Key Concept 3

3.1 Candidates will be able to apply models of technology in school (such as SAMR, TPACK, and/or TIM) to incorporate technology tools to improve teaching and learning.

At Mt. St. Joseph, I have quie a bit of freedom to teach content as I see fit. In the past, I have not always made the most productive choices. In British Literature, in particular, which deals with non-diverse, older pieces of writing, lessons can easily become as stale as the source material. It is up to the instructor to make it engaging and a dynamic learning experience for the learners. In ET605, we were given the opportunity to create a Unit Redesign, and I jumped at the chance to revise some of my Anglo-Saxon Literature lessons.

In the Redesign, I employed technology to revamp my old lessons. I employed ToonDoo, YouTube video clips, G Suite, and QR codes to create a more dynamic learning experience, and links to examples of these technologies are included in the artifact below. Also in the artifact below, you can read about the Redesign project and at the end of this report, I reflect on how I focused on SAMR to improve teaching and learning. I consider the TPACK model, as well, as instrumental in updating my lessons. The main thrust to my Redesign, derived from the TPACK model, is, "When adding technology to our classes and curriculums, we must understand how and why we are applying it." I believed this then and still do now. I am a firm proponent of the idea that you cannot simply have technology for its own sake. It must be incorporated transparently to guide students to achievement and learning.

3.2 Candidates will be able to demonstrate the ability to tackle challenging technical tasks.

ED608 asked our cohort to directly tackle a challenging technical task, and, as usual for me, I chose to focus on professional development and how better we could employ this at MSJ. The rationale of my Equity Project was that to help bring the gap in the digital divide, more of our students needed teachers to model for them appropriate uses of technology and make that technology available to them in class. Unfortunately, many teachers at my school prefer to teach without technology, and students in those class are not given the same opportunity as students in other classes.

This ED608 project germinated an earlier idea from ET680 about creating better forms of professional development for teachers and drew it closer to its ultimate form as my ET691 Internship. Working through convergent and divergent thinking processes, I narrowed my topic and honed in on the measureable gains I thought I could actually make. When I presented this project, I wasn't sure it was possible, but it intrigued me. The feedback I received from my peers in the cohort, however, encouraged me to follow up on the idea. It is one thing to hear praise from instructors, but when your colleagues in the cohort feel an idea is original and creative and worthwhile, you definitely follow through.

This ED608 project came to fruition this past Friday, July 20, in the form of MSJ EdFest, the first professional development experience of its kind at MSJ, complete with a student keynote speaker and teacher-inspired learning sessions. Please read more about this amazing day in my Internship Portfolio. The link to this portfolio can be found above.