5317 Compilation Post and Reflection

Over the past eight weeks, this course has helped me think more deeply about how educators can move from simply completing graduate assignments to creating meaningful work that can be shared with a broader professional audience. At the beginning of the course, I expected to write a research-based article. What I did not fully expect was how much the process would push me to think like both a teacher-researcher and an educational technology leader. Each assignment built on the last, moving from an initial idea to a polished publication and then into a multimedia format that could reach other educators in a more accessible way.

One of the greatest successes of this course was that my work stayed connected to a real classroom problem. My publication focused on using Edpuzzle as a purposeful reteach tool to improve retention in secondary mathematics. This topic matters to me because, as an Algebra I teacher and math department chair, I often see students complete test corrections, attend tutorials, or finish extra practice without truly correcting the misconceptions that caused them to struggle in the first place. The phrase that guided much of my work was that retesting should not just give students another chance to earn points; it should give them another chance to learn. I feel successful because my final products were practical, classroom-centered, and connected to my actual instructional leadership context.

The Publication Outline helped me organize my thinking and clarify my audience. This assignment allowed me to identify secondary math teachers, instructional coaches, and department chairs as the educators I wanted to reach. It also helped me narrow my message by focusing on the difference between review and true reteaching. The Rough Draft was where I began turning those ideas into a practical article. Through that draft, I learned how important it is to balance research, classroom examples, and an approachable tone. Feedback on the rough draft helped me improve my APA citations, add missing years to in-text citations, and clarify the contexts of the studies I referenced.

The Media Project pushed my learning in a new direction because I had to transform my article into a video for secondary teachers. This helped me think about pacing, visuals, narration, and accessibility. I learned that multimedia communication is not just a shorter version of writing; it requires a different kind of planning. The video made my research more engaging by using a clear problem, an Algebra I example, and practical steps teachers could apply. Finally, the Publication Final Draft gave me the opportunity to refine the article into a stronger, more polished piece. This final draft showed my growth in connecting research to practice while still keeping the voice practical and teacher-friendly.

An area where I can continue to grow is in planning digital products earlier in the process. I was able to create a cohesive article and video, but I now see the value of thinking about the full publication strategy from the beginning. In the future, I would storyboard the media project sooner, plan visuals alongside the writing, and create a clearer navigational structure for how the outline, draft, final article, and video connect in my ePortfolio. I also want to continue improving my use of APA formatting and source integration so my research support is both accurate and precise.

The collaborative discussion group was also an important part of my learning. Reading my peers’ work helped me see how many different ways educators are using research to address real problems in their classrooms. I contributed by offering feedback that was specific, encouraging, and connected to each person’s goals. I tried to respond as a colleague by pointing out strengths while also offering suggestions for clarity, audience connection, or practical application. Through this process, I learned that I value feedback that is both honest and supportive. I also learned that my group members brought different perspectives, which helped me think beyond my own math classroom context. I had the opportunity as a leader to manage meeting times that worked for everyone, create documents for us to share our work and provide written feedback, and create text threads for us to address problems or questions as they arose throughout the week. If I could change one thing, I would have met through google meets more consistently. I recognized the challenge of organizing five people so we found alternative ways to continue providing feedback throughout the week, but our live meetings were very meaningful.

Overall, this course helped me understand that digital publication is more than posting assignments online. It is about creating a connected body of work that communicates a clear message, demonstrates growth, and contributes to the learning of others. My publication outline, rough draft, media project, and final article all fit into a broader strategy of sharing practical, research-informed technology integration with secondary teachers. This course strengthened my confidence as a writer, creator, and EdTech leader. Most importantly, it reminded me that meaningful technology use should always serve instruction, support teachers, and help students move toward deeper understanding.