 Alisal EdTech News v 1.2 | |
1:1 Device Expansion: Save the Date!!
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Student Acceptable Use Policy Update
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OARS: Gradebook &
E-Report Card Update
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Alisal Technology Council: Reps Needed
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Upcoming EdTech Professional Development
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More info to come!!
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Feedback, comments, concerns, or quagmire??
Click Below
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Sunday, September 6, 2015
Alisal EdTech News v 1.2
Saturday, September 5, 2015
In the Classroom: Building Student Discourse
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| 4 Levels of Language Version 2.0 |
First many of my ideas are based of off Doug Fisher and +Rick Morris -- two of my favorite educational presenters. If you ever have a chance to see either of them, I would strongly recommend to do so. Also I love to use many Spencer Kagan strategies and structures as well throughout my teaching to further engage students.
Getting down to business, this first post will focus on how I used a rubric and the Class Cards App to build language into my classroom. If you are asking what class cards is, simply follow the link. If you already know what is it, just keep on reading.
It wasn't until after the second +Rick Morris training that I really got into class cards, and at that point I was going full bore with the clip chart, choices program, and numbers in my classroom as well. After really using the app for a few weeks, I had immediately run into a problem. I loved the random selecting of students to check for understanding, but I was not sure how to grade the students' responses fairly. How could I determine if their answer deserved the score of an A, B, C, or D? Some responses sounded like As and some like Cs, but it didn't feel consistent all the time. Not only was I unsure of what to score the students really deserved, but the students also had no clear idea of the criteria/significance of their grade. I did not feel successful with my Class Cards integration. What to do?
My next step of course was to go to Dr. Google and consult the internet. Specifically, I was wondering if I could find any rubrics on speaking that could give my students a general guide of how to compose their responses. I found some great rubrics from many different sites, but none that really fit the bill. So the next day in class, I decided to create my own with the help of my class.
First of course, I presented them with my conundrum of not being able to fairly score them on class cards. Therefore, we decided we needed a better way. We started by finding some videos of eloquent kids giving speeches on Youtube. Kid President was our first stop, and a good resource for you to check out if you haven't already.
We then discussed what made them sound intelligent, and why we liked them. In addition, we talked about the difference between classroom talk and playground talk, and how we needed to increase our awareness. This had been an ongoing discussion from the beginning of the year. Next, we broke a piece of chart paper into four sections and discussed what a scholar would sound like when he or she was speaking. We labeled the top part scholar and agreed what to write in that section. We then moved to the bottom row and filled that in as a class. Swiftly, we moved to the middle sections and filled those in using similar language throughout. Finally, we came up with names that we thought appropriate for our class. Not all might think them appropriate, but we agreed that they fit our class. Viola, our rubric was complete.
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| 4 Levels of Language Version 1.1 |
Let me clarify that this was not the only piece that helped my students be successful linguistically, but it was one of the scaffolds that helped. Plus when paired with Class Cards, it gave me actual data to share with students and parents about their participation and speaking ability.
Let me end by presenting you with the slightly modified original poster. The greatest thing about it is I have seen so many other versions of this poster. My goal is to email those who have adapted this work and include their awesome ideas in this post as well. After all, sharing is caring!!
Alisal EdTech News v 1.1
 Alisal EdTech News v 1.1 | |
Student Acceptable Use Policy
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Alisal Wifi
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New 1:1 Device Roll Out
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Alisal Technology Council
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Upcoming Professional Development
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More info to come!!
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Feedback, comments, concerns, or quagmire??
Click Below
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Tuesday, August 25, 2015
Alisal EdTech News v 1.0
 Alisal EdTech News v 1.0 | |
Student Acceptable Use Policy
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•The Student Acceptable Use Policy (SAUP) is written to protect and inform all stakeholders as to the responsibilities of taking home a device such as a computer or tablet.
•In June the SAUP was rewritten by a team to meet the needs of all schools.
•The SAUP is currently being reviewed by Cabinet and Legal Council and will be forwarded to sites ASAP.
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![Convertible[edit]](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/6IV6QvijHLu2fs6j64Ck8fDsbJF_OjWFNApqVIfKUN0iXPLcn2SJ7hUIYY8ZPxJlmn4Rzqg621FhPNCX4GNChMc-8Owu2MpOA1XeEdYNipysgLZjEANYhs4-zfJTYelL0gxW_E0)
1:1 Device Distribution: Vasquez & Tech Pioneers from Last Year
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•After the SAUP is approved, School Sites should have their Parent Tech Meetings to review the SAUP.
•The SAUP will need to be collected before our Technology Department can hand devices out to students.
•The goal is to have the devices out by mid-September.
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New 1:1 Device Roll Out
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•Devices have been ordered by our Tech Department and are being formatted for students as they arrive.
•The goal for distribution is the beginning of October, but the Technology Department will try to get the devices to teachers as soon as possible.
•Once the distribution dates are firm, we will distribute a schedule for training dates for the teachers who will be new to the 1:1 program.
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Alisal Technology Council
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•The Alisal Technology Council is scheduled to begin on September 16 from 3:15-4:45. Each site will be sending a representative.
•The goal of this council will be to provide the District with guidance on implementing Instructional Technology.
•More information will be coming soon from Mr. Johnson.
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Google Apps for Education
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•Currently the District is in the process of setting up Google Apps for Education to implement District wide.
•Here is a quick Youtube video that introduces Google Apps for Education (GAFE).
•More information on professional development around GAFE will come.
•One great resource for GAFE is www.alicekeeler.com/teacher tech/google-classroom.
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More info to come!!
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Feedback, comments, concerns, or quagmire??
Click Below
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Saturday, August 8, 2015
Coach's Corner: 20% Project in 30 Minutes Flat
When I went to my first +EdTechTeam Summit and looked at the schedule, I thought to myself, "Thirty minutes seems awfully long for a break; couldn't we be doing something better with that time?" Of course I no longer feel this way, but this is where I started. And thus begins the narrative of my 20% Time Project at the +EdTechTeam Summit.
So I would love to say that the first inspiration for this project came from an +EdTechTeam Summit, but alas it actually started at ISTE from some conversations with +Levi Valdois about a leadership project he is working on called "51 Flavors." At the same time, I was realizing the value of connecting with people and picking their brains. I had a chance to engage in a few conversations with +Thomas Whitby around coaching and professional development. I took a few notes on his key points, but many of the gems I wanted to remember slipped past me. How, pray tell, could I catch these insights and cement them in memory?
Enter the Coach's Corner Youtube Series. I wanted to capture as much knowledge on becoming a District Wide Technology Trainer as much as possible. So I went to the +EdTechTeam Team Gafe Summit in Palo Alto. I sat down in the Gunn High School auditorium and listened to Ms. +Jennie Magiera's amazing keynote on taking risks and choosing not to be bothered by failure. So I thought, why not take a risk this very moment? Here at the +EdTechTeam summit, I was surrounded by people with tons of experience training teachers. This was a golden opportunity to grab them for a moment and ask for advice.
I just needed to figure how and when I was going to ask and work up the courage to do so. As I was cogitating about this, I walked into my second session, and who was sitting there -- Ms. +Jennie Magiera herself. I had time before the next session started, so I thought why not? I must have looked like an awkward teenage boy at a middle school dance as I went up to her and asked her if I could do a quick impromptu interview. I struggled through the interview as I held up my iPad and recorded the video arm extended. Boy was my arm tired after six minutes!
I went through the same process with +jeffery heil, +Lisa Highfill, +benjamin friesen, +James Sanders, +Kasey Bell, +Michelle Armstrong, and +Mark Wagner. Suddenly, thirty minutes wasn't enough time. I would pick my session, throw my bag down, and proceed to do as many interviews as possible. In between the interviews, I used those few minutes to do the best editing in the time I had. Of course after rewatching the videos, I found many errors, but the message remained the same. This became my 20% Project not because of the time I allocated to the project, but because of the spirit behind the project. Because of the thirty minute break, I was able to engage in my own learning and professional growth based on my own needs, while possibly helping some others along the way.
So what were my big take aways and key insights into EdTech coaching? The Worldle above represents a loose transcript of all the answers that the +EdTechTeam members gave me. To me it represents how I should proceed with my coaching: my first steps. Moreover, it summarizes my big take aways from the summits. Those thirty-minute intervals between sessions afforded me the opportunity to pursue my own personal and professional learning and create a historical record of the summit that can be paused, rewound, shared, and reviewed. This was the cherry on top of the sundae; perhaps the most valuable piece of my GAFE Summit.
At a this point, I should stop because I must thank each of the interviewees who took the time to humor me in my project. Thank you, +Jennie Magiera, +jeffery heil, +Lisa Highfill, +benjamin friesen, +James Sanders, +Kasey Bell, +Michelle Armstrong, and +Mark Wagner (this interview is missing one component and has not yet been released); you have provided me with inspiration, confidence, direction, and agency in my immediate future educational endeavors.
By the way, if you are interested in the Coach's Corner Series, its simply a click away. I hope it is as helpful to you as it was to me. You can even check out the two bonus videos by my own daughter, former principal, and my wife, whose video is forthcoming.
Shameless plug aside, I need to end this post by expressing my gratitude to the +EdTechTeam for scheduling the thirty minutes between sessions, which ultimately allowed me to create my own 20% Time Project.
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