Running head: Growth Assessment 1

Growth Assessment

Justin Sorensen

Azusa Pacific University

Growth Assessment

Introduction

This paper will describe the ways I have grown during the Credential and master’s in

digital learning and teaching program for Azusa Pacific University (APU). The paper will begin

by outlining the ways I have grown personally; how the program has changed me as an

individual. Second, the paper will outline how I have changed from a career standpoint both as a

future teacher and as someone in the workforce in general. Third, I describe how I gained skills

in technology to be applied in the field of education. I then describe my plan to continue to learn

and conclude the paper. Finally, this paper will show the courses I have taken with a brief

reflection on each course in the form of a table. All these factors show that I have grown

tremendously in positive ways that are attributable to the great effort of APU professors and

staff.

Personal Growth

This program has been one of the most difficult challenges I have ever had to face. It has

forced me to take a hard look at myself and challenge what I thought I was capable of. Despite

these challenges, I am proud of what I have accomplished, and it has given me a clearer path to

success in the future. I am better able to see how I must continue to grow as a person in many

ways for me to become a truly expert teacher (Sternberg and Williams, 2010, p. 76) In

participating in this program I have had to change myself. I have grown in my spiritual journey,

in my thinking, and in how I perceive who I am.

My spirituality had been stagnant before I began this program. I didn’t choose Azusa

Pacific University for its “Christian world view,” I chose it for much more mundane reasons,

namely this program and its convenient class locations. When I was exposed to the programs

weekly faith integrations, I didn’t give it much thought. However, over time I began to see the

wonderful gift, these weekly meditations became. I was forced to take a magnifying glass to

what I believe and answer questions about myself and define my faith. Today I am closer to God

than I have been in years, because APU has allowed me to find my way back to God.

Since this program has proven to be a challenge, I have also had to change the way I

approach problems and organize myself. Before this program, I relied on my own memory

organize my approach to tasks. I learned, after some extensive trial and error, that leaving my

brain to memorize all the tasks I needed to accomplish for my coursework, and my family, and

my day job would be impossible. I learned I need to build an “external” brain that would help me

remember dates and things I need to do. I read books on productivity, I downloaded calendar and

task management apps, I built a system to organize my tasks. By using tools I put in place, I was

better prepared to take on the rigorous TPA’s and signature assignments I have completed.

If there was only one thing I could take from this program, it would be how I taught myself

to be organized. My search for task organization has even expanded to my wife. Weekly we sit

down together over a giant white board we take off the wall and go over the complex schedule of

ourselves and our three children to have a better grasp of what our expectations of the week will

be. Organization has been a powerful skill that I have gained directly because of this program.
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Finally, I see myself differently than I did before this program. I have a great confidence in

what I can accomplish. I had never had to write a paper greater than five pages. With this

program I have written many 10-20-page papers. I had no idea I could write that much. I see now

that before when a daunting task loomed above me I would become overwhelmed. Today, I can

see any large task for what it is, a collection of smaller manageable tasks. Without APU and this

program, I would not have the confidence to strive for greatness in my personal or professional

life.

Professional Growth

Over the past four years I have seen my competence as a teacher increase. However, I have

not, yet, taught a whole classroom of students. I have learned a great deal about what it means to

teach and the “the series of more complex processes…to both influence students and transmit

knowledge” (Domnwachukwu, 2010, p. 166). Yet despite not being a paid teacher, this program

has given me professional skills that have translated to other aspects of my professional career.

These skills include: the interpersonal skills which have allowed me to make strong connections

with people at schools and at my day job; the knowledge and creative freedom to find better

solutions to problems using technology; and the ability to organize and manage complex, multi-

stepped projects. With these skills and traits, I am better prepared for the teaching industry and

the work force at large.

Social anxiety hit me later in life. I wasn’t necessarily outgoing, but I could negotiate crowds

and new people better in my teens and early twenties than I was able to later. This skill I was

losing in my adulthood could have been a major detriment if I didn’t find a way to relearn how to
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communicate and socialize with my peers. Since joining this program, I have had to force myself

into uncomfortable situations to get what I needed, and I have grown because of it. Approaching

strangers and asking them to be able to watch them work seems utterly ridiculous on its face.

However, 60 hours of classroom observations is a key component of this program. That means

talking to strangers and getting what you need form them. I much more comfortable doing this

now than at the start of the program.

While people had become more difficult to me, I had thought that I was more comfortable in

technology. I was comfortable in technology, but I wasn’t growing in it. If anything, I was

becoming stagnant. Just as many people will have an opinion on either iOS or android phone

operating systems, I was developing opinions on many technology systems and becoming

intrenched in those systems, not allowing for flexibility. Before the program I viewed office

productivity software as either being Microsoft Office or not worth my time. I thought it was

ridiculous that other companies were making Geographic Information System (GIS) software

other than ESRI. I was becoming a technological curmudgeon at much too young an age. This

program however has made me more flexible and adaptable. I can now see solutions in Google

docs as well as Microsoft word and see equal viability in their application. This open-

mindedness and flexibility makes me more marketable in any job.

My new sense of organization also makes me more marketable as well. The various difficult

signature assignments I have had to do since starting this program have made my ability to plan

and breakdown tasks indispensable. Were it not for this ability I developed at APU, I would not

be running my own department at my day job. I have a better sense of task priorities and overall
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workload which has enabled me to be more open and honest with my employers about what I

can deliver and when.

I have been able to deliver so much more, professionally, thanks to this program. I can better

communicate with my peers, adapt my technological approach and organize my work to be a

very effective employee.

Technical Growth

I have become more ambitious because of this program than I ever thought possible. I came

into APU with, what I thought was a talent for technology, however I have been able to push

myself and create some extraordinary things. I have a new-found drive to create in technology

that I hadn’t thought possible previously. I am also able to integrate my passions together and

bring forth creativity in new and exciting ways. Because of my technological experience, my

technological drive and creativity, I believe amazing opportunities exist in the realm of

educational technology that I will be a part of.

I am in my tenth year as a geographic information systems specialist. My current job consists

of creating maps and managing geographic data on the computer, across internal networks and

the broader cloud. I also prepare and maintain GPS equipment for myself and others going into

the field for various land and environmental surveys. This talent and experience has given me

more of an advantage in dealing with technology than many of my cohorts. Though “there is a

direct connection between your talents and your achievement” (Clifton, Anderson, & Schreiner,

2006, p. 2) This program is about who knows the most about technology; it is about how you as

a teacher can apply the technology you do know to enhance and engage your students’ content
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learning. For me to get the most out of this program I purposely pushed myself outside of my

comfort zone in technology. My greatest accomplishment in how I pushed myself in this

program was the 20% Project for EDUC 515 – Evolving Educational Technology. For this

project I created a website that allows educators to share and rate educational resources with

each other, [Link] I like to think of it as a Yelp for educational technology.

Creating web sites and to automate the user generated data to create a website that all teachers

could use is something I had never considered to be within my realm of possibilities.

This 20% project helped to awaken a drive in me to continue to push my boundaries of what

I am capable of. I invested in a .com domain for my website so I would have a reason to make it

work. I have not continued development of the website, however. For right now, finishing this

program must take precedent. However, once I am able I plan to focus on this project again, I

have every intention to continue to grow it. Similarly, from the EDUC 515 course, I learned

about the many opportunities that Google has to offer teachers. It is also part of my drive in

educational technology to become a google certified teacher. There is a similar certification in

Microsoft as well. Each of the opportunities are becoming fuel for my drive to expand my

knowledgebase of educational technology.

My focus is not just on certifications and web 2.0 development but also on using technology

as a creative outlet for me and my students. My second greatest accomplishment in this program

is the library of math videos I have created. They are wonderfully weird. Through digital videos,

I can teach and make people laugh. In of my video’s I created a trailer for Algebra complete and

over the top music and wildly over dramatic acting (a middle schooler falling to his knees in a
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sand box arms raised victory…all in slow motion). I look forward to continuing to create and

make education funny as I teach.

Though I started quite comfortable with my technological ability I pushed myself outside that

comfort zone and have strived to keep bettering myself and continue to be creative in all my

endeavors.

Lifelong Learning Plan

As I move forward, I will no longer have the regiment of this program forcing me to continue

my studies. Therefore, it is important that I find ways to push myself toward greater

advancements in educational technology. Top achieve this, I have set a goal for my classroom to,

each term, ask how can I improve the classroom processes for my students and for myself? This

question will frame a goal that allows me to explore and sue my creativity to provide new

solutions for teaching and teachers. I will also continue to find new ways to explore educational

technology outside the classroom. In particular, I will find ways to create new streams of revenue

from my expertise. These revenue streams may be writing blog posts to continuing to expand my

20% project. By using money as a reward, I can better motivate myself to continue to help and

support teachers at large. I also have an innate sense of curiosity. Part of my plan is to let it free

in the world of education and see where it lands. More specifically, I plan to peruse the articles

of Edutopia and skim through my delivery of Educator Magazine, I will follow the people on

social media that I find fascinating on TED talks and I will attend conferences when I am able. In

other words, I will continue to let the vast ocean of knowledge wash over me and let my

curiosity lead the way as it always has.

Conclusion

This has been a difficult program. I did not realize how difficult. The difficulty was not some

discreet problem in set theory I got to contemplate and always be thinking big thoughts. This

program pushed your ability to balance life and work and family and education. I was struck by

writers’ block innumerable times. I felt like I didn’t belong. I persisted. I may have taken brakes,

I took my time when others were moving faster but I continued through the program and I am

nearly done. I have gained so much from doing this. I have grown as a person and am better able

to handle murky situations. I have grown professionally, making me a better employee and a

better teacher. I have also grown technically, I can do things I never thought possible and will

continue to do so. I will keep learning. This program has given me a gift of understanding

education and technology in a new light. I won’t squander that gift by not continuing to grow in

my knowledge.

Table 1

History of Coursework

Course Term Professor Reflection

EDUC 572 Summer Ann Bradley, By taking part in the Emotional Skills Assessment
Advanced 2014 Ed.D. Process, I understand myself better and recognize
Educational my own strengths and weaknesses to better myself
Psych and my teaching.

EDUC 504 Summer Dr. Mikulics I better recognize perspectives from others and
Teaching and 2014 how that would apply to the classroom because of
our weekly in-class discussions on the readings.
The topics ranged from how culture plays a role in
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Cultural the school experience to how “color blindness” as

TESP 506 Fall 2014 Marilyn Dye I now see what it means to work as a teacher. Our
Educational first TPA helped me to see how a teacher works by
Foundations breaking down the various parts of a lesson into its
(K-12) specific chunks (e.g. the hook, guided practice,
etc…), and taking the time to make sure all your
students’ needs are being met at every level.

TEP 518 Fall 2014 Gail Reeder While doing the signature assignment case study, I
Methods: saw how teachers see their students as individuals
Teaching yet also need to detach themselves from the
Reading/Writ individuals and view them as a set of traits (e.g.
ing 7-12 language ability, literacy level, and other various
behaviors) like a social scientist, or doctor might.
This detachment helps the teacher be a better
problem solver while figuring out how best to
teach that individual student.

TEP 528 Fall 2014 Dr. Charles In this class we got to spend a lot of time
Teaching Downing practicing teaching and watching others practice
Strategies 7- their teaching with many lesson plans we prepared.
12 Through this, I saw how it all comes together as a
teacher with lesson plans, individualizing those
lesson plans and practicing teaching.

EDUC 514 Spring Tory Temple My favorite class. jumping into the nitty gritty of
Digital 2015 video creating and editing helped me see the
Video in the immeasurable possibilities technology and this
Classroom master’s program could improve the classroom. In
particular, our signature assignment, I was able to
make a humorous video on radians that I plan on
using for years to come.

EDUC 511 Fall 2015 Timothy By taking the time to review our advising forms
Essentials in Holder with Dr. Courduff this class really showed me
Digital what I can expect from the master’s program,
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Teaching and helping to alleviate some of my anxiety of what

EDUC 512 Fall 2015 Richard Geib Google has amazing potential in the classroom, I
Instructional should get Google Education Certified. Also,
Applications anything can be used to teach, even the walking
of undead where I applied calculus to the zombie
Productivity apocalypse in a webquest. “That is to say, if Z is
Software the population of zombies at any given time t, then
we have a function” (Adams, 20).

TESP 556 Fall 2015 Ie May I really enjoyed taking turns with the other
Clinical Freeman students and teaching each other SDAIE strategies.
Experience I learned that these strategies would help everyone
Teaching Ell and are vital to effective teaching. Also, these
K-12 TPA’s are no joke and are only getting harder.

EDUC 522 Spring Lance Martin Thoughtfulness and intention must be applied to
Learning in 2016 technology applied in the classroom, it is not the
the 21st ends, merely a means to effective teaching. I had
Century to develop whole lessons and really think about
how technology could be deployed in the most
productive way possible.

EDUC 515 Spring Tim Holder, In presenting our own finds with each other I
Evolving 2016 M.A. learned about so many new and amazing apps and
Education tools to see and use, it is almost overwhelming. In
Technology the end, however, it is the teacher applying these
using them well and with intention that matter.
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References

Adams, C. (2016). Zombies & calculus. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Clifton, D. O., Anderson, E., & Schreiner, L. A. (2006). StrengthsQuest: Discover and develop
your strengths in academics, career, and [Link] York: Gallup Press.

DomNwachukwu, C. S. (2010). An introduction to multicultural education: From theory to

Sternberg, R. J., & Williams, W. M. (2010). Educational psychology. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Merrill.