My GAME plan continued......

Quite honestly, I have had a difficult time this week with some aspects of my game plan. My week has been extremely unusual, but I am sure you don’t want to hear about my woes. So I am going to jump right into what has been going on as far as my GAME plan is concerned.

Information/Resources – Due to lack of time to research, finding videos to use in the classroom has been put on the back burner. I have concentrated on using real-world examples in the classroom. We have been dealing with scatter plots and linear regression equations. These activities have been plentiful and somewhat relevant to my students. We have enjoyed conversations and activities about minimum wage, humpback whales and the growing population in our county.

However, I am still looking for some videos and more interactive activities for my students. As far as projects are concerned, I am trying to fine tune a house construction project to use with my students.

Modifying my action plan – One thing I am going to add to my action plan is to utilize the computer labs as often as possible to help students prepare for the state-mandated End of Course Exams. Our district uses USA Test Prep for students to use. Some of my students do not have internet access at home which has made it difficult for them to practice. To give all students the opportunity, I will reserve the computer lab whenever it is available and whenever it will work into our schedule.

This week it has been particularly difficult to update my site. I realize the need to keep information current so it will be beneficial to students and parents. My goal is to be more diligent about this part of my plan. Our school is in the process of changing our computer system which has made it difficult to keep grades updated. I have decided to use my old grading system until the change so my students can view their grades online.

What I have learned so far? Carrying out my GAME plan is not going as smoothly as I would have originally hoped. I realize that some of my efforts may take a while to develop, and I need to be patient with myself. Although I would like for everything to fall into place with ease, research, development and modification are going to be the keys to success.

New Questions: One of my main questions deals with the timeline I have set for myself. For some reason I thought I could get things up and running for this semester….lofty goals for myself. I need to concentrate on the things I can accomplish, the website is a good start, but which elements are most important for me to focus on?

How can I truly use real-world situations when I start factoring with my lower level students? How can I make some of the concepts we cover important/relevant to them?

Carrying out my GAME plan.....

Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer (2009) discuss is how a lesson may work for one group of students and not another. They stress the importance of monitoring the effectiveness of lessons and how technology can help the teacher organize, collect data, change and improve plans. Developing a GAME plan and following up on our progress and ideas seems like an effective method of improving our teaching skills through thought and reflection.

Resources/Additional Information –

In order to find real life scenarios, I realize I am going to have to take the time to do some research. There are a couple of sites that have videos that have been helpful (such as http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/). Virtual field trips about careers and other math related topics could be another resource to develop.

Colleagues with good ideas have been a resource that I have used for years. Most educators love to share when they find good ideas. Promethean Planet is another resource I have found myself using to assist with lesson plans and ideas. In order to create some project-based assignments I am trying to get some teachers together to work on this idea. Sometimes it is hard to get others onboard!

As far as a website is concerned, I ask a few teachers what they use. Some of them used the website creator used by the school (Oncourse), some make their own, while others use TeacherWeb.


Steps Taken –

To create a website I choose to use TeacherWeb, although there is a yearly charge I found that this is the best option for me at this time. It is a user friendly site with many options to get one started. The link to my site is http://www.teacherweb.com/SC/GreenwoodHighSchool/LeilaniReid/h0.aspx
I hope to keep it updated regularly and possibly create an ‘original’ one in the future.

I have been in my new room for 2 days and have used the Promethean Board for each class. Although I am really a novice at this I am hoping to become more comfortable with the technology and use it to further engage students. I am looking for ideas to use the board more interactively with students, suggestions anyone??

Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

The GAME Plan

I believe as teachers we are always trying to improve our strategies to encourage learning and success in the classroom. The GAME plan as outlined by Cennamo (Laureate Education, Inc. 2009) is probably something we all do. However, we may never actually write it down. Putting something into writing often makes us consider what we are doing more often. So here we go….A couple of GAME plans to increase my technological awareness and activities in the classroom.

The two NETS-T indicators I choose to make a GAME plan for are 1) Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity and 2) Model Digital-Age Work and Learning

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity GAME plan

Goals:
· Explore more real-world issues and careers involving mathematics.
· Allow students to work independently as well as collaboratively on project-based assignments.
· Encourage student creativity and originality when researching and presenting information.

Actions:
· Use more videos to depict how mathematics is used in real-life situations.
· Use Promethean Planet activities to engage student learning.
· Create and use more relative PowerPoint presentations to engage students in classroom instruction.
· Create more project-based learning assignments for students.

Monitor:
· Observe the level of engagement of students. Are they actively involved in the videos? Do they participate in the activities provided?
· Evaluate the projects. Are students using the technological skills as well as mathematical ability to complete projects? Do the students seem to be more interested using this type of learning?

Evaluate:
· Have other teachers review PowerPoint presentations and activities.
· Have students complete and evaluation of presentations, videos and activities.

Model Digital-Age Work and Learning GAME Plan

Goals:
· Maintain a webpage for students and parents to use throughout their class.
· Communicate with parents and students through technology sources.

Actions:
· Use webpage to communicate important dates and assignments to parents and students.
· Use webpage to post notes, resources, videos and activities for parents and students
· Communicate regularly with parents and students through email.
· Create a blog for students to discuss classroom activities and assignments.

Monitor:
· Monitor the ‘hits’ on website and entries on blog.
· Ask for student feedback on the usability and relevance of the information on the website.
· Ask for parent input regarding website.

Evaluate:
· Have students and parents evaluate the website.
· Continue to maintain and update website on a regular basis.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). 1. Self-Directed Learning with Technology [Motion picture].Integrating technology across the content areas. Baltimore: Author.

Final Reflection - Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom

“What are we doing to prepare our students for their future and not our past?” (Laureate Education, 2009) was a question asked by Hartman in our first video. Hartman (Laureate Education, 2009) states that “Literacy is evolving” and will be rooted in digital media.

As a high school teacher, I feel I need to prepare my students to enter the ‘real-world’ whether they are going to enter the work force or attend college. Wherever my students go, they will be thrown into a world where digital media is the norm and not the exception. The days of teacher lectures and student worksheets are fading quickly.

Information is so readily available online. The new literacies involving digital evaluating and synthesizing will be areas that I address often with my students. Although I knew there were hoaxes online, I guess I never realized how real these sites could look….saving the rennets, getting a computer tan and saving the tree octopus. These sites could look very real to a person who does not analyze the information carefully. Phillips (Laureate Education, 2009) gave some good examples of things and steps to follow when examining websites.

Although I have given my students projects over the years, through this course I have taken a look at how the projects have changed. Everything used to be done with pencil, paper, markers, poster board, and the list could go on. Now we find ourselves creating and accepting projects that are done almost exclusively online. Looking back at the projects I have assigned, I realized that I was the one providing all the questions. Completing the inquiry based unit for this class, I have experienced a revelation! I plan to use the skills from this class to guide my students through creating, researching and answering the questions they develop.

Mid-January I will be moving into a renovated building that has been upgraded to support technology in the classroom. My goal is to use the technology I will now have in my classroom to the fullest potential. I feel sure I will find myself spending many hours searching and evaluating sites that will assist me in creating a digital friendly and enriched environment for my students. My plan is to move away from the traditional style classroom where I am doing all the work (lecturing, working examples, etc.) and turn the learning over to the students. Through hard work, help from others, and cooperation of students I hope to become a facilitator of learning and not a mouthpiece of learning!

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom. Baltimore: Author

Reflection: Bridging Learning Theory, Instruction, and Technology

As my summer vacation comes to an end, so does another course at Walden. When beginning this course I found myself reflecting on the things I did during the past school year. Now that I am beginning a new school year, I am trying to find ways to incorporate things I have learned during the summer. It had been quite a while since I had really thought about the different learning theories. Of course, I studied them in college, but that was quite a while ago – this class helped me examine my actions in the classroom and how I incorporate the different theories.

Looking back at my personal theory of learning, I don’t think my ideas have changed a whole lot, but I have come across new ideas for my classroom through the use of technology tools. I still believe having a ‘hook’ for the students and creating connections for them is important. Having students actively involved in the learning experience is beneficial to all in the classroom. I still like the statement made by Wolfe that if something is worth teaching then it is worth teaching well. I feel it is important for me to do the best job possible every time I stand before my class. I think all of the learning theories can have a place in the classroom. For example, reinforcement for good behavior as well as consequences for bad will always be around. And constructionism (both in individual and group activities) should be present to give students hands-on experience as well as tap into their creative side.

An immediate change I would like to make in my instructional practice is to help my students develop note-taking skills that work for them. Today I noticed my students writing everything I said and did down. They were not actively listening …. They were just writing and copying as fast as they could. Having my students experiment with graphic organizers, summarizing techniques, and concept maps can help them in all of their classes. Allowing them to share their ideas through power points or concept maps could also benefit the entire class.

One long-term goal I have is to become more familiar with some of the technology tools, such as wikis, blogs, voice threads, google docs we have looked at during this course. Before diving into some of these with my students, I believe I need more experience so I can assist them with any questions they may have. I plan to get this experience by participating in professional development opportunities with my district and creating some artifacts to share with my students. I will also research sites on my own to broaden my knowledge.

My second long term goal is to make my classroom one that is more student-centered. I find myself doing most of the talking and would like to get the focus of the classroom off of me and onto my students. I believe my two long term goals will go hand in hand….Getting technology into the hands of my students will turn it into a learning tool and not just an instructional tool. I want my students to see what technology and the internet has to offer. It is not just a place to socialize and chat with your friends, but a place of immeasurable knowledge, resources and discovery.

Voice Thread - MP3, Ipods and Cell Phones

Would like to hear about your school's policy on MP3, Ipod and Cell Phone use.

http://voicethread.com/share/572502/

Connectivism and Social Learning Practice

Social Learning is when the students are actively involved in constructing artifacts and conversing with others. Cooperative and collaborative learning …. Here we come!!!

Cooperative learning/group learning can drive some teachers nuts! When I mention to some colleagues that my students are going to be working together, eyes roll to the back of their heads, deep sighs can be heard, and the request that my door remain shut during the day are the reactions. For me there is nothing much better in my classroom that to hear students talk about math and problem solving strategies. Yes, it is a bit noisier, but it is noisy when you act 30 kids to take out their books. Do they always stay on task? Of course not, I do not have a perfect classroom. If you do, please tell me your secret.

With the web, cooperative/collaborative learning has gone global (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, Malenski, 2007)! Students can now share information and knowledge with others who take similar classes in dissimilar worlds. Technology continues to open new doors for students to collaborate with others. The possibilities are endless.

I enjoyed looking at the sites suggested for this week. I must admit that I look at Facebook daily, but I am not sure that it would work well for me in the classroom (bit still a good example of a social networking site). Also went through the steps of creating a Secondlife account, once again I am not sure how well this could work in the classroom without some regulations. Google Docs however is not an application I am familiar with but after reading the posts of my classmates, I feel that it is something I should definitely explore more to find ways to utilize it in my classroom.

Keypals, WebQuests, wikis, blogs, and Web site creation are just a few of the strategies mentioned by Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, Malenski (2007). I really like the idea of Keypals and students connecting with other students. Some of my students hardly even leave the area we live in; having a Keypal could open them to a whole new world. How exciting would it be for them to share pictures, cultural likenesses and differences with each other through a site that is monitored for educational purposes?

Technology could be a really effective way to bridge the learning theories with careful planning. One must have the end in mind when planning to use technology (and any other strategy) in the classroom. Clear expectations and outcomes should be address and communicated with students.