New Keynote Features Allow for Endless Creativity
One of my favorite things about having 1:1 iPads at my school is that there are so many opportunities for students to create. Over the course of the year, they use GarageBand to make raps about science and iMovie to produce environmental PSAs (among many other things). Now, with new Keynote features, students can even […]
What’s Your Digital IQ?
In the article, How Educators Can Raise Their Digital IQ, Matthew Lynch says, Just as we strive to make advancements in other areas of our schools, educators should be working to raise their digital IQ. Setting a higher standard for teacher development in this area could have a major benefit to the students they serve. […]
Preparing for an Unknown World
When I was in school (not that long ago), my teachers prepared me for a known world. People went to school, got jobs with companies who offered insurance, worked for forty years and then retired with a pension. Today, teachers have to prepare our students for an unknown world. In the book, Inquiry and Innovation in the Classroom, […]
How Educators can Prepare for the Future (which is now)
Technology has changed pretty much every facet of our lives – including how we learn and therefore how we teach. Some have started to question what the role of the teacher is going to be in the future. Will we be replaced by artificial intelligence? In the post, “The Future Proof Educator,” Chris Young argues […]
Teachers vs. Tech
What has the biggest impact on student achievement? The teacher or the tech? In an article titled, “Why the Teachers vs Tech Narrative Must Go” Matthew Lynch argues that tech is never going to replace the teacher. He says, “Research studies consistently have shown that the single most significant indicator of student success is the […]
Edtech Tools to Try This School Year
Not everyone likes to think about the school year over the summer, but if you are planning ahead like I am, you may be researching ways to leverage technology in your classroom. Luckily, in an article titled, 38 Amazing Edtech Tools for Student Creation and Innovation, Mathew Lynch has done some of the work for […]
The Coworking Classroom for the 21st Century
I don’t teach students in a classroom, I facilitate the learning of students in a coworking space. Maybe don’t tell my principle, but my main goal as an educator is not to drill the content into the kids’ heads. My focus is to help prepare them for the 21stcentury and life beyond the classroom. I […]
Make Thinking Visible
So many of the most exciting trends in education right now are coming from Project Zero at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. One of those is the idea of Visible Thinking. Visible Thinking aims to document student thinking, help students understand thinking routines, and help students and teachers with their reflective practice. In an article […]
ISTE 2018 Day 2 Highlights
On Tuesday I attended a session called Leveraging Innovation: The Classroom Startup. I picked this one over so many others because it sounded like it was right in line with what I try to do in the classroom. Amanda Lanicek, Andi McNair and Don Wettrick were the presenters. It turned out to be mostly about […]
ISTE 2018 Day 1 Highlights
Reporting live from ISTE 2018 in Chicago! Earlier today, I was able to see Kasey Bell, author of Shake Up Learning, talk about how to create a more dynamic learning environment (engaging) – compared to a static learning environment (boring). Of course, technology can play a huge role in that. Kasey says, “Dynamic learning is […]