Module+8+Reflection


 * // Reflection Prompt: // Summarize your learning for this term. How will you use the knowledge you have constructed to improve your use of technology for learning in your class and for your own personal and professional development? **

During the eight-week time frame for Introduction to Instructional Technology I was exposed to the many facets of information and characteristics of a technology facilitator/instructor. The session started off by having us evaluate our current strengths and weaknesses with technology according to the ISTE standards. We were then introduced to the TPCK framework, which creates a way to seamlessly integrate technology into the instructional process by infusing technology, pedagogy, content and knowledge together. Two areas of concern are equity and ethics in technology and we read and discussed a case study examining the issues in these areas. While access to technology is becoming easier, equity in technology within the school setting is still a concern in many areas. Using technology in ways that is ethically sound comes from being educated on the right and wrong procedures. Students will not know how to use the Internet and search for information correctly without it being taught and modeled appropriately. 21st Century skills in teaching and learning is the wave of the educational future and we took a week reading articles on 21st century characteristics and wrote a paper on our Philosophy of Instructional Technology to showcase our knowledge and beliefs when integrating technology into teaching and learning. We furthered our knowledge in technology by looking at evaluation and assessment via technology and looked in to current and future ways to assess using technology. With the ISTE standards, TPCK framework and discussions into other aspects of technology we began planning our field experience to complete throughout the course of the Master’s program. This allowed us to reevaluate our individual strengths and weaknesses and look into ways to showcase our knowledge of the standards in becoming a technology facilitator. Lastly we evaluated what it is like to be an online learner and what we can do, as a student and future technology instructor, to make a successful and effective environment.

Throughout this course I have learned new information, gained useful resources to further my learning, and confirm that with my current knowledge I have made a sound decision going into this program. I have always been one to look for new tools to try in the classroom to enhance student learning, improve my teaching, or aide in the organization of my materials and responsibilities. Two huge pieces of information I learned from this course were the ISTE standards that teachers and students are expected to follow when working with technology, and the TPCK framework to help guide in the usage of technology in the classroom. The standards will help guide me when using technology and help me evaluate where my weaknesses are. Identifying weaknesses allows for growth and gives me an area to work on. I also learned and experienced how useful and effective a wiki page can be for reflections. The ease of use of the wiki page has me brainstorming ways I can incorporate one into my classroom in the future. I also gained more awareness and insight in equity and ethics issues and concerns. My district is one where the digital divide is still a minor issue and this is an obstacle to overcome in order to fully integrate technology in and out of the classroom setting. With the lack of technology usage on a regular basis in my building, ethics issues arise. Students are not taught about correctly citing information they retrieve from the Internet and are not given guidelines when simply using the Internet. With in information and insight I have gained through the past eight weeks I put together my field experience plan to allow myself to grow in the area of technology.

In my field experience plan I have outlined projects and tasks I am going to complete throughout the next year. The plan was created after thoughtful reflection on the standards and looking at my strengths and weaknesses. With in valuable discussions and topics in this course I have designed a tentative plan to further my practice and experience. One idea I have is to create a Wiki Word Problem Math journal and have my students answer the questions in word form and provide opportunity for other students and myself to respond to student’s answers. The other way I want to use a Wiki page is to create a resource page for teachers accounting my experiences from the eTech Conference next year. Attending the conference will be a professional development experience while even gaining information for personal use as well. In regards to ethics I want to create guidelines for laptop carts and iPad carts and make the guidelines easily accessible to students and teachers. Currently the guidelines are verbally stated and misuse of technology is occurring. While my plan is part of my requirements for the program is has opened my mind to the many possibilities technology can provide and I find myself thinking of new ways I can enhance technology performance personally and professionally. I look forward to furthering my knowledge in future courses and the rewarding possibilities for my career.