Erica Cedillo

Dr. Harrison

EDLD 5303

November 2^, 2025

Investigating the Use of New Technology Tools for College Preparation

As a CCMR Coordinator, I am specifically assigned to assist seniors as they progress toward college, career, and military readiness. In reality, I am constantly looking for ways to increase the accessibility and effectiveness of resources and planning assistance for students. As a continuation of this mission to best assist the seniors at our high school, I personally tried out a variety of digital tools that I had not used before. The goal was to see how they could enhance my workflow and potentially support students in the future. This experience has truly been both rewarding and educational as I continue to grow as a Program Coordinator. Even though I have not had my students use these digital tools yet, experimenting with them has allowed me the perspective of understanding their uses and functionality in a CCMR environment.

The first app I decided to investigate was Wakelet. This app enables me to create collections of resources. In fact, I used the app to create my collection. I gave the collection the title “College Readiness Resources for Seniors” and included links to resources at Texas College Bridge, resources for the TSI test preparation materials, steps to follow when applying for the FAFSA program, and resources that outline scholarships. I sought to set up the resources in the most effective manner. This took some experimenting, once I began to set up the resources and understand how the app worked, everything seemed easier. In the app, I discovered the ability to add images and share a video which enabled me to create a visually appealing resource for students. This app has the benefit of allowing all resources to be centrally located. This would make information more accessible to teachers and students. The possible pitfall of the app consists of organizing as well as maintaining the resources, this takes time and patience. I found the app useful in spreading information among students. I could see using Wakelet to share content with students in a way that encourages independence, as they could explore topics at their own pace. It could also be shared with teachers to coordinate support across classes. Although I haven’t introduced it to students yet, testing Wakelet helped me think about what kinds of resources are most useful and how to organize them clearly. I realized that well designed collections could reduce confusion, save time, and increase student engagement. Overall, Wakelet feels like a practical tool that could enhance how I deliver information in my CCMR role while keeping students motivated to explore resources independently.

The other tool I investigated was ThingLink. This enables the creation of interactive images that have icons the user can click to view video tutorials or explanations. I accessed the program by uploading a photo of a college campus and began adding hotspots to the image that led the viewer to the ApplyTexas website and the FAFSA website, Scholarships, and more. This process proved a little difficult when trying to adjust the layout of the icons so that everything fit together nicely. However, once I began experimenting with positioning the icons and utilizing different colored backgrounds, the experience became more enjoyable. This tool has the ability to add interactivity to images that students can use at their leisure. This could play a significant role in helping students see the activities involved in college preparation in visually appealing ways. On the downside, the creation of interactive images can sometimes become quite frustrating, especially when trying to create multiple images per page. For the purposes of the CCMR project, I believe that the creation of visual “maps” of the activities involved in college preparation and other aspects of the program such as preparation for the TSI test or applying for scholarships could have been useful. While I have yet to present this information to the students, the experimentation process allowed me to see what will most likely grab the students’ attention. This experiment has been important because it has shown me how adding explanations to the previous activities can not only inform students but also protect them from becoming overwhelmed.

For the third tool, I investigated Canva Docs, a function that I had not previously used. For this tool, I chose to build an interactive “Senior College Checklist” that incorporates links to TCB resources, scholarship pages, college fairs, and deadlines. While completing this project, I discovered how to incorporate links and the use of headings, placement, and graphics to create a visually appealing and easy-to-understand document. One advantage is that the finished product looks polished and approachable, which could make students more likely to use it compared to a plain Word document or PDF. A drawback is that it can take some trial and error to get spacing, formatting, and readability just right, especially when the document includes multiple links and graphics. I experimented with using colors and icons to emphasize key steps, which helped me think about how design can influence student engagement.  In my role, Canva Docs could serve as an interactive guide for seniors to track their progress, see deadlines, and access important resources in one place. The setup process gave me ideas about how to simplify complex tasks and present information in a visually appealing way. I also considered how teachers could use it to create consistent guides for multiple classes. Exploring Canva Docs reminded me that presentation matters when trying to motivate students to take action, and even small design elements can make information easier to follow and remember.

The fourth tool I investigated was Notion. While I heard of the tool before, I had not used it. Initially, I felt a little overwhelmed because the app has many templates and functions. After some research, I decided to build a personal dashboard for tracking the completion of TCBs, the submission of scholarships, and senior activities. Gradually, I built tables for tracking student progress, included pages for each campus, and began to experiment with calendars and reminder functions. I found that the app has the ability to function as a hub for the management of both myself and the students. On the positive side, the app has the ability to manage multiple forms of information at one website rather than through the use of spreadsheet programs, documents, and emails. On the negative side, the ability to master the app and create useful databases can sometimes delay the effective implementation of the app. Through experimentation, I recognized the true potential the app has in organizing information and facilitating efficiency in the management of student tracking. While I have not used the app in the context of student management yet, I can already imagine a simplified version in which students log their application status updates, their TSI test schedules, and their visits to each college. This exercise allowed me to re-evaluate the role of structure and versatility in planning both as a personal virtue and to add efficiency in the lives of students.

Finally, I investigated the use of Perplexity AI as a kind of AI-based research assistance. Essentially, I investigated how the AI tool could assist me in researching information and assist students in completing essay or research assignments. To accomplish this goal, I began asking the AI questions about researching scholarship information, information related to FAFSA and ApplyTexas updates. In addition to the above-mentioned activities, I assessed the AI tool’s ability to generate a sample essay outline. As expected, the outline directly presented information clearly. The positive aspect of the AI tool is that the information presented can be trusted and cited very quickly. A disadvantage is that it can oversimplify complex topics or leave out important details, so human judgment is still necessary. I could see myself using it to prepare workshop materials, draft templates, or research guidance for students. For future student use, it could help them brainstorm ideas or access accurate information while teaching them to evaluate and interpret sources responsibly. Working with Perplexity AI showed me how AI can be a practical support tool when used thoughtfully and ethically. This experience reminded me that tools are most effective when they complement, rather than replace, human interaction and mentorship.

Exploring the five digital tools has been an insightful journey that has given me the ability to reflect upon the role that technology can play to not only improve what I do as a CCMR Coordinator but also improve the experiences of students. Each of the above resources has given me the ability to identify their advantages such as organization or interactivity, as well as the potential pitfalls involved in the set-up or complexity. In experimenting with each resource available to me, I began to think critically of how I can apply them as a resource at the students’ personal disposal to empower them to have greater autonomy in tracking milestone steps toward college readiness and accessing resources and information related to college readiness. This experience has made me more thoughtful in applying digital resources to empower students.

References

Canva. (n.d.). Canva Docs: Create beautiful documents online. Canva. https://www.canva.com/docs/

Notion. (n.d.). Notion: All-in-one workspace. Notion. https://www.notion.so/

Perplexity AI. (n.d.). Perplexity AI: Ask questions and get cited answers. https://www.perplexity.ai/

ThingLink. (n.d.). ThingLink: Interactive images and videos for education. ThingLink. https://www.thinglink.com/

Wakelet. (n.d.). Wakelet: Save, organize and share content online. Wakelet. https://wakelet.com/