Reflection

By setting up Cennamo, Ross and Ertmer’s GAME plan (2009) this summer, I achieved far more than I have ever accomplished during a summer. My research during this course demonstrated hundreds of ways I can use technology to enhance my instruction. When the course began, I set goals based on the ISTE NETS, reshaping my classroom to integrate technology as a tool for enhancing learning. Thanks to these goals my instructional practice will be greatly changed, with technology infused throughout most of my units.

Many of my accomplishments related to standard 2: “Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments” (ISTE, 2008). Focusing on this standard, I created a poetry wiki where our poem-a-day assignment can take on more collaboration and critical thinking. This site will allow my students to reflect on our class poetry at home, adding personal insights and expanding their thinking by reading each other’s ideas. I also discovered ThinkQuest.com, where we can join students from other schools to collaborate on creative projects. I am in the process of setting up a project-based learning experience through this web site now.

This course demonstrated the value of problem-based as a tool for promoting creativity and collaboration. The recycle project I created will give my students a chance to practice reading and writing skills while using higher-order thinking. During this unit, groups will choose areas of interest to research and use self-directed learning with their own GAME plans. This lesson, based on authentic, relevant subject matter that affects my students’ lives, will “stimulate curiosity related to real-world problem solving” (Alvermann, Phelps & Ridgeway, 2007, p. 182). This unit fits my GAME plan and ISTE standard 1, where I will “facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments” (ISTE, 2008). Best of all, my students will use digital storytelling to share their findings with members of our community who have little understanding about our recycling problems. My students will become proficient in the NETS for students based on problem solving, “employing technology in the development of strategies for solving problems in the real world” (ISTE, 1998).

As I stated in an earlier blog, I strongly value goal-setting and reflection as learning tools. This summer, I set my own goals and came a long way on my journey towards becoming a 21st Century teacher.

Kris
References

Alvermann, D., Phelps, S., & Ridgeway, V. (2007). Content area reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Mason, Ohio: Cengage Learning.
The power of project learning with ThinkQuest [Online Pamphlet]. (2009, August 3). Menlo Park, CA: SRI International. Retrieved August 5, 2010, from http://www.thinkquest.org/en/projects/index.html
Nets for Teachers. (2008). International Society for Technology in Education. Retrieved on August 5, 2010 from http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm