Great Day!!

Today's class was extremely fun and informative!  I really enjoyed the Microsoft Excel assignment because it was a great refresher on skills that I used to know but have forgotten.  If and when I become and administrator, I can see how important Excel will be to my profession. 

Excel Day of Learning!

Today was frustrating, overwhelming, rewarding, and eye-opening all through one Excel assignment/experience! I have used Excel in the past, but only to enter information or data into cells. I have not ventured into formulas, hyperlinks, or the many other features we explored today. I do see lots of ways that excel could be utilized when reporting student data, performing student conferences, and/or just to keep track of scores! I think that Excel could really be utilized by my building through the data-team process when reporting data! A chart would be so easy to read and if the formula process was utilized correctly not much would have to be changed to keep the document an on-going process to analyze student scores.

Technology takes practice...

Excel is one of my most feared programs. Today was a nice way to look at several of the features which I know I have never used. I will not be held captive by my computer. I use Excel on a very limited basis now, but have avoided (to this point) using formulas and some of the other features. I can see several applications for it for my current job (counselor), and certainly it can be useful for teachers and principals. I'd like to get good enough with it so that most of the functions become as easy to use as e-mail.

Practice practice practice.

Excel Day- I have to be honest and say that I have not done much work with excel. I can do some of the very basics so today was a real learning experience. There was so much material today I just hope I can remember it all. I think a review of the tutorials may be in my future. But after looking at the project I did complete I can see where it would definitely be used in my role as an administrator.

Excel plus

I have recorded student scores on Excel documents for years, but have never created one myself. This was an excellent introduction to many of the (unfamiliar) functions, and the guided practice was an effective way to teach them. I also liked that you shared some applications for the school/district setting for each new tab/function. Thank you for your patience, and thanks to my classmates that helped me, as well.

Excel

I enjoy using Excel but also lose the ability to use the program efficiently and effectively if I do not use it on a daily or weekly basis. I will be saving the directions to the Excel project for future reference. I am also going to take Dan's advice and find a reason to use it on a regular basis to keep it fresh in my mind. I am looking forward to improving my knowledge of educational technology. Good class today!

Learning....

My use of EXCEL has always been limited. However, I know how important it will be for me to be knowledgeable with it as an administrator. Through this class I am quickly learning that these programs do not have to be complicated. Today there were times I felt a little lost and a little frustrated, but the examples were very educational, and once tasks were performed, I realized how easy it can be. I would say that my overall intimidation of the types of technology we will be exposed to in this course is getting smaller and smaller. In fact, I am already looking forward to the next hurdle we jump together. More than anything, I would like to challenge myself to apply and practice these new skills as a professional and continue to learn.  

What a challenge

Today was an excellent example of how learning new things can be fun and challenging at the same time. Excel is a program that I'm not familiar with, so everything I worked on today was a new experience. These assignments were very rewarding and it's interesting to think of all the potential uses this program has. I'm concerned that when I walk out of the door I will forget most of the information, but I believe repetition will be the best tool in order to master this program.

Week one, day two

Today's excel lesson was A LOT of new information.  As a prinicpal, it will be very helpful to be able to use excel when doing budgeting and fundraising.  I hope that I can remember how to do it when that day comes!  The tutorials were very helpful.  I liked that you could stop them, do the step, and then continue if you were falling behind or wanted to work ahead. 

Sunday 1/15

Today was a helpful day.  Many of the Excel tools we utilized in the first part of the Module were things I have manipulated before in the program.  However, once we got to the Salary Sheet, it was all new.  I am not positive I could do it again if asked, but it was great to learn the options that Excel can create.  I am reminded how much Excel can be used as an administrator, so I feel it is important to keep these skills fresh in my mind, and most definately continue my professional development related to the topic.

It also makes me grateful my district has a "data guy" that does this job.  He even did an Excel Workshop earlier this fall where I learned several of these skills.  I am hopeful with his assistance, and practice in the future, I can use this to provide for my counseling department.

Day 2 reflection 1/15/12 Ryan Geist

What a day!  I have always stayed away from Excel, but after the experience today, I will definetly use it more often.  I have used it in the past, but never in this much detail.  This is probably just the tip of the iceberg as to what we are capable of doing with the program.  Today was very productive and I feel great going into the remainder of the class!  It is a wonderful feeling to get things DONE and have the time spent in class working on assignments.  As our district moves on further with technology, I feel that after this class I will be able to help more staff members and feel more comfortable doing various tasks, which in turn will develop more leadership roles and capabilities for myself.

EXCEL!

Today was a great day.  I left yesterday feeling "technologically disadvantaged".  Today was different, beginning the class with the peer review was good because I was able to see how well our group followed the appropriate steps.  Then, moving on the excel project was very exciting.  I have a fair amount of knowledge about excel and I enjoy using it.  I am one who HATES to ask questions at work.  Today so many of my excel questions were answered and I feel confident in abilities to use excel even further in my profession.  I need to use excel to manipulate test data and many other things and today's class was a great professional development day for me!!!  I also enjoy helping others and being able to help those around me to finish the excel project.  I hope I can take my new experiences with me to school!!

Reflection 1-15

Today challenged me to go back to class and come up with lesson plans for students to create projects using technology.  Glogster would be an easy way to allow students to create posters that are interactive and students do not have to bring in posters and materials.  Getting started is the hardest part, but my students know a lot more than I think they do when it comes to technology.  Furthermore, using Excel will allow me to manipulate data that I had no clue how to do before.  I look forward to using this even in my personal life for finances to track spending.

Weekend 1 Day 2 Reflection Dan

It is good to hear that Superintendents want principals that are good with data and manipulating excel files.  Today was right in my comfort zone, with using excel and doing all that.  So if anyone is actually reading this and needs help with excel stuff just let me know.  I really enjoy messing around with it.

apps

I really enjoyed the learning about some of the apps available for use in the classroom. I do feel a little like a dog chasing his tail trying to stay up to date with technology. I am looking forward to Dr. Closens list of top 100 apps on further information about technology that I have no knowledge of...yet.

Day 1 reflection

I enjoyed the first class.  I found the technology plan review to be challenging but interesting.  I have never viewed a technology plan before.  I am curious as to whether or not the Moline School District has a plan.  I have an email into the Assistant Sup. to see if I can get a copy.  I am on the technology committee for the district and am suprised I have never seen our plan. 

I am excited to give the glogster a try with my second graders.  I just had my high readers research an animal on our ipads, make a poster, and teach the class about the animal.  It will be awesome to give them the opportunity to make an interactive poster on the computer through glogster. 

Thank you for all the new information!

Steven Etheridge

I thought today's class was a lot of fun because I was able to gain some new technology ideas for my classroom.  Creating a classroom blog through blogger.com is something I have already started to do and have a lot of ideas for.  My school district has a blog website they use, but it is not as user friendly as blogger.com.  Glogster, was another website I found could be a useful tool for my students.  I thought about how much more exciting creating a class project or book report would be if the students were using this technology.  Once a get used to creating projects on these websites, I would like to share them with other faculty members at my school because I feel they could all benefit.

Quadrant 4

I was amazed at the shear volume of sites and tools out there, and something tells me that we've only scratched the surface. I do think a principal should be aware of some of these things, especially when it comes to setting rules for school usage, but it's obvious to me that one needs to pick and choose which ones are truly educational in nature, and which ones are for fun and recreation. When I think back to Steven Covey's "Time Management Matrix," I can't help but think that one could easily get caught up spending far too much time in quadrant IV, all the while thinking they were doing something constructive.

Reflection 1-14

As much as I think I know about technology, the more I find out I really don't know that much at all.  The topics discussed today, as well as the resources looked at truly will help me become a better teacher.  Perhaps the biggest take away from today is that if an education leader expects technology to be used they MUST USE IT AND MODEL it for others to see.  Continuing to reflect on today the most frustrating part is that using the technology at school is hit or miss.  Sometimes it works great, but often times the proper software is not downloaded and it takes emails, phone calls, and begging to get things ready to go. This must change if technology is to be used and if the needs of students are to be met.  Engaging students through technology will challenge them and when they are engaged they actually behave in class!!  Looking forward to what else is to come.

Overwhelmed?

It's still an internal debate whether I'm more overwhelmed... or more excited after this first class. In my defense, there is only so much a kindergarten student can do with technology. We do use many software and online programs on the two desktops in our classroom, and the children are quickly learning how to use the one iPad I have... I also have a class website - using Wordpress which is a blog format. The presentation software would be useful at this grade level to introduce or review topics, especially in Science and Social Studies. After saying all that, as an aspiring principal, I need to become familiar with SO much more in terms of technology uses in the classroom so that I can promote, encourage and support my staff. I liked that an emphasis is on the instructional uses in our discussions, as well as other purposes beyond the classroom - record-keeping, gradebook systems, etc.

Tech Plans

I believe it is VERY important to learn and review your schools tech plans, and vary the peers that are reviewing them, because different people have different opinions. I also agree that tech plans need to address the needs of the school and the goals that have been met and the ones that need to be met within the specific time frames that are suitable for the schools needs. It is a good thing that everyone is on board with the tech plans goals and to really get involved. I look at technology as a great thing for relating to younger generations.

Sat. Jan 14 reflection

I never thought much about creating any blogs.  After today, I think I will make one for my class.  Our administration is pushing for the teachers to become more active on the web and I kept thinking about creating a website.  The blog seems so much easier and I feel more likely to use it since it looks like it is very user fireindly.  Overall it was a great day, and I realize even more how far behind I am in regards to technology!

My Day 1 Reflection by Dan Powell

I loved learning about all those apps and tools you can use.  The ones that particularly interested me were the utility and productivity apps like evernote and the cloud save apps.  I have organization skills that are to be desired and I have been taking a more active approach to improving them.  I really feel like those will be apps that I can use, and recommend others people (like my colleagues and students) to help them get or stay organized.  Really great stuff!  I am looking forward to learning more about all this fun tech.

So much to learn....

I have never considered myself technologically “advanced.” Average would be the better word. So, coming into this class, I was both intimidated and excited. I realize that new technology is developed every day, but our first vocabulary activity blew my mind with the amount of “common” examples I had never heard of. As a high school English teacher, I am constantly looking for new ways to get my students engaged and excited about learning. A comment was made that a “normal” math lesson cannot compete when students have access to laptops and iPads. It IS hard to compete with the amount of technology that is available to my students. Throughout this class, I hope I am able to find many valuable tools to incorporate into my classroom to both engage and challenge my students. For example, I hope to explore Glogster further and possibly create assignments using it. I am excited to learn and use examples from this class to better myself as a teacher, and eventually, as an administrator.

Great when it works....

We have all seen it. Everyone is sitting there, the screen is ready, the people are ready... and the "stupid computer" doesn't work.....Ughhhhh. Usually it has nothing to do with the computer. Some teachers have made a great effort to incorporate technology, and others are either resistant, or simply afraid. Either way, it is here, and needs to be used. It is a tool, and with practice, you can get quite good with it. Leave it alone long enough, and you end up having to assign a student "helper" to assist you.

As future principals and administrators, if we are willing to learn to use it, so too will our teachers. They will go as we go. I do not think this means we have to know how to use each and every tool available considering how many there are. It may mean however that we work backwards from time to time, and find suitable tools for the job, skill or information we want to teach. I see far too many whiteboards being used as movie screens. Time to learn.

I have known that I am behind the times when it come to technology but this class has shown me just how far behind I really am. Today I learned some new terminology (glogster, primary pad, ect). Based on the information provided in class many of these applications will be of great benefit to me in both my personal life and as I progress in my education career. Also, looking at a technology plan really showed me what is involved in making sure a school district has a comprehensive technology plan.

January 14, 2012

Wow! I really liked the idea of a primary pad to be utilized in the classroom. My school recently made the jump to smart-boards, and I have been a "fan" of the smartexchange as well as other websites that provide already made notebooks to be utilized in the classroom. I believe the primary pad could be utilized to increase discussion among students. I learned many "new" phrases for technology that I had no idea existed. I now realize I have a lot to learn!

Technology for Counselors

I was very interested to learn new way to utilize technology in the school.  As a school counselor, I do not have the option to teach students on a daily basis, but I am always looking for interesting ways to present in the classrooms on social-emotional topics and post-secondary planning.  I really like the Blogger that we are using for this project.  Though there are many sites that can do this type of activity, I like this one the best, as it is easy to navigate.  I also like the Glogster site.  I can see students using this to present as a part of the new "natural helpers" program my student intern is helping start. 

I think I am also excited on a personal level to learn great ipad/iphone apps....I don't have the time to search out these cool new things (right now), so it is helpful to take notes on what you have found useful in your own experiences.  It will be great to try them out.

Prezi...huh?

I have always felt confident in my abilities when it came to technology.  That was definitely tested today.  I learned several new words, most I will forget before I get home, and heard about new ways to use technology in my life.  The activity using technology vocabulary was interesting because I had no idea what most of the terms meant, but once they were explained I knew exactly what we were talking about.  The technology plan review was challenging because that was the first time I had ever seen a technology plan.   The format as well as the content was all fairly new to me and I found it difficult to review.  I am glad we were able to do the peer review as a group because it would have been very challenging otherwise.  I look forward to the rest of our classes because I know this is all information I will be able to become a more productive counselor and eventually administrator.  #Is there an app for that?

I don't know what I don't know

It seems like a new form of technology is coming out each and every day. I found it interesting to learn about new pieces of technology and how we can apply them to our professions. I still have a cell phone that is only used to call and text, so these "apps" are new to me. When I become an administrator, I believe having these pieces of technology will be a necessity.Adapt or die...

Wow websites.....

primarypad.com note sharing
facetime.com phone conferencing face 2 face
polycom.com conferencing face 2 face

other awesome websites, please share

First Weekend

I hope you walk away with a lot of new ideas after our first weekend together.