Supporting Narrative for Competency 8: Apply CBT & Media

Teaching in the 21
st
century has changed the game. There are so many shifts in
education, most of which include technology. In my district we had a new policy for
the school year, known as Bring Your Own Device, or BYOB. Each student was
encouraged to bring their cell phones, iPads, Notebooks, Nooks, etc. to class in order
to enrich instruction and integrate technology more fluidly.

For the upcoming school year, each student in our building will be issued a
ChromeBook. The integration of technology in classrooms will or should allow
teachers/instructors to apply more opportunities for learning that appeal and
engage students more than a traditional classroom. Personally, I feel that
technology is a must in my classroom. It creates an environment that is open,
focused, and differentiated. Students are more engaged, in most cases, and really
enjoy the instant feedback and environment that accompanies the devices utilized
and web 2.0 tools introduced. However, with change comes hard work. So, applying
a variety of instructional strategies in order to create a classroom that is well
managed, engaging learners, and teaching skills necessary for future successes is
vital. I have been able to apply instructional design methodologies and strategies
while designing and developing new units that are delivered asynchronously and
synchronously in my own classroom.

EDCI 577 opened the door for me to encourage my peers to introduce more
technological tools, such as web 2.0 tools like No Red Ink, or social media outlets like
Twitter to improve engagement and communication. However, I did have to
address several ethical and legal queries revolving around the obligations of the
teacher. Teaching teens, the units or online courses I have designed discuss the
responsibility of the student to obey Copyright laws. In my course, I found that
having my students complete the plagiarism lesson that we do as graduate students,
really opened their eyes to the severity of breaking the law and not following
copyright laws. Before researching the reliability and authenticity of a website and
the protocol to follow if they need to report inappropriate content or sites that are
not school appropriate so that they are making ethical decisions.

And of course we have the digital safety debate. Since I encourage my students to
use social media sites while in class and out of class, I developed a mini-lesson on
the legal trouble students can get into if they do not use these outlets in the
appropriate manner. Sure, it is accessible, convenient, and fosters communication
and information sharing, but in order for students to use these tools, I had to teach
them about the platforms, and the right way to use them. All students are able to
make a school account, which means they use their school e-mail address, to create
a safe environment. This helps to prevent the evolution of sharing and accessing
private data using Twitter, You Tube, or even Facebook. Currently, students sign a
technology policy, but teaching digital natives about responsible use- basic use and
expectations with online communication protocol- will continue.

I created an online course that would help my peers utilize a learning management
system called Schoology. It introduces the LMS as a tool in their classrooms. It
reminds teachers about the demographic we are serving. The course displays the
benefits of utilizing a LMS for lesson design and assignments.

EDCI 569 granted me the opportunity to design and develop a human trafficking
unit for the course I am currently teaching. I actually applied this unit and it proved
to be successful. I created resource lists, video banks, a public service
announcement repository, and includes discussions, wikis, quizzes, and multiple
activities and assessments.

I have been able to integrate the design process and develop units of instruction for
my peers and students. This integration and experience, has helped me to become a
more well-rounded teacher who has the ability to provide her students with a more
individualized and differentiated learning environment. Engagement has increased
and the relationship with my students has grown stronger due to the immediate
feedback I am able to provide. Data drives instruction and because I have integrated
technology, my students are making great gains toward mastery of standards and
adding to their personal repository and skill sets.

Signup for 21st Century Basics (13052014)
Content
This course is being taught using CourseSites by Blackboard, an online platform for
organizing and securely sharing course materials, online lectures, discussion and
other learning activities. To request enrollment into my course, follow the steps
below:

1. Launch a browser and enter the following URL to the course home page:
https://www.coursesites.com/s/_13052014

2. Once at the course home page, click the Request Enrollment button.
3. Enter a valid email address and your full name in the corresponding fields.
4. Optionally, edit the Subject.
5. Optionally, edit the message. The name you enter in the Full Name field will be
automatically entered into the signature of the message.
6. Click Submit to send your request.

Shortly after, I will send to you a course invitation. Follow the link to confirm and
register. When signing up, take note that you can register using existing account
information from popular web services like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Gmail,
Yahoo and Windows Live to make it easier to login.

Password: 1234567

Signup for Human Trafficking Unit (HTU123)
Content
This course is being taught using CourseSites by Blackboard, an online platform for
organizing and securely sharing course materials, online lectures, discussion and
other learning activities. To request enrollment into my course, follow the steps
below:

1. Launch a browser and enter the following URL to the course home page:
https://www.coursesites.com/s/_HTU123

2. Once at the course home page, click the Request Enrollment button.
3. Enter a valid email address and your full name in the corresponding fields.
4. Optionally, edit the Subject.
5. Optionally, edit the message. The name you enter in the Full Name field will be
automatically entered into the signature of the message.
6. Click Submit to send your request.

Shortly after, I will send to you a course invitation. Follow the link to confirm and
register. When signing up, take note that you can register using existing account
information from popular web services like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Gmail,
Yahoo and Windows Live to make it easier to login.

Password: happyfeet