Monitoring the GAME

Ahhhh, Holidays, Breaks and Vacation…with a two-day work week, there was not a lot of work to be monitored on my GAME plan. I am still working on downloading to our site and have all students access the material. So far I have it to each class. I plan on playing around with it this weekend, in between the decorating, cleaning up and packing daughter back up for college. On a positive note, the trial run of my peer tutoring was a success. Right away I saw that it was imperative that the students have their rough drafts completed, this way the peer tutoring can focus on the edits and support and elaboration, rather than helping them write the entire paper. For the most part they were well behaved and focused, and it was not a struggle to get students to attend, I had 4 with the promise of several more after break.
On the personal development side, I downloaded my instructions for National Boards…hopefully I will actually get to read them later this week!

Week 2 of the GAME

This week was interesting to say the least. I have 100% of my students now signed up for their Schoology account, and have posted and downloaded assignments for the week. This part worked out well, as the flu is raging through my classes and twenty percent of my students have been absent. Feedback from the site, from both parents and students was positive. My editing and peer review did not go as well. My grand hopes of online interaction and editing came to a crashing halt as the system would only allow five students at a time to edit. This is my error and how I set up the system, so hopefully it will be resolved this week...wow, there is so much to think about when starting up! I did make a conscious effort to go over my lessons right after class and make notes, something I should have been doing all along, but now I am making it a habit. I have made a request for the computer lab, to have set times for my students, in an effort for all students to have access while I am around to answer questions. The only materials needed is a more techno-savvy teacher!
My next goal is to have a peer tutoring, it will have to be an after school project, for my struggling writers and diverse learners. It is my plan to have the students write their rough drafts in class, then have several peer tutors, I have five who have volunteered so far, go over and edit before they write their final copies.
On the personal front, to address my growth and development, I signed up for National Boards!
Call me crazy......

GAME PLAN!

Behind every successful endeavor, there is a game plan; this is especially true in education. With our students exposed to technology in their life outside school, we must find a way to integrate technology inside the classroom. In order to become a successful teacher of 21t century learners, I must complete and implement a game plan that includes the technology that is such an important part of their life. In order to guide the direction I want my teaching to take, I must have a solid action plan on how to accomplish these goals. This plan includes using the GAME plan using the ISTE (2010). The two standards that I have chosen are:

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
2. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

Goals and Actions
I am currently revamping many of my lessons to include technology-enriched activities. Specifically, I have set up an account on Schoology, in which students may edit, compose and suggest essays in an online setting. I also want to include assessments on this site. In order to properly instruct my students, I will model the lesson first, that way insuring complete understanding from my students. Secondly, I will continue to continue my understanding and education in technology, as there are new developments daily! In order for me to be the best instructor, I must first be current on all the technology that is available to my students. My district offers several a year, and although my class does not have EReaders at this time, I am taking a class on their use in the classroom in hopes we will acquire the in the future.

Monitor
In order to monitor myself, I will have weekly reflections in which I will see what worked, what did not and how I will change it in the future (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2008). I will use a blog to monitor this progress and set up a time weekly in which I will post, making me accountable for this goal. This self-monitoring will be essential in helping me accomplish my goal, as well as adjusting the lessons for the future (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010).


Evaluation
In order to evaluate my progress, I will evaluate the student’s progress and engagement in the lesson. This will be done at the completion of each unit and allow me to see how successful the lesson was in engaging the students and improvement in their writing. I will also look to the students for their feedback on what they feel was beneficial and what they would change. Their feedback is crucial. For my second goal, I will self monitor and adjust as needed. Since technology is such an ever-changing field, I will always challenge myself to stay abreast of new developments and to serve as a role model to my students.

By designing a game plan, my lessons will be more directed and focused, therefore hopefully having favorable results. It is my hope to be a life long learner as well as showing my students through example that learning is a life long process (Cennamo, et al., 2009).

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.
ISTE. (2008). The ISTE NETS and performance indicators for teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved
from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers.aspx
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010). Program 1: Promoting self directed
learning with technology. [DVD]. Integrating technology across the content areas. Baltimore,
MD.