TeachTec

U.S. Teachers Win at Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum

Teach_Tec — Sun, 02 Dec 2012 15:59:59 GMT

In the lovely setting of the Prague Castle, five teachers from Florida, Michigan and Washington state were among 21 awarded global recognition for their innovative work in the classroom. These educators, part of Team USA mentioned here last week, took home prizes in the categories: cutting edge use of technology, collaboration and Educator’s Choice.

The Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum is an annual program which this year attracted over 250,000 teachers from around the world through a rigorous application process seeking innovative and effective uses of technology in K-12 classrooms. It culminated with roughly 115 teachers attending the Global Forum in Prague last week. The winning U.S. educators came through the US Forum held this summer in Redmond, WA (see earlier post).

It was an honor to have been present to acknowledge and celebrate these awards along with meeting other amazing educators from around the world (see official press release featuring all of the winners and this release highlighting the U.S. winners).

All of the Forum projects can be found on the Partners in Learning Network, along with short videos and other supporting materials the teachers have provided. There are direct links to each project below (while you’re there, poke around for some free software and classroom resources) and join a community of these educators here to learn more about projects from around the world.

Here are short summaries of each of the winning U.S. projects:

Category: Collaboration

Pauline Roberts (@pr05bps) & Rick Joseph (@rjoseph852)

Birmingham Covington School (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan)

Project: Doing Business in Birmingham

Doing Business in Birmingham is a Sciracy project. Sciracy aims to promote scientific literacy, or the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes required for personal decision making, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity. Students learn to ask, find, or determine answers to questions derived from curiosity about everyday experiences, and to describe, explain, and articulate their thoughts about the world around them. Students synthesize their learning and challenge themselves to generate creative solutions to real world problems. After learning about sustainability in business, students took to the streets of downtown Birmingham to assess the sustainability of businesses in their local community. Armed with informational flyers and brochures the students had created, they visited over ninety establishments to interview and educate local business owners.

Category: Cutting Edge Use of Technology

Robin Lowell (@teacherinthebox) & Sherry Hahn

Washington State School for the Blind (Vancouver, Washington)

Project: Accessible Distance Learning of Mathematics for Blind and Visually Impaired High School Students

Mathematics is a challenging subject for blind and visually impaired (BVI) students because it requires specialized instruction to meet their unique accessibility needs. Access to specialized instruction is extremely limited due primarily to a shortage of Teachers of the Visually Impaired (TVI) qualified to teach mathematics. At the Washington State School for the Blind, we have developed a unique and effective program built on Microsoft Lync that provides specialized mathematics instruction to BVI students anywhere. Our mathematics TVI uses video conferencing to instruct her classes to any student with a Lync client and an internet connection. Specialized instruction is possible because Lync works seamlessly with assistive technologies such as Braille Displays and screen readers; which enables lecture, whiteboard, and other class materials to be delivered in accessible formats (e.g. Braille, large print, and/or audio). For 1:1 instruction, the students can easily share their work, ask for help, or submit classwork to the teacher using desktop sharing, instant messaging, and file transfer. (Here’s a short post I did earlier on this project).

Category: Educator's Choice

Todd LaVogue (@ToddLaVogue)

Roosevelt Community Middle School (West Palm Beach, Florida)

Project: What’s Up Egypt?

In order to help his students gain a better understanding of life in ancient Egypt, Todd LaVogue had his students create a TV show about ancient Egypt. Using Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer and video editing software, his students researched and created a Today show style news program with news, weather, sports, cooking, lifestyle, historical, music segments. Students were able to compare and contrast ancient Egypt with today's society very well. In the end, they had a better understanding of what it would have been like to have lived during that time. (Here’s a guest post I hosted from Mr. LaVogue)

You can also learn some fun facts about these teachers on the Partners in Learning Facebook page in the new Educator Spotlight app.

Please join me in congratulating these educators for their truly global achievement.

Rob

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Reflections in Pictures: Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum

Teach_Tec — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 12:48:36 GMT

Here are some images from the past few days from the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum in Prague. It has been an inspiring 3+ days. My post earlier this week shared a little about “Team USA” and the projects they brought to this global event. These photos will give you a sense for what we’ve been up to this week including a global teacher exhibit, teacher workshops, keynotes, and getting to see some of the lovely city of Prague.

Tonight will be the Gala Dinner at the Prague Castle where 18 global winners will be announced (watch this blog for details) and continue to follow #PiLGF for the real-time updates.

It is humbling and inspiring to see teachers from around the world come together to share ideas and a similar desire and passion to improve education for students around the globe.

Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum - Prague

VIEW SLIDE SHOW

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Regards,

Rob (aka @TeachTec)

Top Educators to Represent the U.S. at the Partners in Learning Global Forum

Teach_Tec — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 18:54:00 GMT

16 educators will advance to Prague, Czech Republic to represent the United States at the Microsoft Partners in Learning Global Forum this week (Nov. 28 – Dec. 1). They will be joining 500 teachers, school and government education leaders from 80 countries. Each of these teachers have advanced through regional events held throughout the year to represent their respective countries at this unique global education event.

These U.S. educators were named top among their peers during the US Forum held this summer in Redmond, WA (see earlier post for bkgrd) and represent a mix of K-12 schools, grade levels and subject-matter, all using technology in creative ways to impact student-learning, including creative uses of gaming and learning, thoughtful applications of distance-learning to engage visually-impaired students, projects focused on community outreach, video creation, and teachers extending learning beyond their classrooms and beyond the continent!

Here are summaries of each of their projects and you can find more project details, including supporting classroom materials and short videos on the Partners in Learning Network (links to each project are below).

Here’s a short video to introduce you to Team USA and their projects, but if you really want to get to know them, here’s a “Call Me Maybe” video shot this summer at the US Forum : ) -- follow their progress at #PiLGF and of course @TeachTec will be there reporting live!

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Collaboration

1st place - Jamie Ewing (@mrewingteach), Mount View Elementary (Seattle, Washington)

Project: Science in the Sky and Our Backyards: A Virtual Science Fair

Students begin by exploring Earth Systems and brainstorm in small groups to create earth systems based science experiments. While designing each experiment, student groups build all the tools necessary to complete science experiments. Finished experiments will be presented in a virtual world instead of the normal science fair model. 5th grade students will build videos using Movie Maker or digital presentations in PowerPoint stored on a Windows Live SkyDrive so that they can bring their ideas to other school around the globe. Students will build video game presentations in Scratch that are interactive as well as informative. Once data is collected and experiments are finished, groups will bring their findings to the local community in the form of an ecology project to help take our findings and use them to build a better community. Community interactions will be in person but also using Skype to connect our students to community leaders. (Here’s a guest post from Mr. Ewing with some more details).

Runner-up - Julie Hembree (@Mrs_Hembree), AG Bell Elementary (Kirkland, Washington)

Project: Kid Lit Movies: Book Trailers for Young Readers

How do you connect kids with great books? In our library, its with movies, thanks to our student-created book trailers! These videos are exciting visual previews of books. In three 4th grade library classes, teams selected a favorite book, storyboarded the content using Microsoft OneNote, and then created book trailers with Windows Live Movie Maker. These movies are used as digital advertising in our library. They are embedded on our school library blog, and on SchoolTube for a wide range of student and public access. In addition, we generated QR codes for their movies and placed them on the books themselves and on other high profile locations around the school, linking the physical book to its digital counterpart. In the process students improved their evaluative and analytical skills, while creating an engaging product designed to sell awesome books to their peers.

Extended Learning Beyond the Classroom

1st place - Pauline Roberts (@pr05bps) & Rick Joseph, Birmingham Covington School (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan)

Project: Doing Business in Birmingham

Runner-up: Tie

Joli Barker, Slaughter Elementary (McKinney, Texas)

Project: XBOX 360: the iConnect Project

Using Kodu gaming, gaming vernacular and concepts, 2nd grade students utilized ePals, Edmodo, Skype, and Microsoft Office, PhotoStory, Skype, and Xbox 360 to participate in a global literary book study and multimedia festival. The class connected with over 8 classrooms across the world who read the Magic Tree House books with us and participated in creating multimedia reports and Kodu games to extend and express their learning. When the book series took us to a new country, the classroom from which the book was set "hosted" the Q&A for that book via Skype. The overall result was an extraordinary literary experience that transcended reading comprehension into a cultural study and a global connection that far surpassed the original goal.

and

Sarah Collins (@sssminnow) & Jo Spark (@jo_spark), Moody Elementary (Moody, Texas)

Project: Cans for the P.L.A.N.

Cans for the P.L.A.N. is a campaign designed by 3rd graders to make the world cleaner and help fund campus technology. Determined to raise money to purchase document cameras, clickers, and/or tablets, third grade students started the P.L.A.N. (Proceeds for Learning And New technology). The goal was to collect enough aluminum cans each semester to purchase a new piece of equipment for a classroom. Students divided into five teams for the campaign. Team Presentation created a PowerPoint and presented Cans for the P.L.A.N. to classrooms of students on our campus. Team Advertise and Team Logo used Microsoft Word and Paint to create flyers that were distributed around our school and community. Team Video wrote a commercial to explain and promote Cans for the P.L.A.N. Finally, Team Data developed an Excel spreadsheet to track can collection and money raised. This is an ongoing program, and we plan to make our first purchase this spring.

Knowledge Building & Critical Thinking

1st place - Jennifer Bevill, LSU Laboratory School (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)

Project: Peace Project

The Peace Project focuses on global collaboration between a high school in Japan and Louisiana. Interactions using SkyDrive, Skype, PowerPoint, Outlook, Word, Bing, and video/audio editing software are used to engage students regarding international understanding, tolerance, conflict and resolution, and to develop 21st century digital and communication skills that can be used in college and the workforce. Students work collaboratively to create digital media projects in order to communicate with the other school about specific historical events, literature written from different perspectives, traditional art, sustainable living, and everyday culture of interest to students. After learning about the other culture students create a project to address a common issue; an example is producing a PSA on Bullying in Schools. The project has been so inspiring that students in their second year of participation initiated a trip to Japan to meet our Japanese friends in person.

Runner-up - Cheryl Arnett (@c_arnett) & Melany Neton, Sunset Elementary School (Craig, Colorado)

Project: Let's Go To Disneyland!

First and second graders researched, planned, and traveled to Disneyland, using an Xbox 360 Kinect. The project was organized on a OneNote Web document in SkyDrive in a series of student-determined tasks to be completed by collaborative teams. Tasks included locating Disneyland on a map, deciding when and how to travel, where to stay, what to take, calculating the cost, and how long they would need to save for the trip. Learning addressed educational standards including math, literacy, geography, collaboration, research, and personal financial literacy, as well as ISTE standards in critical thinking, problem solving, decision-making, research, and information fluency. Following the research and planning, students used the Kinect game Disneyland Adventures to take the virtual trip, giving the children a chance to explore the theme park using their bodies to navigate. Students kept a journal of their imaginative experience and created brochures and post cards to send to family and friends. (Here’s a guest post from Ms. Arnett sharing some more on their project.)

Cutting Edge Use of Technology

1st place - Robin Lowell (@teacherinthebox) & Sherry Hahn, Washington State School for the Blind (Vancouver, Washington)

Project: Accessible Distance Learning of Mathematics for Blind and Visually Impaired High School Students

Runner-up - June Teisan (@jlteisan) & Alexandra Beels (@AlexandraBeels), Harper Woods Secondary School (Harper Woods, Michigan)

Project: Student Water Initiative in Michigan AKA "The SWIiM Team"

Freshwater resources are crucial to survival across the globe, and the challenge is to equip the next generation of environmental stewards. Our Student Water Initiative in Michigan ("SWIiM Team") at Harper Woods Middle School is a year-long grant-funded project that immerses a cadre of urban 7th graders in a host of technology-rich, activity-based STEM studies out on the Great Lakes to foster environmental awareness and build stewardship skills. Central to the work of our student-scientists is BOB, our homemade Basic Observation Buoy, being deployed with a suite of water quality sensors that gather a unique 24/7 data stream. Developed with multiple partner organizations, the SWIiM Team project offers critical connections to expert mentors, robust resources, place-based experiential learning, and authentic audiences for reporting student research --- all vital components for engaging and equipping our urban, minority learners who are under-represented in the STEM fields.

Educator as Innovator and Change Agent

Gregg Witkin (@divergregg), Boynton Continuation High School (San Jose, CA)

Project: Finding Your Voice

Students work with a selection of technology to create youth media that has a purpose for social change. Students are able to create documentary films, animations, music videos graphics and/or audio stories, but with the caveat that it must be about a topic that is both important to them and a vehicle for social change. Students used Bing for research and developed their stories in Microsoft Word, organized their time in Excel and presented their ideas in PowerPoint.

Educator's Choice

Todd LaVogue (@ToddLaVogue) - Roosevelt Community Middle School (West Palm Beach, Florida)

Project: What’s Up Egypt?

You can also learn more about these teachers on the Partners in Learning Facebook page, in the new Educator Spotlight app and the Partners in Learning Global Forum app – find out what makes them tick!

We hope you follow their progress at #PiLGF and support “Team USA” and the other amazing educators from around the world.

Regards,

Rob

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Engaging Young Students in Knowledge Building and Critical Thinking

Teach_Tec — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 22:28:00 GMT

We are two weeks away from the Microsoft Partners in Learning Global Forum (#PiLGF) in Prague, Czech Republic. I wanted to share another guest post from a member of “Team USA” (one of the 16 teachers who will be representing the U.S. at this amazing professional learning experience). Today’s post is from educator Cheryl Arnett (@c_arnett) featuring a project done with collaborating educator Melany Neton. The project is called Let’s Go to Disneyland and won runner-up in the Knowledge Building & Critical Thinking category at the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum. Cheryl is a 1st/2nd grade teacher at Sunset Elementary, Craig, CO. This will be Cheryl’s second Global Forum. You can also find her blogging on Huffington Post.

Imagine the look on the face of a six-year-old child entering a classroom and discovering an Xbox 360 Kinect gaming system!

Their curiosity and excitement quickly turn to inspiration and motivation when the games are used for learning. Early interactions with Kinect games in my classroom offered opportunities to practice basic math and listening skills. Each game holds a multitude of possibilities for academic lessons. One particular game, Disneyland Adventures, provided a basis for an amazing unit of learning for first and second grade students. (To see the full project and supporting classroom resources, check it out on the Partners in Learning Network).

Using the Kinect game as a final virtual destination, young children worked in collaborative groups to plan a vacation of their dreams. Working on SkyDrive One Note Documents, the teams researched and planned their trips. Using actual online travel and vacation sites, they located Disneyland on a map, compared transportation options, researched hotels, and explored the rides in the park. Working well beyond math skills typically expected of first and second graders, the children calculated costs of driving versus flying. They had to negotiate and make decisions in their group as they considered not only the travel variables, but also how the length of their stay and hotel choice would affect the costs associated with their final plans.

The virtual trip on the Kinect sparked their young imaginations and the trip to Disneyland become quite real in their minds. The students not only planned, but wrote journal entries of their experiences and created post cards to send to their families and friends.

Listen to their reflections in this video clip:

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Our project reinforces two important points in education. The first is that children are never too young to begin learning 21st century skills. Six and seven year old children easily and enthusiastically tackled a challenging problem, applying critical thinking and collaboration skills as they learned to work together and built knowledge beyond their years with passion and purpose. The second is the importance of play and imagination in learning. By tapping into their dreams and creative nature, the project became successful beyond our expectations. The students couldn’t wait to learn. They truly understand that the difference between a dream and a goal is a plan.

Kinect offers a new dimension to learning. Our experiences are still growing as we have incorporated Avatar Kinect into our lessons this year. The possibilities for communication and creation are many! Never underestimate the potential of young children. If they are given the opportunity to explore, create, and build knowledge using technology with access to the world at six, think what they can be doing at sixteen!

Cheryl Arnett @c_arnett

Sunset Elementary School

Craig, Colorado, USA

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Guest post: The 21st century science project

Teach_Tec — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 15:54:00 GMT

As we prepare for the Microsoft Partners in Learning Global Forum (#PiLGF) in Prague, Czech Republic, I will be featuring guest posts from “Team USA” (the 16 teachers who will be representing the U.S. at this amazing professional learning experience). Today’s post is from educator Jamie Ewing and his student’s with their eLabs: Science in the Cloud project, which won 1st place in the Collaboration category at the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum. Jamie is a fifth grade teacher at Mount View Elementary, Seattle, WA.

What SHOULD it look like with 21st Century Learning? DIGITAL!

eLABs: Science in the Cloud takes students there and beyond. Spending valuable time doing amazing science work only to end up cutting out construction paper and gluing it on cardboard is atrocious in this age of technology!

Students begin by exploring the state standards in student friendly language for Earth Systems/Ecology and then ‘Mind Storming’ in small teams to create science experiments based on these standards. Teams design their experiment using the Scientific Method as their guide. It’s important that teams work together to assign roles in the team making sure that each member shares in the responsibilities of setting up that experiment and collecting data. Finished experiments will be presented in a virtual world instead of the normal tri-fold ‘science fair’ model.

But the fun (and learning!) has only started.

The two most important words for eLABs? Science + Blogs.

Science blogs are set up for experiment. Teams will blog about their experiment, what they are observing day to day, and report about their final results. But since running science experiments doesn’t leave time to see what other teams are doing, students interact with other blogs ask questions or make comments. Students can use social media to find scientists, biologist, ecologists, gardeners…well you get the picture…to find experts to match up with projects and teams to ask questions, make comments, and get involved. THIS BLEW MY STUDENTS MINDS! To find out that people outside the classroom were interested, really interested, in their work was powerful. As one of my students said, “It made me feel smart!”

Downtime? The very nature of science experiments creates a lot of down time. This part of the project is where things start to make sense and connections are made. Each member creates a PowerPoint presentation and a Scratch programmed animated presentation. Use PowerPoint to create an instructional ‘video’ that each group up-loads to our class website to share with the world. The presentation is only about running the experiment not findings so that other people could take the information and try it themselves (here are some tutorials for using PowerPoint in the classroom).

The Scratch project is a programmed animated video that shows each students (animated as a scientist avatar) walking the viewer through their entire experiment, even testing the viewer at the end. These projects are then uploaded to the Scratch website to be judged.

To finish the whole project off, teams take their findings and design an ecology-based project that they could bring to their community as a way to help the community’s environment and improve their surroundings. Community interactions will be in blog form or with Skype, if possible, to connect our students to community leaders.

While each of these projects plays an important part to the whole process for my students they are not set in stone. Putting together the pieces that can be easily manageable is the key to eLABs success. The interactions within blogging are the most powerful piece. It allows students to express things that they might not do so in the classroom. Blogging allows students to have conversations with other students and beyond. I use EduBlogs as it is a safe, manageable blog service that is free. If the blogging seems daunting (I had 12 going all at once), try having only one and post questions that students can then go on and write reflections.

Young students could benefit with using Skype for the Classroom which allows you to bring the scientist into the classroom. Scratch is a powerful tool but will take a little practice. Try video science presentations. The ideas for a digital eLAB science experience are endless.

The power of this project is not the science but the experiences the student create in science and collaborating with each other to share their science ides. The power is in the engagement that social media brings to broaden the learning from all corners of the globe (my students collected information from as far away as Luxemburg). eLABs puts the power in the hands of the students and THAT is power!

Jamie Ewing @mrewingteach

5th grade teacher

Mount View Elementary, Seattle, WA

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Guest post: Encouraging collaboration and engagement in middle school students

Teach_Tec — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 15:07:36 GMT

As we prepare for the Microsoft Partners in Learning Global Forum (#PiLGF) in Prague, Czech Republic, I will be featuring guest posts from “Team USA” (the 16 teachers who will be representing the U.S. at this amazing professional learning experience). Today’s post is from educator Todd LaVogue @ToddLaVogue featuring his “Educator’s Choice” winning project “What’s UP Egypt?“ from the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum. Todd is a middle school teacher in West Palm Beach, FL.

My name is Todd LaVogue. For the past three years I taught sixth and eighth grade history teacher at Roosevelt Middle School in West Palm Beach, Florida.

I enter each unit of study with the idea of taking something the students know and enjoy and combining it with the material mandated by the state that should be taught during the unit. My students, in turn, create television shows, plays, public service announcements and music videos within our unit of study.

In one of our more recent projects, my students researched and created an ancient Egypt Today show-style news program with news, weather, sports, cooking, lifestyle, historical and music segments. For example, the weather segment discussed the annual flooding of the Nile and how that was essential to life in ancient Egypt through the depositing of silt on the banks, fertilizing crops.

We accomplished this by infusing technology into the curriculum. Using a flip video camera, a digital camera, video editing software and tools like Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer and Windows Movie Maker my students were able to compare and contrast ancient Egypt with today’s society very well. In the end, they had a better understanding of what it would have been like to have lived during that time.

Some of my students are homeless, others are gang members. Over 80% of my students qualify for free and/or reduced lunch. A vast majority of my students have more important issues to worry about than what took place in Egypt 4,000 years ago. A vast majority do not enter my classroom with enough prior knowledge to scaffold learning. It is important I engage students in a way that involves and inspires them in the learning process. Innovative uses of technology, combined with what they know and like have been my hook to involvement and inspiration. My students are engaged in learning. When this happens, classroom management takes care of itself.

We were able to combine other content areas during the making of our television show. We took and field trip to a local television station to discover the number of jobs and people necessary to make a television show. We learned about the various technology used in the making of one show. We were given writing, filming and editing advice by the television staff. We also needed sets and costumes. We took another field trip to a reuse facility where we collected supplies for our sets and costumes. We discovered the importance of recycling and reusing materials in the process. Both field trips took less than two hours each, limiting lost instructional time.

After the field trip, I had the students divide into groups that interested them in the production of a show. The groups were: on-camera, film team, writers, editors, lighting, set design, cue cards and wardrobe. We also selected a production team that would decide on segments, segment order and overall look of show.

We viewed the state benchmarks and brainstormed the best way to meet the state requirements through the use of technology. We researched, wrote, edited, rehearsed and designed each segment to meet benchmarks. This may seem like a lot of work to accomplish. Since the students had already divided into departments that most interested them, each department worked on their responsibility. One department did not want to disappoint the other departments so the quality of work increased as the production continued. We previewed each segment before the production department gave final approval.

Once you complete a couple of these projects, it gets easier as well. Students enter my class knowing what is going to happen because someone they know has taken my class. Once students see examples of completed student projects, it’s easier to get them focused on their own.

I left the Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum a much better educator. It was the best professional development I have ever received. I look forward to representing the United at Partners in Learning Global Forum in Prague, Czech Republic. I am anxious to learn from teachers around the world.

The link below to the Partners in Learning Network site includes a details on my project including a short video, timelines, rubrics and other resources to help you do something similar:

http://www.pil-network.com/Resources/LearningActivities/Details/6d30a9a3-17f2-4d82-9e54-7ff896e5f39b

Todd LaVogue @ToddLaVogue

Magnet Coordinator

Roosevelt Middle School

West Palm Beach, FL

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Guest post: On A Mission to Stop Bullying with the Canastota Apprentice

Teach_Tec — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 18:52:00 GMT

Today it is my pleasure to feature a guest post from educator Patricia Ragan (@PatriciaRagan1) and her newly deemed “2012 Apprentice,” junior Isaac Smith as contributors to @TeachTec. Patricia is a career and technical education teacher at Canastota High School in Canastota, New York and Isaac is in his junior year. Patty and I met this summer at the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum, you can find out more about her project and the work of 100 amazing educators from the Forum here.

A new year of opportunity has begun at Canastota High School and I am ready to embark on “season four” of The Canastota Apprentice.

The Canastota Apprentice is an experiential learning program that is modeled after the show The Apprentice with Donald Trump. Student teams are assigned tasks weekly and are judged by teachers, administrators and local business leaders. Only one student wins the title of The Canastota Apprentice and that student is afforded the unique prospect to work with me on development of the next season. I am proud to say that this program has received a great deal of attention including a nod from The Donald himself with the sage advice “work hard!”

One of the most popular tasks was to develop an anti-bullying campaign. The teams were charged with the task to develop a video and message aimed to stopping bullying in our school. This year, teams Alpha and Incredibles designed engaging videos showing what “not to do” and how to react to bullying in a kind manner. The final task culminated in the ultimate two contestants, Isaac Smith and Audrey Soper, designing an anti-bullying organization with membership. Isaac was deemed the winner with the development of his powerful organization “Fight the Good Fight.”

Miss Ragan working with Isaac Smith

As week three unfolds, I am working with my current Apprentice Isaac, a junior at CHS, to write this guest blog for post. Isaac defied the odds last year as he won task after task weekly to ultimately become my apprentice. Isaac and I have become a team of teacher and student aiming to make a difference in the high school.

Isaac and Audrey presenting their program

Our newest challenge comes from our Vice Principal and Principal to continue to develop an anti-bullying program, created by students for students. It is my opinion that when cohorts present a concept to the student body, it gives the idea validity.

The Canastota Apprentice candidates observed this phenomenon last year as they presented an anti-bullying program to grades 7-12. My business students teamed up with FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) and the Digital Photography class to create a presentation with substance from our community. The program resonated with students as members of our student body delivered it to classes.

Isaac wrote the following regarding The Canastota Apprentice and our efforts:

“As a finalist for The Canastota Apprentice, I had a task to create an anti-bullying organization and reach out to the students of Canastota High School. The Fight the Good Fight Movement was my invention and the concept was to stop bullying from ever happening by going to the source. My plan was to show a documentary about the United States Bullying Epidemic, thereby showing the damage that the bullies were doing. The Documentary “Bully” was recently changed from a R rating to PG-13 rating to allow the young population to see the things they don’t see after the harsh words leave their lips.

I had a meeting with Vice Principal, Mr. William LaClair, in which we discussed several things to take all of the great ideas we had last year and expand on them. On Wednesday, September 19, 2012 there will be a presentation on bullying and later on in the school year we will be having the guest speaker, Layman Hicks, come and talk to the students of Canastota High School. Another item discussed in the meeting is getting grades 4-6 involved to prevent bullying early on in our school.

This week, the high school students will be signing a pledge to not bully and the pledges will be posted on the bulletin boards around the school with a banner in the front lobby.”

Isaac Smith, 2012 Canastota Apprentice

Isaac has earned the title of leader through his actions. I am impressed at his commitment to the program and to work with leaders outside of our school to spread his positive message.

In July, I had the amazing opportunity to present The Canastota Apprentice at The Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum. It was an eye-opening experience as I was positioned in the role of the presenter, and now I was judged. It was the precise role-reversal for me as the educator to feel the energy and desire to present successfully.

I was mindful of the difficult nature of a competitive event and reflected in awe at what my students accomplish as they compete in my classroom yearly. I decided to write students a personal business letter detailing how each participant was “with me” at the Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum as I spoke of their accomplishments.

When students are given a challenge, they are more than willing to rise to it and go above and beyond their comfort zone. I look forward to “Season Four” of The Canastota Apprentice and to the opportunities that lie ahead for my classroom.

Patricia Ragan @PatriciaRagan1
Business Teacher, Canastota High School, Canastota, New York

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Guest post: Social Studies educator finds inspiration to engage students

Teach_Tec — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 16:04:51 GMT

Today I’m featuring a guest post from educator Kim Leegan @KimberlyALeegan, a first time contributor to @TeachTec, following her achievement of being invited to the Microsoft’s Partners Learning US Forum for the past two years. Kim is a social studies teacher at Union Catholic Regional High School, Scotch Plains, NJ. You can find out more about her project and the work of 100 amazing educators from the Forum here.

I was so excited to be able to return to the Microsoft Partners in Leaning US Forum in beautiful Redmond, Washington this summer. After such an amazing experience in 2011, I knew I wanted to return. For me, the best part of the forums has been meeting with, sharing and collaborating with so many passionate and creative educators. Last summer, I did not have a Twitter account and thought QR Codes were for grocery store items only. After attending the 2011 conference, I worked to incorporate social media technology in my lessons, extended learning beyond my classroom walls with Twitter and found fun ways to utilize QR Codes and voice thread in many projects, including the one selected for the 2012 forum (includes tips for teachers, may require a log-in to Partners in Learning Network or see the video overview here).

Like last year, after returning from the forum, I couldn’t wait to share what I had learned. I spent several hours with one of my administrators talking about the projects I had seen and the incredible professional development I received. My administrator was so intrigued by our lively discussion of Alan November’s book, that she canceled a previously scheduled appointment and told me that what we were discussing was both “more interesting” and “more important” than her meeting. After discussing his book at length, she immediately downloaded a copy, sent an email to our entire faculty encouraging them to read it and later purchased several copies to pass around our staff. I suggested taking the chapter entitled “Student as Researcher” and turning it into a lesson plan that could be shared with all of the writing and English classes in our high school. She agreed and I have been working on the lesson plan that we hope to make sure that every student in our school receives this coming school year.

Recently, a colleague and I put on a 2 day AP US History summer camp. Our goal was to review all of the topics and skills covered in the first year of AP US History with those students who were continuing with the second year of the AP course. Inspired by the emphasis on gaming that I saw in the many projects this summer, my partner and I designed a two day review camp that was entirely games based. We played password, used BrainPOP, made student raps on the reform movement of the late 1800s (Thanks Jake Scott!), created a fashion show game and even managed to make S’mores with a game that rewarded students as they moved through a maze of review questions with the pieces to make a S’more! The students loved all of the games and had so much fun. We knew it was a success because we had a packed house of high school students who voluntarily gave up some of their last days of summer vacation to review topics in US History! (at right, Kim and collaborating teacher with her students at AP U.S. History Camp)

With the start of another school year, I am committed more than ever to providing my students with authentic and purposeful learning opportunities. As Anthony Salcito spoke so eloquently at the forum, we are at an incredible moment in education. We can choose to be intimidated and overwhelmed or we can embrace the opportunity that the fall provides to each of us in this profession. We can embrace the opportunity to be better, work harder, collaborate more, extend learning beyond our classroom walls, think globally and create authentic and purposeful learning environments for our students.

I know that the 2012 forum alums and the Microsoft Partners in Learning team will seize this opportunity. Our responsibility is to make sure that all of our colleagues, administrators, parents and students do the same. Happy Fall! Carpe Diem!

Kim Leegan @KimberlyALeegan

Social Studies Teacher, Union Catholic Regional High School, Scotch Plains, NJ

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Guest post: Surround yourself with passionate educators

Teach_Tec — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 16:40:07 GMT

Today it is my pleasure to feature a guest post from educator Kim Sivick (@ksivick), a second time contributor to @TeachTec, following her popular post, “Don’t afraid to be awesome today.” Kim is a technology coordinator at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy in Philadelphia, PA. Kim and I met this summer at the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum, you can find out more about her project and the work of 100 amazing educators from the Forum here.

Recently, while at the Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum event in Redmond, I had the good fortune of spending a few days with teachers that love their jobs. These teachers, without exception, are those individuals who think outside the box, they think “what if” then go on to challenge themselves and their students to find the answer. They try new things and push limits; they have the courage to propose new ideas and the conviction to follow through. They teach with passion, inspiring their students and peers alike.

How do you develop into a passionate, innovative educator? What class do you need take? What degree do you need to earn? How much time must you devote?

The answer is very personal. I can’t begin to map a generic route to success as a teacher/learner. What I do know is that surrounding yourself with passionate people is a great start. Enthusiasm is indeed contagious. Open your mind to new ideas. Embrace differences, listen to stories, share and learn with a group. Continue to reflect, evaluate and revise your teaching. Model the behavior you’d like to see in your students.

Attend as many professional development events as time, distance and finances will allow. Become an expert at finding opportunities for learning, such as Edcamps, TEDx & Tweetups. Take advantage of online communities like Microsoft Partners in Learning Network, Twitter chats, blogs, and webinars.

Use social media to stay in touch with other teachers. Develop a Twitter Personal Learning Network (PLN) and talk to people. Sometimes it’s that simple, a face-to-face conversation. Skype and Blackboard Collaborate are great ways to connect face-to-face with educators all over the world.

Welcome the opportunity to learn from and with anyone. The point is, not how you connect, but that you do connect. Often, it’s the moments when you step outside your comfort zone, outside a group of known individuals, that you learn the most.

Don’t wait for motivation, actively seek inspiration. Blogs like Anthony Salcito’s Daily Adventures blog can help start your day, not just with inspiration, but affirmation that the world is full of excellent teachers.

Post note:

I was not one of the educators chosen to be a finalist at the US Forum. Was I disappointed? Well, an all expense paid trip to Prague would have been awesome. However, once I walked around the exhibition floor and really looked at the projects other educators had displayed, I knew I had to be honest with myself. I had work to do. I didn’t let myself get discouraged, rather I am more motivated than ever. Not only do I want to apply again, but also I now have a new community of teachers to look to for inspiration, honest feedback and support. Teachers are wonderful that way.

To all the finalists at the 2012 US Forum, you rock! Your passion and enthusiasm came shinning through. Your students are blessed. Congratulations on well-deserved honors. I wish you all the best in Prague. It was a pleasure spending time with you and I hope you’ll stay in touch. I will be looking to you for inspiration. See you on the Partners in Learning Network.

Kim Sivick (@ksivick)

Technology Coordinator, Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, Philadelphia, PA

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Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum Finalists

Teach_Tec — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 12:45:00 GMT

This post has been updated on 8/21/12 to include links to each winning project on the Microsoft Partners in Learning Network where each project includes a video overview and classroom resources. I’ve also updated with pictures of these proud teachers!

Last night at the Gala Awards celebration we announced 16 educators from California, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Michigan, Texas, and Washington states that were the finalists from this fantastic celebration of teaching. 100 educators from 25 states participated in the Forum in Seattle suffering through the rigors of a judging panel representing a cross-section of education leadership from across the United States (see a complete list of the judges and an overview of the process in this early post).

Below are summaries of each of the projects that will represent the United States at the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum in Prague, Czech Republic this November, perhaps best described (given the moment) as an Olympics of Teachers.

I will do my best to blog on these projects in greater detail in the weeks to come, but this gives you the flavor of the innovative, creative and passionate approach each of these individuals takes to their profession.

Collaboration

1st place - Jamie Ewing, Mount View Elementary (Seattle, Washington)

Project: Science in the Sky and Our Backyards: A Virtual Science Fair

Runner-up - Julie Hembree, AG Bell Elementary (Kirkland, Washington)

Project: Kid Lit Movies: Book Trailers for Young Readers

Extended Learning Beyond the Classroom

1st place - Pauline Roberts & Rick Joseph, Birmingham Covington School (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan)

Project: Doing Business in Birmingham

Runner-up: Tie

Joli Barker, Slaughter Elementary (McKinney, Texas)

Project: XBOX 360: the iConnect Project

and

Sarah Collins & Jo Spark, Moody Elementary (Moody, Texas)

Project: Cans for the P.L.A.N.

Knowledge Building & Critical Thinking

1st place - Jennifer Bevill, LSU Laboratory School (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)

Project: Peace Project

Runner-up - Cheryl Arnett & Melany Neton, Sunset Elementary School (Craig, Colorado)

Project: Let's Go To Disneyland!

Cutting Edge Use of Technology

1st place - Robin Lowell & Sherry Hahn, Washington State School for the Blind (Vancouver, Washington)

Project: Accessible Distance Learning of Mathematics for Blind and Visually Impaired High School Students

Runner-up - June Teisan & Alexandra Beels, Harper Woods Secondary School (Harper Woods, Michigan)

Project: Student Water Initiative in Michigan AKA "The SWIiM Team"

Educator as Innovator and Change Agent

Gregg Witkin, Boynton Continuation High School (San Jose, CA)

Project: Finding Your Voice

Educator's Choice

Todd LaVogue - Roosevelt Community Middle School (West Palm Beach, Florida)

Project: What’s Up Egypt?

If you would like to see a curated selection of pictures from the Forum, check out our Facebook page and to see the full “uncut” selection of pics go here.

But, of course, what’s an event without “the video” – some highlights from the past two+ days in Seattle:

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Highlights from the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Keep watching this blog as I hope to gather some guest posts from the above educators – #PiLUS to keep an eye out!

Regards,

Rob

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Aha! Short Reflections on the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Teach_Tec — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 23:15:30 GMT

A guest post by Allyson Knox, Academic Program Manager, Microsoft Partners in Learning on her visit to the Forum.

The 2012 US Forum kicked-off with a bang in Redmond. 100 teachers presented 73 projects to judges, educators, and guests. My goal? Talk to as many teachers as possible. My “aha” moment? More teachers are charged up about getting students to not just be users of technology but creators of it.

Traditionally the Forum highlights powerful learning fueled by technology and now – I realized – 7 projects were all about what it takes to make the actual technology a reality. When I talked with the teachers of these projects our conversations were filled with issues and questions like, “How is logic used in programming? How is logic used in other subject areas? What is an algorithm and how is it used in programming? Are algorithms used in industries other than software design like banking or engineering? How can educators engage more female and minority students to take computer science courses? Is designing online games the best way to hook students to computer science?” Just take a look at the types of projects below featured at the US Forum:

· 3D Game Design with Kodu

· Hide and Seek – Kodu Style!

· STEM Gaming Challenge

· Shapes, Letters, and Numbers: XNA Games for the next generation

· Kinect-the Dots Motion Capture for 3D Animation

· Exploration of Computer Science on Smartphones

· Xbox 360: the iConnect Project

No question – most students get excited to create a real game involving challenges, missions, mazes, points, and trial and error. By leveraging game-creating software like Kodu – teachers are tapping into students’ existing enthusiasm, exposing them to potential career paths, and are often shocked just at how much time students put into creating a game. I think the trend I experienced today at the forum might be indicative of a trend in the US and I’m hoping we see more and more computer science taught in the context of other subjects so that it is no longer seen as an elective course but as an embedded part of many academic subjects. After speaking with these teachers – I think this might become reality!

Thank you to the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum Judges Panel

Teach_Tec — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Today officially kicks-off the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum which I’ve blogged about quite a bit and I’m excited to finally be here on-site as the Forum gets underway. Though the 100 educators have been arriving to Seattle over the past 24 hours (as evidenced by the sharp uptick on #PiLUS) the work in earnest began this afternoon with our panel of 30 education leaders who will act as judges for this year’s Forum.

The group is an impressive mix of school leadership, professional association leads, edtech social media mavens, higher ed professors, state government, industry, but most impressive is that these individuals are passionate about the positive impact technology can have on students to advance learning. I would like to personally (and publicly) thank each judge for offering their time and effort for what I hope is a memorable, professional learning experience for all involved.

The judging task is not a small one, and beyond volunteering their time, they are immersed in an afternoon, hands-on workshop to develop a deep understanding of the Innovative Teaching and Learning Research that provides the foundation for the rubric each project will be evaluated on. It is worth looking at this research in greater depth (and using it in your classrooms), as it ultimately provides a framework that articulates those oft-quoted buzzwords of “21st century learning.” The judges will use this knowledge to look at each of the 73 projects from 25 states over the next 24 hours to determine who will go on to represent the U.S. at the Partners in Learning Global Forum in November.

The key areas of the rubric they will examine and evaluate for each project include:

Collaboration – defined in short as, learning activities requiring students to work with other people, sharing responsibility while making substantive decisions for developing a joint product, a design, or an answer to a complex question. Students may be collaborating with their peers in the classroom, or with students or adults outside the classroom.

Knowledge Building & Critical Thinking - defined in short as, learning activities requiring students to move beyond reproducing what they have learned to building knowledge through interpretation, analysis, synthesis, or evaluation. These learning activities ask students to create or explore information or ideas that are new to them and to connect information and ideas from two or more academic disciplines.

Extended Learning Beyond the Classroom – defined in short as, the learning experience is not bound by classroom walls, time-frame of conventional lessons, subject parameters. The project addresses real world issues (i.e. authentic situation and data from outside the classroom). The students’ ideas/solution are innovative in that they are implemented in the real world and have meaningful impact on communities locally and/or globally.

Cutting Edge Use of Technology for Learning – defined in short as, the learning activity involves students’ use of ICT – whether or not the use of ICT helps students build knowledge/collaborate or learn beyond the classroom, and whether or not students could build the same knowledge/collaborate or learn beyond the classroom in similar ways without using ICT.

Educator as Innovator and Change Agent – defined in short as, in environments where innovative teaching is challenging, how is innovative teaching practices and ICT being used in instrumental ways to change how students learn. Does the educator demonstrate evidence of continuous improvement in their professional practice, model lifelong learning and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by supporting other educator’s development and understanding of the impact on learning of the effective use of digital technologies

From these categories the finalists will be chosen to represent the U.S., with the addition of each attending educator casting their own vote in an “Educator’s Choice” category to round-out the group (watch this blog Thursday am to see how it sorts out) and follow #PiLUS for breaking news!

It will be an exciting and busy few days and I know each of these judges will put in a significant effort, and we thank them in advance for their time.

The Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum Judges Panel:

Steven Anderson

Educational Consultant, Web2.0 Classroom, NC

Steven W. Anderson is a District Instructional Technologist with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools in Winston-Salem, NC. He also regularly travels the country talking to schools and districts about the use of Social Media in the classroom. Steven has been a presenter at several educational technology conferences, including ISTE, ASCD and NCTIES, as well as served as a panelist at the #140 Conference in Los Angeles, New York and was a featured speaker at the first ever #140Edu Conference, focusing on the real-time web in education. He is also responsible in helping create #edchat, a weekly education discussion on twitter that boasts over 500 weekly participants. Steven has also been recognized with the NOW Award, highlighting the Movers And Shakers in the world of social media and the 2009 and 2011 Edublogs, Twitterer of The Year Award. blog.web20classroom.org, on twitter @web20classroom

Julie Baker

Chief Officer of Major Projects, Houston Independent School District, TX

Julie Baker, Ph.D., has led strategic initiatives and grant development for the Houston Independent School District since 2010. She came to the district with 15 years of experience in developing and leading large-scale projects, managing client relations, and creating opportunities for organizational growth and impact at Battelle for Kids and the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio. In addition, Dr. Baker led statewide K-12 educational technology initiatives during her nine-year term with the Ohio SchoolNet Commission as Chief Programs Officer and Interim Executive Director. Dr. Baker began her career as a middle-school math teacher and earned a Ph.D. in educational administration from The Ohio State University in 2001. Significant contributions while at HISD include starting up the Apollo 20 school turnaround project and co-sponsoring the Effective Teacher’s Initiative. In addition, competitive grants awarded to HISD have nearly doubled to $135 million under her leadership.

Doug Bergman

Computer Science Dept. Chair, Porter-Gaud School, SC

Doug Bergman, a previous US Forum award winner and Global Forum award winner, is head of Computer Science at a Porter-Gaud private school in Charleston, SC. He has presented at national and international conferences about Computer Science in education. Throughout his life, he’s lived, traveled, and worked all over the world and has been in education for almost 20 years. He is always interested in forming partnerships with other schools and teachers with similar ideas, energy, and passion for innovation. www.portergaud.edu, on twitter @dougbergmanusa

Leslie Boozer

Chief of Schools, Chicago Public Schools, IL

Leslie Boozer is Chief of Schools for the North/Northwest Side High School Network in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Previously, she served as the Chief of Staff to the CPS Education Team and Chief of Human Capital Initiatives in the Rochester (NY) City School District. She is also a doctoral candidate in the Urban Superintendents Program at Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) where her research focuses on the areas of leadership, equity, and organizational change. She is an author and editor of the book, Every Child, Every Classroom, Every Day: School Leaders Who Are Making Equity a Reality (2011), which was published by Jossey-Bass in partnership with the American Association of School Administrators and Education Week Press. Boozer earned her B.S. in business administration and history/political science from Cumberland College, her Ed.M. in Education Policy and Management from HGSE, and J.D. from University of Cincinnati College of Law. www.cps.edu

Deirdre Butler - Head Judge

Senior Lecturer, St. Patrick’s College, Ireland

Deirdre Butler is a senior lecturer at the faculty of the Education Department of St. Patrick’s College (a constituent College of Dublin City University) with the chief responsibility for designing and coordinating learning programs for undergraduate and postgraduate students using a broad range of digital technologies. Deirdre’s passion in life is exploring what being digital in learning can mean. She is interested in ways that using digital technologies could revolutionize learning by challenging us to examine how we learn and to question our assumptions about “traditional” models of schooling. Prior to joining St. Patrick’s College, Deirdre worked in primary schools for nearly twenty years holding positions as classroom teacher, deputy head and teacher for the traveling community. Deirdre has served as a judge at regional and global forums since 2006 and as Lead Judge at the recent European Forum in Lisbon and Global Forum in Washington.

Leslie Conery

Deputy CEO, ISTE, OR

Leslie S. Conery, PhD is the deputy CEO of ISTE, a nonprofit membership association with a reach of over 100,000 educators globally. ISTE is the world’s leading membership organization dedicated to transforming learning environments to meet the needs of today’s students and preparing students, teachers, and school leaders with digital age learning and leadership skills. She provides executive leadership for ISTE’s operations office in Eugene, Oregon, is chair of ISTE’s educational technology conference and exhibition, and serves as a member of ISTE’s NETS (National Educational Technology Standards) leadership team. Conery has served on numerous boards and advisory groups supporting innovative educators and has collaborated with educators and policy-makers globally to bring about systemic change in education. Conery holds a M.S. degree in Computer Science and a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Oregon. www.iste.org, on twitter @lconery

Vicki Davis

Co-founder Flat Classroom Projects, Teacher, GA

Vicki Davis is a full time teacher and IT administrator at Westwood Schools. She authors the award winning Cool Cat Teacher blog and is co-founder of the internationally recognized Flat Classroom project where thousands of students collaborate from kindergarten to college. She’s co-author of Flattening Classrooms, Engaging Minds (Pearson Publishing) and Collaborative Writing in the Cloud (with Common Core). She lives in Camilla, GA with her husband and 3 children. www.flatclassroomproject.net, on twitter @coolcatteacher

Jhone Ebert

Chief Technology Officer, Clark County School District, NV

Jhone M. Ebert has served students and staff of the Clark County School District, the nation’s 5th largest school district, for over 20 years. As an award-winning mathematics teacher, the District’s first Secondary Technology Coordinator, first Virtual High School principal, and past chair of the Nevada Commission on Educational Technology, Ms. Ebert’s vision continues to drive educational reform in the Clark County School District and the state of Nevada. Having also served as Director of Mathematics, Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction, and Assistant Superintendent over Curriculum and Professional Development, she is drawing on her experience in curriculum and educational technology leadership as the District embarks on major reforms in technology integration and blended learning. ccsd.net

Bree Falato

Program Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility

Bree Falato manages corporate social responsibility programs for Samsung Electronics North America. She helped create Samsung’s Solve for Tomorrow, a nationally-recognized program dedicated to increasing interest in STEM subjects among students. Bree also oversees a variety of other programs that address health, fitness, and education for children through the company’s philanthropic initiative called Samsung Hope for Children. She joined Samsung in 2007 in a marketing role and has helped Samsung expand its corporate social responsibility programs. A lifelong Jersey girl, Bree holds a bachelor’s degree in Art History from William Paterson University and resides in Hoboken, NJ, with her husband and son.

Les Foltos

Director, Peer-Ed, WA

Les Foltos is the Director of Educational Innovation at Peer-Ed, and the architect of the Peer Coaching program which trains teacher leaders to help colleagues to integrate technology into 21st Century classroom activities. Microsoft Partners in Learning partnered with Peer-Ed to implement Peer Coaching worldwide, and Foltos leads the team that is working with more than 40 nations that are implementing Peer Coaching. Foltos also has designed and led learning activities at Microsoft’s Worldwide Global Forums, and regional education Forums in Asia, Latin America, the U.S. and Canada. Prior to this he served as the Director of Instructional Technology for Seattle Public Schools from 1990 to 2001. Foltos is a frequent speaker at international and national conferences including a TEDx presentation. Les Foltos earned a Ph.D. in American History and has five years of university teaching experience. peer-ed.com, on twitter @peer_coaching

Deborah Hendrix

President, Harrison Board of Education, CO

Deborah is the principal consultant for CD Global Enterprises, a training and consultant company. She is a multi-course instructor for Dale Carnegie and has been instructing for 13 years, and was selected the Instructor of the Year for Dale Carnegie Denver in 2003. Deborah is the President of Harrison School District Two and Colorado Springs Early Colleges school boards in Colorado Springs and spends numerous hours on volunteer work. She worked 20 years for Junior Achievement Worldwide in various positions from Center Manager to President to VP of Organizational Development. She graduated with a B.S. from Howard University in 1983, was selected Outstanding Student – Human Ecology. She has a corporate paralegal certificate from Roosevelt University and is currently pursuing a Masters in Human Resources from University of Phoenix. She has been married to Charles for 21 years and has 2 beautiful daughters, Catherine (18 and Danielle (14). www.hsd2.org

Susan Jeffords

Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, University of Washington Bothell, WA

Dr. Susan Jeffords joined the University of Washington Bothell in September of 2007 as Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs where she serves as the chief academic officer and is responsible for advancing the academic and scholarly life of the campus. As Vice Chancellor, Jeffords oversees academic programs, the Teaching and Learning Center, Information Technologies, the Division of Enrollment Management and Admissions, Student Affairs, the Offices of Research Support and Institutional Research.

Sara Jones

Director of Educational Excellence and Community Outreach, Utah Education Association, UT

Sara Jones, Ph.D. is the Director of Educational Excellence and Community Outreach at the Utah Education Association. At the UEA she has worked to promote teaching excellence and advocate for effective education policy through work with the Utah State Office of Education, the Utah legislature and the business and non-profit community. Before joining UEA in 2009, Sara taught high school social studies in Dublin, California as well as political science at Morehead State University in Kentucky. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego and Ph.D. from Claremont Graduate University. www.myuea.org

Lee Kolbert

Manager Educational Technology, Palm Beach County Schools, FL

Currently district manager of the Department of Educational Technology, Lee has been an educator in Palm Beach County, FL for 27 years. She has been a classroom teacher, district technology program specialist and continues on her journey of sharing and learning. Lee is also a blogger and loves everything about bringing the benefits of technology and social media to the classroom and helping teachers integrate technology seamlessly. In addition to her personal blog at www.leekolbert.org, Lee has also blogged for The Secret Life of Scientists and The Huffington Post. Lee is very proud to have served as a judge at the 2011 MS PiL US Forum in Redmond, WA; as well as the 2011 MS PiL Global Forum in Washington, D.C. and she is very excited to once again be a part of this amazing event. www.palmbeachschools.org, on twitter @teachakidd

Maria Langworthy

Principal, Langworthy Research / ITL Research, WA

Dr. Maria Langworthy is the founder and principal of Langworthy Research. She is a social scientist who has worked for 20 years studying the intersection of public and private spheres, and how historic changes in social and work patterns are shifting the locus of social responsibility. In the last five years, Maria’s work has centered on education policy research, globally managing the Innovative Teaching and Learning (ITL) Research project that is sponsored by Microsoft’s Partners in Learning. Through the ITL initiative, Maria has developed an international network of research and professional development partners. Before launching her company in 2009, Maria managed international communications, marketing and policy research at Microsoft, where she led a team responsible for research in over 40 countries. Langworthy holds a M.A. degree in International Relations and a Ph.D. in Political Sociology, both from Boston University. www.itlresearch.com

Kurt Madden

Chief Technology Officer, Fresno Unified School District, CA

Kurt Madden is the Chief Technology Officer for Fresno Unified School District. Fresno Unified is the 4th largest school district in the state of California with 73,000 students and 10,000 employees. A graduate of Fresno State University, Kurt opened one of the first computer stores in Fresno in the early 1980’s, was the CEO of a software company, corporate VP of a Fortune 1000 company and was also CEO of a large community-based nonprofit before joining Fresno Unified. He is an adjunct professor for Information Systems at Fresno State University and is also the author of “Synergetic Follower: Changing Our World Without Being the Leader.” Kurt serves on several boards and councils including the Fresno Business Council Board, the Economic Development Corporation Board of Fresno County, the Valley PBS Board, the Children’s Movement Leadership Council and the Microsoft K-12 Advisory Council. www.fresnounified.org, on twitter @kurtmadden

Yohance Maqubela

Executive Director, Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science, DC

Yohance Maqubela is a seasoned professional in the areas of educational administration and business management, and he currently serves as the Executive Director of the Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science, (MS)2. Mr. Maqubela worked closely with the founder to create the school’s strategic plan and navigate the organization through its startup. During his tenure, (MS)2 has become one of Washington, DC’s highest performing public schools. Prior to relocating to Washington, DC, Mr. Maqubela was the Managing Director of the Courtland Business Development Group (CBDG), a boutique economic development firm based in New York City. With his guidance, CBDG assisted its clients in obtaining total private investment capital, debt financing, and private sector procurement in excess of $100 million. Mr. Maqubela is a graduate of Phillips Academy Andover and Howard University. Personally, he enjoys volunteering as a motivational speaker and playing team sports. www.howard.edu/ms2

Punya Mishra

Professor, Michigan State University, MI

Dr. Punya Mishra is Professor of Educational Technology at Michigan State University where he directs the Master of Arts in Educational Technology program. He is internationally recognized for his work on the design and use of computer based learning environments. He is the co-developer, with Dr. M. J. Koehler, of the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework, which has been described as being “the most significant advancement in the area of technology integration in the past 25 years.” Technology and Learning journal recently named Dr. Mishra as one of the ten most influential people in educational technology. Dr. Mishra is an award winning instructor who teaches courses at both the masters and doctoral levels in the areas of educational technology, design, and creativity. He is also an accomplished visual artist and poet. You can find out more about him by going to punyamishra.com, www.educ.msu.edu, on twitter @punyamishtra

Patricia Neudecker

Superintendent, Oconomowoc Area Schools, WI/President, AASA, DC

Dr. Patricia Neudecker is the superintendent of the Oconomowoc School District in Wisconsin and the 2011-12 President of the American Association of School Administrators (AASA). The Oconomowoc School District has received numerous awards and recognitions for their advances in technology, blended learning environments, and digital applications. The district is committed to the application of technology for learning in grades 4K through 12 grade. Dr. Neudecker has been a middle and high school teacher, an assistant principal, principal, Director of Instruction, Assistant Superintendent, and a Superintendent for the past 10 years. She was named 2012 Wisconsin Educator of the Year by the Wisconsin Association of School Administrators (WASDA. Her current leadership is focused on public policy, leadership development, social justice and promoting and transforming public education. Pat’s 3 grandchildren inspire her to be a lifelong learner and advocate for all children. aasa.org, on twitter @NeudeckerPat

Thuan Nguyen

Chief Information Officer, Kent School District, WA

Thuan Nguyen has worked in educational IT for more than 15 years. He has spent time in many IT roles including web developer, desktop specialist, network engineer and other leadership positions. Thuan has participated in numerous case studies and been the subject of several articles highlighting his work with wireless technologies, VPN, SharePoint, application virtualization and strategic planning. In 2010, he was named as 100 most important people in education technology as part of Tech & Learning’s 30th anniversary celebration. As a former English Language Learner in Kent, Thuan brings a unique perspective and wants to ensure that all students who follow him have the same opportunity for success. As part of this mission, he developed an internship program that allows students the opportunity to gain hands-on technical experience. His passion for bridging the digital divide led him to spearhead an initiative to distribute surplus technology to underserved students and families. www.kent.k12.wa.us

Kirsten Panton – Judging Facilitator

Partners in Learning Lead, WE, Microsoft Corporation, Denmark

Kirsten works as the Partners in Learning regional lead for Western Europe in Microsoft. Before joining Microsoft in 2003 as the PiL manager in Denmark, Kirsten spent 15 years working in the education sector. This includes 11 years at Niels Brock, the largest business college in Denmark in the roles of teacher, program manager and Head of Information. She also held the position of Head of Teacher Development, designing and implementing key pedagogical development for the 2,000 teachers at the college. Previous to entering the world of education, Kirsten spent 12 years in the modern industrial design industry where she was head of buying at Form & Farve. Her responsibilities included working with international companies, like Crate and Barrel in the US, Marimekko in Finland and others on procuring goods for resale within Denmark. Kirsten holds a Master of Science (Economics) degree and a Bachelor degree in English. on twitter @kpanton

Jonathan Parley

Manager of Creative Design and Media, Center for Digital Innovation, WA

Jonathan Parley is the Manager of Creative Design and Media for McGraw-Hill’s Center for Digital Innovation, where he guides the development of highly engaging software and interactive games that present quality educational experiences to over 3 million users in the K-12 segment. He functions as a game and experience designer, as well as a teacher, and has spent over twenty years working to combine these disciplines. As a dedicated educator, Jonathan has created content for mathematics courses, language and reading, science, the arts, history, and social studies in the form of student lessons, games, museum exhibits, interactive digital curriculum, animations, and professional development materials. www.mhecdi.com, on twitter @jonathanbparley

Janet Platenberg

Principal, Steuart Weller Elementary School, Loudoun County Public Schools, VA

As the Principal of Steuart Weller Elementary in Loudoun County, VA, Janet Platenberg helps students to succeed and learn in a 21st Century learning environment. Her efforts to transform education via 21st Century Skills were recognized this year by the National School Board Association, as she became one of the “20 to Watch” Educators for Technology Leadership. She has consulted nationally for school districts on Collaborative Teaching and Inclusive Practices, and was selected by National Geographic to present at their Big Cats National Conference for Educators in Washington, D.C. Professional degrees for Janet Platenberg include a Masters of Arts in Education and Human Development from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Science Degree from Baldwin Wallace College. Janet Platenberg has also completed the Principal’s Educational Leadership Institute at Princeton University and the Brain Research Institute at Harvard University. www.lcps.org

Heidi Rogers

Executive Director, Northwest Council for Computer Education, ID

Heidi B. Rogers is Executive Director of the Northwest Council for Computer Education (NCCE), a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting effective uses of technology in education. She has served as president of four nonprofit organizations; PCMA, NCCE, International Society of Technology Education (ISTE), and the EXCEL Foundation supporting the Coeur d’Alene School District. Rogers is also on staff at the University of Idaho-Coeur d’Alene. She specializes in the development and direction of non-traditional outreach activities, such as workshops, conferences, and other educational events. Dr. Rogers received her Doctorate of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Oklahoma State University with an emphasis in Information Communication and Educational Technology. www.ncce.org, on twitter @NCCE_EdTech

Danny Silva

Professional Development Coordinator, CUE, Inc., CA

Danny is formally an Agriculture Teacher, Technology Coordinator and Administrator. He is the Professional Development Coordinator at Computer-Using Educators (CUE) and he has led multiple workshops around the world as part of CUE’s Lead Learner team. Danny also maintains an educational blog at iteachag.com and co-hosts his own “Small School, Big Tech” podcast with Andrew Schwab. Danny and his wife Wendy live in Madera, CA with their two children Cayla and Jacob. cue.org, on twitter @iteachag

Robert Slaby

Superintendent, Storey County School District, NV

Robert Slaby, Ed.D, has been in public education for over 42 years. He has taught from kindergarten to doctorial level students. He has also served as an assistant principal and principal at both the middle school and high school levels. For the last twenty-six years he has been a superintendent in four districts. He is currently in his seventh year as the superintendent of Storey County School District in Virginia City, Nevada. He received a doctorate in education from the University of Southern California in educational administration. He also has earned a masters of science in biology from the University of Southern California and a masters of arts in education from Occidental College. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in zoology. He has been awarded Superintendent of the Year in both California and Nevada. Rob is married with two grown children and recently became a grandfather. www.storey.k12.nv.us

Lilith Werner

Principal, Chicago Public Schools - Lake View High School, IL

Lilith Werner, PhD, is currently the Principal of Lake View High School in Chicago. Beginning in the Fall of 2012, Lake View High School will be one of five Chicago Public Schools that will be an Early College STEM School. Lilith has five years of K-12 principalship experience, along with 7 years of high school teaching experience. Prior to working in education, she worked as a marketing coordinator for an international financial institution. She is bilingual and bicultural, with extensive overseas life and work experience. She has published works in both English and Spanish about the rights of immigrant children’s access to public education, education for citizenship, and current international state formations in education. She also serves as a consultant for districts who hire teachers from Spain who come to the U.S. to teach and need assistance with the cultural and employment transition. www.lakeviewhs.com

Eric Williams

Superintendent, York County School Division, VA

Eric Williams, Ed.D., serves as Superintendent of the York County School Division in Virginia. Williams, a former Social Studies teacher and principal, was named as a 2011 Tech-Savvy Superintendent. Williams promotes providing students with opportunities to make a difference locally, nationally, and globally through project-based learning. York County students learn in brick and mortar settings, as well as in blended and virtual environments. Students and teachers bring their own technology to school to connect with the district’s wireless network while learning. With VDI (a private Internet cloud), students and staff are no longer tethered to a specific computer. They use the district network’s resources anytime, anyplace, and from any device with an Internet connection. You can connect with him through his blog at promotingstudentengagement.blogspot.com, www.yorkcountyschools.org, on twitter @williams65

De’Shawn Wright

Deputy Mayor for Education, DC Government/Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education, DC

De’Shawn Wright began his career in the advertising industry before entering the public education arena. He was a ’98 Teach for America corps member before entering municipal government in 2002 under the Bloomberg administration in the Mayor’s Office of Operations.
Wright returned to public education in 2003 working in the NYC Department of Education in several roles including policy director and advisor to Chancellor Klein. Wright joined Newark Mayor Cory Booker in 2006, serving as education advisor before becoming chief policy advisor. Wright was also a founding partner of the Newark Charter School Fund.Wright was appointed by Mayor Vincent Gray in 2011 to serve as Deputy Mayor for Education in Washington, DC where he is responsible for district-wide education initiatives and policies. dc.gov

Kimberly Yee

State Representative, Arizona State House of Representatives, AZ

State Representative Kimberly Yee, a native of Arizona, represents the 10th Legislative District, covering Phoenix and Glendale. In November of 2010, she was the first Asian American woman elected to the State Legislature in Arizona’s history. Kimberly is a graduate of Pepperdine University where she earned Bachelor’s Degrees in Political Science and English. She holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from Arizona State University. Representative Yee has served in the administrations of statewide elected officials including the Arizona State Treasurer, two California governors, a State Superintendent of Public Instruction and as staff to the State Board of Education and the Senate Education Committee. She serves as Vice Chairman of the Arizona House of Representatives Education Committee and as a member of the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools. She is also a member of the House Health and Human Services Committee and the Employment and Regulatory Affairs Committee. www.azleg.gov

Sharon Zulli

Manager, Hillsborough County Public Schools, FL

Sharon Zulli has been an educator for 25 years and is currently the Manager for Technology Customer Service and Support for the Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) in Tampa, FL. Hillsborough County is the 8th largest school District in the country with 190,000 students. Sharon previously worked for IBM as an Education Specialist assisting all counties in Florida with integrating technology into the curriculum. In 2006 Sharon co-authored a paper with K. Christensen and D. Rundus from the University of South Florida (USF) titled “A Service Learning Program to Provide IT Support to the Hillsborough County School District.”; which was presented at SIGCSE (Special Interest group on Computer Science Education). Sharon is the HPCS District Technology Steering Committee Chair and the E-Rate District resource. She also presented at the 2008 Florida Education & Technology Conference on SharePoint and Technology Support. www.sdhc.k12.fl.us, on twitter @zullis

Louis Zulli Jr.

IT Instructor & Network Administrator, Center for Advanced Technologies, FL

Lou Zulli Jr. has been an educator for 35 years; the past 18 as the IT Instructor and Network Administrator for the Center for Advanced Technologies at Lakewood High School in St. Petersburg, FL. Lou is the 2011 Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum and the 2011 Microsoft Partners in Learning Global Forum winner for the Cutting Edge Use of Technologies for Learning with his project Center for Advanced Technologies News and Information Portal (CATNIP). He is also a member of the team that won first place in the Partners in Learning Global Forum for Collaboration with the student created Kinect game “When Fish Fly”. Lou is one of only three educators to have ever won first place twice at Microsoft’s Global Forum. Lou is a proud alumnus of The Ohio State University and an avid golfer; he also rides a Harley, smokes cigars and claims that everything he needs to know he learned from watching Star Trek. www.cat.pcsb.org, on twitter @lzulli

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Guest post: “Don’t be afraid to be awesome today”

Teach_Tec — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 19:18:53 GMT

This is one of the occasional guest posts that happen here at @TeachTec. Today it’s my pleasure to feature educator Kim Sivick (@ksivick), a technology coordinator at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy in Philadelphia, PA.

Consider the title of this post: “Don’t be afraid to be awesome today.”

Give yourself a few moments to let that sink in.

These were the words that my 22 year-old son casually said to me as I headed out the door to share a project at the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Regional Forum in Philadelphia this past April. He knew I was anxious. I’m sure the words came from a movie or perhaps a coach, but they were completely fitting for that moment.

How many times do we as teachers hesitate to “be awesome”? Sure, we work non-stop to engage our students, but when it comes to sharing our work with our peers, inspiring other professionals, we often hold back. It was time for me to let loose, relax and share what I knew was a great project.

My son’s words made me chuckle but also added a measure of excitement to the day. Maybe, just maybe, the project my teaching partner and I were presenting would be recognized and we would be selected to attend the national Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum at Microsoft Headquarters.

Our project, “Global Connections, a Study of World Cultures” connected 4th grade students (9 & 10 yr-olds) with people around the world. The students started this project by choosing a country they would like to study. Since the students were so young, research was guided and skills were stressed. The students used PowerPoint to create digital scrapbooks.

Once the initial round of research was completed, it was time to blog. The students were very excited that people around the world might read their posts, view their scrapbooks and offer comments. A visitor map was crucial in the endeavor, as student excitement grew when they witnessed the map being populated with visitors all over the globe.

The students used Microsoft Word to create International Blogger business cards to share with family and friends. We welcomed and encouraged comments from anyone, but were especially interested in comments from foreign countries. We reached out to our school community and asked them to forward the link to family and friends in far away places. Lastly I tweeted out the link to the blog.

On a few occasions, I tweeted the link while the students were watching the visitor map. Without exaggeration, they jumped out of their seat to marvel at the red dot on the map and at the realization that someone, thousands of miles away, living in a vastly different environment, was looking at their blog in real time!

The response in less than one month was phenomenal. The students' blog had over 1000 visits from individuals in 49 countries. These 22 students received over 200 comments. The authentic exchange of information took this project to an exciting level. It was not uncommon to overhear conversations about the blog all over our school campus. There was a palpable buzz. The amazing part was witnessing the beginning of global voices, these children knew they had an audience, the world was watching and their work mattered.

Although I think we had a great project, there were many wonderful projects presented. I was humbled to be in the company of such creative, inspiring and passionate educators. As my hopes for being selected waned in such impressive company, I comforted myself with the knowledge that even if we weren’t selected, the day spent at the Regional Forum was an exceptional learning opportunity.

Was I awesome at the Regional Forum? I didn’t feel I was “awesome”. The project was awesome and I wasn’t afraid to share. We were indeed selected to attend the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum in Redmond. What a humbling honor.

I encourage teachers everywhere to familiarize themselves with the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum. Connect, collaborate and get involved in the Microsoft online learning community. It’s changed my world and it can change yours too. Don’t be afraid to be awesome!

This year’s 2012 US Forum is just a week away and I can feel the excitement build. Thank you Microsoft for this experience, I can’t wait!

Kim Sivick

(@ksivick)

Postscript:

Kim Sivick and her teaching partner Marisol Booth are two of the 100 educators who invited to attend next week’s Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum in Redmond, WA. To learn more about the project they will be sharing check it out on the Partners in Learning Network (log-in required), to learn more about the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum see the related posts below.

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100 Educators to Share Innovative Classroom Practices

Teach_Tec — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 18:02:00 GMT

We are just two weeks away from having 100 innovative educators descend on Microsoft campus in Redmond to show the positive impacts being made in classrooms across the country through innovative use of technology combined with effective teaching. These educators applied and were selected to attend this unique professional learning forum. Finalists from the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum will go on to represent the U.S. at the Partners in Learning Global Forum in November. The forum kicks-off July 30th and runs through August 1st when the finalists will be announced at the Gala Awards Dinner.

This year we have 100 educators representing 25 states and nearly all grades and subjects across the K-12 spectrum. Projects ranging from students flipping the classroom to game development to aid learning, creative uses of technology to support diverse learning needs and students taking action in their community and across the globe. I’ve highlighted each of these projects in this previous post – some truly amazing work going on in classrooms across the country today.

Each educator will exhibit their work to be evaluated by a volunteer group of diverse education leaders ranging from professional associations, school leadership and industry education leadership. Projects will be assessed based on key 21st century attributes including collaboration, critical thinking, extending learning beyond the classroom, and the effective use of technology to support learning. In addition to an opportunity to represent their country at a global level, educators will participate in professional learning activities beginning with a keynote by Alan November, educator, author and founder of November Learning, who will challenge educators to encourage more student-driven learning and creativity (see his TED talk here).

Anthony Salcito, Vice President of Worldwide Education for Microsoft, will discuss how technology is transforming the classroom. Educators will engage in special sessions around the impact of social media in education, designing and assessing 21st century learning, techniques for bringing gaming into the curriculum, and how students and teachers can collaborate in the cloud with tools like Office 365 for education.

Last year the Partners in Learning Forum global program attracted over 250,000 educators from 70 countries culminating in a Global Forum dubbed “the World Cup of Educators.” The U.S. fared well at this forum with multiple educators going home with top awards. (2011 global winners, pictured at right)

I’ve posted a few times on this year’s forum, including posts featuring select projects that will be exhibited at this year. See a quick curated list below. If you would like to follow along track the official hashtag #PiLUS and like Partners in Learning on Facebook book where we will post daily photos and updates. And, of course, follow me @TeachTec as I will be there and posting!

As I’m reflecting back a bit and getting ready for this year’s forum, here are some highlight’s from last year’s forum:

(Please visit the site to view this video)

I’m looking forward to meeting each of these educators in just two short weeks.

Rob

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Video Game Victory: Students Fight a Growing Epidemic with Technology

Teach_Tec — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 19:36:00 GMT

In the battle against childhood obesity, many schools are revamping their lunch menus, removing junk food from vending machines, and instituting exercise and healthy eating programs. First Lady Michelle Obama has championed the fight against this epidemic and thanks to two tech-savvy educators, students at Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, California have joined the crusade.

The Crenshaw High School Digital Media team became an official high school partner of Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move initiative, dedicated to solving the problem of obesity. Let's Move reports over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled, and today, nearly one in three children in America are overweight or clinically obese. The numbers are even higher in African American and Hispanic communities, where nearly 40 percent of children are overweight or clinically obese.

In south Los Angeles there is a significant Latino and African American population, Digital Media Consultant Daphne Bradford and Biology Teacher Jacqueline Lopez saw a need to address the issue in their classroom as a way to engage and teach their students about real world scenarios. Because so many of their students had an affinity for gaming, the two decided to use game design as an innovative educational vehicle to get raise awareness with their class and become actively part of finding a solution.

Bradford and Lopez split their 11th and 12th graders into teams and tasked them with a challenging and fun mission: design an Xbox Kinect game to help fight the global childhood obesity epidemic and type 2 diabetes. Each team researched obesity and type 2 diabetes, and combined their understanding of biology, digital media technology, and computer science programming to develop a game that would educate students, parents and K-12 school districts about the importance of healthy eating and exercise. For many students, learning C# coding software for this project was their first introduction to computer science.

While developing their games, students faced the challenge of making sure it was fun but also accurate. For example, one game challenges players to catch and separate healthy food from junk food falling from a tree. Students test marketed the games in various Biology and PE classrooms and consulted with local-area physicians to make sure they were properly educating the public about childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes.(Please visit the site to view this video)

Rounding out the projects, students submitted their software design to the Microsoft 2012 Imagine Cup competition, becoming the only students in the Los Angeles Unified School District to submit an entry and one of only a small handful of high school students that applied for this prestigious competition. While the game did not advance to the 2012 Imagine Cup U.S. Finals, the students accomplished something not many high school students can say they did; they created a fun product that can help address a real and growing epidemic in America.

We applaud the impact these educators are having on students’ education and their future, and the extremely creative work of their students. Bradford and Lopez are among 102 educators around the country selected to attend the Partners in Learning US Forum, which brings together like-minded educators using technology to creatively engage students. The Forum also provides them the opportunity to collaborate on new teaching ideas to help their students in the classroom and beyond.

If you would like to follow the progress of the 2012 US Forum, track #PILUS on Twitter and follow @TeachTec for updates. Select educators from the US Forum will advance to compete and share their work on a global scale at the Partners in Learning Global Forum in Athens, Greece in November 2012.

Regards,

Rob Bayuk

Program Director, Microsoft U.S. Partners in Learning Team

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Delivering Success through Technology for Students with Disabilities

Teach_Tec — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 21:51:17 GMT

Homework, tests, reports and pop quizzes are standard fare in the life of a student, but for those diagnosed with a disability, they can be challenging to manage. However, with creative use of technology, educators are finding new ways to break down barriers and positively impact learning for all their students equally.

According to the National Center for Learning Disabilities, there are 2.4 million students diagnosed with learning disabilities and receiving special education services in the United States. Of those students, 20 percent of drop out of high school, and only 67 percent graduate with a high school diploma.

Those are discouraging numbers, and many educators are looking for ways to increase them. Three such educators, who have been selected to attend Microsoft’s Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum, are using technology in an innovative way to effectively prepare their students diagnosed with a disability for a successful future.

Igniting Communication through Technology

Students in Julie Conn‘s classroom at Sugarloaf Elementary School in Hendersonville, North Carolina have been diagnosed with autism and are considered functionally non-verbal, or have repetitive speech patterns. To reach these students, Julie developed a Microsoft PhotoStory-based project to help her students learn social behaviors and conversational skills.

Through the project, students select a topic, collect photos, write a script, and then must use their verbal skills to narrate their story. It allows each student to think beyond what they see, create structure from chaos through various photos, learn to sequence, and enhance their computer skills. Each PhotoStory is then posted to the class website, allowing parents to hear their child’s voice. The impact has been inspiring for both students and their parent, many of whom have had little hope their child would ever read or speak. One student learned to read and verbalize 55 sight words through his PhotoStory, amazing his parents, who are continuing this work with him at home to extend his learning and engagement.

(Above, Julie Conn and William Imperatore work on a building language skills with their PhotoStory project.)

The project has been a lightning rod for progress in Conn’s class. All of her students showed increased general knowledge, reading and communication skills. The project also motivated them to become more independent and outwardly curious, navigating the internet to watch their classmates’ PhotoStories. Finding their voice and sharing it with others through the process has fueled their excitement for learning while building self-confidence.

Bridging the Gap for the Blind

Numerous disabilities can impact student learning. A majority of Blind and Visually Impaired (BVI) students struggle in math because traditional teaching methods used in mainstream education do not take into consideration their unique accessibility needs; even more difficult, is finding a qualified math teacher certified to teach the visually impaired (TVI). At the Washington State School for the Blind, Robin Lowell and Sherry Hahn are conquering all odds, and in their own way, have reinvented math education approaches for their students. The result is an accessible virtual classroom using Microsoft Lync video conferencing.

When Robin’s husband’s job moved her to Snoqualmie, WA, Lowell and Hahn figured out a way for the school’s only qualified, TVI certified math teacher to instruct a classroom of students more than 170 miles away in Vancouver, WA. Lync is one of many products developed by Microsoft with accessibility prioritized for functionality to work seamlessly with Assistive Technology devices. As such, the examples Robin creates on the Lync whiteboard are easily transmitted to the students’ Braille Displays. Accessibility features built into Windows and Lync enables students and teachers to easily transfer files, instant message, and share desktops and programs for 1:1 instruction. (Above, Robin Lowell (on the television screen) instructs Chris Green and Sunny Aparece through Microsoft Lync video conferencing)

Not only are students completing assignments, tests, and projects with greater ease, they are also increasing their technology skills, preparing them for future educational and professional opportunities. The project has also empowered students to advocate for themselves by shaping the tools they need to succeed. For example, students let the Lync engineering team know how the program interacted with their accessibility device JAWS. Lowell also requested the ability to change the width of color of the pens so that low vision students could see the work. The engineering team took their feedback to heart and those changes were made to the product.

Overcoming Obstacles

Living with a disability is challenging enough; succeeding in school can often be even more difficult. We applaud the creativity and compassion of these educators and the many others around the country who are working to make a real impact on their students’ education and their future. The Partners in Learning US Forum will bring together 100 like-minded educators using technology to creatively engage students, providing them the opportunity to collaborate and further the impact they have on students in the classroom and beyond.

If you would like to follow the progress of the 2012 US Forum, track #pilus on Twitter and follow @TeachTec for updates. Select educators from the US Forum will advance to compete and share their work on a global scale at the Partners in Learning Global Forum in Athens, Greece in November 2012.

Thank you all for the great work and I look forward to meeting you in Redmond this summer.

Sincerely,

Rob Bayuk

Program Director, Microsoft U.S. Partners in Learning Team

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Finalists for the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Teach_Tec — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 12:30:00 GMT

Today we are excited to announce the official list of educators for the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum. This is the 8th annual Partners in Learning Forum, a global program that last year attracted more 250,000 educators from over 70 countries. The Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum focuses on showcasing and celebrating educators and the work they are doing in classrooms across the United States. A select few will go on to represent the U.S. at that Partners in Learning Global Forum in Athens, Greece in November.

This year we received an unprecedented number of applications and we want to sincerely congratulate all that took the time to apply and share their work. What is inspiring about this process is seeing the number of creative and innovative projects teachers are doing in the classroom. Educators across the K-12 spectrum are applying technology as a key tool to encourage critical thinking, while solving real-word problems that extend learning beyond the traditional classroom, ultimately preparing students for their 21st century future.

This summer we are inviting 102 educators from 25 states to showcase their projects (here is the official press release). Educators will travel to Microsoft’s worldwide campus in Redmond, WA (July 31-Aug 1) to share their work, collaborate with like-minded educators and participate in professional development activities. Each project will be carefully evaluated by judges who are education leaders from professional associations and non-profits, school and NBCT leadership, and master teachers. Finalists from the 2012 US Forum will go on to represent the U.S. at the Global Forum in Athens, Greece this fall for a unique opportunity to engage with educators from around the world.

In the coming months these educators will be sharing their projects on the Partners in Learning Network, Microsoft’s globally connected educator community, and you can follow the Forum's progress on Twitter (#PILUS) and follow me @TeachTec (I will be there!), and, of course, get updates via Facebook.

Here is the list of superstar educators from across the country. Please add your thoughts below and join me in congratulating them for the inspiring work they do.

Alabama

Kelli Etheredge & Marty Lester, St. Paul's Episcopal School (Mobile)

Project: Professional Development for the 21st Century

St. Paul's professional development program instills motivation and passion in educators and trains them to engage, inspire, and prepare students for their future. St. Paul's encourages teachers to create lessons that utilize the best practices of lesson design and effectively integrate technology. Additionally, the administrative team reframed our mission into the St. Paul's Standard and designed a progression model that measures the success of our educators. Our plan achieves the following objectives: (1) provide faculty with common language regarding best practices & innovative lesson design; (2) offer professional development opportunities meeting the varied needs of the faculty; (3) create team building opportunities for faculty at the school, department, and division level; (4) measure the progress of faculty through 1:1 progression model meetings and with Partners in Learning School Research Tool; and (5) celebrate the innovation of teachers and students through Teaching and Learning Showcases. The professional development program integrates the effective use of a diverse array of technologies including Microsoft Office, OneNote, Office Web Apps, Kodu, Movie Maker, Worldwide Telescope, AutoCollage and more.

Gina McCarley and BeLinda Cross, Lawrence County High School (Moulton)

Project: Invasive Species Gone Hog Wild!

The Invasive Species Gone Hog Wild! project is the beginning of a long-term commitment to increasing awareness about a growing environmental problem: the population explosion of feral hogs. These nuisance animals cause millions of dollars in damage annually and threaten other wildlife. Students, teachers, and community members worked together to document and monitor the hog population using hands-on techniques and technology tools. This collaborative cross-curricular project incorporates history, environmental science, mathematics, engineering and technology. Students used photography and videography in conjunction with Microsoft Office tools to record and analyze the successive phases of the project and then published these records to a student-generated Wild Hog Blog.

Alaska

Leigh Ray, Seward Elementary School (Seward)

Project: Seward, Alaska: Through Young Eyes

Seward, Alaska, is a town with a rich history, and its main industry is tourism. In this unit, 1st & 2nd graders used a variety of digital technologies to share what they learned about their town's history with a world-wide audience. Students created podcasts using Windows Sound Recorder to share on the project's website: www.sewardtouring.com and on Seward's digital newspaper. They used Microsoft Publisher to create brochures for tourists which are displayed at the Seward Visitor Center and the Community Library. They created photo stories and slideshows for the project's website using PhotoStory, Windows Movie Maker, and AutoCollage. One team of students wrote and input facts into Microsoft's Web Expression software. Finally, the students created the "Seward Song" using Songsmith. Overall, students learned that history is worth sharing, and that 21st century technology makes sharing fun!

Arizona

Karen Mensing, Sonoran Sky Elementary School (Phoenix)

Project: Super Star Story Starters

Super Star Story Starter is the beginning of a short story, written by a student or group of students. Students record this story - either they read it or they work with a group of students to act it out - and create a video using Windows Movie Maker. The video is posted and students around the world are encouraged to watch the Super Star Story Starter video and write their own ending with students connecting and collaborating with these classrooms using Skype. Those endings can also be turned into a brief video and the two videos can be watched one after the other so students can view a complete story.

California

Daphne Bradford & Jacqueline Lopez, Crenshaw High School (Los Angeles)

Project: Gaming for STEM & Health

In an effort to engage students in biology, students were tasked with designing a simple Xbox Kinect Game to educate kids, parents and K-12 school districts about the importance of healthy eating and exercise to help fight the global childhood obesity epidemic and Type 2 Diabetes. Type 2 diabetes, often called non-insulin dependent diabetes, is the most common form of diabetes, affecting 90% - 95% of the 21 million people with diabetes. The game illustrates what happens when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin and glucose (sugar) can't get into the body's cells. When glucose builds up in the blood instead of going into cells, the body's cells are not able to function properly. The project included student-led game development for the Kinect using the Kinect SDK, Visual Studio, Silverlight, in addition to Microsoft Office tools in the planning and development process.

Alice Chen, Suzanne Middle School (Walnut)

Project: Blogs & Vlogs with Microsoft Tag

Students unearthed their hidden talents as writers and poets after being introduced to blogging for the first time. With visitors from around the world reading their blogs (as far away as New Zealand and as close as Texas), students discovered their love of writing. For the first time, writing has become, not just a required assignment, but something real and exciting, something to be shared and celebrated. Students wrote blogs and created vlogs to demonstrate their knowledge, tap their creativity, and challenge their critical thinking skills. After studying poetry and writing their own, they created vlogs by using Microsoft PowerPoint, Clipart, and Movie Maker. To show off their blog, students also created personalized Microsoft Tags to distribute to friends and family. As a result of this project, students learned that writing can be fun, creative and meaningful.

Diana Cornejo-Sanchez and Christopher Wakefield, High Tech High Media Arts (San Diego)

Project: Superhero in the Making

The project integrates Language Arts and Physics standards while tapping into students interests in comics and anime. Student pairs research physics concepts such as magnetism, electricity, waves, and thermodynamics to create superheroes and supervillians whose special powers embody these concepts. Through the study of characterization, elements of fiction, plot structure and dialogue they are able to develop short stories and ultimately a colorful comic book starring their characters. Students are able to complete this project from the early stages through the use of technology ranging from Microsoft Word for story writing, to Adobe Photoshop and Flash for image development, and Comic Life for comic book composition.

Gail Desler, Elk Grove Unified School District and Natalie Bernasconi, La Paz Middle School (Elk Grove)

Project: Digital iD - Citizenship in the 21st Century

The Digital iD project and wiki (digital-id.wikispaces.com) to incite students to become active, ethical and contributing digital citizens. The project responds to both state and federal legal imperatives and the Common Core State Standards mandate to teach the 21st century digital skills all students need to be truly college and career ready. The Digital iD focus is 4-fold. The first focus- Stepping Up, a call to social action- is the driving force behind the project. We are committed to empowering students by providing them with the tools and strategies they need to step out onto the Internet, while also ensuring that they understand the need to build and maintain a positive digital footprint, to respect intellectual property boundaries, and to protect their privacy and developing this through a collaborative effort. The project used a number of Web 2.0 technologies in developing and promoting the Digital iD project, Microsoft tools are integrated throughout, including Microsoft's Digital Citizenship and Creative Content curriculum, as well as supplementary activities utilizing PowerPoint, Word, Movie Maker, and Photo Story.

Jennifer Hogan, Visual and Performing Arts/Photography, Henry M. Gunn High School (Palo Alto)

Project: Transitioning Still Images to Moving Pictures: Creating Movies with Meaning

As technology continues to expand in the photographic realm many manufacturers are including HD video capture as a feature of traditional DLSR cameras.This is a natural progression, as moving pictures are an extension of the still capture. This project is formulated to gain a knowledge of the techniques and experience of creating moving pictures from a still foundation. Building on our knowledge of photographic composition, lighting, and concept we will use our skills of communication to transition from a still image to capturing a visual narrative in motion. Microsoft Excel was used to aid in project management and sharing of ideas, Windows Live Movie Maker for editing movies and Songsmith.

Olga Kokino and Danna Coonen-Lee, University High School (Los Angeles)

Project: Electronic Career Portfolios

Students in Graphic Arts and New Media classes built Electronic Career Portfolios which archived and showcased their best work as well as documenting their progress. They created their own websites, embedding their PowerPoint presentations, ported in QuickTime, so they could watch them as a movie or download then and watch interactively. Projects included Who Am I, which explored the student's cultural traditions and ethnicity; Internet Investigation, which researched an historic event resulting in the student's original, interpretive, multimedia presentation, and the advanced project, Building a Client Website, which entailed Skyping with a business partner to build his professional website. By incorporating basic technological literacies that integrate real-world experiences, the students become more confident in their competencies and more prepared for career and college.

Angela Sveda, Ralston Middle School (Belmont)

Project: The Storytech Course

The Storytech Course is where storytelling meets technology! In this trimester elective, students solve real-world problems through digital storytelling. They learn about world issues and then work to improve them by reinterpreting stories with the free, software platforms of Windows Movie Maker, Kodu, Scratch, and Alice. In doing so, they improve their narrative, technical, global, and environmental literacy skills as they turn stories into movies, 3D video games, 2D video games, and 3D animations. Storytech represents a synthesis of Common Core English-Language Arts standards, ISTEs NET*S, and 21st Century Learning Skills. It is designed to be effective, fun, and above-all -reproducible.

Gregg Witkin, Boynton Continuation High School (San Jose)

Project: Finding Your Voice

Colorado

Cheryl Arnett and Melany Neton, Sunset Elementary School (Craig)

Project: Let's Go To Disneyland!

Neil Pollard & Karie Green, High Tech Early College (Denver)

Project: I2P - Idea 2 Product

Business students participate in an intensive entrepreneurship project in which they generate product ideas, perform business research and budgeting activities, create a business plan, and eventually produce and sell their products. Students develop 21st century and entrepreneurial skills by managing the collaborative business development process through a personal website. At any time, anyone in the world can see how the I2P business development process is progressing at HTEC. The element of student choice is at the forefront of the I2P Project helping to engage students ensuring a culturally relevant learning experience. Students search for a gap in the market within an industry they are drawn to and proceed to fill that gap. Gone are the days of learning business concepts out of a textbook; students are learning business concepts by developing a successful business. Throughout the project in this 1:1 school students use Microsoft OneNote, PowerPoint, Excel, Word and Skype.

Connecticut

Leslie Chausse, The Morgan School (Clinton)

Project: Designing an online newspaper

The goal of this project was to design and establish an online school newspaper. The lesson has two sections: research and proposal. Students were assigned to one of four groups: Design, Content, Management and Policy. Students accessed and assessed the resources from a wiki. These included links to journalism organizations, national, local, award winning high school, and local online high school papers. Groups communicated through a web tool of their choice. After the research, students developed a proposal. They included support for the proposals from a variety of news sources. Students used PowerPoint, Mimio Studio, Popplet, Spider Scribe for presentations. They agreed to the design, content, management structure, and policy of the paper. Following this lesson, students began to produce the first online paper.

Florida

James Bell & Denise Spence, Dunbar High School (Fort Meyers)

Project: Kinect-the-Dots Motion Capture for 3D Character Animation

Students in Dunbar High Schools Academy for Game Design and Programming Excellence are creating complex video games that enable the educator to teach a variety of higher order thinking skills, such as, strategic thinking, interpretive analysis, problem solving, plan formulation and project execution. This project’s innovation is how the use of Xbox Kinect has helped students to connect the dots with respect to how to bridge the gap between real-life movement and computer generated movement. As a unique and innovative part of the program, the students are able to utilize the Kinect system to solve the problem of creating 3D real time character animation without the major complexities involved in time lining the events. Students enrolled in the program have the opportunity to earn industry certifications such as Microsoft Office Specialist: Word, PowerPoint, and Excel, Autodesk Certified Associate: 3DS Max, and Adobe Certified Associate: Photoshop and Flash.

Randy Lavery, U.B. Kinsey/Palmview Elementary School (West Palm Beach)

Project: Germs, Germs, Everywhere!

Students worked together to create Microsoft PowerPoint and Photo Story 3 multi-media projects about topics that affect them at home and school. The final products were videos and poster/fliers to post around campus. All students in the class now have a greater understanding of how they can stay healthier and reduce the spread of germs. The final videos will be shown to the school and posters placed around campus to educate the whole school.

Todd LaVogue, Roosevelt Community Middle School (West Palm Beach)

Project: What’s Up Egypt?

In order to help his students gain a better understanding of life in ancient Egypt, Todd LaVogue had his students create a TV show about ancient Egypt. Using Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer and video editing software, his students researched and created a Today Show style news program with news, weather, sports, cooking, lifestyle, historical, music segments. Students were able to compare and contrast ancient Egypt with today's society very well. In the end, they had a better understanding of what it would have been like to have lived during that time.

Sylvia Martinez, Jorge Mas Canosa Middle School (Miami)

Project: Science Projects

Students complete their science projects researching their topics using scientific method so they can bring it all together on a colorful, animated PowerPoint slide presentation to impress and entertain their peers. Students are required to collaborate and negotiate with friends, family members, community members, business owners, and medical professionals to research and conduct experiments on their various scientific topic. Students use PowerPoint and Word to improve note-taking skills.

Andy Goldstein, Omni Middle School (Boca Raton)

Project: Invent!

Students become inventors! All inventions begin with a dream, and students create inventions by taking a leap into imagination. For this project, students used Microsoft Word and Windows Movie Maker to explore their imaginations and to encourage team work through collaboration. These tools also helped achieve a highly skilled finished product; the end results being the completed videos that are published to the classroom blog at http://weblogs.pbspaces.com/mrgoldstein/. This project was helpful to gently encourage students to stretch their imaginations, yet to have discipline in completing each step of the design process.

Jamie Worrall, Christa McAuliffe Middle School (Boynton Beach)

Project: 21st Century Technology + Creativity = Students' Deepened Knowledge of Abstract Algebraic Concepts

Microsoft’s PhotoStory3, PowerPoint and Word were the driving force behind these middle school student products that produced a deepened knowledge about the abstract algebraic concept of functions and relations. Through this project, students took ownership of recognizing the difference between discrete and continuous data, domain and range, and learned how to flow effortlessly between the four representations of algebraic data (graphs, tables, equations and words).Their goal, through digital photography, smartphone technology, and the use of various software and hardware products, was to create a PhotoStory3 slideshow that explained these difficult concepts in an entertaining yet educational way so that other middle school students could make sense of the abstract material.Their products were then shared with lower level 8th grade students to help them solidify these concepts in their own minds in preparation for the end-of-year state math exam.

Georgia

Robert Osborn, Margaret Harris High School (Atlanta)

Project: Using Microsoft Photo Story to Teach Communication Skills

Working with profoundly intellectually disabled high school students, one of the primary goals of this project is to assist students to communicate by using technology. This project use Microsoft Photo Story using a teacher-created story called Bentleys Friends. When teaching a new language symbol the teacher must first associate the picture with a symbol. Throughout this story each picture is embedded a brief narrative that identifies what the students are viewing. This picture then is followed by a symbol. The students when viewing the symbol are prompted to look at their communication devices and to identify the symbol. The story contains 9 pictures with each picture having a corresponding symbol.

Illinois

Susie Oh, Everett School (Lake Forest)

Project: Our Dream World

Dream big! In Our Dream World project, fourth grade students were challenged to think about what their ideal world would look like. Students were able to design their final product using a wide selection of technology. There were students who used Microsoft Word to write poems and described their dream world. Some chose to do PowerPoint presentations, while others opted to use web 2.0 tools like Prezi, Animoto, or VoiceThread. Several students created skits and produced videos. In efforts to share their Dream World with others, we hosted a World Fair and invited parents and students to join us. After creating QR codes that linked student projects to Ms. Oh’s website, students distributed cards with the codes so that parents and students could view the projects by simply scanning the cards.

Lisa Perez, Dept. of Instructional Tools & Technology, Chicago Public Schools (Chicago)

Project: CPS KINECT

CPS KINECT is a project that involves nine Chicago Public Schools sites in the use of XBox 360 Kinect across the curriculum. Teachers have used the system to introduce gaming in the language arts, mathematics, physical education, special education, and extra-curricular learning. In this highly successful program, students are motivated and engaged in learning due to the gaming approach to learning. Schools have shared their learning via photos, video and blog posts. Our wiki (http://cpskinect.wikispaces.com) showcases the work of our students via our blog (http://cpskinect.wordpress.com), teachers report on the work of their students and comments of colleagues.

Indiana

Rodrigo Anadon, Penn High School (Mishawaka)

Project: STEM Gaming Challenge

By using video game development to tackle a problem in STEM, secondary students generate software that is fun, engaging, and educational using software development tools. Students have the option of using Visual Studio, Visual Basic, C++, C# (with the XNA Framework), or a different programming environment to generate a video game that can be incorporated in classes of STEM or other disciplines to engage students in learning. Student-lead teams of four allow for the challenge to incorporate competition, collaboration, and computation among students. Each team consists of a team leader, lead programmer, lead digital artist, and lead audio engineer. Each role must be filled by each student. At the end of the program development cycle, teams will present their STEM game to the class and present their experience in the process.

Don Wettrick, Franklin Community High School (Franklin)

Project: Skype, Camera, Action!

Skype, Camera, Action! is a class project for an advanced broadcasting class. Over the past three years the project has evolved into a state-wide film festival. Collaborating with other teachers, a film festival was started to showcase the top fifteen films from this project every March. The project involves inquiry-based topics that revolve around the theme of passion for this year’s festival. Students must research, interview, shoot and edit a fifteen to twenty minute documentary. The project requires significant time outside of school to complete, but many students make valuable contacts and gain real world knowledge as they complete the documentary. The top films then are showcased for the public to see at a local historic movie theater.

Kansas

Mary Durand, Humboldt Middle School and Tracy Rampy, Southeast Kansas Educational Service Center-Greenbush (Humboldt)

Project: Cubs That Care

With the use of a technology rich classroom (provided through the TRC grant program), students were asked an essential question, “What changes do you feel are needed in your community?” Students took charge. By integrating the many Microsoft multimedia and educational technology tools, students were able to collaborate to create powerful presentations to persuade their peers and create awareness, support, and change within their community. Not only were safety issues with crosswalks addressed and improved, but through the process of gathering and analyzing data, students were able to create a Safe Routes to School Action Plan and grant application that has led them to becoming finalists for a $250,000 grant. This project is a true testimony to how technology can help young people have a voice and create change.

Kentucky

Meghan Bottom, Mary Queen of the Holy Rosary School (Lexington)

Project: A Flipped Geometry Classroom: Using SkyDrive to Tier, Differentiate, and Assess while Promoting Student-Centered Learning

New avenues are opened for students by creating a flipped math classroom using a content driven database of Internet resources on Windows Live SkyDrive. By having students view mini-lesson videos at home, class time can be spent participating in interactive, tiered learning involving watching videos, learning songs, playing games, taking practice quizzes, and solving real-world problems either independently or with others at their level. Each child is given an entry slip which determines the appropriate starting level of instruction for the day. Students may re-test during class to move to the next tier of challenges once they are ready. An exit slip is used as the final measurement of academic growth at the end of class. Lessons may span over a few days depending on student needs. Content knowledge is then used to solve complex, authentic tasks and create products to demonstrate mastery of the material.

Jeanne Caudill, Mullins School (Pikeville)

Project: Reducing Our Carbon Footprint

Reducing Our Carbon Footprint is an ongoing project-based learning experience undertaken by first graders in my classroom. The objective of the teaching unit was to bring awareness of how the students' habits impact the environment and to find steps that each child can take to save the earth. The students began the unit with studying ways to reduce energy consumption. After realizing that many people waste electricity by leaving their cell phone and laptop computer chargers plugged into the outlets, their first campaign to raise awareness was to create a Public Service Announcement (PSA) called Just Unplug It using Windows Movie Maker. Another PSA the students created was titled Reducing Our Carbon Footprint and focused on simple ways to eliminate waste such as turning off the lights when leaving the room and recycling. The students showcased their films at the Student Technology Leadership Programs Kentucky competition winning a trophy as being Best in Showcase.

Shannon Putman, Cochran Elementary (Louisville)

Project: Sensory Integration-The Future Of Teaching

Project Sensory Integration-After witnessing firsthand the success of using the Xbox Kinect with my special needs students, I was inspired to get my students involved in the process and create a sensory integrated, academic Kinect game that would appeal to all types of students. Brain Drain mixes research based, proven effective fine and gross motor movements with sensory integrated tasks to create the highest learning environment possible. Students use their body and spatial awareness skills to complete academic learning tasks. When students of all learning styles have an aligned and balanced sensory system, they are able to retain more information and learn new tasks at a much higher and more efficient rate.

Louisiana

Jennifer Bevill, LSU Laboratory School (Baton Rouge)

Project: Peace Project

Maryland

Nancy Ale, Earle B. Wood Middle School and Michelle Lipson, Montgomery County Public Schools (Rockville)

Project: Environmental Stewardship

Students research the state of Chesapeake Bay oyster depletion due to pollution. This issue has relevance to Montgomery County students due to their familiarity with the Chesapeake Bay through science and history instruction, recreational use, and as a food resource. Concurrent instruction with science course work allows for a greater depth of Chesapeake Bay ecology. Students use Microsoft Office to support this specific issue of Chesapeake Bay Oyster depletion. Using information from print, audio and video research students use higher order thinking to determine which strategies for renewal of oyster population have the greatest potential for impact on the Bay. Students develop a multimedia presentation public service announcement to inform the local community and government of the current status of oysters in the Chesapeake Bay. As a capstone to classroom activities, students participated in creating Oyster Reef Balls, a technology being used to promote oyster growth.

Brenda Green, Cabin John Middle School (Potomac)

Project: Hide and Seek--Kodu Style!

Middle school students develop and demonstrate programming skills using Kodu to create a unique hide and seek game. Game development teams work collaboratively to brainstorm ideas, plan, and solve problems. In addition to classroom interacting, students continue their collaboration from home enabled by OneNote and Skype. Students are challenged to exploit fully the software using keyboard or Xbox controller, to fashion a dynamic environment of land and/or water bodies with various Kodu objects and bots. Players use elements of critical thinking to locate and collect items that randomly appear within a given time or to move and hide behind objects. Competitors are awarded points for each item collected and penalized for contacting obstacles. The project provides sufficient flexibly to engage both the novice and advanced gamer. Students document results using Word, PowerPoint, Photo Story or MovieMaker. Participant success is measured by performance indicators for learning such as increased understanding of
mathematical logic, planning, teamwork, and creativity.

Ellen Krich and Ethel Bouloubassis, Roland Park Country School (Baltimore)

Project: Thinking Outside the Classroom Box: Delivering English Instruction Using Twenty-First Century Bubble Wrap

Visual and auditory learners; learners with executive function challenges; learners who struggle with reading comprehension, abstract ideas and short term memory; out of the box thinkers…Wait, ALL students benefit from 21st century bubble wrap packaging for basic English instruction. This presentation will help explain how to rev up instruction through exhilarating technology and resources that empower classroom learners of all types. Reading and writing naturally takes place in any typical English classroom; however, bubble-wrapping literacy tools converts them into an exhilarating journey for students which allows the literature to come alive in untold ways. While the literature itself demands in-depth discussion of hard issues from the real world, students can research current and historical connections and debate these issues. They can literally walk in the footsteps of characters, live within the settings of the novels and problem-solve the contextual conflicts through One Note and other powerful Microsoft programs. Twenty-first century bubble wrapping that encases great literature can make reading come alive – changing the ephemeral into the eternal, through life-changing connections.

Jacob Scott, Montgomery Blair High School (Silver Spring)

Project: MATH RAPS

Learning involves the acquisition, storage, recollection and application of information. Today, students are used to a much faster pace of this process and many challenges arise when information is provided in a manner which is inconsistent with the majority of other things in students lives. MATH RAPS is a curriculum supplement that is designed to address this challenge. MATH RAPS supplements the existing curriculum with videos and fun activities for students. With MATH RAPS students are required to produce a math rap video and make predictions and come to conclusions basted on the video's statistics.

Michigan

Pauline Roberts and Rick Joseph, Birmingham Covington School (Bloomfield Hills)

Project: Doing Business in Birmingham

David Squires, Oak Valley Middle School (Commerce Township)

Project: Solving Unemployment

The overarching objective of the project is to achieve the impossible: solve unemployment. Communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity are all fostered as students work with each other, their teacher, and their community while they immerse themselves into a problem that deeply affects their lives. Students build 21st Century Skills while intensively drawing on content from their core academic classes. Data analysis, economics, presentation skills, effective communication and many other content standards are incorporated throughout the duration of this semester-long quest to better the community collaborating centrally through Microsoft OneNote as well as using OneNote to create audio and video recordings of scenes of the literature and to create study guides.

June Teisan and Alexandra Beels, Harper Woods Secondary School (Harper Woods)

Project: Student Water Initiative in Michigan AKA "The SWIiM Team"

Missouri

Krissy Venosdale, Hillsboro R-3 School District (Hillsboro)

Project: The Iditarod: The Great Learning Journey

Students explore the history, culture, and content of the Great Alaskan Sled Dog Race: The Iditarod. The essential question "Why take a risk?" is focused on in this cross-curricular unit. Focus includes student technology skills, collaboration, problem solving, and creativity as the history of the race, the geography of Alaska, the wildlife of the great state, heroic measures, and the race history are analyzed. A race poem is turned into a digital story. As the race is tracked live online, interest is built, sled speeds are graphed and analyzed in Excel, temperatures are charted, and musher diaries are created collaboratively all with the live, authentic backdrop of the race. Students tweet with mushers and hold a post-race Skype session. Race diaries are created with Microsoft PowerPoint. A culmination of the unit involves the creation of a collaborative Iditarod-themed digital newspaper. It's the Iditarod... where learning is about the journey, not the destination!

New Jersey

Kim Leegan, Union Catholic Regional High School (Scotch Plains)

Project: Interactive Civil War Museum

After studying the Civil War, students worked in teams to create an interactive museum. Each team selected a topic on the Civil War and conducted research using Encarta, Bing, Internet Explorer and other on-line search databases. Each team created a Visual Display regarding the chosen topic and used voice thread technology and/or Movie Maker to record a voice over regarding the selected topic. Exhibits were put on display and student laptops were placed next to each exhibit. As people toured the museum, museum visitors could watch the Moviemaker Films regarding each exhibit. Each team also created a QR Code with additional hidden information on the chosen topic. Museum visitors were invited to scan the QR Codes and gathered additional information on the topics. As visitors exited the museum, they were invited to Tweet the exhibit creators with comments or questions. Twitter feed was later followed in class.

New York

Vincent Interrante, Mineola Middle School (Mineola, NY) and Robyn Hrivnatz, Lamar CISD (Rosenberg, TX)

Project: Reach For The Stars

Reach for the Stars is a Project Based Learning experience in which learners collaborate to design and construct a water bottle rocket that will have the longest elapsed flight time after careful design, testing, and feedback from peers. Over 225 students from five different schools on three different continents participated in the Reach for the Stars learning activity. Teams consisted of 1-2 learners from each participating school. The students shared design, construction, and flight information with their virtual team using Microsoft OneNote, Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Windows Live Movie Maker. Learners offered design and construction recommendations so their fellow teammates could improve their overall flight time. Flight Data was recorded using Microsoft Excel. Through the utilization of OneNote and Edline each learner team contributed in a discussion by reflecting on their individual flight information as well as providing constructive feedback to their team. This project required learners to generate and testing hypotheses, interpret research, analyze rocket design and launch data, synthesize recommendations from partner schools, and evaluate design principles. But most of all, learners became a vital part of a global collaborative team to achieve academic success!

Christina Jenkins & Francesca Fay, NYC iSchool (New York City)

Project: #Disastercamp

#Disastercamp asks high school students to design creative solutions for disaster response. Inspired by the 2011 Microsoft Imagine Cup Emergency Response and Crowd Sourcing challenge, this course investigates the extent to which natural disasters are ever natural and looks to design as a methodology for creative problem solving. In this course, participants engage with each step of the design process as they move toward a final concept that leverages social media and other tools to improve communication and coordination for disaster relief.

Patricia Ragan, Canastota Jr. Sr. High School (Canastota)

Project: The Canastota Apprentice

The Canastota Apprentice is an experiential learning program that fosters the competitive spirit and inspires students to reach their highest potential in real-world settings. The Canastota Apprentice is modeled after reality television shows and focuses on academics. The objective is to be "hired" by the teacher through completion of rigorous tasks assigned weekly using various technologies including Microsoft Office , Flip Cameras, Movie Maker, Photoshop, and Dreamweaver. Students strive to remain in the program by conducting themselves in a professional manner in the boardroom while being judged by faculty and administrative volunteers. Students are assigned tasks weekly and compete in teams to win the title of The Canastota Apprentice. As students are "fired", they are re-hired in a capacity that fits the students skill set displayed through the program to date. For example, an international student from Denmark was re-hired as an International Business Advisor to promote the program overseas.

North Carolina

Julie Conn, Sugarloaf Elementary (Hendersonville)

Project: Voices of Autism: Igniting Communication through Technology

It is well documented that effective instructional methods to improve communication of children with autism (and other disabilities) include written prompts and pictorial cues, video feedback, and self-modeling of social behaviors and conversational skills. This PhotoStory-based project presents an exceptional tool to combine these effective instructional methods and students strengths to produce a powerful joint activity communication lesson. Posting student photo stories on a class web page and observing students with disabilities eagerly acquiring the independent skills to navigate to the website to repeatedly watch the photo stories demonstrates the increased levels of engagement. Affording parents instant access to hearing their child read, view projects and events has impacted their visions for their child. PhotoStory is aptly suited for children with autism and other disabilities, easy to use and produces a powerful output: voice.

Lorraine Ethridge and Stephanie Hall, The Fletcher School (Charlotte)

Project: BizMovie

Using BizMovie as a basis, students created a business, that combines entrepreneurship, and movie production. Students collaborated in teams of 6 to 8 to write a script, storyboard, determine shooting locations, props and "costs" associated with the production. They use Windows Live Movie Maker to edit the project and Microsoft OneNote and SkyDrive to collaborate on it. They also experienced the entrepreneurial cycle working together to design, produce, market and sell tickets to their film. According to their website, "BizMovie teaches students the value of creative and critical thinking as they gain practical experience in the business world. Participation helps students to see how their unique talents and skills translate from the classroom to the real world."

Gail Holmes, North Carolina Virtual Public Schools (Raleigh)

Project: Authentic Learning in a Virtual World

Working with students can be a challenging experience if you do not have the appropriate tools to engage and motivate students. Through this virtual school students learn how to use a variety of computer applications with the goal of engaging students with an interest in technology and key applications. Opening announcements using Windows Movie Maker encourage and provide tutorials and instructions for successfully completion of the days assignments. To help students prepare for end of course exams and reflect on their learning on Microsoft Office tools; Excel, Access, Word, PowerPoint, students will create an ongoing Movie Maker presentations to reflect on learning. Students will create videos to share artifacts and how the information learned each week can be applied in real world scenarios. These videos will be used to review for the end of course test which is given at their home based schools.

Kacey Sensenich and Kevin Combs, E.E. Smith High School (Fayetteville)

Project: Has Hollywood Gone Too Far Bending the Laws of Science?

Students love movies, especially teenagers! Movies are made for entertainment purposes. Film makers have discounted the science that governs our world to create fantastic events for our enjoyment. Students become numb to the chemical and physical sciences that directly contradict Hollywood blockbuster movies. Students are challenged to locate their favorite movies or television shows where Hollywood exaggerated the laws of science. After identifying an unrealistic event, use sound scientific concepts to prove Hollywood lost touch with reality. The project is located in Microsoft OneNote. Using Windows 7, Microsoft Office and Windows Movie Maker students begin researching. Collaboration continues using Edmodo. Using personal devices to connect to the schools wireless allow students to collaborate any time. The culminating activity is a presentation using PowerPoint or a student selected Web 2.0 tool to report findings, organize ideas, and present to peers.

Ohio

Jenifer Conard, Springboro High School (Lebanon)

Project: Going Green at the Grocery

This project provides a solution to achieving paper-less checkout at the grocery. In our partnership with Kroger, we learned about inventory control and point of sale systems. Our intention was to create a mobile application that would be attached to a cart and used as a POS while the customer was shopping. The business process would be stream-lined to allow the customer a "check-out" as they go and the payment and verification would be done by store management at the conclusion of the customer's shopping experience. Students used Microsoft Visual Studio, SQL Server, Access and more to create the application.

Greg Martin, Cincinnati Country Day School (Cincinnati)

Project: Secrets of the Dead: Writers at Home

The ninth grade Humanities course of study at Cincinnati Country Day focuses on ancient and early modern civilizations and their literary and artistic outputs. The courses feed upon one another in terms of historical context building (the socio-, geo-political framework out of which the Odyssey was written) as well as thematically (the way class distinctions in ancient China are similar to those that appear in Dickens' Great Expectations). The courses also aim to strengthen communications skills. Two years ago, we added a capstone research project, a video documentary that requires traditional research, analysis, and argumentation, but also requires creativity and collaboration. Students conduct extensive collaborative research using shared Microsoft OneNote notebooks. They then write scripts for the 10-12 minute documentary using both Microsoft Word and OneNote. In the final production phase, they use Windows Live Movie Maker to create a video documentary that makes an argument about the past.

Pennsylvania

Lora Davis, Keith Valley Middle School (Horsham)

Project: The Power of Persuasion: Pack a Powerful Punch with a Multimedia Approach

Eighth grade Language Arts students evaluated audience and purpose as they tailored their choice of words, images and audio to get the most powerful punch from each of the required components of a multimedia presentation designed to convince Warren Buffett, one of our country’s most generous philanthropists, to write the “big check” to their chosen foundation. Their journey from concerned students to committed activists started with research to craft a formal proposal, to production of a public service announcement movie about their foundations, and ended with their best “pitch” to Mr. Buffett enhanced by a PowerPoint.

Kelly Farmer and Tom Gaffey, High School of the Future (Philadelphia)

Project: Social KINECTions

The Social KINECTions Program helps children with autism build confidence not only by learning social skills and making friends, but also by engaging in activities at which they excel, such as video gaming, social networking, kinesthetic and conversation. Students with autism are encouraged to develop their abilities and embrace their identities through creativity, collaboration, and play. The group consists of students diagnosed with Autism and their typical peers. The teacher works with students on socialization such as pragmatics (conversation skills), body positioning, negotiation, friendship building and nonverbal communication. The most important goal is for students to have fun with peers and make friends. The XBox with Kinect is used to engage all students in activating body motion, practicing good sportsmanship, and stimulating body awareness.

Young Kim, High School of the Future (Philadelphia)

Project: Van Gogh: Kinesthetic Mark-making

Van Gogh was a brilliant artist with a unique painting technique. To appreciate his work, students need to have an awareness of the mark-making process in art. In previous Van Gogh projects, drawing with oil pastels on paper with short repetitive marks were to emulate the brush strokes. The Kinect is a great tool to engage students in activating the body motion possibly used by Van Gogh to create his paintings. The kinesthetic mark-making Van Gogh digital painting project is the culminating experience of appreciating a museum artifact. Students analyzed qualitative similarities and differences of seeing a Van Gogh painting on a poster to the actual artifact in a museum and then visited the Philadelphia Museum of Art to learn about Van Gogh while viewing original paintings. Back in the classroom, they created digital paintings by kinesthetically painting with the Xbox 360 Kinect and KinectPaint.

Kate Reber, Bodine High School for International Affairs (Philadelphia)

Project: Test Prep Video Contest

11th Grade Students created short instructional videos to teach their classmates a test preparation or study strategy for the Pennsylvania State Exams, the PSSAs. The purpose of this project is to make test preparation more engaging, increase student buy-in, and genuinely reinforce the understanding and use of a test-taking strategy. The best videos from each class were shown to the whole school and the winning video was evaluated by students based on established rubrics and expectations. Our process emphasized the stages of the writing process – Brainstorming, Pre-writing, Writing, Revising and Publishing. The project has been implemented in two different Philadelphia public high schools and has evolved in the use of a variety of filmmaking tools including FLIP Cameras, Microsoft Movie Maker, Windows Live Movie Maker,iMovie and a the web-based program Xtranormal.com.

Peter Sigmund and Braden Bonner, La Salle College High School (Wyndmoor)

Project: Lab Manager Program

Calling on deep experience coaching the crew team, this project creates a team approach with the ultimate goal to "win the race" in the classroom. There are “tryouts” to entice through friendly competition and those tryouts include Microsoft certifications that students can get through the school’s Microsoft IT Academy, in addition to participating in interviews and seeking recommendations. The lab manager program is a unique technology team at La Salle College High School. Every year 50+ applications are submitted to join the team of the top tech students in the school. The program gives La Salle students the chance to gain hands on experience running a real network. Students have the chance to gain true experiential learning. This is not a printer help desk. Some of our senior lab managers become Domain Administrators with the same rights as the school network administrators gaining valuable real-world experience and preparation for life after high school.

Kim Sivick and Marisol Booth, Springside Chestnut Hill Academy (Philadelphia)

Project: Culture Studies

The Culture Studies project in fourth grade serves to give students a sense of the world around them, an understanding of cultures around the globe. The students develop a framework which helps them research, compare and contrast cultures. Using books and online resources, the students gather information; create poster presentations and digital presentations using PowerPoint. The students then blog about the countries they have studied. Students receive authentic feedback from people living around the world. They develop a global voice, experience a positive digital footprint, and contributed to the learning of others. Students learn to create a blog post that inspires and educates readers. This year their blogging project included translations into 14 languages, visits from people in 45 countries, and over 300 comments. The culminating events are individual presentations at the annual Multicultural Festival.

Pamela Volakis, West Allegheny High School (Imperial)

Project: Shapes, Letters, and Numbers; XNA Games for the next generation

As enrollment in computer science classes declined this project introduced a new approach to teaching traditional programming concepts combining critical thinking, creativity and business thinking. Prompted by student use of computer gaming, this concept was incorporated into the computer science curriculum. Students worked directly with Preschool and Life Skills teachers to join forces by creating games to teach preschool and life skills students specific skills through student-developed games. Programming students observed and worked with students as “customers” in the preschool and life skills classes. Collaborating increased student communication skills and enabled students to design games meaningful for the preschoolers and other students using Visual Studio, XNA Game Studio and Xbox 360.

South Carolina

Marion Meyers, AC Moore Elementary (Columbia)

Project: Literacy Edge/Collaboration and Cultural Responsiveness

Literacy Edge encompasses collaboration and communication across cultures. with emphasis on promoting cultural responsiveness amongst students.The Literacy Edge empowers students to collaborate, communicate and respect others differences. Students learn ways to resolve issues and work collaboratively through responses and solutions. This facilitates life skills that can be applied in other settings, in school and beyond. Students in the program will apply strategies that improve their reading, writing and higher critical thinking skills. As they cultivate these skills, they produce student-generated work, using a variety of digital literacy strategies and technology including Microsoft Office, PhotoStory, Tikatok, Toondoo, and Voice Thread.

Texas

Joli Barker, Slaughter Elementary (McKinney)

Project: XBOX 360: the iConnect Project

Sarah Collins and Jo Spark, Moody Elementary (Moody)

Project: Cans for the P.L.A.N.

Angela Kirkendoll, Martin Luther King, Jr. Early Childhood Center (Houston)

Project: If The Sea Were My Home

Students researched the 2010 Gulf oil spill to explain how it affected the environment, community, and the world. Students collaborated on a classroom book and music video to show how the animals and ocean were affected by the oil spill. During the summer, Pre-Kindergarten English and bilingual students attended a technology camp facilitated by the library media specialist. At the time, the April 20, 2010 Gulf of Mexico BP oil spill was all over the news and students had a lot of questions this teachable moment led to a project in which students could do research and participate in a whole group study using technology. Students collaborated with their teacher to write a book in Microsoft Word about the oil spill and used photographs to tell the story. For a final project study, students created a music video in Windows Movie Maker to showcase what they learned through song.

Virginia

Stephen Biscotte, Cave Spring High School (Roanoke)

Project: PIT Crew: Physiologists in Training Program

The PIT Crew: Physiologists In Training Program pairs senior Anatomy and Physiology students with community experts in the field to conduct real-world exercise physiology research through a combination of in-person and Skype conversations. The students explore current literature in online databases and fitness magazines based on their personal interests, design exercise physiology "clinical trials"and with the guidance of exercise physiologists from a local health sciences college, gather data, analyze the data, and develop conclusions that build on the course's content, specifically the musculoskeletal and cardiorespiratory systems. Students use Vernier data collection sensors (e.g. HR, BP, EKG) to gather baseline fitness data on freshmen PE student classes. Next, they explore their research question (e.g. "fitness demands of Zumba with a DVD and Zumba with Xbox Kinect and their effects on heart rate and BP") and analyze and share their data in Excel. Students present their findings in a poster session judged by the healthcare professionals.

Amy Burk, Westgate Elementary School (Falls Church)

Project: Student Technology CUBS Computer Upkeep & Breakdown Service

The Technology CUBS (Computer Upkeep and Breakdown Service) program teaches 5th and 6th grade students technology skills, improves their critical thinking skills by teaching them to use technology to solve problems, and provides a benefit to the school. Through weekly meetings with the School Based Technology Specialist, Tech CUBS develop technology, leadership and life skills they apply in their classrooms and in their studies. The program has made a positive impact on each Tech CUB student, the school and the community. It provides students of all ability levels and diverse backgrounds a unique learning opportunity and one-on-one support from the school’s technology teacher, when in some cases these students make few connections with teachers and adults. The program began as a need to help an overcrowded, diverse school community, and it has grown into a program of role model students.

Bonnie Ellis, York High School (Yorktown)

Project: You Are What You Eat

The purpose of this project was twofold. First, the project fostered a sense of commitment in students that went beyond earning a letter grade. Students were asked to assess the nutritional value of their school lunches and through research and collaboration with other students, educational professionals and nutritional experts, create a new menu that is both nutritionally sound and has food that high school students would eat. This project also created work that has personal value to the students and value to others. This is a real world issue the students were working to solve. All products the students created were sent out to policy makers such as Congressmen, local representatives, the president of the company that provides our school lunches, and the superintendent. The products were also shared with other teachers to use in their classroom with younger students. During the project, students had access to a host of Microsoft programs including Publisher, Excel and Movie Maker.

Gaynell Lyman and Debra Roethke, Henrico County Public Schools (Henrico)

Project: Henrico 21

Teachers, eager to refine their 21st century instruction, consistently ask: ‘Show me what it looks like!’ Henrico 21 does just that. This repository features over 500 high quality lessons that support the development of 21st century literacies. The teachers that author these lessons, model creative integration of Microsoft products and other modern technologies to foster a rich K-12 learning environment. Lessons are evaluated using the Teaching Innovation Progression Chart (TIP Chart,) Henrico’s 21st century rubric. Using the power of WordPress to format and post lessons, this constantly-evolving site has grown from 8 to over 500 lessons in less than two years. With the addition of Student 21 this year, students can now easily publish their work to share with a larger network. Henrico 21 is changing the culture in our schools and developing community surrounding 21st century learning.

Kimberly Rouse & Martha Potts, Newton-Lee Elementary (Ashburn)

Project: Through Many Lenses

Students from two different states join together on a journey through the American Civil War using a flipped classroom model. Utilizing primary and secondary sources, students gain multiple perspectives on the war. Students learn through inquiry-based lessons how the Civil War affected different groups: the government, soldiers, generals, people living in the North or South, slaves, and many more. The primary and secondary resources add a sense of authenticity to the lessons and allow the students to use evidence to support historical ideas they formulate throughout the lessons. Students examine and evaluate the primary and secondary resources for historical context in relation to war. By taking on a flipped classroom approach, our inquiry-based lessons garner more motivation, discussion time, Skype time, hands-on learning time, and engagement with students. Monique Howley from Newton-Lee Elementary and Kristy Woods from Stahl Elementary in San Antonio, Texas were also instrumental collaborators in this project.

Kelley Queen and Jennifer Thomas, York County School Division (Yorktown)

Project: Technology Tuesdays

Examining a teacher’s work day,there is little time for professional learning. Once the day is over, there are the responsibilities of home and family that take priority. Teachers have the desire to learn about new technologies, but scheduling a time and place for training is sometimes a challenge. This is what drove the creation of Technology Tuesdays, to find a way to meet the needs of those teachers who want training, but who aren't able to spend time with facilitators during an after school session. These optional sessions are aligned with the county’s professional development goals and objectives, covering current technology trends and scheduled at a time that’s more convenient for teachers. All of the resources and ancillary materials shared with teachers are created using the Microsoft Office, including the presentation itself. Any video examples that are viewed during the sessions are developed using Windows MovieMaker. Trainers are able to deliver valuable sessions after contract hours to an unlimited number of teachers online, and in the convenience of their own homes.

Washington

Ericha Anderson and Alicia Cast, Chinook Elementary (Vancouver)

Project: Snake River Dams Removal? You Decide!

In small groups, students will use digital media such as an electronic salmon resource pathfinder and World Book online to research the Snake River Dam Proposal. Each group will be given a different stakeholder interest group to research (hydroelectric companies, eastern Washington armers, commercial and sport fishermen, and environmentalists). They will communicate and work collaboratively to evaluate and analyze the data found and then present the information to their classmates. Individual students will then take a position on the issue. They will write a short persuasive speech that demonstrates their critical reasoning skills and evaluation of different stakeholders’ positions. Their position will be defined through a digital story produced in Windows Movie Maker. Students will import their voice recordings using Audacity, digital pictures taken with AverVision or scanned by a printer, a PowerPoint slide, and other forms of media retrieved from Internet Explorer. After participating in this project, students will have learned that the Constitution of the United States applies to current issues. Living in America, people of all ages have protected rights and are called to be active, responsible, and compassionate citizens.

Michael Braun, Rainer Beach High School (Seattle)

Project: Exploration of Computer Science on Smartphones

In collaboration with Rainier Beach High School, Southshore Middle School, Seattle Public Schools, and Microsoft TEALS, our class is designed to teach students app programming. By using Windows Phones and the Windows Phone SDK students learn how to create apps for a phone with TouchDevelop. There are no separate PCs in this course. Students develop scripts to perform various tasks similar to regular apps. Students use TouchDevelop to install, run, edit, and publish scripts.

Jamie Ewing, Mount View Elementary (Seattle)

Project: Science in the Sky and Our Backyards: A Virtual Science Fair

Caleb Gentry, Sequim Middle School (Sequim)

Project: 3D Game Design with Kodu

Using Microsoft Kodu to enable 3D video game design with middle school students has created an increased interest in game design and programming, especially in girls. Combining scientific information (e.g., types of volcanoes) and through their use of design and programming skills they create a STEM-themed game they can showcase while generating interest in computer programming.

Jac de Haan, Westside School (Seattle)

Project: BATTLESHIP!: Excel Edition

In looking for a way to introduce the power and flexibility of Microsoft Excel, its important to recognize that students enter 6th grade with a variety of personal & academic technology experiences. Battleship: Excel Edition is a collaborative & creative opportunity for students to play while learning to manipulate cells & data - engaging critical thinking, logic, and strategy. In the process of building & playing a two-player game, students: build a common vocabulary of Excel components & functions coach each other towards skill development troubleshoot formula & reference errors in small teams gain experience with data entry & coordinates engage mathematical concept of if/then statements design & apply their own enhancements to a basic structure By turning a spreadsheet into a game, we open creative possibilities for exploration beyond numbers & data, and engage even a seasoned Excel user. Students work together to ensure that everyone has the skills required to enjoy friendly competition.

Julie Hembree, AG Bell Elementary (Kirkland)

Project: Kid Lit Movies: Book Trailers for Young Readers

Robin Lowell & Sherry Hahn, Washington State School for the Blind (Vancouver)

Project: Accessible Distance Learning of Mathematics for Blind and Visually Impaired High School Students

Lindsey Own, The Evergreen School (Shoreline)

Project: Data-Driven Service Learning

Applying data analysis to advocate for community problem-solving is a crucial 21st century science skill. In this project, 7th grade students collected three sets of data for three separate, but key, issues to our immediate school community and used Microsoft Excel to analyze them for presentation to applicable audiences. One data set came from pre- and post-tests for a 2nd grade unit on positive friendships. A second set was collected by the 7th graders themselves for a school-wide waste audit, identifying gaps in our recycling and compost sorting program. Finally, particularly high-risk data was collected from a 4th-through-8th-grade survey on experiences with bullying at school. The students used COUNTIF and other Excel functions, then exported graphs identifying patterns in the data. In small groups, they then presented relevant patterns along with recommendations to the 2nd grade teachers and counselor, the faculty, the parent association, and the whole school.

Kathy Wright, Eastlake High School (Sammamish)

Project: .Net Gadgeteer - Controlling the Flow

Using the .Net Gadgeteer modules and Microsoft's C# programming language, students learn and practice critical thinking skills to create a solution to a real-world engineering problem: how to safely manage traffic flow through a busy high school parking lot. Students research and identify situations where colored lights are used to stop and start traffic such as crosswalks, bridge toll booths, air fields and road ramps for merging cars. Students select an engineering focus (traffic entry/exit speed, improving pedestrian safety or reducing the carbon footprint of stopped idling engines) and build a working model using the Gadgeteer LED modules. Students have had no prior programming experience or use of the Gadgeteer modules.

Thank you all for the great work and I look forward to meeting you in Redmond this summer.

Sincerely,

Rob Bayuk

Program Director, Microsoft U.S. Partners in Learning Team

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Students Impact Change in Times of Crisis

Teach_Tec — Fri, 18 May 2012 17:21:11 GMT

When a hurricane strikes, thousands of people unite with a common goal to provide disaster relief. When a local treasure is facing devastation, a community is mobilized to find a solution. Among them are the brightest budding minds of our future—students.

A 2009 study commissioned by The Volunteer Family and Harris Interactive found that 73 percent of 12-17 year olds in the U.S., or 18.8 million youth, have engaged in a volunteer activity. This spirit of service is driving many educators to incorporate real life scenarios into their classroom curriculum, challenging their students to help solve real world problems. This was the case for four educators from New York City and Rockville, Maryland, selected as finalists in Microsoft’s Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum this coming July which celebrates innovative teaching practices. Their students tackled issues of disaster response and the impact pollution has on marine life.

Designing Disaster Relief Solutions

At NYC iSchool, high school students are using social media, and their knowledge of geography, political science, and economics to get creative and design solutions for disaster response problems during 12-week course titled #Disastercamp. Students created prototypes such as a “Disaster Bear” to comfort and assist young children separated from their families, a mobile application designed for deaf or hearing-impaired victims, a mobile system to help victims reliant on daily medications fill prescriptions and a communication system for victims who find themselves homeless.

Above: Maksoom Zahara (left), Justine Serrata (right) present their prototype for Disaster Bear to the class. Zach Behrman looks on. Below: Early whiteboard prototype for “Disaster Bear.”

Christina Jenkins and Francesca Fay were inspired by the 2011 Microsoft Imagine Cup and challenged students to find solutions for emergency response and crowdsourcing difficulties. During #Disastercamp students analyzed case studies in disaster vulnerability preparedness and response, examined the way social media has been leveraged in times of disaster, researched and tested mobile apps designed in response to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, and spoke with emergency managers at FEMA through Skype to understand the domestic approach to disaster management.

At the end of the course, students proposed their own mobile app solutions and used PowerPoint to present their final solutions to guest critics including designers from Parsons the New School for Design, global design firm IDEO and Bard College, and then used their feedback to improve on their solutions. While students got the satisfaction of developing solutions to help people during a natural disaster, they learned how to think creatively about complex problems, how to accept and integrate feedback into their work, how to problem solve difficult or frustrating roadblocks, and how to be deliberate about every design decision they make so they can be confident when defending their work to critics.

Reviving the Bay

Just down south of New York City and the NYC iSchool sits Chesapeake Bay, well known across the country for its beauty as the largest estuary in the United States and famous for its seafood production. In recent years, the bay has been associated with the depletion of oysters due to pollution; a problem that students in Nancy Ale and Michelle Lipson’s classes at Earle B. Wood Middle School seek to solve.

Students studied the ecology of Chesapeake Bay and the impact of pollution, infestation of non-native species and other environmental impacts in their science class. Using that knowledge and research of the oyster depletion issue, students applied critical thinking skills as they developed strategies for the renewal of the oyster population. Students then used PhotoStory to develop a multimedia public service announcement to inform the local community and government of the current status of oysters in the bay.

At the end of their research, students worked together to create Oyster Reef Balls, a technology being used to promote oyster growth, and placed them in the bay to create new homes for the oysters and other marine animals. Beyond the academic lessons, students gained an understanding of how to use technology to increase efficiency and productivity when communicating with the community. For some students, this lesson was the first time they used technology for reasons other than as a toy. Perhaps far greater than the grade they earned, students gained tangible experience and realized they can have an impact on environmental change.

Collaborating for Change

Inspiring students to learn and promote positive change is no easy feat; these educators are at the top of their class incorporating academics with real impact. The Partners in Learning US Forum will bring together 100 like-minded educators using technology to creatively engage students, providing them the opportunity to collaborate and further the impact they have on students in the classroom and beyond.

If you would like to follow the progress of the 2012 US Forum, track #pilus on Twitter and follow @TeachTec for updates. Select educators from the US Forum will advance to share their work on a global scale at the Partners in Learning Global Forum in Athens, Greece in November 2012.

Regards,

Rob

Finalists Announced for Round 1 of the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Guest post: Educator Combines Biology and Gaming with Kinect to Engage Students and the Community

Teach_Tec — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:24:03 GMT

As part of a continued occasional series of guest blog posts by Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum alumni, this week we feature educator Daphne Bradford from Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, CA. Daphne participated in 2011 US Forum and was recently accepted for the 2012 US Forum as a Round 1 finalists. I wanted to thank her for taking the time to put together this post and acknowledge the work she, her collaborating teacher Jacqueline Lopez and their students have accomplished this year.

Applying to the 2011 Innovative Educator Forum was one of the best decisions of my education career. Always looking for innovative ways to prepare inner-city high school students for college and career, I was up late one night searching for information about the process and cost of certifying Crenshaw High School students in the Microsoft Office Suite: Word, PowerPoint and Excel. During my search I unexpectedly stumbled upon the application for the Microsoft Partners in Learning Innovative Education Forum, now known as the US Forum. I had no idea searching the internet would result in me being chosen to represent some of the top innovative educators in the United States.

Like a lot of teachers who hesitate about applying to things like this, I didn’t think I had a chance since I only used the Microsoft Office Suite with students at Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, CA. Many of the other applicants used Microsoft tools such as Photo Story, Movie Maker and Skype. After communicating with Rob Bayuk, Program Director, US Partners in Learning, I was encouraged to take a chance and apply. I completed my application on the last day during the last hour of the submission deadline and to my surprise I made the second round finalist cut.

My first experience at the form was amazing. I learned so much about the free and cutting edge innovative tools Microsoft has to offer I couldn’t wait show and tell other teachers about OneNote, Kinect and cloud computing. Most importantly I had glimpse at what the technology future holds for our “global” 21st Century existence. I left Redmond, WA with a bigger vision, which was to integrate gaming into the classroom to get students excited about STEM education. I was on a mission to go back to Crenshaw to introduce inner city students to the profitable world of gaming technology using the Kinect sensor. My motto for the young innovative minds on the Cougar campus would be “don’t just play the game, be the game.”

The first gaming project I began working on involved creating a software design for the Imagine Cup 2012. My digital media team students love the idea and I recruited my partner teacher Ms. Jacqueline Lopez, one of the best biology teachers on campus, to add her Science to my Technology game plan. Together all of us worked hard with Microsoft Academic Developer Evangelist, Sam Stokes, to produce a kid friendly educational design to make learning biology more fun. Considering none of us had any gaming experience, the digital media team did an awesome job submitting their first imagine cup entry, Fantastic Crenshaw Gamers. All of the positive buzz about Kinect gaming at Crenshaw high school resulted in a visit by the Microsoft Team (see below).

An invitation to participate in the Los Angeles Unified School District Family Summit Make Me Proud: On the Road to College and Careers was also extended to my Imagine Cup students and me. The digital media team will demonstrate their Kinect gaming skills in the EduTech tent at the summit on May 5, 2012.

Making the April 15th early decision cut for the 2012 US Form is even sweeter this year because my partner teacher Ms. Jacqueline Lopez will join me in Redmond, WA for the prestigious event.

Our Kinect gaming project showcasing how teachers can make learning biology more fun in the classroom is ambitious and impressive for two African-American women trying to level the “gaming” playing field for economically disadvantaged students and women. We will make Crenshaw high school, our students and Microsoft proud.

I encourage educators across the US to apply to the 2012 US Forum. Don’t miss your chance to become a Super Star teacher with Microsoft.

Daphne Bradford (@daphne99)

Digital Media Teacher, Crenshaw High School (Los Angeles, CA)

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Guest post: Three-time Partners in Learning US Forum alum reflects on her evolution teaching students and teachers

Teach_Tec — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:01:00 GMT

As part of the continued occasional series of guest blog posts by Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum alumni, this week we feature educator Kelli Etheredge, who has the esteemed honor of being three-time alum to the Forum and who also had her project accepted to the 2012 US Forum. I want to publicly thank her for time putting together her reflections on attending the Forum.

In the spring of 2009, I received an email inviting me to submit a lesson for a chance to attend Microsoft's Innovative Educator's Forum. I didn't really know what was involved, but it sounded intriguing, and I had a lesson I was proud of, so I submitted my application for "Poetry is Alive" - a project in which student groups research a poet, analyze their poems, and then turn one of their poems into a movie. When I told my teammate that our application was accepted, I really had no idea what was in store. I simply knew we were headed to Mountain View, California for two days with Microsoft. To be honest, I didn't even know it was a competition! Looking back, I see that first email as the impetus to many of the changes that have occurred for not only me but my school. Four years later, I can safely say Microsoft's Partners in Learning US Forum is one of the most meaningful professional development activities that I have ever participated in.

Since 2009, I have been privileged to attend the US Forum three times and the Global Forum once. Keynote speakers have included John Medina, Jane McGonigal, Linda Darling Hammond, and Will Richardson. Keynotes, however, only scratch the surface (and meeting and sharing my project with Sec. of Ed. Arne Duncan was a bonus, pictured at right).

Throughout the event, teachers have collegial conversations about their teaching methods, their students, and their schools. Microsoft also demos many of its wonderful products that can be utilized in the classroom. Every year, I return to my school energized and motivated to try new methods of innovation. Over the years, my classroom has been transformed because of what I have learned at the Forums. Specifically, my teaching practice has changed in the following ways:

Learners collaborate daily and in varied ways. One example is our two day Tanka & Haiku study.
The use of technology in the classroom is ubiquitous and makes learning more efficient (as opposed to a tech "add-on").
Students explore literature in unique ways, moving beyond the traditional read, discuss, test method.

Students have choice.

Over the year, students choose (1) their projects, (2) their roles in groups, (3) their topics, and (4) their assessments. For example, currently, we are studying All Quiet on the Western Front. As part of the project, students are completing a Tic Tac Toe Project (a format I learned about from another educator at my first US Forum), in which they explore their understanding of a soldier's life and WW I in a variety of different formats that fit their talents and their interests, but also encourages them to stretch beyond their comfort level.

Projects extend beyond the four walls of our classroom.

Students know that their work product will be published to a larger audience, and we frequently invite others into our classroom. I have goals to extend our learning beyond our classroom by connecting with students around the globe (I have to admit this component is still a work in progress, but I am determined to make it happen). I came quite close this year, but circumstances conflicted with the plan and so it didn't happen.

In short, I am a better educator because of Microsoft's Partners in Learning US Forum. The transformation, however, does not stop in my classroom. Because the Forum incorporates all disciplines and grade levels, I return to school with a plethora of ideas to share with my colleagues. In addition to sharing lessons with colleagues, I have brought back many professional development ideas for our school. Changes in our professional development practices include:

Hosted TeachMeets where our PK-12 teachers share with each other their best practices in the classroom and the students' work product
Improved collaboration among teachers
Connections with classrooms and experts outside our school
Innovative lesson design across grades and disciplines

School transformation is a hot topic. Key questions around the topic include: How do we improve teaching and learning? How do we implement the 5C's in our curriculum? How do we support teachers in changing their practice? WHAT do we change and HOW do we change?

My answer: attend Microsoft's Partners in Learning US Forum. Why? To experience personal and school transformation. Who could ask for more?

Kelli Etheredge (@ketheredge)

World Literature Teacher & Teaching and Learning Resources Director, St. Paul’s Episcopal School

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Finalists Announced for Round 1 of the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Teach_Tec — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 04:01:00 GMT

The first round of applications are in for the 8th annual Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum and we are pleased to officially announce the first group of educators invited to attend the Forum this summer in Redmond! This year we received an unprecedented number of early applications, four times more than we’ve received at the same time last year, a testament to the innovation happening in classrooms across the U.S. The final deadline for educators to apply is May 15th, so there is still time!

The Partners in Learning US Forum is part of a global educator recognition program that last year attracted over 250,000 educators from 75 countries. The intent of the Forum is to showcase innovative teaching practices happening in K-12 classrooms inspired by the effective use of technology with the goal of positively impacting student learning.

Finalists from the US Forum will advance to the Partners in Learning Global Forum in Athens, Greece. The group of educators below applied to be considered in the first round of applications for the US Forum and rose above their peers with a combination of thoughtful pedagogy coupled with an effective use of technology to advance student learning.

We are excited to share this initial group of 44 educators representing 32 projects across the K-12 spectrum from 15 states.

Educators can still apply before the May 15th deadline and the final 2012 US Forum cohort will be announced on June 1st. Each of these educators will be invited to attend a 2-day professional learning forum on the Microsoft campus in Redmond, WA (July 31- Aug 1).

Congratulations to these educators, their schools and most of all their students who are the beneficiaries of their thoughtful teaching!

Alabama

Kelli Etheredge & Marty Lester, St. Paul's Episcopal School (Mobile)

Project: Professional Development for the 21st Century

California

Daphne Bradford & Jacqueline Lopez Crenshaw, High School (Los Angeles)

Project: Gaming for STEM & Health

Gail Desler, Technology Integration Specialist, La Paz Middle School & Natalie Bernasconi, English/Language Arts, Elk Grove Unified School District (Elk Grove)

Project: Digital iD - Citizenship in the 21st Century

Jennifer Hogan, Visual and Performing Arts/Photography, Henry M. Gunn High School (Palo Alto)

Project: Transitioning Still Images to Moving Pictures: Creating Movies with Meaning

Angela Sveda, Ralston Middle School (Belmont)

Project: The Storytech Course

Gregg Witkin, Digital Media, Boynton Continuation High School (Palo Alto)

Project: Finding Your Voice

Colorado

Cheryl Arnett & Melany Neton, Sunset Elementary School (Craig)

Project: Lets Go To Disneyland!

Neil Pollard & Karie Green, High Tech Early College (Denver)

Project: I2P - Idea 2 Product

Florida

James Bell & Denise Spence, Dunbar High School (Fort Meyer)

Project: Kinect-the-Dots Motion Capture for 3D Character Animation

Randy Lavery, U.B. Kinsey/Palmview Elementary School (Palm Beach)

Project: Germs, Germs, Everywhere!

Todd LaVogue, Roosevelt Community Middle School (Palm Beach)

Project: What’s Up Egypt?

In order to help his students gain a better understanding of life in ancient Egypt, Todd LaVogue had his students create a TV show about ancient Egypt. Using Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer and video editing software, his students researched and created a Today Show style news program with news, weather, sports, cooking, lifestyle, historical, music segments. Students were able to compare and contrast ancient Egypt with today's society very well. In the end, they had a better understanding of what it would have been like to have lived during that time.

Andy Goldstein, Omni Middle School (Palm Beach)

Project: Invent!

Jamie Worrall, Christa McAuliffe Middle School (Palm Beach)

Project: 21st Century Technology + Creativity = Students' Deepened Knowledge of Abstract Algebraic Concepts

Illinois

Lisa Perez, Dept. of Instructional Tools & Technology, Chicago Public Schools (Chicago)

Project: CPS KINECT

Indiana

Rodrigo Anadon, Penn High School (Mishawaka)

Project: STEM Gaming Challenge

Don Wettrick, Franklin Community High School (Franklin)

Project: Skype, Camera, Action!

Kentucky

Meghan Bottom, Mary Queen of the Holy Rosary School (Lexington)

Project: A Flipped Geometry Classroom: Using SkyDrive to Tier, Differentiate, and Assess while Promoting Student-Centered Learning

Maryland

Ellen Krich and Ethel Bouloubassis, Roland Park Country School (Baltimore)

Project: Thinking Outside the Classroom Box: Delivering English Instruction Using Twenty-First Century Bubble Wrap

Visual and auditory learners; learners with executive function challenges; learners who struggle with reading comprehension, abstract ideas and short term memory; out of the box thinkers Wait, actually ALL students benefit from 21st century bubble wrap (cutting-edge technology) packaging basic English skills instruction. This interactive presentation will help participants rev up instruction through the use of exhilarating technology and resources that empower classroom learners of all types. Students use a combination of OneNote, Movie Maker, SharePoint, Skype and Microsoft Office.

Nancy Ale & Michelle Lipson, Earle B. Wood Middle School (Rockville)

Project: Environmental Stewardship

Students research the state of Chesapeake Bay oyster depletion due to pollution. This issue has relevance to Montgomery County students due to their familiarity with the Chesapeake Bay through science and history instruction, recreational use, and as a food resource. Concurrent instruction with science course work allows for a greater depth of Chesapeake Bay ecology. Students use Microsoft Office suite tools to support this specific issue of Chesapeake Bay Oyster depletion. Using information from print, audio and video research students use higher order thinking to determine which strategies for renewal of oyster population have the greatest potential for impact on the Bay. Students develop a multimedia presentation public service announcement to inform the local community and government of the current status of oysters in the Chesapeake Bay. As a capstone to classroom activities, students participated in creating Oyster Reef Balls, a technology being used to promote oyster growth.

Michigan

David Squires, Oak Valley Middle School (Commerce Twp)

Project: Solving Unemployment

New York

Christina Jenkins & Francesca Fay, NYC iSchool (New York City)

Project: #Disastercamp

North Carolina

Julie Conn, Sugarloaf Elementary (Hendersonville)

Project: Voices of Autism: Igniting Communication through Technology

Pennsylvania

Young Kim, High School of the Future (Philadelphia)

Project: Van Gogh: Kinesthetic Mark-making

Peter Sigmund and Braden Bonner, La Salle College High School (Wyndmoor)

Project: Lab Manager Program

Pamela Volakis, West Allegheny High School (Imperial)

Project: Shapes, Letters, and Numbers; XNA Games for the next generation

Texas

Joli Barker, Slaughter Elementary (McKinney)

Project: XBOX 360: the iConnect Project

Virginia

Stephen Biscotte. Cave Spring High School (Roanoke)

Project: PIT Crew: Physiologists in Training Program

Kimberly Rouse & Martha Potts, Newton-Lee Elementary (Ashburn)

Project: Through Many Lenses

Washington

Michael Braun, Rainer Beach High School (Seattle)

Project: Exploration of Computer Science on Smartphones

Jamie Ewing, Mount View Elementary (Seattle)

Project: Science in the Sky and Our Backyards: A Virtual Science Fair

Jac de Haan, Westside School (Seattle)

Project: BATTLESHIP!: Excel Edition

Robin Lowell & Sherry Hahn, Washington State School for the Blind (Vancouver)

Project: Accessible Distance Learning of Mathematics for Blind and Visually Impaired High School Students

Our project addresses the underserved population of Blind and Visually Impaired (BVI) K-12 mathematics students. The vast majority of BVI students struggle in mathematics because traditional methods used in mainstream education are ineffective due to their unique accessibility needs. At the Washington State School for the Blind, we developed an accessible virtual classroom built on Microsoft technology that addresses this problem. Using Microsoft Lync video conferencing, a qualified math teacher instructs her class in an online meeting accessible to any student with an internet connection, as well as our residential students in a physical classroom. The examples she creates on the Lync whiteboard are transmitted to the students Assistive Technology devices called Braille Displays, which allows them to see the work. Accessibility features built into Windows and Lync enables student and teacher to easily transfer files, instant message, and share desktops and programs for 1:1 instruction.

An excellent group of projects and educators and I look forward to learning more about their work in Redmond this summer. Congratulations to each one of them.

Please feel free to share your thoughts, related ideas or other inspiration these projects may have sparked by commenting below. In the end, the hope is that these projects, and the Forum overall, inspire other educators to try something in their classrooms and continue to spark innovative teaching and learning through the education community.

If you would like to track the progress of the 2012 US Forum follow me at @TeachTec and the official Forum hashtag is: #pilus and “Like” us on Facebook to get status updates.

The final deadline to apply to the 2012 US Forum is May 15th, we look forward to hearing what you’re doing in the classroom.

Regards,

Rob

See related posts:

Silicon Valley educators on their way to the Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Teach_Tec — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 16:25:31 GMT

Last Saturday, on a lovely day in Silicon Valley I had a chance to visit a group of amazing educators convened by the Silicon Valley Education Foundation (SVEF), a forward-thinking non-profit chartered to drive innovative teaching and learning within schools in the region. The reason for this visit was their partnership hosting a Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Regional Forum, seeking innovative educators from the region to submit class projects that use technology in innovative ways to positively impact student learning. This regional forum was designed to send three projects, and the teachers who led them, onto the national forum hosted in Redmond this summer.

The regional forum was led by Shubha Tuljapurkar, Amy Wong and Jennifer Li of SVEF and hosted by Liane Freeman and Gay Krause at the Krause Center for Innovation on the lovely Foothill College campus. Manny Barbara (SVEF) emceed the day featuring a poster session where educators who had reached the semi-final round shared their projects.

The day kicked-off with a thoughtful keynote by Milton Chen, Senior Fellow at the George Lucas Educational Foundation and past Executive Director of Edutopia along with a professional development workshop led by your very own @TeachTec! In short, it was a great event and I thank the hosts for making it so welcoming and pleasant.

It is always inspiring to meet motivated and forward thinking educators who are using technology in creative ways to increase student achievement. Below are the three projects that rose to the top after a thorough evaluation by judges that included three past Partners in Learning US Forum alumni (Angela Sveda, Corinne Tokara and Meg Omainsky) and Rushton Hurley, Exec Director of Next Vista for Learning.

Digital iD - Citizenship in the 21st Century

Gail Desler, Technology Integration Specialist, La Paz Middle School & Natalie Bernasconi, English/Language Arts, Elk Grove Unified School District

The Digital iD project and wiki (digital-id.wikispaces.com) to incite students to become active, ethical and contributing digital citizens. The project responds to both state and federal legal imperatives and the Common Core State Standards mandate to teach the 21st century digital skills all students need to be truly college and career ready. The Digital iD focus is 4-fold. The first focus- Stepping Up, a call to social action- is the driving force behind the project. We are committed to empowering students by providing them with the tools and strategies they need to step out onto the Internet, while also ensuring that they understand the need to build and maintain a positive digital footprint, to respect intellectual property boundaries, and to protect their privacy and developing this through a collaborative effort. The project used a number of Web 2.0 technologies in developing and promoting the Digital iD project, Microsoft tools are integrated throughout, including Microsoft's Digital Citizenship and Creative Content curriculum, as well as different activities utilizing PowerPoint, Word, Movie Maker, and Photo Story.

Some background from Natalie on her school: La Paz Middle School is a Title 1 School located in east Salinas, the epicenter of gang warfare, with one of the highest homicide rates per capita in the state. My students are marginalized and disadvantaged in just about every metric you can apply- from poverty, health care, high dropout and unemployment rates. Both my school/district are in "Program Improvement" for failing to meet NCLB goals.

Some background from Gail on her district: The Elk Grove Unified School District is the fifth largest school district in California and the largest in Northern California. It is also a "Program Improvement" district, with high home foreclosure rates and rising poverty levels. Of the 62,000 students, close to half now qualify for free and reduced lunch.

Transitioning Still Images to Moving Pictures: Creating Movies with Meaning

Jennifer Hogan, Visual and Performing Arts/Photography, Henry M. Gunn High School

Finding Your Voice

Gregg Witkin, Digital Media, Boynton Continuation High School

If you would like to track the progress of the 2012 US Forum follow me at @TeachTec and the official Forum hashtag: #pilus and “Like” us on Facebook to get status updates.

The final deadline for all educators to apply is May 15th.

Fun Microsoft AutoCollage from the event (Educators get AutoCollage for free here).

Regards,

Rob

See related posts:

Guest post: 21st Century Skills a Must-Do in 21st Century Instruction

Teach_Tec — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 22:48:27 GMT

A guest post from Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum alumni Melanie Wiscount., who was the “Educator’s Choice” finalist at the 2011 US Forum. Part of an ongoing “occasional guest post series” hearing from educators who have experienced this unique professional learning forum, reflecting on their experiences and sharing practical tips for other educators. A sincere thank you to these contributors for taking time from their important day jobs to offer these thoughtful posts.

Coming from twenty years in business as a general manager and my experience in higher education teaching as an adjunct and tenure track professor at a community college and PA state university respectively, I know all too well the value of having 21st century skills in one’s learning, performance and achievement.

One reason I changed my career ten years ago to education was my passion to develop 21st century skills in students. Our schools do a good job at teaching the core subjects, getting our students into good colleges, which in turn lead to great jobs, but in K-12 education, sometimes we are not taking the time to prepare students for their future “real world”; a world full of professors and supervisors with high expectations for high school and college graduates. Those high expectations can be expecting students and employees to be efficient time managers, sound team players, innovative thinkers, empathetic employees, inquisitive investigators, collaborative creators, effective communicators, creative designers and productive project completers.

With limited time and resources, 21st century development in our students has to happen inside instruction and assessment. Expectations need to be interwoven into the assignment tasks and rubrics. Additionally, before students can successfully exhibit 21st century skills, role-playing good teamwork, modeling effective project planning and demonstrating time management strategies, for example, need to be a part of the lesson and project preparation.

Furthermore, driving 21st century fluency is an important part of national educational initiatives across the globe. With our “flat world”, competition for countries’ economic and innovative success is top priority. But where should we start as educators? What 21st century skills should be taught?

Here are some excellent resources for looking at skills students should be strong in coming out of their K-12 education:

· 21st Century Digital Project – Ten Skills Every Student Should Learn

· P21 Framework for 21st Century Learning by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills

· The NETS Standards for Students developed by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education)

· ATCS (Assessment of Teaching of 21st Century Skills) – What are 21st Century Skills?

While understanding the importance of developing 21st century skills in our students, and bringing rigor and relevance into core subjects, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills developed a toolkit (free download) which aligns the Common Core Standards to the P21 framework. This resource provides districts and educators with a way to link academics with 21st century skill development in instruction and learning.

Other resources that may help educators infuse 21st century skill development into their instruction and assessment:

· Microsoft Partners in Learning Community – find free tools, tutorials, discussions and learning activities, and connect with over 4 million educators from 115 countries

· Microsoft IT Academy – Focus Your Curriculum on 21st Century Skills with certification opportunities

· The Gateway to 21st Century Skills

· 21 Activities for 21st Century Classroom

· Thinkfinity 21st Century Skills Lesson Plans

· Goochland County Public Schools (VA) Framework for Developing 21st Century Skills – a super real school example of matching academics with 21st century skills!

To measure 21st century skills in our students, learning.com offers for a fee a 21st Century Skills Assessment which is aligned to both the P21 Framework and the ISTE NETS for Students.

Developing 21st century skills in students is proactive to preparing for a better tomorrow. Looking at the Logic Model (ITL Research), 21st century skill development in our students starts with innovative teaching practices.

If you are doing innovative teaching that raises expectations, knowledge and achievement for students, apply to the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 U.S. Forum. Sharing with other educators across the nation what you and your students are doing in the classroom is key to transforming education at a larger scale. The blend of teaching academic content while developing 21st century skills in our students takes a special teacher. Are your students ready?

Be that special teacher!

Melanie Wiscount (@mwiscount)

Business/Computer Technology Educator, Palmyra Area High School, Palmyra, Pennsylvania

About the Author
Melanie Wiscount is a Microsoft Partners in Learning 2011 US Forum educator winner, a 2011 Siemens STEM Institute Fellow and a business/computer technology educator at the Palmyra Area High School in Palmyra, Pennsylvania. Melanie is also an educational technology doctoral candidate at Wilkes University, Wilkes Barre, PA beginning her dissertation in gesture-based learning according to learning styles using Kinect in the middle level STEM classroom. She trains teachers as an educational technology professional development designer and facilitator and has presented at international, national, state and regional conferences as well as delivered online webinars to teachers and administrators. Melanie was awarded the Educators’ Choice Award at the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2011 US Forum in Redmond, WA and represented the U.S. at the 2011 Global Forum in Washington, D.C. Pictured above at the Partners in Learning 2011 Global Forum with educator Rui Lima from Portugal.

See Related Posts:

On Melanie’s 2011 “Educator’s Choice'” winning project: Students use QR codes to uncover the history around them
Teachers Be Recognized For Your Innovative Ideas

Palm Beach Co. Educators invited to Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum

Teach_Tec — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 22:54:13 GMT

On Monday I was fortunate to visit Palm Beach Co. School District’s annual Technology Conference (see: #sdpbctechconf) which aims to bring educators from across this large district together for professional learning focused on education technology. This year’s event attracted nearly 2,000 educators and staff from across the district. An impressive display for even a large district.

As part of this event, Microsoft had an opportunity to partner with the district to host a Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 Regional US Forum. I’ve blogged about this global teacher recognition forum, and in the U.S. we host the national forum in Redmond on Microsoft’s worldwide campus attracting top educators from across the country.

The Regional US Forum, hosted by Palm Beach Co. School District, was led under the thoughtful leadership of Lee Kolbert (aka @Teachakidd) and is the first of four regional forums being hosted across the U.S. that provide local educators an opportunity to be invited to the national forum this summer in Redmond (though any educator can apply to the national forum).

It was great to meet and congratulate the four finalists from this forum who have the esteemed acknowledgement of being the first four educators to be invited to the national Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum in Redmond this summer. As their projects outline below they are doing incredible work to engage their students thoughtfully, incorporating relevant and practical technology to advance their student’s learning.

So without further adieu, I would like to congratulate the first educators to be accepted to the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2012 US Forum. All are from Palm Beach Co. School District (Palm Beach, FL) teachers are seated, from left to right in the pic: Andy, Todd, Randy and Jamie and here is a little about their projects:

Andy Goldstein, 6-8th Grade Technology Teacher, Omni Middle School

In Andy Goldstein’s class, students became inventors! All inventions begin with a dream, and students create inventions by taking a leap into imagination. For this project, students used Microsoft Word and Windows Movie Maker to explore their imaginations and to encourage team work through collaboration. These tools also helped achieve a highly skilled finished product; the end results being the completed videos that are published to the classroom blog at http://weblogs.pbspaces.com/mrgoldstein/. This project was helpful to gently encourage students to stretch their imaginations, yet to have discipline in completing each step of the design process.

Randy Lavery, K-5 Communication Arts/TV Production Teacher, U.B. Kinsey/Palmview Elementary School

Todd LaVogue, 6-7th Grade History Teacher, Roosevelt Community Middle School

In order to help his students gain a better understanding of life in ancient Egypt, Todd LaVogue had his students create a TV show about ancient Egypt. Using Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer and video editing software, his students researched and created a Today Show style news program with news, weather, sports, cooking, lifestyle, historical, music segments. Students were able to compare and contrast ancient Egypt with today's society very well. In the end, they had a better understanding of what it would have been like to have lived during that time.

Jamie Worrall, 6-8th Grade Math Teacher, Christa McAuliffe Middle School

Using Microsoft PowerPoint, Word and Photo Story 3, Jamie Worrall’s honors algebra students worked in groups to create instructional videos to assist (tutor) other math students through the concepts of relations and functions in a fun and entertaining format. The assignment was for each video to be rich in vocabulary and to include the four ways to represent functions (words, equations, tables/maps and graphs).

If you would like to track the progress of the US Forum follow #pilus and “Like” us on Facebook. The final deadline to apply is May 15th.

Rob

(@TeachTec)

See related posts:

Guest post: Educator Examines His Teaching, Shares His Learning

Teach_Tec — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 16:02:00 GMT

A guest post from Microsoft Partners in Learning US Forum alumni Lou Zulli, Jr., who was a two-time winner at the 2011 Forum. Over the next two months I am hosting bi-weekly guest posts from Forum alumni with the intent of hearing from educators who have experienced this unique professional learning forum, providing an opportunity for them to share their experiences, reflections and practical tips for others who are considering applying to the 2012 US Forum. A sincere thank you to these contributors for taking time from their important day jobs to offer these thoughtful posts.

“Lou, you really need to enter this project in the Innovative Education Forum.”

“What’s that?”

“You don’t know about Microsoft’s Partners in Learning?”

“No, but I guess I’m going to find out now, aren’t I?”

That conversation happened about a year ago and was the catalyst for a singular experience that became a career affirming journey like no other. And that’s exactly what it was, a journey.

After researching Partners in Learning I became intrigued by the thought of interacting with like-minded educators from the United States. I saw this as an opportunity to compare notes, exchange ideas and practices and to learn from each other. And honestly, I also was drooling over the free trip and the chance to walk the Microsoft campus in Redmond. But first I had to fill out the application.

I read some of the applications from the early acceptance and soon realized that my project was too broad and expansive and that I had to distill it down yet communicate how it was more than a sum of its parts. In effect, the application forced me to examine what I was teaching, how I was teaching it and what benefits my students were getting from what we were doing. It was a process that was long overdue.

The application questions are designed so that you have to be honest with yourself about your practices and your outcomes. I remember filling out my application and writing: “This project was never intended to integrate with the core subjects identified in the 21st Century Skills Framework.” I went on to explain what I had intended but I felt that after writing that the chances of acceptance were slim to none, but I was honest about the project and didn’t try to write what I thought the reviewers wanted to read.

And that is one of the most important points I can stress, be honest about your project and be honest with yourself. Use the application and the rubric companion to self-evaluate your project and your methods. Focus on the core strengths of your project and let your students speak for you, because after all, it is their evidence of learning and knowledge building that is the ultimate goal of your project. Also, make sure that any supporting evidence you use is representative of your students work.

So what makes a good project? At both the US Forum and the Global Forum I observed that most all of the projects had the following in common:

· Technology was not the focus of the lesson but the tool used for the outcome.

· The teacher was the guide not the sage. Students were allowed to work autonomously.

· Projects were cross-curricular and collaborative.

· When possible they moved outside the classroom.

· Projects should be replicable.

· Do not create a project just for the Forum. It should be a project that promotes learning and advances your curriculum.

The application is only the first part of the entire Partners in Learning Forum experience. If you are fortunate enough to have your application accepted for the US Forum you then have to start to think about presentation and display. And that is a story left for a future post. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions; just use the contact information listed below. Good Luck and I hope to see you at the US Forum at the end of July.

Best of luck!

Lou Zulli, Jr.

zullil@cat.pcsb.org

IT Instructor, Center for Advanced Technologies at Lakewood High School (St. Petersburg, FL)

See related posts:

Previous post includes an overview of Lou’s winning project “CATNIP”
12 educators to represent the U.S. at the Partners in Learning Global Forum
Teachers Be Recognized For Your Innovative Ideas