Where It All Comes Together
By: Laura Rinehart
When I started the MAET program I applied with a simple Prezi. I was trying to show off my awesome technology skills! Now I realize that making a Prezi is a small dot on the map of using technology and that technology is ever changing.
Where It All Began With Technology
My first course was CEP 810, Teaching Understanding with Technology, where I was introduced to productivity tools, digital citizenship, learning theories, copyright and creative commons, 21st century skills, and the TPACK framework. I was overwhelmed and excited at the same time! I began to realize that there were more elements than I ever imagined about teaching students with technology. The course started by explaining an overview of Web 2.0 tools and an introduction as to how these tools can be re-purposed and used in my classroom. I learned about the Cloud and how to safely store information, documents, and pictures. I began to use Google Drive with my Spanish classes and was able to explain to my students how things are stored there. This was perfect timing because all students at my school received Gmail accounts and the newly purchased laptops were not provided with Microsoft Office. I was also able to teach my students how to use GClass folders to successfully organize their Google Drive folders. This was just the beginning of my journey with technology.
Next, I started creating my Personal Learning Network (PLN). I joined Twitter, Merlot, and Diigo, I started to feel an online presence as I reached out to various people in my PLN. At first, I was timid to join these sites because I feared my information being stolen and wondered if my ideas were good enough to share with others. I knew I had to put myself out there in order to grow as a teacher and technology specialist. The first site I joined was Twitter and I was not even sure how to "tweet"! I now have two accounts! I use one account to connect with the MAET program, MAET students, and other educational professionals. My other account is used with my students. I update them on cultural events going on in the Spanish-speaking world and remind them of important due dates for assignments. I also use it with my leadership students to promote events going on at our school, keep in touch with them outside of school, and to motivate and encourage them to keep up all the good work that they are doing. I used Merlot to post a Spanish food unit, my StAIR lesson plan, and project. I also use it to connect with other Spanish teachers and to to find lessons that I can re-purpose and use in my classroom. Lastly I created my own Diigo account to collect resources fro my group project on the creating a paperless classroom. Now I am eager to join different types of networks! I want to connect with more and more people. I love learning from my PLN and finding out what other educational professionals across the world are doing in their classes.
I was then able to learn about digital citizenship and Internet security. Learning about these areas made me feel more comfortable using the Internet and technology in my classroom with my students. I feel equipped with the tools to help my students learn and grow on the Web in a safe learning environment both inside and outside of the classroom. Learning the ISTE standards for students and educators was very helpful because if I a fellow colleague, administrator or parent asks me as to why I am using technology in the classroom, I will have the support and reasoning to back it up. One thing that I really enjoyed learning about in CEP 810 was the creative common laws. It was something that I never knew existed before starting the program. I am glad that I can effectively use creative commons on my own work and know how to correctly site the work of others whether it be a picture, document, or lesson plan. Lastly, I was introduced to the TPACK framework. The TPACK framework has become a fundamental guideline to my every day teaching with technology. I went from thinking Prezi was an amazing technological tool to understanding that you need to use the right type of pedagogy with your content area then find the best technological tool to match those needs. I learned that putting laptops in front of students is not teaching with technology. Rather using the right type of technology to assist in your content area added with the correct types of pedagogy is using technology effectively inside and outside of the classroom. I learned so many new things in CEP 810 and I realized that I had a lot to learn if I want to effectively and correctly use technology in my classroom to help students learn Spanish and become global learners.
Where It Will Go With Technology
Now feeling more confident with my technology skills, I moved on to take CEP 811, Adapting Innovative Technologies in Education. This was one of my favorite courses in the MAET Certificate Program. In this course I learned about the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), Instructional Design Principles, how to create a WebQuest, how to plan using the Universal Design for Learning (UDL), explored Web 2.0 tools, and create a StAIR presentation. Using the UDL model, I created a lesson for my Spanish class that involved a food. I wanted to make the students do more than just learn the food vocabulary, I wanted them to understand how to use it in a real world context. I also wanted them to be able to explore the culture of World Hunger in the United States and compare it to World Hunger in Spanish-speaking countries. Keeping the UDL model in mind, I created a Backwards Design lesson plan. I really enjoyed doing this because I got to start with the overall picture of what I envisioned my students achieving. I wrote on the plan that I wanted to create awareness in my students about World Hunger. The Backwards Design model helped me to see that there are some many things I could teach about and so little time to do them! I had to be realistic in the learning objectives and goals that I wanted my students to be able to achieve in the time we had to work together. So, the next step I added to my lesson plan, was the creation of a WebQuest. The WebQuest I created was the perfect way to have students use technology to explore their vocabulary words, learn about World Hunger, and create a skit showing their overall understanding of the the unit. The WebQuest, which I was actually able to use in my classroom, was very successful. Students were able to follow it easily, learn the information, and use technology! They started off learning about World Hunger then they answered questions in Google Docs. Using Google Docs they learned how to work with students in real time, collaborated with students and myself to receive immediate feedback, and they learned how to put Google Docs into different folders and share them with me using GClass folders. Google Docs allowed me to use a technique from Making Thinking Visible, "I used to think… & Now I think…", which truly allowed students to express their old and new opinions on World Hunger. Lastly, students collaborated and worked with each other to create skits and menus, which they later presented to the class using Spanish! Had I not taken CEP 811, I never would have tried something so exciting with technology. One of the best parts of the WebQuest was that is followed the TPACK framework so well because I used scaffolding to help student reach their end goal, I created something that fit well with my content area, and pushed students to use the target language. Overall, this course continued to reinforce the TPACK framework while encouraging me to re-purpose tools and be innovative with the types of technology that I am I using in my classroom!
Where It All Comes Together with Technology
With the TPACK model in the back of my mind and the end of my school year finishing up, I decided to be part of the MAET Summer Cohort program. All I can say is…WOW! The first 3 weeks of the program flew by and my brain was overloaded with knowledge all the way from Vygotsky to the TPACK framework! The next 6 weeks as I was working at home seemed to go by just as fast. The combination of CEP 800, Learning in School and Other Settings, CEP 815, Technology and Leadership, and CEP 822, Approaches to Educational Research made for an amazing and enriching learning experience. CEP 800 really broadened my horizons as I worked towards the finalization of my Dream It project. I used the Backwards Design template to help brainstorm my ideas for the Dream It project. I really enjoy using this model because it helped me to identify my desired results from the start. Then the design helped me to find evidence to support my results. Lastly, I planned lessons and activities that would best benefit learners' needs. The next step of the Dream IT project was creating 3 i-Images, which were used to represent the big idea of my Dream It project. The 3 images were titled: Connect with Communication, Connect with each other, and Connect with the word. Please feel free to view them in the following Google Presentation. For the Dream IT project, my “dream” was to help transform my student's knowing vocabulary words to understanding how to use them in authentic situations while communicating in Spanish while using technology. Next, I explained and explored how I would use the TPACK framework to support my ideas. I included an in depth analysis of how the context, content, pedagogy, and technology come together to support my ideas. Lastly, I wrote about the evaluation process I would be using with my students as if I were able to use my Dream in real life. The Dream It project encouraged me to think outside of the box as a learner and teacher. It challenged me to be able to support my findings and prepared me to to be able to write a grant in the future. Writing out the Dream It project helped me to grow as a learner, a thinker, a student, and a teacher.
Overall, the summer cohort program did more than just provide me with information, it provided me with skills that I need to put the total PACKage into effect in my classroom on a daily basis. These summer classes truly gave me motivation to want to be the best teacher I can be and to effectively use technology in my classroom to help reach the highest amount of learners as possible.
With the motivation to try to integrate technology into my classroom, I decided to take CEP 820, Teaching Students Online where I created an online hybrid course for Spanish 1 students using the course management system (CMS), Edmodo. This course was challenging due to the fact that I have only taken an online course and never taught one before! I have learned how to re-purpose Edmodo and use it as my CMS, as well as create a learning environment for students online. The learning environment that I created consists of a variety of multimedia tools, polls, posts, online assessments and more! I hope to one day be able to implement this as part of my classroom curriculum so I can encourage the students to learn inside and outside of the classroom while using technology.
Overall, I am so proud to have completed my Masters in Educational Technology through Michigan State University. Every course I have taken has provided me with a tremendous amount of knowledge as to how to effectively use technology in my classroom. I am excited to continue to grow my PLN, use the TPACK framework in my classroom, dream big, and implement Edmodo. I have the total package and I am ready to use it!
Where It All Began With Technology
My first course was CEP 810, Teaching Understanding with Technology, where I was introduced to productivity tools, digital citizenship, learning theories, copyright and creative commons, 21st century skills, and the TPACK framework. I was overwhelmed and excited at the same time! I began to realize that there were more elements than I ever imagined about teaching students with technology. The course started by explaining an overview of Web 2.0 tools and an introduction as to how these tools can be re-purposed and used in my classroom. I learned about the Cloud and how to safely store information, documents, and pictures. I began to use Google Drive with my Spanish classes and was able to explain to my students how things are stored there. This was perfect timing because all students at my school received Gmail accounts and the newly purchased laptops were not provided with Microsoft Office. I was also able to teach my students how to use GClass folders to successfully organize their Google Drive folders. This was just the beginning of my journey with technology.
Next, I started creating my Personal Learning Network (PLN). I joined Twitter, Merlot, and Diigo, I started to feel an online presence as I reached out to various people in my PLN. At first, I was timid to join these sites because I feared my information being stolen and wondered if my ideas were good enough to share with others. I knew I had to put myself out there in order to grow as a teacher and technology specialist. The first site I joined was Twitter and I was not even sure how to "tweet"! I now have two accounts! I use one account to connect with the MAET program, MAET students, and other educational professionals. My other account is used with my students. I update them on cultural events going on in the Spanish-speaking world and remind them of important due dates for assignments. I also use it with my leadership students to promote events going on at our school, keep in touch with them outside of school, and to motivate and encourage them to keep up all the good work that they are doing. I used Merlot to post a Spanish food unit, my StAIR lesson plan, and project. I also use it to connect with other Spanish teachers and to to find lessons that I can re-purpose and use in my classroom. Lastly I created my own Diigo account to collect resources fro my group project on the creating a paperless classroom. Now I am eager to join different types of networks! I want to connect with more and more people. I love learning from my PLN and finding out what other educational professionals across the world are doing in their classes.
I was then able to learn about digital citizenship and Internet security. Learning about these areas made me feel more comfortable using the Internet and technology in my classroom with my students. I feel equipped with the tools to help my students learn and grow on the Web in a safe learning environment both inside and outside of the classroom. Learning the ISTE standards for students and educators was very helpful because if I a fellow colleague, administrator or parent asks me as to why I am using technology in the classroom, I will have the support and reasoning to back it up. One thing that I really enjoyed learning about in CEP 810 was the creative common laws. It was something that I never knew existed before starting the program. I am glad that I can effectively use creative commons on my own work and know how to correctly site the work of others whether it be a picture, document, or lesson plan. Lastly, I was introduced to the TPACK framework. The TPACK framework has become a fundamental guideline to my every day teaching with technology. I went from thinking Prezi was an amazing technological tool to understanding that you need to use the right type of pedagogy with your content area then find the best technological tool to match those needs. I learned that putting laptops in front of students is not teaching with technology. Rather using the right type of technology to assist in your content area added with the correct types of pedagogy is using technology effectively inside and outside of the classroom. I learned so many new things in CEP 810 and I realized that I had a lot to learn if I want to effectively and correctly use technology in my classroom to help students learn Spanish and become global learners.
Where It Will Go With Technology
Now feeling more confident with my technology skills, I moved on to take CEP 811, Adapting Innovative Technologies in Education. This was one of my favorite courses in the MAET Certificate Program. In this course I learned about the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), Instructional Design Principles, how to create a WebQuest, how to plan using the Universal Design for Learning (UDL), explored Web 2.0 tools, and create a StAIR presentation. Using the UDL model, I created a lesson for my Spanish class that involved a food. I wanted to make the students do more than just learn the food vocabulary, I wanted them to understand how to use it in a real world context. I also wanted them to be able to explore the culture of World Hunger in the United States and compare it to World Hunger in Spanish-speaking countries. Keeping the UDL model in mind, I created a Backwards Design lesson plan. I really enjoyed doing this because I got to start with the overall picture of what I envisioned my students achieving. I wrote on the plan that I wanted to create awareness in my students about World Hunger. The Backwards Design model helped me to see that there are some many things I could teach about and so little time to do them! I had to be realistic in the learning objectives and goals that I wanted my students to be able to achieve in the time we had to work together. So, the next step I added to my lesson plan, was the creation of a WebQuest. The WebQuest I created was the perfect way to have students use technology to explore their vocabulary words, learn about World Hunger, and create a skit showing their overall understanding of the the unit. The WebQuest, which I was actually able to use in my classroom, was very successful. Students were able to follow it easily, learn the information, and use technology! They started off learning about World Hunger then they answered questions in Google Docs. Using Google Docs they learned how to work with students in real time, collaborated with students and myself to receive immediate feedback, and they learned how to put Google Docs into different folders and share them with me using GClass folders. Google Docs allowed me to use a technique from Making Thinking Visible, "I used to think… & Now I think…", which truly allowed students to express their old and new opinions on World Hunger. Lastly, students collaborated and worked with each other to create skits and menus, which they later presented to the class using Spanish! Had I not taken CEP 811, I never would have tried something so exciting with technology. One of the best parts of the WebQuest was that is followed the TPACK framework so well because I used scaffolding to help student reach their end goal, I created something that fit well with my content area, and pushed students to use the target language. Overall, this course continued to reinforce the TPACK framework while encouraging me to re-purpose tools and be innovative with the types of technology that I am I using in my classroom!
Where It All Comes Together with Technology
With the TPACK model in the back of my mind and the end of my school year finishing up, I decided to be part of the MAET Summer Cohort program. All I can say is…WOW! The first 3 weeks of the program flew by and my brain was overloaded with knowledge all the way from Vygotsky to the TPACK framework! The next 6 weeks as I was working at home seemed to go by just as fast. The combination of CEP 800, Learning in School and Other Settings, CEP 815, Technology and Leadership, and CEP 822, Approaches to Educational Research made for an amazing and enriching learning experience. CEP 800 really broadened my horizons as I worked towards the finalization of my Dream It project. I used the Backwards Design template to help brainstorm my ideas for the Dream It project. I really enjoy using this model because it helped me to identify my desired results from the start. Then the design helped me to find evidence to support my results. Lastly, I planned lessons and activities that would best benefit learners' needs. The next step of the Dream IT project was creating 3 i-Images, which were used to represent the big idea of my Dream It project. The 3 images were titled: Connect with Communication, Connect with each other, and Connect with the word. Please feel free to view them in the following Google Presentation. For the Dream IT project, my “dream” was to help transform my student's knowing vocabulary words to understanding how to use them in authentic situations while communicating in Spanish while using technology. Next, I explained and explored how I would use the TPACK framework to support my ideas. I included an in depth analysis of how the context, content, pedagogy, and technology come together to support my ideas. Lastly, I wrote about the evaluation process I would be using with my students as if I were able to use my Dream in real life. The Dream It project encouraged me to think outside of the box as a learner and teacher. It challenged me to be able to support my findings and prepared me to to be able to write a grant in the future. Writing out the Dream It project helped me to grow as a learner, a thinker, a student, and a teacher.
Overall, the summer cohort program did more than just provide me with information, it provided me with skills that I need to put the total PACKage into effect in my classroom on a daily basis. These summer classes truly gave me motivation to want to be the best teacher I can be and to effectively use technology in my classroom to help reach the highest amount of learners as possible.
With the motivation to try to integrate technology into my classroom, I decided to take CEP 820, Teaching Students Online where I created an online hybrid course for Spanish 1 students using the course management system (CMS), Edmodo. This course was challenging due to the fact that I have only taken an online course and never taught one before! I have learned how to re-purpose Edmodo and use it as my CMS, as well as create a learning environment for students online. The learning environment that I created consists of a variety of multimedia tools, polls, posts, online assessments and more! I hope to one day be able to implement this as part of my classroom curriculum so I can encourage the students to learn inside and outside of the classroom while using technology.
Overall, I am so proud to have completed my Masters in Educational Technology through Michigan State University. Every course I have taken has provided me with a tremendous amount of knowledge as to how to effectively use technology in my classroom. I am excited to continue to grow my PLN, use the TPACK framework in my classroom, dream big, and implement Edmodo. I have the total package and I am ready to use it!