Alex Facciponte's Week 4 Blog Post EDU 5373

Alex Facciponte's Week 4 Blog Post EDU 5373

    Professional development is proven to be a viable option in not only helping teachers but students too (Crompton, 2023). Students who have had teachers endure professional development have performed better in school than students who did not (Crompton, 2023). There are many things I would like to consider when looking at structuring my own plan. I want to make sure that my professional development is in a constructivist style of learning technology (Kopcha et. al, 2020). While receiving the direct information is important, it is more crucial to have learning experiences with the technology instead (Kopcha et. al, 2020). This makes the daunting task of implementing and utilizing more technology easier and can help to instill confidence in teachers to incorporate it into their classrooms (Kopcha et. al, 2020). I would also like to make sure that teacher feedback is highly considered for professional development (Shannon & Cate, 2015). This is not only valuable for the people who are running the professional developments on what they can improve upon, but it also provides insights on things that should be covered instead for the future (Shannon & Cate, 2015). This sense of communication can empower teachers and make them feel confident that administration is supporting them and has their interests in mind (Shannon & Cate, 2015). No teacher wants to show up to a professional development where they think nothing pertains to them. They will not be engaged and get little or nothing out of the experience. I would also like to assign mentors and technology leaders within each subject area teacher (Williams et. al, 2008). This will allow for colleagues to work with each other through collaboration and can create a mutually supportive environment which will then make teachers more comfortable when learning this new technology (Williams et. al, 2008).

    There are also connections between teacher learning and connected student learning. As teachers, we wish for our students to be involved in authentic intellectual work (Swan et. al, 2011). However, I believe this also correlates to teachers when regarding professional development. Students and teachers need to be engaged when working on things. It is crucial what they are working on truly gages their interest (Swan et. al, 2011). If there is little to no interest in what they are doing, then both teachers and students will not put forth their best efforts in trying to learn something. Instead, they will shut down and care less about the outcome. This is why I try to create engaging projects for my students so they are motivated to learn and work. This is how we should be in regards to professional development which will then engage teachers (Swan et. al, 2011). If teachers are more engaged during professional development, they will also create a sense of confidence within themselves that they could not only use the technology but to utilize it for authentic learning experiences for their students (Swan et. al, 2011). To help support their students, teachers ultimately need to leverage the technology they have into engaging learning experiences for their students. Through the use of professional development this can be possible because it allows for the use of newer more creative lessons that would never be thought of before (Shannon & Marculitis, 2019). These ideas do attach to my vision and goals assignment because I wish for students to have an enhanced learning experience so they can attach emotion to what they learn. I also mentioned as my second goal that professional development needs to be a priority within the district if we wish to instill confidence in our teachers to utilize the newer technologies that would be given to them.

    Currently in my district, there are policies in place that do support professional learning. For the majority of the week, we do have a PLC Period where teachers within the same subject area are supposed to collaborate. However, I believe that these periods require more structure so we can get more things out of it. Also, we have professional development days, however, they are more centered towards curriculum writing instead of technology. I believe that it would be beneficial to have at least a couple of days in the school year dedicated to technology and effective methodology we can utilize within the classroom.

    I believe that student learning can be transformed through my technology integration plan. I think that students having access to updated devices can ultimately enhance their learning experiences and have them much more engaged. I think this will reflect in their academic performance as well as assessments. Through professional development, the plan will also allow teachers to gain more confidence to try new things in the classroom with technology which will result in these meaningful learning experiences. Students also need to be prepared for international learning experiences such as PISA. Students need to be given proper digital literacy training to understand the expectations of questions to complete the PISA (OECD, 2022). Ultimately, the students within my district struggle with proper device care and literacy. In my plan, they will receive proper training on how to take care of and use their digital devices.




References

Crompton, H. (2023). Evidence of the ISTE standards for educators leading to learning gains. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 39(4), 201-219. Retrieved from: Evidence of the ISTE Standards for Educators Leading to Learning.pdf


Kopcha, T.J., Neumann, K., Ottenbreit-Leftwich, A., & Pitman, E. (2020). Process over product: The next evolution of our quest for technology integration. Educational Technology Research Development, 68. 729-749. doi: 10.1007/s11423-020-099735-y Retrieved from: Kopcha et al. (2020).pdf


Pisa Test | OECD. (2022). Retrieved from: https://www.oecd.org/en/about/programmes/pisa/pisa-test.html

Shannon, K. E. & Cate, J. L. (2015). Democratic professional practice for technology integration. In Tenuto, P.L. (Ed). Renewed Accountability for Access and Excellence: Applying a Model for Democratic Profession Practice in Education. Lexington: Lanham. Retrieved from: Shannon & Cate (1).pdf


Shannon, K.E. & Marculitis, T.J. (2019). Professional learning to support ISTE-aligned technology integration practices in ELA and math. Retrieved from: Professional learning to support ISTE aligned technology integration practices in ELA and math. Poster presentation for the International Society for Technology in Education Conference, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.


Swan, K., Hofer, M., & Swan et. al, G. (2011). Examining authentic intellectual work with a historical digital documentary inquiry project in a mandated state testing environment. Articles, 29. Retrieved from: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/articles/29


Williams, L. A., Atkinson, L. C., Cate, J. M., O'Hair, M. J. (2008). Retrieved from: Mutual support between learning community development and technology integration: Impact on school practices and student achievement. Theory Into Practice, 47, 294-302.