EDLD+5370+-+Assignment+3.5

**Self-Assessment**
“Technologists have historically helped people learn about technology; in TF/TLV, they also help people learn with technology – regardless of the knowledge domain in which it is applied. In Standard V, technology facilitators are asked to structure both formal and informal professional learning environments” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p.107).

Standard V represents much more than simply using school purchased software to teach the instructors how to use their time more effectively. This standard lists ways in which a technology facilitator can assist instructors in not only using their time more wisely, but becoming more efficient and independent with the technology that is available to them. If the instructors are sufficiently confident in their use of computer technology, today’s software packages are more user friendly and usually have tutorials built into their programs enabling the user to build any type of lesson plan or projects that they are requiring. Other teaching tools can be found online, if the instructors know where to search for them and if they know they exist.

Some problems that have stemmed from the more advanced technology-driven classrooms can be found as “Educators complain that they do not have time to learn how to apply them to educational purposes,” says Williamson and Redish (2009, p. 103). While some argue that the professional development workshops should alleviate this dilemma, others feel having online training allowing the teachers to learn on their own time could be a solution. “The technology leader realizes that if the online training is well designed and well monitored, hundreds of teachers will experience effective online learning for the first time – providing them with a model for designing online learning experiences for their own students” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 115).

As I have read about the different types of technology that is used in classrooms, I understand how frustrating it can in becoming proficient in a short amount of time, both for the technology facilitators and the instructors. It seems as if the technology wave is seemingly changing and revising software products alone, every 6-12 months. The only reassurance that one can have is that school districts are not in the habit of buying new versions of software from their school budgets more frequently than once a year. In that light, a technology facilitator would be able to follow the guidelines of Standard V in effectively planning and creating educational opportunities for the teaching staff that they are assigned.

In the creation of my field-based internship activities, I selected the topic of educating teachers on products currently in use in the school district. I know that with their better understanding of the capacities of the software they are required to use, it will assist in building their confidence, as well as provide them with a renewed independence in building their own creative classroom lesson plans. When an instructor is confident in his or her own abilities, their own classroom of students will also reflect on that.

**Learn as a Learner**
As I read through the standards, indicators and tasks, I do see that more time is needed during the school year to provide technology instructional workshops. I am also keenly aware of attempting to condense an eight-hour day of instruction down into smaller increments of time to allow for professional development workshops and the reality is overwhelming. In my opinion, using the weeks prior to a new school year to offer any type of workshop would be much more effective in that it would allow for a more relaxed environment for learning and collaboration between faculty members. As software products become more advanced in the buttons and whistles that they offer, more time is needed to absorb the instruction that is needed to use them.

Technologies that could be taught during that time frame could include: Google Docs, Quizdom, Skyward, Microsoft Office, Wikis and Blogs, and Digital Imaging. These classes would be offered at a beginner level, but would demonstrate the new tips and tricks that teachers could use and it would initiate conversation between them about what might be available for the upcoming year.

By taking advantage of last summer month before the new school year begins, a variety of concepts that teachers teach during the year could be discussed and adaptations to the new software could be used as examples.“Learners bring unique prior knowledge, experience, and beliefs to a learning situation. Every learner has experiences that influence his or her understanding of the world. Those unique experiences are the foundation for learning. They provide opportunities for personal connections with new content” (Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, 1999). By using examples of what the teachers are using on a daily basis, they would be able to see the effectiveness of the new skills they have learned and be able to adapt them more efficiently in into their classrooms.

**Lifelong Learning Skills**
As I have worked in a technology based work environment for many years, I have attended many software and professional workshops. Some environments were collaborative while others were more instructive. I tend to agree with Williamson and Redish as they stated, “Adults prefer learning that is self-directed and directly related to their work. They also understand that adults learn better from actively constructing knowledge through solving problems or producing products with peers than they do from passive, traditional modes of instruction” (2009, p. 107).

In my present position as Web Designer for a local community college, I do prefer to work through my own individual problems with the highly technical web software that I use. I tend to work more effectively in that manner, in consideration of the tasks at hand, but there are times when I do require further assistance and a call for help is initiated. Most times, the technologist person that I contact, she being the former webmaster, guides me through the complicated software, providing answers to my questions along the way, and helping me understand the somewhat complicated pathway she is following. The authors of our text would agree with her methods as they stated, “Instead of telling students the answer, the teacher asks questions to help them discover the answer themselves” (Sprague & Dede, 1999, p.7). With this method of instruction, I find I am able to internalize the information that the former webmaster is showing me and will be able to better remember it for my next website challenge.

In my former employment as a Graphics manager, I worked with college professors and staff members on a continual basis. For some, I provided the finished visual art project for their classroom or teaching displays, others I would help answer their questions about software they were using to produce lesson materials in their own offices. Most software questions were very basic in comparison to the graphics software that I used on a daily basis, but nevertheless vital to the instructor that was searching for assistance and immediate answers. I always tried to answer their questions with patience and enough detail that they would be able to somehow remember the digital pathway that I lead them on. Some would remember, most would not, but I always remembered how frustrating it was for me, when the computer age had just begun and the DOS system was the only game in town!

**References**
Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every K-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene: International Society for Technology in Education.

Southwest Educational Developmental Laboratory, (1999). Learning as a personal event: A brief introduction to constructivism. Retrieved from http://www.sedl.org/pubs/tec26/intro2c.html

Sprague, D. & Dede, C. (1999). If I teach this way, am I doing my job: Constructivism in the classroom. Leading and Learning 27(1). Retrieved from The International Society for Technology in Education at http://imet.csus.edu/imet9/280/docs/dede_constructivism.pdf