Running head: MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER

My Growth as an Exceptional Teacher Amber Hinkle Azusa Pacific University

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER My Growth as an Exceptional Teacher History of Coursework

Course Number: EDTC 527 Title: Special Topics (Integration of Web Resources) Professor: Bettger Term: Fall I 2010 Course Number: EDTC 511 Title: Foundations of Educational Technology Professor: Dr. Bacer Term: Fall II 2010 Course Number: EDTC 517 Title: Telecommunications Professor: Bruzzese Term: Spring I 2011 Course Number: EDTC 518 Title: Global Learning/ Cross Cultural Classroom Professor: Dr. Bacer Term: Spring II 2011 Key Learning: Understanding current trends in technology and understanding the benefits of technology in the classroom.

Key Learning: Learning the effective use of adobe acrobat and understanding the components of tappedin.org

Reflections: Throughout this course I was introduced to a plethora of information all of which will help me to be a better informed teacher and one that will understand how to best teach my students. Reflections: This class was very helpful in learning about the program and gaining skills for successful program participation

Key Learning: Learning about online collaboration and website design as related to the classroom.

Reflections: In this class I learned how to design and website and there uses in the classroom.

Course Number: EDTC 524 Title: Instructional Design and Development Professor: Silva Term: Spring II 2011 Course Number: EDTC 523 Title: Ed App: Info Design/Hyper Media Professor: Silva Term: Summer 2011 Course Number: EDTC 520 Title: App of Tech- Support Curriculum Tools Professor: Silver Term: Fall I 2011 Course Number: EDTC 515 Title: Emerging Trend in Technology Professor: Dr. Brown Term: Fall I 2011

Key Learning: To grasp the concept of Global Learning and its benefits in the classroom. Collaboration was a concept that was encouraged to be used in order to gain a broader understanding of the topics discussed. Key Learning: Understanding design elements in websites and brochures. Creating well designed lesson plans.

Reflections: Researching the various GLPs allowed me to learn ways in which I can help develop my students cultural awareness.

Key Learning: Understanding principles of design, using blogs in order to display learning, and learning about digital ethics.

Reflections: Reflecting upon the BWD lesson plan helped in my growth as a responsive professional. It required me to think critically not only on my own assignment and but the assignments of my peers Reflections: This class helped us learn more about website designs and allowed us to further refine our Global Learning Projects.

Key Learning: Software evaluation, lesson deconstruction, and evaluating technology plans.

Reflections: This course challenged me and I was able to learn many skills that will benefit me as a professional.

Key Learning: How to create an online learning environment and using technology in the classroom.

Reflections: This course was helpful in creating an online classroom. We also explored many different technologies that I felt helped me grow as a professional.

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER Personal Growth

Throughout my journey in the Master of Arts in Educational Technology program I have seen two obvious areas of personal growth. First, I have seen myself become much more confident in my ability as an educator. Secondly, I have seen a growth in my passion for the use of technology in the classroom. Since receiving my multiple subjects teaching credential in 2008, I have slowly started to lose confidence because I have yet to be able to find a teaching position. With starting this program I was concerned that I would not be able to meet the expectations of the program, since I was not working as a teacher. However, with the support of friends who are educators, fellow cadre members, and with the support of my professors, I was able to successfully get through the program. Upon completion of this program, I feel confident that my new found skills and degree is going to make me a desirable employee into any school district. I have always believed that technology should play a role in classroom, but as I have progressed through the program my belief has turned into my passion. There are so many options for integrating technology into the classroom and its so exciting developing the ways to use these technologies that will benefit the greatest amount of students. I truly look forward to sharing my passion with other teachers and helping them create a technology rich learning environment. Not everyone is as lucky as me to find a career that they are excited to start, feel confident in their abilities, and have a true passion for what they will be doing. I feel so blessed to have acquired the skills needed to be successful in my choice of careers and cant wait to find my perfect job where I can put all my new found skills into action.

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER Professional Growth

While working towards my Master of Arts in Educational Technology I have seen growth in me as a professional. I have found that now I should be able to obtain a job where I will be able to play a key role in the development and implementation of technology in the classroom. My growth as a professional can also be seen by the portfolio I will now be able to show future employers. Teaching jobs are very difficult for new teachers to find right now. Having a higher level of education is a must if you want to have any shot of landing a position. The fact that I will be holding a Master of Arts in Educational Technology should allow me to be extremely marketable. Since educational technology is so important in the classroom, this degree will show future employers that I have spent a substantial amount of time working on how technology can be applied in the classroom. In addition, this degree shows employers that I will be able to teach my fellow coworkers how they too can apply technology in their classrooms as well. When applying for any teaching position its important to show future employers what you will be able to bring to their district and school. Throughout my journey I have picked up valuable tools that I will be able to use as part of my teaching portfolio. The amount of resources, information, and examples in my portfolio will impress any district and prove to them that I will be an asset if hired. My main goal while in this program was to develop as a professional and in turn become much more marketable as a teacher. I feel that I have done just that. Through my work on my global learning projects, lesson plan assignments, and the various technology assignments I have seen so much growth in myself as a professional.

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER Technical Growth My technical growth has been the largest growth I have seen in myself since starting my journey. My skills on a technical level have been taken from basic to advance. My tremendous growth can be seen by my technology rich lesson plans, my vast knowledge of resources, my website design, my creation of blogs, and of course the development and implementation of my global learning project.

The thought of creating my own global learning project caused me much anxiety at first. I had no idea how I was going to pull this off. However, with the guidance of my professors and my new found skills, I was able to successfully create a website and use my resources to market my GLP to others. Having technology and a lesson plan in your classroom are two separate things. My technical growth can be seen by the way in which I now can create technology rich lesson plans. These lesson plans allow students rich learning experiences that connect to them personally. These lesson plans are infused with website resources, blogs, wikis, power point presentations, adobe acrobat, videos, podcasts, digital story books, and much more. I now have the skills to teach these tools to my students and connect them with the curriculum successfully.. During this program I have learned a vast amount of knowledge and really can see my technical growth. I feel very confident that I will be able to successfully be able to use technology in my classroom on a daily basis.

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER Life Long Learning Plan Completing my Master of Arts in Educational Technology for me is just another step in

the right direction; it is by no means my stopping point. I am a true believer that everyone should chose to be lifelong learners, but this should definitely be the goal for every educator. When it comes to teaching students its important to stay ahead of the game. Now that I have my degree it will be extremely important to stay current with educational technology trends and stay up to date with the information and resources available. If I do not, in many ways down the line my degree will be almost pointless since technology changes so fast. In order to stay on top of the game I have subscribed to different newsletters and have several different educational technology sites hooked up with my RSS feed. These I feel will be two great ways to stay current. Educational wise I have decided to go back to school and get my special education teaching credential. Once I have taught for a few years I plan to go back to school again to get my credential in administration and possibly get my Ph.D. I would love to one day be working as a principal and maybe eventually play an even larger role at the district office level. I have a pretty clear idea of the path I am taking and the goals I see myself accomplishing. Every time I reach a goal I create a new one, this is important to do in order to avoid ever becoming stagnant. According to Tom Rath author of Strengths Finder 2.0, my goal orientation is because one of my greatest strengths is being focused. Rath (2007) states that Guided by this theme of Focus, you need a clear destination. Lacking one, your life and your work can quickly become frustrating (p. 101). My focus allows me to look forward to each and every goal that I might someday reach and greatly enjoy helping others create and reach their own personal goals as well.

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER Conclusion My growth as an exceptional teacher has been amazing during my journey in the Masters in Educational Technology program. I have seen growth within myself personally, professionally, and technically. All of these growths have helped me become an even better teacher than I could have ever imagined possible.

This program was well designed, allowing the most amount of people to be successful in the program. With the support of my professors and fellow cadre mates I believe I learned just as much as I would have in a traditional classroom, in fact in many ways I probably learned more. Azusa Pacific Universitys website (2011) states that, The Online Master of Arts in Educational Technology produces 21st-century leaders equipped to infuse and implement technology into KU teaching, classrooms, and online learning communities (para.1). I now feel confident that I have thoroughly met the expectations of this program. I am completely satisfied with my growth and believe that I have grown even more than I initially thought I would.

MY GROWTH AS AN EXCEPTIONAL TEACHER References Azusa Pacific University. (2011). Online Master of Arts in Educational Technology. School of Education and Behavioral Studies, Azusa Pacific University. Azusa, CA. Retrieved from www.apu.edu/education/edtech/edtechonline/ Rath, T. (2007). Strengths Finder 2.0. New York, NY: Gallup Press.