Action Learning Workshop

I presented my workshop the other day and it didn't really go as well as I wanted it to. It seemed like most of the folks were there to learn what I had to share with them. However I had one person that made my job a little difficult. It seemed like she was trying to point out every mistake I made in front of everyone. I felt belittled and came away from the workshop feeling very bad about the way it went. She embarrassed me in front of my colleagues and I'm not really sure why. I'm also not really sure why she was there because she is a tech guru who definitely knows Photo Story. Nevertheless, I guess it went better than I thought because one faculty member stopped me in the hall the next day and told me that she and her teammate were so impressed with the program that they were going to incorporate it into a lesson very soon. That made me feel great. I worked very hard on preparing the tutorial and the annotated list of web resources (lesson ideas in every subject area) and after hearing that it seemed like my efforts weren't wasted. It was a learning experience for sure and I definitely won't make the same mistakes I made the first time. I did, however, feel like it was a little early on in my graduate studies to be giving workshops, though. I felt like I didn't really know enough just yet and I wish I would've gone with a different approach. I'll know better next time.

Portfolio Nearly Finished

Tomorrow is the day I give my workshop on Photo Story. I'm very excited and I'm hoping that I can tell them something that they don't already know. I kind of feel like the blind leading the blind, because I have yet to use Photo Story in a lesson plan myself! Although I have seen it used before. I also have a great tutorial that the IT guy at my school sent me, so everything should be fine.

I'm also putting the finishing touches on my portfolio. I've got that part figured out, but I'm still having trouble trying to figure out what to put on my display for the expo. I know I plan to take some pics of the people who came to the workshop, but that's all I have so far. I really need help on this one.

Anyway, I'll post another blog tomorrow and give an update on how the whole thing went. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It's definitely going to be different teaching adults (and a little intimidating teaching teachers), but hopefully I'll do okay.

AL Project Update

Monday I met with the information technology person to get some information on Photostory. According to the survey I posted on surveymonkey.com, most of the users at St. Stephens Elementary would like to have some more information on this program. He provided me with a detailed handout and took me through the program. It was very simple to use and the handout gives teachers something to refer to at a later date. I have also been researching some ready to use lessons from the web, because if teachers are willing to learn about this new technology, they should really have some incentive to use it. I want them to be excited about it so that they will be more likely to use it in their classrooms. That's the problem with most workshops -- it's nice to learn about this new technology or this new idea, but how can we make it practical? How can I use it in my classroom? Teachers don't have time to generate new lessons plans with this technology (not to mention, it isn't easy to the novice user), so I've been trying to be as helpful to them as I can in that respect. My workshop date is scheduled for this Monday (Techno Tuesday moved to Monday). We'll see how it goes.

Project Update

I'm still in the planning phase of my project. However, everything is coming along nicely. I've already filled out my Action Learning Plan, my Desired State plan, and my Action Learning Project planning tool. Now I have a better idea of what needs to be done by what date. I hope to have my workshop presented sometime during the week of Nov 6-12 or the following week. If not, I'll have to do it after Thanksgiving, but I really wanted to have it done before the class ends. I also just e-mailed a survey to all the faculty and staff of the school today. I've narrowed it down to three software programs (PowerPoint, Publisher, and Photo Story). I also gave the participants in the survey an opportunity to list any other programs that they might be interested in. Hopefully I'll get some responses soon. Hopefully someone will come! I gave them the opp. to select the best day and time for this workshop, so they won't have any excuse not to come. I also promised it would be brief (20-25 mins).

Delicious Workshop

Okay, after hearing about tagging and social bookmarking, I believe I want to present at least one workshop on this tool for Techno Tuesday. How many times have you heard the phrase "teachers are the best thieves"? I'm constantly asking to borrow my colleagues' lesson plans, worksheets, activities, and supplementary materials. I think the best way to learn to be a great teacher is to network with those who are already master teachers. How wonderful would it be if we were all members of a site like Delicious so that we could all share our resources. The web is so expansive and can be so overwhelming at times. It takes hours of researching sometimes just to find sites that are useful in your classroom. However, with this site, the majority of the work is done for you. I think this will be a hit with the teachers at my school.

With regard to the planning on my action learning project: I'm currently searching for an electronic survey to send out to my colleagues to find out what their needs are. Next week, I'll hopefully have the questions written and be getting some responses.

Mashups and Action Learning Project Tools

I recently read the chapter in the book on mash ups. I wasn't familiar with this term until reading this chapter. I wasn't even aware that I was using these tools. I use amazon.com often. I also took time to explore the Delicious Library website to see what it had to offer. It allows the users to catalog their CDs, books, etc. This type of service would be useful for knowing exactly what you have in case your collection were damaged or stolen. You would have a complete listing at your fingertips to submit to the insurance company for replacement. Although that does seem like drastic measures. Who really has the time to create an online catalog of their personal belongings? I'm still not really clear on how this could be used in a library. I would like some more hands-on experience with sites like these. I feel like I need to see a few more examples of how mash ups are used before I can really understand their value. I did like the feature on Delicious Library that allows you to see how much your materials are worth. It also allows you to sell them on the site. I'm anxious to see what else is out there. I suppose mash ups are just starting to gain popularity because according to the discussion boards, many people had never heard of them.

Also, I did start filling out my Action Learning Project Planning tool worksheet today. I like the way these sheets help you think through the process. It allows me to break my project into steps so that it doesn't seem so overwhelming. I do need to get started as soon as possible. I still do not know what software I want to present to the faculty. So far, the sessions that Mrs. Jones present only last approximately 20 minutes each. She is presenting tomorrow on Destiny Quest (how to use the new library online catalog). However, I will not be able to attend because the 6th grade is going on a field trip to the Renaissance Festival. I'm planning on going to next Tuesday's lesson so that I can see how she presents this material to the teachers. I will hopefully gain some understanding of what I will need to research and how I should present.

Technology Tuesday is in the Works!

I recently met with the Media Advisory Committee again (last week) and Mrs. Jones told me that I was welcome to present a workshop on any topic I was interested in. The only problem is that I'll need to research and learn all about the technology first. There isn't really any software program that I'm completely comfortable with (and I'm certainly not ready to share it with my colleagues yet). For tomorrow's technology Tuesday, she is going to talk about the use of a device / program called Weatherbug. This device is used to predict weather and storm patterns. It gauges the temperature, barometric pressure, etc. I believe it also collects the data it sends to some local weather broadcasting stations. It's a pretty neat device. I would love to sit in on this workshop, but I have class this Tuesday. I'm so amazed that Mrs. Jones knows all about all the technology in the school. I can't wait to get to that point myself. I've always been interested in technology and I would love to gain the knowledge necessary to troubleshoot problems and educate patrons about the hardware and software that we have available to us.

My next project is completing the forms that we are supposed to have completed by next class. I need to get the timeline completed and lay out some deadlines for myself, because right now it seems like a pretty overwhelming project (especially when I have seemingly 4 or 5 other projects due before the end of the semester).

I'll let you know how it goes. I'll keep you posted on what workshop(s) I decide to present for the faculty. I also still need to get the Principal's approval to do that, but I don't foresee that being a problem. Wish me luck!