When reviewing the National Education Standards for Teacher (NETS-T) created by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), there were two standards that I identified which I would like to improve upon. To strengthen my confidence and effectiveness as an educator, I would like to focus on facilitating and inspiring student growth and creativity, and engaging in professional growth and leadership. In order to do so, I will follow the GAME plan outlined by Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer(2009) by setting goals for myself and my students, putting a plan into action to meet my goals, and monitoring and evaluating the process of my development in the integration of technology.
To set goals for my students, I will promote more self-directed learning. Through the use of collaboration in the classroom and virtual environments using technology, students will be inspired by each other. Their creativity will be influenced by the world of resources available to them, which will create meaningful experiences to improve their growth of knowledge. To professionally grow as an educator and leader, my goal is to continue on to receive a higher education after completing my Master’s degree at Walden University. I would like to either work as a professor to educate new teachers in the use of technology in classrooms, or work as a technology specialist to teach teachers all of the Web 2.0 tools available to them and their students.
To put my plan into action, I will include technology integration as a part of my daily lesson plans. I will need to make sure that my students are knowledgeable about using Web 2.0 technologies and use these tools to assess the students. I will also begin using virtual environments to expand the creativity of my students. We will take online field trips and explore webcasts and other online communities. For professional growth, I will stay current on new developments for technologies in the classroom. I will research through library articles and attend workshops and seminars to learn more about how I can inspire my students’ learning. The ISTE standard for professional growth and leadership expects teachers to, “exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others” (2008). To meet this goal, I will share my professional development findings and what I learn with my colleagues. I will also begin looking into Specialist and Doctorate programs.
To monitor my students’ learning and creativity, I will assess them frequently to see if their learning is growing and they are creating meaningful experiences. From these assessments, I will be able to modify my lessons based on the students’ achievements. When we receive our benchmark results, I will evaluate the impact that the technology integration has had on my students. I would like to gather their opinions and find out what they liked using and what helped them learn. To monitor my professional growth and leadership, I will communicate with my colleagues often to offer assistance or ask about their progress in integrating technology into their classrooms. I will evaluate my own professional growth at the end of my Master’s program and make the decision of which direction I would like to go in my career and education. With my students’ progress results and my constant individual professional development in integrating technology, I will be able to modify my instruction and inspire more creative student learning.
References
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 for Technology in Education. (2008). NETS for Teachers 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2010 from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers/nets-for-teachers-2008.aspx
Hi Tiffany,
ReplyDeleteIf you could teach all of the teachers out in the field that are digital immigrants how to be confident when using all of this new technology you would be a wealthy person. So often, I am always questioning myself when using new technology. You have a great game plan!
Tammy
Tiffany- I have a very similar goal as you. My goal was also to engage my students in more student directed learning. I started my goal out very small. My goal is to do one project based project this year. I know it does not sound like a lot, but knowing the time and planning that goes into such a project I am trying to ease myself – and my district into using project based learning. I also wanted to make sure my own goal was attainable and I know in all likelihood I would not incorporate more than one of these lessons with the remainder of my year. My goal for next year will be different and might include 2-4 self directed learning projects. I suppose I am one of those people who needs to wade in the water before I jump in!
ReplyDeleteI really admire your professional goals. I think teaching teachers how to incorporate technology- specifically web 2.0- is a great use of all of your newly acquired knowledge. What a great thing to inspire change in the way other teachers teach their students. I have discovered at my own school site that so few teachers really understand what it means to integrate technology in the classroom. Good luck with your game plan! -Amber
Tiffany one of my goals this year as an ICT facilitator in my school is to educate new or technofobic teachers web 2.0 tools and many other integrations of technology in their classrooms. I find it very challenging and sometimes extremely disappointing. But with strong wit and belief in them, I am achieveing some satisfaction. Recently one of the teachers that I am working with came in and asked my help on setting up her own blog and made my day. I think it takes time for some people to get adjusted with new technologies and once they get into it, they can not let go. And I love being a part of it:)
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