Reflection: GAME Plan

In retrospect, the value of the GAME plan enabled me to learn how to set goals that are necessary to evaluate my students’ as well myself. One positive lesson that I learnt from monitoring my GAME plan was that, I need to have a plan that will help me to be accountable for my students’ learning. Not all goals were achieved but I remain confident that in the future, I can revisit the goal where by I would like my students to be more actively engaged with technology tools. So far, the use of the digital camera to provide authentic images for use in discussions, problem-solving activities and for reinforcing a topic have had far greater effect on my students’ rather than using only textbook pictures. “While we can certainly learn many things by reading textbooks and by observing others complete task, the most natural form of learning involves active, hands-on concrete experience” (Cennamo, Ross, Ertmer, 2009, p. 31). Hence my students will be required to use digital cameras and the Internet to assist them as they promote tourist attractions in selected countries that will be done in the form a brochure.

The GAME plan was also instrumental in allowing me to experience practical ways to share teaching-learning developments with colleagues. “Collaborative activities involve the engagement of students in deep conversations about both the processes and the products of learning” (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009, p. 39). Teachers can only develop confidence in using specific learning techniques like that of blogging about goals. By sharing my approach to execute the GAME plan and modify my actions with my colleagues, I received added inspiration to persevere at realizing the full potential of setting goals.

Based on the reading from throughout this course, I am more conscious that I need to be more steadfast at empowering my students to use technology in their learning. Therefore, I plan to give my students more challenging tasks to conduct research about topics that they will use to create word documents and quizzes for the class. I also want may student to engage in more open discussions so I will plan in advance some videos that will help develop their listening, speaking, and writing skills.
Finally, based on this week’s learning I am reminded that, “working in technology-enriched learning environments, students will benefit from having guidelines that indicate what they should accomplish during the lesson, what they are expected to have ready beforehand, and what they should do after their computer time is over, including self-assessment activities” (Cennamos, Ross, Ertmer, 2009, p. 97). I am certainly in the right direction to empower myself and my students as we make more constructive and efficient use of technology inside and outside the classroom.

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.