Monthly+Reflections+on+Field-Based+Activities

Monthly Activity Reflection
February 2010 Standards I-B, V-A, V-B This month I attended the TCEA convention in Austin, TX. This took place while I was taking EDLD 5306. I even created my wiki while I was in Austin. So when learning about the Internship activities that were to take place I figured I had a good start with one full week of Professional Development. I attended one full day of Technology Coordinator training. I learned about new and emerging technologies and Legislative updates. I also learned that the state was going to allow schools to use a portion of the textbook fund to purchase handheld devices for accessing ebook textbooks. Our school district was on a winter break the week after TCEA. After returning from winter break I met with the Superintendent and explained about the textbook and ebook information and his response was “No, the students will steal them.” My first thought was how sad and my second thought was but not if they all have one. So not only are we behind the times as far as technology is concerned, we are going to stay behind. It was not until the end of February that I was able to report to the teachers all of the new information I gained at TCEA. The report took place during a regularly scheduled Faculty meeting so I was limited in time. I used that time to introduce new technologies that I learned about, new software demonstrations I had participated in and the fact that I visited with representatives from our Student Information Software Company. I ended with a calendar of upcoming afternoon workshop opportunities during the month of March. I learned through this activity that what I think is a most interesting workshop is not always the favorite of other teachers. I needed to really think about how the information I was going to mention was going to be the most beneficial for the teachers. Based on the participation from the teachers I chose the right workshops to talk about and demonstrate that afternoon. One thing I feel I need to work on is how to get the administration to “buy-in” to the future (which should be now) of technology in our school.

March 2010 Standards I-A, V-C During March we provide afternoon staff development. This year we had some funds that needed to be spent so we decided to first demonstrate and then provide the teachers time to learn how to use some new hardware. The first thing I needed to do was learn where to find lessons that had already been created. After finding the lessons, I practiced on the hardware so that I would be ready for the workshops. Learning the new equipment was fun. Learning where to search for the lessons will enable me to help teachers find lessons quicker and I will have an idea of how to help them design new lessons. The afternoon workshops were facilitated by me, a High School Technology Apps teacher, and the Middle School Technology Apps teacher. Some of the workshops took place at the High School campus, and some took place at the Elementary campus. We provided interactive workshops on new document cameras, interactive wireless tablets and interactive white boards. For those teachers that already have this hardware these afternoon mini-courses were refresher courses. At the end of the month those that did not have this hardware were given a survey to find out which type of technology resource they would prefer for their room. This survey will be used for a needs assessment for the Technology Team. We also provided the regularly scheduled afternoon mini-workshops on classroom productivity software. We have workshops on Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher, and Moviemaker. The more of these workshops I facilitate, the more I am learning how adults learn. I can take this knowledge and use it for designing future workshops and facilitating future meetings.

April 2010 Standards V-A, V-B The Technology Task Force meets in April. I am the team leader for this group. A needs assessment has to be done before entering data in the district’s Technology plan. We discuss the results of the survey taken during the March workshops and any other request from the faculty and staff. We discuss purchases, changes in hardware or software and any new information from TEA. Another subject on the agenda is the latest research on how technology is being used in the classroom. We also talk about any new updates from TEA and the state Legislature. An activity I facilitated this month was the use of the Classroom Performance System (aka “the clickers”). We use our Flex days to assist those students that have been classified as needing a little nudge before taking the TAKS test. I helped a teacher set up her class in the software, and then helped her create the assessment. Before we created the assessment we looked at what types of data the software would collect and report so that she could determine how she wanted her feedback. She was thrilled with the types of reports the software generates. On the days we call “Fantastic Friday,” her mathematics class used the clickers to participate in an interactive assessment. The teacher used the data generated by the software to determine from which lessons the students would gain the most benefit. Before the next Fantastic Friday we created a new assessment based on the data generated from the first Fantastic Friday. The activity taught me that different forms of assessment are often just as good or better that paper and pencil tests. In this case the students were engaged and worked to get correct answers. I will be able to use the lessons learned from this activity for finding new ways to assess how the students are learning.

May 2010 Standards IV-A, VIII-A, VIII-C, VIII-D, In May we had one more Technology Task Force meeting. We looked at the summary of the needs assessment, and the budget information and made a final decision on purchases. We looked at the information from the teachers’ response to the Texas STAR chart and made changes to some of the goals for the next year; I reported on budget information received from the Superintendent, and we put the final touches on the goals and objectives. After the meeting it was my job to enter the information into the Technology ePlan. Our district participated in the online field testing for TAKS. I assisted the Technology Apps teacher in preparing her computer lab for the testing and helped administer the test. There were several false starts and a few technological issues during the test but all of the students scheduled for the test managed to complete the assessment. This type of assessment was great. We used proctor caching for administering the test. This was new to me; I had heard of it but had never used it. It involved downloading the questions to one computer and then each of the student computers accessed that computer instead of bogging down the Internet. For me, the ease of access made me realize this was the way to do online tests. The other teacher and I worked really well together and I learned that if you have the right team much can be accomplished in a short period of time. I will use this knowledge in the future to get the right mix for creating excellent teams.

June 2010 Standard VII-A During June I worked on the computers in the computer labs, and the teachers classrooms. I used the storage available on the district server to back up files for the teachers and then cleaned the computers. I removed files, updated the operating system and software, defragmented, and installed new software that had been purchased. This may not look like much on paper but it took most of the month. Part of what I have been doing for the last 20 years is regular maintenance on the computers. This is a very time consuming activity. I had to touch every computer and start the process of updating but I had a little assembly line going so I did not take up a lot of time going back and forth. This month I decided to set up a regular schedule for the maintenance checkups during the school year. Working on the computers like this has always been easy for me. The things you do on the computer are done in a logical order and that works for me. Also I love troubleshooting hardware problems. I can remember when the computer acted this way, or that way, what the problem was and then I am able to fix it. I know that although the main focus of a technology facilitator is to work with teachers, knowing how to work on the computers and the network will be beneficial for me. There are times when there is a simple fix and if I am there and can quickly fix it then the teacher will not have to wait for an answer from the help desk.

August 2010 Standards VI-A, VI-D, VIII-E I met with the principal at the beginning of this month to discuss and plan my field-based activities for the next school year. We laid out what I considered to be a good plan. I will be the facilitator for two workshops during the teachers’ In-service, will help a sixth grade Social Studies teacher plan lessons for the students to use technology for the purpose of creating a product. I will facilitate more afternoon mini-sessions for the teachers, attend the TCEA convention, report to the faculty, and again work with the Technology Task Force on the district Technology Plan. I thing together we worked out a list of activities that will cover the rest of the Technology Facilitator Standards I have not already covered. At the end of the month I was the facilitator for two In-service workshops. One half of one day was devoted to teaching on Internet safety including the Acceptable Use Policy both for the teachers and students. We discussed ethical practices and legal issues concerning Internet use. The second half-day was used for the teachers to work on their web pages provided through the Student Information software. This was a hands-on workshop for the teachers. Today was a good day for discussing the ethical and legal issued because the teachers will know what can and cannot go on their web pages. All in all it was a good day, the teachers were concerned about copyright issues and I was able to show them where to find all of the information they needed before finishing their pages. I like the way the ethical and legal issued flowed right into the web page creation. I will be able to use the format of today’s agenda for future workshops.

September 2010 Standards V-D, VI-E This month I helped the teachers and administrators set the schedule for Computer Lab access and Mobile lab schedules for classroom use. We first asked for requests and then planned around those requests. While participating in this activity I discovered that making schedules is not all that easy. It took me a little while to fit everything in to each week. Of course I did this with the help of someone who is very proficient in making schedules. At TCEA I attended a workshop on Google Docs and Sites and I remembered about Google calendar so I decided to use one for the Computer Lab access. After we finished creating the calendar we emailed a link to the calendar so the teachers can check their scheduled times. The teachers can access the calendar and request extra time or days in the lab and then it can be seen by all others when they access the calendars. The teachers really like that capability. I liked the fact that I was able to use something else that I learned at TCEA. Also this month I helped train students and their parents on the parent portal. One of the features of our Student Information Software that I //really// like is the parent portal. The parents and the students give us an email address and that is what they use for a login id. The student and the parent each have their own access, even though it takes them to the same page. The student/parent portal training took place several afternoons and evenings during the month. These events were successful. I have learned that both the students and the parents are interested in how the student is doing in class. That made the afternoons enjoyable. I will be able to use that fact to help communicate with the parents later on down the road.

October 2010 Standards V-C, VI-B, VI-C, VII-B, VII-C During the month I worked with the Special Education teachers at the high school to evaluate and purchase new hardware and software for their students. We made several decisions; one was to purchase a new server for their software, a newer version of the software they use, some netbooks for student use, and an interactive whiteboard for one of the classrooms. I worked with several vendors to find the best fit for them, initiated the purchase process, ordered the items and assisted them with setting up the hardware and installing the software when they arrived. This is another one of the activities that I really like doing. I like talking to vendors, comparing products and finding the best fit for the students and teachers. I have a tendency to take too long in making purchases because I want to find the best buy for the money and even after I make a decision I sometimes feel that I might have made the wrong one. We began having some afternoon mini-shops on using Microsoft products such as PowerPoint, Moviemaker, Publisher, and Excel. These workshops took place 3 afternoons each week with both the middle school and high school tech teachers and myself facilitating. We took turns working with the teachers. Many times, even though the teachers already use this software they will learn something new, something they did not realize they could do. Sometimes one of the other facilitators would show a feature that I had forgotten or did not know. So these lessons were also beneficial to me. Working with the teachers both for purchasing new items, and for training has led me to realize that even the smallest bit of new knowledge can kick start a refreshing leap in the learning process.

November 2010 Standards II-B, II-C, II-D, II-E, III-E I began working with the sixth grade Social Studies teacher to brainstorm some ideas on how to have the students in her classes use technology to create a product. We looked at different websites that had examples and discussed which technology was available in our district. I explained to her that the students could create photo stories, make podcasts, PowerPoint presentations, and movies. I showed her some of the online free websites available for creating presentations. We met several times and I gave her some ideas to think about and more places online to get ideas. We met again and she informed me which types of lessons she wanted her students to do so I worked with her on which types of technology she felt comfortable with. She wanted to use the technology that would produce the best results for those lessons. We sat down and started writing the lessons. It took several meetings to work out the lessons. We decided to have the students do research on the Internet during scheduled lab days, create drawings for the information and scan them, or take staged photos and import them. These will be used to create a photo story depicting the subject area she chose. We also decided to use Photo Story 3 for Windows because it is freeware and is user-friendly. I took the time to look online and research new freeware programs to see if there was anything that would work better. I decided that for a first time of requiring the students to use technology for more than just research, Photo Story would be the best fit. While searching for new software I learned how to quickly evaluate the programs to see if they served the purpose we were looking for. Off for Thanksgiving break and some turkey.

December 2010 Standards II-A, II-F, III-A, III-B, III-D The sixth grade teacher has taken her classes to the lab several times for them to do the research required for the creation of their photo story. While the students are doing their research she has asked me to meet with her a few more times to show her how Photo Story works. She wants to be able to answer the questions the students might have on days when I cannot be there. I have learned how to recognize the signs of a teacher that is not comfortable with the use of technology for both themselves and their students. I met with the teacher several times after school to work with her on the program. She now feels more comfortable and is getting excited about having the students work with technology. The students themselves are glad to be learning a new program and are enjoying participating in a different kind of lesson. In the lower grades they played with KidPix and so they know about creating stories. Once they have finished the research they have started on the drawings and photos. I have not done an incredible amount this month because of the holidays. I sat down and looked back over the activities I have done and compared them to the Technology Facilitator Standards. One thing I see is that many of the indicators can be covered with one planned activity. I am trying to keep the list of standards and indicators very visible so that when I am working with a teacher or staff member and a question or need comes up that requires me to do something not in my plan, I can see right away what standard and indicator will be covered. I can then make a note and add it to my plan when I return home. Christmas break and then back to work.

January 2011 Standards II-A, II-F, III-A, III-B, III-D The sixth grade Social Studies classes are continuing the lesson started in December. They are ready to import their photos and drawings. I helped the students use the scanner, showed them how to save on the network and find the information later on another computer. Some of the students that took photographs already know how to import pictures to the computer so we had them peer tutor those that do not know how. We are now ready to start teaching how to create a photo story. This entailed several more visits to the lab for story creation and narration. One of the things the students liked about the photo stories was recording the narration. A few of the students had played with recording themselves and tweaking the speed of the recordings. When the other students heard them they started playing with their own recordings and had a lot of fun. .Seeing them having so much fun making recording gave me the opening to teach them about podcasts. The teacher decided that might be the next project she has her students do. One thing I learned is to always be ready to take advantage of an opening in the lesson to teach something new. Students love learning new things. I have not done much this month because we have the end of the semester with semester tests, a workday and a holiday. But that was okay because it gave me more time to work with the sixth grade teacher who is also learning as her students are learning. I found that the students were excited to learn how to use the scanner to save their drawings. This made me feel like what I was doing was worthwhile. This gives me hope that future lessons with other grade levels will go as well.

February 2011 Standards I-B, III-C, IV-C, VIII-B, VII-C I did not go to TCEA this year since the Superintendent made a decision to change the Student Information Software. The High School Counselor and I attended workshops on the new software. We will train the teachers after we are finished with our training. It feels like just yesterday we were doing this very thing on the previous software. We only used that program for two years so I guess you could say it was like yesterday. This software has fewer features so the transition to the new should not be hard although is not as user friendly as the other program. I will work with the administration, the counselor and teachers to make the change a smooth one. One thing I would like to make note of is how learning the new program made me realize the team that worked together to pick the previous software made an excellent choice. Back to the sixth grade Social Studies. The students have finished their projects and are ready to present them. I went to the lab and we started up the projector. The students sat down at the computer, accessed their finished product from the network, and presented their stories. Many of them created excellent stories. Those who scanned drawings had products that were as good as those who took staged photographs. While working with the students on this project I learned to let the students work at their own pace, asking those who finished first to do a little peer tutoring. I will use that knowledge when planning future assignments especially collaboration projects.

March 2011 Standards V-C, VII-C This month we have had workshops galore. First there were the regularly scheduled Microsoft software trainings like we had in October and now we are having the new Student Information Software training. We decided to devote the first week to the new software so the teachers will have a smooth transition from the old to the new software. If there is still a teacher with questions after that I will help them with it individually. I feel that one week is enough time to teach this software as it does not have as many features of the previous program. These afternoon workshops are generally not well attended but the principals made attendance at these particular workshops mandatory. After being required to come to the Student Information Software workshops the teachers did not want to come to the productivity workshops. We tried to give the teachers incentives to come and attend the other workshops. Even though attendance was light, I felt we should keep plugging along because those that are attending are learning new things. I have learned that the teachers that work with teachers need more patience than children do. Again as we did last year, we gave the teachers a survey, this time to determine what kind of afternoon workshops they would like to see next school year. I am hoping to have the 2010 version of Microsoft for next school year so that would entail some workshops to teach new features of the software. Having the teachers put in requests and make suggestions should make them want to attend the workshops in the fall. I have learned several things while participating in this activity. One is to have patience and another is that teachers like to learn. Most of them understand that the use of technology with the students needs to be done now but do not know how to go about integrating student use into their lessons. That is where I came in. Helping them become very familiar with their technology gave me the time to see exactly what is to be done next to help the teachers with integration of technology for student use.

April 2011 Standards VIII-A, VIII-C, VIII-D The Technology Task Force meets each year in April. I am the team leader so I call and lead the meeting. A needs assessment has to be done before entering data in the district’s Technology plan. We discuss the results of the survey taken during the March workshops and any other request from the faculty and staff. We discuss purchases, changes in hardware or software and any new information from TEA. This year we asked for input for evaluation of the new Student Information Software. Another activity I facilitated was the use of the Classroom Performance System (aka “the clickers”). We use our Flex days to assist those students that have been classified as needing a little help before taking the TAKS test. This is the last year we were going to be allowed the Flex days. This year I helped a Social Studies teacher set up his class in the software, and then helped him create the assessment. We found one online that covered all of the TEKS he wanted to cover. On what we call “Fantastic Friday” his class used the clickers to participate in an interactive assessment. The teacher used the data generated by the software to determine from which lessons the students would gain the most benefit. After the first Fantastic Friday and before the next one, I helped the teacher use the reports generated by the progam to work on what questions to include for the next flex day. Working with the teachers and the clickers is always fun. I have learned that the teachers who were the most afraid of the technology are coming around, so I will keep working with them. This gives me hope for the future of technology integration at our school.

May 2011 Standards VIII-A, VIII-C, VIII-D As we do every year we have one more meeting of the Technology Task Force to wrap up the year and plan for the next school year. We take the STAR chart information, budget information from the Superintendent, and decisions made in the April meeting to make adjustments to the district Technology Plan. We have been doing an annual technology plan and we discussed changing to a three year plan instead. Before the meeting was over we decided not to change from a one year plan to a three year plan. We decided that keeping up to the minute on technology needs is better than writing a three year plan and then having something change that will affect the technology plan. Again our district participated in the online field testing for TAKS. I assisted the Technology Apps teacher in preparing her computer lab for the testing and helped administer the test. We remembered some of the issues we had in 2010 so we were prepared, we thought, for all of the students scheduled to take the test. At the end of the first day a student comes and asks why we did not call for any of the students in the class she was in. Oops, seems the person responsible for giving us the names of the students missed one of the classes. So we scheduled them for another day. After that, all of the students scheduled for the test completed the assessment. The test this year went smoother because we remembered what we went through last year to provide enough computers for the test. I learned that you have to keep a cool head when working with technology because it does not always work like you want it to when you want it to. I will be able to use that little tidbit when I work with impatient teachers in the future.