background preloader

Teacher2

Facebook Twitter

How Teachers Can Be Better: A Call for Cultural Knowledge in the Classroom. It was 5 a.m. —right before I was due to rise, dress, get my two children ready to go to church—and tears began to stream down my face. I was struck by the irony of my emotion: Seven years before, I’d been crying because I thought I had a serious illness and could not have children. This morning, I was crying because of my children: in particular, my boy child, about whom I was desperately worried, unsure how to help him navigate the everyday world of school as an African-American male. Teaching matters. And good teaching matters particularly to those students who, like my son, through no fault of their own, are physically active, verbal, and outwardly focused and sometimes demonstrate their intellectual curiosity by asking lots of questions in class.

These qualities ought to be indicative of a bright, energetic, and eager student. As a former teacher and school administrator—and now a researcher and university education professor—I know this terrain all too well. Educational Technology and Mobile Learning: 8 Excellent Blended Learning Tools for Teachers. September 25, 2015In its basic and simplest definition, blended learning is an instructional methodology, a teaching and learning approach that combines face-to-face classroom methods with computer mediated activities to deliver instruction. The strengths of this instructional approach is its combination of both face to face and online teaching methods into one integrated instructional approach. In today's post, we are sharing with you a set of some useful web tools you can use for blended learning:1- Blubbr Blubbr is a cool web tool that allows users to create quizzes around YouTube videos.

These are basically interactive video quizzes ( called Trivs ) that you can create for your students and which they can answer while they watch the selected video clip. The quizzes are also feedback supported meaning students will get feedback as they answer each question. 2- Teachem Teachem is a web service that allows teachers to create lessons around YouTube videos. 3- Educanon 4- VideoNotes. #DOKchat – DOK is Hard Let’s Talk About It. I have really enjoyed chatting with teachers on Twitter lately about DOK (Depth of Knowledge) levels. Part of what I teach in my college class to pre-service teachers is DOK levels. We have been tweeting out our learning objectives and discussing what DOK level it is. Sometimes it is really clear what the DOK level is. Learning Objective: Memorize math facts.

Let us start by admitting it is hard to assess the DOK level of a task. One thing that makes DOK levels so challenging is looking at the DOK chart with all the verbs on it. DOK 1 = Create a list of the spelling words. DOK 2 = Create a similar math word problem. DOK 3 = Create an argument for how the main character grows over the course of the novel. DOK 4 = Create an original music score in the style of Mozart. It drives me batty to see a mapping of DOK levels with technology, as if the tech creates critical thinkers. Click Here to link to Google Drawing of Chart Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Like this: Like Loading... “ReadWorks.org” Looks Like A Good Source Of Free Reading Passages For Social Studies. ReadWorks.org has a zillion free reading passages available for download and in many subjects. They come with comprehension questions, but I wouldn’t use them. The passages themselves, however, are rated by reading level, and could be very useful for English Language Learners – particularly in Social Studies.

I could use them with students to help them develop knowledge preceding their beginning a more complex text on the same topic, or use them to supplement content in our ELL history books. It would also be easy to modify their reading passages into clozes or other reading exercises. I’d say their content is similar to what you could find on Edhelper, which I’ve used for years to get passages to use for similar purposes. Is History a Game to You? Is History a Game to You? Most are familiar with the adage, ““Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”

With all due respect to George Santayana and those who have expressed similar sentiments over the years, it may be time to adjust this important sentiment, at least when it comes to teaching and learning. Simply put, we cannot expect 21st-century students to truly learn from history — and civics and social studies in general — in the same way and through the same approaches that may have worked for Santayana, Winston Churchill, and others concerned about repeating history.

The methods of old, those with experienced educators lecturing in front of a class of students all sitting at desks in straight rows, is quickly becoming a thing of the past. Toppo examines everything from a video game version of Thoreau’s Walden Pond to using Minecraft to stage an originally developed high school opera. Teachers’ experience bears that out. Socratic Questions In eLearning: What eLearning Professionals Should Know. Encourage your online learners to explore the subject matter and view problems with a fresh perspective. In this article, I'll highlight the 6 types of Socratic questions and I’ll offer 5 tips on how to use Socratic Questions in eLearning. As Socrates once said: So, it makes perfect sense that this famous ancient Greek philosopher would introduce Socratic questioning to the world, a disciplined inquiry method that requires deep thinking, thought exploration, and questioning of our assumptions. Instead of just absorbing ideas that are being offered, learners must examine the logic and reason behind those ideas.

In eLearning environments, Socratic questioning can be a powerful tool, as it gives instructors the ability to assess learner knowledge. It also helps learners to expand their comprehension of complex subject matter and probe key issues, theories, and problems. 6 Types of Socratic Questions Clarification. 5 Tips To Use Socratic Questions in eLearning Get 2 Free eBooks. The Guggenheim Puts Online 1600 Great Works of Modern Art from 575 Artists. If you were to ask me in my callow years as a young art student to name my favorite painter, I would have answered without a moment’s hesitation: Wassily Kandinsky. His theoretical bent, his mysticism, his seemingly near total creative independence…. There were times when Kandinsky the thinker, writer, and teacher appealed to me even more than Kandinsky the painter.

This may go a ways toward explaining why I left art school after my first year to pursue writing and teaching. But nowadays, having seen a tiny bit more of the world and its bountiful artistic treasures, I might pause for just a moment if asked about my favorite painter… then I’d answer: Wassily Kandinsky. But if you can’t make it to New York, then just head on over to the Guggenheim’s online collection, where the museum has digitized “nearly 1600 artworks by more than 575 artists.” This is the most sweeping move toward greater accessibility since the private collection went public in 1937. Related Content: The Script as Step One: Why Your eLearning Video or Demo Must Have a Script First by Max Yoder. “Editing after creating a script allows you to improve instead of improvise. Instead of adding things you forget, having the script lets you improve what you already have. You wrote the script knowing what you wanted in it.

Now, take what you had planned, and make it better.” When it comes to creating a product demo video it’s often intuitive to create the video first. After that, the script flows in, right? Well, not quite. If you create the video first, you sacrifice fluidity and opportunity to emphasize. I recently constructed a short video about our learning software. In both cases I wrote the script first. Here are three reasons why scriptwriting first makes the entire production run smoother: You’ll think about what you’re sayingDitch the technical jargon, and speak like you would to a friend.

So you can see what was involved in creating and editing them, these links will take you to the short video and the longer version that Max wrote about. Effective Online Quiz Design. In last week’s blog post Pete Sparkes shared some different approaches to help Moodle users rapidly create quizzes for use in course sites, overcoming some of the perceived usability challenges associated with the Quiz activity. In this article I want to focus on the effectiveness of the questions within the quizzes we create, an aspect of the process that I’m sure anyone who has previously created an online quiz will appreciate is challenging and anything but rapid.

Quiz design An online quiz – be that in Moodle, another learning management system or assessment platform – is typically a form of objective test, that is to say a test which consists of questions to which there is a specific correct or ‘best’ answer. Critics of objective testing argue that it is difficult to design questions which assess at appropriate levels. Anatomy of a Question Before looking at some of the dos and don’ts of effective online question design it’s helpful to understand the anatomy of a question. Reference. Launching a Year of Meaningful Note-Taking. When teaching kids to take notes, whether about their reading, a film, a lecture, or the like, finding balance can be tricky. Have you noticed that when they are reading fiction, most kids race through their books, and getting them to stop to jot even a list of characters is a teaching feat of strength? But when reading nonfiction, many kids slog through at a snail’s pace, writing down every fact and detail nearly verbatim from the book.

Note-taking when reading nonfiction is a genre unto its own, and is the kind of writing that must be learned in order to be done well. Following are a few ideas for launching a note-taking curriculum that will help your students become expert note-takers by the time they leave your classroom. Building a Vision for Students’ Notes First, as with any kind of writing genre, it’s important to build a vision for yourself of the kind of writing you hope your students will produce.

Then, consider how you envision your students’ notes looking ideally. Like this: Create an Interactive Course Using a Single Image. This post gives you a two-fer: that’s two freebies for one. I found a free desktop image made available by Anastasia Kolisnichenko. I used the free image to create an interactive course prototype for an upcoming workshop activity. The template is free for you to download and use as you wish.

Below is an example of the template in action. It’s embedded on the blog page. Click here to view the template if the embedded version isn’t visible in the email. The example above was created in Storyline 2 and uses the zoom region feature and triggers to pause the timeline. Storyline 1 (less specific control of the zoom feature)PowerPoint (no zoom). How to Create an Interactive Course Using a Single Image If you had access to a graphics designer you could create anything you want. You do have some options to customize if you get an .EPS version of the free download. Locate an image that has multiple components. Create a separate slide for each distinct area.

Enjoy! August 21 (Athens, GA). Open-Ended Questions In eLearning: What eLearning Professionals Should Know. Open-ended questions prompt learners to explore their thoughts, feelings, and opinions while testing their comprehension. They don’t have the limitations of closed-ended questions and encourage learners to delve deeper into a topic by using their critical thinking skills and creativity. In this article, I’ll explain the difference between open-ended questions and open-ended statements, and I’ll share 6 tips on how to use open-ended questions in eLearning.

An open-ended question in eLearning, which is often referred to as an “open question”, is a form of eLearning assessment which allows learners to formulate their own response without having to choose from a set of pre-determined answers, as is the case with closed-ended questions. They prompt learners to think about the various solutions to the problem and answer in their own words, which helps them build critical thinking, communication, and creative reasoning skills.

Types Of Open-Ended Questions: Open-Ended Questions vs. How Flipped Classrooms Change from Schools to Colleges Infographic. Blended Learning Infograpics How Flipped Classrooms Change from Schools to Colleges Infographic How Flipped Classrooms Change from Schools to Colleges Flipped classrooms are changing the way education is being imparted all across the US. The flipped classroom describes a reversal of traditional teaching where students gain first exposure to new material outside of class, usually via reading or lecture videos, and then class time is used to do the harder work of assimilating that knowledge through strategies such as problem-solving, discussion or debates. The How Flipped Classrooms Change from Schools to Colleges Infographic takes a look at some of the key differences in implementing a flipped classroom strategy in both schools and colleges. Read also: The Flipped Classroom Guide for Teachers Via: emantras.us Embed This Education Infographic on your Site or Blog!

6 Keys to the Flipped Classroom. Have you considered creating a flipped classroom? No, this doesn’t mean turning your room upside down. The flipped classroom is about implementing 21st-century digital learning strategies and engaging learners outside of the classroom. Using a flipped classroom strategy engages the iStudent, and whether you realize it or not, your classroom is filled with iStudents. These are students who come prepared to use mobile devices, social media and video for learning. Oh, and when they leave, they’re even more ready for flipped learning. Of course planning (the first key) is essential to a successful flipped classroom. Your students will engage with your instruction readily, if you put it in an interactive video. This infographic provides 6 keys to the flipped classroom. Find more education infographics on e-Learning Infographics Today is the perfect time to learn about flipping your instruction and other ways to improve education at your school.

The following two tabs change content below. Four Assessment Strategies for the Flipped Learning Environment. Flipped learning environments offer unique opportunities for student learning, as well as some unique challenges. By moving direct instruction from the class group space to the individual students’ learning spaces, time and space are freed up for the class as a learning community to explore the most difficult concepts of the course. Likewise, because students are individually responsible for learning the basics of new material, they gain regular experience with employing self-regulated learning strategies they would not have in an unflipped environment. But because initial engagement with new material is done independently as a preparation for class time rather than as its focus, many things could go wrong. If students do the assigned pre-class work but don’t acquire enough fluency with the basics—or if they simply don’t do it at all—then the in-class experience could be somewhere between lethargic and disastrous.

A key to achieving this kind of environment is assessment. 3 Tips For Rapid Storyboard Development. Sketchnoting For Reflection. Six ways to boost classroom participation: Part Four – Improve your questioni... Guidelines to Design Matching Questions in E-learning Assessments [Infographic] 5 Benefits of Teaching with SCORM in Your Online Course. 8 Tips To Create eLearning Courses On Budget. 5 Learning Management System Add-Ons You Never Thought Of Before. How can Question banks contribute to elearning project success. Developing E-learning Courses for the iPad – 6 Aspects to Consider [Infographic]

Content Curation In Online Learning: How To Do It Right. Using Video Backgrounds to Visually Engage Learners #97 - E-Learning Heroes. Learning New Information is Easier When it is Composed of Familiar Elements. Educational Technology and Mobile Learning: An Amazing Speech to Text App (Wo... Educational Technology and Mobile Learning: Another Great Tool for Creating B... Showtime in the Classroom: Seven Ways Streaming Video Can Enhance Teaching. Rethinking Digital Literacy: Collaborating, Hyperlinking, and Owning Our Learning | Building Creative Bridges. Education Week. Rapid quiz creation for Moodle | Technology Enhanced Learning. Audio Strategy: Significant Element of E-learning Design – Part 3.

Vicki Cobb: Real Books Are Better Than Textbooks. “Q & A Collections: Teaching Social Studies” Top 5 Tips For Online Facilitators. 7 Tips for Proofreading and Editing Your eLearning Course. Flipped Classroom | Kristen's Website. TeachThought | How To Screencast Like The Khan Academy. Lets Not Forget: Teaching is an Art–The Intersection between Relationship, Cu... Mobile/ Project-Based Learning Activities—on a Budget! 10 Excellent Platforms for Building Mobile Apps. 20 Things You Can Do In (About) 10 Minutes For A Smoother Running Classroom. Active Learning In Online Training: What eLearning Professionals Should Know. 10 Great Educational Apps for the new Windows 10. Blending technology and traditional teaching shows promise | Miami Herald.

9-Point Checklist for the Perfect eLearning Course Design. Capture Learning on the Go. The Scoop on Periscope: Broadcast Live Video to the World. Matt Miller Can Help You "Ditch That Textbook" in Your Classroom. Kenniwick Man intro - Zaption. Can Teachers Author Their Own Textbooks on the Fly? -- THE Journal. Schools Need to Include More Visual-Based Learning.