Last Digital Writing Post

This is the last of my projects for my Digital Writing Class; however, this is NOT the last of me :) Hope you enjoy it!



http://upload.youtube.com/my_videos_upload

I'm Scared

Saturday is my last face-to-face meeting with Bill and our Digital Writing group. I can't begin to tell you how much I've grown professionally in terms of incorporating technology into my teaching practices. Bill made me feel uncomfortable and took me WAY out of my comfort zone and required me to use certain pieces of technology I would have otherwise NEVER known about or chosen to use. He required me to read professional text that took my thinking outside the box. I complained at first and thought, "What had I gotten myself into??" He required me to do things and use things and read things I would have never been exposed to had I not taken this course. Now I find myself scared to death because I might not have this contact anymore. I'm scared to think about going back to "Pre-Bill" and I don't like it! Colleen, Ann, and I just presented a staff development to our faculty about some of the neat things we have been introduced to. I love the idea of "each one, teach one." I feel "empowered" that I have some knowledge about technology and how to use a few things in my teaching. I don't want my learning to end. I am not ready to do this on my own. I feel like I have just started my journey and I don't want to lose my connection to these wonderful people. I'm wondering if we can keep our support group going so we can continue to learn and grow from each other?? I'm scared of losing this contact. I wonder if anyone else feels the same as me.

Here We Go Again

Okay....here I am in Florida and I am supposed to be on vacation. I pick up the daily newspaper and listen to the daily news and the top news story over the past three days is teachers picketing the state capital because there is a bill getting ready to be passed that ties teachers salaries/bonuses to test scores. The state of Florida says higher test scores equals higher salaries. Hmmmmmmm.......are they really being serious??? Are you telling me that the only measure of a child's growth over a school year is being tied to a test score????? Is there not anything else we can look at??? Excuse me for sounding so down on this, but come on....we live in the 21st century. If I were measured by every test I ever took during my school days, I may never be in the position I am in today. Test scores are but ONE measure teachers/parents/administrators should look at when it comes to growth. Even the teacher of the year is so against this. Why is it that people who are not involved in the day-to-day grind of the daily classroom make decisions that influence teachers that force them to go in a direction they know is not right??? I'm on vacation right now, but my heart and my passion are on fire right now for what I know is right. Tying student test scores to teacher salaries is not right and it is not fair. If a teacher is not performing to standard, create an improvement plan that measures various ways a child's growth can be measured, and then, if no progress is shown, get rid of them. That is fair. But DO NOT measure a teacher's salary based on a child's performance on ONE test. Are the senators/legislatures in Florida really thinking this through??????