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Concept driven curriculum | Collaboration | Braingym

The professional development I attended today was about Concept Driven Curriculum, Collaboration and BrainGym in the PYP. Some of the main points driven home from the first session were that:

Concepts and related concepts are the links between specialist subjects and core teachers.
Teachers should vocalize concepts, “We are learning about change. How are you learning about change in another class?”
“Less is more” – Related concepts should be focused upon for in-depth learning, rather than a whole slew of concepts lightly touched upon.
Related Concepts should be embedded in the Central Idea
Lessons should be universal – transdisciplinary, over time, local and global
A good central idea is one that can be used in any grade.

The following session was a reflection about collaboration.

One new idea to me was that “Collaboration is not always a good thing.” These ideas were adapted from Robbins, H., & Finley, M. (2000) They mentioned these pitfalls:

Sameness – If teams are too collaborative they adopt rigid standards and impose them on themselves, not ready to think outside the box
Groupthink leads to purges of perceived outsiders and stultification of insiders.
Blurriness. Too much democracy leads to mush and might lack focus.
Slowness. Concensus doesn’t “snap to” the way intimidated agreement does.
Leaderlessness. When everyone is encouraged to lead, the result is that no one does.
Defencelessness. Some teams become so intimate and sensitive with one another they can’t function among outsiders.
Interiority. Teams who work too long together have a way of becoming cross-eyed over time.
Mercilessness. “The many are stronger than the one” is the motto of supercollaboration, which is also the motto of fascism.

Don’t teach for knowledge, but what to do with that knowledge – to teach for understanding. For example, don’t just teach about the French Revolution. Think about what you do with and through the knowledge. For more about this concept up on read David Perkins
To find out who is a leader and who actually has better answers use the LOST AT SEA test.
Is there are difference between collaboration and cooperation?

Braingym was the final session that is a program of 26 movements to enhance learning and performance

Feed your body with water and oxygen
The human body was made to be used
Be Positive, Active, Clear & Energetic
Make connections between left and right hemispheres of the brain
Laterality, Centering, Focusing
Combine fine motor exercises, reflexology, yoga and fitness.

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Posted by Dr. Thomas Johnson | ict-design.org on March 11, 2011 in Education

Tags: Curriculum, Education, Professional Development

ICT integration at NIST

08 Mar

I am researching what ICT integration is and what it looks like. While doing so I came across an interesting document from NIST that stated exactly what I was looking for:

What is ICT and what is ICT Integration?

ICT stands for Information and Communication Technology and is used as a term to describe all technologies that manipulate and communicate information. This term is the preferred term in education because ICT covers all digital equipment such as computers, camera’s, PDA’s, calculators, sounds recorders, mp3 players and all other digital equipment imaginable.

In the Elementary School at NIST Information and Communication Technology is part of the classroom experience and students use digital equipment on an almost daily basis. To make meaningful connections between the units of inquiry and ICT experiences, the ICT teachers work in close collaboration with the homeroom teachers. This way we can ensure students make connections between previously acquired concepts and we support them with their inquiries.

What are the underlining principles?

We believe that ICT is a catalyst for learning, promotes creativity, brings members of the community together, enhances understanding and gives people a voice. Below are some essential agreements about ICT in the elementary school:

Well integrated ICT into the classroom allows us to expand, broaden, and enhance all aspects of learning

The ICT department works in collaboration with the year level teams to make meaningful connections between classroom content and ICT activities

We believe that the ICT experience should be inquiry based and that there should be room for exploration and discovery

What does ICT Integration look like in practice?

The Elementary School is equipped with two computer labs and one drop-in lab that can support up to one full sized elementary class. Students in year 4, 5 and 6 have laptop carts available that can be used in the classrooms.

The Elementary ICT team works in collaboration with the different year levels to plan lessons and make meaningful connections to the units of inquiry. The ICT teachers are on a flexible timetable which gives room for flexibility and homeroom teachers can book us to assist in the classroom or for lessons in the computer labs.

Of course, I will be cross-referencing this with other sources when I find and add them here.

iPad2: teaching possibilites

03 Mar

“I want that and it’s affordable!”

Beyond this thought, I was also thinking along the lines of, “How can I use that in the classroom? How can others use that in the classroom? How can it be used beyond the classroom?”

These are some of my thoughts:

Use it like the ipad video displays with someone in front of the classroom with the iPad hooked up to a TV. It is basically like a computer hooked up to an overhead projector.
Use it as an electronic textbook. Forget the Kindle, which seems to be only that. The iPad can do this and so much more. Why not have everyone download the next book in the series the teacher is guiding the class to read? Saves paper. Better yet, many books online these days are more interactive than just reading. Students also have the ability to rate and comment on books, which gives other readers a possibly more informed opinion about such text
As an administrator or tech coordinator, forget going out and buying all new portable labs for the students. These are the new portable computer labs. Make sure there is enough wifi available in the school and allow for more electrical outlets in the classrooms, libraries, study areas and lounges. (Don’t forget the teacher’s lounge as well)
Science teacher? Art teacher? History teacher? These new devices with their camera capabilities are now mobile data collection devices. Not only are they great for taking pictures of needing sources, but they quickly have applications like Word, Excel and too many others to mention at the tip of your fingers to add, configure and consolidate said data.
Going on a field trip? Don’t forget your iPads. These little creatures will add a whole abundance of knowledge to wherever you plan to explore. Have students search for information on the fly as they encounter everything from new flora and fauna, to extra specs about the T-Rex they are viewing, to what is really happening on the assembly line in the Toyota plant, since you can’t hear the guide.
What about content creation itself? With the advent of multi-touch, product developers who create Photoshop, Garageband, iWorks and so many more have to rethinking how people are interacting with the programs in order to make work-flow more intuitive. The mouse changed things years ago, but the surfaces and abilities to use them in different ways will probably allow for undreamed of possibilities in the creation arena.

A recent Reed College report:

After extensive student interviews throughout the Fall 2010 semester, “The bottom line feeling was that the Amazon Kindle DX was not adequate for use in a higher education curricular setting,” Chief Technology Officer Martin Ringle tells Fast Company. “The bottom line for the iPad was exactly the opposite.”

The most impressive iPad feature was also the simplest: a smooth scrolling touchscreen. “The quick response time of the touch screen was highly praised and seemed to be extremely beneficial in class discussions because it allowed students to navigate rapidly between texts to reach specific passages,” notes the report.

Some questions that were recently brought up at an ISTEC meeting are worth considering:

Is your school allowing students to use tablets or slates? Will you be?
Do you have policies regarding the tablets ans slates?
Do you think it will be a replacement for laptops?
How do you support slate technology?
Are schools allowed to scan in textbooks that they have already paid for?
Is there site licensing for apps? – ANSWER: No, in Asia and anywhere not North America schools seem to be buying one app and sharing it. However, this seems to be highly illegal.
Buy and app and you can use 5 machines – 21st Century Learning conference mentioned this

Some notes from the same meeting were:

Tablets do not seem to be using major bandwidth versus laptops (in Cambodia)
Laptops seem to be used more for creating, versus iPhones, iPads, iPodsthat are used for consuming
Apple iPad seems to have the advantage over the other tablets due to educational software that is available. However, from an administrative point of view, the apps are lacking in support and management. Apple users can install parallels in order to be able to use PC softwares.

Paul White recommended a great area for sharing called http://www.Appolicious.com

With that said, I see no reason to not try out the iPad2 for myself and for education. Woot!

About 1:1 laptop programs

02 Mar

Many schools are 1:1 or are on their way. A pioneer in Thailand with this type of program was the New International School of Thailand (NIST) with its tablet program. However, is 1:1 enough?

Maybe 3:1 is the way we should be thinking!!

What is a 3:1 program? It would look, as Paul White puts it, with “students having multiple devices (iphone, ipad, and netbook, depending on the task)”

Frasier Speir states the following:

I can tell you some long-term big trends that I’ll bet on right now:

Pupils and teachers will never wish they had fewer computers.

Pupils and teachers will never wish their devices had shorter battery life than the iPad.

Pupils and teachers will never wish that they had to queue up to get access to computers.

Pupils and teachers will never wish that their internet access was slower.

Pupils and teachers will never want a device that’s harder to use than the iPad.

Teachers will never want to have to go to a special classroom to use The Computers.

Nobody will want a device that’s more expensive and less capable than the iPad.

Nobody will want to carry around a device that’s significantly heavier than the iPad all day.

Pupils will not want to use a special “education device” when the market is going elsewhere.

Schools will not want to deploy a device that requires more tech support than an iPad.

Everyone is mentioning the iPad as the possible way to go or the industry standard with regards to initiating a 1:1 or 3:1 program these days, but what other options are presently available out there:

Is your school up to speed? Will your students be able to compete with so many others?

The Kno Tablet

The Galaxy Tab

Acer Tablets

Asus Eee Pad

Educators in this video are saying,

“1:1 is no longer an option. It is a necessity.”

In order to do it, “Go all at once. Communicate about what is happening with teachers, parents and students.”

Why not, “enable learning to happen anywhere at any time”?

As educators, “it will force you to rethink the learning space and the learning time”

“Skills-based learning, for example Microsoft Word, without real-world application is frustrating” A 1:1 program means that students are using the tools as they need them.

“1:1 allows students to use technology in all areas of the curriculum.”

“New conversations are developed that are not focused on technology,because technology is the source and the resource used for active planning.”

In order for a 1:1 program to take place, the school needs to consider the infrastructure it has in place. It needs, “good wifi, good technical support” and also proper power sources for students to replenish and power-up their devices.

It doesn’t take much. It could start with the school asking for students to have a computer or pad with certain requirements. From there the school can grow and modify as it sees fit. One of the last speakers in the video also mentioned that it is, “important for staff to have continuous professional development” with regards to technology.

I couldn’t agree more.