POST #2: Challenges to Using Iowa AEA Online Resources

As I become more familiar with the many various resources available through AEA I continue to be impressed as to what is included in this wealth of information for teachers. The challenge I face with all that is available is selecting the resources that best fits my student's abilities and the objectives of the lesson at hand. There is so many resources it becomes a time drain looking through many examples of videos and print resources to see how they might fit my specific need. A plus side is that all the materials offered are age appropriate and safe for my students to access. The AEA resources, although there is a lot here, is much fewer and much more relevant that a simple web search.

My goals for overcoming this hurdle begins with simply using the materials more and more. Taking small bites helps build a more active library of useful materials to my class goals. I liked in the training how to use the advanced search options in order to be more specific to what I am looking for. I will definitely use that feature more often. Also, I plan to use a more diverse selection of materials. Instead of only images in PowerPoint presentations, I will look to using more video resources. Instead of simply open web directed research projects, I will use more focused resources through Learn360, Britannica School, Culture Gram, and Gale resources. One last area of opportunity to use the materials more effectively will be to explore the lesson plan tools that many of these resources connect into. This will allow for a more streamlined experience for my students in the long run.

My biggest challenge is that I am a substitute teacher.  I am usually only in the class for one or maybe two days of the week.  The permanent teacher dictates what resources the kids will be using.  I have found that the kids are very good at accessing the social media that the teacher has assigned for them.  My role is usually that of informing them as to what their teacher wants them to do in his or her absence.  I will not be creating lessons plans.  Another challenge will be not using the AE online resources on a regular basis.  I will need to access the system when not in the classroom to remain familiar with the various programs.

I think perhaps the greatest barrier to my implementation of these or any other digital resources is my limited access to the technological tools necessary for their use with students. My current classroom hosts four teachers, all of whom work with students throughout the day. Although I have access to a Promethean board in the room, it is controlled by a computer used primarily by another teacher. She realizes that for P-board purposes the computer must be shared, and she remains generous and accommodating whenever possible. As the computer sits in her teaching space, however, it would be intrusive (to say the least!) of me to climb behind her and navigate the system while she vies for student attention.  Moreover, the P-board is centrally located in the room, and for most of the day, all teachers are engaged in teaching their own group of students. For me to use the board would be to command focus away from their lessons and onto whatever I were doing.

One possible solution to this issue is to borrow enough iPads or Surface Pros to complete our tasks by using multiple smaller screens. While this presents a bit more of a logistical and management challenge, I think it is doable.  It's something I will have to explore, however, before planning an implementation with students.

I feel that some of the biggest challenges to implementing the resources of AEA online has been finding the time to navigate and explore each of the different options available and which ones would be appropriate for my younger students.  
I would say that at this point my greatest challenge is teaching my first graders to navigate certain sites when asked to. This includes bookmarking sites, logging in and then finding  the information from that site that is applicable to what is being taught. This requires a lot of initial planning on my part and then mostly repetition and training using the sites.
We have begun to work through these challenges by setting aside time each week to bookmark different sites on our chrome books and looking at information together. My students are becoming more comfortable and independent each time we use Bookflix and Trueflix.
Our district also has a set aside time of four hours per month for collaborative team meetings and my team is focusing on technology. This gives me some set aside times to explore and prepare for my classes.

As stated in many other posts, there is an overwhelming amount of online material available to use. It will take time to determine which resources are appropriate for a preschool classroom and then also take time to learn to use them. I won't have classroom time to research but I like spending time on my laptop at home so that will be good time for me to check everything out. Good thing online resources are available 24 hours a day. I can preview stories at home and perhaps create a few playlists of environmental sounds to engage the students at large group times. As an educator I think I could use the research resources for my own benefit. Learning to use Excel and improve my technology skills would be beneficial for me to use in the classroom with planning and organizing my classroom environment. My the time I begin teaching 5 and 6 year olds I should be more familiar with the resources and how to use them.  

I think one of my biggest challenges with implementing the AEA resources, or really technology in general, is that it is always changing. I feel half the time I just get comfortable using a certain resource or an assessment and then it's changed. I know that is just the world we live in now, but it makes it a bit more difficult for all of us. Technology is an amazing thing, as long as you know how to use it. Also, since I am currently not teaching at the moment, by time I do go back to the classroom a lot of this will probably have changed. It can be hard to keep up. The only way to overcome this obstacle is to keep learning. Keep taking classes, reading articles, going online and browsing through the AEA, and talking to other teachers. I have so many friends that are teachers and I learn so much from talking to them, so I think your co workers can be a great resource for you. How are they implementing these resources in their own rooms? Seeing how someone else is using it can spark ideas for yourself.

For me, the biggest challenge to using the AEA Online Resources is learning all that is available to me. There seems to be an infinite number of resources. At the moment I am a little bit overwhelmed because there is so much to choose from. The resources seem to cover every media source and grade level.

I plan to spend some time this summer navigating the AEA site and finding the resources that would be most applicable to my students. I am hoping to find a job teaching somewhere between kindergarten and 3rd grade. I like that there are so many video tutorials for each of the different resources. I also plan to talk with some friends who are currently teaching in the district to give suggestions on resources that they have found particularly useful. I will approach the ones that are teaching the lower elementary grades since this is the age group I hope to teach next school year. This will help to give me a starting point in my studies.

My biggest challenge will definitely be time.  I teach so many different subjects that it is hard to change everything at once.  I will need to focus on just one course at a time to start implementing more online resources.  I think I will focus first on my world history classes, as they can definitely gain from the culture grams resource.  I may also try implementing new resources in staggered units in my literature classes.  I could handle revamping one unit in each class, as long as it isn't all at the same time.

Another challenge our school faces is a sometimes shaky internet connection.  It always seems that the internet works great when I don't need it, but the moment I want to use it in a class, it goes out.  I'm sure I'm not the only one this happens to!  I always have to make sure I have a back up plan just in case.  This makes me a little more wary of using online resources.  Though I am excited that many of the resources allow downloading so I don't have to rely on my internet connection.

*Biggest challenges: Due to the nature of my position and the intervention format I am expected to follow, I typically have students for a 20-30 minute intervention time daily. I have to implement the intervention models with fidelity to give it integrity.  So...
1. lack of time within a session
2. lack of freedom/flexibility of content (within that time) that I'm expected to deliver per session
...might prove to be my biggest challenges.

*Steps to overcome those challenges:
Since digging in to research and information takes time, I will have to plan ahead of time to know precisely what I want to achieve (objectives) with the research that session.  I can also do pre-searches to guide the kids to be more effective and efficient.  I can narrow the searches by giving topic specific keyword choices within the chosen databases for them to enter and decide what they want vs open ended. Spelling for the (low reading) elementary kids can be a problem too, so if I print out options to choose from, it will expedite the searches preventing misspellings.  As far as my interventions having specific guidelines for me to follow, I can use very targeted portions of the AEA online info when it really does apply to our format. I will have to again to a lot of prior planning to be certain I don't waste time searching when with the students. I can send the link to myself so I can have it ready and open from an email. I did this when I was sharing an audio clip from an author while establishing background and author's purpose before reading a new text. That is an expectation of my intervention model. What better way than through the author's own words and voice! I would not have thought to do that prior to this course.

There seems to be an endless amount of online resources available at AEA, which is a challenge in itself!
My challenge in using the resources is to use them enough personally to become familiar with them.  This will allow me to demonstrate to the homeschool parents and students how to effectively use them.

To overcome this challenge I plan to focus on some of the resources I believe would be most helpful to our homeschool families.   Narrowing down the resources will help me become proficient with these resources. Two of the ones I will be starting with are the Britannica online and the up-to-date periodicals.    After I am confident in my ability to use them, I can show these to my own children first and then share them with the other homeschool families.  There are several others that appear very interesting, especially CultureGrams to study various countries around the world.

My primary challenge is that I am not currently a teacher but a paraprofessional. I would need to use resources that the special education teacher to whom I am assigned feels comfortable with me using.  I do think that she would be willing if I would make suggestions.  True Flix and Learn 360 come to mind as they are both highly visual resources that have the potential to be effective for students with intellectual challenges.  

Another challenge is that I have limited contact or influence with general education teachers to suggest these resources.  I think some of the resources like 360 learning and the e-books could promote integration for some of the students with special needs.  Again, to overcome this challenge, I could speak with my supervising teacher, and she could be the liaison with the general education teachers.  Perhaps, too, a media person could do a short inservice to some of the teachers on how these resources could be used for students with special needs in the general education classroom.

I wish these resources had been around when I was teaching middle school. The lessons plans would have saved me a great deal of time, and it would have motivated some reluctant learners.

     One of the biggest challenges I'll face in implementing these resources is that my students will largely be given access to these resources at the discretion of a content-area teacher.  That teacher will have to take a look at the resources, learn to navigate, and actually implement.  We all know this is easier said than done with the time crunches today's teachers experience.  To help this along, I could delve into the curricula of all of my K-12 teachers and design accommodations using these resources.  That is a mind-   boggling thing to consider.
     So, what can I do to overcome these challenges?  My first thought is to start with designing ways I can use the resources within my ELL time with them.  This time is spent honing their English skills.  There are obviously many aspects of the AEA Online Resources that I could utilize to capture their attention and capitalize on their interests.  This strategy will be good because I can incorporate the resources into my own classes, with which I am obviously familiar.  I can get instant feedback on which resources are most accessible to my students and which ones need more front-loading before students can dive in.
     After I am more comfortable with the resources and how best to have students approach them, I would be ready to encourage content-area teachers to utilize them.  Since I'm K-12, that is still an overwhelming proposition.  I would need to start with one or two teachers to be able to actually have a positive effect.  So, the strategy would be to start small and do the job correctly before I spread my efforts K-12.
   Even at this pace, I'm excited about the possibilities there are of improving classroom experiences for both teachers and students!

As a Substitute Teacher For the Des moines Public School System, my biggest challenge is access to the digital references. My personal computer is not comparable for the the School District. Or the teacher I am Subbing for has taken her class computer for the day. Therefore, using the resources from the Iowa AEA online is unavailable. Fortunately, there are resources available to the  students if they have computer lab to access certain subject matter. Almost like a digital Library.
Sometimes, when the Primary Teacher knows He/She is going to be absent they will arrange for the Substitute to have assistance for the lessen. Usually another teacher will be available to combine their classes to benefit the lesson.This takes coordination. So, When a teacher is out  and needs a Substitute Digital resources are spotty. Unless, it is built into the plans.
I have often thought that Subs need more training on the use of digital technology. Access codes availability  or technology labs for the classrooms.
Some other challenges in using AEA online Resources, is not every one is computer savvy. But ignorance is no excuse. You ether learn or get lost in the digital dust.

I think my biggest challenge in implementing the resources that Iowa AEA Online has to offer is TIME.  Since I will be teaching a music class, part of our instructional time is singing or playing instruments, so to actually space some time out for the students to do a project using Iowa AEA Online will be challenging.  Mostly because it will take some time for myself to become completely comfortable will all that Iowa AEA Online has to offer, and it will also take time to teach my students how to navigate and use its resources.  Thankfully students learn technology faster than I do, so I know they will catch on.  
The steps I will take to help with the challenge of time, will be to 1) become as comfortable with the Iowa AEA Online resource that I will be using with my class as possible, 2) have part of the project be something they can do at home so that it doesn't take up so much class time, 3) start with smaller projects that help introduce Iowa AEA Online to them and then move to bigger projects and more resources when they are ready, and 4) just dive in and do it with confidence!  I think the students will enjoy a change from the norm and hopefully this will be a good experience for them.  Now I have to think up possible music related projects they can do using the resources on Iowa AEA Online!

The biggest challenge I will have in implementing the AEA Online resources in our classroom is time… because trying to navigate through all of the materials and deciding which excellent resources to use (let alone implement) will take a lot of time to get used to.  Going through this class has helped me to understand what is available.

The manner in which I will overcome the time element challenge is to decide to look through one resource every two weeks.  During the two week period, I will think about our curriculum and how the resource can be used in one of our classes.  I believe that if I consciously set this goal for myself and write down the ways that I believe it will work, I will then have a comprehensive beginning to this challenge.  After researching, gathering, and analyzing these resources, I will finally be able to make informed decisions on which ones to use.  I think it would be a great idea to enlist another teacher in our department in this endeavor, so that we can have a sounding-board for ideas and collaborate together.

I feel that the biggest challenges for me will be finding the right resources and being able to show the students how to use the resources.  There are so many resources available that I think it will take several hours of searching and trying out the resources before I am ready to use them with my students.  Even though this will require much time outside the classroom, I am sure that these resources will be a valuable addition to my science curriculum.  I'm not sure that I will be able to implement any of the resources during the current year, but I have plans to the necessary searching and testing over the summer.  Several of these resources will fit nicely into the new NGSS science standards that have to be implemented in 2018.  By spending dome time on the AEA resources this summer, I feel that I will be ahead of the game when it comes to the new science standards.

The biggest challenge I will have for implementing Iowa AEA Online Resources will be not being in the habit of using online resources.  In my mathematics classes, we have usually been busy enough trying to accomplish everything that a good textbook provides.  That said, many young people today lose interest in textbook-only curriculum.  Therefore, injecting a video, a picture, or an audio file at the appropriate time can engage students who need more variety.

If I have "Online Resource?" on my checklist when I do my lesson plans, it would help me to remember.

The online encyclopedia can be used for historical or biographical information that mathematics textbooks often do not include.  Also, sometimes the textbook explanation is inadequate to understand a complex topic, and another view is helpful.

I think I will have three challenges implementing these resources into my classroom.  1)  There is such a wealth of information on the AEA Online website that it will require a substantial amount of time on my part just to sift through all the options and possibilities that I can use with my 4th grade classes.  I teach reading, social studies, everyday math, and language arts (also guidance once every 6 cycle days).  2)  Besides finding brand new information that I can use to write brand new lesson plans, I also want to find some great materials to supplement the lesson plans that I already have in place.  This may be a bit more difficult as I will need to find just the right examples that will work with what I have already done this year.  So I plan to implement the resources to make my current plans better!  3)  The third challenge that I may face is being able to let my students use their chrome books individually with some of the resources and interactives that are available on the AEA Online website.  I need to make sure I know exactly how all the in's and out's work before I let them set out on their own.  I am a 46-year-old teacher who is a little behind teachers who are right out of school.  I am hoping I can keep up and stay ahead so that my students can benefit as well.  So even though this class has been wonderful for me...I plan on spending quite a bit of time this summer just exploring and practicing many of the available resources.

While I do not have a "classroom" or a set time with students, I have on occasion been able to work with the 7th-grade language arts teacher on some library skills.  One of the presentations I give is an introduction to the AEA online databases.  I have experienced two challenges to the usage of the AEA databases.  The first being from the staff.  There is so much material available on the sites, that some of the teachers don't have the extra time to explore.  Younger teachers are more receptive to the sites and integrating technology into their plans.  We are a 1 to 1 school and as the teachers become comfortable with that technology, I believe they will be looking for a wider variety of options to include in their curriculum. The second challenge is from students, Google is just too easy.  They don't want to take the time to use reliable sourced material. Anytime a student comes in asking for help with a project, I will send them to the AEA site if appropriate.  For staff, I would like to work with our technology integrationist to expose the staff to the databases during professional development and walk them through some examples of how they could incorporate them into their lessons.  

I work in a unique classroom with children of special needs. We like to use different Media that are visual and colorful. During reading we will use Bookflix or Tar Heel for a source.  Then will we change it up and maybe use YouTube, depending on what topic we are going with for the week.  I love the resources that AEA has on line.