Nocking the Arrow

After several months of planning meetings... Meetings about professional development, meetings about support documents, meetings about teacher proposals, meetings about devices, meetings about budget, meetings about tech support, meetings about infrastructure, meetings about distribution, meetings about learning goals...  you get the idea. Anyway, after several months of planning our 1:1 pilot, it was go time! Day One for AP Biology students Our 1:1 pilot would involve five high schools, thirty-four teachers, fifteen hundred students, and approximately 1600 iPad-2s, cases, cords, and styluses. Of course, it would involve countless hours of planning and preparation.  Typically a two to four year process, we put our proverbial foot to the floor and cranked out our pilot in nine months. With day one just a couple short weeks away, we finalized and mailed invitation letters to students and their parents informing them of their enrollment in at least one 1:1 pilot cou...

One if by Land, two if by sea... the devices are coming (if they haven't already arrived) Web-based applications, 1:1 mobile computing devices, BYOT, digitized content, paperless teaching, flipped lessons, 24-7 learning...  Teachers need to proactively prepare for the current educational revolution that is being driven by mobile technology and the Internet.  As one of my colleagues noted, we will all be like first year teachers again at some point soon.  Considering the sweeping changes in teacher evaluation, this can be a threatening proposition to some.  Teachers can stay ahead of, and even shape these changes by preparing themselves and their students for this digital information age by building out their connected classrooms.  Bob the Builder asks, "Can we build it?"  "Yes, we can!" Accept and plan for the changes that are coming.  Teachers should articulate with students, parents, and community members to develop a set of blueprints for ub...

Being a proponent of daily growth, I think that great lessons and learning can take place anywhere and at anytime.  This was completely evident about a month ago when my family and I toured the Mayan ruins at Chacchoben , which is near Costa Maya, Mexico.  Our tour guide, Sergio, incorporated several techniques and practices that make up a great teaching / learning lesson. He flipped the lesson by providing a pre-tour planner to our cruise ship cabin.  This guide included a map of the Quintana Roo province, a brief history and cultural description of Chacchoben, a Mayan calendar , and an architect's diagram of the surviving ruins. During the 45 minute bus ride to the site, Sergio established a rapport by telling a story about a Mayan family living in ancient Chacchoben .  He reviewed the supporting documents, and set the collaborative tone for the tour by admitting his English language deficiency, and that we would be learning from each other as we recorded an...

Keith Sorensen and I spent a few hours in the PHS Media Center interviewing students. The focus of our  questioning was to find out what students were expecting from their educational experiences, particularly relating to instructional technologies. We interviewed several dozen students attempting to get a heterogeneous representation of our student population. We naturally gravitated towards students that were either using or obviously possessing their own mobile technology (cell phones or tablets) . Some of the student responses were surprisingly honest, and revealing.  Here are a few general themes that we learned from today's discussions. Most students are willing and able to bring their own technology to class, but in most cases, the teachers restrict usage.  In a few noted exceptions, teachers encouraged student usage of personal electronics.  In these situations, students commented about feeling more engaged and connected with the lesson, and with the...