Group items tagged

School committee voted to fire the entire staff at a small, high-poverty school that was performing badly - a move reportedly applauded by US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.  Yet another reason to hate the worship of standardised, summative testing results being used to evaluate schools.

a social network dedicated to educators interested in the flip

A good interview from a very articulate man on "What really matters in education?". A lot of good sense and seemingly simple advice.

25 random things innovative educators can do to enhance teaching and learning.

" The Computers in Education Group of South Australia is a professional association of educators that promotes and supports teaching and learning with Information and Communication Technologies and the study of Information Technology as a discipline. "

LinedIN home page for CEGSA, useful for South Australian teachers.

NAPLAN-style testing and reporting has failed in the United States by narrowing the curriculum and corrupting education standards, says a chief education adviser to the US President, Barack Obama. .. The US tests have been criticised for narrowing the curriculum to reading and maths and multiple-choice formats.

Making, Maker Centred Learning and STEAM fit neatly alongside Inquiry Based Learning (IBL) for many schools. Commonly this approach includes a constructivist view of knowledge and teachers seek to establish conditions which allow students to explore questions and ideas with greater independence than may occur in the traditional classroom.  Learning becomes a collaborative partnership between teachers and students with a clear focus on a learner centric approach.

The post offers information about some engaging presentation tools available for teachers who could start using them in the classroom to better engage students. The teachers are then challenged to find ways for their students to create projects using these tools. 

"This infographic that features 27 ways teachers can guide and facilitate student learning.

"Rachel Langenhorst helps teachers in her district find solutions for those issues. She used to teach social studies, but is now the K-12 Technology Integrationist and Instructional Coach at Rock Valley Community Schools in Iowa. "Really be cognizant of the digital tools you're picking and why you are picking them." She put together a list of favorite digital tools for the social studies classroom and shared them during an edWeb webinar. She emphasizes that, as with any classroom technology, teachers need to be careful not to just substitute a tech tool for an analog one. Instead, technology should be used to enhance classroom learning in ways that wouldn't be possible otherwise, including expanding learning beyond the classroom walls."

"CommonSense Media blog post introducing Lesson Flows, Darri Stephens shares that the framework redefines the traditional lesson plan by integrating digital learning tools and content with pedagogical intent. Quite simply, you can discover tools on Graphite and then align them to each part of your lesson -- the hook, direct instruction, guided practice, independent practice, and wrap-up -- thinking with purpose about your lesson redesign. Lesson Flows are excellent tools for teacher librarians to use as they design technology-rich collaborative projects with classroom teachers."

"Online whiteboards can be a fantastic aid to students when they're trying to help each other work through problems or tutor each other. Online whiteboards are also helpful to teachers who are crafting visual explanations for students. Sketchlot and Stoodle are excellent online whiteboard tools. Both will work in the web browser on your laptop, Chromebook, iPad, and Android tablet. Video demonstrations of both tools are embedded below. Sketchlot allows teachers to create and manage student accounts. Stoodle offers a platform for collaboration through whiteboards."

ICTeD Services offers professional development to schools. It in located in Melbourne, Australia. ICTeD Services specialises in teaching Information and Communication Technology skills to whole schools, to teams of teachers, and to groups of teachers and students learning together. These skills can include the use of digital video, animation, multimedia, Web 2.0 technologies, and website design and can be integrated into a variety of curriculum areas.

six case studies of science inquiry in the elementary classroom written by teachers participating in the Institute for Inquiry Teacher Learning Group.

A Free Public Resource - Providing Teachers with the tools needed to enhance their instruction using Google Earth®, the free program that brings the world to the classroom! A Website By and For Teachers.

School of Everything connects people who want to learn with passionate teachers in their local area. The award-wining site is free to join for both people who want to learn and people who want to teach.

Inspirational Quotes for Teachers and Learners