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"Please, No More Professional Development! By Peter DeWitt on April 17, 2015 8:10 AM Today's guest blog is written by Kristine Fox (Ed.D), Senior Field Specialist/Research Associate at Quaglia Institute for Student Aspirations (QISA). She is a former teacher and administrator who has passion for teacher learning and student voice. Kris works directly with teachers and leaders across the country to help all learners reach their fullest potential. Peter DeWitt recently outlined why "faculty meetings are a waste of time." Furthering on his idea, most professional development opportunities don't offer optimal learning experiences and the rare teacher is sitting in her classroom thinking "I can't wait until my district's next PD day." When I inform a fellow educator that I am a PD provider, I can read her thoughts - boring, painful, waste of time, useless, irrelevant - one would think my job is equal to going to the dentist (sorry to my dentist friends). According to the Quaglia Institute and Teacher Voice and Aspirations International Center's National Teacher Voice Report only 54% percent of teachers agree "Meaningful staff development exists in my school." I can't imagine any other profession being satisfied with that number when it comes to employee learning and growth. What sense does it make for the science teacher to spend a day learning about upcoming English assessments? Or, for the veteran teacher to learn for the hundredth time how to use conceptual conflict as a hook. Why does education insist everyone attend the same type of training regardless of specialization, experience, or need? As a nod to the upcoming political campaigns and the inevitable introduction of plans with lots of points, here is my 5 Point Plan for revamping professional development. 5 Point Plan Point I - Change the Term: Semantics Matter We cannot reclaim the term Professional Development for teachers. It has a long, baggage-laden history of conformity that does not

"When a board game is presented as a math game, I am always eager to try it out! Unfortunately, in many cases I find the math in these games are too straightforward with cards of math problems for players to solve, or numbered spaces to count. These games are usually far from fun, only allowing kids to practice math facts or formulas. They lack the opportunity for the player to choose from different actions, strategize or even plan ahead. The math in board games doesn't have to be so straightforward! Math is not just about numbers and formulas, and through games is one way we can experience the beauty of math all around us. There are many fun board games that integrate deeper mathematical thinking into the gameplay. These games help students develop skills such as multi-step problem-solving, spatial reasoning, pattern recognition, resource management and much more. Here's my list of go-to board games for engaging students in math through games!"

"Game-based learning, and the developers who identify with it today, have come a long way since then and gotten much closer to closing the gap. And there's still a need to communicate core content through games, a need that the consumer market just doesn't have incentive to fill. Yet at Common Sense Graphite, when we evaluate games for learning, what we find is that many of the highest scoring 'learning' games aren't aimed at the educational market. They're more at-home, consumer-oriented games. Because these games are free from the constraints of school standards and traditional curriculum, they flourish, featuring rich cross-disciplinary and truly 21st century learning experiences. Here are just a few favorites that reviewed well on Graphite this year:"

"Among the many ways to actively engage children in the learning process, educational games are one of the most fun. With so many award winning and cleverly designed games on the market, young children to teens (and even adults!) can develop new skills and reinforce other skills, without even realizing they are learning. Board, card, cooperative, puzzle games, and more encourage interactive hands-on learning in a humorous, light hearted environment. In a addition to math, reading, vocabulary, logic, problem-solving, and spelling skills regularly introduced by educational games, turn based and cooperative games foster with social interaction, communication skills, and self confidence. Consider adding one of these excellent educational games to your home or classroom collection."

"Try Engineering is a site that hosts lesson plans and games designed to get students interested in engineering. The lesson plans, more than 100 of them, are arranged according age and engineering topic. The lesson plans can be downloaded as PDFs. The games section of Try Engineering features 36 online games. Some of the games were developed specifically for Try Engineering while others are hosted on other educational sites like those of NASA and PBS. Like the lesson plans, the games collection cover a variety of topics including solar energy, space science, and bio-engineering. The games section of Try Engineering also includes links to a dozen iPad apps that students can use to learn about engineering and programming."

"As anyone who's ever spent hours hunched over Candy Crush can attest, there's something special about games. Sure they're fun, but they can also be absorbing, frustrating, challenging and complex. Research has shown our brains are "wired for pleasure," and that games are an effective way to learn because they simulate adventure and keep our brains engaged and happy. But what exactly do we learn from them? In an era consumed with teaching 21st-century soft skills, are games any good at building critical thinking or collaboration skills? The answer is likely yes, but, much like games themselves, it's complicated. "What you'll find from the research is that it's very much dependent on, 'under certain types of conditions, certain types of skills seem to be developed,'" explains game designer and theorist Katie Salen, a former executive director at the nonprofit Institute of Play. "I never want to make claims that games writ-large for any kid-under any circumstances-teach these sort of skills.""

"Regardless of whether you think every infant needs an iPad, I think we can all agree that technology has changed education for the better. Today's learners now enjoy easier, more efficient access to information; opportunities for extended and mobile learning; the ability to give and receive immediate feedback; and greater motivation to learn and engage. We now have programs and platforms that can transform learners into globally active citizens, opening up countless avenues for communication and impact. Thousands of educational apps have been designed to enhance interest and participation. Course management systems and learning analytics have streamlined the education process and allowed for quality online delivery. But if we had to pick the top ten, most influential ways technology has transformed education, what would the list look like? The following things have been identified by educational researchers and teachers alike as the most powerful uses of technology for learning. Take a look. 1. Critical Thinking In Meaningful Learning With Technology, David H. Jonassen and his co-authors argue that students do not learn from teachers or from technologies. Rather, students learn from thinking-thinking about what they are doing or what they did, thinking about what they believe, thinking about what others have done and believe, thinking about the thinking processes they use-just thinking and reasoning. Thinking mediates learning. Learning results from thinking. So what kinds of thinking are fostered when learning with technologies? Analogical If you distill cognitive psychology into a single principle, it would be to use analogies to convey and understand new ideas. That is, understanding a new idea is best accomplished by comparing and contrasting it to an idea that is already understood. In an analogy, the properties or attributes of one idea (the analogue) are mapped or transferred to another (the source or target). Single analogies are also known as sy

"Some of the best games for learning aren't developed with schools in mind. But these more commercial games can be tough to wedge into a classroom. Even the most motivated teachers have to sideline these games because of scarce technology, budget, and/or time. Summer break presents the perfect opportunity for students to dig into games and build skills that'll reap huge rewards when they return in the fall. Game making can be one of the best ways to get students thinking creatively while cultivating useful technical literacies, and there's a ton of absorbing tools that students won't tire of over the long break. Here are three options to choose from depending on the type of technology students have at home."

"Some of the best games for learning aren't developed with schools in mind. But these more commercial games can be tough to wedge into a classroom. Even the most motivated teachers have to sideline these games because of scarce technology, budget, and/or time. Summer break presents the perfect opportunity for students to dig into games and build skills that'll reap huge rewards when they return in the fall. Game making can be one of the best ways to get students thinking creatively while cultivating useful technical literacies, and there's a ton of absorbing tools that students won't tire of over the long break. Here are three options to choose from depending on the type of technology students have at home"

"The MindShift Guide to Digital Games and Learning started as a series of blog posts written by Jordan Shapiro with support from the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop and the Games and Learning Publishing Council. We've brought together what we felt would be the most relevant highlights of Jordan's reporting to create a dynamic, in-depth guide that answers many of the most pressing questions that educators, parents, and life-long learners have raised around using digital games for learning. While we had educators in mind when developing this guide, any lifelong learner can use it to develop a sense of how to navigate the games space in an informed and meaningful way."

"Build a fort! A treehouse! A fort on top of a treehouse surrounded by a moat filled with molten lava! Children are endlessly fascinated by what we adults considered mundane and their imagination truly knows no limits. Children are the best builders in the world and can use any building material in order to create the most vivid worlds. And now, there are building apps for kids so they can hone their building skills in a virtual world. Building games are a great outlet for kids who enjoy doing solitary, creative work and then wish to test their concepts in practice. Unlike a shooting or a racing game, a 3D building game rewards patience, planning and thinking ahead. Through a building game, a child gains confidence, achieves a sense of accomplishment and develops in itself a sense of pride through the development and application of its own ideas, plans and thoughts."

"Factitious is a game for testing your skill at identifying fake and misleading news stories. The game was developed by the American University Game Lab and the American University's School of Communication. I learned about the game last month when Larry Ferlazzo featured it and I have since shared it in a couple of professional development workshops. It was a hit in both workshops in which I shared it with teachers."

"Play is positive; gaming is good; and online engagement has begun supplying a generation with the love and feelings of connection that all humans crave. Some 7 billion hours a week are being poured into to this alternate world of engagement through online games. And 25 percent of Call of Duty players call in sick the day a new version the game comes out. These amazing and concerning facts paint a picture of the new world of gaming, said Jane McGonigal, who delivered the opening keynote address Wednesday at the FETC 2015 conference in Orlando, FL. The first person to earn a Ph.D. in the study of the effects of gaming, she is director of Games Research & Development at the Institute for the Future, a non-profit research group in Palo Alto, CA."

"Unity 3D Student is a new way to learn game development with the Unity Game Engine. By following 'bitesize' tutorial Modules, and combining them in our Challenges, you will learn all the skills you need to pickup game development and also get an understanding of how to research further info as you work."

"Not so long ago, video games in the classroom were limited to educational computer games that taught skills like multiplication or parts of speech. A growing number of teachers, however, are integrating the popular games kids play at home (such as "Angry Birds," for example) into their curriculums. What's more, researchers say that video games can be a powerful path to learning since they allow kids to grow from their mistakes, develop problem-solving skills and find internal motivation."

" Apple has long touted its device's assistive technology as a powerful tool for the educational development of physically and mentally disabled children. The iPad's touch screen makes it easier to manipulate than more traditional educational tools. For children with autism, "the iPad is not a toy, but a tool that works best when there is a 'team effort' between parents and therapists encouraging its proper use," said Marc Reisner, co-founder of Reach for the APPs. "Our goal is to provide schools with iPads so they can reach every child on the autistic spectrum." Reach for the APPs built their site with an initial donation from Managed Digital. Now, they're seeking out donations of money and/or iPads from both individuals and corporations to propel the program forward. According to reports from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 1-in-88 children have some form of autism, up 78 percent from just a decade ago. The demand for augmentative communications devices is growing. But the schools can't meet the demand, so the children are losing valuable time during critical developmental years. Lois Brady, a speech language pathologist and assistive technology specialist, said apps can help develop fine-motor skills, which will in turn make functions like writing and manipulating small objects easier for the students. "I have spent years working with the most challenging students that are considered profoundly disabled," she said. "And I have seen some small miracles when I introduce the iPad into our therapy, as the children have made huge gains in attention, focus, communication, language and literacy skills." Some experts also say that the iPad can lessen symptoms of autistic disorders, helping children deal with life's sensory overload. Brady will be contributing content to the Reach for the APPs website to inform therapists about the latest-and-greatest apps for children all over the autistim spectrum. Apps must be tailor

"Filmmakers are using virtual reality to make the problems of the developing world seem more ... real. But how can you see their work? You could buy a headset, but you might end up in virtual debt. Prices range from $200 to $500 for devices from big players like Oculus Rift, Sony and Samsung. And forking over that much cash is a problem since there's not a lot of content yet. MindMaze Software Engineer Nicolas Bourdaud demonstrates a virtual reality system at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco on Tuesday. All Tech Considered Developers Continue Push To Make Virtual Reality Mainstream An attendee at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles plays Sony's Project Morpheus London Heist video game with a virtual reality headset and Move controllers. All Tech Considered Gaming Industry Pushes Virtual Reality, But Content Lags "You're in a store ... and here's all the head-mounted displays and then it costs $200 or $300. Why would you ever buy it when you don't know why you're buying it? You wouldn't," Tony Christopher, CEO of Landmark Entertainment Group, told NPR last month. But there are inexpensive options that require only your smartphone and some cardboard. Google Cardboard, a project of the tech giant, offers instructions and templates to build your own cardboard virtual reality headset. Grab a pair of scissors, X-Acto knife and some glue. Then find some cardboard at home, print out the templates, trace and cut out the different pieces and assemble your goggles. The instructions can get confusing, so our multimedia editor Ben de la Cruz suggests following a how-to video like this one from the tech site, CNET."

"Minecraft is a "sandbox' video game that can be used in a variety of ways to support and enrich the curriculum. Through game-based learning, using Minecraft, you can support students who achieve differently, as well as foster social development and digital citizenship. Watch student intrinsic motivation explode (like those creatures called Creepers) and discover how game play and discussion helps to develop learning skills and make connections to different areas of the curriculum.   In this session you will learn the basics of Minecraft, discuss games based learning, and dispel the myths around "doing Minecraft"."

"Jean Piaget once said that "play is the answer to how anything new comes about." As educators in the digital age, it is important that we embrace the power of play in our classrooms. One of the ways that we can redefine our practice is by using game education in our schools. Game education is a powerful way to engage 21st century learners in a variety of cognitively complex tasks that lead to deeper levels of understanding. Educational games help students to learn about certain subjects, expand their thinking on specific concepts, and reinforce skill development while they play while increasing engagement, empathy and excellence in the classroom."

"Computational thinking is the set of skills you need to be able to get computers to do useful things. It includes logical thinking, planning ahead, working with data, being able to give precise instructions and make predictions. There are lots of activities that can help young children aged 4-7 to develop these skills. Computational thinking skills can be developed through coding but there are lots of other activities that help too. A lot of them are screenless which helps to develop modern skills while also developing other important skills including motor skills and communication. Some of the ideas here are classic kids games and activities that you might have tried anyway, they just happen to be great for computational thinking skills."