Final Step: Bringing About Change

Pilot Experience

This is the end of my EDU781 class and the completion of my pilot experience for this class. My proposal was a big one that would require systematic change for my entire district - using E-Learning days for snow days. This was an interesting project because the more I worked on it the more my idea changed. In the beginning I just thought about using E-Learning for snow days but then I realized that this protocol could be used for students that are at home for extended time due to illness and injury. It could also be used for when schools need to be closed down due to the spread of illness and they need to sanitize the entire building. Sadly, sometimes schools need to close due to a threat declared on social media. There are so many reasons school might be shut down and they all disturb the flow of learning in our students. 
My first goal was developing an appealing slideshow to persuade my fellow staff members that this could be a a good choice for our district. After my presentation, I sent out a Google Forms survey to those staff members that attended my presentation. The results of those surveys were mostly positive but they also shared some valid concerns about the project. This experience has been interesting because as a technology leader for an entire school you have to try and solve problems that are going to work for all of the various roles in the building. This can be quite a challenge so open communication and good problem solving skills are important qualities for technology leaders. 

Future Technology Leader

Upon completion of EDU781, I am about a third of the way through my journey in getting my degree. My goal is to continue taking classes after getting my technology specialist endorsement in order to obtain my master's degree. I am looking forward to taking the rest of my technology classes through Dominican University, where I have so far had positive experiences with the professors and been satisfied with all that I have learned. I plan on starting to prepare for the Technology Specialist Test now by reading the study guide that is available online. I think that all I will learn through this program will help me teach my 21st century learners as a classroom teacher but I am also interested in becoming a technology coach in an elementary school one day. 

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