Nocking the Arrow

Nocking the Arrow - 2013

Pelican Lake, MN

2013 was an inspired year of personal and connected learning for me. It was my intention to share my thoughts and "learnings" within the seventy-two posts published during the past year. The bloggers that I read regularly, such as George Couros, Tom Whitby, or Will Richardson are those that challenge my thinking while igniting some degree of action, or reaction. Thought change leaders such as these start with, and make me ask "why?". I want my writing to evolve away from apps, devices, and tools, and move more towards pedagogy, mindset, and social learning.

That said, and I am not quite sure why, but it's still my more "how to", and "what is" posts that attract the most attention. Here are my three most popular posts for 2013 based upon reader page views.

1:1 Digital Workflow (2721 page views) - provides a recipe for document workflow in a 1:1 iPad classroom.
Classroom Management in a 1:1 Environment (2522 page views) - provides strategies and resources for managing student behavior in a 1:1 supported classroom.
3 Significant Obstacles to Creating a PLN (1081 page views) - this post was also published to Schoology's Blog. It summarizes a discussion with educators looking to overcome obstacles and get started with connecting to a personal learning network.

I subscribe to close to 100 blogs that I read daily. Additionally, Flipboard and Zite have become my current event gateways. My personal learning network has grown from a few, to a few thousand influential educators looking to improve school, and create a culture of learning. I know how much I value the comments that are submitted to my posts, and I make a point to comment on at least one post each day. In addition to this blog, Twitter has become a pillar of my PLN interaction. Twitter has changed the way that I view learning, and it energizes my educational spirit every day. You can read my tweets, see my lists, and follow me @robert_schuetz.

Although I read and follow hundreds, maybe thousands, of people with interests in promoting learning and improving education, here are several bloggers that have had the greatest impact on my thinking and writing this year. If you haven't done so already, I encourage you to check out their work.

Tom Whitby - My Island View
Silvia Tolisano - Langwitches Blog
Dr. Jackie Gerstein - Jackie Gerstein
George Couros - The Principal of Change
Steve Wheeler - Learning With "e"s
Justin Tarte - Life of an Educator
Eric Sheninger - A Principal's Reflections

"Nocking the Arrow" is a labor of love for me. It is quickly evolving into my digital portfolio of learning. The title, which is correctly spelled, is an archery term referring to setting the arrow on the bowstring prior to taking aim at the target. I equate this to having a vision and plan in one's mind prior to taking sensory and motor action. I appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts, and I appreciate those folks that have taken the time to read my posts. I intend to be more tenacious and thought-provoking in 2014. My primary focus will be encouraging every learner to build a positive digital footprint with a digital (web) portfolio as evidence of mastery and learning. I am looking forward to learning and growing with all of you this coming year!

What Teachers Can Learn From Effective Coaches

In my educational world teaching and coaching involve the same processes. The people that impacted my own learning most significantly were coaches. Could it be that great coaches were ahead of their time with respects to instructional best practices? Let's take a look at ten coaching practices that thankfully have found their way into the classroom. http://www.coachwooden.com/files/PyramidThinkingSuccess.jpg Standards-based Grading - coaches aren't concerned with arbitrary measures of success such as letter grades. Great coaches identify a requisite set of skills that are necessary for advancement and success. Promotion and achievement are based upon clearly identified levels of skill mastery. Authentic assessment - coaches are looking for their athletes to demonstrate their skill mastery under game-like situations. The best coaches incorporate game simulations and competitive, game-like drills into their practices. Winning coaches will use the contests as assess

Board Games in the School Library: 3 Reasons Why It's a Winning Play

"Play is the highest form of research." - Albert Einstein “Play is the work of the child.” – Maria Montessori In our recently remodeled school media center, we have a space dedicated to active engagement in fun learning activities. Part maker space, part literacy lounge, board games are being incorporated to promote a culture of joyful learning. Whether it's a game of Rummy , Yahtzee , or Scrabble , family game night serves as a communication elixir and solidifies our domestic climate of togetherness. Shouldn't similar opportunities for interaction, challenge, and fun exist somewhere in our schools? Broken families, cultural fragmentation, and poverty are impacting opportunities for children to play. As we unpacked and tagged our new media center games, I was more disappointed than shocked by the number of students who had never played Monopoly , Boggle , or Sorry . One skeptical teacher commented, "Oh great, now we're letting students pl

Self-Directed vs. Self-Determined Learning; What's the Difference?

"We need to move beyond the idea that an education is something that is provided for us, and toward the idea that an education is something that we create for ourselves." - Stephen Downes In this age of abundance of information, shifting classroom pedagogy isn't nearly enough to make learning in school more relevant and authentic for the learner. Self-directed learning ( andragogy ), and self-determined learning ( heutagogy ) are the ideals necessary in making students " future ready " to live and learn in a web-connected world. While original research applied these concepts to mature learners, it has become apparent that even young children have an abundant capacity for recognizing and directing their learning. Anyone who has observed toddlers learning how to walk and talk understand the motivation and skill development that quickly develops during these processes. Considered by some to be on a learning continuum, self-directed learning, and self-determined

Nocking the Arrow

Search This Blog