6 Tips for Getting Started with Genius Hour
Posted 05/22/2014 2:36PM | Last Commented 02/02/2015 11:36AM Genius hour is a great way to allow students to drive their own personalized instruction but where to begin such a big project? How to Get Started There are a lot of resources out there already, and most of the teachers that are embarking on this process are willing to share what they have or help you problem solve. The following all have something to offer: Practical Tips Face to Face time is invaluable: While the students are working independently you are still there helping them focus and problem solve.
Take aim at innovation, with students in the center
In September 2012, I packed up my Prius, left my patient wife, and drove around the United States for 89 days and 10,000 miles visiting 64 schools of every flavor and size to find out how they are preparing students for a rapidly changing world. I asked questions and recorded learning with more than 600 teachers, administrators and students. In setting up the complex matrix of this trip, many of my hosts asked, “What would you like to see when you are here?” The journeys of discovery in my life have started with open goals and few preconceptions, so I left the agendas as open ended as possible, with one caveat: I was not interested in seeing a 1:1 laptop program or talking with teachers about their tablet rollouts. As others have said, technology in learning should be as ubiquitous as air, and there is nothing innovative about students and teachers breathing. Technology is not innovation What would Dewey do? Flipping the classroom is not enough But what if we really flipped learning?
Teachers’ Most Powerful Role? Adding Context
Lenny Gonzalez Part 3 in the series Learning In the New Economy of Information. By Shawn McCusker During a recent unit on World War II, Courtney Wilhelm’s U.S. History class conducted a leader’s conference. Students explored broad topics such as economic and political philosophies from the perspective of European leaders from the 1930’s and 1940’s. In classes where students connect ideas from the abstract to real-life events, the role of the teacher — as Wilhelm illustrates — moves from being a distributor of information to one of nurturing students as they collect, evaluate, and process information into unique learning products. For some, these changing roles might signal the end of an era where the teacher serves as a content expert. It’s here, in these seemingly disjointed moments, that the expertise of the teacher is crucial to uniting the class’s learning. In reality, however, the converse is true. Teacher as Conductor in the Classroom Orchestra Related
Reinventing School From the Ground Up For Inquiry Learning
By Thom Markham A grave miscalculation exists in the minds of many educators: That inquiry-based learning, project based learning, and 21st century competencies can flourish in industrial model schools. Under this world view, the inquiry goals of the Common Core State Standards are “strategies” to be added to the existing list of classroom techniques, while skills like collaboration, communication, or creativity can be taught despite 43-minute periods, desks in rows, and pacing guides set in stone. In other words, reaching the top of Bloom’s Taxonomy is important, but less so than maintaining regimental order. But what we know—from industry and neuroscience—is that organizational structure, environment, and human performance are deeply intertwined. It is inevitable that schools must be completely redesigned if society wants to tap the wellsprings of creativity and exploration that the industrial system subdues. This redesign issue looms large. But a historical moment has arrived. Related
Coding from kindergarten to graduation
We interact with computing devices every day—so should we have a better understanding of the science behind them? An increasing number of districts are saying yes. This year, 25 states require computer science courses for high school graduation, compared to only 11 states in 2013, according to the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA). Districts are teaching basic coding to students as early as kindergarten, embedding computer science principles into core curriculum, and mandating computer science courses for graduation. Computer and mathematical occupations are projected to add 778,300 new jobs between 2010 and 2020, after having added 229,600 new jobs from 2006 to 2010. “It’s a new path in the curriculum and it presents a whole lot of opportunities for kids,” says Eric Schneider, assistant superintendent for instruction at Minnetonka Public Schools in Minnesota. An example of its growth could be found in the news. Uniformity, integration Start a computer coding program St.
A School With No Teachers, Where Students Teach Themselves
Big Ideas UTC Library/Flickr By Eleanor Beardsley, NPR A new computer school in Paris has been overwhelmed by some 60,000 applicants. The school, called 42, was founded by a telecom magnate who says the French education system is failing young people. In the hallways of 42, suitcases and sleeping bags are piled, and people are stretched out on mattresses in some of the corners. Living here for the next month are some of the 4,000 potential students who already made the first cut by passing cognitive skill tests online. Now they have to clear another hurdle. A Demand For Thinkers From Any Class “It’s very, very intensive,” Sadirac says. The only criteria for applying is to be between the ages of 18 and 30. Sadirac says they’re not looking for how much students know, but how they think. “We don’t want to teach them stuff. Youth unemployment in France is at a 14-year high. Niel, the creator of France’s third largest telecommunications company, Free, says the social elevator in France is broken.
Brainscape: What would you like to learn today?
40 Uses For Smartphones in School
As Alanis Morissette once said, ‘isn’t it ironic’. After years of struggle between teachers and students and the use of smartphones in school, new educational trends are actually encouraging the use of these devices. The mobile, cellphone or smartphone is not just used for WhatsApp, Facebook or Angry Birds, it can be used in a multitude of ways from an educational perspective. Don’t believe us? Keep reading. In this article we bring together 40 uses for smartphones in school. Before we continue, it is worth remembering that this does not mean we should suddenly change the way in which we teach and allow the use of the smartphones without control. A revolution in the classroom: Check facts: probably the most common use of all. These 40 uses of Smartphones in School are just the beginning. Don’t forget to download the brand new ExamTime iOS and Android app today. About the ExamTime Blog
