“Dream big. Wake up. Take the first step into the unknown.”
― Roy T. Bennett
When I first began my master's program I was in my second year of teaching, and I was looking for a program that would help me grow as a teacher. My original program was Reading and my intent was to possibly become a reading specialist. I took a class at Eastern Michigan University, and while I learned a lot about helping kids read, I wasn’t sure that was what I wanted to do. Originally, I started off teaching in lower elementary (kindergarten). My second year in Northville Public Schools, I volunteered to teach in a fifth grade classroom that had opened up. Most of the kids were at or above grade level reading and I had plenty of support for kids that needed it. I decided I wanted to change to a program that would be more applicable to my teaching and affect student learning. My goal was to be a better teacher and find a program that would support all of the subjects I was teaching. I was very happy when I found the Master of Arts in Educational Technology program at Michigan State University!
At this point I was learning a lot through the district's professional development (PD) and teacher conferences I was attending about best practice instruction. I was trying new things in the classroom and enjoyed collaborating with other teachers. My district was in the process of implementing a new technology plan which meant installing smart boards, and access to technology in the classroom such as laptops and Chromebooks, as well as some iPads. I had the opportunity to write a grant for iPads in my classroom and it was accepted! Ten iPads were housed in my classroom and my students can use them regularly to support their learning. I began to take on a leadership role at my school and was willing to take risks and try new things. My administrator would ask me to lead short snippets of PD. I was so excited about what I was doing and how it was helping my kids that I wanted to share
it with other teachers! My drive to learn how to integrate technology with best practice instruction led me to explore what Google for Education had to offer. We were changed to a Google district, so we had access to Google apps for Education. I researched online and became a level two Google certified educator. For the past three years I have been a building Technology Integration Specialist in addition to teaching, and I have had the pleasure of sharing my learning district wide at PD’s.
My main goal when I started this program was to become a better teacher. Now, it is more specific than that. My goal throughout the program morphed into not only being a better teacher, but also being a resource for my colleagues and teaching others about the amazing possibilities with technology. I also gained clarity in what it meant to be a better teacher. It means to meet the needs of my students by taking advantage of the affordances of online tools and online applications. It means to inspire my student to be creators of content rather than just consumers.
Looking Back
Photo taken from: wix.com