Month: February 2014

February 21, 2014

Big Win in Appleton

It has been a very exciting week as the local Appleton community has chosen to pass both referendum questions on the ballot this past Tuesday. More specifically, I’m excited about what this means for our schools in regard to technology. Students will have more access to the web, research and have the ability to create and share their work. All students in the high schools will be issued a device that they will then use in their classes.

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I think the biggest misconception is that going 1:1 is simply about the technology. It’s not. Technology is simply a tool.

The biggest challenge that we will need to overcome is simply “using the technology” to do the same things we have always done. Rather we need to figure out ways to challenge our students to do more. The goal is rather to have students be able to create, innovate, share and collaborate. We want them to safely and appropriately connect to the world outside of our walls and allow them to have support as they figure out how to do this.

This starts with teachers and administration. We need to start wrestling with what this all means for our lesson plans and units. We need to envision how this will change how our classroom will look. How will this allow us to better teach our curriculum? Remember technology is another tool in our toolbox. How will we incorporate that? We’ve all had those days when we would love to have access to a computer lab for an activity, only to see it booked for weeks to come. The lab has now entered our room.

I really recommend attending the summer Tech Institute and other staff development sessions this semester. It’s an exciting time and I will do all I can do to come alongside of you as we all prepare to teach in a 1:1 environment.

February 6, 2014

The Win-Win of Screencasting

Screencasting is simply creating a digital recording of your screen with audio over top of it. While it may sound pretty involved, there are some tools and applications that make this process reasonably straightforward.

As a teacher, screencasting has allowed me to deliver content in a video format when I have a sub or even as a homework assignment. Students really enjoy how they can stop the video to take notes or review content that is confusing. This has allowed me to better use the face to face time I have with students each day. We can now focus on higher order thinking activities, discussions and projects during the actual class period.

Just this past week, I was out at a tech training and had a sub for my AP World History course. I didn’t want to delay my pacing of the course so I’m simply created this video on my iPad. The students watched in class and took part in other collaborative activities while I was gone.

My dream would be to teach a 1:1 environment where all students would have devices. It would be phenomenal as it would allow students to easily access previous lessons and review content. I would be able to create a screencast to jump start the conversation that we could have in the class the following day. In addition, I would be able to offer more remediation or assistance as the learning could be more self guided. When a student is unsure about the content, typically they come to me with a question about it. If I had more screencasts of my content or a math teacher creates a quick video about how to solve a problem, students can review the information and be in charge of their learning instantly. Students don’t have to wave their hand in the air waiting for the teacher to come to them and the teacher no longer has to explain the same content repeatedly. It is really a win-win.

Here is a quick clip from Jon Bergman, a pioneer in the flipped classroom model. He explains how creating these types of videos have allowed him to better differentiate his instruction and reach more of his students. I really feel as though this can be a game changer in education.