Professional Development Wiki

This wiki was created for a team of teachers and could be added to based on subject area.  It could be expanded to in include a whole grade or even an entire school.  Another option to show Professional Development towards NETS-T standards would be to create an individual website that each teacher would be responsible for updating.

NETS Competency

E-portfolio’s are a great method for tracking any kind of professional development.  Teachers can use online programs like Chalk and Wire or simply set up a free website, like google sites, to feature teacher competency and professional development.  Teachers and administration can set up a page for NETS-T or NETS-A on their public sites.  They can add sub pages under that page for each competency.  On these pages they will provide a description of what the competency is, how they have met the competency and a reflection.  These sites are public so anyone at anytime can see a teachers progress.  Many school’s have already implemented e-portfolio’s for professional development.  In most cases these are only viewable by administrations within the schools district.  It would not be to difficult to add to existing portfolio’s a section for NETS competencies.  I also feel that making them viewable by the public would help parents and community members see that teachers were actively working towards addressing the needs of the students they serve.

The following is one of the NETS-T competencies:

2. Design and Develop Digital Age Learning

Experiences and Assessments

Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic

learning experiences and assessment incorporating

contemporary tools and resources to maximize content

learning in context and to develop the knowledge,

skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS·S.

a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that

incorporate digital tools and resources to promote

student learning and creativity

The teacher that has met this competency would write the following on her eportfolio under NETS-A Competency 2.a :

During our unit on the 1920s the students completed a webquest.   During this webquest they listened to blues, jazz, and a current song and compared the messages, tempo, and possible reasons for the differences.  They were placed into groups and read samples of literature, poems, and speeches that were created during the Harlem Renaissance.  Each group was given a specific piece and used animoto to create a short digital story relaying the message or story that they read.  Next the students participated in an online cultural investigation on an important event or topic of the 20’s.  Each group became an “expert” on their topics, and used power point, prezi’s, or any other digital story software to create a presentation for the class about their topics.  I was able to use multiple digital tools as well as address students differing learning styles.  They were able to create presentations using the tool or program that they wished and created very differing styles of presentations.

Online Learning

Try a sample course or see a demonstration of how the materials are delivered to students through either VHS or VLACS. 

I was able to view an instructional video on the VLACS site.  The site seems more complicated then our black board site.  There seems to be many steps to do a simple assignment.  I definitely could see this as a source of enrichment for students especially since they offer course’s that earn college credits as well as High School and Middle School credits, but I can also see students struggling just to keep up with all of the steps they need to do.

Preview the course selections for your state and an adjoining state. 

The course catalog lists do not seem to differ for in state and out of state students.  The same subjects are offered for the same amount of time and are worth the same credits.  The same learning goals are used and for competency recovery the same GSE’s are used for in state and out of state students.

What are the policies for the virtual school regarding accepting students from other states? 

Eligibility

• Have not earned a high school diploma;
• Be able to pay non-resident tuition in full upon admission;
• Complete all coursework prior to his or her 21st birthday
• Not been expelled from a school or diploma granting program;

To complete the admissions process for a full time student, prospective students are required to: 

• Complete an admissions application;
• Participate in the student/parent interviews;
• Receive a recommendation for acceptance from the VLACS admissions team;
• Transfer academic records to VLACS
• Complete one or more half credit segments of a high school English, math, social studies or science course with a grade of 70% or better as a part-time student before becoming eligible for full-time status;

The only difference between in state and out of state is there is a tuition fee, and there is an interview and recommendation process for out of state students.

Do the virtual schools work with local schools? 

There was no specific schools listed on the site.  It just states that it is available to all NH Middle School and High School students.

Can students be part-time students? 

Students can register as part time.  As a matter of fact, VLACS states that they are required to enroll as part time for at least a half a high school credit segment in either English, Math, Science or Social Studies

How you could use these schools for supplemental education and for providing extended learning opportunities for students. Use specific examples to illustrate. 

As I stated above I could see this being used as enrichment for more advanced students or students looking to earn college credits.  I could also see a student who is behind in a subject using it as a way to get caught up.  I do not see it as a way to take the place of a brick and mortar school except under certain circumstances, like bullying or a type of disability that would cause the student to struggle in school.  Or if a child was severely sick and would have been out for an extended period of time.  This could also be a great tool for parents that want to home school but lack the education, knowledge and training to do the job properly.

References:

Welcome to the Virtual Learning Academy. (n.d.). Virtual Learning Academy Charter School. Retrieved from http://vlacs.org/

Virtual Schools:The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Virtual public schools are growing.  These are private companies taking tax money from taxpayers to preform worse than brick and mortar school on state tests and have higher drop out rates. (Brown and Layton, 2011)  I do believe despite these facts virtual or online education can have an effective place in public education.  We are facing a time of severe budget cuts and growing student population.  Our schools are comparable to hamsters running a wheel in a cage.  Something needs to be done.

I believe that virtual schools can be a benefit when used for the right purposes by the right students, and run by the right people.  Most of the students that attend full time online or virtual public schools are students that are in very real danger of not graduating.  These are the students that should not be going to school full time online.  This is usually the population that has no support at home.  These are students who only have and can only get support from teachers and specialist at school.  I just do not understand why we take these students away from the only support most of them have, and try to make them do it all on their on.  Many agree that students that do not have a learning guide at home are the ones that fail or drop out.  Students need that support in the home for online and virtual schools to be a potentially successful option for them.

I do not believe that online schools can replace what a child will receive in a brick and mortar school.  Maybe a hybrid model would be the best option.  Students could spend half the day doing work online and the other half in a school building interacting with peers, teachers, and any specialists they may need.  You could put the school day on a rotation, where half the population goes in the morning and half in the afternoon.  All teachers would have the same prep and lunch periods between these shifts which would allow for easy communication and collaboration among staff.  Think of the one on one time a teacher could give if there classes were to go from 30 to 15.

Another option is to have local or online colleges bid for an opportunity to provide accelerated classes for those students that move faster and need more challenge or simply want to earn some college credits.  For remedial students you could set up additional classes they could do from home to help catch them up to where the other students are.

If online learning where to become an option I would highly recommend that the state or the district invest in creating it themselves.  These private companies are using our tax dollars to make millions.  One company even states in an article written by Lindsey Layton and Emma Brown that, “We understand the politics of education pretty well.” (Brown and Layton, 2011)  These private companies donate thousands of dollars to politicians and are contracted to provide online education to our students, and they do it unsuccessfully.  Why are they not held as accountable as schools?  Maybe if schools were able to make political contributions politicians would support failure and call it innovation as well.  

References:

Layton, L., & Brown, E. (2011, November 28). Virtual schools are multiplying, but some question their educational value. Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/virtual-schools-are-multiplying-but-some-question-their-educational-value/2011/11/22/gIQANUzkzN_story.html

Virtual Libraries

Please click here to view my presentation on the benefits of virtual libraries.

Technology Use

	Generation @: 0-16	Millennial’s: 17-31	Generation X: 32-48	Baby Boomers: 49-67	Silent Generation:68-88
Minutes per week texting	2779 min	1299 min	441 min	80 min	32 min
Percent that use email		97%	91%	77%	53%
Minutes per week talking on the phone	631 min	981 min	896 min	587 min	398 min
Main source of news		Internet	Internet	TV	TV
Seek news or come across it	I could not find exact numbers for this category, but from what I was able to find.  Generation @, Millennial’s, and Generation X typical come across news, while Baby Boomer, and Silent Generation are more likely to seek out news.
How many Internet-connected devices do they use?	1-3	3-5	3-5	2-3	1-2

References:

Millennials Defined By Technology Use. (n.d.). NationalJournal.com. Retrieved from http://www.nationaljournal.com/njonline/no_20100225_3691.php

New Generation of Communication: Texting versus Talking. (n.d.). The HireAHelper Blog.            Retrieved from http://blog.hireahelper.com/2009/06/11/new-generation-of-communication-texting-versus-talking/

Chart/table from: Majority of US Seniors Now Online. (n.d.). Chart/table From: Majority of US   Seniors Now Online. Retrieved from http://www.marketingcharts.com/direct/majority-of-us-seniors-now-online-22327/pew-internet-use-by-age-june2012png/

Comparing cell phone use by age. (n.d.). The DO Loop. Retrieved from http://blogs.sas.com/content/iml/2010/09/28/comparing-cell-phone-use-by-age/

Issues and Activities

One computer in the classroom
Potential Issue	Possible Activity
Only one student can use	Have students look up questions during a lesson
It may break leaving you with none	Use as a station during an activity
It may freeze while using	Skyping with another school in another country.
If doing a group activity not all students will be able to see.	Use during a scavenger hunt.
It may be very very slow	Skills drill tests/quizzes
It may crash during use.	Accommodations for students with special needs
It takes a long time to boot up	Books, stories, primary sources online
Student get jealous if only one kid is able to use it.	Research
Spam	Jeopardy review

Small cluster of computers in the classroom (assume 1 computer for every 10 students)
Potential Issue	Possible Activity
Students may be looking up things they should not be.	Have students look up questions during a lesson
One or some may break leaving you with fewer then planned for or none.	Use as a station during an activity
They may freeze while using	Skyping with another school in another country.
If doing a group activity not all students will be able to see.	Use during a scavenger hunt.
They may be very very slow	Skills drill tests/quizzes
They may crash during use	Accommodations for students with special needs
Student will argue about who get to be the computer person	Books, stories, primary sources online
They would take a long time to boot up	Research
Groups will distract each other	Jeopardy review
Spam	Webquest

A portable computer cart or COW
Potential Issue	Possible Activity
Students may be looking up things they should not be.	Skyping with another school in another country.
One or some may break leaving you with fewer then planned for or none.	Use during a scavenger hunt.
They may freeze while using	Skills drill tests/quizzes
If doing a group activity not all students will be able to see.	Accommodations for students with special needs
They may be very very slow	Books, stories, primary sources online
They may crash during use	Research
They would take a long time to boot up	Jeopardy review
Students will distract each other	Webquest
Spam	Writing papers

A computer lab
Potential Issue	Possible Activity
Students may be looking up things they should not be.	Skyping with another school in another country.
One or some may break leaving you with fewer then planned for or none.	Use during a scavenger hunt.
They may freeze while using	Skills drill tests/quizzes
They may crash during use	Accommodations for students with special needs
They may be very very slow	Books, stories, primary sources online
They would take a long time to boot up	Research
Groups will distract each other	Jeopardy review
Spam	Webquest
	Writing papers