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. You do a fabulous job of offering dynamic learning experiences for teachers who are new to teaching or new to utilizing contemporary information and communication technologies in their classrooms.
Bitmoji Archives Hello, friends! February was the month of conferences, workshops, sick days, snow days, and federal holidays for me, and I feel like I’m playing catch up. I know you feel my pain! This is the 4th year of our 1:1 initiative, and I’ve started to just assume that my students know how to “technology,” if you will. I’ve made an effort, as I’m sure many of you have, to make technology the background player in my classroom.
E-Curriculum… 7 Key Tools Uncovering A Goldmine of E-Resources … The Digital Curriculum Part Three Everyone is talking about a digital curriculum free of those hard copy textbooks that have been a part of schooling since the advent of the one room schoolhouse. In this series I will investigate some resources that can open up a world of digital curricula. In this third post of the series, I’ll examine tools you can use to find your own amazing digital resources.. In later posts, I will have more ideas to consider as schools develop their digital curriculum. Please take a moment to subscribe by RSS or email .
Common Core Online Testing Methods Seriously FlawedCapitol Hill Daily It’s no secret that today’s kids are more tech-savvy than ever. Like many kids, my nephew knew how to use an iPhone before he could even walk. Now, at just four years old, he’s handier with an iPad than many adults. However, despite the fact that our society revolves around technology, parents and teachers are worried that their students lack the computer skills necessary to take the new Common Core assessments. As states begin implementing the Common Core State Standards, students around the nation will be required to complete the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Career (PARCC) standardized test. But the transition is not going smoothly.
Blog - Will Richardson Over the years, we’ve heard a lot of predictions about what the future of work holds for all of us, not just our kids. It’s interesting now to see some of those predictions actually playing out. Case in point is this post in the Harvard Business Review that summarizes the Herculean change initiative now underway at AT&T. It’s a fascinating read on it’s own, but it’s even more interesting when you start to align some of the findings to the work of schools. Blog Silvia Zanatta wrote how she incorporated the Classroom Habitudes into her 7th grade classroom in a wonderful post last year. Here, she updates us on her progress of using Heartbreak Mapping and the transformation she’s seen in her students—and her school. One year ago, Angela Maiers asked me to share my students’ work and experiences around Following Their Heartbreak, and what resulted was a blog post that she graciously published on her website. At that time, I had been in the midst of exploring and learning about the Classroom Habitudes and the #youmatter movement with my students.
Share Assignments with Parents/Reuse Assignments Next Year Google Classroom is a closed environment. This means that the assignments and discussions in Google Classroom are only available to students in the class. I view this as a positive thing to protect the privacy of students in our classes. Earlier I had published a blog post on Backupify on this topic.
Blog 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? It is March of 2020. Tempers flare at 1st Common Core hearing as legislators clash with Flanagan, each other LANSING — Rep. Tim Kelly had to play traffic cop at times Tuesday as legislators from both sides of the aisle peppered State Superintendent Mike Flanagan and Michigan Department of Education officials with questions about the Common Core State Standards. The fireworks came during a subcommittee hearing on whether or not the legislators should give their seal of approval to continuing implementation of Common Core, one of four such hearings scheduled for the summer. The hearings came about after legislators inserted a provision in the new state budget, set to take effect Oct. 1, that blocks the education department from spending state funds to implement the standards. RELATED: What is Common Core? Flanagan began his testimony before the panel by asking legislators to take action as soon as possible, so teachers working on lesson plans and other preparation for the fall have certainty about curriculum standards.
Beth’s Thoughts on Technology in the Classroom — This blog focuses on education, technology and learning. It has been one heck of a roller coaster start to the school year. Lots of new tech to deploy, PD to develop not to mention new state standards to integrate and the likely hood of licensing changes. It is a lot to take in. But October is here and things tend to get into a rhythm and it is time to connect with others and indulge in some personal learning. I look forward to attending MassCUE our stated premier conference in technology and learning. Your School and Google’s Nine Principles of Innovation The other day Kathy Chin Leong published a review of what Google’s chief social evangelist, Gopi Kallayil, calls Google’s Nine Principles of Innovation. I tweeted out the post (as did others) and I know many of my followers linked to it. A major section of my upcoming book will discuss how key elements of innovation strategy are particularly effective in a school setting. Much of what I found in my many school visits resonates with this list of what makes Google one of the most innovative cultures on the planet. Here are some very brief examples of how I see Gopi’s keys to Google innovation, as applied to a K-12 setting: My preferred definition of innovation is “ideas that enhance the value of the organization”.
A Flipped Learning Flow for Blended or Online Classes As teachers prepare for a new school year, many are brushing up on their video production skills. Teachers know there will be times when they will need to lean on videos to allow students to access information asynchronously. Video has several benefits in a blended or online course. Videos put students in control of the pace they consume and process information.