What a whirlwind! As I have been putting together my Innovative Learning website, I have realized how much work and effort I have put into this Master's program. As a result of this work and effort, a tremendous amount of knowledge has been gained by myself and that feels really good. Going into my 15th year in Education, it felt good to be in "student-mode" as a Graduate student. The model of instruction in my time at Touro University is a great example of what a successful classroom can look like in my future. I loved how each of our classes were a collaboration instead of a lecture. Students can learn so much more collaborating with each other instead of just hearing a lecture from their teacher. As teachers, sometimes we don't allow enough time for feedback and communication. I will remember these unnecessary time restrictions in my own classroom as I move long in my career.
I am very proud of my cohort, we have worked together as colleagues and friends. Thanks to the excellent instructors of Touro University!
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I am very proud of the Master's work that I have done over the past year, one of the main reasons is because of the value system that Touro University has in place. The Touro value that stands out to me at this particular time is the "promotion of interprofessionalism". To me this means the sharing of ideas, knowledge, thoughts with not only your cohort but with your work peers. My goal is to make a positive impact in the lives of all students, with a specific focus on advanced learners. In order for this to happen there needs to be promotion and marketing of my advanced learner resource (A.L.I.V.E!). I plan on posting the ALIVE resource on twitter, Facebook and my own personal website. I believe, with some marketing on my end, I can promote this resource so folks beyond the North Bay can take advantage. I also plan on reaching out to my principal regarding my ALIVE! strategies in hopes of passing along the knowledge to my peers as professional development. I believe my resource is valuable especially due to budget cuts that may limit the hiring of GATE teachers. Overall, my Touro University experience has been tremendous and I hope to make a positive educational impact in the future.
It is incredibly important for high-level technology skills to be taught in schools. I teach in a very progressive and forward-thinking district in Napa County that I would say has an all-encompassing technology vision. In a recent LCAP document, my district stated that they have made "significant investments in upgrades to the technology infrastructure several years ago that facilitated the implementation of one-to-one computing for every student. We recently upgraded the majority of our instructional technology devices to better prepare our students for college and career."
I have been in the district for three years and have been really impressed with the level of technology from students to teachers to staff. Classrooms are equip with 1:1 devices, projectors, speakers and a high-quality loaned teacher computer. During the COVID-19 crisis, our district was able to switch to distance learning as seamlessly as possible on very short notice because of previous technology investments. In addition, I believe that parents have become more knowledgeable as a result of distance learning. Our parents made a good faith effort to learn about applications such as Google Classroom, Class Dojo and Freckle. I can't help but think that this additional parent exposure to technology may end up being a positive aspect of distance learning and may help parents support their children at home for years to come. What was the big reason that you committed to research the topic you did? Why did it appeal and resonate with you?
My Master’s research topic was a very personal one for me because it relates to my own children. My three kids have been classified as “GATE” by their schools. This was exciting news and I was expecting that this would open up unique learning opportunities for my kids. Unfortunately, my wife and I soon found out that there was very little follow through with a GATE program at their school. In addition, most of the opportunities that were provided took place after the school day, which would be considered “extra work” by my kids. I started thinking that it would be great for a teacher to have a GATE curriculum that they could weave into the school day with their entire class. Enter Touro University and the topic of action research. It was easy to select my action research (the implementation of an in-class ELA GATE curriculum) because it is appealing and resonates with me personally. Imagine you have completed your Master’s – what’s next with regards to the research you have done? How do you see yourself bringing the work into the world? Do you see yourself continuing what you started? How? As mentioned in a recent class, bringing the great work of Cohort 18 into the world is a major goal of mine. After the completion of the program (and getting all my ducks in a row), I plan to send out a press release to promote Kriner’s ALIVE 1.0. I think there is a need for a curriculum that encourages the growth of advanced learners. Basic curriculum resources will be provided free online, an in-depth curriculum (paid) will be listed on Teachers-Pay-Teachers and Amazon. From there, I am hoping that Districts and Administrators use this curriculum in their schools with great success. I hope to revise and put out a Kriner’s ALIVE 2.0 the following year, which would include additional information and insights. I reviewed two Learning Innovation Lab capstone projects, this research gave me some ideas about how I would like to present my own capstone project as I work through this semester.
Jennifer Perkins The driving question is: why is it important to implement 21st Century Skills and a Growth Mindset into the Mathematics Classroom? Who was their audience? Their audience is district administrators and teachers. I thought Perkins did a good job of trying to reach her audience, especially on the "Standards" and "Learn More" tab. Those tabs gave great resources to educators who are looking for ideas about how and why they should implement 21st Century and Growth Mindset opportunities. I also like the graphs which provides clear data. Were they effective in presenting to them on every page? Why or why not? I think Perkins did a nice ob of presenting to her audience on each page. One suggestion would be to highlight the finding of each of rounds of research, maybe with bold fonts or enlarged text. Cerda The driving question is does having students create video lessons engage them in learning? Who is their audience? Their audience is district administrators and teachers. I thought there was a lot of good information in Cerda's capstone project but I did feel like the content was a bit light. I like the graphics but it seemed that there could have been additional resources or add-ons to his pages that would have given more information and power to his project. Were they effective in presenting to them on every page? Why or why not? I thought the "Learn More" tab was the best part of the project. Another suggestion would be to highlight the findings of each rounds of research, maybe with bold fonts or enlarged text. My capstone project audience include district administrators, site administrators, teachers, paraprofessionals and parents. These folks will be my capstone audience because I am providing resources for how to challenge advanced learners to grow to their greatest potential. This audience will be interested in learning how to best support this student population. |