Sunday, May 23, 2010

CEDO 565 Week 2

So this week we've been asked to review statistics for our individual schools. I have had to do this in the past for grant applications and I must say that prior to my introduction into the world of education, I never knew that the State kept track of such things. I find it truly amazing all the stuff that the State keeps track of and feel that we as teachers should be required to review these stats more frequently. Every time I look at these stats I learn something new and this really helps to identify just what it is that I'm dealing with in my student body.
I have to admit that I haven't had time yet this week to complete my assignments as we had a rainout, a game, a three game tourny, and my NA test for my dog. I just got home a little while ago and this is my first chance to sit down so I will get on the assignments tonight. I do, however, sincerely look forward to completing these assignments and gaining additional insight into my student population.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

CEDO 565 Week 1

I have to apologize for the tardiness of this post. It's been a hectic week with rain cancellations and makeups, a game last night, and three today. With that being said, I hope this finds you all well and enjoying the rapidly approaching end of the school year. I for one know I can't wait for my schedule to die down.

As for this weeks learning. I find leadership to be an extremely valuable characteristic in our profession. I can't imagine being a teacher and not a leader. I can't believe that one can be a poor leader and a quality teacher because I believe it is our responsibility to lead young people as much as it is to teach them x's and o's. I, myself, work very hard to be a quality leader within my school and I believe that my commitments attest to that. I am the varsity head coach of our softball team, the treasurer for our union, trap shooting advisor, SKILLS USA advisor, chair of our union scholarship committee, and personal advisor for students. I work extremely hard to not only lead by example for my students but also to make myself available at all times to mentor my students. I think my strongest trait as both an educator and an individual is my ability to lead individuals. I have always been this way and I attribute a lot of this to my years in athletics but also my desire to see others accomplish more than I have.

I'm looking forward to learning additional ways I can continue to improve upon my leadership skills and learning how to improve leadership amongst others. I sincerely look forward to seeing where this class takes us and seeing what I can take from this class to improve my own skills and those of my studnets.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

CEDO 555 Week 5

It's week 5 and another class is nearing the end of the line with me scrambling to try to get caught up from a busy stretch. I finally got my culminating experience proposal written up and off to the Instructors and am now awaiting a response. My proposal consisted of creating screencasts that would link to my Ning and thus allow my instruction to continue on even on days where I am unable to be in the classroom. It was for this reason that I chose to take a Master's in Instructional Technology so I feel it only fitting that this be my culminating experience. Upon entering this program I was quite aware that technology could be of assistance to me in helping me be more prepared and more efficient with my instruction but I didn't have enough experience to figure out just how that would be. This program has given me plenty of insight on different ideas for doing that and this screencast is just one major example of that.

As for my portfolio it coming along slowly but surely. I did in fact have dump the aesthetic appeal of applying pictures and various layout formats as I eluded to in my previous blog, however, I still tried to make it as functional and pretty as I could given my time constraints. I did learn a thing or two about setting things up and linking stuff together but again with the time constraints didn't have enough time to go back and change everything as I didn't figure this out until most of it was already posted. Again as I eluded to in a previous post, I will be going back and making this into a personal portfolio that I can link to my Ning and I can't wait to create a site of my own to represent me as an instructor.

CEDO 555 Week 3

Ok so I'm struggling to find the time to create my portfolio but I have been able to get layout done. Unfortunately I'm affraid at this point in time I'm going to have to abandon my aesthetic's goal and shoot for a grade goal of just accomplishing what is required and getting a grade. I hate this approach but with 13 games in 7 days and this just being midseason with very little end in sight, I don't know what other approach I can take at this point.

The beauty for me is that I totally see the value in a process like this and fully intend to complete this after the class. I'm not going to lie, I will likely change this portfolio to be a personal portfolio rather than a Master's portfolio, however, I love the idea that much of it will already be done for me. I will pry include a lot of my artifacts and class work into my curriculum vitae, and will likely use much of what I learned in looking at other sites to put together what I feel is not only a true representation of who I am as a teacher but also as a person. I can see linking this portfolio to my school website so my students and parents can get a sense of what I have accomplished and who I am outside of the classroom and I feel that this will benefit in the long run. You also never know when you may need something like this and should I be in need of it, I'm sure the time will be stressful enough without having to add the stress of creating a portfolio at that point in time.

As for the site itself, I must admit that I'm not totally comfortable or don't necessarily like the tools and mechanics of the site, however, I'm hoping as I get an opportunity to use them more, they will grow on me. I certainly look forward to the completion of this site and look forward to the completion of my culminating experience and maybe, just maybe, a couple of days where I can relax and take time for me.