October 27 Web Conference

Tonight I attend my fourth web conference for EDLD 5306.  The conference was helpful because the internship was explained in depth with information about future web conferences with Dr. Abernathy.  We discussed this week assignments and addressed any concerns.   Although my microphone  did not work tonight, I enjoyed listening to the interaction between the people in attendance.   I look forward to attending the web conference each week because it gives me the feeling of actually attending class.  My husband is attending graduate school at another university,  and he is amazed each week about me stopping everything to attend the web conference.     He watches from a distance to see how it works each week.  We discuss how modern technology is giving people  ability to see, hear, and talk with other people.   Maybe, next week all my equipment will work correctly because each week something works that did not function the previous week.

Second Web Conference

On October 13, I attended my second web conference in Educational Technology. I was disappointed that my sound was not working properly, and I could not hear the conference.  I missed the discussion between the participants and Professor.

After listening to the recorded summary of the conference, I realized that the problem  was with my setting. I learned from the summary the details for participants in the master program. 

My experience from the web conference has been a delight the second time because I realized the benefits. The web conference provided interaction between the professor and students through an online course.  It allowed us to view a PowerPoint with information about the internship requirements, assignments, location of the class information and website.  This provided me with a better understanding of what to expect throughout the program. Another  benefit of web conference is that it allows participants from various locations to meet together without leaving the comforts of their homes.

October 20th Web Conference

Tonight, I attended my third web conference for this course.  I felt privileged because only a few people logged in to the conference, and all my equipment was working proper.  We discussed week three assignments, the internship, and site mentors.  I was pleased to learn that my site mentor could be my campus Instructional Tech because I thought the mentor had to be a certified administrator.  During this week conference, I was more relaxed because I understood what to expect from the conference. 

National Educational Technology Plan

On March 5, 2010 the National Educational Technology Plan rough draft was published because of the Obama administration.  The current administration believes education has become an urgent priority driven by two goals:

• to raise the proportion of college graduates from 39% to 60% of our population holding a 2-year or 4-year degree
• to close the achievement gap so that all students  graduate from high school ready to succeed in college and careers by 2020.

The NETP calls for revolutionary transformation of schools to provide personalized learning instead of a one-size-fits-all curriculum, pace of teaching, and instructional practices by using technology. The NETP identifies five goals to address learning, assessment, teaching, infrastructure, and productivity.   The 21^st century educators will teach in  community teams that are connected 24/7, instead of solo classrooms.

 According to the plan, students need to be assessed continuously with more project related teaching that involves technology across sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics.  This will provide opportunity to create engaging, relevant, and personalized learning experiences for all learners  using  higher levels of thinking skills.

The model comprehensive infrastructure includes people, processes, learning resources, policies, and sustainable models for continuous improvement in addition to broadband connectivity, servers, software, management systems, and administration tools to bring together teaching teams and students anywhere in the world together.  

Technology can enable transforming education into learning environment; therefore, changing the 21^st schools to learning all year which will increase the required funding for schools. Teachers will adjust instruction by reorganizing teaching for all students

Longview Technology Plan E-Rate

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Longview Technology Plan E-Rate

View more presentations from Winifred Jackson.

District Technology Plan

Longview ISD is required to have an approved technology plan to participate in the federal Universal Service Fund program and the Title II Part D Enhancing Education through Technology program established by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. . All campuses and teachers are required to complete the Texas STaR Chart. The plan is a working document that aligns with the Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology 2006 - 2020 and the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Technology Applications for students, the Technology Applications Standards for Beginning Teachers and the Texas StaR Chart.

The technology department uses a variety of methods to accomplish the evaluation of the technology plan.  The department examines reviews and analyzes data from surveys, grade level technology skills checklists, professional development records, STaR Chart profiles, technology expenditure reports, web pages, District and campus plans.  Other data used to evaluate the plans are reports from Instructional Technology Specialists, technical help requests, server records, and hardware and software inventory records. 

The goals are:

• all students becoming technologically literate and applying technology skills to enhance academic achievement
• all educators and staff becoming technologically proficient
• all educators successfully structuring and supporting technology-based learning experiences
• adequate hardware, software, professional development and support in order to provide challenging curriculum, exemplary instruction and efficient business operations
• planning for hardware, technology infrastructure, software, professional development, and support.

Annually, professional staff is required to complete technology proficiency. The plan is funded with funds from the Title II, Part D and local funds.

October 6 Web Conference

On October 6, I had the opportunity to attend my first web conference in the Educational Technology course; however, this was not my first experience with web conference.  When I first tried to enter the room, it stated that the conference was already in session and I would have to wait for permission to enter.  My frustration level rose and I felt disappointed that I had missed the conference.  After I reached access to the conference I was unsure how the conference was going to work.  I learned how to operate my equipment during this conference.  The only thing that did not work properly was my camera. During the conference I received clarity on the assignment one, due dates, and the required books for the course.  We received the email address for the class website and the Cohort number.  The group discussed how to navigate the course and resource section of the course.  During the conference, I was delighted to see the participants, hear them speak, and read what was typed.  I was glad to know that no extra equipment was required for the conference.  Thanks for the opportunity to participate  before the required conference.

Technology Assessments

The assessment of educators and students’ technology knowledge and skills is must for the 21^st century learner.  The advantages of assessing teachers and students out weighs the disadvantage because assessments of  essential skills for implementation of the Technology TEKS was designed to spiral giving students multiple opportunities to master the knowledge and skills.  The only disadvantage of assessing teachers and students is reliability and validity of the assessments. 

With assessments in place that assess the complete level of expertise and competencies reflected in standards, student learning data can be collected and used to continually improve learning outcomes and productivity. Both informal and formal needs assessments to determine priorities for technology professional development should be conducted regularly.  These regular assessments are the key to improving the quality of learning in the classroom.   When teachers are knowledgeable  about technology, they will integrate it effectively in the classroom. The professional development component of the technology plan should include a fair and equitable system for assessing each individual teacher's level of technology competency.  The assessment can be used to determine the skill level of individual teachers and their needs for professional development. Such assessment provides data that can be used for future planning and development of strategies for teachers and students.  Leadership and staff must constantly collaborate to develop campus plans for integrating, using, and improving the educational technologies in the classroom based on the campus needs assessments.  Finally ,there must be on-going technology needs assessments to identify the needs of the digital-age students .