A Tortuous, Rewarding Road

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My path to this MAET Capstone has been a circuitous one, taking longer than the average track (long story). Rather than an impediment to learning, I see my path as having granted me a unique perspective on my EdTech journey.

 

Initially, I was interested in exploring what was then a relatively nascent iteration of classroom software and hardware (the school I was working at was piloting iPads in 6 classes, that was it). I hoped MAET would introduce me to new methodology and effective practices in finding and implementing EdTech in the classroom. I wanted better skills in finding and using EdTech, to stay ahead of the curve of new technology, and find a way to use those ideas to deepen students’ learning. During my student teaching I attended one of the first EdCamps in the Chicago area and was introduced to the concept of Twitter as a means of professional development and not just reading @Dril tweets or watching Vines- that concept would carry me far.

 

I like to think that with experience comes nuance; my current goals have not changed by leaps and bounds, but they have refined themselves. I no longer chase the dragon of every new EdTech fad I see online, instead I review learning targets for individual units or semesters and hunt down the most relevant and helpful piece of software I can find. My current technology usage philosophy now leans more toward achieving the maximum utility from technology usage, rather than just ensuring its ubiquity. Similarly, the omnipresence of smartphones has rendered looking for the perfect piece of classroom tech a fool’s errand. I know my students will have their phones on them at all times, so the wisest thing is to make use of them, rather than villainizing them out of some misplaced sense of duty to a ChromeBook cart.

 

I see the shift in my philosophy as a result of greater exposure to the wider educational and technological world. The people I met at those EdCamps and started following on Twitter became a fantastic incubator for EdTech ideas and I still use Twitter as a professional development tool to this day. Realism also impacted my goals: I simply do not have the time to look for every new thing, but by cultivating  multiple flows of information from other teachers, departments, schools, Twitter follows, etc., I can still achieve my initial goal but in a healthier and more prismatic fashion. Finally, staying in one place with a set number of preps has also changed my approach, I no longer must cast an impossibly wide net, rather I can narrow my focus on individual goals and curate my options.

 

I have certainly changed over the course of MAET, however I see those changes as a sign of professional maturity and realism. I would be wrong to claim that I had achieved my goals from the start of the MAET program, but I am confident in my analysis that I have used those goals to drive me to the better place in which I currently work and learn.