Reflection on Technology

Through this course I have learned more about technology and how it can be incorporated in my lessons. I have always looked for new ways to use technology in the classroom, but I have very rarely learned how to appropriately incorporate it. I would just go through the lesson with the students and show them how to use the technology or what to do with the technology. This course has taught me how to be a little more hands off and let the students take control of the technology around them to learn.

The GAME plan that was presented in this course is something that I will be using for the rest of my teaching career. It is a wonderful tool to keep myself on track to complete the goals that I set forth, and it is also a great way for students to keep themselves on track. There is always a place for goals in the classroom, but the focus on attaining those goals often fall to the side. The teacher accomplishes them and the students learn them, but rarely is it presented to the students how they reached them. By letting students create GAME plans it allows them to see how to attain their goal in the classroom, and can help them in any aspect of their lives.

The last thing I took from this class is the confidence to show my district that technology is not such a scary thing. In every school I have ever been a part of there is a fear that if we let students use any technology they want they are not really learning the material and they will do "bad" things with it. For instance if we allow students to use the internet to look up solutions to a problem then they are just copying and not learning, and the students won't really do what is asked of them because they will be looking at other sites instead of doing the curriculum. This idea is completely false, and in my experience through the implementation of my GAME plan students who research and look up the answer to a question learn it much better than those who are just told what it is. I tell teachers all the time that if it is just copying that they are doing from the interent, aren't the students just copying from the board too? At least by using the technology they are finding the answer themselves which can lead to higher understanding.

Technology is a wonderful tool that can be used within a classroom setting. Many teachers and districts hesitate to allow the use of all technology out there, but the more we can show them how wonderful it can be the more they will allow to happen in the classroom. The use of a GAME plan and the appropriate technology in any classroom can only bring a learning advantage to all the students and teachers involved.

GAME Plan with Students

I have benefited from the use of a GAME plan so much that even before this assignment I was thinking about how to incorporate this idea into my classroom. The plan has allowed me to focus my thoughts, stay on task, and continually monitor my progress toward my goals. I often talk to students about setting goals, but I think the use of a GAME plan would really keep students accountable for their goals.

Since the teacher and student technology standards are so close in nature any time I am trying to accomplish a technology standard I feel like I am allowing my students to accomplish a technology goal. So, I could see myself using a GAME plan in two different ways. First, I could use it as it pertains to technology standards. I could have the students take a pre-test on technology, and then let them set goals as to what they want to improve upon throughout the year. This can even be extended to have the student come up with projects and ways they can accomplish these goals in a math setting. I can then use their ideas to strengthen their technology standards and help them reach their goals. The second way would be to use the GAME plan according to the curriculum standards. Each chapter I could outline what they will be learning, and they can create a GAME plan that would help them accomplish the goals they set for the chapter. This would give me an idea of where they want to focus and how they will accomplish it. It would also show them that they are part of their own learning and that they are responsible for their share in the classroom.

I really think that setting goals is a wonderful thing to do in a classroom, but I am not sure that many teachers (including myself) have students actually write out the goals they have for themselves. A GAME plan allows everyone involved to be held accountable for their actions and give the students a sense of responsibility in their own learning. This will be a great tool they can then use for the rest of their lives.

GAME Plan Revisions

So far I have learned so much about using technology in my assessments and how much it engages my students and allows them to learn the material better. Also, by adjusting my assessments to account for the technology based learning I am seeing an increase in the 21st century skills in my students. The students are becoming a little more self-sufficient knowing that they are able to use all different kinds of resources to complete a task. With my second goal I am realizing that taking on administration is not easy no matter how educationally beneficial what you are trying to do is for your students. Since my district's administrators are there 12 months of the year, this is definitely a task that would have been better taken on over the summer when there is not as much going on. With coaching and teaching I feel like I have not been dedicating as much time to the fight for blogs and wiki's as I should.

In the last week I am still progressing on changing my assessments, and the students are responding well to it. They are making progress on the content and NETS standards. The students are also becoming more self learners and asking responsibility for their own learning. I have not gone back to administration with anything about the wikis and blogs because I just have not had the time to research enough websites to find one that will work for them. To accomplish this task I am thinking about having my students research the topic and let them present something to administration as to how it can help them learn.

So, I am not revising my GAME plan just yet, but I am revising how I am going to accomplish my goal by bringing my students into the situation. I will continue to extend what I am doing throughout the remaining chapters, and then start getting my stuff revised for next year. I will also be planning ahead for when I get the blogs and wikis approves so that I can start to use them right away. Again, I am looking forward to continuing on this journey with my students.