Intehgration Part 2.....................My Reflections

The one point I want to talk about that has really turned my head during LE3 and LE4 is that of leadership. Included in the leadership role is the issue of the role that you want to aspire to in your school with regards to technology.

I had no idea how crucial leadership could be to integrating technology into our lesson planning and delivery. Needless to say, it has shook something in me that was not quite alive! I am so excited about becoming a leader and demonstrating all the qualities needed to nurture a technology attitude towards 21st century learning. It has become my main aim now to lead by example no matter what school I end up at and I will meet the challenges head-on and inspire others to do like-wise. Sharing and collaboration are such an important part of being a leader.

I really enjoyed the articles and the resources in LE3 and LE4. 'Digital Citizenship' really came to the fore-front once again for me in relation to technology. The articles I read about the advantages and disadvantages of using devices in the classroom really interested me, also. I learned that there are way more advantages than disadvantages to using technology; for teachers, students and even parents. I will include links to some of the websites that I read material from at the end of this blog.

Once again, the amount of information that I garnered from the discussion forums was amazing! So many good ideas and so many things that I did not even think about! The collaborative process throughout this course has been a complete success for me in all areas of my learning and teaching. The commitment to students that has been demonstrated in the activities and ideas by fellow teachers have definitely continued to inspire me. 

The learning community that has transpired from our discussions continues to inspire me; I also to want to create a similar environment within my school. The amount of shared knowledge has demonstrated to me the commitment that fellow teachers have towards their profession. Throughout the discussions, teachers have demonstrated their desire to help educate a future generation of learners.

 Just by taking this course, each teacher has demonstrated a willingness to want to continue to learn; especially with something as important as the integration of technology into their lesson planning and delivery. The array of ideas and diverse school settings that we each are involved in, demonstrates the unbelievable amount of knowledge that is out there! The creation of a 3 year technology plan for my school instills the spirit of community and being a leader in the implementation of ideas for the community. 

Moving forward, I have so much more to learn and I aim to approach all my learning with a positive attitude. I am taking the Specialist Part 3 AQ for Integration of Technology and am really looking forward to the challenge. I am both excited and passionate about the future and what it holds for me professionally. I have an aim to be Google Certified, Smartboard Certified and to learn about as many Apps and useful resources to help nurture a technological environment within any school; especially with my lesson planning and delivery. The future is so bright, I might have to wear shades!

The overall learning that each of us have accomplished by taking this course, leads to us applying the knowledge to our lesson planning and delivery and becomes a huge part of our professional practice. 

Links to some resources and websites:

http://education.cu-portland.edu/blog/tech-ed/pros-and-cons-of-allowing-digital-devices-in-the-classroom/

http://www.teachhub.com/advantagesdisadvantages-ipad-classroom

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2014/02/20/from-distraction-to-learning-tool-mobile-devices-in-the-classroom.aspx?=CTMOB

https://mps-eventreg.com/gk/g/6gRbqPIQelv-575

LE 3 Reflections Continued...............................

The amount of information that I have taken in over the course of this AQ actually blows my mind!

There is so much shared information that I have started to organize sub-folders with all the different websites and links to articles to make sure that I do not lose any of these awesome resources. I was just looking today at the amount of resources and it is actually quite amazing that I have been able to read and digest most of the information given and shared.

I really like sharing and collaborating on all the activities that we have done and really appreciate the effort that fellow teachers have put into sharing their ideas and resources on a daily basis. It has given me a renewed spirit and hope about collaboration and I am going to pay it forward to the next school I work at and hope to nurture an environment of technology, full-on!

I am looking forward to the LE 4 portion of the course and know it will be as interesting at the first 3 parts.

LE 3 Thoughts and Reflections

I have really enjoyed some of the activities that we have done in this unit; from realizing how lacking the school board is in resources and training, to renewing hope that I could be a part of the change to inspire other teachers, I have come full-circle to my attitude towards collaborating. I was quite frustrated at the lack of opportunities to collaborate, but now realize that I can be the catalyst by doing it with my own power of positive thinking and can use my own skills to teach reinforcement.

Teacher development has come to the forefront of my mind and has really made me think about what a great decision I made to take all 3 parts of the Integration AQs for Technology. It has woken up the lazy, complacent attitude that has been allowed to fester. Combine that with the fact that I am moving to a new school in September, I feel like I have a renewed spirit and vigor towards teaching. At my new school, I am definitely going to be leaning towards staff development and training in technology and am going to let my ideas and attitude known to all that are willing participants!

The introduction of Google docs to allow people to either edit in real time or on their own schedule, has really peaked my interest. I am loving the Google Calendar and think that going forward it is going to be one of the tools that I will use consistently. Being able to co-ordinate to arrange meetings and teaching workshops or teach and greets, is such a plus for me to have the tools to accomplish this.

The discussions that we have had about staff development and the ideas we have shared among ourselves, has given me a sense of both reality and hope. I realize that the challenges to change the culture of technology in our schools is one of major proportions, but I feel that going forward, it can be very exciting and very self-fulfilling. Communication is the key and twin that with collaboration, I think that all teachers can hop these hurdles with the least amount of discomfort possible. The world of education has opened up even more with the integration of technology as one of the tools of life-long learning and will only get better as the future unfolds. I am excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!