tkt8763-01: Re: Help with Ideas for Assignment #9, etc.

["Tammy Parkes" <ltparkes@ayrix.net>]

Dear Dr. Anderson &  Friends:

I want to tell you that you all have really made me feel good today.  Being
an online student, I have felt like I'm just out here soaring all alone.  It
wasn't until yesterday that I really felt involved in the class at all.  I
know that's my own fault because I haven't made the effort I should to be
involved, however, I need some serious help, so here goes.

I loved the inspiration software, but am still having difficulty posting
anything to the web (but jibberish).

I have gotten some very valuable information from your very impressive and
informative web pages, but I am overwhelmed by the amount of information I
am consuming.  Also, I feel like I 'm stealing your ideas.  Everytime I look
at someone's work, I want to use it.  Is this feeling normal or should I do
my work and stop peeking?  Am I sitting in the wrong nest on someone else's
eggs?

Also, as for Assignment #9,  the word "Interactive" really scares me,
because I'm not that advanced in all this "webified" stuff.  I wouldn't know
where to begin to come up with something that someone could actually use.

I really would like to design some sort of instrument that could keep
administrators and technology planners abreast of the ability levels of all
their staff and where they stand at any given time in terms of their
knowledge and training needs.  I have seen staff development planned at the
beginning of the school year and by the time the formal training was
conducted the teachers themselves had already aquired the trained elsewhere
(ie., self or peer taught) so the training was of no use.  Also, I have seen
training conducted school-wide, with teachers who don't know how to use
Word, being trained in the same way as Instructional Technology grad
students.  In other words, could I come up with a "webified" checklist form
that teachers and staff could regularly use that would be a sort of
"pretest" of their ability levels.  Then at any given time the technology
planner or administrator could compile these results to see where their
staff stands in terms of training needs and design their staff development
for different levels of need.  I feel if staff development could be more
individualized teachers would be less intimidated to try new technologies
and more motiviated to use existing ones.  What do you think?  Is this
needed?  Could it be useful?  How can I do this?  Where do I begin?

I feel like I'm going to fall out of the sky at any minute.  You all sound
so positive and excited, please send me a parachute!
(Picture that, an eagle with a parachute!  -:)


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