Megan Preslin
Portfolio
Learning Goals
August 2018 marks year five that I have been out of the classroom, however, I am still an educator. Day in and day out I can make a larger impact in my position as a Technology Training Administrator. I am able to encourage and support 2500 teachers which means they can then turn to encourage and support their students. I do not take this lightly and that’s why I always want to better myself, which makes me continue to set goals for myself. Becoming a Google Educator, presenting at a conference, and extending my knowledge are all obtainable goals that will not just help me, but also benefit those around me.
Become a Google Educator
As a technology training administrator for a large urban district, I have the ability to create opportunities for our teachers. This comes mostly in professional development (PD). Whether teachers are conducting sessions at one of our district-wide PD days or if they are helping conduct a session at our annual tech conference, I turn to our teachers for help in making these events more meaningful for their colleagues. I want to continue this collaboration, yet, I also want to help myself as well. And, the one thing that continues to hang over my head is being a Google Educator. It is something that I have looked into doing on a yearly basis, and teachers have come to me seeking advice on it as well. I would like to obtain the Google Educator Level 1 and 2 status, and then achieve the Google Trainer status as well. To accomplish this task and to continue to strengthen the teachers in my district, I would like to offer an Ed Tech Bootcamp. Looking at different funds and talking with various people, I believe I could set this up for the summer. Not only would this benefit me, but it would also support our teachers that are at a higher tech integration level. Once all of us achieve the Google Educator Level 1 and 2 status, I can continue to utilize these teachers for various PD opportunities to spread their knowledge within our district.
Present at a Conference
As a regular attendee of the Ohio Education Technology Conference (OETC), I want to present at this conference. Each year I attend and think, I can present on something and yet fail to send my proposal. Unfortunately, the conference was just last week, so I will need to wait until 2019 to complete this goal. However, this plays to my advantage as I don’t have a definite idea of what to present, but I could coordinate with my Google Educator goal as I could present something using Google. Or, I am working on a blended PD course using our Learning Management System (LMS), Schoology , which I could present on for this conference. I can refer to past agendas to finalize a topic of choice and one that would be beneficial for the audience. And, since it is a year away, I can continue to brainstorm on what specific topic to present.
Life-long Learner
In order to stay abreast of new technologies, I turn to various outlets: Twitter, Blogs, Podcasts, YouTube, and Books. These are essential to continue to support my learning on a daily basis. I am finishing up The Innovator’s Mindset by George Couros and have jotted down so many learnings from this book. Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess , Tasks Before Apps by Monica Burns , and Master the Media by Julie Smith are all next on my reading scope. I follow many of these individuals, as well as others on Twitter to keep up with new findings. Twitter is part of my everyday life. Twitter does not require as much time as reading a chapter of a book to spark an idea. That’s why I always encourage others to join in the free PD of Twitter. Besides books and Twitter, the two main blogs that I follow are Alice Keeler, Christine Pinto, and Eric Curts. These individuals give a variety of resources that help educators. I look to follow more blogs to continue my growth as an educator. If you have any suggestions on blogs to follow, I am definitely interested! It’s important to never stop growing as an educator. Learning, sharing, and collaborating, I believe, are keys to this growth.
Continue to Grow as an Educator
These three goals, not only affect me, but also my Personal Learning Communities. In expanding my knowledge and helping myself, I can then support and encourage those around me. Yes, I’m not in the classroom anymore, but I can still make an impact, actually, on a larger scale and serve our students. It’s important to not take that power for granted, and that is why I want to continue to better myself as an educator.