Sarah Miller

6.1 Continuous Learning

6.1 Continuous Learning

Candidates demonstrate continual growth in knowledge and skills of current and
emerging technologies and apply them to improve personal productivity and professional
practice.

1. Briefly describe the artifact and the context in which it was created. What was/were
your individual contribution(s)?
For this standard I chose an artifact from recent conference I attended that had a huge
impact on me, the Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) conference. This
conference was held in Orlando, FL this past January. I was invited to join our Assistive
Technology Specialist in attending this conference. The session I would like to focus
upon for this standard’s reflection is a session on creating an Integrated Technology
Team in which Assistive and Instructional Technology work together to support all
students and teachers.

2. Explain how this artifact demonstrates mastery of the standard/element under which it
is placed. See the portfolio rubric and watch the videos for more details on what to
include in your reflection for this question. You must respond to each of the items on the
rubric in this question! It is VERY IMPORTANT that you address ALL of the criteria on
the rubric. This one question may need to be several paragraphs long in order to address
all of the items on the rubric.
This session provided current and emerging best practices in integrating instructional and
assistive technology into the same classroom by utilizing Universal Design for Learning
principles.

This session had a great impact on my professional practice. I have a new position
beginning next school year as Instructional Technology Specialist, and this session
provided me with the inspiration and some direction I needed to get this position. I
revamped my vision and PL plans to include the development of an Integrated
Technology Team for our school system that incorporates and supports Assistive,
Instructional, and Informational technology needs.

3. What did you learn from completing this artifact? What would you do differently to
improve the quality of the artifact or the process involved in creating the artifact?

This session taught me so much about the frustrations and obstacles faced by our assistive
technology specialists. As a general education teacher, I was so unaware of the ways in
which technology could be used to assist students with disabilities. Further, it grounded
my belief in using instructional technology to support all learners.

To improve this, I would love to have spent more time with the session leaders. I did
follow them all on Twitter, and I have been in contact since the session. However, I
would love to spend more time collaborating with them!

4. How did the work that went into creating the artifact impact school improvement,
faculty development, or student learning? How can the impact be assessed?
 Sarah Miller
6.1 Continuous Learning

This experience will impact school improvement and indirectly impact student
achievement. The superintendent was supportive of my Integrated Technology
Team plan, and I plan to implement for next school year!