Comprehensive Classroom Technology Plan

Patricia Lewis
Grand Canyon University
EDU-225
02/19/2016

Comprehensive Classroom Technology Plan

Technology has advanced to the point that it is possible to have
different tools of communicating in the classroom. The progress that
technology has made has surpassed our expectations in the classroom. It
has become very important in todays world to teach the teachers so they
can teach the students and enhance their learning experiences and to better
prepare them for the work force and into adulthood. Another great feature of
technology is that we can now access data with ease in todays world. There
are many different tools that teachers can use to help them with this process
and to keep track of their students progress as well. The students also see
their progress and they are excited to see how far they are coming along in
their work. With the help of technology we are able to differentiate learning
for our students. Differentiated Instruction is when teachers collaborate on
how to teach the material, to slightly change the material, to model the
material and the process of how the students comprehended the material
that was being taught. You have to assess your students to see where they
are and you have to have a great collaboration with the other teachers as
well.
Vision & Mission Statement
My Mission Statement is that I will do my best as a teacher and as a
person after receiving my degree. I will keep my integrity, be a positive
reflection upon my school, at my school and outside of my school. I will

embrace the changes that come to the best of my ability for myself and for
my students.
My Vision Statement is that I will encourage and teach every student
that I may have. I want the students to know that they can do everything
that they set their mind to. All children are capable of Success, No
Exceptions!! I firmly believe that this is true. I want to see the light bulb
going off on all my students, all of my students. I want them to know and
learn that school is a great place to be. All children have a right to education
and a safe positive environment in which to learn in.
Section Two: Communications Plan
My philosophy of effective communication with parents, students and
the community is being consentient when I am dealing with students,
parents and even in the community. It is very important to build and try to
have a solid relationship with your students and their families. You will find
that sometimes its the grandparents raising the children and or multiple
children as well. It is very important to include them in as well. You have to
make them feel like they have a voice to just not too loudly of course. Its
always good to set your expectations right up front. That way everyone is on
the same page as you and the parents and students know right away what
you expect from them. Also let the students and parents know what they can
expect from you as well. That way again there is no issues and you have
everything laid out for them as well. The three different ways that I will be
communicating with my families are:

1. The agenda. This is a tool that can be used for everything, notes,
material to go home, and homework. This is a notebook with a
calendar with room to write in that the student takes back and forth
from school to home. Granted they do get lost but there is other
ways to send communicated home if they do get lost.
2. Email. I will use email for all the parents that have one or can go
somewhere to check their email. This will be something that I use
but if the parents dont have one, I will continue to use my agenda
and the phone.
3. The phone. I will use the phone regularly as I can as long as they
have one and on their paper work that the parents fill out, I will be
asking for 2 or three numbers that I may reach them at. Even then
this is still not a full proof plan as sometimes even with 2 or 3
numbers handy it can be difficult to reach them when its an
emergency.
Section Three: Integrating Instructional Technology
In todays classrooms teachers have the opportunity to help open up a
childs world and eyes with all the new tools of technology that are available
to us. I can see technology working in the classroom to help the students.
The internet is this generations defining technology for literacy. (Zawilinski,
2009). This generation is all about keeping up with the internet. Google docs
are an excellent tool that I will be using in my classroom. It is fast and the
documents can be shared with the teacher and the other students. It can
save on paper when we need it to. We want to foster technology use that

doesnt neglect valuable human interactions. (Frey and Fisher). One of the
tools that I will be using that will help me be a better teacher is the smart
board and another thing would be the different assessment tests. The smart
board is a great thing to use while teaching and having the students interact
with you and with each other. They the students can also go up to the board
and work on it and the other students can help them. The Read Naturally
Reading program is another tool that I will be using to help me be a better
teacher and to help the students be better readers. This tool will help me
help the students during reading practice and it will help the students with
their reading fluency when its time for testing. The important thing is for us
to want to teach the students and for the students to want to learn.
Section Four: Differentiating Instruction through Technology
Differentiated Instruction is when teachers collaborate on how to teach
the material, to slightly change the material, to model the material and the
process of how the students comprehended the material that was being
taught. Differentiated Instruction is also finding out what works with your
diverse maybe challenging students. It is not an easy concept but it is one
that works very well in your classroom. You have to assess your students to
see where they are and you have to have a great collaboration with the other
teachers as well. You dont want to only use technology to differentiate
instruction when there are some many different assessments that you can
use as well. Technology is a big help, but if you have those days that the
internet is down then you wont be able to use the computers to finish the

lesson at hand. You should always have another lesson planned just in case
this does happen. This way you are not losing instruction time and you are
able to continue on with the lesson. The importance of student centered
technology in the classroom is that the students are able to learn at their
own pace. They can all be using the same program but at different levels and
that is ok. Also, the students can track their progress with their charts and
see how they are doing. Some programs will have incentives for the students
so they will want to improve their skills while working. Through differentiating
instruction, teachers create different levels of expectations for task
completion, and environments where all learners can be successful (Waldron
and McLeskey, 2001).

Section Five: Technology to Support Assessment

Formative Assessment is to monitor student progress as they are
learning and to give the student feedback as they are mastering the
concepts that you are teaching. It is also a way to check for their
understanding of the concept that you have taught in that particular lesson.
It is also a way for the teachers to see what particular area that the student
might be low in. Assessment can foster and drive student learning. However,
in higher education where there is so much emphasis on grading via written
tests and exams the quality of assessment can lead to either surface or deep
approaches to learning (Biggs, 2001; Hounsell, 2005). Summative
Assessment is when the students are tested after a unit, a block or a

semester depending on what grade level you are teaching. Summative

Assessments are used to evaluate student learning by comparing it against a
benchmark or standard at the end of the unit. They are used to see what the
student knows from the unit they were studying. Emphasize useful feedback
on student performance that is embedded into everyday learning.
(Framework for 21st Century Learning). Pg. 3/5. Both of these assessments
can be used with technology. There are many options out there for teachers
to use to create assessments and charts online. A few that I have researched
are the online assessment tool.com with this particular one you can create
your own assessment that you would like the students to take. It is a very
easy and quick process. Its very important to have the right software when
we are testing our students. It is also helpful to have some sort of tracking
tools that you can use. Some people use binders, others use notebooks I use
folders with the students name on them to keep track of their data. The
folders are easier for me and if my case load gets too much then I will
change my system. But right now it is working for me.

Conclusion

Technology has become such an integral part of our world today. In

schools, workplaces and at home, technology is a must. Technology not only
helps the teachers but the students benefit from it as well. They will take this
learning and use it in their careers, school and even at home. There are so

many tools to use and so many different applications that are available for
our use as well. From teaching tools, different software and creating
assessments for the students the list goes on and on. It is such a benefit to
us all. As an additional benefit, using technology also provides students with
learning opportunities that are both fun and authentic, which means that
they are more likely to remember the lesson. (Owen, Deborah Another C for
Learning) pg. 6. Formative and Summative Assessments are some of the
best tests to keep track of your students and to make sure they are moving
forward in their learning. Technology will help us to help the students and
teachers and parents to become better learners ourselves of all the new and
different programs that become available to us in the upcoming years.
Technology will be a great assess to us as we learn more and more. The more
we learn the more we will grow.

Reflection Essay

This was an extensive plan to put together. I will be referring back to

this plan during my first years of teaching. This was a very good idea. I
understand now why we had to write on a different topic each week, it made
putting everything together much easier. What I find difficult for me was
putting everything together. I found after the first couple of sections it was
easier to put it together and to have a nice flow going. This will better my
classroom by helping me to become a better teacher while helping me to
help my students to become better learners. Hopefully from what Ive
learned here I can share at my school and at my district any new technology
tools that maybe the district or school may not know about. I have learned
that there are so many tools out there for us to use it are amazing. It is also
amazing how fast new technology is being thought up and being created. I
have learned how important it is to learn all we can so we can teach our
students and their families so they will learn and keep up with all the
changes in the technology world. This has been a wonderful experience for
me and I cant wait until I get to apply everything that I have learned in this
class in my own class. I have learned how to make videos and how to create
assessments online for my students. That is one piece that I will apply to my
daily lessons.

References

Beatty, Mia-Integrating Google Blogs into the K-6 Language Arts Classroom to
Promote Interactive Learning Communities. Pg.1
Beatty, Mia-Integrating Google Blogs into the K-6 Language Arts Classroom to
Promote Interactive Learning Communities. Pg. 16
By: Tobin, Ruthanne and McInnes, Alison. Literacy Vol. 42, Number 1, April
2008.
(Biggs, 2001; Hounsell, 2005) Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and
Learning, Vol. 15, No. 5, October, 2015. Josotl.Indiana.edu
P21Partnership for 21st Century Learning: Framework for 21st Century
Learning. Pg. 3/5.
Owen, Deborah Teacher Librarian. Jun2013, Vol. 40 Issue 5 pg. 6