Technology Assessments-Week 1, Part 2

By taking the Technology Applications Inventory and the State Educational Technology Directors Association Building assessment, I have learned a little bit more about my abilities in the area of technology and the technology level of my campus.
I have always felt confident in the area of technology. I am capable of using various productivity tools and willing to learn how to use other software that I currently do not know how to use. My strengths as a campus leader are:
· The use of technology for communication,
· The ability to plan, create, and edit spreadsheet documents, publications, word documents, and presentations,
· The ability to integrate technology into curriculum, and
· The ability to locate and acquire information on the internet.
I feel confident in my ability to use technology as a campus leader. I currently use technology to acquire lesson ideas and order resources for the Elementary Math teachers. I also use technology to analyze student data, review lesson plans, study curriculum, and align curriculum for K-4 Mathematics. My weaknesses in technology are in the more complex areas of technology such as programming, network maintenance, and software/hardware repair. It would probably be helpful for me to learn more about these areas of technology, but I do believe that I would be able to be an effective campus leader and model use of technology which will encourage the teachers and staff to use technology without being able to maintain the network or repair hardware and software.
From the survey and assessments, I have learned that as a campus, we are weak in technology. Our school district is very fortunate to have knowledgeable and efficient technology staff. However, we do not have technology staff assigned to our campus. Our campus, both staff and students, would benefit from having a technology instructor/resource person on campus. Our teachers work hard to provide optimal instruction in content areas, but it is difficult for them to integrate technology into content areas and provide technology instruction due to time constraints and the availability of technology.
I am sure that the assessments are somewhat helpful in determining an individual’s strengths and weaknesses in the area of technology, but I believe that some of the technology skills assessed on the Technology Applications Inventory are not necessary for a campus leader to be an effective model of technology use. It is important for the campus leader to effectively use technology; however, some of the technology skills assessed are better served by a campus or district level technology resource.