Herrington's technology pd action plan
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Sunday, March 20, 2011
Herrington's organizational chart
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Herrington's organizational chart
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Sunday, March 6, 2011
Blog Post #3
The National Educational Technology Plan was released in March of 2010 by the U.S. Department of Education. The basic goal of the plan is to give our students the resources they need to be competitive in a global economy. The NETP has a priority of reaching two challenging goals by the year 2020. One of the goals is to have 60% of the American population attain a 2 or 4 year degree. Along those lines, the other sweeping goal is to close any achievement gaps between subgroups, such as race or socioeconomic status. In order to achieve these goals we must be innovative and have continuous improvement in our education system. We must also work collaboratively to solve problems and meet challenges in order to achieve these goals. Accountability and assessment will be an integral part of this process. States will develop assessments that measure critical thinking, complex problem solving, collaboration, and multimedia communication throughout curriculum. Instruction will be data-driven. The new model calls for connected teaching, in which teachers are connected to other teachers as well as to their students through online communities. Professional development will also be collaborative and ongoing. In addition to the two overarching goals mentioned before, education will be guided by 5 basic goals. These are learning, assessment, teaching, infrastructure, and productivity. Reference is also made to some tough problems known as grand challenge problems. These will require teams of experts to develop plans and solutions. Technology will be crucial in helping America reach these aggressive and challenging goals. Also, time is of the essence since we have only nine years to accomplish this monumental feat.
Blog Post #2
I began teaching over twenty years ago. Because of this I was surprised that the first Long Range Technology Plan was written in 1998. I don't remember hearing anything about this in my early years of teaching. At that time we were so focused on TAAS scores that we hardly heard mention of technology. I learned through this progress report about how we are progressing in our technology goals. Some of the progress is in the area of teacher implementation of Technology Applications TEKS. Also, we have seen that high school students have successfully used technology to create educational games using computers, designend newspapers and yearbooks using desktop publishing, developed digital animation and even used video technology to increase achievement in math. Instruction in internet safety is another requirement of the Long Range Technology Plan. Students are expected to be computer literate by eighth grade. There are a number of pilot programs to attempt to increase student computer literacy and to increase student achievement throug the use of technology. One of these is the Technology Literacy Assessment Pilot. This provides an assessment measure of the Technology Applications. It has been found to significantly increase student progress toward achieving technology objectives. One of the pilot programs I found most interesting is the Technology Immersion Pilot. This is a pilot program which provides a laptop for every student, ongoing professional development for teachers, and online resources. Some of the results of this have been that both teachers and students believe that laptops improve student achiement. Also, students report that they use their laptops extensively, both at home and at school. I have heard about this program from several students in my cohort group and it is something I would very much like to have at my school. I found that there are many ways that we are using technology to help increase student achievement.
Blog Post #1
I have chosen to write about the area of Educator Preparation and Development. This was a weak area at my campus. I think schools struggle with this because some veteran teachers may be resistant to or confused about how to make the changes necessary to meet the technology needs of today's technology savvy students. To bring this about, colleges and universities are now providing educator preparation programs which provide instruction in current technology integration strategies in all curriculum areas. Teachers also learn how to use technology as a flexible tool to create collaborative and interactive learning environments customized to the students in their classrooms. To aid in these efforts, the SBEC provides Technology Applications Standards. The TEA also provides Technology TEKS to guide teachers in developing engaging technology application lessons. Local districts routinely offer professional development in the area of technology as an ongoing means of increasing student achievement through the use of technology. Federal mandates require that all states develop strategies for a comprehensive plan to help students learn through the use of technology. Trends indicate that progress has been made in this area. At the local level, faculties are using the STaR chart, professional develoopment, online learning, and campus mentoring and coaching to help teachers focus on the technology objectives set forth at the state and local level. At the state level, we have developed the Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology. This is another tool for campuses to use to increase technology applications in the classroom. At the national level, states are monitored in their success toward meeting the goals of their technology plans. I would recommend that improvements be made in the area of providing the tools necesary to implement the technology goals. Teachers need access to promethian boards, projectors, document cameras, laptops, and current software to help students achieve in all subject areas through the use of technology. This can be done by campuses including such expenditures in their CIP's and by districts providing equal funding to campuses throughout their districts. States can help in this effort by ensuring appropriate funding to districts to make such expenditures possible. This effort can also be assisted through Federal funding programs such as Title 1 for schools with significant percentages of low SES students.
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