Standard 4: Professional Development & Program Evaluation
Technology coaches conduct needs assessments, develop technology-related professional learning programs, and evaluate the impact on instructional practice and student learning.
a. Conduct needs assessments to inform the content and delivery of technology-related professional learning programs that result in a positive impact on student learning
This substandard discusses the importance of conducting needs assessments in education. The first needs assessment that I included was one that I did collaboratively with my peers. The purpose of this needs assessment was to determine what technology was currently being used, and what technology teachers and students could benefit from learning and utilizing in the classroom. The second needs assessment I included was from Designing Online Courses. This needs assessment analyzes the need for an Information Literacy course in my school. Needs assessments are important because it is the beginning phase of the instructional design process. You consider the problem or issue at hand, and how the proposed idea would help solve the problem. This is where you also determine a target audience as well as the objectives of the lesson or course that you are proposing. Considering data collection is also an important part of the needs assessment.
Needs Assessment from Researching Current Issues
Needs Assessment from ITEC 67442 Designing Online Courses
b. Design, develop, and implement technology rich professional learning programs that model principles of adult learning and promote digital age best practices in teaching, learning, and assessment
This substandard covers the technology coordinator’s ability to design and implement professional development opportunities for staff. During my practicum, I had the opportunity to present to staff during the summer before school began. At our staff retreat, I presented the teacher training workshop below. One of the big focuses of our district continuous improvement plan is reading. I created a presentation that focused on digital resources that could be used. I introduced Newsela and Smithsonian’s Tween Tribune that have current event articles as well as more dated information to supplement the curriculum. The Lexile level or reading level of each article can be changed to best fit the needs of the learner. I also introduced other resources that were more subject based and could supplement specific content in English, Science, and History classes.
Teacher Training Workshop from ITEC 67492 Advanced Practicum
c. Evaluate results of professional learning programs to determine the effectiveness on deepening teacher content knowledge, improving teacher pedagogical skills and/or increasing student learning
This substandard discusses the technology coordinator’s ability to evaluate results of professional learning programs to determine their effectiveness. The peer reviews from the Change Model Project that I included were short critiques on the projects that my classmates were working on. The technology cost analysis discusses eReaders and digital textbooks as opposed to traditional print textbooks. I analyze the pros and cons and give my opinion on the matter. I also included a peer evaluation of the system proposal from my Distance Education course. In this evaluation, I critiqued each section of my peer’s proposal. Finally, I have included my review and analysis of a distance education organization as well as a distance education research project. All of these evaluations provide evidence for my ability to analyze and review the effectiveness of various projects and programs.
Peer Reviews of Change Model Project from ITEC 67425 Managing Technological Change
Technology Cost Analysis Paper from ITEC 67420 Researching Current Issues
Peer Evaluation of System Proposal from ITEC 67436 Distance Education
Analysis of Distance Education Organization from ITEC 67429 Distance Education
Analysis of Distance Learning Research Project from ITEC 67436 Distance Education
Shannon Routte's ePortfolio 