Final Reflection
Cycle 2 was a pivotal moment in my action research. After creating a technology committee and was genuinely excited for the potential of this committee. I believed these members were as passionate about technology integration and would have good ideas for how to help create change at my school. However, it became clear that the majority of people in my technology committee were either too busy to fully commit, or had only joined to help me out, as a friend, with my action research project.
One of the most valuable things I learned was how to lead a professional development session. This experience was entirely new to me and while the presentation itself was organized, the communication with teachers was not as organized. As I continued giving sessions I learned that sending out RSVP forms, having sign in sheets at the sessions, and offering a post meeting survey were all equally helpful. In the future, I would like to further explore the concept of professional development in small groups, as the majority of the staff indicated that this was how they preferred to conduct the sessions. Unfortunately, due to time constraints this was not a possibility and the sessions had to be conducted in the most efficient manner possible, leaving whole group learning as our only option.
Throughout the course of my action research project, I have taken on a larger leadership role at the school. I am the youngest staff member and as such find difficulty in believing I have any new information to present to the rest of the staff. Technology integration has always been a passion of mine, and I felt that this was an area in which I could really help educate my staff. Because my school is a K-8, and because I am relatively new, I did not know everyone on the staff well. By offering these professional development classes, and being in constant communication with the staff, I feel like my personal relationships with some of the other teachers also improved. People would often stop me in the halls to discuss what they had done with technology in their classroom.
I have grown an immense amount in many different ways, with a fair amount of said growth coming from trial and error. This is the first time I have really stepped into a leadership position at my school. I think the biggest way for me to really make a change at my school with regards to technology integration is to work more closely with the administration. I felt in my action research project that I was hesitant to approach my principal because I believed he would be busy with other duties, and would not have had the time to assist. However, I believe a lot more change could have been implemented had I been in closer contact with him and elicited his involvement in the process. The entirety of this experience has made me want to improve upon certain practices to make them more beneficial not only next year but in the years following. It would be beneficial to send out another needs assessment to the staff, but make it less broad open-ended. I would like to work with my principal and a select few members to come up with pointed questions that we really want to solve. I think previously, the needs assessment was too vague and general and the answers I received spanned a very wide range, making it more difficult to get a sense of what the overall need was.
One hindrance of the study was a lack of time. By the time I finally had a true understanding of what I was doing and the path I wanted to take, the school year was just about over. I still plan to continue my action research next year, outside of this formal setting. In order to receive feedback and assist in my personal reflection, I sent out an end of the year assessment to get an understanding of how to best proceed next year. I sent this form out to the entire staff much like I did my initial needs assessment, and received 18 responses. While no external rewards were offered for responses, I believe that further follow up may have led to even more responses. Of those who responded, 17 teachers had attended at least one or more of my professional development sessions. A total of 16 teachers said the classes offered were beneficial, one person said they somewhat beneficial, and one person did not respond because he/she did not attend any sessions. All 18 teachers said they would like me to continue offering professional development next year surrounding technology integration and15 out of the 18 said that they thought there should be a technology committee formed next year to help discuss technology integration needs, while three said they did not think there was a need for technology committee.
In summation, the data I collected is extremely positive to me. Not only did the teachers enjoy my professional development classes and find them beneficial, but it is also encouraging to know that they want me to continue doing them next year. I would really like to continue my leadership role on campus with technology integration and help teachers improve their teaching practice. I want to help facilitate integration of tools that will encourage better student learning and not merely share information about technology tools. This year was pivotal in introducing new products and getting teachers thinking about technology in new ways and I feel that I’m at the brink of a breakthrough with my staff. Most immediately I plan to establish an effective technology committee next year. I also plan to offer more professional development classes, attend 3-4 technology conferences next year, and keep the Sycamore Canyon School website up to date as a resource for teachers. With the support of administration, the continual offering of professional development classes, and my own continued education, I believe that our school can do some great things with regards to technology integration.
Cycle 2 was a pivotal moment in my action research. After creating a technology committee and was genuinely excited for the potential of this committee. I believed these members were as passionate about technology integration and would have good ideas for how to help create change at my school. However, it became clear that the majority of people in my technology committee were either too busy to fully commit, or had only joined to help me out, as a friend, with my action research project.
One of the most valuable things I learned was how to lead a professional development session. This experience was entirely new to me and while the presentation itself was organized, the communication with teachers was not as organized. As I continued giving sessions I learned that sending out RSVP forms, having sign in sheets at the sessions, and offering a post meeting survey were all equally helpful. In the future, I would like to further explore the concept of professional development in small groups, as the majority of the staff indicated that this was how they preferred to conduct the sessions. Unfortunately, due to time constraints this was not a possibility and the sessions had to be conducted in the most efficient manner possible, leaving whole group learning as our only option.
Throughout the course of my action research project, I have taken on a larger leadership role at the school. I am the youngest staff member and as such find difficulty in believing I have any new information to present to the rest of the staff. Technology integration has always been a passion of mine, and I felt that this was an area in which I could really help educate my staff. Because my school is a K-8, and because I am relatively new, I did not know everyone on the staff well. By offering these professional development classes, and being in constant communication with the staff, I feel like my personal relationships with some of the other teachers also improved. People would often stop me in the halls to discuss what they had done with technology in their classroom.
I have grown an immense amount in many different ways, with a fair amount of said growth coming from trial and error. This is the first time I have really stepped into a leadership position at my school. I think the biggest way for me to really make a change at my school with regards to technology integration is to work more closely with the administration. I felt in my action research project that I was hesitant to approach my principal because I believed he would be busy with other duties, and would not have had the time to assist. However, I believe a lot more change could have been implemented had I been in closer contact with him and elicited his involvement in the process. The entirety of this experience has made me want to improve upon certain practices to make them more beneficial not only next year but in the years following. It would be beneficial to send out another needs assessment to the staff, but make it less broad open-ended. I would like to work with my principal and a select few members to come up with pointed questions that we really want to solve. I think previously, the needs assessment was too vague and general and the answers I received spanned a very wide range, making it more difficult to get a sense of what the overall need was.
One hindrance of the study was a lack of time. By the time I finally had a true understanding of what I was doing and the path I wanted to take, the school year was just about over. I still plan to continue my action research next year, outside of this formal setting. In order to receive feedback and assist in my personal reflection, I sent out an end of the year assessment to get an understanding of how to best proceed next year. I sent this form out to the entire staff much like I did my initial needs assessment, and received 18 responses. While no external rewards were offered for responses, I believe that further follow up may have led to even more responses. Of those who responded, 17 teachers had attended at least one or more of my professional development sessions. A total of 16 teachers said the classes offered were beneficial, one person said they somewhat beneficial, and one person did not respond because he/she did not attend any sessions. All 18 teachers said they would like me to continue offering professional development next year surrounding technology integration and15 out of the 18 said that they thought there should be a technology committee formed next year to help discuss technology integration needs, while three said they did not think there was a need for technology committee.
In summation, the data I collected is extremely positive to me. Not only did the teachers enjoy my professional development classes and find them beneficial, but it is also encouraging to know that they want me to continue doing them next year. I would really like to continue my leadership role on campus with technology integration and help teachers improve their teaching practice. I want to help facilitate integration of tools that will encourage better student learning and not merely share information about technology tools. This year was pivotal in introducing new products and getting teachers thinking about technology in new ways and I feel that I’m at the brink of a breakthrough with my staff. Most immediately I plan to establish an effective technology committee next year. I also plan to offer more professional development classes, attend 3-4 technology conferences next year, and keep the Sycamore Canyon School website up to date as a resource for teachers. With the support of administration, the continual offering of professional development classes, and my own continued education, I believe that our school can do some great things with regards to technology integration.