Blog Post 6

1. As I rated myself as "developing" on all the NETS-5, I choose the 5-a for this blog. This standard is about engaging in professional growth and leadership. As someone who has not had much experience with leadership in elementary, middle or high school, I figure I need more practice with this standard so that I can model it for my future students. I was interested in looking at some of the resources listed for professional organizations having to do with education, so I looked at two of them:

International Reading Association: Really awesome website about this organization that has been around since 1956. They are advocates about reading, and I even read a summary of their position statement. They have a section about trending topics and right now it is about the Common Core State Standards, or CCSS which we have been covering in our other classes! They have resources regarding the standards and literacy. 

International Society for Technology in Education- As this is fitting for this class, I visited this website to get more information about technology and education, and it is a great resource! They have a conference every year, and they have a blog in which they cover topics about technology in education. 

As for the section on various online chat tools I use ichat, AOL instant messenger, Yahoo messenger, and Skype. Skype being the most prevalent now because my Sister is in London and that is our main mode of communication, as well as Facebook messenger. 

I like the idea of Formal Schooling and how most states require it to maintain teaching certificates. I believe it keeps teachers updated on the most professional development resources, I also like the ideas they mention about informal professional development opportunities. I am going to look into this further. I am also going to listen to some of the podcast resources they mention on page 256. 

2. In your experience: Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now? Ten years? How do you anticipate professional development being a part of your 5 and 10 year plans?

I see myself in 5 years teaching in a classroom, probably in the Washington State area. I see myself attending professional development conferences every year, and hopefully having experiences teaching in various grade levels. I see myself owning my own apartment or home, and possibly married. In 10 years, I see myself married, and still pursuing professional development opportunities during the summer. I see myself hopefully married and having children by this point. I understand professional development is an important aspect of being a teacher, and will be pursuing the informal and formal aspects of professional development mentioned in the book. 

3. Exploration: Locate, explore, and describe one informal learning opportunity that can help you enhance your teaching practice. 

I looked into the Department of Education's Teaching Ambassador Fellowship. Their mission is to use teacher's experience in the classroom and having them lend a voice to the officials on the federal level. There are two opportunities mentioned on the website, and I have attached the link here. I think this will enhance my teaching practice because I am further practicing my teaching skills, as well as learning from other teachers about how they teach in their classrooms. It is also a chance to have my voice heard at the federal government level, which makes decisions regarding education and affects my future students and school. 

Link: Link to Professional Teaching Fellowship Opportunities

4. Final Reflection: 

“Barth (2000) describes the at risk teacher or principal as one ‘who leaves school at the end of the day or year with little possibility of continuing learning about the important work they do’” (as cited in Morhpew, 2012).

Explore the websites listed for the educational societies found in Resource List 5.1 (pg 248) and Resource List 5.9 (pg 262). Which of these societies would be most valuable to you in order to continue your learning after you graduate and begin your education career? What kind of resources do they offer? How could technology play a role in promoting your future professional development and lifelong learning?

As I mentioned in in the above section, I did review two professional educational society pages. I think they were the most valuable to me, as I am a big advocate of literacy in education, and I need to learn and keep abreast of the changing technology in the classroom and beyond. They offer books and articles on topics concerning literacy and technology in terms of education. Some are free, and some resources you can only access as a member. After I obtain a teaching position, I will probably become a member of a few of them, and utilize their resources. I think that technology will play a vital role in my professional development. They have podcasts, articles, and resources that are only available online and I see myself using technology as a way to further my professional development almost on a daily basis.