ED Tech Philosophy Final Draft

I have slightly modified my original philosophy, but the foundation has remained the same.

Technology must be an integrated access point to the world of knowledge and experience, not just a tool to assist with learning. Technology is capable of transforming the learning process if educators embrace the possibility that a student can learn by using technology as a tool to accomplish the end goal of new learning and understanding. Technology allows the learner to be empowered and direct their own learning, thus increasing motivation and relevance.

I believe that educators that empower their students through technology integration will create the life long learners that will direct the future of the world.

I believe that educational technology is more than just a tool used to supplement education. It is a means to an end with endless application possibilities. Educational Technology encompasses so many aspects of education. It is the vehicle that education is using to transport learners into a global context and into a world that demands certain competencies and skills.

Aha's

I have really enjoyed this semester. I have been exposed to new applications and technology that I believe will continue to improve my role in education. I love technology and could spend hours toying with new program and devices. I really have benefited from the experience of creating this blog. I had never kept one before this course but will definitely be creating more. They are an excellent way to communicate and also to just share interesting information. The time we spent looking at virtual environments was very intriguing to me. I can't say that i will walking around second Life all the time, but the concept hit me that this will continue to grow as a major form of education. I don't plan on keeping this blog running with the express purpose of educational technology. It would be too narrow of a focus. I do plan on creating a personal blog with stories and new information. I am also working on creating a professional blog for my administrative role.

Final Thoughts on Romano

This text has been an interesting read. I believe that Romano is helping point educators in the right direction. His statements are bold and pointed. I thnk thta many people would be reluctant to join in this line due to fear of change or just realization of the state of the system and the slow process for change.

Romano discusses technology woven into the curriculum as the prime approach. I agree with this because too many times, technology seems to be the add on or the extra piece we have to pile on at the end. Technology is often viewed by some teachers as a threat, but by making a part of the curriculum, the teacher is not feeling pushed out. By using technology to enhance curriculum, teachers will be empowered rather than intimidated.

I agree with Romano that a solid technology plan and goal need to be in place to ensure effective and efficient use and implementation. I would also note that this plan as well as developing a blended technological curriculum will be a lengthy process. I sadly, don’t see any big changes anytime soon. I really think the that true change to the educational system will take place when ALL of the stakeholders get on the same page, no, the same book about what we are doing in education. It is not about dollar signs, it is not about getting a percentage of students to met a standard. It is about doing what is best for kids and if I have a tool that will help me deliver the best product for my students, I will use it completely, even if it is new or unfamiliar.

Online Learning: My Thoughts

We have read about the possibilities of online learning in public school in the Alan November text. I believe that this is an excellent vessel to develop global learners and should be a goal for classrooms all over the world. The real problem lies in the logistical issues of the technological gaps in classrooms. When every classroom has the capabilities, then the true global connections can take place.

The virtual classroom, as experienced in Second Life is very interesting to me. I can see this tool being a component to the classroom, but not a replacement to it. I think that true human interaction in a face-to-face context must be present in some form.

I believe that these two innovations are wonderful additions to the classroom, but can not be the only method of interaction. Likewise, I believe that the current teacher-student or student-student interactions in the classroom should not be the only form of interaction. A true integration between the two must take place. Trying to add on one to the other system will not be effective. A new system needs to be developed to create this integration.

Primary Sources

Think back to elementary school... recess... playing "telephone". I used to think that game was the greatest. The ridiculous things that we would end up with after sending a message through a line of friends were always funny and always different from what we started with. I think that there is a plethora of information on the Internet that is taken from somewhere else, that took it from somewhere else, that took it... you get the idea. As educators, we must help our students realize which information is at from the end of the telephone line and where to find the information that started it all. Primary sources are the beginnings of the telephone lines of information. It is more beneficial and accurate to consider the source, so to speak. Students should talk about the documents that framed our country, but wouldn't be much more meaningful to actually analyze the actual documents? The resources available at the National Archives website (www.archives.gov) are really amazing. There are many interesting things to discover, although the site can be a little tricky to navigate. i was able to look up military records from some of my relative during WWII. I could easily burn a few hours exploring the information available. I believe that technology is a tool to enhance learning and the ability for a learner to access primary sources online is an amazing tool that adds credibility and validity to the their discover and analysis of information.

Windows Movie Maker

Here is a video I created two years ago. We were trying to recruit more teachers to come to Togo to take our positions. I really enjoy working with Movie Maker. It is straight forward and easy to use. I had to upload the video into YouTube and then embed the html code in my blog post to get it here. Hope it works and that you enjoy.

Perceptions: Computers and Education

1. “As the third millennium begins, it is evident that the development of digital technology has had and will continue to have a profound, pervasive impact on the course of global civilization” –You know that this is evident when you can be in out in the sticks of west Africa and there as many cell phones as people in a small village. Technology is making our world very small, and it is getting smaller everyday. Educators need to help equip students with the tools necessary to navigate this source of information and community.

2. “The mind coupled with a computer infinitely amplifies its capacity to perform the basic cognitive functions. Yet, there is no configuration of microchips that replicates the interactive, vital interface between mind and emotions – a basic limitation of computers.” – Computers can not replace the human, at least not in the sense that we have emotions and feelings. I think of poor Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation. As an android he could function as human in the fact that he could make decision, solve problems, communicate, but he still could not feel emotions (well not until they added the emotion chip later in the series). The point is that computers are not able to replace the human, so the human is still a vital part (the part that interjects empathy, value, aesthetics, and other emotions) of the implementation of computers as a tool.

3. “Computer technology has been adapted to amplify the capacity of professionals in virtually every aspect of society – with the exception of the teacher. Rationalizing this reality becomes increasingly difficult, since teaching and learning is an information-intensive process.” – Why is education last? Reluctance to change. How long will it take to catch up? Will we be bale to in the current system of education? Will our system have be modified drastically or thrown out? These are questions that need to be answered in the coming years, if not today.

4. “There is a generalized intuitive feeling that computers should have a vital role in teaching and learning. What is lacking is a sharply focused definition of that role and a strategy for integrating computers into education alongside books and chalkboards – in a mode that secures the teacher’s central role.” –Technology can not be the next sweeping change that takes education by storm. It must be intentionally planned and implemented so that there is buy-in from all stakeholders. The teacher can be replaced, but must have a clear understanding of how technology can and will improve education.

5. “The new literacy –interactive multimedia- offers teachers opportunity to improve the fidelity, the relevancy, and the accessibility of the information driving the teaching-learning process and thus enhance student achievement.” –I enjoy giving my students as many multimedia experiences as possible. If I have a student who has never been to the beach, wouldn’t seeing a video and hearing the sounds of the ocean be much more effective than me explaining my experiences with mere words? Teachers help students to acquire new information. We should use the best methods available.

6. “There is ample evidence that after more than a quarter century of high expectations, dedicated effort, and substantial expenditures, computers have failed to improve what happens in the classroom. Additionally, it appears there has been no serious attempt to analyze and thereby learn from this failure.” –If we do not learn from our mistakes we are doomed to repeat them. I think someone famous said something like that. It really rings true with this issue. If we can’t step back and look at why the billions of dollars spent to get computers and the Internet into our schools are not affecting the students’ achievement, then we are only going to continue to buy the new thing without knowing how to make it a part of what we are doing and more importantly without making an impact on the learning that takes place everyday with our students.

Educational technology is a means to an end, the end being increasing student learning. I have chosen these perceptions because they deal with some of the issue that are in the foreground in the path of change that will help lead to the previously stated end. Technology must become a tool in the process of learning, not continue to be the piece added on the top of the current curriculum.

*All quotes taken from Romano(2003)

Technological Innovations: How are we doing in schools?

It has been observed that the educational world is about 10-20 years behind the business world in technology use. I would agree with this observation. Educators, in some respects, have been very reluctant to embrace the full potential of new technology. Although, in the four years that I have been in public education, I have seen some educators happily embrace technology and its educational benefits. I think that, overall, the educational system has not realized the full potential of common technologies, like the television, or the telephone, or the fax machine, not to mention the grand possibilities that are present in the Internet. I propose that the reluctance lies in the fact that to embrace some new technology is to change the traditional role of the teacher in the classroom. It means that teachers need to loosen the reigns on knowledge and move to the side of the learner and journey together as opposed to leading from the front. This perception can be changed not only through training on the technologies, but also through observations of others’ success, and more importantly with time. A change to the teaching structure that has been in place for hundreds of years (teacher imparts knowledge to the eager learner) will not happen over night, but will come with time and more naturally to those that are now students that will become the educators of tomorrow. These digital natives will be able to change the perception that the “new” thing is actually the “normal” thing. I see the educators seeking new technologies that will better enhance their teaching as opposed to resisting technologies that are viewed as taking their place.

Perceptions

Romano, in his book Empowering Teachers with Technology, shares several perceptions about technology, information, and the teaching and learning process. In this post, I will discuss several of these perceptions and their relevance to my experience as an educator.

1. “All human activity is driven by information; the more demanding the activity- the greater the need for information. Thus information can be termed the fuel that powers the teaching-learning process.” -As one who has grown up during the early information age, I can see the need for information for the increasingly varied tasks of the world today. I would prefer to flip the emphasis and say that the potential for accomplishing extremely complex tasks will be heightened due to the increased information availability.

2. “At the fundamental level it can be assumed that all learning is initiated by information perceived by the senses: specifically, what you see, hear, taste, smell, and feel.” -We are always learning, in everything we do. We are gaining information in every experience. The ability to relate and connect experiences and to construct new meaning is the capacity to learn.

3. “Information technology empowers teachers by amplifying their capacity to readily provide their learners the heightened sensory perceptions of multimedia.” -The majority of student acquisition of knowledge outside of school comes from the television. Students can absorb and retain information at a very high level of accuracy. Why are teachers not increasing their effectiveness by integrating the available technologies? A shift in educational thinking and training must take place.

4. “For centuries, the teaching-learning process has been primarily fueled by words- the lecture and the book- mainly because up until now, teachers have found words easier to use; not because it was determined that words impact learners better than the combination of words and images.” -Why are we continuing the educate children the way we have always done it? Is it the most effective process available? Is it easier? If we want to assist our learners in their information acquisition we need to be about doing what is best for them, not what is easiest for teachers.

5. “A verbal description alone of anything that can be seen must be considered a compromise; a compromise that takes place every day in classrooms in an age where technology makes it unnecessary.” -A picture is truly worth well more than a thousand words. Why spend the time on thousands of words when we can share several pictures? We only need to be willing to find the pictures that will tell the stories.

6. “In great part, the effectiveness of the communication phase of the teaching-learning process determines the outcome” -The manner in which information is communicated makes all the difference. Use tools for effective information communication and wait for increased achievement. TAKS prep question and test taking strategy are not the tools needed.

I am constantly looking for ways to improve my teaching. I have been given a new tool for tool belt just about every time we meet for this course. The learners I interact with are benefiting daily.

*All quotes taken from Romano (2003)

Hopes and Fears

My worst fears and best hopes for technology integration actually tie together and are closely related. My best hope is to see teachers and students partnering side by side in the learning process. As stated in our texts, our students are far more advanced in technological skills than most teachers. I hope that teachers will realize this and see the importance of teaching critical thinking and problem solving in the application of the technology without having to know how it all works. This goes hand in hand with my worst fear. The traditional role of teacher is changing and as is the case with any change, resistance is inevitable. My fear is that teachers will not be willing to give some of the power and responsibility over to the learners. I agree with the following sentiments of Dr. November (2001), “Students young and old have an unlimited capacity to add value to their communities when given the opportunity.” Why should teachers be the only ones with knowledge to be shared? I am always learning from my students, especially about technology. I found the analysis of the Apple classroom of tomorrow project that is outlined in our Romano text to be very interesting. After ten years with the top of line technology, the roles of teacher and learner remained unchanged and the technology was not used to its fullest potential. It will take a shift in teacher thinking and training to accomplish meaningful technology integration and implementation.

I can really identify with the second barrier to the effective use of technology stated by Romano (2003): “Teachers have not been provided a convincing explanation of how technology would empower them. It has erroneously been perceived by some as a threat to their professional security rather than an amplification of their capacity to function.” As a teacher, I can only communicate how little true technology use has been validated and explained to me. As a future administrator, I know that my staff will be given ample resources and understanding how the use of technology will help empower their teaching abilities. I know that the skills I have acquired and developed from this course will help in this shift of control.

Reflections from Chapters 2

I am totally on board with making meaningful connections to the world outside of the classroom. This makes learning real and helps students apply meaning. I have enjoyed using skype and other communication tools discussed in this class to enhance connections around the world. Working overseas in our international school in Rwanda, global connections are going to be key in our learning experiences. I am going to help our teachers and students with the basics of critical thinking online and then they are limited by only their own imagination. I want students to create their own inquiries into the world of information and assist teachers in developing lessons that will challenge students to make connections and gain information from around the world. As far a technology plan, I believe it will be more important to establish learning goals that are integrated into technology. More emphasis on how technology will be used as opposed to what technology will be used. We will look more at the process of putting the puzzle together than the size and shape of the individual pieces. I see loud and clear that our school system for the most part is behind, but the answer is not one swooping revolution that changes education. The answer is an integration that slowly stimulates an evolution in the system.

Some Safari Pictures

The following pictures were taken during several trips to Pendjari National Park in Benin, West Africa. This is where my wife and I would vacation while we were living in Togo for a year.

This is an antelope, that were very common in the game preserve.

This is a baboon that wanted to share our lunch. He sat in that tree for a long time waiting for us to give him some food.

This picture was taken while a heard of angry elephants were chasing our SUV. There were about 30-40 of them all together. The video is even more exciting!

We were able to witness a very rare fight between two male antelope to win the "rights" to a few nearby females. Very exciting.

Here is another picture from that elephant chase. I never knew elephants could growl.

And here is a family of warthogs. Good old Pumba!

Hope you enjoyed. I thought I would add a little color to this blog and share a little bit of our experience in a West African Game Preserve.

Our Authentic Audience IS Out There!

Just an interesting side note, I was told by another professor that he had been reading my blog for this course. I was excited about the feedback and reminded that these blogs are public, so technically the whole world could be reading them (in actuality, a very small protion of the world probably even knows they exist, but hey, the potential is there). It has been fun developing this blog and I look forward to blogging more in the future.

Resources: Desktop Publishing

In our previous meeting, we discussed various applications of Microsoft Word. I was introduced to the "track changes" feature and was really excited about the possibilities. I had received a few papers back from professors in the past with comments made using this tool and had always wondered how it was done. I was amazed to find out it was done right in Word and was very simple. I will use this tool in the future by leaving comments on work submitted by my students as well as offering training to my teachers so they will also be able to use the tool as they instruct their students.

The rest of the class was spent covering how to manipulate images in Word and then how to use Publisher, both of which I had previously learned and applied. Although the content was not new, I will say that I was able to learn a few shortcuts and additional ways of getting things done. I know that these programs will continue to be part of my "tool belt" as I progress into administration. I have already begun to work on an official letterhead for our school in Kigali, Rwanda. I will post it when I am finished. Thanks again Dr. W and everyone who is presenting. I really enjoy the community atmosphere and shared learning that is taking place.

Resources: Information Literacy, Bloglines, and Del.icio.us

I have enjoyed getting to apply these resources as I integrate them into my time on the internet. having attended the Dr. November seminar, I had learned about these resources previously. I have even shared the information literacy piece with my campus at a staff meeting. I am amazed at little is known by the general public, especially our students. I feel it is like I found the secret map to a treasure of information and I am compelled to share it. I recently helped a friend of mine who teaches some journalism classes at a university to present the information literacy study to his students.

Bloglines and Del.icio.us are still blossoming into an enormous time saver for me. I love being able to check all "my" sites at once and immediately know what's new. Del.icio.us is taking a little more intentional use. I have not really used the "favorites" or "bookmark" features in the past. So I am trying to integrate them into my common web practices.

Overall, I am very excited about the topics discussed in this class. I believe that these tools are invaluable as we continue through the "information age".

Educational Technology Defined

I believe that educational technology is more than just a tool used to supplement education. It is a means to an end with endless application possibilities. Educational Technology encompasses so many aspects of education. It is the vehicle that education is using to transport learners into a global context and into a world that demands certain competencies and skills.

Resources:
RAND. (1996). Fostering the use of educational technology: a national strategy.
Washington, DC: Glennman, T. K. & Melmed, A.
http://www.rand.org/pubs/monograph_reports/MR682/contents.html

Technology Skills to Develop

I am very intersted in anything technological. I do consider myself well versed in most basic techological skills. I would like to develop the following skills further:

• Blogging (used in educational contexts, like setting a classroom blog with access rights for students, etc.)
• Web development
• Digital Imaging Development
• Programming code
• More advanced video editing and posting
• Virtual environments
• Podcasting
• VOIP networking

I know that with so many lists from all of the students in the class every one's skills might not be discussed or covered. I am am very excited just to be in a class that is focused on the topic, so whatever we choose to discuss will be motivating to me.

Educational Technology Philosophy

I believe that learning takes place when teachers and students develop a relevance and are able to build and connect the new learning to previous learning. Education is on-going and constant. A teacher's primary objective is to instill the respect for and practice of life-long learning in their students. The teacher can assist their students in accomplishing this by fostering motivation through any specific content.

Technology must be an integrated access point to the world of knowledge and experience, not just a tool to assist with learning. Technology is capable of transforming the learning process if educators embrace the possibility that a student can learn without a teacher or in spite of the teacher, in some cases. Technology allows the learner to be empowered and direct their own learning, thus increasing motivation and relevance.

I believe that educators that empower their students through technology integration will create the life long learners that will direct the future of the world.

Introduction

Welcome to my blog. This first post is going to introduce myself (which is partially done in the "About Me" section to the right) and help explain what this blog is about.

I am currently in the final semester of my Master's program. I am pursuing a degree in Educational Administration. I am taking this course as an elective because I have been in class with Dr. Wickersham previously and I am very interested in technology and expect to be able to sharpen the skills I have as well as learn some new ones.

5th graders are my current project. I teach science to a bunch of them in McKinney,TX. I love to teach but am becoming more and more disillusioned with the current educational systems that are in place in Texas and the US. My current goal is to help my students to become life-long learners and to truly become scientific thinkers in their worlds. I have accepted a new position that I will be fulfilling this fall. I will be the principal of Kigali International Community School in Kigali, Rwanda. I am very excited about the possibilities that this position entails. I will be operating a school outside the confines of the American Educational system. I believe that the board, staff and I have the common goal to do what is best for the students we work with and are looking forward to doing what works not just we are told is best. I plan on living and working in Kigali for the next five years.