Towards Self-Directed Learning and Creative Problem Solving

My GAME plan consisted of getting my students comfortable recording themselves using digital technology to promote enhanced learning and performances in American Sign Language (ASL). These recording would also serve as a reflective tool for self-evaluation. To accomplish this goal, I had decided to address the first standard of the National Education Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) and two of its indicators.

For my goal, I wanted my students to work together in groups to define Deaf culture. I also wanted them to have a chance to collaborate with deaf students from a residential school enabling them to experience Deaf culture firsthand. As a final project, I wanted my students to create a visual story of what they had learned from this research and experience.

For my actions, I created a unit lesson plan for Deaf Culture. I began with a lesson plan for Problem Based Learning, continued with a lesson plan involving social networking, and finished with a lesson plan using digital storytelling.

Monitoring consists of using class blogs and wikis, along with checklists or rubrics for students to keep themselves on track. Evaluations will be made using rubrics.

As I proceeded with my GAME plan, I noticed that I even though I started with only one standard of the NETS-T, with the addition of each lesson, more standards were being addressed. The GAME plan is not only a valuable tool for the teacher, but for the students as well. By teaching students to use the GAME plan, they will become better organized in their working habits and develop 21st century working skills.

As a result of this course, I will be teaching my students how to use the GAME plan. I will also adjust my lessons to incorporate more social networking and digital story telling!

Using the GAME Plan Process with Students

It saddens me to know that I will not be going back to work this September. As the start of the school year approaches, I sit here and contemplate my GAME plan and how beneficial it would be to teach the GAME plan to students to help them develop proficiency in the NETS-S.

As students learn to set goals for themselves, they will be using skills in critical thinking, decision making, communication, and collaboration.

As they decide on what actions to take to meet these goals, they will be using skills in creativity, innovation, communication, collaboration, digital citizenship, and technology operations and concepts.

When students are monitoring their progress, they will be using skills in all of the above areas as well as problem solving, research and information fluency.
And as students evaluate and reflect on their work, they will again be using skills in critical thinking and communication.

Therefore, teaching students to use the GAME plan ensures that they will be meeting all the standards of the NETS-S.

GAME Plan Week 6

My original goals for my GAME plan were 1.) to promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students’ conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes, and 2.) to model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

This week we have learned about social networking sites and how they can be used to enhance student learning as well as to motivate and engage students in learning content. These sites are wonderful online collaboration tools for students to utilize for communicating with their peers, experts, teachers, and a variety of other people. These sites will certainly help me with my goals.
I have not started setting new goals, nor have I extended the goals that I already have. I have been busy searching for teaching positions in my content area. This is my first time on unemployment and it is a humbling experience. It is also a lot of work!!!!!!