Monitoring my GAME Plan

I have begun to make some progress in my GAME plan towards strengthening my confidence and proficiency in standard one of NETS-T. I am currently, midway through a problem-based lesson where students are learning to find percentages and use them in real-world situations. I have integrated technology in the form of Microsoft Excel to assist students. Students are using the spreadsheet software to calculate sale prices and sales tax to complete holiday shopping list. Students will also continue to use the software to set up budgets. The software is saving students’ time while also forcing them to problem solve and set up formulas.

I have learned that my students are more engaged and have more opportunities to use technology when I present them with problem-based lessons. I do not believe that I need to modify the action part of my GAME plan at this time. I am in the need of finding more ideas and research problem-based lessons and authentic instruction. I have not had much luck finding other lessons to review for problem-based learning in my math class.

I have also been researching on different forms of technology to integrate in my classroom. I have done most of this research using www.atomiclearning.com . I am currently learning how to use Google Apps and Google Sites with my students. I want to be able to integrate more collaboration with my students via the internet.  Does anyone have any good ideas for resources on problem-based lessons or have suggestions for technology used in their classes? Any suggestions would greatly be appreciated.

Carrying Out My GAME Plan

To carry out my GAME plan I will need to continue to read more about authentic instruction and problem-based learning. I would like to conduct more research and find examples of authentic instruction used in math classes. Thus, collecting articles and books on the subject matter is a major resource need. I also need to find and learn how to use additional technology in my classroom. This technology needs to be relevant to the content being taught and have connections to real-world application. To help me discover and learn how to use new technology I am using atomic learning, www.atomiclearning.com .

 I have just begun to use atomic learning and I am realizing all of the benefits this site has to offer. I have also learned quite a bit on authentic instruction through the reading our course text, Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use. This past week I began to use some problem-based lessons and incorporated the use of Microsoft Excel into the lesson.

My Personal GAME Plan

My goal is to strengthen my confidence and proficiency in indicators a and b of standard one of the National Education Standards for Teachers. Standard one calls for teachers to facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity. Indicator a requires teachers to promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. Indicator b suggest that teachers should engage students in real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources.

            My action to help me accomplish my goals is to use authentic instruction in my classroom. I will use more project-based and problem-based learning with my students that incorporate different forms of technology. I will make sure that the projects the students create are based around both content and real-world issues.

            I plan to monitor my progress by evaluating my students and the success of their learning through the authentic instruction. I will also monitor my students’ use of technology along with my own modeling of technology in the classroom.

            I think a good way for me to evaluate my own learning through this process would be through journaling. I am going to keep a journal to reflect on each lesson and determine what aspects of the lesson went well and how may be able to improve the lesson next time I present it. I believe I can extend my learning to help me reach my goals by continuing to participate in professional development on different types of technology and authentic instruction