Monitoring My GAME Plan Progress

"The ability to monitor and evaluate your personal and professional decisions is enhanced through reflection both "in action" and "on action" (Schon, 1983, as cited in Cennamo, Ertmer, & Ross, 2009, p.11)  As I progress with my GAME plan, I have made an effort to reflect in these ways.  To monitor my first goal, I have developed a spreadsheet to keep track of the various parts and deadlines.  I also started to create a checklist for students to use.  When I was completing these steps, I realized that it might also be useful to keep track of useful websites.  Though it wasn't part of my original plan, I have decided to create a pathfinder that students can use to find information about copyrighted material. 

I have also made progress with my second goal.  I was able to create a Screencast to show my colleagues how to access data from the EVAAS website. I received positive feedback from my colleagues about the information I provided, and some were also interested in learning how to create a screencast.  I am currently working on another technology tip to share with colleagues at our next staff meeting. 

Resources:

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.

Carrying Out My Game Plan

In order to be able to advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources, I will need to improve my knowledge in these areas.  I have located a number of websites (listed below) that have helped me to begin doing this.  I also have made arrangements to work with the Library Media Specialist in my school.


http://www.umuc.edu/library/libhow/copyright.cfm
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Teachers/copyrightlaw.html
http://www.copyrightkids.org/permissioninformation.htm
http://centerforsocialmedia.org/fair-use
 
I have already made progress in my goal to engage in professional growth and leadership.   I am working on a teacher based team to discuss how we can help certain subgroups in our school become more successful.  We are examining data from EVAAS (Educational Value-Added Assessment System) that predicts how students will do on the Ohio Graduation Test.  I have made a screencast that shows other teachers how to log-on to this website and how to navigate it to obtain the data for their students.  I shared this screencast on our school's Professional Development Moodle page.

My GAME Plan

     It is impossible for a teacher to have all of the answers.  What is important is knowing how and where to find the answers if necessary.  By nature, many teachers tend to be self-directed learners who are used to doing this.  According to Gibbons (2002), self-directed learning is “any increase in knowledge, skill, accomplishment, or personal development that an individual selects and brings about by his or her own efforts using any method in any circumstance at any time” (as cited in Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009, p.2).   Technology is one area where teachers often increase their skills in this manner.

     Technology has always been an interest of mine, and for this reason, I enjoy discovering new applications on my own. There are, however, a few areas I would like to improve upon.   One area I would like to develop is ISTE NETS-T Standard 4, which is to Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility.  I would like to focus on advocating, modeling, and teaching safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.  I rely upon a number of sources in my Popular Culture course and also require my students to use copyrighted material.  In addition to properly citing these sources, I would like to require students to obtain permission to use copyrighted materials in projects.  This is something I should be modeling for students and also teaching them how to do.

    Cennamo et al., (2009) recommends using the GAME plan for self-directed learning.   The first step in this plan is to set goals.  In this case, my goal is to become knowledgeable with regard to the laws surrounding the use of copyrighted material and intellectual property for educational purposes.  The next step is to take action.  I plan to come up with a user-friendly checklist for determining what steps need to be taken to obtain permission for using copyrighted material in student projects.  I also plan to come up with a list of resources for contacting the appropriate persons to obtain this permission.  The third step is to monitor progress.  I plan to use a spreadsheet with the different types of sources I use, along with dates that I want to have the information for the sources.  I will use this to determine if I am making progress, and will make use of other sources, like the library media specialist if I am not. Lastly, I plan to use a blog throughout this process, so my colleagues can use it as a reference.  I will review previous blog entries, along with the checklist and list of resources to determine if I have met my goals. 

     Another of the ISTE NETS-T Standards I would like to improve upon is number 5, which is to Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership.  My colleagues often come to me for help with technology problems, but I would also like them to look to me for ideas on how to integrate technology into the classroom.  My goal is share at least one new idea per month with my colleagues.  To take action, I will post my ideas on the school Moodle page that is for Professional Development.  I will also tell my colleagues when I have posted a new idea by making an announcement during staff meetings or sending an email.  To monitor my progress, I plan to use a monthly checklist.  I will review the posts on the Moodle page, and also ask my colleagues to make suggestions on what technologies they would like to know more about.  This will help me to evaluate whether I met my goal. 

     Setting and accomplishing these goals will not only make me more proficient in these areas, but will also help my students and my colleagues.  They will benefit from both the information I share with them and the process by which I am obtaining it.  Though I am a self-directed learner, the GAME plan will help me structure my learning.  It will also help to assure that I reach my goals.    

Resources: 

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.

ISTE. (2008). The iste nets and performance indicators for teachers (nets•t). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers.aspx