LOOKING BACK

At the beginning of this journey, I was very apprehensive and nervous.

Ive been teaching for twenty years and somehow I had only managed to take a
one credit hour course on technology back in 1998. Technology seemed out of
my grasp, beyond my abilities. I was just a few years ahead of the generation
that grew up on technology. I had taking coding classes on an Apple computer in
1986 where I learned how to code a smiley face that could wink. It took forever!
In high school we still had a typewriter lab. I brought a word processor with me
to college.
What I will remember most about the summer course was that I overcame
some of my fears. I found colleagues and instructors who took the time to sit
down with me and help me to understand. As time went on, I learned that I was
no longer apprehensive about technology but excited by the capabilities. I had
great conversations with my nine year-old son about how to code, the way his
teachers use Google classroom and how a computer can take pretty good
selfies! I have learned that I am not as outdated as the technology that I grew up
with and that pushing myself to learn how to use YouTube editor can change my
classroom.
The past twelve years of my career have been devoted to teaching
mathematics. At various points I have also taught reading, writing, science,
social studies, and health but math has been a constant. I have taken numerous
courses and attended dozens of meetings and workshops all devoted to math
instruction and methods. What has been new about this experience is that we
did not focus on math the way I had in previous courses. I learned how to take
the skills I have learned as a math teacher and make them brighter, make
instruction modern.
I greatly appreciated the group activity we did when each person was
given a technology, a content and pedagogy during TPACK The Musical on day
3. First, I was surprised by the definition given to us by Punya regarding what
constitutes technology. I am paraphrasing but the idea was technology is

anything that is not found in nature. But that reasoning, Post-Its are technology,
as are computers and magnifying lenses. I distinctly remember it as the first time
that I thought, Maybe I can do this after all. Talking to other teachers,
brainstorming how to use a random technology, content and pedagogy to work
together in a creative way was exciting and a gateway for me to feel like I would
have success in this program.
My experiences with making stop-motion videos, i-Images and video story
problems (to name just a few) awakened my senses and helped me to see my
math instruction in a new way. I have long admired Dan Meyer and his videos,
how they are fun and quick and inspiring. Never had I thought that I could create
something similar but by day 2, my group had come up with an idea and there I
was, on the video creating a similar story problem. It was thrilling!
The learning experiences that I have had this summer have woken me up
in a way. I am seeing how pushing myself to use technology and trying new
methods will truly bring my lessons into the present day. Math can be such a dry
and boring topic. At least in science there are experiments and in engineering
the ability to create. Technology makes fun sounds, can be manipulated and is
full of color. Math can live in the land of black and white-a graphite pencil on
white paper. I have no desire to use gimmicks or fluff to entice my students. I
can easily see how they would tune out and be bored when the world around
them is so vibrant. These experiences will support me in turning my math class
into a modern adventure. I now have skills that will make lessons more alive,
tangible, and most importantly, relevant to my students lives.
LOOKING FORWARD
Moving forward, I hope to take the vibrant, playful nature of this summer
with me to my students. STEM education is a daunting task but it can still be fun
and creative. I began this program fearing it could be dry, intense technical work.
What I found was a kaleidoscope of thought, talent, interest, ability and humor.
STEM education is far more creative than most people know. The artistic side of
teaching technical subjects has truly influenced me as I go forward. I want to be

more colorful in class, more creative. I want to see what my students could come
up with in a Quick-fire situation and what their memes will look like. This summer
has inspired me to make my classroom come to life.
Over the years, Ive always had a handful of computers in my classroom.
They mostly collected dust and were used primarily to look things up, jump on a
skill-based website or, mostly, take assessments. I never understood how to use
them to teach with in my classes. Following my experiences this summer, I see
technology not so much as a tool to teach with but as a tool for my students to
demonstrate their understanding. While I am intimidated by the idea, I look
forward to releasing some control to my students and asking them to create their
own ideas from my examples.
The video story problem quick-fire was such a powerful experience for me.
I can only imagine the impact that could have on a student. This particular quickfire was an example of a sticky idea as described by Chip and Dan Heath. i In
their book, Teaching That Sticks, A sticky idea is an idea thats understood,
thats remembered, and that changes something (opinions, behaviors, values).
This summer was full of sticky ideas and I would like my classroom to evolve into
a very sticky place.
Giving my students the tools and the access to be creative in my class will
be inspiring. For too long I have given students projects that expected one,
correct outcome. I have expected them to create my vision, not allowing them to
create one of their own. If I want the lesson and topics in my classes to be sticky,
I need work with some unexpected methods and incorporate other disciplines.
When I go back to my classroom I will be placing a greater emphasis on enabling
my students to demonstrate understanding through multimodalities and across
disciplines. I want them to have WoW moments and find the math all around
them. From years of experience, I know what my students need to learn in order
to be successful in elementary and, later, high school. Having a solid
understanding of mathematics gives me more freedom to push the self-imposed
boundaries of how it should be taught and how understanding should be
measured.

I want my classroom to become a vibrant learning environment. My

students respect me and work diligently. I know they will be better engaged and
develop deeper understandings if they enjoy their work and process. It is a
daunting task to step away from a neatly packaged curriculum with easy to use
assessments. However it is time for me to grow and push myself along with my
students.

i Heath, Chip & Heath, Dan (2007) Teaching That Sticks. New York, NY: Random
House.