The Edge of Tomorrow - Standing on the verge of a technologically educational revolution. Quality leadership is an essential factor for making change in education. Just ask any classroom teacher who has had a particularly good, or bad, building principal, and they will tell you stories. Stories of triumph or tragedy, depending on which of the leaders they were paired with. In Project RED’s study of nearly 1,000 schools involved in a major technology implementation, they state “the principal’s ability to lead change is critical.” As Simon Sinek says, “There are leaders and there are those who lead.” I’m very honored that I have the opportunity to work in a district where our entire administrative team is pushing and challenging each other to be the latter. As part of that effort, this year we created the 21st Century Leadership Academy. There are plenty of conversations about the qualifier “21st century”, and wherever you stand on the convention, we find it a very useful way to add the necessary context to say that we want to do things different.
Weblogg-ed Free Technology for Teachers 2¢ Worth Listen A few weeks ago I worked and attended North Carolina's ISTE affiliate conference. I opened the NCTIES conference with a breakfast keynote address and Marc Prensky closed it with a luncheon keynote the next day. Sadly, I missed the second day of the conference. I would first offer some constructive criticism to NCTIES , and to all such ed-tech conferences across the nation and around the world. The only idea I can think of is to have one or two session rooms devoted to unconference topics. Now to the surprises It was in the student showcase, a part of most ed-tech conferences that I often miss, using it as an opportunity to visit the exhibitors or dash up to my room for something or other. She then began telling me what they were doing, describing some of the communication skills they were learning as well as social studies and character. “No software. After my hesitation, she continued, “..the game master.” Seeing this was energizing to me. Donna Hitchings, Snaderson HS, WCPSS
WORDOID - Creative Naming Service We’re ‘imagineering’ our K-4 Computer Lab into a STEM experience. Join our journey Have you ever wondered what it would be like to re-invent your classroom? I have. For quite a while. Years, in fact. What would you do? The photo above is my lab as it appeared in September 2003, my first year teaching. Fast forward to this school year, nine years later (above). While the hardware has changed over the years (and my lessons have too), my students still sit at fixed stations, working on their own, for 42 minutes, once a week. It’s time for a change. Let’s be honest: some consider fixed labs an anachronism, a throwback to a time when computers were so expensive only a small number could be purchased and they had to be housed in a single location so that as many people as possible could utilize them. We have been talking for months about an exciting new direction for our K-4 Computer Lab. We have seen the future and it is MOBILE, COLLABORATIVE and ALWAYS-ON This evolution of the NCS elementary computer lab is the result of many forces converging at once. Join Us!
Blog | The Magic of Learning Remote Scavenger Hunt We are heading into our third week of social distancing, school closures and “shelter at home&... We are in the Midst of... Are you aware that we are in the middle of making history? Week in the Classroom“Wiki Collaboration Across the Curriculum” Victoria A. Davis Camilla, Georgia, USA Blog: Presentation Title“Wiki Collaboration Across the Curriculum” BioVicki Davis is a teacher and technology administrator at Westwood Schools in Camilla, Georgia. Description Vicki loves it when she gets students excited! Last November 2005, Vicki was a scared beginner when she ventured out onto this new Internet that experts call Web 2.0. Vicki has done this in two ways: a video with show notes and a live wiki project for YOU to join in. Video Presentation Outline: Wiki BackgroundWhy students need to know how to wikiA brief overview of the active portion of this projectThe pedagogical use of wikis in the classroomWiki assessment strategiesCommon questions from school administrators Note: To show you how rapidly things change, this presentation was finished on Sunday, October 15th and on Monday, October 16th, wikispaces has announced a new feature to help with the concurrent editing problem of wikis. Presentation
Peter Pappas: Educational Consultant Provenzano's GPS Tech Guide