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
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
Katie, I'm impressed with the progress you have made toward your goals. I am particularly interested in your student-directed learning module. You mentioned that you had located online resources to create it. Will this unit feature parts of both a WebQuest and problem-based learning?
ReplyDeleteWhat are asking your students to include in the digital portfolios? Because it is late in the school year to be showing growth over time, are you simply having them include samples of their best work? Or will you wait until next year to implement it?
Good luck with finals and the remainder of the school year.
Becky
Becky
ReplyDeleteYou are correct in saying that the student-directed learnig module will be designed as a problem-based learning WebQuest. I think it will be agreat way to use technology to build authentic instruction. The portfolios will be implemented next year. Our students are in this class all four years of high school so they will use it over that time span. The current students have been keeping paper portfolios, so next year they can be asked to digitally store items from this year and previous years.
Thanks for your inquiry.