Effective teachers model and apply the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS•S) as they design, implement, and assess learning experiences (ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), 2008). I will formulate these two goals I plan to utilize by establishing a game plan. I look forward to hearing feedback and suggestions from my cohorts.
THE GAME PLAN #1
3b. Collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation(ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), 2008).
Set Goals- Learn more about how other Kindergarten teachers and classroom are using weblogs or blogs to communicate with others.
Take Action- Analyze and explore various blogs to decide what format will work best and prove most beneficial for the students, parents, and community I teach in.
Monitor- Make a list of the characteristics that would help to make the blog beneficial. Critically analyze other teacher’s blogs by listing and identifying negative and positive details of select blogs. Review how other teachers are using the technology by attending conferences, reading journal and magazine articles, or searching the web (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009).
Evaluate and Extend- Collaborate with cohorts and peers to decide which type of blog would be most useful. Identify what purposes it will serve. How will the blog be used in the classroom, community, and school, as well as, with students and parents?
THE GAME PLAN #2
5b. exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others (ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), 2008).
Set Goals- Participate in and join committees that reinforce technology integration and 21st century learning while helping peers to integrate technology on a regular basis.
Take Action- Develop and share lesson plans that integrate technology through the use of specific software, internet, and devices that are most beneficial for students and teachers at the elementary level. Model and encourage technology infused lessons.
Monitor- List what software, internet sites, and devices are already available within the district and school. Identify how members of the committees I am on, my team, and teachers in my school are already integrating technology. Review and compile ways that technology is being used well and ways that it is not. List specific technologies that are not currently being used but would probably serve as useful with enhancing learning.
Evaluate and Extend- Share lists with cohorts and peers of what technology is available to teachers and students and how often it is used. Collaborate to determine what lesson plans and policies should be put into place to encourage the development of leadership and technology skills.
Works Cited
Cennamo, K., Ross, J., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use. Mason: Cengage Learning.
ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education). (2008). The ISTE National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) and Performance Indicators for Teachers. Retrieved November 2, 2009, from International Society for Technology in Education: http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf
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You certainly have a good GAME plan in place! I particularly like your second goal. I think with your expertise as a former ITRT, you are just the right person to help your new colleagues learn about technology and encourage them to integrate it into their classroom instruction. You have a wealth of knowledge to share and have the technological skills to help them feel more comfortable using it. If you model these lessons and lead by example, your enthusiasm for technology integration will become contagious! Half the battle is learning about what resources are available and you probably already have a lot of resources to share which makes it easier. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks Sarah! I do hope that I can motivate the other teachers in my school. I am lucky to have a classroom chock full of technology!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sarah that you are the perfect role model for inspirting teachers to integrate technology in their classrooms.
ReplyDeleteAlso your GAME plan to increase communication is certainly an admirable one! I do wonder who will be a part ot your network for communication? Will it be only the classes you are currently working with, the teachers at the various schools you serve, the parents of students who seem particularly motivated by technolgy integration; or all of these people? Would it focus on only the kindergartners? It certainly sounds like a helpful resource for all these groups and your evaluation and extension appears to be the way to reach out even farther!
It sounds like you are very inspired to build a collaborative community in working with technology. I'm so glad that you look to your colleagues to learn from them. I think that some teachers see it as degrading to ask for help and it's a shame because each teacher as so much to offer. Good luck and happy happenings with technology!
ReplyDeleteMelodi, I am very interested in your first goal. How do you envision using the blog with your kindergarten class? I think it would be interesting to use it as a communication tool with parents. A brief post every other day to share some resources with parents, or discuss classroom goals or activities could be a very interesting way to connect your classroom to the community. I would hope it could facilitate the interactions of your students' parents with each other as well as with you. In our present society, parents have so many demands on their time it is challenging for them to attend PTO and other school related activities that in the past provided that face-to-face interaction. Your blog might be a solution to this issue. I look forward to seeing how you decide to utilize it to fit the needs of your students.
ReplyDeleteMelodi, very nice set of goals do you have for yourself. Question about your first one, do many of your current set of kindergarden teachers use online resources in their classroom already (classroom website, blogs, etc.) or is this something you will need to train many to do in the near future as well?
ReplyDeleteHello everybody! Have I told you how much I love blogging?? Awesome stuff! I am really happy to be collaborating with all of you again :)
ReplyDeleteApril, I really feel that my network of communication will be all of the people I come in contact within my learning community which would include my fellow kindergarten teachers, the students, educators and professionals within the school and district I teach in, as well as, parents of the students. The more feedback and communication I can involve myself with, the better!
Erica, I feel as you that I can never be ashamed to ask and learn from others. I think it is part of the whole learning process. As you know, teachers are always improving their own knowledge and what could be a better way of bettering yourself than learning from those around you?
Karen, when you mentioned that parents have so many demands on their time and that it is challenging for them to attend PTO and other school related activities, you really hit the nail on the head. As a teacher and parent myself, I find it nearly impossible to make myself available face to face within my son’s school. I do feel that a blog will provide parents a “peek” into the classroom and make them feel more involved with their child’s learning. Yes, newsletters are great, but in this day and age of technological advancement, why not enhance communications by adding a blog? I plan to use my blog as an account of what we are doing within the classroom, but also as a source of communication between parents and students.
Steve, the teachers I am working with do not use blogs yet they are required to keep a school website. For the majority of teachers, it seems to be used more as something they “have to do” than a resource. I think this will all change soon as we begin utilizing an outside resource for our websites. I should know more about this next week, but from what I hear you can edit the site anytime you want which is better than how it is set up now. Any blogs we create for school purposes have to be approved so I am in the process of getting that approved as we speak. We shall see...