Six+Course+Reflection

Lamar University
In my quest to become an educational technology leader, I hope to be able to share my abilities and knowledge with those in the educational field, whether in the profession of teaching or leading others. While my resume is quite diversified in the abilities that I have acquired over the years, my strengths lie within the technology field and the knowledge that I have gained from the computer-based positions that I have held.

**Position Goal**
My job position at Weatherford College is that of Web Designer. I have been employed with WC for a year and have found the information I have learned in the classes for this program beneficial in that particular role. Although I am not playing the role as professor for a class of high school graduates, I do find opportunities to instruct administrators, secretaries, and teachers about the college website. At this time, I’m not quite sure how my role will change after the completion of my M.Ed. degree, but I am looking forward to the possibilities. I have learned, after working for another community college as Graphics Manager for 16 years, not to be so focused in on a single career choice that you overlook what opportunities may appear on the horizon.

**Leadership Goal** In my twenty-plus-year career, I have seen how technology has shifted and changed. Mimicking the ebb and flow of an ocean, some technology developments have taken a strong hold on our society and others have not. With the surging of the waves onto the educational arena, it not only has taken a strong hold, but flooded the gates like a tidal wave.

As our young 21st century students have begun their educational journey, our teachers have found they are immersed in a digital world and challenged to present new lesson materials revised and edited for the “Digital Natives” as Marc Prensky (2001) had predicted. Today’s generation of instructors are now labeled as “Digital Immigrants” and now struggle in the student chair to learn the technology that is so eagerly accepted by their students. Many times, students are instructing the teachers on the classroom technology that surrounds them.

This challenge not only affects that K-12 grade levels, but also the higher education level with those similar “Digital Immigrants” struggling to comprehend this new educational technology. If students are taught the new technology in grade school levels, they sometimes find themselves facing a community college also struggling to upgrade to the new standards required of them by the state educational agencies. In essence, technology is affecting all levels of education and no matter what role you play there will always be a need for technologist trained in the educational technology.

**Vision of Educational Technology**
As mentioned in the //2011 Horizon Report//, “The abundance of resources and relationships made easily accessible via the Internet is increasingly challenging us to revisit our roles as educators in sense-making, coaching, and credentialing ” (Levine, Smith, and Smythe, 2009). Our population is immersed in the technical gadgets of our century. Mobile devices of every kind is now available and flooding our markets with gadgets, such as the Kindle and iPad. Books, magazines, and other reading materials are now available to download to your electronic devices of choice. Libraries are considering changing their shelves of dusty periodicals into drawers of DVD’s or having the digital archived onto computer systems to be shared between several community libraries at one time and open twenty- four hours a day. No longer will you have to struggle to “get to the library before they close”! With this digital emergence, the mass population is now expecting to learn, what they want to learn, and when they want to learn it. Companies are also struggling to “keep up” with the public demand as new versions of software and products seemingly repopulate the shelves every six months. It is now common to hear the frustrations of consumers and students alike when digital connections are not available or devices are no longer suitable for the higher version of technology data feeds.

Typical school desks with the storage bin underneath your seat to house your folders and various textbooks have now been replaced with laptop computers that are loaded with all the school software and programs needed during that academic year. Wire-bound calendars are now replaced with various electronic versions that can be downloaded to your iPad, computer or cell phone, to keep your schedule up-to-date on all your electronic tracking devices. Homework that is shared between a variety of personal devices now eliminate the old excuse of “the dog ate my homework.”

As with all changes and developments over the centuries, we are finding that we can never reverse the flood waters of advancement. As the //2011// //Horizon Report// also concurs, “These trends and challenges are a reflection of the impact of technology that is occurring in almost every aspect of our lives. They are indicative of the changing nature of the way we communicate, access information, connect with peers and colleagues, learn, and even socialize.”

**What I Learned**
**Self-Reflection** Although the past eighteen months have seemingly flown past, the hours that I have invested into this program and the development of the skills as an Educational Technologist, have been forever etched upon my brain cells. I believe I have worked harder for this degree than any other goal I have set for myself. I have learned a great deal about myself, the technology that has saturated our everyday living, my leadership skills, as well as my attitude towards it all.

** Myself **
In reflecting back to the beginning of my master’s program, it’s hard to believe that I have come so far in this journey. I remember so vividly a group of disgruntled college employees fed up with being overlooked for well-deserved advancements and opportunities, deciding to take a positive action to better our employment status. I had been searching for an interesting master’s degree that would cause financial ruin to my family or myself, as well as obtainable before I had turned 100 years old!

Although I lacked the professional skills as a teacher, I have had many opportunities to teach in one form or fashion in my career, and in my personal life. At one time, I did have aspirations to be an Art teacher in a school for the handicap or deaf. But alas, my career choices took me down a different life path leading to the title of Graphics Manager and supporting teachers in the college educational arena.

** My Attitudes **
I had my insecurities about beginning a master’s degree program, especially in a field that was somewhat unfamiliar to me, but found the reassurance of class subjects as //Multimedia Video// //Technology//, //Web Design//, and //Digital Graphics// – all subjects that I was accustomed to using in my daily work life – how hard could it be? Not being one to turn away from an opportunity to better myself or my career, I cautiously proceeded. As I completed the required information to be submitted online, my brain kept reviewing all the information that I had found at local universities and their master’s programs that were available. I kept coming back to the reasoning of “If you pursue a MFA at another university, you will be taking classes similar to that of your BFA, why do you want to study something you are already proficient at?” Only one logical conclusion made sense,”I want to learn something new that will enable me to share what I’ve already learned.” I found all the cards were “stacked in my favor” and I had nothing to lose! Taking that first step into the dark unknown was inevitable and take it, I did.

**Technology & Leadership Skill**
I was pleased and surprised of how well I scored in the class work that I was assigned and thoroughly enjoyed the subject matter. Since I had no children in my home, I found learning about the school systems and how they function a completely new and fascinating subject. As I studied about the technology that is becoming more and more available for classrooms of all age groups, I was surprised to learn of the struggles within those very classrooms. As students embrace the technology, because they’ve known nothing else, teachers struggle to learn the new technology and “keep up” with the students that they are leading into the 21st century.

With this new discovery, I now know what role I may play in this rapidly advancing Educational Technology field. Embracing technology has always been easy for me, although I am one of the original “Digital Learners.” Prensky (2001) As I have taken on the responsibilities as Web Designer for a different community college, than I had originally worked at the beginning of this journey, I have found the knowledge I have gained from my studies has been readily available to share with my new colleagues. My newly learned knowledge of the educational field has been helpful to the college planning committees that I participate in that attempt to predict what might be needed for classroom instruction for these “Digital Natives” Prensky (2001). As K-12 schools are attempting to update their classrooms into the 21st century technology, the colleges and universities are also struggling to provide those high-tech learning gadgets that new students will expect to be available in their higher education pursuits.

In reflecting over the many months of consistent and dedicated study in the Educational Technology Leadership Master's program, I am still in awe of the progress I have made throughout this program. I have put my courage and determination to succeed to the test and have found just how much can be gained when you don't lose sight of your goal. As I took on courses and subjects that were completely out of my comfort zone, I did so with an a sense of adventure and a desire to pass on what I had already learned in the sometimes highly technical field of advertisement.

To my surprise, I found that selecting six courses that were the most influential in my progress was fairly easy. All the courses in this program I found very useful in different ways, but there were some that stood out from the others. While some courses were familiar to me, (i.e. digital graphics and multimedia subjects) others, would provide excellent hands-on learning and would prove to be very useful in my pursuit of a career as a Technology Facilitator. The six that I chose were:
 * 1) EDLD 5306 / Concepts of Educational Technology
 * 2) EDLD 5364 / Teaching with Technology
 * 3) EDLD 5366 / Digital Graphics & Desktop Publishing
 * 4) EDLD 5363 / Multimedia & Video Technology
 * 5) EDLD 5388 / Web Development & Design
 * 6) EDLD 5345 / Human Resource Management

**EDLD 5306 / Concepts of Educational Technology** ====EDLD 5306 marked the beginning of a journey that would take me from a well-adjusted career in the Graphics and Advertising field in a higher education market – to a more informed and knowledgeable advocate for supporting educational instructors with the technology and tools they need in teaching our “digital natives” in this 21st century. In consideration that I was not one with deep career roots in the educational field as a teacher, this class provided a better understanding of Texas STaR Charts and digital natives. ====

====<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Having no prior knowledge of the struggles within the educational system, my eyes were soon opened to the reality of our classrooms. I quickly learned that although my knowledge of technical systems and computer technology was great, my ranking was that of a “digital immigrant.” I learned from the fascinating writings of Marc Prensky (2001) that this ranking includes those that still have one foot in the past and one foot in the future. While I see a slight advantage in having knowledge of the way “it used to be,” there are still some time wasting habits that, for some, are hard to break (i.e. printing out all my assigned readings to study and highlight with a marker). ====

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">**EDLD 5364 / Teaching with Technology** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Teaching with Technology introduced me to a number of online tools that promoted a collaborated working atmosphere between class members. I learned how effective Web 2.0 tools would be within the corporate world, as well as an educational atmosphere. Technology tools such as Google Docs and sites; wiki’s, blogs, rubrics, graphic organizers, and self-assessments were just a few of the examples provided (Pitler, Hubbel, Kuhn, & Malenoski,2007).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Since I had never worked in this type of collaborative atmosphere and especially using this type of software or web tools, I found the possibilities very exciting. I thoroughly enjoyed working in a collaborative team with members that were scattered to all ends of the state of Texas. The process reinforced the ideas that being able to instruct a classroom of students no matter what their home base location might be, whether rural, or interurban, would give them a much broader perspective on their homework assignments. Watching You-Tube presentations about distance learning classrooms in Alaska and how they are able to collaborate with other schools within their remote location was fascinating, as well as informative.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Our creative assignment in using the CAST UDL’s e-book builder was interesting in that it allows teachers easily create online multimedia lessons, or “books”, that use a variety of instructional strategies in addressing multiple learning styles. I had to concentrate on a third grade audience level that this project would be used for, as well as learn new software in building the presentation. My strengths were evident in manipulating the software, however my biggest weakness was in gearing my presentation toward a class of third graders and not to overwhelm them with adult viewpoints of the subject matter. < [|Book Builder – Nature's Food Chain] >

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">**EDLD 5366 / Digital Graphics & Desktop Publishing** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In consideration that this class was teaching about a media field that I have worked in for the past 20 years, I felt quite comfortable in the multimedia concepts that were being taught. When our assignments called for creating a logo and a newsletter, I knew that my expertise would finally work in my favor. I understood the importance of knowing your audience and developing your newsletter to appeal to that particular group of readers. In my understanding of various media tools that are available, I know they will be very useful for creative instructors in the educational field.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I had not, however, experienced the integration of animation into an online newsletter using Adobe Flash. Being a Graphic Designer, I had access to all the software needed, but had never had the time to really learn some of the aspects of software not commonly needed in my current job position. I enjoyed having a legitimate reason to play and experiment using tools that I had had available to me on my own personal computer for years!

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I thoroughly enjoyed this course and the lessons that were taught. It reminded me that details are so often overlooked, but so important in providing us in that link of communication that instructs and very often entertains our prospective audience. What we produce whether on paper or on a computer screen provides our visual arena with a 3-second window to advertise who we are and how we present ourselves to others.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">**EDLD 5363 / Multimedia and Video Technology** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Although my current career involves multimedia, it does not include the field of Videography. The planning and production part of this class was very time consuming, likewise with finding the right software to use that would be user friendly to an extent that none on our team would have a hardship learning it overnight.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Much was learned in this course about collaboration between students and teachers while focusing on pre-production, production, and post-production. While each member of our team took on the different roles as videographer, graphic designer, and writer we were able to learn and collaborate well together as a team. In using Google’s chat program, we were able to assign meeting times where we could discuss ideas and any problems that may have come up in our separate production assignments.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Our team members were using either the Mac or PC format, so extra care was taken to be able to share editing responsibilities. Investigating various FREE video products on the market was enlightening in itself, as software programs contain various buttons & whistles promising to make your editing life a breeze. The decision was finally narrowed down to the talents of iMovie and a star was born!

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">“Although multimedia can provide opportunities for improved learning, it can also be ineffective, even detrimental, when implemented poorly” (Shank, n.d., para. 9). Throughout our coursework, we have concentrated on how using the new technology available can support education for diverse learners. Unfortunately, there are many well-meaning people that do poorly in using multimedia tools. I have learned a great deal in working around the challenges within this course and have now have assisted in the production of a well produced video available to the world on You-Tube. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzLSzFqZw-M>

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">**EDLD 5388 / Web Development & Design** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">As I reflect upon this course, I found it provided me with background information that might have been recorded at the development stage of a school district’s website. I was not present in the beginning stages of the existing website for the college I work, but I am now employed as their main Web Designer that reconstructs and maintains the website for a college campus and three satellite educational centers. The exposure to the three competency areas of website design and development in this course, as well as site administration, will be very helpful in visualizing an overall picture of web design.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There were many tools we learned about in this course that I was not familiar with including surveys, parent and student portals, wikis, blogs and other social media, as well as support for online learning through podcasting. I found that these are essential tools for today’s teachers for use in the classrooms and for our students to access; according to Rhoades (2009) “Today's faculty members (elementary through college) are using podcasts, wikis, chat rooms, online curricula and virtual realities to help students become successful in the classroom” (p. 24).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There was great emphasis focused on the required supporting school policies and guiding documents that offer direction for website development and web publishing. Policies that I follow and would implement in any classroom setting would include making sure all website content has a consistent look and feel, that it follows a content style guideline, has consistent navigation abilities, and communicates a message consistent with the campus, as well as district goals. Without this type of guidelines and a firm policy support, as the website is developed and updated, it can easily become disorganized and inconsistent in the information that it relays to the public. As different staff members rotate in the responsibility of the upkeep of the website, it would be increasingly difficult to find the information they were seeking.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">As website navigation becomes more and more a critical component of website design, so does the relevant content that fills the pages. However, if your audience cannot find the relevant information that they seek, the effort is wasted. As website browsers increase the competition between their companies, users find favor in one navigation system over another. Kaiser (2006) reminds us that “If it is to be most helpful to your visitors, your web site will probably need to incorporate a combination of navigation types” (p. 119).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">**EDLD 5345 / Human Resource Management** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This particular class stressed looking at our school campuses and principals, as well as ourselves with an objective eye. The objectives seemed to point to the lessons of our youth of treating people as we would want to be treated. There should be more time spent in instructing teachers on how their actions could be viewed by their coworkers, students, and the public. Our sense of self is often reflected on our jobs and our environments. Add into the mix, a classroom of students and how they perceive their teachers or how they are influenced by their teacher’s attitudes and actions. It is important that we examine our campus culture closely and ponder how other people might perceive our schools in comparison to others.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ethics not only touch the lives of the teachers in the classrooms, but the principals as well. While principal competencies may focus more on the administrative tasks, it must also align closely with campus cultures. Principals are viewed as the main example of a school’s culture, if he is perceived to not embrace all cultures residing in his care, teachers and students may also reflect the same bias. Our schools must help parents teach our students to be tolerant of those that may be different, whether in dress, attitude, or religion. Our schools are functioning poorly in the subject of culture tolerance and it has now become a problem world-wide.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We were asked in the assignment for this course to evaluate ourselves along the lines of what our personal strengths were in relation to a principal’s competency. In a typical manner, personal reflections can be painfully honest at times, but it is important for administrators to realize that just as it is for their staff, they need to continue to grow professionally as well**.**

<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">**Reflection of the Educational Technology Leadership Program**

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;">In entering into this journey as a twenty-plus veteran of the advertising and graphics field, I was hoping to gain a master’s degree that would assist me in teaching what I have learned. I have often heard, “//those that can’t – teach//,” but I have proven in my numerous years of wearing an assortment of stylish titles, such as administrative secretary, technical illustrator, graphic artist, graphics manager, photographer, web master, and finally a web designer, that it isn’t that I can’t be successful in those positions of employment, I have been successful. I now make that choice to pass the torch, as they say, and teach what I know. In the beginning days of my college career, I was focused on a future as a special education teacher. I wanted to teach art to special education students. At the time, I wasn’t aware of career counselors or that they could guide me in the direction I wanted to go. However, I had heard of many students regretting their degree choices after many years of study. I did not want to be numbered among the dissatisfied, so I proceeded to take employment of different types to experience the variety of job duties, all before I was married to a specific career choice. Wise? I’m not sure my mother saw it in that light, but it seemed to make sense to me.

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Forward some twenty years later, with a successful career in graphics and web design, the winds of change have now begun to blow. Thoughts of what I have learned and what I have of value that can be left behind for some other aspiring artist or dedicated teacher weave in and out of my artistic and technology-laden brain cells. So, this is my journey leading to the doorsteps of Lamar University and their Educational Technology program. It is with this degree that I have found a way to fine tune my teaching abilities and interests in assisting others in their educational technology pursuits. The new world in which we live is now influenced by an ever-expanding technology. If we all learn the language and the knowledge it has to offer, we all benefit from this wave of change that has consumed us, no matter if we’re the “digital immigrants” or “digital learners” (Prensky, 2001). I only claim to be a digital survivor!

<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">**Three-Year Professional Development Plan** <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Being taught and instructed by wise, educational professionals, who have invested their time and patience in my educational pursuits. It is only understandable that they would desire some type of confirmation as to how this newly acquired knowledge will be shared and developed over the next three years of my life. It is, at this moment, I know how the little sparrow feels as it is pushed out of the nest by its concerned parent and expected to spread its little wings and take flight. Some little sparrows take to their first flight with courage and determination, while other timid ones, hop around looking for an object of height to jump from to test their wings a little while longer. <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;">I came into this program with no anticipation of what opportunities might arise at the completion, let alone over the next three years. With my career firmly planted in the college educational field, I have had many opportunities to assist with not only new students, just beginning their college journey, but with college professors struggling with the new technology that is being installed into their classrooms. With the knowledge I have gained from the Academic Partnership program courses, I have already had numerous occasions to speak to college professors about new Web 2.0 technology tools available to them and their students. I feel the time and energy that I have put forth in my studies about the 21st century educational technology, has already begun to show its worth in abundance. No matter what golden opportunities arise in my future, I will always be grateful for the decision I made to pursue my master’s degree at Lamar University and for the professors that were so supportive in my goals to “teach the teachers.” What wonderful examples you are to all of us – thank you!

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: center;">**REFERENCES**
<span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: center;"> <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Fertig, R. (2007). When "acceptable" becomes unacceptable. //The Journal//. //Retrieved from: [| http://thejournal.com/Articles/2007/12/01/When-Acceptable-Becomes-Unacceptable.aspx] .//

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Johnson, L., Levine, A., Smith, R., and Smythe, T. (2009). //The 2009 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition.// Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Pitler, H. Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). //Using technology with classroom instruction that works.// Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Shank, P. (n.d.). The value of multimedia in learning. //Think Tank//. Retrieved from []. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). //Web 2.0: New tools, new schools.// Eugene, OR: //International Society for Technology in Education.//

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Texas Education Agency. Long-Range Plan for Technology, 2006-2020. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; text-decoration: none;">[| http://www.tea.state.tx.us/technology/etac]

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Texas STaR Chart. Retrieved May 28, 2011, from http://starchart.esc12.net/history.html

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Williamson, J. & Redish, T. (2009). //Technology Facilitation and// //Leadership Standards: What every K-12 leader should know and be able to do.// Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants: Part 1. //On the Horizon//, 9(5), 1-6. <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">Prensky, M. (2005/2006). Listen to the natives. //Educational Leadership//, 63(4), 8-13.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Rhoades, E. (2009). Can Web 2.0 Improve Our Collaboration? (Technology Usage in the Classroom). Techniques, 84(1).