Sounds pretty fancy, right?  I thought so too when I first heard the term.  What about Learning Specialist?  Prior to taking my starting my Learning Theories and Instructional Designs course, I thought the same thing.  To be honest, I had never heard the terms.  While these are rather impressive terms, they are necessary to the role of the Technology Specialist.  According to Kilbane and Milman, in Teaching Models: Designing Instruction for 21st Century Learners, Instructional Designers are deliberate and systematic and use specialized approaches to create instruction that works for learners they do not know personally.  Technology Specialists are regularly working with teachers to build lessons that incorporate technology to make lasting learning experiences.  Since Technology Specialists work with students and teachers from multiple grade levels with a variety of skill sets, it is important to approach planning using a researched based framework, such as ADDIE and TPACK.  With the implementation of both of these frameworks, Technology Specialists can work with teachers to develop lesson that support 21st century learning.

 

As a first year Technology Specialist at the elementary level, I have been assessing the technology needs of the teachers and students I work with across the district.  Thanks in part to the course I am currently taking, EDU77706, I will be proposing the use of Microsoft Class OneNote with 4th and 5th grade students at the elementary level.  This is currently a program available to all students in our district and widely used at the middle school level.  My target audience of 4th and 5th grade students is due to the fact that they have one-to-one laptops.  I am in the midst of planning my proposal, so now is a good time for some self-reflection…

 

How has the process been?

 

Since this is my first year as a Technology Specialist/STREAM teacher, I have found it difficult to figure out where to focus my efforts in the area of technology.  Should I look at the STREAM curriculum or work with teachers to improve their use of technology?  Ultimately, I thought professional development for classroom teachers would have the greatest impact on students’ digital literacy skills.  Once I settled on where to start, the idea of increasing the use of OneNote with students at the elementary level made the most sense. 

 

Have there been any challenges?

 

The biggest issue I have found so far is determining how “on-board” 4th and 5th grade teachers will be with the implementation of OneNote in their classes.  Since it is the beginning of summer, many teachers are taking a much-needed mental break from planning and any technology related to school, and with the way the last third of the school year ended, I do not blame.  There responses I have received when conducting my needs assessment have been very helpful, but I was hoping to get more responses.

 

What have been the positives and negatives about the journey?

 

I’ll start with the negatives because I always like to end on a positive note 😊 The biggest negative about this journey is one that is really out of my control.  Unlike many other Technology Specialists, I am also a part-time STREAM teacher.  This means I am limited in the amount of time I have to work teachers, and I am still waiting to hear about my schedule for next year.  My schedule will determine how I organize and implement my plan for next year, and it doesn’t sound like this information will be shared any time soon due to the pandemic currently taking place.

 

The most positive aspect of the digital literacy of students and teachers will tremendously increase with the use of OneNote.  The silver lining of at-home learning has been teachers becoming more aware of the need for technology in everyday teaching.  The use of OneNote would solve many of the problems that teachers encountered during at-home learning.  I’m hoping the technology momentum from this pandemic will be fill over into the upcoming school year.

 

I am still very excited about the potential Class OneNote has at the elementary level.  Planning and developing a through implementation is even more exciting.  The more prepared I am the more people I believe will be buy into the use of Class OneNote.

 

Sources:

Kilbane, C.R. & Milman, N.B. (2013). Teaching Models: Designing Instruction for 21st Century  

     Learners. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.