Carroll Academy STaR Chart Summary

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Teacher Preparation and Development

Teacher preparation and development are two of the great challenges Texas faces today. Teacher preparation needs to be relevant to the 21st century if Texas is to fulfill its Long Range Plan. Teachers need to be well equipped with skills necessary to handle technology tools which they are expected to use in 21st century classrooms. Staff development should be geared towards helping teachers acquire current knowledge in using technology.

The 2007-2008 statistics found in the Campus Statewide Summary showed a majority of teachers fall under the developing tech level of progress. This showed that the use of technology by teachers were not maximized and was limited to administrative tasks such as emails and classroom management.

There is an immediate and great need to push to a higher level of progress. My recommendation would be to make it mandatory for teachers to fulfill a certain number of staff development hours to be spent on technology applications. Teachers should be given more preparation time so they can practice their technology skills. Budget allocation for staff development should be increased. Technology integration into lessons should be given more weight in the PDAS in order to challenge teachers to implement it.

Summary of Pre-K Technology Applications TEKS

At the end of pre-kindergarten year a child is expected to open and navigate through software programs designed to develop appropriate concepts. The teacher models the use of computers and software, and the child follows basic oral or visual cues. The teacher also provides a variety of audio, video and graphics with which the child interacts to enhance learning experiences. Another expectation is for the child to use and name a variety of computer input devices, such as mouse, keyboard, voice/sound recorder, touch screen and CD-ROM. The teacher provides instruction and practice time to ensure mastery of the skill. The child is also expected to operate voice and sound recorders and touch screens. The teacher models how to use the recording and provides a CD or tape recorder for the children to use. At the end of pre-kindergarten, the child is expected to use software applications to create and express his or her ideas. Finally, the child is expected to recognize that information is accessible through the use of technology. The teacher models and discusses when and how to obtain information from websites.

By surrounding children with technology such as computers, voice/sound recorders, televisions, digital cameras, etc., children learn to handle appropriate technologies. This early exposure to technology in pre-kindergarten lays the foundation for student performance in later years.

A dynamic and spiraling curriculum provides students multiple opportunities to master a skill. What students learn in the upper grades have been built upon knowledge that was introduced in the early years. Constant exposure to the skill helps them to hone it. As an example, the TEKS in the four strands are repeated from K-2 to 6-8. Foundations for K-2 states that the student demonstrates knowledge and appropriate use of hardware components and software programs. The same TEKS is repeated in grades 3-5 and 6-8. Each grade level builds upon what students learn from the lower grades. The basic skills start in K-2 and become more complex as the students progress to the higher grades. In K-2 students learn to start and exit programs as well as create, name and save files. In grades 3-5 students hone those skills and, in addition, learn to delete files. When they get to grades 6-8, they learn more complex tasks such as comparing, contrasting, processing and using primary and secondary storage devices.

Analysis of the Texas Long Range Plan

The vision of the Texas Long Range Plan is for students to be able to use digital tools and various media resources to gather and use information by 2020. Literacy in technology will prepare students to thrive in an economically demanding world. In order to meet the individual needs of students, teachers must be knowledgeable in th use of current digital tools and multi-media resources. As an educational leader, I have the responsibility of supporting the students and teachers by providing them with a technology-rich environment. I must envision, fund, and assess the use of technology in my campus. I must develop and implement a budget for technology allocation and align resources to improve student learning. I must put in place a school infrastructure that will provide access to e-learning tools and provide technical assistance to support teaching and learning.

My knowledge about technology applications

The result of the Technology Application Inventory I took discloses that my knowledge about technology application is quite basic. It made me realize that I need to acquire more knowledge about technology. First, I have to have a clear understanding of technical terms. It occurs to me that using a computer is not just word processing e-mails, creating power points or just surfing the internet for resources I can use in my classroom. I had no idea what the difference is between primary and secondary storage. I also need to know how to determine the amount of RAM requirements necessitated by programs I use and the amount of RAM installed in my computer. I had to ask my husband about it! I have since realized that I have been proficient only in keyboarding and navigating through different websites. I had taken for granted all the other aspects of the use of computers because there was always someone else who provided that information to me.

With regard to information acquisition, there are many things I need to learn. I am proficient in making text files but deficient in making video and audio files. My ability to solve problems using technology tools is limited. In the domain of communication, the assessment shows I possess average skill. I have made powerpoint presentations for my students and created some activities for my class using some school- provided software. It is clear overall that I need to develop and broaden my knowledge about technology applications through self study and by attending more staff development activities related to technology applications.