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Since the early days of computers, many of us dreamed of how computers were going to revolutionize education. We didn’t know exactly how it was going to work, but we knew that the “personal” computer made it possible to individualize education. In learning, one size does not fit all, so individualized education is the “holy grail” of education! MORE
Tweet In response to a tweet asking how to print a folder of student work in Google Drive I wrote a script that will list all the files in a folder in your Google Drive and create a PDF. The advantage to this is you can download all of the PDF’s at once to your […]. MORE
A conversation with Avra, Beth, and Brenda Socrative ( [link] ) is a FREE student response system that can be used on any device. During this Hangout on Air, Beth Holland , Avra Robinson , and Brenda Doucette will walk through the features of Socrative 3.0 MORE
Lately I've been thinking about my daily rituals as a Principal. I typically arrive at school around 630am each morning and after dropping my briefcase, my rituals begin. MORE
August 13, 2015, Volume 2, Issue 9, Number 7. Let's start with an assessment. A simple agree or disagree. Circle A (agree) or D (disagree). A D It is important that teachers formatively assess students in the middle of lessons 2. A D Test Prep is a valuable teaching tool. A D Feedback to students is the most important part of the assessment process. A D Assessment is an important instructional tool. A D Accountability is the most important reason for assessing student work. MORE
Brilliant or Insane. MORE
In the final week of the ThingLink Teacher Challenge we asked participants to create a lesson to Engage Students with ThingLink for Video. MORE
Middle school science teacher and Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow Joshua Sneideman and energy education specialist Erin Twamley share seven ways that teachers and schools can involve students in climate change studies. Included: Project ideas. MORE
Sponsored by Staples Now is the time. I start back to school. So does my son. Lots of you will soon too. How do we get totally ready? Start by making a list. But sometimes I don’t know everything that is out there. MORE
If you could design your ideal social studies curriculum for middle school, what would it look like? After surveying area high schools, Jody Passanisi and Shara Peters decide to focus on skills development. Here's their draft scope & sequence for grades 6-8. Future of History Lesson Planning Common Core grade 7 grade 8 grades 6 history curriculum history scope and sequence Jody Passanisi sequence Shara Peters skills teaching history skills using technology in history class MORE
I just read a great post by Alice Keeler , titled “ In the Real World “, where she discusses the irony of the idea that schools need to prepare students for the “real world”, yet many of the things that happen in our schools do not necessarily mirror the current realities of the world we live in at the moment. Here is a sample of some of what she listed as the world’s current realities: In the real world, we look things up on Google. In the real world, YouTube is one of the most popular tools for learning. In the real world, collaborating is not cheating. In the real world, finding information on the internet is a resource. In the real world, my job does not ask me things I can Google. I need to use critical thinking. In the real world, I use my phone for everything. It is a great post meant to push thinking, and she even crowdsources more ideas, if you are so inclined to add your own. This being said, I am not about absolutes. In my own experience, I have seen more schools open up sites like YouTube, and encourage students to not only bring their mobile devices, but encourage them to use them in meaningful ways for learning. There is a definite shift happening in education. Yet I am sometimes baffled how one organization can block things like YouTube stating that it is unsafe for students to have access, while other organizations in nearby areas have the same site open. I always wonder why they don’t just talk to each other? There are many schools that are starting to understand that they are closing powerful learning opportunities down for their students, and they want to get to the place where students are encouraged to bring their own devices, or free up access to social media and sites like YouTube to create powerful and collaborative learning opportunities. My advice to them? Don’t do it tomorrow, but you need to set a date of when you want to create some of these opportunities. What is important to understand that simply flicking a switch and unblocking opportunities from students does not mean anything will change about the teaching and learning in the organization. It should not be teaching plus a mobile device, but it should significantly change the way learning looks like in the organization. Why I am adamant that there is a time frame is that we do not ignore and constantly put tomorrow out of reach. For example, I created the following “rubric” on whether your school’s digital citizenship practice is a “pass or fail” In reality, this is not meant to be an evaluative tool as much as it is a conversation starter and guide. One possible way you can use this is to have a discussion on where you want to be, how you are going to get there, and when you are going to be there by. Obviously nothing is perfect, but having a date creates an accountability to not only yourselves, but your students. As John C. Maxwell says, “change is inevitable, but growth is optional” As we manage change, it is necessary to have the critical conversations to not necessarily get to where we need to be (because it is a constantly moving target in education as it is with all organizations) but to move forward. Each community is unique, and differentiation is not just for students and teachers, but schools as well. Creating a plan of how to move to the next step is paramount if we are to take advantage of the opportunities for innovative learning that lay in front of us. October 10, 2014 Blog Posts on Leadership Development July 31, 2013 3 Conversation Starters for the School Year April 17, 2013 3 Important Trends That We Should Focus On in Schools October 18, 2012 Let’s Figure This Out November 4, 2014 Leadership Framework: Developing the Organization #ONTEdLeaders. Developing and Facilitating Leadership Managing School Operations and Resources alice keeler critical conversations innovative leadership is your digital citizenship practice a pass or fail john c maxwell youtube in the classroom MORE
August 16, 2015 Junaio is a great Augmented Reality app to add to the list of the best AR apps for teachers. Junaio enables you to easily access augmented content on images and objects and.read more. iPad augmented reality apps MORE
Games are challenging but they’re also fun. That’s a formula worth emulating. Ninety seven percent of kids spend an average of ten hours a week playing video games. It’s hard work, but they keep coming back. MORE
Traditionally as students come back to school, it is important to establish a positive classroom culture. Today, more and more districts are following the lead of places like New York City where schools are empowered to support students in the responsible use of cell phones and social media. MORE
August 16, 2015 Educational Web Tools is a section we created in this blog a year ago where we periodically feature new releases in the world of educational technology. The purpose is to keep.read more. educational web tools MORE
note: App of the Week picks are now being curated with help from Graphite by Common Sense Media. Click here to read the full app review. Inventioneers. What’s It Like? Kids can either create their own inventions or build inventions to accomplish a given task. MORE
There is often a great deal of emphasis on establishing a vision when beginning the change process and rightfully so. Great leaders understand the importance of a shared vision and the need to articulate lofty goals and resulting outcomes. MORE
Inspiring, informative, useful, or just plain fun tweets posted on Twitter over this past week … collected here to share with our blog readers. This week … two pieces that discuss learning by doing, [Please click on the post title to continue reading the full post. MORE
Rules for responsible smartphone use can vary by age and student. For many tweens heading into middle school, the transition from elementary school won’t be marked only by new teachers, class schedules and locker assignments but also by a gleaming new phone. MORE
HMH, WGBH partner to create TV, cross-platform learning series. MORE
August and September are very expensive months for educators as we try to navigate all the back-to-school advertisements. Often we need to buy basic supplies like pencils and paper for our students. We see adorable decorations on Pinterest that we need to buy craft supplies for. MORE
30 Universal Strategies For Learning. by Terry Heick. As teachers, we’re all trying to better understand how people learn–not now they’re taught in terms of teaching strategies, but more so learning strategies–only not really strategies. Learning actions, or cognitive actions. MORE
New PD program’s strengths-based culture aims to improve teacher engagement, student success. Hobsons and Gallup have announced plans to launch on-site and online professional development courses to help teachers identify their strengths and apply them in their teaching. MORE
The CoolCatTeacher
AUGUST 16, 2015
Sponsored by Staples Now is the time. I start back to school. So does my son. Lots of you will soon too. How do we get totally ready? Start by making a list. But sometimes I don’t know everything that is out there.
A Principal's Reflections
AUGUST 16, 2015
There is often a great deal of emphasis on establishing a vision when beginning the change process and rightfully so. Great leaders understand the importance of a shared vision and the need to articulate lofty goals and resulting outcomes.
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Brilliant or Insane
AUGUST 16, 2015
Brilliant or Insane.
EdTechTeacher
AUGUST 16, 2015
A conversation with Avra, Beth, and Brenda Socrative ( [link] ) is a FREE student response system that can be used on any device. During this Hangout on Air, Beth Holland , Avra Robinson , and Brenda Doucette will walk through the features of Socrative 3.0
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If your school is like most, inventory and/or asset management plays a critical role in daily operations.
TeachThought - Learn better.
AUGUST 16, 2015
30 Universal Strategies For Learning. by Terry Heick. As teachers, we’re all trying to better understand how people learn–not now they’re taught in terms of teaching strategies, but more so learning strategies–only not really strategies. Learning actions, or cognitive actions.
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EdTech Update brings together the best content for education technology professionals from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
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Cool Tools for 21st Century Learners
AUGUST 16, 2015
In the final week of the ThingLink Teacher Challenge we asked participants to create a lesson to Engage Students with ThingLink for Video.
Battelle for Kids
AUGUST 16, 2015
August 13, 2015, Volume 2, Issue 9, Number 7. Let's start with an assessment. A simple agree or disagree. Circle A (agree) or D (disagree). A D It is important that teachers formatively assess students in the middle of lessons 2. A D Test Prep is a valuable teaching tool. A D Feedback to students is the most important part of the assessment process. A D Assessment is an important instructional tool. A D Accountability is the most important reason for assessing student work.
EmergingEdTech
AUGUST 16, 2015
Inspiring, informative, useful, or just plain fun tweets posted on Twitter over this past week … collected here to share with our blog readers. This week … two pieces that discuss learning by doing, [Please click on the post title to continue reading the full post.
eSchool News
AUGUST 16, 2015
Games are challenging but they’re also fun. That’s a formula worth emulating. Ninety seven percent of kids spend an average of ten hours a week playing video games. It’s hard work, but they keep coming back.
This article provides teachers with a step-by-step guide on how to handle plagiarism in the classroom: it examines the definition of the term "plagiarism" and its types with examples, describes common reasons students plagiarize, and provides tips for teachers to detect and prevent plagiarism among students.
The Innovative Educator
AUGUST 16, 2015
Traditionally as students come back to school, it is important to establish a positive classroom culture. Today, more and more districts are following the lead of places like New York City where schools are empowered to support students in the responsible use of cell phones and social media.
The Cornerstone for Teachers
AUGUST 16, 2015
August and September are very expensive months for educators as we try to navigate all the back-to-school advertisements. Often we need to buy basic supplies like pencils and paper for our students. We see adorable decorations on Pinterest that we need to buy craft supplies for.
The Principal of Change
AUGUST 16, 2015
I just read a great post by Alice Keeler , titled “ In the Real World “, where she discusses the irony of the idea that schools need to prepare students for the “real world”, yet many of the things that happen in our schools do not necessarily mirror the current realities of the world we live in at the moment. Here is a sample of some of what she listed as the world’s current realities: In the real world, we look things up on Google. In the real world, YouTube is one of the most popular tools for learning. In the real world, collaborating is not cheating. In the real world, finding information on the internet is a resource. In the real world, my job does not ask me things I can Google. I need to use critical thinking. In the real world, I use my phone for everything. It is a great post meant to push thinking, and she even crowdsources more ideas, if you are so inclined to add your own. This being said, I am not about absolutes. In my own experience, I have seen more schools open up sites like YouTube, and encourage students to not only bring their mobile devices, but encourage them to use them in meaningful ways for learning. There is a definite shift happening in education. Yet I am sometimes baffled how one organization can block things like YouTube stating that it is unsafe for students to have access, while other organizations in nearby areas have the same site open. I always wonder why they don’t just talk to each other? There are many schools that are starting to understand that they are closing powerful learning opportunities down for their students, and they want to get to the place where students are encouraged to bring their own devices, or free up access to social media and sites like YouTube to create powerful and collaborative learning opportunities. My advice to them? Don’t do it tomorrow, but you need to set a date of when you want to create some of these opportunities. What is important to understand that simply flicking a switch and unblocking opportunities from students does not mean anything will change about the teaching and learning in the organization. It should not be teaching plus a mobile device, but it should significantly change the way learning looks like in the organization. Why I am adamant that there is a time frame is that we do not ignore and constantly put tomorrow out of reach. For example, I created the following “rubric” on whether your school’s digital citizenship practice is a “pass or fail” In reality, this is not meant to be an evaluative tool as much as it is a conversation starter and guide. One possible way you can use this is to have a discussion on where you want to be, how you are going to get there, and when you are going to be there by. Obviously nothing is perfect, but having a date creates an accountability to not only yourselves, but your students. As John C. Maxwell says, “change is inevitable, but growth is optional” As we manage change, it is necessary to have the critical conversations to not necessarily get to where we need to be (because it is a constantly moving target in education as it is with all organizations) but to move forward. Each community is unique, and differentiation is not just for students and teachers, but schools as well. Creating a plan of how to move to the next step is paramount if we are to take advantage of the opportunities for innovative learning that lay in front of us. October 10, 2014 Blog Posts on Leadership Development July 31, 2013 3 Conversation Starters for the School Year April 17, 2013 3 Important Trends That We Should Focus On in Schools October 18, 2012 Let’s Figure This Out November 4, 2014 Leadership Framework: Developing the Organization #ONTEdLeaders. Developing and Facilitating Leadership Managing School Operations and Resources alice keeler critical conversations innovative leadership is your digital citizenship practice a pass or fail john c maxwell youtube in the classroom
MiddleWeb
AUGUST 16, 2015
Middle school science teacher and Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow Joshua Sneideman and energy education specialist Erin Twamley share seven ways that teachers and schools can involve students in climate change studies. Included: Project ideas.
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A custom eLearning project is an exciting opportunity, but any L&D Manager will also tell you it can be challenging. Inno-versity shares 5 points to consider before kicking off your project. These concepts are critical to addressing the most common pain points which, IF addressed, will ensure success.
eSchool News
AUGUST 16, 2015
Rules for responsible smartphone use can vary by age and student. For many tweens heading into middle school, the transition from elementary school won’t be marked only by new teachers, class schedules and locker assignments but also by a gleaming new phone.
MiddleWeb
AUGUST 16, 2015
If you could design your ideal social studies curriculum for middle school, what would it look like? After surveying area high schools, Jody Passanisi and Shara Peters decide to focus on skills development. Here's their draft scope & sequence for grades 6-8. Future of History Lesson Planning Common Core grade 7 grade 8 grades 6 history curriculum history scope and sequence Jody Passanisi sequence Shara Peters skills teaching history skills using technology in history class
eSchool News
AUGUST 16, 2015
HMH, WGBH partner to create TV, cross-platform learning series.
Educational Technology and Mobile Learning
AUGUST 16, 2015
August 16, 2015 Educational Web Tools is a section we created in this blog a year ago where we periodically feature new releases in the world of educational technology. The purpose is to keep.read more. educational web tools
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Discover how this rapid development process creates engaging, custom learning solutions on a timeline that works for you, why a strong learning culture is important, and how to showcase your Return on Learning (ROL) using data to tell the story.
eSchool News
AUGUST 16, 2015
note: App of the Week picks are now being curated with help from Graphite by Common Sense Media. Click here to read the full app review. Inventioneers. What’s It Like? Kids can either create their own inventions or build inventions to accomplish a given task.
Educational Technology and Mobile Learning
AUGUST 16, 2015
August 16, 2015 Junaio is a great Augmented Reality app to add to the list of the best AR apps for teachers. Junaio enables you to easily access augmented content on images and objects and.read more. iPad augmented reality apps
eSchool News
AUGUST 16, 2015
New PD program’s strengths-based culture aims to improve teacher engagement, student success. Hobsons and Gallup have announced plans to launch on-site and online professional development courses to help teachers identify their strengths and apply them in their teaching.
Adam Welcome
AUGUST 16, 2015
Lately I've been thinking about my daily rituals as a Principal. I typically arrive at school around 630am each morning and after dropping my briefcase, my rituals begin.
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Picking the wrong LMS can cost you. Don’t settle for a disconnected, hard-to-use, expensive system that doesn’t meet your needs. Follow these 12 steps crafted by Lambda Solutions' LMS experts, and find your perfect eLearning solution!
Knowledge Avatars
AUGUST 16, 2015
Since the early days of computers, many of us dreamed of how computers were going to revolutionize education. We didn’t know exactly how it was going to work, but we knew that the “personal” computer made it possible to individualize education. In learning, one size does not fit all, so individualized education is the “holy grail” of education!
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