Game Plan – 4th and Goal!
• What have you learned so far that you can apply in your instructional practice?
I feel much more confident in my use of online collaborative tools, such as blogs and wikis. I now use a blog site for my science classes, and I am planning a technology lesson where students will interact via a wiki page to discuss and comment on some of the most important tool inventions of the 20th and 21st centuries. Through our coursework, I have been able to “troubleshoot” potential problems before they happen. I know not only how the pages are created, but I have worked on them enough to know what students are doing with just a quick glance.
• What goals are you still working toward?
I am working hard to keep the National Educational Technology Standards at the forefront of my lesson plans. Specifically, NETS-T 2.a - Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments that adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.
• Based on the NETS-T, what new learning goals will you set for yourself?
It is hard to give students the ability and opportunity to chart their own progress. But I am attempting to supply a number of alternate assessments for each science chapter. These assessments range from the tried and true multiple-choice test to an extensive PowerPoint presentation. I even plan to start letting students use the Promethean Board software to design their own teaching and presentation flipcharts. This goal comes from NETS-T 2.b Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments: develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress.
• What learning approaches will you try next time to improve your learning?
I will look for continued education training in both interactive software and collaborative software. High school students in our district are checked out a laptop and are expected to use it in every class, every day (of course, probably not gym). Each class has it’s own Moodle page, and some courses use wiki pages. If high school students are using this, I need to find a way to incorporate these tools into my 8th grade classes. And while I’m at it, I might as well teach my 7th graders as well.
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I like your ideas for giving the students alternate assessments for the chapters in the book. This will allow them to pick what they want to do and it gives them a sense of choice since they won't be limited to one specific way. With more students using technology and the benefits that are offered, it is essential that we teach the students how to use this technology at a younger age. Only then will they understand the full benefits and what they are capable of.
ReplyDeleteTodd,
ReplyDeleteGreat job, I like what you're doing. I especially like that you're worried about your 8th graders and how you want to help them be prepared so when they get to high school they will have knowledge to deal with a lot of the things they'll find there. When I taught elementary school, I would find it upsetting that my colleagues who were teaching 6th grade weren't worried about that transition at all (our school only went up to 6th grade). Every student who graduated 6th grade would go on to another school, undoubtedly a larger one with a lot more challenges, and it just seemed that the teachers in charge of 6th grade either didn't care, or were blissfully unaware of this. Lesser of two evils, the latter, I guess, but still inexcusable.
Your 8th graders are lucky, great job!
Cesar
How do you plan to give your students access to the Promethean Board software? I know that the program was loaded on the teacher laptops, but are you willing to give your students access to your laptop? I think it is a great idea. I also think our students would comeup with some great flipcharts and would even find tricks that most teachers don't even know about...much like they do with everything else we ask them to produce through technology. I like the idea.
ReplyDeleteKerry
I agree that our coursework has allowed us to foresee potential problems before our students begin working with any of these tools.
ReplyDeleteAs middle school teachers, especially in 8th grade, preparing our students for high school should be one of our primary goals. It upsets me that so many of our teachers and administrators have the attitude of "they'll get a wake-up call next year!" I don't want my students to "wake up" when they get to high school. I believe it is my job to prepare them adequately for that day. It is very difficult to do without support from other adults. I would say that there are, at the most, 4 teachers who seriously try to prepare their students for the next year. Most just want to "get through" this year.
You are doing a wonderful job with your students. Keep it up!
Todd,
ReplyDeleteThe fact that you are looking ahead to what your students are going to be expected to do next year is exciting to me. As a high school teacher, it is refreshing to hear of a middle school teacher playing into the high school game plan rather than just teaching whatever they like. I teach high school math and the students to not come into high school rady to go. They have no study skills, and they don't follow the standards that they need to. You are making a lot of teachers' jobs a lot easier if you look ahead like this!
Thanks on behalf of all high school teachers!
Tyler