Reflection Statement
Looking Back:
Technology has always been my forte. I grew up with technology. As the technology changed, I always wanted to keep up. I would try to get the newest phones and stay up to date with the newest internet options and software that was available to me. With each new innovation, figuring it out was always easy for me. During my undergraduate work, I took a class on web development. I had never created a webpage before and I was excited when I found it easy as well. When I finally graduated, I found myself in a school where technology being used in the classroom was supported, even though it was not always easy to come by due to the size of the school. When the funding for SMARTBoards was anonymously donated to our school, I was excited to be able to have that extra technology in my classroom. I jumped in feet first and made changes to my lessons. When I finally decided to start my Master’s program, I wasn’t sure what I really wanted to pursue. I originally looked for a program that was online and that was the big appeal of the Educational Technology emphasis from the Information Science and Learning Technologies Masters Program. What really set this program apart was being able to get different ideas on how to use more technology and in different ways in my classroom.
Here and Now:
One thing I learned during this program is that having students just research online does not truly mean that they are learning with the internet. In the past my students have completed a research project on one specific aspect of a civilization of their choosing. After several of my classes, but specifically Technology and Assessment, I realized that having them create a research paper on whatever they felt like writing down was not really helping my students learn about the concepts. The project was teaching them the research process, but not anything really specific about their topic as they were mostly copying down what they read. By having each group of students research a specific civilization together, I could create a questionnaire and guide specifically on what they are supposed to be researching. This way they would be reinforcing what they are learning about each civilization as we discussed them not just in an isolated instance. Example Research Lesson
Another thing I am taking away from this program is that students can in fact collaborate on a project without actually having to be at the same computer or even in the same room. This seems obvious for college and graduate level students, but I really have learned that my sixth grade students can do the same things as upper level students. In Learning with the Internet I was really introduced to what Google Apps has to offer, especially Sites and Docs. My group created and edited a document online and it was amazing how easy it was for us all to work on the same document. In doing this I got to see first-hand how to implement this into my classroom, and how it would eliminate the ever present problem of only one person keeping all of the information. The Sites app was also easy for all of us to create and edit as a group and would make presentations a little different than the usual Power Point or poster board standby. Example Collaborative Lesson
One final example of something I will be taking away from this program is how to effectively assess issues in my classroom by gathering data, analyzing it, and then creating a plan on how to fix the problem. The action research process may be time consuming because of all of the data that needs to be collected and then analyzed. I do, however, think that it is worthwhile to be able to see exactly what is and is not working in the classroom. The process and template that were used in the Action Research course make creating and repeating the process with the same topic or a different topic extremely easy. Example Action Research Plan
Looking Forward:
This program has changed me and my teaching more than I thought it would. I still love technology and am always eager to implement it in my classroom, but I realized that I have to use it responsibly. Just because a technology seems great at first does not always mean that it is going to help my students get more out of a lesson. I realize now that using my SMARTBoard in my lesson does not always make the lesson that much more effective. For the technology to truly help my students, I really need to make sure that they are using it and are able to create something with the technology. I think this realization will ensure my future lessons have my students truly learning with technology instead of just from it. This program has also made me feel like a good teacher leader of technology. I have learned so much about how to implement technology in a lesson correctly and I believe that I can show and teach my colleagues how to create their own lessons.
Technology has always been my forte. I grew up with technology. As the technology changed, I always wanted to keep up. I would try to get the newest phones and stay up to date with the newest internet options and software that was available to me. With each new innovation, figuring it out was always easy for me. During my undergraduate work, I took a class on web development. I had never created a webpage before and I was excited when I found it easy as well. When I finally graduated, I found myself in a school where technology being used in the classroom was supported, even though it was not always easy to come by due to the size of the school. When the funding for SMARTBoards was anonymously donated to our school, I was excited to be able to have that extra technology in my classroom. I jumped in feet first and made changes to my lessons. When I finally decided to start my Master’s program, I wasn’t sure what I really wanted to pursue. I originally looked for a program that was online and that was the big appeal of the Educational Technology emphasis from the Information Science and Learning Technologies Masters Program. What really set this program apart was being able to get different ideas on how to use more technology and in different ways in my classroom.
Here and Now:
One thing I learned during this program is that having students just research online does not truly mean that they are learning with the internet. In the past my students have completed a research project on one specific aspect of a civilization of their choosing. After several of my classes, but specifically Technology and Assessment, I realized that having them create a research paper on whatever they felt like writing down was not really helping my students learn about the concepts. The project was teaching them the research process, but not anything really specific about their topic as they were mostly copying down what they read. By having each group of students research a specific civilization together, I could create a questionnaire and guide specifically on what they are supposed to be researching. This way they would be reinforcing what they are learning about each civilization as we discussed them not just in an isolated instance. Example Research Lesson
Another thing I am taking away from this program is that students can in fact collaborate on a project without actually having to be at the same computer or even in the same room. This seems obvious for college and graduate level students, but I really have learned that my sixth grade students can do the same things as upper level students. In Learning with the Internet I was really introduced to what Google Apps has to offer, especially Sites and Docs. My group created and edited a document online and it was amazing how easy it was for us all to work on the same document. In doing this I got to see first-hand how to implement this into my classroom, and how it would eliminate the ever present problem of only one person keeping all of the information. The Sites app was also easy for all of us to create and edit as a group and would make presentations a little different than the usual Power Point or poster board standby. Example Collaborative Lesson
One final example of something I will be taking away from this program is how to effectively assess issues in my classroom by gathering data, analyzing it, and then creating a plan on how to fix the problem. The action research process may be time consuming because of all of the data that needs to be collected and then analyzed. I do, however, think that it is worthwhile to be able to see exactly what is and is not working in the classroom. The process and template that were used in the Action Research course make creating and repeating the process with the same topic or a different topic extremely easy. Example Action Research Plan
Looking Forward:
This program has changed me and my teaching more than I thought it would. I still love technology and am always eager to implement it in my classroom, but I realized that I have to use it responsibly. Just because a technology seems great at first does not always mean that it is going to help my students get more out of a lesson. I realize now that using my SMARTBoard in my lesson does not always make the lesson that much more effective. For the technology to truly help my students, I really need to make sure that they are using it and are able to create something with the technology. I think this realization will ensure my future lessons have my students truly learning with technology instead of just from it. This program has also made me feel like a good teacher leader of technology. I have learned so much about how to implement technology in a lesson correctly and I believe that I can show and teach my colleagues how to create their own lessons.