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=__Concordia University Wisconsin__= Education Design and Technology Graduate Program Portfolio Sarah Bauhs 2010-2012

=**My Personal Profile**= Welcome to my digital portfolio! My name is Sarah Bauhs, and I am pursuing a Master of Arts in Educational Design and Technology at Concordia University Wisconsin. This is a collection of my work that represents my proficiencies within the six CUW program goals.

I realized my passion for education when I began working as a community living specialist for Lutheran Social Services. My primary objective was to equip women with cognitive disabilities with the ability to independently complete daily living tasks. It was at this time that I first had experience with differentiating instruction, because I quickly realized that each client had individual learning needs, and that if I could modify my instruction to utilize their strengths, their level of understanding would increase tremendously. Also, it was at this time that I saw the benefits of using assistive devices to differentiate learning and communication, which sparked my interest in the field of technology. Working with these wonderful women showed me that everyone has the capacity to learn, no matter what their cognitive, social, or emotional abilities may be, and that the quality and quantity of learning can be increased with the use of technology.

Currently, I am an 8th grade science teacher a West Milwaukee Intermediate School (WMIS) in West Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Shortly after I began working for the district, there was a push from administration for teachers to begin integrating more technology into their daily lessons. Due to my little knowledge about available technologies and lack of confidence in using them, I made the decision to continue my education within the field of educational technology. In hindsight, this was one of the best choices that I could make. At the start of the 2012-13 school year, the district kicked off a "Bring Your Own Device" technology initiative, where students can use any mobile device that they own to enhance the learning process. Also, as a part of this initiative, I will be receiving a classroom set of iPads at some point during the school year, as I have been named my school's Next Generation Learning Community science teacher.

Since I began the Educational Technology and Design program at Concordia, my comfort level with technology hardware and software has grown immensely. I am proud to say that, since then, I have been identified as a leader in the field within my school, and have been called upon to perform a number of services in that area. The director of teaching and learning in my district appointed me to help create an inquiry-based hybrid course for 8th grade students, where a face-to-face learning environment would be combined with Moodle, an online learning platform. When it was implemented in the 2011-12 school year, it was the first class of its kind in our district, and due to its success, many more courses are currently moving to a similar design. I have also presented at district inservices about topics such as engaging digital natives, use of classroom blogs, collaboration using online platforms, and the use of images to promote critical thinking. Today, I rely upon online collaborative technologies, such as Google Drive, for management purposes as I work in my new, additional role as dean of students for behavioral interventions.

Ever since I began learning about teaching pedagogies in science, I have done extensive research on inquiry-based learning. When students are participating in inquiry experiments in the classroom, it can become costly and difficult to equip students with the individual tools that they may need. Then, the question becomes, how does one effectively and efficiently nurture inquiry attitudes or habits of mind and help develop the inquiry skills that will help students to continue their quest for knowledge beyond the classroom? The simple answer is: with the use of technology. The Internet is an amazing resource of information and activities that can be used to promote inquiry-based learning. One of my most important future aspirations is to create an inquiry-based science course in which the Internet and other digital tools are the primary learning tools. With iPads being purchased for my class in a few short months, this aspiration can now become a reality.

Through my training within Concordia University’s Educational Design and Technology program, I believe that I have developed the skills necessary to meet the six program goals. Most importantly though, I feel that I have also become critically conscious of the technologies available and their capabilities, and will always consider how they will enhance student learning and the content objectives before implementing them into the curriculum. I feel that the Educational Technology and Design program and CUW has presented me with many new opportunities within the field of education beyond the classroom. Therefore, if I ever decide that I need a change from being a classroom teacher, I would be prepared to do something in an administrative role. Other than creating an inquiry-based science course, my other future aspiration is to be a full time dean of students. In this role, my job would be two-fold, as I would be dealing with student discipline as well as instruction. In the area of student discipline, I would be teaching appropriate behaviors as preventative measures, managing school-wide consequences, and tracking data about student progress in this area. In the area of instruction, I would be training teachers in a variety of skills, one major one being the use of technology within the classroom and the profession in general. I think that a dean of students position will utilize all of the skills that I learned in my graduate program at CUW, especially since it requires proficiency within instructional design, use of various digital tools, collaboration, leading professional development, and knowledge and application of research findings and recent trends in education.

Concordia University Wisconsin, Mequon, WI September 2010 – December 2012 Master of Arts in Educational Design and Technology GPA: 4.0
 * Education **

Alverno College, Milwaukee, WI August 2004 – May 2008 Bachelor of Science in Education- Grades 1-8 Support in Broadfield Science GPA: Ability Validation grading system used at Alverno College; performance translated to a 4.0 on transcripts; graduated with honors

West Milwaukee Intermediate School, West Milwaukee, WI August 2008 - Current // 2008 - 2009: 7th grade language arts, reading, and social studies teacher // // 2009 - June 2012: 8th grade science teacher // //August 2012- Current: 8th grade science teacher, Dean of students//
 * Work Experience **
 * Implemented learning experiences such as webquests, virtual field trips, simulations, and other technology-based activities
 * Lead inservice presentations about classroom blogs, use of collaborative online platforms, and the use of images to promote critical thinking
 * Helped to design an inquiry-based hybrid learning course using the Moodle online learning platform
 * Use online collaboration platforms to fulfill Dean of Students Behavioral Intervention role

Lutheran Social Services of WI and Upper MI, Milwaukee, WI July 2004 – May 2007 Community Living Specialist
 * Used assistive technologies with clients for learning and communication purposes

=**CUW Program Goals**= Goal 1 - Facilitate and inspire learning and creativity using existing and emerging technologies Goal 2 - Design and develop effective and engaging learning experiences, environments, resources, and assessments Goal 3 - Model digital- age work, research, collaboration and learning Goal 4 - Promote and model digital citizenship and Christian discipleship within the context of the digital age Goal 5 - Conduct research and promote provide research and data-driven decisions about technology- enhanced teaching and learning Goal 6 - Engage in ongoing professional growth and leadership