Looking forward is never easy. Trying to see what’s out there, what lies ahead, what path to take. The way is forward, but the path isn’t always clear. But I am lucky, because I have been given a bit of light to see by.
The Master’s of Educational Technology Program at Michigan State University has helped me to hone not only my skills, but my goals as well and as I move forward I can more clearly envision what I would like to accomplish next.
It has occurred to me that this degree would allow me to remain “in education” but without the rigors of teaching or the stress of becoming an administrator. Neither of those options seem right to me right now. All things considered, I am still new to teaching! There are many aspects of working in the classroom, with or without technology, that I could point to as an area needing refinement. All along, my passion has been working in the classroom and I don’t feel like I’ve spent enough time there yet to move beyond that setting. In fine tuning those teaching skills I intend to work to find ways to make it a more student-centric environment and having students use technology helps in that goal. However, as the Master’s program has iterated, having the students use technology is not enough-and I agree.
The quote above really reflects where I would like to take my teaching. I want students to leave their metaphorical darkness in order that they may create a world that is that much more kind and just-but I want them to create the light. Project based learning allows me as a teacher to help students do multiple things at once: discover history and its connection to present day scenarios, learn technology skills, think critically, and learn to self-monitor and work in real-life team scenarios. There needs to be a sense of authenticity and purpose to what students are doing in my History class and so, I am looking forward to developing a stronger project-based curriculum. The steps for accomplishing this goal have become much more clear to me as I have progressed through the CEP 820 class where we are building our own course websites. The three year goal is to have a course website that covers the entire American History curriculum, and is not dependent on a purchased textbook. In that course students would be interacting online and in the classroom and every unit would have them creating some sort of project.
Achieving this goal would help me accomplish another: acting as a technology advocate. I believe strongly in pushing for technology availability and integration in schools, but I also understand what an uphill battle it can be. I believe that part of this struggle comes from the fact that many teachers often times feel like technology is ‘forced’ on them, and in the process, they feel their classroom skills becoming devalued. Instead of pushing for change from the top down (which I do recognize as necessary at times), I would rather be an example of what can be accomplished with minimal resources and without losing the integrity of the traditional classroom environment (that is, I’m not just sitting students down in front of screens). It’s hard to say what kind of activism may be necessary.
And there is so much to learn and so much opportunity for growth! I saw earning a Master’s degree as a way of becoming a “more professional” professional (if you catch my drift), but I realize now just how much that entails in a constant cycle of learning, teaching, growing, and then learning some more. There is no way that I feel like any sort of expert! I intend to stay active with several journals-both in my content area, but also in the Educational Technology field. And I intend to remain connected to the world of EdTech with all the means given and available to me. If there is one lesson that I have learned from the program is that technology makes it easy to ask questions AND get answers. Just as I encourage my students to ask questions, I want to keep asking them myself. This Master’s program has also taught be the value of joining professional communities by my experiences with MACUL (Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning) and I hope to gain member in both the Ohio Council for the Social Studies and the National Council for the Social Studies. Just as I hope to be an example in my own school, I know that I can learn from the example that other professionals set. In the end, it all about taking the light that you've been given, adding it to the light of others and then helping to spread that light among students. This then, is my goal: To be a bringer of light.
The Master’s of Educational Technology Program at Michigan State University has helped me to hone not only my skills, but my goals as well and as I move forward I can more clearly envision what I would like to accomplish next.
It has occurred to me that this degree would allow me to remain “in education” but without the rigors of teaching or the stress of becoming an administrator. Neither of those options seem right to me right now. All things considered, I am still new to teaching! There are many aspects of working in the classroom, with or without technology, that I could point to as an area needing refinement. All along, my passion has been working in the classroom and I don’t feel like I’ve spent enough time there yet to move beyond that setting. In fine tuning those teaching skills I intend to work to find ways to make it a more student-centric environment and having students use technology helps in that goal. However, as the Master’s program has iterated, having the students use technology is not enough-and I agree.
The quote above really reflects where I would like to take my teaching. I want students to leave their metaphorical darkness in order that they may create a world that is that much more kind and just-but I want them to create the light. Project based learning allows me as a teacher to help students do multiple things at once: discover history and its connection to present day scenarios, learn technology skills, think critically, and learn to self-monitor and work in real-life team scenarios. There needs to be a sense of authenticity and purpose to what students are doing in my History class and so, I am looking forward to developing a stronger project-based curriculum. The steps for accomplishing this goal have become much more clear to me as I have progressed through the CEP 820 class where we are building our own course websites. The three year goal is to have a course website that covers the entire American History curriculum, and is not dependent on a purchased textbook. In that course students would be interacting online and in the classroom and every unit would have them creating some sort of project.
Achieving this goal would help me accomplish another: acting as a technology advocate. I believe strongly in pushing for technology availability and integration in schools, but I also understand what an uphill battle it can be. I believe that part of this struggle comes from the fact that many teachers often times feel like technology is ‘forced’ on them, and in the process, they feel their classroom skills becoming devalued. Instead of pushing for change from the top down (which I do recognize as necessary at times), I would rather be an example of what can be accomplished with minimal resources and without losing the integrity of the traditional classroom environment (that is, I’m not just sitting students down in front of screens). It’s hard to say what kind of activism may be necessary.
And there is so much to learn and so much opportunity for growth! I saw earning a Master’s degree as a way of becoming a “more professional” professional (if you catch my drift), but I realize now just how much that entails in a constant cycle of learning, teaching, growing, and then learning some more. There is no way that I feel like any sort of expert! I intend to stay active with several journals-both in my content area, but also in the Educational Technology field. And I intend to remain connected to the world of EdTech with all the means given and available to me. If there is one lesson that I have learned from the program is that technology makes it easy to ask questions AND get answers. Just as I encourage my students to ask questions, I want to keep asking them myself. This Master’s program has also taught be the value of joining professional communities by my experiences with MACUL (Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning) and I hope to gain member in both the Ohio Council for the Social Studies and the National Council for the Social Studies. Just as I hope to be an example in my own school, I know that I can learn from the example that other professionals set. In the end, it all about taking the light that you've been given, adding it to the light of others and then helping to spread that light among students. This then, is my goal: To be a bringer of light.