Fall 2018 First Class Meeting

Getting Started

My little bump in the road

So I must admit that it had been several months since I had launched ZOOM as the host or instructor. About ten minutes before the class was to start I launched everything up that I was going to need for the class session and then started the meeting in ZOOM. I have done this dozens of times but for some reason everything seemed different or out of place and it took me a few minutes to get my bearings and begin interacting with those that had joined early and start helping out those that were having difficulty joining.

This was a gentle nudge or reminder of how the participants must have been feeling as some of them joined a distance course via video chat for the very first time and other like me had spent some time away from the environment. A little nerve racking and a little hard to swallow but a good dose of perspective right from the start.

Welcome, now why are you here?

The introductions went much the way they would at the beginning of any course at the beginning of any semester. As we each describe our status as student or educator or both we found that our technology backgrounds and experiences were all over the place. As we took a look at some of the data gathered about our group from the needs assessment we discovered that much like any workplace or school setting we all brought backgrounds and experiences that make for lively discussions.

Here is where we will start the semester...

Rate Yourself as a Tech User

Rate Yourself as a Tech Integrator

There was a slight difference in where participants rated themselves in the survey and how they described themselves during their introductions. Regardless of the starting point we are all on a journey of professional and personal growth.

Asking Good Questions and Finding Better Answers

I introduced the idea that the only 'stupid questions' are the ones you do not ask. One of the key goals of this course experience is to be able to ask good questions. In order to do so you have to build up your background knowledge concerning educational technology applications. In order to find better answers you must consider how you learn best and how you move toward proficiency or even mastery of a topic. The discussion turned at one point about learning how to learn a topic we will revisit often as we grow our technology knowledge.

There was a really solid exchange of ideas as we discussed the seven International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards for Educators. Without any prior instruction on the standards, participants were asked to weigh in on what each of the seven key words meant to them. Remarkably, the learners showed great insight into how those terms applied to educational technology and we seem to have a strong foundation to build from during the semester's experiences.

I, for one, am really looking forward to it!

Embedding Published Google Slides Presentation

Blogger: Embed Published Google Slides Presentation

Once your Google Slides presentation is complete:

• Follow the File menu in Slides to Publish to the web
• Link will be the default choice, choose Embed
• Choose the Slide Size (small usually works best)
• Select and copy the embed code

Ex. <iframe src="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vQMRdq-gvmvx2zR6FomNdkc0JwUj3Eg9OX9C6XGkKGK7Ty6yDYvw2bAXj06FDsAP-pOvY_MV1D6beIm/embed?start=false&loop=false&delayms=60000" frameborder="0" width="480" height="389" allowfullscreen="true" mozallowfullscreen="true" webkitallowfullscreen="true"></iframe>

• Change the edit view in Blogger from Compose to HTML
• Paste the Code into the editor
• Switch back to compose to preview results

Optional: Click and drag across the image to select and then use the alignment tool on the tool bar to push left, right or center.

When the presentation is updated, the changes appear on the refreshed page where the embed code was used. No need to return to that web page to edit or update the information.

One can also opt to stop publishing and preserve a static version of the presentation if needed.

• File
• Publish to web
• Stop Publishing

EdTech Tool Certifications: Maximizing the Benefit

EdTech Tool Certifications: Maximizing the Benefit

I will use Edpuzzle as an example in this writing but the same approach could be taken with any product or suite of products that provide avenues for professional learning and/or certification. EDpuzzle is a safe video platform that keeps students engaged and accountable while watching videos.The teacher selects the videos the students will watch and embeds comments and questions to track student understanding.

Getting Started

Getting Started with Edpuzzle is easy. Visit http://edpuzzle,com and log in as a teacher. Creating an account is made really easy as is subsequent logins when you connect your Google or Edmodo account. More and more cloud based digital resources are moving to this type of account management which for school divisions is very helpful. Once you have the security parameters set for the original account the subsequent accounts allow only the directory information to be shared and that limits the risks for students, teachers and school districts. It also limits the number of usernames and passwords a user must remember.

Accessing the Content

Once you have logged in,  visit the My Content tab, then scroll down the page to find Resources and then click on Courses and Certificates. Obviously, this will provide you the training you would need to get started using Edpuzzle.  Take a minute to browse around and see what you can see. Once you find the course you are looking for Edpuzzle will provide you with the join code. You then log out as a teacher and log back in as a student to join the course. I appreciate this particular approach as it allows the educator to experience the interface as a student would and this helps the educator to better prepare the lessons for the student. I will guarantee that the time will be well spent when compared to trying to learn the interface by trial and error. 

If you are not able to easily find the training course components for an educational technology application, find the contact us page or link and submit a quick inquiry to see if a company representative can point you in the right direction. The training materials can be hidden behind a password or in some cases require a payment. Luckily most are like Edpuzzle and provide training to users without cost. If there are fees or commitments, practice good digital citizenship and spend some time investigating your options before committing yourself. Many times you can also search the web to find tutorials that other users have created to help others get started and learn more about using the applications.

Courses and Certifications

There is however value added to this type of offering by a software application. Teachers are required to participate in activities the provide ongoing professional development. Over the course of a 5 year period a teacher must earn 180 points toward license renewal. The certificate provided will verify participation and also the number of hours spent in the coursework or in earning the certification. When scrolling through the menu of online professional development offered by Edpuzzle one will find many choices that go far beyond basic tools training. I like that there are initially two levels, one for teachers just getting started and then a second for teachers that have been using Edpuzzle for a few weeks. The menu continues on to offer specific courses on effective utilization for users of all levels as well as an advanced coaches course for those that provide support to teachers and train others on how to use educational technology applications. Each is broken down into modules and the time commitment is right out in front so participants know how to plan out their self paced learning.

License Renewal Points for Participation

Understanding how to earn points helps teachers to maximize the benefit of their efforts to learn new educational technology applications. Most teachers follow a well beaten path of coursework from colleges or universities or professional conferences. Another popular option is professional development activities which are usually decided upon by the school district. One could also participate in Curriculum Development, Publish an Article or a Book or serve in the role of Mentor or Supervising teacher. Taking full advantage of educational software application courses and certifications would fall under educational project. 

According to the Virginia Department of Education an educational project is an option for the license holder to enhance the skills or advance the educational needs of the group being served i.e. teachers as learners or students of the teachers learning, given our example, new educational technology applications. For more details please see the Educational Project Parameters listed below.

Continuing with the example of Edpuzzle, one would need to identify and write a goal related to content learning objectives and educational technology proficiency specifically including Edpuzzle (or any other application you are learning) in the intended outcomes of the goal statement. Working with a supervising administrator to refine the goal and identify the documentation, artifacts and processes for submitting said items will kick off the process. Making the project time bound will further identify the expectations and build in a system of accountability as well as set a target for the hours encumbered that will eventually translate to points awarded for the educational project.  

Learning to Learn EdTech

When learning to learn edtech I would encourage educators to use the tutorials that the developers provide, search out others that have used the application both near (grade team, district technologists, etc.) and far (online tutorials, user groups, PLNs on Twitter or other social media platforms). Once upon a time, new users had to open up the software and go it alone to learn the ins and outs features and functionality of the application. Fortunately, those times are behind us and dealing with frustration and feeling like you are wasting your time are dragons we no longer need to slay. With an emphasis on customer support built in and other educators out there on the web willing to share their experiences, knowledge and insight the entry point for new users isn’t a fairy tale but is much much closer to living happily ever after...

Educational Project Parameters

Activities within this option may include a broad range of programs: 

participation in a special project assigned by the division superintendent; participation in an alternative work-experience program (paid or volunteer) in which the license holder fulfills new professional responsibilities for a specified period of time; participation in a program of independent study, provided that the license holder investigates a specific aspect of education, produces a written report or other tangible product, and evaluates the independent study and its product. Additional activities within this option may include institutional self-study projects, administrative review projects, teaching of a course for a college/university or for an employing educational agency activity and/or other activities for school improvement.  

1. Maximum number of points: 90
2. Point value assignment: one point per clock/contact hour 
3. Criteria: 
• Must be a minimum of five hours per activity. The five hours do not have to be consecutive.
• Must have prior approval from the chief executive officer or designee if the license holder is employed in a Virginia educational agency. Prior approval for an educational project is a commitment that professional development points will be awarded for the activity. If job-related leave is being requested, the license holder must follow the guidelines in the personnel handbook of the employing educational agency. 
• Must result in a written report or other tangible product.
4. Verification (one or more of the following):
• Acceptance for exchange program from college/university, or business
• Written summary/journal of project activities
5. Examples:
• Participation in a special project assigned by the division superintendent
• Sabbatical leave for a high school technology education teacher to work in the semiconductor industry
• Institutional self-study
• A Quality Assurance Review team
• Teaching of a course for a college/university or for an employing educational agency activity

"Virginia Licensure Renewal Manual - Virginia Department of Education." 22 Nov. 2017, http://www.doe.virginia.gov/teaching/licensure/licensure_renewal_manual.pdf. Accessed 3 Feb. 2018.