Star Chart

Star Chart

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Texas STaR Chart-- Leadership, Administration and Instructional Support

I believe the area in which the impact is the greatest in the Long Range Plan is the area of leadership, administration and support because of this I choose to focus on this area. Strong leadership can ensure that the technology vision becomes a reality. Providing characteristics of what good leaders look and act like. Some characteristics that they exhibit are to provide staff development, use data for decision making and develop, implement and budget for a technology planning.

Progress in this area focuses on creating a technology plan that falls within the shared vision between the state and campus. Creating a campus technology team in which decisions are made in accordance to the goal of the long range plan.

Trends in this area have the focus should be to integrate technology into all schools. Allowing for adequate teacher planning time and tech support and ensuring that computers are able to run effectively. Recommendations for TEA, regional agencies, and local agencies; examples include to provide leadership in data driven decision making and model leadership in the use of technology. At the school level however this was our lowest scoring area. Providing more professional development opportunities in which teachers can build off of their current knowledge and also having the technology team set up to help with issues that arise.

Pre-K Technology TEKS

The Pre-K TEKS allow the young learners to become familiar and gain confidence to different forms of technology. The technology skills that they will be first introduced to are essential to student performance in future grades. Such skills as beginning able to open and navigate through programs and being able to use a mouse to double click or insert a CD-ROM.

A spiraling curriculum allows skills to be introduced at one grade level, but are not intended to be mastered within the same year. There are opportunities and for the students to master the skills during other grade levels. TEKS that provided multiple opportunities for the student to learn are using appropriate technology for the given task, following acceptable use policies, and use software video, audio and graphics to enhance learning. All of these are skills in which the students will continually be exposed to year after year.

Reflections over Technology Assessment

Technology assessments or inventories have been a regular part of my own personal assessment since I have began teaching. The first assessment was a technology inventory and I could answer most of the questions for the most part with little to no difficulty. Under the foundations domain I was able to say yes to all, but two of the areas. One of the areas in which I did not answer yes to was being about to know the difference between analog and digital technologies and can interface the two. I know about analog and digital, but am not clear on what they mean by interface the two. I don't feel like I fully understand what they were asking here. The two domains in which I answered no to at least four questions was information acquisition and problem solving with technology. I had strengths in those areas, but I also had questions that I did not know what it was asking or I had not even heard of what the question was asking. Examples included Boolen search strategy, creating liner and non linear projects, and virtual environments. After looking over the entire assessment I was able to really think about how I am using technology within the classroom to improve student learning. I believe that I have an overall awareness and understanding, but do have room for improvement.

The SETDA teacher survey was much harder for me to reflect on and answer the questions fully. I believe because of my current position. I am not at a school full time and I don't have my own classroom. I consult and work as an interventionist only seeing students for 45 minutes in an intensive intervention. So using the assessment from my current position then I look as if I am weak in technology integration within the classrooms. Most answers were no currently. However, I retook the assessment and based it on my last year as a full time classroom teacher my answers changed to yes on a majority of questions.

Analysis of the Long Range Plan

In reading over TEA's Long Range Plan for technology I was able to see the intended direction and goals for schools in the area of technology. These goals or objectives have been thought out and included research from the Speak Out Net Day 2005 in which teachers and school leaders were able to provide TEA with vital information on technology use and need within the schools. This plan is ambitious and could do great things, but I am not sure if it will all come to frution. My knowledge gained from reading allows me to see were we are headed in the area of technology. Allowing me to attend professional development workshops that will provide support to areas of weakness. While facilitating workshops in areas that fall within my strengths.