EDLD 5301 Section 8306 Week 1 Assignment, Part 3 – Action Research

This week I learned a new phrase - action research. A more accurate descriptor might be “Research in Action.” The whole concept centers on identifying an area that could be improved, deciding what changes need to be made, and then putting a plan into action to accomplish that goal. Did you catch that? “Could be improved.” Beginning an action research project does not necessarily mean there is something wrong with how it’s being done now. It simply means that someone is willing to take a serious look at the current procedure and decide if there might be a better way of doing it.

Every area in a school is a possibility for an action research project. Custodial duties, carpool lane, classroom procedures, even the procedure for distributing standardized tests to teachers could benefit from an action research plan. Ironically, the easiest areas to impact are most likely the ones we are less likely to be willing to change because they involve our daily routines and our comfort zones. We are all guilty of wanting to change everyone else’s corner of the world before we change our own, even if those changes could be for the better.

While discussing my action research project with my site mentor this week he said, “That’s the beauty of scientific inquiry. You don’t have to be right. You just have to be honest about the results.” I believe that applies to action research inquiries as well.

How might educational leaders use blogs – 

Just as students are connecting with and making new friends around the world via online games and Facebook, educational leaders are doing the same with blogs. As life becomes more hectic, both at work and at home, blogging may literally become the educational leader’s most trusted professional resource and new best friend.

Web Conference #5 (8:00 PM, Tuesday, August 9, 2011)

I tried desperately to finish the work for this week ahead of time. I downloaded the Week 5 Assignment and then sat there overwhelmed. I read and re-read the instructions for the Internship Plan Draft and the Principal Competencies but I did not understand the assignment. Had it not been for the web conference and the Professor Borel’s explanations, examples, and patience I would still be staring at a blank computer screen. As soon as the web conference ended I was able to very quickly produce a fairly thorough draft of both plans. When I met with my mentor at 9:00 the next morning he was pleased with my progress.

Week 5 Assignment, Part 2: Course Reflections

What outcomes had you envisioned for this course? Did you achieve those outcomes? Did the actual course outcomes align with those that you envisioned?

As I entered this course I had no idea what to expect. I had two desires. That I would not flunk out; and, that I would know for sure, after twenty-five years, if I was grad school material. After the first two weeks of crying myself to sleep and a lengthy conversation with Professor Borel, I made it! From that perspective, this class has been everything I had hoped.

What I did not expect was to understand how my students feel when they receive a 92 instead of a 99. Twenty-five years ago, an “A” was an “A” and a “B” was good enough! I didn’t know I had become a grade perfectionist until Professor Borel pointed it out. Thank you!

I also did not expect to learn so much so quickly. I never imagined that Concepts of Educational
Technology (which quite frankly sounds rather boring) would include so many hands on “create your own wiki” “make your own blog” activities. I have been pleasantly surprised.

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?

Everything that I have learned in this course will easily transfer to what I do at my school. As a one-to-one campus there are endless possibilities for tasks stemming from what I have learned in the last five weeks. As usual, my concern remains the time constraints associated with meeting standardized testing requirements. I will have to look for opportunities to implement more “Target Tech” type activities into my curriculum in such a way that they are not too time-consuming.

My biggest concern will, as usual, be with my classes that are made up largely of special needs and ESL students. Any deviation from a standard daily routine causes many of my students to shut down. They often become step-by-step teacher led instructional activities that frustrate students who are asked to assist those who are struggling. I will continue to work with my co-teacher so that she can help me more by troubleshooting atypical computer issues.

What outcomes did you not achieve? What prevented you from achieving them?

There are two areas that I do not feel I have achieved the outcome I was hoping for in this course. The first has to do with my comfort level when working with my blog and wiki. I am fully capable in adding content to both. However, as I look at the blogs and wikis of others, mine is boring. I would like to know more about, and be comfortable with, changing the look and style of my pages. As I have time, which has been at a premium throughout this course, I will use the Internet as a resource to learn more about changing the look of my pages.

Citations are not my friend! I have a constant fear that I am not properly citing my work. I have read the APA textbook, searched the APA website, explored the sites listed on the Weekly Overviews, Googled for specific formats, and compared citations created at Easybib.com to those by Son of Citation Machine. I even swallowed my pride and sought advice from my English major daughter who politely told me she only knows MLA. I can only hope that practice will make perfect.

Were you successful in carryig out the course assignments? In not, what prevented or discouraged you?

Throughout this course I have successfully accomplished each task. At times, however, the instructions seemed both vague and thorough at the same time. I understand now that the instructions are meant only as a guide; but, for those of us who are avid instruction followers, they were sometimes a source of great frustration.  When Professor Borel told me to check YouTube for more help it made a huge difference. (Perhaps they should say that in the Week 1 Overview!)

If I had it to do over again, I would send out a mass email as soon as my cohort mates posted their email addresses giving them my cell phone number with instructions to call or text anytime day or night. It helped immensely to learn that I was not the only one struggling.  

To add to my frustration, someone advised me that, in their experience, most professors do not want to speak to their students other than via email. When I finally gave in and asked Professor Borel to call me, the entire course changed and my stress level diminished substantially. For me, the web conferences were the highlight of the course!  

What did you learn from this course…about yourself, your technology and leadership skills, and your attitudes?

I am a writer who has learned from this course that I put too much thought into what I write. I know what I want to say but I am so concerned that I am not conveying my message correctly that I spend, literally, hours writing, re-writing, and re-re-writing. I would rather do the discussions board by way of a web conference. I also have a great deal of trouble keeping my “personality” out of my writing. That is one of the many reasons that APA is going to drive me crazy. It’s okay, though, because after I finish my degree I will write my own book using only my own ideas and thoughts (so I will not have to cite anything) and I’ll have a few new letters to put after my name on the cover.  

The Internet scares me. The idea that the entire world can see anything I say is a bit ominous. That will be the biggest hurdle for me from a technology leadership perspective. Given enough time, I can master most software and hardware; however, I need to build my confidence when it comes to the World Wide Web.

Web Conference #3 (8:00 PM, Thursday, July 28, 2011)

Monday night I hit a wall. The instructions for the Week 3 Assignment didn’t make sense to me. I felt totally alone and was seriously considering whether I should drop out of the program. I couldn’t see how I would keep up once school starts back. After talking to Professor Borel on Tuesday, I felt a little bit better. The web conference on Thursday sealed the deal. As I sat reading the comments and questions in the chat pod, my classmates began to take on personalities and I started to feel less alone. Members of the class were addressing questions and concerns of other members. The isolation of being in an online course stated to dissipate. As it turns out, I’m actually doing better than many others in cohort 22! That shouldn’t make me happy, but it does. I offered my phone number to others and today I received a call from a new friend and classmate. The web conferences are providing an opportunity to connect in a way that brings cohesion to our class. And now I am sure that, even after school begins, I can be successful in this program.

E-Rate and Technology Plan Presentation

More PowerPoint presentations from Sherri Heathcock

Blog Posting #3 – National Educational Technology Plan

The National Educational Technology Plan, Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology, provides guidelines and recommendations that they (the NETP) believe will move American education forward in the technology domain. There are five areas addressed in the document - learning, assessment, teaching, infrastructure, and productivity—that they say must be addressed if America is to have any chance of competing with other countries in the professional and technological world.

The NETP says that, first and foremost, we must use technology. We must also use the scientific information we have on brain function to guide us as we change the way we approach education. It states that the time has come to “rethink basic assumptions of the education system. Some of these include measurement of educational attainment through seat time, organization of students into age-determined groups, the structure of separate academic disciplines, the organization of learning into classes of roughly equal size, and the use of time blocks.” It recommends the use of technology based assessments that provide faster more achievement based feedback. The document also encourages more distance learning and open source instructional material. It, also, suggests that teachers have online access to professional development resources.

My favorite recommendation is found in section 3.5 “Develop a teaching force skilled in online instruction”.  I would ask also that they be skilled in not putting students to sleep! Not only are technology skills required to conduct an online class; but, there is a need for a great deal of presentation talent as well. I teach 8th grade US History. My students say they do not get as much out of my recorded lectures as they do from being in the classroom even if they were in the room when the recording was made. The personal interaction makes a great deal of difference. To compensate for that personal touch, an online teacher, especially of younger students, must possess a great deal of “stage appeal.”

The recommendations go on to say that all students must have access to the Internet and Wi-Fi (in and out of school) and to the hardware and software that go with it.

Every one of these items brings me back to the same two questions. Where is the money coming from and how can we expect teachers to take on one, or twenty, more responsibilities? Perhaps the answer is to find one really good, animated teacher in each subject area and video them. Students could sit in their living rooms and “watch” school.

Blog Posting #2 – School or District Technology Plan

The Executive Summary of the Klein ISD Technology Plan states that "Klein ISD's mission is to embrace the future and provide engaging learning experiences and resources in a safe and nurturing environment." To accomplish this all educational stakeholders (educators, students, parents and others in the community) will be encouraged to adopt an attitude that all technology should enhance teaching and learning; and, that learning about technology will take place only as a step in mastering the instructional objectives.

The Klein ISD technology plan includes the following four goals:

• Implement teaching and learning strategies that incorporate 21st century tools, context and content.
• Implement and sustain a high quality, on-going, systemic, job-embedded professional development program for all staff.
• Increase student and staff productivity through the use of technology.
• Provide a stable and secure infrastructure to deliver appropriate content and allow for growth.

Within those 4 goals there are 30 objectives and 83 strategies (77 of which are currently underway or are complete) for accomplishing the goals by the year 2013.

Currently, the district has 38 campuses and a student enrollment of 44746 with just over 1/3 of those students qualifying as economically disadvantaged. 100% of our classrooms already have direct connection to the Internet and, while the goal is to have a student to computers ratio of 1:1, our current student to computer ratio is fairly high at 3:1. The district’s economically disadvantaged factor presents an added issue in meeting our goals in that, as we implement our 1:1 platform district wide, we must also find a way to assure that all students have Internet access at home.

The district is committed to continuing the allocation of at least 30% of the technology budget allotment to technology professional development. However, the focus of professional development will move from using the computer as a tool to produce an end product, such as a PowerPoint, to using it as a way of transforming the teaching and learning process. Of course with the increase in the number of computers and applications being used, the need for more technology support personnel and technology staff development facilitators will increase as well.

A budget of $48,926,722 has been approved for Technology Expenditures. The breakdown by STAR chart summary areas is as follows:

- Teaching and Learning Budget: $12,741,200.00

- Educator Preparation and Development Budget: $4,045,000.00

- Leadership, Administration and Support Budget: $2,174,266.00

- Infrastructure for Technology Budget: $29,966,256.00

That translates to $1,093.43 allocated toward the technology needs of each student.

While we are ahead of most districts in meeting the Texas long range goals, there is still much work to be done.  The Klein ISD Technology plan ascertains that will know that we have fulfilled our responsibilities because “Our students will demonstrate academic achievement, productive citizenship, career development, a healthy lifestyle, and lifelong learning.”