Saturday, December 22, 2012
EDLD 5363 Web Conference December 16th
As our team finished up the final touches on our project, questions came up regarding what to submit, our actual due date and other important details that would ensure the success of our project. I used the transcript from the December 16th web conference to clarify some points of contention with my team members. I had almost forgotten to use the transcripts as an additional resource!
EDLD 5363 Web Conference November 19th
This was the one web conference that I was able to attend with my peers. I didn't participate in a great deal of discussion, but I was pleased that I attended because it gave me the opportunity to form a group and exchange contact information with my new group members. Also, Dr. Abernathy let us know some important information about due dates for our final project as well as other things to expect in the coming weeks.
EDLD 5363 Web Conference November 18th
I was a bit nervous about this course after viewing the blogs and e-portfolios of previous students, so I was very happy to learn during this web conference, that not only would there be several more web conferences to get additional information, but also that we would be working in groups. The idea of working with others makes everything better!
Multimedia and Video Technology Web Conferences
Attending and reading through the web conferences provided a frame of reference for completing our video production process. I didn’t necessarily see the benefit of attending them until my group members and I had questions about certain portions of the project. I was able to recall information from one of the conferences and then verify the information from the conference transcript to answer our questions. So in the end, the conferences were not just a way to familiarize myself with my cohorts, but provided valuable information that I can attribute to the success of our final video.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Tech Talks Episode 1
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Digital Storytelling
Creating a personal digital story was not as much fun as I thought it was going to be! I spent a lot of time thinking about the focus of my story and once I found one, then I spent even more time playing with different web tools for video production. I quickly realized that there are truly a lot of resources out there, but that they all have there pro's and con's. After recalling different resources I learned about during a district led technology conference, I settled on using My Brain Shark. It was very user-friendly and allowed me to use add background music and add voice-over without using any additional software.
For a first attempt, I don't think my video is too terribly bad, but I know with more practice, I can only get better!
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Action Research Plan Process Overview
1. SETTING THE FOUNDATION
Through careful examination of my internship plan and discussions with my site mentor, technology integration in the classroom emerged as an important and critical theme. From this vantage point, I looked into my experiences as a classroom teacher and reflected on factors that prevented me from furthering my knowledge on educational technology and using technology in the classroom. After reflecting, I formulated the wondering of how can I facilitate professional developments to aid in the integration of educational technology?
I anticipate using literature, self-reflection, surveys, field notes from interviews and classroom observations, and quantitative measures of student performance in technology rich environments.
3. DEVELOPING DEEPER UNDERSTANDING
As I begin data collection through literature and self education, I anticipate developing more questions. These inquires will facilitate the development of other data collection endeavors, such as interview questions, survey questions, and classroom observations. For example, my understanding of web tools and other easy to use technologies will definitely affect the types of questions I pose in a technology knowledge and use survey.
4. ENGAGE IN SELF-REFLECTION
Reflective questions that I may ask myself include:
• Have I gathered sufficient information to facilitate a professional development in educational technology that is specific to the needs of my campus?
In exploring programmatic patterns, I plan to discuss my reflective questions with my site mentor, campus technology specialist and principal. It is very important to the success of my action research that all issues and obstacles regarding the implementation of educational technology are addressed.
6. DETERMINING DIRECTION
This step demands that I take a step back from my research and review and revise my plan. Here is where I will prioritize my goals. I anticipate having to revert back to collecting more data in areas of my research that are lacking or that I have identified as a bigger priority.
In order to implement my action research findings, I will need to lead an educational technology professional development of my own or in the very least, help facilitate. After initial permission to lead a professional development of this type, I plan to systematically carry out the action steps I identified as necessary for success.
8. SUSTAIN IMPROVEMENT
Sustaining improvement will come from modeling the desired behavior in my classroom as well as carrying out the last two steps identified in my action research plan. Through the encouragement of participation in teacher reflective blogs, ongoing tutorial sessions on web tools and other available technologies, as well as tiered professional developments, self-growth on behalf of the teacher will continue beyond the confines of the school.
Through careful examination of my internship plan and discussions with my site mentor, technology integration in the classroom emerged as an important and critical theme. From this vantage point, I looked into my experiences as a classroom teacher and reflected on factors that prevented me from furthering my knowledge on educational technology and using technology in the classroom. After reflecting, I formulated the wondering of how can I facilitate professional developments to aid in the integration of educational technology?
2. ANALYZING DATA
I anticipate using literature, self-reflection, surveys, field notes from interviews and classroom observations, and quantitative measures of student performance in technology rich environments.
Through these data collection measures, I hope identify
best practices for developing professional developments, to identify easily
accessible web tools for educational use, as well as to identify ways to align
the unique features of educational technology with continuing education
efforts.
3. DEVELOPING DEEPER UNDERSTANDING
As I begin data collection through literature and self education, I anticipate developing more questions. These inquires will facilitate the development of other data collection endeavors, such as interview questions, survey questions, and classroom observations. For example, my understanding of web tools and other easy to use technologies will definitely affect the types of questions I pose in a technology knowledge and use survey.
Reflective questions that I may ask myself include:
• Have I gathered sufficient information to facilitate a professional development in educational technology that is specific to the needs of my campus?
• Do the questions I developed for survey and interview
purposes have any biases?
• Have I explored and/or recognized all obstacles to the
goal of increased classroom technology integration in my project?
5. EXPLORING PROGRAMMATIC PATTERNS
In exploring programmatic patterns, I plan to discuss my reflective questions with my site mentor, campus technology specialist and principal. It is very important to the success of my action research that all issues and obstacles regarding the implementation of educational technology are addressed.
6. DETERMINING DIRECTION
This step demands that I take a step back from my research and review and revise my plan. Here is where I will prioritize my goals. I anticipate having to revert back to collecting more data in areas of my research that are lacking or that I have identified as a bigger priority.
7. TAKING ACTION FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT
In order to implement my action research findings, I will need to lead an educational technology professional development of my own or in the very least, help facilitate. After initial permission to lead a professional development of this type, I plan to systematically carry out the action steps I identified as necessary for success.
8. SUSTAIN IMPROVEMENT
Sustaining improvement will come from modeling the desired behavior in my classroom as well as carrying out the last two steps identified in my action research plan. Through the encouragement of participation in teacher reflective blogs, ongoing tutorial sessions on web tools and other available technologies, as well as tiered professional developments, self-growth on behalf of the teacher will continue beyond the confines of the school.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Developing an Action Research Plan
This week, we were asked to develop an action research plan based upon the wondering identified in last week's assignment. After reading the Dana text, Leading with Passion and Knowledge and looking back at my internship plan, I realized that I had already created an action research plan without even knowing! The data collection means will essentially be the same as many of the activities I identified through my draft internship plan. The fact that these two documents coincide, make me feel much more confident about the strength and actuality of my action research project.
I am also very excited about my ability to embed my action research chart! I remembered the instructions from a previous course on how to embed a power point presentation and surmised that I could do the same for a chart in a word document. After converting my document to a PDF file, I uploaded it onto a free software program that converts pdf and text documents to html and was able to embed it properly into my blog posting! It’s a great feeling when you’re able to apply what you’ve learned!
I am also very excited about my ability to embed my action research chart! I remembered the instructions from a previous course on how to embed a power point presentation and surmised that I could do the same for a chart in a word document. After converting my document to a PDF file, I uploaded it onto a free software program that converts pdf and text documents to html and was able to embed it properly into my blog posting! It’s a great feeling when you’re able to apply what you’ve learned!
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Discovering Wonderings that Drive Teacher Inquiry
I found this week’s assignment to be a bit frustrating. After reading about the different areas where
teachers and administrators find their wonderings that lead to action research,
I found it extremely difficult to settle on one topic of interest for my
particular action research project. I
did rely on some insight from my site mentor and decided to investigate best
practices for leading technology themed staff developments. I feel very strongly about this topic because
it has a two pronged approach. It gives
me the opportunity to exercise leadership ability through the possibility of
conducting a staff development session, but also enables me to research a
subject matter that I am just beginning to explore.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Action Research in Educational Leadership
In the required reading for course EDLD 5301, I have learned about the history
of action research, who benefits, and potential applications of action research
findings.
Prior to reading the texts, I was unsure as to the implications of the term “action research” and as Dana (2009) from Leading with Passion and Knowledge mentions, I immediately conjured thoughts of late nights at the library and dated theories (p.6). However, Dana (2009) uses the term as a spring board that leads to the coining of other terms such as “practitioner inquiry”,”classroom research” and ”practioner research” to further describe the process (p.5-6). As it turns out, the distinguishing characterisitic of action research is the proactive process in which practitioners cultivate a relevant question and actively take part in seeking and applying solutions. In the past, educational research has either been disseminated by institutions who are far removed from the daily activities of schools and/or ignored the pivotal role the practioner plays in the inquiry process. By contrast, action research demands that the practitioner internalize the process by use of reflection upon previous experiences and the examination of digestable and realistic goals.
Prior to reading the texts, I was unsure as to the implications of the term “action research” and as Dana (2009) from Leading with Passion and Knowledge mentions, I immediately conjured thoughts of late nights at the library and dated theories (p.6). However, Dana (2009) uses the term as a spring board that leads to the coining of other terms such as “practitioner inquiry”,”classroom research” and ”practioner research” to further describe the process (p.5-6). As it turns out, the distinguishing characterisitic of action research is the proactive process in which practitioners cultivate a relevant question and actively take part in seeking and applying solutions. In the past, educational research has either been disseminated by institutions who are far removed from the daily activities of schools and/or ignored the pivotal role the practioner plays in the inquiry process. By contrast, action research demands that the practitioner internalize the process by use of reflection upon previous experiences and the examination of digestable and realistic goals.
As a teacher and a student preparing to be an educational leader, action
research has several benefits and uses. For
instance, within teaching I could use action research to explore web tools for
use in my subject matter, French language.
I could also use it to collaborate with other teachers on classroom
management strategies. As a student in
educational leadership, I could use action research to explore common issues
administrators face, such as finding funding for technology, creating hands on
and effective professional developments, and reducing discipline referrals.
Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Blogging in Educational Leadership
In a traditional setting, educational leaders are limited to problem-solving and troubleshooting common issues within the confines of their school or district. However, web tools such as blogging are breaking down boundaries and fostering boundless environments for brainstorming and conversation.
Blogging is an easy to use web tool that creates an open dialogue on issues of interest or concern for educational leaders. It allows followers to respond, critique and/or offer suggestions. Educators and others wanting to communicate to stakeholders or school administrators can use this as a tool to voice their opinions, concerns and needs in a quick, informal and effective way (as blogs archive posts) in hope that a solution is developed or created. Another way educational leaders can use blogs is to encourage best practices amongst teachers, by modeling and encouraging staff to use blogs as a reflective teaching journal. Reflection fosters writing and and thought that sincerely consider the conveyed meaning and desired content of their queries, opinions and research. Other uses include using blogs for professional development, and to communicate with parents.
Blogging is an easy to use web tool that creates an open dialogue on issues of interest or concern for educational leaders. It allows followers to respond, critique and/or offer suggestions. Educators and others wanting to communicate to stakeholders or school administrators can use this as a tool to voice their opinions, concerns and needs in a quick, informal and effective way (as blogs archive posts) in hope that a solution is developed or created. Another way educational leaders can use blogs is to encourage best practices amongst teachers, by modeling and encouraging staff to use blogs as a reflective teaching journal. Reflection fosters writing and and thought that sincerely consider the conveyed meaning and desired content of their queries, opinions and research. Other uses include using blogs for professional development, and to communicate with parents.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Educational Technology Leadership 5306
Course Reflections
My decision to enter the Lamar University online Master’s Program in Educational Technology came to me after a few career centered setbacks last fall. I wavered back and forth between a master’s in administration and a master’s in educational technology leadership. I eventually chose educational technology leadership because I felt it was a dynamic program that had the leadership component I was looking for, but also introduced the concept of classroom technology integration, a subject of which I know little. My decision revealed to me that I am still willing to embrace and engage in new and perhaps scary experiences. Now that I am in the program, I am extremely pleased with the expectations of my professors, my ability to communicate informally about assignments and the content with this first course.
I also understand now that I need to stay open to new classroom practices. I have only been teaching for 3 years and consider myself to be progressive. However, I learned that as progressive as I think I am, I still cling to some of the more traditional tenets of how to teach, how to manage a classroom and how students learn. The web tools that I learned about in this course, I narrowly viewed as technologies for personal and entertainment use only. I now understand the way these can be used to help revolutionize education for our 21st century learners.
My decision to enter the Lamar University online Master’s Program in Educational Technology came to me after a few career centered setbacks last fall. I wavered back and forth between a master’s in administration and a master’s in educational technology leadership. I eventually chose educational technology leadership because I felt it was a dynamic program that had the leadership component I was looking for, but also introduced the concept of classroom technology integration, a subject of which I know little. My decision revealed to me that I am still willing to embrace and engage in new and perhaps scary experiences. Now that I am in the program, I am extremely pleased with the expectations of my professors, my ability to communicate informally about assignments and the content with this first course.
I also understand now that I need to stay open to new classroom practices. I have only been teaching for 3 years and consider myself to be progressive. However, I learned that as progressive as I think I am, I still cling to some of the more traditional tenets of how to teach, how to manage a classroom and how students learn. The web tools that I learned about in this course, I narrowly viewed as technologies for personal and entertainment use only. I now understand the way these can be used to help revolutionize education for our 21st century learners.
Educational Technology Leadership 5306
Course Reflections
I’ve been fairly successful in fulfilling the requirements of my assignments. I have learned that most crucial to success has been time management and keeping the pace of the course. My first week, I didn’t expect the assignment to be as lengthy and time consuming and as a result didn’t set aside enough time to complete. I worked until the last minute of my deadline and still didn’t finish. I also, confused the due dates for my assignments. My syllabus told me one date, but the software program for my coursework stated another. Thankfully, I was able to submit my assignment again, but still managed to overlook one small section! After my second week, I was able to effectively manage my time, review all parts to my assignment before starting and submitted work to the best of my ability given time constraints. I hope to keep up the momentum in my next courses.
I’ve been fairly successful in fulfilling the requirements of my assignments. I have learned that most crucial to success has been time management and keeping the pace of the course. My first week, I didn’t expect the assignment to be as lengthy and time consuming and as a result didn’t set aside enough time to complete. I worked until the last minute of my deadline and still didn’t finish. I also, confused the due dates for my assignments. My syllabus told me one date, but the software program for my coursework stated another. Thankfully, I was able to submit my assignment again, but still managed to overlook one small section! After my second week, I was able to effectively manage my time, review all parts to my assignment before starting and submitted work to the best of my ability given time constraints. I hope to keep up the momentum in my next courses.
Educational Technology Leadership 5306
Course Reflections
It’s been a long time since I have been asked to write anything of significance. In high school I do remember writing many research papers but I was required to use MLA as my guide to citing works. In college, I’m not sure whether I used MLA or APA, either way, my knowledge of both is very limited. Coincidently, as one of the topics discussed in this first course and one of the outcomes that I’ve struggled with in my coursework submissions, is the fact that resources for gathering research have drastically changed in the last decade. Physical copies of books are what I am used to citing, but now there are online government publications, online journals, and blogs. As a result, mastering correct APA style and understanding the latest APA handbook will continue to be a work in progress and crucial to my successful completion of my graduate coursework.
It’s been a long time since I have been asked to write anything of significance. In high school I do remember writing many research papers but I was required to use MLA as my guide to citing works. In college, I’m not sure whether I used MLA or APA, either way, my knowledge of both is very limited. Coincidently, as one of the topics discussed in this first course and one of the outcomes that I’ve struggled with in my coursework submissions, is the fact that resources for gathering research have drastically changed in the last decade. Physical copies of books are what I am used to citing, but now there are online government publications, online journals, and blogs. As a result, mastering correct APA style and understanding the latest APA handbook will continue to be a work in progress and crucial to my successful completion of my graduate coursework.
Educational Technology Leadership 5306
Course Reflections
I am currently not working as a teacher, but I am doing some substitute work at a special needs school. For the purpose of my coursework, I started using the school where I worked as a French teacher last year as my reference point. I am now using a high school in a neighboring district as my resource as well as to satisfy my internship requirements.
All aspects where I was asked to reflect upon my current teaching position or assess my schools’ needs proved to be frustrating, since I am not employed as a teacher. Therefore, all of the tools that I want to apply and share I haven’t been able to do yet. Hopefully, by next school year I’ll be teaching again. When it does happen, I’ll be ready with a fresh new approach. In the meantime, I hope to sharpen my teaching skills by employing the concepts introduced in this course and using my work as a substitute teacher as a chance to observe a school where technology is embraced.
I am currently not working as a teacher, but I am doing some substitute work at a special needs school. For the purpose of my coursework, I started using the school where I worked as a French teacher last year as my reference point. I am now using a high school in a neighboring district as my resource as well as to satisfy my internship requirements.
All aspects where I was asked to reflect upon my current teaching position or assess my schools’ needs proved to be frustrating, since I am not employed as a teacher. Therefore, all of the tools that I want to apply and share I haven’t been able to do yet. Hopefully, by next school year I’ll be teaching again. When it does happen, I’ll be ready with a fresh new approach. In the meantime, I hope to sharpen my teaching skills by employing the concepts introduced in this course and using my work as a substitute teacher as a chance to observe a school where technology is embraced.
Educational Technology Leadership 5306
Course Reflections
My first course of my Masters in Educational Technology coursework is coming to a close. As, I look back on the days before I began this program, I realize I didn’t know much about the program at all and consequently didn’t have many expectations! I have learned about all sorts of Web 2.0. tools, started a blog, created a Wordle and I have subscribed to RSS feeds. There are so many tools available for educational and personal use.
I also find myself talking about the tools, laws and concepts that I have read about or learned about throughout this course to friends and other educators. It’s exciting because I know when my students are talking about a lesson with their friends or teachers, days or weeks after it’s happened, that it was a good, effective lesson. That’s exactly how I feel about this first course. It was overwhelming, but a very thorough introductory course into educational technology leadership.
In that sense, this course has been a huge eye opening experience and I have immensely enjoyed.
My first course of my Masters in Educational Technology coursework is coming to a close. As, I look back on the days before I began this program, I realize I didn’t know much about the program at all and consequently didn’t have many expectations! I have learned about all sorts of Web 2.0. tools, started a blog, created a Wordle and I have subscribed to RSS feeds. There are so many tools available for educational and personal use.
I also find myself talking about the tools, laws and concepts that I have read about or learned about throughout this course to friends and other educators. It’s exciting because I know when my students are talking about a lesson with their friends or teachers, days or weeks after it’s happened, that it was a good, effective lesson. That’s exactly how I feel about this first course. It was overwhelming, but a very thorough introductory course into educational technology leadership.
In that sense, this course has been a huge eye opening experience and I have immensely enjoyed.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Web Conference Reflection
As I posted in my profile, I am currently pursuing my Masters in Educational Technology Leadership. As with many online Masters programs, web-conferencing is used as a tool to familiarize students with other students as well as faculty. Here are my reflections on my very first conference.
I didn’t have the opportunity to participate in the first optional web conference, but did attend the required conference the following week. I was a bit nervous even though I knew the purpose of the conference was purely informational. I plan to make the necessary accommodations in the next couple of weeks to attend the others. I find that I need to acclimate myself to communicating in such a fashion—as I sure it will be required in other courses and also because it is a fantastic tool to use when needing to inform or discuss topics when geographical or time constraints don’t allow for a physical meeting. The content provided for us was informative, as it outlined the requirements for our internship.
I look forward to when I become more acquainted with this format so that I can actually voice my concerns, ask my questions and benefit even more!
Monday, January 30, 2012
National Educational Technology Plan
The National
Educational Technology Plan: “Transforming American Education: Learning Powered
by Technology”, is an inspiring piece of legislature. It provides a framework at the federal, state
and local level for why and how schools should revise curriculum standards to
include technology and encourage the end goal of preparing students for the
world of tomorrow.
The document is broken down into four key components- learning, teaching, productivity and infrastructure as areas that need to be addressed.
Learning—Seeks curriculum that is engaging and empowering both inside and beyond the scope of the classroom
Teaching—Educators should be trained in innovative ways of teaching that serve the tech needs of students.
Infrastructure—Seeks technology to be equitable and easily accessible to educators and students
While I find no fault with the plan itself, I can’t help but feel a bit discouraged at the daunting task. Implementing a plan of this magnitude requires that communities, educators and stakeholders agree on strategies and methods. It also requires us to overcome obstacles such as equitable distribution of resources, talent and skills. Perhaps what most concerns me is the issue of time. Transforming our education system is a process and one that will take a fair amount of time as not only do we have to get technology into the hands of students and educators but we also must concern ourselves with changing/challenging the ideals of the status quo. How do we plan a technology rich curriculum (with the implication that it will take time) when technology itself is changing by the second?
National Educational Technology
Plan 2010. U.S. Department of
Education. Retrieved from
http://www.ed.gov/technology/netp-2010
The document is broken down into four key components- learning, teaching, productivity and infrastructure as areas that need to be addressed.
Learning—Seeks curriculum that is engaging and empowering both inside and beyond the scope of the classroom
Teaching—Educators should be trained in innovative ways of teaching that serve the tech needs of students.
Infrastructure—Seeks technology to be equitable and easily accessible to educators and students
While I find no fault with the plan itself, I can’t help but feel a bit discouraged at the daunting task. Implementing a plan of this magnitude requires that communities, educators and stakeholders agree on strategies and methods. It also requires us to overcome obstacles such as equitable distribution of resources, talent and skills. Perhaps what most concerns me is the issue of time. Transforming our education system is a process and one that will take a fair amount of time as not only do we have to get technology into the hands of students and educators but we also must concern ourselves with changing/challenging the ideals of the status quo. How do we plan a technology rich curriculum (with the implication that it will take time) when technology itself is changing by the second?
How do we fare?
The
Instructional Technology Department for Alvin ISD strives to increase student
achievement. The district is greatly concerned with the academic success of its
students and recognizes that changes must be made to ensure their success post
high school. Therefore they are
committed to implementing technology that will allow this goal to pervade through
the district and surrounding communities. The district uses data-based decision making
tools to determine technology needs. For
example, all campuses across the district identify needs through the Texas
Teacher STaR Chart. The STaR Chart
focuses on four main areas: Teaching and Learning, Educator Preparation and
Development, Leadership, Administration and Instructional Support, and lastly, Infrastructure
for Technology. Laura Perez, Director of
Technology Services and the rest of the technology team, prioritize needs and
how to receive funding to fulfill needs.
The networking staff determines technical needs as well as
infrastructure needs based on the various instructional hardware and software
that is being used by the district--Its latest achievement includes changing
from Novell to Active Directory and from Groupwise email to Outlook.
Results of
previous years STaR Charts reveal continued effort and progress with respect to
acquiring technology, however more training on effective integration as well as
closer alignment of 8th Grade technology TEKS is needed. To remedy these issues, the district plans to
create new technology benchmarks at the junior high level as well continue to
assess the need for new technology themed courses. Training on effective integration of Promethean
Boards, document cameras, digital tablets, etc. continue to be remedied by
on-going professional developments online, on campus and via teacher
evaluations such as PDAS.
Comprehensive
Needs Assessment And Campus Improvement Plan.
Alvin Independent School District.
Retrieved from www.alvinisd.net
Assessing Technology Needs
Among the greatest concern of educators, administrators and
school stakeholders is improving academic achievement. Research has shown that students
would greatly benefit from the integration of technology into curriculum, which
has caused us to change the way we need to approach teaching.
Where do we begin?
Access the full text of the Long-Range Plan for Technology, 2006-2020, at this website: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/technology/lrpt/lrpt_lrpt.html.
Access the Texas Teacher STaR Chart and the Texas Campus STaR Chart at: http://starchart.esc12.net/.
Where do we begin?
Most schools have developed
technology plans to assist with funding and curriculum alignment. For example,
in the state of Texas, if schools wish to receive funding for school technology
initiatives, it mandates that teachers and schools complete the School,
Technology and Readiness Chart or STaR Chart.
This type of assessment tool provides information that is crucial to
developing a sound and effective technology plan. In order to successfully implement school
technology plans, we have to know what skills teachers possess, what skills
need to be taught or sharpened, the technological needs of a physical classroom
and also how to prioritize this data.
The same is true for assessing the technology readiness of our
students. We must know where they stand,
what skills they possess, and what technology they have been exposed to in
order to provide authentic teaching and bridge the gap of technological
knowledge between student and teacher.
As a teacher in the
state of Texas, I am familiar with the STaR Chart assessment of technology
needs in schools. Schools mandate that
teachers complete the survey, but in my experience with little knowledge of the
implications. This along with the
subjective nature of some of its inquiries lead me to question the accuracy of
its results and whether there are more effective ways to gather a truly
measurable set of data to improve Texas schools.Access the Texas Teacher STaR Chart and the Texas Campus STaR Chart at: http://starchart.esc12.net/.
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