My Five Year Educational Technology Plan
Heather Sanderson
June 27, 2019
My five year technology plan will focus on the professional development I will attain, the equipment acquisition I will purse, and the assessments I will be implementing.
I noticed when reading through the Connecticut State Department of Education’s Plan Template it said that teachers should consider the “technology PD activities that have been offered to teachers” (Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), 2012 – 2015). I have decided to take advantage of the summer technology professional development sessions my school offers. My school has 23 different technology professional development sessions that are offered ranging from learning about the newest online games, to online student journals, to student assessment and data collection. There were at least 10 that I felt I would benefit greatly from. These professional development sessions are run by teachers in the district that have experience using the technology in the classroom. These sessions are free and vary every summer as the technology needs of teachers change.
Another area of professional development I would like to pursue is seeking out and working with scientists and engineers in the field to bring their expertise into my classroom. Connecticut’s Commission for Educational Technology states teachers should “identify and analyze untapped and unrealized resources that exist in every corner of Connecticut, in regional and national networks, and online (Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology, 2015). We have Pratt and Whitney nearby and I am sure they would love to work with schools; I would also like to work more closely with The University of Connecticut because I have heard they have been very supportive of helping teachers implement STEM education.
The third area of professional development I would like to pursue in my five year plan is to take advantage of the myriad of online open educational resources. The group GoOpen CT which is comprised of teachers, professors, students, leaders, and policy makers and backed by the Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology wants teachers to embrace “the use of open educational resources (OER) across Connecticut” (Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology, 2015).
For my five year educational technology plan I am committed to learning how to use the new MacBook Air laptop I am receiving this upcoming school year. For the past seven years I have been working on my issued Lenovo laptop but my school is upgrading next year to the MacBook Air. I am also dedicated to keeping up to date on the latest educational apps available on the iPad since I have a school issued iPad and all of my students have one as well. In the ISTE Standards for Educators 1a states that teachers should “explore and apply pedagogical approaches made possible by technology and reflect on their effectiveness” (International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), 2019). My goal is to make the most efficient use of the iPad as a teaching tool in my classroom.
There is some cool science technology I would like to acquire to use in my lab. When reading through the different science lessons on What Works Clearinghouse, I came across an air pressure assignment that proved to be an effective lesson that I would like to implement in my classroom (Institute of education Sciences, 2016). When I click on the link to The Concord Consortium where I was able to download the student journal and teacher notes for the air pressure assignment I realized I needed an air pressure sensor to do the experiment (The Concord Consortium, 2005). The sensors cost around $90 so I am planning on ordering one next year when we put in for our science budget since the budget for this year was already due. I also would like to research other lab equipment for the science classroom to get my students the most up to date technology to prepare them in their pursuit of future science endeavors.
The final area in my five year educational technology plan is assessment. With one to one iPads at my school it has become routine for me to assess my students almost daily through iPad games or closure questions on the iPad. These “formatives” are a quick and easy way to gauge my students understanding and guide my teaching practices. When reading through the National Education Technology Plan: Future Ready Learning: Reimagining the Role of Technology in Education I found the section on assessment to be very informative. There was a chart that showed where assessment has been to where it is going. For example assessments should be embedded in learning rather than after learning, they should be universally designed so that all students can access them, they should have adaptive instead of fixed pathway, and the students should get their feedback immediately (US Department of Education, 2016). I have been implementing most of these changes the past few years, but for my five year plan I would like to work on having an adaptive pathway on my assessments to further personalize the learning of my students. I know the Smarter Balance tests my students take have different questions of varying levels based on how students answered the previous questions. I would like to implement a similar scenario. I envision the questions becoming more difficult as my students demonstrate mastery.
I visited my districts webpage to take a look at our technology mission. I am lucky to work in a district that values technology and puts money towards implementing technology. Our website boasts about having an iPad for every student in every grade and about the implementation of Apple Classroom on all iPads so that teachers can properly monitor all students’ screens and take control of the screen if needed. We also have a section on data security for our students with a list of the web-based systems that our district uses.
As I put together my five year technology plan I realize how important it is to evaluate where I am currently with technology and to set goals for myself for the future. Technology is ever changing and is vital to stay current in order to have the best classroom implementation and learning outcomes for my students.
References
Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology. (2015). Annual Report of the Commission for Educational Technology: Inclusive of FY 2012 – 2015. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ct.gov/ctedtech/lib/ctedtech/annual_report_of_the_commission_for_educational_technology_2015.pdf
The Concord Consortium. (2005). TEEMSS 2 Retrieved from http://teemss2.concord.org/texas_instruments/investigation_technical_hint_toc_invid_12.html
Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE). (July 1, 2012 – June 30, 2015). EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY PLAN TEMPLATE (CSDE Educational Technology Plan Template '12-'15 [DOC]). Retrieved from http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2618&q=321166
Institute of Education Sciences. (2016). What Works Clearinghouse. Retrieved from https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2019). ISTE Standards for Educators. Retrieved from https://www.iste.org/standards/for-educators
US Department of Education. (2016). National Education Technology Plan: Future Ready Learning: Reimagining the Role of Technology in Education. Retrieved from http://tech.ed.gov/netp/