ET 605- Introduction to Educational Technology
Fall 2009- This was our first class of the cohort. When I arrived, I knew so little about how to use a computer other than basic Word, email, and web navigation. I knew from the start that I would be challenged by my lack of prior knowledge! However, I was determined to learn and worked diligently to try to catch my skills up to my classmates. In this class we learned newsletters through Word, spreadsheets and graphs in Excel, interactive PowerPoint, and how to create a Webquest using an HTML template. At the time, all of this was new to me. We created 2 major projects as a group- a Probablility lesson using websites and Excel, and a Webquest that would lead to students becoming aware of ways to help their environment. This class gave me confidence with my computer skills that I would draw on throughout the program. In designing my internship, I reflected on my growth from my starting point in Fall 2009, and wanted to design a program that would help these types of teachers who are less skilled and confident, as I was when I began the program.
ED 670: Teacher Research and Inquiry
Spring 2010- Research is an integral part of any graduate program. In a previous program, I had done considerable research on the effect of inquiry instruction on science comprehension and retention of students in school. In this course we researched a topic of our choice, and I continued to research inquiry instruction, specifically if inquiry labs would help my students learn the experimental design process in science. I developed a plan for conducting action research myself after a literature review and developing focus questions. Although I did not conduct the research during this program, I did apply this knowledge to instruction in my science classes. One interesting note about this course- Maryland had an unprecedented snowfall during this course and we missed several classes. We conducted our discussions online and I realized how an online course can be just as time-consuming as attending class! The snow eventually melted enough for us to return to class- and we were appreciative!
ET 610- Curricular Applications of Technology
Summer 1 2010- In this course I was able to apply my love of finding interesting websites for my students to use in class to different lessons, and to share them with my classmates. We further developed our Word, Excel, and PowerPoint skills as well as explored different ways to use them. In addition, we looked at various Web 2.0 tools to use in our class. This was my first experience with blogs, iMovie, and safe searching of websites. Although I was often the last one to finish the in-class projects, I felt that I was growing as a technology leader as I was building my confidence.The sharing of interactive websites was extremely helpful in teaching my own classes and in creating a plan for tools to help my fellow teachers with technology. I was able to think about the sites we found and find similar applications for the iPad that would help the teachers, and students, at my school begin to rethink the way that learning takes place in class.
ET 631- Distance Learning
Summer 2 2010- Online classrooms are here, and this course looked at how they are used in classrooms from elementary through college level courses. This course was a hybrid course- we met several times as a class and met online between classes. The online discussions were reflective of the readings of online courses. We examined state standards for technology-based classrooms and examined several state online schools, both public and private. In this course I researched diverse populations, and the way the different ethnicities approach online classrooms. Cultural backgrounds definitely affect the way an individual participates in discussions with classmates, similar to ways culture affects face-to-face discussions. Our final project for this class was to create a plan for an online tutorial math after-school program for a minority population, allowing me to use the diversity research in the plan. As I have planned my internship, I have looked at iPad apps that allow a student to use an iPad to show their knowledge through discussion and presentations such as Edmodo and ShowMe.
ET 620- Multimedia Design in the Classroom
Summer 3 2010- This course was one of the most challenging courses in the program yet one that I found most rewarding. In this class we created interactive PowerPoint presentations, then used VBA to create questions and answers so that the user can find out the correct answer and become a part of the presentation. In high school I had done some old-school Basic programming, and this class brought back my previous interest in programming. I found myself challenged to not only create a self-graded test, but to understand how it was done, and create a product that could be easily edited and adapted to any topic I chose. My group worked as a team to design an end-of-unit review of the human body systems, and I worked to create a self-review test as my portion of the project. I then edited it to use in my class the following fall for a safety test, as well as smaller in-class reviews. When I considered apps for my internship, I made sure to include flashcard apps that would also let a student monitor their own progress with a given topic.
ED 608– Educational Innovations
Fall 2010- To truly make a difference in education and achievement, we must make dramatic changes to the way teaching takes place. I never understood this until I took this course. We discussed different pedagogical strategies that have been tried in this class, and their effectiveness. As students, we were reflective on a variety of strategies and critical yet supportive of many. Each group chose one strategy and researched its effectiveness and summarized the pros and cons of each. My group researched inclusion of special education students- I worked with students outside of our technology cohort- and I was able to analyze the inclusion classes that I was teaching at the same time. My favorite part of this class was creating a PSA for one strategy that we designed ourselves. I looked at online textbooks and how they could change a student's interest in reading. In my internship, I am focusing on the uses of technology in the classroom beyond online textbooks!
ET 630- Digital Communication in the Classroom
Winter 2011- This was another favorite yet challenging course. In creating a blog about Web 2.0 tools, I researched the web extensively looking for sites that I could use in class, and that were different from those discussed by my classmates. One of these sites I discovered, Edmodo, has led to its use in my classes, several PD sessions both in MD and TX, as well as becoming an integral part of my internship. That blogging project was probably my favorite project of all the courses, and one that has helped me in many times in creating technology based lessons for my students. In this course we created webpages using HTML and CSS while designing lessons for our classrooms that taught students how to look at websites critically and participate in a global learning experience. Again, rather than just copy and paste HTML code I used the optional text to understand how the code worked together and create webpages that were functional and attractive. We discussed how to teach our students to determine the authenticity of a website and then created a series of lessons that would help them do that. I chose genetic breeding- a somewhat controversial topic- that gives students plenty to think about and discuss. In the lessons I incorporated Web 2.0 tools we had discussed as well. As a class we looked for global learning experiences for our subjects, then created a series of webpages that would allow our students to participate in some sort of global learning. As part of the iPad initiative which I designed my internship around, this is one goal for our students and one topic I plan to help my fellow staff members with beyond my internship.
ET 690- Educational Technology Seminar
Spring 2011- Due to the possibility of a move to Texas, I took this course with another cohort. This class was discussion of different visions of technology in the classroom, and I liked having different viewpoints of individuals outside of my own cohort. In this course we read 3 very different texts and discussed the author's views as well as our own. My favorite text was Carr's The Shallows- What the Internet is Doing to our Brains. We looked at how reading text online has changed the way individuals read and what they read. This course opened my mind to different views of technology- both supportive and opposing- and has given me a greater ability to look at all sides of technology in our lives. I found this to be one of the most difficult of the courses, but also became much more confident in participating in controversial and lively discussions. In our culminating debate, our group debated online privacy in banking, medical records, shopping and that in general an individual's privacy was secure- and won!
ET 680- The Role of the Technology Leader
Spring 2 2011- At the time of this course, I had no idea that it would become such a large part of my internship! In this course we looked at various policies and guidelines for student use of technology in the classroom. I wrote a student use policy, a plan for a technology committee, a grants proposal, and a software tracking policy. At the time, I felt the policies in Howard County covered the needs of my classes, although I liked how my student use policy connected our school motto to proper use of technology in the classroom. Now, within my internship, I have been working on legal policy for district iPad distribution and rules for iPad use within my own school. I have referred back to the policies written in class while working on these new policies. In conversation with my colleagues, I have repeatedly referred to the change process and how it occurs slowly. Teachers at my school are at widely varied places in their comfort level with technology and we need to be aware of these differences as we develop procedures for iPad use at school. The policies developed in this class have had a large influence on policies developed throughout my internship.
ET 640- Adaptive and Assistive Technology
Summer 1 2011- Although this course was focused on ways to use technology in the classroom to help special needs students, I found that everything we did would help all of our students. My school does not have interactive whiteboards, and so this was my first experience with those. I was thrilled to learn that we could use the software on our computers, with limitations, even without the whiteboard itself. We also learned tools, with and without technology, that can help all of our students. In creating a unit on the water cycle, I used several different strategies that focused on vocabulary development in my lessons. In continuing to learn the effective use of PowerPoint, I created an online text for students to use with or without narration. As I developed plans for my internship, I was better able to look at the needs of the special education teachers and find ways that the iPad can help our students with comprehension of difficult terms and reading passages.
AD 662- Leadership, Supervision and Professional Development
Summer 2- 2011- My last class! In this discussion-based course, we continued to look at how change takes place in educational settings. We discussed successful programs that have been implemented throughout the country, and some that have been less than successful. As a final project, we studied one program in-depth to determine the effect of this change on the school and the community. My group looked at the closings of unsuccessful schools in Rhode Island. It was interesting to find that perhaps the changes came too fast to be completely effective. This seems to be a constant in education- change comes slowly. As my campus implements the 1:1 iPad initiative, I remind others that change needs to move at a pace that allows each person to adapt at a pace that allows all to adapt. My students are anxious to move faster with their iPads, but I am taking the time to make sure that everything is set up according to the plans set forth by the district. Effective change does not happen overnight!