I've Got GAME

Goodness this has been a long and difficult week! Before I begin, please let me apologize for the lateness of this posting. I live in Hawaii, but have had to make an emergency trip to Connecticut to help my grandmother who fell down a few weeks ago. Though I wrote this initial post several days ago, I have been unable to post it (or go) online because my Connecticut relations do not have internet access at this time! 2012 and no internet access? Who does that? Apparently, my relations…. Anyway, I apologize for the lateness, and will find another means of getting internet access than this small library as soon as humanly possible!

Due to lack of internet access for several days this week, I have hit quite a snag in the process of gaining information critical to PLCs and of course integrating technology into my own classroom. Yet, I look at this week as one in which I have learned a great deal. Why you ask? I have spent many hours (especially in tiny seats on packed planes) thinking about my own teaching and reflecting on what I could do to improve my teaching, and specificially areas in which I could more readily address technology standards for my students.
Initially, my reflections were rather despondent, with me thinking that I was doing as much as I could with what I have. I then took my reflections in a different direction and began thinking about ways in which using technology could help me and make my job a little bit easier. My first thought was simply finding resources online and using these, yet I want my students to do more than simply use resources I provide, I want them to create. This was when I realized that allowing my students the choice in how they wished to convey their learning would make my job much easier. By providing my students with the technology tools and know-how they need, I can give them much more reign with which to create. This would mean that I no longer have to create their projects for them, and allow the students to fill in the blanks, which will save me a great deal of time! From here I began mapping out ideas on what kinds of projects I would like my students to create as the school year progresses. This requires that I teach my students how to use the technology efficiently, but I believe that my students will be motivated by the fact that they want to use the technology, so they will learn the skills quickly.

Though I have hit a communication snag this week, I believe that my action plan remains a good one. I will continue to contact colleagues and use PD360 as a resource for learning. In addition to these things, I will be contacting an old professor of mine who is working on creating a better technology class for undergraduate students. I am hoping that she will be able to provide me with contacts for people who are in the field of exploring technology resources for classrooms, and I can begin to dialogue with them.
New questions have arisen for me through these reflections. What exactly are the skills I absolutely need to teach my students in order for them to independently use KeyNote, Word, and Kidspiration? How can I teach these skills to all of my students, including those with spatial difficulties? I am finding that the questions are limitless, and am excited for the possibilities ahead!

Implementing my GAME Plan

          Over the last week, I have been doing a great deal of research about Professional Learning Communities (PLCs), focusing on those geared toward integrating technology throughout the educational experiences of students. I have found pd360 to be a very helpful tool in this search. There are several PLCs available for integrating technology. There are also many videos and articles regarding this topic. I quickly became overwhelmed by the available resources! 

          As my research continued, I turned to colleagues for help in determining PLCs in which to participate, as well as for ideas for technology integration. I found several colleagues who were highly motivated, like myself, to integrate technology into the daily educational experiences of students. I have found these colleagues to be very helpful in finding resources, as well as discussing these resources from various perspectives. The Tech Coordinator at my school has been particularly helpful in helping me to become more aware of the technology resources available to me at my school. After speaking with her, I became overwhelmed with the possibilities, and decided to focus my attention on helping my students to more efficiently navigate websites so that I can build on this skill so that they can conduct research and create products later in the school year. One resource I found was Edmodo, which allows me to post links to websites, which I want my students to view and navigate through. I plan to use this resource to expose my students to educational websites so that they become used to navigating through websites with a specific purpose in mind. 

          I do want to do more research about specific strategies for integrating technology in the first grade classroom. There is a great deal of research for students and teachers working at higher reading and maturity levels, but first graders must be first introduced to the technology, and taught how to use it in appropriate and efficient ways. I will use this as a filter for my searches in pd360 in the future. I also will work on creating an Edmodo group for my colleagues and myself to share resources and ideas. By linking all of my colleagues, I will create a PLC which has the focus we want, as well as meet the standard regarding providing leadership in PLCs regarding technology. 

GAME Plan

          As I embark down another road through my Masters course, I find that while I am aware of the NETS-T standards, there are several indicators in which I would like to strengthen my teaching abilities. The first area in which I would like to become more adept is Standard 5: “Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership” (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008). I especially want to work on participating in professional learning communities which are dedicated to integrating technology into classrooms with the focus on improving the learning of students. My first step toward this goal is to locate PLCs which are dedicated to this focus. I will begin by signing into pd360, which is a professional development program provided by my school. I believe that this resource will help me to find PLCs which fit what I specifically want to focus upon.

          The second area which I want to focus on is Standard 2: “Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences and Assessments”(International Society for Technology in Education, 2008). I do spend a great deal of time working to integrate technology into every subject area, but I want this to become a much more seamless experience for my students, in which most of their learning is rooted in the use of various levels and kinds of technology. Again, I think that reviewing the offerings of pd360 will be helpful, though I think that participating in the a PLC, like the one described above, will help me to become a much better teacher, and especially a teacher of 21st Century Skills.  

          I am excited to begin this new journey toward improving my teaching, especially in regards to integrating technology more readily into my classroom. My goal, since beginning this Masters degree has been to improve my teaching, now I finally feel that I am gaining the tools to really make a positive impact on my teaching, and subsequently the learning of my students!

References

Cennamo, K., Ross, J., Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use.
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National education standards for teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Teachers_2008_EN.sflb.ashx