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This blog was first posted on Jen’s Blog. The next session I’m attending is given by alumna of my institution, Ransom Everglades School, Ana Albir. She is presenting on the iPad Application, Drawp (Free). Drawp for School is an app that has been in development for seven months and drawn out of the previous app, Drawp for Families ($4.99). Drawp Sharing Screen Shot The nice feature of Drawp is that it allows young children to share content without the need of an email address (an issue for students under 13 years old). Why Drawp? Students like to share their work and the ubiquity of tablets makes a…
This is the last session of the iPad Summit in San Diego. Its pretty impressive how many people are still here! It is also pretty funny because everyone is hugging the walls (including me) because our batteries are all dying and we all need full batteries before flights tonight. Hopefully everyone gets home safe. So many of are colleagues have been stranded due to the storms out East (which is so hard to believe in the sunshine of California right now) so I hope people aren’t here just because their flights were cancelled 🙂 Before I get to Beth’s talk,…
Tom Daccord (@thomasdaccord) is the co-founder and CEO of EdTechTeacher. The presentation materials for his talk can be found here. In this last afternoon of the San Diego iPad Summit, Tom is going to outline what makes EdTechTeacher work as a professional development (PD) provider. As the newest member of the EdTechTeacher team, I have been learning so much going to see the other EdTechTeacher instructor’s present in both the hands-on pre conference workshops and the conference sessions but mostly I have been able to hear common themes such as OneScreen of Apps, sharing with the world, and mostly importantly…
This post first appeared on Jen’s blog. The next session I’m attending is given by alumna of my institution, Ransom Everglades School, Ana Albir. She is presenting on the iPad Application, Drawp (Free). Drawp for School is an app that has been in development for seven months and drawn out of the previous app, Drawp for Families ($4.99). Drawp Sharing Screen Shot The nice feature of Drawp is that it allows young children to share content without the need of an email address (an issue for students under 13 years old). Why Drawp? Students like to share their work and the ubiquity of tablets makes a new…
Dee begins by explaining that this session is going to be about the workarounds possible with Google Drive. Paperless Assignment Distribution & Collection Dee prefaces her talk by explaining why these workarounds are important and why she chose to go down this path with Doctopus. The world is going paperless both in terms of students handing in work and getting digital feedback. Google doesn’t always play nice with iPads She tried a lot of things already. File>Make a Copy works on a computer but not on iPad. There was also the challenge of students not turning assignments in correctly both…
This post first appeared on Jen’s blog. The Keynote Speaker for Day 2 of the iPad Summit is Mimi Ito, Ph.D., a cultural anthropologist with the University of California at Irvine. Her focus is on the changing relationship of youth and new media. I have been following her work for some time, so it’s exciting to be able to see her speak in person! You can see a lot of her work published at Connected Learning. Mimi argues that we’re at a tipping point in education: we are culturally ready for a student centered, engaged, and social form of learning that thrives in…
Douglas begins by introducing himself and asking the question: What does the classroom of the future look like? Right now, people talk about the 21st century classroom, but we’re already here! We need instead to reexamine the present in order to envision the future. Douglas begins by taking a look at the past and showing his 2nd grade yearbook. Through his illustrations, we realize that the kids had accurately predicted the future: a Hawaiian president, Skype, iPads, robot basketball (school robotics tournaments). In the future, the classroom of the future emphasizes curriculum, classrooms, and community. Curriculum needs to be flexible and adaptive.…
Keep Explaining! This session is Greg (@gregkuloweic) not necessarily going over what the technical aspects of Explain Everything (@explainevrythng) but its going to more about how to use it to enhance your learning. Reshan Richards (@reshanrichards), creator of the app, is in the audience. Last night at dinner, he told Greg that he is going to try and break the app. So this should be a great session as Greg says “Geeking out in Explain Everything.” Greg’s session materials can be found here. Greg’s first challenge for the audience is to takes notes from this session in Explain Everything. He pulls up…
This post first appeared on Jen’s blog. The next talk I’m attending is the “DIY Genius Bar: Embracing Student Leadership” by Sara Chai, Alicia Johal, and Marielle Venturino. I have seen some versions of student help desks in action and am always excited about the potential of getting more students involved in educational technology and investing in their school’s resources. The first thing that Sara, Alicia, and Marielle do is demonstrate their DIY Genius Bar Website. They plan to do their whole presentation from the website itself. Cool! So what is the Genius Bar? They rolled out iPads to students and staff with very…
This post first appeared on Jen’s blog. The first session of day two that I am attending is “Student Digital Portfolios: Redefining Assessment with iPads and Google Apps” by Holly Clark. You can view the slides from her presentation here. Holly highlights the fact that we have to think forward and progressively, “Are you Blockbuster or are you Netflix?” While people originally thought that mailing movies to you was “crazy,” ten years later Blockbuster is now dead. Disruptive innovation isn’t just for businesses, it’s something that we can, and in fact should, be doing in education! Traditional models are dinosaurs and leaving students behind in…
Welcome to iLab This is the first time EdTechTeacher has done an iLab during a conference. Though our conferences have a day of hands-on PreConference Workshops, the iLab gives conference participants a chance to play with the ideas they learned in previous talks. This AppSmashing iLab follows yesterday’s sessions from Greg Kulowiec and Beth Holland. The idea is that it is completely informal and people are encouraged to work and then just ask if they need help. The challenge is to take a concept and then make an AppSmash. Greg highlights the best apps to use in an AppSmash: ExplainEverything,…
This live blog from the iPads in the Elementary Classroom Holly Clark(@HollyEdTechDiva) is moderating a panel with Jo-Ann Fox (@AppEducationFox), Karen Lirenman(@KLirenman), Samantha Morra (@sammorra), Reshan Richards (@reshanrichards), and Kristen Wideen (@mrswideen). “If they will build it they will come” says Holly who convinced Tom Daccord, our CEO to come to San Diego for the inaugural event just little over a year ago. Sam’s start in educational technology was because her principal walked past her classroom while she was taking her first laptop. Reshan Richards is the Director of Technology at his school as well as a 5th grade math teacher. O, and the creator…
This post first appeared on Jen’s blog. The last session of the day (after presenting at my own) is “iPads in the 21st Century Classroom: It’s NOT About the Apps!” with Stephanie Harman. You can see her presentation material here. Stephanie shares her iPad evolution experience. Her first summer was overwhelming, so many apps (especially content specific apps) and believing that her tools would be far ahead what the students were doing. She said that the biggest error that she and her peers made was finding a “cool app” and then designing a lesson around it. THey quickly learned that it’s about…
For my second live blog, I am blogging the master of the live blog, Jennifer Carey (@TeacherJenCarey) for her talk. A link to her materials can be found here. Jen Carey is the the Director of Educational Technology at the Ransom Everglades School (a secular independent school) in Miami, Fl. You can learn about all the great things she does on her blog, Indiana Jen (she studied Archeology she isn’t from Indiana) . While not one of the “sexiest” topics at the Conference, Jen explains how this type of information is necessary and integral to any type of roll out of iPad program. She learned this process by…
“Hi Everyone. This is a session about how to get through the first year of the classroom as a teacher.” Begins Shawn. “But I’m not going to talk to you about apps. I’m going to talk to you about your soul, because I LOVE TEACHING.” A tiger is the perfect example of light and dark dancing across the jungle floor, because some things just make sense. Shawn is a teacher, and so what he’s going to say is just going to make sense. So, Shawn wants us to understand that 1:1 became part of his identity because of his mistakes…
This post first appeared on Jennifer Carey’s blog. The next session I’m attending is: “The Language Classroom 2.0: How Making a Self-Made iBook Has Transformed Language Instruction (7-12)” with Violet Richard and Anderson Auza from Noble and Greenough School. You can see a copy of their presentation slides here. The agenda states that they will cover three main topics: Video, iBook, Apps & Websites. Noble & Greenough is currently piloting iPads in the 7th, 8th, and 9th grade (1:1) as well as some shared carts. There are also some iPads for specific classes (like the language class). Anderson shows us a lovely video…
Hi everyone! My name is Kate Wilson and I am the newest member of the EdTechTeacher team as the Web Coordinator. This is my first attempt at Live Blogging so bear with me but I have gotten some great tips from Beth Holland and Jennifer Carey. I have also only heard great things about Greg Kulowiec so I am excited to start off the EdTechTeacher iPad Summit in San Diego in his session “Unleashing Creativity with App Smashing.” Greg opens his talk with “I don’t like to focus on the Apps themselves but the concept of Unleashing Creativity.” He uses a great analogy to…
This post first appeared on Jennifer Carey’s blog. My first session is “Explain Everything: Demonstrating Understanding with Screencasting” by Reshan Richards. It highlights one of my favorite iPad Apps, Explain Everything. You can see the slides for Reshan’s presentation here. Here’s a great, quick tutorial to familiarize yourself with the app: Reshan is an Ed Tech Director at the Montclair Kimberley Academy. With the advent of iPad 1, Reshan saw the iPad as a potential to replace the Smart Board for interactive creation – an extension as it would allow multiple students to work on a single device. He teamed up with some app…
Karen Lirenman is a grade 1 teacher in Surrybridge, Canada – so this is her first international presentation! She is the only 1:1 classroom in her district. As much as she loves being 1:1, much of what she does, could still happen with far less devices. Connecting Through Twitter In the beginning of the year, Karen’s class started with 1 tweet: This is what it looks like outside of our classroom. What does it look like outside of yours? AND, the world responded. What was interesting about using Twitter, is that the little grade 1s realized that the world is far bigger…
This post first appeared on Jennifer Carey’s blog. Audrey Watters, the esteemed educational writer, is keynoting the iPad Summit San Diego. Audrey blogs at HackEducation. Her topic is, “The History of the Future of Ed-Tech” focuses on what educational technology is going – and where it won’t. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Audrey highlights the idea of what do we think the future of technology holds and why does the present always look quite different? Why do we not have hover boards (as promised by Back the Future). So looking at technology today, what is the future of technology going to look like?…
We’re off and running! Today, we had an amazing lineup of hands-on workshops. Some of our incredible participants blogged their experiences, and we can’t thank them enough. Want to know what it’s like to attend a hands-on workshop? Check out these posts. #ettiPad Day One & App Fluency vs App Addition – from Michael Cohen (@TheTechRabbi) Advanced iPad Classroom – from Jen Carey (@TeacherJenCarey) iPads in Elementary with Beth Holland and Kristen Wideen – from Lanette Walters (@LanetteW)
Carl Hooker is talking this afternoon very quickly and trying to get through all his information before his flight at 5pm. He is also live tweeting while he does this. He syncs his keynotes so as he goes through his slides, the tweets have already been queued up to go out. His slides can also be found here but warning its a big file. Many of the audience here were just in Jennifer’s Carey talk as well. Carl is from Austin, Texas he is in a 1:1 program in his district with over 8800 iPads. This is K-12 for all students and…
Recently, when looking for a new tool that would work across multiple platforms (Windows, Mac, & Chromebook in particular), I stumbled on Popplet. While I had used the free Popplet Lite iPad app as a mindmapping tool, I had been unaware of the truly awesome potential for using Popplet on the web! At first glance, Popplet seems like most other mindmapping tools such as Inspiration, Bubbl.us, or MindMeister. However, it has three critical features that separate it from the rest (on top of being FREE). First, not only can you create objects with text, but Popples can also include links,…
This post first appeared on Edudemic. Game designers have mastered certain tricks that make games so addictive that people can’t stop playing them. Here are the top five secrets that game designers know, and some tips on how you can use these same game dynamics to make learning in your classroom as addictive as gaming. The Appointment Dynamic: Be Here At This Time, Get a Prize Make it an event! Games such as FarmVille and Animal Crossing have events going on all the time, even if players are not logged in. Crops need to be tended, and special gifts await…
This post first appeared on Edudemic. As students begin producing a plethora of digital work – and connecting and sharing that work with the world – we need to take a step back and teach them to think a little more about typography and design. This was not important when I was in school because I either wrote everything by hand, or used a computer with less ubiquitous font choices. Today, anyone with a computer can basically take a stab at typography and design. I have personally been the recipient of papers that were barely legible, despite the fact that…
Here in New England, we’ve had a pretty brutal week. However, we’re all looking forward to warming up next week in San Diego! February 3-5 will be our inaugural West Coast event with iPad Summit San Diego. If you aren’t able to join us, we will be tweeting at #ettipad and LIVE blogging much of the conference right here! We will also be running iPad workshops in 6 cities this summer, and have more learning opportunities with our winter webinars on January 30th and February 6th! NEW from the ETT Team The Tricky Task of Figuring Out What Makes a MOOC Successful…
This post first appeared on Edudemic. “You are a liar and I will never, ever, trust you again!” The student rose to his feet at the conclusion of a role-playing simulation in our negotiation class, pointing across the room at another student who had misled the other team and then changed his own vote. The other student, a little shaken, raised his hands in protest. “Dude, relax, it’s just a game.” “That’s exactly what I mean!” the first student continued. “If you’re willing to do this in a game, what would you be willing to do if the stakes were…
We had a great week at EdTechTeacher. Our team of instructors led workshops in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Dubai! The iPad Summit in San Diego is now SOLD OUT, but there are a few spots left in the iPads in the Elementary Classroom Pre-Conference Workshop. Summer Workshop registrations are also starting to roll in. Remember that we will have workshops in 6 cities across the country this year. This week, we have some new articles from the team, our 1st webinar recording of the winter series, as well as some new resources from around the web. Enjoy! Creativity & Learning…
This post first appeared on Edudemic. “Ms. Clark, I can’t believe it! Someone from Argentina and New Zealand just read my blog!” This kind of wide-eyed excitement is why I have been blogging with my students for nearly 10 years. With the infusion of technology in most classrooms, many teachers are finding blogs a great way to galvanize and encourage purposeful writing and then to quickly publish student work. Publishing is an important step, but I urge educators to think of blogs as so much more than just a way to publicize student work. A blog empowers students to interact…
We’re back! Happy New Year! We have lots of new articles, webinars, and resources this week. Enjoy! FREE, LIVE Winter Webinar Series January 15th/16th: Creativity & Learning with iPads with guests Richard Wells from Auckland, New Zealand and Paul Hamilton from Sunshine Coast, Australia Too often, iPads are viewed solely as consumption devices – good for little more than checking email and online research. However, in schools around the world, teachers are proving this theory wrong. Join Richard Wells (@iPadWells) and Paul Hamilton (@PaulHamilton8), as well as EdTechTeacher’s Shawn McCusker and Beth Holland, as they explore how iPads can inspire creativity and empower students…
This post was first published on Shawn’s blog. He is currently in his second year of teaching in a 1:1 iPad environment. 1. Manage the Technology: In addition to learning and completing assignments students have an array or responsibilities simply in managing the device. The device needs to be charged, apps and programs need to be updated so that they continue to function correctly. At first students and perhaps parents may scoff at the idea that these tasks are part of learning. It can be hard to keep them accountable for them, but just as important as it is to…
Happy New Year! We’re all snowed in up here in New England, so most of us have not yet gone back to school. For those of you who have, we hope that 2014 has started out strong. We continued digging into the archives of 2013 this week and tweeted out a few of our favorite articles each day. If you missed our @EdTechTeacher21 tweets, here’s the FULL list. Just keep an eye out for reads 18-20 this weekend….. Week #2 iPad As Trojan Mouse from Justin Reich When to Put the Tech Away in Your 1:1 Classroom from Shawn McCusker & Beth Holland…
This post first appeared on Patrick’s Blog – Learning in Burlington. Photo via Wesley Fryer on Flickr As I was playing catchup on my blog reading from the last couple of weeks, I came across a great post from Scott McLeod on the topic of parents choosing to opt out of their students having a device in a 1:1 setting. The major questions that Scott asks here are certainly ones that have been wrestled with in every school that has implemented a 1:1 program: “Should parents have the right to refuse or limit a 1:1 initiative – or other educational technology…
We hope that all of you are enjoying a break from school! This week, we dug into the archives and tweeted out a few of our favorite 2013 articles each day. If you missed our @EdTechTeacher21 tweets, here’s the list! 6 Ways Students Can Collaborate With iPads from Greg Kulowiec iPad or Chromebook? 4 Questions to Ask from Beth Holland All the Good Apps Fit on One Screen iPad Collaboration Part 2 from Greg Kulowiec Failure Is Mandatory: Creating A Culture Of Innovation from Tom Daccord & Justin Reich The Textbook is Dead, Long Live the Textbook! from Shawn McCusker 5 Myths about Writing with…
This post first appeared on Edudemic. Last week on the Connected Student Series, I discussed the ‘why’ of digital portfolios. It is imperative that in 2014, students be able to curate, archive and expand on the work they are producing in class. As an added bonus, student digital portfolios help students authentically learn important digital citizenship lessons. Portfolios also allow students to internalize vital digital literacy skills such as creating their own digital web presence and learning to effectively and purposefully share their learning with the world. This week, I will highlight how you can make this process happen and showcase…
From all of us at EdTechTeacher, we send you are very best for the holiday season! NEW from the EdTechTeacher Team Taking a Dip in the SAMR Pool In this post for the SchoolCIO Blog, Carl Hooker describes the SAMR model not as a ladder, but as a swimming pool. “Some may decide to jump off the diving board straight into the deep end and learn how to integrate from day one with a particular learning objective. Others elect to take swimming lessons (Professional Development) and use the occasional swim noodle (instructional technology integrators) to help them stay afloat. In…
This post, co-authored by Jennifer Carey & Beth Holland, first appeared on Edudemic. Live Blogging is a popular medium to convey information as it is announced. Unless you’ve been privileged enough to get an invitation to the latest Apple or Google Event, then you have likely seen the release of information via Twitter or other live blog platforms. Live Blogs include not only writing, but images, video, links, and more. In essence, they are multimedia publications. Most conferences have access to wireless, and their inherent nature and culture – engaging, interactive, and open – lend to a live blog platform.…
We’re spent the weekend digging out of the snow here in New England (and Shawn in the mid west). We hope that all of you are staying warm! NEW from the EdTechTeacher Team December Newsletter We made some big announcements in our newsletter this week! The Summer Workshop Series web site is now up and ready for registration. We are also still accepting submissions for Leading Future Learning, and Early Bird Registration for the San Diego Summit is only open through January 3rd. Reading & Writing with iPads Beth Holland has written two posts for Edutopia in the past few weeks…
Welcome to December! We took last week off for Thanksgiving, but have lots of resources this week – as well as a few announcements. BIG News from EdTechTeacher Welcome Douglas Kiang! We are thrilled to add Douglas Kiang as the newest member of our instructional team. In many ways, Douglas has worked with us for several years as an instructor at the iPad Summits and Summer Workshops. However, he is now officially joining us from Oahu! Douglas currently works at Punahou School in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he teaches computer science, provides technology professional development to faculty, and is co-director of…
First published on Edudemic on November 25, 2013 The Connected Student Series: Warning: True Confession of an Educator Ahead…I always find it quite confusing when educators tell me that students in their classroom are reading at a 7th grade reading level. What does that really mean? Does that mean that they are truly reading? When I say truly reading I mean with full comprehension. They are able to share their learning, demonstrate it in many different ways and extend that knowledge. Too often when I hear that students are at a particular reading level the person is referring to decoding…
It’s hard to believe that this time last week we were wrapping up the Boston 2013 iPad Summit. For those of you who attended, we can’t thank you enough for your enthusiasm and insights over the two days. If you didn’t get to join us in Boston, both the Call for Proposals and Early Bird Registration are still open for San Diego! This week, we have curated a number of posts and podcasts from last week’s event. Thanks to all who have been writing! Insights Live from the 3rd iPad Summit from Jen Carey As always, we can’t thank Jen enough…
What should we pack for our collective adventure into an era of ubiquitous computing and mobile devices? What tools and skills will we need in order to survive? To prepare for the age of digital exploration, maybe we need to acquire a new set of essential skills… At the recent iPad Summit in Boston, I had more than 12 minutes to address this concept within the specific concept of the iPad Classroom. You can view that presentation – and dozens of others – on the iPad Summit web site.
The posts below came from Ian Simpson’s (@familysimpson) Postach.io blog – Caffeine Tangent. Each heading links to his original post. Thanks again to Ian for letting us share! #ettipad Notes from vendor alley Before the keynote on Thursday I was able to wander a little along what I want to dub “vendor alley” – the line of commercial showcases and stalls outside the majority of the session rooms. I spoke to Appazur Solutions first. They were promoting a parent and student engagement platform which was packaged as a school-branded mobile app. Last year a colleague at RGC investigated the need for…
You can also read this post on Jen’s Blog. The last session I am attending is “Redefining the Writing Process” with Beth Hollandand Samantha Morra. Beth highlights the idea we all have about writing – that it’s about paper and keyboarding. Beth wrote a great article about this at Edudemic, “5 Myths About Writing with Mobile Devices.” Now that we’re in a 2.0 world, writing is now a Digital Process. We can use tools like Google Drive to provide simultaneous feedback or even use audio comments instead of written ones. I wrote about leaving Voice Comments in Google Docs. Beth highlights the fact…
You can also read this post on Jen’s Blog. This afternoon I’m attending “iOS Tips & Tricks” with Don Orth and Carl Hooker. Having seen both Don and Carl present individually, I’m excited to see what they do together. You can follow the Today’s Meet Backchannel. This is focused primarily on iOS 7. Not Carl’s shopping list. Carl’s starting with his wife’s shopping list on “Reminders.” One of the great features is that you can set reminders not only for time, but for geography as well. You can remind yourself driving past the grocery store to pick up milk or to grab your computer when…
Challenge 1 – close your eyes for 30 seconds and describe the ideal learning environment Challenge 2 – turn to people around you and share your vision for 1.5 minutes What does learning look like? If you can’t answer that question, Tom begins, then you don’t know where you’re going. It’s only in the last few years that we realize that paper is a limitation. 6 Tenets of Learning Environments 1. Vision – the story of the Idea Wall. Tom talks about visiting a school and how they use the idea wall as a way to allow students to pursue and…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. The next session I am attending is about Subtext, a tool I have been wanting to learn and explore. Check out their presentation materials here. “Subtext is a free iPad app that allows classroom groups to exchange ideas in the pages of digital texts. You can also layer in enrichment materials, assignments and quizzes—opening up almost limitless opportunities to engage students and foster analysis and writing skills.” Subtext allows students to engage deeper with reading material both individually as well as collaboratively. Subtext does work with Google Apps for Education! You can use subtext…
I have to say that I’m thrilled to be sitting in Richard’s session as I’ve been following him on Twitter (@iPadWells) for quite some time and really value his blog – http://ipad4schools.org. Richard is the head of technology at a high school in New Zealand. He teaches teachers who do anything that touch technology – from design and architecture to automotive. His blog is aimed at high school teachers who often get bogged down in the heaviness of content to get them thinking about new ways to create content. Three big questions from Richard. What happens when…. Teachers are trusted…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. The next session I am attaching is Kathy Schrock’s “All You Need to Know About iPads in the Classroom.” I’ve been following Kathy for a while so I’m excited to hear what she has been thinking and developing. Kathy begins her discussion by talking about Bloom’s Taxonomy and its modern revision. I especially liked that she connected it back to the SAMR model. Looking at apps in the Taxonomy of Bloom’s, it’s important to ask pertinent questions about an apps meaning and value. She highlights one of my favorite tools,Evernote as well as apps like Pocket that are great for…
Kristen started out by having 2 iPads with her elementary students. She focused on sight words and did a formalized research study to prove their value for teaching and learning. Her classroom is based on the idea of “open concept” – there are no walls. Two combined grades work together and collide into the library. While at first glance, her room may look similar to others, there are key differences. Difference #1 – students choose their morning activity When students enter in the morning, they can read, blog, or Tweet. They work independently or in groups wherever they like. Difference…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. I can hardly contain my excitement for the keynote speaker of day 2, Ruben Puetendura, Ph.D., the father of the SAMR model concept. His topic is: Of Lively Sketchbooks and Curiosity Amplifiers: Thoughts on the iPad and Learning. Ruben’s primary focus is the implementation of technology in the realm of education – not just in simple ways, but in meaningful and revolutionary ways. Today’s talk focuses specifically on the iPad. Why is the iPad special? One is its ubiquity. We find them everywhere. Another key element is that the iPad is intimate. We can use…
Yesterday, during one of the first sessions, we discovered Ian Simpson’s (@familysimpson) Postach.io blog – Caffeine Tangent. Ian told us that his posts are more immediate reflections, so we asked permission to capture them here on the blog as well. Each heading links to his original post. Thanks to Ian for letting us share! Boston iPad Summit Thursday This is an experiment in live blogging using Evernote and Postach.io. I’ll go back and edit the information below, but the aim of publishing this as I go is to engage others in discussion. Please excuse any mistakes, but don’t forget to call…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. My last session of the day is “Electronic Portfolios & Making Things Visible” by Michelle Cordy. You can check out her website, “Hack the Classroom.” Many of my teachers and administrators have expressed interest in learning more about digital portfolios. I’ve explored it on many platforms (see my posts Google Sites for Digital Portfolios andDigital Portfolios & College Admissions). I’m excited to learn about composing and building portfolios on the iPad. Courtesy of WIkimedia Commons Michelle said that she is an “education hacker” because we all (including students) work on projects that we neither…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. The humanities teacher in me could not resist attending “Hacking the Humanities” with Lawrence Reiff. He starts out discussing the importance of the humanities – it’s not about STEM, it’s about STEAM! Teaching the humanities is about collaboration – perhaps the most important skill of the 21st century. As an interdisciplinary subject, we have common learning goals that we can address across multiple classes (language, science, art, etc.). This allows us to view our discipline from multiple perspectives. Epic of Gilgamesh, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons These “mashed” social studies curriculums allow multiple…
Educators love acronyms, begins Carl. At Eanes ISD, they had LEAP – Learning and Engaging through Access and Personalization. This was their why for the pilot. In the first year, they had 6 iPad 1s. The following year, they launched 1800 iPads at the high school level with the teachers who were the most ready. Before handing out iPads to the students, they gave out 2400 to the teachers. By spring of 2013, all students in K-12 are armed with iPads (8800). However, through the process, they have made a number of mistakes. Top 20 things NOT to do in a 1:1…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. In keeping with my focus on Professional Development (the life of a tech administrator), the next session I am attending is “Challenge-Based, One-Screen, & T21: the EdTechTeacher Approach to iPad PD” by Thomas Daccord of EdTechTeacher (the hosts of the iPad Summit). Tom’s focus in this session is ETT’s approach to professional development and pedagogy. Challenge Based Learning Instead of beginning with instruction, issue a series of challenges along with a time-limit. When asked “Aren’t you going to teach us how to use it?” He responds, “No. You’re going to learn how to use it.”…
Featured speaker, Jon Bergman, starts out by saying that he’s going to talk more about pedagogy than iPads because why use a device if there isn’t strong pedagogy behind it. He grew up being a learner and in a family of learners. When Jon first started teaching, the only technology that he had was the chalkboard. However, after a few years, his next tool was “the overhead projector.” Eventually, he got a computer and a projector, but the teaching practice all looked the same. “Do our students know anything different than asking Siri?” Asks Jon. We are in exciting times…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. The next conference I am attending is by Sam Bruzzese (you can check out his blog here). If you would like to see the notes for his talk, check out the linkhere. I’m excited to hear more information about providing good professional development. Sam starts the session by taking a Socrative Poll. If you’re unfamiliar with Socrative, it’s worth a look – it’s a great tool to quiz and poll groups. It’s a highly flexible and versatile tool! Sam recommends using it in your professional development to take a pulse of the room and being sure…
Greg Kulowiec begins his session by asking, “Why limit our students to one tool at one time?” With App Smashing, students can create content with a variety of apps and then publish it to the web – don’t let content “die on your iPad.” The general concept between App Smashing is merging content from a variety of apps. Greg likes the word App Smash, but Lisa Johnson (@techchef4u) calls it App Synergy. Toolkit for App Smashing – keep it simple! The key to App Smashing is the camera roll – use apps that can save to camera roll or take screen captures and…
You can also read this post on Jen’s blog. It’s time to kick off the iPad Summit! This year’s keynote speaker is David Weinberger, Ph.D., Co-Director of the Harvard Library Innovation Lab and Senior Researcher for the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet & Society. David begins by telling us that he would like to discuss how we raise children to be good citizens and that we recognize that the new digital environment in which we live provides us not only new obligations, but also a new opportunity. David highlights that there is a temptation among educators to look at the internet as a collection of…