Bringing Quality Education to the Island of São and Principe. Video

Technology and Media for Distance Education

I had some difficulty deciding which technology is predominantly a collaborative communication or concept tool because some of them serve multiple purposes.

I enjoy some of the static tools, and I love some of the dynamic tools. I have used virtual simulations in my classes for some time and am fascinated by the capabilities of virtual environments and what they can do for collaborative projects. There are some environments that can be used for educational purposes wonderfully. I have only used a gaming tool once, yet I see their potential and am going to work on their integration and discover where they can be integrated successfully to enhance student learning. Dyads are new to me, but I think they have a lot of potential.

These tools are used frequently in my classrooms. Although in the area of communication I prefer electronic conferencing tools where we are able to speak and share content as well as see the person we are speaking to.
In conclusion, I would say that in the communication area I predominantly use dynamic tools yet in the other areas I use both static and dynamic tools so I am very much in the middle of the static dynamic continuum although more interested in the dynamic aspect.

Engaging Learners with New Strategies and Tools



Fig. 1  Chart adapted from template supplied by Walden University.

 According to Anderson, T. (2010) the online educational environment provides students with unique educational opportunities: interacting at the time and place that best suits the learner and teacher; accessing content in multiple formats such as multimedia, video, audio, immersive environments and text; supports human contact in multiple formats, video, audio and text in synchronous and asynchronous modalities.

In this chart we are able to see how content, collaboration and communication provides the students a complete and motivating learning experience. In each of these areas there are tools to enhance this experience.

 

According to the Horizon Report (2011), the new educational technologies such as, augmented reality and game based learning are going to be adopted within the next 2 to 3 years. There are some very good games:  In distance education they can be very important, as are the ebooks, specially for those students that live in isolated regions and do not have efficient posting services. In the next 4 to 5 years there will be the gesture based computers and then learning analytics which is the great development in data mining, interpretation, and modeling to improve understandings of teaching and learning, and to tailor education to individual students more effectively.

I present some good sites http://www.globalconflicts.eu/%20and  which has some examples of virtual games.  http://www.accreditedonlinecolleges.com/blog/2009/100-most-educational-iphone-apps shows a list of applications which can be used in many disciplines in face to face education and also in distance education. http://www.pr-inside.com/world-s-largest-openuniversity-goes-r1553595.htm  shows the example of an university that adopted mobile technology in their courses. http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/layar/ augmented reality which based on GPS values shows the person photos of what the place looked like 100 years ago. This last one would be a wonderful tool for historians.

References:

Anderson, T (2010). Teaching in an Online Learning Context. Edmonton: AU Press.

Horizon Report (2010)  Horizon Report. The new Media Consortium.

Storyboard Revised

Title of Program: Bringing Quality Education to the Island of São and Principe


1. VIDEO
Five photo slideshow and video segment of the Island.
View words such as: (remote; little access to good education; poorly prepared teachers; poverty; poor resources) rolling up the screen.
AUDIO
Music of São Tomé

2. VIDEO
Video of children in a classroom without a teacher.
AUDIO
Narrator: Sometimes in remote areas students miss lessons because the teachers leave and there are not substitute teachers at hand.

3. VIDEO
Still photo of a student in front of the computer on a distance education learning environment.
AUDIO
Narrator: A distance education learning environment to cater for the students that do not have teachers and could also complement face to face education, making learning a more motivating experience for students by providing learning opportunities which otherwise would be impossible for them to experience.

4. VIDEO
Screencast of a Prezi show with the principals of online learning. Words that appear on the screen:(equivalent curriculum; inclusion; learner engagement; innovative approaches; effective learning; formative assessment; summative assessment; coherence, consistency and transparency; ease of use; cost-effectiveness).
AUDIO
Narrator: Introduces the principals of distance education while they appear on the screen.
1. Equivalent curriculum: The curriculum should be equivalent to the curriculum in a face to face environment with clear objectives, with relevant content coverage, with appropriate student activities and assessment.
2. Inclusion: Present content in various forms to support students with different learning styles, social backgrounds, gender and with different types of impairments.
3. Learner engagement: The pedagogy should motivate and engage the learners and have a worthwhile educational aim.
4. Innovative approaches: Learning approaches must be fit for the purpose of the course.
5. Effective learning: Providing materials for the learner to choose the one that suits them best, exhibit multiple perspectives on a topic, giving the learner a global view.
6. Formative assessment: Aimed at improving learning by providing rapid feedback, by providing opportunities for peer assessment in collaborative environments, and by providing opportunities for self-assessment.
7. Summative assessment: Should be valid and reliable.
8. Coherence, consistency and transparency: Objectives, content, student activity and assessment should match each other.
9. Ease of use: As well as being transparent in its intention, distance education should be transparent in its ease of use by being open and accessible and intuitive.
10. Cost-effectiveness: It should be cost effective.

5. VIDEO
Screenshots of wikis, blogs, discussion boards, forums class chats, Skype chats and videoconferencing.
Phrase appears on the screen: Conrad and Donaldson (2004): “collaborative acquisition of knowledge is one key to the success of creating an online environment. Activities that require student interaction and encourage a sharing of ideas promote a deeper level of thought.”
AUDIO
Narrator: Reads Conrad and Donaldson’s phrase: “collaborative acquisition of knowledge is one key to the success of creating an online environment. Activities that require student interaction and encourage a sharing of ideas promote a deeper level of thought.” Retrieved from their book Engaging the online learner: Activities and resources for creative instruction. (p5)

6. VIDEO
Screenshots of online social communication environments such as facebook, twitter, myspace, skype and wiggio.
AUDIO
In the world there is a growing acceptance of distance education because of the increase of online communication among people. Students are using new tools; they are becoming comfortable with online discourse and are getting the opportunity to communicate with diverse groups.

7. VIDEO
Video of a student speaking over skype with another student while working on a distance education team project.
AUDIO
Synchronous and asynchronous learning; the asynchronous environment allows the student to log onto the class at any time, access discussions and think about what is being discussed before posting their discussions. It invites the student to reflect on what is being studied. The synchronous aspect of the distance learning environment benefits the community building aspect of the course as well as the delivery of an online class in real time, which facilitates the interventions by the students. The instructor should guarantee students stay on course and within the topic of study.

8. VIDEO
An organogram of an online system learning framework.
AUDIO
Narrator: Presents the learning system framework.
1. Learning outcomes;
2. Courseware development team;
3. Curriculum delivery via the learning management system;
4. Library and other learning object repositories;
5. Services;
6. Student information system;
7. Secure server;
8. User’s portal;
9. Quality Assessment process.

9. VIDEO
Screencast of the distance education site that I created for the project, integrating three different portals for distance education. Screencast shows the learner entering the distance education environment and accessing a lesson, a discussion board activity and viewing the collaborative tools.
http://teleformacao.edu20.org/ appears on the screen.
AUDIO
Narrator: Explain the site which has three different distance education management systems. One portal was prepared for the university students at the local university; another was prepared for teachers continued training, and the last portal was created for secondary school students who do not have teachers or by classes in collaborative work or using the virtual laboratories.

10. VIDEO
Still photo of Dr. Leslie Moller.
AUDIO
Narrator: Says that we have the opportunity and honor to have an expert speak about distance education, Dr. Leslie Moller. Presents biographical information on the main speaker Dr. Leslie Moller, explaining his long journey through distance education.
Music of São Tomé

Assessing Collaborative Efforts

1. How should participation in a collaborative learning community be assessed?

According to Siemens (2008), collaborative learning communities can be assessed
• through peer assessment;
• through online communities;
• by educators based on student contributions ;
• by educators based on metrics supplied by the management systems.

2. How do the varying levels of skill and knowledge students bring to a course affect the instructor's "fair and equitable assessment" of learning?

Assessment is based on stated outcomes, yet the concept of assessment has broadened and students are also assessed on the degree of the student’s development throughout the course.

3. If a student does not want to network or collaborate in a learning community for an online course, what should the other members of the learning community do?

Students in the learning community can start looking out for them. In the case of the educator, he/she can see when the student is in the course and call him in to communicate or the colleagues can communicate to get them to participate or simply look out to see if they are having any problem with their coursework.

4. What role should the instructor play?

The instructor is the person that is responsible for the degree of social presence that is managed in the online community, and they way that this is managed is by setting the rules in the beginning, yet giving the student a sense of comfort and belonging. The instructor is also responsible for letting the students feel that he/she is there to assist when a hurdle appears in the way of progression preventing the student from feeling overwhelmed.

5. What impact would this have on his or her assessment plan?

According to Siemens, assessment is a teaching based activity which is based on authentic activities and that when the instructor assesses they are also assessing their participation as educators.

References:
Laureate Education, Inc. (Siemens, G.).(2008). Assessment of collaborative learning. Principles of Distance Education. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Bringing Quality Education to the Island of São and Principe. Storyboard.

1. Five photo slideshow of the Island.
View words such as: (Remote; little access to good education, poorly prepared local teachers, poverty, very poor resources) rolling up the screen.

São Tomé Music.


2. Photograph of children in Principe High school, without a teacher.

Narrator: Introduces the shortage of teachers on the island of Principe and speaks of the implementation of a distance education program for these remote areas and how the educational levels could increase greatly in this way.


3. Still photo of Dr. Leslie Moller.

Narrator: Introduces key speaker, Dr. Leslie Moller.

4. Dr. Leslie Moller using webex video conferencing tool.

Narrator: Greets Dr. Leslie Moller


5. Short excerpts from videoconferencing presentation on the advantages of distance education for people in remote areas, giving them the opportunity to have well developed programs and giving the students opportunity for collaborative work as well.

Dr. Leslie Moller speaks to school directors and people involved in the educational development in São Tomé.


6. Link to full video on top of still image of children using the distance education resources.

Music of São Tomé.

Flowers of São Tomé

Here are some flowers that exist in the Island of São Tomé.  Nature is wonderful and technology helps us share it. To see it better you can find it at: http://www2.skyalbum.com/album2/2011/201104/20110403/doloresjardim/4d996bf5082/Flores_de_S%E3o_Tom%E9.swf

Enjoy!

Collaborative Interaction

According to Dr. George Siemens, acceptance of distance education is growing due to the increase of online communication between people, whether they are family members, colleagues or strangers with whom they need to collaborate. Communication and collaboration with diverse and global groups has become much easier and more efficient in these last years. Dr. George Siemens believes that distance education will be impacted by new communication technologies, and that the higher education institutions will all gradually adopt distance education technologies although he also believe that face-to-face education will not be abandoned. Dr. Siemens did nevertheless not believe that k12 education would adopt national requirements for distance education. I also believe that online communication has become very important, and that people whether they are young or old are starting to use this technology to communicate among themselves.

According to Palloff and Pratt (2005) collaborative activity is important both in the face to face education and in distance education as it promotes the development of critical thinking skills; reflective thinking; creation of knowledge and meaning with collaborative group and transformation thinking.

Collaborative online communication is a very important aspect of distance education. The collaborative tools are more by the day; there are the wikis where participants are able to collaborate in the creation of documents, blogs where participantes are able to share their work, interact and collaborate, some social networking sites such as wiggio where students are able to collaborate and even use the tools in the classroom. There are google docs, google groups; voicthreads, there are also tools for videoconferencing among which we find skype. There is also Elluminate, Webex and Dimdim5 for webconferencing.

Maria

Distance Learning

Distance Learning

"Distance education can be defined as Formal education in which the learning group (teachers, students, resources) are separated by geography and sometimes by time." (Simonson, 2010)
Distance education is not identical to face to face education, it is equivalent. The courses have the same learning outcomes but in distance education learning experiences need to be provided in order to accomplish the outcomes.

Distance education is becoming very popular in post-secondary education. According to Moller,Foshay, and Huett, (2008, July/August) distance education will become dominant with concerns such as course development, workload, intellectual property rights, collaboration and salary. In the future competition will be in favor of institutions which provide the best and most effective distance education.

K12 education does not have as much demand as does college education. In the k12 site based distance education is becoming very popular. In rural areas site based distance education allows highly qualified teachers to instruct students, that otherwise would not have any teachers.
Some online high schools allow students to take courses from home while others require computer labs supervised by teachers. In the case of K12 instruction, there are few opportunities for personal interaction and the student may feel isolated. The amount of independence, the synchronous versus asynchronous environments and technology required needs more research. I personally think that distance education is a breakthrough and that through distance education students all over will have e access to education.

References:

Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W. & Coleman, C. (2008, September/October). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the Web (Part 3: K12). TechTrends, 52(5), 63–67.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010). Distance Education: The Next Generation [Webcast]. Principles of Distance Education. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, July/August). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the Web (Part 2: Higher Education). TechTrends, 52(4), 66–70.

Reflection

As this course comes to an end, I can´t help but feel a little sad. The time I spent in the whole program was wonderful and I learned so much from the teachers and my peers alike. I wish all of you lots of success as teacher leaders in the integration of technology in your school districts.


I am so excited to start using emerging technology in my classes as well as inspiring my administrators and colleagues to start using them as well. As was stressed by Johnson, L., Levine, A., Smith, R., Smythe, T. (2009) in the Horizon Report, there are new technologies which will be adopted within the year, others in the near future and others still, in four to five years time. All the tools I had opportunity to try out seemed so wonderful and will be able to be used in the classroom by me or by other teachers. I had the opportunity to see some tools that are fantastic for student motivation and commitment. I have seen other tools that would work so well in some of my colleague’s classrooms because of the specificity of the work they need to do with their students. After this course I realize that what I knew about technology was not really much compared to what I have come to learn, especially in this course. I also realize that I still have a long way to go and that I need to be prepared to adapt new technologies in my classroom and that I need to guide my fellow colleagues so that they too may do the same.

Our students are the twenty first century digital natives who use technologies on a daily basis and we as educators need to implement these technologies as educational tools to support, transform, expand, and deepen students learning. Brann, A., Gray, T., Piety, P. J., & Pacuilla H.S. (2010) believe that there are five key dimensions of science education for struggling students which are:

1. Physically doing science or “getting a mechanic grip” on the natural world

2. Visualization, representation, and modeling

3. Science literacy, vocabulary, and discourse

4. Questions, argumentation, and use of evidence

5. Student engagement and identity with science

Multi-user virtual environments for professional development and for student participation in learning networks such as teen second life, skoolaborate and flatclassrooms fulfil these dimensions. I have already started using some cloud based and collaborative tools such as voicethread, blogs, wikis, prezi, glogs, webquests, surveys, virtual field trips and simulations. I have already motiveted some of my colleagues to start using some of these tools as well.

www.flatclassroomproject.org

Flatclassrooms are ideal for activities that are performed on a worldwide scale where students are able to exchange ideas and experiences that will definitely be extremely beneficial for all involved. One of the flatclassrooms projects this year is “the way the World Wide Web changed the world” which is ideal for my “Science, Technology and Society” students which have a module on Technology. This is a wonderful opportunity for these students to learn more about technology and share their ideas and thoughts with students in the same program from schools anywhere in the world.

http://www.skoolaborate.com/

Skoolaborate is a Multi-user virtual environment prepared for educational purposes so it is the ideal setting for educators to use with their students. My “Quality, Environment and Security” and my “Science, Technology and Society” students have a learning module on sustainable development which gives me the ideal opportunity to have them do a project on sustainable constructions and have them construct a sustainable home in this virtual environment.

I enjoyed the videogames and know that there are many wonderful games out there. I just wish there were more good games for secondary school science. Hopefully they will start appearing soon. I saw good math games and good games for younger students.

I am going to commit to the purpose of changing my colleague's views on the integration of technology in the classroom and I am going to keep myself updated with the emerging and the disruptive technologies that may be of use in education. I have also joined the Kappa Delta Phi Honor Society, which is a good way to keep myself updated on what is new in education and educational technologies. I am also thinking of continuing my studies at Walden.

Maria

Brann, A., Gray, T., Piety, P. J., & Pacuilla H.S. (2010). Using Technology to Support Struggling Students in Science. Center for Implementation of Technology in Education.1-23.

Johnson, L., Levine, A., Smith, R., Smythe, T. (2009). The 2009 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition, Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

Online Learning in K-12 Schools

We do already have Moodle at our school, which goes from 10th through to 12th grade. This Education Management System and collaborative learning environment is used by very few teachers and mostly is just used as a file storage where students are able to access extra resources for their courses, very few teachers use moodle for quizzes and even less use it as a collaboration tool or online comunication device.

I have therefore chosen a presentation using glogster to motivate the teachers in a further use of this tool.

http://doloresjardim.glogster.com/Moodle/

Rcampus which is also a very good comprehensive Education Management System and collaborative learning environment with very interesting features for those who definitely do not appreciate Moodle.

McLuhan's Tetrad

Mc Luhan´s Tetrad considers four complementary aspects which are:
Enhances
Obsoletes
Retrieves/rekindles
Reverses.
This tetrad of the effects of technologies is simultaneous.

Computer-based learning suppliers transform schooling by introducing technology to compete against non-consumption.

E-books:
This technology ENHANCES through innovation by supplying online versions of school textbooks. This technology is already starting to appear through virtual learning environments for students supplied by the book editors and some books also have e-versions. These e-books could eventually also contain content for differentiated instruction, supplying specific content for all students, at all grade levels as well as comprehension levels. Christensen, C and Horn, M (2008) state that computerbased learning software must be introduced disruptively, by letting it compete against non-consumption. They also state that software makers should customize software for different learning types.

This technology OBSOLETES and replaces the heavy books which also contain content that the students never learn but have to carry around with them throughout the school year. With ebooks the technology may provide for the different learning styles of students substituting the normal books that, although the editors try to appeal to all students are not able to. Computer based books could have multiple paths leading students to study through different processes according to learning style. It could turn the learning process much more individualized.

This technology RETRIEVES/REKINDLES information from the past, the fact that the student gets access to the information they are looking for without having to waste time searching through several chapters in books and contouring around unnecessary content, brings us back to the times where teachers would give the notes to the students which only contained the content she wanted them to learn at that moment. They just got the information they need. This technology would go further giving the students what they need respecting their individual learning styles.

This technology may eventually be REVERSES by being substituted in the future, by online libraries, or one big information center, with accessible content to everyone at every grade level all over the world. It can also be replaced by something else we do not imagine that can appear and that can revolutionize the course of education, another disruptive technology.

As Thornburg, D. (2008) states:
“A new technology carries with it the seeds of destruction paving the way for the next one to follow.”

References:
Christensen, C. M., Horn, M. B., & Johnson, C. W. (2008). Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns (1 ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.


David, T. (2008). Emerging Technologies and McLuhan's Laws of Media. Thornburg Center for Space Exploration, 1-8. Retrieved July 9, 2010, from http://www.tcse-k12.org

Universal Design for Learning and Differentiated Instruction

As I reflect upon this course I think of the guidelines given by the three principles of the Universal Design for Learning which parallel the learning components and networks in the brain: recognition, strategy, and affect:

1.      Provide alternative formats for presenting information (multiple or transformable accessible media)

2.      Provide alternative means for action and expression (write, draw, speak, switch, graphic organization tools, etc.).

3.      Provide alternative means for engagement (background knowledge, options,

             challenge and support).

I discovered in Differentiated Instruction the answer to many questions and doubts I had about reaching every child. I came to realize that I could match content to the different learners differentiating according to readiness, I also discovered how I could try to compact content for more able students, use learning contracts and differentiate product depend on the student´s level of readiness, interests and learning profiles. I am thinking of using surveys to determine the students learning styles, learning profiles and their readiness in order to determine the preferred style of my lessons.

I have already started working with the technology tools that we have been learning about throughout the masters program and have been introducing these tools in my lessons and have given the students the possibility to use the technology tools that work best for them, having students prepare projects and work use technology they identify with. I have come to realize the importance of diverse tools for instruction in order to motivate students with diverse learning styles. It was fascinating to learn about some of the assistive tools for students with learning difficulties. With these tools students will all have the opportunity to learn the content they need to using the technology to overcome their shortcomings. I plan to use the summer break to master all these tools in order to start using them when they are needed in my lessons.

This course gave me the opportunity to see how enriching the experience of exchanging and sharing with peers that we have come to know through posts in the discussion board and work groups using wiki, google groups and skype is. With the wonderful resources my peers in the differentiation station and I were able to find for determining learning styles and preferences, assessment tools, curriculum materials, assistive technology, instructional technology I will be able to start taking steps to become a better teacher, using differentiated instruction. I will be starting with tiered projects.

As many of my peers pointed out throughout the course, many of us have used some differentiated instruction through intuition, not having any planned support; this has been given to us through this course. We now need to move forward one step at a time.

Maria

Surveys

MY SURVEY

I tried to prepare a survey that may give me an idea of the learning interests, a little of the multiple intelligences and learning styles. This information may give me the students profile.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CQMNKZ2

INTEREST SURVEY

The interest survey I prefer for my students is found at:
http://www.union.k12.sc.us/ems/Teachers-Forms--Student%20Interest%20Survey.htm

This is a nineteen question survey which is quite complete. The survey covers interests in reading, travel, movies, food music, sport, hobbies, friends and curiosities. The students are also surveyed to find out how they are capable of analyzing their friends and themselves.

LEARNING STYLE SURVEY

The learning style survey I appreciated the most is the survey found in:

http://www.engr.ncsu.edu/learningstyles/ilsweb.html

This learning style survey belongs to the NC State University, but is very interesting for my students. It has 44 interactive surveys which will be able to give us a complete idea of the students preferred learning styles. They may be visual, auditory or kinesthetic learners.

MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES SURVEY
The multiple intelligences survey I chose is the survey in:

www.mvanhecke.net/MI-Survey.doc

This survey is a very complete and interesting multiple intelligence survey which is composed of 55 questions that determine:

Verbal Linguistic Intelligence;

Logic Mathematical Intelligence;

Intrapersonal Intelligence;

Interpersonal Intelligence;

Visual Intelligence;

Musical Intelligence;

Kinesthetic Intelligence;

Naturalistic Intelligence.

There is a section for the results which sums up the preferences very nicely.

LEARNER PROFILE
The learner profile information I prefer is:

http://daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com/file/view/Learner_Profile.pdf

This site contains a learner profile which is absolutely wonderful. It is in a card shape and yet contains all the information needed, such as: learning styles; interests, favorite subjects and multiple intelligences.

Maria

Reflection

I have been successful in reaching the goals I set for myself and have had digital-age learning experiences and assessments that I already started implementing with my students. As suggested by the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) teachers should allow individual students to access active learning:
• Use out of several media formats to access information; I have started using
some of the tools I have learned in this course with my students in order to successfully reach the NETS-T goals I set out for myself which were:
1. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments;
2. Engaging in Professional Growth and Leadership;

I feel that this course has had the snowball effect on me, as it started rolling it became bigger until it turned into an avalanche; As I learn more I discover many more tools and procedures to learn. I have already started preparing my personal eportfolio and have started working with tools, such as o lesson builder, unit builder, rubrics, standards and target sets, which are in our Taskstream portfolio.

The immediate adjustments I will make to my instructional practice regarding technology integration in my content areas as a result of my learning from this course are:
• Provide students with more choices in the media , tools and context in which learning will take place;
• Have students demonstrate concepts and skills through the use of varied models of expert performance to allow students to identify with preferred mode;
• Provide multiple examples for multiple intelligences(visual, auditory, kinesthetic)using varied digital tools;
• Provide opportunities to practice skills with various levels of support, and provide ongoing, relevant feedback using digital rubrics and lesson builders;
• Include activities with varied levels of difficulty to challenge students at all levels of ability with a variety of tools.

Maria

GAME Plan Process with my Students

The technology standards and indicators outlined in the NETS-T are necessary for us as teachers to develop for ourselves before we are capable of effectively developing the NETS-S in our students, and as ours is a never-ending process, so is that of our students. We need to be motivated, and need to motivate our students to become self directed lifelong learners.

I will use the GAME plan process with my students to help them develop proficiency in the technology standards and indicators outlined in the NETS-S, which are:
1. Creativity and innovation.
2. Communication and collaboration.
3. Research and information fluency.
4. Critical thinking, problem solving and decision making.
5. Digital citizenship.
6. Technology operations and concepts.

Setting out GOALS:
• Such as use of models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues.
• Incentivize the use of digital learning environments so that students may interact, and collaborate with peers.
• Develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners from other cultures and countries.
• Learn how to plan strategies to guide inquiry.
• Learn how to locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media.
• Collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions.
• Advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.
• Demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning.
• Understand and use technology systems.

APPLYING:
• Create a social networking site for the students to interact collaboratively. I created a site for a lesson in Ning.com.
• In the future I plan to have them interact in the “flatclassrooms” program with students from other countries, starting off with the topic of global warming and natural resources.
• Have them develop a project, promoting research using the QUEST model.
• Have them use different digital tools to present their final projects.

MONITORING:
• Monitor the development of their work throughout the process in order to readapt if some student is having difficulty.

EVALUATING:
• Formative evaluation throughout.
• Summative evaluation of the final project using a rubric.

Maria

Revising my GAME Plan

The two NETS-T goals I set out to reach were:

1. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments;
I intended to incorporate digital tools and resources to maximize content learning and develop knowledge skills and self development attitudes in my students.

2. Engaging in Professional Growth and Leadership;
I intended to keep myself informed as to current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of students learning as well as teachers learning.

So far I have learned about the existence of different social networking tools that I had never heard about. Wiggio is a tool that I loved because as with the other social networking tools, with this one we are able to have videoconferences with our students when it may be necessary, for example before an important event such as the proton acceleration at the CERN. I was warned by mail that I could link into a certain site to see the collision. With Wiggio I would be able to be with my students to view this event and discuss it with them on the spur of the moment.

I also enjoyed working with Ning which is very much like a wiki although it seems to have greater facility in uploading different types of media. It is also easier to personalize. We are also able to twitter or publish on facebook using this tool.

I am still trying to prepare the e-portfolios for my students. I thought of being able to complete that during this break but I have had to complete the schools security and evacuation plan for evaluation, as we have had many changes because of the optical fibers that had to be installed throughout the school and as the school needed control rooms we had various modifications which affect the overall security of the school. All these excuses to say: I have not reached this goal yet.

When I look at the NETS-T goals I feel that I need to meet all these goals because they are all very important. I cannot meet some and then stop to go off to meet others, they are all linked to one another, therefore I have started off slowly getting myself accustomed to the process and then just have to join in more and more goals. This is a never-ending process.

Next goals:

Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
I want to demonstrate fluency in technology systems and transfer my current knowledge to new technologies and situations. I want to collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation. I also want to model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to be able to locate, evaluate and use information resources to support research and learning.

Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibilities
I need to advocate, model, and teach safe, legal and ethical use of digital information and technology. Promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to the use of technology and information. I also need to develop and model global awareness engaging with colleagues and students from other cultures, using digital age communication and collaboration tools.

Maria

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009). Program ten. Spotlight on Technology: Social Networking and Online Colaboration, Part 1 [Motion picture]. Integrating technology across the content areas. Baltimore: Author
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009). Program ten. Spotlight on Technology: Social Networking and Online Colaboration, Part 2 [Motion picture]. Integrating technology across the content areas. Baltimore: Author

Evaluating my GAME Plan Progress

Evaluating my GAME Plan Progress
1. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
• How effective were my actions in helping me meet my goals?
I feel that the students are corresponding very well to these digital age learning experiences. I have already started getting work that I have started uploading, with the students´ authorization, to our adult education site. I have still not completed learning how to create a e-portfolio, I am expecting to have time this following week to get into this.

• What have I learned so far that I can apply in your instructional practice?
I have learned that there are some problem based learning strategies I would like to include.

• What do I still have to learn? What new questions have arisen?
I have still to learn about many new digital age tools to be able to implement them in the learning experiences.
I have heard of Rubistar and have seen the site, although I need to experiment, preparing a rubric using this software.

• How will I adjust my plan to fit my current needs?
The plan does not need adjusting, it needs constant updating.

2. Engaging in Professional Growth and Leadership
• How effective were my actions in helping me meet my goals?
I have been learning, but as I get to know more, I realize that I still need to carry on because this process does not end.

• What have I learned so far that I can apply in your instructional practice?
I have learned some more information about Problem Based Learning that may be of utmost importance to my colleagues that are involved in the adult education program with me.

• What do I still have to learn? What new questions have arisen?
I can only say what I need to learn based on what I know now, yet tomorrow I will need more because when I learned what I thought I needed to learn I just discovered that behind that there is so much more. I have to keep an open mind and realize that the more I know in this field the less I feel I know, so I will just have to try to keep up (this is the phrase I could use to be kind on myself).

• How will I adjust my plan to fit my current needs?
My plan is open ended, so I just need to monitor and evaluate periodically to see if I maintain my goal and just carry on engaging in my professional growth as well as leading my peers in the same direction.


Maria

Game Plan Progress

The steps I have already taken toward meeting the goals established for learning about technology and technology resources.

1. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments.
i. Finding the information and resources I need?
I have already started incorporating the digital tools where they have helped my students develop skills they did not have. They have started using tools such as webspirations for concept mapping, survey monkey for surveys and polls, they have already started using and preparing prezis, voicethreads, glogs, moviemaker, powerpoint and blogs.
I have still to learn more about the creation and how to implement the use of Digital Portals. I have been reading about them and how to create them but have not yet got down to producing one. If anybody can give me some support I would appreciate it.

ii. Do I need to modify my action plan?
I think that the students are enjoying their work, so I think this is the way to go, and continue without stopping.

iii. What have I learned so far?
I have learned that students, even adult students, try to do the same as other students when they like the product that the other students have produced. As I am working with adult students, and they have had a days’ work when they arrive at my lessons, some of them do not want to learn new ways to do things because it takes longer, but when they start seeing the results of the work done by other colleagues they want to try out the tools themselves and are able to do better research because they are so much more motivated.


2. Engaging in Professional Growth and Leadership
i. Finding the information and resources I need?
I am searching for the information I need, some information I have already managed to get other information has been much more difficult to access.
I have also been trying to keep myself informed about what is new in other educational blogs and it is quite challenging yet interesting getting new ideas, because it is so important for us to exchange our thoughts and ideas. We get so much richer in capacity to innovate and prepare different learning opportunities for my students.

ii. Do I need to modify my action plan?
I do not think that I should modify my action plan, I must organize myself in a better way to be able to apply it properly.

iii. What have I learned so far?
I have learned that if I monitor the blogs on a daily basis I am able to keep myself informed about what is being posted by other teachers and this is important as we all have drawbacks and we are able to learn with one another and learn from all those that know much more than we do in certain areas. I myself have learned so many interesting things about education of younger students, the challenges and the compensations.

iv. What new questions have arisen?
I have come to realize how much I have been missing out on. I thought I knew so much about technology and meanwhile I have come to see that I have just come out of the Stone Age.

Maria

Reviewing GAME Plan

1. Design and develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments:

Resources:

· Computers with internet access;

· Survey monkey, webspiration, audacity, webquests.

· Voice Threads, PowerPoint’s, Movie Maker, Glogsters, Prezi’s, blogs and sites used to share final products that students will present and finally become artifacts in their personal portfolios.

Information...

• on how to use the internet and evaluate the search engines;
• on how to validate the information on the web;
• on how to research for information on the web;
• on how to use digital tools they will need.

Learning strategy:

• I will ask the students to start off by analyzing a webpage.
• I Supply worksheets and podcasts explaining the steps they should follow to do their research.
• They would then search for the information they need, evaluating them, synthesizing and then transforming this information into a product that is theirs.
• They will perform their surveys using the online surveys,
• They will organize their concepts using concept mapping tools.
• As their program does not contemplate laboratory experimentation (adult students) they may use simulations when they need to understand some concepts better.
• As these students are not all doing the same work at the same time, my contribution is individual to each one of them.

2. Engaging in Professional Growth and Leadership:

Resources:

· Computers with internet access;

· Blog; RSS feed; portfolio

Learning strategy:

I need to view and answer the blog postings on a more regular basis. I have being viewing the posts although not as often as I should, but have failed to interact with my colleagues on a more regular basis on their blogs. I am able to view the blog posts each time I use my search engine because the blogs I have iGoogle as me homepage (as the page opens I see who has posted on their blogs). When searching the web and I am able to view the posts quickly before proceeding with my work, if I have a minute.

Maria