Performance Assessment Outline

Technology Standard VII:

Professional Growth
Megan Long
Technology
Standard

In Technology Standard VII, Professional Growth, teacher candidates will

develop professional practices that support continual learning and
professional growth in technology.

Technology
Indicators

Instructors will examine the task product(s) in terms of four proficiency

indicators:
1. Create a professional development plan that includes resources to support
the use of technology in lifelong learning.
2. Use resources of professional organizations and groups that support the
integration of technology into instruction.
3. Continually evaluate and reflect on professional practices and emerging
technologies to support student learning.
4. Identify local, state and national standards and use them to improve
teaching and learning.

Assessment
Task

As a teacher, it is likely that you will be expected periodically to identify your

professional goals and establish plans for systematically addressing one or
more of these goals. Sometimes doing this is mandated, but regardless,
effective professionals in all fields engage in lifelong learningsuch as
medical doctors keeping up with new procedures and tax accountants staying
up-to-date on IRS rules and regulations. In this task you will have an
opportunity to develop a plan to support an area for your own continued
learning and professional growth in technology.
Complete the following steps to create various products, including a selfassessment chart, an individual professional development plan and supporting
documents, to demonstrate proficiency in this technology standard. The final
product is a written plan that describes to a general audience of education
professionals how you would improve an identified need or improve on a
strength in using technology in your professional practice. For example, you
may develop a strength in an area so that you could present a technology
workshop for your colleagues or peers.
1) Familiarize yourself with the Scoring Tool for Evaluating Technology
Standard VII: Professional Growth. Use this tool to guide you when
completing this assessment task.
2) Next, examine the Self-Assessment Chart of the Maryland Teacher
Technology Standards and do the following:

2002

Place an S or an N in the box next to those Indicators that apply, to

Technology Standard VII <272745593.doc >

Performance Assessment Outline

designate your strengths and needs in relation to the Technology
Standards. (Note the directions at the top of the chart.)
Attach the completed Self-Assessment Chart to your final individual
Technology Professional Development Plan for continued growth in the
use of technology to promote learning.
3) Select one or more Indicators for one of the Technology Standards on
which you would like to focus as a professional development goal. You
may either choose an area of need that you would like to improve or you
may choose an area of strength that you would like to develop further.
Write a justification for your selected goal that contains the following:

2002

A restatement of your goal that specifies the Technology Standard and

the Indicator(s) you have identified and indicates whether you are
addressing a need or strength as your goal.
The goal of my Technology Growth Plan is to become more proficient
at using technology to communicate information in different forms and
picking the best form to fit my needs. The Technology Standard that I
am concentrating on is, II B. Use technology to communicate
information in a variety of formats. The Technology Indicator I am
using is, Select appropriate technologies for a particular
communication goal. I believe that my goal is covering an area of
personal strength and is a desire to accomplish. I believe that setting,
reaching, and accomplishing this goal is important for me to become a
strong and efficient educator.

A description of your level of competence and confidence in relation to

your identified goal.
I have set a goal for myself to become more proficient at using
technology to communicate information in different forms and picking
the best form to fit my needs; therefore, I feel like through my journey
of becoming an educator I have gained many ideas to help reach my
goal, and is something I am confident enough in myself that I can
accomplish. I am very certain that I am capable and well rounded to
achieve this goal that I have set for myself. Over the years I have gain
an understanding of different forms of technology and how they work;
however, I feel like I need to learn more about the different forms of
technology and which form is best for each situation.

An explanation of who you anticipate serving by meeting your goal and

the ways in which you anticipate doing so. For example, this goal could
serve one or more of the following:
you personally
needs of peers or colleagues by contributing to the shared body of
knowledge
a particular student
a group of students with a given need or interest
a school improvement team goal
a district mandate
Technology Standard VII <272745593.doc >

Performance Assessment Outline

a federal mandate
I plan to serve, my peers and colleagues, and the students and families I
teach by obtaining my goal. Any time I set and achieve goals, I do it for
myself. I will be serving my peers and colleagues because I will be able to
share my knowledge and ideas with them. Achieving my goal will have
the greatest impact on the students I teach in my classroom as well as the
parents of the students in my classroom. My goal states that I will become

more proficient at using technology to communicate information in different

forms and picking the best form to fit my needs; my main goal is to help create
that home and school connection and communication with each of my families.
If I am able to achieve my goal, my students and their families will benefit
greatly.

4) Create a well-developed individual Technology Professional Development

Plan that describes the actions you anticipate taking to reach your goal.
This written document should address the following questions:
A. Conducting research on resources
What activities, contacts and resources are necessary to reach your
goal?
There are many contacts and resources that I will need to utilize in
order to reach my goal. I think it is important to understand and realize
that my teaching peers/team, and other technology savvy experts within
the school system in which I will be teaching play a huge role in
helping me achieve my goal I have set for myself. I am open to
suggestions from others in an effort to best reach my goal. Here are is
an additional list of resources I will utilize in order to reach my goal:
Weebly
http://www.weebly.com/
Dr. Kris McGee
Frostburg State University @ USMH
Emily Reeves
Washington County Public School System
Carly Shockey
Washington County Public School System
Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBdOgTj7x7o
What professional organizations and/or groups support your goal?
Weebly is one of the biggest professional organizations that will help
support my goal. As a teacher through much research I know I will be
able to find many other resources to help reach my goal.

What professional practices support your goal?

I believe that my teaching peers/team, and other technology savvy
experts within the school system in which I will be teaching play a

2002

Technology Standard VII <272745593.doc >

Performance Assessment Outline

huge role in helping me achieve my goal I have set for myself. In
addition to these professional practices, people such as, Dr. Kris
McGee, Emily Reeves, and Carly Shockey will help me create a
Weebly containing all the appropriate information to help build the
home and school connection and communication with each of my
families. I also feel that my own experience with various
technology(ies) that I have seen in many different classrooms will also
support me to complete my goal, as well.
What emerging technology(ies) support your goal?
I believe that there are a lot of different types of emerging technologies
that will help support my goal. Some of those emerging technologies
are:
Blogs
Social Networking Sites
Personal learning environments
Technology is constantly changing and will be important for me, as an
educator, to stay on top of the emerging technologies so I can
effectively implement them in my classroom.

What local, state and/or national standards support your goal?

Maryland Teacher Technology Standards (MTTS)
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE)
Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE)
Common Core

B. Creating a plan of action

Through what product or performance might you demonstrate that
you are approaching or meeting your identified goal?
I feel like feedback from the parents on whether or not the Weebly site
was beneficial or not and reflecting will help determine whether or not
I am approaching or meeting my goal that I have set.
How do you anticipate that the resources identified in Part A will
contribute to your product or performance?
The resources identified in Part A will help contribute greatly to my
overall goal. The resources I have used are; the actual site, a site to
help, and people who have actually created and used Weeblys in their
classroom before. I feel like my human resources are going to greatly
contribute to my goal overall because they have created a successful
Weebly multiple times and will be able to help not only create a
Weebly, but give ideas for good information to be on my Weebly. I am
always willing to learn from the experience of my peers and colleagues.

What is a reasonable timeframe to reach your goal?

A reasonable timeframe for me to reach my goal would be by the end

2002

Technology Standard VII <272745593.doc >

Performance Assessment Outline

of my first year teaching. I feel like this is a broad, but attainable goal
that will take time to master. I believe I will need a full school year to
fully obtain my goal and fix all of the issues.
C. Developing criteria for evaluation
How will you know if you have approached or met your goal?
I will know I have approached/met my goal, ultimately, by the lack of
emails/questions the parents ask throughout the week. The parents will
be able to get on the Weebly site and have most of their questions
answered. I will know when the parents take the time to check the
Weebly before asking questions and then if they are still confused or
have questions they will email me stating they still have questions. I
will also rely on parent and peer/colleague feedback over the year on
what I can add and eliminate from my Weebly site to help create the
home and school connection and to better help with communication.
Evaluation

The Scoring Tool for Evaluating Technology Standard VII, Professional

Growth will be used to assess the product(s) associated with this task.

Benchmarks

One or more sample products are available as benchmarks for the different
levels of proficiency on the PT3 website: www.smcm.edu/msde-pt3.

Reference

This task and its supporting materials were developed from Marylands
Preparing Tomorrows Teachers to Use Technology (PT3), USDOE Catalyst
Grant, May 2002. Performance assessment materials are available for each
standard on the PT3 website: www.smcm.edu/msde-pt3. Any use of these
materials should credit Marylands PT3 Catalyst Grant P342A990201. For
additional information, please contact Dr. Louise A. Tanney, PT3 Director,
410-767-0416.

2002

Technology Standard VII <272745593.doc >