FINAL REFLECTIONS
As my Action Research comes to an end, I look back at this year and cannot believe all the things that were accomplished in such a short period of time. Through my Action Research, I did not only learn about Social Media in the classroom and its impact, but I learned a great deal about myself and what I value and consider most important as an individual, a teacher, an administrator, and as a student.
As an individual my goal has always been to strive for change. I am never satisfied with the status quo or things being good enough. I easily get restless and look for some new project to work on or work toward. I now realize that this trait of mine does not really have much to do with being restless. It has to do with realizing that remaining stagnant and accepting things for the way they are or have always been is not good enough. I now see that the reason I have always strived for change is because I wanted or even needed to experience new things and make up my mind accordingly. Like Dewey and Constructivist theorists, I believe I have a need to take part in the process of learning and discovering what is to come next. I have to be a part of the process, a part of the discovery, a part of the learning, and essentially a part of the change.
As a teacher, I realized that my needs and values were the same as an individual in the sense that I strive for change; however, the need for change stems from a different place. It is not that I need to experience new things necessarily, as much as it is that I want to make change in students’ lives. I would love to be remembered as compassionate, knowledgeable, capable, but most importantly as someone who made a difference. I think that has always been my main draw to the field of education. There are other fields that pay more, offer more benefits, are far more glamorous, and so on. But for some reason, I have always been drawn to and drawn back to (after leaving the field for a short period of time) the field of education.
I now realize that as a teacher I have the power and the ability to bring about change not only by “teaching” my students but by empowering them to discover and experience change for themselves. During my Action research, I saw myself evolve from a teacher who lectures and presents material, to a teacher who provides opportunities for students to actively map out and lead in the design of their education. When I involved my students in my Action Research, I realized that I was not just teaching them a new way to communicate and collaborate, but I was creating leaders, thinkers, and collaborators who took charge of their own learning at times, for no other reason except that they could. They were given the opportunity to contribute, and they did. And as a result, they brought about change in our class and in the way they approached their studies.
As an administrator, the change that I seek is not so much about me as an individual, or me as a teacher, but the change I seek is all about my school, my students, and my community. Instigating change ceased to be about me, rather became about ‘the me’ that was a part of the greater whole. I realized that change was not something I was in charge of or responsible for as much as it was a shared process among teachers, administrators, students, and even parents. Without some kind of common vision, common goal, and even shared work, change is much harder to bring about than necessary. Yes, this year I was able to create a new class, bring in social media into the class, start planning for a new Art Program at our school, started planning and organizing other major changes within the school, but most importantly what I was able to do was align these changes with common values between myself, my principal, my students, and other teachers. I used their knowledge, their experiences, and made everyone work toward a common purpose, and by doing so, I ended up with an end product I could not have even envisioned on my own. The various perspectives added dimension to my original ideas and proved that the greater whole can definitely accomplish more than any one person.
As a student, I believe I have learned and changed the most. I started off this program an eager and excited student ready for a change and a new challenge. I was eager to learn and know new things. I was eager to experience what it really meant to be grad student. Instead what I really learned was that I will never be done learning. I learned that if I want to create change and make a difference, that I will be forever a student, learning and knowing that I still do not know enough. What I also learned was that I cannot learn just on my own. Working cooperatively and sharing knowledge with my students, teachers, and principal can only enhance any learning that may be taking place. I always saw myself as an individual who would work hard and bring about change. Now I know I can bring about change, but I should not be doing it alone. Bringing in different perspectives and ideas will only enhance and add to what it is that I am trying to accomplish.
The MALT program has enabled me to look at things that matter to me through different eyes. At this point, I can look at my work and all I hope to accomplish as a small part of a larger whole. If there is anything that this program has taught me, it is that the collective whole, the community, the group of like minds and goals, can and will accomplish more and accomplish it far more effectively.
As my Action Research comes to an end, I look back at this year and cannot believe all the things that were accomplished in such a short period of time. Through my Action Research, I did not only learn about Social Media in the classroom and its impact, but I learned a great deal about myself and what I value and consider most important as an individual, a teacher, an administrator, and as a student.
As an individual my goal has always been to strive for change. I am never satisfied with the status quo or things being good enough. I easily get restless and look for some new project to work on or work toward. I now realize that this trait of mine does not really have much to do with being restless. It has to do with realizing that remaining stagnant and accepting things for the way they are or have always been is not good enough. I now see that the reason I have always strived for change is because I wanted or even needed to experience new things and make up my mind accordingly. Like Dewey and Constructivist theorists, I believe I have a need to take part in the process of learning and discovering what is to come next. I have to be a part of the process, a part of the discovery, a part of the learning, and essentially a part of the change.
As a teacher, I realized that my needs and values were the same as an individual in the sense that I strive for change; however, the need for change stems from a different place. It is not that I need to experience new things necessarily, as much as it is that I want to make change in students’ lives. I would love to be remembered as compassionate, knowledgeable, capable, but most importantly as someone who made a difference. I think that has always been my main draw to the field of education. There are other fields that pay more, offer more benefits, are far more glamorous, and so on. But for some reason, I have always been drawn to and drawn back to (after leaving the field for a short period of time) the field of education.
I now realize that as a teacher I have the power and the ability to bring about change not only by “teaching” my students but by empowering them to discover and experience change for themselves. During my Action research, I saw myself evolve from a teacher who lectures and presents material, to a teacher who provides opportunities for students to actively map out and lead in the design of their education. When I involved my students in my Action Research, I realized that I was not just teaching them a new way to communicate and collaborate, but I was creating leaders, thinkers, and collaborators who took charge of their own learning at times, for no other reason except that they could. They were given the opportunity to contribute, and they did. And as a result, they brought about change in our class and in the way they approached their studies.
As an administrator, the change that I seek is not so much about me as an individual, or me as a teacher, but the change I seek is all about my school, my students, and my community. Instigating change ceased to be about me, rather became about ‘the me’ that was a part of the greater whole. I realized that change was not something I was in charge of or responsible for as much as it was a shared process among teachers, administrators, students, and even parents. Without some kind of common vision, common goal, and even shared work, change is much harder to bring about than necessary. Yes, this year I was able to create a new class, bring in social media into the class, start planning for a new Art Program at our school, started planning and organizing other major changes within the school, but most importantly what I was able to do was align these changes with common values between myself, my principal, my students, and other teachers. I used their knowledge, their experiences, and made everyone work toward a common purpose, and by doing so, I ended up with an end product I could not have even envisioned on my own. The various perspectives added dimension to my original ideas and proved that the greater whole can definitely accomplish more than any one person.
As a student, I believe I have learned and changed the most. I started off this program an eager and excited student ready for a change and a new challenge. I was eager to learn and know new things. I was eager to experience what it really meant to be grad student. Instead what I really learned was that I will never be done learning. I learned that if I want to create change and make a difference, that I will be forever a student, learning and knowing that I still do not know enough. What I also learned was that I cannot learn just on my own. Working cooperatively and sharing knowledge with my students, teachers, and principal can only enhance any learning that may be taking place. I always saw myself as an individual who would work hard and bring about change. Now I know I can bring about change, but I should not be doing it alone. Bringing in different perspectives and ideas will only enhance and add to what it is that I am trying to accomplish.
The MALT program has enabled me to look at things that matter to me through different eyes. At this point, I can look at my work and all I hope to accomplish as a small part of a larger whole. If there is anything that this program has taught me, it is that the collective whole, the community, the group of like minds and goals, can and will accomplish more and accomplish it far more effectively.