CEP 812: Project Evaluation

When doing another TechQuest project, I need to be mindful of two things.  First off, I need to be sure that the scope of my project is not to lofty, but reasonable and able to be implemented in a fairly short period of time without much fuss.  I believe that I bit off more than I could chew by trying to look at Examview as well as student response systems for improving the timeliness and quality of feedback for students and parents.  I should have kept the focus on one technology attempting to maximize its effectiveness in the educational setting, later looking at, perhaps, how the other could be tied in.

Secondly, refining my search techniques and tapping into the resources of others (websites, blogs, Delicious accounts) is key.  Most of my research was done using Google and Google Scholar.  I would then find good resources and search the references of those resources to locate others.  I need to become much more proficient with using library systems and their databases to find information on topics.  Often times, however, technological innovations are too new and articles related to them are few in number.  This is when being a part of an educational technology community comes into play.  I can look at sites like Tech & Learning and MACUL space to stay current.  Also, utilizing my RSS feeds more effectively could help me locate resources and information on my proposed topic.

When embarking on a Techquest such as this, in my opinon, the most important thing to know is where to find resources.  I came across a website that housed a plethora of quality resources.  21 things for the 21^st Century: Technology every educator should know connects teachers to the top, most prominent and user-friend resources available based on the National Educational Technology Standards for teachers.  In particular, I was interested in the links for professional organizations and networking.  I have bookmarked this site and will refer to it often. 

When endeavoring to do a project such as this again, I will begin with the research of several interests and narrow my topic down based on what I’m able to find with regards to research.  If the work cannot be substantiated, then it feels like there is less chance of success.  Even if others have not experienced success, one can learn from their experiences and tweak to create a best practice.  I would also keep a journal along the way so that I can document successes and pitfalls throughout each stage of the process.  Lastly, I would try to find another teacher who is interested in the same thing to work along with me.  This collaboration would be priceless and have maximum benefit for student learning.