Monitoring Your GAME Plan Progress

With every week that we are asked to post to our blog reflecting our GAME plan I find that I must revisit my initial post about my GAME plan to reread what I wrote to see what my goals are.  I know that my main area of focus is on developing authentic experiences that incorporates technology, but again this week I find myself wondering what my other area of focus is and must return to that initial blog post.  It is not that these goals aren’t important, it is just that we have so much we must juggle at this time with Walden coursework and our daily jobs (forget the idea of having a life-I haven’t seen friends or most family members since we started this adventure), and the portfolio hanging over our heads that I’m simply too exhausted to really put the time and effort that I would normally put into becoming a better teacher.  I am NOT the teacher I want to be, I am not as prepared, I’m not as rested, I’m not spending my time planning engaging activities, I’m winging it, just to get by and this bothers me greatly.  I can’t stand the thought of being a lackluster teacher, but at this point, that is what I have become and that is the best that I can do at this time.

After revisiting my initial GAME plan post I am reminded of my two goals:

·      Standard 2-Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments (with a focus on authentic experiences)
·      Standard 5-Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

Information & Resources-are you finding the information you need?

At this point I have found a great deal of information on authentic learning experiences and activities that correlate with the content I’m mandated to teach, however I am still in search of even more activities.  I am excited for the time when my Walden coursework is done and I can really dive into these resources, organize them, and implement them to meet the various needs of my students. 

            As far as the professional development, I am attending meetings each month as a member of the math committee, I have signed up to attend the Indiana Association for the Gifted Conference next month, and I am currently attending Walden to strengthen my teaching and to add new strategies and tools to my repertoire.  I feel at times our courses are constantly pushing us to look elsewhere, causing us to overlook the immense amount of work we are putting forth to complete Walden assignments and taking our focus away from reflecting on how much we are truly learning.  I am doing my masters, in a sense; I feel that is sufficient for this area of my GAME plan.  Not only does it directly relate to professional growth, but it also focuses on our specialization of integrating technology. 

Do you need to modify your action plan?

            I do need to make a few small modifications to my GAME plan.  One of the major changes will be the amount of time I spend with our technology department.  The reason for this is because they have cut their hours from 2-3 guys working 10 hour days, 5 days a week to one guy working 8 hour days twice a week.  There are so many technology problems or issues that he does not have the time to meet with me on a regular basis at this point like we have previously this year. 

            Another change is that my goal of working with colleagues at my school needs to be postponed.  Sure I still assist a number of teachers on a daily basis or I share ideas with them about how they can use technology to strengthen a particular lesson or skill but these meetings are not formal.  In the beginning of the year I did host some technology meetings to share tips with my coworkers.  At this time, I’m just too exhausted and have too much on my plate to plan appropriately (using the Madeline Hunter lesson plan format that takes FOREVER), let alone to host formal training sessions.  This is still a passion of mine, and I still share what few things we’ve done in our room, but until I get my Masters I will not push the issue of leading any professional development in the area of technology. 

What have you learned so far?

            This process has reminded me that all good teachers constantly assess and evaluate their own teaching and strive to get better.  However, this process has made me realize just how important it is to be able to select your personal goals.  Although the two goals I have selected are important to me, there are issues that are currently more important and are taking precedent over my GAME plan.  For example, how to keep my student who today said he wants to kill himself, to realize his capabilities and worth.  This is not an area in which I was trained, but it is essential for me to become familiar with what to do in these situations.  Or simply how to deal with the great changes that will be occurring in my district as we lose our assistant principal that we love dearly (and probably our principal), a kindergarten teacher, a first grade teacher, a third grade teacher, and a fifth grade teacher (yes, I teach 5^th grade…not sure who will be going or if other veterans will take my spot), and working through the struggles of trying to get our school board to hear our voice and listen carefully to our arguments.

            I have found that the goals I set for myself I will spend countless hours trying to reach.  I will research, I will contact others, and I will do whatever it takes because I have a personal connection with the information or goal.  However, when I’m forced to create a goal (especially with already being so bogged down by my real or current goals) I find myself to be less driven, unable to focus on the content, and not caring as much about the topic as if I would have selected the topic on my own.  This reminds me of how our students must feel on a fairly regular basis in classrooms that offer limited or no choice in regards to instructional and assessment methods, and it is truly sobering

What new questions have arisen?

            At this point I don’t have many questions that directly relate to my GAME plan.  I still have the question of how to get feedback since my other strategies have fallen through.  I also am questioning whether or not I will ever be able to complete this plan to my high standards and expectations.  But for the most part my mind is focused on our Portfolio checkpoint.  I’m wondering how Walden can justify assessing us time and again using the same type of assessments (writing papers) despite teaching us about unique needs of students and the importance of assessing in a variety of ways to meet students’ needs.  I’m wondering how they can advertise that they are student-centered when the portfolio is so demanding and lacks the ability to accurately assess our teaching abilities.  I’m wondering where the portfolios are of our professors, but primarily the administrators.  I’m wondering why our professors have such limited experience or knowledge of the portfolio if the portfolio is in deed a crucial part of our education.   I’m wondering why Walden doesn’t value our coursework.  I have learned a great deal from our program and feel our assignments in the classes represent this.  If Walden truly valued our coursework as a quality assessment to determine what we have learned, then why the need for the portfolio?  I’m wondering WHO do we contact to share our concerns about the portfolio?  Will they listen to anything we have to say?  Will they have answers to help us understand it better?  I’m wondering, HOW can I express our concerns in a professional way while showing that others have the same concerns?  Would a Google doc help with such a task?  I’m also wondering how Walden is expecting us to be effective teachers when putting forth so much time on our class assignments and then having the extra weight of the portfolio. 

            All in all, I feel it is important to have a GAME plan or some sort of plan to become a better teacher.  I feel that we should be congratulated on our efforts in our graduate work and that this should not be overlooked or deemed as not enough.  We are currently putting forth more effort to better ourselves than many teachers are currently doing.  It is easy to get bogged down with the stress of it all but I feel we all should take a moment and truly celebrate ourselves and our current accomplishments. 

As with any goal I feel it is important to be able to select an area that we want to work on.  However, simply getting to select the goal is not always enough.  I feel that in addition to being able to select the goal, timing is crucial.  If there is already too much on our plate, we will be unable to put our focus and efforts into it and our progress with our GAME plan will be limited.  Also, if we do not have the time to research or work on our GAME plan, this will also hinder our success.  We must allow ourselves to take a break when needed, and to set goals that are manageable while juggling the stresses of every day life.  It is okay to extend the amount of time to work on a goal, it is okay to change a goal or go in a new direction, but it is not okay to stop working towards bettering ourselves.