Reflection

As I complete my first semester in the Master’s of Educational Technology program through Boise State, I have a whole new perspective on technology in the classroom. Throughout this semester I have been able to communicate with other students from around the world, complete interesting research projects, and create artifacts to enhance my teaching with technology.

The main challenge I faced through this course was time management. Being a full time teacher while completing two classes for my master’s program was definitely a challenge. I was grateful that assignments were posted early enough for me to get a head start. I am a planner, so when I had to plan the times where my schedule would allow for the necessary time to complete assignments it was a bit stressful at times. The other challenged I faced was the research aspect of the course. I had been out of college for a few years, so research was something I needed to practice again. There are so many different resources online and finding the most useful and current research is a skill of its own.

Throughout the semester, I tried to stay ahead of schedule as much as possible. This helped me with my time management by not waiting until the last minute to complete assignments. I did a little work during the week but the majority of my projects had to be done on the weekends. Since assignments were due on the weekends, I tried to get started early so I wasn’t crunched for time at the end. I was grateful for the research resources that were provided within the course. It definitely help me get back into practicing my research skills again. Zotero was a useful resource for my to keep and organize my research. Also, reviewing how to best utilize the school library online databases was a useful tool.

The Tech Trends assignment was my best artifact I created this semester. I had the chance to utilize what I had learned in my 502 class this semester to create a website for my idea of students teaching students using instructional videos. I felt like utilizing my research and website creating skills was a good way to integrate what I was learning in both classes this semester. This assignment really opened my eyes to the variety of useful ways to enhance learning in the classroom with the use of technology. It made me think about my own teaching and how I am having my students create authentic presentations or lessons to teach each other.

As a result of this course, I plan to use the artifacts I have created in my own classroom. I look forward to seeing how my students use the technology to create and teach each other.  I plan to continue writing grants to receive more technology for my classroom and school. I also plan to share what I have learned with other teachers in my grade level and building to help them enhance their use of technology in their classrooms.