Evaluating my GAME Plan

The final step of a GAME plan is a critical component to determining success and/or possible next steps. To support the development of self-directed learning, it is important to “reflect on how well you have met your goals and determine whether you should modify your strategies for future learning tasks” (Cennamo et al., 2009, p. 3). Prior to setting my goals for my GAME plan, I wanted to increase my effectiveness in communicating important classroom information and fun happenings with my students’ families. Creating a class webpage seemed like a natural first step. With my webpage constructed and ready to be made public, the goal of constructing a webpage is complete; however, future evaluations must be made to determine its effectiveness by asking for parent feedback. This will be a work in progress for quite a while.

My second goal was to become more knowledgeable about interactive whiteboards as I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of mine in November. To better familiarize myself with how to utilize an interactive whiteboard to support student learning, I subscribed to a variety of elementary technology blogs and frequently review their updated posts. Educational technology blogs such as http://ilearntechnology.com/ and http://primarytech.globalteacher.org.au/ have posts that often contain links to engaging activities and descriptions as to how to best integrate these tools into the classroom. Staying up-to-date on these informational blogs helps to maintain my enthusiasm about integrating technology in the classroom and extends my GAME plan for years to come.

Reference:

Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA:Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.



 

To recap my GAME Plan, I have created two goals for myself that are in accordance to the NETS-T standards. To meet the Model Digital-Age Work and Learning standard, I am creating a class website that will increase my ability to communicate relevant information to my students’ families. Concurrently, I am taking steps toward becoming more knowledgeable about Interactive Whiteboards through professional discourse and my own research.

My class website is a work in progress but I am planning on making it available to parents at the end of the week. Having looked at other teacher’s websites, I had a good idea as to what components I wanted to included on mine; however, I look forward to gaining the parents’ insight into its effectiveness in communicating classroom information. In conjunction with the website (which is actually a wiki), I have an attached blog where I plan to include updates about the classroom happenings. While the wiki will be more informational, I hope that the blog will provide the families with a better understanding of what is actually happening within the four walls of our classroom through pictures and conversational text.
This week, I met with the school technology committee to discuss the upcoming installation of our Promethean Boards. With deadlines in place, it is all the more critical to have a tentative plan as to how I would like to integrate this piece of technology into my already functioning without Kindergarten classroom. Fortunately, one visit to Promethean Planet is all it takes to provide me with plenty of ideas, as it contains numerous flip charts that are relevant and applicable in meeting the standards in our core curriculum.

This week’s learning resources has left me thinking more about using technology as assessment tools and assessments in general. Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer (2009) emphasize the importance of jointly planning lessons and assessments. They also remind educators to only use technology as an assessment tool when it facilitates learning, and is “not simply a novelty” (p. 146). I think this is an important idea to reflect upon. As new technology infiltrates our classrooms (some more quickly than others), much thought must be given to how it should be best incorporated to ensure that teachers are still using best practices as instructional strategies. Technology such as wireless responders fulfills these guidelines as they allow teachers to receive immediate feedback about specific concepts assessed through a forced-choice assessment. Students, in turn, also benefit as they receive the same feedback in an engaging manner. I look forward to having access to this tool in the near future.

Reference:
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning

GAME Plan Revisited

My GAME plan already needs to be tweaked. I decided that I would like to create another goal that is more measurable and will have an immediate impact on how I communicate with parents. This year, I plan to create a class website that will contain all important information pertaining to my class. Although I know that this is a large undertaking, I feel that it is critical to finding my place in a family’s busy lifestyle.

My district recommends teachers to create their websites in the form of a wiki. Although I am relatively familiar with how to create a wiki, I have located a how-to guide to assist me with the basics. I also have referred to many other teacher websites, noting the most commonly included information. Examining other websites provided me with greater clarification as to the direction in which I should be taking with my own website.

My other goal outlined in my GAME plan is to become more knowledgeable about my future Interactive Whiteboard. Although I will be receiving district training about how to use the equipment, I want to have a better idea as to how to incorporate it into my Kindergarten classroom. I have already subscribed to several technology blogs that provide Interactive Whiteboard ideas. Sifting through activities found on www.ilearntechnology.com and http://primarytech.globalteacher.org.au/ has allowed me to determine which activities are aligned with my curriculum. Dr. John Ross reminds teachers that sometimes you have to “train yourself to go out and find information” (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010). Fortunately in this day in age, a simple Google search can get you headed in the right direction – well, most of the time that is.

Reference:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010). Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author.

Developing my Personal GAME Plan

My students deserve a teacher who has a desire to be a continual learner. The GAME plan as outlined by Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer (2009) provides easy steps for self-directed learning. After reviewing the NETS-T standards, I feel that focusing on two areas will directly influence my effectiveness as a teacher and a proponent of technology integration in the classroom.

Set Goals:
My goals fall under the Model Digital-Age Work and Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership categories. My first goal is to become more knowledgeable about my soon to come Interactive Whiteboard and how to effectively integrate it into my Kindergarten classroom. My second goal is to become an active member of the school technology committee to ensure that technology integration in the classroom is being recognized as an issue of importance.

Take Action to meet those goals:
To become more knowledgeable about my Interactive Whiteboard, I plan to attend any offered trainings and communicate with those that have already successfully integrated its use in their classroom via educator technology forums and online discussions. There are also many websites available that have Interactive Whiteboard resources. Frequently reviewing websites such as www.ilearntechnology.com will ensure that my newfound practices never become mundane. Becoming a member of the school technology committee is the first step to achieving my second goal. Since the committee sets goals for itself, I plan to actively participate in helping the technology committee achieve such goals.

Monitor progress toward achieving goal:
I plan on keeping a journal to document the outcome of various lessons involving the Interactive Whiteboard. What went well? What should I change? Were the students engaged? Was it an effective use of technology? Answering these questions will better prepare me for discussions with my colleagues about technology integration and how to best use an Interactive Whiteboard. Monitoring my progress for my second goal may prove to be more difficult; however, if I can expand the conversations about technology to include how to use technology to inform instruction and engage students in learning then I feel that I will be making progress in achieving my goal.

Evaluate whether the goals were achieved:
Achieving my first goal will undoubtedly take years as it requires much trial and error; however, I will feel satisfied when I can foresee the success of a future lesson involving my Interactive Whiteboard. Only then will I know that I am on the path to truly utilizing this technology tool to promote student learning and engagement. Achieving my second goal can be determined by what goals the school technology committee chooses to create for the following school year. These goals should contain a focus of technology integration in the classroom if I truly was an active participant in discussions with my colleagues.

Self-directed learning is not only meaningful but it is also critical to being an effective teacher. “As a self-directed lifelong learner, you’ll be able to respond to the rapid and continuous technological changes that inevitably will occur during your professional career, keep your skills up-to-date, and better meet the needs of your students today and in the future” (Cennamo et al., 2009, p. )

References:
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) and Performance Indicators for Teachers. Retrieved September 14, 2010, from http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf

Reflection

The Internet does not leave today’s students awestruck because of its many capacities; it is simply an everyday tool. Many teachers recall referring to hardcover encyclopedias and maybe even, an informative computer program to locate information about particular topics. Not surprisingly, these are things of the past. Just as we were taught to locate information in an encyclopedia, today’s students must be taught how to use the Internet effectively as a learning tool. Throughout the past few weeks, I have gained a greater understanding of how many new literacy skills must be taught in order for students to become proficient in the 21st century. Simply put, the definition of “literate” has definitely changed.

The new literacy skills include: questioning, searching, evaluating, synthesizing, and communicating. Prior to this course, I simply went through the motions of using these skills in my everyday life and never put much thought into the importance of the skills. Although many of these skills were self-taught, today’s students need explicit modeling and guided practice beginning at the early stages of their schooling careers because they will be required to develop and use these new literacy skills in order to be considered literate in the 21st century.

One goal that I am creating for myself is to utilize more collaborative learning, especially with others outside of our school and classroom. Will Richardson states that it is important for our classrooms to have “thin walls” when teaching our students the new literacies. “If we sincerely want to prepare students to read, write, and edit their way through complex online networks, we need to make these literacies part of the way we do business as educators/learners” (Richardson, 2009, p. 31). To support this thinking, I plan to set up a collaborative project with one of my good friends who teaches Third Grade at another school. Every year, my Kindergarten class creates a fairytale during our fairytale unit and this year, I think it would be fun to create a digital fairytale between the two classes. This project would promote imagination and collaboration amongst the students in my classroom and it would provide a framework that allows for creativity in a timeframe that is appropriate for my students’ attention span. Such a project will not only teach my students valuable collaboration and new literacy skills, but they will also have a product that the students will be proud of.

Reference:
Richardson, W. (2009, March). Becoming network-wise. Educational Leadership, 66(6), 26–31.

Reflection

Reflecting upon learning theories give educators a foundation from which to build their own learning theories. Although all learning theories have their place in the classroom in some form, I still believe that constructionism outlines how most students learn and construct meaning. Important brain research proves that “[t]he brain is sculpted through experience” (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009), reinforcing the idea that no two students are exactly the same. According to Han and Bhattacharya, constructionists maintain “that new ideas are most likely to be created when learners are actively engaged in building some type of external artifact that they can reflect upon and share with others” (Orey, 2001, p. 4). Instead of simply assessing student knowledge through the use of standard assessments, learned concepts can be demonstrated by creating an artifact through the use of PowerPoint, VoiceThread, wikis, blogs, and any other application that encourages student creativity.

Based on my learning throughout this course, an immediate adjustment that I will make to my instructional practice is to utilize a portion of our time in the computer lab as a time where the students are reviewing previously introduced literacy and math concepts. “Practicing with multimedia allows students to shape the experience to their individual learning styles and increase their level of understanding to mastery” (Pitler et al., 2007, p. 192). Allowing the students to practice these concepts through the use of multimedia will increase engagement and will give me another method in which to assess the students’ level of knowledge regarding specific concepts.

One technology tool that I intend to utilize in my classroom is VoiceThread. Allowing students to utilize VoiceThread to demonstrate their understanding of a concept or share their ideas provides students with the opportunity to create an artifact. This form of constructionism is beneficial in promoting meaningful learning through experience. Adding a social component through student comments enhances student learning as maintained by social learning theories. According to Beaumie Kim, “[m]eaningful learning occurs when individuals are engaged in social activities” (Orey, 2001, p. 3).

Through the use of Kidspiration, a concept mapping tool, students can learn how to identify similarities and differences. “Use of graphic organizers helps students visually portray connections and experience new and deeper insights about the content” (Pitler et al., 2007, p. 179). By using this technology tool to create concept maps, my students can easily include graphics and text to increase meaning to support Paivo’s Dual Coding Hypothesis which states that information is stored as images and text (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009).

As I become more knowledgeable about how to best incorporate technology into my current practices, it is important to set and outline personal goals. To increase student engagement, I plan to make a more conscious effort to incorporate technology more as a learning tool instead of simply an instructional tool. Due to the fact that our SmartBoard is a new addition to our classroom, I feel that I have not familiarized myself enough with it yet to fully allow my students to use it mostly as a learning tool. As I explore its applications more fully, I intend to explicitly model how to properly use the SmartBoard so my students will have a clear understanding of how they are to use this tool to enhance their learning. Through the use of an interactive whiteboard, my students will be encouraged to be active learners by collaboratively reviewing concepts in an engaging manner.

Next year, I also plan on developing at least one activity per term that introduces my students to a new learning tool and allows them to use this technology to demonstrate their understanding of a concept. Now that I am aware of a variety of technology tools that can be used to encourage active learning, I plan on reviewing my curriculum map and identifying which concepts would lend themselves nicely to incorporating learning tools such as VoiceThread, PowerPoint, and concept maps. By identifying these areas prior to the conclusion of the school year, I will increase the likelihood that I will in fact utilize these tools when they prove to be most relevant and beneficial to enhancing student learning.

I believe that learning is doing. Every year, my students and I share the role of learners in my classroom as I continually adapt my teaching practices to best meet my students’ needs. I look forward to next year when I can begin the school year with my newfound knowledge pertaining to technology integration in the classroom.

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Program 2. Brain Research and Learning. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Program 5. Cognitive Learning Theories.[Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

Orey, M.(Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

VoiceThread regarding Interactive Whiteboards

In this VoiceThread, I am seeking the advice of my colleagues as to how I should begin utilizing an interactive whiteboard in my Kindergarten classroom.

http://voicethread.com/share/1040725/