Home

Reflection Script:

My name is Bjorn Behrendt and and this is my electronic portfolio for my Me.d Program through UVM.

When I signed up for the Masters in Curriculum and Instruction program I had a much different background than many of my peers. My previous experience and education is that of a technician rather than a teacher. I am not sure if this put me at a disadvantage or advantage, but it did mean that the theories and concepts were brand new to me, and I didn't have any classroom experience to reflect on. What I did have was knowledge of educational technology, and a need to help train teachers to integrate those tools. Continuing my schooling with an educational focus has helped me greatly understand the teaching role and how curriculum should be built, which in-turn has helped me build better professional development.

Prior to my UVM journey I had never written a lesson plan, so the concept of Understanding by Design was one of the most helpful things I learned. I always knew people learned differently and Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences allowed me to finally identify the type of learner I was working with. The idea of a digital native and digital immigrant was also very prominent in all the classes. During one of the classes I came up with the concept of teaching change as a skill, which I want to explore further.

My role in the schools system is changing from purely technical to tech integration. The theories, concepts and tools I am learning about are greatly helping me to excel at my new role. Being able to talk the lingo of an educator has helped get administrators and teachers on board with new initiatives. The most popular of which is the use of Google Apps in the classroom. For example explaining the summative and formative assessment has helped make the adoption of its use very quick and well accepted.

I have learned a lot during my UVM Journey and hope to take what I have learned and apply it to building better professional development programs for schools.