· What outcomes had you envisioned for this course? Did you achieve those outcomes? Did the actual course outcomes align with those that you envisioned?
When I learned that this course was focused on technology, I was very excited. I enjoy working with technology and was looking forward to what I could learn. I didn’t know what there was out there to learn, but I was sure that by the end of this course I would be able to have some knowledge that was very applicable to today’s classroom as a teacher and to today’s schools as an administrator. This, in fact, is the case. I had only heard of blogs, pod casts, wikis, etc. in passing but I hadn’t really explored them before this course, and certainly wasn’t proficient with them. Now, having completed this course I feel confident in my ability to create and manage some of these applications and beginning to integrate them into my classroom. I am excited about the possibility of improving my instruction and bringing my students lessons that are more engaging.
· 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 think that the outcomes I have achieved are very relevant and current to today’s educational system. I believe this course was designed with the future of education in mind and that goal has been achieved. Those that have completed this course, like myself, now have skills and abilities that will be applicable as the educational field transforms to service the 21st century learner. What I liked about this course was the application of the learning. Not only were we required to study the Technology plan, the district improvement plan, the campus improvement plan, we then had to apply what we were learning through this course with what we were studying and create a realistic action plan which give real world application. Not only can the skills that are learned through this course apply as an administrator, they are immediately applicable within current educational assignments. I have learned how to create a blog and follow other blogs which I can do for my classroom and my students. This will provide them a location to collaborate as well as provide me an avenue to connect with other educators out there and learn as well as collaborate myself.
· What outcomes did you not achieve? What prevented you from achieving them?
I don’t think there were outcomes that I didn’t achieve. In my self evaluation prior to starting this course I scored all of the statements with a 2 stating that I at least had some knowledge of what it was discussing. I did not score any higher than a 3 on any of the statements however, after going back and reviewing the statements again I feel as though I really didn’t know as much as I though I did. I feel this course provided me clear guidance through the Texas Long Range Technology Plan, the STaR chart, and the set up and use of a blog. This along with studying the district and campus plans for technology improvement and applying my knowledge in the development of my own analysis, action plan and staff development I believe gave me the opportunity to experience a true application of the information that is available to administrators in a progressive and innovative way.
· Were you successful in carrying out the course assignments? If not, what prevented or discouraged you?
I was very successful at carrying out the course assignments however I do think that they were very time consuming. I learned a tremendous amount of very applicable concepts and skills through this course and I think that the assignments were very worthwhile. They required studying relevant and applicable material, reflecting, and applying learned concepts through learned skills. I also think that the assigned readings were very informative and educational. I appreciated the fact that they were full of information but short and to the point. Too often readings can be page after page of ramblings about the same thing reworded over and over again. I enjoyed the readings for this class and learned a lot from all of them. What I though was discouraging was the large amount of postings that were required through the discussion board. I thought that the comments on the quotations were a good way to think reflectively and form an opinion about what was being read but it became a very daunting task to read and comment on eight readings and then read and comment on two other classmate’s comments also.
· What did you learn from this course…about yourself, your technology and leadership skills, and your attitudes?
I learned that I am very technologically inclined and open to learning what’s out there that is up and coming. I learned that as much as I do know about technology there is so much more out there to be learned and most of what I know is for the purposes of assisting the teacher in administrative tasks or in the presentation of a lesson. Through this course I discovered that I was not fully integrating technology into my classroom and into my lessons as I should and involving the students in the process as well as creating lessons where the student output demonstrates their technology awareness and capabilities. I have learned that once I learn something new I immediately try to apply it and want to share what I know with others. I have a very open attitude about technology and I embrace its advancement into the educational realm. I agree with what I learned through out this course in that we must step up to the plate as educators and equip ourselves to meet the needs of our 21st century learners. I agree that if we don’t strive to educate our students in the areas of technology we could potentially be depriving our students of a fair and adequate education.
· What is the educational value of blogs and blogging to the 21st century learner?
I can see so many educational benefits to blogs and blogging for the 21st century learner. From an educator’s standpoint I can see using a blog for students to post their work and make it open for other classmates to see, comment on and learn from. The teacher could post class information as well as assignment instructions so that students could easily access it from home or anywhere they may be working. Going electronic has so many benefits for so many different reasons. This cuts down on paper shuffling, lost papers, no name papers, and duplicating someone’s work. For a teacher it would be easy to pull up a blog and everyone’s work is right there. As a student it would be easy to just pull up a teacher’s blog and post the work. The availability of access to other’s work allows for collaboration which takes learning to a higher level and teaches students a valuable skill that will be required of them as they enter the job world. Following other’s blogs can be equally valuable as you can engage in conversation with others regarding topics related to classroom discussion and instruction. This would be beneficial for both teachers as well as students. I think that blogs and blogging connects teachers and students with others in a way that could not otherwise have been accomplished.
· What are the concerns of blogs and blogging in education?
There are many concerns regarding blogs and blogging in education. The concerns range from the validity of a published work to the privacy of students being violated if published without parental consent. For some, blogging is an open forum for statements to be made that are void of sound evidence to support the claim. While encouraging students to read scholarly blogs and follow the discussions teachers must educate their students how to delineate between fact and opinion. Care needs to be taken when encouraging students to follow blogs. Teachers need to do their research and verify blogs for their validity then provide specific URLs for students to use. For students, blogging sometimes can be used carelessly and statements can be made that are damaging and hurtful to others. There is also concern about publishing students and their work. Just as permission has to be granted from parents to publish student’s pictures or statements in a newspaper, so it is with publishing work on blogs.
· How can you use blogging to communicate with school stakeholders?
I am overseeing the student council for my 2-5 campus this year. For our community service project we adopted two families in our district that have children with cancer. We have been met with very uncooperative administrators and difficulty with getting information about our efforts out there. Upon working through the first week assignment and learning how to create a blog I began to contemplate ways to apply what I had learned. When we were denied the ability to use our “Alert Now” phone system to remind students to bring their loose coins to donate to our “Coins for Cancer” fundraiser I realized I could create a blog and get the word out. I promptly did so and began posting. I am able to communicate with the entire community about who we are, what we stand for, and what our cause is. I post weekly updates of our donation totals as well as our major contributors. I have been able to imbed a calendar of events as well as a counter so I can track how many visits I have received. As of tonight I have 225 visits. Due to this site word has traveled and a local reporter has come out and written a story that made the front page. I think there is a real benefit to blogging and I believe that it has provided an avenue to communicate with community stakeholders regarding our efforts that are focused on helping one of our own. Visit us at www.questcouncilcares.blogspot.com for more information
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