My GAME goal is to increase Digital Age experiences, both learning and assessment based, for the students I teach. This goal is so broad and could take a life time to work on and even start to feel like any impact is being made. Technology is changing at an exponential rate and teaching in some ways is still stuck in the agricultural age (why do you think we have our vacations... Crop based). One material that I will definitely need a lot of is Computer access. A lot of what I have bouncing around in my head for these students to engage in is internet based student interaction software and media. By getting the students online and engaged with web 2.0 materials like blogging and wiki's they will be able to enhance their digital age mind and experiences while still meeting and achieving content goals. Vicki Davis (2010b) explains that teachers should look to enrich lessons with technology, not develop lessons to meet the technology and this will be the way assessment forms will be selected (from my last entry). In this way the technology will be used to enhance their learning. By using dynamic and interactive websites students will be able to experience things not possible in an inner city classroom. I am fortunate enough to have access to a full set of laptop computers that I can sign out for my class to use (as long as other teachers have not already signed them out). This has been an amazing tool that I have used repeatedly throughout the year.
Another material or resource that I will need is the schools permission to begin testing out some facebook interactive features. I have heard of other teachers creating a teacher page which students can add on facebook. The teacher will then send out current events, deadline reminders, homework help, interesting facts and quotes. It takes the classroom into the "light" that Marc Prensky discusses the students are basking in all day outside of the classroom.
In regard to information that I will need, I think I am chalk full of ideas of things to try and implement in the classroom. What I really need is someone to work the details out with and problem solve issues that may arrise. I have thought about blog discussions as review, Wiki's as portfolios, Facebook as an interactive extension of the classroom etc. There is so much that can be done, but what I really want to do is One thing really well. Then start a new GAME plan to include the next.
All of that being said I want to narrow down my GAME plan to focusing on the use of Word and email together for students to collaborate and work on one lab report/science fair project. This is a long term science investigation that the students will be working on for the next 4 weeks and they will have the computers out for 2 periods a week (fingers cross for availability). I will begin by teaching them the skills of creating a document and saving it. Then working on attaching the document to an email and ensuring it is sent before shutting down the computers. Later on I will introduce them to the "commenting" option on microsoft word and google docs. This way they can begin collaborating and having an academic conversation about the text without needing to be in human contact.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010b). Enriching Centent Area Learning Experiences With Technology Part 2 [Webcast]. Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore, MD: Vickie Davis
Prensky, M. (2008). Turning on the lights. Educational Leadership, 65(6), 40–45.
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I was wondering if you had given any thought to using google docs instead of word. Since you have multiple students editing one document might it be easier to use google docs where they all have access to the same document at the same time? Sounds like you have a great start on your GAME plan. I think that it is wise narrow down and focus on just one idea that you have for now. Have you found anyone in your school to help you hash out the details of your ideas yet?
ReplyDeleteChris,
ReplyDeleteYou really ARE chock full of ideas! I also had the idea of using Facebook with my students next school year. I teach Spanish and I think it would be a great way for me to break down the classroom walls and get them actually using what we are learning into their daily lives.
I'm sure that is your intention as well. Any how, while I was reading your post I thought that maybe you should try to form a group of colleagues with the same interests for you all to hash out all of the details. Do you have colleagues that have the same interests? I'm sure that it would still work if they do not teach the same subject as you.
If you do not find anyone in your school, maybe you could branch out to teachers in the others schools within your school district or maybe the town that you live in. You could also look for a blog to follow.
Hope this helps.
Tania