As I ponder what it means to be a lifelong learner, many different ideas come to mind. However, one in particular involves exactly what I am doing...continuing my education to better myself, my students, and my instruction. I am always trying to instill the belief in my students that learning is a lifelong, never-ending process and I truly believe in the common saying, "You learn something new every day." I am constantly learning from my own students, colleagues, family, and friends. The technology courses I have taken have opened my eyes to the various technology tools and resources that we have at our fingertips and the importance of taking advantage of these tools in order to enhance student learning.
One of my greatest challenges this year has been the lack of student motivation in my classroom. I can honestly say that the various lessons I have learned incorporating the elements of TPACK have helped my fifth graders become more engaged in their learning throughout the course of the year. Implementing technology in my classroom is something I value as an educator and realize now more than ever, there are ways to do so more effectively to boost student motivation and understanding. I plan on developing a classroom blog to keep students and parents informed. A goal of mine is to create and incorporate more WebQuests into curricular areas...my students loved the WebQuest I created on traveling through space and learned great information while participating in the quest. I plan on continuing to use VoiceThread as a means to share their reading and writing online. I feel I have grown as an educator and accomplished many of my goals already, however, I have many more goals in mind thanks to CEP 810, 811, and especially 812.
When I think about tackling Wicked Problems in my classroom and at my school, the thought is overwhelming yet exciting. The benefits of being able to solve a Wicked Problem far outweigh the challenges to get to that point. I am hoping to continue to collaborate with my teaching partners on this and tackle the issue of lack of parent communication in our building. Another Wicked Problem I hope to work out is issues within our math curriculum and students struggling because they do not understand the basic math facts. These are just a couple out of the many struggles teachers deal with on a daily basis.
I am thrilled to officially be a member of the MAET program and look forward to continuing my education in teaching and implementing technology in my classroom. I already have all of my courses lined up and am proud of myself for sticking with it and doing the best I can! I am so grateful to have the support of my friends and family. It is amazing how much they support me in everything I do, and continuing on to get my Masters in Educational Technology is no exception. As long as my daughter continues to take naps during the day (when I complete much of my course work) I will be good to go!
I feel fortunate to be able to learn so many valuable lessons through these technology courses, which I then am able to apply in my own classroom and also teach my colleagues; creating blogs, podcasts, data visualizations, imovies, PowerPoint presentations, WebQuests, etc...I look forward to continuing to learn and collaborate with my classmates, knowledgeable instructors and our incredible world of technology, which changes each and every day.
Enjoy my Prezi below that shows my Professional Learning Plan!
Lindsay,
ReplyDeleteI can completely identify with your belief that we are lifelong learners. I never want to call myself an "expert" for fear that that implies I have learned everything I need to know- because there is ALWAYS more! :)
I appreciate the Prezi as your visual for the professional learning plan. This is one of the tech tools on my list of ones to learn. I've got to jump in and try one!
Congrats on being in the MAET program. I am as well, so maybe we will cross paths again in another class. What are you taking this summer?
Best, Melissa
What more can I say.... You and I have had our phone conversations and I can honestly say I know that you will do well in all you do. Your plan gives clear directions as to where you're headed - GREATNESS. It appears that we both had ideas about keeping parents and students connected (wiki/blog) as well as teaching other educators the benefits of technology (EduTech expert/teach professional development). Good Luck Lindsay! Don't be surprised if you hear from me again.
ReplyDeleteLindsay,
ReplyDeleteI can definitely relate when you talk about concerns regarding student motivation. I am finding that, in my work as an adviser, that students aren't necessarily motivated (or maybe don't know how) to pursue answers on their own. They tend to just want to e-mail questions to me that they could answers on their own if they gave a little effort. Getting students to be proactive and active in their education is an issue that all educators, regardless of role, need to be aware of.
I enjoyed your Prezi design as it relates to your PLP. I definitely will continue in my learning as a "lifelong learner." That is a vital philosophy. It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the MAET program goes for you and what resources you might be able to share out with me and others. I won't be pursuing the program (yet), but hope to use my personal network to share resources and continue to learn.
Good luck!
Hi Lindsay!
ReplyDeleteGreat job on your PLP! We have a lot of the same viewpoints and outlooks regarding teaching with technology, especially about being a "lifelong learner". Since getting my teaching cert. in 2003, I have been off and on taking college classes, to the point that some call me a "professional student"! Anyway, I believe that is a true description of a great teacher, one who regards themselves as a lifelong learner. We never stop learning new things to share with students!
I enjoyed viewing your Prezi too! I have a lot of the same concepts you used in my own PLP!
Good luck and success always!
Cynthia
Lindsay,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading about your experience and future plans. What you said regarding technology aiding in the motivation of your students really "hits the nail on the head". Our students have basically been born into the technology world that we live in. Why fight it, right?
Like you, I am planning on using blogging in my classroom. I think that it is a great way for students to be involved in their education. Plus its great feedback for us as teachers.
Good luck in all of your future endeavors and enjoy your summer!
Jason
Hi Lindsay,
ReplyDeleteI agree that student motivation and getting students to buy into lessons is one of the most challenging problems that we face as teachers. It's encouraging to hear you say that TPACK has been successful in helping you solve this problem in your classroom (it gives me hope for when I have my own classroom some day!).
I also really like how your Prezi clearly lays out specific things that you learned in each of the Certificate classes, specific goals for yourself, as well as the context of lifelong learning. It was a great way to capture and communicate what you've learned and where you are going, and you frame it all really well with your blog.