#214EdPrep: Collaborating in Professional Learning

This is the first in a series of blog posts discussing the collaboration of the Collab Lab and our EG Ed Prep students.  Please follow along on our journey using the hashtag #214EdPrep or clicking on the label #214EdPrep in the word cloud!

Students in the District 214 Ed Prep Program at EGHS, taught by Kim Sander, have begun collaborating with the Collab Lab on varied professional learning experiences. This previous post explains a workshop we did with the EdPrep students on how to use Social Media to learn, lead, build community, and to expand their professional portfolio. 

Most recently, the EdPrep students joined teachers in a class visit experience. The class was split into four groups, each accompanied by EG teachers, to observe a class for 20 minutes. We visited the classrooms of Persida Bujdei, Mark Heintz, Bonnie Kale, and Kim Miklusak. 

The focus of the class visit was to look for examples of learning target(s) and how they are communicated, and formative feedback (given by the teacher and/or peers). Here is the a document we used to take notes and to facilitate our conversation afterwards.

After the class visits we returned to the EdPrep Classroom to debrief in a jigsaw conversation.  Each group had at least one student from each class we visited, and at least one teacher facilitator. We discussed what we observed and learned in each classroom.

The students shared insight from both their student and future-teacher perspectives. The teachers were inspired, and we learned from them too! Here are some highlights of their observations:

Schoology quizzes before a test help students understand exactly what they know and don't know.  It isn't graded, it is just for learning.  Several students commented on how much they like these kinds of quizzes that they have done in some of their classes, and that they aren't graded.

Teachers gave clear explanations of how to do the practice for the learning targets, and then did a model problem/reading and then students worked in pairs. The modeling really helps. During the pair work the teachers gave feedback and students give each other feedback too.  We talked about how this intentional scaffolding (I do, we do, you do) supports learning.

The whiteboard tables are so good to foster collaboration and feedback. One student said she was so sorry she was "too old" that she missed out on having the whiteboard tables in her English class last year! 

The pros and cons of Quizlet live and Kahoot for feedback.  Quizlet is good at the beginning of the unit as a "hook" and for collaboration, but if your group doesn't finish before the winning group wins, you don't see all of the questions.  Kahoot is good to make sure every student sees all of the questions and gets individual feedback. It can get boring if teachers do them all of time. But they are so good for feedback.

It is helpful it is to plan activities with a model, small group work and time for students to then do it on their own (scaffolding).

We're looking forward to having the EdPrep students join us again for future professional learning experiences.  We have so much to learn from each other! 

You can connect with them too! Follow their Ed Prep journey via #214EdPrep on Twitter.  You can encourage them with a "like", a "retweet" or a comment!  The would LOVE to hear from you!

D214 EdPrep Students Expand Opportunities with Social Media

By Linda Ashida

In the spring of 2016, District 214 kicked off the Educator Prep Program giving students yet another opportunity to gain workplace experience before they graduate high school. This unique program offers a sequence of courses, in collaboration with community partners in education, with the goal of developing future educators.

 

I recently enjoyed the opportunity to work with the students in Kim Sander's Teacher Internship Program at Elk Grove High School, to help them get started, or expand, their professional social media accounts to showcase their experiences in this program and build their professional digital presence and resumes.

Why social media?

By engaging in professional social media accounts, these students can multiply their opportunities to build their professional learning networks with other educators and professional organizations, and expand opportunities to learn, lead, and showcase their experiences with the community in D214 and beyond. Via social media these students can build a digital portfolio and resume which can lead to future connections and opportunities they might not even imagine. Using the hashtag #214EdPrep they can connect with fellow students in the program to share examples of their work and learn from each other.  They can build community with staff, parents and community members who can easily search the hashtag to learn about the program and their experiences.  The students can also follow other educational hashtags and participate in twitter chats that correspond to their specific educational or content interests. At year's end, their social media account will also serve as a portfolio of their work. This can be especially important since more and more universities and employers now do online searches of applicants. So, these EdPrep students, who will also post other academic and extracurricular experiences in addition to their EdPrep content, will have a positive digital presence that will impress and help them stand out in the crowd.

Getting started:
 
Before we got started with setting up our accounts, we discussed key considerations of digital citizenship and the importance of maintaining a positive and professional social media presence. After discussing the "how to" and the options for social media accounts, most students chose to use Twitter or Instagram.  They worked on their professional photo and profile and they prepared to do their first posts.  Even with just their first few posts you can get a good idea of the experiences they enjoyed during the first semester.

Next steps: 

Stay tuned and follow #214EdPrep for more posts to come from these students. They've already inspired me, and they are sure to inspire you! Consider how you could encourage these future educators by commenting on their posts, or sharing your own resources and educational wisdom with them.

I am looking forward to my continued collaboration with the group. As the students progress with Twitter and Instagram, some may expand and explore blogging for more in-depth reflection and sharing.  Stay tuned!

Have you seen the 214Ready Blog? Check it out!

By Linda Ashida

Do you want to be inspired by the ways that students are preparing for their future in District 214?  We suggest you check out the 214Ready Blog to learn about the many ways that we collaborate with students, parents and the community to insure that students are college, career, and life ready when they graduate.

This week's post is on the Power of the Hashtag, showing how Social Media can multiply our opportunities to showcase learning in action and build connections and community across the district and beyond. Check it out!

And, if you have suggestions for the 214Ready blog please contact Linda Ashida or Jen Delgado.

Recharge with Professional Learning! ICE 2016

Written by Linda Ashida


February is a great time to take a break from our daily routines as educators and recharge by attending a professional conference.  And, as Kirsten Fletcher reminded us in her recent Collab Blog post, taking time out for professional learning benefits our students!

Last week I had the opportunity to recharge by attending the ICE 2016 Conference: Welcome to the Future.

In this post I will share highlights of just a couple of sessions that I attended. They were inspiring, stretched my thinking and re-energized me.

Keynote speech by Jenny Magiera. 

If you ever have the chance to hear Jenny Magiera speak, don't miss it!  In her keynote she inspired all of us to all be courageous, step out of our comfort zones, and "share our crazy pills" to encourage others to join us in our Edventures. She shared powerful examples about the power of student voice.  Check out the video her students submitted to the White House Film Festival campaign:  #YesYouCan.  You will be inspired!

Jenny also led an engaging workshop on Professional Learning.  Participant Katie Muhtaris captured many of the ideas presented in this sketchnote:

Katie's tweet is an example of how we can multiply our learning through social media. By following #ICE16 on Twitter during the conference, I expanded my professional learning network and learned from sessions, like this one of Jenny's, that I didn't even attend.

Social Curation by  Joyce Valenza

Curation is a search strategy, an activity to promote learning, a critical thinking activity and if we teach our students to curate, we teach them to take responsibility for their own learning, be a trusted guide, and form community and learning networks.  Joyce Valenza stressed the importance of teaching curation skills to our students. She shared a wealth of examples and resources. If you are interested in exploring curation resources, check out this this link to her presentation.

 

To "see" more about what ICE 2016 looked like and how it inspired participants, and for a wealth of resources, check out #ICE16 on Twitter.  

Telling our Stories . . . The Power of Blogging with Students!

By Linda Ashida

The other day I was checking my Tweetdeck columns and I came across a couple of my favorite tweets of the week from my colleague Dean Burrier Sanchis.  The tweets share the interview his AP Spanish Literature students did with Literature professor and author David Arbesú.

A couple of things stood out to me.  First I thought, what a great activity for students to apply their learning in such a meaningful experience, interviewing the professor who had translated from Spanish to English the work of literature they had just read in class; a great example of extending learning beyond the classroom walls!

I also thought how great it was that they shared their experience with their blog post. I wonder if the students even realize the impact of their interview and blog post on their readers.  As I read the post, I learned from and was inspired by their experience.  They inspired me to re-read the works that were cited in the interview!

Their post reminded me of the power of sharing our stories with others.  When we write, we learn more deeply from our own reflection, and we inspire learning in others, multiplying learning opportunities, especially when we write for an authentic audience; a live, and potentially world-wide, audience! Furthermore, the class blog is a great way to share with parents and the community to give them a glimpse of what learning looks like with our students.

Here is the link to their blog post.  Check it out!


Even if you cannot read Spanish, you can appreciate and be inspired by their work. You will notice that all of the students participated in the interview, they shared a transcript of the interview, and, together in collaboration with their teacher, they are all listed as authors on their class blog. Check out the archives of their blog, too, to see earlier posts by these student authors. Consider leaving them a comment on their posts. Think how excited the students would be to hear from their readers!

In addition to blogging, the class also uses Twitter, as a microblog, with their class hashtag #EGHSLAE to share their learning experiences.  Check that out too!

Perhaps the work of Dean Burrier Sanchis' students will inspire you to consider blogging with your own students.  And if you do, please share with us!  We'd love to learn from your examples too!

If you are interested in getting started, please check in with us at the Collab Lab! We'd be happy to help.

And here are a few resources on blogging that might inspire you:

• "Empowering Students through Blogging: by Eric Patnoudes

Why Do I Use Twitter?

By Kim Miklusak

I admit: I was one of those people who refused to join Twitter.  What in the world can you do in 140 characters, I thought?  But I have to say I've been completely convinced for many reasons.  Here are the two main ones:

1.  I've connected with educators who have provided me with amazing resources and an instructional support structure: for example, while at the ISTE conference in Atlanta, I attended a workshop on 20% Time, which I was hoping to implement the following year.  The presenters kept speaking about Joy Kirr, who hosts a LiveBinder on this instructional practice.  Following Joy and the presenters on Twitter provided me with not only a plethora of materials but also a list of people to pose questions to and receive feedback from.

2.  A few times a month I see an instructional strategy on Twitter that I am able to implement in my classroom.  For example, I saw a tweet where Catlin Tucker shared a strategy called "Thesis Throwdown."  It fit perfectly with what I was instructing in writing that week, so I tried it out the next day with great success!  Then I was able to report back to Caitlin with pictures of what we did in class and thank her for sharing these ideas.

It can be hard to get rolling on Twitter, I know.  I recommend starting small and following other people in your school or district as well as notable people or groups in your subject area.  Unfollow if you don't find that resource useful!  Start retweeting or sharing out links you find online or maybe updates of what is going on in your class.  You may be surprised at the connections you make.  From there you may want to create lists or use resources like TweetDeck or HootSuite to keep track of everything with ease.

If you would like a tips, a tutorial, or to talk more about how to use Twitter as a professional resource or an instructional tool, stop down to the CollabLab or post resources/questions in the comments below!

The Power of Student Voice: #BeThePower

Written by Linda Ashida

"If you want to have a successful anti-bullying campaign at your school, don't have an assembly and don't invite a guest speaker! Don't create a form for parents to sign.  If you want to teach students not to bully, get the students involved.  Promote student agency.  Have the students own it!"

This message (paraphrased) from Ken Shelton's keynote address at the 2015 SchoologyNext Conference in July 2015, really stuck with me and reminded me about the incredible power of student voice, especially after watching these two videos he shared:

• Lend A Hand: Eanes Elementary   

 A student-created anti-bullying video.

•  My Name is Michael   

Michael shares his story about what it is like to have Autism

I hope you will take a few minutes to watch both videos before you read on.

Too often schools try to solve problems by getting a group of adults together to decide the best solution, when the best answers often come from the students themselves.

District 214 remembered the power of student voice to respond to students' negative use of social media last winter.  Students took to Twitter to complain about a district decision not to cancel classes on a very cold day. Many student tweets were mean-spirited and reflected negatively on their digital image.  Instead of responding with adult-imposed consequences and admonitions about digital citizenship, the district invited the students to come together to create a campaign to encourage positive and responsible use of social media.  Thus, the District 214 #BeThePower Campaign was born. Students from Wheeling and Prospect high schools began with a Twitter campaign using the hashtag #BeThePower and student created videos, and they challenged Elk Grove High School students to follow their lead. Students in the Leadership Through Service class responded with this video: "Joseph D. Bush's Mean Boyzzz"

 To be even more inspired about the power of student voice, check out the Student Voice Website.

How have you seen the positive impact of student voice in your classroom or school?  We'd love to hear from you! 

Social Media for Leading and Learning

Written collaboratively by the Collab Lab's ITF / DTC team 

Social media has a significant impact on the engagement, influence, and connections students can make in their educational and professional lives.  

Linda Ashida presented the countless benefits of using social media to the students of Joe Bush's Leadership Through Service class. In this slide presentation, she first addressed the importance of being responsible digital citizens, and she shared examples of how students can protect their digital presence, or their digital tattoo. Linda emphasized the ways that students can build a positive digital presence to create connections with others, to learn, and to create future opportunities related to their academic and professional interests, as well as their passions. 

After the brief presentation on digital citizenship, students created a professional Twitter account.  Linda shared the importance of determining a simple and succinct - yet professional - Twitter handle and profile, in order to facilitate meaningful connections and learning opportunities. 

Linda also gave examples of how to tweet meaningful content so students can share their work with a broader audience, and how they could also think of Twitter as a micro-blog allowing them to document their experiences throughout the year.  Storify can be used to curate a sampling of tweets related to a common theme or event.  Here is an example of a Storify of tweets from Joe Bush that reflects the experience of EGLTS during the first weeks of school. Staff and students can do the same for any of their courses. If students and staff tweet routinely, they can easily build a portfolio of their experiences to reflect upon and share with others.

After establishing their Twitter accounts, students set up their own blogs on Blogger. These blogs will give students an avenue to share their thoughts and experiences in their leadership class throughout the year.

Using these tools will give students an opportunity to share their work with an authentic audience, build a collaborative learning network, receive feedback, and extend their learning in meaningful ways beyond the classroom. Furthermore, they will grow their a positive digital presence in ways that will inevitably lead to academic and professional opportunities long after they graduate from Elk Grove. 

Please watch for the students' Tweets and Blogger posts this year by following their class hashtag: #EGLTS.  Just as Linda encouraged them to engage with others, we hope you will engage with them to encourage them in their academic and professional pursuits!

Twitter for School & Classroom Culture

This isn't a shameless plug for #214SpiritEG.  Well, I guess by default it sort of is; however, I wanted to build off Linda's post from Monday.

District 214 is holding a Twitter Spirit Week in honor of the Centennial this week.  They asked each school community to tweet to its specific hashtag all week, and the winning school will get burritos from a local business.  This is, I believe, the second year they've run a contest like this.  Additionally, they have celebrated #214oneday and #214bday, which were well received by many in and out of the district.

In addition to fun competition between schools, what events like this show are how a classroom, a school, and a district can leverage social media in a positive way.  Instead of banning technology and punishing students for using their phones & iPads in class, we can reward them when they are using them responsibly to enhance learning.  We can redirect students to create a positive digital culture and an audience for their work beyond the four classroom walls.  This has been shown through some of our school's class hashtags like #EGLTS and #FRAPEG--both of which have been blogged about on this site (here and here) and whose digital presences and influences are growing constantly.  It is possible to use Twitter and other forms of social media to enhance student learning!

Additionally, Twitter has become an important source of professional development for many educators.  For example, I have connected with so many teachers for resources and feedback on our 20% Time Project (#20Time/#GeniousHour).  Other teachers find contacts and resources via Twitter chats.  No matter what you're looking to work on in your own professional development or classroom content, there is someone out there to easily network with on Twitter.  If you'd like to learn more, please leave a comment or stop in to the CollabLab!

Also, go #214SpiritEG!

Enhancing Learning with Social Media

Posted by Linda Ashida (@Ashida_Linda)

I have become increasingly interested in the impact that Social Media tools can have on teaching and learning.  Many students still see Facebook, Twitter or Instagram simply as a means of social communication, without realizing that it can be a powerful learning tool. I am reminded of this when I visit colleagues' classes, in my role as Innovative Technology Facilitator, to teach lessons on Digital Leadership or Digital Presence. Students are often amazed and excited to learn about the opportunities social media can give them to share their work, receive feedback from authentic audiences, network, and extend their learning beyond the classroom. For example, after doing these lessons for students in our Leadership Through Service course, they began to regularly post on Twitter using their class hashtag #EGLTS. They were encouraged by the responses, feedback, retweets, or even by having their blog posts republished. These students quickly began to see the impact of social media on their learning and leadership.

In my work with teachers and students, I am also reminded about the challenge we all face with organizing all of the digital content that we come across every day.  Haven't you ever thought to yourself, "I know I read that online somewhere, and I saved it somewhere . . . " but you just cannot remember where?  Curation of digital content is an important 21st century skill for us and for our students, and it is greatly facilitated by social media tools such as Diigo, Pinterest, and Scoop.It.  Just do a Google search on a topic related to your teaching and include the word "Pinterest" in the search: You will find a wealth of great curated resources by other educators. If you are like me, from the examples of others, you will find yourself intrigued by the possibilities of using Pinterest to curate resources and have your students do the same.

For my own curation of content, I regularly use both Scoop.It and Diigo. Just today on Scoop.It, I came across this interesting article "Tools for Teaching and Learning."by Leila Meyer, via @ICTPHMS. Check it out! It gives examples of how to use six social media tools, including the aforementioned Diigo, Pinterest, and Scoop.It. It also shares ideas for using Voice Thread, Instagram and Feedly. Though they are examples are from college courses, they still apply to other levels of education.  

Do you have examples of how Social Media has impacted teaching and learning for you and your students?  Please share! Comment below!

A Student Perspective on Using Twitter in an Academic Setting

Today the CollabLab welcomes Arely M., a senior at Elk Grove.  She can be reached through her class hashtag #EGLTS

I was introduced to Twitter through my Leadership Through Service Class with Mr. Bush, and I love using my professional account for various reasons. Mrs. Ashida, both an innovative technology facilitator and a world language educator, kindly helped my class realize how important our digital presence is and showed us how to use our account as a networking resource. The more one builds up their digital identity positively, the more opportunities one will have in the long-run. Personally, I enjoy using Twitter because I can link it with my extracurricular interests and share my achievements or those of others I admire. Currently, I tweet every time I create a new blog post, wish to reach out to my Best Buddies club, find something interesting for my French class, and want to connect with my Leadership class. I look forward to continuing my use of Twitter and finding new passions, mentors, and inspirations.

The Impact of Social Media in the Classroom

Today the CollabLab welcomes Joe Bush, a teacher in the Social Studies department at Elk Grove.  Joe can be reached @josephdbush

I was never too fond of the term "social media."  I felt like it was a waste of time or something people did just to see others “like” pictures that were posted.  My perspective changed a great deal when social media avenues such as Twitter and Blogspot were presented in a new and interesting way. At the beginning of my Leadership Through Service Class, Linda Ashida came in and discussed digital leadership and digital footprints. These terms were foreign to me in the first place, but I quickly saw the powerful nature of blogging and tweeting. 

The first step we took in developing a digital footprint for both my students and myself was creating professional twitter accounts. These were to be used to help students connect with teachers, leaders, and each other as a forum to discuss topics with leadership or curate what they have done throughout the year. 

Although it has only been two months, my students and myself have made huge strides in chronicling our successes in class through Twitter (#EGLTS).  In addition, we have all made connections with leaders in the business community who have led us down avenues of positive leadership and growth.  The connections have expanded our worldviews and have helped us to grow into better people and leaders. 

In addition to Twitter, we have also used Blogspot to archive our class successes.  Every other week, students are given a topic to Blog about.  We have the benefit of reading each other’s blogs and commenting on them. This gives the students an authentic audience to share ideas with.  Overall I am very pleased with the use of social media in my class. Students have taken it seriously, we have connected with outside resources that we did not even know existed, and have grown as leaders.