Benjamin Ayres
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY COACH
MSU Transcripts
Masters Education Technology
Kylemore Abby in Conamara, Ireland.
Ashford castle in Conamara, Ireland.
Summer of 2013 was my first summer in Galway, Ireland. This was an extremely exciting summer. The most memorable thing about this summer was spending the time learning with my father for the first time. Ireland was beautiful and being able to meet new colleagues was a good experience as well. Word press was used as our portfolio.
Summer 2013
Instructors: Alison Keller, Chris Sloan, Dr. Leigh Graves Wolf
Menlo ruins Galway, Ireland
Gaol Bridge Galway, Ireland
One of the first concepts we were introduced to was TPACK (Technology, Pedagogy, Content and Knowledge). One of the tasks that was presented to us was to reimagine a lesson using technology. We were also introduced to ITSE (International Technology Standards in Education) in this class. This class really heled me in defining an educational technologist role.
CEP 810: Teaching for Understanding with Technology​
Wild Irish rose Galway, Ireland
CEP 811: Adapting Innovative Technologies to Education
I really enjoyed this class as we were tasked to form a group with a common interest. We then developed a PLG (Peer Learning Group) that promoted this subject. The group that I was a part of explored different applications on mobile platforms like tablets in education. I created a poster and then we used the poster to promote our interest group within the MAET community.
Schoology Venn Diagram
This class introduced the concept of Wicked problems in education. Wicked problems have so many different aspects to them they are often too vague to solve. As a part of this exercise we explored the concept of having a growth mindset. It was a positive and rewarding experience to be able to know that we have such an impact on our students and just by adjusting our comments and positive outlook at failure we can change a student's life.
CEP 812: Applying Educational Tech to Problems of Practice
Tablet Enhanced Infographic
Summer 2014
This was the second year of the MAET program in Galway, Ireland. It was another beautiful time with picturesque weekend trips and lots of great music and food. Most of the students in the first cohort returned for this year as well including my father. I was really looking forward to this year as I knew that we would be creating a conference and I had lots of experience coodinating and designing conferences in DODEA. It was an enjoyable experience overall and I enjoyed woring with poeple from around the world.
Instructors: Dr. Emily Bouck, Sean Sweeney,
Dr. Leigh Graves Wolf
Shop Street Galway, Ireland
Galway Corrib River Dam Ireland
This class we were tasked to find a technological solution to a common problem of practice. We talked about some problems being inherent to the system and therefore common problems. We then were tasked to choose and create a solution. I focused my attention on teacher professional development. Teachers are constantly innudated with homework, lesson planning, Parent communications, District training, assessments, etc. There is rarely time to do any significant professional development in technology. My solution is a technology called Schoology. It is a learning management system where teachers can learn at their own pace and get masters credit simultaneously.
CEP 800: Learning in School and Other Settings
Technology conference poster
Design Credit: Dan Priest
CEP 815: Technology & Leadership
Technology and Leadership was all about becoming a leader in education by developing a conference for teachers. The conference we developed was called the GREAT 14 (Global Resources in Education and Technology 20014) and it was held at the University of Galway in Ireland. Educators from around the globe participated in the conference. I presented with my colleague Ray Stuckey on finding solutions through technology. I was tasked to promote the conference. People got to present in pairs. Overall the conference was received very well and we were invited to return the next summer to continue the conference again with the next cohort.
Understanding Understanding group project video
CEP 822: Approaches to Ed Research
This was one of the most difficult courses that I took during my graduate studies. We were posed a task to understand how people understand subject matter. As a team we interviewed people on the streets of Galway, Ireland concerning a common misconception. We chose to do our project on maps and the misconception that maps are accurate representations of measurement. There were so many misconceptions about our continents and both cultural and cognitive issues with understanding maps. As a group we tried numerous misconceptions but all our answers and questions seemed vague. It was fun to interview and work in our group to try to tackle this task.
Group project for conference
Sushibots for Board Game
FALL 2015
CEP 818: Creativity in Teaching and Learning
This was a great course. I really enjoyed exploring the idea of creativity in learning. I never put much thought into creativity and how it relates to education but it was refreshing and really helped me in my career. At the very end of the course I finally started relating it to other aspects of my life like home and theater. Only then did I finally make the connection how important creativity is to me everyday and in every compartment of my life.
Instructors: Dr. Punya Mishra, Carmen Richardson, Jonathon A. Good
Educational Technologist Board Game
SPRING 2016
TE 831: Teaching School Subject Matter with Technology​
This course explored the ITSE standards, TPACK, SAMR and using various technologies in the classroom. We were introduced to Vodcasts as a type of flipped learning video lesson. I also got the opportunity to learn more about video making using Adobe Premiere Elements. Finally, I used voicethread to summarize what I learned in the course. It was a great way to summarize my learning with Michigan State.
Instructor: Dr. Douglas Hartman
CEP 807: Capstone Ed Technology
This class had the focus in creating a website that explored the MAET program. This website is the main website. It was neat to be able to build this portfolio with the rest of my colleagues and edit each website to create more engaging works. I will continue to use and develop this website in my future. I hope to use it as my main job and professional online presence.
Instructors: Dr. Matt Koehler, Sarah Keenan, Spencer Greenhalgh
Photo credit on this page: Benjamin Ayres
Project credit: Benjamin Ayres