One of my goals as a teacher is to enhance my students’ ability to become self directed learners. A self directed learner can be described as someone who investigates a topic of interest or works towards learning a new skill (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). It is essential for teachers to model the skills of self-directed learning if they are to enhance those skills in their students. I have identified two areas of the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) to build my proficiency in. Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer’s (2010) GAME Plan approach has been working well for me as I work towards these goals. So far I have established my goals and begun to take action. This week, I would like to evaluate my progress towards meeting my goals.
My first goal was originally to develop a blog in order to collaborate with students, peers, parents and community members. After considering the advice from other teachers and researching related information, I have decided that a website may work better for this purposed as opposed to a blog. Doing a simple Google search for “class websites” lead me to an abundance of programs that I could use. Weebly is the resource I chose to use for my site creation. From this site I can create pages for each of my classes. This approach appears as though it will work better for me as I felt that creating a blog for each of my classes would be more than I could easily manage. My site is called Mrs. Nabb’s Classes. I have written a short introduction and created pages for each of the courses I teach this semester. The IED page has the week activities listed and I plan on updating the other courses as well. One of the features that I liked about Weebly is that it will allow me to password protect some of the pages if I choose to purchase the pro version. This is an important option for me because one of my courses requires material on the internet to be password protected. At this point I am simply listing the activities we are doing so I do not have the need for it yet.
My second goal is to utilize the flip video to record clips of myself teaching to compile for my professional portfolio. I am currently in the process of editing the clips I have to create a short movie of one of my lessons. I am planning on sharing this video with my teacher quality committee. The Mimio board is used in this lesson and several of the teachers in my group would like help in how they can use it in their classroom. The editing has to be done on my home computer as the software is not yet loaded on my school laptop. I would be able to progress with this faster if I was able to do the editing at school without the many distractions I have at home.
The actions I have taken have been very effective at helping to meet my goals. I feel much more confident about both of these technologies and am excited to incorporate them into my lessons. Both of these tools could be very effective at engaging my students in the content material we are covering. The fact that a website can be viewed by anyone could really motivate my students to do their best work if they were to create their own for some type of project. In order for my students to use the flip videos for class projects, I need to talk with the IT department about having the software installed on computers throughout the school. In regards to the class website, I would love to see some examples of great sites that teachers have developed for their classes. I tried to research this but have found some pretty average sites. If anyone could direct me to some great websites that I could visit for inspiration, I would really appreciate it. One of my next steps is to add links from my site to the high school, internet grading, and the AEA online site which students can use for research. I also need to add information to the other courses I have so that all students can benefit. I am anxious to capture more video of my classes so that I can add it to my portfolio. In working towards these goals, I need to allow myself the time needed to do an effective job with them.
Jenny
Resources
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2010). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
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
Showing posts with label NETS-T. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NETS-T. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
My Progress with Flip Video and Blogs
Seamlessly integrating technology into my instructions is a very important goal. Its importance is magnified as I read articles like Friedman’s “It’s A Flat World, After All” and Prensky’s “Turning on the Lights.” Both authors make clear the need to re-evaluate how and what students are learning in today’s classrooms. I have been using Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer’s (2010) GAME Plan approach to build my proficiency with technology integration. You may recall that this approach involves setting goals, taking action, monitoring progress, and evaluating success and extending learning (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). The goals I created were established to build my proficiency in the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T). This week, I would like to consider the steps I have taken towards meeting my goals.
The first goal I developed was to implement a class blog to communicate with students and parents and have students utilize blogs for collaborative reflection. I have discovered that I need to modify this goal. The IT department at my school has informed me that they will be setting up blogging sites for each teacher within our school’s server. They prefer for blogging to be handled this way so that students do not need individual email accounts and teachers can closely monitor the discussions. Therefore, I have decided to focus on the first part of that goal to implement a class blog so that I can communicate with students and parents. This will allow me to keep students who miss class informed. They will also be able to post questions to me about the material. I appreciate the advice from people on my last posting. This really answered a lot of questions for me. Focusing on creating a blog for the class as a whole is a good step to begin with so that I can work towards having my students use their own blogs. I think that I will summarize what was done in class. Do any of you have suggestions for what I need to include on this blog?
The second goal I have is to use flip video to record myself teaching and compile the clips for my professional portfolio. I have made a lot of progress in this area. I have recorded clips from one lesson and my next step is to edit them into a video. I need to have the IT department load the flip software onto my laptop. In the mean time, I will have to do my editing on my home computer. I would highly recommend the flip videos to other teachers. I have found them to be very user friendly and the quality is quite good considering how affordable they are. I may need to modify my plan to include how many lessons I would like to record. I think that one to two a month is a good goal to have as I do not want to become overwhelmed with the task. This would give me a good base of information to review as I evaluate the things I am asking my students to do. I am really interested in having my students use these cameras in the future. Have any of you had students do projects with them? Do you have any advice?
Thanks to everyone who has assisted me with my goals. I really appreciate the helpful advice I have received. I will continue to keep you posted as I work to build my proficiency in these areas and I look forward to hearing more great suggestions.
Jenny
Resources
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 first goal I developed was to implement a class blog to communicate with students and parents and have students utilize blogs for collaborative reflection. I have discovered that I need to modify this goal. The IT department at my school has informed me that they will be setting up blogging sites for each teacher within our school’s server. They prefer for blogging to be handled this way so that students do not need individual email accounts and teachers can closely monitor the discussions. Therefore, I have decided to focus on the first part of that goal to implement a class blog so that I can communicate with students and parents. This will allow me to keep students who miss class informed. They will also be able to post questions to me about the material. I appreciate the advice from people on my last posting. This really answered a lot of questions for me. Focusing on creating a blog for the class as a whole is a good step to begin with so that I can work towards having my students use their own blogs. I think that I will summarize what was done in class. Do any of you have suggestions for what I need to include on this blog?
The second goal I have is to use flip video to record myself teaching and compile the clips for my professional portfolio. I have made a lot of progress in this area. I have recorded clips from one lesson and my next step is to edit them into a video. I need to have the IT department load the flip software onto my laptop. In the mean time, I will have to do my editing on my home computer. I would highly recommend the flip videos to other teachers. I have found them to be very user friendly and the quality is quite good considering how affordable they are. I may need to modify my plan to include how many lessons I would like to record. I think that one to two a month is a good goal to have as I do not want to become overwhelmed with the task. This would give me a good base of information to review as I evaluate the things I am asking my students to do. I am really interested in having my students use these cameras in the future. Have any of you had students do projects with them? Do you have any advice?
Thanks to everyone who has assisted me with my goals. I really appreciate the helpful advice I have received. I will continue to keep you posted as I work to build my proficiency in these areas and I look forward to hearing more great suggestions.
Jenny
Resources
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.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
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
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
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