Reflective Essay 6715

Throughout this course I was able to explore some wonderful new and emerging technologies that I never know existed. I was able to understand how important these tools can enhance learning and prepare our students for the future with 21st century skills. For example, I am experimenting with a new technology that will allow me to have a virtual classroom environment. This tool is very crucial for me to use because the only reason why most of my students fail is because of missing work or low test scores. Moodle will allow me to have better communication with my students and their parents. It will also allow me to be able to give practice quizzes or drill and skill lessons online. This tool has so much to offer and when I found out that it is free, I knew it was a tool that I had to utilize in my classroom right away

I am also very excited to share Moodle with my colleagues, who are more familiar with BlackBoard, because that is what some of the other teachers in our building have used. When I tell them that is free and show them all the features it has to offer, I cannot imagine them being excited to use it too. I also am going to share Second Life with the Science teachers and all the many other digital games that I was introduced to. I hope that this is the beginning to some great changes in my school building and for our students who I believe will enjoy learning with the new and emerging technology.

Moodle

Here is my VoiceThread.

http://www.voicethread.com/share/1259507

Reflective Essay EDUC 6714

Throughout this course I was introduced to a wealth of resources that I had no idea existed. These resources have opened many doors for me to help me implement Differentiated Instruction (DI) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) into my classroom. I have taken many of the sites and placed them in my favorites tool box, so they are always available and a constant reminder for me to remember to use them for future planning. Many of these sites contain excellent lesson plans, teaching methods, and new research on how the brain works so I can use DI and UDL in my classroom. By using these sites that were shared in our Differentiation Stations I will also have many sources that will help with implementing technology into my classroom that support DI and UDL. I will also make CAST part of my curriculum and its devised three sets of broad teaching methods that support each of the three UDL principles: recognition, strategic, and affective learning.

As a teacher, making adjustments and changing lessons plans is something I am very good at. Therefore, I will make sure that the beginning of my school year I have given all my students "Getting to Know You" assessments to help me figure out my students learning styles, interests, multiple intelligences, and learning profile. This will be the vehicle that will help guide me to constantly differentiate and break barriers that usually frustrate students who are very bright. I will assess my students throughout the year for readiness. Offer them to learn the content in different ways, and produce what they have learned in a variety of ways too. Technology will be a factor when creating my lesson plans and I will commit myself to be a life long learner and continue to research, ask my colleagues, and take courses in technology so I can always offer my students the best 21s t century education that is available to them.

Reflective Essay 6713

Every lesson needs a well thought out "game" plan in order for it to be effective. There are so many angles a teacher must look at when creating a lesson. To name a few a teacher must look at meeting content standards, meeting all learning styles, modifying, and to add to our long list we must meet the NETS-T standards in order to give our students the 21st century education that is required for today's future.
After reviewing the GAME plan that I developed I realize that the GAME plan needs to be implemented into many of my daily lesson plans. The impact that the GAME plan will have on my teaching instruction will go further then just the blogging that I have documented in this course. I see how imperative it is for teacher and students to have a GAME plan when applying any sort of knowledge that needs to have a clear final product. In reality you cannot really teach or learn without setting learning goals, taking action to meet those goals, monitoring progress, and evaluate or extend the lesson (Cennamo, Ross, Ertmer, 2009).
Because I will be integrating more technology into my classroom I will incorporate the GAME plan into more of those lessons that require the use of technology. The new techniques that I have learned such as digital storytelling, blogging, wiki pages, and VoiceThread will take time and energy to impose on my lessons, but I believe that with the use of the GAME plan strategy I will be successful and so will my students.
Furthermore, I also learned the importance for allowing students to work individually, in small groups, and in whole-group settings. The importance of preparing the computers, and preparing the students for computer use is not to be undermined either. The GAME plan strategy and template will not be left to collect dust once this course is over. I will graciously take this one with me and enforce it on other teachers to try and implement it in their daily teaching.

Reference:Cennamo, 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.

GAME Plan Used By Students

The GAME plan strategy can easily be incorporated into lessons for my students to use in their assignemnts. I will first need to introduce them to the NETS-T standards and have them become familiar with them. I can then use the GAME plan strategy every time I introduce them to a new technology tool. For example, with The Outsiders WebQuest lesson I can have them set goals to explore other Webquests and then take action to find another one that they can use in my classroom or even another classroom like science or social studies. They can then monitor their WebQuests and actually make a lesson of their own to offer to bring into the classroom and share. They can then evaluate and share their lesson and WebQuest with that of other classmates. During this time they can take notes and compare their plan to others. This GAME plan can really turn into something bigger than just a lesson I taught; they will discover the world of WebQuests, how to create a lesson, and how fun it is to learn in this manner. I can do this with blogging and digital story telling too. Allowing students to be part of their own GAME plan can create some amazing lessons created by students. I can see how this will clearly allow for students to think critically and creatively. I feel that when we allow them to create their own lessons and take action for it they will rise to the bar and become the "teachers." If we allow them to evaluate their own creations of lessons I believe they will become life long learners and more succsessful in life as well.

Revising My GAME Plan

After sitting down and actually completing The Outsiders WebQuest lesson myself, I realized that I needed to make changes with the handout that I created for my students. The handout had too much busy work that it took away from being able to browse and enjoy the WebQuest. I feel that if a lesson involves teaching students a new tool to use they need time to be able to browse, become familiar with it, and enjoy it. I went back and created a completely different handout with the same objective of allowing them to be able to become familiar with the time era of when The Outsiders takes place. I allow them more choice with guidance now. I also added classtime for them to reflect and discuss and share what they discovered and what they liked or did not like about the activity. I realized that this project will take two days to complete, something I was not sure of yet. Overall I feel pretty good about carrying out this activity and cannot wait to use it next year with my students.
Furthermore there is so much more that I still need to learn when it comes to WebQuests. One goal that I have is to actually create my own with the help of our applied technology teacher (NETS-T standard 1). I have very limited time and realize that this may take a while, but learning how to actually create one can have a huge impact when teaching. I also would like to find more teachers that have used this type of activity in their lessons and become familiar with how they used them as a learning experience. I will research this by asking teachers within my own building and research the Internet (NETS-T standard 5). Based on the NETS-T, I still have many goals for incorporating technology into my classroom by adding more NETS- T standards into my teaching. For example, I plan on creating a digital story telling lesson for next year too (NETS-T standard 2).
There is so much that technology has to offer for the classroom, and since it is constantly changing, I will learn and teach new technology to my students as often as possible. I will provide many different forms of formative and summative assessments that are aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching. I will also commit myself to evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis. By committing to doing all of the above this will help improve my learning and contribute to completing some of my goals for integrating technology into my classroom.

Reference:

Evaluating My GAME Plan

I am very sorry for getting to this blog so late in the week. I have been packing and moving all week and weekend on top of everything else that goes with our busy teacher lives. Anyway as far as my GAME plan goes I have created a handout that will guide my students through The Outsiders WebQuest. The handout is designed to allow them to browse through the site independently that way I can facilitate. I still need to create a modified version for my ELA and Special Ed. students. I also need to create a rubric, which I know is something I should have created first. However, the rubric was in mind while I created the handout. I have yet to figure out how much time needs to be allotted for this project. Therefore I will sit down this week and do the assignment myself, this will also allow me to make any changes necessary to the assignment if need be. I have decided to take 30 minutes of classroom time to go over the handout and rubric with my students and also model for them on my computer and projector how to find the site and show them how to navigate through the site. Once we have done that I will have some practice skills for them to work on before actually heading down to the computer lab, I know this may take longer if there are lots of questions, but I do not anticipate too many questions because of my instructions. I am also still working on what would be the best way to evaluate their experience of what they learned. I will ask my colleagues what they think would be a good idea for self-reflection. I will also ask them of any WebQuests they have used in the past and how did they use them for ideas.

Following up on my GAME Plan

Being that my GAME plan includes an all time favorite novel that I had read in seventh grade, The Outsiders, I was able to quickly find many WebQuests that were created for the novel. My focus though is to give my students some background knowledge for the time era of the novel. After previewing many WebQuests I found one that will work perfectly for what I want my students to learn, http://slms.leesummit.k12.mo.us/egriffin/Outsiders.htm. This WebQuest covers above and beyond what I was looking for. Now that I have found the site my next goal is to create a handout and rubirc that will help my students utilize the site and be able to benefit from it. I realize that this site can be a little intimidating, especially for my special ed. and ELA students so I will definitely modify their handouts. My biggest goal is that all my students walk away with a clear idea of what the late sixties was like. My students do not comprehend "back in the day" comments. Their little lives are so consumed with the now. I really believe this activity will help them understand the novel better and enjoy who each character is because of the time era that the novel was based around.
The WebQuest that I chose taught me some new and interesting facts about the late sixties, I also found it to be seventh grade friendly, and fun to browse through.

Carrying Out My Game Plan

To carry out my game plan I will need computers and the Internet to research WebQuests. Once I find the best Webquest I will then determine what the criteria will be and what exactly it is that I want them to be able to walk away with and learn. I will need to have an estimation of time needed for the task, and decide what should be done before, during , and after the instruction.Action: During this stage I will have to create student guidelines, including instructions, handouts, and rubrics.a. I will have to create instructional demonstrations and handouts.b. I will need to identify the WebQuest.c. I will need to be sure computers are working and available for the time that I need them.e. I will develop evaluation rubrics, and a checklist.Monitor: During this time will group students and let them know what they should do before, during, and after computer time. I will demonstrate the tasks that need to be done. Provide any and all handouts. I will let students know what they need to bring to the computer lab. They will be given a specific time to work in the lab and in the classroom. As students work I will facilitate and keep interruptions to a minimum so they can work independently with their partner. I will remind them of the time as it gets closer to the end. I will monitor student understanding: engage students in self-assessment. These are some of the steps I will need to take to be sure this assignment is successful.

GAME Plan: EDUC 6713

This GAME plan will be created for seventh grade language arts classes. My goals will be to design, implement, and assess learning experiences to engage students and improve learning; enrich professional practice; and provide positive models for students, colleagues, and the community with the incorporation of technology. I will begin by using the ISTE standard 1:Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity, I will also use standard 5: Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership.
Standard 1 will be used along with a novel unit that I teach every year. I would like to incorporate a WebQuest into my unit.
Goals: I will begin by researching and becoming familiar with WebQuests that have already been created for The Outsiders. I will evaluate which one works best for my purpose, which is to find a WebQuest that introduces and informs my students about the time era that the novel takes place. Once I find the best Webquest I will then determine what the criteria will be and what exactly it is that I want them to be able to walk away with and learn. I will need to have an estimation of time needed for the task, and decide what should be done before, during , and after the instruction.
Action: During this stage I will have to create student guidelines, including instructions, handouts, and rubrics.
a. I will have to create instructional demonstrations and handouts.
b. I will need to identify the WebQuest.
c. I will need to be sure computers are working and available for the time that I need them.
e. I will develop evaluation rubrics, and a checklist.
Monitor: During this time will group students and let them know what they should do before, during, and after computer time. I will demonstrate the tasks that need to be done. Provide any and all handouts. I will let students know what they need to bring to the computer lab. They will be given a specific time to work in the lab and in the classroom. As students work I will facilitate and keep interruptions to a minimum so they can work independently with their partner. I will remind them of the time as it gets closer to the end. I will monitor student understanding: engage students in self-assessment.
Evaluate: I will take notes during the lesson from beginning to end to remember what went well and what did not work or needs tweaking. I will also allow for my students to reflect and offer any suggestions for the lesson. I will analyze the data an d plan for reteaching and improving the WebQuest lesson by always searching for new and better WebQuests (standard 5). I must remember to record student progress from the following year. This will most likely occur during the Socratic Seminar, through their discussions.

Reference: Cennamo, 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.

National Education Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) located at http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf.

Transitioning from Knowledge to Synthesis Reflection EDUC-6712

How we educate our students for the 21st century and meet and keep up with the high demands for technological practice is a question that may never be answered. However, we can teach our students strategies that can prepare them for this ever changing, fast paced world. One strategy that can contribute to preparing our students for the future is through inquiry learning.
With the vast amount of information that students are given access to, it is very clear that they need to be taught the ability to locate, evalute, and use appropriate information for learning, living, and working with new technologies. Inquiy learning allows for all of that while learning. I found it striking how this one project offers motivation, reading comprehension, language development, writing ability, cooperative learning, and social skills. All of which are skills that are essential for life long learning.
This class allowed me to realize the importance of inquiry learning. With careful planning, close supervision, and ongoing assessments I will continue to teach inquiry learning throughout my teaching career. My ulitmate goal will be to develop independent learners who know how to expand their knowledge and expertise through skilled use of a variety of information sources employed inside and outside of school.
One professional goal that I have is to continue to be a life long learner and research inquiry learning before I teach it. This will help refresh my memory and add any new ideas or strategies to the project. In order to prepare them and get them excited I must become an expert on inquiry learning so they are guided and coached more and lectured less. I really want my students to be motivated and want to learn more and create ways to share what they have learned. Therefore, if I dedicate myself to polishing up my inquiry learning projects both student and teacher will have a good experience and success.
Schools are faced with the challenge of preparing students to be successful, productive citizens in a fast changing world with huge amounts of information. Students need to be taught how to properly exercise the new literacy skills for future success. Inquiry learning will be a strategy that will prepare them to use the new literacy skills and become life long learners.