This course has introduced me to the GAME plan (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, ß2009) which is a way to plan an authentic learning project. The first step in the game plan is developing a goal that you want your students to achieve. While it is important to integrate technology, “make sure the content is tied to the standards” (Laureate, 2010). When developing rubrics with my students, I will be sure to display the standards that I want them to master by working through the project. By allowing students to look towards the end goal before starting a project, they are more aware of the expectations.
The second step of the game plan is taking action. This step is more similar to a lesson plan I have created in the past. In my past lessons I have listed the steps necessary for students to complete the goal. What this course has taught me with problem based learning, is that students are able to determine their own steps in solving the problems. They can be more independent with this step as they plan out their project, therefor taking more ownership in their learning.
The third step in the game plan is monitoring your learning. I have always monitored student learning with quizzes or through observations. I like having students monitor their own learning by posting reflections on blogs and or wikis. This form of communication would form a social network for peers to offer suggestions and comment on their peer’s reflections. This requires higher level thinking since most students will be comparing their peer’s reflections with their own results of their projects or experiments. I will also be able to monitor student thinking by reading over the student’s reflections.
The last step in the GAME plan is evaluating and extending thinking. Students will reflect upon the goals and rubric created in the first step of the game plan. They will determine whether their goals were met. If they were not, they can extend their learning by modifying the assignment to best meet their goals. This part of the GAME plan reminds me that problem based projects can be ongoing. Students can extend their learning past the initial phase of the GAME plan and continue testing out theories and finding solutions.
Throughout my courses at Walden, I have always been told to integrate technology when it meets the standards, not revolving the standards around the technology. Near the end of the school year, I was able to use use some of the tools I have learned about in this class to enrich my curriculum. I used Edmodo (www.edmodo.com) which is a free social networking program where students can carry on conversations on a chat room. My students posted their responses from literature circles both at home and at school while they were reading. Students were able to start discussions and clarify misconceptions. I will be sure to use a social network because of the positive feedback I received from implementing it this year.
I have always been a little hesitant to integrate digital storytelling because I thought it would take a lot of time and I had a difficult time determining where it would tie into my curriculum. Dr. Arnie Abrams (Laureate, 2010) gave examples of how digital storytelling can be integrated into all content areas. He also clarified that a digital story could be just pictures, it can be a movie, and it could be a powerpoint. As long as there is information that is provided by watching the product, it is a digital story. This clarification and the examples provided have made me more comfortable in implementing this tool. I plan on having my students create a three-dimensional shape scavenger hunt slideshow using digital pictures they take from around the building. This project will not be time consuming, but it will provide creative thinking skills as students are locating three-dimensional figures in their environment.
I was also able to implement the beginning of a problem based learning project. Since summer was arriving, I had students plan a trip including the airline, hotels, and tourist attractions. They were able to choose a destination anywhere around the world and work in small groups to design an itinerary. Although I was not able to finish this project, many of the students finished the research and were both excited about the fascinating hotels and tourist attractions they found, and surprised by how much airline tickets cost. It was a good lesson for students to learn even though they were not able to create their final product. I have discovered how necessary it is to find authentic instruction to demonstrate for the students the importance of the lessons and objectives they are learning. Without real world application, the students will lose motivation as they will not understand the application in their own world.
Reference:
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.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Video: Spotlight on Technology: Digital Storytelling. Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas. Baltimore: Author.
