EDLD 5301-Week 4

For this particular Action Research Plan, I have partnered with my CTE Director, David Berrier. Mr. Berrier has a passion for students and their future career development. He is very innovative and listens to his teachers for furthering that innovation. Since he has an open door policy we sat in his office at the Administration building and discussed the options available. We have talked a lot about elective choices and whether we are meeting our student’s needs. At this time we both feel we are meeting those needs but we are not sure that the students are adequately taking the opportunities that they are being offered. We can offer a lot of different types of electives but then does it get to be almost a marketing ploy where the best advertisers get the students? Shouldn’t the students take classes they are interested in as a future career? The real Action Research Plan is to learn ways to encourage the students to really explore careers now through the classes that are being offered. The main change we decided on was just this instead of trying to change the selection process instead emphasize ways to teach and inform students better about what is available to them as electives and eventually future careers.

EDLD 5301-Week 3

What is the relationship between the electives students choose and the results of their career aptitude testing instrument?

Why do students choose certain electives? Is the program of studies easy to use?

Goals and objectives:

The goal of this research is to make it easier and more effective for students to choose electives. These electives might impact the rest of their lives.

Activities:

Survey students, counselors, and other key players in the creation of the program of studies and course selection.

Resources: The use of survey’s from students, counselors and principals. Other schools will be asked how they handle the course selection and the making of schedules for students. The use of 4-year plans will be researched through the Internet and asking other schools about their practices.

Internet, student and counselor survey’s, software

Timeline: see attached document 7.1* attached below Part 3 assignment

Persons responsible: Allene Pennington, David Berrier (CTE Director) and Vanessa Harry (lead counselor)

Process for monitoring: After course selection monitor program for ease of use by students, teachers, and counselors.   

Assessment: compare the selection to last years and make adjustment for future years

1.            Examining the work: Setting the Foundation-

Many students do not choose electives according to their future career aspirations. They are given a program of studies (book with all of the course selections) which many do not look at or share with their parents. Each student is given a skills and aptitude test that identifies their interest for future careers. The problem is that the students do not use this information when choosing electives. The question is what we (as a school) can do to make the choice of electives easier and more beneficial for the students.

2.            Analyzing data-

Student schedule changes are quite prevalent. The number of changes will be compiled by the counselors. Many students do not turn in their course selection card and are randomly assigned courses. Students do not choose electives according to their career test results.   

3.            Developing deeper understanding-

Additional information will given by the counselors, the CTE director and Bridget Winstead (SASI expert) to decide what the issues are and what issues need resolving. A questionnaire will be given to the students to develop a more efficient course elective process. The electives should correspond to the student’s 4-year plan.

4.            Engaging in Self-Reflection-

At this time I do not have all the resources needed to really make the changes needed. I will have to get buy in from some very key players within the campus. This may be very difficult and may take increment changes that are less dramatic than what is being proposed.

5.            Exploring Programmatic Patterns –  

There could be some problems in developing a course selection according to career testing. Many students may want to take programs like AVID and ROTC and these may not be identified by the testing tool. A resolution for special programs will need to be developed before implementing a new course selection tool.

 6.  Determining direction-

  At this time the direction is still taking shape. The more I think about the scope of the issue the more daunting it becomes.

7.  Taking action for school improvement- Completed chart 7.1 on next page.

8.   Sustaining improvement –

The nominal group setting will be used to evaluate the new course selection process. The group will consist of the counselors, CTE Director, CTE Coordinator, and Allene Pennington. There should be a debriefing and suggestions for further improvement.

The revamping of the course/elective choice procedure can possibly ruffle quite a few feathers. The first step is to get the backing of the CTE department since it can impact them greatly. The counselors are who could possibly become the most resistant to change. They have used the same process for course selection for ten years and it does seem to work but is slowly becoming inadequate. The principal is the third person to get on board. She will need to have input into the topic and keep abreast of all changes in the system. The fourth person will be our SASI Aid because she works with the new system and has the most experience with process. The above order is not necessarily the correct order because getting the SASI Aid on board first is probably going to make it the most successful. The above persons on a committee would make it the most successful. During the committee meeting I would discuss the reason for choosing the change in course selection and the logic behind choice overload. The committee meeting would conclude with some ideas that would incrementally change the system. Time would also be allowed for brainstorming more ways to improve the system.      

EDLD 5301-Week 2

What an interesting book? Many times when you HAVE to read a book it is not something you look forward to reading. I love the 9 passions because they are passions that most teachers share. Plus, what an excellent way to show how action research can be done in each of the areas and it does not matter what grade level you are in they all have similar but different problems. As future administrators we must always be innovative in our thoughts and be able to get the teachers on-board with a vision of the future.

EDLD 5301-Week 1

Choices! In the United States we have more choices than most other countries. We have the choice of where we live, what schools we attend and what kind of classes we want to take at the secondary level. The students can take Spanish, French or German as a foreign language. They can take a culinary class in some high schools or auto tech. Students have so many choices and yet they seldom take the classes that lead to their future careers. Do they have too many choices? Are schools offering the right classes.

Action research will allow this question to be stated in a very direct manner. The question will be "Are high school students offered the correct number of elective choices?". This is a reflective question that needs to be asked of the school administration. Though there are a lot of other factors that go into what is being offered. For instance, our high school is one of the top schools for those who enter the military after graduation. Yet we have no ROTC program. Would a ROTC program increase the military enlistee numbers? Research will need to be done to determine if the ROTC impacts the military enlistee count.

The benefits in all of these cases and in the use of action research are because it focuses on student achievement and supports reflective practice. The second thing it does is it provides opportunities to work, discuss, and solve problems with your peers.

Blogs would be the perfect way for peers to exchange ideas. Time is a key factor in most educators life. We just don't seem to have enough of it. Blogs would allow for each team member to post their ideas when they have time. It is hard for all the team members to be available at a certain time for a meeting so this would certainly make allow good ideas to be shared when they were thought of and not a week later when they could be forgotten.

Week 5 Reflections

Technology is such a huge topic! So what exactly does Instructional Technology mean? How does it impact me as a classroom teacher? Why is it important to the school? To the students? To the administrators? What am I going to learn in an Instructional Technology class? As this class started I thought maybe “I will learn what programs are important for students and teachers to use”. As the course unfolded it was interesting to see how my District’s Technology Plan mirrored the State. The authors of Deer Park ISD’s plan thoroughly evaluated the State Plan and are trying to excel in most every area as long as the budget allows. The items that I felt were the most interesting was finally understanding what the STaR Chart was evaluating and why we were asked to do certain tasks at school. Often we are asked to do things as teachers but never know why we are doing it. Most teachers think here is another thing you want me to, like I don’t already have enough to do. Never are we told about the Technology Plans! Never are we told about the reasons for doing the surveys!
The Instructional Technology course really open-end my eyes to the use of different types of technology in the classroom. Maybe I can include webcams and blogs into the curriculum that I teach. Marketing and Technology do work hand in hand with each other. I have started working the Flip video cameras into my lessons. The class has encouraged me to spend a little more time on my faculty website. In the beginning of the class my attitude was “Oh, another thing they want me to do and maintain!”. Now I understand for my district to be constantly evolving and meeting the Technology standards the State has in place, we need to incorporate this into our everyday technology usage.
Technology is one of those areas where you never know enough. As it evolves, teachers never feel they are able to keep up with the fast changes. I wish I could learn how to build websites and use them more effectively in my class. The one thing that our campus is missing is the explanation of why we are doing certain things. I would love to be able to take a leadership role in this area but I do not have the time to learn all it would take to be an expert in this field. The District has existing experts that could do a better job in the dispensing of information. At this time I have not had the correct opportunity to suggest this to the appropriate District Administrators. This is an area where you need to be very tactful and say it in a proactive manner.
Each week as I read the assignment I would feel overwhelmed and think there was no way I could finish the assignment in the appropriate time. Or I would feel that I did not thoroughly understand the assignment. The third week I did partner with two other teachers in my building to tackle the assignment. We came together and compiled the list of the questions to ask each of the assigned administrator and/or experts. We each asked one person to answer our questions and then shared the answers. We did not want to unnecessarily burden very busy administrators with multiple interviews. Collaborating on the interview questions and having someone experiencing the same pressures did help alleviate my anxiety in completing the assignment. Since I have started in this program I never feel confident about my work when turning it in. Thank goodness it is better than I think it is. As an occupational field, I think most teachers have this personality issue where they over think the issue at hand.
Every time you take a new course, meet some new, or experience something new you change. As a person you are a constantly changing. This constant evolving is a good thing since technology and education is constantly changing. The course has made me think more about the copyright laws and the fact that I have so much more to learn. I like technology and the fact that it can make life easier. During the learning phase it makes life harder though. I do understand from an Administrators point of view why we do certain things a certain way. As teacher we sit back and complain about how we are going to fit a new thing in to our always busy day and now I know why certain things are asked of us. As a teacher we tell our students why they are doing a certain task and as an administrator we don’t always do that. The hope is as a potential administrator, I will take the time to tell my staff why it is important and get their buy in to whatever the issue of the day may be.
Our School district trained the staff on the creation and usage of blogs last year in our Technology In-Service Day. Blogs as a short term assignment can improve students writing abilities and teach them to write in a business setting. Most of us are very busy and do not WANT to take the time to read lengthy blogs written by other people. We are a short attention span society. The majority of us want things written in short bulleted points. This is why texting is so popular. You write your answers in short blurts when it is convenient for you. Students do not like to take the time reading long essays and to tell you the truth I don’t think they are alone in their feelings. On the other hand my students need the practice in writing so blogs can give them this outlet where they learn to write meaningful communication. All in all blogs are a good practice tool for students as long as it is used for a short time period.
Face it teenagers don’t always my good choices. They are very emotional decision makers. Though they don’t want to be constantly monitored they still do need supervision. The use of blogs takes a lot of time to monitor and read. The best place for their usage would be an English Composition class. If I were an English teacher that taught a writing intensive course I would use blogs as a place to have the students turn in their work. It would be a means to “Go Green” by creating less paper waste. The problem would be the freedom for others to see their work. So once you taught the importance of security the students can really learn about publishing and collaboration.
“Time” has been the key expression throughout this blog. Just as it has been mentioned during the course, blogging can be a way for teams to collaborate and find solutions for problems within their district. Just as we sit in a meeting and brainstorm, blogs can be used in the same way. We all know we come up with the best solutions for problems in the middle of the night. Blogging would allow you to get up and send your idea before it was lost to the business of the day. The opposite “time” factor is that it can be time consuming to read blogs that are not productive. But then again how many meetings have you been in that a person kept talking and talking without really saying anything towards the solution of the problem. Blogging would allow you to skip over that part of the essay making the collaboration more effective. Blogging used in the correct place can be very beneficial in the communication of school stakeholders.

Pennington Week 4 Part 1

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Pennington Week 4 Part 1

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Week 4 Assignment

Week 4 Assignment, Part 2

Superintendent Job Description

Job Description: To manage the school system and to provide leadership according to the school district’s vision. The Superintendent is responsible for a relationship with the School Board. H/her job responsibilities include budget allocation, educational leadership and curriculum, personnel, facilities, general management and communications/public relations.

Assistant Superintendent of Administration   

Job Description: Responsible for all areas of human resources. Assist in the development of policies and administrative regulations needed by the District. Assist in the development, supervision, and evaluation of programs serving constituent districts. Assist in the supervision of the Texas educational programs such as technology integration.  Work with administrators, principals, teachers, and parents of constituent districts relative to curriculum, administrative functions, instructional materials, and evaluation of educational programs.

Assistant Superintendant for Curriculum

Job Description: The Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction serves as the primary administrator responsible for curricular activities in the district. This leadership role is to be conducted in cooperation with many other faculty and administrative committees in the district. The Assistant Superintendent also serves the Superintendent as an advisor on educational, operational, and budget matters for the district. It is expected that the Assistant Superintendent will interact with faculty, students, staff, and parents on a daily basis. In particular, faculty and student contact are expected. The Assistant Superintendent attends all School Board meetings. The Assistant Superintendent also serves as the primary liaison between the high school district and the lower schools. The Assistant Superintendent will be assigned projects and other responsibilities by the Superintendent on a regular basis.

Chief Technology Officer

Job Descriptions: Responsible for developing, coordinating, implementing, and assessing K-12 educational technology plans.  Familiar with current/emerging issues impacting schools related to District use of Instructional Technology. The Director of Technology provides supervision and support for the operation of the Deer Park School District voice, video, and data networks. S/he assists administrators and provides oversight of teachers and staff in the full utilization of the networks to improve the instructional and management functions of the school district.

Principal’s Job Description

Job Description:  The school Principal serves as the educational leader, responsible for managing the policies, regulations, and procedures to ensure that all students are supervised in a safe traditional learning environment that meets the approved curricula and mission of the school.

Director of Network Systems

Job Description: Director will be responsible for installing, maintaining, and supporting computer communication networks within the school district. H/her goals are to ensure the smooth operation of communication networks in order to provide maximum performance and availability for their users.

Director of Information

Job Description: Maintain and gather all district information systems, such as SASI and attendance.

Campus Technology Specialist

The Instructional Technology Specialist will facilitate and oversee the use of technology and delivery of curricula while working with teachers through a variety of instructional methods and staff development. The primary focus is to strengthen the technology integration skills of Deer Park teachers and provide leadership in the implementation of the District Technology Staff Development Plan.

School District Webmaster

Job Description: Maintain a school website which communicates school-related information to parents, students and the community-at-large.

Multimedia Specialist

Job Description: Create videos and multimedia projects to support district projects.

Role of Principal

The principal’s role in implementing technology within the campus is to support the campus and district-wide technology implementation and use through campus level planning, adequate staff, and appropriate budgeting.

Part 2: Professional Development Planning

According to the Texas Technology Long Range many teachers are willing to learn more about the use of technology in the classroom but feel that they do not get quality professional development. According to the plan teachers should have access to training 24/7 that includes online and distance learning.

Professional Development Ideas:

  

·         Use the K-12 Online conference to instruct teachers on the latest technology trends.

·         Create PowerPoint slide shows with video (like the ones used in this program) to teach educators the importance of each type of evaluation tool. (ex. Why do teachers need to take the STaR Chart survey?) Many teachers do not understand the importance of each report or how it could impact their teaching. It is a dry subject so the videos will need to be short.

·         Create Web Quest for teachers to discover new technology.

·         Create links to Microsoft (or appropriate software company) Tutorial videos to help teacher with software questions from Staff Portal section of school district website.

·         Using Staff Portal create Icons that include different types of training based on type of equipment. (i.e. Flip Video usage)

·         During department meetings discuss different measurement tools and their importance. (i.e. PBMAS) Meeting should be kept short to eliminate inattention.

·         Monthly technology training on one small part of a yearlong initiative. (ex. Teacher WebPages)

·         Technology Open House-new technology is placed in the Teacher Break Room once a month manned by an Instructional Technology Liaison. They will be able to answer questions about the equipment or software. Teachers may look at it and play with it during conference time. 

Part 3:  Evaluation Planning for Action Plan

·         Teachers will be required to take STaR Chart Survey each year.

·         Short progress monitors will be placed at the end of each PowerPoint Video. (as this class uses)

·         Teachers will take short survey using software like Survey Monkey at the conclusion of department meeting trainings.

·         Use cell phone text messaging to ask educators one to two question surveys at the conclusion of in-person trainings. (ex. Monthly technology training sessions)