After several years of collaboration and coordination with over thirty two authors, I’m pleased to announce that “Designing Effective Blended and Distance Learning Environments in K-12" is officially published!
HIIT Workouts and Lesson Design: Balancing The Use of Complex Tasks (EdTechTeacher Webinar)
Using Assessment Data: How to Personalize Instruction with Albert.io
One of the most effective uses of edtech is teachers' ability to use assessment data to personalize instruction for their students. In this new video tutorial (linked here and embedded below), I demonstrate how to do this process using the powerful Albert.io platform.
Best Mic Options For Teachers
Teachers across the world are attending virtual meetings, hosting live classes and creating instructional videos. When engaging in this new reality of teaching, you may have realized that your computer’s built-in microphone just isn’t cutting it. I realized this a while back when creating my first “flipped videos” and have tested out countless mic options over the years. Below are three great options for teachers looking to improve their sound quality, all without breaking the bank.
New Feature: How to Share Your Screencastify Video Directly to EdPuzzle
There is a new feature in Screencastify that enables you to share your video directly into the EdPuzzle platform. In this video tutorial, I demonstrate how to enable this setting and share from Screencastify to Edpuzzle. Definitely a time saver and ramping up the impact of your screencasts with the powerful tools in EdPuzzle will make for effective and engaging instructional videos!
Screencasting with Screencastify!
Screencastify is one of the most popular screencasting tools for educators, and for good reason! It is a free Chrome extension that enables you to record your screen, add voiceover audio, and embed a webcam video. There are also some annotation and editing tools built-in. This is incredibly helpful for distance learning since it helps teachers provide students with much needed asynchronous video instruction that is tailored to their needs and interests.
Learn edpuzzle in 2 Minutes
How to Create Instructional Videos With Google Meet
In my work with teachers around distance learning, I have been advocating for the creation of instructional videos that are tailored to their particular students. One of the simplest and most effective ways to get up and running with video creation is actually with Google Meet! Here is a quick tutorial I just created demonstrating the process in three steps:
Elevating the Student Data Privacy Conversation (MassCUE 2018 Session Resources)
Learning Spaces Reimagined in Montour - Visual Tour
We often hear of the need to redesign schools to support modern learning environments, and yes, we should. But how often does a school’s investment in these spaces clearly support and enable a shift towards innovative, student-centered practices? Not so much. That is why when I had the chance to visit Montour Public Schools last Spring, I jumped at the opportunity.
Challenges of Digital Learning Leadership
Last week, I had the incredible opportunity to work alongside several groups of education leaders at the EdTechTeacher Innovation Summit in Boston. Of all the themes, topics and challenges we explored, the biggest takeaway for me had to do with time.
My Take on EdTech Ambassadorships
A couple weeks back I posted a collection of articles addressing the nature of edtech ambassador programs and topics related to the evolving relationships between educators and the edtech industry. Here is my take on the issue.
Viewpoints on EdTech Ambassadorships
As many of us have witnessed, discussion about edtech companies and their relationships with teachers has heated up across the country. Although this issue has been around for a while now, it has recently come to the forefront in many school communities following a New York Times article published a few weeks ago that took a particular stance on the issue.
Over the past few weeks, I have spent some time researching the issue from multiple angles. I quickly discovered how nuanced of an issue this is and how these discussions go well beyond the scope of any one particular "ambassador" program.
Nodes, Networks and Learning (Beyond Sharing)
What is the value of a professional learning network? And how can we make the most of these networks to actually learn in deep and profound ways?
These are questions that I have been grappling with, particularly since the way that many educators (myself included) have been engaging with our networks lately. From my perspective, it has shifted quite a bit, and not always for the better.
Scaling Innovation: A System’s Approach to Transforming Teaching and Learning
Like many districts across the nation, Rhode Island’s Bristol Warren Regional School District (BWRSD) has a firm understanding of best practice and current research. However, the difficulty in scaling any innovation is converting the theory into action. To overcome this, BWRSD has adopted the Future Ready Schools® (FRS) framework, a systematic approach to scaling innovative digital learning practices while promoting long-term sustainability. This transition to digital learning affords BWRSD the opportunity to provide greater clarity and coherence regarding the district’s vision of teaching and learning. At BWRSD, we have used the opportunity to develop and communicate a new, shared vision of personalized instruction that fosters deeper learning for all students.
Navigating Our Digital Lives
Last Spring, Media Smart Libraries and EdTechRI hosted a regional event in Barrington, RI called "Navigation our Digital Lives: In School and Beyond." This event was geared towards parents, educators & administrators to discuss topics such as student privacy, safety, & digital citizenship. It was an honor to join a panel of experts in this field, many of whom are leaders right here in Rhode Island.
5 Guiding Principles to Help Evaluate EdTech
Innovative edtech products are being developed at an increasingly rapid pace, making it more challenging than ever for educators to decide which to use in their classroom. As a former high school teacher who was eager to try anything that could improve student learning, I was at times overwhelmed by all of the new tools that claimed to transform teaching and learning as we know it. Now, as a school district’s Director of Educational Technology, it is not only my role to help us make district-level edtech decisions, but also to help educators make the day-to-day decisions regarding which instructional technologies will work best in their particular learning environments.
