As I progress along in my GAME plan, I have come to the "M" part - monitoring.
This is where I take a step back to look at what I have accomplished so far and if there needs to be any changes in my actions to achieve my goal.
My first question for myself is - "Am I finding the information and resources I need?"
For my first goal to find and use beneficial forms of technology for assessment, I have made some great progress. I have located and began to incorporate the CPS "clickers" in my classroom.
For my second goal of using a blog to communicate with parents is not going as well as planned. There is a lot of red tape with privacy and such that I am in a holding pattern until I get some clarification from my administration on if I can incorporate this blog as a parent communication tool. My school requires that we get anything approved by the administration before we send it home to the parents. With a blog, this step would be bypassed or the administration would have to review each blog entry before I post. That means a lot more work and time for everyone. So, as you can see, it is a big decision for not just me but for a lot of people at my school.
My second question for myself is - "Do I need to modify my action plan?"
I believe my first goal is moving right along. I am making great strides so no modification is needed.
As for my second goal, I may need to do some modifications pending on instructions from administration. Once I get the final "do's and don'ts" for the blog, I can move in with my process or modify where needed.
My third question for monitoring is - "What have I learned so far?"
Using the CPS system has allowed me to free up so much time when it comes to evaluating assessments. This tool is such a great thing for the classroom. Anytime I need to give a quick assessment or any forced-option test, the tool gives me so much data on my students. It really helps with seeing growth and weaknesses in individuals as well as the areas of strengths and weaknesses for the whole class.
As for the parent-teacher blog, I have come to realize that it requires a lot of careful planning as well as clear communication before one can even begin to be put into action.
My final question for myself is - "Have any new questions arisen?"
Yes. I have enjoyed using the CPS remotes and would like to see about some newer versions. They now make them with full qwerty keypads which would allow me to make some other types of questions besides multiple choice. I wonder if my school would be interested in purchasing a set?
Some questions for Goal #2 are - how can we begin to incorporate web 2.0 tools when the restrictions really hold us back? So many great tools are out there - what are some steps I can take advocate their use the the classroom?
I am eager to hear some comments. Thanks for reading!
-Ashley
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Ashley,
ReplyDeleteMy school has received a set of student responders which I am assuming are like your CPS clickers. It seems as though it is taking forever to get them set up. I can't wait to try them out! I am trying to remain patient.
I know the general concept behind them is that they are wonderful tools for immediately assessing your students. I was wondering if you set up questions ahead of time that you want your students answer. Can you tell me a little about how these clickers can be used?
As far as your blog, I hope the administration approves the use of it for parent communication. It can be a wonderful tool if they will allow it. I have never heard of an administration wanting to approve all parent communications. Is there a reason for this that you are aware of? This makes me wonder if there are important questions I need to ask my administration regarding my use of technology.
Kristin
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteThat is a big downfall that your blog postings must be checked by administration. We have similar rules and I had not thought about having them check the blog. Good luck with getting that approved. Maybe they will realize its use and not be so strict. As far as your question about the strictness of regulations the only thing I keep holding on to is that they will eventually see the benefits of technology and rather than placing all of the limitations, they will let teachers use their judgement.
It seems as though your GAME plan is really coming along. You are making strides to achieve your goal and I think your are having some success. Great Job!
Kristin,
ReplyDeleteSetting up the clickers was a bit of a process but I had my technology coordinator walk me through it. Once I uploaded my class list, assigned each student a number, and linked it to my gradebook, the work was done. It is a one time thing and for that reason, it wasn't so bad. Most of the time, I do set up my tests before hand. The great thing about them is you can choose the type of multiple choice question to ask. You can include images, videos, and of course text. The clickers have labeled buttons (A,B,C, etc...) They choose the letter of their choice. The only down fall is the questions have to be multiple choice. That is why I want to look into classroom response systems where the clickers have full QWERTY keyboards. That would open up a lot of options. Sometimes, I don't set up the tests, I just open an additional window from online and use the questions from there. You can still use the clickers, you just have to manually put in the letter answers for each question for the system to grade their responses. This works well with our online practice tests for our state mandated test.
As for the blog, my administration wants to approve all parent communication so that they can be sure everything sent home is appropriate as well as a good representation of our school (no typos and such). This is mainly for letters sent home school-wide or grade level-wide. Parent emails and one on one communications do not have to be checked.
Thanks for the comment and questions!
Amanda,
I too hope that our schools see the benefits of technology and ease up on some of the restrictions. I know why they are there - to protect the students - but some really hinder their growth in technology education. Thanks for the comment!
-Ashley