Running Head: GROWTH: FOOD OF CHAMPIONS 1

Growth Assessment: Challenges Are the Food of Champions

Kermit Boyd

Azusa Pacific University

GROWTH: FOOD OF CHAMPIONS 2

Growth Assessment

History of Coursework

Table 1

History of Coursework

Professor/
Course Term/Yr Instructor Key Learnings
• To have educational technological
knowledge doesn’t mean I simply use
EDTC511
technology in my classroom.
Foundations in Spring I Dr. Kathleen
• APA formatting is king! Learn it and abide
Educational / 2019 Bacer
by it!
Technology
• How to effectively use Adobe Acrobat such
as bookmarking and hyperlinking.
• There are a plethora of learning applications
EDTC527
(apps) out there but finding what works for
Integration of
my classroom takes research and work.
Web Resources – Spring I Kristen
• Technology in my classroom does not
Special Topics in / 2019 Effinger
improve my lessons but merely provides
Educational
higher student engagement.
Technology
• Digital citizenship is the foundation for
EDTC518 creating a cross-cultural classroom.
Global Learning/ Spring II Barbara • Digital citizenship for my classroom starts
Cross-Cultural / 2019 McMillan with my school district’s standards, but I can
Classroom still adopt other pertinent standards.

• Google has numerous features that allows

EDTC517
Spring II me to integrate technology in my classroom.
Digital Joe Bruzzese
/ 2019 • Websites must flow and leave out thinking
Communications
for the user to an extent.
EDTC523
• Effectively planning the implementation of
Educational
educational apps will contribute greatly to
Applications of Summer Kathryn
the user-friendliness of my global learning
Information / 2019 Price
project.
Design and
Hypermedia
EDTC521
Digital Imagery Summer Dr. Thomas • Collaboration is not just for students but it’s
for Learning / 2019 Wilson crucial for me as an educator.
Environments
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• Starting with the end in mind is the

EDTC524
foundation for Unit by Design.
Instructional Fall I / Dr. Thomas
• The Big Idea keeps the Unit in focus and on
Design and 2019 Wilson
Development track to reach the end.

EDTC520 • Evaluating technology in my classroom will

Managing Tech- Fall I / Elisabeth assist me in keeping my students engaged.
Supported 2019 Silver • Professional Development is not a cookie
Curricular Tools cutter solution
• Lifelong learning is not passive
EDTC515
Fall II Dr. James • As new technology emerges, I need to learn
Emerging Trends
/2019 Brown about it.
in Technology
EDTC526
• Starting what I finish is the goal
Practicum in
Fall II / Dr. Kathleen • The hard work paid off!
Educational
2019 Bacer • Never give up and make it happen!
Applications in
Technology
Personal Growth

Belonging to Azusa Pacific University’s (APU) Master of Arts in Educational

Technology (EDTC) program and being a member of cadre 33 has stretched me. I was stretched

as a husband, father, friend, and follower of Christ. As a result, I grew in my time-management

skills, desire to be accountable, and reality that Jesus is King of my life.

“The father is the fountain of the family’s joy. Where Daddy is winsomely happy — and

happy enough to make the sacrifices necessary for the good of others — a happy family will

follow in his wake” (Mathis, 2016, para 1). Knowing that my time would be occupied with

meeting assignment deadlines, required readings, zoom sessions, and cadre collaborations; time

management would be paramount. Before this program my time was miscellaneous and

unstructured outside of work. My marriage has grown stronger because I have had to hone my

time-management skills. Time with Tamara, my wife, is more purposeful and the date nights are

meaningful. Daughter-daddy time, with Selah, has spiked as we spend our weekends out at the
GROWTH: FOOD OF CHAMPIONS 4

park or watching her favorite movies. Time-management has produced organization in my life

allowing me to care for my family more consistently and carry more responsibility.

My friendships have been strengthened through intentionality by drawing closer to men

who have encouraged and pushed me to keep strong while in this program. To be successful and

reach the finish line of this program I had to share my struggles and stress with men who could

pray for me and keep me grounded because they know me intimately.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy

burdens, and I will give you rest” (New Living Translation). Each paper written, forum post

made, assignment turned in, and at every moment I have truly needed Jesus. For each moment

that I totally relied on Him, the evidence is in the quality of my work and for each moment that I

did not, the evidence is in my quality of work.

Personal growth was significant and evident in my family relationships through

sharpened time management skills, growing stronger in friendships through accountability, and

spiritually clinging to Jesus to be my strength. Overall, my personal life has grown exponentially

because of the EDTC program.

Professional Growth

Professional growth, I believe, is sometimes quantified by the increase in one’s yearly

salary. While increase in my yearly salary is valuable it is certainly not conclusive evidence of

professional growth. Career development “isn’t only about climbing the greasy pole or earning

more money. It’s also about avoiding stagnation in your career and future-proofing yourself”

(Berry, 2018, para 6). Therefore, I have measured my professional growth by the challenges that

my management has afforded to me. These challenges provided by my administration has

GROWTH: FOOD OF CHAMPIONS 5

resulted in new roles and allowing me to participate and have input for professional development

trainings.

This program has allowed me to use my time-management skills to take on more

responsibility this school year. My administration at the start of the school year (knowing I am

completing this program) compelled me to join the Instructional Team Leadership (ITL). With

this expanded role and having to utilize time-management skills, I have been blessed enough to

mentor fellow teachers and branch out to teach adult students. My school district providing me

the opportunity to teach adults is the biggest vote of confidence that they have in my ability and

recognition of growth professionally.

Additionally, as an ITL member I have participated in planning and leading two

professional development (PD) days and I am currently working on a third teacher PD. Growing

professionally can be exhibited in formally relaying your growth and transformation in the form

of training and leading others. I have never had an opportunity to lead teacher PD’s or even train

other teachers in my teaching career but since entering this program and now preparing to exit, I

have had more opportunity in one year than in the nine years of my educationally career.

Technical Growth

I have always thought of myself as a techy. However, I was awakened, like how the

Apostle Paul describes the church of Ephesus, writing “Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead

and Christ will give you light” (Ephesians 5:14, NLT). I have been awakened technically and the

light of this growth can be seen in two major ways; my movement towards technical expertise in

video creation and editing, and my ability to lead my students to navigate technology from

novices to digital innovators.

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My initial EDTC course, Foundations in Educational Technology (Bacer, 2018),

challenged my technical expertise. I grew from that moment and honed my technical skills,

specifically in the areas of video creation and video editing. In EDTC521: Digital Imagery for

Learning Environments with Dr. Thomas Wilson (2019), I created a video project for my

signature assignment. As a result, I became extremely proficient with Camtasia and Adobe After

Effects. Moreover, I was able to take that knowledge and apply it personally toward a business

venture of a clothing line. I became responsible for creating videos from our photoshoots.

Without the technical growth from EDTC521 (Wilson, 2019) I would have never been able to

take on such an endeavor.

Another major area of technical growth has been taking my students from digital media

novices to creators and innovators. This Fall my students completed self-assessments of their

learning for as part of their mid-term projects. Students created interactive videos, used Powtoon,

and some used Screencastify to narrate their projects. Students have also utilized and created

inventory documents, forms, and tracking systems using Google Docs, Slides, and Microsoft

Excel for an upcoming toy drive. My students have become digital creators, using technology by

driving it for our classroom projects.

Overall, the EDTC program has prepared me to take on technological projects and roles

confidently while also making me a lifelong learner in the process. The next challenge is to

somehow move the needle within my school district for educational technology because “for

many schools, implementing the latest technology is a difficult strategy to navigate” (Mareco,

2017, para 1).

Life Long Learning Plan

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Lifelong learning will be a part of my life for the rest of my life. As a lifelong learner I

will consistently be in three phases of this journey: participating, processing, and progressing

(figure 1). This process will include but is not limited to:

 Keep smart company

 Teach others

 Keep a list of things I want to explore

 Use a personal learning environment

 Experiment with new ways to learn

 Join Learning Communities (I am currently in a yearlong one now)

 Make lifelong learning a priority!

Overall, I will stay abreast with books, Major Open Online Classes (MOOCs), conferences,

current journal subscriptions, and personal learning networks (PLN). Learning will never stop

for me, because truly, it feels like breathing.

Conclusion

In this one-year journey of the EDTC program, I could have never imagined that my

marriage would be strengthened while also bringing my family even closer together. God knew. I

suspected that my professional life would be positively affected by this program, but I never

imagined that I would belong to the ITL, having direct opportunities to mentor and lead

professional developments, but God knew. Undeniably, I knew that I would grow technically but

to witness my students leading the warehouse class with technology and digitally creating in the

aspects they have, has far exceed far what I would have ever envisioned. Unequivocally, this

program has shown me that God truly can “accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or

think” (Ephesians 3:20, NLT).

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Participating
Processing

Progressing

Lifelong Learning
Figure 1. Three phases of lifelong learning for Kermit Boyd.
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References

Bacer, K., Brown, J., Bruzzese., J., Effinger, K., McMillan, B., Price, K., Silver, E., Wilson, T.

(2018 - 2019). Master of Arts in Educational Technology. School of Education, Azusa

Pacific University. Azusa, CA. Retrieved from http://canvas.apu.edu.

Bacer, K. (2018). EDTC511: Foundations in Educational Technology. Master of Arts in

Educational Technology. School of Education, Azusa Pacific University. Azusa, CA.

Retrieved from http://sakai.apu.edu.

Berry, S. (2018, April 11). 5 ways to manage your personal and professional development. [Blog

post]. Retrieved from https://www.cv-library.co.uk/career-advice/development/5-ways-

manage-professional-development/

Boyd, K. (2019). Three phases of lifelong learning. [Graphic]. Unpublished work.

Mathis, D. (2016, October 13). Happy daddy, happy home. [Blog post]. Retrieved from

https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/happy-daddy-happy-home.

Mareco, D.(2017, July 28). 10 reasons today’s students need technology in the classroom. [Blog

post]. Retrieved from https://www.securedgenetworks.com/blog/10-reasons-today-s-

students-need-technology-in-the-classroom

Wilson, T. (2019). EDTC521: Digital Imagery for Learning Environments. Master of Arts in

Educational Technology. School of Education, Azusa Pacific University. Azusa, CA.

Retrieved from http://canvas.apu.edu