Learning Circles Teacher Guide The Learning Circle Teacher Guide provides a structural approach to promoting cross-classroom collaboration with telecommunications. The first chapter is a condensed version of the whole guide. If you want to understand this model of online teaching and learning, this first chapter is a good place to begin. Learning Circle Introduction The Learning Circle Teacher's Guide is organized around the six phases of Circle interaction: The description of each Learning Circle phase has a similar structure. The narrative of Learning Circles interaction can be read--from beginning to end--by following the links at the book of the each narrative. Learning Circle Phase Structure In describing Learning Circles interaction, there are frequent links to different Learning Circles themes. Learning Circle Themes Computer Chronicles Places and Perspectives Society's Problems Mind Works Energy and the Environment Global Issues To Begin at the beginning
What Project-Based Learning Is — and What It Isn’t Screenshot/High Tech High The term “project-based learning” gets tossed around a lot in discussions about how to connect students to what they’re learning. Teachers might add projects meant to illustrate what students have learned, but may not realize what they’re doing is actually called “project-oriented learning.” And it’s quite different from project-based learning, according to eighth grade Humanities teacher Azul Terronez. Terronez, who teaches at High Tech Middle, a public charter school in San Diego, Calif says that when an educator teaches a unit of study, then assigns a project, that is not project-based learning because the discovery didn’t arise from the project itself. “If you inspire them to care about it and draw parallels with their world, then they care and remember.” For Terronez, the goal is to always connect classroom learning to its applications in the outside world. When Terronez assigns a writing project, it’s rarely just for a grade. Related
Differentiation and explicit teaching in English | Teaching AC English 10 Apps For More Organized Project-Based Learning Project-Based Learning, by definition, is flexible. It encourages learner-centeredness, provides the possibility of more authentic work, and allows learners to self-manage and self-direct in places they used to have their hands held. But this has its drawbacks. There are a variety of ways to support students in project-based learning, including organized digital learning spaces that support creative thinking, collaboration, and ultimately project management. 1. Platform: iOS How It Can Help: Pure overkill for most classrooms, but if an extremely powerful productivity and project management is what you need and you’ve got a $50 iTunes card burning a hole in your pocket, this could be just what the doctor ordered. 2. Platform: iOS How It Can Help: By enabling the reading and subsequent annotation of almost any file-type for research, collaboration, and content curation. 3. Platform: Android & iOS How It Can Help: 4. Platform: iOS 5. Platform: Android & iOS 6. Platform: Android & iOS 7. 8. 9. 10.
Project Based Learning Resources (image from education-world.com) Project Based Learning (PBL) is a great way to teach students content, 21st century skills, and engage them in something fun and educational. I spoke more about PBL in an earlier blog ( and we had some great reader comments (Tech&Learning, May 2009, page 14). Today I'd like to give some tips and ideas on how to get started with PBL in your classroom. First of all, PBL can be used in any classroom, in any subject, at any grade level. PBL does take planning. For instance, I teach physics and developed a project for my classes on structures and stress and strain. Another example of PBL is having the students research a topic and present it to the rest of the class through a multimedia presentation, website, or poster. Start small. Another idea for projects is to look at your school or community and see what they need. Some web resources to get you started:
10 Practical Ideas For Better Project-Based Learning In Your Classroom By Jennifer Rita Nichols, TeachThought Intern Teachers are incorporating more and more projects into their curriculum, allowing for much greater levels of collaboration and responsibility for students at all levels. Project- based learning is a popular trend, and even teachers who don’t necessarily follow that approach still see the benefit to using projects to advance their students’ learning. Projects can be wonderful teaching tools. The increase in classroom technology also makes projects more accessible to students. Despite general agreement about the benefits of using projects and project-based learning in general, it must be noted that all projects are not created equal! This may happen fairly often because teachers are wary about being able to assign grades to the final assignments handed in to them by students. Students do not need to be compared against each other, but to the standards they need to achieve for their level. Don’t underestimate the power of collaboration.
Restorative Classroom Circles - home Six Affirmations for PBL Teachers All great teachers do great work. And not only that, but they also do different work. Great teachers are always looking to improve practice, steal ideas and try new things -- all in order to meet the needs of their students. PBL teachers are no exception. 1) PBL Teachers Collaborate with Each Other Although PBL teachers often start out with projects in just their own subject area, most create integrated projects with teachers of other disciplines. 2) PBL Teachers Give Power to Students Through voice and inquiry, PBL teachers constantly reflect on how students can have more power in their learning environment. 3) PBL Teachers are Learning Environment Designers When PBL teachers engage in designing a PBL project, they are looking to create an engaging experience for all students. 4) PBL Teachers are Student-Centered PBL teachers know it isn't about them. 5) PBL Teachers Honor 21st Century Skills 6) PBL Teachers Really Plan And I mean they REALLY plan! PBL teachers, you are rockstars!
What Is PBL Really? Do you want to engage your students in Project Based Learning (PBL)? Maybe you are asking yourself what is PBL really? Am I doing it right? Well, first of all, the most important thing to understand is that PBL is a construct made up by human beings and so there are lots of variations! And you are entitled to construct your own version, too, within some parameters. My suggestion is to study many of the great resources that are available to you and then create your own working definition and effective PBL practice. Some Parameters to Consider I have created this diagram, enhanced by the critical eye of Brenda Sherry, which may be useful as you consider what is important to you and to your students. We like to think with the frame of continua rather than dichotomies simply because things are rarely on or off, black or white, ones or zeroes! You could likely add other dimensions to consider as you build your own understandings and beliefs! Trust Who is in control? Questioning Collaboration
Free Resources and Tools for Replicating Project-Based Learning Educators from High Tech High in San Diego, California, and the Whitfield Career Academy's 21st Century Learning Academy in Dalton, Georgia, have provided these resources for you to use in your own school. Students in Whitfield County take on a range of multidisciplinary projects. A middle school science student (left) identifies the parts of a fish before painting it to make a Japanese-style gyotaku print, and students (right) learn math and physics while building an outdoor classroom. Credit: Grace Rubenstein (left); David Markus (right) Click on any title link below to view or download that file. Tips for downloading: PDF files can be viewed on a wide variety of platforms -- both as a browser plug-in or a stand-alone application -- with Adobe's free Acrobat Reader program. To download a free version of the Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer, visit Microsoft's Download Center. Resources On This Page: Back to Top
10 Teaching Practices Every 21st Century Teacher should Do Teaching is not only a job but is a way of life.It is a sublime task one can ever be entrusted with. Teachers educate generations of learners and in their hands lays the faith of any nation. A well developed country is a country whose citizens are well educated and this is done only by effective teaching strategies. Teachers have also their peaks and valleys, happy moments and sad times. A small conjugal problem can severely affect how a teacher perform in the classroom. Leading a successful teaching job requires a high sense of adaptability, for what used to be a successful teacher in the 20th century is now an outdated teacher in the 21st century. One of the pivotal facts we should keep in mind is that we teach in a different milieu, a digitally focused environment where technology has the lion's share. Are digital skills the only key elements needed for us to be labelled effective teachers ? 1- Maintain good communication skills 2- Getting students engagement 3- Use Humour
Getting Started with Project-Based Learning (Hint: Don't Go Crazy) Before the start of the school year, many of us want to use the remaining weeks of summer to learn some new skills -- such as project-based learning (PBL). One of the things we stress for new PBL practitioners is, as I say, "don't go crazy." It's easy to go "too big" when you first start PBL. I have heard from many teachers new to PBL that a large, eight-week integrated project was a mistake. So how do you start PBL in ways that will ensure your success as a learner and teacher? Start Small As I said, "Don't go crazy!" Plan Now One of the challenges of PBL, but also one of the joys, is the planning process. Limited Technology We love technology, but sometimes we get too "tech happy." Know the Difference Between PBL and Projects This is the big one! We are all learners, and when we start something new, we start small. Photo credit: wwworks via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
Student Engagement: Resource Roundup Facebook Edutopia on Facebook Twitter Edutopia on Twitter Google+ Pinterest Edutopia on Pinterest WHAT WORKS IN EDUCATION The George Lucas Educational Foundation Tips and Strategies for Keeping Students Engaged Igniting Student Engagement: A Roadmap for Learning, by John McCarthy (2015) McCarthy discusses key strategies to ensure student engagement including being authentic, introducing units with meaningful launch events, and letting students know what outcomes to expect. Back to Top Engagement Through Projects Integrated Learning: One Project, Several Disciplines, by Edutopia Staff (2015) For any project within a vocational major, High Tech High encourages teachers and students to include relevant content from other subject areas to enhance real-world connections. Engagement Through Technology Engagement Through Social and Emotional Learning Getting (and Keeping) Students Engaged Create experiences so students invest in their learning.