As a history teacher, I love when I can align what I’ve learned about the past with what is happening in today’s world. We call this continuity and change – the ability to tie a thread of an idea, an event, or happening, from then to now. Today, I heard the incredible story of Mozart…
Read more
These past two weeks have been a prime time for Educonferences – there was a great one at St. Clements in Toronto, The Klingenstein Summer program in Lawrenceville, and of course the ISTE 2014. But I was at none of them…or was I? I have colleagues who attended each of these conferences, and we were…
Read more
We at Cohort 21 have written before about the different places that technology can occupy in a classroom. We’ve talked about leveraging it to check-in on student learning, Louis has reflected on how use tech to engage students in the learning process, and even allow students to use technology as a demonstration of their knowledge….
Read more
One of my big take-aways from this year’s Cohort 21 experience is the overall momentum and capacity for shifting our practice that was generated within the members this year. When Justin and I first began this journey, we had talked about how important it was to us, personally, that we pursue excellence in our classrooms…
Read more
When introducing students, teacher and administration to the concepts of digital literacy and footprinting, there are few insights that I have gleaned from my experiences. Overcoming Digital Natives’ Complacency: This is a concept first created by U.S. author Marc Prensky in 2001 is emerging as the globe’s dominant demographic, while the “digital immigrant,” becomes a relic of…
Read more
Back in October, I launched my action plan, and even though Digital Citizenship Day is in the past for 2013, I am looking forward to the first week of October in 2014. There are some great conversations throughout Cohort 21, as well as the CIS Ontario community about online safety and the role of students,…
Read more
The more I read and research, the more fundamental I see digital citizenship being to what we do as educators. However, I also get more and more curious about where this type of learning fits in with the Ontario curriculum. In my research, I came across a document by the Ministry of Education entitled A Shifting…
Read more
There is a sea-change happening in the realm of educational leadership. I feel that Cohort 21 is a big part of that change. Sarah McKibbon’s article in ASCD’s publications is entitled “Following Lincoln’s Lead“, and it resonates with many of the actions that I, and others, are taking in their schools towards a more open…
Read more
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLTZv2NFkLI[/youtube] “This is me in Grade 9 Baby, yeah, this is me in Grade 9” – great lyrics from a great band. But they make me think about what we do, as grown-ups, to help us find out who we are. This song is about a picture, but it leads to memories. Memories of…
Read more
As the month of August continues to march forward, the dawn of a new school year lies ahead. This year, one of my personal goals is to really push the envelope with digital literacy. So, naturally, I’ve been doing some 21st century research: looking at YouTube, visiting blogs, and looking at infographics. I’ve stumbled upon…
Read more