Looking Back

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When I began teaching, I knew I wanted to go onto complete a master degree, but wanted to make sure whatever I continued my education was something I could be very passionate about. So instead of diving into a program, I waited to see as an educator what my "niche" was. It only took me about  a year to realize that my calling was technology. I was the go to teacher, when other teachers in my building struggled with their technology in their classroom. Wanting to know more about myself, I attended the MACUL conference in Detroit. I left that conference with a wealth of knowledge as well as having been introduced to the Michigan State, Master of Arts in Educational Technology program. 
​When I returned to school after the conference I was asked to present to the rest of my district some of the new things I had learned. I was hooked after that. I knew this was something I wanted to do more of. I remembered Michigan State's program, and talking to former educators, who were inspired by the same way. I knew this was the program I wanted to further my education, so I went for it. 

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My Goals

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When I entered the program I had a few major goals I wanted to achieve. 

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My first goal was I did not want to just complete the program, but I wanted to complete the program successfully. I wanted the work I did to be something I could be proud of, and I wanted that pride to fuel the fire that lead me to this next chapter as a learner and as an educator. 

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Next, I wanted to be able to take risks and practice what I was learning into my daily routines as a teacher. I wanted to weave what I was doing in my graduate classes into what I was doing in my own classroom. 

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Last, I wanted my completion of this program to lead me to a career where I could help inspire teachers to love and use technology with purpose. Teaching in a district with little technology, I wanted to be able to show teachers that it is the quality of the technology and not the quantity.

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Now...

 

As my time in the MAET program comes to a close, I think about the goals I entered the program with and how they have shaped me as a learner. I feel that as far as being successful I have almost reached that goal with only 2 classes left, the work I have done while in this program has made me so proud. You can view samples of that work here. During this program I was able to apply what I was learning into my own classroom, and this helped me to feel more confident in my own technology capabilities. I took this goal one step further, and even shared my learning with my colleagues, giving them fresh ideas for their classroom. Which has affirmed my last goal, and that is to leave this program wanting to continue to help educators find fulfillment and purpose in the technology they use. Now I feel that, I am ready to enter the next chapter of my time as an educator and life long learner.