Pre- Reading My thoughts below are inspired by the following: Cast your NETS by Andrew Vicars Really? Its my Job to Teach Technology? by Jeff Utecht. My Thoughts I am a tech integration specialist, my title says my job is to integrate technology, presumably that means in the classroom. But I tend to think of myself more as an instructional or learning coach. It has never been about the tools, but about the learning. As educators I have always viewed …
My guess is we all had a teacher who required us to take notes a particular way. I remember one teacher who made us take two column notes. I did not like having to fold my pages and frankly I have trouble reading my own handwriting, this method was not for me. I appreciated knowing there are different strategies for taking notes, organizing and maximizing workflow but ultimately the choice should be mine. I feel the same way about all…
Over the last two weeks I have had the opportunity to attend some workshops on the iPad in general and for use with those who have special needs. I have come away more solidified in my vision of the use of iPads in schools The iPad is a game changer when it comes to supporting differentiated instruction and universal design in learning. I know there are other devices out there but Apple made a commitment to accessibility a long time ago and continues to…
I guess I am currently sensitive to the ‘homework” issue. I wanted to share with you a post by Scott McLeod, Homework Authoritarianism and Student Choice. I was particularly struck by the section regarding college vs high school work expectations. Here in MA schools must provide a minimum of 990 hrs of structured instruction over a 180 day school year. That works out to be about 27.5 hrs a week of structured instruction, this is exclusive of study, lunch, homeroom and passing time. So a typical HS student is in an…
Earlier this week I spent a good chunk of time in a waiting room at Children’s Hospital Boston. The patients ranged in age from infants to the early 20’s. One thing was common for all the school/college age children, everyone was doing homework and every parent, myself included, was trying to get their child to focus on schoolwork. I heard echoes of the following: “Please just get your homework done, I don’t need another call” “You are missing lots of…
Having access to data is not the key to success any more; it does not confer power or achievement. Those who know are no longer the ones who are landing the jobs. Those types of jobs are dwindling. Those who just have knowledge are more likely to be dependent on others and not in control of their own destiny. The key to success is the ability quickly find, sort, analyze and act on information. The valuable skills today are information processing and…
Though many of you may have seen these videos I wanted to share them again. Vi Hart does some great videos to get inspired about math. She helps take math from the rote work of endless problem solving and highlights the wonder of numbers. Math Doodling Vi Hart on YouTube