EDLD 5352 Course Reflections

As this course winds down, I pause to reflect on the lessons and outcomes - for both personal and academic reasons I must confess. Regardless of the initiative behind this blog though, I will attempt to be honest and reflective in answering the assigned questions.

What outcomes had you envisioned for this course? Did you achieve those outcomes? Did the actual course outcomes align with those that you envisioned?


At the beginning of this course, the only real outcome I had was that this course would not feel like a professional waste of time. To be honest, there are times when I look at technology "instruction" and often not to be negative, as a fair share of what I have sat through is both frustrating and outdated. So, it wasn't until the first week of the course, and the "create a blog" assignment that I realized that this course could help give me some framework and rationale for practices that I was already employing in my classroom. At that point, I simply intended that I would utilize the course and the instruction to give me a framework for the classroom that I knew could exist. In that regard, I would have to say that I have achieved that goal. I have learned in this course that it is okay to be nervous when integrating technology, and that the over burdensome "Big Brother-ism" of the districts are counterproductive in classrooms.

As for the course goals, I would say that the course material was structured to produce those goals. I would have liked for more collaboration outside of the course bulletin board, perhaps within a class Wiki or Moodle page. Other than that, this was one of the more relevant classes I have felt a part of in my degree program.

To the extent that you achieved the outcomes, are they still relevant to the work that you do in your school? Why or why not?

I would certainly say that the outcomes I achieved are very relevant in my day to day job. Granted, I work at a campus that is more technologically advanced than others, and I work with two Apple Distiguished educators who not only use technology but teach others to do so as well. I do have that luxury. However, having the coursework and the readings not only allowed me to dialogue with them on a current basis, but challenge them as well. I also would have to say that the readings more so than anything else forced me to categorize my thoughts and my classroom in regards to technology.

In regards to why this information still has relevance to me, is that I am still in educaton. Schools that fail to move with the technology will fail. They will fail to produce competitive students in an ever changing world; they will fail to produce relevant education; and they will fail to teach the new students of the new world. As a teacher, and a future administrator, I will not accept that failure. That means, I will have to embrace this technology, use it, and encourage others to do the same.

What outcomes did you not achieve? What prevented you from achieving them?

I don't know that there were outcomes that I failed to achieve. I would have to say that like most of the courses I have taken, I went into this course with open mind to learn and follow the course outcomes, as I do sincerely wish to be a good principal. There were a couple of outcomes I had difficulties with- primarily seeing the practicality of some of the more "data" driven outcomes, but after using the data to create a plan, I realized the relevance of such. I think the only reason I personally have a challenge with some of those assingments is more in relation to my personality and less of the course structure.

Were you successful in carrying out the course assignments? If not, what prevented or discouraged you?

I did feel successful in carrying out the assignments. The only real struggles to complete the assingments were due to poor time management on my part. I had no issue fitting in the course readings, and I rather enjoyed them all, but there were parts of the assignments that I waited until too late and didn't offer the proper effort to them: See Week 2. Beyond that, all of the technology assignments were things I felt comfortable doing, and I actually found the assignments insightful and helpful.

What did you learn from this course…about yourself, your technology and leadership skills, and your attitudes?

I think the biggest lesson in this course was the philosophy of the digital native versus digital immigrant philosophy. I have to be honest that because of my age (I'm a young teacher) and the fact that I did grow up in HS with the internet and have been using a computer since I was in middle school, that I often get frustrated with teachers that are older than me and their reluctance to accept the changes of the world wide web.

However, upon putting things in the proper philosophical context helped me to be compassionate and patient in my staff development plan for those who are "new" to this land. Understanding and communicating that philosophy is a vital step for any future leader. I do think of myself as a good leader, and the ability to communicate ideas is one of my stronger suits, and it certainly helps to have such a well stated philosophy at the ready.

What is the educational value of blogs and blogging to the 21st century learner? What are the concerns of blogs and blogging in education?

First of all blogs provide a key to instantly sharing mass information. In a very real since, it is like having an entire groups papers and collective thoughts in one place, instantly avaible. Blogs allow students to instantly find experts on subjects, share their findings in a real environmet, and partcipate in their learning in ways that extend well beyond the classroom. Blogging provides an opportunity for learning to take place outside of the time and structural framework of a classroom. Of course, there are dangers anytime students share their ideas- privacy concerns are always paramount. The web is open to anyone, and blogs are some of the most sought after fodder for the dangerous element in the web. However, a school and teacher can teach students to monitor themselves properly and to share and protect themselves as needed.

How can you use blogging to communicate with school stakeholders?

Blogging is a great tool to communicate with school stakeholders, because they can be accessed, commented upon, and shared at any time of the day, in any place of the world. The idea that a father, traveling to Shanghai on business, can know of what procedures his district has just adopted in regards to any policy, and then commuincate with the principal or other adminstrators is amazing. With all of the technology that is out there, schools have no excuse when it comes to communicating with their stakeholders.

Texas STAR Chart

If we are to move forward in our use of technology in the classroom, then we need to know two things: Where we are now and where we are headed. We know that Texas provides key teacher surveys (see previous blog posts) but while these assess teacher abilities, they don't provide campus wide data.

To that end, the state has developed the Texas STAR chart. The STAR chart analyzes campus data based on 4 Key Areas and then provides a technological rating on the campus. For the past three years, my former school in Texas (as I am currently living and teaching in Malaysia) has received an Advanced Tech rating- the 3rd level on the continuum.

Of the 4 areas that require attention, in my mind, the key piece of the pie for me is the Educator Development and Preparation component. Yes, the other three (Teaching and Learning, Administration, and Infrastructure) are unbelievably important (see previous blog posts for my thoughts on Infrastructure), but to me, at this point, everything is keyed into the proper type of PD a school gives. If the campus provides the proper type of integration and support to its teachers, then it's teachers can grow. If the teachers grow, so does the campus.

The pitfall of our campus is that we have been complacent in the Educator Preparation stream. For the past 3 years, our campus has remained at the same score, down to each venue. What this says, at least to me, is that we (the campus) is okay with their current level. However, given the rapid pace of changing technology, is staying pat the right move?

Beginning Early- Technology in Pre-School

If we are truly going to see an education landscape filled with technology, then it has to begin the moment students start school. The students attending school at the earliest age must be given the vocabulary, skills, and basic understanding of a computer and its resources. To that end the state of Texas has developed a PreK TEKS in regards to technology instruction. Like all curriculum documents it is verbose and technical, but it does highlight some key points that I will outline below.

One quick word prior to the breakdown of the TEKS. It should be said that in order for the PreK TEKS to work, they must be the first steps in a line of higher developed TEKS, that is, they should be step one in a scaffold of skills that students must learn. For instance, if a High School student should learn how to produce a well designed publication ( such as a newsletter) then there is a long chain of requisite knowledge to be taught long before a student ever opens up Publisher or Quark Express. For instance, they need to know how to properly turn on a machine, save their work, type, find and document images, etc. Those beginning steps lay the groundwork for all technology education.

Thoughts on the PreK TEKS:

• Knowledge is broken down into 5 key categories, all of which are kid friendly in both phrasing and setup.
• The website itself is geared toward interactive eduction, unlike the HS Tech TEKS, which read more like a business manual.
• All skills are supported within the normal curriculum. For instance, as students learn to read in general, they learn to read webpages. Just as they are taught to decode words in a book, they are taught to decode words on a webpage.
• And finally- my favorite part of the entire setup: Students are taught the proper vocabulary for discussion in a technology world.

Long Term Technology

Despite the fact that technology is rapidly changing and teachers need to catch up quickly, it is worth mentioning that properly integrating technology into curriculum is a marathon, not a sprint. While the digital revolution has changed business at a rapid pace, using these tools properly in an education setting takes time and energy to use properly. To that end, the state of Texas has developed a highly detailed long range plan for Technology and Education. The plan can be viewed here (http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/technology/lrpt/LRPTCompleteDec06.pdf) , but I'll summarize some key points below.

• First off- in order to properly use technology, schools must dedicate a significant amount of Professional Development to the process. Even new teachers need time to see and manipulate the technology in their curriculum.
• Schools must be willing to dedicate the financial resources to technology for it to work
• Students in the US, and Texas in particular, must learn to use technology in education to compete on a global market.
• Technology is not a replacement for previous methods, but a learning of new ones.
• Lastly, teachers must recognize the world they live in now, and not harken back for yesteryear. There is no point in resisting technology- it is not going anywhere.

Technology Evaluation

Technology in the classroom- depending on which teacher your speaking to, it's either the wave of the future or the bane of their existence. The reality is, no matter what school districts do, technology is here and we have no choice but to embrace it.

But where do we begin. Even the youngest teachers, who grew up with the Internet in school, are no match for the rapid pace at which technology adapts almost daily. 10 years ago, if we were using cell phones at all, they were bulky, large, analog devices with poor coverage. Now they can play music, take photos, download audio books, find restaurants, all at the speed of digital light. So how do we as teachers even know where to begin in using technology in the classroom? If there is so much to learn, where do we start?

It's simple, we begin teaching ourselves the way we teach our students. With an informal pre-assessment of our abilities. The State of Texas offers two valuable tools for teacher assessment- both of which give a fair assessment of a teachers knowledge, skills, and understanding in the technology world. Of the two, the teacher developed Technology Applications Inventory provides a great self-assessment of the abilities and vocabulary most teachers would need to know to integrate technology into almost any situation. It is a bit daunting, considering the vocabulary could make someone feel unintelligent, but it gives teachers a great start.

The much longer SETDA Teacher Survey is incredibly thorough. However, it's incredibly beneficial, and I could envision a technology minded Principal gathering great data from his staff and using it to create purposeful PD plan. Then again, that would assume that the principal is themselves willing to admit their own shortcomings when it comes to tech and learn as well.

I think these surveys are great for this main reason. These surveys prove to us that this is one area we do not know everything about - nor is it even possible for us to know everything. We are learners like the students. Unfortunately for most of us, that means we will need to swallow our pride and admit to ourselves and our students that we all have something to learn from technology. If we are going to use this to engage our students, we will have to be fearless educators, coaching from the sidelines instead of lecturing from the front.