Course Reflections

While reading about the course outcomes at the beginning of this course i thought there was no way that we would cover all of the objectives in five weeks but i was wrong. I had originally thought that we were going to learn how to use blogs, pod casts and technology to teach to our students and faculty. After reading the learning outcomes for the class i was excited because these are things that i wanted to learn about. As a teacher i hated filling out the Texas STaR chart as it was such a pain, but now i realize why that information is so valuable. I also thought that learning about how to connect technology and learning was going to be tough but i have come up with several ideas to share with my teachers. I believe that the outcomes are completely relevant to the work i do in my school. I can now figure out what needs to be addressed and what issues i don't have to worry about anymore. I have found ways to help my teachers make those connections with their students who are digital natives. It is hard for teachers to find ways to connect with their students and i have the knowledge now to help me. I also can make sure that we have the resources needed to help out students and teachers with technology. I also feel confident in teaching the faculty about the dangers of technology and what they should be looking for to keep our students safe. I do not feel confident in facilitating the design of curriculum to enhance teaching and learning. I feel that i need more work with the different curriculum's and departments in order to come up with new things that can help make those connections. I can teach the teachers how to enhance the curriculum but haven't learned enough to change the curriculum to include these standards.
I was successful in carrying out most of the course assignments except for week four. I found it very difficult to figure out what the assignment was asking for. There was a rubric but it really didn't explain what it was looking for in terms of structure for the assignment. Even though i did well on it, i was very uncomfortable submitting the information for grading. I did however have the information that i needed to include in the assignment, i was just confused as to how to set it up. I felt like i needed more instruction on what to include and how to format it. The other assignments were clearly laid out and i felt comfortable with submitting them. I was able to get enough information from my colleagues who answered the technology questions to complete the other assignments. I learned a lot from this class during the last few weeks. I learned what i needed to look for while my students are online. I feel more comfortable in working with them so that they will be safe. I always worry about what they are going to run in to while they are online and i was given great tips to work with my kids. I also learned about how to incorporate technology in the classroom and to lessen the gap between the digital immigrants and the digital natives. I also learned that i need to be more open to technology and the opportunities it can bring.
I was wary about doing a blog and was not looking forward to it. After working with the format and the site i enjoy getting on there and looking at other peoples work as well. I think it can be a great tool in the classroom and i am already thinking of ideas in how to incorporate it into mine. Blogs can have such an impact on the way that we teach. Teachers can connect students with other students in classes, schools and even countries. i think that it is an excellent way to start off the communication between the teacher and the students as well. We can teach students that they have to be responsible for checking the blogs but also that they are responsible for what they put on their blog as well. This is teaching them responsibility for the future when we aren't there to keep an eye on them. My only concerns for blogging are that it does open the students up to be judged by others. I am also concerned that there is no way to block the public from reading the blog. I don't want people from the outside to have access to my students on the inside. I do think however, that when used properly it can be a great tool. Blogs can be used for parents, community members and staff to find out what id going on inside the classroom. They have open access to their students work and can communicate with the teacher instead of trying to catch them on the phone while they are teaching. They open the lines for communication so that we can connect with parents as well as school stakeholders. Technology can be great when it is used correctly and monitored to be safe as well.

Week 4 Action Plan

Part Two
Goal: To improve the use of technology to enhance the efficiency of learning and to provide technological knowledge and skills to students.

Instructional Facilitators: Will provide training in AWARE, which is a database that has all assessment information on all students enrolled in the school. This will allow teachers to assess which areas and objectives that they need to focus on.

Billye Turner: Will provide training on web pages and teach the teachers how to use these to enhance learning in the classroom. Make them interactive and allow students to input and use their technology skills to be successful.

Teachers will also be trained in blogs and how to create, use and implement them in the classroom.

Kari Rhame: Will provide Intel training for all teachers and allow them to learn different techniques for using technology in the classroom. By taking this training teachers also receive 5 student computers for their classroom use.

Rita Miller: Will train teachers on and set up the CPS (classroom performance systems) for classroom use. Teachers can use these systems to help enhance instruction for optimal understanding.

Part 3
Goal: To improve the use of technology to enhance the efficiency of learning and to provide technological knowledge and skills to students


Professional Development
Using web pages in the classroom for student and parent use. To enhance instruction and allow for better communication.
Use the AWARE database for identifying areas of need.
Take Intel training to learn about different forms of technology that can be used in the classroom.
Use of CPS units in the classroom.


Assessment
Use the district web site to check that all teachers are using these websites and survey students use of these pages.
Use AWARE to pull data on improvement on benchmarks on those objectives.
Count the number of student computers in the classroom and total number of teachers that have received training.
Observation of classroom teachers and the use of the CPS units in the classroom to make sure that they are being used effectively.