Sunday, November 29, 2009
STaR Chart
Was unsuccessful at uploading my slide presentation onto my blog from slideshare. If you would still like to view it, you may by clicking the following link. Thank you.
http://www.slideshare.net/yebarrera/yuridia-barrera-week2-course5-edld5352-presentation1
http://www.slideshare.net/yebarrera/yuridia-barrera-week2-course5-edld5352-presentation1
STaR Chart- Opinion Piece
The STaR Chart is composed four areas: Teaching and Learning; Educator Preparation and Development; Leadership, Administration and Instructional Support; and Infrastructure for Technology. According is our results from the past three reporting periods, Teaching and Learning has been our campus lowest area so I will be focusing on this area.
Teaching and Learning consists of the following components: Patterns in the classroom use, Frequency/design of instructional setting, content area connections, technology applications (TA) TEKS being implemented, student mastery of the TA TEKS, and online learning. Since we will be looking at the 2007-2008 Statewide Summary, I will use our district 2007-2008 STaR Chart for comparison. In that year, our total was a score of 13, which was the highest of all three reports. We scored a 2 all the way across and in TL 5 we received a 3. However, in all years we have been classified as “Developing Tech.” The Campus Statewide Summary indicates that 3.9% were Early Tech, 69.7% were Developing Tech, 25.5% were Advanced Tech, and 0.9% were Target Tech. It seems that we fell in the normal trend that year to be classified as “Developing Tech.” Some recommendations for improvement is to include a column in the teachers lesson plan template requesting them to complete a section indicating what technology will be used to target the TL2 objective. We can also be providing constructive feedback and modeling to teachers how others are using technology in their classrooms because some teacher will use technology, but will only use it one and also provide data so that they can understand the rationale.
Teaching and Learning consists of the following components: Patterns in the classroom use, Frequency/design of instructional setting, content area connections, technology applications (TA) TEKS being implemented, student mastery of the TA TEKS, and online learning. Since we will be looking at the 2007-2008 Statewide Summary, I will use our district 2007-2008 STaR Chart for comparison. In that year, our total was a score of 13, which was the highest of all three reports. We scored a 2 all the way across and in TL 5 we received a 3. However, in all years we have been classified as “Developing Tech.” The Campus Statewide Summary indicates that 3.9% were Early Tech, 69.7% were Developing Tech, 25.5% were Advanced Tech, and 0.9% were Target Tech. It seems that we fell in the normal trend that year to be classified as “Developing Tech.” Some recommendations for improvement is to include a column in the teachers lesson plan template requesting them to complete a section indicating what technology will be used to target the TL2 objective. We can also be providing constructive feedback and modeling to teachers how others are using technology in their classrooms because some teacher will use technology, but will only use it one and also provide data so that they can understand the rationale.
Summary of Pre K Technology Applications TEKS
By the end of Pre K, there are not many outcomes outlined for students. However, those five guidelines are very crucial for their continued technology growth. In Pre K, students focus on opening and navigating software programs, using and naming a variety of computer input devices such as mouse, keyboard, voice/sound recorder. touch screen, and CD-ROM. Students in Pre K are also expected to operate voice/sound recorders and touch screens, use software applications to create and express their own ideas, and recognize that information is accessible through the use of technology.
Again, these skills are important because it helps to build the a foundation for future grades, they are the builiding blocks. Take for instance a middle school technology TEKS, more specific 6th grade, it states that students are expected to demonstrate knowledge and appropriate use of operating systems, software applications, and communication and networking components, which is quite similar to one of the Pre K outcomes, yet a little more elaborated. With this said, it shows the spiraling done through out the years in the technology curriculum seeing that the Pre K Guidelines and middle school TEKS are very similar.
Again, these skills are important because it helps to build the a foundation for future grades, they are the builiding blocks. Take for instance a middle school technology TEKS, more specific 6th grade, it states that students are expected to demonstrate knowledge and appropriate use of operating systems, software applications, and communication and networking components, which is quite similar to one of the Pre K outcomes, yet a little more elaborated. With this said, it shows the spiraling done through out the years in the technology curriculum seeing that the Pre K Guidelines and middle school TEKS are very similar.
Long Range Plan For Technology (2006-2020)
The goal of this plan is to implement the use of technology into the classrooms in order to meet unique individual students' needs. After reading the assigned sections, I found the following statement(s) very awakening,
“In 2001, India graduated almost a million more students from college than the United States did.
China graduates twice as many students with bachelor’s degrees as the U.S., and they have six
times as many graduates majoring in engineering.”
Source: Thomas Friedman The World Is Flat
We are aiming to get our students through school, but what about after school? How well are we preparing them for the workforce? We are living in a digital-technological world where much can be conversed via email, blogs, text messaging, online learning, discussion boards, web conferencing and so forth, how much of this is being done in our own school? School leaders have this written plan and they need to share it with all teachers so that we all truly have the same vision. School leaders should also model these technology strategies or teachings for us, or more yet, allow them in school, to increase student achievement, motivation, and engagement. Another interesting view is that the minority ethnicity is growing and you sit to realize that some of these students will never get the opportunity to learn outside the school they are in due to their background. One opportunity as educators that we can provide for them is to offer distance learning or online learning so that they can communicate and collaborate with others from different communities.
“In 2001, India graduated almost a million more students from college than the United States did.
China graduates twice as many students with bachelor’s degrees as the U.S., and they have six
times as many graduates majoring in engineering.”
Source: Thomas Friedman The World Is Flat
We are aiming to get our students through school, but what about after school? How well are we preparing them for the workforce? We are living in a digital-technological world where much can be conversed via email, blogs, text messaging, online learning, discussion boards, web conferencing and so forth, how much of this is being done in our own school? School leaders have this written plan and they need to share it with all teachers so that we all truly have the same vision. School leaders should also model these technology strategies or teachings for us, or more yet, allow them in school, to increase student achievement, motivation, and engagement. Another interesting view is that the minority ethnicity is growing and you sit to realize that some of these students will never get the opportunity to learn outside the school they are in due to their background. One opportunity as educators that we can provide for them is to offer distance learning or online learning so that they can communicate and collaborate with others from different communities.
Technology Skills Assessment
In my current Master’s Course, Instructional Leadership, we were asked to take two assessments regarding our current knowledge and use of technology.
The first assessment was divided into four domains, 1) Foundations, 2) Information Acquisition, 3) Solving Problems, and 4) Communication. Before completing this assessment, I thought that my areas of strength would be Domain 1 and Domain 4 because I understand the foundations of technology to be the basics of computers and using other software on the computer and feel that I have strong communication skills. After completing this assessment I found my self responding “YES” to 13 out of 18 questions from Domain 1 (Foundations), “YES” to 5 out of 5 questions in Domain 2 (Information Acquisition), “YES” to 11 out of 18 questions in Domain 3 (Solving Problems), and “YES” to 6 out of 12 questions in Domain 4
(Communication). With this as a result, my area of strength would be the first Domain-Foundations, I can create basic documents, am aware of editing tools, and other basic software application functions.
My responses show that my greatest areas for improvement are both Domain 2-Information Acquisition and Domain 4-Communcation. Under the second domain, I need to acquire more information on LANs and WANs, Boolean search engines, and methods to evaluate accuracy and validity of electronic information. In the fourth domain, I need to be able to present the information in varied amount of ways. I am able to create and design different products for assignments, but I should also set up that expectation for my students as well.
The second technology assessment was the SETDA (State Educational Technology Directors Association) Teacher Survey. This survey focused toward technology that our school currently uses. Our school has a written plan of where we are going, but I see that, at times, with budget and limited resources, we, like most districts, have difficulties and concerns when it does come to integrating technology. There are some teachers that will implement the use of technology more than others in the classroom, but it might be due to lack of resources or lack of professional development. What I did find interesting during the assessment was the directed question of thinking about technology when planning a lesson, I think that this can help teachers shift gradually to the use of technology by simply adding a “Technology Equipment Needed” column to the lesson plan template that teachers are already completing and submitting.
The first assessment was divided into four domains, 1) Foundations, 2) Information Acquisition, 3) Solving Problems, and 4) Communication. Before completing this assessment, I thought that my areas of strength would be Domain 1 and Domain 4 because I understand the foundations of technology to be the basics of computers and using other software on the computer and feel that I have strong communication skills. After completing this assessment I found my self responding “YES” to 13 out of 18 questions from Domain 1 (Foundations), “YES” to 5 out of 5 questions in Domain 2 (Information Acquisition), “YES” to 11 out of 18 questions in Domain 3 (Solving Problems), and “YES” to 6 out of 12 questions in Domain 4
(Communication). With this as a result, my area of strength would be the first Domain-Foundations, I can create basic documents, am aware of editing tools, and other basic software application functions.
My responses show that my greatest areas for improvement are both Domain 2-Information Acquisition and Domain 4-Communcation. Under the second domain, I need to acquire more information on LANs and WANs, Boolean search engines, and methods to evaluate accuracy and validity of electronic information. In the fourth domain, I need to be able to present the information in varied amount of ways. I am able to create and design different products for assignments, but I should also set up that expectation for my students as well.
The second technology assessment was the SETDA (State Educational Technology Directors Association) Teacher Survey. This survey focused toward technology that our school currently uses. Our school has a written plan of where we are going, but I see that, at times, with budget and limited resources, we, like most districts, have difficulties and concerns when it does come to integrating technology. There are some teachers that will implement the use of technology more than others in the classroom, but it might be due to lack of resources or lack of professional development. What I did find interesting during the assessment was the directed question of thinking about technology when planning a lesson, I think that this can help teachers shift gradually to the use of technology by simply adding a “Technology Equipment Needed” column to the lesson plan template that teachers are already completing and submitting.
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