EDLD 5364 Course Embedded Reflection - Wk 5

     What a journey EDLD 5364 has been.  This course has been a substitute course for me because I am not a technology student.  I consider myself to be about average when it comes to using technology, but I was very overwhelmed at the beginning of this class because of my unfamiliarity with certain technological aspects that would be required.  My group TEAM AWESOME 5364 has been great to work with.  I have learned so much from them.  I normally hate group projects, but because of this experience, I have become an even bigger advocate of technology and collaboration in the classroom.   

     As a teacher, I embrace the use of technology, but sometimes I did not use it adequately.  As an elementary principal, I can see even more advantages the use of technology in the classroom can add to students becoming more and more successful.  While I do not agree with the the concept about becoming Cyborgs, I do acknowledge that there is definitely a place for technology in the medical world.  The text, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, has been a great source of information to help me point my teachers toward great technology uses in the classroom.  Pitler discusses Blogs, Grading Software, Applications, Educational Websites, Videoconferencing, Social Media, and many other great educational technology tools.  The assignment of developing an ebook and an UDL lesson plan were also two great experiences that helped me to learn the importance of differentiating lessons to meet individual's needs.  

     Our group TEAM AWESOME developed a lesson over the Causes of the Texas Revolution.  In this lesson, we addressed the learning needs of six different groups using different strategies and technology tools to reach the subgroups of students.  We used Google Docs to collaborate and plan our lessons and activities.  We also used Google hangouts a couple of times to collaborate through videoconferencing.  Using these two applications helped me to become aware of ways that I could use these tools for teaching or even professional development trainings on my campus.  The creation of our website has also been a great experience for me.  I have learned how to create and link information onto a website.  I learned enough in this process that I think I could actually teach students how to create their own site, which they could use to keep an up to date electronic portfolio.

     I have to admit upon completion, that this course was enlightening.  It has helped me to open my eyes to maintaining an openness to allow my students to have the freedom to learn through experimenting and exploring technology.  

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.