Wednesday, September 12, 2012

The GAME Plan


Being a reflective learner is an important quality for people to have. It is equally important to model this quality for students.  One way to do this is what Cennamo, Ross, and Etmer (2009) have named the GAME plan.  The GAME plans stands for “set Goals, take Action to meet those goals, Monitor progress toward achieving goals, and Evaluate whether the goal were achieved and Extend your learning to new situations” (p.3).  Reflecting on my own teaching, there are two goals I would like to focus on. One is ISTE Standard 1D Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity- model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

 Goal- My goal is to incorporate virtual field trips and more Skype sessions into my classroom to inspire student learning.

 Actions- I need to evaluate my curriculum to determine which lessons lend themselves to virtual fieldtrips. I need to research the Scholastic website, historical and science museums, zoos, etc. to find resources geared for elementary students. Many of these places also provide Skype sessions.

 Monitor- Monitoring the quality of information on the virtual field trips is important for establishing factual information. It is essential that the field trips or Skype sessions actually engage my students since my ultimate goal is to inspire their learning.

 
Evaluate and Expand-I can evaluate the factual information my students gain through assessment and observation.

 Another standard is 4D: Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility.  This is to develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital-age communication and collaboration tools

 Goal- My goal is for my students to have an understanding and global awareness of other cultures.  Also, I would like them to learn how communicate respectfully through e-mail.

Actions- I plan on incorporating ePals into my curriculum. It is essential that I thoroughly investigate the ePals program to make sure that it is has the approved settings set by my school and is safe for my students.  Another step is to connect with administration and parents on communicating globally through e-mail. I also need to find a classroom through ePals that is willing to be partners with my class.

Monitor- I need to monitor e-mails that are going through to students of another ethnicity.  Students should be respectful at all times. I also need to make sure students are not putting any personal information on the web.

Evaluate and Expand- I will evaluate the activity through discussion and parent feedback. It is important for students to understand and be respectful of other cultures and customs. This is the best way I know for students to establish global awareness when they do not come in contact with other ethnic backgrounds in their daily lives. Hopefully, students and parents have a wonderful experience and I will be able to expand this into a yearly communication project.

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/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Teachers_2008_EN.sflb.ashx

4 comments:

  1. Christina,

    I really like your action plan for ISTE NETS-T Standard 4D: Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility. I too chose Standard 4 to develop a GAME plan. I did not think about using ePals as a way to model and teach my students digital citizenship but I like the idea. I considered having my students last year become ePals with another class but did not end up pursuing it. After reading your GAME plan, I think I need to look into implementing it this year. What grade do you teach and where are you located? I teach third grade and teach in Ellisville, Missouri (west side of St. Louis).

    Another possibility for pen pals using technology, is to use a Wiki (another teacher I heard at a conference does this). You could easily model and teach digital citizenship and responsibility through this technology tool as well. You could also set the wiki up so others besides the pen pal can view/comment on the discussions. You can also set it up so that the comments have to be approved by you before they are published. Kidblog would be another resource.

    I have a class blog in which my students post to weekly. I use this opportunity to talk about digital citizenship and responsibility but want to work on taking it a step further which also includes teaching my students legal and ethical usage of others pictures, videos, and words.

    Daneen

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  2. Daneen,

    I teach fourth grade outside of Peoria, Illinois. We are only a few hours away from each other! Have you tried sharing a Wiki with another class? What kind of discussions did you have on it?

    I LOVE Kidblog. I have not introduced it to my students yet this year but plan on it in the next couple of weeks.

    Christina

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    Replies
    1. I have used a wiki for other class projects but I have not used it with another class yet. I got the idea from another teacher I heard present at a conference. I am in the process of trying to set up either pen pals using a wiki or epals with another third grade class at a Lutheran school in Orange County, CA. We have done a few collaborative projects with them already (through Skype) and I want to take it step further.
      I also love Kidblog. I have not introduced it to my students yet either but plan to soon. I mainly use it for journaling. What do you use it for? My students love reading their peers entries and the making comments!
      Daneen

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  3. Christina,

    I think your goals are excellent, and I love that you're incorporating virtual field trips with your students. I have used a few in my own classes, and my students love them! Are there any in particular that you are planning on using or any you have to suggest to others? For art class, I have used the tour of Lascaux http://www.lascaux.culture.fr/#/fr/00.xml and the Louvre also has a few tours http://www.louvre.fr/en/visites-en-lign

    I don't know if you have a SmartBoard, but they make virtual tours incredible and so much more interactive with students working the controls. I'm always looking for new tours to add or adapt for my music and art classes, as well as a list for other teachers at my school to use, so I'd love your input.

    Alisha

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