Jeff Bailey of Mountain Valley High School, formerly an English teacher, will be teaching video production and CAD this coming school year. Jeff's new wiki for his video classes is called MVHSvid and is growing quickly in resources. You might also check out Jeff's Wicked Decent Learning blog.
Additional Video Resources at LIMResources
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
RSU 10 Summer Learning & Technology Institute 2009
Once again I find myself at Mountain Valley High School for the annual summer institute. The first two days of the week are devoted to an array of half day and full day workshops on various topics. This now includes employees of the new RSU 10 which combines SAD#42, SAD#39, and SAD#21. I've been very impressed with how well the tech staff is doing in making this huge transition in infrastructure. It is a huge job that includes the addition of the MLTI high school laptop program in three separate high schools as well. RSU10 is indeed fortunate to have such a group of highly-skilled technical individuals, with wonderful people skills as well, to make the transition a reality.
My full-day offerings were:
FirstClass RWD
Organizing, Manipulating, and Using Images
These last two days are given to collaborative classroom projects that various teams proposed. Several of us have the job of wandering between groups, acting as resources in applying technology to curriculum goals.
I have done this institute for several years now and thoroughly enjoy the approach. The institute was initially seeded by competitive IID funds, but for the last 4 or 5 years has been funded from a variety sources. Teachers are paid for their summer work time and work in areas that they wish to become more proficient in helping kids to learn.
My full-day offerings were:
FirstClass RWD
Organizing, Manipulating, and Using Images
These last two days are given to collaborative classroom projects that various teams proposed. Several of us have the job of wandering between groups, acting as resources in applying technology to curriculum goals.
I have done this institute for several years now and thoroughly enjoy the approach. The institute was initially seeded by competitive IID funds, but for the last 4 or 5 years has been funded from a variety sources. Teachers are paid for their summer work time and work in areas that they wish to become more proficient in helping kids to learn.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
"Teach Digital: Curriculum by Wes Fryer"
Wes Fryer freely publishes digital handouts that are part of his presentations at conferences and workshops of all kinds. I'm perplexed and disappointed that I had not happened upon them earlier, but now I have another incredible resource just a click away. Thanks, Wes.Here are just a few of the topics:
Blended Learning
Collaboration
Conversations
Copyright
Cyberbullying
Digital Storytelling
Family Learning Blog
Multimedia
Podcasting
If you go to the front page of the wiki, you find many more conference/workshop topics and accompanying resources on the right sidebar. Again, note that these are freely given under a Creative Commons License. And even more importantly, they don't require any special password or proprietary software for access. A ubiquitous web browser is all that is needed.
BTW, for the uninitiated, Wes blogs at Moving at the Speed of Creativity.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Students and Technology
by Becky Ranks
We are living in a Digital World. As teachers we are constantly being told that we need to change the way that we prepare students for the 21st Century. The American classroom looks much the same as it did almost 100 years ago...desks in rows, content separated into blocks with bells ruling the day.....Teachers standing at the front of the class delivering much of the content through lectures. We continue to ban all forms of digital devices from the clssroom including cell phones and ipods, even though experts in the field continue to promote their use in schools. Students are immersed in technology before and after school, and we continue to act as though that has nothing to do with their learning experiences. I think that most teachers realize the implications of this continually expanding digital world, but its up to us to convince the decision-makers that change is necessary. Students also can be part of this conversation and should be. Mistakes will be made, but that's how we learn. Until we trust in teachers to be part of the decision-making process, we may remain stuck right where we are teaching our 21st Century students with 20th Century tools and methods.
In my role as an Instructional Specialist, I am always promoting the use of new digital tools in the classroom. The Web 2.0 tools and the Open Educational Resources available are so exciting that it's difficult to find enough time in the day to explore them all. I also think it leads us to a cautionary tale. As much as we enjoy learning and exploring we also need to put everything into perspective. Are we constantly connected, texting, Skyping, Tweeting, e-mailing? If the answer is yes, then we need to take stock in the importance of these digital tools in our lives and the lives of our students. A national report recently stated that young people are now at threat of a Vitamin D deficiency. This has come about because of our fascination with television, video games, music, and all things digital. A simple 15 minutes per day in the sunlight is the cure.Another threat is what author Richard Louv calls Nature Deficiency Disorder. He explains that new condition in his best-selling book...The Last Child in the Woods, a highly recommended read for all educators.
It's all about balance. The world of our students is changing and we as educated people have to be part of that change and do what's best for our greatest resource, our children, the citizens of tomorrow. When you walk into that classroom in September, think about how teaching and learning has changed in the last few years and think about how we can all be part of positive decision-making in our schools and help those young digital natives become responsible decision-makers themselves with strong bones and a healthy appreciation of the natural world.
We are living in a Digital World. As teachers we are constantly being told that we need to change the way that we prepare students for the 21st Century. The American classroom looks much the same as it did almost 100 years ago...desks in rows, content separated into blocks with bells ruling the day.....Teachers standing at the front of the class delivering much of the content through lectures. We continue to ban all forms of digital devices from the clssroom including cell phones and ipods, even though experts in the field continue to promote their use in schools. Students are immersed in technology before and after school, and we continue to act as though that has nothing to do with their learning experiences. I think that most teachers realize the implications of this continually expanding digital world, but its up to us to convince the decision-makers that change is necessary. Students also can be part of this conversation and should be. Mistakes will be made, but that's how we learn. Until we trust in teachers to be part of the decision-making process, we may remain stuck right where we are teaching our 21st Century students with 20th Century tools and methods.
In my role as an Instructional Specialist, I am always promoting the use of new digital tools in the classroom. The Web 2.0 tools and the Open Educational Resources available are so exciting that it's difficult to find enough time in the day to explore them all. I also think it leads us to a cautionary tale. As much as we enjoy learning and exploring we also need to put everything into perspective. Are we constantly connected, texting, Skyping, Tweeting, e-mailing? If the answer is yes, then we need to take stock in the importance of these digital tools in our lives and the lives of our students. A national report recently stated that young people are now at threat of a Vitamin D deficiency. This has come about because of our fascination with television, video games, music, and all things digital. A simple 15 minutes per day in the sunlight is the cure.Another threat is what author Richard Louv calls Nature Deficiency Disorder. He explains that new condition in his best-selling book...The Last Child in the Woods, a highly recommended read for all educators.
It's all about balance. The world of our students is changing and we as educated people have to be part of that change and do what's best for our greatest resource, our children, the citizens of tomorrow. When you walk into that classroom in September, think about how teaching and learning has changed in the last few years and think about how we can all be part of positive decision-making in our schools and help those young digital natives become responsible decision-makers themselves with strong bones and a healthy appreciation of the natural world.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
High School Social Culture
High School Subculture
University of Michigan: Cool Kids and Losers: The Psychology of High School Students in Peer Groups and Cliques
Wikipedia: Peer Pressure
Essential Question: Can institutional structure have an effect on peer pressure and social ostracization?
Friday, July 31, 2009
Twittering for Education
Update from Setting the Sail, the 2009 Summer Institute for teachers organized by MLTI.
It's 10:10 am, Friday July 31st (can you believe it???), and I just dropped in a session led by Shawn Kimball, which you may find on his wiki - http://twitterforeducation.wikispaces.com/.
Hope you will find it helpful.
It's 10:10 am, Friday July 31st (can you believe it???), and I just dropped in a session led by Shawn Kimball, which you may find on his wiki - http://twitterforeducation.wikispaces.com/.
Hope you will find it helpful.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Games for Change at Summer Tech Institute Castine
by Ed Latham and Olga LaPlante
Please select one of the questions below and respond to it as a comment. If you would like people to know who you are, but you do not wish to log into Blogger, you may include your name in your comment.
1. What do students need to know about a community's energy needs?
2. If students were given control of energy policy, what might the outcome look like?
3. Briefly share one example of an activity you provide students in which the student can quickly and easily try different scenarios to see results.
Please select one of the questions below and respond to it as a comment. If you would like people to know who you are, but you do not wish to log into Blogger, you may include your name in your comment.
1. What do students need to know about a community's energy needs?
2. If students were given control of energy policy, what might the outcome look like?
3. Briefly share one example of an activity you provide students in which the student can quickly and easily try different scenarios to see results.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Videogames in Education
Ruben R. Puentedura, Ph.D.
Founder and President
Hippasus
228 Main Street, #412
Williamstown, MA 01267
(413) 441-6467
rubenrp@hippasus.com
http://hippasus.com
Videogames are becoming a progressively more important component of teaching today. They can provide learners with rich worlds and complex narratives that both enhance and transform their educational experience in previously unexplored ways. Because of this, we are pleased to announce that, as part of a joint research project between MLTI and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Dr. Ruben Puentedura has created a 14-part podcast series on videogames in education. This mini-course, available now in its entirety from iTunes U, provides educators with the knowledge needed to successfully use educational gaming in their classroom. The podcast series will be supplemented by ongoing posts and discussions on Dr. Puentedura's blog, with more materials to be announced in the coming months.
iTunes U URL:
http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/education-maine.gov .
2246057621
Blog: http://hippasus.com/rrpweblog/
Founder and President
Hippasus
228 Main Street, #412
Williamstown, MA 01267
(413) 441-6467
rubenrp@hippasus.com
http://hippasus.com
Videogames are becoming a progressively more important component of teaching today. They can provide learners with rich worlds and complex narratives that both enhance and transform their educational experience in previously unexplored ways. Because of this, we are pleased to announce that, as part of a joint research project between MLTI and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Dr. Ruben Puentedura has created a 14-part podcast series on videogames in education. This mini-course, available now in its entirety from iTunes U, provides educators with the knowledge needed to successfully use educational gaming in their classroom. The podcast series will be supplemented by ongoing posts and discussions on Dr. Puentedura's blog, with more materials to be announced in the coming months.
iTunes U URL:
http://deimos3.apple.com/
2246057621
Blog: http://hippasus.com/rrpweblog/
Monday, July 27, 2009
Wicked Decent Learning Call In Show
From Jeff & Dan:
"Join us for a Wicked Decent Listener Call In Show... Tell us what excites you about the upcoming school year."
"We are scheduling another Wicked Decent Listener show via Skype on Tuesday, July 28th at 8:00PM Eastern Standard Time. If you'd like to join us, all you have to do is..."MORE . . .
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