Comprehensive+Examination

Due to formatting issues each time I have gone from Word into my wiki, I have embedded the running document of my comprehensive examination below so that I do not continue to lose points due to formatting. I am also placing the text of my document on this page, although the formatting is lost when doing so. I have tried tracking changes and other suggestions to remedy this with no luck. Thank you.



Running Head: Educational Technology and Special Education 1

**Educational Technology and Special Education**


 * Goals in Educational Technology Leadership**


 * La Sheonda Martin Sa****nchez**


 * EDLD5388**


 * Dr. A. Kay Abernathy, Dr. Diane Mason**


 * August 26, 2010**

**Introduction**

 Throughout the course of this master’s program, my desire has been to become an expert in the area of educational technology, specifically so that I can help all students have equal access to the content and curriculum we are trying to teach. I have seen technology help special education students to do things that they never thought they could. I have seen students who claimed to hate school become excited and motivated when they have technology tools in their hands at school. I am not the most technologically savvy person I know, but I was at least proficient at the beginning of this program. As the program has progressed, I have not only learned so much more about technology, but I have learned more ways to use it specifically for students who have otherwise been marginalized by mainstream education and its traditional methods. There is a long way to go in education, and in my skill set, but this program has served to whet my appetite even more to pursue the use of technology in education for the purpose of equaling the playing field among all students in schools.

**Position/Leadersh****ip Goal**

 The educational technology leadership program has given me a good background in many things that I will need in order to pursue my career goals in this field, as well as to implement the things that I would like to do. My original interest in this program was based on my experience in working with special education children. I would like to see the creation of a position in my district that combines my two greatest educational passions—special education and technology. In between where I am now and then, I will probably look at positions such as Campus Technology Facilitator, Special Education Consultant, Elementary Special Education Coordinator, and District Special Education Director. I would like to create a position over time that is a hybrid of these so that I can us technology in schools to help all students to reach an even playing field in education. I would like to see all students have equal access, and I believe technology is the key in order to make this happen.

 I want to lead in this area because I am passionate about it. I love working with special education children, and I love being able to see them achieve success. The biggest tool that I have seen work to that end has been the integration of technology into the curriculum. Students are more motivated and can side step some of their differing abilities when technology is introduced into their instructional day. Some students are deterred by the “pen and paper only” model that has existed in education for too long. In working with my students on a self-contained behaviorally and emotionally disturbed campus, I see this daily. Being a part of this program and working to learn more about tools that exist and how to implement them effectively will help me to improve my campus in the short run. Over the long term, my vision is to see all of my district’s schools go to a model that actively seeks to improve educational opportunity for special education children through the use of technology in the classroom. As a result, I believe other districts will want to observe and eventually use the same concept in their own classrooms.

 **Vision for Educational Technology** My vision for educational technology is ultimately that we as educators will find ways to use technology in the classroom

that will prepare students for their future careers and adult lives. It is inevitable that students will one day use technology on

a daily basis in their work and personal lives. Technology connects students to others as well as giving them a voice

beyond the classroom (Johnson 4). In an effort to help students reach success in situations, we can help students to do

this by teaching them to use technology in all areas of their life. Closing the "digital divide" for all students regardless of

socioeconomic status or level of education will help students to achieve career and personal success in their futures

(Johnson 4). While it becomes increasingly more important for students to be proficient in the use of technology, there

exists a growing lag in the training of teachers to be able to teach students these skills (Johnson 5). I see it to be of key

importance that teachers receive the ongoing training that they need to be proficient themselves, that they are given the

tools, training and opportunities to teach those skills to their students, and that they are given access to the technologies

that they and their students need (Price 2006).

 There are many technologies in use that are still shunned in most educational settings. It is important for us to find ways to  use these in teaching and acknowledge these tools, as our students will be using them (and many already are) in their   daily lives, while still keeping our children safe (Hitchcock 2007). We have to use these existing technologies as well as teaching students about newly emerging technologies so that our students can enter the workforce prepared for what they need to be able to do (Joseph 2007). Incorporating collaborative environments into education will be a huge aspect of preparing students for their futures. Students will all be working in collaborative environments in one way or another in their future jobs. We have to mirror that in educational settings in order to prepare students for what they will be facing when they enter the workplace. The struggle will be to move away from traditional teaching practices and incorporating more student-centered models, rather than simply attempting to plug technology into the practices that we currently have (Williamson 38). My vision is a slow but steady shift toward new models of inquiry, collaboration and constructivist models of teaching and learning with the assistance of technology tools.

**What I Learned**

 This program has taught me much about myself, my leadership skills, technology itself, and my attitudes in relation to technology. One of the things that I have learned about myself is that even though I consider myself one of the “new” and “young” teachers in my profession, I am still a digital immigrant. I am learning lots of new things about technology and ways to integrate it into my classroom instruction, but I am still working with students who have grown up with technology in their hands, quite literally. There is still a gap that I am trying to close as I learn and gain experience. Realizing this has given me a better understanding and tolerance of what I previously called “older” teachers who were very hesitant with most any technology introduced at school. I experienced some hesitancy at trying to incorporate some new things that I learned about in this program, because it is harder to work in something new rather than going with the routine and comfortable things already in use. For me, things like wikis and classroom performance systems are great tools, but to them, they are very foreign and confusing. Getting out of my own comfort zone with some new things over the course of this program has helped me walk in their shoes a little bit more. I have also learned that I truly love technology and what it can do for students in the classroom. I really want to be more and more equipped to use it (and help others do the same) to help kids learn—especially special education students (Williamson 126).

 In regards to technology and leadership skills, I have learned that I have more technology skills than what I first thought upon entering this program. I know that there is still so much to learn, but I have also learned that I can grasp just about anything in this arena as long as I am willing to jump in and try. I also have learned how much I love sharing what I have learned with others (Williamson 41). I love finding ways to bring others along with me to learn about and incorporate new technologies in the classroom. I have known that I have a gift for leadership before this, but I have never applied it in the area of educational technology. Being able to share with others and get them excited about the possibilities that exist when we can integrate these things into our classrooms is now a focus for me.

 Some of my attitudes about certain things had to change as I learned about new technologies and tried them out in my classroom. I had to expand my acceptance of new things as well as my acceptance of those who are slow to embrace technology at school. Stepping out of my comfort zone was a big help to this and I am really able to appreciate that now.

** The Six Courses That Helped Me Most **

 In looking at the six most helpful courses in this program, for me the first course that we took in this program, EDLD5306 was a great foundation for all that followed and is one of the courses that helped me most as I worked through the content. I learned about wikis for the first time in this course, and have been using them consistently ever since. They have become an important tool to me. I have several and can not remember how I did things before.

 Another course that I found to be especially helpful was EDLD5333, Leadership for Accountability. This course gave me a good template for planning and implementing professional development on my campus that is effective and engaging. I have led and been in professional development sessions that could have been executed in a more learner-centered way. Learning about ways to make this happen and going through the process of actually planning a session for my campus in line with this template was great practice.

 A course that was particularly beneficial for me was EDLD5366, Digital Graphics, Animation, and Desktop Publishing. In this class we got to learn about the reasons behind why certain things are visually appealing to the eye and why others are not. This was helpful to me in being able to see reasons behind things. In my own experience, I have found myself deciding to read or pass over something based on what the visual appeal was for me. Now I have the knowledge and tools to be able to make my own publications more visual appealing for my readers.

 A fourth course that I thought was most helpful in this program was EDLD5364, Teaching with Technology. The greatest thing about many of these courses has been the take-away tools that we have learned about. The tool that I loved learning about in this course was the UDL Book Builder site. Making a practice book on the site for this course actually became a product that I used at my campus. I have shared this tool with others on my campus and will continue to use it because of what it does for my students as they approach the content I am sharing with them.

 Another course that I found to be most helpful was EDLD5363, Video Technology and Multimedia. In this course, the greatest take-away was again the product that we created in the class. As a group project, we created a public service announcement that we posted on the web. Learning the different aspects of editing the video, writing the script, and getting the finished product ready for public posting, //et al//, were all activities that helped me to learn more about creating a good multimedia product. Another aspect of this course that was helpful was the team part of it. The team that we formed worked very well together and we divided up the labor and found time to communicate with one another.

 The last of the six most helpful courses for me in this program was EDLD5368, Instructional Design. This course asked us to create an online course using web 2.0 tools, assistive technology, and best teaching practices. This course gave me another great tool that I can not only turn around and use myself, but can also share with others on my campus. As a special education teacher, I am finding that many web 2.0 tools make things more accessible to my students, as well as being very motivating to them.

**Reflections on Educational Technology Leadership Degree Program**

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0739;"> My experience in this program has been a big time of growth for me. I came at this program from a different angle from most other candidates. My background is one of special education, rather than a technology focus. My desire in pursuing this program was to learn and use technology in a way that could help all students, specifically special education students, to be more motivated, engaged, and successful. I have loved watching my students respond to the tools and resources that I have learned about in this program. It was beneficial to get a background first in the program, and then to go into more depth about many different facets of educational technology. There were some aspects of the program that I was already somewhat familiar with, while others were brand new. All of the courses in the program were helpful to me. Some courses left me wanting more information or practice, which is why the internship and real-world practice of the information is so important. Even after all that I have learned, I still want to continue learning more about technology resources and tools. This program has served to whet my appetite, rather than satiate it.

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0740;"> The team projects that were incorporated into this program were something that I initially dreaded. In general, I would prefer to work on projects like that on my own. The team that I formed in this program has become a group of friends that I will maintain long after we have received our degrees. I have learned so much from them and have enjoyed the work that we have done together. This is a great model for me in what I am trying to do more in my classes. I am incorporating a real-world problem solving model with students collaborating on things, rather than traditional classroom model of lecture, worksheet, and test. The group work in this program was a good way to get me to do that myself in addition to implementing that model for my students. Subjects that intimidated me in this program, such as web design, turned out to be things that I enjoyed and want to continue to use in my teaching practice.

**Professional Development Plans** **f****or** **the** **Next Three Years**

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0740;"> Over the next three years, I would like to be able to further incorporate educational technology into my teaching and personal growth as a teacher. I will be attending some courses this school year within my school district on grant writing. I have written some grants for educational technology resources and received the items requested. There are more tools that I would like to be able to use and would like to be able to see in the hands of my students. I would like for my campus to have more than one laptop cart, iPods for podcasts, ebooks, and other uses, and other things that we do not currently have the funds to purchase. Improving my grant writing skills will be helpful in making up for things that are needed but our district does not have room in the budget to purchase.

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0740;"> I would also like to attend additional courses on web mastering and web design. These are offered in my district and I will be attending a sequence of these in the next three years. I will also be attending professional development sessions that combine educational technology with specific core content areas, so that I can learn ways to incorporate technology into every area that I teach. I am already doing this to some extent, but I want to continue to learn how to do this. I would also like to be able to share the ideas and resources that I gain with other colleagues and friends who teach.

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0740;"> Another area in which I would like to attend professional development sessions is assessment. My goal is to be able to get the truest picture of my students’ abilities and be able to help them from their starting point, rather than an arbitrary one established in a book or curriculum. There are some great technology tools that provide pre-assessments, as well as formative and summative assessment tools, along with programs to guide students along the way in between the assessments. I believe that students can show more than what they often do on a traditional pencil and paper test. Incorporating technology into the assessment process is a goal of mine, and I will be seeking out training so that I can become better at this.

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0740;"> During this program we learned about universal design for learning. I would like to attend further training on this, because this is an area that combines my two greatest educational passions: special education and technology. The tools that we learned about during this program were very helpful to my students, but I feel that I have only scratched the surface in this area. My desire is to learn more tools and resources that exist in implementing the universal design for learning in the classroom and to do it in a way that incorporates technology tools that will help my students to be successful in school and in the future.

**Conclusion**

<span style="display: block; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-prop-change: 'Northside ISD' 20100923T0741;"> Pursuing a master’s degree in educational technology leadership has been a wonderful, long road. I have learned so much about technology and how to incorporate it into my teaching and the curriculum. Seeing the enthusiasm of my students as they responded to using new technology tools and resources has been a great motivator for me as I continued through the program. As a special education teacher in a self-contained BMC setting, I have seen amazing differences that even small additions in technology can make. This is the catalyst for my desire to achieve this degree. I saw assistive technology devices being extremely helpful to students that I work with, and I know that this is only the beginning of technologies that can help special education students. I have learned much that will help me to help students, and I will continue to pursue more emerging technologies that I can be used to help students.

**Works Cited**

Hitchcock, JA. "Cyberbullies, Online Predators, & What to do About Them." //MultiMedia//

& Internet Sc Sc   hools. May 2007.

Johnson, L., Smith, R., Levine, A., and Haywood, K., (2010). //2010 Horizon Report: K-12//

Edition.

Austin, Texas : The New Media Consortium.

Joseph, Linda. "Keeping Safe in CyberSpace." //MultiMedia & Internet Schools//. Jan 2007.

Price, Betsy. Who's in Control of the Technology-Integrated School?" //Principal//

Leadership. Sept

2005.

Williamson, J. & Redish, T. (2009). //ISTE’s technology facilitatio////n and leadership//

standards: What

//every K-12 leader should know and be able to do//. Eugene, OR:

International Society for

Technology in Education.

** Appendix A **

** Curriculum Vitae **

** La Sheonda Sanchez ** 8530 Ewing Halsell San Antonio, TX 78229 (210)379-6100; lasheonda.sanchez@nisd.net

**Education/Certification**

M. Ed. Educational Technology Leadership, Lamar University, Beaumont, TX, 2010

BA Christian Ministry, Abilene Christian University, Abilene, TX, 1999

Technology Texas (In progress) Applications Certificate

Teacher Certificate EC-4 (Texas) 4-8 (Texas)

Special Education EC-12 (Texas)

**Education Experience**

** BMC Teacher, Northside Children’s Center ** **Northside** **Independent School District** **San Antonio****, TX****; 2009-present**


 * Selected as member of Differentiated Instruction Cadre, attending seminars and demonstrations covering differentiated instruction throughout the year.
 * Selected as district-level presenter at Differentiated Instruction Demonstration School to show teachers how to incorporate differentiated instruction techniques and strategies in the classroom.
 * Selected as member of campus committee to create new campus-wide expectations for staff and students in all common areas
 * BMC teacher on self-contained campus for emotionally disturbed students who have been removed from their home campus due to aggression and other destructive behavior
 * Team Leader for 4th and 5th grades. Facilitate meetings and act as liaison between administration and teaching team.
 * Developed BMC collaboration wiki for all district BMC teachers to share ideas and resources that are beneficial in the classroom
 * Demonstrated video announcements for campus to begin using ceiling-mounted projectors and screens to show announcements instead of simply hearing them over the intercom each morning
 * Began school newsletter for students and parents to see major events, announcements, and points of interest happening at the school
 * Led cooking club for students, demonstrating good nutrition, safety, and fun in the kitchen

** Co-Teacher and Resource Teacher, Alamo Heights Junior School ** **Alamo** **Heights Independent School District** **San Antonio****, TX****; 2007-2009**


 * Selected as Site Based Decision Making Team member. Revised campus improvement plan and rewrote campus one-, five-, and ten-year goals
 * Wrote grant for Classroom Performance System from iLearning for special education department, grant awarded
 * Wrote grant for twelve iPod nano units from Apple for special education department, grant awarded
 * Wrote grant for multiple sets of high interest/low reading level books for resource language arts department, grant awarded
 * Attended and implemented Quantum Learning/Teaching training to integrate research-based practices to enhance student success
 * Chosen as facilitator at TAPPestry middle school conference, helping educate teachers, administrators, parents, and other professionals on how to help students with special needs
 * Co-teacher in areas of math, science, reading, and language arts
 * Helped lead day of training for regular education teachers in co-teach best practices and strategies
 * Resource teacher in area of reading, language arts
 * Attended and implemented Multisensory Teaching Approach (MTA) training to provide remediation for students with dyslexia (and other linguistic learning disabilities) in reading and language arts
 * Used book and website __Teach With Your Strengths__ with myself and my students to identify strengths and encourage students to work from those to be successful
 * Member of social committee, providing activities and events for faculty and staff focusing on socialization, recognition, philanthropy, wellness, and appreciation

**Additional Training/Professional Development**

<span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Multisensory Teaching Approach,” San Antonio, TX, October 2007. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Quantum Learning,” San Antonio, TX, February 2008. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Crisis Intervention,” National Alliance on Mental Illness, September 2009. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “TAKS-M Field Test Facilitator Training,” ESC-20, San Antonio, TX, October 2009. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · Texas Behavior Support Initiative,” San Antonio, TX, December 2009. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · Introduction to Applied Behavior Analysis,” San Antonio, TX, December 2009. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Differentiated Instruction Cadre”, San Antonio, TX, 2009-2010. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Differentiated Instruction Demonstration School,” San Antonio, TX, June 2010 <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Fourth Grade Integrated Science and Social Studies,” “Key Actions,” and “Reading and Language Arts Curriculum Overview,” Summer Institute, San Antonio, TX, August 2010. <span style="display: block; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · “Fountas and Pinnell Literacy Intervention,” San Antonio, TX, January 2010.