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