GAME Plan Reflection

My GAME plan went fairly well, though I didn’t have a chance to complete everything that I wanted to with it, as I ran out of time.  Though I feel that I made some good progress on my GAME plan.  I had never made a GAME plan before and I found it to be very interesting to work on one, and I can see how it can make someone a better educator by implementing one.  

One of the first things that feel that I have gained from my GAME plan was confidence.  If a teacher and student do not have confidence, then the knowledge that they learned will be wasted (Laureated Education Inc., 2009).  Like I have stated, I am fairly confident with technology, but I have lacked in other areas, such as trying something new in the classroom, even if the other teachers are not doing it.  I have learned that by modeling confidence, others around me are exhibiting confidence as well.  It is exciting to see those who lacked confidence, start to gain it and take off with their learning.  

The first standard that I chose for my GAME plan was 4.A, advocate, model, and teach safe, legal and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.  I feel pretty good that I was able to accomplish this goal.  I did a lot of research on the topic and found ways that I could get the information across to the students.  I also put together a sheet for the students to use while they are working to refer back to on proper citation. I think that for my final step in the goal, I put the list that I gave to the students on the wiki that I have been using.  That way they will always be able to refer back to that information, even if they loose their paper.

The second standard that I chose for my GAME plan was 1.C  Promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students’ conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes.  This was the goal that I had the most fun with, but the one that I was not able to complete all of the way.  I was able to design some lesson plans for this goal, but I wasn’t able to implement them in time, as I ran out of time.  These lessons will be used at a later time and I feel confident that the students will enjoy using a wiki to collaborate on.   I did a lot of research for the what tools to use for online collaboration and the two that I liked the best was a wiki, along with Google docs. I still like the idea of a classroom blog, but I think that will be for more informational purposes and to have the parents involved.  I really like the wiki, as it is easy to use, and I can have pages for the students to go collaborate on.   I also like Google docs for that same purpose, though the only holdup about Google docs, is having the students have their own accounts to be able to use it.  

I think that my GAME plan went pretty well.  I do know that I would make changes if I had to do it again. I would make sure that I would have time to be able to complete the tasks that I wanted to complete for my game plan, along with doing one goal at a time.  There were times, when it was a little overwhelming to be working on two goals at the same time.  I prefer working on one goal at a time, then moving on once I have completed that goal. 

During this whole course and GAME plan, I have learned that technology is very important to use in the classroom.  I have always believed that the students should be more exposed to technology as it can open up a whole new learning world to them.  Technology has a way of engaging the students and keeping them engaged with the learning.  It is my goal to keep the students engaged, and where they will want to learn on their own in their spare time.  

The one thing that I found really interesting in this course, was where I learned about digital storytelling.  I have heard of it, but never looked into it.  I really wish that I would have, as it is a fun way to be creative in the classroom, while showcasing what the students have learned.  I’m looking forward to using digital storytelling in the classroom and to see what the students will come up with.  

In conclusion, I really enjoyed taking this class, as I was able to learn a few new ways on how to integrate technology into the classroom.  I was also able to learn about how to make a GAME plan and how to go about accomplishing the plan.  

References:
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2014). ISTE Standards for teachers resources. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/standards-for-teacher
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009).   Integrating technology across the content areas: Enriching content area learning experiences with technology, part 1. 
 [Video webcast]. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1