In this blog post I will reflect on what I have learned and how it will affect my ability to effectively and appropriately integrate technology in the content area I teach. The GAME plan that I developed and followed throughout the course can be viewed in more detail by reading the previous blog postings below. The physical education classroom website that was created has increased collaboration and communication with teachers, students, parents, and other community members. Other teachers have taken ideas from the physical education classroom website and used these ideas on their own website such as the year in review section to let people know what has been learned so far in the current school year. Parents and students like to view the online physical activity calendar and participate in the activities as a family as a fun way to exercise and keep their bodies healthy. This website is helping people be physically active and healthy. The easy communication with parents via email has been a success as well. For example, parents and teachers are able to have convenient communication with one another without having to figure out a time to meet in person or worry about students losing notes that are being sent to and from home.
One immediate adjustment that I will make to my instructional practice regarding technology integration in physical education class as a result of my learning from this course is an online program called Xtranormal. This website allows users to type in whatever text that they want and the online program will quickly and easily create an animation video to present the text that was typed in by the user. This may allow teachers to present information in a way that will engage students and increase their understanding of content. Another piece of technology that will be integrated into the classroom is when a student earns a “star ticket” while in my classroom, I will email the student’s family to let them know how proud I am for their effort in physical education class. Having positive contact with families can promote a positive learning environment and can also help parent-teacher interactions in the future if a concern about the student arises thus making it easier for teachers and parents to work together to help the student.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Using the GAME Plan Process with Students
Teachers can examine the National Education Standards for Students (NETS-T) and use the GAME plan process with their students to help them develop proficiency in these standards and indicators outlined in the NETS-S. Students will go through the same steps as the teachers go through. Students will set goals based off one or two standards and indicators outlined in the NETS-S. They will then take action by stating what they will do to achieve these goals. Next they will monitor their progress of their learning and receive feedback from their peers and teachers. Finally, they will evaluate and extend their learning through reflection.
For example, students may select standard 1a: apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes. Students could create a short one to five minute digital story integrating technology by using pictures, video, music, and narration to share their problem-based learning projects with other students. They could develop a GAME plan using these ideas to help them accomplish their goals. This is one way teachers can use the GAME plan process with students to help them develop proficiency in the technology standards and indicators outlined in the NETS-S.
For example, students may select standard 1a: apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes. Students could create a short one to five minute digital story integrating technology by using pictures, video, music, and narration to share their problem-based learning projects with other students. They could develop a GAME plan using these ideas to help them accomplish their goals. This is one way teachers can use the GAME plan process with students to help them develop proficiency in the technology standards and indicators outlined in the NETS-S.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Revising My GAME Plan
I have learned different ideas that can be applied to my instructional practice since learning about the NETS-T. For example, a physical education classroom website was created to collaborate and communicate relevant information with students, parents, staff, and community members. This idea to create a classroom website was based off of the two standards from the ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for Teachers that were used in the GAME plan: 3b – Collaborating with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation; 3c – Communicating relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats.
The goals that I am still working toward include finding a blog or wiki that can be used in conjunction with the physical education website to allow people to collaborate with one another. Once a blog or wiki has been found, students will need to learn how to use this technology appropriately.
I am not ready to set new learning goals until I have developed my classroom website further. However, based on the NETS-T, the new learning goal that I may set for myself in the future may be related to standard 1b – Engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources. For example, students could learn how to use heart rate monitors to assess their fitness levels to help them create plans to lead a healthy life.
The learning approaches that will be used next time to improve my learning will be to continue to research ways to incorporate a blog or wiki into the physical education website. Further communication is needed with the instructional technology department in the school district to determine which options are available. If possible, a practice session would be used to test out this new technology to determine if it would be beneficial to students before full implementation would begin.
The goals that I am still working toward include finding a blog or wiki that can be used in conjunction with the physical education website to allow people to collaborate with one another. Once a blog or wiki has been found, students will need to learn how to use this technology appropriately.
I am not ready to set new learning goals until I have developed my classroom website further. However, based on the NETS-T, the new learning goal that I may set for myself in the future may be related to standard 1b – Engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources. For example, students could learn how to use heart rate monitors to assess their fitness levels to help them create plans to lead a healthy life.
The learning approaches that will be used next time to improve my learning will be to continue to research ways to incorporate a blog or wiki into the physical education website. Further communication is needed with the instructional technology department in the school district to determine which options are available. If possible, a practice session would be used to test out this new technology to determine if it would be beneficial to students before full implementation would begin.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Evaluating My Game Plan Progress
The focus of this week’s blog post is to evaluate my personal GAME plan (Cennamo, Ross,& Ertmer, 2009). This evaluation is about the progress toward meeting the goals established for learning about technology and technology resources. The four questions below are used to reflect upon my learning.
How effective were your actions in helping you meet your goals?
The two standards from the ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for Teachers that were used to set goals for the GAME plan were: 3b – Collaborating with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation; 3c – Communicating relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats. The goal was to create and maintain a website to communicate relevant information and ideas about physical education, health, and fitness effectively to students, parents, and peers as well as being able to collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using this website.
The actions taken have been very effective in meeting this goal. In order to achieve this goal, the physical education website is consistent in look and feel and it has the appropriate information on it without feeling too cluttered (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). The website template that is being used is the same template that is being used across the entire school district. Relevant information about national, state, and district standards for physical education is available on the website as well as links to other websites about health and fitness. A calendar of upcoming events for physical education class is available along with a month by month review of what has already been taught. A physical activity calendar is available for students, parents, staff, and community members so they can participate in as many challenges as they can and the calendar can then be turned into the teacher to receive feedback about their progress. Recently, some students participated in a 1.2 mile marathon because they were able to use the information found on the physical education website. A link is also given so people can contact me via email if they have any questions or comments so we are able to collaborate easily. I have received positive feedback about the physical education website from many parents, such as thanking me for letting them know about the kid’s marathon so they can promote health and fitness at home.
What have you learned so far that you can apply in your instructional practice?
Using this physical education website to enhance student learning and engagement has given me the confidence to continue to integrate technology into the classroom. It is important to have the knowledge, confidence, beliefs, and supportive culture to effectively integrate technology into the classroom (Laureate Education, Inc, 2009). Also, many questions that students, parents, and other staff members may have about physical education class can easily be answered by the website which allows better communication and understanding between these people and the teacher. Having this better understanding and support allows me to continue to promote health and fitness not just to my students, but to my community and the rest of the world as well. Students can get information from the website and use that information to enhance their learning in the classroom. I can post information on the website and apply it to my instructional practice by integrating the information from the website into the classroom. For example, students can review what skills are needed for an upcoming skill assessment about dribbling a basketball.
What do you still have to learn? What new questions have arisen?
I still want to learn how to integrate other pieces of technology into the classroom. For example, using heart rate monitors to assess students’ effort or attaching a blog or wiki to the website. New questions arise when planning to integrate these new ideas into the classroom. How much does a set of 30 heart rate monitors cost? Are they easy enough for students to use? Would all of my planning time be taken up monitoring the blog and wiki?
How will you adjust your plan to fit your current needs?
Using surveys and questionnaires will allow me to adjust my plan as needed. I may also want to adjust my plan to fit my current needs by selecting a different standard to set goals for. “Engaging students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources” is a standard worth looking into more. Asking students what activities they can do to help keep them healthy would be an authentic problem since obesity and the health risks associated with obesity is continuing to rise in the United States of America.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author.
How effective were your actions in helping you meet your goals?
The two standards from the ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for Teachers that were used to set goals for the GAME plan were: 3b – Collaborating with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation; 3c – Communicating relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats. The goal was to create and maintain a website to communicate relevant information and ideas about physical education, health, and fitness effectively to students, parents, and peers as well as being able to collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using this website.
The actions taken have been very effective in meeting this goal. In order to achieve this goal, the physical education website is consistent in look and feel and it has the appropriate information on it without feeling too cluttered (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). The website template that is being used is the same template that is being used across the entire school district. Relevant information about national, state, and district standards for physical education is available on the website as well as links to other websites about health and fitness. A calendar of upcoming events for physical education class is available along with a month by month review of what has already been taught. A physical activity calendar is available for students, parents, staff, and community members so they can participate in as many challenges as they can and the calendar can then be turned into the teacher to receive feedback about their progress. Recently, some students participated in a 1.2 mile marathon because they were able to use the information found on the physical education website. A link is also given so people can contact me via email if they have any questions or comments so we are able to collaborate easily. I have received positive feedback about the physical education website from many parents, such as thanking me for letting them know about the kid’s marathon so they can promote health and fitness at home.
What have you learned so far that you can apply in your instructional practice?
Using this physical education website to enhance student learning and engagement has given me the confidence to continue to integrate technology into the classroom. It is important to have the knowledge, confidence, beliefs, and supportive culture to effectively integrate technology into the classroom (Laureate Education, Inc, 2009). Also, many questions that students, parents, and other staff members may have about physical education class can easily be answered by the website which allows better communication and understanding between these people and the teacher. Having this better understanding and support allows me to continue to promote health and fitness not just to my students, but to my community and the rest of the world as well. Students can get information from the website and use that information to enhance their learning in the classroom. I can post information on the website and apply it to my instructional practice by integrating the information from the website into the classroom. For example, students can review what skills are needed for an upcoming skill assessment about dribbling a basketball.
What do you still have to learn? What new questions have arisen?
I still want to learn how to integrate other pieces of technology into the classroom. For example, using heart rate monitors to assess students’ effort or attaching a blog or wiki to the website. New questions arise when planning to integrate these new ideas into the classroom. How much does a set of 30 heart rate monitors cost? Are they easy enough for students to use? Would all of my planning time be taken up monitoring the blog and wiki?
How will you adjust your plan to fit your current needs?
Using surveys and questionnaires will allow me to adjust my plan as needed. I may also want to adjust my plan to fit my current needs by selecting a different standard to set goals for. “Engaging students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources” is a standard worth looking into more. Asking students what activities they can do to help keep them healthy would be an authentic problem since obesity and the health risks associated with obesity is continuing to rise in the United States of America.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Monitoring My GAME Plan Progress
The focus of this week’s blog post is to monitor my personal GAME plan (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). Steps have been taken toward meeting the goals established for learning about technology and technology resources. The four questions below are used to reflect upon my learning.
Are you finding the information and resources you need?
Information and resources have been found and are continuing to be found. Electronic copies of documents such as the rubric for effort in physical education class are now available on the physical education classroom website. Also, a monthly physical activity calendar is available for students, parents, and staff to use to help promote health and fitness outside of school hours. This website is available to everyone throughout the world, not just local community members, which increases globalization of our world and has potential to allow people to participate in these activities and communicate ways to be healthy and fit (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010).
Do you need to modify your action plan?
Modification to the action plan may be needed if an approved blog site cannot be found for the physical education website. Surveys, questionnaires, and email will still be available even if a blog site cannot be found.
What have you learned so far?
Collecting forms to be able to use student pictures on the website takes time and effort. Many students and parents are very quick to fill out the consent form and return it. However, there are some parents that have still not returned their consent form. Contacting the few people in charge of the technology in the school district also takes time and patience because they are so busy helping out the thousands of other staff members in the school district.
What new questions have arisen?
Should homework be assigned so students can use this physical education website? If so, should it be mandatory and used as part of their final grade or should it be optional and used as extra credit? What if not all families have easy access to a computer or the internet? If a blog is used for student assessment, how will the blog posts be monitored and assessed? Assessment is more than the assigning of grades and serves a critical role in monitoring and evaluating the academic progress of students (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). A rubric and practice sessions may be needed before considering this assessment as part of students' grades. If homework is done at home, how can teachers be sure that the work is done by their students and not by someone else?
The goal of these blog posts is to explore strategies for seamlessly integrating technology into the content area. A classroom website is one way to do integrate technology into the classroom and the appropriate steps are being taken to accomplish this goal. More information about the development of my GAME plan and the implementation of my GAME plan can be found by reading the two previous blog postings written below. More information about ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for Teachers can be found on their website by clicking here.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning
Are you finding the information and resources you need?
Information and resources have been found and are continuing to be found. Electronic copies of documents such as the rubric for effort in physical education class are now available on the physical education classroom website. Also, a monthly physical activity calendar is available for students, parents, and staff to use to help promote health and fitness outside of school hours. This website is available to everyone throughout the world, not just local community members, which increases globalization of our world and has potential to allow people to participate in these activities and communicate ways to be healthy and fit (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010).
Do you need to modify your action plan?
Modification to the action plan may be needed if an approved blog site cannot be found for the physical education website. Surveys, questionnaires, and email will still be available even if a blog site cannot be found.
What have you learned so far?
Collecting forms to be able to use student pictures on the website takes time and effort. Many students and parents are very quick to fill out the consent form and return it. However, there are some parents that have still not returned their consent form. Contacting the few people in charge of the technology in the school district also takes time and patience because they are so busy helping out the thousands of other staff members in the school district.
What new questions have arisen?
Should homework be assigned so students can use this physical education website? If so, should it be mandatory and used as part of their final grade or should it be optional and used as extra credit? What if not all families have easy access to a computer or the internet? If a blog is used for student assessment, how will the blog posts be monitored and assessed? Assessment is more than the assigning of grades and serves a critical role in monitoring and evaluating the academic progress of students (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). A rubric and practice sessions may be needed before considering this assessment as part of students' grades. If homework is done at home, how can teachers be sure that the work is done by their students and not by someone else?
The goal of these blog posts is to explore strategies for seamlessly integrating technology into the content area. A classroom website is one way to do integrate technology into the classroom and the appropriate steps are being taken to accomplish this goal. More information about the development of my GAME plan and the implementation of my GAME plan can be found by reading the two previous blog postings written below. More information about ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for Teachers can be found on their website by clicking here.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach (Laureate Education custom edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Carrying Out My GAME Plan
The effect of my classroom website increases globalization of our world (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). My classroom website has the potential to allow parents, students, teachers, and people from around the world to participate in activities and communicate with each other about health and fitness. Having access to hardware, software, and connectivity does not necessarily mean student learning will occur; it is how you use the technology that is important (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). Not only do I need to have my website working properly, I may need to teach students how to use it properly.
I will need resources to carry out my GAME plan. I will need to have electronic copies of documents so I can upload them to my classroom website. I will need to get approval from parents if I am going to use any pictures of students on my classroom website. I will need time to continue to develop my classroom website, such as creating questionnaires and surveys.
There is additional information that I need. For example, I will need to see if there is certain district approved software and/or regulations when using this technology. Does our school district have an approved list of blogs that we can use? How will I efficiently monitor and respond to blog postings and to the increased communication that my classroom website encourages.
I have been able to take a few steps so far. I am in the process of creating and modifying my classroom information. So far I have a calendar of upcoming events, a few documents, and links to other websites.
I will continue to develop my GAME plan in the future. My classroom website could be a great communication tool to offer flexibility in the methods and settings in which students can communicate with one another, teachers, and experts (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). Blogs and emails could increase collaboration and communication between students, teachers, and parents to help student learning and student success.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2010). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
I will need resources to carry out my GAME plan. I will need to have electronic copies of documents so I can upload them to my classroom website. I will need to get approval from parents if I am going to use any pictures of students on my classroom website. I will need time to continue to develop my classroom website, such as creating questionnaires and surveys.
There is additional information that I need. For example, I will need to see if there is certain district approved software and/or regulations when using this technology. Does our school district have an approved list of blogs that we can use? How will I efficiently monitor and respond to blog postings and to the increased communication that my classroom website encourages.
I have been able to take a few steps so far. I am in the process of creating and modifying my classroom information. So far I have a calendar of upcoming events, a few documents, and links to other websites.
I will continue to develop my GAME plan in the future. My classroom website could be a great communication tool to offer flexibility in the methods and settings in which students can communicate with one another, teachers, and experts (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). Blogs and emails could increase collaboration and communication between students, teachers, and parents to help student learning and student success.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2010). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Developing My Personal GAME Plan
I need to integrate the National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators into the content area of elementary physical education. The two indicators in the NETS-T that I will set goals for to help strengthen my confidence and proficiency are: 3b – Collaborating with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation; 3c – Communicating relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats.
GAME Plan:
Set Goals: My goal is to create and maintain a website to communicate relevant information and ideas about physical education, health, and fitness effectively to students, parents, and peers as well as being able to collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using this website. In order to help achieve this goal, each page of my website must be consistent in look and feel as well as have the appropriate information on it without feeling too cluttered (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010).
Take Action: The actions I will take to achieve these goals is to add interactive content such as weekly announcements, rubric for grading, calendar of events, multimedia, links to other websites, and a blog to my classroom website.
Monitor: I will monitor my progress by the feedback and blog postings by students, peers, parents, and community members. Students and parents may need guidance on what and how to post (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). I will need to teach my students how to use blogs appropriately and will approve or reject postings before they can be seen by others.
Evaluate and Extend: I will evaluate and extend my learning through reflection by providing surveys and questionnaires to students, parents, peers, and community members. These surveys will give me feedback and will help me think of how or if I should use this technology in the future.
I have the knowledge, confidence, beliefs, and supportive culture that are required to effectively integrate technology into the classroom (Laureate Education, Inc, 2009). I have the technology skills to present the content to students, I am comfortable in using and teaching this technology to students, I believe that students need to interact with the content and not just be told what and how to learn, and I also have the support from my community to use this technology to challenge students and enhance their learning. There are many digital tools that can support teaching and student learning. For example, computer-based tutorials, webquests, wikis, and websites can help students analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information about health and fitness (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). Creating and using this classroom website for physical education may help me achieve my GAME plan.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2010). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author
GAME Plan:
Set Goals: My goal is to create and maintain a website to communicate relevant information and ideas about physical education, health, and fitness effectively to students, parents, and peers as well as being able to collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using this website. In order to help achieve this goal, each page of my website must be consistent in look and feel as well as have the appropriate information on it without feeling too cluttered (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010).
Take Action: The actions I will take to achieve these goals is to add interactive content such as weekly announcements, rubric for grading, calendar of events, multimedia, links to other websites, and a blog to my classroom website.
Monitor: I will monitor my progress by the feedback and blog postings by students, peers, parents, and community members. Students and parents may need guidance on what and how to post (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). I will need to teach my students how to use blogs appropriately and will approve or reject postings before they can be seen by others.
Evaluate and Extend: I will evaluate and extend my learning through reflection by providing surveys and questionnaires to students, parents, peers, and community members. These surveys will give me feedback and will help me think of how or if I should use this technology in the future.
I have the knowledge, confidence, beliefs, and supportive culture that are required to effectively integrate technology into the classroom (Laureate Education, Inc, 2009). I have the technology skills to present the content to students, I am comfortable in using and teaching this technology to students, I believe that students need to interact with the content and not just be told what and how to learn, and I also have the support from my community to use this technology to challenge students and enhance their learning. There are many digital tools that can support teaching and student learning. For example, computer-based tutorials, webquests, wikis, and websites can help students analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information about health and fitness (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010). Creating and using this classroom website for physical education may help me achieve my GAME plan.
Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2010). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author
Friday, October 30, 2009
Reflection: Blog Posting
The most striking revelation I had about the teaching of new literacy skills to my students as a result of this course was that teachers can teach these skills across different content areas and age levels. Going into this course I had my doubts about how I could integrate these new literacy skills into my lesson plans for my elementary physical education classes. However, after working on the assignments I was able to better understand how to teach these new skills to my students.
The knowledge and experience gained in this course will influence my teaching practices going forward because I can now integrate the new literacy skills into my daily lesson plans for efficiently. This integration may lead to increased student learning and achievement.
One professional goal that I would like to pursue that builds upon my learning in this course and develops my own information literacy or technology skill is to collaborate with other teachers in my building to integrate each other's content into the daily lesson plans. For example, I would integrate these new literacy skills into my physical education classes while teachers would integrate fitness and health into their classes.
The steps I will take to accomplish this goal include meeting with teachers to plan future units and lesson plans. We would also need time to reflect on our units and lesson plans afterwards. Pre assessments and post assessments would also be needed so we can gather evidence to whether or not this program is a success or not a success. If it is a success, then we could promote this style of learning across our school and district.
The knowledge and experience gained in this course will influence my teaching practices going forward because I can now integrate the new literacy skills into my daily lesson plans for efficiently. This integration may lead to increased student learning and achievement.
One professional goal that I would like to pursue that builds upon my learning in this course and develops my own information literacy or technology skill is to collaborate with other teachers in my building to integrate each other's content into the daily lesson plans. For example, I would integrate these new literacy skills into my physical education classes while teachers would integrate fitness and health into their classes.
The steps I will take to accomplish this goal include meeting with teachers to plan future units and lesson plans. We would also need time to reflect on our units and lesson plans afterwards. Pre assessments and post assessments would also be needed so we can gather evidence to whether or not this program is a success or not a success. If it is a success, then we could promote this style of learning across our school and district.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Final Blog Posting
My personal theory of how students learn is most related to constructionism. This theory focuses on getting the learner to build something and the act of building something impacts how they understand and store information (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). Students learn best when they are immersed in learning, engaged in learning, and are active in learning (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). For this to happen, students must find learning important to them to help them stay motivated to continue to learn. I structure my physical education classes so that students are engaged in learning that is meaningful to them and they build on their experiences as they learn. For example, students in first grade learn how to throw a ball and by the time they reach fifth grade they are able to play a game of basketball because they have spent years building on previous learning experiences.
Two immediate adjustments I will make to my instructional practice involve integrating technology tools to enhance my students’ learning. I like the idea of students recording their perceived effort on an excel spreadsheet and then seeing the correlation of their perceived achievement. This could help students realize that the more effort they put forth, then the more they will learn and achieve. Another piece of technology I would like to integrate is the use of pedometers. These devices allow students to count the amount of steps taken and they can provide information like how far a student has traveled as well. This technology is a fun way to motivate students to exercise.
Two long term goal changes I would like to make to my instructional practice regarding technology integration would be to use excel spreadsheet to record students’ fitness data. Instead of using paper, students could record their results on the spreadsheet which would be saved and viewed throughout the year to easily show data on their fitness levels to show improvement or need for improvement. When students can actually see results, then it may help motivate them to continue to make healthy choices. Another long term goal would be to continue to enhance my classroom website to include a place where students could record the fitness activities they do at home and allow them to keep track of it. This could promote physical fitness and health outside of the classroom and perhaps involve not only students, but their families and others in the community as well.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Two immediate adjustments I will make to my instructional practice involve integrating technology tools to enhance my students’ learning. I like the idea of students recording their perceived effort on an excel spreadsheet and then seeing the correlation of their perceived achievement. This could help students realize that the more effort they put forth, then the more they will learn and achieve. Another piece of technology I would like to integrate is the use of pedometers. These devices allow students to count the amount of steps taken and they can provide information like how far a student has traveled as well. This technology is a fun way to motivate students to exercise.
Two long term goal changes I would like to make to my instructional practice regarding technology integration would be to use excel spreadsheet to record students’ fitness data. Instead of using paper, students could record their results on the spreadsheet which would be saved and viewed throughout the year to easily show data on their fitness levels to show improvement or need for improvement. When students can actually see results, then it may help motivate them to continue to make healthy choices. Another long term goal would be to continue to enhance my classroom website to include a place where students could record the fitness activities they do at home and allow them to keep track of it. This could promote physical fitness and health outside of the classroom and perhaps involve not only students, but their families and others in the community as well.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice
The instructional strategies described in the resources explored this week correlate with the principles of social learning theories. The definition of social learning theory is students actively engage in constructing artifacts and conversing with others (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). When students work together they can confirm, encourage, and question each other's learning. Technology can be used to conduct research on internet, create power point presentation, handouts, statistics on a spreadsheet, and picture slideshows (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). Technology can also be used to create websites, multimedia, and webquests (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). When students work in cooperative groups, it can help them make sense of new information by interacting with others (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). All of the strategies described in the resources this week help students work together cooperatively.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Voice Thread
Students in our school district only have physical education class for one hour per week. More time is needed to help keep students healthy. I want students to think about activities that they can do at home with their families and friends to help keep them active and healthy. Click on the link below to visit the voice thread that I have created.
http://voicethread.com/share/528945/
http://voicethread.com/share/528945/
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Constructivism in Practice
The instructional strategies described in the resources explored this week correlate with the principles of constructivist/constructionist learning theories. Constructivism is a theory of knowledge stating that each individual actively constructs his/her own meaning (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). Constructionism is a theory of learning that states people learn best when they build an external artifact or something they can share with others (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). Creating and testing hypotheses is one way that students can build something to share with others which can help them understand the content better (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). Other projects like power point, podcasts, and wikis can also help students build something to help them understand the content better.
When students create something and present it to someone else, they are teaching someone about the content that they had just learned and built. In essence, the student becomes the teacher. Students can learn more when they do not just take tests. When someone has to teach someone else, then the teacher must know the content that much more in order to share it with others. When students have to present information and teach others, then they learn more about that content because they must know it well enough to share with others. This is what teachers do everyday. They must learn and share the information with others. The best way to know if someone understands information is to have the person try to teach the information to others.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD
When students create something and present it to someone else, they are teaching someone about the content that they had just learned and built. In essence, the student becomes the teacher. Students can learn more when they do not just take tests. When someone has to teach someone else, then the teacher must know the content that much more in order to share it with others. When students have to present information and teach others, then they learn more about that content because they must know it well enough to share with others. This is what teachers do everyday. They must learn and share the information with others. The best way to know if someone understands information is to have the person try to teach the information to others.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD
Friday, May 22, 2009
Cognitivism in Practice
The instructional strategies described in the resources I explored this week correlate with the principles of cognitive learning theory. These strategies enhance students' ability to retrieve, use, and organize information about a topic (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). For example, Concept Mapping helps learners visualize ideas and connections between ideas by replicating the network model of memory (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). It is a graphical way of connecting and organizing ideas which can then be turned into an outline for a report. Another strategy, note taking, allows students to take information and turn it into a new form by writing down only the important information and putting it into their own words. The strategies described in this week's resources correlate with the principles of cognitive learning theories because they can help students with their short term memory; students can use these strategies to elaborate on information; students can use images and text to help learn new concepts; and giving students experiences that they can tie their learning to (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009).
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Week 2: Behaviorism in Practice
The instructional strategies described in this week’s resources correlate with the principles of behaviorist. The strategy of using a spreadsheet program to keep track of effort and achievement is used to help reinforce desirable behaviors (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). If students have desirable behaviors like studying and following directions, then they will be rewarded with success on tests.
The survey that was created to show student effort and success is another way to reinforce desirable behaviors by showing that those positive behaviors will be rewarded with student success and achievement (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007).
Homework is one more way that correlates with the principles of behaviorist. Homework is drill and practice. Remediation is used to present a small amount of information, ask guiding questions, make a decision and depending if the students are correct or not determines if they get to move on to the next part (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009).
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
The survey that was created to show student effort and success is another way to reinforce desirable behaviors by showing that those positive behaviors will be rewarded with student success and achievement (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007).
Homework is one more way that correlates with the principles of behaviorist. Homework is drill and practice. Remediation is used to present a small amount of information, ask guiding questions, make a decision and depending if the students are correct or not determines if they get to move on to the next part (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009).
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Reflection: Final Blog Posting
I have learned how to create a Podcast and post it to the Internet so others can listen to it. I also learned how to create a Blog and Wiki in order to share information easily with others and for others to share information with me. All three of these items I had never done before and I was a little nervous at first. However, I have had some experience with similar things before like recording audio on my computer just for fun and creating websites for my classroom and school. The Podcasts were pretty simple for me, but that is because I have experience with recording and ripping audio files. I think that creating and posting podcasts is a technology tool that is not for a beginner, but just like everything else all you have to do is play around and give technology a try in order to become better with it. The Wikis and Blogs were extremely easy to use and I could see many teachers and students using this technology piece as long as it is used appropriately.
This course has helped me develop my own technology skills because before taking this course I have never created a Podcast, Wiki, or a Blog. I am happy to have taken this course so I could be exposed to this great technology.
I have deepened my knowledge of teaching and the learning process. I know that it helps to actually be hands on with an assignment. I would have not have learned as much if I only read about Podcasts, Wikis, and Blogs. I know that I learn best by actually creating these pieces for myself. I also realize that having the support of others and being able to ask questions and having quick in depth responses helps with the learning process.
I definitely like the learner-centered approach. I was able to create and produce my work and assignments with my own personal touch. I was given guidelines, but it was up to me to create the final product. I think this is a great approach as long as the students are motivated to work on their own and that teachers have resources and ideas for those students that are not that motivated. If students have more say in their assignments, then students will take more pride and ownership in their work and this may increase the quality of their work and their learning.
There are many ways that I can continue to expand my knowledge of learning, teaching, and leading with technology. I must not get intimidated by new technology and must continue to give it a try even if I do not understand it entirely at first. I can continue to take the classes that are offered by our school district to keep up to date on technology. I need to continue to integrate technology into the classroom and not give up if it does not work the first time. The main goal is to help students succeed and be future ready. Technology is a great way to accomplish this goal.
One goal that I have is to create a blog for the students in my classroom. I want students to be able to share ideas ranging from a simple classroom assignment to what they like to do for exercise, fun, and physical activity. I already have a classroom website, so now all I have to do is get permission from my administrator in order to set up a blog. I will need to make sure that I monitor the comments so they are appropriate and stay on topic.
Another goal that I have is to create podcasts of different skills that students can do at home in order to improve themselves. For instance, I want to create a "Basketball Podcast" where the different segments would be broken down by dribbling, passing, and shooting a basketball. I think this would be very beneficial because students only get one hour of Physical Education per week and podcasts could be a great tool students could use in order to improve their skills. I already have a camera, I just need to find the time to record the different tasks. There are so many ranging from A to Z and it seems kind of overwhelming at first. However, if I can focus on creating a podcast for one skill per week, then I will slowly build a great set of resources for students to use and learn from.
This course has helped me develop my own technology skills because before taking this course I have never created a Podcast, Wiki, or a Blog. I am happy to have taken this course so I could be exposed to this great technology.
I have deepened my knowledge of teaching and the learning process. I know that it helps to actually be hands on with an assignment. I would have not have learned as much if I only read about Podcasts, Wikis, and Blogs. I know that I learn best by actually creating these pieces for myself. I also realize that having the support of others and being able to ask questions and having quick in depth responses helps with the learning process.
I definitely like the learner-centered approach. I was able to create and produce my work and assignments with my own personal touch. I was given guidelines, but it was up to me to create the final product. I think this is a great approach as long as the students are motivated to work on their own and that teachers have resources and ideas for those students that are not that motivated. If students have more say in their assignments, then students will take more pride and ownership in their work and this may increase the quality of their work and their learning.
There are many ways that I can continue to expand my knowledge of learning, teaching, and leading with technology. I must not get intimidated by new technology and must continue to give it a try even if I do not understand it entirely at first. I can continue to take the classes that are offered by our school district to keep up to date on technology. I need to continue to integrate technology into the classroom and not give up if it does not work the first time. The main goal is to help students succeed and be future ready. Technology is a great way to accomplish this goal.
One goal that I have is to create a blog for the students in my classroom. I want students to be able to share ideas ranging from a simple classroom assignment to what they like to do for exercise, fun, and physical activity. I already have a classroom website, so now all I have to do is get permission from my administrator in order to set up a blog. I will need to make sure that I monitor the comments so they are appropriate and stay on topic.
Another goal that I have is to create podcasts of different skills that students can do at home in order to improve themselves. For instance, I want to create a "Basketball Podcast" where the different segments would be broken down by dribbling, passing, and shooting a basketball. I think this would be very beneficial because students only get one hour of Physical Education per week and podcasts could be a great tool students could use in order to improve their skills. I already have a camera, I just need to find the time to record the different tasks. There are so many ranging from A to Z and it seems kind of overwhelming at first. However, if I can focus on creating a podcast for one skill per week, then I will slowly build a great set of resources for students to use and learn from.
Friday, February 6, 2009
My Podcast for Walden University
I posted my podcast on two different places. Click on the links below to listen to it and then let me know which one you like better.
http://www.gcast.com/u/brianj711j
http://brian-vacyt.posterous.com
http://www.gcast.com/u/brianj711j
http://brian-vacyt.posterous.com
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Partnership for 21st Century Skills
My initial reaction to the website Partnership for 21st Century Skills is that I did not learn anything new. Everything that I read seems like I am already aware of and the website just had general statements basically stating that students need 21st century skills. I am a little frustrated when reading articles or taking classes about technology and 21st century skills because they all say that we need to use them. Well guess what, I do! I realize that all of these articles that I read and trainings I attend are not meant for me. I already have these skills. I now realize that I am part of the generation that grew up with computers and using technology comes natural and easy to me. Technology is a part of my everyday life and I don’t think of it as a separate 21st century skill.
I teach at a school where there are only two other people my age (27 years old) and everyone else is at least ten years older, most are over 50 years old. I have noticed that the two people that are the same age as me use technology frequently and have no problems with it. I have also noticed that the rest of the people who are older than I am never use technology and they are intimidated by it. I do not blame them for not using it because technology can be difficult to use, it can be tough to try to learn a new skill when you are already doing so many other things, and their generation did not grow up with it. This website might be a good place for them to visit.
As I am writing this I can see if someone misunderstands this as me bragging or being rude. Hopefully this is not the case. I just realize that I am very competent when it comes to technology so when I read articles telling me to use technology or someone is telling me why technology is important it just seems redundant to me and boring. I am our school’s webmaster, I have a Physical Education classroom website, I am on our school district’s Technology Advisory Committee, I teach other teachers in our district how to integrate technology into the classroom, and I use technology in my classroom. I would rather have specific information for me about how to use it, especially how to use technology in the Physical Education classroom. For example, integrating heart rate monitors into my classroom or using video and computers to assess students’ movement.
For me, this website just has general statements about the skills students should be learning, but there is nothing specific. It might be a good starting point which can help a person begin to think about incorporating skills that can help students thrive not only in the classroom, but in the future. This website is good because it promotes new skills, but it would be nice to have concrete examples. Technology has been a huge part of our school district for years. Vision 20/20 is at the forefront of our school district's agenda and we have moved past looking at philosophies and ideals, such as this website, and are looking for a way to implement "21st century skills" into the classroom.
I teach at a school where there are only two other people my age (27 years old) and everyone else is at least ten years older, most are over 50 years old. I have noticed that the two people that are the same age as me use technology frequently and have no problems with it. I have also noticed that the rest of the people who are older than I am never use technology and they are intimidated by it. I do not blame them for not using it because technology can be difficult to use, it can be tough to try to learn a new skill when you are already doing so many other things, and their generation did not grow up with it. This website might be a good place for them to visit.
As I am writing this I can see if someone misunderstands this as me bragging or being rude. Hopefully this is not the case. I just realize that I am very competent when it comes to technology so when I read articles telling me to use technology or someone is telling me why technology is important it just seems redundant to me and boring. I am our school’s webmaster, I have a Physical Education classroom website, I am on our school district’s Technology Advisory Committee, I teach other teachers in our district how to integrate technology into the classroom, and I use technology in my classroom. I would rather have specific information for me about how to use it, especially how to use technology in the Physical Education classroom. For example, integrating heart rate monitors into my classroom or using video and computers to assess students’ movement.
For me, this website just has general statements about the skills students should be learning, but there is nothing specific. It might be a good starting point which can help a person begin to think about incorporating skills that can help students thrive not only in the classroom, but in the future. This website is good because it promotes new skills, but it would be nice to have concrete examples. Technology has been a huge part of our school district for years. Vision 20/20 is at the forefront of our school district's agenda and we have moved past looking at philosophies and ideals, such as this website, and are looking for a way to implement "21st century skills" into the classroom.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
I teach elementary Physical Education. One way that I could use a blog is for students to share ideas of the different ways that they exercise and keep active at home. What they do to keep their bodies healthy. Also, if there are any after school events that parents are aware of, then maybe they can share that information with others.
I understand the positive potential for blogs and I am a big supporter of technology. However, I am not willing to use it yet in my classroom. It seems like a potentially dangerous tool that could lead to online bullying. I am sure we have all seen what myspace, email, and text messaging can do to all people, not just children. Last year, our school took away email privileges from all 6th grade students because of online bullying.
I understand the positive potential for blogs and I am a big supporter of technology. However, I am not willing to use it yet in my classroom. It seems like a potentially dangerous tool that could lead to online bullying. I am sure we have all seen what myspace, email, and text messaging can do to all people, not just children. Last year, our school took away email privileges from all 6th grade students because of online bullying.
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