Developing My Personal GAME Plan

Self-directed learning provides teachers with the opportunity to grow both professionally and professionally.  We are often engaging in this type of learning without even realizing it – through the creation and teaching of our lesson plans, to the monitoring of ourselves and our students throughout the process (Laureate Education Inc., 2010b).  In order to continuously improve our practice, as well as provide students with new and innovative ways to use technology, teachers must always have goals in mind for taking learning to the next level.   A process like the GAME plan (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009) holds teachers accountable for setting these goals and following them through to success.

The International Society for Technology in Education, ISTE, (2008) has created NETS, or standards, for teachers in order to evaluate the “skills and knowledge educators need to teach, work, and learn in an increasingly connected global and digital society”.  When looking at the five standards listed, along with their objectives, it is clear that I am more familiar and comfortable with some me than I am with others.  Being able to integrate technology in the classroom requires confidence (Laureate Education Inc., 2010a), which gives me the motivation to set goals for working on the NETS that may not currently be my areas of strength.

The first standard that I would like to focus on is standard three – modeling digital-age work and learning.  Before I entered into my graduate program, I used typical technology integration strategies in my classroom.  The SMART Board, Google, and iPad apps were utilized on a daily basis, with activities modified to meet the needs of my students with special needs.  I did not have my own blog or my own classroom website, and most of the activities and interactive books I used on the SMART Board were pre-made.  When I look at how far I have come in the last year, I am proud of my accomplishments, but see that there is much more progress to be made.  My goal for this NET is to work on finding one new “tech tool”, program, or website a week that I can become familiar with and use to enhance instruction and transfer knowledge.  I will set aside time after school or at home, two to three times each week (even if it is only a few minutes) in order to familiarize myself with the new technology.  I will then log the name of the technology, as well as the pros, cons, etc. for using it with my students.  This log will help me to monitor my progress, as well as document the steps I have taken along the way.  I can then choose a time frame (one month, one quarter, etc.) at the end of which I will go back and see which of these tools I have used in the classroom, which ones I haven’t, and which ones I need to learn more about.  I can also share my findings through my professional blog or with colleagues.  I can even work to collaborate globally with special educators to support the research and learning of tools for students with special needs.

The second standard I would like to focus on is engaging in professional growth and leadership.  Because I am the only teacher in my building that teaches a classroom for students with multiple disabilities, it can often be a challenge to collaborate on a meaningful level.  During weekly grade level and content area meetings, I often feel I have very little to contribute to the conversation.  When I do meet with other MD teachers (4 times a year through our county-run program), there is often not enough time to discuss technology during our meetings.  Because of my Walden experience, I feel I am able to satisfy much of my desire to collaborate and communicate in regards technology.  However, I am worried that when I complete my program, I will no longer have the discussions that I currently am able to engage in on a daily basis with my Walden cohort.  This is why this particular NET means so much to me.  I want to be able to step up and become a leader amongst teachers in my building, as well those who teach in similar settings.  I also want to expand my learning community and make it a global one.

In working on this NET, using the GAME plan will set me on the right path – ensuring that I follow through on my goal and hold myself accountable along the way.  My goals are to be able to share and model new technologies (that I have researched and used in my own classroom) with others in my program.  I would like to be able to share and receive feedback from my colleagues, while being self-directed in my search to find technologies that will benefit our students with significant special needs.  Now that all of our classrooms have SMART Boards and iPads, the tools are in place for us all to utilize technology to the fullest extent possible.  I am able to take action right away by contacting my supervisor in order to make sure that I will have time at our next meeting to discuss technology.  I will email fellow colleagues to find out their technology needs/challenges/questions, etc., so that I can work on an agenda to tackle in preparation for our next meeting.  The way I will monitor myself in working on this goal will be to make a list of all content areas (since we all teach every subject) and teacher concerns, and work to locate technology tools that can meet these needs, as well as tools that can be used for all grade levels (we serve students in grades K-12+).  Once I have located resources and solutions to teacher technology issues, I will utilize these tools in my own classroom.  Being able to navigate through the resources will allow me to evaluate what I have found and extend the learning to my colleagues at our next meeting.  Being able to give technology input at each of our meetings will force me to stay accountable to learning and experimenting with new tools that can benefit my colleagues and I.  The cycle can continue through each school year, as new technologies emerge, and new questions/concerns arise.

I am hoping that through the use of the GAME plan, I will be able to strengthen and become more proficient in these technology standards.  I would appreciate any input, ideas, or resources you may have in order to help me do so. 

Cennamo et al. (2009) offer this perspective:

“As we lead the way and break new ground in the world of technology integration, self-directed learning will be essential.  You and your peers have the opportunity to be leaders in these efforts!” (p.19)

 

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 education standards for teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010a). Enriching content area learning:  Part one. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010b). Promoting self-directed learning with technology. Baltimore, MD: Author.