Group items tagged

new and better

We need to have students that are able to ask questions and challenge what they see, but always in a respectful way.

it is not beneficial to give students problems that aren’t real.

Let’s start asking kids to really look into finding what the problems are and giving them some purpose in solving something real.

we spend too much time focusing on being able to tell others what our students can do and know, and not enough time helping students understand those things themselves.

With most people that having a computer also having a Skype account, there are many that are willing to share their expertise in different areas.  This does not only have to be via technology, but we should also be bring in experts from our community to talk to students. 

Treat others with kindness and consideration. Always.

have students not only learn, but teach each other.

everyone can be a teacher, and everyone a learner

If we provide a variety of ways to explore the content outcomes, learners find different ways to connect.

Process is how students make sense of the content. They need time to reflect and digest the learning activities before moving on to the next segment of a lesson.

Processing helps students assess what they do and don't understand.

Reflection is a powerful skill that is developed during processing experiences

Product differentiation is probably the most common form of differentiation. Teachers give choices where students pick from formats. Students propose their own designs.

The key to product options is having clear academic criteria that students understand.

When considering your students' needs, reach even higher in your practice -- that extra stretch is inside us all -- and students will benefit.

Embracing a 21st-century learning model requires consideration of those elements that could comprise such a shift: creating learners who take intellectual risks, fostering learning dispositions, and nurturing school communities where everyone is a learner.

Twenty-first-century technology should be seen as an opportunity to acquire more knowledge, not an excuse to know less.

We need classroom leaders setting an ambitious vision, rallying others to work hard to achieve it, planning and executing to ensure student learning, and defining the very notion of teaching as changing the life paths of students.

Twenty-first-century learning will ultimately be “learner-driven.”

But being able to Google is no substitute for true understanding. Students still need to know and deeply understand the history that brought them and our nation to where we are today.

Technology allows for 24/7 access to information, constant social interaction, and easily created and shared digital content. In this setting, educators can leverage technology to create an engaging and personalized environment to meet the emerging educational needs of this generation.

he term "21st-century skills" is generally used to refer to certain core competencies such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today's world.

Twenty-first-century learning embodies an approach to teaching that marries content to skill. Without skills, students are left to memorize facts, recall details for worksheets, and relegate their educational experience to passivity. Without content, students may engage in problem-solving or team-working experiences that fall into triviality, into relevance without rigor

Twenty-first-century learning will ultimately be “learner-driven.”

Connected, Empowered Learners

Getting Started: Developing Voice

Whether you introduce social media to students through a class blog, individual student blogs, Twitter or paper, there is no "right way" to begin. Do I really feel that toddlers should Tweet? Probably not. However, what's important is that we introduce all children to social media in appropriate and meaningful ways, regardless of their age, such that they can connect to a global audience and develop as empowered, networked learners.

Provide instruction in basic reading strategies using reciprocal teaching practice that includes predicting, visualizing, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing.

Teach students to mark or highlight text for main ideas and also for answers to specific questions. Text annotation is an excellent method to make meaning and provide evidence to support answers.

Use t-chart graphic organizers to have them identify specific lines from a text and explain their thoughts about the lines.

A fully integrated curriculum that includes technology tools that deliver, enhance and create passionate, accountable individuals who use problem-solving skills and resources to transition from a learning environment to a working environment, seamlessly

Twenty-first century learning is a remix of multiple literacies which fuse with the tools of technology—and the skills of critical thinking—to stimulate authentic, relevant learning opportunities for all learners, anywhere, anytime.

skills in communication, collaboration, and information analysis

21st-century skills require a high level of socio-emotional competence and sophistication

Don’t make the mistake of seeing technology as itself and get afraid of it—see it as a tool, as transparent

Technology is enabling us to connect to each other in remote areas of the world, share ideas, identify and solve problems—it’s a new, global classroom. Embracing and mastering new 21st-century skills and tools is an essential part of this revolution to ‘C’ the future: Connect. Communicate. Collaborate. Change.

skills students will need to be competitive in their future careers

Integration of social media has the engagement factor teachers and students seek while enabling students to gain a variety of academic and social skills

Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) identify seven types of social media: collaborative projects (e.g., Wikipedia) blogs and microblogs (e.g., Twitter, Kidblog.org) social news networking sites (e.g., Digg and Leakernet) content communities (e.g., YouTube and DailyMotion) social networking sites (e.g., Facebook) virtual game-worlds (e.g., Minecraft, World of Warcraft) virtual social worlds (e.g., Second Life)

ncreased student engagement and learning and citizenship education are benefits related to social media use in school.

For example, middle grades students can discover how technology-assisted writing can foster innovation, global communication and participation, and creative problem solving with a broader communit

Further, Ramsay purports that technology-assisted writing can nurture student creativity, communication, and problem solving skills while developing digital citizens.

Additionally, social media helps facilitate differentiation by allowing the needs of creative learners to be met through a cooperative learning environment. Students are better able to balance their individualism with the need for contact with others, allowing new ideas to flourish

Social media can help adolescents develop and strengthen collaboration skills as they share knowledge, learn with and from others, and are active in the learning process

Therefore, inclusion of social media in education activities is necessary to help increase equity among students of different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds by increasing access to information and information technology (Darling-Hammond, Zielezinski, & Goldman, 2014; Grinager, 2006).

Darling-Hammond et al. (2014) recommend the following practices to promote optimal learning opportunities for all students: (a) technology access policies should aim for 1:1 computer access and ensure that speedy internet connections are available, (b) policies and practices should favor technology that promotes high levels of interactivity and engagement and that allows for varying learning choices and opportunities, (c) instructional opportunities should enable students to use technology to create content as well as learn material, and (d) learning environments that provide significant and varied levels of teacher support and opportunities for interactions among students as companions to technology use

The first issue many educators currently face is equitable access for students and teachers. Further, uncertainty exists on the type and frequency of professional development for middle level educators that addresses ethical and appropriate use of social networking. Additionally, educators must learn how best to help students navigate safely and monitor students in a virtual environment. Lastly, educators must recognize the possibility for distractions and overstimulation that is often linked to certain types of social media and networking activities (Chen & Bryer, 2012).

Educators and policymakers need to provide the appropriate technology funding and related professional development so students and teachers have the equipment, knowledge, and skills necessary for taking full advantage of what technology can offer.

It is imperative for educators to have professional development opportunities that enable them to learn developmentally appropriate best practices for preparing students

AMLE (NMSA, 2010) believes that middle schools must provide adult advocates to middle school students to guide academic and personal development in an inviting, safe, inclusive, and supportive school environment

Students need to learn how to make great choices about what they share and what are appropriate actions with others, and always review and manage their online reputations in light of others' ability to contribute to that reputation either positively or negatively with a few clicks of the mouse

Edutopia.com, a website published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation and highly regarded by the educational community, provides thoughtful resources on creating social media guidelines for schools.

In tandem, teachers must continue to address the issue of plagiarism including how to determine if sources are credible and having clear and consistent plagiarism policies regularly disseminated to students and parents.

Research suggests that discussions and collaborations are the most common social media classroom strategies (Chen & Bryer, 2012). Frye, Trathen, and Koppenhaver (2010) proclaim that blogs offer students the ability to publish work and comment on others' writing, which increases motivation.

Research shows that social media can increase student learning and engage students who otherwise may be disinterested in the classroom

Social media afford[s] the opportunity for all children with online access to contribute to the world in meaningful ways, do real work for real audiences for real purposes, find great teachers and collaborators from around the world, and become great teachers in their own right. (