RACHEL MALER
1. Facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity
Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments.
a. Promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness
b. Engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources
c. Promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students’ conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes
d. Model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments
Evidence 1:Instructional Video about Smore
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This video was created with ScreenCast-Omatic, and gives instruction on how to create a Smore flyer. This video was created for the teacher I collaborated with on the service learning project. She had no experience with the smore website, so I created this educational tutorial to engage her in learning to enhance her weekly newsletter for better communication with her students' parents.
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Evidence 2: Kidspiration Flow Chart
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I created a flow chart using the computer program Kidspriration that outlines and educational game students can play in the classroom, called Rhyme Time!. This flowchart gives easy instructions with pictures that young children can understand. This is a great organizational tool that promotes innovative and creative thinking in young children.
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This video was first created on WeVideo as an instructional video for my students to watch from home as a review tool, and then was updated with the free and easy EDpuzzle website. EDpuzzle allowed me to add quiz-like questions to my instructional video to enhance the students learning and review of the material, and to get the students to think creatively about the material covered.
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2. Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the Standards.
a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity
b. Develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress
c. Customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources
d. Provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards, and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching
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On this website, I was able to create quiz questions that my students could answer on their device during class. They simply join my classroom on the website and can answer multiple choice, short answer, or fill in the blank questions on the material we are learning. This tool provides students with formative assessments that are aligned with the class material and the technology standards.
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Evidence 2: Service Learning Collaboration
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This project was created to collaborate with another educator in the same focus area as me to create a lesson plan that incorporates technology into the classroom. This project adapted relevant learning experiences and incorporated technology to promote student learning and creativity. It was also customized to to address students' diverse learning styles.
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Evidence 3: Data Collection Activity
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This activity promoted student collaboration and the exploration of individual curiosities. This project had the students come up with a question for their peers, in this example favorite animals, and the student would then go around the classroom and ask his/her peers this question and record the data. They then created a graph with pictures of the questions options.
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3. Model digital age work and learning; Teachers exhibit knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global and digital society.
a. Demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations
b. Collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation
c. Communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital age media and formats
d. Model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning
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To create a beautiful, engaging newsletter to parents to effectively communicate with them, I used the smore website. This website allows photos, videos, text, audio, bright colors, calendar dates, contact information, etc. to be incorporated into your newsletter. This website allows teacher-parent communication to be more efficient.
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In my teacher website on the about me page, I embedded a short comic about myself that I created with Story Board That, which is a free and easy website that allows the creation of comics to engage students, parents, other faculty, etc. with your about me profile, or any other information you are trying to convey. This is another emerging digital tool that supports learning.
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Evidence 3: Google Calendar​
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This calendar I created and embedded onto my teacher website is an excellent means of communication with parents about important dates. This interactive calendar is one of many communication tools I have used, and adds to the variety of effective digital tools to use as an educator.
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4. Promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices.
a. Advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources
b. Address the diverse needs of all learners by using learner-centered strategies providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources
c. Promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to the use of technology and information
d. Develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital age communication and collaboration tools
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The creative commons license I have embedded on both my teacher website and this eportfolio protect my work against other people using my ideas as their own. This tool is great because it models the ethical uses of technology and other peoples online work. It also promotes digital etiquette by safeguarding peoples original work.
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The online tool symbaloo allows an educator or student to created a board of websites the frequently use. This offers the students and educators an efficient way for learners to have appropriate access to online tools.
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I created this rule chart with the free online website called Piktochart. This website gives students or educators a way to create charts or posters. This tool is important for teachers because it allows them to create charts regarding classroom rules and online etiquette, to inform student on what they can and can't do online and what internet safety is.
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5. Engage in professional growth and leadership Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources.
a. Participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning
b. Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others
c. Evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning
d. Contribute to the effectiveness, vitality, and self-renewal of the teaching profession and of their school and community
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Evidence 1: Service Learning Project
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When creating and carrying out my service learning project, I engaged in professional growth and leadership by teaching another educator about new digital tools and helped her implement these into her classroom lesson plan. It allowed me to participate in a real-world classroom in my community and help them with technological tools to make their curriculum more effective and efficient.
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Evidence 2: Resource Evaluation
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I used to digital tool ScreenCast-Omatic to create an evaluation of an online resource. I chose to evaluate the educational gaming website abcya!.com. This evaluation helped me exhibit leadership in the digital community by giving an educational tool a review so other teachers can understand how this website works and whether it is an effective tool or not.
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Evidence 3: Instructional Video
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I created an instruction video with the help of the free and easy online video creating website, WeVideo. This website allowed my to support student learning through the use of an existing and emerging digital tool. This instruction video exhibits my leadership as an educator by going the extra step to create effective review material for my students to use at home.
