Reflection 4

Looking back on the past eight weeks brings several different feelings. I am one step closer to the completion of my masters degree, and I have built and created several new tools to enhance what I do. A feeling of accomplishment comes first as this may have been the most challenging course to date. What I learned and how I learned it has made technology a true factor in the content area of physical education. For the first time, I actually felt that some of the course work was directed towards physical education. I know have solid proof that technology can be integrated in p.e. and it can enhance how students learn and apply information to real life. To date, the most important factor that I have learned throughout my journey is how to relate curriculum to the world that student's live in. Each area of content that students participate in is of equal importance to how students will choose to live. Each time that an educator has an opportunity to reach someone new is a success, and if technology aids in that effort then it will be used as long as I choose to teach.

Relating Game Plan to Students

Now I need to connect everything that I have planned for myself to the students that I teach. After all, the students should be the most important variable in an educator's plan for improvement. I do think that in developing my game plan that I have had the best interest of my students in mind throughout the entire process. I cannot see how technology could hurt the progress of students in physical activity if that technology is used in ways that help educate students about why they are doing things and how those things may be benificial.

So far the focus of my game plan has been to meet National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS-T). Now I will shift some of the focus to the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS-S). Both may be found at http://www.iste.org/. So, how do the two standards that I have been working towards, relate to the standards set for students? The fourth standard for students is Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making. In this standard students are expected to

a. identify and define authentic problems and signifigant questions for investigation.

b. plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project

c. collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions

d. use multiple processes and diverseperspectives to explore alternative solutions

This standard fits pretty well with my first goal to educate students of the trend reguarding overweight youth and the innactive lifestyles that they are living. Students will be expected to develop a personal fitness plan to fit their personal needs and record data such as fat percentage, weight, muscular strength, and cardiovascular endurance. I have also decided to follow up with a lesson that includes a blog page in which students will communicate with peers annonomously about things that did and didn't work and things that they did and didn't like. These activities, if they work as planned, should meet the needs of the students and fall under the standard set by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).

My second goal to continue to incorporate different technologies in physical education could technically fall under several of the student standards, but standards one (Creativity and Innovation) and six (Technology Operations and Concepts) seem to be especially fitting. In these standard students are asked to use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues (1-c), understand and use technology systems (6-a), and transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies (6-d). The more technology that is introduced to students the further their knowledge will take them in education. Through this entire process I have decided that my main goal is to present my students with as many oportunities as possible in order to help them gain knowledge and put that knowledge to use in the technological world that we all live in.

References:

National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS-S) located at http://www.iste.org/.

Game Plan Revisions

It is time to look back at my game plan and take note of what I have done and what I would like to do in the future to include NETS-T standards in what I teach. For now I am focused on the NETS-T first standard, Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity. This standard states that teachers should promote, support and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. It also touches on engaging students in real-world issues and problem solving on the website http://www.iste.org/. Having students create fitness plans to meet their individual needs is a great activity to meet this standard. By educating students about the benefits of physical fitness and the increasing number of inactive youth, this lesson could be turned into a real life problem solving activity. Tracking progress through the use of heart rate monitors (HRM), pedometers, and spread sheet software ties technology into the lesson well. As far as meeting this goal, I feel very comfortable in how I will incorporate what I have learned in what I teach.

My second goal has changed. I wanted to learn more about digital responsibility and citizenship, but I don't really see this becoming an integral part of what I teach. My shift takes me to NETS-T standard 2, Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessment. As I continue to learn of new tools and software that could help students awareness of physical education I will look for ways to get them into lessons that I teach. I feel like technology has become a way to reach students who have not taken an interest in p.e. to this point. P.E. class should be something that students look forward to every day. The anxiety that many students have about physical activity can be reduced by meeting the need of individuals, and technology has made that task more of a reality than before. Tools such as fitness social networks provide support and feedback from individuals of the same background. One website that I have found that shows promise is http://www.meckids.com/. Another software program that gives information about individual fitness is Cooper Institute Fitnessgram (thanks John). This program gives comparisons to other students of the same age from around the country, and helps student set achievable goals based on their current fitness levels. The software also provides several assessments for students, which is another variable in the NETS-T content standards.

References:
National Education Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) located at www.iste.org

The Cooper Institute, (2010) Fitnessgram. Retreived October 11, 2010 from www.cooperinstitute.org.

Game Plan Evaluation

Last week I began to take action to make the goals that I had set for myself a reality. I conducted research among p.e. teachers in my district, and online. I found many options to integrate technology into my classroom/gym that can and will enhance learning by incorporating goal setting activities and creative new ideas that should spark the interest of all students. Technology also allows to tailor activities in order to specify the needs of students of all body types and lifestyles. As far as, my comfort level in the area of digital citizenship and responsibility, I feel good about what I have learned. For the most part the thing that will affect my classroom most is the proper use and citation of resources.

My main focus from here is going to be incorporating technology into several different lessons. I do not want to narrow down the use of technology to one or two units. What I would really like to do is use technology somehow in most, if not all, of the units that I teach. Since my district has limited amounts of heart rate monitors (HMR) those will probably be distributed to a different group of students in each unit. If I am to accomplish this I will have to find more technology to use in different areas. I did find some toys to use in the Laureate text Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use. Cennamo, Ross, and Ertmer suggest great tools like bioelectrical impedance devices that are used to determine body fat percentage (2009). This tool could be useful in that it takes much less time than calipers, and it is much less intrusive for the person being tested. Another suggestion in the the text is geocaching. "Geocaching uses treasures-the cache- that can be located anywhere in the world" (Cennamo, 2009) through the use of the Internet and GPS devices. After reading about this activity, I actually found a group in my town that does geocaching. This could be a great way to get out of the gym and try something new.

References:
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, Cenage Learning.