Technology..What? How? When?

This course was definitely an eye opener for me. I was hoping that after this course I would be able to guide myself and my campus through policies and procedures of technology and learn how to bring the campus into the digital age. I feel that this course is a large stepping stone in that direction. This class helped me think out and plan out how to change my campus. It gave me the tools to decide where my campus is and where it can go. The only thing that I wanted to learn more about was how to incorporate the technology even if the equipment is limited. A few of the teachers on campus have a handful of computers in the classroom. I wish I had a better idea on how to incorporate the few computers they have into a useful lesson.

Everything that I learned in this course is very relevant to my job at school. I consider myself a leader on my campus. I try to incorporate technology all the time and I am frequently visited by other teachers because they are new. These teachers can see how great and useful student computers are and begin incorporating them into their lessons. I also learned a great deal about the students we are teaching today about how they are considered to be “digital natives”. To have a better understanding of my students will always be relevant to me as a teacher and a school leader. This is knowledge I can share with my teachers and administrators as we move towards the digital age and continue to find ways to relate to our students.

I was successful on some assignments more than others. To be honest, the hardest part about completing the assignments was time. Since this course was at the end of the semester, it was difficult juggling school and work. I had to administer and grade finals along with completing all my other grades and turning them in. I have longer school day then most teachers. My actual class time runs from 7:30 to 4:30, but I am on campus until about 6 after meetings and clubs are finished. Therefore I honestly just felt like there was not enough time in the day to complete my teacher duties and my student duties. For Week 3’s assignment I was completely at a loss. It took me most of the week to track down our District Improvement Plan and our IT personnel. It was an overwhelming week with circumstances I could not control.

The blogging phenomenon could be the new educational trend. Blogging allows students to easily continue learning. It brings the education out of the school and into the homes. Students can discuss with each other not only in the school building but also on the internet. Students that are too shy to speak in class can have a voice in the class on the internet. Teachers can easily post discussion topics and get a feel of how students are grasping concepts. Teachers can also see if students are falling behind and help catch them up.

The two main concerns that I believe blogging could bring about is widening the digital gap and cyber bullying. If blogging becomes mandatory in a class then all students will feel as though they need a computer and internet access to be successful in the class. As teachers, we all know that not all students are the same and not all students have easy access to a computer let alone the internet to blog. We need to make sure that if we require blogging, we also provide plenty of time that students can complete the blogging at school. With blogging, strict policies and procedures need to be put in place. We cannot have students shutting down others ideas and thoughts.

Blogs allow all stakeholders to be instantly connected to the school or classroom. Parents and guardians can see what it is that their students are discussing when looking at a classroom blog. If the school itself has a blog, a lot of announcements can be made and reviewed if needed. Schools can also use blogs to send out tips and useful information. Besides parents, teachers can get a feel of what other teachers are accomplishing in their classes. The community that is involved with the school is also able to get a feel of how successful the school is and know that the school is representing the community in a better light.

Teaching and Learning with Technology

Teaching and Learning is one of the four areas in the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology. I feel as if this is the second most important aspect of the Long Range Plan after Infrastructure. The Infrastructure for Technology are the tools and the Teaching and Learning aspect is using the tools and using them properly. Teaching and Learning with Technology is successfully integrating and aligning technology with curriculum. It is being able to teach students with technology and have students use technology responsibly to learn and prepare students for the workforce and college.

The progress in this area is not great. According to Texas data, from 2002 to now, there has not been a lot of progress. The numbers are pretty similar throughout the different tech levels. I have been in and out of classrooms as a teacher for several years. I have been at the elementary, middle, and high school level and in schools of all backgrounds. I have seen a slight progression of students learning from technology. I have never been on a campus where every teacher has not had a computer and internet access in their room.

For the area of Teaching and Learning I would recommend that the best way to improve this area is to focus on the area of Administration and Support. I believe that the teachers can be empowered to use technology more in the classroom with the support behind them. I also believe that the Administration is the one that leads a vision on a campus. The leaders on the campus cannot only be the support but they can be the ones to find great professional development for on going learning and stratigies.

Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology

The Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology is highly thought out. This plan covers practically everything from students to administration to the community. It not only gives a vision for each stakeholder, it also points out areas for improvement. The plan also gives recommendations at every step towards a fully integrated technological classroom. As a future administrator I find the Long Range Plan to be extremely helpful. It almost provides a roadmap to technology integration.

To be honest, before this class I did not know there was a plan for technology in the Texas school system. I went through education certification only a few years ago and there was not a lot of emphasis on technology. We were required to purchase laptops but that was the extent of it. We did not recieve any training on integrating technology in the classroom beyond powerpoint lectures. I believe I had one lesson on creating a web page. The Texas Long Range Plan is a wonderful tool to guide me and my future team to a more successful environment. The plan will help me create a vision for my campus and be a stepping stone for the staff, parents, students, and community towards change.

Week 1: My Technology Assessments

Last week I completed two assessments about technology. The first assessment focused on my personal knowledge of technology and how I use it or do not use it in the classroom. The second one focused on technology at my school. After taking the first assessment I was surprised. Based on this assessment, I have a pretty good hold on the four domains of technology application. My main weakness according to the "Technology Application Inventory" is foundation. I am one of the youngest teachers on my campus. I feel as if my knowledge of technology is more extensive than those of my co-workers. I can easily create presentations, spreadsheets and research on the internet, but when it comes to basic knowledge I am behind. I can easily show my coworkers and students how to use certain applications but I cannot describe to them how to use it with the correct terminology. It would be wonderful if my district or school offered a professional development on the basics of technology. The second assessment only reaffirmed what I already knew about my school and my district. My school and district does not put a lot of emphases on technology with teachers or in the classroom. In the four years that I have been working for my district, we have had three different grading software programs. I feel as though it is a wonderful thing that our district is trying to give us a better program, but we never receive sufficient training. When I feel like I have gotten the hang of it and know the software well, we move on to a new one. Our school has plenty of money, but it does not seem like technology is where it is being spent.