Part 1
What have I learned?
During this course I have learned a great deal about the art and science of integrating technology into my classroom. Many of our activities included learning about new tools that could be used for my engineering class. Each of these tools had to be evaluated for usability and then I had to develop a way to integrate these digital tools into my lessons. The lesson that stood out the most was when I had to integrate tools for English Language Arts and Social Studies into my engineering curriculum. The subjects seem to be disconnected greatly and first, but as I was working through the lesson, I found that cross curriculum lessons really seemed to help tie the subjects together.
How did theory guide the development of the projects and assignments I created?
Every project was preceded by resources that tied into sound educational practices. When creating a presentation on assistive technology for class room use, we had to describe how that technology would be assistive to students in our class. Each assignment had us concentrating on our work in our subject and reflecting on how that technology could be useful immediately. Learning took place as we were working on the projects and we were encouraged to use the lessons as we were going. Everything we created was meant to either be used in our class or as a resource for professional development.
How did the course work demonstrate mastery of the AECT standards.
2.2 Audiovisual Technologies – I was able to blog using video interviews of my coworkers on how they use technology in their classrooms. I also created videos for students to use as resources when working on their sketching skills.
2.3 Computer-Based Technologies – Lessons were developed so that students could work on shared documents and collaborate on their work.
2.4 Integrated Technologies – I created a project that had students work with internet sites to learn about and build bridges. They had to research bridge designs online and then implement their own designs using their new knowledge.
3.1 Media Utilization – Most of the projects that I designed had to have some sort of media integrated into them. I was generally instructed what to use as the base media, but then I had to develop more media that would augment the base lesson.
How you I grown professionally?
My growth as a professional can best be demonstrated by the lessons I have created that my students can use right now. Also, many of the lessons I have created can be used as demo lessons for teachers in my building. In the recent months, I have had many requests from teachers on how they can integrate technology into their curriculum. My subject is technology laden, so it is natural to use technology, but in a social studies class or English class there are challenges with integrating technology. I now feel confident to help and support their work with creating lessons that are driven by technology.
How my own teaching practice or thoughts about teaching have been impacted by what I have learned or accomplished in this course? What will I do differently as an educator as a result of this course?
As an engineering teacher, I use technology a lot in my class. What has changed is how I use it. The technology naturally is used, but now I have projects and lessons that students can work on that are more in depth than just using technology. They have to participate in social networking that is centered on engineering. Students will use Google Maps to locate engineering marvels and then discuss how these marvels have changed engineering. These projects allow the students to interact with technology in a different way than they are used to.
As an educator, I am always looking for ways to do things better. I feel like I now have the tools and the knowledge to implement these different types of technology. Students can experience engineering differently than they traditionally have. They can learn about the history of engineering and why things are done the way that they are. I have the skills to have cross curriculum projects. Students have responded well to these types of projects because they can see why the material is relevant in their lives.
During this course I have learned a great deal about the art and science of integrating technology into my classroom. Many of our activities included learning about new tools that could be used for my engineering class. Each of these tools had to be evaluated for usability and then I had to develop a way to integrate these digital tools into my lessons. The lesson that stood out the most was when I had to integrate tools for English Language Arts and Social Studies into my engineering curriculum. The subjects seem to be disconnected greatly and first, but as I was working through the lesson, I found that cross curriculum lessons really seemed to help tie the subjects together.
How did theory guide the development of the projects and assignments I created?
Every project was preceded by resources that tied into sound educational practices. When creating a presentation on assistive technology for class room use, we had to describe how that technology would be assistive to students in our class. Each assignment had us concentrating on our work in our subject and reflecting on how that technology could be useful immediately. Learning took place as we were working on the projects and we were encouraged to use the lessons as we were going. Everything we created was meant to either be used in our class or as a resource for professional development.
How did the course work demonstrate mastery of the AECT standards.
2.2 Audiovisual Technologies – I was able to blog using video interviews of my coworkers on how they use technology in their classrooms. I also created videos for students to use as resources when working on their sketching skills.
2.3 Computer-Based Technologies – Lessons were developed so that students could work on shared documents and collaborate on their work.
2.4 Integrated Technologies – I created a project that had students work with internet sites to learn about and build bridges. They had to research bridge designs online and then implement their own designs using their new knowledge.
3.1 Media Utilization – Most of the projects that I designed had to have some sort of media integrated into them. I was generally instructed what to use as the base media, but then I had to develop more media that would augment the base lesson.
How you I grown professionally?
My growth as a professional can best be demonstrated by the lessons I have created that my students can use right now. Also, many of the lessons I have created can be used as demo lessons for teachers in my building. In the recent months, I have had many requests from teachers on how they can integrate technology into their curriculum. My subject is technology laden, so it is natural to use technology, but in a social studies class or English class there are challenges with integrating technology. I now feel confident to help and support their work with creating lessons that are driven by technology.
How my own teaching practice or thoughts about teaching have been impacted by what I have learned or accomplished in this course? What will I do differently as an educator as a result of this course?
As an engineering teacher, I use technology a lot in my class. What has changed is how I use it. The technology naturally is used, but now I have projects and lessons that students can work on that are more in depth than just using technology. They have to participate in social networking that is centered on engineering. Students will use Google Maps to locate engineering marvels and then discuss how these marvels have changed engineering. These projects allow the students to interact with technology in a different way than they are used to.
As an educator, I am always looking for ways to do things better. I feel like I now have the tools and the knowledge to implement these different types of technology. Students can experience engineering differently than they traditionally have. They can learn about the history of engineering and why things are done the way that they are. I have the skills to have cross curriculum projects. Students have responded well to these types of projects because they can see why the material is relevant in their lives.
Part 2
This is a self-assessment of my blog postings. I have to admit that I was substantially lacking in my blog postings. I did not budget my time as effectively as I would have liked for these postings. Because of the lack of blog posts, I do not feel that they can be adequately assessed for anything higher than proficient in any category. The posts that I completed were done at a proficient level. My assessment follows:
Content – Proficient 56/70
Readings and resources – Proficient / basic 14/20
Timeliness – Basic / below expectations 8/20
Response to other students – basic / below expectations 15/30
Total 93/140
Content – Proficient 56/70
Readings and resources – Proficient / basic 14/20
Timeliness – Basic / below expectations 8/20
Response to other students – basic / below expectations 15/30
Total 93/140