Interrogating Curriculum: Improving My Practice

March

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 08:09:47 PDT

Well March has been interesting and busy. We have had outdoor ed trips for different grades, PTI's, science fair, music festival....just to name a 'few' things going on at school. It continues to amaze me how many services schools provide for students.

Schools have come along way in twenty years. As teachers we might complain about this or that, but if you step back and look at the things we provide and do for students....it is amazing. The community school concept is a good one. It causes us to interact with community more than we have before and address issues more than we have before. Good work people!

Well, Well, Well

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 14:10:55 PST

I haven't posted in a long time, but I was inspired by one of my teachers. She has been blogging all along. So I thought I should post something.

It is a Friday at the end of a busy school week and sometimes students have had enough. They try to push buttons, especially with substitute teachers. We had a incident at the end of the day where a student had gone too far. The Sub was upset and it was interesting to see that the student thought it was all a joke. It was all a joke until he stepped into the office and it became serious. The smirk was gone and reality sunk in. Respect, dignity and honour must be constantly promoted at all times by administrators. We can never let up on that. This was one of those times. He apologized for his actions and the consequence was meted out. But I was reminded that this type of student wants to watch teachers lose it by pushing their buttons. The key is to stay calm and professional.

Made a Cartoon with Xtranormal

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 07:21:55 PST

Here is my movie on the digestive system using xtranormal.

CISM

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 08:20:14 PST

If educators have not taken this training they should. Critical Incident Stress Management is amazing system designed to help people after incidences like accidents, deaths, suicides, etc. I did not realize that this program really spans the globe and that many organization and institutions have it in place to help their people in times of need. I have seen its benefit and I am impressed. Here is a link to site to learn more about it.

Teaching in America? No thanks!

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:33:38 PDT

Check out this article by Will Richardson at Weblogg-ed. Scary to think that teachers might be put under such stressful situations. Check it out!

Master at last!

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 18:44:35 PDT

The journey started many months ago, but my cohort and I have done it! We have reached our goal. We have our Masters in Education! Fantastic. Good job everyone and good luck in the future.

Presentation

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:03:43 PDT

Presentation on Saturday. The journey is almost over...and I am sure another one is about to begin.

Project Presentation Podcast

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 07:37:13 PDT

This is a podcast of my presentation I gave to my community in May. The podcast is about my major project in my Masters program. It is good to be done, but I have learned a lot!

Powerpoint is not alone!

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Mon, 25 May 2009 20:42:57 PDT

Here are some cool presentation tools online. I found them at Jose Picardo's website called Box of Tricks. Good stuff. If you follow the link it will take you to his site and you can check them out.

Great Quotes SlideShow for Educators

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Mon, 25 May 2009 20:44:09 PDT

Here is a slideshow I got from Wesley Fryers website. It is full of great quotes for educators about learning and change.

Project Presentation

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:06:16 PDT

Today I gave a presentation called "Improving My Practice Using Experiential Learning". In it I summarized my project for ED 900. I felt the presentation went pretty well. I would like to thank everyone who came and watched.

A few of the attendees had questions for me at the end. One participant wanted to know why it is so hard for teachers to give up power and control in the classroom. Another participant inquired about the ease with which experiential learning can be used to meet curricular objectives. One educator asked about evaluating reflections. These are some of the questions that were asked. They created good dialogue between everyone.

I then watched the presentations of my two colleagues. They both did a great job. I would like to give both of them a big round of applause.

Project

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Thu, 07 May 2009 13:19:42 PDT

It feels good to be DONE!!!!!

Quality Teachers

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sat, 02 May 2009 12:33:35 PDT

The latest posting on LeaderTalk is quite interesting. It is about teacher quality. It is titled, "Survivor, Witch Hunts, and the Quest for Teacher".

Here is a quote:

"Every year fire the worst teacher in the school. If you don’t have a robust teacher evaluation system (or if you’re worried about administrator bias), do it like they do on Survivor: everyone gets a vote and the one with the most votes leaves the island. Administrators, teachers, staff, students, parents – everyone involved with the school gets a vote. Dismissal by consensus. The more that are involved, (hopefully) the less likelihood of a witch hunt. If necessary, modify the master contract to make this happen."

Wow! Check it out. Makes for good discussion and reflection doesn't it?

My First Animoto Movie

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 20:15:08 PDT

I signed up to Animoto and made a brief movie. It is easy to use, looks great, and sounds good, too. You get to make a 30 second video for free. It costs three dollars to make a video longer than that.

You can also create an education account. It takes some time because they review your application and then get back to you. I am in the process of waiting for them to get back to me.

Anyway here is my video! I called it "Nature".

Hey! What are 10 great web tools?

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 18:56:38 PDT

Well the blog "Technology and Education - Box of Tricks" has struck again with 10 web tools for educators. Jose, the author, has explored all 10 web tools with his students. His posting is called "Ten Tried and Tested Internet Tools for Teachers".

I am going to try Animoto, rather than using iMovie or Windows Movie Maker. I am looking for simplicity and a good product and I think this tool will do it.

Some you may have used, but not me. Have fun exploring!

LeaderTalk: An Ode To Facebook

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 12:53:25 PDT

LeaderTalk has struck again. Here is a great poem about one person's beliefs about Facebook. It is called, "An Ode to Facebook". I feel the same. It is fun. Check it out!

Using Web 2.0 - Fun for me or my students?

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 16:54:00 PDT

I was reading Box of Tricks again today and the blog posting was very relevant to my own experiences of using Web 2.0 tools in the classroom. The article is called "Can I tempt you with some Web 2.0?".

It is a good reflection on who is actually having fun with Web 2.0 tools. Is it the teacher or the students?

I have found myself thinking about this, too. It is nice to know I am not alone!

Check it out!

More Great Web Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 07:13:29 PDT

I was reading Box of Tricks just now and I thought I would post a link to this article "Half term review". It is a post by a teacher using current web tools, some I had not heard of before. Check out the following web tools:

Animoto
Edmondo
Jamendo

Students are now iGooglers

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 20:32:55 PDT

My students became iGooglers. They have at their finger tips: Reader, Docs, Blogger, and myriad of other 'stuff' they added to their personal google page. They had a fun time exploring and playing with their new web tools. It was fun to watch.

Transparency and Leadership

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 07:40:23 PDT

Will Richardson in his recent post "Transparency=Leadership" at his blog Weblogged wrote quite eloquently about the changing nature of leadership in education.

Here is a quote:
"I pulled Dov Seidman’s book “How” off the shelves last week as it speaks so eloquently to this point. I blogged about it almost two years ago when it came out, but in light of how things have moved forward since then, it’s even more relevant today. While most people see it as a business book, I look at it as a parenting book, one that challenges me to think about how to best prepare my kids for the “hypertransparent and hyperconnected world” in which they are going to work and play. His point is that in that environment, “how” you do something is more important even than “what” you do. If you’re not doing it skillfully, ethically, and transparently, you’ll be ceding success to those that do."

He also states,
"Whether they are in the classroom or in the front office, I want (demand?) the adults in my schools to be effective models for living in a transparent world. I want my kids to see them navigating these spaces effectively, sharing what they know, teaching others outside of their physical space, and contributing to the conversation."

Then he shows the effect of the information age on credentials,
"In Gary Hamel’s recent piece in the Wall Street Journal, The Facebook Generation vs. The Fortune 500, he writes

Contribution counts for more than credentials. When you post a video to YouTube, no one asks you if you went to film school. When you write a blog, no one cares whether you have a journalism degree. Position, title, and academic degrees—none of the usual status differentiators carry much weight online. On the Web, what counts is not your resume, but what you can contribute."

Therefore, lets be proactive "instead of reactive, which is what we’re all about when it comes to transparency in schools right now. What a concept."

Check it out. I don't read this blog that often, but this one made me stop and think.
As he says

MindMeister?

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 21:02:16 PDT

Ever heard of MindMeister? I hadn't until I read G. Siemen's article called "Best Collaboration Tools 2009". MindMeister is a collaborative tool for making Mind Maps or Concept Maps. The example Siemen's gives is by Robin Good. Robin has created a Map that gives the best online collaboration tools on the net. I have never heard of half these things. Check it out. Stay on top of emerging Web 2.0 tools!

Podcast 5 - Project Update

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 22:19:56 PDT

This podcast is a humorous reflection about my recent action in the computer lab. I wrote about it yesterday, but here it is in audio.

The music in the background is from "ccMixter" and has the following Creative Commons Licensing. The music is remixed by George Ellinas.

Enjoy!

Project Update...TeacherTube SmeacherTube

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 11:58:35 PDT

Well it is always interesting working with my students with our Blogs. Today they did some reflecting and grumbling.

Why?

I'll tell you why.

I had everything prepared. Filters were down for Blogger, we were using TeacherTube to find videos (because the filter are up for Blogger and I thought TeacherTube would be great), and I reconnaissanced the computer lab at noon to make sure we all had volume on our computers (students need to hear the audio on videos).

Sounds good doesn't it?

Students got on Blogger and started reflecting. Not bad. A few problems were incurred but nothing major (all this was evidence that I had learned from my previous actions).

Then we used TeacherTube and the wheels fell off the wagon.

TeacherTube on our systems is slow, filtered, and horrible to use. Most of my students were able to embed a video in an hour, but some couldn't. I found the variety and choice painful. The embedding code constantly gave problems.

Near the end of the period I had students shouting at their screens "I give up!" or "TeacherTube sucks". I calmly worked with them, but I was frustrated inside.

I find it frustrating that the pracitices and theories in our class never seem to run as smoothly in class. Their seems to be so many barriers to a smooth, nicely run lesson. But with every action, their is growth. But an experience like today doesn't promote 21st Century Skills very well.

Wesley Fryer on 21st Century Literacy

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 09:43:07 PDT

Once again Wesley Fryer has made me go "Hmmmmm". In one of his recent posts titled "What are the new literacies?" he made me reflect about the direction internet technology is headed.

Wesley Fryer states the following about internet technologies,

"I think Dean (Dean Groom) is on the right track in identifying the move tagging, folksonomies, and cloud computing– and away from desktop / local server file thinking as being an essential part of the collaborative skills needed as a part of a broader “digital literacy” skill set today."

By the way Dean Groom has a blog called, "Teaching and Learning Design". He is the Head of Educational Development Design at the Learning and Teaching Centre, Macquarie University, Sydney. Good stuff check it out

Fryer also states the following,

"I’m also struck by how the “digital knowledge divide” seems to grow larger by the day. How many teachers at your school can define “folksonomy” today? More people are aware of tag clouds and Wordle, but how many are USING them regularly to navigate and manage information flows with tools like delicious?"

Think about where we were at the beginning of this course. Now think about where you are now. You probably can understand what Fryer is talking about! Now how many of your colleagues can do the same?

Kick YouTube?

noreply@blogger.com (Jim S.) — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:32:03 PDT

"Box of Tricks: Technology and Education" is a interesting site, because it gives educators great ideas and tools to use. For instance, are you tired of being blocked from YouTube? Are school filters getting you down? Check this post out called KickYouTube - Download videos from YouTube.