The essay:
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A Look Into the Mirror
I relished the ‘young adulthood’ window of life, in which there was an exciting educational or professional milestone every year or so. Within a span of five years I had: graduated high school, participated in service learning opportunities, completed an undergraduate degree, entered student teaching, and was hired to my first full-time position. That’s a whole lot to be excited about. The excitement continued during my first year as a professional. I cherished every opportunity to come to school every day and implement my lesson plan. There was a sense of delightful urgency as I paced the room to address every raised hand, providing clarity or assuaging concern with each breath. Teaching was a glorious adventure! Unfortunately, my excitement has dwindled. I would be disingenuous to suggest that I have slowly become disenchanted with the teaching profession; I have simply entered the ‘career stage’ of my adult life, in which routine reigns supreme.
When I applied to the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET), I had a couple of simple goals in mind. First, I wanted to learn something new and improve my teaching practice. Second, I wanted to add to my resumé to facilitate a potential move out of the classroom. I firmly believed that this graduate program would grant me new insights into teaching and spark new ideas on how to engage my students, especially when it comes to the use of educational technology. Also, a graduate degree from Michigan State University would undoubtedly improve my prospects if there was an opening for a technology coordinator or instructional coach. I hoped that my pursuit of these two goals would add new excitement to the ‘career stage of my life’ and reinvigorate my practice.
The MAET program has certainly helped reach my goal to improve my teaching practice. I previously feared that I would be implementing technology in the classroom just for the sake of being ‘progressive’, but I am now much more comfortable with educational technology. Assignments like the 21st Century Lesson plan have encouraged me to be more intentional with my use of tools, and projects like the DreamIT research assignment has reignited my desire to be reflective and tinker. In my English Language Arts classroom, I have been successfully using audio texts, supplemental digital material, and the occasional film adaptation to improve student learning outcomes.
At the time of writing, I am no longer entertaining the idea of leaving the classroom. Instead of pursuing technology coordinator or instructional coach positions, I have resolved to play a larger role within the English Language Arts department at my school. My participation in the MAET has boosted my professional confidence and I believe that I can play a formative role in helping my department negotiate its transition into the 21st century; my goal is to implement informal professional development that will encourage more experienced educators within the department to reevaluate their practice work outside of their pedagogical comfort zone.
When I applied to the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET), I had a couple of simple goals in mind. First, I wanted to learn something new and improve my teaching practice. Second, I wanted to add to my resumé to facilitate a potential move out of the classroom. I firmly believed that this graduate program would grant me new insights into teaching and spark new ideas on how to engage my students, especially when it comes to the use of educational technology. Also, a graduate degree from Michigan State University would undoubtedly improve my prospects if there was an opening for a technology coordinator or instructional coach. I hoped that my pursuit of these two goals would add new excitement to the ‘career stage of my life’ and reinvigorate my practice.
The MAET program has certainly helped reach my goal to improve my teaching practice. I previously feared that I would be implementing technology in the classroom just for the sake of being ‘progressive’, but I am now much more comfortable with educational technology. Assignments like the 21st Century Lesson plan have encouraged me to be more intentional with my use of tools, and projects like the DreamIT research assignment has reignited my desire to be reflective and tinker. In my English Language Arts classroom, I have been successfully using audio texts, supplemental digital material, and the occasional film adaptation to improve student learning outcomes.
At the time of writing, I am no longer entertaining the idea of leaving the classroom. Instead of pursuing technology coordinator or instructional coach positions, I have resolved to play a larger role within the English Language Arts department at my school. My participation in the MAET has boosted my professional confidence and I believe that I can play a formative role in helping my department negotiate its transition into the 21st century; my goal is to implement informal professional development that will encourage more experienced educators within the department to reevaluate their practice work outside of their pedagogical comfort zone.