The course title was misleading and made me think that the course was about instruction of curriculum in a school setting. On the homepage it only stated “Instructional Leadership”, yet when copying the assignment pages those stated “Instructional Leadership: The Technology Link.” I was pleasantly surprised to find that it encompassed information and communication systems on a campus level. I feel the course covered the full spectrum of technology issues that are arising into today’s classrooms. After realizing what the course covered I now feel that I am more up to date with what is expected for technology and its growth on today’s campuses.
As a Principal, I have learned about gathering data such as, the AEIS report, for analyzing student progress as it pertains to their academic achievement. I have also found how to use the data from the STaR Chart summary to identify both strengths and weaknesses in teacher proficiency with technology tools. The STaR Chart summary also shows me where professional development adjustments need to be made for my campus. This information is then catalogued into the following year’s Campus Improvement Plan for future needs adjustments, as well; it shows me what professional development areas and courses I should be scheduling for our school needs.
On the Long Range Plan for Technology 2006-2020, I still feel a little less confident in my interpretation of the many areas that will have to be met in my leadership role. The overwhelming amount of information to be digested in The Plan is a factor in my feelings of apprehension. There are numerous stakeholders involved in The Plan that I am not completely familiar with. There are many persons dependent on the accurate and efficient interpretation by me of The Plan and the recommendations I would make along with the actions that will be required of me as an educational leader.
My abilities of adjusting to the technology requirements of this online course were successful and I feel more confident and proficient in using software programs such as Power Point Presentation, Excel Spreadsheets and Word Processing. And, to top it off, as a “digital immigrant,” I created my own blog with information and data, and I inserted my Power Point Presentation with the help of a Web Sharing Site. This is a technology tool I had never even heard of let along use it. I was amazed at what can be accomplished with these astonishing Web based sites if you know what you are looking for.
I feel I have broadened my knowledge base in the area of technology, yet I know I have a long way to go. With the continual and rapid growth in information and communications technologies, staying abreast with this growth will always be a priority in my professional career. I know to be an effective educational leader I will have to model proficiency in technology. My expectations will be high for my faculty and staff in the area of implementing the Technology TEKS. It will be crucial to demonstrate a positive attitude toward the use of technology at school for both teachers and students to succeed in the 21st century.
Blogs in the 21st Century classroom will be a voluble tool to use when teachers and students become more in tune with their use. Blogs make it easy to get valuable information from expert in a certain academic area. For instance, in “Blogging RSS” a Language Arts teacher decided to use a Weblog to carry on a conversation about a book outside of the class between students and the book’s author. This is an exciting sounding tool to get students interested in reading literature. In “Blog Revolution” it states that students and teachers can create and publish content online without knowing technical formatting language required to build a web page. These all seem to be revolutionary trends in 21st Century learning.
There are numerous valid concerns when it comes to blogging in a school environment. Social networking sites pose hazards to students because of naivety of adolescents when it comes to trust and honesty of those they are giving information to. All persons online are not always what they pretend to be. There are numerous stories about online predators that prey on the innocent. Our jobs as educators and parents are to monitor student use of blogs and make them aware of the dangers on the Web that lay in wait. Using the Web as a learning tool is a priority in today’s students’ academic life, and we as educators must model ethical use for the learners to get the educational value that blogs provide.
Blogs provide excellent interactive opportunities among school stakeholders on issues involving the district, campus, or community. An example of the blogs importance would be getting stakeholders input on a bond proposal for a district’s upgrading of its’ facilities. The district could post a proposal of needs, and request timely feedback from the community about its’ thoughts and concerns on the matter of the bond proposal. A Principal could have an idea for improving campus culture and would post a blog on the school campus web page and survey the faculty and staff for their impressions on the subject. Blogs can be an excellent reflection tool on a variety of issues and subjects.
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