The online webinars of the Discovery Educators Network Summer Institute have been archived. You can access approximately 11 hours of technology integration training by going to: http://new.livestream.com/DEN/events/2142733
Monday, July 22, 2013
DEN Summer Institute Webinar Archives
Friday, July 19, 2013
We've had a busy week at Rome City Schools this week. While some of you have been enjoying the last of your summer vacation others of us have been back at work. The administrators are are all "powered up", ready for the new year after a "powerful" 2 days of the administrative institute. Can you guess what the theme was? LOL
We welcomed the new teachers to Rome City Schools for 2013-2014. They have been attending the new teacher orientation workshop for the last three days.
This week was also the Discovery Education Network Summer Institute (DENSI). Unfortunately, it was in Vermont and most of us couldn't attend. Fortunately, they offered it also as a free online webinar as they live-streamed much of the event. But unfortunately, many of us were tied up so that we couldn't even attend the webinar.
So, fortunately, one of the main goals of the Discovery Educators Network is to SHARE and COLLABORATE. So I've placed a link below to a recap page with links to notes shared by those who attended. Not only are they sharing, they are also modeling "how" to share. Some are links to blogs. Many are links to Google Docs that have been shared with us. You can do the same. If you don't like the hassle of a webpage, you can still post information in shared documents in your Google Docs. However, to make it fully functional, you really need at least 1 webpage with a list of your Google Docs (although …. I guess you could have 1 main document that served as an index, with links to your other documents. There are lots of ways to do this). I still maintain that every classroom should have a webpage. If you need help with that, let me know.
Check out some of the neat ideas shared from other teachers at:
http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2013/07/18/densi-2013-daily-recap-day-5
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Project-based Learning
Last spring I mentioned that I’m seeing a new emphasis placed on project-based learning or PBL. This blog will revisit that subject with a focus on assessment resources for use with project-based learning.
What is project-based learning? Take a look at this description from the website at: http://pbl-online.org/About/whatisPBL.htm
Project Based Learning is an instructional approach built upon authentic learning activities that engage student interest and motivation. These activities are designed to answer a question or solve a problem and generally reflect the types of learning and work people do in the everyday world outside the classroom.
Project Based Learning is synonymous with learning in depth. A well-designed project provokes students to encounter (and struggle with) the central concepts and principles of a discipline.
Project Based Learning teaches students 21st century skills as well as content. These skills include communication and presentation skills, organization and time management skills, research and inquiry skills, self-assessment and reflection skills, and group participation and leadership skills.
Project Based Learning is generally done by groups of students working together toward a common goal. Performance is assessed on an individual basis, and takes into account the quality of the product produced, the depth of content understanding demonstrated, and the contributions made to the ongoing process of project realization.
Finally, Project Based Learning allows students to reflect upon their own ideas and opinions, exercise voice and choice, and make decisions that affect project outcomes and the learning process in general.
Combining these considerations, we define Project Based Learning as a systematic teaching method that engages students in learning essential knowledge and life-enhancing skills through an extended, student-influenced inquiry process structured around complex, authentic questions and carefully designed products and tasks.
Project-based learning allows for greater individualization, innovation, and creativity. It can be done individually or as a group. But, many teachers may be uncomfortable with relinquishing control of what is being learned and allowing students to “discover” on their on. What if the students don’t cover all the points, or miss the main point of the lesson? That’s where using guided-assessment through rubrics comes in!
I don’t exactly love to write grants. But, I love writing grants that tell you up front, “Here is the rubric we will use to evaluate your grant application.” The major items that must be included are listed and assigned higher point values, etc. I know exactly WHAT they want, and WHERE to concentrate my effort. It’s up to me to write the grant and make it unique, so that it stands out above the competition. Project-based learning rubrics for students can be specific enough to guide students toward the required content while still allowing for creativity and collaboration. If the rubric is designed well and given to the students ahead of time, every project submitted should meet competency goals and include required elements of the standard being taught. The rubric itself can be a learning tool prior to the evaluation.
I have listed below several excellent resource pages about project-based learning and rubrics:
What are some examples of project-based learning projects? What are some new 21st Century applications for creating these projects (no poster boards or PowerPoints, Please! ) Perhaps those are topics for another day!
Technology Recommendations for Starting the New Year
There are a million things to do prior to that first day of class and no matter how long you’ve been teaching, there’s not enough time to get it all done. Losing pre-planning time due to furlough days compounds the problem and makes it essential that we put careful thought and planning into getting ready for school. How can your technology help?
IS YOUR TECHNOLOGY WORKING?First of all, your technology must be up and running. Over the summer most of your technology may have been disconnected and moved so that floors could be cleaned and waxed. You may need to re-connect computer, monitor, printer, internet cables, speakers, Elmo, projector, and Smartboard. Make sure they are all working. If they are not working, check with a nearby teacher (who is maybe a little more tech-savvy) or check with your media specialist. If it’s still not working, put in a work order as soon as possible.
COLLECTING DATA
Let’s consider all the information that you have to disseminate and gather in those first few days of school. Depending on your situation you may have anywhere from 18 students to 150 students. Again, depending on your school situation, they may or may not already be in PowerSchool as being registered for your class. If they are, you are ahead of the game. You have 24/7 access to class rolls and student demographic information, addresses, etc. If not, you may want to collect that information that first week. [More on PowerSchool preparations later]
How can technology help you collect data? In the past you may have sent home a paper form to fill out. If you have a gmail account, you have access to creating online Google Forms as part of your Google Docs. You can create a form which asks for all the important information that you need and/or allows parents to give you extra information you need to know such as “my child is allergic to chalk”. The results are collected automatically in a spreadsheet that is available from anywhere. Not all parents will use the online form, but each one that does will keep you from having to type that information yourself. You’ll have to add in the ones that still elect to fill out the paper form. See an online YouTube tutorial on how to create an online Form Using Google Docs.
DISSEMINATING INFORMATION
What about all the other information that you have to send home? Some of it is on Rome City Forms that have to be returned. Some of it could be posted online for parents. Could you save paper and copies? Again, you’ll have some parents/students with no computer access, so you’ll need to be prepared with paper copies for those that need it. Perhaps that could be one of the questions on your paper/online data form ….to see who prefers to get information online (or by text) and who requires a paper copy. Be careful how you ask that, so as not to embarrass anyone. You could ask, “Do you prefer to get classroom information or communications through papers sent home, email, text messaging, or the classroom website?”, rather than asking, “Do you have a computer with internet access?”
How do you post information online for parents? There are many options these days, but a classroom website should probably be the minimum. If I’m looking for information on just about anything these days, my first question is, “Is it listed on their website?” Many parents are the same way. You should probably get this decision out of the way and give out the address to your classroom website with the materials that you send home the first day.
CLASSROOM WEBSITES
Each teacher can create their own classroom website through http://Myschooldesk.net/rcs. If you haven’t signed up before, you can go to the website, scroll down to the bottom of the page and register. You will need an RSVP code: wolf. I do have a demo site that I have used when teaching a class on this. It has not been updated in a while and uses the built-in blog rather than the blog I am currently using, but does give you an idea of the different things you can do on the site. I have also recommended that you take a look at David Musgrove’s site (Thank you David!) to see how he uses the classroom website at Rome High. Of course, there are other options (both free and paid) for websites. You could use Weebly, Google Sites, or others. Whatever you choose, my suggestion is to start with just the basic information that will stay up all year. You might post a personal introduction (not too personal … more on that later), any special classroom rules, classroom supply lists, important dates or projects, etc. I would not start out with posting each night’s homework. That gets too cumbersome very quickly.
STORING AND SHARING FILES FROM THE “CLOUD”
You can also make information available through several cloud-based sharing applications such as Google Docs, Dropbox, etc. The files you store are private, but you can elect to “share” files so that anyone with the address can access them. It’s basically the same process as sharing a poll or Form survey document, as described above. Of course, you still have to get the word out by sending the link to the file on paper, by email, text, or on your website.
Many of these things can be done by using Socrative as your classroom website and communication tool. See the previous information on Socrative in one of my emails, my blog, or Facebook account. If you are going to use Socrative, it’s probably a good idea to start setting it up now and publicizing the information on how to join your class that first week.
If a significant portion of your class parents have access to texting (many people have cell phones and texting instead of a regular phone line now) and/or would rather communicate by texts, consider setting up an account with Remind101.com or Celly (http://cel.ly ) and send information home the first week on how parents can subscribe to this without either of you knowing each other’s cell phone number. Messages would go straight to their phone without getting lost in book bags!
All of this may sound like a lot of work. However, just like anything else, a little work before school starts could save you a lot of time or make you much more efficient and effective later
Monday, July 1, 2013
ThreeRing.com and EdmodoCon 2013
Thanks to Randy Stafford for finding this video tutorial on how to use Three Ring, the app I mentioned last week. The link is to a YouTube video that can be found here: - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19otInjcuM8&NR=1&feature=fvwp
Registration is now open for EdmodoCon 2013! EdmodoCon is an all-day live-stream conference on how to use Edmodo in the classroom. Unforunately, the rest of the country doesn’t start school as early as we do and the conference is during a school day, August 7th, for us. However, it will last until about 9 pm. So you should be able to catch some of it. Register for free at: http://edmodocon.com/
Tune in Wednesday, August 7th to watch educators present live about the ways they’re using Edmodo in the classroom, while back channeling with other Edmodo educators around the world. It’s will be a day of collaborative learning and professional development that will leave you inspired and motivated to start the new school year.
They’re live streaming EdmodoCon globally. This means, you will be able to see all speakers as they are presenting.
The streaming platform will allow you to participate from most internet-enabled devices (Yes, this incudes the iPad!). You can check to see if your device meets system requirements at http://webcast.on24.com/view/help/ehelp.html.
Each presenter will provide you with an action plan to help you kick off the new school year with Edmodo!
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