1.4 Diffusion of Innovations & Change
Candidates research, recommend, and implement strategies for initiating and sustaining technology innovations and for managing the change process in schools. (PSC 1.4/ISTE 1d)
Artifact: Coaching Journal Individual Teacher Technology Assessment
Reflection:
In the spring of 2014, ITEC 7460 asked us to provide coaching in instructional technology to a colleague. I have provided my coaching journal and my individual teacher technology assessment as evidence for this standard (1.4) as it shows my ability to model and facilitate technology-enhanced learning experiences. I coached a teacher on my wing at Hand in Hand Primary School for five sessions and documented our encounters in this coaching journal. This journal reflects not only my colleague’s dispositions, but my own as well. This journal allowed me to reflect on what my strengths and weaknesses were and how I might change them for my next encounter.
My colleague was always thrilled to learn something new and she actually gave me confidence in coaching. I chose her because she expressed a desire for a coach because she is returning to the classroom after spending several years at home with four children. From the Early Adopter survey I know she is eager to learn the technologies schools are using, since she was last in a classroom. However, through a survey I gave her, she indicated she is not comfortable allowing students to choose their own digital tools. She also indicated she did not use digital tools with students for higher order thinking and learning skills. This creates lessons that are low on the LoTi scale because they are more teacher centered, rather than student centered. However, as she became more comfortable and proficient in using the tools, she began to create more engaging and meaningful lessons with her students. She was apprehensive at first about allowing kindergarteners to use equipment like the SMARTBoard; however, I demonstrated how she could manage this by allowing them to responsibly participate in language experience lessons.
The humbling part of coaching is breaking a task down into its parts. Sometimes I left out a small detail that made a huge difference in my colleague being successful with a task. This coaching experience asked me to address the changes that occurred with my colleague and for me to reflect on the experience. Those changes were evident as I passed by her room and on more than one occasion I witnessed her giving students more and more freedom with digital tools and engaging them in more than drill and skill activities. As I read each reflection of the journal I began to see the changes I would make. In particular I saw how I needed to slow down and not let my enthusiasm overwhelm her as this kept me from truly listening to her. I could also see how we were learning from one another, and that is the heart of true collaboration.
Word of mouth spreads fast. As I was coaching my colleague, we were often interrupted by another colleague, whose interest was piqued by our session. This helped me to spread the knowledge twice and hopefully that teacher spread it on to another. I feel this coaching experience has benefited not only this colleague but several faculty members.
In the spring of 2014, ITEC 7460 asked us to provide coaching in instructional technology to a colleague. I have provided my coaching journal and my individual teacher technology assessment as evidence for this standard (1.4) as it shows my ability to model and facilitate technology-enhanced learning experiences. I coached a teacher on my wing at Hand in Hand Primary School for five sessions and documented our encounters in this coaching journal. This journal reflects not only my colleague’s dispositions, but my own as well. This journal allowed me to reflect on what my strengths and weaknesses were and how I might change them for my next encounter.
My colleague was always thrilled to learn something new and she actually gave me confidence in coaching. I chose her because she expressed a desire for a coach because she is returning to the classroom after spending several years at home with four children. From the Early Adopter survey I know she is eager to learn the technologies schools are using, since she was last in a classroom. However, through a survey I gave her, she indicated she is not comfortable allowing students to choose their own digital tools. She also indicated she did not use digital tools with students for higher order thinking and learning skills. This creates lessons that are low on the LoTi scale because they are more teacher centered, rather than student centered. However, as she became more comfortable and proficient in using the tools, she began to create more engaging and meaningful lessons with her students. She was apprehensive at first about allowing kindergarteners to use equipment like the SMARTBoard; however, I demonstrated how she could manage this by allowing them to responsibly participate in language experience lessons.
The humbling part of coaching is breaking a task down into its parts. Sometimes I left out a small detail that made a huge difference in my colleague being successful with a task. This coaching experience asked me to address the changes that occurred with my colleague and for me to reflect on the experience. Those changes were evident as I passed by her room and on more than one occasion I witnessed her giving students more and more freedom with digital tools and engaging them in more than drill and skill activities. As I read each reflection of the journal I began to see the changes I would make. In particular I saw how I needed to slow down and not let my enthusiasm overwhelm her as this kept me from truly listening to her. I could also see how we were learning from one another, and that is the heart of true collaboration.
Word of mouth spreads fast. As I was coaching my colleague, we were often interrupted by another colleague, whose interest was piqued by our session. This helped me to spread the knowledge twice and hopefully that teacher spread it on to another. I feel this coaching experience has benefited not only this colleague but several faculty members.