While it seemed as though my Action research plan was to operate smoothly because of the problems that I had solved in the beginning, one issue worsened while another provided hope. Hardware difficulties became compounded, but Cscope integration worked well with implementing Google features.
Acquiring the necessary hardware in the appropriate setting became an increasingly difficult situation. So difficult in fact that I was forced to cut my Action Research time to one semester instead of one and a half. Teachers were scrambling for laptop carts and computer labs like ants in a kicked ant hill. There became no available laptops, no labs available, and complaints about the number of days that I signed up for the use of the lap top cart. Also, no new hardware was acquired by the campus, to my knowledge, in order to improve the situation.
Another challenge that I faced while doing my Action research project was the adoption of the Cscope curriculum by the district where I work. In correlation with Google integration, the Cscope curriculum worked quite well. However, I did have to manipulate the activities because students were learning new technologies along with new curriculum which led to time constraints. In Cscope's favor, the performance indicators worked hand in hand with the Project Based Learning aspect of my Action research project, and supported the 21st century skills of Google. But, the online resources provided by Cscope did not always relate to or completely cover the historical information for the Cscope activities, TEKS, and especially the exams. Therefore, teachers would be wise to research their own website for information; or allow student to build their own data bases while the teachers manages the student's judgement on reliable and relevant websites.
As far as changes to my Action research Project is concerned, I do not have any major changes. I set a goal and followed the original plan. The only change that I have considered to deviate from my original plan is that I was not able to run the course that I had wanted for the project.
Monday, April 1, 2013
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Hardware Difficulties
While starting the implementation of my action research project on September 18, 2012, I ran into a problem with finding laptop computers for my students to use. The campus I work on does have several computer labs, but I did not want to take my students to a computer lab. I wanted to start the project with my students being in their won classroom environment, which is more comfortable for me and them. Also, I encourage the students to use multiple types of resources when researching information; therefore, I point them in the direction of dictionaries that I have in the classroom and the textbooks. So, in order to maintain my style of teaching, I signed up on our school program, eduphoria, for a laptop cart that was located in the Freshmen wing.
On the day that I was to start using the laptop cart, I could not find the cart. However, an ipad cart was in it's place and I was not allowed to use these technology because I had not been trained to use the ipads. When I asked what happened to the laptop cart, the technology person on our campus stated that it did not exist anymore and had been removed from the campus. However, the technology person and I went to our curriculum administrator and found another laptop cart from the vocational department that was not being used. But the obstacle were not totally alleviated with this transition because two days into my use of the cart and implementation of my action research, another teacher had signed up for using the vocational laptops, which I was now using because the Freshman cart no longer existed. This problem was cleared because I happened to be in a training on that day and students are not allowed to use the laptops without teacher supervision. So we were both able to get the use of the laptops.
In conclusion, as a core teacher and a grad student, this scenario is very frustrating to me and calls for solutions. I teach social studies and our department does not have a laptop cart for use. We are required to teach the technology skills as required by the state and federal government but are lacking the necessary hardware. Also, as a grad student, I am having a difficult time procuring the hardware to do my project applications. Solutions to this would be to find ways for funding so that students have the supplies that they need, which is fast becoming a laptop computer. I have resulted to allowing students to use their smart phones in order to do research in class, then have only one or two days of actual computer use for web 2.0. While I am sure that my campus is not the only campus in the state of Texas having this issue, it does bring to light the gap between the accountability and standards that the government expects schools to maintain but do not find the funding to provide the tools.
On the day that I was to start using the laptop cart, I could not find the cart. However, an ipad cart was in it's place and I was not allowed to use these technology because I had not been trained to use the ipads. When I asked what happened to the laptop cart, the technology person on our campus stated that it did not exist anymore and had been removed from the campus. However, the technology person and I went to our curriculum administrator and found another laptop cart from the vocational department that was not being used. But the obstacle were not totally alleviated with this transition because two days into my use of the cart and implementation of my action research, another teacher had signed up for using the vocational laptops, which I was now using because the Freshman cart no longer existed. This problem was cleared because I happened to be in a training on that day and students are not allowed to use the laptops without teacher supervision. So we were both able to get the use of the laptops.
In conclusion, as a core teacher and a grad student, this scenario is very frustrating to me and calls for solutions. I teach social studies and our department does not have a laptop cart for use. We are required to teach the technology skills as required by the state and federal government but are lacking the necessary hardware. Also, as a grad student, I am having a difficult time procuring the hardware to do my project applications. Solutions to this would be to find ways for funding so that students have the supplies that they need, which is fast becoming a laptop computer. I have resulted to allowing students to use their smart phones in order to do research in class, then have only one or two days of actual computer use for web 2.0. While I am sure that my campus is not the only campus in the state of Texas having this issue, it does bring to light the gap between the accountability and standards that the government expects schools to maintain but do not find the funding to provide the tools.
Snags in Action Research due to CScope
We left the 2011-21 school year with the loom of CScope curriculum hanging in the air. Upon our return we find that it is true. Our campus will be following CScope. This decision by our administration has decidedly put a cramp into my action research plan.
CScope curriculum are lesson plans in a can, as I call them. The curriculum is all planned, labeled, paced, and resourced for the teachers. While administration understandably sees this curriculum as a positive tool for keeping all teachers on the same academic rigor, I see it as being pigeon-holed and having my creative wings clipped. Also, I have had the rug pulled out from under me on two years of work with Project Based Learning that I was trained for at Manor New Tech High School's Think Forward program, which I was going to incorporate into my action research technology project. Needless to say, I have run into a snag.
However, as a good teacher does, I am following the CScope curriculum and manipulating the activities to play nicely with project-based learning and my implementation of Google into the classroom. Last week, on September 18, 2012 I started an activity about Gilded Age Society, and used the performance indicator as my assessment. The performance indicator called for students to create a storyboard to show how technological innovations and scientific discoveries of the Gilded Age affected society in urban and rural areas. Instead of the physical storyboard, I had students create a presentation in Google Docs. For the students who had Google accounts, I paired them in groups of four and introduced the web 2.0 feature through Google Chrome.
A positive note about the CScope curriculum is that the curriculum offers a variety of online resources for students to use when researching information. Therefore, I instructed the students to use these resources because they were researched as being viable. However, students were having difficulty with some of the vocabulary used in the articles; and not the historical jargon as expected but words and phrases such as "hotly debated" and "dominated." This is where I directed students to dictionary.com for answers, or found myself teaching reading skills about context clues to eleventh graders. Definitely not what I expected.
In conclusion, though I had worked for two years on project-based learning, I find myself in the shoes of a new teacher with a totally new curriculum and trying to keep my action research plan in motion. However, as a leader I am setting an example and following the curriculum set forth by the school, but just weaving my aesthetic into the curriculum. By doing this, I am diversifying the environment of my classroom and showing the adaptability of a good teacher and CScope curriculum
CScope curriculum are lesson plans in a can, as I call them. The curriculum is all planned, labeled, paced, and resourced for the teachers. While administration understandably sees this curriculum as a positive tool for keeping all teachers on the same academic rigor, I see it as being pigeon-holed and having my creative wings clipped. Also, I have had the rug pulled out from under me on two years of work with Project Based Learning that I was trained for at Manor New Tech High School's Think Forward program, which I was going to incorporate into my action research technology project. Needless to say, I have run into a snag.
However, as a good teacher does, I am following the CScope curriculum and manipulating the activities to play nicely with project-based learning and my implementation of Google into the classroom. Last week, on September 18, 2012 I started an activity about Gilded Age Society, and used the performance indicator as my assessment. The performance indicator called for students to create a storyboard to show how technological innovations and scientific discoveries of the Gilded Age affected society in urban and rural areas. Instead of the physical storyboard, I had students create a presentation in Google Docs. For the students who had Google accounts, I paired them in groups of four and introduced the web 2.0 feature through Google Chrome.
A positive note about the CScope curriculum is that the curriculum offers a variety of online resources for students to use when researching information. Therefore, I instructed the students to use these resources because they were researched as being viable. However, students were having difficulty with some of the vocabulary used in the articles; and not the historical jargon as expected but words and phrases such as "hotly debated" and "dominated." This is where I directed students to dictionary.com for answers, or found myself teaching reading skills about context clues to eleventh graders. Definitely not what I expected.
In conclusion, though I had worked for two years on project-based learning, I find myself in the shoes of a new teacher with a totally new curriculum and trying to keep my action research plan in motion. However, as a leader I am setting an example and following the curriculum set forth by the school, but just weaving my aesthetic into the curriculum. By doing this, I am diversifying the environment of my classroom and showing the adaptability of a good teacher and CScope curriculum
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Action Research Draft
Implementing
Google Features for Educational Purposes
Christy
H. Weeks
Lamar
University
The need for this
paper was determined through research on new technology standards directed by
the federal government and the state of Texas.
Other needs for writing this paper include new research methods for students to
find information, because the state of Texas
is no longer funding textbooks; and to develop collaborative, project based,
work habits that mirror what they can expect in real life situations. Another
need that Google fulfills is the need to communicate with student, parents and
the community about educational happenings.
Goolge offers features such as
Google Chat, Goolge Sites, and Docs, which support collaboration in real time;
and also Blogger and Wikis, which supports collaboration in the form of peer
review. Google Calendar offers communication with students and parents by way
of information and procedures. For research, Google offers Google Scholar,
which is a collection of scholarly journals that students can use as a guide
for reputable resources. All of these features are provided to the public at no
cost, which helps with the lack of funds that public schools in the state of Texas
are experiencing; and satisfy the technology requirements for federal and state
standards.
To follow the best
practices for education and student learning, students are given the
opportunity to use the Google features. Students are provided the knowledge
level of Google through a lecture and example workshop taught by the teacher in
order to get them started. Once the students have been engaged in learning with
Google, they are given specific assignments that facilitate exploring and
applying the features from Google. Students work collaboratively in a project
based classroom environment, while learning real life procedures through
problem solving with technology. Communication and procedures flow freely
through Google Calendar or the class Wiki, where the lesson plans and
assignments are posted; and through Google Chat, where conversations of
collaboration are stored. Assignments can consist of building web pages, writing
research papers, posting to blogs, creating a wiki, and even presentations.
The vision for
creating a classroom run through Google features was communicated to
colleagues, the technology department, and to the superintendent of the school
via a staff development day presentation. In the staff development, Google was
shown to the audience as a tool for education for teachers and students. The point
of view of Google’s features was given to the audience from a teacher’s
perspective and from a student’s perspective. Thus, this allowed the audience
to see the exchange of communication as
well as application.
At the beginning
of the project, I was allowed to use my classroom as the test for implementing
the Google features, and gather information. However, I have run into a snag
with a new curriculum that the superintendent has designated, Cscope. While my
principal has informed me that I can use the new curriculum as a resource, I
believe that I am stuck with further implementation of Google. One of the
promising aspects of the Cscope curriculum is that the curriculum has provided
online resources for the students to use that are reputable and reliable. This
is a big contribution to research and all sites can be posted in a class wiki
or website. However, by providing student with the resources that they are to
use for finding information, this limits the new kind of literacy that students
must develop in discerning a good web resource from a bad web resource.
In order to solve
the conflict that has arisen, I have started to merge the two curriculums.
Cscope resources should not be ignored, but being the teacher I am able to add
the requirement of having the students find a set number of resources outside
from the ones provided. This will not only help them to develop research
skills, but also build an education data base for future referencing.
Students can use
the features in Google any place that an internet connection can be found.
Students who do not have the internet in their homes always find it to use at a
friend’s, a neighbor’s, or relative’s house. Another obstacle is finding the
hardware for students to use while in the classroom.
With more time, as
I have it, I can work out the obstacles and gain a better graps of what it will
take to further implement Google into the classroom for education.
Internship Reflections of Two Web Conferences
Reflecting upon the web conference scheduled on Wednesday, August 29th:
The first
web conference was very helpful in my switching focus to taking a leadership
course. From the technology courses that I have been taking thus far in my
EdTech program. It also was very helpful for gaining an understanding on what
the cource is all about. During the conference I commented on the fact that I
was having difficulty with getting administration to give methings to do for
hours. By Dr. Martin pointed out that I should nto wait for administration, but
stick to my internship plan. I was also confused about he hours that we were
neededing for the internship. This web conference cleared my misconceptions
about he two. I had been viewing my internship as tasks and the hours
requirements as separate issues, when in fact they were on n the same. I was to
follow the tasks from my internship plan and provide allotted time of doing
those tasks. I had not been waiting around for administration, as Dr. Martin
had thought, but I had actually been very active in fulfilling each experience
on the internship plan. After meeting with my mentor I discovered that I have
completed almost all tasks at my half way point in the program. The web
conference helped me to clarify and revisit my internship areas for completion.
Reflecting upon the web conference scheduled on Wednesday, September 12th:
Web Conference for Week 3 was not as informative as previous
conferences. Perhaps it is because students were not asking relevant questions.
Plus, I had difficulty signing onto adobe connect, and was even booted off
once. However, I would like to have had more information on the things that we
were supposed to do for week 3. I had the initial reaction that this week was a
work week with discussion, but no true assignment to submit. Though I have read
and kept abreast with announcements, overviews, videos, and reading; I still
feel lost and overwhelmed on what to do. On the other hand, having a designated
time to chat with peers and have a professor available to answer any questions brings
a sense of community to those of us in the program. This is good for building
trust and sharing information as needed.
Monday, September 3, 2012
NETS Self-Assessment Survey Reflection
Though I know that I have improved with my knowledge of educational technology, standards, and integration into the classroom. I find that I sell myself a bit short on what I know. However, while taking this self-assessment survey, I did answer a judge according to the best of my knowledge, however short it may be.
First, I found that I believe that technology implementation into the classroom is very important for students. However, I do not believe that I am as proficient as I would like to be. For example, after taking the survey, I realized that I am very weak in the area of having knowledge about funding. This has a coincidental twist because I am currently needing more hardware for my classroom and department so that we may have technology for our student to use. While NETS, the State of Texas, and new Cscope curriculum all call for more technology; I do not have readily available access and would like to obtain it. Therefore I believe I had start with researching funding.
Second, for Digital-Age Learning Culture, I believe that I am minimizing my abilities, or being realistic about the inhibitions that lacking in hardware is putting on the digital culture in my classroom. I rated myself as proficient, but with one very weak (in promoting and participating in global communities).
Third, I found what I consider to be discrepancies. Because I have not had the opportunity to exercise recruiting and retaining competent technical personnel; I rated the importance high and my abilities at very weak. A second discrepancy is is in reference to excellence in professional practice. I find it very difficult to stay abreast on technology trend when funding for everything is low and trend come and go; and are often a gamble.
First, I found that I believe that technology implementation into the classroom is very important for students. However, I do not believe that I am as proficient as I would like to be. For example, after taking the survey, I realized that I am very weak in the area of having knowledge about funding. This has a coincidental twist because I am currently needing more hardware for my classroom and department so that we may have technology for our student to use. While NETS, the State of Texas, and new Cscope curriculum all call for more technology; I do not have readily available access and would like to obtain it. Therefore I believe I had start with researching funding.
Second, for Digital-Age Learning Culture, I believe that I am minimizing my abilities, or being realistic about the inhibitions that lacking in hardware is putting on the digital culture in my classroom. I rated myself as proficient, but with one very weak (in promoting and participating in global communities).
Third, I found what I consider to be discrepancies. Because I have not had the opportunity to exercise recruiting and retaining competent technical personnel; I rated the importance high and my abilities at very weak. A second discrepancy is is in reference to excellence in professional practice. I find it very difficult to stay abreast on technology trend when funding for everything is low and trend come and go; and are often a gamble.
Competent, Not So Competent, And What I need To Do To Cure It It
The skills I posses lead me to believe that I am a natural at building trusting relationships in the work environment, but I am not so good at seeing conflict as an opportunity.
As a leader I am definitely transparent. I gather the facts, share the information that I have gathered, gather more information on finding solutions, and share that as well. I believe that a leader should inform their colleagues about every aspect of the decision-making process, and explanations for solutions and policies / procedures. On the campus where I teach I have a reputation as being a leader with a direct approach. I am the department chair of a core subject and I lead that department with modeling and doing what I can for my colleagues.
In the area that I am not so bold is through dealing with conflicts. I do not feel comfortable in the middle of a tense situation where emotions are running high and reasoning is low. Conflicts should be seen as an opportunity to get the facts and solve the issue, which is what I must do in order to become a more competent leader and put out fires when conflicts arise.
Therefore, I must work to experience conflicts as an observer. I must take note of how experienced leaders sort through the emotional display and identify the facts so that solutions can reached.
As a leader I am definitely transparent. I gather the facts, share the information that I have gathered, gather more information on finding solutions, and share that as well. I believe that a leader should inform their colleagues about every aspect of the decision-making process, and explanations for solutions and policies / procedures. On the campus where I teach I have a reputation as being a leader with a direct approach. I am the department chair of a core subject and I lead that department with modeling and doing what I can for my colleagues.
In the area that I am not so bold is through dealing with conflicts. I do not feel comfortable in the middle of a tense situation where emotions are running high and reasoning is low. Conflicts should be seen as an opportunity to get the facts and solve the issue, which is what I must do in order to become a more competent leader and put out fires when conflicts arise.
Therefore, I must work to experience conflicts as an observer. I must take note of how experienced leaders sort through the emotional display and identify the facts so that solutions can reached.
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