Often times many of the techniques and strategies we facilitate to our students are relevant in our own lives as teachers. From the way we learn, to plan, to implement and evaluate ourselves. Dr. Ertmer states that we as teachers need 3, better yet, 4 major components to successfully integrate technology in our classrooms:
· Knowledge and content pedagogy
· Confidence
· Belief in the value of technology integration
· Supportive Culture
Based on those points when creating my GAME (Goal, Action, Monitor, Extend/Evaluate) plan for technology integration I have chosen 2 National Education Technology Standards (NETS) for teachers that I feel are the most important goals for my GAME plan. The two standards that I will focus on as my main goals are to Facilitate and Inspire Students Learning and Creativity (standard 1) and to Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership (standard 5). While all the NETS-T are valid and vital, I feel that these two are a great outline or umbrella to which the remaining standards will follow.
Engaging in professional growth and leadership is imperative to a great teacher no matter the content at hand. Pursuing a master’s degree in technology education has been a great step and initial goal in continuing my professional growth, but the process cannot end there. Technology and education are ever evolving processes that mean you are never finished learning. We would not expect our students to finish learning after the 9th grade, just as a great teacher is never the same teacher two years in a row. That professional growth and leadership will help me change the culture and perspective on technology integration to help create a supportive culture and give me the tools and knowledge I need to facilitate and inspire students learning and creativity. My actions to attain these goals are to seek out new learning opportunities, follow current trends and research in educational technology, and use the incoming content pedagogy to facilitate meaningful and authentic learning experiences for my students. Monitoring my progress during my GAME plan will come from many of the similar reflections that hold value in my students. Keeping a reflection blog, updating my portfolio with new information, keeping track of mistakes and successes, and progressing my confidence levels are all steps I will take to monitor my progression. Evaluating my progress in my GAME plan will come from reflections on my student’s engagement and success in authentic learning. The main motive of my GAME plan is to better myself for the benefit of better my student’s learning experiences. Extending and pushing myself to continue and further this journey will evolve into inspiring my students to carry on these ideas even after they leave the walls of my classroom. I believe that technology integration holds high value and benefits for my students, research and professional development offer me content pedagogy and confidence in teaching, and these skills combined will give me leadership in creating a supportive professional culture. This GAME plan will create a foundation for successful technology integration and professional growth that will hopefully inspire my student’s creativity and progress on their own lifelong learning journey.
ReferencesCennamo, K., Ross, J., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009). 6713:Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas [DVD]. Enhancing content area learning experiences with technology: Part 2. Baltimore, MD: Vicki Davis.
· Knowledge and content pedagogy
· Confidence
· Belief in the value of technology integration
· Supportive Culture
Based on those points when creating my GAME (Goal, Action, Monitor, Extend/Evaluate) plan for technology integration I have chosen 2 National Education Technology Standards (NETS) for teachers that I feel are the most important goals for my GAME plan. The two standards that I will focus on as my main goals are to Facilitate and Inspire Students Learning and Creativity (standard 1) and to Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership (standard 5). While all the NETS-T are valid and vital, I feel that these two are a great outline or umbrella to which the remaining standards will follow.
Engaging in professional growth and leadership is imperative to a great teacher no matter the content at hand. Pursuing a master’s degree in technology education has been a great step and initial goal in continuing my professional growth, but the process cannot end there. Technology and education are ever evolving processes that mean you are never finished learning. We would not expect our students to finish learning after the 9th grade, just as a great teacher is never the same teacher two years in a row. That professional growth and leadership will help me change the culture and perspective on technology integration to help create a supportive culture and give me the tools and knowledge I need to facilitate and inspire students learning and creativity. My actions to attain these goals are to seek out new learning opportunities, follow current trends and research in educational technology, and use the incoming content pedagogy to facilitate meaningful and authentic learning experiences for my students. Monitoring my progress during my GAME plan will come from many of the similar reflections that hold value in my students. Keeping a reflection blog, updating my portfolio with new information, keeping track of mistakes and successes, and progressing my confidence levels are all steps I will take to monitor my progression. Evaluating my progress in my GAME plan will come from reflections on my student’s engagement and success in authentic learning. The main motive of my GAME plan is to better myself for the benefit of better my student’s learning experiences. Extending and pushing myself to continue and further this journey will evolve into inspiring my students to carry on these ideas even after they leave the walls of my classroom. I believe that technology integration holds high value and benefits for my students, research and professional development offer me content pedagogy and confidence in teaching, and these skills combined will give me leadership in creating a supportive professional culture. This GAME plan will create a foundation for successful technology integration and professional growth that will hopefully inspire my student’s creativity and progress on their own lifelong learning journey.
ReferencesCennamo, K., Ross, J., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009). 6713:Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas [DVD]. Enhancing content area learning experiences with technology: Part 2. Baltimore, MD: Vicki Davis.
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteGood luck on your goal. I too am trying to find new learning opportunities. I have found a couple of different ways to do it. One of these is to follow a couple of prolific bloggers or tweeters that share good information. Initially I tried to follow too many, but found that being more selective has meant that I am more likely to read them rather than being overwhelmed.
I also try to find out when conferences are on and follow their digital footprint online. This is either as it is progressing, or I'll spend time the week after looking at the workshops and resources offered and locating things that are useful for me. Here is a link to start you off http://www.globaleducationconference.com/recordings.html
You can also virtually visit a conference I'll be taking part in next month here http://21clearninghk.ning.com/
Andy
http://www.rhinotion.blogspot.com/
Hey Andy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the feedback and use information! I have found that it is important to branch out beyond my counties professional development to get new learning experiences that are geared towards my fields of interest. I too have often found myself overwhelmed with incoming information that I have marked from the web. I now use StumbleUpon and my Google reader to sort and focus my information. Virtual conferencing is a great idea for time and location purposes.