Birdville ISD Professional Learning Blog

SMART Creation 2/8 @ Hilton

2011-02-14T08:14:00.001-08:00

SMART Creation 2/8 @ Hilton
Playground all day - @convention center
Thursday @2:30 in SMART booth

TOUCH LEARN TOGETHER
Learn to walk before you run
SMART Wednesday (or any day) - 1 hour share

Special education - adapt curriculum to smart board
Handwriting practice (gallery)
Replace paper pencil activities
Write with tennis ball instead of pen for kids with limited mobility and coordination
Use as response system to prepare for task alt
When looking at lessons on smart exchange go beyond your content and look at format and then replace with your content
Any thing you do on a worksheet you can do on a board

High school content
Let kids use the notebook software to create
Math - vocabulary - at least 10 ways in smart to do - random picker to keep kids engaged (lesson activity tool kit)
Screen capture from TI calculators and then import images into SMART - these ideas on exchange under TCEA - math 7-12
Random number generator
Video TAKS tutorials
Video complex problems - students can watch, pause & play as needed
Makes sure bells & whistles don't distract from lesson content
learning activity toolkit 2 - templates that are editable flash files
LAT2 - activities
The kids like to play too - 8 am Thursday smart room
Math models -showroom floor - smart
Games that engage - smart room - wednesday 11:30
Bentz - search exchange site - teacher @Lewisville Bentzs@lids.net - geometry website the richest - new to teaching algebra this year
Kids use free download
trinity Christian in Addison - Karen Campere
Kcompare@trinitychristian.org

Lewisville did a content creation seminar
Organize by grade level at elementary and content at secondary
Smart facilitators assist and work to get people to the level of creation
Smart exemplary teachers support / help
User group one day conference (or half day)
Germanyj@lisd.net

Sent from my iPhone

Mobile is a Must

2011-02-14T08:13:00.003-08:00

Mobile is a Must

What makes these authentic, intimate learning opportunities possible? Mobile technologies. Mobile devices provide the platform and, as importantly, the incentive for students to take personal ownership of the learning experience. The lessons absorbed form deep connections for students and add to their cognitive framework in ways that no lecture ever could.

So what is all of this doing for K-12 education? Nothing short of disrupting and transforming the established teaching and learning paradigm. To start, mobile technology is helping to solve the two challenges facing education today: students' desire to learn differently, and students' need to learn differently.

Will Smart Phones Eliminate the Digital Divide?

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Zombie Teacher Project - TodaysMeet.com/zombie

2011-02-14T08:13:00.001-08:00

Zombie Teacher Project - TodaysMeet.com/zombie

Ideas rise from the dead
Assembling the skeleton
Release the monster
And the award goes to

no more than 4 people for a team
Summer
24 hours, only begin at 9 am on day one and must turn in project by 9 am the next morning

Equipment - borrowed from each campus, labeled and checked out to teams

Pre-training before event to learn software, storyboards done before the 24 hours begins, props, costumes, etc

Each team receives an award for something
Teachers choice awards
Set the stage
Every video is shown on award night
Everyone who attends gets a ballot who attends award night

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Technology impact - David Pogue

2011-02-14T08:12:00.001-08:00

Technology impact - David Pogue

App phone - a whole new category - components not in phone or computer

App - Ocarina - globe let's you listen in

Ge Wang - auto tune app

Augmented reality - new generation of apps - combines internet
Nearest tube - subway
Twit around
Facial recognition
Retina - for color blind
Google voice - option 2 let's you make a call

Things won't go away they just splinter and both thrive

Ebooks

Web 2.0 - audience is the creator of the content
Facebook example
Craigslist
Flickr
You tube
Domystuff.com
Prosper.com
Kiva
Goloco
E-petitions
Who is sick?

How does this effect the next generation?

Take back the beep -
Kids today don't do voicemail or email - they want realtime. The new normal is multitasking and on demand

Hulu.com - on demand tv

Privacy - kids don't care

Twitter - a different kind of population - average age 35 - average income 75,000

Book - the world according to twitter

Technology is changing faster than ever - it's like drinking from a fire hose

The pit is always smaller than the plum

Next convention
Feb 6-12
E5
Embark
Engage
Energize
Empower
Educate

ISTE - 2011 June 26-29

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iCheryl SmartJeff and iTraci present iDevices

2011-02-10T07:19:00.001-08:00

Sent from my iPhoneNot a seat available!!!

Notes from TEA Session

2011-02-09T12:13:00.000-08:00

TEA SESSION
A - ASSESSMENT & ACCOUNTABILITY
21st ctry workforce dev will be a distinction designation

B - BUDGET permanent fund lookng more hopeful than predicted
C - COLLEGE READINESS Texas only state to meet all criteria

EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY MAY ACTUALLY BE THE ANSWER TO BUDGET, materials and instruction concerns

Powerontexas.com

Projectshare - our district account?
NEW YORK TIMES KNOWLEDGE NETWORK - goes back to 1851
ITunesU texas education

Sxswedu - focus on projectshare for this first year

Crysten
Sent from my iPad

Game shows

2011-02-09T09:08:00.000-08:00

If you want to use games in your class room. Google "gameshow templates". If you want to do Jeopardy with a URL address so students are able to play at home with parents and review material. To do Jeopardy with URL go to www.jeopardylabs.com.

Melina Wouters
Dual Language Specialist
@TCEA-Austin

SmartJeff presents SmartBoards at TCEA

2011-02-09T08:35:00.001-08:00

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Dr. Waddell presents Web 2.0 at TCEA

2011-02-09T08:32:00.001-08:00

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iCheryl presenting an impromptu session on iDevices at Edubloggercon

2011-02-08T10:43:00.001-08:00

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Given to Us Today by the Great Discovery Education Leaders - Greatness!

2011-01-21T11:02:00.000-08:00

(Listen to our group today reading the poem)

...do not look outside yourself for the leader.
This could be a good time!
There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore.
They will feel like they are being torn apart, and they will suffer greatly.
Know the river has its destination.
The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off toward the middle of
the river,
keep our eyes open, and our heads above the water.
See who is there with you and celebrate.
At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all
ourselves!
For the moment we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.
The time of the lonely wolf is over.
Gather yourselves!
We are the ones we have been waiting for.

Discovery Education Science - Check this Out!

2011-01-21T10:30:00.000-08:00

Discovery Education Science
Amazing Digital Product for our 21st Century Scientists
Be sure to check out the "Experience It" and the "Product Information" links/areas on this page!

Beyond the Textbook - Discovery Learning and Texas ASCD @ Region 11 Education Service Center, Ft. Worth, TX Jan. 21, 2011 - Dr. Carol Wetzel

2011-01-21T09:47:00.000-08:00

21st Century Skills - Promoting Creativity and Innovation in the Classroom - Dr. Carol Wetzel
with Carol Ann McGuire

Fierce Conversations:
The Fierce Blog
Fierce Conversations - Book Notes
1. What is the challenge? Creating 21st Century Learning Ecosystems
What is 21st Century Learning (Partnership of 21st Century Learning videos)? Observable, Measurable Indicators:
Upgraded curriculum and instructional best practices, P21, Global Cultures Learning/Collaborations
2. What's at stake? Our students, our kids
3. The ideal outcome? Carol Ann McGuire
Shanghai TV University -
China educates 23% of population, but planning for 100%. They one education system, not individual systems like the US.

It's not about money, it's about innovation of what we already have (technology, teaching practices, creativity, collaboration, problem solving). Incorporating more Fine Arts into our curriculum.

4. Relevant background information - What are we doing in the United States that is a model of 21st Century Learning Ecosystem?
ThinkQuest:
SARS - An Open Scar thinkquest
Challenge-based/problem-based/project-based Learning: Students collaborating with one another and students around the world, teams creating a website for their peers. Using technology, inquiry-based learning, making the world a global village.
How can we do this? Implementing Problem-based learning, using the Thinkquest model of collaborations of students in different campus classrooms and district schools,

New Tech High -

5. What have we done up to this point -

6. What can we do to meet the challenge - sharing the vision, modeling "the way," take a top-down approach to PL with all stakeholders, educate parents with 21st Century nights (stations manned by students demonstrating how they are learning 21st century skills), teacher PL, model lesson demonstrations for teachers (they are not pulled out of classrooms for PL), classroom management of digital teaching modeling, videotaping of teaching (teachers view one another as they teach digitally) and put these on the Cisco Video Portal.

Beyond the Textbook - Discovery Education &Texas ASCD - Jan. 21, 2011 - Hall Davidson @ Region 11 Education Service Center, Ft. Worth, TX

2011-01-21T08:39:00.000-08:00

21st Century Learning in our district: Must have a shared vision (teachers, parents, administrators).
Hall Davidson - Director of Global Learning, Discovery Education
http://www.discoveryedspeakersbureau.com/node/119

Article: A Call Technology in the Classroom - from District Administration
What do we have to do to Transform?
1. We have to model the use of technologies
Discovery Streaming Education - Not just a video library, that's not digital learning. Editable, student-centered (they can use it 24/7), can share on social-media sites...
We need to use this media in every meeting with teachers, principals. Example: Animal Behaviors clip with principals - "Which animal most reminds you of you in your daily job?"
Begin with this activity at ILT and follow up with Lunch and Learns, campus instruction, integrate into District Curriculum.
Google Translater
Google Alert
Wordle
2. Web 2.0 applications for student learning - have to begin using digital tools in the classroom

3. Professional Learning for Teachers
4.

Kids in online learning situations out-perform kids in face to face instruction. If we don't do it, the private sector/Charter Schools will steal our kids.

Kaplan University Commercial

Online education - web-based video, instant messaging, and collaboration tools
Are we using iTunes U?
More digital books sold at Amazon than books 09/10.

Why go digital?

Economy
Technology effectiveness
21st Century Skills
Engagement for learners

But all of this means nothing if we cant measurably improve learning. That is where you will get buy-in from teachers, principals, and parents. Check out the Charlotte-Mechlenburg School District (this district is also a model Cont. Improvement district). Ann Clark - chief academic officer in Charlotte - Science study scores after they adopted a digital instruction model. The professional development was the key to the success of this initiative. Also Osceola County Public Schools, FL. , Indianapolis Public Schools... Students' scores in Reading, Math, and SS also improved because they were more interested in the content, they wrote in traditional journals in addition to digital composition (important for kids to write in journals traditionally - brain research)

John Couch, March 2, 2010

2010-03-03T05:15:00.000-08:00

Change – personal computer as an intellectual bicycle – exploration & innovation

Apple = culture of empowerment

Digital natives – kids growing up in a world that we are immigrants into; technology is an environment rather than a tool

How will Apple change education?

Model for innovation – starts with vision which yields direction, uniqueness, creativity, forward thinking

right brain vs. left brain (creative vs. analytic) – now kids aren’t confined to those “boxes”

Example: Quantas airlines (Australian airlines) – is what we do to our kids – check you digital devices at the door & when I’m done with you, you get your life back

3 trends

1. Proliferation of digital content – leverage the content of iTunes
iTunes University– disruption to textbook companies – 1200 universities on iTunes U;
Beyond Campus – museums – nasal, etc;
K-12 – already 20 states with academic content
iTunes – rolling out a bookstore, that will include textbooks

2. Mobility – 2 choices – either turn it off or integrate
*look for video on literacy with iPod Touch
pedagogy – challenge based learning – kids research, do the analysis – it’s not just information – it engages kids

3. Integration of Social Communities, such as Twitter, Google Docs,
integration of typical curriculum with social world

Continuity of Learning

Digital repositories, mobile devices, social networks – everything is in place for a virtual high school

Kahn Academy – www.kahnacademy.org

2 types – sustaining innovation; disruptive innovation

Creativity is the key to keeping up with other countries and not getting left behind – not standards based tests such as TAKS

*Do things that you could never do before without the technology!

Technology is not intended to be a substitution

Technology will allow for personalized learning

Leverage the technology available to help kids

Apple Learning Interchange – moving to iTunes U environment

- AdViews Highlights

- Avis commercial – throwing Kleenex out the window – study the times, re-do ads to fit today’s world

Opportunity to prepare kids for tomorrow – a world that we have no idea what it will look like

Assessments using iTouch – advantage is when all students have a common device – immediate feedback;

Technology should not be a burden to the teacher – it should free them up; provide additional learning resources

Marco Torres – transformed his classroom where students were failing & dropping out to MIT grads

Provide a mission & direction – leadership – an incredible opportunity in BISD

The way we define schools today is the way we define society for tomorrow

Hybrid schools – all content delivered through digital lecture & classroom becomes internship environment

Prepare for a world that is flat & competitive – Creativity!

“Culture eats strategy every day of the week.”

Dr. Waddell –

We are poised to do something about what we’ve heard today. We can transform who we are. We are the change agents. Embrace & do what we’ve heard. We don’t have to know it all – the kids will help us. We already know enough to let this happen. We create the environment & let the kids do it.

posted by: Cheryl McKnight

Qwizdom Response system

2010-02-19T06:53:00.000-08:00

Qwizdom is a company that produces response pad systems. They allowed their system to be used during Cheryl's session. The response pads worked great and provided instant feedback on the screen during the presentation. The software seems extensive in its ability to create lessons, integrate into current presentations, and reporting. The price point is well in the range of competing systems such as the EInstruction response pads. Right now they have their Q7 presenter tablets on buy 4 and get one free. These tablets are currently $379.

K12 Digital Video

2010-02-19T06:49:00.000-08:00

We visited the K12 Digital Video booth in the vendor hall. This company provides digial video content similar to Discovery Streaming Video. Rather than purchasing an enormous bundle, you can buy specific titles that your schools will use. www.k12digitalmovies.com

Custom Guide Learn on Demand

2010-02-19T06:41:00.000-08:00

We stopped by the the Learn on Demand booth in the vendor hall. This company produces Microsoft Office training modules for professional development. It may be a product to look at for basic CCI training. www.customguide.com

SMARTboard Demos

2010-02-19T06:14:00.001-08:00

I attended two sessions where teachers demonstrated thier SMARTboards. In both sessions the teachers spent a good amount of time showing the software and its features. There are a number of great features including built in templates, lessons, screen captures, clipart, etc. I wish they would have spent more time on the lessons they created around the board in the 4 core curriculum areas...that's really what I was looking for.

I visited the SMART booth and watched a demo of the newest model of SMART interactive table. It is quite a device, but very much made for primary students.

Smartboard Exchange

2010-02-19T06:14:00.000-08:00

Since I have one campus with now four Smartboards, I was really wanting to attend as many Smartboard presentations as I could, the first one I attended, the laptop crashed half way through, but the two others I attended ended up being a show and tell of their projects. Most of them have posted their lessons to the Smart Exchange, Smart's database and Smart "approved" lessons. It is a great place to start for teachers not really knowing where to start with their Smartboards.

Click on Smartboard Exchange to go the Searchable database.

TCEA Overview 2010

2010-02-19T06:08:00.000-08:00

Click on the slide to view presentation

Moodle in the Elementary Classroom

2010-02-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

These presenters (Jeanette Bueno and Lesa Haney, from Lewisville ISD) were very pumped up about their experience with Moodle in the 4^th grade classroom.

http://schoolweb.lisd.net/schoolweb3/course/view.php?id=2526

They often use the Moodle forums to post discussions with students for writing practice.

They shared the following resources that are incorporated into their Moodle lessons with kids:

www.quia.com ($49 yearly fee per teacher and you can add your own spelling words)

www.Mathplayground.com (TAKS formatted questions)

www.aaamath.com

www.tv411.com (for reading, language, math)

Karen Teeters

Destination Laptop: Catching the Wave of Creating a Successful 1:1 Program

2010-02-18T20:17:00.000-08:00

Jeff, Jon, and I attended this session and Jeff’s post on this initiative is very informative. I do want to add that people use the term 1:1 initiative differently. Also, when folks found out that our school district is considering a 1:1 initiative that would impact every high school student, I received quite a bit of input, even though I had not necessarily asked for it.

Jeff’s post : http://bisdconferenceblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/destination-laptop-creating-wave-of.html

Karen Teeters

Making Your Classroom SMART!

2010-02-18T20:05:00.000-08:00

SMART boards were a hot topic at this year’s TCEA conference. However, technical difficulties kept this presenter from fully showing off the resources she had to offer. Her SMART board wasn’t responding to her touch commands and she said the TCEA technical staff told her that her laptop was the problem. One of my campuses will be getting a new SMART board, if approved by the Board of Trustees next week, so I will be able to get first hand practice before training the teachers. I’m looking forward to it!

Karen Teeters

21st Century Learning at New Tech High

2010-02-18T19:50:00.000-08:00

New Tech High School, Manor ISD, was showcased in this interesting session highlighting the 3^rd year of a T-STEM grant totaling 4 million dollars.

· 300 students

· Both MAC and PC platform. The philosophy is that 21^st century students should use different tools, including the Itouch, laptops, desktops, during the school day.

· It is called a 1:1 initiative with students using the equipment at school.

· Project Based Learning using a rubric.

· Block Scheduling with 80 minute classes.

· Classes such as Social Studies and ELA are coupled and instructors use the team teaching approach.

· Students can apply and are selected through a lottery system.

· The first graduating class will take place in 2010-2011.

· http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_AVJGzIqJY

Karen Teeters

After TCEA

2010-02-18T07:47:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of links to others that are sharing what they learned at TCEA:

TCEA Reflections from SLCS
Tim Holt's Intended Consequences Podcasts

Heidi Hayes Jacobs 2/17/2010

2010-02-17T13:49:00.001-08:00

Three Questions on Curriculum

· What do we… Cut, Keep, or Create?

Educational History in Texas/ USA

· Legally 180 one of the shortest school years of any industrialized nation

· How many of those days do we really teach?

· The 180 school year is based around an 1892 philosophy

· Complex student population

· Student migration is the highest of any industrialized nation

What year are we preparing our learners for?

· 1991, 1972, 2025?

35 to 40 percent of all errors on all test are because of reading errors

You Kinder kids are the class of 2023

Brief History of Curriculum Planning

· Scroll à Quills à Type à Crank Xerox machine (The purple ditto sheet) à Computers à Handheld device

· We have to make the jump b/c the UN is giving out laptops to 3^rd world countries

Social Networks are imperative in education whether it’s Facebook, ning, twitter, etc…

· http://birdvillecurriculum21.ning.com/

Hispanic populations are different they are not from Latin America they are from a country. Peru, Argentina Colombia etc.. Each country has their own beliefs, culture, and background. We need to start thinking differently

Find a book like To Kill a Mockingbird and read it collaboratively with a school across the country or across the world

www.Edsteps.org

Differentiated Staff development: teachers are at different levels just like students

Every faculty meeting should start with… What Web 2.0 application are you using? And share it with the faculty

www.bigpicture.org

Versioning:

· Schedule

· Student grouping patterns

· Teacher configuration

· Space: both physical and virtual

VLM: Virtual Learning Magnet

Five Types of Alignment

· Internal: The elements in a teacher of district curriculum map align to one another

· Cumulative: The curriculum maps build year to year, class to class, K-12 and beyond

· External: Curriculum and assessment maps align to external standards geared toward productivity

· To Students: Curriculum and assessment maps are designed to match the needs of specific learners in specific locations of r their future.

· Global: The aims and actions of our school curriculum and programs will help our learners connect to other countries

o Prepare kids in a rapidly changing world!

What are the basic elements in designing curriculum

· Content (What you teach and what you don’t teach)

· Skills (Actions)

· Assessments (Demonstration of learning)

***Easiest place to start is assessment hardest is content

Lamination: The mummification of curriculum

Skype Example: http://books.google.com/books?id=8qMbB2Nfxi4C&pg=PA35&lpg=PA35&dq=alan+november+skype+grandmother&source=bl&ots=LgbObvN4e8&sig=Ly8aaFWvmLdL2IZ2iIhznRPc59I&hl=en&ei=7CB8S6CUI8-Wtgf2yZSbBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Richer Picture: http://www.ideasconsulting.com/ Student Portfolios

We cannot improve student performance. The only person who can is the student.

http://www.frankwbaker.com/ Media literacyclearninghouse

http://www.visualthesaurus.com/ not free

Heidi web 2.0 suggested sites: http://curriculum21.com/index.php?path=/clearinghouse

www.gapminder.org Historical graphs in motion

Interdisciplinary issues and themes

· Sustainability: www.facingthefuture.org

· Media Literacy: http://www.frankwbaker.com/

· http://www.oecd.org/

· http://www.asiasociety.org/

· http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZDjBzbqGBY

· http://www.nationalgeographic.com/earthpulse/

· http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1xXTi1nFCo (unfolding the earth)

The New Social Studies

· 10 percent have passports 7 percent use them

· Eliminate the unit approach

· World Geography by shape and name early childhood

· The last 50 years

· Worldwide workshop

· Emerging Economies

· Gateway Cities

Each teacher commits to

· Identify at least one specific unit to revise

· Planning to replace a specific content, skill, and assessment practice with an 21^st Century upgrade

Heidi Hayes Jacobs 2-17-10

2010-02-17T08:42:00.000-08:00

Heidi Hayes Jacobs
2-17-10

"designed obsolescence" --sad
learning is uncomfortable b/c it’s new; you are out of your comfort zone
youtube—iSchool
nings “exporting and importing”
CCSSO--very important--Council of Chief School Officers
VLM--virtual learning magnet
"curriculum" means path to run in small steps in Latin
major economies: China, India, Brazil, Russia, Viet Nam (very pro-education); should be teaching them
assessment: easiest to start with; content hardest
reports are lowest form of learning; use reports and development instead (R & D)
Steve Wilmarth by teleconference--trends
foreign lang. teachers are good at teaching speaking (properly) and listening; teach English as if it were FL--interesting
constantly assess listening
if kid can't tell you what he's doing in math, he doesn't know
should be collecting formal samples of work
http://www.richerpicture.com/ portfolios
Texas Visioning Institute ning http://www.texasvisioninginstitute.ning.com/
expand media criticism; Frank Baker is expert http://www.frankbaker.com/
research=search again
web 2.0 Strategic Interactive Instruction---interactive is key
http://www.curriculum21.com/ HHJ's website--full of ideas; take a look
Visual Thesaurus and Wordle to help kids with better writing--good idea
http://www.graphs.gapminder.org/
wonderful time to be an educator!
upgrading content is most controversial
recaset content for timeliness
interdisciplinary issues/themes: sustainablility, media literacy, urban planning, global ambassadors
http://www.facingthefuture.org/ great free lesson plans, etc.
Organization for Economic something
http://www.asiasociety.com/ how to globalize, etc.
Ohio's electric orchestra: Lakewood Project The Arts are important!
timely and timeless--curr. should be
US is isolated; most will never leave country
we don't teach about the world
triple time on global studies--better-prepared kids
we are longest-running democracy--great story
focus on geopolitics and geo-economics
study the last 50 years!
gateway cities: Sydney, NY, etc. cities that have more in common with each other than own countries
EarthPulse by Nat. Geo
your location is your political destiny
youtube: Unfolding the Earth
http://www.polleverywhere.com/ with cellphones
http://www.cia.gov/ go to Factbook==great site!
bring in lots of non-profit groups
study how to improve neighborhoods
if you're going to be a teacher, be a public learner
http://www.ed.voicethread.com/
great school designs around the world

Very thought-provoking and exciting!

Kathy Sales

Symptoms of Successful Online Learning

2010-02-16T19:21:00.000-08:00

Presenter: David McGeary, Harris County Dept of Education WONDERFUL PRESENTER! VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE AND INTERESTING!

Key features of effective online educational environments and successful models of existing online classrooms . . .

have consistent expectations and enforce them--THIS IS KEY
by 2014 all students will be taking at least one online course
online teacher cannot be gatekeeper like face-to-face
conceptual learning is key
build a sense of community
courses with open social spaces are best by far
to make courses better: additional support and additional resources
"It's about information . . . not technology."
Information Validation--very important skill to teach in all courses
cultural validity--like wikipedia
use alternate media rather than lots of text
innovation is greatest motivator

Kathy Sales

TEA Update: Texas Virtual School Network

2010-02-16T18:49:00.000-08:00

Presenter: Barbara Smith, TXVSN. Region X ESC

"free agent" learners
TXVSN is the state virtual school network--supported by TEA
Supernet (district collaborative) is part of TXVSN
no allotment for serving own students
www.inacol.org--standards
course rigor, time commitment
lots of dual credit courses
29 districts involved one year ago; 164 now
Breaking News: commissioner released summer 2010 allotment--applies ot summer courses; this changes game for 2020 grant

Kathy Sales

Are You Teaching Like You're Living?

2010-02-16T18:42:00.000-08:00

Presenters: Cheryl McKnight, Dwight Goodwin, Jeff Samuelson

These three spoke about student engagement through the content creation, podcasting, blogging, and publishing to an authentic audience using a variety of tools and resources, giving many examples along the way. The large audience (300 or so?) hung on every word and they were treated like rock stars afterwards.

We streamed the session and I'm sure they will have notes and handouts to share.

Kathy Sales

Preparing Effective Online Instructors

2010-02-15T12:49:00.000-08:00

Jeanie Cole, Harris County Dept. of Ed.
David McGeary, Harris County Dept. of Ed.

We learned about the research and best practices or preparing quality online instructors. This was interesting and relevant to me because I have helped with our Birdville e-learning program and I've taken an eight-week Moodle course where I created the outline of an online course to prepare teachers for teaching online.

Points Made:

responsiveness to students is a signal as to whether the teacher will be a good online teacher
teachers must learn how to teach online by first being online students in the same way
two sets of values--student and teacher
Kaiser Family Foundation--research on online learning
Ireland and Australia are the most progressive in online learning
Hispanics and African-Americans are the fastest growing group online
females 11-14 are more active online than males
"information validation" should be taught in online courses--how to evaluate info you get online
good book: Global Achievement Gap
cooliris.com--great presentation software
go to trngexamples.wikispaces.com to see cooliris and many other cool things
David McGeary is an outstanding presenter--very knowledgeable about many things and very interesting

I will post handouts and links when TCEA makes them available

Kathy Sales

I.T.S. a Moodle World--The Second Year: Sailing Uncharted Waters

2010-02-15T12:44:00.000-08:00

Jim Remington, Carrollton-Farmer's Branch ISD

Jim and one of his co-workers shared their experiences with Moodle in CFBISD as they went into their second year. They shared what worked and what didn't. It was mostly a positive experience. I will post handouts/links when TCEA releases them.

Kathy Sales

TEC SIG Luncheon

2010-02-15T12:35:00.000-08:00

I've enjoyed being a member of tecsig--I've learned a lot from their listserv, and I enjoy their luncheon every year. The speaker this year was educational futurist Prakash Nair speaking on "Designing Tomorrow's Schools Today". He gave examples of innovative schools in the US and other countries and talked about the key role of technology in shaping learning in the future. I had to leave a little early to get to a session, but I can't say I picked up anything I hadn't heard before.

Kathy Sales

Moodle Course Management K-12

2010-02-15T12:21:00.000-08:00

I attended this session with Mark McCall who was one of my instructors in the eight week Moodle course I just finished. I didn't realize until I got there that it would be Mark. Of course, I had never met him since the course was all online. He showed ways to structure Moodle courses and categories for K-12. He also explained meta courses and mentioned some gradebook techniques. Much of this I had learned during my course, but it was a good review and "big picture" explanation.

I will add handouts and links as soon as TCEA releases them.

Kathy Sales

Reading 2.0: Bluebonnet Books + Moodle + Video Conferencing

2010-02-12T08:03:00.001-08:00

Presenter: Roxanne Glaser

Partnered with Baylor University

Overview: Baylor students partner with local elementary students using Bluebonnet Books. Baylor students act as reading mentors for children and final project is a seven minute dramatization of the book.

The Big Picture:

Teachers select books (Bluebonnet Books)
Baylor students meet their partner classes via video conference
Each class and their Baylor partners Moodle
Each class creates 7 minute presentation to sell their books

The First Meeting:

Quick intro from Baylor students and elementary kids using VC if you dont have a cart use Skype
The Balyor students were reading mentors to the students
From the face to face virtual meeting they moved straight into the Moodle course

Student Presentations:

Students do a dramatization of the book
They write a script
Preform for their Baylor mentor

Where is the learning:

Classroom students
Baylor Students
Classroom Teachers
Project Coordinators

Helpful hints...

Ease students in

References:

www.vcrox.com
www.vcoutonalim.org
Presentation Zen by Design by Garr Reynolds
Making Learning Whole by David Perkins
Jim Trelease's Read Aloud Handbook 6th Ed.

Document Cameras

2010-02-11T18:42:00.000-08:00

Saw a demonstration of the Lumens Ladibug DC265. Here's a link for more info http://www.bitec.com/document_cameras_lumens.html#DC265

Also looked at the Elmo TT-02rx. Here's a link for more info http://www.elmousa.com/digital-visual-presenters.php

Both cameras worked well and had great productivity software.

ITouch, ILearning in Mansfield

2010-02-11T18:28:00.000-08:00

Kristy Bell, Ashley Coffman, and Emily Young...ITS in Mansfield... presented on their rollout of ITouch devices in their district. It was an awesome presentation. This is the link to their presentation and supporting docs... http://sites.google.com/site/misdtechconnect/tcea

K-5 Technology Applications TEKS Day by Day

2010-02-11T08:25:00.000-08:00

Temple Independent School
Technology Director
www:tisd.org
C & I Technology

Day -by Day lesson plans or teacher
Simple, easy to implement projects
Age Appropriate office 2007 lessons
Age appropriate Internet safety curriculum
Spiraling curriculum
Sample exit test for 5th grade

Lab assistance but teachers come to lab twice a week.

SRA TEchKnowledge 3-5
Typing Pal Online
Learning3.com
Kid Pexs

Writing with Webcams

2010-02-11T07:04:00.000-08:00

Writing with Webcams

This session is a fourth grade teachers that uses the webcam to enhane the writing in her classrrom. Using the webcam to video their writing engages them and gives them an audience to share their writing. Using the webcam can create voice within their writing .

Shannon Britton
Texaekana ISD
shanon.britton@txkisd.net

Logitech Pro 9000 - $99.00

Letter to parents from students.Have students write a letter and then video them reading the letter . Send to parent through email. Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, Father's Day.
Sharing composition with other classes
Writing as if they were a certain character - Use avatars
Chapter summaries from novels . Students write summaries and then get to create a video to teach other about summaries.
Presentation summaries
Use the avatars to leave messages for your students when you have to be out. For Halloween safety have older students in school create video using avatars telling younger students how to be safe on Halloween. Students pick an avatar from collection and then they write a composition pretending to be that avatar. Record and post on website.

I am sitting by a librarian and she creates short videos for her students on good picks on books in the library and post them to

Science - Instead of doing a PowerPoint to show reseach , have student get the information and then write a story about their research and then choose an avatar and create a video about their research.

The audience started sharing how to they used Skype an webcams in the classroom.

Using skype and your webcam connect with another class. Have student at both sites create clues for other class and then the connected sites have to guess.

iPlayground

2010-02-11T06:36:00.000-08:00

Visited the iPlayground at TCEA Here's a link to a Google Doc that has lists of APPS by subject and level: http://bit.ly/tcea10.

Cheryl McKnight
http://technologyteacher.edublogs.org

Technology Camp

2010-02-11T06:30:00.000-08:00

Very disappointed this morning I Pod Touch was cancelled so I wandered into a session about having a Tech Camp .
Tech Camp is for grades K-8th. The camp runs for two weeks. Students pay $50 to come.
http://teachersites.schoolworld.com/webpages/SISDtechcamp/

Students get to video conferencing and make multimedia projects. During these weeks the goals are to teach the Tech Apps at each level while learning in a project based learning environment.

Tux Paint
Discovery Education - Discovery Science using the Smart Board was a hit!
Mixbook - Making Photo Books for Free

Destination Laptop creating the Wave of Successful 1-1 Program

2010-02-10T13:36:00.000-08:00

Barber Hill Independent School District has implemented laptops a high school and middle schools. This school district went with PCS.
They are piloting at the Intermediate level with one to one. They are using netbooks at this level and it is working well.
Karen, Jon, and I have a laptop manual from the district.

Started with lots of questions. The question was asked how the students took care of the laptops. The presenters said that students had took ownership with their laptops and they had really took care of the equipment.

Rational for a 1 to 10 Program
Increase daily access
Balance the scales between the 'haves" and the 'have-nots".
Technology is part of how students learn.

Make sure curriculum material is available online. They have put the electronic version of textbook on every computer. Need to have someone researching the online version of textbook and have good communication with textbook company.

Obstacles
1.Admin/Staff resistance.
2.Staffing-What do you need to make this work?
3. Texas State Board of Education. State board is trying to ellimate the use of bond money to
purchasing laptops.
4. Dealing with parents who do now want/refuse laptops.
5. Funding Sources- Starup and Ongoing Costs
1. School Bonds
2. Usage/Insurance Fees
3. Fees/Fines or Damage
4. Reimursement checks for work done by district
5. Auction site recapture

Complete Care Coverage on laptops is important. It will cover all things except theft.
Need someone on each campus that can fix equipment. Have employee be trained and certified to work on equipment.

Barber Hill requires every teacher to get 12 hours of technology training. They asked the teachers what they were afraid of most with the laptops. They also asked them their expectation that they would have with their students with the laptops.

It takes the teachers 2 to 3 years to adapt to the laptops and implementing them into their classrooms.

Program Needs
X- Strikes is used in this distsict to restrict the use of students going to inappropriate sites. After five times going to an inappropriate siste it shuts the laptop down. In the student manual they are restricted from downloading music and games.
Monitoring the laptops is a need. Teachers and parents are the best way to monitor inappropriate behaviors.

Ebooks for ekids

2010-02-10T09:54:00.000-08:00

http://finchfalcons.wikispaces.com/TCEA+2010

Mary Carole Strother and Bryce Kennaugh from Mckinney Texas

This is a great resource for ebooks for kids many are in English and
Spanish.

Dwight Goodwin.
www.classroomnext.blogspot.com

Moodle Overview

2010-02-10T07:02:00.001-08:00

http://training.remote-learner.net

Moodle designed to be a digital classroom. Just like a traditional classroom let the students design within the parameters. Just tell them it's a classroom and not MySpace or Facebook.

1:1 changes the traditional learning environment. One initial mistake
was that every teacher had a different expectation and procedures for
submitting assignment, etc and after a year the students said it was
confusing.

Moodle provides a consistent learning environment.

Definitions:
Users - who accesses
Categories - how are resources managed
Roles - permissions
Courses- repository of resources & activities targeted to isolated group of users
Groups - division of course participants
Meta course -
Gradebook - place to report completion

Moodle initially designed for collegiate calendar; also classroom model (1:1 model with activities); professional development model.

Collegiate - courses built by template &/or dynamic (csv); metacourse
(course 1 with professor, groups, activities) and then enrollment into
sections via dynamic.

1:1 Model - recommended that if you have six periods you build six courses; teacher category - 1st, 2nd, 3rd grading periods to keep
course from becoming huge.

Professional Dev. - topical; tracks successful completion; repetition
training; focused training

Prof dev - instead of one size fits all send those who need to take the course.

Students respond in an online course often way different than in a
traditional classroom, in a good way and all interaction is very
trackable.

Messaging needs to be turned on - provides good info that can be saved.

Cheryl McKnight, http://technologyteacher.edublogs.org
Instructional Technology Specialist - Birdville Independent School District
Achiever_Individualization_Maximizer_Strategic_Responsibility
"...be the change you wish to see in the world"
Mohandas Gandhi

TCEA Leadership Seminar - Session 3 - "How to Prepare Teachers and Students for the Advent of the LMS in K-12 Schools" - Rich Lewis

2010-02-09T11:28:00.000-08:00

Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD - what they do with their Learning Management System (LMS):

Provide online courses.
Support tools to extend learning outside the classroom.
Their motto: "No Child Left Offline."
Research and implement learnings from the book, Disruptive Class
Deliver Professional Learning

Why?

Support Student Achievement and Collaboration
Allows access to resources outside of class (posting interactive lessons and tutorials, teachers presentations, etc.)
92% of Higher Education institutions have a LMS - kids WILL be using this in college courses

LMS - what is it used for in CFB?

used for online courses, organize content, create interaction outside of the classroom between students and teachers, manage user records, utilize Discussion Groups, create Supplemental Assessments with meaningful feedback for students, differentiate instruction/post these lessons there, provide cross campus/district collaboration, create a Campus/District class portal (example: Algebra 1 District Portal so that all teachers and students can access the content and resources for that class)

What does CFB Use as their LMS?: Moodle (everyone in district automatically has access as long as they have a login to network)

They have found it to be highly stable.

The Vision - All teachers will make their course resources available online.

Implementation (they are still in early stages for their LMS, but here are some things they have done to being the district implementation):

1. Installed Moodle, but then went with Remote Learners company to manage.

2. Use LDAP and integrates with Active Directory.

3. Lewisville ISD did training for IT staff. TOT

4. IT then built classes for teachers

5. Made sure that someone/at least one staff member who is passionate about online learning to 'own' it.

6. developed a functional demo course so that everyone could see the robust functionality of Moodle. So teachers can see in action how kids can use it.

7. Developed training for staff focusing on basic course construction and the features that offered the most bang for the buck. The training was a day long face to face.

8. There training was offered to volunteer early adopters. Early adopters latched on.

9. Got principals' buy-in. Showed the valid use of building campus community.

10. District Admin worked on curriculum with teachers.

11. Created an online LMS Community for district staff after about a year. Called it CFB Moodle University. Online community of people who use Moodle - share tips and tricks, how-tos. It is a self-serve solution for learning about Moodle and how to use it.

12. Used Wimba to allow community members to real-time share together.

13. The Professional Learning Department began to endorse and allow teachers to use Moodle for online PL. Piloted it this past Nov. and Dec. with 25 users.

14. Made sure C&I was a partner in the process.

15. Built an online orientation course for students.

16. Will be careful to design learning that is engaging and interactive for students.

TCEA Leadership Seminar - Session 2 "Surviving and Excelling at 1 to 1" by Lori Gracey

2010-02-09T08:06:00.000-08:00

Things You Need to Know and Think About When Thinking of Implementing a 1 to 1 Solution (from Lori Gracey. Project discussed: Bastrop ISD)

Lori says: This is SO worth it to do this. We have to do this because this is their world we, and our kids. live in. How would we function without our cell phones, computers, etc? Why would we do that to our kids? They need to function in school the same way they function in the real world!

Here are the insights and Questions to Ask Ourselves that Lori gave us:

There are tons of free stuff out there. Bastrop bought lots of audiobooks.

Why are we going 1 to 1? What is our educational reason?

The choice of what device to buy is one of the last decisions we should make. The why and the learning are first.

Does everyone in your district know what the 1 to 1 means? Bus drivers? Cafeteria? Custodians? Counselors? Every department in the district? this will effect all of them.

There will be things we do not anticipate.

Our community will have expectations. They will expect Internet access for their kids at home. We will have to put together a public relations information item so that everyone will know where they can go in the community to access wi-fi. In Bastrop Lori made a deal with Starbucks - free wifi for kids if they bought something while they were there. :)

Keep schools open at night when possible.

3 years is basically what we are going to get out of each device. Kids will tear them up.

We need to be sure that the computers will handle online testing.

Leadership: Are the people in 'power' on board for the Initiative. Are they passionate about it? This will consume technology directors/coordinators time. Are we prepared for a TAKS score dip the first year, but then higher scores years after that? It may be even the 4th year that scores go 'way' up. The School Board will need to know this.

Are our TIMS tech staff on board with this? There will be a lot of work. This will be all consuming for this department.

Campus principals will make or break this project. They MUST be 100% behind this project for it to work. They are critical. We need them to totally understand all aspects of the project. They will be dealing with angry parents over broken laptops, students accessing inappropriate sites, etc. There will be bumps in the road and principals will need to be committed to working through these.

Professional Learning: We have to help them understand what the new instruction looks like and how it will be integrated into PDAS. They will be worried. Campus principals must be on the same page about how they will use PDAS with teachers in the 1 to 1.

We must have training for C&I people and teachers.

The technology (laptop and software) vs. the teaching:

Teachers need to know their subject, not technology. That is their job - their content and the best instructional strategies. Tell teachers up front that they do not have to know how to do everything on the computer. The kids will know, kids will learn quickly how to do the things they do not, and teach them. Their job will be about teaching the content they know, just in a different way. We will take care of the technology training.

C&I: You cannot give students a laptop in a classroom and have teachers lecture. Kids will 'eat teachers alive.'

Bastrop totally rewrote their curriculum - all of the CORE.

Teachers have to know what to do when kids do not bring their laptops. And all of these issues. Teachers must know that they are not expected to never use pencils, paper, books anymore.

The computers: Kids who are bored will take their keys off of their keyboards. Note: Kids will be bored in class the first year if the teacher doesn't teach differently than before. We will have repair costs.

Taking them home...kids will decide not to bring it to school (if I don't bring it, I wont have to do work) if there are not engaging learning activities going on at school that involve using the laptops. If it is just a paper and pencil, not too engaging.

In Bastrop, after middle school kids used laptops in 8th grade, the 9th grade BCIS class was not needed for most kids anymore. Kids already knew the skills they would be learning in that class. Now kids there mostly take the advanced technology classes. Few take BCIS, so staffing and classes offered changed. We have to be ready for this.

AUP/Policies/Procedures:

How are we going to update/load software? Discipline policies?

Policies and procedures to think about: Students checking out of school...the school staff member who checks kids out will now be responsible for taking up laptops now, in addition to textbooks, etc. What will that procedure be?

Inventory: can be a nightmare...be careful. Laptop breaks, kid borrows one, inventory serial numbers...be careful to have a good process or kids will end up with more than one laptop.

Filtering: Blocked websites? Teachers will need quick responses to sites that need unblocked.

Bastrop bought software that filters away from school. The community will expect this. When kids are using their laptops late at night or they are on inappropriate sites at home - parents will expect your help with that.

Digital Copyright: Huge issue. Critical that we provide training for teachers and students about this. Lawyers WILL be calling the school when kids and teachers are posting things they copy and paste from other places....

Are we going to use a content management solution (place to put everything - PowerPoint, resources, lessons, web 2.0 tools like blogs, digital drop boxes to turn in assignments - that is searchable and available online 24/7). Free: Joomla.

The battery in the laptops will not last more than 3 hours (Lori says, not matter what brand of computer you have). Where will kids go to charge laptops during the day?

Do we want or need a software monitoring system so that teachers can see what is on all students' computers at all times? They are not that expensive. Teachers can lock students' computers when needed, open a program for everyone, etc.

We will spend a year talking to everyone about this, training, curriculum, etc.

This is NOT about TAKS scores. 1 to 1 will eventually raise scores, but this this is about truly training kids for the 21st Century.

Parents will need training. They will need to see how the laptops will be used to transform teaching and learning. They will not know what their child's classroom will look like and it is our job to help them understand what activities their children will be engaging in (what software/Internet resources will be used, etc.) Parents will want TAKS prep software on the laptops.

Parents and students will want to load printer software on the laptops at home (home printer, digital cameras, etc.). What will be our policy?

Printing Policy: Bastrop's was no printing. Everything was digital (turn in drop boxes, etc.). They went Green. If students want to print at school they must go to library, show the librarian what they want to print and get permission.

Parent Meetings: Lori had many, many meetings. She also had community meetings.

Lori did a great job of helping with the thinking and planning that we must do. She also gave me lots of resources to bring back (management and policies docs, Professional Learning Curriculum, Websites, etc.).

TCEA Leadership Seminar - Opening Session, Anita Givens, Tuesday Feb. 9

2010-02-09T06:59:00.000-08:00

This full-day seminar is designed for board members, campus and district administrators, technology directors and coordinators. Throughout the day, we will be investigating trends and issues related to the effective implementation, administration, and evaluation of technology integration. This looks like a great day!

Opening Session: TEA Technology Update from Anita Givens, Texas Education Agency:

Electronic Textbooks:

Future of textbooks: Definition of textbooks in Texas includes "electronic textbooks" - anything that contributes to the learning process in an electronic format. This includes "open source textbook." The state must have ownership of the Open Source content, then it shall be licensed to all public schools. If a school district adopts the Open Source they will get a credit for the money they save from choosing other Board adopted books. This means that students can download it from the Internet for free.

The state textbook fund may be used to purchase technological equipment to support the use of electronic textbooks.

HB 4292: The commissioner will adopt a list of electronic textbooks. If a school chooses one of these, the state will pay the district the amount equal to the cost of the ET, plus credit up to 50% of difference in savings from choosing a ET from the Commissioners list, and then money to buy more OT or technology equipment.

This Spring, we will be getting information on our options for selecting textbooks. Before we make a decision about instructional materials, we must include these key individuals: IT, C&I, Business Office, Teachers

We will all have a lot of options.

For the Future Proclamation 2011:

Publishers will have to bid digital and paper formats separately, all teacher and ancillary materials digitally.

New Online State Professional Learning:

Future of Professional Development: The State received a directive for online PL. This summer every teacher has the opportunity to take an online class from TEA. Literacy, New TEKS, End of Course Content/Instructional Strategies Academies PL will be created as online modules/professional learning communities.

There will be Content Academies for teachers in Math, Science, ELA, new CTE courses, Fine Arts training for Math and Science...

Because all

When the SS TEKS are adopted, the Content Academies for this courses will be created and offered.

Targeted assistance and training for schools in need. School Leadership Academies

All of this Professional Learning offered by TEA will be evaluated.

Technology Pilots:

Computer Lending Program (more info coming out in the Spring)

TEA Technology Demonstration Sites - schools doing cutting edge things will be able to apply for this

Project Share: New State Digital Learning Platform

Project Share - online digital platform to provide online textbooks, online professional learning. This is a state-wide district portal that all Texas schools can use student and teacher collaboration, access to online resources, content. This will be rolled out this Spring and Summer. Phase One: using it with teachers in the Academies for PLCs. The PL that the state is building is being done in the Project Share platform.

We will get an invitation to the platform and then we can all build e-portfolios.

The Platform will be EPSILEN. The State is paying the cost for this for all districts.

All NY Times content from 1851 to the present will be available to teachers on this platform.

We need to watch for information/email March, April, May to join the platform. Teachers will receive invitations this Spring. Teachers will be able to log in before they leave school in May so that they can join professional learning communities and have access to the Content Academies Professional learning and resources that will become available this summer. Letters have been emailed to District Leader contacts about this project.

Questions or comments can be emailed to:

Projectshare@tea.state.ts.us

Are we ready for all of these 21st Century changes?

2010-02-09T06:01:00.000-08:00

Adobe Premiere Workshop

Denise Pierce every year does a Adobe Premiere Workshop at TCEA. It is an all day workshop where participants learn how to use this great tool to create digital projects using video, images, and audio files. Denise is a educator leader for Adobe. BISD is so fortunate to have her talent.
Check out the Ustream of a short portion of the day. http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/4584091

Tony Wagner - Leading Change in a District Afternoon

2010-02-04T10:43:00.000-08:00

Afternoon Session

Reinventing What and How We Teach
The New 3 "R" for the 21st Century

Rigor
Relevance
Relationship/ Respect

Tony Wagner - Leading Change in a District

2010-02-04T08:16:00.000-08:00

Today Kelli and I are having the opportunity to hear Tony Wagner, Co-Director of Change Leadership Group, Harvard University. Thanks Donna Solley for allowing me to have this opportunity.
We will both be posting our thoughts and learning with you. We hope that you will gleam the excitement that is in this workshop about improving our instruction so our net generation will succeed in their future .
Here is a link to Wagner's site. Once you log in and register you can download a lot of the information that we are receiving today. How cool is that? I love free.
www.schoolchange.org

We are bringing back to the district his book, "The Global Achievement Gap".

Our learning today involves What are we doing to reach our students and preparing them with the survival skills that they will need to be successful in their future.
What are our challenges?
We have been discussing what motivates the "Net" Generation?
We are teaching a generation that stays connected through the internet. They use the internet for connection with others, exploration of knowledge, and a tool for self expression. They are the generation that wants to be mentored by teachers that give them a voice and appreciate and understand who they are. They want a teacher that will not talk down to them but talks with them. And most importantly our student want to make a difference in the world.

The Seven Survival Skills for Careers, College, and Citizenship
1. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
2. Collaboration Across Networks and Leading By Influence
3. Agility and Adaptability
4. Initiative and Entrepreneurialism
5. Effective Oral and Written Communication - College Professors and Employers say that #1 skill lacking is that cannot write with voice
6. Accessing and Analyzing Information
7. Curiosity and Imagination

Now, that is our challenge. How do meet those challenges?
Deal with " The Theory of Change"
Use our resources to create the change
Student will not meet the performance standards for sucess in college and work unless and until TEACHING improve student's skills.
Teaching working alone with little feedback on their instruction will not be able to improve significantly.
Create a system of continous improvment of instruction and supervision.

Re-Invention Architecture of the Process
1. Holding Ourselves Accountable for What Matters Most
2. Doing the New Work: teaching and testing the skills that matter most
3. Doing the New Work in New Ways ( Isolation is the enemy of evolution)

The New Work -7 Disciplines For Strengthening Instruction
1.Understanding and urgency around improving all students for teachers and community
2. Widely Shared vision of what is Good Teaching
3. All Adult Meetings are about Instruction ( Video good instruction)
4. Well- defined standards and performance assessment ( What does quality work look like?) Is the quality everywhere ?
5. Supervision is frequent, rigorous, and entirely focused on the improvement of instructions.
6. Professional Development is primarily on site intensive, collaborative and job-embedded( Peer- coaching on each campus with time off to do the peer coaching) Mr. Wagner believes that peer coaching is vital to improving instruction. Video is a great tool in teaching and improving good instruction. Video Conferencing is a good tool that allows teachers to watch videos of good teaching and collaborate about what the instruction Do I love this man or what?
7. Data is used diagnostically at frequent intervals ( Digital portfolio for each student starting in K and it travels with them and is linked to teachers digital portfolio.)Our ITS department has been saying this for years. Free digital portfolio software: http:/grover.concordia.ca/epearl/en/epearl.php

7 Disciplines are meant to work all together. All must be present for instruction to improve.
There is a sequence that is involved with them.

What is Effective Instruction? This will be in the afternoon session. Stay Tuned.

Tony Wagner - Professional Learning in the 21st Century: 2-4-2010 am

2010-02-04T07:28:00.000-08:00

Teresa Lawson and I are attending "Professional Learning for the 21st Century" with Tony Wagner, Co-Director of the Change Leadership at Harvard's Graduate School of Education.
We are learning about how the concepts in his book, "The Global Achievement Gap," impact professional learning in the 21st century.

http://www.schoolchange.org/ Register for this site - it is free - and you will have access to all of his presentations, articles, videos, etc.

Framing the Challenges/The Crisis in Education:

SCHOOLS ARE NOT FAILING. THE SYSTEM IS OBSOLETE. REFORMING OUR PRESENT SYSTEM ISN'T THE SOLUTION. WE HAVE TO REINVENT IT! We have to be CHANGE LEADERS.

We MUST know our achievement/graduation rate data (everyone in our district must know this data).
1. There are NEW SKILLS for Work, Continuous Learning, and Citzenship in a "knowledge society" that ALL STUDENTS MUST HAVE:
Critical thinking and problem-solving
Collaboration across networks (across distance, time, space) and leadership by influence (as opposed to “by position”)
Adaptability and agility
Initiative and entrepreneurialship
Effective oral and written communication skills
Accessing and analyzing information — information is constantly changing & growing exponentially (here he really criticized our current testing curriculum and gave examples of countries who outperform us on exams, but who use performance assessment or portfolios or oral/written exams rather than multiple choice).
Curiosity and imagination — innovation and creativity — we can’t continue to produce innovators randomly or by chance, we must produce them intentionally.

- But do we really know HOW to teach Critical Thinking? If asked, could we all give an accurate definition and description of Critial Thinking/Problem Solving? -

2. The "Net Generation" is differently motivated to learn and we have to understand this motivation. They are accustomed to to instant gratification, always connected/multi-taskers (everywhere except in school!), use the web for social purposes/interest-driven self-directed learning/as a tool for self expression, learn from peers, want coaching from someone who does not talk down at them, and they want to make a difference.
We have to get past core content focus and move to core concepts (scientific method, democracy, etc.). If you can Google it, do kids have to memorize it and do we really have to spend time teaching it?
3. Quality of Instruction has the most important factor in student success. Not, "Let's just bring in more Whiteboards - that should fix our problem." - Teaching has to improve.
Teachers who work without feedback on the instruction - will not be able to improve no matter how much 'professional learning' we give them. We have to structure an environment for this.

We need to have focus groups with our kids and ask them about our schools.

Virgina Beach School District - did many many focus groups of community and created the mandate for a different kind of teaching and learning.

When trying to convince people of the need for change by dramatizing our data and sharing our data - use Human Bar Graphs....example: A Principal needed to share a low student literacy rate for her building to Central Admin and needed funds for a coaching program to help her teachers. She used a human graph of kids to make her point. She took 10 kids to the presentation. "3 out of 10 kids are on level." 7 of her kids sat down. Then she asked, "whose kids are we going to leave behind?"

So, what might "The Solution" Look Like?

Re-Invention - the 3 Cornerstones we must do:

1. We have to hold ourselves accountable for what matter most. That means every person in the organiztion must know our data.

2. Teach and test the skills that matter most. We have to all learn what the 7 Critical Skills look like in teaching and how to teach them. BUT, AS A START WE HAVE TO INCLUDE THE 3 C'S: CRITICAL THINKING, COMMUNICATION, AND COLLABORATION IN EVERY CLASS AT ALL GRADE LEVELS.

3. We have to create environments where teachers do not work in isolation - that becomes a non-negotiable. They have to have on-going effective inquiry sessions TOGETHER that involves look at and refining instruction/work. This is where the teachers and administrators will learn what Critical Thinking and Problem Solving really looks like. ISOLATION IS THE ENEMY OF INNOVATION AND IMPROVMENT!

The most effective way to improve instruction is COACHING. Like sports, coaches help, games and performances are videotaped, and coaches review videotape with players/preformers. We have to take a hard look at our schedules and also how we are using the time we do have for PL and meetings. Are we using the time we already have for instruction?

Recommendations from Tony to improve instruction and student learning:

1. Find your best people, train them, and make them peer coaches/trainers in every building.
2. Every student should have a digital portfolio K-12. Kids should publish 5-6 items each work for public viewing. Teachers then examine the work for good teaching. The best samples of this work can then be linked to the teacher who designed the work and posted into the district instructional document - along with a video of the teaching, lesson plans, rubrics.

We have to use the 7 Disciplines for Strengthening Instruction

These are not a buffet. You have to do all of them and must do them in order.

This is a copy of the tool:
Seven Disciplines for Strengthening Instruction Diagnostic
The diagnostic tool below can help you assess how the seven disciplines show up in your own
school or district. We encourage you to first fill out the diagnostic individually and then
compare results with your colleagues, holding discussion among yourselves until you’ve had a
chance to each respond individually. The discussion that follows will clarify your understanding
of the disciplines themselves and almost certainly identify the most promising areas for further
work in your school or district. We also encourage you not to skip over the identification of
evidence. These indicators can be the most powerful discussion prompts and build a shared
idea of what is, and what needs to be.
This diagnostic can be used with different groups – principals and teachers and central office
administrators – to see to what degree there are differences in views that can be usefully
explored. The diagnostic can also be given periodically as an informal assessment of progress.
Name ______________________ District ___________________________
1. The district/school creates understanding and urgency around improving ALL students’
learning for teachers and community, and they regularly report on progress.
– Data is disaggregated and transparent to everyone.
– Qualitative (focus groups & interviews) as well as quantitative data is used to
understand students’ and recent graduates’ experience of school.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:

2. There is a widely shared vision of what is good teaching which is focused on rigorous
expectations, relevant curricula, and respectful relationships in the classroom.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:
3. All adult meetings are about instruction and are models of good teaching.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:
© President and Fellows of Harvard College, Change Leadership Group
Permission to reprint with attribution granted.
Seven Disciplines for Strengthening Instruction Diagnostic (continued)
4. There are well-defined standards and performance assessments for student work at all
grade levels. Both teachers and students understand what quality work looks like, and there is
consistency in standards of assessment.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:
5. Supervision is frequent, rigorous, and entirely focused on the improvement of instruction.
It is done by people who know what good teaching looks like.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:
6. Professional Development is primarily on-site, intensive, collaborative, and job-embedded
and is designed and led by educators who model best teaching and learning practices.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:
7. Data is used diagnostically at frequent intervals by teams of teachers to assess each
student’s learning and to identify the most effective teaching practices. Teams have time built
into their schedules for this shared work.
Not yet started 1 2 3 4 well-established in our school/district
Evidence:
Copyright:
President and Fellows of Harvard College, Change Leadership Group
Permission to reprint with attribution granted.

Texas ASCD Recap

2009-11-18T09:54:00.001-08:00

Below are the notes from the recap of the Texas ASCD meeting.

What?

Ken Kay
· See Teresa for handout
· All subject teach 21st skills
· What are the biggest changes in the last 25 years
· Are our students prepared?

Alan November
· Global Communication Center
· To raise the quality of work we have to publish their work
· Teach less learn more
· The longer it takes to get feedback from your teacher the less valueable it becomes
· Every Elem student needs to have an online class
· Students are to be blocked not teachers that’s the way the law was written
· Freedom to think
· Teaching students to make decisions
· One room school house

Irving ISD
· Its not about money its about what you value
· A decade to train teachers

Pickering
· Standards base report cards
· What is it?
· Less testing more assessment

McNulty
· Global
· Primary aim of education should be how they will live outside not who well they do in school
· 9 attributes of innovative communities

Common Threads
· Change
· Teach less learn more
· Move from Push to pull

So What?

Pick something and do it on a district level Example (Global Communication)
Grading issue Consider a revised grading policy
Utilized the Continues Improvement Model for student
Podcasting a clear vision of what is to take place example is the Shift Happens Video