Nocking the Arrow

Today was my birthday. After nearly 1/2 century, the celebration is a bit muted tonight. Not just because 49 is an insignificant, prime number, but because my birthday typically falls during the first week of school, which as you know, can be a rather wild whirlwind, two parts excitement mixed with one part stress. That said, today does offer me a chance to reflect on a conversation that I shared with my principal during our weekly meeting. We shared our beliefs about lifelong, passion-based learning, and it was an enthusiastic discussion that inspired this post. I believe that it's very difficult for educators to stay current and relevant without PLN connections.   Okay, I'm Connected, Now What - Tom Whitby I believe that the very nature of learning is becoming a combination of crowd sourcing and small personal learning teams. Two Roads to Innovation - George Couros I believe that the joy, and reward of learning is found in personal meaning and shared appreciation. The S...

What if attendance to your classroom was optional? Would students still come to your class? These questions were inspired by a recent post by Ryan McLane, " Teach Like a Pirate Day ". Ryan's leading question was, " If your students didn't have to be there, would you be teaching to an empty room? " This question was prompted by the book, " Teach Like a Pirate ", by Dave Burgess . The premise is that students would not attend their classes. Instead, students would look over a menu of learning "experiences" and attend whatever they find interesting. The offerings were interesting, fun, engaging, mysterious, and challenging. The results at Utica Junior High were impressive. So much so, students and teachers responded by asking, " Why can't every day be Pirate Day? " One student offered to pay money to attend a " Mystery Skype " session, which was full. Would students pay money to attend a meaningful learning exper...