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Professional Development Plan

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141 views4 pages

Professional Development Plan

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We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Professional Development Plan 2014-2015 School Year

Jennifer Heckel- Calvary Christian Academy


The terms networking and collaboration are becoming more and more talked about in the field of education. The increased role of technology in schools has provided more opportunities to reach out and see what insight other educators have through their own personal experiences. Teachers find it inspiring when they can find other educators who think alike and can provide inspiration during difficult times. One must ask, though, what role does networking and collaboration truly play in an educators life? What tools can technology provide to make networking and collaboration less time consuming and actually fun? What should the end result of networking and collaboration between educators be for the students in our classrooms? Katrina Schwartz (2013) writes, Through connection and collaboration teachers can start down a learning path that parallels the one they try to create for students. Networking and collaboration should be innovative. Too often teachers see new technology and try to put it in a framework that has been used for years. The whole idea of the use of technology is the fact that no longer should educators just learn from other educators; rather they can learn with other educators and produce something new and exciting for their students. Since we expect students to be creators rather than consumers of information, we as educators must use the technology given to us to collaborate and build a network of resources to help us in our profession. We must get out of our comfort zones and motivate our students to become connected learners by becoming connected ourselves. The name of the series is called, Networking and Collaboration for Digital Educators. This series of professional development sessions is designed to introduce K-12 educators to the world of collaboration and networking using various technology tools. In addition, educators will learn how to use collaboration and networking tools to improve the educational experience of their students. Both in school and out of school networking will be explored, and the goal is to increase resources and collaboration between teachers and administrators by the end of the training sessions. By the end of the training sessions, educators will learn how networking can help broaden their horizons and challenge their thinking. While it is great to work together closely with coworkers, endless resources and possibilities exist out of the boundaries of school walls, and educators can

learn a great deal by tapping into the experiences of other educators. All educators can benefit from hearing about and discussing the hardships, struggles, and joys that happen on a daily basis in the field of education. These reflections can inspire teachers to become a better educator themselves. Specific social networking tools will be explored to help educators build their own learning network and learn how to join the vast connected world of educators! Educators benefit in a variety of ways when collaboration takes place. When educators work together more effectively and efficiently, more can be done and more success can be achieved. We live in a connected world where resources are available at our fingertips. Why should this change when we enter the school walls? Effective collaboration saves time, opens doors, and brings different prospective for educators. This professional development series will highlight different tools that bridge the gaps in communication with coworkers, administration, and even students parents. The educators are not the only ones that will benefit from this professional development series, though. When educators learn how to use the 21st century tools available today, they foster increased use in their classrooms. The educators that participate in this training will learn how to use some of the same tools from their personal learning network with the students they teach. Collaboration is an important skill for students to practice throughout their educational experience in order to better prepare them for the world they will enter after their schooling ends. Students who reach outside their own classroom walls can work with people with different situations, viewpoints, and ideas. Learning how to manage these factors is key to 21st century learning. Since educators will be practicing these skills themselves throughout this professional development experience, students will see real world examples right from the educators in front of them. Plan Specifications Audience: Kindergarten-High School educators Location: Computer Lab with at least 15-20 computers with internet access for learning/exploration of topics. Also, a projector or interactive white board would be necessary for the instructor to be able to show resources or media to supplement learning material. Time: Each session will be 1 hour long and take place once a month in place of a weekly faculty meeting after school. Presenters: Two teachers with Masters degrees in Educational Technology who are also trained in technology integration (one from the elementary school and one from the high school) will work together to present the information and make it relevant for all grade-levels. In addition, building administrators will be asked to identify five teachers/building staff who are comfortable in the area of technology to lead various groups through interactive training sessions. These

participants must be willing to learn technology tools so their group can complete the assignments more easily. S.M.A.R.T. Goals: By the end of the training sessions, educators will: Develop their own personal learning network linked to other educators. Join a social networking site (such as Twitter) for professional use and collaboration. Research one specific social networking site and present facts about it to other educators. Participate in a group Wiki to practice using technology for collaboration. Collaborate as a grade-level/department to develop a lesson/project with student collaboration using technology. Implement a technology tool in their classroom to improve parent/teacher or teacher/teacher communication.

Overview of Specific Topics/Tools Covered: Session 1: What is Networking? Session 2: How to Build Your Own Personal Learning Network. Session 3: How to Use Social Networking as an Educator. Session 4: Using Social Networking with Your Students. Session 5: What is Collaboration? Session 6: Google Drive, Dropbox, and Evernote: Powerful Tools for Collaboration Session 7: Using Wikis and Blogs as a Collaborative Tool Session 8: Collaboration Using Online Portfolios Session 9: How to Collaborate Better With Coworkers

Evaluation Tools: Throughout the specific professional development sessions, both pre-assessment of skills and background knowledge on content will occur at the start of each session. Using that background knowledge of teachers skills, the trainers will tailor the tools presented to meet the needs of the school. In addition, workshops will have instructor checklists so that while participants are engaged in training sessions, the instructors can check in on group understanding and mastery of content knowledge. Finally, a challenge will be issued at the end of each training session where participants will be asked to use the tools researched in some professional way. An example of this might be connecting with the trainers via social networking or implementing a social networking tool with their students. They will be asked to share their ideas and progress with the trainers to provide answers to questions that come up and accountability to participants.

Obstacles/Concerns: One potential problem is the vast difference in technology comfort and experience between staff members at the school. This can be overcome by providing differentiated instruction during the actual tool exploration part of the training sessions. Those who are familiar with or have been exposed to certain technology tools will be placed in groups that will explore more in-depth and not so well known resources. Also, educators who are familiar with the topic at the training session can be placed in a panel for question/answer sessions so educators not so familiar with the resources can ask specific questions and get specific practical uses that their coworkers have used. Some social networking sites or resources might be blocked on the network. One way to overcome this is to either contact IT prior to the trainings to ask for permission to access the tools for a set amount of time, or have educators bring their own devices with data plans in order to access information (this is not ideal). Educators might have some pre-conceived notions about social networking/online collaboration or have not so good experiences with collaboration. This can be challenged through direct modeling and instruction on how to find credible resources online.

References: Schwartz, K. (2013, October 02). The key to empowering educators? True collaboration. Retrieved from http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/10/the-key-to-empoweringeducators-true-collaboration/

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