Web Conference
6:30 pm
March 27, 2011
The web conference that I attended tonight was really informative. I wasn't exactly sure how it was going to go, but I have to say I was very happy I attended. During the conference multiple topics were discussed. To begin we all threw out the web 2.0 tools that we are using in the classroom. It was great to read about the tools that other were using because many of them I was not aware of. Dr. Attaway provided a clearer picture of exactly what web 2.0 tools were as well during the discussion and she listed off several places to find them. The next topic we discussed was were education and technology are heading. Dr. Attaway provided us with some interesting statistics about distance learning. One student posed the question "will teachers become obsolete if distance learning is what the majority of students are doing?". Dr. Attaway told us no, because teachers are the ones who will create those online classes. It was interesting to hear this because I have never thought about how I might be responsible for creating an online course one day. The conference was great and it was nice to hear other students thoughts about technology.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
EDLD 5352 Technology Action Plan
Here is my action plan for raising the usage of technology on the campus of Marie Robinson Elementary School in Cypress, Tx. Let me know if you have any thoughts or comments.
Russ
Click Here to Download my plan
Russ
Click Here to Download my plan
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
National Educational Technology Plan
The draft of the National Educational Technology Plan breaks down the goals of the Office of Educational Technology, which is part of the U.S. Department of Education. In this draft they call for the education system to transform its use of technology in the classroom. The plan has setup its goals for this transformation of school technology use in the areas of Learning, Assessment, Teaching, Infrastructure and Productivity.
· The goal for learning is “All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and outside of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society”.
· The goal for Assessment is “Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement”.
· The goal for Assessment is “Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement”.
· The goal for Teaching is “Professional educators will be supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that can empower and inspire them to provide more effective teaching for all learners”.
· The goal for Infrastructure is “All students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure for learning when and where they need it”.
· The goal for Productivity is “Our education system at all levels will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of the power of technology to improve learning outcomes while making more efficient use of time, money, and staff”.
The draft discusses a term called “connected teaching”. This is the idea of teachers leaving the idea of teaching in isolation and stepping into a 24/7 fully connected environment, that gives them access to student data and provides the opportunity to interact with fellow teachers for collaboration or staff development. This ties into the new idea of student learning. If teachers are connected in 24/7 then we must help teach our students to become 24/7 learners as well. The article says “Learning can no longer be confined to the years we spend in school or the hours we spend in the classroom: It must be life-long, life-wide, and available on demand” (Bransford et al., 2006). I think this a great idea for teachers and students to tap into. It really mirrors the way the world works now. We are no longer disconnected at any time of the day. With modern technology we are tapped into the world 24/7, 365 days a year. We must teach our students to learn in this non-stop world or they will have difficult finding success later in life.
With this draft comes a new way of looking at professional development and training. The article describes the modern teacher as having to transform the way they do things in the classroom, so that they can use technology effectively to reach students. This transformation will require professional development to show them the best practices for accomplishing successful use of technology in the classroom. This was a quote from the draft that I found extremely interesting “Educators can be engaged in professional learning not only when attending formal workshops or other activities outside the classroom, but also in the very act of teaching, 45 Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology which can offer a rich source of information to inform professional growth (Ancess, 2000; Borko, Mayfield, Marion, Flexer, & Cumbo, 1997; Kubitskey, 2006). It was very interesting to read about the idea of teachers attending professional development while in the midst of teaching a class. This is very new concept to me but I can see the benefits of it and the tremendous amount of information you can learn from having people observe you from all over the world. The feedback they could provide would be priceless and the opportunity for others to see concepts used in real time would be so much more valuable than regular professional development workshops.
The draft of the National Educational Technology Plan was an extremely interesting piece of information. The ideas that were presented are very exciting and in my opinion, something that education is in need of. We must find a way to reach all students and technology is an extremely great way to help engage a child that would otherwise not care about their own education.
· The goal for learning is “All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and outside of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society”.
· The goal for Assessment is “Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement”.
· The goal for Assessment is “Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement”.
· The goal for Teaching is “Professional educators will be supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that can empower and inspire them to provide more effective teaching for all learners”.
· The goal for Infrastructure is “All students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure for learning when and where they need it”.
· The goal for Productivity is “Our education system at all levels will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of the power of technology to improve learning outcomes while making more efficient use of time, money, and staff”.
The draft discusses a term called “connected teaching”. This is the idea of teachers leaving the idea of teaching in isolation and stepping into a 24/7 fully connected environment, that gives them access to student data and provides the opportunity to interact with fellow teachers for collaboration or staff development. This ties into the new idea of student learning. If teachers are connected in 24/7 then we must help teach our students to become 24/7 learners as well. The article says “Learning can no longer be confined to the years we spend in school or the hours we spend in the classroom: It must be life-long, life-wide, and available on demand” (Bransford et al., 2006). I think this a great idea for teachers and students to tap into. It really mirrors the way the world works now. We are no longer disconnected at any time of the day. With modern technology we are tapped into the world 24/7, 365 days a year. We must teach our students to learn in this non-stop world or they will have difficult finding success later in life.
With this draft comes a new way of looking at professional development and training. The article describes the modern teacher as having to transform the way they do things in the classroom, so that they can use technology effectively to reach students. This transformation will require professional development to show them the best practices for accomplishing successful use of technology in the classroom. This was a quote from the draft that I found extremely interesting “Educators can be engaged in professional learning not only when attending formal workshops or other activities outside the classroom, but also in the very act of teaching, 45 Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology which can offer a rich source of information to inform professional growth (Ancess, 2000; Borko, Mayfield, Marion, Flexer, & Cumbo, 1997; Kubitskey, 2006). It was very interesting to read about the idea of teachers attending professional development while in the midst of teaching a class. This is very new concept to me but I can see the benefits of it and the tremendous amount of information you can learn from having people observe you from all over the world. The feedback they could provide would be priceless and the opportunity for others to see concepts used in real time would be so much more valuable than regular professional development workshops.
The draft of the National Educational Technology Plan was an extremely interesting piece of information. The ideas that were presented are very exciting and in my opinion, something that education is in need of. We must find a way to reach all students and technology is an extremely great way to help engage a child that would otherwise not care about their own education.
2010 Progress Report on the Long-Range Plan for Technology, 2006-2020
The progress report for the Texas Long-range plan for technology is a very information piece of information. It breaks down where the state is currently at in its technology goals for the state.
In the first section of the progress report the area of “teaching and learning” is discussed. In this section there is a breakdown of the different grants that are being used to help get Texas to its technology goals by the year 2020. In this section are also some of the different programs that are now being used in the state such as the Texas Virtual School Network and Just in Time Online Tutor. These are just a few of the many programs discussed in the first section of the progress report.
The section of the progress report is about “Educator Preparation and Development”. In this part of the report the state lays out the different programs that have been established to help educate teachers about technology and also some of the resources that are now available to them via the Internet.
In the third section of the progress report the state updates the progress of “Leadership, Administration, and Instructional Support”. This is how well administrators are doing in leading their staff when it comes the use of technology. From the 08-09 year to the 09-10 year the percentage of advanced tech went from 48% to 52%. This is showing that more and more schools across the state are having a stronger presence of leadership when it comes to using technology on school campuses.
In the fourth section of the progress report the “Infrastructure” of schools when it comes to technology. The data indicates the schools infrastructures are growing stronger but still have a lot to improve upon. These infrastructures allow for schools to have a stronger technology presence on their campuses.
In the first section of the progress report the area of “teaching and learning” is discussed. In this section there is a breakdown of the different grants that are being used to help get Texas to its technology goals by the year 2020. In this section are also some of the different programs that are now being used in the state such as the Texas Virtual School Network and Just in Time Online Tutor. These are just a few of the many programs discussed in the first section of the progress report.
The section of the progress report is about “Educator Preparation and Development”. In this part of the report the state lays out the different programs that have been established to help educate teachers about technology and also some of the resources that are now available to them via the Internet.
In the third section of the progress report the state updates the progress of “Leadership, Administration, and Instructional Support”. This is how well administrators are doing in leading their staff when it comes the use of technology. From the 08-09 year to the 09-10 year the percentage of advanced tech went from 48% to 52%. This is showing that more and more schools across the state are having a stronger presence of leadership when it comes to using technology on school campuses.
In the fourth section of the progress report the “Infrastructure” of schools when it comes to technology. The data indicates the schools infrastructures are growing stronger but still have a lot to improve upon. These infrastructures allow for schools to have a stronger technology presence on their campuses.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Texas Long Range Plan for Technology, 2006-2020: Teaching and Learning
In the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology, 2006-2020: Teaching and Learning section. The area of teaching and learning is how teachers go about teaching their students the information they need to be successful. Inside this report the state summarizes that we are no longer at a place were a one size fits all approach can be used for teaching. There are so many different types of students coming from such a vaired background and to try and teach them all the same would be doing them a great diservice. In order to level the playing field as they say in the article technology comes in and gives all students the chance to have exposure to the world around them. From the 2009-2010 progress report for the state, we see that the number of advanced tech teachers in improving, going from 29% to about 35%. This is a good step in the right direction because with more exposure to using technology in the classroom, teachers may continue to move forward and start increase the target tech percentage for the state. In order to keep the momentum we must keep those developing tech teachers motivated to learn more by offereing more staff development. Something convient would be online tech classes that the state puts out through the TEA website. The videos could teach teachers about new technology and how it can be used the in classroom. Having something like would keep teachers interested and since it is convient there may be more of positive response.
References:
Scott, R. Texas Education Agency, (2010). 2010 progress report on the long-range plan for technology, 2010 Austin, TX: Retrieved from http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=5096&menu_id=2147483665
References:
Scott, R. Texas Education Agency, (2010). 2010 progress report on the long-range plan for technology, 2010 Austin, TX: Retrieved from http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=5096&menu_id=2147483665
Thursday, August 12, 2010
EDLD 5301 comes to an end
Throughout EDLD 5301 I have learned a great amount about the process of action research and how valuable it is to an administrator. The areas I found of greatest interest to myself were how to find my wonderings to begin the process of action research, the advice of my fellow students as I was trying to finalize my topic for action research and learning about the different strategies for sustaining improvement that I will find from doing action research.
Trying to determine what topic I would like to research was overwhelming at first. I felt like I had no idea where to start, so the book “Leading with Passion and Knowledge” by Nancy Fichtman Dana was extremely useful in helping me narrow down all of my thoughts into a wondering worthy of an action research project. She writes “Wonderings materialize at the nexuses of the real-world observations, dilemmas, felt difficulties, and passions that you develop in your work as an administrator (Dana, 2009, p. 30) After reading her thoughts and looking at the list of areas of passion that she gives the reader, I felt like I had a great place to start. After using her ideas for a place to start and conferencing with my site supervisor about the needs of our school, I came to the topic I will be conducting my action research over. This will be a very helpful piece of literature to reference in the future as I complete my action research project. Trying to narrow down what research needs to be done does not seem as hard now that I have learned these great techniques.
Throughout this course I have learned that advice from fellow students is priceless. Through the discussion board I have received some great insight about my action research topic and as a result I have started to think about my project in a different light. The comment; that was given to me by a fellow student on the discussion board; that helped me to thinking about things differently was ”What could be done to reduce the amount of prep?”. Up until this point I had not been thinking about the time that these interactive science bulletin boards would take to create. This comment reminded me that I am not doing this alone, I am working with a team of teachers and I want to keep them happy, so I must respect their time. Thinking about the little details like that are not my strength, through this course I have learned that if action research is going to done to its fullest potential you must listen to those around you and hear what they have to say. Everyone sees things differently and those different perspectives will allow us to help more children be successful.
I have enjoyed learning different strategies for proposing change and for sustaining it as well. In the book “Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools” by Sandra Harris, Stacey Edmonson and Julie Combs it was very interesting to learn about the Force Field Analysis, Delphi Method, Nominal Group Technique and CARE Model. As an administrator I will be proposing changes and working to sustain changes from the past, so having these strategies will prove to be very useful. The Delphi method really spoke to me as a great technique for teachers because of the way it respects teachers busy schedules. For smaller group meetings the Nominal Group Technique seems like a great way for everyone’s voice to be heard and a true discussion to happen. I look forward to using the techniques in the future as I conduct committee meetings on my campus.
Overall the EDLD 5301 has been a tremendous experience. I look forward to using all of the information that I learned in this class this year in the field as I conduct my first action research project.
References
Dana, Fichtman Nancy. (2009). Leading with Passion And Knowledge: The Principal As Action Researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Harris, Sandra, Edmonson, Stacey, & Combs, Julie. (2010). Examining what we do to improve our schools. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education, Inc.
Trying to determine what topic I would like to research was overwhelming at first. I felt like I had no idea where to start, so the book “Leading with Passion and Knowledge” by Nancy Fichtman Dana was extremely useful in helping me narrow down all of my thoughts into a wondering worthy of an action research project. She writes “Wonderings materialize at the nexuses of the real-world observations, dilemmas, felt difficulties, and passions that you develop in your work as an administrator (Dana, 2009, p. 30) After reading her thoughts and looking at the list of areas of passion that she gives the reader, I felt like I had a great place to start. After using her ideas for a place to start and conferencing with my site supervisor about the needs of our school, I came to the topic I will be conducting my action research over. This will be a very helpful piece of literature to reference in the future as I complete my action research project. Trying to narrow down what research needs to be done does not seem as hard now that I have learned these great techniques.
Throughout this course I have learned that advice from fellow students is priceless. Through the discussion board I have received some great insight about my action research topic and as a result I have started to think about my project in a different light. The comment; that was given to me by a fellow student on the discussion board; that helped me to thinking about things differently was ”What could be done to reduce the amount of prep?”. Up until this point I had not been thinking about the time that these interactive science bulletin boards would take to create. This comment reminded me that I am not doing this alone, I am working with a team of teachers and I want to keep them happy, so I must respect their time. Thinking about the little details like that are not my strength, through this course I have learned that if action research is going to done to its fullest potential you must listen to those around you and hear what they have to say. Everyone sees things differently and those different perspectives will allow us to help more children be successful.
I have enjoyed learning different strategies for proposing change and for sustaining it as well. In the book “Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools” by Sandra Harris, Stacey Edmonson and Julie Combs it was very interesting to learn about the Force Field Analysis, Delphi Method, Nominal Group Technique and CARE Model. As an administrator I will be proposing changes and working to sustain changes from the past, so having these strategies will prove to be very useful. The Delphi method really spoke to me as a great technique for teachers because of the way it respects teachers busy schedules. For smaller group meetings the Nominal Group Technique seems like a great way for everyone’s voice to be heard and a true discussion to happen. I look forward to using the techniques in the future as I conduct committee meetings on my campus.
Overall the EDLD 5301 has been a tremendous experience. I look forward to using all of the information that I learned in this class this year in the field as I conduct my first action research project.
References
Dana, Fichtman Nancy. (2009). Leading with Passion And Knowledge: The Principal As Action Researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Harris, Sandra, Edmonson, Stacey, & Combs, Julie. (2010). Examining what we do to improve our schools. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education, Inc.
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