March, 2022

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Virtual Learning Done Right

A Principal's Reflections

Through adversity, we rise to the occasion. So many important lessons were learned during the pandemic that can be used to not only improve our practice but also to pave the way for a brighter future. The key is not to have a short memory while working to push forward with implementing initiatives that benefit all learners. One important lesson learned was that face-to-face learning does not meet the needs of every child.

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50 Learning Reflection Questions For Students

TeachThought

Were you an active or a passive learner? Of what you learned today, what are you most comfortable with and what is still 'iffy'? The post 50 Learning Reflection Questions For Students appeared first on TeachThought.

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Balance Instruction and Feedback with Blended Learning

Catlin Tucker

Teachers have three primary roles – designer, instructor, and facilitator. When I facilitate blended learning workshops, I ask participants to think about these three roles and identify the role they spend the most time and energy in. The responses always yield the same results. Most teachers dedicate significant time and energy to their instructor role, explaining complex concepts and processes and modeling specific strategies and skills.

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MacKenzie Scott Makes Transformational $20 Million Gift to Digital Promise

Digital Promise

Digital Promise has received a $20 million gift, the single largest unrestricted gift in the organization’s history, from MacKenzie Scott. This catalytic investment will support Digital Promise as it pushes for bold solutions that can create equitable educational experiences to help prepare all learners for holistic, lifelong success. “Digital Promise is grateful to MacKenzie Scott for this generous contribution,” said Jean-Claude Brizard, president and CEO of Digital Promise.

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The School Hall Pass Is Going Digital. Is That a Good Thing?

ED Surge

The ritual of handing students a written hall pass probably hasn’t changed much since schools were first created—unless you count the invention of laminating machines that made paper passes more durable. In the last couple years, though, many schools have brought digital innovation to this seemingly simple process, namely by adopting electronic hall pass systems.

Library 145
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Kids can learn more from guided play than from direct instruction, report finds

The Hechinger Report

What happens when you stop teaching young children via direct instruction and instead set up purposeful opportunities to play? They could learn just as much—or more— when it comes to literacy, numeracy and executive function skills critical to early academic success, according to a new review of 17 studies of play. Researchers looked at 39 studies of play and included 17 in a meta-analysis that found when children ages three to eight engage in guided play, they can learn just as much in some dom

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Change Begins with You

A Principal's Reflections

When we do things a certain way, we often become comfortable, especially if we are satisfied with the result. While this might seem perfectly fine on the surface, the truth is that progress can become stagnant. The fact of the matter is that change will always be needed as employing the same old thinking will continue to lead to the same old results.

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Doing the same thing over and over again…

Dangerously Irrelevant

Hechinger Report just published an article on how having teachers study student data doesn’t actually result in better student learning outcomes. Think about that for a minute. That finding is pretty counterintuitive, right? For at least two decades now we have been asking teachers to take summative and formative data and analyze the heck out of them.

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I’m a Teacher, Will Artificial Intelligence Help Me?

Digital Promise

Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems are becoming more prevalent everywhere, including in education spaces. Educators may sometimes wonder, “What is AI?” and, “What can AI do?” Let’s address these questions and then discuss why and how YOU should be involved! What is AI and What Can it Do for Teachers? Artificial intelligence (AI) is a field of computer science that lets machines make decisions and predictions.

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Who is the Theranos of Education?

ED Surge

Over the last few months, biotech company Theranos has re-entered the conversation due to a slew of newsworthy happenings—the Elizabeth Holmes trial finally came to an end with four of 11 charges of fraud, and Hulu announced The Dropout’s debut while Apple Original Films’s Bad Blood is currently in production. Throughout the years of coverage, journalists, bloggers and commentators alike have each taken to their respective channels and platforms to identify their own Theranos stories in differen

EdTech 145
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A school created a homeless shelter in the gym and it paid off in the classroom

The Hechinger Report

SAN FRANCISCO — On a Friday evening in the fall of 2019, Maria Flores stood waiting with her “crazy heavy” duffel bag and her teenage son outside the office of a man whose home she cleans. A friend of hers had told him that Flores had been evicted from the apartment she had lived in for 16 years. There, the single mom had paid $700 a month in rent ever since she’d moved in eight-months pregnant.

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Level Up Your Leadership

A Principal's Reflections

Like most kids, past, and present, I loved playing video games. During my very early years, Atari was the best and only option. My parents eventually bought an Apple IIe where we needed to use floppy disks to load any meaningful content, which added to our gaming experience. However, once the Nintendo was invented and stationed in our basement, we toiled away immersed in classics such as Super Mario Brothers, Donkey Kong, and Mike Tyson’s punchout.

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The Relationship Between Reading And Critical Literacy

TeachThought

Sounds leads to words, words to ideas, ideas to perspectives, perspectives to behavioral change, and behavioral change to a better world. The post The Relationship Between Reading And Critical Literacy appeared first on TeachThought.

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Activity: High Tech High and ‘Why PBL?’

Dangerously Irrelevant

Here’s an activity to do with your educators… 1. Watch this video (maybe 3 times?). 2. Try to answer the following questions about the video (one focal question per viewing?). What are students doing? (e.g., they’re building something, they’re cooking, they’re designing). Where are the settings in which they’re doing it? (e.g., they’re at the beach, they’re in an art room, they’re out in a field).

Education 134
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Designing Pathways for Rural Learners Using Micro-credentials: Four Case Studies

Digital Promise

In our latest publication, Micro-credentials for Social Mobility in Rural Postsecondary Communities: A Landscape Report , Digital Promise conducted four in-depth case studies to explore how postsecondary institutions are using micro-credentials to create real-time career pathways for rural learners. These innovative institutions are: focused on supporting social mobility for poverty-impacted rural learners; prioritizing outreach to communities of color, returning citizens, and women; designing a

K-12 151
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Kids’ Media Use Is Up. Blame the Pandemic — And TikTok.

ED Surge

It’s official: Kids are spending more time on screens now than they were before the pandemic. That development is perhaps not surprising given the fact that many school and social activities migrated online during the past two years, says Mike Robb, senior director of research at the nonprofit Common Sense Media, which recently released a research report detailing the findings.

Research 130
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OPINION: If we don’t act quickly, the student loan default system could plunge more families into poverty

The Hechinger Report

For too long, the dream of pursuing a college degree has turned into a nightmare of loan default for millions of students. Like the well-documented effects of traffic fines and court fees, the penalties resulting from federal student loan default plunge too many Americans deeper into financial instability, perpetuating rather than helping to resolve the vicious cycle of poverty.

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A Literate Learner

A Principal's Reflections

A great deal has changed since I was in school. I vividly remember getting a TANDY laptop from my parents when I graduated high school. It was a considerable upgrade from the Apple IIe that we all shared in the guest room. I was mesmerized by the black screen with orange text, the fact that I didn’t have to toil over an electric typewriter anymore. Simplistic games were also available that I could now play without being tied to a desktop monitor or television set.

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50 Resources For Teaching With Bloom’s Taxonomy

TeachThought

In this list, we've collected posters, apps, definitions, apps, tools, videos and strategies and more to help teachers use Bloom's Taxonomy. The post 50 Resources For Teaching With Bloom’s Taxonomy appeared first on TeachThought.

Teaching 130
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Front and center in our schools, right?

Dangerously Irrelevant

So these are front and center in our schools, right? Not content, right? . Image credit: World Economic Forum, 2020. Related Posts. Top 50 P-12 Edublogs? – June 2008. Avoid magical thinking: ‘Design for online’ this fall. Photos! [guest post]. The Death of Subjective Values. Welcome back for the 2020 school year! [a letter from your local superintendent and school board].

Economics 130
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How Our Micro-credential Audit Supports Equitable and Accessible Professional Development

Digital Promise

The micro-credentialing field is ever shifting and changing – a characteristic that has made it ideal for innovation. The pandemic has demanded a high level of adaptability in education that micro-credentials can support. To support educators in accessing quality and relevant professional learning tools at the beginning of the pandemic, we curated a list of micro-credentials that could be earned with a remote or hybrid classroom.

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Educators Are Demoralized. What's the Way Forward?

ED Surge

Burned out, tired, demoralized , at a breaking point. Spend time with educators these days—in K-12 or higher ed—and phrases such as these will come up often. It's not a new narrative, but the pandemic has heightened pressures on teachers and professors as it continues to radically reshape the education landscape. For those in classrooms and for school leaders, the challenge is how to meet the many needs of educators during this time—social, emotional, intellectual and ethical.

K-12 129
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Standardized tests in their current format are ‘incredibly antiquated’

The Hechinger Report

Editor’s note: This story led off this week’s Future of Learning newsletter, which is delivered free to subscribers’ inboxes every other Wednesday with trends and top stories about education innovation. Subscribe today! Robert Sternberg is frustrated. Really frustrated. As a professor of psychology at Cornell University, Sternberg has long studied standardized tests, and concluded they don’t provide much useful information on whether students are learning to think critically and crea

K-12 143
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Leveraging Students’ Strengths to Develop Student Leaders

Education Elements

Kate Sanders, Teacher: How do I empower more student leaders? This question had been circling my brain for months. As the adviser for the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) chapter at Sequatchie County High School , I have had the opportunity to facilitate unique opportunities for student leaders. However, much of the workload is placed on the shoulders of the FCCLA officer team.

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Resources for Teachers and Instructional Coaches – March 2022

Edthena

Did spring break keep you from staying up-to-date on recent resources for teachers and instructional coaches? Not to worry; spring has sprung and we’re blooming with this month’s curated resources for teachers and coaches. This edition of noted and notable content for educators includes how to say “yes” to a sustainable workload, best practices for family engagement, and creating a positive school culture.

K-12 98
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Inquiry within spaces of control and compliance

Dangerously Irrelevant

Here are a pair of tweets for ya. So true… Related Posts. Technological change is destined to be resisted by the teachers unions. School is tests and credits. Learning is ‘getting it.’ The President is calling. 4 Shifts Video Series: Looking for some pilot schools or districts. 2 hours, up to 200 people, 1 low price.

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New Practitioner Advisory Board to Consider AI in the Classroom

Digital Promise

Through an educator-industry partnership between Digital Promise and Merlyn Mind, seven practitioners have the opportunity to share feedback on cutting edge technology and engage in critical conversations on the broader use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the classroom. Technology for Classroom Orchestration. As educators continue to adopt and broaden their use of classroom technology tools, a new dilemma has surfaced: how to coordinate and manage these different tools.

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Students Are Jumping Into The Fray Over Book Bans

ED Surge

When high school senior Cameron Samuels started attending school board meetings in the Houston suburb of Katy last year, they were typically one of only a few voices—and at times the only voice—speaking in support of student access to LGBTQ materials. Samuels, 18, who uses they/them pronouns, started by beseeching their district to unblock websites like the Trevor Project, a suicide prevention organization for queer youth, and to refrian from banning library books that featured LGBTQ+ characters

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PROOF POINTS: Debunking the myth that teachers stop improving after five years

The Hechinger Report

The idea that teachers stop getting better after their first few years on the job has become widely accepted by both policymakers and the public. Philanthropist and former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates popularized the notion in a 2009 TED Talk when he said “ once somebody has taught for three years, their teaching quality does not change thereafter.” He argued that teacher effectiveness should be measured and good teachers rewarded.

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Prioritizing Teacher Voice to Recruit and Retain High-Quality Teachers

Education Elements

The staffing crisis in K-12 education continues to zap time, energy, and resources for districts that are already stretched thin, exhausted, and steadfast in their commitment to ensuring students receive high-quality learning experiences. And while we know that it is important to find innovative solutions to address the complexities of teacher recruitment and retention, we also know that some of the potential answers already exist and are closer than we think.

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How the School District of Lee County Builds Coaching Capacity with Video (Learning Forward)

Edthena

The School District of Lee County takes professional learning seriously. With 84,000 students and nearly 100 public schools and 6,000 teachers, the district is supporting many learners. At the Learning Forward conference in Dec. 2021, Asst. Director of Professional Development Helen Martin and Coordinator of Professional Development Amy French presented about how they use Edthena to build capacity, trust, growth, and goals among coaches and teachers.

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Books I read in February 2022

Dangerously Irrelevant

Books I finished reading (or rereading) in February 2022… The World Becomes What We Teach , Zoe Weil (education). The Path of Daggers , Robert Jordan (fantasy). Winter’s Heart , Robert Jordan (fantasy). Crossroads of Twilight , Robert Jordan (fantasy). Santiago , Mike Resnick (sci fi). The Crimson Queen , Alec Hutson (fantasy). The Blue Sword , Robin McKinley (fantasy).

Teaching 106
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How Micro-credentials Can Support Social Mobility in Rural Communities

Digital Promise

In a rapidly changing economy, micro-credentialing has emerged as a time-saving and cost-effective method to help learners gain recognition for their skills. Micro-credentials are digital certifications that verify an individual’s competence with a skill or set of skills. They can be earned asynchronously and stacked together to demonstrate readiness for in-demand jobs.

Economics 123
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What Role Should AI Play in Education? A Venture Capitalist and EdTech Critic Face Off.

ED Surge

The people who build and fund edtech tools occupy different professional worlds than the educators who use those tools. And those worlds can sometimes collide. That was clear when we invited a venture capitalist who invests in edtech companies to have a dialogue with a professor who has been critical of the edtech industry. The topic: what role should artificial intelligence play in education?

EdTech 127
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PROOF POINTS: College students often don’t know when they’re learning

The Hechinger Report

The research evidence is clear. Learning by trying something yourself is superior to passively listening to lectures, especially in science. It’s puzzling why more university professors don’t teach in this more hands-on, interactive way. Logan McCarty, director of science education at Harvard University, is a prime example. Ten years ago, he told me, he was aware of the anti-lecture studies dating back to the 1980s.

Teaching 141
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Thank You Nintendo: Lessons learned that can help your strategic planning initiatives stick

Education Elements

As a product of the 90s I spent my late elementary school years like many of my contemporaries: playing Super Nintendo. I grew up with a large group of cousins and whenever we got together we approached video games as a group project. We took turns helping one another with the tough spots in the game; those of us who were older played a “leadership” role, determining who got to play, and – if we had enough lives left – when we would give a little kid a chance.

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How AI Coach Self-Reflective Coaching Cycles Can Accelerate Growth for Teachers

Edthena

Reality check: Are teachers engaging in coaching cycles on a regular basis? The truth is, many schools often don’t have enough coaching capacity to put a coach in every classroom every day to support teachers’ continual improvement. But we know that teachers can and should continue their professional learning and growth for positive student outcomes.