Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Web Conference Reflection
A few weeks back I attended one of the web conferences for my current course in my Lamar Univerisyt online Master's Degree. It was an enjoyable experience and helped a great deal to provide some clarification on the assignments for that week in the course work. I couldn't help myself, I was cracking jokes and playing the clown, but for those of you who know me this should come as virtually no surprise. As Popeye always said: "I am's what I am's!" It was also a little bit amusing as a few students asked the same question about one of the assignment paramters that required that we upload our blog address to a class wiki. the professor insisted that no such wiki existed and that this was not, in fact, a requirement for the completion of the assingment. Then, in the chat section of the conference, several students quoted the assignment document which clearly indicated that we neded to upload a blog address to a wiki. The professor continually insisted that this was not the case, students continued asking the same question and reiterating the same points, and around and around it went like a bad Abbott and Costello routine. Despite this little hiccup, the web conference was usefyl overall if a bit dull. If we were rating it like a movie, I'd give it three stars!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Texas STaR Chart Thoughts and Analysis
After an overly long hiatus, my incredibly scintillating action research is back in action! Now, today, I'd like to analyze my campus' Texas STaR chart results for the academic school years 2008/2009, 2009/2010 and 2010/2011. As you may know, the chart meaures the growth in technological acumen and usage in schools throughout the state of Texas. As I explored the data for my campus, I found our areas of greatest strength and weakness and will delve into these further in the coming paragraphs.
Our campus’ greatest strength, according to the available data for the three academic years in question, would seem to be our infrastructure for technology. I would agree with this assessment as the district and the campus have been very proactive in purchasing and maintaining our technology and digital resources. Moreover, we have managed to continue to use several vital software tools despite budget cuts. Thus, working in concert with the district, our campus has been able to maintain the facilities and equipment necessary to allow students to learn in digital ways and with digital platforms. This is made all the more impressive by the severe budget cuts our district has faced, as has every other district in the state and around the country.
Our educator preparation and development in the use of technology is the weakest as shown by the STaR chart and I would also agree with this assessment. The reality is that while our technological resources have steadily grown, we have not had a great deal of accompanying professional development on how to integrate these resources as teaching tools in our daily instruction. We have a few tech savvy teachers who share with the rest of us, and a few scattered staff developments on the subject, but not a comprehensive plan.
Our campus’ greatest strength, according to the available data for the three academic years in question, would seem to be our infrastructure for technology. I would agree with this assessment as the district and the campus have been very proactive in purchasing and maintaining our technology and digital resources. Moreover, we have managed to continue to use several vital software tools despite budget cuts. Thus, working in concert with the district, our campus has been able to maintain the facilities and equipment necessary to allow students to learn in digital ways and with digital platforms. This is made all the more impressive by the severe budget cuts our district has faced, as has every other district in the state and around the country.
Our educator preparation and development in the use of technology is the weakest as shown by the STaR chart and I would also agree with this assessment. The reality is that while our technological resources have steadily grown, we have not had a great deal of accompanying professional development on how to integrate these resources as teaching tools in our daily instruction. We have a few tech savvy teachers who share with the rest of us, and a few scattered staff developments on the subject, but not a comprehensive plan.
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