As I come closer to ending my online master’s program I have to admit I feel relieved. I would be lying if I were to say that I was not beyond happy to be finished papers and endless readings.  I am ready for the next couple of years to enjoy my Sundays and not be worrying about midnight deadlines, word counts and paper length.   What I do know is that as far as my formal education is concerned this is probably just a break for me.  I plan on one day moving to the administrative side of education, which means more classes, more deadlines, and more readings, less Sundays to enjoy.   I also know that as an educator, I will never really be done being a student either.  In my future I see an endless array of PD days, SIOP and Reading Apprentice meetings, staff meetings and Late Start workshops. 
 

               Entering the program I was very unsure of what to expect.  When I began was unsure about the whole “online” concept. I had never had an online class during my undergrad days.  I use to think that I would learn more and enjoy the experience more if I went to an actual physical classroom with actual other students and an actual physical professor.  Boy, did I end up being wrong.  I now love the online classroom.  As a teacher and a coach, I already do not have to that much available time.  With the online classes I can pick and choose the times that work for my life and my schedule to attend class.  Another aspect of online structure that worried me at first was that many of the classes were self-paced, or semi-self-paced.  I’ll be honest I used to be a serial procrastinator; I was a pro at starting and finishing papers at the last possible second.  I became dependent on the deadline adrenaline rush to get me to write my papers.  Maybe I’m getting old, or that I now have more than enough stress in my life but I have changed as a student.  I like to think that the online format helped me; it forced me to prioritize my life and to make time prior to the due date to finish my work.   I was able to find alone time and really get into my readings.  In addition, I felt as though I became closer to my colleagues. We were sharing ideas and responding to one another in ways. 
           

               Another valuable tool that the online master’s program taught me was the vast wealth of new technologies and ways of learning.  I am almost positive that I will be the first teacher in my building who has gotten their master’s degree online, granted I am also one of the youngest teachers in my building.  Our building is one of the more lucky buildings in our district when it comes to technology. Our old principal is now the district technology coordinator. What I hope to do is to introduce my colleagues to some of the new and neat technology that I have been introduced to.   Opening their eyes to new things will only allow them different means to educate.   I know that I cannot control a lot of what takes place in other classrooms of my building or at the homes of my students. What I do know is that I have control over what is taking place within my classroom walls.  What I plan to do is to integrate many of the new technology into my classroom.  
While one day in the future I see myself going back to continue my formal education, with either a second masters or a doctorate, but it will be the continuing of my informal education in the use of technology that will define my teaching career for the next five to ten years.  With the advancements in technology over the past 15 years it is anyone guess where we will be in the future.  I would expect that I will have to take the occasional class or professional develop, but what I see as the most important way to stay relevant in the technology age is to understand that it is a constantly evolving landscape.  To stay as up to date as possible takes working with and becoming not only acquainted with the new forms but to understand them and be able to use them and the only way to do that is to use the technology.  As a responsible educator it will be my job to make sure that I understand how to use and implement those new resources into my classroom.