A Reflection of Learning

As a teacher of the 21st century, it has become a reality that educators are not dispensers of all knowledge. Instead, we have taken on a new responsibility to provide students with the skills to access the limitless supply of knowledge and strategies to stay current with ever-developing technology. By following a strategic plan, known as the GAME plan, the opportunities to teach these essential skills, along with content knowledge, can be realized. The four steps include setting goals, taking actions, monitoring the success of those actions, and evaluating the outcome. In addition, these four steps can be taught to and followed by students as they prepare to be competitive in this dynamic workforce and society.

At the onset of the course entitled Integrating Technology across the Content Area through Walden University, my initial GAME plan was based on ideas I had as I was nearing the end of a school year and preparing for the next. Instead of completing the goals and moving on from the coursework, what I soon discovered is the GAME plan format is actually a continuous cycle that can be used for every aspect of my instructional practice. In other words, educators are lifelong learners; as professional developments ensues, the GAME plan can be used.

For this reason, as I come to the end of a course, I have reached new beginnings for my instructional practice. Technology has always played a role in my curriculum, instruction, and assessment because, “Technology provides the means to situate learning within real contexts, and to provide students with the whole picture of an event or process, while still allowing them to focus on the relevant parts” (Cennamo, Ross & Ertmer, 2009, p.34). But what I did not realize was the lack of teaching about the 21st skills students were learning in the process. With my initial GAME complete, I now have an extensive list of goals to begin taking the actions to complete. So far, I have made a list of technological tools and applications mentioned throughout the last eight weeks. A few at a time, I plan to investigate each and create GAME plans for those that would benefit t he students of my classroom. As each are introduced to students during the next school year, they too will be asked to complete the four steps to make them part of their 21st century toolbox.

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.

Teachers & Students Reaching Goals Together

When comparing the National Education Standards for Students (NETS-S) and the National Education Standards for Teachers (NET-T), according to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), the connection is simple. The NETS-S outline the skills students of the 21st century should develop to become digital citizens and competitive members of society and the workforce. The NET-T directly aligns with the student standards, providing ways for the teachers to ensure the students reach these outcomes.

As a teacher, it will be important to not only incorporate these standards throughout the curriculum, but to raise student awareness and assist them in setting personal goals to reach them. Just as it is important to identify content standards and objectives when teaching a lesson, students should be aware of essential skills they will be developing in the process.

At the beginning of the school year, it would be helpful to survey the students, asking them to identify their believed strengths and weaknesses according to the standards. Based on the noted weaknesses, students can build goals for the school year, and together, teacher and students can plan actions to reach the goals. Throughout the year, a class blog can be used to continuously monitor and evaluate the progress being made. As students build and execute their GAME plans, both teacher and student standards will be met.

Revision Where Needed

Professional development and learning are a constant. Lifelong learner is an adjective true to the educator devoted to providing the best education they can and preparing students for success in society and the workforce. I have come to the realization that the GAME plan is the best way to put this learning in motion and ensure success. I have learned that it is not only valuable to use the steps outlined in this plan of action as a professional, but to teach students the importance of using them as well. I have officially completed the goal to locate and create an implementation plan for a digital portfolio for select students in the upcoming school year, as well as finding resources and publishing space for an online student-directed learning module. For now, the remaining actions are on hold until the beginning of the next school year, freeing up some time to set new goals and begin taking actions to reach them.

Based on this week’s learning resources, I have discovered a number of online collaboration and social networking tools that I would like to investigate and hopefully implement. By doing this, I will be fulfilling Standard 1: Facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity, based on those outlined by NETS-T. It will address all four benchmarks, specifically those based on the model and support of collaborative tools.

This time, as I plan my GAME plan, I would like to set goals and establish actions that can be reached in a short time frame. The previous GAME plan outlined goals that I will not be able to fully reach until next year, which is fine, but I do not want to create too many in this fashion in fear that they will never be accomplished. I am excited for the time summer will provide, as I learn more about all of the wonderful technological tools available online.

The GAME Plan: A Continuous Cycle

Five weeks into my GAME plan, I am making more progress than I thought I would despite the time of the year, as classes are coming to a close and I am busy preparing finals. By taking the actions outlined in my GAME plan, I was able to completely meet one of my goals, while making significant progress on the other. The goal I completed included the locating and implementation of a digital portfolio to be used by students of the St. Johns County of Future Teachers. Surprisingly, I was able to locate a free digital portfolio through the Florida Department of Education, get it approved by administration, and begin training both myself and colleagues who will be responsible for implementation. My second goal, which was to create and publish a student-directed learning module is also underway. I have located online sources to create it and have learned how to publish it using our school website, linked to a class webpage. The only reason why I have not completed this goal is because I have yet to receive my teaching assignment for next year and do not want to create the module for a topic I will not be teaching. For now, I will adjust my plan to continue researching additional ways to implement technology into the social studies content area.

By first laying out a plan before jumping into the actions, I have realized that the four steps of a GAME plan are essential to ensuring success in reaching goals. Not only will I continue to use this design for future professional development, but will teach students the importance of setting goals, taking actions, monitoring the actions, and evaluating the results. One way I plan to teach this method is through problem-based learning. By posing authentic real-world problems, students can follow these steps to ensure the question is being answered. As students grapple with the process, I am sure we will continue learning together the best way to incorporate the GAME plan into the classroom setting. Question I have for this application include: Will they be asked to complete a template outlining their plan? Will they post it on a blog and discuss their plans and progress with other students? How can I get them to realize that this is a process to be used in life and not just a class requirement? I guess it looks like I just created a new goal for myself!

Katie

How am I doing so far?

As time progresses, so too do the actions being taken to reach the goals outlined in my GAME plan. The most progress has been made toward my goal of identifying and obtaining access to an online portfolio to be used by the students of the St. Johns Academy of Future Teachers. I have identified several options but decided to use the Bridges portfolio provided by the Florida Department of Education. Since the site is free to access and use, I began by exploring the site under an example account name, discovering its various features and deciding which would best support the students. As this exploration continues to take place this upcoming week, I am positive new questions will arise addresses specific program applications. As decisions are made based on how to implement the portfolio into the program, I will have to meet with the academy cohort of teachers, along with the career specialist, to not only provide training but receive their feedback and input. Because several teachers will be requiring the students to use the portfolios, an additional action has been added to the plan. Several meetings will need to take place in order to discuss the overall requirements that will be made, how the students will be assessed, and a timeline for posting the outlined requirements.

Actions to reach my second goal, which is to create a student-directed learning module for a World History unit, have also been made, although with not as great of strides as the first. So far, I have identified the unit for which I would like to design the module, as I believe the learning objectives match this type of activity (Laureate Education, 2009). The unit is entitled Encounter and Exchange, as students are asked to develop an understanding of the purpose of European exploration starting in the 15th century and how it has led to the exchanges being made and the blending of cultures of the present times. In making this decision, I have also located several webquests posted on the Internet, providing examples of how to design and implement this learning module. Some of these examples are: Example 1, Example 2. My next step includes beginning to design the module specific to my class needs and experiment with ways to publish it using my class website on the district server. Again, as these future actions are taken, additional questions will need to be answers pertaining to specific technology and software being used. So, how am I doing so far?

Reference

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Assessing student learning with technology. Integrating technology across the content areas. Baltimore: Author

The "A" in GAME

In the design of a GAME plan, preliminary actions must be made in order to begin reaching the intended goals. These initial actions include the locating and gathering of resources, along with the building of background information.

To reach the first goal of my GAME plan, which is to develop a self-directed learning module for students, I will need to access a variety of resources for guidance. My first step will be to select a unit around which to base the module. Next, I will need to access example Webquests, or a module of similar design, already posted on the Internet related to the selected content. After gathering ideas and designing a module customized for my students, I will need a place for publishing that is accessible to students. I already have a class webpage connected our district server, and would like students to access the Webquest through the class homepage. I may need to contact a technology specialist at the school to inquire about how to correctly create the necessary links and on designing a user-friendly homepage.

The second goal, which is to locate and provide students access to a digital portfolio, will also require me to locate several resources. I already began accomplishing this goal by contacting a school business partner at the University of North Florida. As a professor in the Education Department, this contact was able to provide an example of the online portfolio required upon graduation for the Education students. I also contacted the Career Coordinator for our district, asking for suggestions and possible funding sources. She provided with me to a link to a free online portfolio through the Florida Department of Education website. From here, I will need to make the decision on which one to use, based on the needs of my students and user-friendly functions. My next step will then be to sign up for an account and create an example portfolio, familiarizing myself with the technology. I will also have to provide training to the other teachers of the career academy for which I plan to incorporate its use before the beginning of next school year when students will be asked to begin portfolio creation.

While planning for the actions that need to be taken, I have come to the realization of why a structured plan, such as the GAME plan, is necessary to reach these profession development goals. As the first actions are taken, additional ones are needed, and I am sure more are to come as new discoveries and questions arise. This will all be determined by ongoing monitoring of the actions, becoming the next step of my GAME plan.

Do as I do

As an educator, it is important to approach professional development and other learning opportunities using the same process we expect of our students. One such method is through the use of the GAME plan. An acronym for setting goals, taking action, monitor progress, and evaluate the results, “The GAME plan enables you to customize your approach to learning tasks, to develop relevant skills that are important to you, and prepares you for lifelong learning” (Cennamo, Ross & Ertmer, 2009, p.4).

I was surprised to learn upon taking a teaching job in Florida, that few skills were written into many of the content area standards and were completely void of technology integration. For this reason, I have found it helpful to look at national standards, such as those posted by the International Society for Technology in Education. Using these standards and indicators, I have identified several that I personally need to strengthen in order to grow in my profession. Using the GAME plan, I have set the goal to focus on two of the indicators to start and will develop the appropriate actions needed to meet these goals, while monitoring and evaluate my progress.

The first indicator I selected reads: “Develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress.” To meet this indicator, I would like to take a unit of the World History content required by Florida Sunshine State Standards and design a technology driven, self-directed learning module for students. Taking the form of a Webquest, students would be required to conduct research using specified sources, with the ability to choose a specific focus based on personal interests. There would be several “checkpoints” throughout the assignment, allowing me to assist them in monitoring their work. The assessment would also be based on student-choice, allowing them to demonstrate their learning through a preferred method. I also believe reflection would become an important part of this process, as continuous evaluation is the key to determining whether or not the goals were met (Cennamo, Ross & Ertmer, 2009). This assignment also takes the form of the GAME plan, allowing student success to become a way to monitor and evaluate my own. Continuous dialogue with the students will be important, as well a communication with colleagues who use similar instructional methods.

The second identified indicator reads: “Collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation.” As a cohort teacher for the St. Johns Academy of Future Teachers, I require students to build a portfolio, exhibiting their growth and talent, just as future teachers are expected to on the college level. At this point, they are three-ring binder portfolios, appearing to be rather old-fashioned and unprofessional. I have set the goal to locate an online portfolio, accessible and affordable for my students. Not only will I have to do research of my own, but will have to meet with administration and colleagues to decide on which one to use. Before the students begin using the portfolios, I will have to become familiar with the program, building confidence to better assist their learning needs. As students begin using the online portfolios, I will continuously ask for feedback, learning what I need to about the program and making sure they are successful in posting their work. After using the online portfolios for a period I time, I will evaluate the progress by comparing them to the hard-back versions used currently and survey the students about the changes that have been made.

As I build my GAME plan to address the indicators in which I personally would like to improve, I find myself wanting the students to follow the same steps. I now realize that it is because these are skills students will need in order to succeed in the 21st century, no matter what career path they choose. Simply stated, we must believe in what we teach and practice the skills we want our students to develop.

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.

National Education Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) located at http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf.