Hi,
I have taken both of the assessments on the www.adultedonline.org and each
was very valuable to my own professional development planning. There are
many things I really like about the TISA and its format, but a few things
really stood out to me.

The questions helped me to think not only of my skill level, but also how
well I am prepared to teach certain competencies. Looking at Technology
Integration in the structured format helped me to really think through the
competencies and understand both where I needed additional PD for my own
understanding and where I could improve my preparedness to teach/train on
these competencies. The questions also helped me to think about the
importance of each as related to my work. While I have asked myself some of
these questions before, the structure and progression really helped me to
think it through in a different way and in some cases arrive at different
conclusions.

I really like the way the results and PD planning piece are structured.
While there are a number of areas I identified as good candidates for
personal PD, the assessment urged me to focus on no more than four, a
manageable goal. I also really like the way the plan is broken down into
smaller tasks. Where I might think to myself "I need to find out more about
X" and that stays in the back of my mind as a larger task, the assessment
breaks it down into some logical smaller steps that can be done in shorter
periods of time, making it more likely that I will follow through. I like
the way I can use it over time as an ongoing guide when I am planning my PD.
And the concepts of the assessment and planning process will help me in
looking at my skills and professional development needs in other areas in a
different (and for me, more productive) way than I have in the past.

The assessment and planning piece can seem a bit long and intimidating. But
there are good supporting resources, the ability to stop and return as
needed without losing what has already been done, and in my case found the
time it took to get comfortable with and then complete the process to be
very worthwhile.

I have thought about how it can be used beyond just the individual as well.
The Administrator functionality, where others can be invited to take the
survey and an administrator can see cumulative results opens up a variety of
possibilities. This provides some good information to the programs which
could help in decision making, planning and PD development. Beyond that, if
the summary information is shared by administrators and teachers at a
regional or state level, it can become a strong planning tool/needs
assessment to help inform technology PD decisions. I also feel the
competencies used for the TISA  are a great starting point for a state who
may need to develop their own, or a good review for a state who has
competencies developed for teachers. There may be several on the TISA that
could be integrated into what a state has developed, and there may be some a
state has thought of that would be good additions to the TISA. I also see it
having potential use as a good PD assessment/planning exercise that could
provide process ideas that would be valuable in looking at other topics as
well.

Didn't mean to ramble quite this much, but I see a great deal of value for
individuals as well as organizations/states in this and the Distance
Learning tool on the site, and I think its well worth the time to at least
check it out.

Thanks for listening,
Tim
--
Tim Ponder
Ohio Literacy Resource Center
tponder at literacy.kent.edu
 

-----Original Message-----
From: technology-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:technology-bounces at nifl.gov] On
Behalf Of Mariann Fedele
Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2007 2:34 PM
To: The Technology and Literacy Discussion List
Subject: [Technology 1319] Re: Trying Out the Technology
IntegrationSelfAssessment (TISA)

Hello All,

Has anyone on the list taken the assessment? Can you share your thoughts
about how you could use it for your own professional development or how you
would want to see it used in your program or state?

Marian will be taking all questions through the rest of the week so let's
take advantage of her time set aside for the list!


Best,
Mariann


Mariann Fedele
Director,
NYC Regional Adult Education Network
Literacy Assistance Center
Moderator,
NIFL Technology and Literacy Discussion List
32 Broadway 10th Floor
New York, New York 10004
212-803-3325
mariannf at lacnyc.org
www.lacnyc.org


-----Original Message-----
From: technology-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:technology-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of David J. Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2007 8:41 AM
To: The Technology and Literacy Discussion List
Subject: [Technology 1317] Trying Out the Technology Integration
SelfAssessment (TISA)

Technology Colleagues,

Marian Thacher mentioned that I helped to review the TISA competencies. As I
was considering the technology competency categories and, within them, the
specific competencies, I was thinking that the list should be wide-ranging,
that it should cover the basics and also push in some new directions for
using technology.  
I thought that the assessment that would be developed based on the list
should be useful for a teacher who was new to using technology in the
classroom and not confident, and also for a teacher who had a lot of
experience using technology but was ready to take on new skills and
knowledge. When you take the assessment, please let us know if  the range of
comepetencies met your needs for professional development.  Were you able to
identify ways that you could grow in using technology in the classroom?

Speaking of which, please do take the assessment. It's at http://
adultedonline.org/ If you can, do it today so you can fully participate in
this discussion. If you have more time, use the TISA to build yourself an
Integrating technology professional development plan.  Then let us know how
this worked for you.

For those who may be confused about what this is, the Technology Integration
Self Assessment (TISA) is an online self assessment of one's skills in using
technology in the adult education classroom, and it is more. It is a
planning process that leads to a professional development plan.  And more.
It includes strategies for using local, face-to-face professional
development learning resources, and for each competency it also includes
links to free, online learning resources for teachers.

Since I was very involved in selecting the online learning resources  
for teachers, I am particularly eager to see what you think of them.   
I would also appreciate knowing about other (better) free online resources
that would help a teacher master a particular integrating technology
competency.  The list of learning resources is useful, I believe, but could
be better.  If you have suggestions for online learning resources that could
be added, or other suggestions, please let Marian and me know.

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



On Oct 2, 2007, at 8:29 PM, Marian Thacher wrote:


> One of the interesting challenges in creating the Technology 

> Integration Self-Assessment (www.adultedonline.org) was to determine 

> exactly what should be included in the definition of technology 

> integration. After looking at a variety of tools, lists, and sets of 

> standards, we decided on 12 categories of competencies.

> The list was reviewed and discussed by several experts in the field, 

> including Mariann Fedele, our fearless list moderator; David Rosen, a 

> consultant and frequent list participant; Laurie Cozzolino, a 

> consultant who has been active with technology for adult education for 

> many years; and Donna Price, a technology resource teacher for adult 

> ESOL in San Diego. With their input, and feedback from a number of 

> teacher/reviewers and pilot testers, we settled on the following list:

>

> I. Basic Computer Operation

>      Includes file management, minor troubleshooting, and helping 

> students learn these skills

>

> II. Productivity Software

>      Includes word processing, presentation programs (like 

> PowerPoint), spreadsheets, and graphics

>

> III. Instructional Software

>      Includes evaluating instructional software and assigning and 

> tracking learners

>

> IV. Assistive Technology

>      Includes making computers accessible as well as locating 

> appropriate software and assistive devices

>

> V. Using the Internet

>      Includes using the Internet personally as well as in the 

> classroom

>

> VI. Virtual Communication and Collaboration

>      Includes using email, discussion boards, blogs, podcasting and 

> other ways of communicating, both personally and in the classroom

>

> VII. Video Technologies

>      Includes using a video camera and doing video projects with 

> learners

>

> VIII. Evaluating and Incorporating New Technologies

>      The list of new technologies will always be a moving target, but 

> the questions mostly ask about strategies for keeping up with whatever 

> is new

>

> IX. Managing the Technology-Enhanced Classroom

>      Not a specific technology, but a set of strategies and attitudea 

> about integrating new technology possibilities into teaching

>

> X. Assessment

>      Asks about both standardized testing and creating online and 

> performance-based assessments

>

> XI. Professional Development

>      Includes professional development about technology, and also 

> professional development through technology

>

> XII. Social, Legal and Health Issues

>      Includes acceptable use policies, copyright laws, ergonomics and 

> the role of technology in society

>

> This can be a pretty daunting list, but the site encourages users to 

> focus on only 1 or 2 competencies at a time, and definitely not to 

> select more than 4 items to include in a professional development 

> plan.

>

> Hopefully just taking the self-assessment will be an enlightening 

> experience for some, raising the possibilities and providing examples.

>

> Not everyone has access to all kinds of technology, so the assessment 

> asks people to rate both their skills and the importance to their 

> teaching now or in the future. You might not have access to a video 

> camera right now, for example, but that could change in the future. 

> The areas that will show up as priorities for professional development 

> are the ones that have an average rating of above 2 in priority, on a 

> scale of 1 to 4, and below 2 on skills.

>

> Does it seem to you that this list covers the important areas? Any 

> thoughts about the areas covered, or how the self-assessment might 

> affect teachers? Can you see the teachers in your program using the 

> self-assessment?

>

> Marian

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

> Marian Thacher, OTAN

> P.O. Box 269003

> Sacramento, CA 95826-9003

> (916) 228-2597

> www.otan.us

>

>

> ----------------------------------------------------

> National Institute for Literacy

> Technology and Literacy mailing list

> Technology at nifl.gov

> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 

> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/technology

> Email delivered to djrosen at comcast.net






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