EDUC6914
Lisa Bowen
PART 1
Preliminary
Work:
January
14, 2015- The initial contact for the practicum was by e-mail to
my principal, assistant principal, and the technology coordinator for Morgan
County. The following is a copy of that
e-mail:
This semester, I am taking a practicum course
and need 60 hours of service concerning technology. I have recognized a
couple of needs at Cotaco but require your assistance in concluding
ideas and accomplishing my required goal while making it most beneficial to Cotaco and
the Morgan County School system.
There is not enough time for a thorough
implementation of technology into the classroom. Teachers still use
technology as a tool instead of student immersion through independent thinking
and activities. I would like to help change the situation. The 4th grade
has been learning computer coding through Khan Academy. They are having a
great time and learning. I would like to take it school-wide. I
could train the teachers by letting them participate in a trial run and guide
their class during computer lab. I would also like to send out a survey
to gain the knowledge of what teachers would like to add to their classroom
projects and then teach them at the next early release day. I could then
help in the classroom to complete the projects.
My concern is that using Khan Academy is too
basic for my practicum but at the same time we need to start somewhere.
I am asking for your help and your time to help me achieve my goal and make an
impact in our school.
Two primary assignments
during practicum –
1) Prepare and conduct
professional development training
a. Conduct needs
assessment
b. Conduct training –
video yourself doing the training and take pictures
c. Evaluate training –
learner evaluation; self-reflection; supervisor evaluation
d. Detail progress on
this training in weekly blog
2) Work with practicum supervisor
on tasks related to his/her job –
a. Detail your work in
your weekly blog related to these duties
b. List all tasks in
final letter from supervisor
Problem
Identified
After the initial contact was made, the
principal and I met in order to discuss where my needs would best be utilized
and most beneficial for the school or county.
Several ideas were discussed including teaching about Khan Academy,
Google Tools, and Learning Earnings. The
discussion concluded with two areas identified as the utmost problem areas for
Cotaco School.
1. Google Docs and Tools-
the majority of teachers at Cotaco School use the Morgan County e-mail system
set up through Google. The weakness is in
using Google Docs, Forms, Sheets, and other collaboration applications that can
be beneficial for the school and classroom.
2. Learning Earnings- a
tool that is set up through the STI program as a reward system for
students. A very brief introduction was
given at the beginning of the school year with little success in teacher
implementation.
Solution:
A variation of the Flipped PD Concept will be used for teaching
the identified problems. The first
meeting with the teachers will be on the February Early Release Day. After the initial meeting, then videos will
be used to update teachers and one-to-one help will be used inside the teacher
classroom as help is needed.
February 11, 2015-On this day, the teachers will be
meeting in the computer lab for professional development. A thorough overview of Google Docs, Forms,
Mail, and Search tips will be given in a face to face format. A Google Form will be sent out a couple of
days before the initial meeting in order to establish how many teachers are
using Learning Earnings, how points are rewarded and redeemed, and any
questions from the teachers. This form
will help to teach Google Forms and to identify the problems teachers are
facing with using Learning Earnings. The
teachers also expressed concern that a baseline was to be established in order
to have points and rewards used in the same format throughout the school in
order to be fair to the students.
After the initial meeting with teachers, then
questions will be answered by going directly into the teacher classrooms for
additional support in the implementation of both Google Tools and Learning
Earnings. Videos will be created to send
out after questions are established in order for teachers to view in their own
time. Then additional face to face time
will be used to insure that the tools are in fact being implemented.
Support:
The principal and assistant principle support the
problems that have been identified and have both been instrumental in providing
extra support and ideas for presentation.
Applications were decided to be kept at the local school level and
therefore the Technology Coordinator for the school system will not be the
contact person.
