NETS GAME Plan

"Creative thinkers generate a variety of original ideas then select the besty one by analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating the various options available" (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009, p. 51). Creating independent learners and thinkers is our main goal as educators even more so now then ever before. We are preparing our students for an unknown workforce, therefore our students need to be effective and adaptable problem solvers. With this focus in mind I am focusing my teaching on the NETS-T2 Design and Develop Digital_Age Learning Experiences and Assessments. I want my classroom to model the real-world through authentic learning experiences and in order to do so, I must also have the ability to assess my students using similiar methods.

My GAME plan is to incorporate new familiar technologies for my students to utilize in ways in which they can relate what they are learning to their personal interests and add their own creative experience. Currently our department is working on a project based assignment in which students will share two healthy snacks which must meet certain criteria and they must also minimize the cost. This would be authentic as our nation needs to work toward developing healthier eating habits and money is always an issue. Students will research nutrional information by visiting websites and evaluating the reliability of the sites they chose. Students goals will be to find out more about the nutrition for their favorite two snacks. In order to achieve this goal they must plan a way to get the desired information ( the internet, food packaging, etc.) They must then monitor there strategy based on their ability to locate the desired information in order to evaluate the criteria. It is my hope that students will then be able to extend this knowledge to create helathy alternatives and healthy meals that meet required health guidelines. I believe students will demonstrate creativity in chosing snacks that will allow them to eat healthy and for reasonable cost. I would love to extend this lesson to have students assess our cafeteria food, research the nutrional contents and share the healthiest choices available.

Elizabeth’s response

I have been teaching AP statistics for the past three years. I have taught the same lesson on least squares regression line (line of best fit) each year in the same way. I explain the literal meaning of least square regression and how the equation is calculated. Some of my students understand the explanation and others look at me like deer in headlights. I showed them visually how this is done using a small example and drawing the squares and calculating the area. I managed to reach a few more students. I recently researched a math applet on line that allows students to use the internet, create a spread sheet of the data, and using a moveable line that shows the squares superimposed they could manipulate the line to adjust it to the best fit. (Smallest sum of the squared area) Technology improved their understanding of the concept and their overall appreciation of the graphing calculator that will do this work for them. As stated in our learning video, teachers must not try to fit technology into the classroom for the sake of using it, it must make the lesson meaningful and it must be used as a tool to benefit understanding (Laureate, 2009).

Technology coupled with my original lesson helped to turn on the lights for my students in this case. It is more important to try to teach the curriculum through student’s interest. I find myself struggling with the curriculum in the sense that I have difficulty relating it to their interests. Why is this important to them? How will they use this in their future careers when we are not sure what future careers will be out there in this ever changing economic climate. “The reality is that students are, for the most part, bored” (Prensky, 2008). I would like them to use their smart phones to gather data from the internet if a teachable moment should arise that calls for this. It is against our policy.

I Plan to incorporate technology into my systems of inequalities lesson to gain interest and understanding. I was thinking of using the internet as a tool for tutoring ( Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009), calculators for quicker graphing, and a math applet to demonstrate how cost lines and feasible regions are related and prove solutions to maximize and minimize costs/profit.



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.