There are a variety of steps I will need to take and a variety of other people that I will need to recruit in order to meet these goals. I will need to gain the buy-in of the other teachers on my 9th grade English team so that we can work together to develop lessons that address these skills directly. I can facilitate this by providing or accessing technology training within my school building. I will be able to build my confidence by practicing and demonstrating my ideas during collaborative planning sessions. One of my short term goals, which will also help me monitor my progress, is to incorporate one differentiated, technology-based activity each month for my students. Another short term goal will be to engage my students in researching and solving at least one real-world problem per marking period. Collaboration with my colleagues will be an imperative step as it will allow for problem solving in the planning phase, eliminating some potential challenges during instruction; it will also allow for a division of labor for materials and resources that may need to be created.
Monitoring will be ongoing throughout the school year. As I plan for implementing technology based activities, I will be able to monitor my comfort level and confidence when I practice or demonstrate for other teachers. The effectiveness of the lessons will be measured by the data collected as students demonstrate their learning.
Achieving my short term goals each month and marking period will also help measure progress toward the main goal and evaluate my effectiveness. If the data is showing a lack of student progress or success, I will have to reevaluate in order to modify my plan to meet the needs of students more effectively. This may mean adjusting my goals, changing the instruction that supports the use of technology, or accessing additional resources and technology tools.
The technology tools that are most comfortable to me, such as wikis, WebQuests, and SmartBoards, will likely be the tools that I use most frequently. In order to extend my learning, I will try to incorporate additional tools and technologies that are less familiar and comfortable. I will attend professional development opportunities to learn about additional tools and provide professional development to my colleagues on the tools with which I am familiar.
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.
International Society for Technology Integration (2008). National Educational Standards for Teachers. Retrieved May 15, 2013 from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/nets-t-standards.pdf?sfvrsn=2
Hi Ellen,
ReplyDeleteI like how you identify clear goals for yourself but realize that it may take more than just you to accomplish them. Enlisting the assistance of your 9th grade English team is a step in the right direction and could help you be even more effective in carrying out your GAME plan. According to “Standard 5” of the National Education Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) (2008), effective teachers are ones who “Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others.” By including your colleagues in your plan, you are collaboratively establishing a culture where technology integration can flourish.
In the end, having time for collaboration is like having a “back porch for teachers,” as it gives us the chance “to come together and talk about innovative ideas that may well revolutionize public education” (Boss, 2009, para. 1-2). I truly believe that educators must be willing to, above many other things, utilize the professionals around us as resources. I especially like that you have more colleagues that are of the same subject and grade level to assist you. If it is a successful endeavor, how exciting it could be to extend that collaboration by taking your GAME plan to other 9th grade teachers of different subjects. I meet with my 7th grade Academic Inquiry Team once a week, and even though we are of all different content areas, we have implemented the use of technological tools that fostered our students’ learning in all of our classes (like laptops).
Good luck with your GAME plan!
Thank you,
Traci Audino
References
Boss, S. (2009). Making Time for Teacher Collaboration Is Crucial. Edutopia: K-12 Education & Learning Innovations with Proven Strategies that Work. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/teacher-collaboration-crucial
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National education standards for teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers
Hi Traci,
DeleteThank you for your feedback! One of the benefits to working in a very large school (2300 students) is there is almost always a team of teachers for each course. We are lucky that next year we will have common planning by content team to allow for weekly collaborative planning sessions. I like the idea of working with grade level teachers, too, to increase the consistency of instruction in other areas. I believe that this is one area that we are lacking at our school. If there is anything I have learned on my 15 years of teaching, it is that I am better as part of group than I am by myself!
Thanks,
Ellen Theloosen
Hi Ellen,
ReplyDeleteWow! Twenty-three hundred students is much larger than my school’s 600, and I agree that a benefit of that can be having at least a few other educators who are of your same content and grade level. As the only 7th grade English teacher in my district, it can get lonely sometimes.
In addition, I wish all schools would offer more common planning time between teachers of the same content; it is great your school will be establishing more of that next year. That supportive culture can be a positive asset when you carry out your GAME plan.
Thanks again,
Traci