8.1 Reflection: iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Teaching

8.1 Reflection: iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Teaching

What have I learned?  How have I changed?  What do I still need to work on?  How will I keep learning?

Standard A – The online teacher knows the primary concepts and structures of effective online instruction and is able to create learning experiences to enable student success.

            As I near the completion of my Leading Edge Certification, I feel confident that I am able to apply the current best practices and strategies in online teaching.  I pride myself in keeping up with the latest and best practices and finding ways to incorporate these practices in my current curriculum.  I am always searching for a variety of ways to create a rich and meaningful experience for students by introducing them various sites and apps that can enhance what they are learning.

I work diligently to find ways to allow students to collaborate on projects and assignments with each other and with global communities across the continents. 

I believe all students learn in individual ways and I continue to use a flexible interactive experience for each student where delivery methods are aimed at individual needs.

            One aspect I plan to explore further is to expand the use of global learning for my students.  Allowing them to access information and people from other parts of the globe and to learn from them.  I will need to work on mastering the skills of video conferencing and wiki projects with others outside of our own community and boundaries.  I plan to incorporate more projects that will connect us with others across the globe to enhance our learning and understanding of the world around us.

Standard B – The online teacher understands and is able to use a range of technologies, both existing and emerging, that effectively support learning and engagement in the online environment.

            There is nothing more thrilling as a teacher than to come across a new lesson, a new strategy, or a new way of teaching.  With today’s access to the Internet, this is even more exciting!  As a teacher for almost two decades, I feel I am a leader in engaging students in what they are learning, but using technology adds another layer of engagement and experimentation.  I spend many hours each week, searching for and mastering the use of instructional technology in order to bring it to life in an online, face-to-face, and a blended environment.

            As technology advances, I will need to work on ways to help others use this technology effectively from the aspect of the online learner.  I will need to work on ways to help a student through communication that is not hands-on or face-to-face.  Working in a strictly online setting will take added practice and skill with both the technology component and the communication from the teacher to the learner.  Through this certification, I have become much more familiar with tools such as screen casts that will enable me to walk a student through the various troubleshooting scenarios that may arise.

Standard C – The online teacher plans, designs, and incorporates strategies to encourage active learning, application, interaction, participation, and collaboration in the online environment.

            The Leading Edge Certification has been excellent in helping me to improve my preparation for online courses.  It has been a tremendous asset to my current knowledge of the strategies for getting students to feel part of a learning group and creating that sense of collaboration among that group.  As I grow as a learner myself, I will be able to transfer what I have learned through this course and the many other courses I have taken online, to help move my planning forward.

            As I continue to practice my planning and designing, I will need to work on my questioning abilities.  How do you ask the right question to get the students to reach the answers you were looking for? I will be spending extra time reviewing questioning techniques presented by Bloom’s and will reflect back to my learning as a GATE certified teacher to make sure I am always reaching for those higher order thinking skills and able to guide students to answer their own questions as they learn online.

 Standard D – The online teacher promotes student success through clear expectations, prompt responses, and regular feedback.

            In order to be successful and productive in a face-to-face classroom, the instructor must set clear expectations.  Students learn through regular feedback that happens in a systematic and prompt way.  Success in an online or blended classroom also depends on clear expectations and feedback.  By participating in Leading Edge Certification, it has been made clear as I go through each module, these clear expectations have been demonstrated.  Objectives have been defined, concepts clearly developed, and learning outcomes carefully and strategically planned out.  This model of planning and organizing a course has been essential in my learning of what a successful course looks like.

            When working with students in a small group sitting at my back table in my classroom, I can quickly and easily see where their learning is headed and where and what type of intervention is needed.  I will need to work on how to develop this type of intervention and structure while developing an online course.  What will I do when a student is struggling and how will I help?  This is an area where I will need to be diligent in my research and reading of professional articles to overcome this obstacle.  This is also a question I have posed on many of the professional blogs and learning communities I am involved with in order to collaborate with others and receive my own feedback to help me become a better learner.

Standard E – The online teacher models, guides, and encourages legal, ethical, and safe behavior related to technology use.

            As I begin each school year, I have a number of lessons geared towards elementary aged students regarding the ethical and safe use of technology in our classroom, our school, and at home.  Students are familiar with the dos and don’ts of online behavior and how to keep their digital footprints small while still accessing all the information they need to be successful.  I have thoroughly immersed them in the downfalls of plagiarism and have used plagiarism sites to show students how “borrowing” someone’s work without properly giving them credit will not be tolerated.  Teaching an online course will take this to another level. 

            I have read through the FERPA, COPPA and CIPA guidelines and still do not feel confident that I fully understand all that is necessary to be successful with this standard.  I feel confident as an example of the legal, ethical, and safe behavior needed in an online setting, but I will need to do more to pass this on to my students.  I need to not only become more familiar with the details of these guidelines, but how to instill their principles to the students as an online leader.

Standard F – The online teacher is cognizant of student academic needs and incorporates accommodations into the online environment.

            In a face-to-face or a blended classroom, I feel confident that I am aware of different learning styles and the need for modification for those individual learners.  Modifications are always on my mind as I work with Gifted and Talented students, English Language Learners, and students with special needs.  I am skilled at modifying for IEPs and 504 plans and working with student’s current CELDT levels, but how will that come into play in an online course?

            Connections will need to made with the students early on in the course to ensure the student feels comfortable and safe asking for help with the course guidelines or accessibility issues.  Leading Edge Certification has greatly enhanced my understanding and ability to incorporate strategies for all learners, especially those with hearing and visual special needs.  As I continue to design courses for the online community, I will be ever conscious of the needs of all learners and do what I can to allow them access to all the course offerings.

Standard G – The online teacher demonstrated competencies in creating and implementing assessments in online learning environments in ways that ensure validity and reliability of the instruments and procedures.

            In today’s world of test, tests, and more tests, I am well versed in formative and summative assessments.  I really love the use of classroom response systems as a means of formative assessment in part, because I can see results immediately and give feedback right away.  The immediate feedback is critical to get students on the right track and clear up misconceptions before they become engrained in the students learning.  Although I though this would be more challenging in an online or blended classroom, I have found there are so many ways to assess students it is just a matter of using the available technology while still giving immediate feedback to the student.  Summative assessments have been created online in my face-to-face classroom for a number of years and Leading Edge Certification gave me the added edge of making sure all students have access to the information to be successful on these assessments.

            I will be doing more research and talking to colleagues to see what types of assessments can be used in an online setting.  I often feel that students know the subject matter; they just may need alternate ways to express their learning.  There is so much more to learning and understanding a concept than just bubbling in answers on a test.  This course has made me eager to learn new ways that students can show their understanding of the subject matter besides taking a test.  With the shift to Common Core, my district is re-assessing their curriculum and the assessments embedded within it.  I will be working with a committee at my grade level to help incorporate technology skills within the Common Core curriculum to assess student knowledge and application of these skills.

Standard H - The online teacher develops and delivers assessments, projects, and assignments that meet standards-based learning goals and assesses learning progress by measuring student achievement of the learning goals.

            Aligning curriculum to state standards seems very mundane as I have been at the same grade level for over 12 years and have them memorized.  Every lesson and every project must address these standards and the student objectives needed to reach them.  Common Core standards will allow for a broader umbrella of learning standards that will allow students to demonstrate their individual proficiencies in a variety of ways.

            I will continue to reflect on my Leading Edge Certification when planning, organizing, and delivering online lessons to a variety of learners.  One thing I loved about this course was that we had clearly defined objectives for each assignment, yet our outcomes were all completely different.  We were allowed to work within our own comfort zones to display our knowledge of the topics and although we all learned the same objectives, how we learned them and we showed what we learned was different for each one of us.  This is the beauty of the online environment.

Standard I – The online teacher demonstrates competency in using data to form assessments and other data sources to modify content and guide student learning.

            Data driven instruction is a topic that comes up over and over in education.  We have all had numerous trainings and professional development opportunities to learn how to use data to drive our instruction.  I will continue to use the training I have received along with the new Leading Edge Certification training to continue to analyze the results of assessments to create new learning opportunities for my students.  I will also continue to allow students to always learn through self-reflection and will use this data to modify online instruction and assessments if needed.

            Knowing how to analyze results of assessments online will be more of a challenge for me than it is in a blended or fact-to-face setting.  I will need to remain familiar with different assessment techniques and how those can be used for online teaching.  I will need to keep up with the latest trends and practices and work to incorporate these into my online lessons.

Standard J – The online teacher interacts in a professional, effective manner with colleagues, parents, and other members of the community to support students’ success.

            As a face-to-face teacher, collaborating with colleagues and the chance to learn from each other and share ideas increases the chances for success for all that are involved.  This holds true for blended and online classes as well.  Reaching out to others in the field and drawing on their expertise is necessary in all aspects of teaching.  I am very effective in my interaction with parents in a face-to-face setting and enjoy this as a way to all work together in the best interest of the student.  In an online only setting, this will be a challenge.
            The use of web pages, email, blogs, and even text messages are currently used in all of my classes, but will be even more prevalent in the online class.  Working with parents in especially important so that everyone involved understands the objectives and goals of the online learning that will take place.  There will always be those who don’t have access to the technology needed for this type of communication, so I will still need to make phone calls and hold meetings when necessary.  The ultimate goal is the success of the student and we will all need to work together in whatever manner needed to make sure this happens.

Standard K – The online teacher arranges media and content to help students and teachers transform knowledge most effectively in the online environment.

            You know when you have an idea about what you want to do in your classroom or how you want to teach something, but you never quite find the time to perfect it they way you want?  Leading Edge Certification has helped me to take what I knew, add to it, and now be able to share it with others.  I had media and lots of content, but they weren’t organized in a structured teaching way.  I now have the skills needed to use all of the media and content I have filed away on thumb drives and in folders and put them to use in an online course format.  This course has helped me become confident in my abilities as an online instructor.

            If I had to choose one aspect of this course to begin to work on improving right now, it would be the use of a Learning Management System to organize and create my online lessons.  My district does not have one defined system in use and it is frustrating when each instructor or professional development opportunity uses a different LMS.  I am hoping to work with our district to choose one system for all teachers to use, but until then, I will use what I have available to me as I work on enhancing my online curriculum.

7.1 Reflection: Personal Learning Plan for Online Coaching

6.3 Reflection: Technology and Assessment

6.3 Reflection: Technology and Assessment

This module has explored the use of technology tools for both formative and summative assessment. As you think about how you will implement formative and summative assessments in the online and blended environments, what are some of the factors you need to consider?

When I think of the implementation of both formative and summative assessments for an online or blended class, my head begins to spin.  There is so much we can do, but it takes additional time and planning beyond just a daily lesson plan.  It has helped greatly to use the backwards design plan and to think about what are the essential questions you want the students to be able to answer and start from here.

Since we have all been teaching for quite some time, it is second nature to plan an effective lesson, but adding the technology to the lesson or making the entire lesson online is not as easy.  We need to think about the students themselves and their familiarity and comfort with the technology being used as well as the availability of technology when they are away from school.  As we head in the direction of more blended classrooms, I need to revise my lessons and add technology components that allow for collaboration and sharing.  With this, I also need to make sure my students are taught how to use this technology effectively and again, this adds time to the lessons.

I have learned to add one technology piece at a time and work with it until the students are successful with its use before adding more.  These gradual steps will allow teacher and student to feel more effective in their planning and creating of both the actual lesson and the responses.  As with anything, this will take time to improve and master.

It is often difficult to stick to due dates when working with an online or blended platform.  Students need that time at home or in a library to work on their projects and there is often no structure in the out-of-class settings to help the student along.  This is where the blended approach fits in best.  The instructor can guide students through the various checkpoints of an assignment and give feed back along the way.  This works well when the student remembers to go back and read the feedback and make changes.  This step is a continual work in progress.  Students are used to taking a test and getting a grade rather than working towards a particular goal and revising along the way.  Common Core will soon take care of that.

As I remain excited about the possibilities to come, I also remain apprehensive as to how all the puzzle pieces will fit together and the added time I will need to find to successfully implement technology skills as part of my everyday curriculum.

Side Note
Information for the best formative assessment I have used to date - class responders (aka-clickers)
Neo2 keyboards
Students can type and print, respond with the clicker, practice keyboarding, take a reading quiz, practice math facts, answer short answer questions, and more!!

5.1 Discussion: Accessibility of Current Materials

5.1 Discussion: Accessibility of Current Materials

Reflect on your learning and practice regarding Accessibility. How accessible are your current instructional materials? Are there elements of your instructional materials that could be revised to make them more accessible? Please share any resources you know or use to make your curriculum and course accessible.

I was very interested in hearing about the amazing ways content is made accessible to those with disabilities.  I spent some time going back through all the instructional materials I use in my classroom to better understand how they are or can be made more accessible to my students.

Currently, my students have access to all four textbooks in an online format.  This allows them to view their reading assignments at online and on-the-go at any time.  Students can enlarge text and have the selection read aloud to them, including photo captions.  Although there is no closed captioning feature as with a video, the text is highlighted as it is read aloud.  I assign various readings at home, so students can read and re-read at their own pace without worrying about the quick moving pace of the classroom.  Students also have access to a leveled reader database where I can assign, and email a specific reader to a student based on his/her reading level.  They are categorized as above level, on level, below level, and some offer an ELD version for the English Language Learners.

We also use BrainPop quite often in our classroom as an extension or an introduction to our learning.  This site allows for closed captioning to go along with the video and I always turn on this feature when viewing videos as a whole group.  This allows for students to see the words and helps our ELs match words spoken with words written on the screen.  BrainPop can also be switched to Spanish language for students that may understand the content better in their home language.  We also use BrainPop ESL to help promote the learning and understanding of the English language with the second language learners.  The English only students use this as well to enhance their knowledge of grammar and mechanics.  Videos can be paused, re-played, and enlarged so all students can take their time understanding the content.

Students that struggle with legible handwriting have the use of keyboards to type all of their assignments and either send them to the instructor or print them in class.  These keyboards can be taken home to use on homework.  Students that struggle with getting their words on paper always have the option of recording their answers on an iPod or iPad or creating a Voice Thread to convey information.  We then work on turning their recordings into written work.  There is always so much more I want to do when it comes to accessibility, but for now, I do the best with what I have available.

4.3 Reflection: Social & Professional Networks

Thinkfinity.org -->

www.thinkfinity.org

 

4.3 Reflection: Social & Professional Networks (Pass / No Pass)

The Internet has made such a huge impact in the way I teach; it’s hard to begin to discuss this amazing tool.  I feel I am connected at all times to family, friends, and professionals in my field.  So, we all use Facebook, but personally I feel this one tool in particular has allowed me to remain in contact with people around the globe whom otherwise would not take the time to keep in contact.  The most amazing day was when my Dad set up a Facebook page and began using it to tell all of his kids about his daily activities.  I look forward each and every day to hearing about even the smallest things my parents have done.

In my classroom, we use our class blog and webpage to stay connected.  I love hearing about what the kids are doing and learning and especially keeping in touch with former students.  It keeps me grounded and positive that I have made even a small difference in their lives as I hear about all the great things they are continuing to do.  We also have a Facebook page called HughesNator Productions as I view all of my former students as products of our classroom, led by myself, the HughesNator,

If my students were asked this question, I think their answers would be similar.  It is a common connectedness we can all share.  For them it goes beyond Facebook and Twitter, they have the world at their fingertips.  Anything they are interested in is just a click away.  They can explore information whenever they want and then share it with others if they choose.  My answer to many of the questions they ask daily is, “Let’s Google it.” and the search begins.  Allowing them and encouraging this exploration can only enhance their learning experiences.  I try to find different ways for the students to use the Internet and Web 2.0 tools to analyze, create, and share their learning with others including their parents.

As for my learning, I am a member of so many different professional discussions through the Internet it is hard to keep track.  One site I use weekly to keep up on the latest in education is Thinkfinity.org where I am a certified trainer.  There are so many resources here for professional development and for teachers to use with students, If you have a question you can post it on one of their many discussion boards and you will be shocked at how many great responses you get.  These types of sites make it easy for me to keep up on the latest trends, search for lesson support, and find new sites for my students use.  I spend way too many hours each week researching, reading, and exploring all the Internet has to offer and for that, I am a much better educator than I could possibly be left to my own devices.

Copyright School

You Tube Copyright School

This would be great to show students!  I posted it so I could add it to my Leading Edge portfolio.

3.3 Reflection: Using Web 2.0 Tools

3.3 Reflection: Using Web 2.0 Tools

Kelly Hughes

We have been studying the water cycle, so I decided to create a few activities for students to take part in that shows their knowledge of what they have learned. 

Common Core Standards:

RI.7

Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.

W.4

Produce clear and coherent writing (including multiple-paragraph texts) in which the development and organization are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

W.8

Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources.

RL.7

Analyze how visual and multimedia elements contribute to the meaning, tone, or beauty of a text (e.g., graphic novel, multimedia presentation of fiction, folktale, myth, poem).

W.7

Conduct short research projects that use several sources to build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic.

CA Science Standards 5th grade

Earth Sciences 3.a

Students know most of Earth's water is present as salt water in the oceans, which cover most of Earth's surface.

Earth Sciences 3.b

Students know when liquid water evaporates, it turns into water vapor in the air and can reappear as a liquid when cooled or as a solid if cooled below the freezing point of water.

Earth Sciences 3.c

Students know water vapor in the air moves from one place to another and can form fog or clouds, which are tiny droplets of water or ice, and can fall to Earth as rain, hail, sleet, or snow.

Earth Sciences 3.d

Students know that the amount of fresh water located in rivers, lakes, under-ground sources, and glaciers is limited and that its availability can be extended by recycling and decreasing the use of water.

Students will read the text for understanding by accessing our Collaborize Classroom site at http://www.mshughes.collaborizeclassroom.com (you can access by using username Demo Student and password room36).  Students click on the PDF file attached and can access their textbook to complete the reading assignment.  After reading, they can then evaluate what they have read and apply this knowledge to the writing prompt answer.  Other students can then comment on other student’s answers giving feedback and information that may be missing.

Each student will then create an individual presentation to share with the class.  These presentations will be uploaded or embedded into our class blog for viewing.  Students may use iMovie, keynote, Voki, ShowMe, or any other creation site or software they are comfortable using (computer or iPad).  If they feel ambitious, they can also create a video to post on YouTube.

This project will work well with attached rubrics defining the learning goals and how each presentation will be graded.  The teacher will always be available to look over projects as they are created to give feed back and steer students in the right direction.  Students can use the class blog to ask each other for help or guidance when questions arise.  My class also uses texting to get immediate responses from both teacher and other students or email for those without a cell phone.  Our class also has access to the computer lab each morning before school for those that need more face-to-face time to evaluate and create their projects.

For our first project, I think they will all be successful and happy with their creations.  They are all very competent using the Web 2.0 tools stated, so the next step of creating a project should not be too difficult.  As with any other project, we can change our direction as we proceed for each individual student.  The ability to change our course or add components is key to any blended classroom for success.