Game Plan

Marc Prensky (2008) makes it very clear, in his article “Turning on the Lights,” that the need for technology integration in today’s classrooms is great. Students employ a variety of technological applications outside of school and it makes sense that educators would draw on this same interest and knowledge in the classroom. The National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators for Teachers (NETS•T) should serve as a guide for teachers as they work to infuse technology into their curriculum and practice.

Within each standard are several indicators that I feel fairly comfortable with. Each standard also has indicators that I would like to become more proficient with. I am most comfortable with Standard 2 as a whole. I utilize a variety of digital tools to create learning experiences of relevance to my students. Students are often able to investigate areas of interest due to the technology and manner it is incorporated. The formative and summative assessments I use align with the content and technology being covered.

One of the goals that I have as it relates to technology is to have the students utilize a blog and to create one for my classes as well. This goal will build my proficiency in indicator 1c: “promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify student’s conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative process.” It will also allow me to gain confidence with indicator 3b: “collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success.” Promoting student reflection is something that I struggle so this goal is especially important as reflection is essential to building understanding. Implementing a class blog will allow for greater collaboration so that students and parents stay informed.

I will utilize the GAME plan strategy, presented by Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer (2010), in order to take control of my learning….
Goal: Implement a class blog to communicate with students and parents and have students utilize blogs for collaborative reflection.
Action: Determine what provider to use (edublogs, blogger, wikispaces, etc…). Seek advice from other teachers who have used the technology. Identify the material to include on it. Identify areas of curriculum to use blogging for reflection with. Create guiding questions for reflection. Create the blog sites. Instruct the students in how to use the sites and how to create their own blogs.
Monitor: Identify areas where further information is needed. Consider how the process is going. What changes are needed in the action plan?
Evaluate: This will be an ongoing process. It will be important to record what worked well so that the needed changes can be made. This goal will develop my own proficiency with blogs. I will also consider students’ ability to reflect on the learning they have done. The amount of time spent discussing missing work should decrease if the class blog is used effectively by those students.

Standard 5 is another area that I would like to improve on. At a recent workshop I attended, Tony Wagner shared the idea of using a flip video camera to record clips of teachers in action. I would like to utilize this idea to develop professionally. This goal will build on several of the indicators for standard 5.
Goal: Use the flip video to record myself teaching and compile the clips for my professional portfolio. I will record myself during a variety of lessons and focus on the activities that I have the students doing. I would like to capture my use of technology so that I can evaluate its effectiveness.
Action: Check out the camera, record clips throughout the year, and compile them onto a CD.
Monitor: This goal will allow me to monitor my own ability to use technology and engage the students. It will be an ongoing process. It will allow me to evaluate my teaching so that I can make improvements and to share lessons where I have used technology with fellow teachers.
Evaluate: I will consider areas where technology was utilized effectively and identify strategies for improving the lesson and enhancing student engagement. I will not only evaluate my teaching but also learn how to use the flip technology to edit clips into movies that represent my lesson. Lessons that I am proud of could be shared with other teachers to promote the integration of it into their classrooms.

Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2010). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Prensky, M. (2008, March). Turning on the lights. Educational Leadership, 65(6), 40-45.

The ISTE National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T). (n.d.). International Society for Technology in Education Home. Retrieved November 10, 2009, from http://www.iste.org/Content/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf