Week 5: Evaluating My GAME Plan Progress

So far, my actions have been pretty effective. Because I work two jobs and I am working on my masters, things are moving a little slow. However, striking up conversations and asking around helps you to learn a lot. For example, sampling starting a conversation about technology at a department meeting is an easy and effective way to see who is knowledgeable and who is not; which of my co-workers would be willing to learn with me and which ones are a little more stuck in their ways. This is one step toward meeting my goals… finding out who I can turn to for help and support.

So far, I have learned that we have a resource called Moodle (anyone ever heard of it?) that will allow me to create a class webpage of sorts and share information with my students and parents. However, that is about the extent of my knowledge so far. I have not had a chance to play around with it yet. Does anyone use Moodle? If so, do you have any advice or suggestions? Also, one of my concerns is that most of my students do not have internet or even computer access at home; therefore, I don’t know how effective of a way this would be for communicating and sharing information.

I still have a great deal to learn and in all reality, will always have something to learn. Since technology is constantly changing and evolving, I will never be at the point where I am satisfied. Therefore, I’m not entirely sure my plan will every fully be mastered. Maybe one adjustment I need to make is that there is no end time or fulfillment status… maybe my plan should be a continuous one throughout my career that is just adjusted and evolves with technology and my knowledge.

Week 4: Monitoring My GAME Plan Progress

I have begun to ask around and strike up conversations with my colleagues about how they incorporate technology into their classroom. Particularly, I have asked other math teachers how they allow student’s creativity to shine through and yet still display their knowledge of mathematics. However, at this point I have not begun any formal observations of other classrooms. I do not think I need to modify my action plan, I simply need more time to carry it out.

So far, I have learned that most teachers struggle with these issues and have very different ways of dealing with the issue. I have also learned that our district has expanded our usage of the PLATO program. Instead of just being used for credit recovery, now all teachers can use it as a supplemental resource, test resource or extension of learning. This program is designed to help students get ready for the ACT and it is a way to incorporate technology into my class. In addition, I have also learned that our building is supposed to be getting two smart boards for the whole building to share. While this is not ideal, obviously, it is better than no smart board at all. Therefore, I can incorporate the smart board into certain lessons (when it’s available). By using the smart board, students who are not always capable of demonstrating learning in the traditional sense (paper and pencil) will be able to gain confidence and knowledge.

Week 3 Blog Post: Carrying Out My GAME Plan

I tend to learn best from watching/viewing others. I like to get samples of what others are doing and then adapt them based on what will work best and fit into my classroom. Therefore, I will need to gather resources and ideas from other teachers in my building, district and possibly search the internet for ideas out there.

I might also need time to go in and observe a class that is completing a similar task or doing something that I might want to adapt. As I stated, I learn best from seeing and doing. It is usually difficult for me to just hear someone talk about something and then implement it into my classroom.

In addition, I will also need some of my colleagues time. Once I have implemented my GAME plan, I would like some outside input. Therefore, I would like them to come in and observe my class to give me advice and input on how to make the lessons more effective. Working as a team of freshmen teachers, it might also be possible to create a cross-curricular project. This way, for instance, if I am doing a project with the science teacher, they could be in my classroom observing the lesson while also assisting with the science part of the project. Our freshmen team has all true 9th graders and therefore, students could create one product and get a grade for math and science.

What does everyone else think? Has anyone done any cross-curricular projects like this before? If so, what went well and what didn’t? Do you have any advice?

Week 2: Developing Your Personal GAME Plan

Even though I think I could use work in every NETS-T indicator, I chose two that I think would directly help and improve my student’s skills. I would like to strengthen my confidence and proficiency in the following two areas:

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
   

The GAME Plan:

Goals:

1. Design lessons that will allow students to display their knowledge of the material in a creative and unique way while exploring real life problems and using problem solving skills.
   
2. Design lessons that will allow students to choose specific topics within a broad focus to study and allow them to use technology to display they have mastered that topic for assessment.

Action:

1. In order to take action on these goals I will consult other members in my department to see if they are doing any similar projects.
2. I will also do research on the internet to see if there are ideas, lessons or activities there that could be helpful.
3. I will also consult my IT lead teacher in order to see what, if any, software applications are available to our district that might be of use to my students.
4. In addition, I will discuss ideas with my co-teacher to see what thoughts he has and accommodations for special needs students need to take place.

Monitor:

1. Once I have developed my goals and followed through on my actions I need to monitor my GAME plan to make sure it stays on track. I will self-evaluate the lessons to make sure they are staying on track with the indicators.
2. I will also ask my co-teacher to evaluate the lessons informally to make sure they are covering all aspects and working efficiently.
3. If necessary, I will make adjustments and adapt the lessons to better fit the indicators.

Evaluate:

1. To evaluate the lessons, I will ask students to fill out a survey to see if they felt it met the criteria I had intended.
2. I will also ask an administrator to observe my classroom on that day (if possible) to see if they feel it meets the intended indicators.
3. In addition, a self-evaluate at the end of the lessons will also be beneficial to see if the student products were at the level I intended.