21st CENTURY EDUCATOR...
not just Texas! |
"Join the maker movement! There's a technological and creative revolution underway. Amazing new tools, materials and skills turn us all into makers."
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"IF YOU AREN'T LECTURING, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
Talking should not be the primary work of teachers-learning about their students should be. ...A teacher's role in a constructionist classroom may include: ETHNOGRAPHER- Find out what the children already know. DOCUMENTARIAN- Collect evidence of learning that makes the invisible thinking of children visible. (See Making Thinking Visible for ideas) STUDIO MANAGER- Make appropriate tools, materials, and resources available so children can make their ideas come to life. WISE LEADER-Guide children's inquiry towards big ideas without coercion." INVENT TO LEARN |
21st CENTURY COMPETENCIES
CREATING CULTURES OF THINKING
Improving learning and collaboration by honing group and individual thinking processes. “Cultures of Thinking” (CoT) are places where a group's collective as well as individual thinking is valued, visible, and actively promoted as part of the regular, day-to-day experience of all group members.
RON RITCHART at the SUMMIT for TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING
STLinSTL@MICDS
When we went to St. Louis to hear Ron Ritchart speak, we felt like we were seeing a rock star in education! He felt that the culture in the classroom matters immensely to our students. He calls this "enculturation". Children will grow into the intellectual life around them. His message was that in the real world we don't work on problems we know the answers to. Testing has narrowed the way our students think. They know content but do not have the capacity to gain knowledge through deeper understanding. We have created a culture of work in schools. Look at the kind of questions they ask...Am I doing this right? Do I have to show my work on this? Homework! Do your Work! We need to send a message of LEARNING. He asked us "What do we want the children to be like when they are adults?" Teachers responded with words like compassionate, resilient, happy, curious, flexible, adventurous, open minded..the list went on! These are what Ron calls the DISPOSITIONS or the RESIDUALS of education. They are the qualities that stay with our students when they leave school. We need to change to a CULTURE of THINKING. He quoted that "Teachers say the word WORK, 48 more times than the word LEARN. Learning is a consequence of thinking. We need to write a new story for education...where there is increased levels of happiness and joy. Where students feel plugged in and energized through activity based learning and educators who have the attitude of "come learn with me!" Learning is an active process and students need to get personally involved and drive their own learning through prior knowledge, curiousity and questioning. CULTURES OF THINKING are place in which a groups' collective, as well as individual thinking is valued, visible and actively promoted. His book highlights how this can be done through these forces:
TIME- the way we allocate time sends messages of what we value.
OPPORTUNITIES- to provide lessons that encourage the thinking of all students.
MODELLING- model the dispositions ....passion, empathy. Students are watching!
INTERACTIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS
ENVIRONMENT- Orchestrate your classroom as if you are the conductor. Everything in your classroom teaches. Think about what it is saying to the students..from what is on the wall to your own body language.
LANGUAGE- Change can be as simple as using different pronouns. WE, OUR, US sends a different message that YOU have to do something.
EXPECTATIONS- should not be "of" our students but "FOR" our students. Expectations for independence suggest students will take responsibility for their own behaviour. Expectations OF are what what we demand of them.
STLinSTL@MICDS
When we went to St. Louis to hear Ron Ritchart speak, we felt like we were seeing a rock star in education! He felt that the culture in the classroom matters immensely to our students. He calls this "enculturation". Children will grow into the intellectual life around them. His message was that in the real world we don't work on problems we know the answers to. Testing has narrowed the way our students think. They know content but do not have the capacity to gain knowledge through deeper understanding. We have created a culture of work in schools. Look at the kind of questions they ask...Am I doing this right? Do I have to show my work on this? Homework! Do your Work! We need to send a message of LEARNING. He asked us "What do we want the children to be like when they are adults?" Teachers responded with words like compassionate, resilient, happy, curious, flexible, adventurous, open minded..the list went on! These are what Ron calls the DISPOSITIONS or the RESIDUALS of education. They are the qualities that stay with our students when they leave school. We need to change to a CULTURE of THINKING. He quoted that "Teachers say the word WORK, 48 more times than the word LEARN. Learning is a consequence of thinking. We need to write a new story for education...where there is increased levels of happiness and joy. Where students feel plugged in and energized through activity based learning and educators who have the attitude of "come learn with me!" Learning is an active process and students need to get personally involved and drive their own learning through prior knowledge, curiousity and questioning. CULTURES OF THINKING are place in which a groups' collective, as well as individual thinking is valued, visible and actively promoted. His book highlights how this can be done through these forces:
TIME- the way we allocate time sends messages of what we value.
OPPORTUNITIES- to provide lessons that encourage the thinking of all students.
MODELLING- model the dispositions ....passion, empathy. Students are watching!
INTERACTIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS
ENVIRONMENT- Orchestrate your classroom as if you are the conductor. Everything in your classroom teaches. Think about what it is saying to the students..from what is on the wall to your own body language.
LANGUAGE- Change can be as simple as using different pronouns. WE, OUR, US sends a different message that YOU have to do something.
EXPECTATIONS- should not be "of" our students but "FOR" our students. Expectations for independence suggest students will take responsibility for their own behaviour. Expectations OF are what what we demand of them.
HABITS OF MIND
"The Habits of Mind are an identified set of 16 problem solving, life related skills, necessary to effectively operate in society and promote strategic reasoning, insightfulness, perseverance, creativity and craftsmanship."
"The Habits of Mind are an identified set of 16 problem solving, life related skills, necessary to effectively operate in society and promote strategic reasoning, insightfulness, perseverance, creativity and craftsmanship."
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DEVELOPING SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Zoe and....
Zoe and....
Shiza Shahid- at the CONNECT Conference 2017
When Shiza gave her Key Note address at the CONNECT Conference, she had many inspirational things to say as an ethical entrepreneur. Firstly, she felt knowledge is acquired best through human interaction. We need to care about what we want to change in the world. Shiza states, "There are no Superheroes, just us!" When you are truly passionate about something you have the power to influence anything. Lastly, Shiza reminds us that there are critical moments in your life when you have to make a decision about who you are and in those moments let your heart guide you to make a difference.
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"TakingITGlobal empowers youth to understand and act on the world's greatest challenges. The Global Gallery is a platform for artistic expressions which raise awareness through the arts promoting cross cultural understanding and dialogue around major global challenges."
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"The Human Library challenges stereotypes and prejudices through dialogue.The Human Library is a place where people are books on loan to readers. A place where difficult questions are expected, appreciated and answered".
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"KarmaTube is a collection of inspiring videos accompanied by simple actions that every viewer can take. KarmaTube is dedicated to bringing inspirational stories to light to multiply acts of kindness, beauty and generosity."
The YOUTUBE VIDEO is an example of what you would find on Karma Tube on GRATITUDE. |
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"We share evidence and practitioner-based learning strategies that empower you to improve K-12 education."
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DEVELOPING THE COMPETENCIES
THE EIGHT KEYS OF EXCELLENCE
Many years ago, one of our staff received training in "QUANTUM TEACHING". "The Quantum Learning Systems focuses on culture and cognition, while orchestrating interactions between student and teacher, students and students, and students and content to reach desired academic and social emotional outcomes" . (See Quantum Button below for the source). Then many of us went to a public school in Breslau to see how the teachers used Quantum Learning in their classrooms. It was then that the "8 Keys", became the basis of character education in our school. As much of Quantum Learning is based on brain research, each key has an auditory, visual and kinesthetic component to it., thus making is accessible to most of our students. There is also the "Living Above or Below the Line" philosophy which encouraged the students to make choices and acknowledge their actions when working through a behavioral difficulty. Having a culture in our school which is embraced by our administration and teachers gives all children a clear understanding of the expectations we have for our students. There are posters around the school reminding the children of the keys and we also have monthly assemblies to keep them relevant. However, the "8 Keys" are also wonderful for establishing 21st Century Competencies. "Failure leads to the Sweet Smell of Success" helps students to develop a growth mindset. Mistakes are celebrated at our school and this in turn encourages our students to take more risks. "Commitment, commitment, commitment!", reminds the children to have grit and persevere on challenges that they face. "Flexibility" reminds the children that they make not succeed on a design challenge or maker project initially but to keep trying and go with the flow. Integrity to our students means "you know the right thing to do...so do it!" This key speaks to the collaboration that is needed to work effectively with others on any challenge that students need to face. "This is it!" is the fosters the attitude that you only have right now to be an excellent YOU, so always try your best. Having these keys as the underpinning of life at VT has helped the students understand and internalize the competencies so they can be lifelong learners.
"Quantum Teaching shows teachers how to orchestrate their students' success by taking into account everything in the classroom along with the environment, the design of the curriculum, and how it's presented."
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"Based on 18 years of experience and research with over 25,000 students - plus the synergy of hundreds of teachers worldwide - Quantum Teaching is the orchestration of learning. Just as a masterful symphony conductor brings out the best from every musician, from every instrument and even from the concert hall, Quantum Teaching shows you how to orchestrate your students' success".
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BLOOM'S TAXONOMY
Bloom's Taxonomy was created in 1956 under the leadership of educational psychologist Dr Benjamin Bloom in order to promote higher forms of thinking in education, such as analyzing and evaluating concepts, processes, procedures, and principles, rather than just remembering facts (rote learning).
COMMITMENT, RESILIENCE, PERSEVERANCE .......GRIT!!!
" How are world-class geniuses different from other people? It may have less to do with genetics and more to do with the journey from interest to purpose to hope. Angela Duckworth is a psychologist, founder of the non-profit 'Character Lab', and bestselling author of 'Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance. She examines how successful and happy people delve into their passions as a process of discovery, and how their acceptance of feedback fuels their motivations. Read her full interview with Adam Grant as they discuss misconceptions of what perseverance really means, the science behind motivation and the tension between creativity and grit. "
Dailygood.org Click Beyond Grit to hear more! |
ZONES OF REGULATION
Zones of Regulation is a curriculum geared toward helping students gain skills in consciously regulating their actions, which in turn leads to increased control and problem solving abilities.
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GROWTH MINDSET
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