Reflection is such a significant part of
learning. Often, teachers are too busy
to reflect on their progress during the implementation process. By experience, I learned that if a teacher
waits until the very end of the goal or process to reflect, it may be too late
to make immediate changes (Nieto, 2003).
Knowing this, I understand that reflecting during this process of my
progress is imperative. During the
beginning of this course, I set to have a GAME plan to incorporate more
challenging technology to enforce more creativity and engagement with
students. Before creating this plan, I
had no idea how important planning is involved with incorporating new
technology. I (like many other teachers
I am sure) am guilty of discovering my “niche” as a teacher, and becoming
comfortable. However, after challenging
myself to try new things, I learned that I will not change any strategies
unless I take action. Thus far, this
action has included collaborating with the technology department, exploring new
websites, talking to students about their knowledge of new websites, “trying
out” some of the ideas with higher level students, and collaborating with peers
at Walden University to discover new strategies of learning.
As I look more deeply into my lesson, I understand
that I am not as far along in this process as I hoped. By the end of this semester, a goal was to
have students use a video conferencing program to communicate with students
from another school. This is yet a goal;
however I must continue to have communication with the tech team to make this
possible. As stated earlier, because the
planning process is so imperative, I often get “stuck” with planning and mapping
out ideas. However, if I am not able to
take action soon, this idea will simply be an “idea”. By using this GAME plan with my students, I
will benefit by understanding the relevance of creating a plan. One of my favorite aspects of creating this
plan is that students will benefit just as much as teachers. This thought is what inspires me to carry on
with this GAME process.
As
I begin to modify my GAME plan, a main goal is to begin incorporating more
technology. However, I am not going to
incorporate this technology for no reason.
Technology should be implemented for the purpose of enhancing student learning
(Laureate, 2010a). Therefore, I am
looking at new ways to incorporate various strategies.
As I seek to incorporate more problem
based learning, I plan to use technology primarily as a form of research. To solve problems, students will need to
understand the significance of researching (or playing detective). By utilizing search engines and websites,
they may be more equipped become critical thinkers. Like with problem based learning, students will
have access to many websites that help become engaged. With the purpose of networking and learning
other students’ perspectives, they will benefit from using protected sites such
as wiggio or livemocha. Because many
business students are learning by having access with people from the real world
and comparing this with their lives, students will benefit from having access
to these sources. Finally, I will aim to
use digital storytelling tools more in some of my business classes. Because this is not a strategy that I
implement as much, I would love to gain more knowledge on how to utilize this
more. A goal is to allow students in my
Business courses to create videos using Windows Movie Maker, Animoto, or other
digital tools. These videos should enhance learning by giving students a
creative outlet to demonstrate their knowledge.
Thankfully, after reflection, I understand the progress I have made so
far, and how much more I will need to accomplish to be successful. With time, I will be one step closer, to
turning my GAME plan into a successful achievement.
References
Laureate Education. (2011a) “Spotlight
on Technology: Social Networking and Online Collaboration, Part 1”.
Nieto, S. (2003).What Keeps teachers Going?.New York: NY. Teachers College Press.
