5301 - Action Research Plan

Kristi Rogers ET8050
Draft Action Research Plan
Goal: To create a paperless classroom (85% less paper usage)
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Meet with classroom teacher to discuss paper usage	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Apr. 2012	Teacher	Copy count
Evaluate student test scores	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	April/May 2012	Teacher         Test scores TPRI	EOY Test scores
Evaluate Copy usage	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	April/May 2012	Copier/Printer	Copy count
Assign iPad/iPods	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Aug/Sept 2012	iPads/iPod	Assignment sheet
Setting up iPad/iPod Applications	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Aug/Sept 2012	iPad/iPod apps	Application list
Notifying parents	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Aug/Sept 2012	Teacher	Letter to parents
Evaluate student test scores	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Oct-12	Teacher         Test scores TPRI	BOY Test scores
Evaluate Copy usage	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Sep. 2012	Copier/Printer	Copy count
Evaluate student test scores	Kristi Rogers Raquel Adame Donna Bzibziak	Jan-13	Teacher         Test scores TPRI	MOY Test scores

5301 Week 2 - Mentor Meeting

So, I met with my mentor again this week because I was going a little crazy with the thought of moving to another school. We decided to go ahead and change the plan to incorporate "the paperless classroom". This will move with me, or I can continue to plan it here at this school and work closely with the teacher. The students I have chosen will be in a class that will either be using iPads or iPod touches...that is to be determined when the princiapl decides where this teacher will be teaching from. If I am fortunate enough to move into a classroom, then I will use it in my classroom which is my hope.

I feel better, but still nervous because of the unknown with my position. Feels good to vent it out on my blog. Feel free to comment!

5301 Week 2 - Reflection

I am in an ongoing mental battle this week. I just found out that I may not be at this school next year, which scares me because this means my action plan will be interrupted. I am frantically trying to think of ways I can still do this plan if I am moved, or if I should look at something else. One idea I had was to keep with the iPad theme, but change it from student improvement to something along the lines of  "the paperless classroom" where the iPads are used for student work instead of paper. It sounds interesting and can move with me to my next school if I get to stay in this district.

As far as what I have learned this week, I would say the Dana reading was very interesting. Chapter 2, "The Passions That Drive Your Journey", pp. 29 – 68, gave me more insight into the nine areas that the are major wonderings of many school leaders. I liked seeing these wonderings from the leader's point of view, and I actually see my principal differently. The videos were also interesting, I like hearing from actual leaders and what their take on things are. They are all very helpful and had some really greatl points. I liked what  Dr. Kirk Lewis had to say, to be practical - if the action research plan is not relative to what you can and need to implement, it will not work. If it is not practical and cannot be applied it cannot help. Being interested and being focused as well as benefits from the students will be seen if the research is useful and not simply theoretical.

Dana N. F. (2009). The Principal as Action Research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin

5301 Week 1 - Action Research Update

As week 1 has been completed and I take a little time to review my Action Research plan, I realize that, as my classmate Nancy put it, I need to "trim down" my plan. I still want to look at the use of iPads and how they can and/or will help students in their learning process. I have decided that I will focus on a "pilot" of about 5 students and see if this is more plausible for my time frame. This is definitely a work in progress and I may end up changing more areas which I think is the point for the start up of this project. Thanks Nancy for the input.

5301 Week 1 - Educational Leaders and Blogs

Educational leaders might use blogs to communicate with the staff and even students as well as other administrators. The blog could be used to ask questions and get feed back about how different issues may be improved upon or changed in a school setting. Administrators could use a blog to reflect upon areas of campus improvement and get the standpoint of others in the same field or even parents and students in the school. This could cause some conflict, but at the same time, if the administrator is open to new ideas it could help improve areas seen from a different perspective than they alone may have.
Using a blog sets a thought into a static condition where the administrator can come back to and pull from the history of what was thought or written. This static condition allows the administrator to hold onto thoughts without the chance of forgetting them. They can come back and take a look at what they knew or what they thought, then take that and put it with what they have done or changed.

5301 Week 1- Action Research

Action research has really changed in the school districts and it will continue to evolve as time goes by. It was not too long ago that our school district would hold a general assembly at the beginning of the year and we would have a guest speaker come give us a pep talk, trying to get us all excited about starting the school year off. Now, as we have a new superintendent, he uses internal speakers and students who are inspiring to get the year started. I can see how this has changed, and I understand that action research is turning the same corner. If not already, soon will be gone the times of having an outside researcher come to our district and try to "fix" things. I have noticed that the last couple of years, we have been working as a campus on our campus improvement plan, breaking up into groups and reflecting on ways to improve how we are doign what we do everyday. We then get back together as one and discuss what changes we feel should be made. What areas need to be added to or discarded and started over. I feel this type of collaboration has opened the door for us to take ownership and feel accountable for how our school performs as a whole and how we perform as a team as well as how each one performs individually.

5306/5311 - Week 5 - Course Reflections

    When I started this course, I was really excited because I could not wait to work in the area of Technology. At the same time I was extremely nervous because I had no idea what graduate classes would be like and there was a little part of me that felt I was out of my league. Once the class started and my professor talked to us, I realized that all of my classmates were feeling the same anticipation and I was not alone. As I worked through the class I began to envision the outcome being one of more understanding about how Technology connects to the classroom and the long range plans that the State has in store. As the class progressed I began to make some of my own connections that I did not even realize were missing and those outcomes not only aligned with the outcomes I had in my mind, but they surpassed what I was expecting.

    The outcomes that I achieved in my first graduate class, Fundamentals of Leadership, exceeded the outcomes I had in mind for this class. I was able to make connections that I didn’t realize were missing. The work I did in class is very relevant to the work I do in my daily job as Computer Lab Manager at Garza Elementary in McAllen. As I learned in class, the Long Range Plan for Technology has a huge task ahead of it that is expected to be fulfilled by the year 2020. If I am to enable my students to achieve all that they are expected I am required to understand the Long Range Plan for Technology, which up until now I did not connect with my job. As I am now empowered with the knowledge of why the STaR chart is used, what the Long Range Plan for Technology is and how to put the two together, I find that I can give my students more and empower them as well.

    I love working online at a fast pace, I have done it since 2005 while getting my Associates degree at South Texas College and continuing up until I finished my Bachelor’s Degree at Lamar University. In the graduate program, the five weeks are awesome. I love getting the work done quickly and moving on, but it does come with a small price. Not really having enough time for everything is a sacrifice I must make. There are sacrifices that I must make in my personal life, too but for the sake of reflection I am I mainly speaking of my school work. As far as what I was unable to accomplish, I would have to say that reading all of the articles and getting the most out of them was not completely achieved on my part. I find myself skimming the articles to see which ones I find the most interesting, when at the same time I feel that I am missing something by not being able to focus thoroughly on the articles.

    For my first graduate class, Fundamentals of Technology, I had no problem carrying out the course assignments. That being said, I don’t want to come across making it seem like the assignments were easy, they required much thought and a lot of work. The assignments in this class were very time consuming, but I did expect that having taken many online courses. The most important thing about being an online student is of course time management. Figuring out how this class fits into my daily life is very important. After time management comes understanding how the professor runs the class. Each professor has their own pace and ways of doing things. What I liked about this class is that all the assignments were open and accessible. It can be a little overwhelming to open all the folders and see what is due, but being able to do them at my own pace, either ahead of time or on schedule, gave me a lot of confidence. Other online courses I have taken keep all assignments locked down and only allow students to work on the week that has started. I like having my assignments open because it gives me the chance to get ahead, just in case something comes up, yet if I choose to I can simply work in the week we are on.

    My first graduate class, Fundamentals of Technology, taught me many things about myself. I learned that my temperament is Guardian. I am always keeping everyone together. It is me that keeps in touch with my siblings, and I am the one that makes sure the family is kept up to date on everything we are doing or involved in. I also learned that I have a lot more technology experience than I gave myself credit for. As I was reading the articles and doing the required assignments I realized that I already implement a lot of technology into my Computer Labs, but now I have even more to offer and teach. Another thing I learned in this first class is that I have many leadership skills that I did not realize I had.  Being a leader comes in many forms and I am quickly discovering all that leaders can do.