Dont be afraid to keep clicking Jessica Martin EDUC 526 Capstone Experience in Digital Teaching and Learning Professor

Joanna Gilbreath

Introduction

The site that I am teaching at is very into technology. I was given a MacBook pro and an iPad, for the first time. Being a first year teacher I was slightly overwhelmed at what was going on in my classroom as well as what to do with all this technology. I also had a class set of iPads just for math and was struggling to figure out how to use them effectively. One of my goals this year is to use centers in my second period of math. Where students can use iPads, work on homework and have small group instruction for those students who are struggling or need a higher level of discussion. I didnt have a lot of responsibilities since I was a first year teacher. One of my goals in pursuing this degree was to become more familiar with the technology at my fingertips. I had all of this technology handed to me and I was just staring at it panicking because I had no idea what to do with it.

Personal Growth

I learn better when I see a visual of what is expected and practice it on my own. For the past year I have heard about common core and how wonderful it was, but not how to implement it. I was finally given a workshop on what a unit plan is suppose to look like and actually got to try to create one with other teachers. Once I was able to practice what were expected things started to make so much more sense about how to implement common core. I have pretty good study habits since I know how lazy I can become if I wait to the last minute. I will work on things way before they are due to get a jump start on stuff otherwise my procrastination starts to kick in. I tend to work well under pressure but I prefer not to have pressure on me. Under pressure I prioritize figuring out what needs to be done first and allows me to focus instead of stressing over everything at once. I like deadlines since it makes me sit down and figure out when things need to be started in order to be finished in time. I have made some great friends and connections through this program. One of my professors actually works in my district. Having him the district is somewhat awkward since I want to call him professor instead of his actual name since that was what I
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referred to him while I was his student. I love the fact that I have been able to go to past professors for advice and recommendations whenever I needed them. The professors in this program really prepared me for what I was going to be seeing in the classroom. I loved that they gave stories and suggestions about what to do as well as actual examples of what they were doing in their own classrooms. I was lucky enough to be apart of a group of students through a majority of my credential and masters program. We got together to do all of our tech assignments or just to blow off some steam during our interning. Having them in each class made the program that much more fun since we knew each other, how to support each other and how to make each other laugh and keep to deadlines. We all survived a not so nice professor by relying on each other. A lot of people that I have met in the masters program didnt have that experience and I think it made the program a lot more isolated for them. When you only meet once a week, its hard to make connections with people especially when they are older and already have set lives and friends. I lucked into a group of people who were of a similar age and we all happened to get along as well. I dont think I have really come to terms with what this degree will mean to me. I already have a masters in Korean Studies and that degree is a badge of honor to me. Those 2 years in Korea is something that I will carry with me forever and the degree is just a culmination of everything I went through. This degree is still a work in progress and doesnt have the same emotional importance as my other one. While this masters will let me teach technology it is such a weird degree since in about a year it will be obsolete because of all the changes in technology. Getting this degree is almost like a challenge to stay current and relevant with what the students are able to do. I think once I have the piece of paper it will really hit me that I have finally completed this program. Once I am done with this program, my first step will be to take a big breath of relief and right after that figure out how to stay current so my degree doesnt become meaningless.

Professional Growth

I have learned to embrace technology in the classroom. When I first thought about becoming a teacher, I was under the assumption that I would be using a whiteboard, like
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how I as taught in school. Instead I use my iPad for everything, whether it is recording a lesson, editing, mirroring to my laptop or class dojo. There are days that I wonder what type of teacher I would have been if I didnt have technology in the classroom to help me teach. Classroom management is something that I am still coming to grips with. It is something that does not come naturally to me like it does to other teachers. With the use of technology I have had better control of my classroom since I am not stuck in front of the class teaching, but I am able to walk around and keep an eye on everyone. I have also learned to keep true to myself in order to create the best learning environment for my students. I was told that I had to be strict otherwise the students wouldnt take me seriously. I have a more laid back personality and my professors have taught me to be who I am and I will be able to figure out how everything else fits together. After my first year of teaching I learned that I cant be that stern faced teacher, it just isnt who I am. I have fun with my students, but I always remind them that I am the teacher and while I may joke around they still have to respect me, my rules as well as their fellow classmates. I am trying to find that balance of having fun in the classroom, but still learning and having meaningful discussions. Since starting this program I have been made the technology lead for the secondary teachers at my site. I havent actually gone to any meetings yet but I have sit down with my co-workers helping them try to incorporate technology in their classroom. I get excited when explaining things to people so I have had to take a breath and let them do their own trial and error in front of me instead of just doing it for them. Some of my colleagues have embraced technology in their classrooms, while others arent sure how to use the technology and then there are those who flat out wont use it. I have incorporated videos into my classroom. I pre-record my lessons so I can play them in class as well as post them online for students who are absent or maybe missed something in class. I love making my videos. I think it helps me better explain the concept in the classroom as well as discover better ways at explaining things. It also helps me keep my voice as well as help with my classroom management skills. I am not as caught up with trying to solve the problem but making sure everyone is on task. Though I make videos I use an app called Doceri that allows me to draw over my video or bring up a blank screen so I can answer questions on the fly. This allows the students to give me
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an example of what they dont understand and they can see right then and there. The drawing tool also lets me emphasize something on my video or even let them answer a question so the entire class can see their work. The focus of my Action Research plan is to help with my organization skills. I am one of those people who make piles of things and those things get lost on my desk to be discovered 2 weeks later. I hope that if I can find a better way to become organized I can give better feedback to my students as well as spend less time looking for things. I hate how piles slowly form on my desk and by the end of the week I am spending 20 or 30 minutes trying to organize it. I need to find a way to keep things in order so I can spend my time in a more productive manner. By utilizing my students I will be able to hand back work in a timely manner, so they can see what they have done and what they might need to improve on. By giving them back their work, it validates them since they know that I looked at it and gave them feedback.

Technical Growth

I had a new MacBook pro and iPad and had no idea how to use them. I learned in EDUC 515 how to create my own website/blog, which I currently use in my classroom for students to have access to my videos and homework assignments. I learned about a video recording app and how to edit my videos in EDUC 514. I use to have to re-record a video every time I made a mistake and it was taking so long, since I would make mistakes half way through a video or right at the end. Now through editing I can make a mistake and it doesnt matter. In EDUC 512 I learned about many different classroom management apps that I can access and use on my iPad so I can still wander around my classroom. One of the funnier apps is a noise detection app. It the students get too loud (I can set how sensitive the noise level is) and alarm goes off. If it goes off 2 times, then they have to do times tables. I use my iPad all the time in my classroom. During lecture I use it to pause my video and Doceri to write out problems on the board. I also use my iPad to use Class Dojo to give or take away points to students based on their behavior. My iPad allows so

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much freedom in my classroom. I worry sometimes that if I go to a new site that if they dont have an iPad I wont know what to do in my classroom.

Life Long Learning Plan

I plan on always conferring with my colleagues and principle at my site. I have to remind myself that I am not a team of one, but I have lots of people to support me as long as I remember to ask them for help if I ever need it. Since technology is always changing I hope to attend at least one conference a year, maybe even see if I can go to CUE this year to see and be around other people who are interested in staying current in technology. I need to make sure that I find time to research new ideas and wander around twitter using keywords to see what new things are being applied to the classroom. I see myself teaching technology and math in the next 5 years. While I love teaching math, I think it would a real challenge to teach children about technology. So many of them see themselves as masters of technology since they grew up with it, but such basics as typing and saving documents is this daunting task. I think it would be a fun adventure to balance practical application of technology and within the same class challenging their creativity with new programs and projects. Students always ask why do I have to learn this math concept and since it is so abstract sometimes it is hard to given them a reason that they can relate to. By using technology I can give them something concrete to relate it to. Im not sure what I will be doing in 10 years from now. It seems too far away for me to even really consider. I have never really been a planner, just setting little milestones for myself so I feel like I have accomplished something. Knowing me in 10 years I will be in some new field that I havent even considered right now. History of Coursework and Course Evaluation Course Title & Term Instructor Completed Name
INSTRUCTOR: Jennifer Cordoff

Course

Key Skills Acquired Live binder wordle

Comments/Suggestions - I felt like this class was not necessary - there just seemed to be a lot of busy work
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EDUC 511

Fall 2012

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EDUC 512

Instructional Applications Productivity Software INSTRUCTOR: Karen McBride Learning in the 21st Century INSTRUCTOR: Lisa Rodriguez Digital Video in the Classroom INSTRUCTOR: Tim McKean Evolving Educational Technologies INSTRUCTOR: Tim McKean Capstone Experience/ Digital Teaching and Learning INSTRUCTOR: Joanne Gilbreath

Fall 2012

web quest tabs iPad apps keynote

EDUC 522

Spring 2013

Blooms Technology and intelligences Pinnacle Story boarding Lighting

- I would have like to been taught how to use word to create tests/quizzes (formatting) - It seemed like we spent time on things that I never applied in the classroom - I liked being challenged in how to incorporate technology in reaching all of the intelligences

EDUC 514

Fall 2012

EDUC 515

Spring 2013

EDUC 526

Fall 2013

- This class was a lot of fun and very informative. - It taught me how to edit my videos and add sound effects to keep my students awake. - Either some more time Twitter spent on google drive or a CUE whole class dedicated to it. Webpage - It gave me a new appreciation of twitter. - I like how we are refining Reflecting Evolving Unit our unit plan from before. It is making me reflect on other Plan units I have created.

Evaluation of the impact of the Digital Teaching and Learning Program A new strategy that I will implement in my classroom is showing students how to create and edit videos. I want students to be able to create a video showing something specific that they have learned from the lesson and be able to describe it in their own words. For example, creating a video showing the steps to solve a problem, or creating a video that has a rap or poem describing what they have learned in class that day or from a fellow classmate. One of my colleagues pointed out that in Sweden, there is 30 minutes of instruction then 15 minutes of playtime for their students. I think incorporating video creation time could be a sort of playtime for my students. The expectation would be very broad. Picking one thing that we learned this week, in a group create a video showing us
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what we have learned. It would get students working together to discuss something in their own words while sharing how they each view that certain topic differently or the same. It would create a fun safe environment of sharing ideas and then discussing what the other students thought of their method or thought process. Students tend to learn better from their classmate then from me. By creating videos it is something I can show in class as a review as well as give them access by posting it online for them to view online. At the same time it is getting them to apply what they have learned in a way that isnt just doing practice problems.

Program Evaluation I have had a very positive experience here at APU. There have been a few professors who I felt did not help me become a better educator, but luckily there were other professors who were able to help me where they failed. One of the things that I wish would be different about their program is specific strategies to help math teachers in the classroom. There were so many times where I was introduced to a strategy and I was sitting there thinking how I could adapt it to a math lesson. For example, how would I jigsaw a math problem or do a thinking map for a math problem? While I assume that there probably ways of doing this, I was never shown this in the program. It would be nice to be shown strategies for each content area. One of the strengths of this program is the dedication to the students. Whenever I had a question or concern it was answered or addressed in less than a day. It was nice to know that when I had a question it would be answered that day, not next week. I think one improvement for the program would be the changing of the 512 class focus. While we spend a lot of time on tabbing, I think that time could be better spent on learning how to format word documents for parent letters or creation of tests. I struggle sometimes in formatting my test for my students. With common core, things will eventually be all teacher created. It would be nice to walk into a classroom knowing how to create a document correctly, so it can easily be edited to use for a later date. Another improvement would be more focus on Google drive. Im not sure if it could be covered in more depth in EDUC 515 or just a creation of a class that focuses on Google drive would be better. With common core teachers will need to be able to collaborate with other
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teachers and through Google docs it could be so simple to share ideas or bounce ideas off one another without having to schedule a time when all the teachers can come together. If we have to create a Live Binder I would like to have to use it for my other classes. I believe we spent an entire class session creating our Live Binder and then I never used it again and my professors never addressed it again.

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