Effective teachers look for all opportunities to enhance
their students learning experience. With
the ease of access to many forms of technology, it is imperative that teachers
not only find ways to integrate it into their lessons, but also follow guidelines
to ensure it is being used effectively and appropriately. The International Society for Technology in
Education (ISTE) developed many performance indicators that allow teachers to
successfully use technology in the classroom instruction. While reviewing these standards, I realized
that there are many areas I feel confident.
But with my strengths, there are also areas that need to be strengthened
further in order to benefit my students.
Therefore, I selected to areas on which I will create a GAME plan to
encourage me to create lessons that promote self-directed learning as well as
creativity.
The first standard I would like to strengthen is Standard 3,
Indicator C: communicate relevant
information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a
variety of digital-age media and formats (International Society for Technology
in Education, 2008). While I feel that I
communicate well with students, parents and my peers, I often rely on simple
forms of communicate. There are many
different formats that can be used to further enhance my communication.
GOAL: I will improve
communication with parents by using technology tools such as a digital
newsletter, e-mail, classroom website, and classroom blog to get parents more
involved with classroom happenings.
ACTION: I will create
and maintain a website, blog, and e-mail group list to promote communication
between school and home. At home
activities that extend classroom learning will be included on the blog or
website.
MONITOR: Parent
feedback will be solicited on ease of access and communication.
EVALUATE and EXTEND:
I can evaluate based upon the level of interaction and feedback parents
provide via the blog or e-mail. Students
will also be able to share how they completed activities based from the
website, e-mails or blog during classroom follow-ups.
The second standard I would like to strengthen is Standard
2, Indicator A: design or adapt relevant
learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote
student learning and creativity. While I
strive to promote self-directed learning, my delivering model is through direct
instruction.
GOAL: I will create
more learning experiences that involve the use of technology, create a
student-centered learning environment, and allow students to display their
creativity in their learning.
ACTION: I will
research and learn new technology tools and create lessons that include
technology or provide opportunities to foster creativity.
MONITOR: As I
implement lessons, I will reflect effectiveness and ways to improve.
EVALUATE and EXTEND: I
can evaluate the effectiveness of this by student products and student feedback
from surveys.
Using the strategies of a GAME plan, I will improve my
abilities as a teacher in implementing technology in my classroom as well as
effectively communicating with parents and students.
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 in Education
(2008). National educational standards for
teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved from
http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs?NETS_for_Teachers_2008_EN.sflb.ashx
Jocelyn,
ReplyDeleteI, too, have had similar experiences with technology and lesson creation. As I have good intentions for making sure that the lessons I prepare offer options for self-directed learning, I often resort back to the “stand and deliver” method when crunch time hits. I feel that I can reach the students faster if I spoon feed, for lack of a better term, the content that they are required to know for a benchmark test or other assessment deadline that is quickly approaching. I know in my mind (and in my heart) that this is not the best method for students to use to gain a thorough understanding of the content. However, fear kicks in and motivates me to guarantee that they have at least encountered the content prior to the test, after all, how can students be held accountable for material that have never seen?
This is where better planning is needed on my part. I need to make sure that enough time is allotted for each unit of study—time that will be sufficient for my students to experience real, authentic learning opportunities in which critical and creative thinking can be involved (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). These are characteristics of instructional methods that help students to truly learn new skills and content, and that should be the goal of any classroom teacher.
Reference
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.
I like your idea of an electronic newsletter or blog. In this digital age, it is a great way to communicate. However, do all of your parents have computer access? If not, will you be sending them a paper copy? At my school, most of the families do not have access to technology so unfortunately that would not work for me. Great for you!
ReplyDeleteAs far as your second goal, I share the same aspirations. I am incorporating new technology but not often enough. I need to work on implementing it in more ways and more often.
Thanks for the comment. I am fortunate that all of my families have internet and computer access, whether at home, at work or through their smartphone. This school year, I piloted an online sign-up for parent teacher conferences instead of sending home dates and times via paper and then having to resechedule when times didn't work. I used the website Sign Up Genius (www.signupgenius.com) and the parents were very excited about it. There were able to select a date and time that worked best for their schedule and received e-mail reminders. It was by far the best attended conferences I have had in 9 years. Therefore, I am looking for more ways to use digital communication with my families.
DeleteGreat Jocelyn. That is wonderful and sounds exciting. I am so glad and envious that you are able to use technology to this extent. I am in hopes that one day I can do the same. I know how difficult scheduling conferences can be. I usually have to change some of them several times. Technology is amazing and a great tool for this purpose. I was not aware of Sign Up Genius but I definitely want to check it out now. Thanks for the insight.
DeleteI am also a second grade teacher. When we are teaching such a young age consistent and easy parent communication is essential. I rely on email as my main form of communication with parents. I liked your idea of having a digital newsletter. Right now, I send out a monthly newsletter as a paper copy. Emailing it to parents would probably be a great way to ensure that they are getting the critical information that is provided. I have a colleague that has a class Facebook page. She used to have a WIKI and then changed it to Facebook. She said she likes it much more because it is way easier and a lot of parents are involved. She finds that the parents also really appreciate the page. This might be an option that you may consider. I track all my communication with parents to ensure that I am regularly communicating with all of them. If this is something that you do, you may want to include on the tracking if it was digital communication. This would be a good way for you to monitor your goal and evaluate it. You have a great GAME plan and I hope it goes well for you. I think it will be something that benefits both you and your students!
ReplyDeleteJasmin
Thank you for the great comment. Communication between school and home is SO important. I like your idea of using Facebook to set up a classroom page. Our school has a Facebook page, and parents seem to appreciate the information communicated through that format as well as the alerts that go out to cell phones and e-mail addresses. A Facebook page may be a bit easier to maintain on a daily basis as well as updates would show up in parents Facebook feeds, instead of having to visit another site for the information. Thanks for the idea!! :)
DeleteJocelyn,
ReplyDeleteI have a colleague that uses a blog as her digital newsletter, parent communication board, and links for at-home practice. What she has found is that her students’ levels of responsibility have increased exponentially because their parents are consistently made aware of classroom updates. I asked her about the quantity of time maintaining the site and she told me that she spends just as much time working on the site as she would talking to parents on the phone or writing notes to specific parents as things come up. She also told me that her site has made it easier to help parents feel involved in the classroom, even if they cannot physically be at school. Talking with her has inspired me to look at designing a site for my class next year. I hope you can find a way to make this happen in your classroom!
Good luck accomplishing your goals,
Katie Weichert