Week 5 Web Conference

Due to some concerns that I had regarding the completion of my Internship Plan, I participated in the last web conference for the EDLD 5306 course. It was comforting to know that my cohorts had many of the same questions that I had about meeting the requirements of our internship. I was especially grateful that Ms. Borel outlined in detail what we needed to include in our Course-based Embedded Assignments Reflection Log upon our completion of the course. If I had not attended the web conference, I would not have fully understood what was expected of me. I was a little concerned to learn that we would need to include at least twenty-eight different activities on our Internship Plan. I work on a one-to-one campus and teachers on our campus attend technology-based professional development sessions at least twice a month. All new technology in our district is piloted on our campus and finding something new and inventive for my internship plan was difficult. The two web conferences that I attended during the course were very helpful in better understanding what I needed to do in order to be successful in the course.

EDLD 5306 Course Reflections

In this course I envisioned learning how research impacted the integration of educational technology at the national, state, and local level. Needless to say, I learned a lot more than I initially anticipated. As a classroom teacher, it is easy for me to develop tunnel vision and only concentrate on what is important in regard to my assigned subject area of science curriculum and instruction. When I began this course, I had no knowledge of the National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) or the Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology (LRPT) and the enormous impact that it will have on educational technology. As a result of this course, I realize that decisions made at the local level are driven by the expectations set forth in the NETP and LRPT. I particularly enjoyed learning about the needs of 21st century learners and the strategies necessary to help our students become productive participants in a global economy.

Everything that I learned in this course is relevant to my role as a classroom teacher and technology leader within my school district. As a result of this course I am aware of the importance of educational technology and the impact that it has on our students. I was amazed to learn about the differences between digital natives and digital immigrants as described by Marc Prensky. Learning about neuroplasticity helped me to better understand my students and their need for educational technology. Our digital native students have been immersed in technology since birth and as a result their brains are wired differently than the older digital immigrants. 21st century students need the speed and variety that technology offers in order to be successful. As a result of this course I have already incorporated some of the digital tools that I learned about into my instruction. Now, more than ever, I am aware of the responsibility that I have as a technology leader by sharing what I learn with other teachers so that our students can be successful both inside and outside of the classroom.

A little knowledge can be dangerous. As a result of this course I feel a sense of urgency in implementing digital collaboration technology into my existing curriculum. Unfortunately, my school district will not allow students to participate in collaboration activities outside of the physical classroom. Our school districts' Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) strictly prohibits the use of any online tools that would allow students to communicate with other students online. As a technology leader, I need to understand how our district AUP was developed and what needs to be done to update it in order to meet the goals set forth by the Texas LRPT. From everything that I learned in this course I do know that I have to take the initiative and learn how my school district plans to meet these goals. I am also unclear on the process that our school district undergoes when planning for the integration of new technology as it becomes available. Not only is it important for our district to meet the goals set forth at the national and state level, but we need to stay abreast of emerging technology that will allow our students to be better prepared to meet the demands of a global economy.

I feel that I was successful in carrying out the course assignments. All of the assignments were well thought out and it was easy for me to access the resources necessary to complete the assignments. I was discouraged by the amount of work required for the first two weeks of the course. It was suggested that I expect to spend ten to fifteen hours a week on the assignment. I did not find that to be the case at all. I spent at least twenty hours a week on each assignment. In my opinion, Week 2 was the most stressful week in the course due to the amount of research and writing. I particularly enjoyed the creation of the wiki and the collaboration that occurred as a result. It was encouraging to log in to my email account to discover that my cohorts were experiencing the same concerns that I had as we worked through our assignments.

I joined the staff of a one-to-one campus a year after it opened and have thought of myself as a little sister learning from her older siblings. The teachers on our campus were selected to pilot the one-to-one initiative for our school district based on their demonstration of their progressive integration of technology into existing curriculum. Even though the other teachers only had a year of experience under their belt, I could not quite shake the feeling that I needed to catch up with their knowledge and skill level. As a result I lost a lot of confidence in my abilities working with other titans of technology integration. This course has had an immediate effect on my instruction and I am pleased that other teachers have incorporated what I have learned into their instruction. As a result of this course, I now feel much more confident as a technology leader in the school district and at the campus level. I have also learned a lot about myself as a student. It has been years since I have taken a college level course and I can definitely see how much I have matured as a student. This course required me to step out of my comfort zone in order to achieve success. Furthermore, it has provided a foundation that I can build upon to achieve success in future courses.

A Brief Overview of My First Web Conference

I had the opportunity to participate in my first web conference with my EDLD 5306 professor and cohorts this week. I really didn’t know what to expect as I’ve been rather reluctant to even consider exploring the possibility of communicating with others using a webcam and microphone.

About fifteen years ago, I remember accidentally launching some type of chat feature on Netscape that required the use of a brand new tool called a webcam. I didn’t even realize that I had launched the application until a window popped open with a stranger’s face staring at me. I was so scared that I immediately closed the window and ran out of the room. My first instinct was that the strange face in the pop-up window could see me. It was late at night and I wasn’t wearing any makeup. Once my heart rate returned to normal, I laughed at my ignorance. The strange face obviously couldn’t see me, but for some reason I found the whole idea of webcams very unsettling. Needless to say, the experience made a lasting impression on me.

Fifteen years later, I finally took the plunge and logged-in to my first face-to-face web conference. I loved the fact that we all had the opportunity to put a face to names that show up on the discussion board for our class. There were some technical difficulties, but it went remarkably well on my end. The audio was a little choppy, but that was due to the number of students participating in the web conference. I was relieved that all of us seemed to be overwhelmed with the assignment for the first week. I’m still overwhelmed, but at least I know that I’m not the only one feeling the pressure. I also appreciated discovering that if we have to miss a course, we can continue with the program and go back at a later date to complete the missed course.

Overall, I was really glad that I overcame my reluctance and took the time to actively participate in a web conference. I’m really looking forward to the next one!