-four years to finish this degree.
I enjoyed the tests because I had not thought about my aptitudes or skills in many years. When I think of being a stay-at-home, I realize that I do naturally use my aptitudes in my day. I can recognize also when I am misunderstood and why.
EDLD 5306 also required that I look into the STaR chart for one of our schools and several data documents that are used for databased decisions in schools. I learned that schools data fills schools and the most important skill is figuring out what data is important. “As we become increasingly overwhelmed by information, we must work hard to decide which information we are going to ignore” (Warlick, 2007, p. 21).
Learn as a Learner
To complete the assignment, I answered all of the needed questions for the assessments. I then analyzed the results and compared them to the given results and measures. This course allowed me to critically analyze my current knowledge of the subject matter and identify areas of strength and target weaknesses. I have always been a visual learner. I remember where I see things and recall their placement later. These assessments helped me to reflect on how I learn and have learned over the years.
One thing that I have learned throughout the courseware is the valuable insight I can receive from my cohort friends. We communicate on Skype frequently and will meet at graduation. Creating an Animoto video in this course was a great way to introduce ourselves to our colleagues and it was fun too. I had never put pictures to video before.
Lifelong Learning Skills
During this course, the knowledge I received from reviewing the way that I learn helped me throughout the courseware. For example, my strength in visual learning reminded me that I would do better remember lecture material if I first printed off the lecture script and then read along with the speaker. Underlining important facts and marking on the script helped me find and remember when taking midterms and finals.
The cohort 13 Skype group was an essential part of my masters experience. Not only have they become my friends, they were greatly helpful in course content that I was not familiar. They quickly knew the website I needed to look at to find information and could tell me if I misunderstood the assignment, which saved me hundreds of hours. I also enjoyed the discussion board strategy on throwing ideas out there and seeing where they landed. Obviously, anyone working in education cares about students, but often our opinions of how education and technology go together is different. This educational activity was informative. The articles by Mark Prensky were thought provoking, not because I agreed with what he said, but because I often did not, and thus needed to effectively articulate my disagreement on the discussion board. But I did agree with this Prensky quote, “Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.” (Prensky, 2001, p. 2)
Works Cited
Chapman, G. & Campbell, R. (1997). The five love languages of children. Chicago: Moody.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants part 1. On the Horizon , 2-6.
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection , pp. 20-21.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
October 4, 2011, Web Conference
The October 4th web conference was led by Dr. Abernathy. Students had questions about graduation and ordering the cap, gown, hood, and tassel. Our master of education degree gives us a hood with blue for education and red for Lamar University. Dr. Abernathy stated in regards to tk20 that the e-portfolio goes in as a link, and the comprehensive exam goes in as a file.
Robyn had a cute baby in her lap named Harlee. Dr. Abernathy told a story about how people in her family were called “monkey cheeks” because they had big cheeks.
We were encouraged to watch the discussion board and ask many questions so we do not get confused about our assignments.
Robyn had a cute baby in her lap named Harlee. Dr. Abernathy told a story about how people in her family were called “monkey cheeks” because they had big cheeks.
We were encouraged to watch the discussion board and ask many questions so we do not get confused about our assignments.
Monday, September 26, 2011
August 2011 Monthly Reflection
Field based activities
During this month, I registered for and participated in a Verizon Thinkfinity class on social networking. We learned how the Thinkfinity website works and all the tools and resources available for teachers to use free. On this website, you are able to share your work and the work of others. Teachers can collaborate and share sources and links.
I also finished out the mentoring program. In addition, I began to read the book A New Breed of Leader by Dr. Sheila Bethel.
During this month, I registered for and participated in a Verizon Thinkfinity class on social networking. We learned how the Thinkfinity website works and all the tools and resources available for teachers to use free. On this website, you are able to share your work and the work of others. Teachers can collaborate and share sources and links.
I also finished out the mentoring program. In addition, I began to read the book A New Breed of Leader by Dr. Sheila Bethel.
July 2011 Monthly Reflection
Field based Activities
This month we went on vacation and my husband got a new job 4 hours away. Lots of change is our house. I began the book Motivation by Daniel Pink. Now I just need to get motivated to finish it!
I also listened to a professional development webinar on the Tx VSN. This website provides support to Texas educators as they become involved in online learning. The professional development center has seven sections that include webinars, online tutorials, collaborations, readiness considerations, media/links resources, online teaching eligibility and requirements, and finally, how to get CPE credit for attending live events.
I also continued to participate in the summer mentoring program.
This month we went on vacation and my husband got a new job 4 hours away. Lots of change is our house. I began the book Motivation by Daniel Pink. Now I just need to get motivated to finish it!
I also listened to a professional development webinar on the Tx VSN. This website provides support to Texas educators as they become involved in online learning. The professional development center has seven sections that include webinars, online tutorials, collaborations, readiness considerations, media/links resources, online teaching eligibility and requirements, and finally, how to get CPE credit for attending live events.
I also continued to participate in the summer mentoring program.
June 2011 Monthly Reflection
Field Based Activities
This month I participated in a mentoring program, which was very enjoyable. The organizer paired me with someone in a similar position but about 20 years younger. We enjoyed getting to know each other and sharing stories of our work.
I also worked with a friend who developed a training program for adult education. The program centered on teaching adult students the basics for obtaining their GED. The desire of the program was to get the information in a form that would be easily assessable on the internet. Several of the adult education centers are both remote and without basic technology.
This month I participated in a mentoring program, which was very enjoyable. The organizer paired me with someone in a similar position but about 20 years younger. We enjoyed getting to know each other and sharing stories of our work.
I also worked with a friend who developed a training program for adult education. The program centered on teaching adult students the basics for obtaining their GED. The desire of the program was to get the information in a form that would be easily assessable on the internet. Several of the adult education centers are both remote and without basic technology.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
I-002 Communication and Collaboration log 2
To establish this partnership, I would point out the increase in economically disadvantaged students that have joined the district in the last five years. I would restate the district mission statement that clarifies the desire to provide a full education to all students. Also mentioned would be the need for money and mentors to make the program work. This program would create great ways to benefit children. Our community wants to see seen as a community that takes care of its children and that the neediest are falling through the cracks. The presentation would discuss the importance of music education to the economically disadvantaged student and the loss of members to important school programs such as orchestra because parents cannot afford the instruments. It would also discuss breaking the cycle of poverty through mentoring partnerships with students that lack academic support at home.
Proposed Activities
Mentoring of priority students
Provision of musical instruments to economically disadvantaged students
Tutoring provided on location for economically disadvantaged students
The program will provide for the provision of glasses and braces for those in need.
Provision of graduation caps and gowns
How you can help
Time – Become a Mentor
Support – Speak about the program to others, help identify needy students
Money – it cannot be accomplished without financial funding
Proposed Activities
Mentoring of priority students
Provision of musical instruments to economically disadvantaged students
Tutoring provided on location for economically disadvantaged students
The program will provide for the provision of glasses and braces for those in need.
Provision of graduation caps and gowns
How you can help
Time – Become a Mentor
Support – Speak about the program to others, help identify needy students
Money – it cannot be accomplished without financial funding
I-002 Communication and Collaboration log 1
Course embedded log for 5326 School Community Relations
In the article Building Bridges Toward Excellence: Community Involvement in High Schools, the authors write “School family and community partnerships in High schools have been associated with increased learning opportunities for students and community development (Durkin, 1998); more positive parent attitudes toward school (Sanders, Epstein, Connors-Tadros, 1999); the academic success of language-minority students (Lucas, Henze, Donato, 1990); and the reduction of student maladaptive behaviors (Nettles, 1991). (Sanders & Lewis, 2005). These outcomes are all possible through the creation of a foundation focusing on student equity. Increased learning opportunities are found in the tutoring lessons. Parents attitudes toward the schools will improve as they see the concern and care provided to their children through the provisions of musical instruments. Poor student behaviors will be addressed through the mentoring program and on-site tutoring will be beneficial to the minority students. Reflecting on this organization, many students would be grateful for opportunities provided to them that they otherwise would not afford. Also, businesses and business leaders have a charitable organization in which they can invest that directly benefits their community. Adult mentors also have a worthwhile organization to invest in the lives of children.
Sanders, M., & Lewis, K. (2005). Building bridges toward excellence: Community involvement in high schools. The High School Journal, 88(3) , 1.
In the article Building Bridges Toward Excellence: Community Involvement in High Schools, the authors write “School family and community partnerships in High schools have been associated with increased learning opportunities for students and community development (Durkin, 1998); more positive parent attitudes toward school (Sanders, Epstein, Connors-Tadros, 1999); the academic success of language-minority students (Lucas, Henze, Donato, 1990); and the reduction of student maladaptive behaviors (Nettles, 1991). (Sanders & Lewis, 2005). These outcomes are all possible through the creation of a foundation focusing on student equity. Increased learning opportunities are found in the tutoring lessons. Parents attitudes toward the schools will improve as they see the concern and care provided to their children through the provisions of musical instruments. Poor student behaviors will be addressed through the mentoring program and on-site tutoring will be beneficial to the minority students. Reflecting on this organization, many students would be grateful for opportunities provided to them that they otherwise would not afford. Also, businesses and business leaders have a charitable organization in which they can invest that directly benefits their community. Adult mentors also have a worthwhile organization to invest in the lives of children.
Sanders, M., & Lewis, K. (2005). Building bridges toward excellence: Community involvement in high schools. The High School Journal, 88(3) , 1.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Internship Book Review
Book Review for
A New Breed of Leader: 8 Leadership Qualities that Matter Most in the Real World
By Sheila Murray Bethel, Ph.D.
This book outlines the qualities and characteristics needed for leaders in the 21st Century. Dr. Bethel writes that we must let go of the past and our reaction to change must allow for new leadership dreams and actions to emerge. The author describes these eight characteristics as puzzle pieces. As my educational colleagues consider these concepts, Dr. Bethel writes, “the value of each piece lies in the tools it gives you to shape your personal leadership strength and to reinforce your ability to serve others” (Bethel, p.6, 2009).
The eight qualities leaders need to acquire and possess are competence, accountability, openness, language, values, perspective, power and humility. Bethel categorizes leaders into four different groups. These include enlighteners, creators, sustainers, and builders. Enlighteners are those that feel an obligation to a cause, social issue, personal or corporate goals and their vision. Creators are those that can envision prospective ideas coming to fruition when others cannot. Sustainers have the ability to take the work of the enlighteners and creators and multiply the effectiveness and production, making the projects long-term successes. Builders are leaders those that have the ability to create a vision of which all stakeholders can take ownership (Bethel, 2009).
Competence is a quality that is continually built. Competence is what a leader uses to back up his vision and purpose as he expresses it to his followers. It is not always transferable from one leadership situation to another. It is expressed in four areas: emotional, intellectual, instinctive and strategic. Of these, emotional competence is what allows a leader to stay calm in the midst of conflict among employees or others. Proactive thinking, that helps avoid conflict by actions such as including all stakeholders, is a form of strategic competence.
Accountability is the second value necessary for today’s leaders. This quality requires leaders to walk the talk they give to their families, communities and employees. Today’s society needs leaders who are accountable and personally responsible. Accountable leaders are able to accept the blame for their mistakes, live by example and understand that others are watching them closely to see if they are authentic in their lives. Dr. Bethel writes, “Discipline…the ability to do what you should do, when you should do it, to the best of your ability, whether you want to or like to, or not” (Bethel, p. 101, 2009).
The third characteristic is openness. Openness is the ability to have an open mind, open heart and open ears. Leaders - who are open - foster an environment that allows for creativity and the freedom to encourage “out-of-the-box” thinking. They possess a sense of humor that allows for the dismissal of overt fastidiousness that squelches innovative thinking.
Language and its proper use are the fourth quality leaders need. Leaders need to be clear. “Clarity means being able to communicate in clear, simple, and precise terms” (p. 155). Leaders can improve their communications skills by improving their ability to present information, by studying the masters, by committing to speaking plainly, and by mastering the usage of words.
The fifth value is values! Leaders must have personal values that exist as a sieve through which all decisions fall. As a leader, your values include what you think is important, needed, and true. Some of the values individuals seek include recognition, relationship, status, power, accomplishment, wealth, and acceptance. All of these values play a role in our interaction with others. (Bethel, 2009)
Leaders should also possess the sixth characteristic – perspective. This quality allows us to consider events and their consequences from the past, present and future. It helps us to achieve balance and simplicity as we look at the challenges we face. This is important for school leaders as they try to balance the interests of all the stakeholders in a school community.
Power is the seventh quality. Leadership power can derive from the position a person holds. It can also be the personal fortitude a person possesses. Many educational institutions look for headmaster, principal or superintendent having the mindset of a servant leader. These leaders do not require others to do a task that they would not be willing to do themselves.
Lastly, the quality of humility is invaluable to leaders. This quality makes a leader approachable and sincere. It also keeps the leader from making decisions out of haste based on pride. It is also the quality that allows a leader to have the courage to apologize.
For educational leaders to home their leadership skills, Dr. Bethel lists some suggestions for personal development. These include managing time, commitment to goals, weight control, empathy, listen, spiritual development, budgeting money, concentration, attitudes toward children and parents, feelings of self-worth and getting sufficient sleep (p. 364). Developing these skills and others would help the educational leader to fulfill their purpose in the position they have found themselves.
Bethel, S. (2009). A New Breed of Leader: 8 leadership qualities that matter most in the real world: what works, what doesn't, and why . New York: Berkley Publishing Group.
A New Breed of Leader: 8 Leadership Qualities that Matter Most in the Real World
By Sheila Murray Bethel, Ph.D.
This book outlines the qualities and characteristics needed for leaders in the 21st Century. Dr. Bethel writes that we must let go of the past and our reaction to change must allow for new leadership dreams and actions to emerge. The author describes these eight characteristics as puzzle pieces. As my educational colleagues consider these concepts, Dr. Bethel writes, “the value of each piece lies in the tools it gives you to shape your personal leadership strength and to reinforce your ability to serve others” (Bethel, p.6, 2009).
The eight qualities leaders need to acquire and possess are competence, accountability, openness, language, values, perspective, power and humility. Bethel categorizes leaders into four different groups. These include enlighteners, creators, sustainers, and builders. Enlighteners are those that feel an obligation to a cause, social issue, personal or corporate goals and their vision. Creators are those that can envision prospective ideas coming to fruition when others cannot. Sustainers have the ability to take the work of the enlighteners and creators and multiply the effectiveness and production, making the projects long-term successes. Builders are leaders those that have the ability to create a vision of which all stakeholders can take ownership (Bethel, 2009).
Competence is a quality that is continually built. Competence is what a leader uses to back up his vision and purpose as he expresses it to his followers. It is not always transferable from one leadership situation to another. It is expressed in four areas: emotional, intellectual, instinctive and strategic. Of these, emotional competence is what allows a leader to stay calm in the midst of conflict among employees or others. Proactive thinking, that helps avoid conflict by actions such as including all stakeholders, is a form of strategic competence.
Accountability is the second value necessary for today’s leaders. This quality requires leaders to walk the talk they give to their families, communities and employees. Today’s society needs leaders who are accountable and personally responsible. Accountable leaders are able to accept the blame for their mistakes, live by example and understand that others are watching them closely to see if they are authentic in their lives. Dr. Bethel writes, “Discipline…the ability to do what you should do, when you should do it, to the best of your ability, whether you want to or like to, or not” (Bethel, p. 101, 2009).
The third characteristic is openness. Openness is the ability to have an open mind, open heart and open ears. Leaders - who are open - foster an environment that allows for creativity and the freedom to encourage “out-of-the-box” thinking. They possess a sense of humor that allows for the dismissal of overt fastidiousness that squelches innovative thinking.
Language and its proper use are the fourth quality leaders need. Leaders need to be clear. “Clarity means being able to communicate in clear, simple, and precise terms” (p. 155). Leaders can improve their communications skills by improving their ability to present information, by studying the masters, by committing to speaking plainly, and by mastering the usage of words.
The fifth value is values! Leaders must have personal values that exist as a sieve through which all decisions fall. As a leader, your values include what you think is important, needed, and true. Some of the values individuals seek include recognition, relationship, status, power, accomplishment, wealth, and acceptance. All of these values play a role in our interaction with others. (Bethel, 2009)
Leaders should also possess the sixth characteristic – perspective. This quality allows us to consider events and their consequences from the past, present and future. It helps us to achieve balance and simplicity as we look at the challenges we face. This is important for school leaders as they try to balance the interests of all the stakeholders in a school community.
Power is the seventh quality. Leadership power can derive from the position a person holds. It can also be the personal fortitude a person possesses. Many educational institutions look for headmaster, principal or superintendent having the mindset of a servant leader. These leaders do not require others to do a task that they would not be willing to do themselves.
Lastly, the quality of humility is invaluable to leaders. This quality makes a leader approachable and sincere. It also keeps the leader from making decisions out of haste based on pride. It is also the quality that allows a leader to have the courage to apologize.
For educational leaders to home their leadership skills, Dr. Bethel lists some suggestions for personal development. These include managing time, commitment to goals, weight control, empathy, listen, spiritual development, budgeting money, concentration, attitudes toward children and parents, feelings of self-worth and getting sufficient sleep (p. 364). Developing these skills and others would help the educational leader to fulfill their purpose in the position they have found themselves.
Bethel, S. (2009). A New Breed of Leader: 8 leadership qualities that matter most in the real world: what works, what doesn't, and why . New York: Berkley Publishing Group.
Monday, September 19, 2011
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Web Conference August 10, 2011
Web conference Reflection:
This week’s web conference was held on Wednesday, August 10th at 7 PM. The web conference discussion was centered on the requirements of the PISE or TLISE - a document evaluating our internship work. Students also discussed the need to update or create a professional development plan. Dr. Martin suggested we join professional organizations to increase our vitae and opportunities for professional development. Many organizations offer an aspiring administrator discount. One significant new thing I understood was that I would need to write a reflection for each of the 33 indicators of my internship.
This week’s web conference was held on Wednesday, August 10th at 7 PM. The web conference discussion was centered on the requirements of the PISE or TLISE - a document evaluating our internship work. Students also discussed the need to update or create a professional development plan. Dr. Martin suggested we join professional organizations to increase our vitae and opportunities for professional development. Many organizations offer an aspiring administrator discount. One significant new thing I understood was that I would need to write a reflection for each of the 33 indicators of my internship.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Web conference - August 2, 2011
Web Conference reflection:
August 2, 2011
The web conference began ten minutes early and questions about the assignment were the first asked. Dr. Mason clarified the upload requirements for tk20 for this class. In week five, students need to update the curriculum vitae, their ETLISE results with a reflection, update their professional development plan, career and goal plans and our updated internship plan. Wow, that is a huge job – the updated internship plan. The most difficult part for me is the formatting of the plan. It is difficult to navigate and not lose data. The draft of the action research will also need to be uploaded. Lamar now offers this class to students in their seventh course of those in the cohorts before thirteen. The information about APA in an earlier class would have been extremely helpful.
Other web conference questions were about the part of the assignment that asks for key words and when and how to submit the PISE and ETLISE. I have a hard time hearing Dr. Martin in these conferences, but I can hear Dr, Mason well.
August 2, 2011
The web conference began ten minutes early and questions about the assignment were the first asked. Dr. Mason clarified the upload requirements for tk20 for this class. In week five, students need to update the curriculum vitae, their ETLISE results with a reflection, update their professional development plan, career and goal plans and our updated internship plan. Wow, that is a huge job – the updated internship plan. The most difficult part for me is the formatting of the plan. It is difficult to navigate and not lose data. The draft of the action research will also need to be uploaded. Lamar now offers this class to students in their seventh course of those in the cohorts before thirteen. The information about APA in an earlier class would have been extremely helpful.
Other web conference questions were about the part of the assignment that asks for key words and when and how to submit the PISE and ETLISE. I have a hard time hearing Dr. Martin in these conferences, but I can hear Dr, Mason well.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
EDLD 5397 Week Three, Part 3
Janet Kelly- Cohort 13/ET8027
July 31, 2011
EDLD 5397 Internship for Leadership
Week Three, Part Three
Title –
Effect of Utilizing the Data Segregation Program Aware on Standardized Test Improvement
Janet K. Kelly
Lamar University
Author’s Note
Master’s degree candidate in Educational Technology
jkelly@my.lamar.edu
Needs Assessment –
My action research project was decided upon with the suggestion of my mentor. Since I am not employed, we felt surveying employees about a new program used in the district would be appropriate. My mentor decided in April that the May/June timeline for collecting data would be too soon, so I am scheduled to collect data in September.
The data I collect will be opinions on the use of the program Aware. The goal is to find out how the teachers are using the program, how they believe it is helping them, and how they need training to use the software effectively.
Objectives and Vision of the action research project. (ELCC 1.1)
The inquiry question that I will ask will be “How has the program SchoolObjects: Aware assisted you as a teacher?” Through surveying teachers, the research will work to determine how the teachers are utilizing the program. It will search for answers into what aspects of the program are the most useful, which features have not been fully utilized and how teachers believe the program is helping them to differentiate their classroom strategies based on the results of the benchmarks tests created within the program.
Review of the Literature and Action Research Strategy –
Although the product Eduphoria School Objects Aware is new, making decisions based on data is not. Marsh, Pane and Hamilton (2006) state that “information becomes actionable knowledge when data users synthesize the information apply their judgment to prioritize it, and weigh the relative merits of possible solutions.” The authors also found that local assessments done in frequent intervals were more valuable in providing diagnostic data than the once-a-year standardized test. The School Objects:aware program allows for the analyses of TAKS data segregated by sub pops and other factors. It gives districts the ability to make their own benchmark tests and question banks and to print the answer sheets on plain copy paper (Eduphoria School Objects: Aware, 2009).
Working collaboratively with my mentor, we may find places where I need to tweak my questions or plans to find the best data. After the survey, any teacher concerns may become known and addressing those concerns may be a future task. I do believe my timelines are realistic. Creating surveys that encourage teachers to fill them out will be an important step. Everyone is busy and may not wish to spend precious time on a survey.
I made the project decisions with my mentor and approval by our superintendent. We considered topics that the data collected would benefit the Instructional Technology Director. The other possibility was to research the use of Project Share in the schools, but this software is not as directly benefitting to students.
Eduphoria School Objects: Aware. (2009). Retrieved July 31, 2011, from Eduphoria: http://www.eduphoria.net/products/aware/default.aspx
Marsh, J., Pane, J., & Hamilton, L. (2006). Making Sense of Data-Driven Decision Making in Education. Rand Education .
Articulate the Vision (ELCC 1.2) –
This student will communicate this action research project to the staff of the elementary school where I will conduct the surveys. The vision of the project will be outlined in the surveys and will also be communicated through conversations as I ask teachers to participate. My mentor will also be involved in requesting the information on Aware from the teachers. We wish the staff to know how many ways this program disaggregates student data so that educationally data-driven decisions can be made for the betterment of each student. There is not a need to give the research results to the parents, students or community; unless, consideration was given to the program upgrade purchase and knowledge of teacher use was requested.
Manage the organization (ELCC 3.1) –
I will employ several data collection strategies. I will take field notes from a focus group of 7 individuals that will include IT personnel, an administrator, and teachers. Interviews will be conducted with 5 – 8 teachers to get details of how they use Aware. Video and notes will also be taken at August 2011 training sessions for the teachers on the program. Surveys will be conducted after one year of program use. Research will also include other districts that have used Aware and documented their results publicly. Since I only a Lamar student, I am not using any money but my own to do this research. No staff is available to help me complete this research.
Priority has been given to determining how the program Aware has helped students by allowing their teachers to determine the best ways each individual student can be taught. This research does not require student personal data.
Manage Operations (ELCC 3.2) –
Consultation with my mentor is the main strategy used to determine the operations of the project. In addition, the text on action research helped to determine the steps needed to complete this project. Although I can see where another project focused on changing culture or attitudes would require the group process skills and consensus building, this research project does not require that. I do not see any conflict arising from the process of collecting the data. The only conflict could be within the results of the data, if it appears a large portion of teachers surprisingly do not appreciate the qualities and features of the program Aware. My mentor may be disappointed that the survey results would claim a lack of training on the program, since she is responsible for the training. These issues would be one-on-one.
Respond to Community Interest and Needs (ELCC 4.2) –
Since the program Aware is capable of disaggregating data by ethnicity, gender, grade, school, and economic status, this program has the potential to point out previously unknown educational deficiencies in any sub pops in the school system. This is a great tool in the hands of teachers.
Start Date End date Needed Resources Evaluation
Attend Training session for employees on the software program Aware Aug-10 Sept - 11 video device, note pad
Research and watch the training videos for using survey monkey Oct-10 Dec-10 time on the internet
Invite seven people to join the focus group May-11 Sept-11 Time for phone calls and email
Meet with the focus group to gather data Sept-11 Oct-11 meeting room, incentive food
Meet with mentor to go over the survey Sept-11 Sept-11 conference time Site mentor approval
interview teachers individually Aug-11 Oct-11 meeting times
Submit the first survey Sept-11 Oct-11 approved survey, email addresses, permissions
Analyze the survey data Oct-11 Oct-11 Sufficient number of returned surveys
Write up my research report Aug-11 Nov-11 Professor advice, Mentor input, Survey data, interview notes, focus group notes Graded by professor
July 31, 2011
EDLD 5397 Internship for Leadership
Week Three, Part Three
Title –
Effect of Utilizing the Data Segregation Program Aware on Standardized Test Improvement
Janet K. Kelly
Lamar University
Author’s Note
Master’s degree candidate in Educational Technology
jkelly@my.lamar.edu
Needs Assessment –
My action research project was decided upon with the suggestion of my mentor. Since I am not employed, we felt surveying employees about a new program used in the district would be appropriate. My mentor decided in April that the May/June timeline for collecting data would be too soon, so I am scheduled to collect data in September.
The data I collect will be opinions on the use of the program Aware. The goal is to find out how the teachers are using the program, how they believe it is helping them, and how they need training to use the software effectively.
Objectives and Vision of the action research project. (ELCC 1.1)
The inquiry question that I will ask will be “How has the program SchoolObjects: Aware assisted you as a teacher?” Through surveying teachers, the research will work to determine how the teachers are utilizing the program. It will search for answers into what aspects of the program are the most useful, which features have not been fully utilized and how teachers believe the program is helping them to differentiate their classroom strategies based on the results of the benchmarks tests created within the program.
Review of the Literature and Action Research Strategy –
Although the product Eduphoria School Objects Aware is new, making decisions based on data is not. Marsh, Pane and Hamilton (2006) state that “information becomes actionable knowledge when data users synthesize the information apply their judgment to prioritize it, and weigh the relative merits of possible solutions.” The authors also found that local assessments done in frequent intervals were more valuable in providing diagnostic data than the once-a-year standardized test. The School Objects:aware program allows for the analyses of TAKS data segregated by sub pops and other factors. It gives districts the ability to make their own benchmark tests and question banks and to print the answer sheets on plain copy paper (Eduphoria School Objects: Aware, 2009).
Working collaboratively with my mentor, we may find places where I need to tweak my questions or plans to find the best data. After the survey, any teacher concerns may become known and addressing those concerns may be a future task. I do believe my timelines are realistic. Creating surveys that encourage teachers to fill them out will be an important step. Everyone is busy and may not wish to spend precious time on a survey.
I made the project decisions with my mentor and approval by our superintendent. We considered topics that the data collected would benefit the Instructional Technology Director. The other possibility was to research the use of Project Share in the schools, but this software is not as directly benefitting to students.
Eduphoria School Objects: Aware. (2009). Retrieved July 31, 2011, from Eduphoria: http://www.eduphoria.net/products/aware/default.aspx
Marsh, J., Pane, J., & Hamilton, L. (2006). Making Sense of Data-Driven Decision Making in Education. Rand Education .
Articulate the Vision (ELCC 1.2) –
This student will communicate this action research project to the staff of the elementary school where I will conduct the surveys. The vision of the project will be outlined in the surveys and will also be communicated through conversations as I ask teachers to participate. My mentor will also be involved in requesting the information on Aware from the teachers. We wish the staff to know how many ways this program disaggregates student data so that educationally data-driven decisions can be made for the betterment of each student. There is not a need to give the research results to the parents, students or community; unless, consideration was given to the program upgrade purchase and knowledge of teacher use was requested.
Manage the organization (ELCC 3.1) –
I will employ several data collection strategies. I will take field notes from a focus group of 7 individuals that will include IT personnel, an administrator, and teachers. Interviews will be conducted with 5 – 8 teachers to get details of how they use Aware. Video and notes will also be taken at August 2011 training sessions for the teachers on the program. Surveys will be conducted after one year of program use. Research will also include other districts that have used Aware and documented their results publicly. Since I only a Lamar student, I am not using any money but my own to do this research. No staff is available to help me complete this research.
Priority has been given to determining how the program Aware has helped students by allowing their teachers to determine the best ways each individual student can be taught. This research does not require student personal data.
Manage Operations (ELCC 3.2) –
Consultation with my mentor is the main strategy used to determine the operations of the project. In addition, the text on action research helped to determine the steps needed to complete this project. Although I can see where another project focused on changing culture or attitudes would require the group process skills and consensus building, this research project does not require that. I do not see any conflict arising from the process of collecting the data. The only conflict could be within the results of the data, if it appears a large portion of teachers surprisingly do not appreciate the qualities and features of the program Aware. My mentor may be disappointed that the survey results would claim a lack of training on the program, since she is responsible for the training. These issues would be one-on-one.
Respond to Community Interest and Needs (ELCC 4.2) –
Since the program Aware is capable of disaggregating data by ethnicity, gender, grade, school, and economic status, this program has the potential to point out previously unknown educational deficiencies in any sub pops in the school system. This is a great tool in the hands of teachers.
Start Date End date Needed Resources Evaluation
Attend Training session for employees on the software program Aware Aug-10 Sept - 11 video device, note pad
Research and watch the training videos for using survey monkey Oct-10 Dec-10 time on the internet
Invite seven people to join the focus group May-11 Sept-11 Time for phone calls and email
Meet with the focus group to gather data Sept-11 Oct-11 meeting room, incentive food
Meet with mentor to go over the survey Sept-11 Sept-11 conference time Site mentor approval
interview teachers individually Aug-11 Oct-11 meeting times
Submit the first survey Sept-11 Oct-11 approved survey, email addresses, permissions
Analyze the survey data Oct-11 Oct-11 Sufficient number of returned surveys
Write up my research report Aug-11 Nov-11 Professor advice, Mentor input, Survey data, interview notes, focus group notes Graded by professor
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
