EDLD+Final+Reflection

1. What outcomes had you envisioned for this course? Did you achieve those outcomes? Did the actual course outcomes align with those that you envisioned?  Before the course started, I envisioned the same type of technology course that we took at the beginning of our degree program, but going more in depth. Once we started and I had the opportunity to complete the first set of readings and watch the first video set, I was extremely motivated to learn more because this was a combination of technology and differentiated instruction. Having been selected to participate on our district’s differentiation team, I am expected to learn all that I can about differentiated instruction, implement it in my classroom, and then mentor other teachers on my campus. As a teacher that has always been a believer in technology in the classroom, I wanted to differentiate my instruction by utilizing technology in innovative ways, but I was not really clear on how to implement that combination. This course gave practical, innovative and exciting ways to differentiate instruction by using technology tools. I feel so much more comfortable now with both aspects of instruction, and I plan to fully utilize what I have learned in my classroom.     2. To the extent that you achived the outcomes, are they still relevant to the work that you do in your school? Why or why not?  The outcome of meshing technology integration with differentiated instruction is extremely relevant and timely to the work that I am doing in my school. I have a classroom this year very much like the classroom in our group scenario. I have six gifted and talented students, one legally blind student, one student with downs syndrome, six students that are operating below grade level, and the rest of my students are somewhere in the middle. It is very difficult to teach a group with this range of abilities efficiently or in a way where each student will learn and grow to their potential. I fully believe that instruction must be differentiated through a flexible combination by interest, learning style, readiness, and ability. The “one size / lesson fits all” teaching approach does not work well in any classroom, but it is especially troublesome in a classroom with such varied student needs. I believe that taking the foundation of differentiated instruction with sound technology integration will facilitate meeting the needs of all of our students.    3. What outcomes did you not achieve? What prevented you from achieving them?  I feel like I achieved my expected outcomes. The only difficulty was in long distance group collaboration. My San Antonio partner and I know each other fairly well, so communicating with each other was not a problem. I did not know our other two partners, and the distance made it a bit more difficult to coordinate and communicate ideas. We were able to communicate through Google Docs without a problem, however, with all of us working full time and on different weekend schedules, it was hard to get everyone’s input in and make decisions at the time when I might be ready to sit down and work on certain aspects of the assignment. The group scenario and corresponding work that was required to try and meet the needs of that scenario was not a simple task and required a clear line of communication between all parties involved. While we were able to meet the challenge, I felt somewhat frustrated at times because we were working from a distance without knowing one another professionally or personally. <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">4. Were you successful in completing the course assignments? If not, what prevented or discouraged you? <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">I was very successful in completing the course assignments. I did not have any technology problems, and my coach was very informative with weekly updates. The readings and videos were perfectly timed each week with the assignments. I felt like the information I received was “just in time” and allowed me to successfully build a UDL lesson, write an online book via Book Builder, and consider many other factors regarding technology use in the classroom. The videos selected for this course were motivating, and among the best that I have had the opportunity to see during my Lamar Master’s courses. I have bookmarked many of them to share with my campus. I also really enjoyed the reading from “Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works,” by Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski. Not only did I read the assigned chapters (which were very helpful), but I also read the entire book. Having had the introduction to the work of Robert Marzano and Grant Wiggins on differentiated instruction, I was able to make many connections and “the light went on” for me. I can really connect with students now who have an interest or background knowledge about something being taught. They are engaged, excited, and soaking up the information! <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">5. What did you learn from this course: about yourself, your technology and leadership skills, and your attitudes? <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">

I learned that I am truly in the right field. As I stated earlier, this course connected the dots for me in so many ways. I feel comfortable now in my role as a mentor and technology leader on my campus because I think that I have made a big leap in both my knowledge base and comfort level with technology integration. I am passionate about the pedagogy behind differentiated instruction and innovative use of technology in the classroom. I want to be a ground breaker and engage my students in ways that will be meaningful to them. I keep going back in my mind to the video about the use of video games in the classroom, and prior to taking this course (or watching the video), I would not have thought about video games as authentic “problem solving’ models of assessment or instruction. My own children love them, and the speaker was right in that they will try, receive feedback, try again, receive more feedback, and keep trying until they have mastered the particular level or game. How great would it be to have that same kind of environment at school?! I am committed to trying to reach kids where they are, engage them, and encourage them to keep trying even when something is hard. I am not sure that I have the expertise yet to implement my vision with any success, but this class has motivated me to try. <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">