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Narrative for Master of Education porfolio, CIT, ISU
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NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 1
Narrative for Master of Education Portfolio:
Curriculum and Instructional Technology
Colleen Ites
Iowa State University
Curriculum and Instruction Distance Program
Master of Education in Curriculum and Instructional Technology
2008-2011 Cohort Portfolio
2 April 2011
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 2
INTRODUCTION:
“I shall be telling this with a sigh -
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference”
~ Robert Frost
While Frost and I likely interpret this poem differently, as I reflect on my time in the
Cohort I find myself returning again and again to this quote. American education is now at a
crossroads with two choices for the future: teaching students the kind of mind-skills and core
competencies necessary to thrive and survive in an uncertain future, or following the skill and
drill of basic information found when standardized assessments control instruction. In 2007
several important events occurred in my life. I had returned to work after the birth of my
daughter, I read Thomas Friedman's The World is Flat, I had a practicum student from ISU who
worked in the CTLT, and I saw Karl Fisch's and Scott McLeod's "Shift Happens" on YouTube.
All of these items together helped me decide to apply for the Master of Education CIT program.
At the time I did not see how all these items were related, but I had begun to feel
suspicious of the push toward standardized assessments found in education and felt there had to
be more out there for my students. The birth of my daughter increased my desire to give my
students (and her) the best academic and societal survival skills possible. The ideas found in The
World is Flat addressed those 'other skills' I felt necessary for student success beyond the skills
that allowed students to have high test scores. Friedman's ideas instead spoke of empowering
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 3
students to become active and cooperative participants in their own education. This seemed to
be the beginning of that 'something more out there' for my students.
As a committee member on the State of Iowa Teacher Quality Enhancement Reading and
Writing Team I helped host a teacher symposium at Upper Iowa University. During this
symposium UIU President Dr. Alan Walker presented "Shift Happens" on YouTube and
expressed his experiences with these 'flat world' ideas at his multi-site university. Part of my job
during this symposium was to catalog student reactions to research samples of the Question
Answer Relationship (QAR) reading method; while some students did not take the process
seriously, others seemed to appreciate the ability to share feedback with the program and have a
voice in the process. The part I found shocking was the number of students who wrote their
answers using TXT or IM language; there was an assumption that this 'translation' would be
acceptable in a school setting. It was my first realization that these digital natives were truly
bilingual and needed to be taught the appropriate ‘when and where’ their second language would
be acceptable. This discovery seemed to solidify my decision to find an M. Ed program that
would allow me to cultivate these skills in myself and help my students do the same.
That school year I began to research programs that would utilize these skills, but as a new
parent and full-time teachers and coach, I didn't think I would find a program where I could
dedicate the time necessary to really fulfill my new-found passion for teaching. That spring I
had a practicum student who told me about the Curriculum and Instructional Technology
program at ISU that taught teachers how best to implement technology and encourage student
problem-solving and independence. When she told me that it was an on-line / on-campus
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 4
hybrid, I felt confident enough to inquire about applying. I had begun down the less-traveled
road and was uncertain where it would lead.
My own educational journey had many twists and turns, and my undergraduate years had
not been academically successful. I was a top-level student in high school, but I was lacking in
social and emotional maturity. After learning that you couldn't just memorize and repeat
information in college classes, I began to drift in the academic program at my university. I
entered college with aspirations to be a language arts teacher, but eventually I left that field for a
degree in business writing. Eventually I graduated and spent six years working in finance before
returning to earn my teaching endorsements. Because of my previous experiences in college, my
entrance into the Master's program at ISU was nerve-wracking; I didn't know if I had the
knowledge and drive to 'cut it' in this type of program; I feared what lie down that less-traveled
path.
The educators and staff at the CIT were welcoming but firm: you would need to leave
your comfort zone in order to succeed in this program. For many in the Cohort, leaving your
comfort zone involved working in a truly cooperative environment (where the whole was more
that its parts combined) and putting yourself out there on the Web in word, image, and sound. As
a Cohort we became very close and shared in both joys and sorrows together: one member's
marriage, the birth of babies for three members, the miscarriage of a baby and loss of a parent for
two other members, and the creation of an adoption family for another member. Instructors were
active participants on-line and in the classroom, giving advice and bouncing ideas off students
and each other. Students build a trust-based environment together to create and implement
exciting and cutting-edge ideas in classrooms and school districts across the country. As the
Cohort progressed I found that I was no longer afraid of 'not making the cut' and instead looked
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 5
forward to working with my peers and re-learning how to learn. My journey down the less-
traveled path was no longer frightening and instead encouraged me to push my thinking and try
new things in the classroom that I would never have imagined previously.
As I enter into the final phase of the Cohort I view it with a sense of melancholy. The
environment we have created has fostered support and encouragement for all involved. I would
daresay that we are unified in our desire and drive to change education for the better as a result
of our time at ISU. I will greatly miss this environment, as it has been both encouraging and
nurturing over the last three years, but am now committed to creating this type of virtual
environment for my future students and colleagues. The less-traveled path has given me the
tools, the knowledge, and the desire to make my students' education one that will give them
survival skills for school and beyond. And that, truly, has made all the difference.
PERFOMANCE INDICATORS / ADAPTED NETS STANDARDS
STANDARD 1: Technological Applications
Best classroom practices using technology: Teachers plan, design, and implement innovative
uses of technology that have implications for learning.
This standard speaks to the evaluation process teachers need to address while developing
their own curricula. To me the most important part of this standard is "innovative uses of
technology that have implication for learning." In CI 511, Technology Diffusion, Leadership
and Change, we read a book by Larry Cuban titled Oversold and Underused that greatly
affected me. In this piece Cuban addresses the way that society has assumed that by purchasing
the latest and greatest in technology equipment schools will be more tech savvy, and why this
isn't true. In explaining a case study of teacher Alison Piro, I was struck by her belief about
effective technology use in the classroom, "... through the use of computers students can
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 6
demonstrate their knowledge and show whether they reach the school standards teachers have
set. Computers, however, are not appropriate for all projects" (2003, p.70). This deep analysis of
not just what the technology can do but how it can best aid learning was a key element in my
own attitude toward instructional technology. Up until that time I had simply thought of a
technology integrationist as someone who would show fellow teachers a variety of technologies
and how they could be used in their rooms, but the evaluation of those technologies had not
struck me until I read the Cuban book.
In every course of the CIT M.Ed program students were required to create and implement new
or emerging technologies into their own classroom practices. This 'hand-on' process forced
students to leave their comfort zone and to see the implications of the planning and
implementation processes involved in utilizing a variety of technologies within the classroom.
The final essential component of this process was a reflection on these implementations. My
reflective paper from CI 505 with Dr. Ann Thompson was published by ASCD Express. ASCD
is formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and organization that
advocates “best practices and policies for the success of each learner.” (“History and
Membership,” 2011). ASCD Express is a bi-weekly newsletter distributed to ASCD members
with updates and discussions on current topics in education. My article discusses a variety of
ways to efficiently integrate technology into classroom instruction and assessments, skills that
were taught by both ISU instructors and my peers within the Cohort. Drawing on the idea of
student and teacher as co-learners, I synthesized the collective knowledge of the Cohort into an
organized 'primer' for other teachers to use when integrating technology in their own classrooms.
Taking my own advice, I began to look at technology integration not as a teacher but as a
learner. In my own classroom over the last three years students and I began to collaborate on
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 7
best ways to integrate technology into our instruction. Without using the term constructivism,
students seem to understand that they deepen and internalize their knowledge if it is created by
them instead of given to them. Using this, along with their own multiple intelligence and
learning style surveys, students create a personal plan for integrating technology. For example,
if a student is a visual learner and who has high visual / spatial intelligence, he may choose to
present his monthly book report using PowerPoint or Prezi.com. Meanwhile, his female
classmate who has a high mathematical / logical intelligence and is a tactile learner may choose
to use the Scratch programming language to create a 'game' of the plot from her free reading
book. Both are equally valid and the projects are scored using a topical rubric. The bonus is that
by using this process the students take ownership of their own learning, are vested in that
learning, and play to their strengths, giving them a greater chance of success in (and a better
attitude toward) school (Cuban, 2003, pp. 69-70).
STANDARD 2: Technology Planning and Integration
Creating technology infused learning environments through appropriate technology uses:
Plan and integrate technology effectively in learning environments and experiences.
This standard's greatest importance is in considering the best use of technology to create
effective learning environments. This speaks to the digital divide between digital natives and
digital immigrants, as proposed by Marc Prensky. Digital natives often have a greater
understanding of what technologies are out there, but digital immigrants often can step back and
see the best ways to use those technologies. Often the natives are students while the immigrants
are teachers: by working together they can develop effective learning environments (Van Horn,
2007). These learning environments also speak to Bransfords' learner-centered and community-
centered environments, where students must feel motivated to work on developing their own
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 8
knowledge as well as a community of knowledge within their own group to show their ability to
meet the standard of learning required. The teacher must then serve as a guide to this process
and not as a knowledge expert instructing the process.
For CI 515 Action Research in Education I developed a plan to implement Google Apps
as a LMS (learning management service) with my eighth grade students to more efficiently
research and develop comparative MLA research papers. As an instructor I needed a learning
platform that was flexible in time and place. I also needed one that could adapt and change
based on individual student needs. Finally, as a teacher in a parochial school I needed an
application that was very cost-effective (and if possible, free). After working with a group of
staff and committee members in my building to research this, we purchased a separate domain
name and created a Google Apps for Education account. I created a step-by-step unit of
planning and instruction and implemented a study with a pilot class of eighth grade students.
The results of this pilot study found that when given guidance for the entire process and
parameters to fulfill, the use of Google Apps for Education can be an effective LMS for grade 8
students.
The multiple applications found in the Google Apps made the process invaluable as an
LMS. Students used a webpage to create a form that everyone used to enter their thesis, which
allowed them to break into groups based on their thesis content. These groups then splintered off
to create webpage summaries of research on content about their specific topics. They also gave
the internal documentation and citation for each resource. Students then created outlines for
their papers utilizing these webpage summaries, making me a collaborator and their content
group peers viewers. We all gave feedback (mine directly on the document, peers on a wiki
page) to the outline to make it as complete as possible. Each student then created a second
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 9
document as their working draft. I again was a collaborator and the student then choose any
three students from the same content area to be viewers for feedback on the document. The
students utilized the summary web pages as support for his / her arguments and used the internal
documentation and citations for the working draft as well. This working draft became the
student's final draft, with the submission being electronic only. My grading was done by a rubric
with comments, which I digitally attached to each paper. Comments were added by myself and
others outside and inside of school, utilizing the anytime, anywhere learning aspect of Google
Apps, and the problems found with compatibility issues were non-existent as long as a student
had Internet access outside of school.
Throughout the process students kept journals on their use of Google Apps and their own
research. There was a Calendar for all students as well as one for each content group; these were
posted on specific web pages for instant viewing during the process. Students also utilized
Calendars to schedule homework for other classes and extracurricular events. As a Google Apps
for Education account, all advertising was eliminated and the student addresses and documents
were locked away from the general Web, ensuring a safe digital environment for students.
Students overall gained a greater sense of ownership of their work by using Web 2.0 skills and
by working collaboratively with peers. Feedback between students and teacher was deeper,
more specific, and much timelier in the Google Apps environment than in the typical classroom
environment. Feedback among students regarding their work was more content-driven and
focused than in group edits done outside of the digital environment. While grading and parent
communication was still kept using Edline (the school grading and communication software), the
use of Google Apps was far and away a success.
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 10
After I reported out on the use of Google Apps to the school board the board voted to
have the technology committee implement Google Apps availability for all students in grades 3-
8. This process will be implemented starting in the middle school with grades 7-8 and then
moving down to include grade 6, grades 4-5, and eventually grade 3. The next study being
completed by the technology committee will test the viability of using Google Apps for
communication among all staff to replace Microsoft Outlook and other aspects of the Office
Suite. I plan on implementing a program similar to the study for use with the school staff to
instruct the teachers in best ways to utilize the Google LMS as motivation in student learning;
this key element is necessary for all learners - digital immigrants, digital natives, on-line natives
- to experience a successful digital educational environment (McNeely, 2005).
STANDARD 3: Social, Ethical, Legal, and Human Issues in the Use of Technology
Teachers understand the above issues and use that knowledge as a guidepost in their use of
technology in schools: Teachers understand social, ethical, legal and human issues surrounding
the use of technology in schools, and use that understanding to guide their practice.
In my mind this standard will be the most difficult for education to achieve over the long
run. The idea of equity or fairness is so broad and easily manipulated that educators must give
detailed attention to the diverse nature of the physical and digital environments found in schools.
Student populations come from a variety of social, cultural, gender, ability, and socioeconomic
status groups: when utilizing technology in schools all these items need to have equal weight in
the decision-making process. If a student is from a society where photographs are not to be
taken, it would violate that student's cultural norms if she were required to participate in a video
chat or to create a video podcast as an assignment. If a school is struggling to cover basic needs
for its student population (such as food, general building conditions, or cold-weather clothing) a
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 11
fund drive to improve technology may not be the next best step. And finally, if a developing or
third-world country has spotty resources or limited funding to give students the basics of
instruction, being paternalistic and deciding what is best for the population without taking into
account that population's cultural, human, and societal needs is creating a system designed to
fail. On both the American and international fronts, the ideas of digital equity, the digital divide,
and the impact of technology on globalization are constantly changing, yet still have an impact
on American education today. I addressed several articles and Friedman's The World Is Flat in a
midterm for Dr. Patricia Leigh's course CI 577: Historical Perspectives on Technology Equity:
Implications for Policy and Practice. In this paper I argued that America needs to bring about
immediate and necessary changes in order to meet the needs of a globalized society, but that
these changes must be tempered by the humanistic needs and resources available to all. I also
bring up the question of digital equity as a basic human right in an ever flattening world.
In developed countries the assumption that 'give them the technology and their scores
will improve' is another way that the human aspects of instruction are ignored. Technology must
be viewed as a tool for instruction, not a magic 8-ball for learning. As with any tool, when used
properly it can assist in completing a job in the best way possible. Conversely, a tool misused
can do more damage than if it were not used at all. Students from impoverished areas (both
urban and rural) often are given technology to benefit or improve their learning, but often the
training for teachers, the upgrades and updates for technology, or the time needed to best
implement these technologies is not given. If a school is on the watch list for NCLB their
greatest concern will be to improve test scores in order to continue to receive funding. The idea
of working to implement ELMOs or SMARTBoards into classroom instruction will take a
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 12
backseat to the greater concern at hand. This stance is not wrong in and of itself, but the before
implementing new technologies these kinds of factors must be taken into account.
Student access to technology in their homes, community, and schools must also be
directly addressed. Previous knowledge and experiences with technology must be addressed for
all educational stakeholders: students, staff, parents, and the community, especially when
determining appropriate technology usage guidelines. The expectation of Internet access outside
the home for instruction and communication must coincide with the socioeconomic status of the
school population, an issue that often occurs when discussing the digital divide. Schools need to
learn how to adapt and change instruction and homework expectations regarding technology
usage to meet the needs of students inside and outside of school. This critical element must also
be considered when determining technology funding for schools and districts.
I felt strongly enough about this issue that I chose to create a podcast on it for CI 501:
Foundations of Instructional Technology. In the course we addressed several issues of morality
regarding technology usage in the class, including Pojman's moral philosophy. These ideas of
ethics, culture, gender, ability, and copyright spoke directly to my own concerns as to the true
definition of the digital divide, and as I have worked through the Cohort I have taken particular
cautions to be aware of and not infringe upon these issues in my own practice (Ites, 2008,
“Pojman's moral philosophy: moral responsibilities in education”) . As a classroom instructor I
have also actively worked to make my students aware of these issues as well.
The final hurdle to overcome regarding these humanist issues is that of copyright. I have
worked with the Diocesan schools regarding how to define appropriate copyright requirements
for technology infusion. Within my own classroom students are instructed in these copyright
issues and must incorporate them into their own created projects (Ites, 2009, “Technology
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 13
Exploratory Websites”). Students then take this incorporated knowledge and re-teach it when
working with younger students in the building. By showing students the requirements for
copyright regarding mixed media resources, there has also been an increase in student awareness
regarding copyright and plagiarism regarding the written word on the Web. As more and more
information becomes fused with other divergent information through the Web, this issue will
need to be continually addressed and adapted.
STATNDARD 4: Research and Assessment
Using research-proven technology infusions for effective research projects and assessments:
Technology-infused classroom-based educational research projects that use effective assessment
and research strategies.
The 'bling factor' found when technology is infused into education is a double-edged
sword: it can be both a blessing and a curse. The blessing of technology's bling factor is that
because it often appeals to multiple sense simultaneously, it can involve student's lives outside of
the classroom, and it can be a more efficient and enjoyable method of instruction, many people
decide to support the use of technology in classrooms today. On the flip side, because
technology's 'latest and greatest' often seem to hold potential for improving educational
instruction, educator and administrators often overlook research-proven studies regarding the use
of technology in specific classrooms. Often the marketing for new technologies show positive
results from a limited and homogenous group of students used in a pilot study. While opinion
pieces about the use of technology are prevalent, it becomes more difficult to find action research
studies completed with specific groups utilizing specific technologies. This lack of attention to
the finer points of technology diffusion can cause school opinion leaders and change agents to
become ostracized from their colleagues. If the new technology has high expectations that are
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 14
not grounded in hard fact research, these technology innovators may likely be blamed for the
'failure' of the technology to meet the collective expectations of those in the schools (Rogers,
1995, p.22-30).
As I have completed my own 'mini-research projects' during the course of the Cohort I
have seen this 'change agent as bad-guy' idea come into play. As with most successful
enterprises, the successes are quickly forgotten while the failures loom large for long periods of
time: to use an old adage, bad news travels twice as fast as good news. For the class CI 515
Action Research in Education I learned the best ways to develop and implement an effective
research project in schools. Using the Mertler’s text Action Research: Teachers as Researchers
in the Classroom and Mills’s text Action Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher the
process for effective action research was laid out for me. Mertler’s text gave excellent visual
aids and graphic organizers showing the step-by-step processes necessary for effective action
research as well as real-world action research projects done in the classroom. This breaking-
down of the process into smaller organized units allowed for me, as the developer, to pay
attention to detail, look for possible problems and create contingencies, and know how to design
and what to do with all the data once it is collected (Mertler, 2009, pp.125-135). Mills’s
extensive use of example projects for success and failure were critical to the ways in which I
chose to create and implement my action research project on using Google Apps as an LMS with
grade 8 students. In Chapter 4 Mills also showed the problems and pitfalls found when the
researcher allows bias into their data creation and collection (2007, pp.84 -97). Mills also
dedicated Chapter 7 to showing how action research can have a positive impact on educational
change: how to use the results of classroom-created action research to transform and develop
best practices in instruction. The subsection on challenges facing teacher researchers were
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 15
excellent reminders that as a researcher I must remain conscious of the possible results of my
action research project: a lack of funding or resources, resistance to change, admitting to difficult
truths, and interfering with others’ professional practices all have implications both professional
and personal for the action researcher. The author also gives eight conditions for creating
effective educational change, sort of a cheat-sheet for best ways to implement the results of
action research (Mills, 2007, pp. 151-158). While I utilized all aspects of the action research
process in both texts, these best ways to implement the results were perhaps the most helpful to
me. My school had asked me to create and complete my specific project, and planned on using
the results of the project for technology changes in the following school year. I had more riding
on this paper than just a grade: my professionalism with my colleagues and administration as
well as with students and parents needed to be impeccable. This guideline given by Mills
advised me on potential problems and – most importantly – gave me potential solutions.
While the process was not without hiccups and setbacks, I would consider the overall
outcome a success. Because of the extensive planning I learned in the CI 515 class I had also
developed contingency plans to deal with those hiccups and learn how to gather the data
scientifically without emotion. I paid specific attention to the skills and ideas given in Chapters
4 and 5 of Mills' text and Chapter 6 of Mertler’s text. These chapters dealt with the specific
considerations necessary in data collection and the most effective methods to analyze and
interpret data (Mills, 2007, pp.69-110; Mertler, 2009, pp.140-164). While trying to plan and
interpret data without involving emotion, I also tried to keep in mind the ideas presented in
Wagner's The Global Achievement Gap . Chapter 5 in Wagner's text centered on student
motivation and the how to use that motivation in the creation of life-long learners. Since I
wanted to show my students easy ways to create effective collaborative groups, I took the
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 16
examples given in Wagner's text (both good and bad) to heart in designing this project (Wagner,
2008, pp.167-206). As a result of the data created and gathered during this project, the
technology committee has proposed to the school board implementation of Google Apps for
Education as a communication and collaboration tool for all students in grades 3-8 (Ites, 2010,
“Action research in the cloud: …”). The success of this project also prompted a request for future
study regarding the effectiveness use of Google Apps for Education as a communication and
scheduling tool for the school faculty and staff.
STANDARD 5: Instructional Technology Leadership
Teachers serve as peer innovators with their local and national peers: Teachers provide
effective instructional technology leadership to peers within schools, districts, and nationally.
I have not had much chance to serve as a leader or sounding board for technology issues
to teachers outside of my own Diocesan district, but within the Diocese of Des Moines schools
and, specifically, St. Theresa School, I have had many opportunities to guide my colleagues in
the implementation of new technologies. I am currently in my ninth year at St. Theresa School
and have served as the teacher coordinator for the technology committee for the last six years.
During this time I have been asked to share information with teachers that looks to the social
dynamic of the classroom, the instructional style of the teacher, the learning style of selected
students, and the culture of the school. In the past I have been the liaison for use of Jackson
Edline and GradeQuick instruction to teachers in grades pre k - 5. I have also assisted our
webmaster in the design of teacher Edline web pages to coincide with the overall design of the
school's website. The final step in this process was to work with those teachers who were more
adept at Edline at utilizing the Moodle WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) mode of
development to coordinate or improve the information posted on each teacher page.
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 17
For the course CI 511 Technology Diffusion, Leadership and Change I had the
opportunity to incorporate the ideas given in the texts Oversold and Underused by Larry Cuban
and Diffusion of Innovations by Everett M. Rogers. Both texts stressed the important of well-
planned systems for diffusion of new technologies in schools, and both also stressed that the
different stakeholders within the schools (digital immigrant teachers, digital native teachers,
administration in both areas, students, and parents) need to be approached first at the level where
they are most comfortable, then later challenged to implement the newly proposed innovation.
While previous attempts at new technology innovations had taught me (albeit the hard way) that
there was not 'one size fits all' way of supporting a new innovation within a school, these texts
showed the best ways to innovate to each of the different adopters found in a school.
As a result the professional development plan I created was designed to bring all faculty
and staff members to a minimum standard of knowledge and use of a variety of technologies,
including ELMOs, SMARTBoards, and LCD projects and laptop computers. I decided the best
method of implementation for these innovations was to have monthly face-to-face meetings and
monthly journal posts via Google Apps. There would be early innovators within in each grade
band chosen to be both instructor and resource for that specific innovation. The resident 'expert'
in each grade band would lessen any sense of fear or jealousy that would likely occur with late
adopters or laggards, and would also reduce fear in those who where technophobic. Also, the
asynchronous reflective journals shared within each group would serve as an additional form of
communication: as a support for those adopters who were nervous about the process and as a
way to check on growth toward the adoption of the new innovations. The final element would be
for at least one peer to view a lesson taught with classroom students utilizing at least one of the
innovations (Ites, 2010, “Professional development plan …”).
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 18
As I come to the end of the Cohort this specific course and the information I learned have
become very valuable to my current work with not just students but also colleagues. The
conscious decision to treat these very divergent learning groups differently must be made in
order to aid the success of new innovations in schools today. In order to ensure a successful
implementation of new technologies the trainer must also be flexible, supportive, and willing to
provide as much emotional support as knowledge support to teachers. All of these ideas are the
result of the information I have taken from the texts used in CI 511. This need to take into
account the emotional needs of all stakeholders within technology integration added new
speedbumps to the less-traveled road. These speed bumps forced me to slow down, be cautious
with my decisions, and be careful where I tread; they are not large enough to stop my overall
journey.
Final reflections ME PAGE
"It doesn't matter where you live, it's what you do with your life that counts."
~ "Red" McManus
This was one of my grandfather’s favorite sayings and is one that I have tried to
accomplish every day. My time in the Cohort has been both a struggle and a challenge. I have
learned to truly structure my time and plan for contingencies. My personal experiences using
technologies have been enriching, forcing me outside of my own personal comfort zone and
teaching me the best ways to push others to expand their own technology skills. My courses
have showed me the most effective ways to differentiate technology use for all stakeholders in
education. I have developed close personal and professional relationships with my peers and
professors in the Cohort, and now look forward to sharing my knowledge and understanding
with my own students and colleagues in the future. American education is currently at a
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 19
crossroads and I feel ready to guide future students to become effective world citizens regarding
content knowledge and collaborative learning skills. I also am ready to show them the best ways
to utilize technology in both areas.
As a teacher of technology and language arts, I live in both worlds regarding high-stakes
testing and instructing students in collaborative problem-solving processes. As I wade through
this process I have worked with students to develop more efficient and effective methods of
instruction and assessment, including the use of combined spelling and vocabulary root word
books, creation of prezi.com presentations for all-class novels, use of Google Docs to create on-
line tests in grammar and collaborative research units, and small group creation of summative
grammar assessments. All of these have an impact on my own teaching and life-long learning,
as well as on the lives of my students.
I am still continuing my journey down that road less traveled, but now the path ahead is
not dark and foreboding, but instead full of rich and exciting future endeavors. There will be
vines across the path designed to trip any passersby, but the trees will be there for support and
guidance. Those supports, the skills I’ve developed throughout the Cohort, will continue to
guide me to the end of that road less traveled, if there is an end to find. Perhaps it will be the
journey itself and not the final destination that will make ‘all the difference.”
NARRATIVE FOR MASTER OF EDUCATION PORTFOLIO 20
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