MVU-MyBlend Social Media

An insane amount of resources shared by EdTech consultant, Dan Spencer (JCISD connection).

More formal case studies for the strategic minded leaders we partner with.

Per conversation with Peter & Brandon, I wanted to share an example of Zappos style review. The thought is that we could repurpose this review style for us to review tools that could promote differentiated, customized and/or personalized learning. Here is my interpretation of the "zappos" video review structure: 1) Host/Reviewer Intro 2) Presentation of the product (both visual and name) 3) Quick visual "show off" of the product's attributes 4) Briefly go into detail on essential core features 5) Briefly mention envisioned/practiced uses & users 6) End with re-stating the name of the product These should be brief, quickly digestible, and instantly applicable to classroom practice. Comments welcome for agreement, disagreement, and additions.

Nicey nice. Love this. I think this style would also be snappy and applicable to a focus on a given pedagogical practice that is product/tool agnostic.

This is one I had to contribute. Glad to see we are on the same page, yet again. :)

I appreciate the focus on preparing students, parents, and teachers for the "shift" that happens when customizing and personalizing instruction. This article focuses on the ground-work that needs to be laid to transition parent and student mentality from a traditional to blended environment.

Solid post. I Digg it. Would love to solicit guest posts very much like this with Michigan faculty. I think his words about giving "a) some examples of research that supports blended learning and b) have some concrete samples of the different types of work that students will produce and c) demonstrate what assessment will look like. If you cover these three components, then my experience is that parents are thrilled about the change." could also ring true for MyBlend PD.

"Instead of a course syllabus or description, I've found it more useful to give students a "roadmap for success".  Here is an example from my middle school Geography class.  The idea is that all learning options are clearly laid out and routes for success are made clear.  It is well worth spending a class or two clarifying what the journey will look like in a blended learning environment and I've found that this reframes the experience for students in a way that they understand.  It also lays the groundwork for the one-on-one conversations you will have with students moving forward.  You will want to delineate the different segments of the class, discuss possible timeframes for moving through the challenges and what the options are for demonstrating mastery at each stage.  In this particular roadmap, some items are bold because they will be done by all students.  Other components are framed by a dotted line meaning that only some students will be eligible for those challenges based on their progress at specific stages.  You will want to make the roadmap as clear as possible so students are able to understand the journey to the point where they develop a sense of agency around their work. "

This site is an example of the value of being a social aggregation space for the topic. I can see how MyBlend would bring the added value of being Michigan centric.

Here is an example of story telling via video that is Michigan-focussed while using boring web-design techniques. We can do better.

I am friends with the guys who run this site. They do some fun and innovative podcasting, videos and PD. I am sure we will run into them at MACUL.

These are the kinds of Educators we should definitely reach out to as potential partners/collaborators.

Very tool-centric it seems, but also a site run by JCISD.

Links links links

Example of an overview site regarding what Blended Learning is.

Example of a blog post focussed on learning in a math course rather than technology: