As long as I can remember I have been a curious person with a ferverant desire to know. I have always enjoyed learning about new subjects and have been lucky enough to be surrounded with others who are equally curious or eager to teach me something. I remember the joy and excitement I would feel when cracking open a brand new notebook to take notes, or the smell of an old library book ready to share it's secrets. To this day those feelings are still a powerful force in me and my love for learning pushes me to continue to pursue education even after I have obtained my degree. I have developed a deep knowledge of literacy education throughout my master’s program; however there are still areas that I yearn to learn more about. Though my goals and desires may change as time goes on, I am eager to develop my technology integration, mathematics instruction, and integration of Google Chromebooks into the classroom.
My Journey Begins Again
The third goal I have for my future as a learner is to continue to develop my instructional and assessment practice with mathematics. My experience through the MAED program at Michigan State University focusing on literacy has truly enhanced my skills as a teacher. I feel more confident and have proven to be more effective in my practice because of my learning. I would like to feel this way about mathematics and continue to become a more effective education in all areas. I have started this process my joining the Math Committee at my school that creates consistent assessments school wide, analyzes assessment, data, and uses the results to guide instruction. I also plan on becoming a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). I plan on using my membership to help read professional research journals on mathematic practice, see exemplar lesson plans, and find conference opportunities for professional development.
My school has finally jumped on the technology bandwagon. This year my school has purchased class sets of Google Chromebooks. We were given our class set in a charging cart and they are housed in our classroom at all times. With the availability of this resource, I want to make sure that I integrate it as much as possible and use it to enhance my instruction and my students learning. I also know that in order to prepare my students for life outside of school they will need these 21st century skills to be successful. My original thoughts are to use it for practice games, introducing curriculum topics, and give students hand on learning, however I feel that my thoughts are only a small part of what these Chromebooks offer. In order to incorporate the Chromebooks in my classroom effectively I will complete research and sign up for seminars to learn various strategies. I will take advantage of the Google for Education website and The Chromebook Classroom to begin my professional development.
Another goal that I have for the future is to broaden my knowledge of technology that can be used in the classroom and learn how to effectively integrate it into my everyday instruction. My classroom was gifted a Promethean Board this year and I would like to learn different ways that I can make learning more hands on with this tool. I would like to not only use this tool for instruction, but for students to independently use for practice in small groups or pairs. Along with the Promethean Board, I have been intrigued by incorporating blog writing and increasing communication between my students on the computers with one another and with students from other schools. I want them to be able to use technology to connect them to others and have discussions with students inside and outside of the classroom about their learning. I will be attending a professional development seminar on how to use the Promethean Board in the classroom and I will use the Promethean Planet website as a resource. I also explore EdTechTeacher as a professional development resource to discover different technologies that can be used in the classroom and how to manage and introduce it into my classroom instruction.
As an educator and as a person it is imperative that you continually set goals for yourself and work towards achieving them. My passion for learning is something that will not stop when I earn my degree, it will open up the opportunity for me to set new goals and begin a new journey.
