Sara's Leadership Showcase
The area of concentration I chose for my master's degree was leadership. I have been interested in taking on leadership roles within my school and eventually in my district. The courses I have taken allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of the different aspects of leadership, the principles involved, and what it takes to be a good leader. These skills will help me in any future leadership position.
This course provided the opportunity to learn about using technology in different ways; through professional development and by helping building relationships between stakeholders. I was able to experiment with different forms of technology, like Twitter, Prezi, and Poster Maker, while learning about the importance of technology in schools. I also created a case study of how I would like to see parent involvement benefit from the use of technology. This course gave me more confidence in using technology in my classroom, like a classroom website, blog, and interactive lessons.
The characteristics of what makes a good leader became clear to me while taking this course. The essential principles leaders should practice, like active listening, not leading alone, taking risks, collaboration, open-mindedness, and remaining a life-long learner, are all critical. The books, articles, and discussions provided time for me to think about the big ideas of being a leader, ponder about shifts in my own thinking or beliefs, and how I would apply the new principles of leadership. I have been able to put some of these principles to use while being a teacher leader on my school's Student Council and participating on both the Response to Intervention (RTI) and Cultures of Thinking committees.
Throughout this course I became more familiar with the importance of creating an environment where staff members routinely work together and collaborate with one another. I learned why educators need to remain life-long learners and be willing to implement new ideas and incentives into their schools and classrooms. As a final assignment I was given the chance to become a leader and create a year-long plan for teacher learning. I also produced a budget plan on which resources I would provide for my staff members to assist in their teacher learning. In the future I plan on being a member on the Continuous School Improvement (CSI) team and take on leadership roles on the district level.
This course offered more insight into the difficulties diverse students and families face in the education world. I was provided the opportunity to learn about the struggles minority families face in our society and how they can become more engaged and active in their child's education. I was able to reflect on the readings about the oppression these families face. My final case analysis and PowerPoint discussed how to improve the relationships between schools, students, parents, and the community. Using my case analysis I have been able to begin to build the relationships between school, home, and the community. I have provided my students' families more opportunities to take part in their child's education, as well as feel welcome in partake in school activities and events.
Please click on the pictures below to take you to each of my digital projects!
Prezi
PowerPoint
Poster