Here is a project that I thought I would just follow the instructions and crank out the report. Little did I know that I would end up putting in lots of time and energy and by doing a self reflection on the Outdoor College I really learned a lot. To me some of the best projects are going in expecting very little and yet coming out very surprised (kind of like a movie).

In preparation for doing this School Evaluation Summary, we had to read The National Education Technology Plan, which along with a great video laid the ground work for moving forward.

Stepping back and laying down the facts and figures; reading the literature, and assessing the state of technology at a school really helps to focus on both the successes and the areas of weakness. I found that while this made up college might have great access to technology and a staff that can change and adopt quickly it really lacks the implementation part and the training for users. Having technology is one thing, using it correctly and effectively is quite another. By using the Maturity Model Benchmarks for Technology I learned not only about the process but also specific areas that we can focus on. You can read my whole School Evaluation Summary (a Google document) about this mythical College as part of my ongoing Boise State Masters Program.

One great surprise to me as I was writing this report, is that I found that it was actually OK to fail at some of my technology initiatives. I had kind of known this but until I wrote it down, it was never really tangible. This struck me as to why I really like what I do. I’ll close this post up with a nice conclusion sentence from the National Education Technology Plan (NETP). “It is a time of great possibility and progress for the use of technology to support learning”, yup, i couldn’t agree more.