Goal: 12 Resources for Giving Constructive Feedback Posted by Shelly Terrell on Saturday, January 23rd 2010 Part of the Goals 2010 Challenge Series, Goal 22 and the Cool Sites series In the former school I taught at some of the students rallied together and complained to the principal about the previous teacher. The instructor thought it was because of the low grades they received in the class. This experience made me reflect on my grading practices. Why do only a few instructors provide constructive feedback? I believe this is due to two main reasons. specific- the student knows exactly what you thought was positive and what needed improvement.private- make sure the other students do not know who made the worst grades.immediate- provide the feedback as soon as possible when the assignment is still in the student’s mind.helpful- We want students to strive to improve and to learn. Grading Resources Second, many instructors probably do not have the time to give constructive feedback. Brain Honey- Free online curriculum mapping. Challenge:
3 things you should know about Edupunk Coursera UPDATE: we're doing a live, updated MOOC of this course at stanford-online July-2014 (not this Coursera version). See here: CS101 teaches the essential ideas of Computer Science for a zero-prior-experience audience. In CS101, students play and experiment with short bits of "computer code" to bring to life to the power and limitations of computers. Here is another video Nick created for this class. Google Announces 100 Live Hangouts For Teachers Around The World Track Hurricane Sandy Using The Google Crisis Map 1.05K Views 0 Likes If you're on the east coast like we are, you've got a pit in your stomach about Hurricane Sandy. It's shaping up to be brutal and there's talk of widespread power outages and dangerous flooding and winds. In an effort to keep everyone safe, Google has created a very useful 'Crisis Map' that shows plenty of relevant information about the storm's trajectory, details about it, radar views, cloud cover, and more. Report: Vast Majority Of Top U.S. 7.33K Views 0 Likes Google has just unveiled some new statistics on the uptake of its popular Google Apps In Education platform. University of Michigan Developing Crash-Proof Cars 1.85K Views 0 Likes Forget Google's driverless cars. Google Drive Now Supports Native Editing On Mobile Devices 4.09K Views 0 Likes Google Drive is one of the most controversial yet useful edtech tools today.
25 Of The Best Pinterest Boards In Education | TeachThought Blogs and Twitter aren’t the only social tools out there that can help you keep up with the latest and greatest developments in educational technology. Pinterest is rapidly becoming a favorite tool of educators all over the nation, and many have amassed some pretty great collections of edtech-related pins that teachers and students alike can use to explore new ways to learn, share, teach, and grow. While it would be nearly impossible to highlight every edtech pinboard out there, we’ve shared some of the boards we think stand out among the crowd here. Many are maintained by major educational websites, key figures in edtech, and well-known bloggers, but others were created by teachers just like you who simply want to share resources and tips with others in education. Oh–and don’t forget TeachThought’s burgeoning Pinterest board ! Vicki Dabrowka, Ed Tech : Browse through more than 180 pins all related to educational technology from teacher and environmental educator Vicki Dabrowka.
The Teacher’s Survival Kit for Lesson Planning! Tips & 1000s of Free Lesson Plans Posted by Shelly Terrell on Saturday, August 18th 2012 Goal 16: Plan An Engaging Lesson of The 30 Goals Challenge for Educators I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think. – Socrates Lesson planning is stressful and time-consuming, but is important in giving us an action plan for the entire school year. The way we design our curriculums and the activities we use will determine how successful our learners will be in grasping new knowledge. Lesson design and planning is important. A Few Tips … When planning a lesson, I think we need to keep objectives in mind but there are other factors that make up a great lesson. G- group dynamic R- relevance to learners’ lives and needs E-emergent language and ideas focus A- attentiveness T- thoughtfulness To this list I would add flexibility. Templates Some of us will need a framework from which to build our lessons. Structured Templates: Another idea: Map our your lesson plan in a mindmap More Lesson Planning Tips: 1000s of Free Lesson Plans
The Art of Slipping in Some Learning The Art of Slipping in Some Learning. Off to the side of Eric Azcuy’s cluttered desk were two products from Nissin Foods: one Cup Noodles and one box of Chow Mein. It looked like lunch, but it was actually the day’s art lesson. The inspiration came from an NPR story Mr. “It’s something relevant,” he said calmly, his black curly hair, dark-rimmed glasses and plaid collared shirt making him appear just a bit hip. The lesson plan was typical for Mr. The attitude has led to projects that include painting a giant periodic table of the elements, creating a mural based on “The Great Gatsby” and the day’s effort at redesigning the Cup Noodles container. Still, Mr. “It can also function as an escape to a place that has nothing to do with the tests and the SAT and the college pressure and this kind of thing that’s happening in a lot of their classes,” he said. Mr. In other words, this wasn’t just a chance for students to transform a stapler into a five-headed dragon. Mr. Earlier this year, Mr. Mr.
25 Websites That Will Make You Smarter Brain food. Sean Gallup/Getty Images Rather than waste your life on Facebook and Instagram, put your daily interneting to good use. Here's a list of websites that will actually make you smarter: CodeAcademy — Learn programming languages like HTML, CSS, and Javascript with this free, interactive resource. Coursera — With more than 800 free courses on topics that range from internet history to financial engineering, the education platform helps you deepen your knowledge across a range of subjects. Digital Photography School — Read through this goldmine of articles to improve your photography skills; they're helpful even if you're a complete beginner. Duolingo — Sharpen your language skills with this fun, addictive game. edX — From classes like The Science of Happiness to Responsible Innovation, edX offers tons of MOOCs from many of the world's top universities. Screenshot/Harrison Jacobs Factsie — Did you know the horned lizard can shoot blood out of its tear ducts?
5 New Technologies That Have Changed The Digital Classroom In the past, the suggestion of getting a college degree without ever cracking a book meant paying a degree mill. It meant the degree was in name only, reflecting neither learning nor effort. Then distance learning meant correspondence courses, perhaps combined with some coordinated telecasts. Technology has already changed all that, and the future will change it even further. eTexts Now online college students can obtain legitimate college degrees without cracking a book– but that doesn’t mean they don’t have to read. Students can copy the PDF to mobile devices, and carry all of their texts on one iPad or Galaxy Tab. Virtual Libraries Most online school programs — even those which still use correspondence course designs have robust virtual libraries – something that never existed 15 years ago. Distance learners access the same journals as campus students — from anywhere in the world. Online School Portals Webcams & Teleconferencing Mobile Apps & Augmented Reality
The Power of the Positive Phone Call Home When I first started teaching and was overwhelmed by the demands and complexity of the job, my survival strategy was simply to take all the advice that came my way and implement it. So when my wise mentor suggested that after the first day of school I call all of my second grader's parents, I did so. In spite of my exhaustion, I called each family and introduced myself. I asked a few questions about their child. Throughout that year, and the years that followed, I continued this practice -- I had an intuitive feeling that it was key: The positive phone call home. When I taught middle school, this strategy made the difference between an unmanageable group of kids and an easy group. First I'd call parents of the kids who I knew would be challenging, those I suspected rarely got positive calls. Some of these kids were difficult, extremely difficult. I'd first used this phone call thing as a strategy for managing behavior and building partnerships and it worked.