Action Research Week 4

This week focused on fine tuning and finding strategies for sustaining improvement through action research. I was able to work this week on my action research plan by meeting with my site mentor and going through steps to ensure that my plan is sufficiently designed. My mentor and one commenter had noticed that the action research proposal mentioned a reference to doing a survey to determine campus perceptions on technology use. This was incorrectly written by me as my action research plan is intended to measure current technology levels and to increase integration over time.

As mentioned previously, I learned about various academic strategies for sustained improvement in the course textbook, Examining what we do to improve our schools. The authors discuss systematic ways to foresee and confront challenges to action plans. This helped me to think strategically about problems that will arise during the implementation of my action plan.

I appreciated all of the comments I found on the discussion boards this week. In particular, Shendolyn Anderson gave me feedback on a number of ways to model and teach technology integration as part of future staff development activities I will be incorporating with the implementation of my action research plan. Shendlolyn mentioned various methods of using technology to facilitate teacher learning such as videotaping my own classroom with technology integration. These are useful suggestions which should help me be more successful in my implementation.

Action Research Plan: Final

 

Action Research: How can we increase teacher adoption of available campus technology resources?
Goal: The goal of this action inquiry is to investigate how we can effectively increase technology utilization by teachers in the classroom to facilitate greater learner engagement and achievement.  Technology resources are becoming increasingly available on campus however many technology resources are underutilized.  We hope to find ways to motivate teachers to effectively increase their technology use in the classroom.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Investigate research on theories of change and adoption in teacher practice.	Gregory Gedeon	December 5th 2010- December 19th 2010	Lamar University Library, Professional Journals, Internet Searches	Interview teachers to get informal data on personal motivators of practice change to compare to formal research findings.
Investigate current level of classroom technology utilization.  Baseline usage statistics will be assessed in order to measure technology implementation change at plan termination.	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez, Classroom teachers	December 12th 2010- December 18th 2010	SurveyMonkey, Professional Staff, ITS personnel, personal computer	First SurveyMonkey will set baseline campus statistics to compare future survey with to evaluate action plan effectiveness.
Create inventory management system for campus technology resources to monitor check-out of hardware.  Usage statistics will be monitored throughout action plan and changes will be noted.	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez	December 19th 2010- December 30th 2010	ITS personnel, Professional Staff, personal computer	ITS will be responsible for checkout monitoring.  Field interviews will be conducted with teachers to verify hardware integration into instruction practices.
Start employing strategies learned from research to target changes in perception and technology use.  Some expected findings include staff development on technology use and extrinsic motivators.   *strategies will be updated here as they are learned through research	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez, Classroom Teachers	December 19th 2010- May 1st 2010	Previous research from first action step, information from surveys, laptops, classrooms for staff development or PLC’s	Learned strategies will be evaluated for effectiveness based on final survey outcome.
Determine change in technology use through comparisons in new survey with baseline survey and data gained through inventory management program.	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez, Classroom teachers	May 2nd- May 15th, 2011	SurveyMonkey, laptop, spreadsheet software,	Final survey will attempt to account for any change in teacher practice with relation to technology integration.  Data from management system will also be compiled to determine final effectiveness of action plan.

 

Format based on Tool 7.1 from Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010)

 

Week Three Reflection: Draft Action Research Plan

With this week came the launch of my action research. I have started to follow my plan by researching into known motivating factors in influencing teacher change in instructional practice. I have been conducting preliminary research into motivating factors for teacher change to better understand strategies to affect teacher adoption of technology.

For example, one obvious strategy to affect teacher practice is through ongoing learning. Ongoing sharing and learning amongst teachers is a quality found in the best of schools (Taylor, Pressley, & Pearson, 2000). Staff development in effective technology implementation is a must if there is to be any change in usage.

I will continue to research teacher practice change while I begin to formulate my first survey. I hope to develop a survey this week that is effective and simple for teachers to participate in. It will also be important to create a survey that is succinct in order to facilitate greater participation.

The core of this week's readings focused on the dissemination plan for the action research. This blog will act as my main communication point but I will also be communicating with my campus faculty throughout my action research. Faculty communication will come mostly in the form of email.

Taylor, B. M., Pressley, M., & Pearson, P. D. (2000). Effective teachers and schools: Trends across recent studies. Ann Arbor, MI: Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED450353).

Draft Action Research Plan

 

Action Research: How can we increase teacher adoption of available campus technology resources?
Goal: The goal of this action inquiry is to investigate how we can effectively increase technology utilization by teachers in the classroom to facilitate greater learner engagement and achievement.  Technology resources are becoming increasingly available on campus however many technology resources are underutilized.  We hope to find ways to motivate teachers to effectively increase their technology use in the classroom.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Investigate research on theories of change and adoption in teacher practice.	Gregory Gedeon	December 5th 2010- December 19th 2010	Lamar University Library, Professional Journals, Internet Searches	Interview teachers to get informal data on personal motivators of practice change to compare to formal research findings.
Investigate current level of classroom technology utilization.  Baseline usage statistics will be assessed in order to measure technology implementation change at plan termination.	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez, Classroom teachers	December 12th 2010- December 18th 2010	SurveyMonkey, Professional Staff, ITS personnel, personal computer	First SurveyMonkey will set baseline campus statistics to compare future survey with to evaluate action plan effectiveness.
Create inventory management system for campus technology resources to monitor check-out of hardware.  Usage statistics will be monitored throughout action plan and changes will be noted.	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez	December 19th 2010- December 30th 2010	ITS personnel, Professional Staff, personal computer	ITS will be responsible for checkout monitoring.  Field interviews will be conducted with teachers to verify hardware integration into instruction practices.
Start employing strategies learned from research to target changes in perception and technology use.  Some expected findings include staff development on technology use and extrinsic motivators.   *strategies will be updated here as they are learned through research	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez, Classroom Teachers	December 19th 2010- May 1st 2010	Previous research from first action step, information from surveys, laptops, classrooms for staff development or PLC’s	Learned strategies will be evaluated for effectiveness based on final survey outcome.
Determine change in technology use through comparisons in new survey with baseline survey and data gained through inventory management program.	Gregory Gedeon, Sarah Sanchez, Classroom teachers	May 2nd- May 15th, 2011	SurveyMonkey, laptop, spreadsheet software,	Final survey will attempt to account for any change in teacher practice with relation to technology integration.  Data from management system will also be compiled to determine final effectiveness of action plan.

 

Format based on Tool 7.1 from Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010)

 

Week 2 Action Research Reflection

This week I had the opportunity to read chapter 2 of Nancy Dana's book Leading With Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher . Dana mentions a number of 'passions' that are ripe for action research projects. Each passion represents an aspect or area within a school that a leader can address while keeping in mind the ultimate goal of improving student achievement.

Using Dana's passions I have been able to focus my thoughts surrounding my proposed action research project. Working with my site mentor I have decided to research ways to increase technology utilization at my school by motivating teachers to implement available technology resources. This project will affect individual teachers with the ultimate goal of improving school performance.

Appropriately utilized technology resources create a classroom environment with engaged learners. Often our school's technology resources are left untouched and therefor underutilized. My district has a policy requiring teachers to post one new lesson which integrates technology use each semester. In general, this expectation not been a successful motivator for technology implementation.

Through the use of action inquiry it is my hope to find a way to encourage teacher's use of technology and engage more learners.

Action Research: An Early Learning Refleciton

Everyone who has spent some time in academia has their own notions and ideas of what research is and for what it is used. Research for me brings to mind the classic double blind trial where a scientist or other researcher is conducting an investigation on a topic. The research is meant to test a hypothesis in order to gain a better understanding of our world. This new knowledge is then put to use in whichever field of study it is applicable to.

Action research offers many benefits to the professional educator. School improvement projects require a lot of input and focus from campus stakeholders. Action research allows an educator to become directly involved in finding unique solutions to campus problems.

Administrators choosing to utilize action research in order to improve their campus will first consider a problem to address. The administrator will then become the researcher who is involved in learning about the problem while discovering and simultaneously implementing learned solutions. Learning is ongoing in action research. This allows for the researcher to adjust and incorporate any new data into the research plan. This is a far cry from the double blind study that is attempting to limit subjectivity. In action research, the researcher and the resultant practitioner are one and the same.

The use of Blogs by Educational Leaders:

Blogs can act as unique communication tools for leaders in education. Leaders can create professional blogs to collaborate throughout the educational community. Blogs allow for quick sharing of ideas with the ability to comment on blog content. Educational leaders who would like to create online learning communities should consider using and maintaining a professional blog.

EDLD: End of Course Reflection

I am reaching the end of my adventure in Lamar University’s EDLD 5306 Concepts of Educational Technology. I was unsure of what to expect with starting an M.Ed. in Educational Technology Leadership while working as a teacher full time. I quickly realized that the workload was going to be at least double of what I had expected but like all things I adjusted quickly.

The first assignments for the course quickly set up learning outcomes by introducing me to self-assessments in technology capabilities. This gave me direction in realizing my own abilities and pointing me towards growth areas. I had hoped to become more proficient in critical areas such as state law and its relation to technology needs assessment. After taking the post course self evaluation I was able to realize that I have indeed grown from before starting the course. Gaps that existed are virtually gone.

I had envisioned that the course would cover topics ranging from technology integration, ethics and copyright and all of these were covered. Each course outcome is extremely relevant to the work that I do. I am a 5th grade bilingual teacher and am frequently asked for help and technical advice with technology integration. Everything that has been presented in this first course will help me do my job more effectively and efficiently. I can take all I have learned and teach it to coworkers and integrate it in my own classroom.

Some theoretical concepts such as the digital native and digital immigrant were eye-opening. I had never considered that whether different technologies have been present since birth or invented later in life that the influence on social development could be so great. I think that with the internet and social media being such relatively new inventions we have a lot to learn about how younger generations will develop and be influenced by technology.

I had hoped to learn more about copyright law. I am finishing this course with a basic understanding of what is protected in educational settings and the ethics that surround copyright implementation. I do feel though that I need to seek out more information to have a more complete understanding. While it is unlikely I will ever be an expert in the field of copyright law, I can continue to improve my understanding by researching and reading more. This course was too short and packed with information to fully assimilate it all.

The course assignments were daunting at times and my time limits with a family and job made it stressful at time. It has taken some adjustment on my part and much understanding from my family to get everything done. None of the assignments were too difficult to complete but required an incredible amount of time to accomplish with a high level of quality and success. I believe it was stated that one needs to dedicate 10-15 hours to the coursework each week but for me that would have only accomplished about half of the assignments with mediocre results. If I am going to do something, I give it my best. That requires a ton of time for this course.

I learned a lot from this course about myself. I realized that although this masters program is a program in Educational Technology Leadership, I am going to have to work harder to develop my leadership skills. I am in the beginning of my third year of teaching and have not had much leadership opportunity or experience. I have recently been asked to participate on the Campus Leadership Committee and have been able to provide some input into campus direction but that is the extent of my leadership experience. I hope that as I become an expert in my field and have more to offer those around me I will be able to lead and guide others in creating engaging learning opportunities through technology.

Through this course I was able to read some very interesting research on technology integration and outcomes on learner engagement. This has allowed me to become more aware of students in my own classroom that respond better to technology infused lessons rather than traditional teaching. With this knowledge I am able to inspire and motivate a greater number of students.

Finally I learned that I have some specific and differing attitudes towards technology than the prevailing minds such as Marc Prensky. I understand and respect the concepts of digital natives and digital immigrants but I still am not sold on the necessity of full digital immersion in the classroom. I feel there needs to be more research on the use of gaming and its effects on psychology and development of youth.

Considering the huge workload for quality completion of this course it was worth the struggle. The knowledge that I have gained is invaluable and immediately pertinent to my work.

Web Conference Reflection

Last night I experienced my first web conference for my EDLD5306 class. I have used video conferencing with family members overseas and have had pleasant experiences with the technology. My experience last night proved to be less enjoyable but not without merit.

In a college course that is entirely online without physical meeting rooms, it is nice to see the faces of students that are embarking on the same educational journey. I enjoyed the brief companionship that helped to allay my fears that I was alone in feeling a bit overwhelmed after week one.

The instructor was very patient while we fiddled with the technology and tried to learn the application. For some reason I was booted from the conference room twice and had to ask permission for admittance back in. It also took me a moment to realize that I had to hold down the talk button to talk. Initially I had simply pressed and released to no avail.

Many students were frustrated as they had choppy or no sound. I feel fortunate that this was not my case. Otherwise I would have felt the event to be a waste of time. All in all though, I did learn a bit.

E-Rate and Irving I.S.D.

E-Rate and Irving I.S.D.

A Look at The National Educational Technology Plan

The National Education Technology Plan outlines America’s current education goals and discusses technology’s role in achieving these goals.  One current predicament mentioned in the plan is that only 39% of the population are college graduates.  We should strive to change the number of people attending 2 or 4 year colleges to 60% of the population.  Technology can help foster growth towards goals like this by engaging more learners. 

The National Education Technology Plan encompasses the following goals:

1.  Learning- All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and outside of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society.
2.  Assessment- Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement
3.  Teaching- Professional educators will be supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that enable and inspire more effective teaching for all learners. 
4. Infrastructure- All students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure for learning when and where they need it. 
5. Productivity- Our education system at all levels will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of the power of technology to improve learning outcomes while making more efficient use of time, money, and staff.

With regards to learning the technology plan strives to reach more learners through more engagement in the learning process with a greater utilization of technology.  Technology should be deployed in a way that all learners are able to be reached anytime and anywhere.  Teachers need to be prepared to facilitate the use of this technology.  Online communities can foster the development of teachers as they interact and share in their experiences.

The plan makes mention of training educators in online instruction.  This is part of the plan’s goal of providing learning opportunities anytime/anywhere to students.   I am curious to see how this would be implemented in low income areas.  The plan speaks of extended access for low income populations through longer school building hours, community centers and libraries.  I don’t think this goes far enough.  If we truly want equity in learning and equity in access we need to find a way to provide computers and broadband access for all.

Summary and Reflection on Irving I.S.D.’s Technology Plan

Irving I.S.D. has a comprehensive technology plan that is centered on learner success.  The technology plan is written with the following goals in place: 

• Infuse higher level thinking with technology and quality instruction to ensure engaging learning experiences for all teachers and students.
• Support assessment and planning through the use of technology.
• Educate all students and teachers in responsible technology use.
•  Ensure educator professional development is on‐going, high quality, based on the National Educational 
• Technology Standards (NETS), and increasing in rigor so that student learning and 21st century skills are increased.
• Ensure 100% administrative participation in appropriate, current and new software programs. 
• Provide leadership to leverage technology for the improvement of teaching and learning in every classroom daily.  
• Ensure a stable and robust infrastructure for technology use.

Effective implementation of the plan relies on the following four components: Integration of Technology into Teaching and Learning, Professional Development, Administrative and Support Services and Infrastructure for Technology.

Irving I.S.D. has a large technology budget equating to $1,346.02 per student.  The budget, which supports their long term goals, is written to support each of its goals.  The largest portion of the budget is proportioned towards the goal of achieving a 1:1 student to computer ration.

Goal success is to be measured by strictly defined evidence as identified in each objective.  This evidence coordinates to a timeframe to ensure that goals are being strived toward and met.  Some objectives are assessed at short intervals while others are assessed long-term.

Irving I.S.D.’s current technology plan was drafted utilizing a needs assessment from teacher/student surveys, a staff development needs assessment survey, interviews and STaR Chart analysis.   Regular assessment of the plan’s objectives is made by walkthroughs and metrics to determine future growth areas.  This includes hardware, software and infrastructure services.

Professional development is the responsibility of Content Coordinators, the Director of Staff Development, the Director of Instructional Technology and the Technology Coordinators.  Irving has been improving its access to professional development activities by utilizing a 24/7 online development program.  This allows staff to acquire new knowledge at their own convenience while offering a wide range of opportunities.