Reflection

Reflection

            My GAME plan included two goals from the ISTE NET-S. One goal is to create lessons that mirror real world issues. I have several ideas that I think the students will find interesting. I would like to develop a PBL project out of these ideas and cover several standards with one lesson. My second goal, Standard 2, design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments, is to work on creating assessments that match the assignment. I would like to develop rubrics for some of the PBL’s. I look forward to utilizing some of my time off this summer to implement several technology lessons into my current curriculum.

Integrating technology into the classroom curriculum can appear to be just another thing to add to a long list of tasks to be accomplished in the classroom. However, throughout this course I have learned that it is a “tool” not a task. This course has given me many resources that I can use in my classroom. These resources range from discussions about how to integrate a particular technology to names of programs and websites to exemplars that can show me what the end product should look like.

            Prior to taking this course, I had never considered blogs and wikis as “tools” to be utilized in the classroom. Now I see that a class wiki or blog would be something my students would enjoy and it could be a great Segway to interacting with students around the world. Our school is a small rural community school and we have less than one percent cultural diversity. The wiki or blog could open doors to my students about the culture outside their community.

            Digital storytelling is another new tool I learned about in this course and I am anxious to try it with my class this fall. I thought of digital storytelling as a complicated software program that required additional equipment and would be difficult to learn. Again, I found that it is a relatively simple means of displaying student knowledge with equipment we already have in our building. There are several ways a student can present a digital story. Storytelling helps students develop writing, critical thinking, creative, and organizational skills in a fun way.

            As with all of my Walden courses, I have enjoyed the interaction with colleagues. Sharing ideas and offering suggestions is another way to deepen the learning experience. This type of “classroom” inspires me to create a blog or wiki where my students can share ideas and thoughts online. Now is a great time to expose them to the wave of the future. The more time digital natives can spend learning and sharing electronically, the better prepared they will be for their experiences in a post-secondary or work environment.

            I also appreciate the instructors at Walden. They demand excellence from their students but they remain approachable and sensitive to their adult, working students. I am thankful for this type of learning experience. 

PBL's...Changing the way we teach

Throughout my courses at Walden University, I have been challenged to look at my approach to educating my students. I have also become keenly aware of how quickly the landscape of education is changing. I feel as if I am basically starting over. This thought both excites and frightens me.

The fear of change is something everyone faces at some time in their journey. It happens in life as well as in our careers. Most people do not openly embrace change. They resist it because they are fearful of the unknown. But change allows growth and newness to the situation. Let's face it; the face of the average student has changed drastically over the past 10 years. Forget the traditional approach to educating them. They are not interested nor are they challenged by a "boring" textbook and monotone presentation of information by the classroom teacher. Without saying a word, they are begging to be taught in a manner in which they can learn. I often hear "this isn't fun" and I know I am among the majority of classroom teachers when I state this fact. When our students are not having fun, they are not engaging themselves in our classrooms. So, is problem-based learning the key to transforming our learning environments? I think it is a great start.

The GAME plan approach to integrating technology and redesigning our methods of presenting information to students, or leading them to the sources of information necessary for them to learn, is a thoughtful and sound approach. The GAME plan challenges us to look at the technology standards to determine what our students need to be successful once they leave our classrooms. We next look at ways to integrate these necessary technologies into our curriculum while whole-heartedly embracing the new Common Core Standards.  It is a marriage of what they need to know to where and how they find out. Teachers must now move into the role of facilitator rather than director in the classroom. The once believed perfect classroom environment of total quiet is being replaced with face to face interaction with classmates. Students are collaborating with one another in small groups. They ask questions of each other and then try to figure out where to go to get the answer. They agree and disagree on many things which develops their ability to reason and defend what they know and do not know. They are not in their seats, they are on the floor or walking around the room. This is the face of the new classroom.

Embracing change and opening our minds to new methods of accomplishing the same goal is the least we can do for our students. If we are not willing to do this for them, we must be willing to accept that we will harm them more than help them.

WEEK 4

Evaluating my GAME plan…..

          I am pleased with the progress of my GAME plan. Developing a learning project that incorporates technology can appear to be an enormous task. But sometimes the time it takes to complete the project is shortened because of the technology. My biggest concern is that I will not incorporate the appropriate technology for the project. This week’s reading assignment helped me see that I am using technology when I ask my students to type their essays. When I am using the SmartBoard in my classroom to review literary terms, I am using technology. Although I am restricted from using blogs, wikis, podcasts, and digital story telling programs right now, I can still prepare my students for the 21^st century with the tools I have available to me.

     I would like to modify my GAME plan by broadening my goals. ISTE goal number 2c. states, “Teachers will customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources” (ISTE, 2008). This summer I want to develop a method of writing for students who struggle to write a complete sentence. I am going to look into some story starter programs. If anyone has a suggestion, I would appreciate the feedback.

     The administrators in our district are using data to determine instructional needs for individual schools. To incorporate “assessments that align with content and technology standards” our district uses a program called Acuity (ISTE, 2008). Assessment is done completely online and provides data that I can use in my classroom. The program provides students with a pretest and a posttest each quarter and individual test results, class results, and the standards students are not proficient in. With this information, it is clear to see what areas need to be addressed. I plan to find additional software programs that track student progress and present it to our IT Department for approval.

      I think I am ready for THE NEXT STEP in my plan.

References:

ISTE NET-S and Performance Indicators. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Teachers_2008_EN.sflb.ashx

Carrying out my GAME plan.....

My first step in carrying out step 1 of my GAME plan is to develop a set of definitive real world scenarios for my students to work on utilizing technology. Last week, a colleague of mine challenged me with this question and I realized it is important to establish this before moving ahead with an assignment. A real world problem or situation might be to plan a summer vacation which includes a trip to an amusement park. Students would be challenged with the task of comparing and contrasting what each park offers, the cost, distance to travel, and possibly handicap friendly. Another real world situation might be choosing a computer for college. How much memory does it need, what type of software runs on it, does it have a DVD drive and webcam? These are situations that a student could be faced with.

I need to compile a list of information I expect the students to find when assigning this type of project. I also need to provide them with a rubric so they know how their project will be assessed. I need to determine which software program is most effective for this assignment; power point or a simple word document. I would also like to utilize some other programs such as animation and sound for the project. Students will be allowed to complete the same project but with their own unique tools. An additional tool I would like to add is a program that enlarges the print for students with certain learning disabilities as well as those with visual impairment. I need to find out what programs are available.

paper title: Blog Entry 3

paper ID: 187951952

author: Shelburne, Kathryn

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MY GAME PLAN

MY GAME PLAN

Just as our students have learning goals and progress reports, teachers need to have goals that will make them stronger, smarter and better teachers. Professional development, independent learning through college courses, seminars or conferences, and collaboration with colleagues are just a few of the ways we can do that. The International Society for Technology in Education has set forth standards for teachers and standards for students giving both inspiration for setting goals. I have developed a GAME plan to reach my goals for two areas: student learning and designing and developing learning experiences and assessments.

My game plan is ambitious and somewhat out of my comfort zone but it is what I feel I need to do to become a better teacher for our digital natives. I chose ISTE Standard 1 and Standard 2. I do not know that I feel confident in the other standards but I feel compelled to focus on these standards first.

My goal for Standard 1, facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity, is to create lessons that mirror real-world issues. We are reminded that students need to be prepared for real-world issues when they leave our classrooms and it seems logical that students could learn how to do this best by “hands on” experience. I need to effectively guide students as they use technology resources to solve an authentic problem. To reach this goal, I will encourage students to do some of their research at home or at the public library if they do not have internet access at home. Progress will be monitored by observing students as they become better researchers and problem solvers. They will be more confident while working on their own and will need less guidance with each lesson. Students will also become more creative and innovative in their abilities to problem solve. Another goal I have is to prepare a proposal for our IT department on the reasons why our students need less internet restrictions when on the school computers. Teaching students to work creatively using technology and preparing them for their future outside of school requires access to the programs available to help them as well as access to the world outside their community.

My goal for Standard 2, design and develop digital-age learning experiences and assessments, is to continue my classes at Walden University. I have learned a great deal about technology requirements for today’s classroom. Before my classes I thought if students were going to the computer lab once a week, they were getting all the exposure to technology they needed. I was unaware of the many uses for podcasts, digital storytelling, blogging, and wikis. I now think about these tools when considering a lesson but am unable to act upon the lesson ideas because of our restricted access. Again, I will push for these programs to be allowed by presenting the many benefits to our students. My progress will be measured by the results of my push. If I can get access to even one of these programs, I will consider that progress. My learning can be extended by collaborating with colleagues in other districts that have been using these tools and can share lesson ideas I can incorporate into my curriculum. I would also like to become more skilled at using technology to adapt for different learning styles and modalities. I will look into conferences in the area offering classes that could help me. My progress will be measured by the programs I learn to use that will help me develop more diverse lessons.

My hope is to accomplish these goals by the end of the calendar year. Technology quickly changes and I do not believe it is possible to learn it all before it becomes the “new and improved” version. However, developing a strong foundation in technology will make it easier to learn new things when they come along.

New to blogging....

I am new to blogging and am a little nervous about whether I have this down pat or not. I have created my own blog, Teacher Tech, and will be posting to it each week for my graduate course. I hope to get comfortable with blogging so I can use it with my students eventually. Right now our corporation will not allow it. I am concerned the students in our school are going to be behind when it comes to technologies available to them. I hope to make a case for loosening the internet security and allow our students to explore the many possibilities available to enhance their learning experience.

Integrating Technology

Integrating technology into the classroom sounds like a simple task. However, I have found that it takes time and the cooperation and support of administrators. Teachers must be able to present the benefits of podcasts, blogs, wikis, and the many other technology tools available and necessary to our 21st century learners.