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I interviewed Jamie Lord a first grade teacher at an elementary school in Mustang, Oklahoma. She has 22 students in her class. She does have technology already in place at her school. In her classroom specifically she has 2 desktop computers, a smart board, an Apple TV and a front row speaker system. She also has access to iPads that are available for checkout through her school. Unfortunately, this check out is at a first come first serve basis. She told me she would love to have her own iPad to use in the classroom to use with her Apple TV that she could have all the time and not have to worry about checking out. She also stated she would like to be a one to one iPad school so the students could use the iPads as well. I asked her what kind of support she has for her technology in the classroom as well. She stated her school has a media director on site that any teacher can go to if needed. She said she also has a technology department that is for the entire district that they use to trouble shoot any issues. She seems very excited about technology! I learned that she is a part of her school's technology committee. She said the technology committee meets once a month to discuss needs and help other teachers as needed with technology. She personally stated "I feel that technology is very crucial for my classroom and I have yet to go a day without using some form of it in my lessons". I enjoyed getting to know her and how she uses technology in her class. I hope to find a school district that has a technology committee and if not I hope to start one in my future school. 

 The teacher I interviewed teaches second grade in a suburban middle-to-lower income elementary school in downtown Lubbock, Texas. The school was predominately a mixture of African American, Hispanic, and Caucasian students.  This elementary school adopted a “rural” method of teaching pertaining to following state and district standards. These standards were more “relaxed” in following common core standards and curriculum assigned by the state because it was a lower scoring school. Since the school wasn’t in the top percentile of test scores, teachers could choose various methods and ways of teaching to meet the needs of their students. Because of this, teachers in this school could choose how much they wanted to implement technology into their curriculum. The teacher I interviewed used technology daily, and thoroughly enjoyed teaching using various forms of technology.   The various types of technology found in the classroom included a SMARTBoard (1), Ipads (enough for a class), Chromebooks (5), and Computers (2). Even though this was a lower income school, the school district provided several elementary schools, including this specific one, with Ipads for the school. Although not every classroom obtained Ipads, there was enough available for several classrooms to check them out for several days at a time. Every classroom in the school obtained a SMARTBoard, although not every teacher used it with their lessons. My teacher preferred to use the IPad everyday to the SMARTBoard. Her experiences with the SMARTBoard were stated as “difficult and not user friendly.”   Individual teachers did not pick out the technology in their classroom. Every teacher in each grade level is provided with the same technology opportunities as any other teacher in the whole school. More technology opportunities can be used, but must be checked out through the school.   For technical assistance, there is a tech support crew that helps out around the school. As well, the computer lab instructor is a great resource for quick assistance.   With technology, there are rules that come when using various devices. The students are really great with following the expectations given to them when learning about the technology. With the Ipads, I have a “5 Countdown” to let the students know they have 5 seconds to close and put away the device. The students know whenever I say, “I’m about to start the 5 countdown,” that they have to wrap up whatever they are doing in the moment. This rule has been great because students respect their time with the Ipads and know that technology time is a privilege earned from using it respectfully. The same rules go for using the Chromebooks, however, the students tend to use the Ipads more frequently than the Chromebooks so there are more expectations with the Ipads.   Teacher’s school-wide don’t have specific rules with technology, the expectations are just assumed to be followed by every teacher. There are limitations with how much technology you can checkout and keep in a row, however. Usually, the school will only allow you to check out 2 separate types of devices at a time (like Ipads and Chromebooks). Although, many teachers don’t utilize the technology available so there is always devices ready to be checked out.   Even though every classroom has a SMARTBoard, teachers aren’t using them as frequently as they are talked about. Personally, the SMARTBoard is less effective than using the document camera because everything I write on is on the projector. The only time the SMARTBoard is used is during activities or games were kids will use it, but the Ipads have managed to take over that job!   Our district has highly recommended technology workshop seminars that many of our principals suggest that we attend since our school doesn’t train us on the new technology that comes in. However, these seminars occur vary rarely and tend to not be beneficial in teaching us about the technology that we have.   Overall, I enjoy implementing technology into my lessons because it’s something the kids are very passionate about and look forward to. In today’s schools, technology is becoming so important to student’s learning and growth. Even though I teach second grade, I still find creative ways to incorporate easy ways for my kids to get their hands on various devices. I have been so surprised to find so many lesson plans and activities that are for the younger grades that are centered on using technology for learning. I plan to continue using the devices I have in my classroom for the years to come and learn more each day!   

 As a future teacher, I think it is important to continue to develop and learn about as many new technology opportunities as possible. One thing that I have found very helpful is attending the technology professional development workshops. From my interview, the teacher sounded like she wished she knew more creative apps and activities that would correlate with her lesson plans. These professional development workshops help get you acquainted with different types of apps that you can use with many different types of lessons ranging from all different subjects. I believe that technology can help certain students understand material more effectively since all students learn differently. As I continue to learn and grow in the educational field, I plan to get more comfortable using various tools and devices that maybe could be found in my future classroom.

For this assignment, I interviewed Mr. Cameron Stahl who teaches 9th grade Biology at Santa Fe South High School. For my field experience last semester, I observed at this high school so I was familiar with his and other classrooms at the school. Of the ones I observed, Mr. Stahl’s classroom was the only one that regularly used technology. He has a set of chromebooks and a projector that they use daily. The school received funding from the K20 center at OU, which allowed them to purchase these chromebooks. Mr. Stahl’s is one of the only classes that has a “classroom set” of chromebooks because his lessons require these resources daily and his students use their Google student accounts to do most of their work. He uses Google classroom for his daily lessons, worksheets, tests, surveys and even to keep track of student grades. The office also stores some chromebooks so students can check them out for the day with their teacher’s permission. However, they are only to be used for school purposes and students are not allowed to take them home.  

When asked about technology in his school district, he said the district has chromebooks and iPads in several classrooms. They also provide students with Google emails and access to Google drive. The district has a full-time IT department but Mr. Stahl notes that colleagues are often a better and quicker source of advice. Additionally, Mr. Stahl stated that their school district has recently increased their investment in technology training for teachers. They advertise and host multiple technology-oriented workshops and conferences, which Mr. Stahl has found helpful in the past.  

The only resource Mr. Stahl and some of his colleagues no longer use are textbooks. Especially since he teaches the constantly-expanding science of biology, he prefers online versions such as CK-12. Expanding on that, I asked what technology he would like for his classroom that he currently does not have, and he immediately said 3D technology and VR headsets. These are not only popular for their practicality in education, but are also becoming financially realistic. Mr. Stahl says, “The more immersive the science is for students, the more they will strive to master the knowledge.” 

How what I've learned will help me as a teacher:

Personally, I think that Mrs. Blake is the epitome of what a visual arts educator should be. I think she is a fantastic teacher to model my style of teaching after, because she stays up-to-date with technology, and constantly seeks opportunities to continue her own education so she can be the best educator possible. She embraces the attitude that she is never done learning, which is so important for herself as well as her students. I have learned that when I am a teacher, I want to have a solid understanding of where art technology is and possibilities of where it could be going. After talking to Mrs. Blake, I've realized that teaching classic art technique is still important and essential, but providing access to up-to-date art technology is just as crucial for student success. Perhaps the future of art is moving to a predominantly digital format with digital illustration and 3D fabrication. I will make it a point to direct my funding and education in a smart, and helpful way for my future students. 

Tell me about your classroom?  Fourth grade classroom in a Title 1, rural school  
What kind of technology do you have? Did you get to help choose it?  A SmartBoard, two computers, two Chrome Books, and a document camera.

Do you get to order technology yourself?  No, and with almost no input to the technology that is ordered school-wide

What technology is available to you?  What is in the classroom and a computer lab
  
Are there any rules about what kids can do with technology?  There are barely any rules going beyond the standard Internet literacy rules. Some students are allowed to bring their own tablets if they have them. However this cannot be relied upon in order that every student may have a tablet in the classroom, because not every student as access to a tablet.

How often do you get to use technology in the classroom?  Everyday to take AR tests, but rarely in a creative way. Maybe once a semester they get to use them to do research for independent projects.

What keeps you from using technology in the classroom?  The lack of technology and the lack of knowledge to come up with more creative lessons

What things do you wish you had available to you in the classroom but do not?  She wishes she had a tablet of her own so that she could connect and project on the board. Using this tablet, she could get up and walk through the class in order to better engage her students.

Is there anything that you have that you never use?  The SmartBoard is only used as a projector, very rarely interactively. The document camera gets way more use.

What makes using technology difficult in the classroom?  The fact it is not available to every student.

Do you like technology?  “If I’m being honest…no,” she still tries to make lessons interactive and fun, however just not using what little technology is available.

Does your school train you in how to use technology?  No, it is more of a trial-and-error and teachers helping one another

One of the greatest lessons that was enforced for me is that you are extremely limited by what is available at your school and what is provided to you in the classroom. This is why I am grateful we are learning ways around that difficulty. We are learning to write grants and use what little technology is available to us creatively and interactively. I also learned that if little to no technology is available, there are still ways to keep the students engaged in the lessons. It is important to recognize what your students want and need out of their classroom. This teacher noticed that a lot of the students were getting distracted on their tablets and has since limited their use for them in the classroom. This is a good reminder that technology isn’t always the best option, and that it must be utilized correctly. 

The teacher that I interviewed was a second grade teacher who works at an inner city charter school located in Fort Worth, Texas. She described her school as a very college driven school where the concept of higher education is introduced as early as Kindergarten. Her classroom has 25 students whom she consistently referred to as scholars with the majority of them with Hispanic and/or African-American backgrounds. Although it is common for her to have approximately 8 or 9 ELL students, the majority of her class are second language learners. 

One thing that I realized as I was conducting the interview was how structured and data-driven the school appeared to be. She mentioned that the school administrators have research to support any and all services they pay for and mandate for each classroom to use. Therefore all of her technology was chosen for her. If any teacher wishes to use an additional application that is free and is compatible with the existing devices, then it is allowed as long as the mandated technology and services are used efficiently as well. If the school notices that a teacher is not using the mandated resources, they evaluate their teaching and provide professional development to help teachers learn how to use the resources efficiently and effectively. When I asked why teachers were not given much flexibility in what they use in their classroom, the teacher responded that the school has a growth mindset in which they try to find the root cause of why a teacher does not like the resources he/she are given. Since they have data and research supporting the resource, teachers are required to use them. In addition, since there are a lot of educational gaps in the school, every minute needs to be used efficiently to ensure that progress is made for each student.

It was very interesting to hear about this experience. On one hand, having a set curriculum that is meticulous and fact driven can place less pressure on the teacher in her planning. However, I found that creativity is what is sacrificed in these situations. The teacher emphasized that students have significant challenges when they come to the school and so the objective of the school is to bring them to grade level. Sometimes that means there is no time for extra projects and learning new applications that the teachers have not already been trained for. One thing that the teacher hoped for was a computer literacy class for the students. Since they use technology daily, often the teacher has to spend time teaching students the basics of using computers. Another resource she thinks would improve the effectiveness and efficiency of her classroom is an application that would allow her to simultaneously see her students’ screens and to be able to control and see what they are doing. She said this would allow her to immediately correct misconceptions and redirect or reteach concepts instantly. Currently, progress in these areas is limited to if she catches it occurring.

The teacher gave some very valuable advice to help me as a future teacher. She mentioned that communication with parents is key and that having a consistent form of communication is more reliable and encourages accountability for both parties. In addition, she emphasized the efficiency of utilizing one or two programs in teaching. Choosing a program that gives detailed feedback on the students’ progress is beneficial because it helps in developing intervention plans. Eliminating multiple variables helps the teacher track a student’s progress more effectively and allows for the teacher to easily compare a student to the rest of the class. This also allows for an effective method to communicate to parents about the deficiencies or progress in their child’s education. 

The teacher I interviewed was Lindsay MacDonald, a teacher at Westmoore High School. She has been teaching for 18 years and teaches Spanish 1 and AP Spanish. She has students from across all grades – ninth through twelfth. A “normal” day in her classroom currently consists of starting with bell work then a small review. Then, they will read a chapter from the novel, Piratas. After they finish reading, they will have some sort of activity that accompanies the reading such as a storyboard, creating a short text message between characters, etc.

The technology available to her are: language lab, desktop computer, laptop computer (which is part of her language lab), a mounted projector, and an iPad with Apple TV. She did provide some help in the selection of the technology in her language lab. When it comes to training for the technology, Lindsay said that there has been lots of training opportunities with the language labs. Also, the school offers trainings on some applications such as Google Docs/Drive, One Drive, and Google Classroom. Lindsay stated that the technology director they have available has been helpful on any inquiries about the technology.

When it comes to technology use in the classroom, she uses it every day; it is an essential part of her teaching. Many of the resources she uses for her Spanish class she finds online. She uses the projector to display the materials to the class, such as listening activities found online. Another way she uses technology in the classroom is having the students submit their weekly homework using a Google form found on her website. She also uses QR codes to sign out of the classroom. She has just learned about a new app called Recap that she is learning about and trying to incorporate into her AP class. Although these are great uses of technology, Lindsay said the most difficult aspect of using technology in the classroom is that not every student has access, this affects which assignments she may have as homework.

 When I asked her if there were any technologies that she wishes she had available to her. Lindsay said she would love to have a SMARTboard, but she has been managing fine without one. This was the most interesting answer to me because I attended Westmoore High School, and when I was a student there, every classroom had a SMARTboard.

After talking with Lindsay, I know that I have to continue learning about the advancement of technology and anything technology-related because it is constantly changing and being updated. It would be important to learn about ways to integrate technology into the classroom in an enhancing way because students enjoy using programs they like for school work. 

I interviewed two teachers. One taught in Washington D.C. ten years ago and the other teaches right now in Oklahoma City. The bolded answers are from the past teacher. 

• What kind of technology do you have available to you in your classroom?
  • Two desktops
  • Desktops (5), smartboard, laptops (2) but neither work- given all
• How often do you use it?
• Teacher used them every day, students used frequently but not often because not enough for all
• Daily
• Who do you ask for help?
• Tech teacher (only one). They would find you resources/help if they couldn't help you themselves
• Help desk in main building, trained IT people help thru phone and then send help for work order
• Are there any rules about what you or your kids can do with tech?
• None but common sense
• Desktops with YouTube will or will not work sometimes even educational version. Every now and then OKC will block random pages inconsistently. Can bypass with google chrome
• What keeps you from using tech in the classroom?
• Up to date software, needing more than just two desktops
• Waiting on funding to be able to use smartboard. Waited 2.5 years for smartboard lightbulb to be replaced
• Anything you wish was available but isn't?
• More desktops
• Tablets, not chrome books for younger grade levels
• Did you receive training in how to use tech?
• Yes, extensively
• Yes for certain programs
• How did you do stuff as group?
• Did in lab because not enough in class
• Easel paper and chart paper before smart board was fixed

I asked more questions than these, but deleted some because I wanted to emphasize the difference between the two situations. I thought it was cool to see how the technology in the classroom has changed over the past decade, but the assumption is still that it only furthers and improves learning (doesn't hinder it) because both teachers said that they wanted more technology in their classes. This applies to me as a teacher because now I have an opportunity to continue to further the education of little ones with the help of even newer technology. iPads are arguably to future for elementary classrooms and I learned that all technology can be useful in some way, even if I don't get a set of iPads for my room one day. 

  Interview with Kenny Ward Principle at Bridgecreek Middle School   

 Are there places where students can go to use technology?            
Yes. We have a computer lab available.  
What technologies do you have available for your students to use?          
Chromebooks, iPads, MacBook and Pcs are available for all students to use.  
 Do you like technology in the classrooms?            
Yes. I love technology.  
Do classrooms have access to technology?            
Yes. We have tech carts that teachers can take into their classrooms.  
What kind of apps are used in your school?            
They use Google apps for education every day as well as many other apps.  
Do students in your school like to use technology?           
 Yes. Students use their phones every day all day. Hallways, Lunch. Everywhere.  
Is there any technology that your school is in need of at the moment?            
We need more devices to put in student’s hands. We need more iPads in our school.  
How do you like students to use technology in the classrooms?            
We encourage students to use technology to create, not just use technology to get on the internet.

She has been teaching for quite some time now, so maybe it is that or maybe it is just that this elementary school is behind the times a little bit as far as technology, but to me it seeemed like technology was not as prevalent in this school and classroom as other schools I have seen. She uses the smart board every day, they just go a set of 6 Chrome Books, and they go to the computer lab twice a week. That is the extent, as far as I understood, of their use of technology in her classroom. Because she is my mom, I also know that she is not necessarily up with the times when it comes to technology. I know she tries to integrate technology more into her classroom, and she even said at the end of the interview to be as comfortable as you can with technology and be prepared to be constantly learning new things. I told her about this class I'm in and how much I am learning to use technology in my classroom, so (if I can ever find the time to make it home on a school day) hopefully I can visit her class and share with her some of the things I have learned so far. 

I interviewed a pre-k teacher who works at John Rex Elementary. This school is a charter school, and they have only been open for three years. Mrs. B has 20 children in her classroom. For these twenty children, she has 4 iPads, a teacher iPad, and an Apple TV. Their school has not has any professional development opportunities to learn more about technology in their classrooms, and they were not given any formal training regarding their iPads. There are carts of iPads that are able to be checked out by teachers. She mentioned that her students only spend a total of 2 hours on technology a day, and that is not every student every day. She has a morning activity on the iPads that four different students get to do every day, which works out nicely because four students a day and five days a week, all twenty students participate in this by the end of the week. She also has center time, and the four iPads are put together as a center. She does not have enough technology available to her to use it any more than this a day, and she said that she doesn't think that she would if she had the opportunity to. Mrs. B said that the students get enough screen time at home that she likes to have more hands-on activities in the school day. She was not provided with any useful apps or training on anything like that, and I feel that if her school could attend a workshop that Anne Beck puts on then they could see the creativity technology could bring to a classroom and the benefits that it has for the students. They only have one person in the whole school that was trained on how to handle technology problems, and she has not gone through all of the training, so there are many problems she doesn't understand yet. Their entire school is Apple based, so they have iPads, they don't have smart boards, but rather Apple TVs, and their computer lab is made up of macs. Overall, it seems like the technology in this school was not presented to the teachers in an organized, instructional way. It is almost as if they were just given the iPads and they said 'here you go, have fun'. Mrs. B does recognize the importance of teaching the students how to be responsible with the technology because technology is the future that they are growing into.

Before going into detail about my interview, I want to share what I learned from it. Being from a generation that used older forms of technology and maybe not much to begin with, my aunt acted like if she were given a better preparation time to work with the tech available to her it would be a better experience than what it is now. I can agree that it is important for us to learn about the technology and how to utilize it before we are thrown into the field; technology is better to be understood first before using. Someday I would like to be able to use technology in the classroom for creative purposes, but I wouldn't want it to consume all of our learning/teaching methods. Believe me, I know technology is needed, but I don't want to rely on technology alone to teach my future students. 

Getting to interview my Aunt for this badge was a lot of fun. She told me that she tries to create a classroom environment that is warm for her students, which are usually from 10th to 12th grade. She likes to make sure that her classroom reflects her personality, preferences, attitude, and philosophies; she does this so that her students might feel more comfortable and confident. Technology is a daily use in her classroom, but she has a love/hate relationship with it. I think something that has affected that relationship was the fact that her school didn't do very much training prep for teachers with the technology. Apparently, her classroom came equipped with existing technology; being said, there are some technologies that she doesn't know how to use. She has a computer, a cart of laptop computers for her students to use, a smart board (she hardly ever uses it), an Elmo, a projector, and clickers for test taking (she doesn't know how to use them; I'll bet that they are meant for use such as the clickers OU provides for students). My aunt has the power to order her own technology; in fact, she told me she just recently ordered some software and a microphone that will enable her to create videos of herself teaching certain topics (I could see where this could come in handy if students are sick and need to review what they missed). There are two computer labs for the school's use. I found it funny when she told me that she asks people who are younger than her (which she jokingly said was 100% of the faculty) for help with the technology. Rules and limitations are put into place with what they can do with their technology; appropriateness of movies, videos, etc. are priority, but the principal is apparently very "forward-thinking" regarding his willingness to use the technology in creative ways that could benefit the students. As for student rules with technology, they are not supposed to have cell phones with them in the hallways or classrooms; they are to be turned off and stored in their lockers. Occasionally, with the permission of the principal, she will allow her students to have free cell phone time at the end of class as a motivation/reward. Something I found interesting was that my aunt feels like technology can sometimes intimidate her. She said, "The students are so much more technology savy than I, and I am afraid that my lack of self-confidence might appear as a weakness. We high school teachers must never reveal our weaknesses."  I was surprised to her that her technology of choice she wish was available to her is an overhead projector. She told me, "I loved teaching via transparencies on an overhead projector so that I could look at the students while I taught without ever having to turn my back on them." I can see where she is coming from with that statement because it takes a lot of trust to turn your backs on your students, even for a split second. Her advice to me as a future teacher was to "Continue to gain confidence and be willing to try it.  Networking with other teachers is invaluable."