Final reflections

CEP 811 allowed me to continue to grow in my understanding of what quality technology integration means in the classroom. My biggest take-away from this course was learning about UDL principles. I feel that session had the most influence on my day to day work. Since learning about the UDL principles, I have been able to put together tool kits for teachers and have presented that information both at staff meetings and in individual or team planning sessions with teachers. This new knowledge has not only empowered my own teaching, but has allowed me to empower others, and essentially, improve student learning.

I use a fair amount of web technologies in my day-to-day work, so none of the content was completely new. I liked being able to evaluate web resources with the notion of TPACK in mind. TPACK is something I am very passionate about especially in a teacher-leadership role. I liked being able to apply that knowledge to actual webquests and wikis (both of which I use with teachers on a regular basis) in search of those projects that truly embody the principles. That helped scaffold the process of applying those principles to web-based projects I do often. By being reminded of the TPACK framework and being asked to review projects for all elements of TPACK, it really re-focused my thinking and planning on fostering each element in plans and projects.

I have continued to grow as an educator through this course. Specifically my horizons were expanded through the UDL portions of the course. I am able to see how technology can aid in students ability to access information, and have begun to work that knowledge into my work with both teachers and students. A big portion of my goals for these courses lie within teacher training and growth, as I am trying to foster more technology integration in my building. By presenting and working with teachers on UDL principles, I am not only teaching them a new program or tool, but instead aiding them in empowering students.

I do not have totally new goals related to educational technology and my teaching, but rather, they are continuing to evolve. I think this coursework has reiterated the importance of the focus areas I had already identified. Specifically, fostering professional development and teacher training in order to increase student engagement. My goals of building quality professional development and teacher training opportunities were met as I learned about new tools and ideas for integration. For example, the UDL sessions really hit home and I was able to bring that to my teachers and work it into my repertoire. I see my work and learning in CEP 811 as one more step along the path of quality technology integration.