Thoughts and reflections on teaching and learning – Cohort 21 Member Blog
Written by Garth Nichols
Luckily enough, I was able to meet this author, Liz Arney, when I was on a research trip in San Francisco visiting innovative schools up and down the Bay Area. Liz made time to meet with both Justin Medved and I to explain her organization’s approach to finding schools that are innovative and finding ways to […]
Written by Garth Nichols
One of the most provocative things I was told was to “sell your Smartboards, and buy 3D printers!” (Richard Byrne at the ECOO conference keynote address), and I’ve been exploring this idea ever since…big time! Reading, researching, attending the Toronto Maker-Faire, and visiting MakeLab in Toronto. I’ve discovered some incredible things about 3D printing: 1) The […]
Written by Garth Nichols
How did my school go from almost ZERO twitter connections, to being part of a CIS Ontario-wide movement to connect on Twitter with other schools across disciplines and grades? What started as zero twitter chatter within my school, grew quickly to over 15 teachers, either starting new with Twitter or repositioning their Tweets to connect […]
Written by Garth Nichols
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. […]
Written by Garth Nichols
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 […]
Written by Garth Nichols
I find myself looking more and more at the impact of MOOCs on education, and in particular, on the notion of personalized learning. Reading the blog “Hack Education” and following this movement in Edutopia have spurred interest. In his article from Edutopia, Matt Levinson, argues that: Unfortunately, for many learners, MOOCs lack the possibility of […]
Written by Garth Nichols
For a few years now, I have been following Joe Bower on Twitter. He is a great thinker and advocate for responsible and positive change in education. He is a thoughtful blogger, and he got me thinking of my discussions with many during the last Cohort 21 F2F session about personalization of learning. Amongst others, […]
Written by Garth Nichols
Susan Davis writing for “Getting Smart” begins her blog post on “Teaching Authentic Writing in a Socially Mediated World” with this idea: “…I don’t know where to start. You see, I’ve completely bought into the idea that what we teach our students should be authentic, that is, tangible and real in ways that are meaningful and purposeful for […]
Written by Garth Nichols
It is November 11th, and it is the day of stories. Stories from what our students might consider ancient history, stories from textbooks and primary documents; stories told from black and white movies or sincere, frightened faces, and hard working bodies in the bodies in the trenches. How well can students connect to these stories? […]
Written by Garth Nichols
This first report card is always a bit of a wake-up call for students and teachers alike. It’s a time to reflect on the work that has been done, the learning that is happening in the classroom, and as such, it serves as a launching pad for the rest of the year. Using the concept […]
