Leadership Action Plan – Education Research and Innovation
Through this course, with all of the technology we have used, I have been most excited about the ability to deliver individualized instruction to my students. I know that this is a far-reaching goal, but with Canvas assessments, and course delivery systems like Canvas, it is a start. In the video by Knewton Adaptive Learning, it showed a model of how students can take courses tailored tor them. Through these courses, gaps in student learning are identified, with student-specific, precise, instruction that is then delivered to teach those concepts to the student. This would be an ideal learning environment.
I have a chance to do this, perhaps on a smaller scale, with use of technology in the classroom. With Canvas, I can post mastery tests/quizzes online, I can use the data from these tests to modify instruction, and provide remediation opportunities for my students. Initially this takes a big commitment, and extra time to get lessons set up, but ideally once that is done, it would only require modification, to make the lessons better. The thought of doing this all at once is daunting. I can phase lessons and units in without the pressure of doing everything now.
Of course the whole time I am setting up my courses, I realize that there is new technology being developed, (possibly better technology). It makes the idea of being a life-long learner real. To keep up with new technologies and innovations, plus being able to teach full time, I would use my PLN to keep up. I will continue to take in-person and online courses to assure that I am using the best methods of teaching my students and the best delivery system. I am currently looking forward to taking some online courses through UEN and Canyons School District. It will give me something to do on Thursday nights.
Within Alta High School, there are many opportunities to share what I have learned, with my fellow teachers. Last year, in the Science Department, individual courses (Biology, Chemistry, Physics) developed course goals and objectives to be taught to our students. These “power standards” were developed, using the Utah State Core, Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and AP course frameworks. Now we are working to develop common assessments. Once these assessments are pilot-tested, we can modify them as needed and post them to Canvas so that all of our students can be tested, using the same instrument. We can also upload course materials for our students, and teachers to use. With my experience in using Canvas and Weebly, I can help the other Biology teachers to create class websites, manage their Canvas pages and deliver instruction to their students. This will enhance the consistency of Biology instruction taking place at Alta.
At Alta High School, we are working together as a faculty to improve instruction by using best practices. Our faculty (around 70 teachers) have been divided in to smaller learning communities. We learn teaching strategies and observe one another, teaching. After observations, we provide feedback to one another. We can use Dropbox and Google docs to share materials and to give feedback. We can use common calendars for planning this process, to become more effective and efficient.
One of the most important innovations that I have adopted in my classroom is Canvas, I have also amped up my class Weeblies. Through the use of these course management systems, students are able to manage part of their own learning. Another thing I am doing in my classroom is using “blended learning” where part of their learning is delivered through use of technology, at home (flipped lessons). Discussion and reinforcement occurs in the classroom, and then students practice what they have learned with other students during activities, labs and projects. As time goes on I plan to modify some lessons, create others, and add more lessons to Canvas and Weebly, using this format. Using technology in my classroom will require careful planning to assure that ALL students have access to the technology. Some will use their own mobile devices and some will need have them provided.
As I move toward having students use more technology in the classroom and at home, I will need to inform and educate parents about what we are doing, my vision and goals. This way they can help their students and reinforce what is being done in the classroom. I have noticed over the years that most parents are very supportive of this. They understand and use technology and are not timid about using it to communicate with me, and welcome it as a tool for their students’ learning.
I have always been interested in using technology in my classroom, ever since using my first school computer (Apple 2e) and have taken opportunities to learn and use technology, throughout my teaching career. I have learned so my much during this endorsement class and have used many of the tools we have been taught about, and information taken from these endorsement classes, to transform the way I teach, the way instruction is delivered and how I provide feedback to my students. I am so happy I was able to take these classes and to get my endorsement. I don’t have aspirations to be an “ed tech”, but wanted to be able to increase my ability to teach my students and give them many ways to learn and opportunities to learn in an engaging and enriching environment. This goal has been accomplished, at least partially, and I look forward to continuing to learn and grow as a professional by applying these new skills in my professional and personal life.
The biggest hurdle to teachers is the rapid advances being made in educational technology and gaining the skills necessary to incorporate this new technology in the classroom. I can incorporate new technology in to my classroom now because of the training I have received. It would be nice if other teachers sought out this kind of training and students were able to use the same kind of technology to learn in all of their classes. The first challenge to this will be training teachers. Once this happens there will be a greater consistency provided for our students and this will hopefully translate in to more learning.
I feel confident that I can help other teachers in Alta High School, either formally or informally to learn the technology that will not only help their students to learn, but will enrich their teaching.
Mobile Learning - Exploratorium
Leadership Action Plan – Section 3
My Contributions – Current and Planned
Ever since we started this last endorsement class on professional growth and leadership, I have been thinking about what I could do to help my students, other teachers in my school, and the teaching community at large. I have done many things, mostly with my own classes that have been effective in helping my students to learn, but there are many more things I could be doing.
One thing that I started a few years ago was having websites for each of the courses that I teach. I update them weekly with schedules, online resources and online assignments. Over the past year, and with what I have learned in class, these websites have evolved and are much more than I ever though they would be. By viewing the statistics of the courses I can see that they are being used more and more by students and parents. As part of these websites, I have students and parents sign up for remind 101 to better communicate with them about the course they are in, when things are due, and upcoming events. Students from other schools are using my AP Biology website, and students from other Biology classes at Alta also use my websites to help them review to reinforce what they are learning in their Biology classes. Because of the new tools and skills I have gained in our endorsement class, the resources that I post on my website are much more organized, and the assignments and labs are more engaging!
I have been putting mastery quizzes up on Canvas (which I have linked to my Weebly sites) and have had students submit online assignments. This is something that has worked very well. Students get the chance to take quizzes over until they have mastered the material, and I record their highest score on Skyward. I still have a few students that don’t do the work, but for the most part students like the opportunity to study the material and do remediation after the quiz and retake the quiz. I know I am not teaching the same students as I did a year ago, but on average student assessment scores, which are done in class at the end of each unit, are higher than a year ago. I need to gather more data, but anecdotally I am encouraged by what I have seen and attribute this at least in part to having these mastery quizzes. The thing that I really like is that I don’t have to re-grade the retakes, this happens automatically with Canvas.
I have lessons that I have developed over the past 30 years of teaching. As a veteran teacher, I would like to share these materials. So far, I have only done this informally with other teachers. I haven’t postes my lessons or shared them formally with the larger teaching community. iTunes U might be a great venue to do this. I have set a goal to organize and share the materials I use to teach AP Biology, through the AP Biology website (AP Central) where I am part of a discussion board. When I started teaching AP Biology about ten years ago, I had to start from scratch in developing lessons and finding materials to use. I would like to be able to share materials that I have used with my students, to help first time AP Biology teachers to teach this demanding course successfully and avoid many of the pitfalls I experienced along the way.
In my own school, we have two of our veteran Biology teachers who are retiring at the end of the year, hopefully with teachers that are hired, we can set up our courses and do common assessments and have more consistency in what is being taught from class to class. I envision us working together collaboratively and using technology to provide this consistency. I am in the process of developing some “flipped” lessons, I would like to share with other teachers, since I have benefitted by lessons that other teachers have shared online.
I see myself as being involved with the online science community, and at the department level at Alta. I would like to also work with biology teachers at the district level, in sharing and collaborating to develop engaging lessons. I see my role at Alta High School primarily as supportive. I would definitely be willing to work with other teachers at Alta, one-on-one , or in small groups, to set up Canvas, or use Skyward, or make a Blendspace, or a Weebly, or other tools I have used with my students. I would also be willing to teach more formally at the school level, (I can’t believe I am saying this)…gulp. I have never wanted to teach professional development for a larger group of teachers until I actually did it. I learned that with preparation, even I could teach my fellow teachers. We as teachers expect perfection of ourselves, and that has made me reluctant to teach others. Having now taught professional development I feel more comfortable instructing other teachers.
I would like to continue to take professional development in using technology. I would like to become more proficient using technology both professionally and personally. I would definitely encourage other teachers to take advantage of these courses that are offered. I saw some online courses that I would love to take, both at UEN and at Canyons Pro-learning site. I am also using Pluralsight (the free card we got at the TedX event) to brush up on my excel skills. I love being able to use mobile learning to increase my confidence and proficiency with technology.
With the grant writing assignment, that we did, I started thinking of things I could do to increase learning and to acquire materials and supplies in my classroom not having to rely entirely on the school or district for funding. While I don’t know what will happen with the grants that I submitted, I would like to explore ways to get materials, supplies, and devices in the hands of my students that will increase their learning and their success.
This past year has been a great journey for me! I never realized what an impact the things I have learned from this endorsement class would have on me. With the number of years that I have taught, it has been great to do something that is truly challenging for me, and has changed the way that I teach my students. It has made such a difference to me in my classroom, and now I want to share what I have learned with my students, with other teachers, and with the educational community. I know adopting new technology and applying what I have learned in my classes has made a huge difference in my attitude, the delivery of lessons, and even my classroom management. I hope for the rest of my teaching career, I will continue to learn and change and make a difference with my students, and my fellow teachers.
iTunes U
I think the concept behind iTunes U is amazing, to offer courses that are free to the public, that can be viewed on any mobile device and can be downloaded from the apple store, and explored whenever wherever a person wants is a very attractive concept. Did I mention they are FREE? Does it seem like it's a little anti-capitalistic? In my initial research, I saw so many topics that I would like to research further. I found some courses using my iPad app and that I think I will be able to use. I like what I saw and actually downloaded the following courses:
Pre-AP Biology -This course included links to worksheets, video and I thought the best part of this course, were projects that students do that are inquiry-based and are created and presented using digital web 2.0 tools. Talk about a perfect marriage of what I want to do with my students. This course was designed specifically for High School students and teachers and does not include endless lectures, like many university iTunes U courses.
Digital Storytelling- Developed by KQED (2011), this iTunes U course includes training in story theory and the use of multimedia and digital technology for teaching, and learning The links include iMovie, adding audio, effects, file management and other aspects of a good digital story. I think this would be great to use as a tutorial or refresher course for the digital storytelling class we took as part of our endorsement. It would be great for students to move through in developing their digital projects.
Flipping the Classroom with iTunes U- Developed by Foxcroft Academy, this iTunes U course is meant to teach instructors how to transition their classroom into a student-centered, project-based learning environment.
iTunes U Courses for High School - Acalanes Union High School District (2012), this iTunes U course set up to teach teachers how to create iTunes U courses, and provides examples of what kinds of courses work well in High School.
Some of these courses have links to other courses that have been created on related topics and some created by the same instructors. I think these will be great courses for keeping sharp on the skills and technology we have been learning about in our endorsement classes.
I loaded the over-the-shoulder sessions from the UCET conference that we went to last spring, and also saw a link to Electronic High School. Which was interesting to me since some of my students have taken classes throught Electronic High School. I had no idea that this content could be accessed through iTunes U. I liked how some of the links TedEd could be set up as a flipped assignment.
I am a long way from creating a course myself, but I think it would be a good venue for creating a "flipped" classroom which students could access by using their mobile devices.
Click the link below to view the Donors Choose grant that was submitted
Professional Growth and Leadership - Professional Development
In the school environment, teachers are constantly involved in professional development. When participating in professional development, teachers are put in the role of a student, if even for a brief time. This is good for teachers to not only remember what it is like to be a student but to help teachers to appreciate the diversity of the learners that they have in their own classrooms
Teachers are often required to participate in professional development at the school level, this is usually under the direction of the school administrator. Ideally a formal or informal needs assessment has been conducted and it has been determined that there is a need for the professional development. This professional development is often conducted to comply with district and/or school goals. When professional development is mandatory, it puts the presenter in the role of either before the meeting, or at he beginning of the presentation, stating the objective of the meeting, explaining why it is important/necessary, and outlining the benefits, and /or the risks of not learning.
Once teachers see a need for the professional development, and the growth they will gain, they will often seek out opportunities for professional development, and learning. Adult learners in any setting who seek out learning opportunities based upon their perceived needs, will have a different set of expectations than those required to participate in the professional development. Teachers who are there voluntarily take ownership of the learning are more likely to be engaged learners, because they are focused on what is useful to them personally and professionally.
I love teaching in my classes and applying the things I have learned during professional development, but am reluctant to conduct formal professional development with my peers. Part of this is because I have participated in mandatory professional development where benefits of the learning were very small compared to the time spent in the professional development, and there was very little that I walked away with that would make my life better or make me a better teacher.
The other part of my reluctance stems from the fact that I am generally a pretty reserved person, even a little shy. I think the setting I would be most comfortable in teaching professional development would be with a small group of teachers, who are there by choice to learn a very specific type of technology (that I am proficient at) that they can take and use to better their teaching immediately. I would like to be able to follow-up with these teachers and teach them one-on-one after the professional development to help them master the skills or technology they have chosen to learn about.
Through this Technology Endorsement course I have learned some wonderful things, I am much more comfortable using technology, but I still lack the proficiency in many areas that I would like to have. I will continue to take advantage of professional development opportunities to improve my skills of using technology in the classroom. I am looking into the costs and benefits of getting my Masters degree in technology, which will keep me involved in learning and teaching the use of technology. I will also participate in online learning to sharpen my skills, and help me to better use and teach others how to use new technology.
Leadership Action Plan – Effective Leadership
Elaine Hardman
When I signed up to do this technology endorsement, I had no idea that I would be expected to fill a leadership role in my school. I primarily signed up to take this course so that I could integrate technology in my classroom and increase student motivation and student learning. In fact when I read the syllabus at the time of the course invitation, I will admit, I was somewhat intimidated, and thought the requirements of this course to be least suited to my natural inclinations and almost entirely out of my comfort zone. Even the online leadership survey we took (I honestly answered the questions) showed me to be a reluctant leader. While I know this is true, I also believe that as a teacher, I am a leader in my classroom, and I believe with opportunity and experience I can take on more leadership roles in my school. I hope that during this course I will be able to identify qualities of leadership and to integrate them so that I can make a contribution, not only in my classroom, but with my colleagues.
To me a leader has a vision for change, often the vision is not theirs alone, but is necessary due to circumstances. For example when we learned that there would be a grade reconfiguration in Canyons School District, our teachers and administrators at Alta High School, knew a change was ahead of them whether they wanted it or not, they could either prepare for the change and provide the best transition possible, for all involved (teachers, administrators, counselors, students, parents) or just let the change happen. As it turned out, our Principal and Vice Principals put together a team of teachers, counselors, current students, incoming students, and members of the school community (all the stakeholders) and surveyed them to see what they would like our school to be like with this major change. With feedback from these survey’s, followed by in-depth research, to see what other schools and school districts had done to transition ninth grade students in to High School and as a team, we came up with a comprehensive plan and vision of what would be best for our School and all of the stakeholders. Other teams were put together to write documents and lessons to be used in Alta High School, to increase student success school wide during this time of transition. I was able to be part of this transition team and to help do research and design curriculum to be used school wide. It has been exciting to see this hard work as it has been implemented this year.
Okay, so what does this have to do with my leadership action plan? To be honest, I think what we did as a school to transition our ninth and tenth graders into Alta High School this year is a great model for a leader to follow.
Based on feedback from teachers in our school, (especially in the Science Department) our teachers are concerned about using Canvas to do our science benchmark testing this year. Many have never used Canvas, some have little experience with using technology in general, and none have done testing online. Some of these science teachers will be retiring at the end of this school year and are not terribly interested in learning new technology.
I am fairly comfortable using technology and have in fact been using technology in every course and in my classroom (well I have been using Weebly for 4 years anyway) for a long time, and especially since I have been working on my technology endorsement. After attending a High School Science teacher academy in September, all of our Science teachers set up Canvas sites needed to do the benchmark testing, but that is where most have stopped. I proposed to our Science Department to do some professional development with them and teach these teachers and any others who are interested in the school how to add online tests to their Canvas sites. We will be doing this during our collaboration time, and teachers are bringing quizzes that they can put on during this professional development. I still have a lot to learn about Canvas, but have been practicing and have had students take several online tests so I feel like I can be a resource to these teachers during the professional development, and after. As we move toward “mastery” testing I believe that our science teachers will find that posting tests on Canvas is a great way for students to be able to test until they reach mastery, and to learn.