Eric C. Sheninger's Blog, page 54
March 1, 2015
Digital Learning Prospers With the Right Culture
As of late I have been doing a great deal of work with schools and districts on how to effectively implement digital learning across the curriculum. When it comes to technology in general, the overall goal is to support learning, not drive instruction. Where digital learning initiatives miss the point is a focus on how technology actually accomplishments. Schools invest billions of dollars to purchase technology with no real thought as to how it is actually impacting learning. When I routinely ask school leaders how they determine or measure the impact of their technology on student learning, I get blank stares or open declarations that they have no idea. This is a problem.
Image credit: http://innovate.champaignschools.org/
The right culture focuses on technology as a tool to enhance learning in a variety of ways. When technology is integrated with purpose, students can create artifacts to demonstrate conceptual mastery, apply an array of acquired skills, illustrate the construction of new knowledge, and be empowered to take ownership over their learning. It can also increase relevance and make the curriculum more contextual. This is just a sample of how digital learning can complement the work that is already taking place in schools while allowing students to clearly see the value in their learning. As with any holistic initiative, the key is sustainability and a resulting change that sees all aspects of digital learning become an embedded component of school culture. Without the right culture in place for digital learning to be embraced and thrive, there will only be isolated pockets of excellence. The following are some suggestions on how to ensure digital learning initiatives in your district or school don’t fall flat:
Build a shared vision – This important aspect is notably absent in many digital leaning initiatives. Efforts must be made to developing a shared vision with a variety of stakeholder input, including students. This is vital if the goal is sustained, cross-curricular application on a routine basis. The vision should be established in a way that clearly articulates how technology will be used to support/enhance student learning.Develop a strategic plan backed by action – Begin to form a plan for digital learning using some essential questions that add perspective for the change: Why is this change needed? How will it be implemented? What resources are needed? How will we monitor progress and evaluate on a consistent basis? What other challenges have to be overcome? By focusing on these questions and others that you develop, a concrete plan for action can be created.Access matters – During the planning process it is imperative that there is a critical analysis of existing infrastructure. There is nothing more frustrating to teachers and students when an activity incorporating technology fails because of poor WiFi connectivity. In addition to WiFi, it is important to ensure there are enough devices and associated software if the goal is integration across the curriculum. To increase access give some thought to a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiative if there is not enough funding to go 1:1. An audit of available resources during the planning process would be a wise idea.Ensure ongoing professional development – I cannot overstate the importance of this suggestion enough. Teachers need training on how to develop pedagogically sound lessons and quality assessments aligned to higher standards. They also need to be exposed to a variety of tools and ways that they can be seamlessly integrated to support specified learning outcomes. School leaders need professional learning opportunities that assist them to effectively observe and evaluate digital learning in classrooms. Professional development should be ongoing and embedded throughout the school year.Monitor with intent – The vision and planning process provides the focus, but consistent monitoring helps to ensure sustainable change leading to transformation. School leaders need to consistently monitor and provide feedback on digital learning activities through observations, evaluations, walk-throughs, and collecting artifacts. Provide support – Throughout the initial implementation stages, and well after the initiative gains steam, ongoing support needs to be provided. Support comes in many ways such as empowering teachers to be innovative through autonomy, giving up control, being flexible, and encouraging risk-taking. Budget allocations will also have to be made each year to not only sustain current digital learning initiatives, but to also move forward. Model the way – To put it simply, don’t expect others to do what you will not. Attempt to model at a basic level the expectations that you have when it comes to digital learning. Don’t be afraid to roll up your sleeves and work along side your colleagues. Honor student voice and choice – Digital learning initiatives are all about creating schools that work for students. When developing lessons allow students to decide which digital tools they want to use to show you what they have learned. The key is being able to assess learning, not knowing how to use thousands of tools. Put students in the driver’s seat when it comes to allowing them to determine the right tool for the right task. Also encourage them to consistently provide input to improve digital learning initiatives.
The whole premise of digital learning is to increase relevance, add context, acquire then apply essential skills, construct new knowledge, and enhance critical literacies. Regardless of what standards you are accountable for digital learning can be integrated seamlessly to foster deeper learning. Education today should not prepare students for a world that no longer exists. It is time to not just prepare students for college and careers, but also life in an ever-increasing digital world.
Image credit: http://innovate.champaignschools.org/The right culture focuses on technology as a tool to enhance learning in a variety of ways. When technology is integrated with purpose, students can create artifacts to demonstrate conceptual mastery, apply an array of acquired skills, illustrate the construction of new knowledge, and be empowered to take ownership over their learning. It can also increase relevance and make the curriculum more contextual. This is just a sample of how digital learning can complement the work that is already taking place in schools while allowing students to clearly see the value in their learning. As with any holistic initiative, the key is sustainability and a resulting change that sees all aspects of digital learning become an embedded component of school culture. Without the right culture in place for digital learning to be embraced and thrive, there will only be isolated pockets of excellence. The following are some suggestions on how to ensure digital learning initiatives in your district or school don’t fall flat:
Build a shared vision – This important aspect is notably absent in many digital leaning initiatives. Efforts must be made to developing a shared vision with a variety of stakeholder input, including students. This is vital if the goal is sustained, cross-curricular application on a routine basis. The vision should be established in a way that clearly articulates how technology will be used to support/enhance student learning.Develop a strategic plan backed by action – Begin to form a plan for digital learning using some essential questions that add perspective for the change: Why is this change needed? How will it be implemented? What resources are needed? How will we monitor progress and evaluate on a consistent basis? What other challenges have to be overcome? By focusing on these questions and others that you develop, a concrete plan for action can be created.Access matters – During the planning process it is imperative that there is a critical analysis of existing infrastructure. There is nothing more frustrating to teachers and students when an activity incorporating technology fails because of poor WiFi connectivity. In addition to WiFi, it is important to ensure there are enough devices and associated software if the goal is integration across the curriculum. To increase access give some thought to a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiative if there is not enough funding to go 1:1. An audit of available resources during the planning process would be a wise idea.Ensure ongoing professional development – I cannot overstate the importance of this suggestion enough. Teachers need training on how to develop pedagogically sound lessons and quality assessments aligned to higher standards. They also need to be exposed to a variety of tools and ways that they can be seamlessly integrated to support specified learning outcomes. School leaders need professional learning opportunities that assist them to effectively observe and evaluate digital learning in classrooms. Professional development should be ongoing and embedded throughout the school year.Monitor with intent – The vision and planning process provides the focus, but consistent monitoring helps to ensure sustainable change leading to transformation. School leaders need to consistently monitor and provide feedback on digital learning activities through observations, evaluations, walk-throughs, and collecting artifacts. Provide support – Throughout the initial implementation stages, and well after the initiative gains steam, ongoing support needs to be provided. Support comes in many ways such as empowering teachers to be innovative through autonomy, giving up control, being flexible, and encouraging risk-taking. Budget allocations will also have to be made each year to not only sustain current digital learning initiatives, but to also move forward. Model the way – To put it simply, don’t expect others to do what you will not. Attempt to model at a basic level the expectations that you have when it comes to digital learning. Don’t be afraid to roll up your sleeves and work along side your colleagues. Honor student voice and choice – Digital learning initiatives are all about creating schools that work for students. When developing lessons allow students to decide which digital tools they want to use to show you what they have learned. The key is being able to assess learning, not knowing how to use thousands of tools. Put students in the driver’s seat when it comes to allowing them to determine the right tool for the right task. Also encourage them to consistently provide input to improve digital learning initiatives.
The whole premise of digital learning is to increase relevance, add context, acquire then apply essential skills, construct new knowledge, and enhance critical literacies. Regardless of what standards you are accountable for digital learning can be integrated seamlessly to foster deeper learning. Education today should not prepare students for a world that no longer exists. It is time to not just prepare students for college and careers, but also life in an ever-increasing digital world.
February 22, 2015
Looking at Teacher Accountability Through a New Lens
In case you haven’t noticed the education profession has been under attack as of late. The brunt of these attacks has been aimed at the very professionals who are tasked with positively impacting the lives of children each and every day – our teachers. In my mind education is the noblest of professions. Without education, at some level virtually all other professions would be non-existent. This places our teachers at the forefront of molding young minds into the next generation of doers, thinkers, creators, leaders, and entrepreneurs. If there is ever a profession that should be revered as much as that of a doctor who saves lives it is that of a teacher.
Image credit: https://larrycuban.files.wordpress.co...
Unfortunately there is a growing rhetoric and sentiment that the education system in America is broken and our teachers are to blame for this. New accountability systems have been championed and adopted across the country that reduce teacher effectiveness to a mere number. The algorithm adopted by many states, which quite frankly makes little sense, crunches data sets in an attempt to measure the quality of a teacher against his or her peers. Each state has different factors that go into their value-added measurement (VAM) of a teacher, but the dominant component is standardized test scores. Teachers are the true catalysts of change that can create schools that work for kids. Even though countless studies have debunked this means to truly assess teacher effectiveness states have moved full steam ahead ignoring the research.
With such a focus on standardization in schools, many teachers feel compelled to prepare students for a litany of exams, as the data extrapolated from them will be used for high-stakes evaluation. Administrators are also intimately tied to these results as well, so as a knee-jerk reaction an environment that resembles a test-taking factory is created. The sole focus becomes one that emphasizes performing well on a test as opposed to learning. What results is the proliferation of an industrialized model of education that reformers claim they want to get away from, but the policies they support only help to sustain it. This gloomy depiction of what is happening to schools across the country by people that have no business enacting education policy is forcing teachers to leave the profession at alarming rates.
The structure and function of the majority of schools in this country is the exact opposite of the world that our learners are growing up in. There is an automatic disconnect when students, regardless of their grade level, walk into schools due to the lack of engagement, relevancy, meaning, and authentic learning opportunities. Our education system has become so efficient in sustaining a century old model because it is easy and safe. The resulting conformity has resulted in a learning epidemic among our students as they see so little value in the cookie-cutter learning exercises they are forced to go through each day. The bottom line is that they are bored. It is time that we create schools that work for our students as opposed to ones that have traditionally worked well for the adults.
Creating schools that work for students requires a bold vision for change that not only tackles the status quo inherent in the industrialized model of education, but also current education reform efforts. Even though Common Core is not a curriculum, many schools and districts have become so engrossed with alignment and preparing for the new aligned tests that real learning has fallen by the wayside. We need to realize that this, along with other traditional elements associated with education, no longer prevail. How we go about doing this will vary from school to school, but the process begins with the simple notion of putting students first to allow them to follow their passions, create, tinker, invent, play, and collaborate. Schools that work for students focus less on control and more on trust.
There is a common fallacy that school administrators are the leaders of change. This makes a great sound bite, but the reality is that many individuals in a leadership position are not actually working directly with students. Teachers are the true catalysts of change that can create schools that work for kids. They are the ones, after all, who are tasked with implementing the myriad of directives and mandates that come their way. Leadership is about action, not position. Schools need more teacher leaders who are empowered through autonomy to take calculated risks in order to develop innovative approaches that enable deeper learning and higher order thinking without sacrificing accountability. If the goal in fact is to increase these elements in our education system then we have to allow students to demonstrate learning in a variety of ways.
For change to be successful it must be sustained. Teacher leaders must not only be willing to see the process through, but they must also create conditions that promote a change mentality. It really is about moving from a fixed to a growth mindset, something that many educators and schools are either unwilling or afraid to do. The essential elements that work as catalysts for the change process include the following:
EmpowermentAutonomyOwnershipRemoving the fear of failureRisk-takingSupportModelingFlexibilityCollaborationCommunication
What I have learned is that if someone understands why change is needed and the elements above become an embedded component of school culture he/she or the system ultimately experience the value for themselves. The change process then gets a boost from an intrinsic motivational force that not only jump starts the initiative, but allows for the embracement of change as opposed to looking for buy-in. We should never have to "sell" people on better ways to do our noble work nor rely on mandates and directives. These traditional pathways used to drive change typically result in resentment, undermining, and failure.
Even in the face of adversity in the form of education reform mandates, Common Core alignment, impending PARCC exams, new educator evaluation systems, loss of funding, and an aging infrastructure, at my school we have not only persevered, but proven that positive change can happen with the right mindset. Teachers were put in a position to overcome these challenges and experience success. Others can as well. Throughout the past couple of years I have seen improvements in the "traditional" indicators of success by mainly focusing on creating a school that works better for our students as opposed to one that has always worked well for us. Technology was a tool that my teachers harnessed and leveraged to do what they did better while creating a culture of learning that actually meant something to our students. My recent TEDx talk provides insight into how this was accomplished.
My message is to everyone who has and continues to bash teachers by implementing accountability structures that will do nothing to help our students succeed in life and follow their dreams. There needs to be more creative ways to hold teachers accountable so that a school-wide focus on relevant learning becomes the norm. Teachers should no longer be forced to prepare students for a world that no longer exists and be held accountable through one-dimensional means. Teacher success should be judged on the products students create with real-world tools to solve real-world problems. If teachers are allowed to innovate and allow students to create artifacts of learning to demonstrate conceptual mastery, the end goal should be the acquisition of higher-order thinking skills.
Image credit: https://larrycuban.files.wordpress.co...Unfortunately there is a growing rhetoric and sentiment that the education system in America is broken and our teachers are to blame for this. New accountability systems have been championed and adopted across the country that reduce teacher effectiveness to a mere number. The algorithm adopted by many states, which quite frankly makes little sense, crunches data sets in an attempt to measure the quality of a teacher against his or her peers. Each state has different factors that go into their value-added measurement (VAM) of a teacher, but the dominant component is standardized test scores. Teachers are the true catalysts of change that can create schools that work for kids. Even though countless studies have debunked this means to truly assess teacher effectiveness states have moved full steam ahead ignoring the research.
With such a focus on standardization in schools, many teachers feel compelled to prepare students for a litany of exams, as the data extrapolated from them will be used for high-stakes evaluation. Administrators are also intimately tied to these results as well, so as a knee-jerk reaction an environment that resembles a test-taking factory is created. The sole focus becomes one that emphasizes performing well on a test as opposed to learning. What results is the proliferation of an industrialized model of education that reformers claim they want to get away from, but the policies they support only help to sustain it. This gloomy depiction of what is happening to schools across the country by people that have no business enacting education policy is forcing teachers to leave the profession at alarming rates.
The structure and function of the majority of schools in this country is the exact opposite of the world that our learners are growing up in. There is an automatic disconnect when students, regardless of their grade level, walk into schools due to the lack of engagement, relevancy, meaning, and authentic learning opportunities. Our education system has become so efficient in sustaining a century old model because it is easy and safe. The resulting conformity has resulted in a learning epidemic among our students as they see so little value in the cookie-cutter learning exercises they are forced to go through each day. The bottom line is that they are bored. It is time that we create schools that work for our students as opposed to ones that have traditionally worked well for the adults.
Creating schools that work for students requires a bold vision for change that not only tackles the status quo inherent in the industrialized model of education, but also current education reform efforts. Even though Common Core is not a curriculum, many schools and districts have become so engrossed with alignment and preparing for the new aligned tests that real learning has fallen by the wayside. We need to realize that this, along with other traditional elements associated with education, no longer prevail. How we go about doing this will vary from school to school, but the process begins with the simple notion of putting students first to allow them to follow their passions, create, tinker, invent, play, and collaborate. Schools that work for students focus less on control and more on trust.
There is a common fallacy that school administrators are the leaders of change. This makes a great sound bite, but the reality is that many individuals in a leadership position are not actually working directly with students. Teachers are the true catalysts of change that can create schools that work for kids. They are the ones, after all, who are tasked with implementing the myriad of directives and mandates that come their way. Leadership is about action, not position. Schools need more teacher leaders who are empowered through autonomy to take calculated risks in order to develop innovative approaches that enable deeper learning and higher order thinking without sacrificing accountability. If the goal in fact is to increase these elements in our education system then we have to allow students to demonstrate learning in a variety of ways.
For change to be successful it must be sustained. Teacher leaders must not only be willing to see the process through, but they must also create conditions that promote a change mentality. It really is about moving from a fixed to a growth mindset, something that many educators and schools are either unwilling or afraid to do. The essential elements that work as catalysts for the change process include the following:
EmpowermentAutonomyOwnershipRemoving the fear of failureRisk-takingSupportModelingFlexibilityCollaborationCommunication
What I have learned is that if someone understands why change is needed and the elements above become an embedded component of school culture he/she or the system ultimately experience the value for themselves. The change process then gets a boost from an intrinsic motivational force that not only jump starts the initiative, but allows for the embracement of change as opposed to looking for buy-in. We should never have to "sell" people on better ways to do our noble work nor rely on mandates and directives. These traditional pathways used to drive change typically result in resentment, undermining, and failure.
Even in the face of adversity in the form of education reform mandates, Common Core alignment, impending PARCC exams, new educator evaluation systems, loss of funding, and an aging infrastructure, at my school we have not only persevered, but proven that positive change can happen with the right mindset. Teachers were put in a position to overcome these challenges and experience success. Others can as well. Throughout the past couple of years I have seen improvements in the "traditional" indicators of success by mainly focusing on creating a school that works better for our students as opposed to one that has always worked well for us. Technology was a tool that my teachers harnessed and leveraged to do what they did better while creating a culture of learning that actually meant something to our students. My recent TEDx talk provides insight into how this was accomplished.
My message is to everyone who has and continues to bash teachers by implementing accountability structures that will do nothing to help our students succeed in life and follow their dreams. There needs to be more creative ways to hold teachers accountable so that a school-wide focus on relevant learning becomes the norm. Teachers should no longer be forced to prepare students for a world that no longer exists and be held accountable through one-dimensional means. Teacher success should be judged on the products students create with real-world tools to solve real-world problems. If teachers are allowed to innovate and allow students to create artifacts of learning to demonstrate conceptual mastery, the end goal should be the acquisition of higher-order thinking skills.
February 15, 2015
Tips for BYOD Equity
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives are being adopted by districts and schools around the globe. With the growing access that students now have to technology at home, educators are seizing this opportunity to increase access in the classroom. For cash strapped districts BYOD seems like the logical solution to leverage the mobile devices students have to enhance learning, increase productivity, conduct better research, address critical digital literacies, and teach digital responsibility. In theory this all sounds fantastic and there are many benefits that I have witnessed firsthand after successfully implementing a BYOD initiative over five years ago at my high school. However, in practice it is important to ensure that any initiative involving student-owned devices is well thought out with a resulting plan for action focused on student learning. For more information on how to implement a successful BYOD initiative make sure all of these drivers are firmly in place.
One issue that comes up frequently with BYOD initiatives is equity. The equity issue either haunts those who have or are in the process of going BYOD. There are other times, however, that this issue stops the initiative from moving forward. In any case the ones who suffer are our students. In today’s digital age, who are we to tell a student that he or she cannot bring their tools to class to support learning? Don’t get me wrong; equity is a real issue that needs to be addressed when rolling out or sustaining any BYOD initiative. It is our job as leaders and educators to provide the best possible learning environment for out students. With this being said the equity issue should not be seen as an obstacle or challenge that cannot be overcome. Instead of using this as an excuse, or allowing the naysayers to use this as ammunition to derail the initiative, it is our job to find applicable solutions in order to create schools that work for today’s learners. After all, it is not about our (adult) learning, but our students.
Image credit: www.securedgenetwork.com
In my community where we made the decision to roll out BYOD many years ago, we did so knowing full well that all of our students did not own a device. Through our planning we also discovered that some students had parents/guardians who would not allow them to bring them to school for fear of theft or breakage. Then there was a small group of students who flat out told us that they had no interest in using their technology in school to support learning. All of these challenges could have been excuses not to move forward, but we decided to find some solutions to benefit the majority while not excluding any student.
Any successful BYOD initiative should focus squarely on how students can use mobile devices to support their learning. If a lesson called for every student to use a device to demonstrate conceptual mastery aligned to a specific learning outcome it was our job to ensure this. Here are some practical tips that we utilized to ensure BYOD equity:
Know Your Students – Once a decision has been made to implement BYOD in your school/district and proper professional development has been provided find out who are the haves and have nots. One suggestion is to use Google Forms to curate this information. Going forward this will allow you to focus on those students who need access.Advance Planning – Notify students the day before that they will need to bring their device to class the following day if the learning activity calls for it. Supplement School Technology – If a learning activity calls for every student to have a device then it is imperative that supports are put in place. Students will either forget to bring their device, not have one, or chose not to bring it into school. A successful BYOD initiative has ample technology on hand to make sure all students have access to tools. Utilize Cooperative Learning – This archaic pedagogical technique is a necessity in a BYOD environment. There will be some cases where supplemental school technology is not available. Developing lessons where collaborative groups are established and all students have equitable access to a mobile device to accomplish the learning outcome is a sound practice.Engage Parents - Prior to going BYOD parent meetings should be planned and held to discuss the initiative as well as outcomes and expectations. These conversations should also clearly outline how the issue of equity will be handled. Device envy is another issue that is commonly referenced by BYOD critics as a reason for not implementing BYOD. As children we all experienced some sort of envious situation in school. For me personally it is when I wanted Air Jordan sneakers and my parents bought me Converse. Sure, it didn’t make me feel good, but I learned to deal with it. Part of preparing our students for life is helping them to deal with envy in positive ways. As educators the last thing we want to do is make students feel bad about the type of device he/she has, but we also don’t want to use this excuse to exclude the potential of mobile learning. The best way to avoid any envious situation is to keep the focus on learning. Not only did we do this, but we also began signing out school owned technology to students who did not have access at all. When it was all said and done we never received one complaint from our parents on the equity or envy issues.
So what are your thoughts on the equity issue? Would you add any tips that I might have missed? For more BYOD resources visit this Pinterest board.
One issue that comes up frequently with BYOD initiatives is equity. The equity issue either haunts those who have or are in the process of going BYOD. There are other times, however, that this issue stops the initiative from moving forward. In any case the ones who suffer are our students. In today’s digital age, who are we to tell a student that he or she cannot bring their tools to class to support learning? Don’t get me wrong; equity is a real issue that needs to be addressed when rolling out or sustaining any BYOD initiative. It is our job as leaders and educators to provide the best possible learning environment for out students. With this being said the equity issue should not be seen as an obstacle or challenge that cannot be overcome. Instead of using this as an excuse, or allowing the naysayers to use this as ammunition to derail the initiative, it is our job to find applicable solutions in order to create schools that work for today’s learners. After all, it is not about our (adult) learning, but our students.
Image credit: www.securedgenetwork.comIn my community where we made the decision to roll out BYOD many years ago, we did so knowing full well that all of our students did not own a device. Through our planning we also discovered that some students had parents/guardians who would not allow them to bring them to school for fear of theft or breakage. Then there was a small group of students who flat out told us that they had no interest in using their technology in school to support learning. All of these challenges could have been excuses not to move forward, but we decided to find some solutions to benefit the majority while not excluding any student.
Any successful BYOD initiative should focus squarely on how students can use mobile devices to support their learning. If a lesson called for every student to use a device to demonstrate conceptual mastery aligned to a specific learning outcome it was our job to ensure this. Here are some practical tips that we utilized to ensure BYOD equity:
Know Your Students – Once a decision has been made to implement BYOD in your school/district and proper professional development has been provided find out who are the haves and have nots. One suggestion is to use Google Forms to curate this information. Going forward this will allow you to focus on those students who need access.Advance Planning – Notify students the day before that they will need to bring their device to class the following day if the learning activity calls for it. Supplement School Technology – If a learning activity calls for every student to have a device then it is imperative that supports are put in place. Students will either forget to bring their device, not have one, or chose not to bring it into school. A successful BYOD initiative has ample technology on hand to make sure all students have access to tools. Utilize Cooperative Learning – This archaic pedagogical technique is a necessity in a BYOD environment. There will be some cases where supplemental school technology is not available. Developing lessons where collaborative groups are established and all students have equitable access to a mobile device to accomplish the learning outcome is a sound practice.Engage Parents - Prior to going BYOD parent meetings should be planned and held to discuss the initiative as well as outcomes and expectations. These conversations should also clearly outline how the issue of equity will be handled. Device envy is another issue that is commonly referenced by BYOD critics as a reason for not implementing BYOD. As children we all experienced some sort of envious situation in school. For me personally it is when I wanted Air Jordan sneakers and my parents bought me Converse. Sure, it didn’t make me feel good, but I learned to deal with it. Part of preparing our students for life is helping them to deal with envy in positive ways. As educators the last thing we want to do is make students feel bad about the type of device he/she has, but we also don’t want to use this excuse to exclude the potential of mobile learning. The best way to avoid any envious situation is to keep the focus on learning. Not only did we do this, but we also began signing out school owned technology to students who did not have access at all. When it was all said and done we never received one complaint from our parents on the equity or envy issues.
So what are your thoughts on the equity issue? Would you add any tips that I might have missed? For more BYOD resources visit this Pinterest board.
February 8, 2015
Administrating Your School With Success Using A Multi-Functional Communication System
The following is a sponsored post by DialMyCalls.
If long lists of numbers and phone chains are still part of your school’s communication system, it is time for an upgrade. There are hundreds of people you may need to contact at any given time, and dozens of different groups. Luckily our modern technologies have included amazing communication systems that can make your important job of over seeing a school so much simpler.
General Messages
Are you still relying on notes sent home and paper calendars to let students and parents know what is happening in the upcoming year? If you set up a website for your school, all of that information can be kept in one place where a distracted student can’t lose it.
A comprehensive calendar can be set up to show school events and holidays for quick reference. You can even grant your teacher's access to post messages about necessary supplies and upcoming tests. A website lets school officials and families communicate effectively, and at their convenience.
Urgent Matters
Of course unplanned events happen with frequency at a school, and you need a quick method of contacting the affected individuals immediately. This is where a school notification system like DialMyCalls will become your communication central. All of the phone numbers your school needs to stay connected are stored in a central online database. Here they can be grouped into whatever categories you need, like teachers and staff and class by class. This makes it a breeze to pick out the right people you need to reach when time is critical.
DialMyCalls offers a variety of ways to communicate, depending on the situation:
Voice message: When you want to remind a class of parents about an upcoming field trip, or your teachers of tomorrow's meeting, you can record a message and then send it to their phones. The calls are made instantly through your account, and when answered, the right recipient will hear your message. Consider the time you save by only having to say your spiel once, instead of having to make repeated calls during your busy day.SMS text message: More and more people are relying on texts to communicate and now your school can too. Text messages get immediate attention when you have emergent information to share. Is snow causing your school to close early today? Let the parents know right away with an urgent text. An automated text message broadcast is the fastest way possible to get an important message across to hundreds at the same time.Email messages: You can all use a special email feature for when you just need to send gentle reminders. Maybe your PTA wants to let parents know about their fundraising schedule, or you need to make a change on the calendar. An email can be used to direct parents to your website to get any updates about the school.
With the right technology at your fingertips you can completely modernize the way your school communicates. There are dozens of issues that need your attention daily, make them your priority by making communication quick and easy.
If long lists of numbers and phone chains are still part of your school’s communication system, it is time for an upgrade. There are hundreds of people you may need to contact at any given time, and dozens of different groups. Luckily our modern technologies have included amazing communication systems that can make your important job of over seeing a school so much simpler.
General Messages
Are you still relying on notes sent home and paper calendars to let students and parents know what is happening in the upcoming year? If you set up a website for your school, all of that information can be kept in one place where a distracted student can’t lose it.
A comprehensive calendar can be set up to show school events and holidays for quick reference. You can even grant your teacher's access to post messages about necessary supplies and upcoming tests. A website lets school officials and families communicate effectively, and at their convenience.
Urgent Matters
Of course unplanned events happen with frequency at a school, and you need a quick method of contacting the affected individuals immediately. This is where a school notification system like DialMyCalls will become your communication central. All of the phone numbers your school needs to stay connected are stored in a central online database. Here they can be grouped into whatever categories you need, like teachers and staff and class by class. This makes it a breeze to pick out the right people you need to reach when time is critical.
DialMyCalls offers a variety of ways to communicate, depending on the situation:
Voice message: When you want to remind a class of parents about an upcoming field trip, or your teachers of tomorrow's meeting, you can record a message and then send it to their phones. The calls are made instantly through your account, and when answered, the right recipient will hear your message. Consider the time you save by only having to say your spiel once, instead of having to make repeated calls during your busy day.SMS text message: More and more people are relying on texts to communicate and now your school can too. Text messages get immediate attention when you have emergent information to share. Is snow causing your school to close early today? Let the parents know right away with an urgent text. An automated text message broadcast is the fastest way possible to get an important message across to hundreds at the same time.Email messages: You can all use a special email feature for when you just need to send gentle reminders. Maybe your PTA wants to let parents know about their fundraising schedule, or you need to make a change on the calendar. An email can be used to direct parents to your website to get any updates about the school.
With the right technology at your fingertips you can completely modernize the way your school communicates. There are dozens of issues that need your attention daily, make them your priority by making communication quick and easy.
February 1, 2015
Getting Digital Tools On Your Side: 4 Steps
This is the second post as part of an adapted article I co-authored, Real-World Ready: Leveraging Digital Tools
A few weeks back I shared ways that digital tools can improve teaching and learning. It goes without saying that the most important aspect of digital leadership is enhancing student learning while increasing achievement. Technology needs to be integrated with purpose in ways that support learning as opposed to driving instruction. A good rule to follow is pedagogy first, technology second when appropriate. Using technology just for the sake of it is an ineffective practice. Effective digital leaders understand this and through the observation and evaluation of instruction ensure that digital tools align to learning outcomes and are having an impact on student learning.
Image credit: http://www.robeson.k12.nc.us/cms/lib6...
The main driver of successful, effective teaching originates from educators who are scaffolding learning in relevant and strong ways. A grounding in the Rigor/Relevance Framework -- an action-oriented continuum that describes putting knowledge to use -- gives teachers a method for charting learning. This framework is based on traditional elements of education yet encourages movement from acquisition of knowledge to application of knowledge. Although digital tools themselves are no substitute for a clear framework, they can underpin it. No matter what digital tool is considered, introduced, or integrated into the classroom, capable teacher presence and teacher-centered instruction always belongs in the foreground.
How can you, as a school leader, take your understanding of the strengths behind some digital tools and create pathways for rigorous and relevant use of digital tools? Use the following best practices when assessing digital tools and their use in your school:
Prioritize Instructional Excellence : Technology can be an effective tool but it remains just that -- a tool. Educators provide the backbone of the student’s learning experience. A teacher should always have concrete answers to these questions:
What capabilities do I want my students to develop? In what specific ways is my instructional design rigorous and relevant? What are my benchmarks for rigor? relevance? relationships? creativity? inquiry? Armed with responses to these questions, a teacher can then go on to consider a specific digital tool, asking:
How does this digital tool provide a way towards full development of the capability I want to develop in my students? Is my teaching, using this tool, still just as structured, rigorous, and relevant as it would be without this tool? Identify Student Needs Around Use of Digital Tools : Information should not be confused with knowledge in evaluating digital tools. Knowledge is the recall of information, discovery, observation, or naming. Teachers should be able to define what knowledge (not information) students will need to apply when using a digital tool.
Create a Game Plan for Managing Student Use of Online Tools : It takes work and careful planning to implement the use of digital tools in defined ways. Before introducing a digital tool into a learning context, teachers should understand:
How he/she will be able to support students in using a tool that might be unfamiliarHow each student will be able to manage it independently How he/she will take advantage of students’ diversity and inclination towards building community online How students and instructor will connect across sometimes great distance Maximize Opportunities for Diverse Forms of Feedback : Rather than relying on feedback or evaluation models suited to older models of assignments, have teachers ask:
How will this online tool allow me to hone in on each student’s thought process and provide targeted, formative feedback that can be immediately and usefully applied? How can my feedback help pave the way for next steps in learning and in reaching established, articulated, or modeled goals?Educational landscape and digital landscape have become inherently intertwined. Learners are teachers alike are enmeshed in digital life and need effective, specific ways to best use digital tools in rigorous and relevant ways. Educators must be able to develop and enact rigorous, relevant instructional methods and formats, while learning about and using effective digital tools to underpin their instruction. As long as educators are clear about the learning objectives, digital tools can be a powerful supporting tool.
A few weeks back I shared ways that digital tools can improve teaching and learning. It goes without saying that the most important aspect of digital leadership is enhancing student learning while increasing achievement. Technology needs to be integrated with purpose in ways that support learning as opposed to driving instruction. A good rule to follow is pedagogy first, technology second when appropriate. Using technology just for the sake of it is an ineffective practice. Effective digital leaders understand this and through the observation and evaluation of instruction ensure that digital tools align to learning outcomes and are having an impact on student learning.
Image credit: http://www.robeson.k12.nc.us/cms/lib6...The main driver of successful, effective teaching originates from educators who are scaffolding learning in relevant and strong ways. A grounding in the Rigor/Relevance Framework -- an action-oriented continuum that describes putting knowledge to use -- gives teachers a method for charting learning. This framework is based on traditional elements of education yet encourages movement from acquisition of knowledge to application of knowledge. Although digital tools themselves are no substitute for a clear framework, they can underpin it. No matter what digital tool is considered, introduced, or integrated into the classroom, capable teacher presence and teacher-centered instruction always belongs in the foreground.
How can you, as a school leader, take your understanding of the strengths behind some digital tools and create pathways for rigorous and relevant use of digital tools? Use the following best practices when assessing digital tools and their use in your school:
Prioritize Instructional Excellence : Technology can be an effective tool but it remains just that -- a tool. Educators provide the backbone of the student’s learning experience. A teacher should always have concrete answers to these questions:
What capabilities do I want my students to develop? In what specific ways is my instructional design rigorous and relevant? What are my benchmarks for rigor? relevance? relationships? creativity? inquiry? Armed with responses to these questions, a teacher can then go on to consider a specific digital tool, asking:
How does this digital tool provide a way towards full development of the capability I want to develop in my students? Is my teaching, using this tool, still just as structured, rigorous, and relevant as it would be without this tool? Identify Student Needs Around Use of Digital Tools : Information should not be confused with knowledge in evaluating digital tools. Knowledge is the recall of information, discovery, observation, or naming. Teachers should be able to define what knowledge (not information) students will need to apply when using a digital tool.
Create a Game Plan for Managing Student Use of Online Tools : It takes work and careful planning to implement the use of digital tools in defined ways. Before introducing a digital tool into a learning context, teachers should understand:
How he/she will be able to support students in using a tool that might be unfamiliarHow each student will be able to manage it independently How he/she will take advantage of students’ diversity and inclination towards building community online How students and instructor will connect across sometimes great distance Maximize Opportunities for Diverse Forms of Feedback : Rather than relying on feedback or evaluation models suited to older models of assignments, have teachers ask:
How will this online tool allow me to hone in on each student’s thought process and provide targeted, formative feedback that can be immediately and usefully applied? How can my feedback help pave the way for next steps in learning and in reaching established, articulated, or modeled goals?Educational landscape and digital landscape have become inherently intertwined. Learners are teachers alike are enmeshed in digital life and need effective, specific ways to best use digital tools in rigorous and relevant ways. Educators must be able to develop and enact rigorous, relevant instructional methods and formats, while learning about and using effective digital tools to underpin their instruction. As long as educators are clear about the learning objectives, digital tools can be a powerful supporting tool.
January 25, 2015
Leading Schools of the Future
Portions of this post are adapted from the Future Ready Schools website with permission.
Advances in technology continue to impact society in amazing ways. The evolution of the Internet allows anyone with access the ability to communicate, collaborate, acquire information, and learn with anyone, at anytime, and from anywhere. Learners today have embraced this digital world and have begun to explore their passions in ways never imagined. They thrive in this world and find relevancy and value through a variety of experiences that technology provides. Growing up in a digital world has expanded their creative boundaries while motivating them to be self-directed learners. With the changes in technology, virtually every facet of society has adapted in some way, with one major exception – schools.
Image credit: http://www.schooloffinehearts.net/201...
The structure and function of the majority of schools in this country is the exact opposite of the world that our learners are growing up in. There is an automatic disconnect when students, regardless of their grade level, walk into schools due to the lack of engagement, relevancy, meaning, and authentic learning opportunities. Our education system has become so efficient in sustaining a century old model because it is easy and safe. The resulting conformity has resulted in a learning epidemic among our students as they see so little value in the cookie-cutter learning exercises they are forced to go through each day. The bottom line is that they are bored. It is time that we create schools that work for our students as opposed to ones that have traditionally worked well for the adults. Schools and districts need digital leadership.
Digital leadership takes into account recent changes such as ubiquitous connectivity, open-source technology, mobile devices, and personalization. It represents a dramatic shift from how schools have been run and structured for over a century, as what started out as a personal use of technology has become systemic to every facet of leadership. Digital leadership can thus be defined as establishing direction, influencing others, and initiating sustainable change through the access to information, and establishing relationships in order to anticipate changes pivotal to school success in the future. It requires a dynamic combination of mindset, behaviors, and skills that are employed to change and/or enhance school culture through the assistance of technology.
Creating schools that work for students requires digital leaders who articulate a bold vision for change that not only tackles the status quo embedded in the industrialized model of education, but also one that sees the inherent value of technology to enhance the teaching and learning process. We need to realize that many traditional elements associated with education no longer prevail. How we go about doing this will vary from school to school or district to district, but the process begins with the simple notion of putting students first to allow them to follow their passions, create, tinker, invent, play, and collaborate. Schools that work for students focus less on control and more on trust.
Future ready schools are those focused on learning in a digital age and prepare students for the world of today and of the future. The culture of these future ready schools is based on building a leadership team, establishing a coherent vision for change, developing a systematic action plan, modeling for leaders effective and efficient ways to leverage digital tools to increase effectiveness, and modeling for teachers how to harness tools to support students’ learning. Working smarter, not harder, by discovering natural complements to the work already being done enhances outcomes.
Digital Leadership and Future Ready
Recently the U.S. Department of Education and the Alliance for Excellent Education announced Future Ready Schools (FRS), which aligns seamlessly with the Pillars of Digital Leadership. FRS is a free, bold new effort to maximize digital learning opportunities and help school districts move quickly toward preparing students for success in college, a career, and citizenship. Future Ready provides districts with resources and support to ensure that local technology and digital learning plans align with instructional best practices, are implemented by highly trained teachers, and lead to personalized learning experiences for all students, particularly those from traditionally under-served communities. If your district has not taken the pledge yet please do so by clicking HERE. There will also be a series of free summits for district leadership teams to attend. Leadership is central to the FRS effort. As a coalition partner ICLE is uniquely positioned to assist leaders in transforming their districts to be Future Ready.
The Time is Now
This effort comes at a critical time as districts embrace college and career readiness as the goal for all students and recognize the potential of digital tools to help teachers personalize learning for each student. While less than 30 percent of U.S. schools have the bandwidth they need to teach using today’s technology, federal and state efforts are expanding this capacity to ensure that at least 99 percent of the nation’s students have access to high-speed internet in their schools within the next five years. Such connectivity, along with strategic planning by districts to maximize its availability, has the potential to transform the educational experiences of all students, regardless of their background. Will your district be ready for this transition?” District leaders must respond to these changes with thoughtful planning to align necessary technologies with instructional goals to support teaching and learning.
For more on Future Ready, visit www.FutureReadySchools.org.
Advances in technology continue to impact society in amazing ways. The evolution of the Internet allows anyone with access the ability to communicate, collaborate, acquire information, and learn with anyone, at anytime, and from anywhere. Learners today have embraced this digital world and have begun to explore their passions in ways never imagined. They thrive in this world and find relevancy and value through a variety of experiences that technology provides. Growing up in a digital world has expanded their creative boundaries while motivating them to be self-directed learners. With the changes in technology, virtually every facet of society has adapted in some way, with one major exception – schools.
Image credit: http://www.schooloffinehearts.net/201...The structure and function of the majority of schools in this country is the exact opposite of the world that our learners are growing up in. There is an automatic disconnect when students, regardless of their grade level, walk into schools due to the lack of engagement, relevancy, meaning, and authentic learning opportunities. Our education system has become so efficient in sustaining a century old model because it is easy and safe. The resulting conformity has resulted in a learning epidemic among our students as they see so little value in the cookie-cutter learning exercises they are forced to go through each day. The bottom line is that they are bored. It is time that we create schools that work for our students as opposed to ones that have traditionally worked well for the adults. Schools and districts need digital leadership.
Digital leadership takes into account recent changes such as ubiquitous connectivity, open-source technology, mobile devices, and personalization. It represents a dramatic shift from how schools have been run and structured for over a century, as what started out as a personal use of technology has become systemic to every facet of leadership. Digital leadership can thus be defined as establishing direction, influencing others, and initiating sustainable change through the access to information, and establishing relationships in order to anticipate changes pivotal to school success in the future. It requires a dynamic combination of mindset, behaviors, and skills that are employed to change and/or enhance school culture through the assistance of technology.
Creating schools that work for students requires digital leaders who articulate a bold vision for change that not only tackles the status quo embedded in the industrialized model of education, but also one that sees the inherent value of technology to enhance the teaching and learning process. We need to realize that many traditional elements associated with education no longer prevail. How we go about doing this will vary from school to school or district to district, but the process begins with the simple notion of putting students first to allow them to follow their passions, create, tinker, invent, play, and collaborate. Schools that work for students focus less on control and more on trust.
Future ready schools are those focused on learning in a digital age and prepare students for the world of today and of the future. The culture of these future ready schools is based on building a leadership team, establishing a coherent vision for change, developing a systematic action plan, modeling for leaders effective and efficient ways to leverage digital tools to increase effectiveness, and modeling for teachers how to harness tools to support students’ learning. Working smarter, not harder, by discovering natural complements to the work already being done enhances outcomes.
Digital Leadership and Future Ready
Recently the U.S. Department of Education and the Alliance for Excellent Education announced Future Ready Schools (FRS), which aligns seamlessly with the Pillars of Digital Leadership. FRS is a free, bold new effort to maximize digital learning opportunities and help school districts move quickly toward preparing students for success in college, a career, and citizenship. Future Ready provides districts with resources and support to ensure that local technology and digital learning plans align with instructional best practices, are implemented by highly trained teachers, and lead to personalized learning experiences for all students, particularly those from traditionally under-served communities. If your district has not taken the pledge yet please do so by clicking HERE. There will also be a series of free summits for district leadership teams to attend. Leadership is central to the FRS effort. As a coalition partner ICLE is uniquely positioned to assist leaders in transforming their districts to be Future Ready.
The Time is Now
This effort comes at a critical time as districts embrace college and career readiness as the goal for all students and recognize the potential of digital tools to help teachers personalize learning for each student. While less than 30 percent of U.S. schools have the bandwidth they need to teach using today’s technology, federal and state efforts are expanding this capacity to ensure that at least 99 percent of the nation’s students have access to high-speed internet in their schools within the next five years. Such connectivity, along with strategic planning by districts to maximize its availability, has the potential to transform the educational experiences of all students, regardless of their background. Will your district be ready for this transition?” District leaders must respond to these changes with thoughtful planning to align necessary technologies with instructional goals to support teaching and learning.
For more on Future Ready, visit www.FutureReadySchools.org.
January 18, 2015
How Digital Tools Improve Teaching and Learning
Adapted from an article I co-authored, Real-World Ready: Leveraging Digital Tools
Digital tools are transforming essential elements of the education space. Understanding how they are impacting teaching and learning will help guide your consideration of which tools are useful and how to best implement them.
Image retrieved from https://l2lbyte.wordpress.com/learning-videos/
Currently, online tools....
Increase collaboration: Just as social media has given rise to new definitions of community, digital tools are transforming community and the give-and-take between students and teachers. Platforms for web-based discussion threads and creation of course or class wikis alter the types of student involvements in project-based and writing-specific assignments. A piece of student writing can become a diverse and substantive document when it is the basis for a step-by-step exchange of ideas and questions between teacher, peers, authors, and mentors. When digital tools are integrated in a pedagogically sound fashion they also promote and enhance other essential skills sets such as communication, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, digital literacy, entrepreneurship, global awareness, and digital responsibility/citizenship.Innovate assessment: As formats and contexts for assignments evolve, the methods of assessment has had to keep pace. The openness of the online environment and the integration of such things as game attributes, shape all kinds of assessment, especially formative assessment, which measures learning progress (not only endpoints in learning). Enable learning about information and research: Research projects will always require substantive research, accurate and relevant synthesis, and defined audience-oriented approaches. However, in an information-saturated world, students are drawing on tools that help them analyze and understand multiple representations from a range of disciplines and subjects, such as texts, data, and photographs.Transform time-frames around learning: In many instances, digital tools offer an asynchronous (not simultaneous) environment for response and inquiry not present in brick-and mortar environments. Written and video discussions online can enable diverse views, opportunities for collaboration, and time to think and plan before responding in ways that in-class discussions do not provide. This is true for both online classrooms as well as “blended” classrooms, those integrating online and digital tools into a traditional learning setting.Ownership of learning: According to John Dewey, the type of activities that stimulate real involvement "give pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking, or the intentional noting of connections; learning naturally results". There are thousands of free digital tools available that promote the art of doing. Students can now pick the best ones in order to create an artifact that demonstrates conceptual mastery through the construction of new knowledge as well as the acquisition and application of essential skill sets. The process of choice increases engagement, authenticity, and ultimately more value in the learning process. Unleash the power of digital tools and empower students to take ownership of their learning.By no means is this list exhaustive. With that being said, what would you add? How do you see digital tools transforming teaching and learning?
Digital tools are transforming essential elements of the education space. Understanding how they are impacting teaching and learning will help guide your consideration of which tools are useful and how to best implement them.
Image retrieved from https://l2lbyte.wordpress.com/learning-videos/Currently, online tools....
Increase collaboration: Just as social media has given rise to new definitions of community, digital tools are transforming community and the give-and-take between students and teachers. Platforms for web-based discussion threads and creation of course or class wikis alter the types of student involvements in project-based and writing-specific assignments. A piece of student writing can become a diverse and substantive document when it is the basis for a step-by-step exchange of ideas and questions between teacher, peers, authors, and mentors. When digital tools are integrated in a pedagogically sound fashion they also promote and enhance other essential skills sets such as communication, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, digital literacy, entrepreneurship, global awareness, and digital responsibility/citizenship.Innovate assessment: As formats and contexts for assignments evolve, the methods of assessment has had to keep pace. The openness of the online environment and the integration of such things as game attributes, shape all kinds of assessment, especially formative assessment, which measures learning progress (not only endpoints in learning). Enable learning about information and research: Research projects will always require substantive research, accurate and relevant synthesis, and defined audience-oriented approaches. However, in an information-saturated world, students are drawing on tools that help them analyze and understand multiple representations from a range of disciplines and subjects, such as texts, data, and photographs.Transform time-frames around learning: In many instances, digital tools offer an asynchronous (not simultaneous) environment for response and inquiry not present in brick-and mortar environments. Written and video discussions online can enable diverse views, opportunities for collaboration, and time to think and plan before responding in ways that in-class discussions do not provide. This is true for both online classrooms as well as “blended” classrooms, those integrating online and digital tools into a traditional learning setting.Ownership of learning: According to John Dewey, the type of activities that stimulate real involvement "give pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking, or the intentional noting of connections; learning naturally results". There are thousands of free digital tools available that promote the art of doing. Students can now pick the best ones in order to create an artifact that demonstrates conceptual mastery through the construction of new knowledge as well as the acquisition and application of essential skill sets. The process of choice increases engagement, authenticity, and ultimately more value in the learning process. Unleash the power of digital tools and empower students to take ownership of their learning.By no means is this list exhaustive. With that being said, what would you add? How do you see digital tools transforming teaching and learning?
January 11, 2015
The Drivers of a Successful BYOD Initiative
Technology seems to be more accessible that ever before. It is common to walk into a typical household these days and see a variety of devices being charged. One of the first things I look for when I go to a friend’s house is whether or not any charging cables are readily available in case I need one. Even when we entertain guests I will go to charge my iPhone and find that someone has already commandeered my charger, much to my chagrin. Many other people regularly take some sort of charging apparatus with them wherever they go. Access to technology is by no means isolated to only adults. As devices have become more affordable over the years, parents have bestowed a variety of mobile technologies upon their children. We really are living in a digital age.
As a result of the advances in technology and an increase in Wi-Fi access, schools have slowly begun to respond to this trend. The realization now is that many students possess devices and it only makes sense to harness and leverage their immense power. For many, even the most stubborn school districts that have fought this trend for years have begun to change course. All one has to do is look to the largest school district in the United States, the New York City public school system, to see that they have just lifted a ten year ban on students bringing their cell phones to school. The potential is there for schools and educators to empower students to take more ownership of their learning. This has resulted in a growing trend of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives being adopted. This has been the preferred option as opposed to 1:1 initiatives due to overall cost. However, many schools and districts that have adopted BYOD have done so without proper planning and support.
The overall goal of any BYOD initiative should be to support and enhance student learning. It should not be implemented as a way to just pacify students by allowing them to use their devices only during non-instructional time or to eliminate discipline issues. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that these are two important outcomes of BYOD, but firmly believe that student-owned devices in school have to be aligned to learning outcomes first and foremost. Other important outcomes on behalf of the student include increasing productivity, conducting better research, becoming more digitally literate, and developing into a digitally responsible citizen. BYOD begins with trusting and respecting students. The fact remains though that the cart is too often placed before the horse. A rash decision is made to go BYOD without a sound rationale for how it will impact student learning. The following are key drivers of a successful BYOD initiative:
Infrastructure – Herein lies a common pitfall for many schools/districts that implement BYOD. Before going any further it is pivotal to ensure that the plumbing can withstand the stress of mobile technologies accessing the Wi-Fi network. You need to expect that there will be more devices connected to the network on a given day than there are students. Not only will some students bring in more than one device, but you have to account for staff member access as well. There is nothing worse than developing and implementing a lesson that integrates mobile learning devices than to have the Internet slowed down to a snail’s pace. Or even worse, the network crashes or begins to negatively impact teachers and students using school-owned mobile technology.Shared Vision – This is extremely important, as you will have staff and community members on both sides of the fence. Before going full steam ahead with BYOD, gather key stakeholders to establish a shared vision that includes rationale, goals, expected outcomes, expectations, and means to assess the effectiveness of the initiative. Central to a BYOD vision is a consistent focus on student learning.Strategic Plan – The shared vision that is created by all stakeholder representatives, including students, will drive a plan for action. As is the case in any successful initiative, sound planning is imperative. During the planning process one must consider community outreach, budget allocations to improve existing infrastructure, policies, professional development (teacher and administrator), student trainings, and evaluation procedures (i.e. How do I know that this is impacting student learning?). Sound pedagogy must be at the heart of any BYOD initiative. To assist in this area check out these mobile learning frameworks.
Policy Development – Part of the strategic planning process will be to develop policies and procedures relating to BYOD. It is important that the resulting artifacts are not too overbearing and afford students the opportunity to be trusted and empowered to take ownership of their learning. A sound policy addresses Wi-Fi login procedures, a focus on learning, acceptable use, and absolving the school of any liability for lost, stolen, or broken devices. Professional Development – As I work with schools and districts across the country on BYOD initiatives, I can honestly say that this is one area where mistakes are made. Teachers need proper support in terms of developing pedagogically sound lessons, designing assessments aligned to higher standards, exposure to web-based tools and apps that cater to BYOD, ensuring equity, and developing classroom procedures. Prior to rolling out a school or district-wide BYOD initiative, teachers should know full well what the outcomes are as articulated in the shared vision and have a set of tools and instructional strategies that can be used on the first day. Another key to success is ongoing professional development to provide teachers with additional strategies and ideas so that devices are used to support learning. In addition to teachers, leaders also need professional development in regards to the observation and evaluation process. They are the ones after all that have to make sure that mobile devices are being used properly to support learning while addressing higher standards. Before implementing BYOD as a school or district make sure professional development has been provided to teachers and administrators. Student Programs – Students themselves need a form of professional development on the expectations and outcomes of device use. Successful initiatives contain an embedded component that includes educational programs for students before a BYOD initiative is rolled out and ones that are continued each year. These programs, which can be held once in the beginning of the school year, focus on how devices should be used to support learning as well as digital responsibility. As principal, I held annual assemblies in the early fall for each grade level, which focused on cyberbullying, creating positive digital footprints, and the tenets of our BYOD program. The end result was that our students embraced the shared vision and device use was more focused on learning than off-task behavior. We were also in a better position to give up control and trust our kids.Budget allocations - Although BYOD initiatives are a cost-effective means to increase student access to technology in school, there are solutions available to help streamline teaching and learning devices. ClassLink Launchpad is a fantastic learning management system (LMS) that can be purchased to deliver a uniform experience across all devices in order to assist with the teaching and learning. With ClassLink students and teachers can access a customized dashboard that is pre-loaded with a variety of tools that are used on a regular basis. Some teachers have even used it to help transform their classroom to paperless environments.By focusing on these drivers BYOD can be implemented successfully in your school or district with the primary focus being on student learning. For the latest BYOD resources and tools check out this Pinterest board. Please consider sharing your thoughts on the advantages and perils associated with BYOD. By openly discussing both sides of the issue we can crowd source the best set of drivers to ensure BYOD success.
As a result of the advances in technology and an increase in Wi-Fi access, schools have slowly begun to respond to this trend. The realization now is that many students possess devices and it only makes sense to harness and leverage their immense power. For many, even the most stubborn school districts that have fought this trend for years have begun to change course. All one has to do is look to the largest school district in the United States, the New York City public school system, to see that they have just lifted a ten year ban on students bringing their cell phones to school. The potential is there for schools and educators to empower students to take more ownership of their learning. This has resulted in a growing trend of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives being adopted. This has been the preferred option as opposed to 1:1 initiatives due to overall cost. However, many schools and districts that have adopted BYOD have done so without proper planning and support.
The overall goal of any BYOD initiative should be to support and enhance student learning. It should not be implemented as a way to just pacify students by allowing them to use their devices only during non-instructional time or to eliminate discipline issues. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that these are two important outcomes of BYOD, but firmly believe that student-owned devices in school have to be aligned to learning outcomes first and foremost. Other important outcomes on behalf of the student include increasing productivity, conducting better research, becoming more digitally literate, and developing into a digitally responsible citizen. BYOD begins with trusting and respecting students. The fact remains though that the cart is too often placed before the horse. A rash decision is made to go BYOD without a sound rationale for how it will impact student learning. The following are key drivers of a successful BYOD initiative:
Infrastructure – Herein lies a common pitfall for many schools/districts that implement BYOD. Before going any further it is pivotal to ensure that the plumbing can withstand the stress of mobile technologies accessing the Wi-Fi network. You need to expect that there will be more devices connected to the network on a given day than there are students. Not only will some students bring in more than one device, but you have to account for staff member access as well. There is nothing worse than developing and implementing a lesson that integrates mobile learning devices than to have the Internet slowed down to a snail’s pace. Or even worse, the network crashes or begins to negatively impact teachers and students using school-owned mobile technology.Shared Vision – This is extremely important, as you will have staff and community members on both sides of the fence. Before going full steam ahead with BYOD, gather key stakeholders to establish a shared vision that includes rationale, goals, expected outcomes, expectations, and means to assess the effectiveness of the initiative. Central to a BYOD vision is a consistent focus on student learning.Strategic Plan – The shared vision that is created by all stakeholder representatives, including students, will drive a plan for action. As is the case in any successful initiative, sound planning is imperative. During the planning process one must consider community outreach, budget allocations to improve existing infrastructure, policies, professional development (teacher and administrator), student trainings, and evaluation procedures (i.e. How do I know that this is impacting student learning?). Sound pedagogy must be at the heart of any BYOD initiative. To assist in this area check out these mobile learning frameworks.
Policy Development – Part of the strategic planning process will be to develop policies and procedures relating to BYOD. It is important that the resulting artifacts are not too overbearing and afford students the opportunity to be trusted and empowered to take ownership of their learning. A sound policy addresses Wi-Fi login procedures, a focus on learning, acceptable use, and absolving the school of any liability for lost, stolen, or broken devices. Professional Development – As I work with schools and districts across the country on BYOD initiatives, I can honestly say that this is one area where mistakes are made. Teachers need proper support in terms of developing pedagogically sound lessons, designing assessments aligned to higher standards, exposure to web-based tools and apps that cater to BYOD, ensuring equity, and developing classroom procedures. Prior to rolling out a school or district-wide BYOD initiative, teachers should know full well what the outcomes are as articulated in the shared vision and have a set of tools and instructional strategies that can be used on the first day. Another key to success is ongoing professional development to provide teachers with additional strategies and ideas so that devices are used to support learning. In addition to teachers, leaders also need professional development in regards to the observation and evaluation process. They are the ones after all that have to make sure that mobile devices are being used properly to support learning while addressing higher standards. Before implementing BYOD as a school or district make sure professional development has been provided to teachers and administrators. Student Programs – Students themselves need a form of professional development on the expectations and outcomes of device use. Successful initiatives contain an embedded component that includes educational programs for students before a BYOD initiative is rolled out and ones that are continued each year. These programs, which can be held once in the beginning of the school year, focus on how devices should be used to support learning as well as digital responsibility. As principal, I held annual assemblies in the early fall for each grade level, which focused on cyberbullying, creating positive digital footprints, and the tenets of our BYOD program. The end result was that our students embraced the shared vision and device use was more focused on learning than off-task behavior. We were also in a better position to give up control and trust our kids.Budget allocations - Although BYOD initiatives are a cost-effective means to increase student access to technology in school, there are solutions available to help streamline teaching and learning devices. ClassLink Launchpad is a fantastic learning management system (LMS) that can be purchased to deliver a uniform experience across all devices in order to assist with the teaching and learning. With ClassLink students and teachers can access a customized dashboard that is pre-loaded with a variety of tools that are used on a regular basis. Some teachers have even used it to help transform their classroom to paperless environments.By focusing on these drivers BYOD can be implemented successfully in your school or district with the primary focus being on student learning. For the latest BYOD resources and tools check out this Pinterest board. Please consider sharing your thoughts on the advantages and perils associated with BYOD. By openly discussing both sides of the issue we can crowd source the best set of drivers to ensure BYOD success.January 4, 2015
Leading the Maker Movement
Over the past year more and more schools across the globe have embraced the concept of making to learn. This phenomenon trickled into schools as the Maker Movement became more popular and natural connections to learning became quite evident. To begin to understand the educational value of making we must look at the roots of this movement. A recent article in Newsweek sums it up nicely:
Image credit: http://www.inside3dp.com/wp-content/u...
As the Maker Movement has gained steams schools and educators alike have begun to incorporate makerspaces as exploratory centers for students to invent, tinker, create, and make to learn. A makerspace can best be defined as a physical place where students can create real-world products/projects using real-world tools. In 2013 I was fortunate enough to hire media specialist/teacher librarian Laura Fleming, who took the initiative to create a makerspace in our school. Through her work I discovered some guiding principles that might just help you begin to create a makerspace in your school or integrate the process of making across the curriculum. It is first important to understand three underlying qualities that essential in ensuring that students make to learn:
Making is a process – As with any process, making requires the ability for educators to give up control and trust students. It can be messy and unpredictable, but the products students create, problems they solve, and questions they answer become learning relevant learning experiences they value. Making is guided by a student’s natural inquiry and self-directed learning. Specific skills are require of students, the first of which is knowing what tool to use and how to use it safely. The second involves problem-solving and diagnostic skills that are required to figure out why something won’t work, come up with a creative solution, and not get frustrated. The right educator makes the difference – The process of making requires patience on behalf of an educator who will not have all the answers nor know how to help students out every time they experience a problem. This is quite ok as it is near impossible for someone to have all of the required content knowledge to assist students as they make to learn. The right educator helps students diagnose a problem so that they can create a solution. He or she guides students through the inevitable highs and lows of making something while tying the process and embedded concepts of various maker projects to different content areas. This educator understands that there needs to be a fundamental shift from transmitting knowledge to enabling a student to create his/her own solution. The right person is a coach, models when necessary, and has the mindset of a maker educator.
Image credit: http://usergeneratededucation.wordpre... Identify the perfect space – This can be a challenge as available areas to set up a makerspace in many schools are few and far between. The perfect space must encourage creativity and support the idea that anything is possible. It should contain comfortable seating, have limited rules and control, be flexible, have ubiquitous access to WiFi and technology, and infuse prompts and guides to promote inquiry. Possibilities include the library/media center, classrooms, or a common area of the school. You can even develop a pop-up makerspace or a makerspace on a cart. The possibilities are only limited to your imagination. Once you understand the essential qualities to create the perfect makerspace or environment for your students it is time to begin planning. There is no need to reinvent the wheel here are there are many resources available. For a curated list of online resources related to makerspaces check out this Pinterest board. To learn more in depth about the concepts associated with making be sure to purchase the book Invent to Learn by Gary Stager and Sylvia Martinez. Laura Fleming's World's of Making website has everything you need to get started, including suggested items to outfit the space with. She also has generated a step-by-step flow chart pictured below that will assist you in your makerspace planning.
For a maker culture to succeed and thrive in a school, leadership matters. I learned some of these lessons unbeknownst to me as they were only brought to my attention after making to learn became an embedded component of our school culture. Selecting the right person to lead the initiative is pivotal. Once that is done give him or her the autonomy to make decisions related to the space and process. Ensure that there is a mutual understanding of the freedom to execute on innovative ideas and create a space that is always in a state of controlled chaos. Provide encouragement every step of the way, as there will be times when equipment does not work or fellow colleagues attempt to undermine the process due to their own insecurities. Finally, make sure there is an allocated budget for the maker educator to establish a space that attracts students. In simple terms, get out of the way.
THE MAKER MOVEMENT is a global community of inventors, designers, engineers, artists, programmers, hackers, tinkerers, craftsmen and DIY’ers—the kind of people who share a quality that Larry Rosenstock says “leads to learning [and]…to innovation,” a perennial curiosity “about how they could do it better the next time.” The design cycle is all about reiteration, trying something again and again until it works, and then, once it works, making it better. As manufacturing tools continue to become better, cheaper and more accessible, the Maker Movement is gaining momentum at an unprecedented rate. Over the past few years, so-called “makerspaces” have cropped up in cities and small towns worldwide—often in affiliation with libraries, museums and other community centers, as well as in public and independent schools—giving more people of all ages access to mentorship, programs and tools like 3-D printers and scanners, laser cutters, microcontrollers and design software.
Image credit: http://www.inside3dp.com/wp-content/u...As the Maker Movement has gained steams schools and educators alike have begun to incorporate makerspaces as exploratory centers for students to invent, tinker, create, and make to learn. A makerspace can best be defined as a physical place where students can create real-world products/projects using real-world tools. In 2013 I was fortunate enough to hire media specialist/teacher librarian Laura Fleming, who took the initiative to create a makerspace in our school. Through her work I discovered some guiding principles that might just help you begin to create a makerspace in your school or integrate the process of making across the curriculum. It is first important to understand three underlying qualities that essential in ensuring that students make to learn:
Making is a process – As with any process, making requires the ability for educators to give up control and trust students. It can be messy and unpredictable, but the products students create, problems they solve, and questions they answer become learning relevant learning experiences they value. Making is guided by a student’s natural inquiry and self-directed learning. Specific skills are require of students, the first of which is knowing what tool to use and how to use it safely. The second involves problem-solving and diagnostic skills that are required to figure out why something won’t work, come up with a creative solution, and not get frustrated. The right educator makes the difference – The process of making requires patience on behalf of an educator who will not have all the answers nor know how to help students out every time they experience a problem. This is quite ok as it is near impossible for someone to have all of the required content knowledge to assist students as they make to learn. The right educator helps students diagnose a problem so that they can create a solution. He or she guides students through the inevitable highs and lows of making something while tying the process and embedded concepts of various maker projects to different content areas. This educator understands that there needs to be a fundamental shift from transmitting knowledge to enabling a student to create his/her own solution. The right person is a coach, models when necessary, and has the mindset of a maker educator.
Image credit: http://usergeneratededucation.wordpre... Identify the perfect space – This can be a challenge as available areas to set up a makerspace in many schools are few and far between. The perfect space must encourage creativity and support the idea that anything is possible. It should contain comfortable seating, have limited rules and control, be flexible, have ubiquitous access to WiFi and technology, and infuse prompts and guides to promote inquiry. Possibilities include the library/media center, classrooms, or a common area of the school. You can even develop a pop-up makerspace or a makerspace on a cart. The possibilities are only limited to your imagination. Once you understand the essential qualities to create the perfect makerspace or environment for your students it is time to begin planning. There is no need to reinvent the wheel here are there are many resources available. For a curated list of online resources related to makerspaces check out this Pinterest board. To learn more in depth about the concepts associated with making be sure to purchase the book Invent to Learn by Gary Stager and Sylvia Martinez. Laura Fleming's World's of Making website has everything you need to get started, including suggested items to outfit the space with. She also has generated a step-by-step flow chart pictured below that will assist you in your makerspace planning. For a maker culture to succeed and thrive in a school, leadership matters. I learned some of these lessons unbeknownst to me as they were only brought to my attention after making to learn became an embedded component of our school culture. Selecting the right person to lead the initiative is pivotal. Once that is done give him or her the autonomy to make decisions related to the space and process. Ensure that there is a mutual understanding of the freedom to execute on innovative ideas and create a space that is always in a state of controlled chaos. Provide encouragement every step of the way, as there will be times when equipment does not work or fellow colleagues attempt to undermine the process due to their own insecurities. Finally, make sure there is an allocated budget for the maker educator to establish a space that attracts students. In simple terms, get out of the way.
December 28, 2014
2014 Was One Wild Ride
The holidays present a wonderful opportunity for many of us, including me for once, to relax from the rigors of work while spending time with family and friends. However, there is always some quiet time to write so I am seizing that golden opportunity this morning. With 2014 coming to a close in a few days there is no better time than now to reflect on this past year. The year began like so many others had in the past with me as Principal of New Milford High School. There was never any thought in my head that I wouldn't finish my career in this position, let alone the year. I can honestly say that I could not have predicted many of the dramatic changes to my professional life that would transpire late in the year.
Image credit: http://www.patrasevents.gr/imgsrv/f/f...
The one thing I have learned though since I began my social media journey almost six years ago is that we no longer follow a predetermined path. What was once unfathomable in my professional role has become a reality. What is even more crazy has been the successful implementation of initiatives, taking control of my own learning, and professional accomplishments that I never believed were possible. Social media really did open up a door to a whole new world that I never knew existed. The best part of this new world were the endless possibilities to improving professional practice and school culture. This year was no different in strengthening my resolve to lead without fear, learn collaboratively with a global network of passionate educators, and be the change I wished to see in education (with the help of many of you). Here are some professional highlights from 2014:Digital Leadership was published by Corwin on January 14, 2014. This was my first solo effort at authoring a book. In a little less than three months it became a Corwin best-seller. Being an author is still a shock to me as I never, ever thought I could write even a blog post, let alone three books.NMHS teachers began to earn digital badges in earnest as a way to gain acknowledgment for their informal learning. On February 27, 2014, CBS Channel 2 NYC visited NMHS and did a nice feature on our makerspace, which aired during the five o'clock news. Media specialist/teacher librarian Laura Fleming spearheaded this initiative in the fall of 2013 and the makerspace really hit it's stride around this time.In late March NMHS student Sarah Almeda created the best student projects I had ever seen during my tenure as principal. Not only did she articulate the importance of creativity in learning, but she also challenged the entire education system from a student's perspective. You can read about the project and view the video HERE.During the late spring we had hosted our 30th school visit to NMHS. These unsolicited visits were a result of our continuous efforts to share what was truly possible in education and how we created a school that worked better for students than adults. Most of the visits were from schools and educators across the Northeast, but there was one other significant guest who would forever alter my career path. More on this later.CBS Channel 2 NYC visited NMHS again on May 16, 2014. This time they did a feature on the 3D virtual learning initiative we were working on.Near the end of the school year in June I published one of my most popular blog posts to date that provided insight on the successful implementation of 13 specific change initiatives at NMHS.On July 9, 2014, I officially announced my decision to step down as Principal of New Milford High School. This was the hardest professional decision I ever had to make. After Scholastic visited in the spring, conversations began about a potential position with the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE). It was at this point that I chose to go down a new path and assist more educators to experience what is possible in education. My last day as Principal was September 3, 2014. The next day I received the best gift an educator could ever wish for from NMHS student Sarah Almeda.On September 20, 2014, I delivered my first TEDx talk titled Schools That Work For Kids. This is another professional accomplishment that I never thought was possible considering I had a fear of public speaking prior to 2009. Social media let me find my voice in multiple ways and also built up my confidence to overcome fears and self-doubt in my abilities as a leader, writer, and speaker.Thanks to the visionary leadership of Dr. Scott Rocco I was officially appointed as the K-12 Director of Technology and Innovation in the Spotswood School District. This move has allowed me to stay as a true practitioner, something I feel is vital to my work in the field of education. Currently I am assisting the district with their move to Google Apps for Education (GAFE) as well as a more systemic use of technology to enhance and support learning. In early October the Center for Digital Education notified me that I was a CDE Top 30 Award recipient. This was extremely gratifying as it was a testament to the collaborative work done over the years at NMHS.After months of work the ICLE team and I debuted our new Digital Leadership practice area late this fall to assist leaders, schools, and districts implement sustainable changes resulting in transformation. As 2014 comes to a close take a few minutes to reflect on your specific journey including accomplishments, the challenges you overcame, and new connections. You might very well see a link to social media as I have.
Image credit: http://www.patrasevents.gr/imgsrv/f/f...The one thing I have learned though since I began my social media journey almost six years ago is that we no longer follow a predetermined path. What was once unfathomable in my professional role has become a reality. What is even more crazy has been the successful implementation of initiatives, taking control of my own learning, and professional accomplishments that I never believed were possible. Social media really did open up a door to a whole new world that I never knew existed. The best part of this new world were the endless possibilities to improving professional practice and school culture. This year was no different in strengthening my resolve to lead without fear, learn collaboratively with a global network of passionate educators, and be the change I wished to see in education (with the help of many of you). Here are some professional highlights from 2014:Digital Leadership was published by Corwin on January 14, 2014. This was my first solo effort at authoring a book. In a little less than three months it became a Corwin best-seller. Being an author is still a shock to me as I never, ever thought I could write even a blog post, let alone three books.NMHS teachers began to earn digital badges in earnest as a way to gain acknowledgment for their informal learning. On February 27, 2014, CBS Channel 2 NYC visited NMHS and did a nice feature on our makerspace, which aired during the five o'clock news. Media specialist/teacher librarian Laura Fleming spearheaded this initiative in the fall of 2013 and the makerspace really hit it's stride around this time.In late March NMHS student Sarah Almeda created the best student projects I had ever seen during my tenure as principal. Not only did she articulate the importance of creativity in learning, but she also challenged the entire education system from a student's perspective. You can read about the project and view the video HERE.During the late spring we had hosted our 30th school visit to NMHS. These unsolicited visits were a result of our continuous efforts to share what was truly possible in education and how we created a school that worked better for students than adults. Most of the visits were from schools and educators across the Northeast, but there was one other significant guest who would forever alter my career path. More on this later.CBS Channel 2 NYC visited NMHS again on May 16, 2014. This time they did a feature on the 3D virtual learning initiative we were working on.Near the end of the school year in June I published one of my most popular blog posts to date that provided insight on the successful implementation of 13 specific change initiatives at NMHS.On July 9, 2014, I officially announced my decision to step down as Principal of New Milford High School. This was the hardest professional decision I ever had to make. After Scholastic visited in the spring, conversations began about a potential position with the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE). It was at this point that I chose to go down a new path and assist more educators to experience what is possible in education. My last day as Principal was September 3, 2014. The next day I received the best gift an educator could ever wish for from NMHS student Sarah Almeda.On September 20, 2014, I delivered my first TEDx talk titled Schools That Work For Kids. This is another professional accomplishment that I never thought was possible considering I had a fear of public speaking prior to 2009. Social media let me find my voice in multiple ways and also built up my confidence to overcome fears and self-doubt in my abilities as a leader, writer, and speaker.Thanks to the visionary leadership of Dr. Scott Rocco I was officially appointed as the K-12 Director of Technology and Innovation in the Spotswood School District. This move has allowed me to stay as a true practitioner, something I feel is vital to my work in the field of education. Currently I am assisting the district with their move to Google Apps for Education (GAFE) as well as a more systemic use of technology to enhance and support learning. In early October the Center for Digital Education notified me that I was a CDE Top 30 Award recipient. This was extremely gratifying as it was a testament to the collaborative work done over the years at NMHS.After months of work the ICLE team and I debuted our new Digital Leadership practice area late this fall to assist leaders, schools, and districts implement sustainable changes resulting in transformation. As 2014 comes to a close take a few minutes to reflect on your specific journey including accomplishments, the challenges you overcame, and new connections. You might very well see a link to social media as I have.
