Week - 6: GAME plan revision

As I continued to revise my GAME plan this week, I realized that I was pretty much on track with mine. I was continuing with this class and will finish up the program with the last two classes. Also, I am looking out for tools that I can use with my students that I feel will be fairly easy and quick for them to pick up on and use. They do not have very much experience using various technology tools, so I have to go slow when I introduce a new one. I have been using real world situations when we go over new topics, so that they can see how they tie into their lives. So far, the only tool I have been able to use with them is Power Point, and it seems to be going pretty well. They are struggling to create the slides without putting entire books on them, but we are working on that issue. The higher level students like being able to put in audio and video, and this has made some of my middle students want to learn how to do that. The students are very excited about working with the Power Point because I let them present it on the Smart board.

There are some questions that need to be addressed for this assignment.
1. What have you learned so far that you can apply in your instructional practice? What goals are you still working toward?
What I have learned so far is that students need time to practice with the tools, once they have been introduced to them. It is best to start with a small assignment and let them work on the skills necessary for that tool, than to give them a big one and expect them to get it right the first time. I like the reflection and revision that Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer (2009) discuss in their book that we read. It helped me so much, when I was teaching my students about the correct way to create Power Point slides. The goals I am still working on the the technology tools I want to teach my students. I would love to get them using a wiki or even a blog, but I need a little more experience with these myself.

2. Based on the NETS-T, what new learning goals will you set for yourself?
There is one I would like to set for myself right now. It falls under #3 - Model Digital-Age Work and Learning. Teachers will communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats. I think this will help me to be better at teaching them the technology tools they need and fulfill one of my previous goals.

3. If you are not ready to set new learning goals, how will you extend what you have learned so far?
I do think that I will set the goal described in #2, but I still want to focus on the goals I have set in the beginning. I am not totally finished with them. There are still tools I believe that my students need to have at least been introduced to, if not used many times.

4. What learning approaches will you try next time to improve your learning?
For next time, I will find real world applications that I can use to practice the skills on. I want to use this approach on my students, too. So far, they seem to really enjoy that and respond positively to it. I just need to find ways for me and them to be able to practice the technology that we both need.

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.

Tami Phipps