Course Embedded Hours and Reflections

After completing 150 hours of coursework, I submitted my reflections about each of the courses.  The reflections include my thoughts about the courses as well as some of the activities completed.

II.6 TF-I, TF-II, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VII, TF-VIII	EDLD 5311 Fundamentals of Leadership and Technology	Students will collaborate with the school supervisor and develop the 18 month internship plan.  Plans will be based on self-assessment findings, professional goals, and the unique needs of the intern and school.	In developing the 18 month internship plan, it becomes obvious that administrators wear many hats.  There are many skills that I didn’t initially consider.  In developing my plan, I found that I needed to reach out to areas that I had not previously considered.  I also found that many of the tasks that I already do assist me as they contain a variety of leadership skills that are necessary.
II.6 TF-I, TF-II, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VII, TF-VIII	EDLD 5311 Fundamentals of Leadership and Technology	Students develop an educational vita noting all professional experience, education, relevant training, professional organizations, and references.  The vita will become part of the professional portfolio and used to note strengths and areas for further development in devising the internship plan.	It was interesting and eye-opening to create the educational vita.  I was able to complete this based on professional developments and accomplishments.  It was rewarding to find that I have shown strengths in many of the areas included in the vita and I feel proud of the work that I have done.  When I had the opportunity to submit my educational vita for a new job opportunity, I was confident that it would showcase my abilities.
II.6 TF-III, TF-IV	EDLD 5301 Research	Students engage in identifying an action research topic(s) or research question(s) and designing a draft action plan completing a recommended template or format of a blueprint of the action research plan.	As a science teacher, I feel I have a strong grasp on the concept of research or inquiry.  Using inquiry methods on a regular basis, I guide students as they develop their understanding of science.  Using these same practices and ideals, I believe that I can guide my practice in leadership.  By working through this course, I have developed a stronger understanding of the importance of inquiry, strategies for developing a strong inquiry plan, and continuing the inquiry journey through assessing the inquiry process.
	EDLD 5301	Students review comments from colleagues and site supervisors and engage in revising their draft action research plan. By the end of Week 5, students should confer with their site supervisor(s) and agree on an action research topic and plan.	An action research plan was developed and decided upon. Research was scheduled to begin in the 3rd quarter of the 2012-2013 school year.  Students were selected and invited to participate.  Research was conducted and two interns from a different program were involved as assistants in the research.  Research was concluded and a draft of the findings will be created by the end of June 2013.
I.1 TF-I, TF-IV, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VIII	EDLD 5333 Leadership for Accountability	Students create a personal vision of leadership.	Mission statement was created that helps direct leadership goals.  The mission statement allows me to develop a clear understanding of my direction and it can help guide the direction I take as a leader.
I.1 TF-I, TF-IV, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VIII	EDLD 5333 Leadership for Accountability	Students attend a Site-Based Decision-Making (SBDM) meeting, record reflections, and interview the principal and one other staff member regarding collaboration, consensus building strategies, ethical relationships, typical agenda items, etc.	As part of our campus Site-Based Decision Making board, the School Improvement Team, I have been involved in campus-level decisions.  I have worked with our team to ensure that the campus resources are used in the best way possible for all stakeholders.
I.1 TF-I, TF-IV, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VIII	EDLD 5333 Leadership for Accountability	Students demonstrate leadership for accountability by researching best practices, including specific professional development to address a target area and list the strategies and rationale for using each strategy.	The target area reviewed was our special education program.  Best practices were investigated on the internet.  Programs that are already in place were investigated for efficacy and continued support through additional training and implementation.
I.1 TF-I, TF-IV, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VIII	EDLD 5333 Leadership for Accountability	Students conduct a data-based needs assessment. Based on the areas of need identified, students create a campus action plan to address the needs identified including professional development plans, allocation of resources to support the plan, and any tools needed for school improvement efforts	The target area reviewed was our special education program.  An agenda was created that would address a professional development with the intention of targeting this population as we continue to meet the NCLB standards.
I.1 TF-I, TF-IV, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VIII	EDLD 5333- Leadership for Accountability	Students conduct a data-driven, comprehensive needs assessment using the latest AYP and AEIS data, a multi-year history of this data, and a comparable improvement report.	After reviewing the data from the latest AYP and AEIS, I noted that there is improvement in each category from year to year.  The areas of slowest growth are Social Studies and Special Education.  Additional focus is needed on our Special Education populations as they need to meet NCLB standards also.  Social Studies is particularly difficult because it is taught in isolation.  There is no vertical alignment and there are a very large number of TEKS that need to be taught using a variety of process skills.
II.6 TF-VI	EDLD 5344 School Law	Application of learning by designing a remediation to a situation you would like to improve in your school. In your School-Based Analysis, you familiarized yourself with special education policies in your state and school district. For your Application, you will use this knowledge as you follow a fictional student, Julia, who has just enrolled at your school. You will develop an Individualized Education Program for “Joseph,” monitor how her program is implemented in the classroom, and use your knowledge of student rights and school management to make sound decisions when she engages in behavior that calls for disciplinary action. This assignment will require you to use knowledge gained from your lectures and readings, and from communication with leaders at your school, including your principal, special education coordinator, and classroom teachers. Your final step will be to make suggestions about how management policies and procedures for special education students at your school can be improved. In all instances, you are expected to cite relevant law and/or policy that you used to formulate your answers.	In this course, several types of law that apply to education are reviewed.  Case law is studied so that practice can be made in application of case studies to current situations.  Following our fictional student, “Joseph,” we develop an IEP that can be followed by our school.  Although Joseph is a fictional student, the behaviors and situations that we find him are realistic and could happen on our campuses.  Having a better understanding of both obligations and limitations through case law is necessary when dealing with IEPs.
I.3 TF-VI, TF-VII	EDLD 5345 Human Resource Mgt	Students review Chapter 247 of the Texas Administrative Code, "Educators' Code of Ethics," conduct observations and/or interviews in your school, and use the results of those observations interviews to complete the "Code of Ethics Mind walk."	I feel that the principal standards paint a very clear picture of the leadership skills that are required of a principal.  Each compentency covers a different area, whether it be working with faculty, students, or the stakeholders in the community.  I feel I have been fortunate in the leader I had and now that she has moved, I look forward to observing a new principal.  I didn’t feel that there were any standards that were not important for the overall success of the principal as leader of the school community.  There were a few areas that I felt I had not had a suitable chance to observe.
II.6 TF-VI, TF-VII	EDLD 5345 Human Resource Mgt	Students conduct an interview with an administrator at their school regarding strategies for recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers and administrators.	Goal 2 of the Campus Action Plan deals directly with the recruitment and retention of quality staff on our campus.  Providing ongoing professional development is one method of retaining highly qualified teachers.  Providing rich resources is another strategy for recruiting and retaining quality staff.  The overall culture of excellence that is maintained on our campus is a big draw for new recruits, as is the reputation of the school within the district.
II.6 TF-VI, TF-VII	EDLD 5345 Human Resource Mgt	Students access the policies and procedures in place in their district related to teacher mentoring programs by accessing the district's webpage or contacting district Human Resources Office and reflect on the policies in place for mentoring induction.	The district has a mentoring program called the Teacher Induction Program for Socorro Independent School District (TIPS).  This program is designed to observe new teachers while they teach and to engage them in conversations regarding their teaching.  The idea is to allow new teachers to overcome challenges while reflecting on what is working for them.  TIPS facilitators provide feedback and suggestions.  The mentoring program is designed for new teachers, but can also be used to support struggling teachers.  I have been a TIPS mentor for several teachers in the past eight years.  To become a TIPS mentor, I attended intensive professional developments to understand observation protocols and to develop non-threatening strategies to engage the mentored teacher.  In my time as mentor, I mentored several new teachers, a teacher new to our district, and a veteran teacher that was struggling with classroom management.
II.6 TF-VI, TF-VII	EDLD 5345 Human Resource Mgt	Students complete the Cultural Proficiency Receptivity Scale, use the Cultural Proficiency Professional Development Rubric to assess the level of professional development at their campus or workplace, and identify and describe where and how their campus has responded to each of the elements of Cultural Proficiency	Our district is very good at responding to changing demographics.  With a very high influx of military families, our district is sensitive to the needs of the students and their families.  We are also sensitive to the needs of the students that are new to America and are not English speakers. There is an attempt to reach students of varied backgrounds.  Recently, teachers participated in military team building exercises and ropes courses in an effort to understand some of the activities that military families experience. There is an attempt to understand the background of new students to ensure their success.
I.2 TF-V	EDLD 5326 School Community Relations	Students develop a plan for a family-school-community partnership(s) to increase student achievement	The Career Day program most effectively involves the community and school.  This program gives students an opportunity to learn about career available to them and it helps them to understand the value of education and hard work.
I.2 TF-V	EDLD 5326 School Community Relations	Students develop a presentation to be given to key stakeholders in their school that emphasizes the importance of parental-community involvement to student achievement.	A presentation for stakeholders was created using Prezi.  The presentation focused on the areas that would be need to be addressed to increase student success.
I.2 TF-I, TF-II, TF-III, TF-V	EDLD 5363 Video Technology and Multimedia	Create a public service announcement for parents and community partners. Capture and integrate sound, video, and digital images; create RSS feeds; and publish the final product on the web. Use short teacher and student interviews to focus on 21st century technology for engagement and achievement.	This course provided an opportunity to collaborate with peers in the course.  We were able to work to create a product that addressed a specific curriculum topic.  Collaborating with this student group was very beneficial and I was able to use newly gained skills.
III.8, III.9 TF-I, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VII	EDLD 5362 Information Systems Management	Analyze district technology after completing interviews with at least two school administrators who are involved with the planning and budgeting of technology.	After interviewing school administrators on planning and budgeting, it was revealing to discover that the priority for the district under prior superintendent was not technology based.  Many changes had been made under the previous superintendent, but with a new superintendent that is data driven, there is the hope that technology will come into focus again.
III.8, III.9 TF-I, TF-V, TF-VI, TF-VII	EDLD 5362 Information Systems Management	Students will evaluate and analyze a school district’s Student Information System, including the evaluation of total cost of ownership, feature set, ease of use, customer support, and training.	In reviewing current SIS for the SISD district, I focused on two systems: Tyler Munis and Eduphoria. Eduphoria is used to analyze student data and professional development has been instituted in the district for teachers and administrators.  Tyler Munis is the next step for the district.  It is a program that will be used to track finances, attendance, and student progress.  At this time Professional Development has not been instituted.  There have been implementation difficulties at the district level.
II.4, II.5 TF-II, TF-III, TF-IV, TF-V	EDLD 5364 Teaching with Technology	As campus professional development activity, create a wiki-based study group with 3-5 teachers leading and support teachers who analyze data related to student learning , create a lesson using Universal Design for Learning at the CAST Lesson Building at http://lessonbuilder.cast.org/, create a sample electronic book to share with your learning team members. Lastly, add a team reflection to your Google site about the process of creating an electronic book.	Collaborating with this intern group was very productive.  We were able to create a complete lesson including Universal Design, ebook technology, and animation.  Our group worked well together and created a great product.  This class was interesting because the scenario presented a class that is realistic.  The scenario included Advanced students as well as students that need additional assistance and the lesson created was able to address all needs through differentiation.
I.1.I.2, I.3 TF-I, TF-II,      TF-III, TF-V, TF-VI,   TF-VII	EDLD 5366 Graphics Design and Web Publishing	Students will collaborate to create a  website that addresses digital ethics, design principles, diverse learners, and  communication with peers, parents, and the larger community in order to nurture student learning.	This course was intended to be done as a group, but there was very little support from fellow students.  Encountering difficulty was a challenge, but it was also used as a learning tool.  I was faced with an opportunity to complete a task and I did it.  I also learned about pitfalls in group work and will be better prepared on how to handle it the next time.