ISTE Standard 5

ISTE Standard 5: Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

To become more effective educators, it is important for teachers to take responsibility of their own professional development and growth. They must also focus on their performance and involvement as a member in their learning community. Teachers should never get comfortable or content with the educational methods, resources, and digital tools they continue to use in their classrooms. They should always find new ways to implement and integrate current and new technologies that will keep the students engaged and enhance their learning.

a.      Participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning.

It is important to work either formally or informally with other teachers or your grade level team to discuss various ways to improve student learning. As a teacher you want to be an active member in a learning community when wanting to implement new and creative lessons that will benefit the students and keep them engaged. Every time you are able to share and communicate within a group you are adding to the knowledge and resources available to everyone in your school’s learning environment and community.

b.      Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others.

Whenever a teacher models how to use a technology tool effectively in the classroom, they are more than likely expanding the vision of a fellow colleague. Most teachers seek advice on how to implement new activities or tools in their classroom. They like to see and hear about what is working in another teacher’s classroom. Any teacher can allow themselves to be a resource to others that are more open to experiment a similar strategy in their own classroom.

c.       Evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning.

As a professional you can share blogs, articles, books, or even journals that you find interesting that deals with new technology in the classroom. You can discuss these findings with a fellow colleague asking them their opinions on the topic. This is opening up a dialogue for teachers to evaluate and reflect how they can expand on improving their students learning.

d.      Contribute to the effectiveness, vitality, and self-renewal of the teaching profession and the school community.

This indicator is easy to master! Anytime a teacher chooses to use technology in their classroom and share their new technique with other teachers, they are contributing to the effectiveness of the school community. They are also helping raise the level of professionalism in the school’s environment.
Technology is constantly changing and teachers need to keep up with these changes. To keep up with these changes they must first take an active interest in wanting to stay updated within their profession and be a positive contributor to their school. I always try my best to remain engaged in professional growth and be an active member of my school’s learning community.

ISTE Standard 4

ISTE Standard 4: Promote and Model Digital Age Citizenship and Responsibility

As our global and local world changes it our responsibility as a teacher to understand what is going on around us. We need to be aware of the issues that face our society. It is becoming necessary for everyone despite their socioeconomic status to have access to some type of digital technology. When gaining digital access it is important to portray and model using legal and moral behavior on the internet. This is necessary because of the digital changes happening in and out of schools.

All teachers, parents, and students need to practice good etiquette when communicating and working online. It is important for teachers to be the first role model when teaching students how to be safe online. It is important that teachers show respect online appropriately documenting any resources they may use, including respecting copyrights. This is critical to begin teaching these rules to students at a young age. This is the time to begin laying the foundation for how to practice legal and ethical behaviors online. Many young people act without thinking online because they naively think that the internet can make them anonymous. Sometimes they do not realize that the internet can be harmful to them if they are not careful.

Teachers should begin teaching students that the internet can be used to meaningfully integrate teaching and lessons that go on in the classrooms. Students are going to be introduced to the digital world rather we are ready or not so it is important that we model and teach them how to use online sources as safely and responsible as we can. Students look up to teachers to demonstrate the appropriate behavior we expect from them. We do not want to develop with our students the idea of “Do as I say not as I do.” Students feel betrayed and do not take a teacher serious if we show a lack of judgment when making choices on the internet.

Once we establish the rules and safety precautions of communicating online, we open the door to creating opportunities for other informal teachable moments.  These often involve matters of “ethical and legal behavior,” as the standard specifies, regarding media use and digital etiquette.  When my class did a class video for a project and we used music from YouTube and songs from outside resources, I was able to use it as a teaching lesson. I had to explain to the students how all the students had to have their parents sign a consent giving us permission to use their pictures. I also touched on the facts that the songs we used had copyrights and had to ask for permission to use them. I explained how that is very important because we do not want the owner of the songs to get upset and accuse us of stealing their work.
 As a teacher, I will be communicating with students, parents, school boards, principals, and other teachers all the time. Because of the technology available this day and age, much of my communication will be online. Therefore, I need to know how to write in a way that clearly demonstrates my profession status. Proper technological etiquette lets my receiver know that I am serious about what I am saying, and that I expect equal attitudes from them; it also conveys a sense of trust between correspondences due to the professional manner.