LDT Competency 5

Demonstrates the disposition for life-long learning and continuous professional development.

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Artifact: EDCI 528 Final Paper (Prepping for Trig) - Summer 2016

Narrative:

The following quote from this artifact which sets the stage, also provides some insight as to what my educational professional engagement level is all about. I have journeyed into a system where existing processes may have been effective for decades, but now the learner has changed (living in a digital media infused culture with limited filtering), and so must the system.

"A significant challenge of Trigonometry is that the majority of the mathematical operations involved are based on basic skills briefly encountered in Geometry, a course which the students (in our district's vertical alignment design) completed 15 months prior. During 9 of those 15 months the students were focused on Algebra II, which currently rarely references their Trigonometry-related Geometry knowledge. The remaining 6 months comprise two summer breaks of 3 months each, during which many students receive little exposure to math.

Consequently, the students often enter Trigonometry attempting to reference background knowledge that many find difficult to access. Compounding this situation, precalculus is an honors-level math course tying together a wide array of previously taught concepts with minimal class time available for readdressing critical background knowledge, which is expected to be in place when the students enter the classroom.

Thereby the conundrum is created."

When I consider the opportunities for addressing the gap-creators, I see important professional development activities such as producing concept-specific tutorials, or adjusting/expanding the base lesson design.

In support of the instructors striving to have successful students, "this gap analysis will focus on...investigating how to improve the student experience in Trigonometry by focusing on student preparation for the course."

"In regard to the information-rich world that our students are entering, Wagner (2015) states, "What matters most in our increasingly innovation-driven economy is not what you know, but what you can do with what you know" (p. 27).

"Making the summer material more enticing to digital natives requires use of a digital platform or venue. An overarching challenge in education is to create a digital citizenship attitude whereby students utilize their digital tools for education as well as entertainment in a comfortable, competent, and responsible manner. Digital tools are a significant cornerstone of their culture moving forward and education needs to breach the application barrier." "Wagner (2015) highlights that we need to give our students 'work worth doing' because 'student motivation remains a critical - and largely ignored - issue in education' (p. 122). This directive encourages educators to build engaging materials to maintain student attention and focus. This is a tall challenge for summer maintenance work."

The paper finishes with a call-to-action that I am pursuing with my current colleagues. "Addressing gaps in student preparation levels for Trigonometry requires activity in two different locations on the 6 month timeline leading up to the start of the class. The first occurs near the end of their prerequisite Algebra II course where basic Trigonometry concepts/skills are introduced within the framework of background knowledge. This is accompanied by a performance aid (PreCal Tools) that reinforces the basic tools used in Trigonometry. The second activity occurs throughout the summer where students regularly participate in Trigonometry-based digital activities."

While the study undertaken in this artifact demonstrates my disposition for life-long learning and continuous professional development, as further evidences of my focus on continual professional improvement, following are the items that I currently have on my docket for 2017:

Presented at TCEA 2017 in February regarding tools to use to build and instruct in blended/online classrooms. This was my third year to present at this convention. I also spent the full week attending other presentations and seminars, and discussing/plotting the future with vendors supporting the 'fully online' movement.

Tasked by District Assistant Superintendent to work with a small team to develop a vision and template for a district online secondary school offering. I will then build at least one engaging and rigorous online course and have it available for use in 2017.
Attended a 4-day Kagan training in mid-January to set me on a path to become an in-district trainer for this student engagement structure for brick-and-mortar classrooms. I will also be pursuing a vision with Kagan regarding how to move this engagement level to our online world.
Work with the Texas A&M Computer Science Sketch Recognition Lab (TAMU SRL) in Summer 2017 as part of the E^3 (Enrichment Experiences in Engineering) program to bring another online tool, Sketchtivity/Coursesketch, to high school classrooms everywhere. I performed the same task with their tool, Mechanix, in Summer 2015 and used my first Purdue LDT class in Fall 2015 to produce a paper on this experience that I presented at CPTTE 2016 at Brown University in April 2016.
Conducted a very thorough search and vetting of graduate programs in order to find Purdue LDT, and expect to begin a similar journey later this year in search of a program providing skills and knowledge to further advance my support of the secondary education webolution.
Continuing roles as District-level 'Schools Attuned to All Kinds of Minds' consultant, a PLTW instructor/presenter, a PBSLearningMedia Digital Innovator, and a regular Semi-Finalist/Finalist for the annual Texas-based HEB Excellence in Education Rising Star Award.
Study industry 'visionary edge' books, such as the Wagner publication used in this paper, to ensure that my vision of a world of online, engaging and rigorous secondary programs is in line with current visionaries.

After 23 years in Telecom, I came to education with a vision and am very engaged in pursuit of creating that reality with a significant mix of professional development as both learner and informer. Purdue LDT has been a major influencer in my growth and is a key driver of the 2017 ramp-up in activity.

Wagner, T., & Dintersmith, T. (2015). Most likely to succeed: Preparing our kids for the innovation era. New York, NY: Scribner.