Vision and Outcomes
I envisioned strengthening my definition and perception of instructional leadership. I thought this course would help me understand better how to help the teachers on my campus be the best instructors they can. I was looking forward to that information because it is a question that I have. Unfortunately, it is still a question. I do believe that the material covered in this course was important. All the required class articles, plus those I read outside of this class, indicate that technology is the biggest part of education that we will have to work on. But certainly, it’s not all the instructional leadership information we will need? I will have to do some outside reading on instructional leadership to fill in the gaps left by this class.
Assignments
I was successful in carrying out the course assignments if grades are an indication. I felt that some of the instructions were so vague that my answers were more of a shot in the dark than I would ever want them to be. I was often frustrated at the lack of direction in the assignments. Most requests for help were directed to the course overviews, which were little more than a copy of the assignment instructions, and there is born a vicious circle. I was able to muddle through the assignments because I have a good study group to work with and discuss what the instructions could really mean. The assignments themselves were huge. Creating a technology action plan was way more than a one week assignment had any right to be. That plan would be better served as an ongoing project through the class. It was somewhat helpful to look at district technology plans through the eyes of an administrator, but the work I did on it was so rushed that I do not think it will be helpful to me in the future.
What I Learned
What I learned in this course was most definitely relevant to the work I do in my school. At this point, I am still a classroom teacher. I am incorporating more technology in my assignments so that these students will not be behind when they enter middle school or high school. I have let go of some of my fear of using unknown technologies with my 4th graders. Because of the articles and discussions, I’ve begun to tell my students that I don’t know how it [new software] works and I need them to play with it and teach me. This lit such a fire under many of these students that I wondered what on earth I had been waiting for.
Even though I didn’t get exactly what I expected from this course, I definitely learned a lot. I already had a solid grasp of many technologies, some from classroom use and some from personal use. This class helped me see that some of the technology I use personally, like blogging, can work for me and my students in the classroom. I also saw how I was adding to the [falling behind] problem by not having my students use the computers for anything more than subscription services like Symphony Math, Ticket to Read, or Accelerated Reader. I realized that my students don’t need perfect lessons from me with technology incorporated in according to my rules. They need to see me use it, and they need to use it themselves as a tool to learning. They need to put their hands on it and click to figure out what they can make it do. They need someone to give them permission to explore. The dendrites they build through that exploration last longer than any perfect assignment I can give them. In that, I see my own attitude altered greatly.
Blogging
Blogs have a terrific educational value. Students write reflectively and for an audience. It helps them learn to find their voice (very important for 4th grade in Texas) and write coherently. It also connects their ideas to others. Through RSS feeds and commenting, students can interact with each other, practicing the way adults are interacting more and more in our society. My students always ask me why they have to learn to write correctly. They tell me it’s all on computers nowadays. Well, when I think of handwriting, I can see their point, but no one wants to read a blog that is not coherent or has mechanics so terrible it hurts the eyes! Of course, there are concerns about blogging. These are 4th graders we’re talking about. Our district uses Edublogs and with that, I would be able to block my students’ blogs from the outside internet, allowing them access only to each other. Should our blogging efforts require communication with someone outside of our circle, I, as the teacher, would take steps to be the filter between the groups. I would love to encourage other classes at our school to blog so that students can have a range of students to discuss content with. And, of course, the topics of blogs would be moving the curriculum forward. My own teacher blog would have pages for students, other teachers, and parents. As an administrator, I can see a blog as a valuable tool for connecting with the community.
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