Application 2: My GAME Plan

Self-directed learning is one of those phrases I have heard before, but never really stopped to reflect upon. The readings of the last couple of weeks have affirmed, however, the benefits of actively planning, monitoring, and evaluating my learning. Cennamo acknowledges that through the process of creating and delivering lessons teachers are engaging in self-directed learning (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). I do not have an established way in which to monitor this process however, so it often ends up providing me with inadequate or ineffective results. In order to more effectively reach my goals for teaching with technology, though, I will utilize a strategy developed by Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer (2009) called the GAME plan. The GAME plan helps you set goals, take action on those goals, monitor your progress, and then evaluate how you have done in reaching the goal (Cennamo, Ross & Ertmer, 2009). This post will detail a GAME plan for two indicators from the International Society for Technology in Education (2008) that I will work on for the next two months.

The first indicator I will focus on is #3d which states teachers “model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning” (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008). I have chosen this as my goal because the research process is such an important part of social studies, yet sadly, is an area where my instruction is lacking. To improve I plan to teach my students the REAL strategy for evaluating websites developed by November (2008). I will monitor students as they learn and apply each step to determine whether further assistance is needed. I can then modify my instruction to meet those needs. Once students are ready for independent practice, I will ask them to apply the skills in a research project. If they can successfully choose reliable websites, then I will have met my goal. This is only a rough idea in my head so far, though, so suggestions on how to teach analysis and evaluation of websites is appreciated.

The second indicator I will focus on pertains to my professional development. I would like to work on indicator #5a which states that I will “participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning” (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008). This goal is important to me right now because of a grant I was awarded for an interactive whiteboard (IWB). I would like to connect with other teachers in my district who have one as well as globally to get help using the technology. The first action I will take is to find out how many other teachers in my district have a Hitachi Starboard. I will then see if they are willing to set up a collaborative space to share ideas and provide support to each other. The frequency with which we share ideas will be a good indicator of how well I am working toward meeting the goal. If I can learn and apply new strategies successfully from these collaborative discussions, then the learning community will be successful.

So those are my goals for the next two months. If you have any suggestions for improvements to my GAME plans, I would appreciate your feedback.

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 of Technology in Education. (2008). NETS for Teachers. Retrieved January 10, 2011, from http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Teachers_2008_EN.sflb.ashx

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Promoting Self-Directed Learning with Technology. [Motion Picture]. Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author.

November, A. (2008). Web literacy for educators. Thousands Oaks: Corwin Press.