Week 5 Reflection

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

Initially, I did not envision this course exposing me to the many challenges facing the instructional leader with a vision of having the campus technologically integrated. This course has “opened my eyes” to much more than I envisioned. I am certainly categorized as “digital immigrant,” and never imagined the issues involved in meeting technology standards, how to safely involve students exploring the world outside of the classroom, and actually connecting with students in other locations to learn. Every week opened my mind to new thoughts and ideas to ponder for implementing technology into my school. I achieved more than I expected by learning about the Long Range Plan for Technology, TEKS for technology, Blogs, Wikis, RSS, intellectual property, revising acceptable use policies, and teaching the ethical use of technology. The course was exceptionally thorough as far as how technology relates to education. I feel that this course was very effective in engaging and allowing me to explore areas of technology, things I had heard about, but never imagined their use in the classroom. I feel that I am more aware of how to approach changes that need to be made and that I must work closely with the technology committee and site based committee to formulate plans and answer questions before purchasing and implementing. I also realize how professional development must be ongoing and hands-on to be truly effective. This course has definitely given me much to think about in a leadership position in the future.

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?
In my current position, these outcomes are relevant. I have begun looking at possible ways to explore engaging my students in projects on Think.com. I gained approval for membership, and this has been accepted. I have asked my principal and tech director about obtaining releases and notifying parents. In addition, I have also mentioned an update to our acceptable use policy. The information discussed in this course made me want to increase my use of technology with my students, and I am making an effort with every lesson to integrate technology that my students use to create performance outcomes. My students understand many types of technology, and they are definitely more engaged when they can use it to do their class work. I feel that other elements taught in this course such as copyright issues, cyber safety, and state mandated technology TEKS will help me focus on these endeavors. I feel that I will be able to facilitate learning using technology after taking this course, and I feel that my students will be better prepared as they enter middle school.



What outcomes did you not achieve? What prevented you from achieving them?
Some technologies discussed in this course through the readings and lectures remain “foggy.” I need to practice and question to find out more about RSS, wikis, podcasting, and making web pages. I think podcasting and/or video casting could be a great tool to use for students who have been absent and for communication with parents. These could even be uploaded into my teacher web page, but I do not feel I learned as much about these tools as I need. I will be involved in professional development using Web 2.0 tools, so I hope to learn more about these tools then. There is much value to learning in depth about these tools, and I will need to find time to actively participate in our new learning opportunity in order to become effective and confident in using these tools in the classroom. As an instructional leader, I also want to develop my understanding of these technologies in order to explore alternative ways of meeting with staff members, collaborating, and observations. I think these would allow for more effective time management.

Were you successful in carrying out the course assignments? If not, what prevented or discouraged you?
The time constraints were a challenge for me as this course involved a lot of new learning, and this added to current job responsibilities certainly was demanding. However, I feel the rigor was necessary, and all of the components of the course were very necessary to allow a deeper understanding of technology and how it will affect changes in education. At times, I felt as if I was jumping into the unknown, and that is an uncomfortable feeling. Even so, the assignments and lectures were understandable and thought-provoking. Technologies that I had heard of became familiar and using blogging with a hands-on approach helped me understand how it can be used with my students. Furthermore, the assignments helped me comprehend these technology concepts. The readings were also very insightful and discussed topics to be considered as an instructional leader. I feel there are many aspects of integrating technology that I still need to further explore, and there are many layers of planning that will need to take place before I completely address all aspects of information in which I have been exposed.

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

I learned that I am currently not using technology to the degree that was discussed in our readings. I feel that I am now motivated to learn more about all aspects of integrating technology. I did realize how much I stand in the digital immigrant world. I learned that I am not confident in learning new types of technology, and I need to get over that and plan projects that will benefit my students, as well as, engage them. I am amazed by this new information as it will allow me to grow as an educational leader in the near future. My technology skills and understanding have been greatly increased upon the completion of this course. Before this course I did not seek out new types of technology to integrate into my classroom. Now I have the attitude that there is no limit concerning what I can use in the classroom to better educate and engage my students. I now find myself thinking of ways to integrate new technology to better educate my students and myself.


What is the educational value of blogs and blogging to the 21st century learner?

I can see blogs being used in ELAR while reading a class novel. As an on-line journal in which other students can respond, I think blogging would allow students to see issues from more perspectives. In any content area, this could apply for whatever project is assigned to groups of students. By students sharing and collaborating information, I think the individuals learn more as they are exposed to many sides of an issue. Furthermore, digital natives like to use this sort of technology as it is very much like chatting or texting. In an educational setting, they do need to understand that what they post will be under scrutiny not only by the teacher, but an entire group of followers. However, I think students will rise to this standard and will be more engaged in the learning.
As an instructional leader, blogging could be used to collaborate with staff on matters of administration, as well as, staff development issues. In the same way as students, different points of view are expressed and everyone involved learns more. Plus, all information is easily cataloged and stored.



What are the concerns of blogs and blogging in education?

Concerns of blogging I think have to do with going to sites that are inappropriate for students. We want students to be safe from predators and/or cyber bullying, and any time they venture on-line where others are responding, students could be faced with such negative on-line users. This is why educators should explore and plan for safe on-line uses for students. Parents and teachers should also teach children how to stay safe when they are working on-line. We do not want information to get into the wrong hands to defame our students or our schools. Privacy is of the utmost concern, and proper releases should be obtained beforehand. Students and teachers should always remember that the purpose of blogging in school is for educational purposes only. I think using services that allow for safer blogging experiences might be better to use for the sake of keeping students safe and their information private.


How can you use blogging to communicate with school stakeholders?
Blogging can be used to communicate on the website to inform stakeholders about virtually anything that needs to be communicated. It could be for releasing information about accomplishments of staff and students. It is a way to spread great news about our schools to give a positive climate among all who are involved with and interesting in the workings of our schools. Administrators could also have a staff blog for relaying meeting information and calendar events. Furthermore, blogging could be used to reflect on staff development, what was learned, and how are we going to use what we learned. Integration of technology could be shared with other teachers and administration, discussing the learning and the outcomes. Teachers could use blogs to upload information ranging from assignment information to presentations for instruction on their web pages. The use of blogs is simply a way to communicate timely information in an effective way and reflect on what we do.