Running head: A GROWTH ASSESSMENT

Education Technology Growth Assessment Stephen W. Wright Azusa Pacific University

For the word of God is sharper than any two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12 New King James Version)

A GROWTH ASSESSMENT

A GROWTH ASSESSMENT Education Technology Growth Assessment

Personal Growth My personal growth throughout the Masters of Arts in Education Technology has been incredible. This program has refocused my spiritual growth, sharpened my cognitive skills, and dramatically increased my confidence as an educator. Teaching is a second career for me. I worked in the retail hardware industry for twenty five years. After a series of events and much prayer I decided to pursue my teaching credential. My professor, Dr. Gaunty-Porter at Vanguard University, asked me about my plans after the credential. I said I could not decide between a Masters in special education or education technology; she said why not do both. So I completed my Masters in special education at Azusa Pacific University (APU) in 2007 and now I am completing my Masters in education technology in 2011 at the same university. The surprising part of this journey is the spiritual aspect. I was glad I was attending a Christian university, but I did not anticipate how that would impact my spiritual growth. Each week in every class we had scriptures, devotionals, and poignant discussions. As I reflected on the readings and read the feedback from fellow students I realized that we were all on the same journey to understand what God is doing in our lives and then as Francis Shafer (2005) said that in light of what we know and who God is how shall we then live. You see our learning is not for the sake of learning it is to apply what we have learned personally, professionally, and spiritually. I read a book, Sit, Walk, Stand by Watchmen Nee (1957). In the book he states, form Ephesians, that we are seated with Christ in heavenly places; we are to walk in the spirit, and to stand against the Devil. It is the application of what we learn, our walk and stand, that makes a difference in the lives of our students, colleagues, ourselves, and finally our world. The next part of my growth has been cognitively. About ten years ago I had a traumatic brain injury. At that time I lost my short term memory. The process of going through these Masters programs has sharpened my memory and enhanced my learning skills. During each class I worked on projects that challenged me to do my best. At times I would hit the wall and think I cannot do this. Through the help of excellent professors, fellow students working together, and leaning on God I have been successful. The skills I have learned at APU will serve me well as I apply what I have learned to my personal life and as an educational leader. Professional Growth The Masters in Educational Technology program at APU has helped me grow professionally and will be a

A GROWTH ASSESSMENT 2 tremendous asset to improve student engagement in learning and enhance my professional development as a technology leader in my school. The difference has been profound. As a result of this program I have attended and participated in a technology sales presentation for my school, served on the districts math curriculum development committee, and researched math curriculum software programs for my school. I have also gained an understanding of how to implement and use technology in the classroom by engaging students in interactive lessons. Last year my district was reviewing new math curriculum for the New Year. I severed on the selection committee working with other teachers and the district curriculum department head to choose the best program for our district. After the selections were made I continued on the curriculum mapping committee to align the new curriculum to our new state content standards. We laid out what material needed to be covered and in what time frame. As a result of working on this degree, I was able to help in the selection of new technology tools for my district and school. The information I have gained from my classes enabled me to ask pertinent questions and make recommendations to my school principal. This allowed my principal to make informed decisions for spending grant money that was designated for technology. The end result was that we purchased portable Promethean smart boards to use in the classrooms that can be shared by multiple teachers at a significant price savings over an installed SmartBoard. Professionally, for me, the biggest impact of my learning has been the knowledge I have gained to present lessons and engage students in their learning. I learned to present interactive lessons using web 2.0 technologies that enhances education and allows me to differentiate my lessons for various learning styles of students. This program has helped me grow as a professional and I believe will launch me to the next level of my professional development and career. Technical Growth The technical growth I have experienced through the education technology program has been amazing. I thought I know a lot about technology because I could make a PowerPoint and find lessons on the web. I was wrong. I have learned so much from this program. I learned to create web sites, conduct research, collaborate, create online courses, and how to use technical applications like File Transfer Protocol (FTP). I learned how to engage the digital learners of today using Web 2.0 tools.

A GROWTH ASSESSMENT 3 To me one of the best parts of the program was learning to create websites and how to fine tune them using HTML, hypertext makeup language. I have created sites using Google Docs, Weebly, and Jimdo. I learned to embed videos, images and audio to create informative interactive lessons. I created a virtual field trip to Old Bents Fort in Colorado (Wright, 2011), using Camtasia and YouTube. I also created an online class using Moodle and used electronic feedback with Poll Every Where and Mouse Mischief. I believe that online learning is the wave of the future. I also have come to realize the importance of collaboration from students to students and teacher to teacher, using Blogs, Twitter, and Google Docs, to increase learning and create a synergy of thought to improve learning. I have created blogs and engaged in Personal Learning Networks to glean ideas form other educators. The more technical side of education technology is another aspect I plan to engage. In this program I learned to use create websites and use FTP to transfer large amounts of data in a short period of time. This is just the beginning. I plan to learn much more on the technical side so that I can be an even greater asset to my school and district. Technology and education is a union that will drive our future. This Masters degree has prepared me to be a leader in education. The body of knowledge is vast and forever expanding. As we can never say, I have reached the end of the internet (Weinman, 2006, p1), I can never say that I have learned all there is to know. Just as I am so amazed at what can be done with technology in education today, it will even be more amazing where we will be in just ten years. This program has equipped to be a leader in education technology by giving me the tools and incite to expand what I have learned and to search for the next best solution. Lifelong Learning I believe that from the time we are born to the time to go to heaven we are engaged in lifelong learning. Some people learn a little knowledge and others embrace the learning. Lifelong learning, according to Wikipedia (2011), is the continuous building of skills and knowledge throughout the life of an individual. It occurs through experiences encountered in the course of a lifetime. My learning path has been extensive. In my early days I learned practical hands on knowledge form working in my fathers hardware store. After a series of events I reengaged my learning by becoming a teacher and then went on to earn a Masters of Education in Special Education and now Education

A GROWTH ASSESSMENT 4 Technology. In between I took classes in business, computers and even cooking. Now that I have completed this step in my education the question is what is next. As a Lifelong learner I plan to continue my education both informally and formally. I have signed up to attend the Texas Computer Education Association Conference in February. This conference is a weeklong. It is one of the nations largest computer conferences. It includes presentations, collaboration, demonstrations, and will host hundreds of venders. I plan to be looking for possible jobs while I am there. I anticipate this will be a great opportunity to learn. To stay up to date on what is happening in education I have joined the Colorado Math Teachers Online, Professional Association of Colorado Educators, Learning Disabilities On-Line, and other Real Simple Solutions feeds (RSS). These will enable me to stay current with the ever changing technology and education environment. The final part of my plan is that I am investigating my next step educationally. I am checking out various online and site based Doctoral programs in education. I have not yet made a decision but the possibilities are exciting. As a lifelong learner I do not think I will ever stop. Even as retirement approaches I do not think I will settle for Bingo and TV. It is my hope to make a significant difference in education at the district and state level and once I do retire I think I will learn to carve and paint birds and perhaps teach others to do the same. Conclusion The transformation I have experienced in Azusas Masters in Education Technology program has been phenomenal. It has taught me to look for innovative ways to facilitate the learning of my students as they construct their learning with online web 2.0 tools. In one sense this is the beginning of the beginning. While my learning has been tremendous, it has opened my eyes to not becoming complacent but to continue to expand my resources and technology skills. A quote from John Kennedy (2011), our thirty fifth president, speaks of the importance of education: Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation. (para 2) It is imperative that we as educators continue to grow in our knowledge and application of technology so that we can reach the youth of today and prepare them for the world of tomorrow.

A GROWTH ASSESSMENT References Kennedy, J. F. (2011, December 05). Proverbia.net. Retrieved from http://en.proverbia.net/citasautor.asp?autor=14002

Nee, W. (1957). Sit, walk, stand. ( 3 ed.) Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishing Inc.

Schaeffer, F. A., & Dennis, L. T. (2005). How shall we then live. (50 ed.) Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.

Weinman, B. (2006). The end. Retrieved from http://bw.org/end/

Wikipedia. (2011, November 24). Lifelong learning. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifelong_learning

Wright, S. W. (Producer). (2011). Old Bents Fort. [Video]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8sUtTum-MQ