Standard 5.1
Professional learning is nothing new in the world of education. Teachers have been training teachers to use new tools and strategies for many years. The best way to determine what teachers need is to conduct surveys about tools and strategies on their use and comfort levels. I was able to conduct a needs survey on a colleague when I began coaching him for a project. This needs assessment was a survey that I distributed to my colleague before we had our session. From this survey I gained a better understanding about what technology my colleague knew and how he used it in his classroom, if any at all. Also from the survey I was able to get a better understanding of what my colleagues’ daily classroom routine is. Not only was I able to get a look at his classroom, but his attitude towards technology in general. This document was put together in the form of a narrative, with references to the survey that was taken and to the LoTi framework.
This needs assessment was developed to determine how and what I would coach my colleague on. From this I chose grade level and subject area tools to conduct professional development sessions. My colleagues’ strengths were in his content area, but he was very weak in technology tools other than managerial tools needed to perform daily tasks. From the assessment my colleague determined that he was very interested in Google Docs and how he could use it in his classroom. He also mentioned needing help with the online learning platform, My Big Campus, which our system recently purchased. From this assessment I put together five coaching sessions to help implement technology tools in his classroom. During these sessions I was able to deliver information, strategies, and best practices for Google Docs. Curving my colleagues’ attitude was the best part of the assessment. While modeling and showing the best uses for the tools mentioned, I was able to shoe my colleague easy trouble-shooting tips to make the experiences more enjoyable and worthwhile. I say this because one of the reasons my colleague did not like to use technology was because of the infrastructure at our school. Changing his attitude was not difficult, all I had to do was show him ways around the infrastructure problems so that the lessons would run smoother for him. This also helped him maintain his classroom so that there was no down time to get off task.
I feel like this experience was a good experience for me to help me mature in the realm of coaching others. This was really the first time that I was one on one with a colleague of mine. Being one on one was interesting because you have the persons full attention rather than a large group where some might not being paying attention. I actually felt in charge while conducting our sessions, but at the same time very easy to work with. While this was a successful coaching project I think that the next time I am coaching another teacher I will spend more time watching them teach before creating a needs assessment. This way I have their input about what they want to change as well as some observations of how they teach. This way I can mold the tools to their teaching styles. This way it will not seem like I am trying to change their style altogether. I feel that I helped this teacher create a more enriching learning environment as well as an engaging one. By being engaged in rich learning students will be better prepared for their future. Once other teachers see how this can affect their lessons hopefully more will jump on board with wanting to implement technology in their classes. Student work and teacher observations will be the best way to assess this in the short run. In the long run lower drop-out rates due to engagement and higher standardized test scores because of the enriched learning learning environment.
This needs assessment was developed to determine how and what I would coach my colleague on. From this I chose grade level and subject area tools to conduct professional development sessions. My colleagues’ strengths were in his content area, but he was very weak in technology tools other than managerial tools needed to perform daily tasks. From the assessment my colleague determined that he was very interested in Google Docs and how he could use it in his classroom. He also mentioned needing help with the online learning platform, My Big Campus, which our system recently purchased. From this assessment I put together five coaching sessions to help implement technology tools in his classroom. During these sessions I was able to deliver information, strategies, and best practices for Google Docs. Curving my colleagues’ attitude was the best part of the assessment. While modeling and showing the best uses for the tools mentioned, I was able to shoe my colleague easy trouble-shooting tips to make the experiences more enjoyable and worthwhile. I say this because one of the reasons my colleague did not like to use technology was because of the infrastructure at our school. Changing his attitude was not difficult, all I had to do was show him ways around the infrastructure problems so that the lessons would run smoother for him. This also helped him maintain his classroom so that there was no down time to get off task.
I feel like this experience was a good experience for me to help me mature in the realm of coaching others. This was really the first time that I was one on one with a colleague of mine. Being one on one was interesting because you have the persons full attention rather than a large group where some might not being paying attention. I actually felt in charge while conducting our sessions, but at the same time very easy to work with. While this was a successful coaching project I think that the next time I am coaching another teacher I will spend more time watching them teach before creating a needs assessment. This way I have their input about what they want to change as well as some observations of how they teach. This way I can mold the tools to their teaching styles. This way it will not seem like I am trying to change their style altogether. I feel that I helped this teacher create a more enriching learning environment as well as an engaging one. By being engaged in rich learning students will be better prepared for their future. Once other teachers see how this can affect their lessons hopefully more will jump on board with wanting to implement technology in their classes. Student work and teacher observations will be the best way to assess this in the short run. In the long run lower drop-out rates due to engagement and higher standardized test scores because of the enriched learning learning environment.
individual_teacher_technology_assessment_narrative.docx | |
File Size: | 0 kb |
File Type: | docx |