September+2010

Our district has a very extensive special education program and along with that is high amount of untrained special education teachers in the area of technology. Two of my favorite special education teachers are swamped with so much paperwork that they hardly have time to learn about technologies that could improve their challenged students. This week I had the privilege to spend time with Corrie Gutierrez and Rolando Herrera on how to use some tools when working with their students in their resource class. One of the most common and overlooked tools usually are bundles with the operating system. In our campus we use Windows XP and some machines are running Windows 7. During this training I taught these teachers how to find and manipulate the settings to accommodate to the students disabilities including adjusting screen resolution, using magnifier, onscreen keyboard, using narrator and dictation tools. I utilized Microsoft's tutorials because they are so simple to use. The training was rather short on this topic mostly because Corrie and Rollie were fast learners and did not have many questions on this, they basically just needed a quick refresher on it. Majority of the training was on a specific product that our district purchased called Read & Write Gold. This piece of software is the complete package, it has reading support including: text-to-speech, dictionary, pronunciation tutor, translator, word prediction tools, verb checker and so many other tools that I did not even get to cover. What was wonderful is that I managed to get the training materials straight from the manufacturers website. It has easy to use guides with pictures and keys. I was very impressed and learned more about the product on the fly. Previous to the training I had very little experience using this product. It works really well and I believe that this product should be used district wide for our ELL and other special populations. Unfortunately, I learned that since it was purchased with Special Education funds, it can only be used with these students. I think that is wrong and I learned that there are loopholes to this rule. A general education teacher can use this program as long as they serve a special education child during that class period. In the future, I intend to introduce to all teachers and include it in every image of every PC in the campus for easy access.I believe that this activity was related to and helped me master the following standards/indicators: TF-I.A.2 / TF-II.A.3. / TF-III.B.1. / TF-VI.B.2. The most important indicators and standards met here in this activity were (TF-II.A.3. / TF-III.B.1) because together we identified and practiced using tools that support the needs of special education students who struggle and require the use of adaptive and assistive technologies to close the achievement gap. Also, with diverse learners in mind we all learned new strategies that can be used in resource classes that help diverse learners especially with the Read & Write Gold program.
 * Week 1: 9/1/2010 - 9/4/2010 : Disabilities Technology Training**

Sources: Read&Write - Literacy software with support tools to help all readers and writers succeed independently. (n.d.). //Welcome to Texthelp Systems - Accessibility Software for those with Dyslexia, literacy difficulties and English as a Second Language//. Retrieved September 28, 2010, from http://www.texthelp.com/North-America/our-products/readwrite

Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). //ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: what every K-12 leader should know and be able to do//. Eugene,OR: International Society for Technology in Education.

Windows Accessibility - Microsoft Windows. (n.d.). //Microsoft Windows//. Retrieved September 28, 2010, from http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/help/accessibility

Technology has significantly impacted almost all aspects of life. I always tell my students and staff that technology makes everything better. It helps students achieve more, carry out their creativity and reach mass audiences. Educators become more productive therefore it allows for more planning time and overall better teaching. In this week I had to the opportunity to meet with language arts teachers Melody Ortiz and Don Smith about how to use Microsoft Publisher in language arts. I had my keyboarding students produce sample works created using Microsoft Publisher. Both educators were taught how to easily create brochures and other print jobs that clearly has shown to increase student achievement and assist with learning the content faster and in an engaging manner. The teachers were rather excited to see that the sample work was created by students. Even though I took away their conference period for that particular day, they were extremely open about the idea of making brochures to reinforce learning. Mr. Smith decided that he wanted the students to create a brochure menu that uses food adjectives. Ms. Ortiz on the other, wants to have her students create a brochure on a popular product however the students are required to change the the data and use persuasive advertising techniques to attract audiences. Right off the bat, the teachers were able to take their content expertise and apply it with using Microsoft Publisher. In addition to this rather short training, I also offered assistance in the computer lab area since my classroom is situated in the same vicinity. I believe that this activity was related to and helped me master the following standards/indicators: TF-III.A.5. / TF-II.A.2. / TF-III.A.1. / TF-V.C.1. / TF-V.C.2. / TF-VII.A.4. The more important indicators or standards met for this internship activity were (TF-III.A.1 and TF-V.C.1.) since I encouraged my own students to create and model brochures to be used in influencing educators to use productivity and publishing tools. In this process I modeled features and the use of a desktop publishing program to develop classroom products that can be later used to create professional products. We immerse the content and the technology for natural learning however students may use these two rather important skills in the workforce to create professional products.
 * Week 2: 9/5/2010 - 9/11/2010 : Using Publisher in Language Arts**

Sources: Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). //ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: what every K-12 leader should know and be able to do//. Eugene,OR: International Society for Technology in Education.

In our school we have many labs to maintain. We have a technology dome with over 100 computers and more importantly two labs designed specially for our ESL students. In these hybrid classrooms two teachers use a multitude of technology programs to assist recent immigrants and struggling readers learn the English language. Some of these programs include Systems 44, ESL Smart, Read 180 and Rosetta Stone. Our teachers are quite familiar with these programs however from time to time they are unable to keep up with their students technology skills and sneaky methods. Our ESL teachers actually requested that I install the classroom management software we utilize in the CTE department so they can monitor their student computer use and assess their students using built in capabilities. First step was installing the software in about 30 computers across two classroom. Next, I sat down with each teacher for about an hour to teach them how to use the teacher console. The basic features were a breeze for them however each one of them struggled and asked further questions on the assessment feature of LanSchool. They both understood how to use the program very quickly and were able to create quizzes in multiple choice, essay or true/false format in a relatively short time. In my opinion teachers will benefit from using this program and can avoid using other expensive popular assessment packages such as turning point clickers or Promethean clickers. Also, I provided them with quick start guides and troubleshooting charts given to use by the Lanschool company when we first purchased the program. I believe that his activity was related to and helped me master the following standards/indicators: TF-II.D.1. / TF-II.E.1. / TF-III.D.1. / TF-IV.A.1. The more important indicators or standards met for this internship activity were (TF-IV.A.1. & TF-II.E.1.) Essentially this sophisticated technology software has the capability to assess student learning of the subject matter. In this training I helped teachers learn management strategies using technology programs in a lab setting which is considered a technology-enhanced environment. Since we created sample quizzes in multiple formats, I supported their implementation of the strategies to be used in the classroom.
 * Week 3: 9/12/2010 - 9/18/2010 : Lanschool For ESL Labs Training**

Sources: LanSchool | LanSchool v7.6. (n.d.). //LanSchool | Classroom Management, Monitoring, and Corporate Training Software//. Retrieved August 31, 2010, from []

Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). //ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: what every K-12 leader should know and be able to do//. Eugene,OR: International Society for Technology in Education.

There are many roles that I take as an educator and campus technology coordinator and one of the most time consuming tasks is preparing mobile labs for classroom use. Our campus only has one large lab of 100 computers however 50 of those computers are being used by myself and another CTE teacher throughout the day. In recent months more teachers have been assigning computer based projects which means many of these teachers have to scramble and reserve these labs way in advance. Now that our campus has a great wireless infrastructure we have purchased two class sets (30) of laptop computers combined with a laser printer. Before these mobile labs can be checked out to the classrooms, it is my responsibility to check that these computers have all the correct wireless credentials, printer installed, and the latest software updates. Every year these laptops must be imaged or refreshed since many of the students leave a lot of work and change many settings on these laptops throughout the school year. This year we have two eager teachers that immediately checked out these computers for their classroom. Reading teacher Ms. Elizabeth Germain and History teacher Mrs. Mary Moreno both were confirmed with their laptop checkout dates but were also given an article (an easy read) that will help them with the use of these laptops in the classroom. It gave them insights, tips n tricks and the pro's and con's of the laptops in the classrooms. More importantly, the article gave suggestions on how to improve classroom management and content delivery when laptops are present in the classroom. Although, I wish I could of provided further training, both teachers assured me that they did not need much training since they were very familiar with how to use computers on their own. Teachers were mostly concerned about what to do in case there was no connection with the wireless and other troubleshooting advice. One question that did arise and I considered and discussed with our district technology specialist was the installation of classroom management software on these machines. I am all for the installation however, that also meant that this program would need to be installed on each teacher computer and that is where it would get messy. each of these laptops is issued a channel and if there are two sets of laptops that would mean that teachers would need to manually switch channels and that would create a world of confusion and loads of work for me and the district technician. Also, we were concerned with the issue of privacy for the students. All in all, this activity deal more with setting these devices up and assuring that they were ready for classroom use. Therefore, believe that his activity was related to and helped me master the following standards/indicators: TF-III.D.1. / TF-II.D.1. / TF-II.E.1. This setup of the machines and the resources provided teachers the options for managing the technology (mobile labs) within the context of learning activities. This also relates to increasing student learning in a technology-enhanced environment because I assisted and supported the teachers in implementing the strategies needed for a smooth environment that included a technology rich setup.
 * Week 4: 9/19/2010 - 9/25/2010 : Laptops in the Classroom**

Sources: Groom, D. (2009, May 19). 23 Things about Classroom Laptops. //Dean Groom Weblog//. Retrieved September 29, 2010, from http://deangroom.wordpress.com/2009/05/19/23-things-about-classroom-laptops/

Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). //ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: what every K-12 leader should know and be able to do//. Eugene,OR: International Society for Technology in Education.

As you may know by now, one of the important hats I wear in my campus is that of the campus technology coordinator. I oversee all campus technology including servers, infrastructure, media systems, iOS devices, mobile labs, online testing, learning programs and other technology related activities. Every year we kick off the year with a welcome back newsletter and agenda from out technology director Mr. Roland Handy. Mr. Handy is quite knowledgeable with many administrative duties and takes on the chief role of purchases and maintenance of all district technology. Basically, he holds the job I wish to have one day. In our first CTC meeting of year, we discussed the status of the media systems across the districts. The goal is to have 100% media setups in every single classroom. This includes a teacher PC, document camera and overhead projector with sound. In my campus we are nearly at 80% with this setup. Also in the agenda for this meeting was the infrastructure. We have a fairly good infrastructure that can support many more computers and wireless devices. As one of the first campus' with iPads I suggested that they revamp the wireless infrastructure because of the dead zones on campus. I suggest we go from a WEP encryption to a WPA2 Enterprise and add some Meraki devices to boost the wireless signal. Part of the infrastructure changes for this year include a full roll out of OKI printers for every classroom, phasing out any other brand of printer. Also, we are in the process of phasing out any old Dell PC's and any HP computers. There is also a new policy for toner request where all users must submit a work order in order to have a toner cartridge replaced. In fact, the entire work order system is also in the process of being revamped using a third party vendor. I believe our current system works just fine however Mr. Handy believes that the new system will have a work ticket and give users an approximate time for completion as well as an opportunity to view the status of their issue. Although most users are not affected there is exciting news regarding our Student Information System (Skyward). We are now transitioning to a fully web based system for all. Last on the agenda was my favorite topic; TCEA Austin. In this meeting we took a roll call to see who was interested in going to TCEA Austin 2011. I assured them that they can count me in. I enjoy these monthly meetings because we discuss issues relating to campus technology that only us CTCs understand. Also, we get useful tips and tricks on how to deal with these issues and on some occasions our director of technology provides us with some new toys. I believe that his activity was related to and helped me master the following standards/indicators: TF-VII-A.3. / TF-VII-A.8. / TF-VII.B.3. / TF-VII.B.4. / TF-VII-B.5. / TF-VIII-D.7. / TF-VI.E.1. I'd have to say that these meeting in general help me master Standard VII because it involves a high deal of planning for infrastructure, hardware, software, updating policies, procedures involving district and campus technology needs that affect the classrooms and the front lines of our schools.
 * Week 5: 9/26/2010 - 9/30/2010 : First CTC meeting of the school year**

Sources: Williamson, J., & Redish, T. (2009). //ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: what every K-12 leader should know and be able to do//. Eugene,OR: International Society for Technology in Education.