Why:

I was a 5th grader in the school I teach in. It was the first school that I attended after coming to the U.S. from El Salvador. It is the school all three of my younger brother attended; it is my community. I returned to this school to impact and provide other students like me with experiences that will show them the world outside of their surroundings and show them that their possibilities are endless. I truly believe that coding, creativity opportunities, virtual reality, and robotics can help prepare students to thrive in their future careers. For these reasons, I want coding and creativity apps to become tools ingrained in our teaching practices. When these tools are used in conjunction with purposeful, active learning practices, we can develop creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking skills. 

To do this, we have to provide learning opportunities for teachers different from the current standard. The current professional learning approach is not yielding the needed results. Concepts from our current professional learning opportunities are not being implemented in the classroom; it is superficial. We need to do more; there is always room to grow and to be better. Stepping away from the current approach and adopting an approach that follows the 5 Key Principles of Professional Learning will guarantee better teaching practices and student learning outcomes (Gulamhussein, 2013). 

​

What:

I created this presentation using some of the tools I hope my peers will learn to use; Keynote and iMovie. I tried to provide a clear message of the ultimate goal while keeping my administrators in mind as my audience. As a teacher, I incorporated my own ideas of what I would hope to get out of a professional learning journey. I kept in mind David JP Phillips's advice on How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint; message, size, contrast, and space to provide a purposeful message.

​

How:

I used Keynote as my presentation tool. I obtained all of the images from the app's own image gallery and included animations to help develop a clear flow of ideas. I wanted to use this as my presentation medium to provide an experience for my organization's administration members, to showcase a communication tool. The same tools students can use to develop an app prototype, showcase a learning product, present an idea and so much more. Additionally, I used Imovie to create the voice-over for each slide. A creativity and communication tool students can use to collaborate on a learning product. 

​

​

References:

​

Andrews, T. M., Leonard, M. J., Colgrove, C. A., & Kalinowski, S. T. (2011). Active Learning Not Associated with Student Learning in a Random Sample of College Biology Courses. CBE Life Sciences Education, 10(4), 394–405. http://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.11-07-0061

​

Goodwin, B. (2015). Research Says/Does Teacher Collaboration Promote Teacher Growth? Educational Leadership, 73(4), 82–83. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec15/vol73/num04/Does-Teacher-Collaboration-Promote-Teacher-Growth%C2%A2.aspx

​

Gulamhussein, A. (2013). Teaching the Teachers Effective Professional Development in an Era of High Stakes Accountability. Center for Public Education. Retrieved from http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/system/files/2013-176_ProfessionalDevelopment.pdf

​

Schoology, H. L. (2017, October 30). SAMR model: A practical guide for Edtech integration. Retrieved March 7, 2021, from https://www.schoology.com/blog/samr-model-practical-guide-edtech-integration

​

TEDxTalks. (2014, April 14). How to avoid death by PowerPoint | David jp Phillips | tedxstockholmsalon [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iwpi1Lm6dFo

​

TNTP. (2015). The Mirage: Confronting the Hard Truth About Our Quest for Teacher Development. Retrieved from http://tntp.org/publications/view/evaluation-and-development/the-mirage-confronting-the-truth-about-our-quest-for-teacher-development