Wikis, blogs and podcasts were in the fringes of my consciousness before EDLD 5306. Prior to taking this course, I remember hearing about noteworthy blogs that certain newsmakers or celebrities maintained, wikis that my students had created and podcasts that were available on iTunes. I also knew that these were only a smattering of the awesome tools available to the public. The old “read-only” web was becoming a thing of the past and the new shiny Web 2.0 with its interactive, free and creative tools was becoming mainstream. I was burned out teaching the same things that I’d been teaching since receiving my Technology Applications certification in 2003 and I felt as though I was standing on the sidelines of something awesome. I knew that there were so many new tools and so much open source material available and this knowledge was one of the reasons I sought out a degree program that would place me squarely in the present using the most current digital tools.
I love seeing the creativity these tools bring out in my students, my own children and also in me. I have learned that Web 2.0 tools provide outlets never before seen for the masses. Warlick said that "information also flows free of the containers that we previously managed as the gatekeepers” (Warlick, 2007) and I maintain that teachers are no longer the keepers of the knowledge but also the learners. My daughter summed it up well when she said that “Web 2.0 tools can make even uncreative people look good”. I’ve seen special education students excel in my classroom because of the opportunities afforded by digital media. I’ve known for years that most students respond positively to adaptive technologies and some students’ only means of communication comes from the use of special technologies, so I can comfortably conclude that most students like using technology and some students require it to be motivated. It was about this time that I began strongly questioning the teaching methods in my school and became suspicious that in order to teach these kids without boring them to death, we needed to stop giving notes in lecture form and start getting them out of their seats and into groups brainstorming, collaborating and researching with digital tools.
With the huge amounts of information on the internet comes the responsibility of protecting its creators and content owners. EDLD 5306 was largely about copyright issues and ensuring rights of owners aren’t violated. I have always begun my new classes with a large unit concerning copyright infringement, web safety, and “netiquette”. I want my students to be vigilant in protecting themselves and their identities and, also, in respecting the creations of others. Willard proposed that “except for the occasional plagiarized passage or unattributed reference in student research papers, most veteran K-12 teachers have had little experience dealing with copyright issues in their classrooms”.(Willard, 2004) 5306 gave me more information and tools to teach my students to respect the internet. There is one YouTube video (Faden, n.d.) that spoofs copyright and public domain using Disney movie clips and my students love it.
EDLD 5306 was my first course in this program and I was relieved find that the three major assignments covered topics with which I was very familiar. A few of my jobs as District Technology Coordinator are to modify and update our technology plan, to direct our teachers in completing their Texas STaR charts and to provide professional development in the area of technology. We were directed in one assignment to analyze our district’s Texas STaR charts and create a presentation outlining our findings. I was under the false assumption 17 months ago that the teachers in my district were more adept with technology than they actually are. I now know that we took a staggering step backward in the three year period reviewed. Over time, I’ve come to believe that much of this regression has been caused by several reasons. First, my district has jumped into CSCOPE with both feet and teachers have very little time for outside technology integration. Also, the fact that we are without an elementary computer lab is causing our students and teachers to miss out on the Technology Application TEKS in the lower grades. Thirdly, my district’s teachers are so worried about the rigor of the new state assessment that they are using all of their available professional development opportunities in STAAR training. I now feel that minimal technology integration is a disappointing reality even though it has a positive impact on student learning and motivation. It will take strong leadership who understand the tremendously positive impact that technology integration has on student success to begin changing the way schools deliver learning to students. “The challenge to us as educators lies with keeping up with an education environment that has changed dramatically in the past 10 years…”(Armstrong, & Warlick, 2004). According to the LRPT, more than 5,000 Texas teachers participated in the NetDay Speak Up 2005 technology survey. Most teachers indicated that the primary impact of technology on student performance is student engagement (57%), student achievement (46%), or collaboration and teamwork (35%). Only 12% did not see an impact of technology on student performance (LRPT, 2006). With statistics like this, how can I not try to provide my teachers with professional development to help them understand these facts? Warlick said that "information also flows free of the containers that we previously managed as the gatekeepers” (Warlick, 2007) and I maintain that teachers are no longer the keepers of the knowledge but they are also the learners. My 9 year-old daughter summed it up well when she said that “Web 2.0 tools can make even uncreative people look good”. I’ve seen special education students excel in my classroom because of the opportunities afforded by digital media. I’ve known for years that most students respond positively to adaptive technologies and some students’ only means of communication comes from the use of special technologies, so I can comfortably conclude that most students like using technology and some students require it to be motivated. It was about this time that I began strongly questioning the teaching methods in my school and became suspicious that in order to teach these kids without boring them to death, we needed to stop giving notes in lecture form and start getting them out of their seats and into groups brainstorming, collaborating and researching with digital tools.
As a result of my new knowledge, I have scheduled time during the school day to meet with teachers one-on-one to talk about their technology needs and try to help them integrate Technology Application TEKS and Web 2.0 tools into their curriculum. Also, I’ve begun meeting with small groups of teachers to show them different websites and tools that they can have students use to enhance their lessons. I am definitely more compassionate toward core subject area teachers who are preparing students for state assessments and try to use the knowledge that I’m gaining both through this master’s program and through my own research to help them have successful outcomes. As a life-long learner, I have subscribed to educational digests and newspapers and have also added many RSS feeds concerning educational technologies to my Google Reader account.
The last major assignment in 5306 was to create wiki and place our Texas STaR Chart presentation on it. Creating this wiki was probably the single most important activity I did to keep myself organized. I didn’t understand at that time just how useful “cloud storage” would be in my life. The wiki lead to the blog site, the Google Reader and the Dropbox. Once I realized how beneficial all these tools were to me, I told everyone who would listen how great they were. I’ve done several small professional development trainings with colleagues who were interested and also with a few that weren’t. One science teacher came to me after a short lesson on Dropbox and wikis with questions that lead her to begin a summer-long project to move her complete curriculum to an online format. I assisted her in securing an old laptop cart containing 20 computers that no one else ever used and a wireless access point for her online classroom. All it took was a teacher with some initiative and desire to make her life easier to show everyone how easy it is to have a “near” paperless classroom. I tend to agree with Hebron when he said that “a wiki site can be a profoundly productive component in the work of any organization that has ready access to computers.” (Hendron, 2008)
Armstrong, S., & Warlick, D. (2004, September). The new literacy: the 3rs evolve into 4es. Technology and Learning, (25), 20-28
Educational Technology Advisory Committee, Texas Education Agency (2006). Long range plan for technology 2006-2020. Austin, Texas. Retrieved from http://www.tea.state.tx.us/technology/lrpt/lrpt_lrpt.htmlHendron, J. G. (2008). Rss for educators: blogs, newsfeeds, podcasts, and wikis in the classroom. Eugene, OR: ISTE Book Publishing.
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection, 26(1), 20-21.
Faden, E. (n.d.). A fair(y) use tale [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJn_jC4FNDo&feature=socblog_th
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection, 26(1), 20-21.
Willard, Nancy. (2004). Schools, the internet, and copyright law. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech121.shtml
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