Personal Technology Plan
Vision of Technology
The integration of technology and the teaching of digital literacy skills are critical aspects of 21st century education. Today and in the future, my students’ success in the classroom and in life will depend on their digital literacy and ability to utilize technology. This literacy must include fluency in electronic communication, computers and applications, ethics, digital media, online information, and the Internet.
According to the 2009 Horizon Report, “Students are different, but a lot of educational material is not.” In order to actively engage my students in the acquisition of technology literacy, I need to adapt my teaching style and technology resources to their learning style which is much more interactive, hands-on, and game or project based. My students have grown up with the computer and are digital natives. They have their own learning style and want to control how they acquire knowledge.
With a forward-looking approach to technology and education, a constructivist strategy that supports inquiry and critical thinking with an application of acquired knowledge to complex problems will be necessary. The delivery of lessons must be engaging and interactive with appropriate content and real-time feedback for assessment. This more easily said than done, but I will continue to search and research online and software resources to actively engage my students.
In the 2010 Horizon Report, one of the key trends likely to impact education is “just-in-time” learning. This phrase is enough to make any novice or veteran teacher cringe. It could even be related to fingernails on a chalkboard. However, the reality is that students expect real-time access to information and their social networks to help make sense of that information. The report states, “People expect to be able to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want to. Life in an increasingly busy world where learners must balance demands from home, work, school, and family poses a host of logistical challenges with which today’s ever more mobile students must cope.” This desire for “just-in-time” learning will have a tremendous impact on education and will be a serous challenge for teachers. Pedagogy must be creative and open minded to address this issue. Sometimes I think that when my students are “surfing” the net they end up drowning in a sea of information. My focus will be to provide direct instruction in the most efficient methods of online research. If there is something that they do not know, they will know the most direct and effective method to find the answer.
With reduced state funding and local budget cuts, our school districts must make the most of their limited resources. Technology can be helpful and it can also be misappropriated. Applications such as Gmail and cloud computing/storage can be financially beneficial and reduce the expenses of purchased or licensed network software. However, administrators must be careful to do their due diligence and research to insure that they have the most effective and functional technology available.
Classroom Technology
In my classroom, I use Moodle everyday as a way to communicate, deliver lessons and resources, and provide a virtual classroom to my students. Each class begins with a journal or forum reviewing a previously learned topic or introducing a new lesson. I also place videos and podcasts in Moodle to deliver a message or to demonstrate a unit we are working on in class.
For tutorials, Atomic Learning is a useful online resource. I usually assign a few short segments in Atomic learn that relate to the software or technology that we will be using. It allows the student to have more control over their learning environment. They can stop or pause the tutorial and check the application in the software. This is difficult to do to the teacher when I am demonstrating or modeling a lesson.
Collaboration in my classroom has been successful with the use of Google Apps. Students work in pairs with Google Docs while they are researching a project topic and Google Sites to create their presentations for the class. An example is my Teachhowe WebQuest on the history of the Internet and the computer. I also have class wikis on PBWorks. Students must create their own page and review and comment on the works of others. They have their individual pages because there has been too much frustration when more than one person is working on a page.
As the online coordinator, I am responsible for mentoring classes of online students in e2020 and Michigan Virtual High School. Using research and a “best practices” approach, I suggested to our district to use e2020 as an online tutorial for remediation and credit recovery. It has worked well so far. The key to the success with e2020 is the customization of the courses. Working with core subject teachers, we review each course and align it with state benchmarks and standards and with our school’s curriculum. E2020 provides prescriptive testing which enables us to further edit courses according to a student’s knowledge or learning experience. One feature of e2020 that is notable is the use of Gizmos in the math and science lab sections of each online course. The Gizmos are interactive and help the student to visualize the concept that is being taught.
MIVHS core subject courses are designed and aligned to the Michigan Merit Curriculum. A highly qualified teacher manages the student and the course. I provide classroom mentoring, coaching, and technology support. Many of the courses are engaging, but there are still too many that have been designed along the lines of an online textbook. Reading an online textbook and answering questions is not active learning. I have made it a personal project to bring this to the attention of the administrators and teachers of MIVHS. I complete every course survey and teacher evaluation that is sent to me. Emailing the course teachers is another way I try to communicate the needs of my students. MIVHS has a lot to offer, but I am very selective of the courses that we use. Most students enjoy their MIVHS classes and have been successful with them.
Personal Growth Plan
Through Michigan State University, I have earned a “Certificate in Educational Technology" this spring. The learning process will go on for me as I have been accepted into the Master’s of Educational Technology program. Learning new technology and applying it not always easy, but it is exciting for me. I am enrolled in the summer cohort program for CEP 800 – Learning in School and Other Settings, CEP 815 – Technology and Leadership and CEP 822 – Approaches to Educational Research. It is my plan to complete my master’s within the next year.
For the 2010-2011 school year, I have been assigned all online students. This came a bit as a surprise, but it is definitely a compliment to the success of the online program and my mentoring. It will be a challenge to have forty different daily lesson plans, but I am determined to be successful along with my students.
Looking forward, I would like to design online classes or consult in their structure and content with a current provider. There is definitely a different perspective that I have acquired by experiencing online learners in the classroom. In addition, I would like to structure a database that would track my e2020 and MIVHS students, their courses and grades. This is important to evaluating the success of our program and implementing changes as needed to continuously improve our application of technology in education. Ultimately, I would like to work in administration and coordinate a district or county wide online learning program.
The integration of technology and the teaching of digital literacy skills are critical aspects of 21st century education. Today and in the future, my students’ success in the classroom and in life will depend on their digital literacy and ability to utilize technology. This literacy must include fluency in electronic communication, computers and applications, ethics, digital media, online information, and the Internet.
According to the 2009 Horizon Report, “Students are different, but a lot of educational material is not.” In order to actively engage my students in the acquisition of technology literacy, I need to adapt my teaching style and technology resources to their learning style which is much more interactive, hands-on, and game or project based. My students have grown up with the computer and are digital natives. They have their own learning style and want to control how they acquire knowledge.
With a forward-looking approach to technology and education, a constructivist strategy that supports inquiry and critical thinking with an application of acquired knowledge to complex problems will be necessary. The delivery of lessons must be engaging and interactive with appropriate content and real-time feedback for assessment. This more easily said than done, but I will continue to search and research online and software resources to actively engage my students.
In the 2010 Horizon Report, one of the key trends likely to impact education is “just-in-time” learning. This phrase is enough to make any novice or veteran teacher cringe. It could even be related to fingernails on a chalkboard. However, the reality is that students expect real-time access to information and their social networks to help make sense of that information. The report states, “People expect to be able to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want to. Life in an increasingly busy world where learners must balance demands from home, work, school, and family poses a host of logistical challenges with which today’s ever more mobile students must cope.” This desire for “just-in-time” learning will have a tremendous impact on education and will be a serous challenge for teachers. Pedagogy must be creative and open minded to address this issue. Sometimes I think that when my students are “surfing” the net they end up drowning in a sea of information. My focus will be to provide direct instruction in the most efficient methods of online research. If there is something that they do not know, they will know the most direct and effective method to find the answer.
With reduced state funding and local budget cuts, our school districts must make the most of their limited resources. Technology can be helpful and it can also be misappropriated. Applications such as Gmail and cloud computing/storage can be financially beneficial and reduce the expenses of purchased or licensed network software. However, administrators must be careful to do their due diligence and research to insure that they have the most effective and functional technology available.
Classroom Technology
In my classroom, I use Moodle everyday as a way to communicate, deliver lessons and resources, and provide a virtual classroom to my students. Each class begins with a journal or forum reviewing a previously learned topic or introducing a new lesson. I also place videos and podcasts in Moodle to deliver a message or to demonstrate a unit we are working on in class.
For tutorials, Atomic Learning is a useful online resource. I usually assign a few short segments in Atomic learn that relate to the software or technology that we will be using. It allows the student to have more control over their learning environment. They can stop or pause the tutorial and check the application in the software. This is difficult to do to the teacher when I am demonstrating or modeling a lesson.
Collaboration in my classroom has been successful with the use of Google Apps. Students work in pairs with Google Docs while they are researching a project topic and Google Sites to create their presentations for the class. An example is my Teachhowe WebQuest on the history of the Internet and the computer. I also have class wikis on PBWorks. Students must create their own page and review and comment on the works of others. They have their individual pages because there has been too much frustration when more than one person is working on a page.
As the online coordinator, I am responsible for mentoring classes of online students in e2020 and Michigan Virtual High School. Using research and a “best practices” approach, I suggested to our district to use e2020 as an online tutorial for remediation and credit recovery. It has worked well so far. The key to the success with e2020 is the customization of the courses. Working with core subject teachers, we review each course and align it with state benchmarks and standards and with our school’s curriculum. E2020 provides prescriptive testing which enables us to further edit courses according to a student’s knowledge or learning experience. One feature of e2020 that is notable is the use of Gizmos in the math and science lab sections of each online course. The Gizmos are interactive and help the student to visualize the concept that is being taught.
MIVHS core subject courses are designed and aligned to the Michigan Merit Curriculum. A highly qualified teacher manages the student and the course. I provide classroom mentoring, coaching, and technology support. Many of the courses are engaging, but there are still too many that have been designed along the lines of an online textbook. Reading an online textbook and answering questions is not active learning. I have made it a personal project to bring this to the attention of the administrators and teachers of MIVHS. I complete every course survey and teacher evaluation that is sent to me. Emailing the course teachers is another way I try to communicate the needs of my students. MIVHS has a lot to offer, but I am very selective of the courses that we use. Most students enjoy their MIVHS classes and have been successful with them.
Personal Growth Plan
Through Michigan State University, I have earned a “Certificate in Educational Technology" this spring. The learning process will go on for me as I have been accepted into the Master’s of Educational Technology program. Learning new technology and applying it not always easy, but it is exciting for me. I am enrolled in the summer cohort program for CEP 800 – Learning in School and Other Settings, CEP 815 – Technology and Leadership and CEP 822 – Approaches to Educational Research. It is my plan to complete my master’s within the next year.
For the 2010-2011 school year, I have been assigned all online students. This came a bit as a surprise, but it is definitely a compliment to the success of the online program and my mentoring. It will be a challenge to have forty different daily lesson plans, but I am determined to be successful along with my students.
Looking forward, I would like to design online classes or consult in their structure and content with a current provider. There is definitely a different perspective that I have acquired by experiencing online learners in the classroom. In addition, I would like to structure a database that would track my e2020 and MIVHS students, their courses and grades. This is important to evaluating the success of our program and implementing changes as needed to continuously improve our application of technology in education. Ultimately, I would like to work in administration and coordinate a district or county wide online learning program.