Amid the anxiety, confusion, anger, and organized chaos, educators from near and far leveraged the power of technology and social media to prepare for the upcoming online standardized tests known as PARCC. Too many unknowns entered the equation during the process and it can become very stressful. This often comes with change no matter if it's for better or worse. Having the ability to reach out to people who are on the front lines can help alleviate some of the pressure that everyone has encountered. Transitioning from paper based to online high stakes assessments has been an enormous undertaking. Through it all though, educators used their virtual common sense to figure things out and dissect the abundance of information. So how did we do it? Where did educators turn to for real time information related to implementing and administering these standardized tests? Here is the list......
As schools and districts around the country continue their uphill battle with implementing and administering these new online standardized tests, educators will undoubtedly look to the connections they have in the virtual world to make sense of what is they actually have to do. Because at the end of the day, it goes back to putting kids in a position to succeed. The only way this can be done is through an All Hands on Deck approach and a commitment to putting our best foot forward. Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is an ASCD Emerging Leader, Bammy Award Finalist, ClassDojo Thought Leader and Google Certified Educator. He currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Middle School Vice Principal for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.
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Does your school or district have a Pinterest Plan? If not, you might want to consider leveraging the power of this very popular social media tool. So many educators use this virtual pin board to stay on top of best practices. Taking it a step further and using it to tell your school's story will do wonders for all involved. Below you will find a Pinerest Plan of sorts that can help your school or district move the educational conversation forward.
Creating and maintaining a school or district Pinterest board will help with informing school stakeholders and promoting student and staff achievements. It can also be used to highlight alumni and how they are still making your school or district proud with what they are accomplishing. The content on your school or district's Pinterest board does not have to solely focus on what is happening with your staff and student's in school. Putting focus on the great things that happen outside of the school day goes a long way in strengthening community pride. Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is an ASCD Emerging Leader, Bammy Award Finalist, ClassDojo Thought Leader and Google Certified Educator. He currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Middle School Vice Principal for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.
Recently I sat down with a pre-service teacher who was ready to embark on her student teaching experience for the spring semester. She had many questions as it related to her role as the "teacher in charge" and how to land a job in the 21st Century. During our discussion I recommended she explore the use of several resources that could promote the success of students, engage stakeholders in her classroom's story, and most importantly help her grow as an educator. Below you will find these resources that were recommended to her and that have also made me a better educator over the years. Twitter ~ Follow content specific hashtags, share best practices, assess student's knowledge, and tell your classroom's story in a 140 characters or less. Specifically explore the New Teacher Chat hashtag #ntchat Remind ~ Formerly called Remind 101, this tool allows educators to disseminate information in a safe manner. Choose to communicate via text, email, or push notification. Blogging ~ Consider using a site like Weebly or Wordpress to reflect on your experiences as an educator. Reading education blogs also helps educators realize that others are experiencing the same things on a daily basis. ClassDojo ~ Manage your classroom virtually, celebrate student accomplishments, and communicate timely student information to school stakeholders. Edmodo ~ Create an online learning environment where students can turn in assignments and teachers can provide feedback. Connected Educator Series ~ Check out this series of books that addresses the importance of integrating technology, social media, and web tools in the educational world What Great Teachers Do Differently ~ Todd Whitaker provides tremendous insight on what it means for a teacher to do what's best for kids all day every day. Teach Like a Pirate ~ Dave Burgess provides guidance on teaching with passion and making learning fun for students. Teaching Mythologies Exposed ~ Starr Sackstein shares what is reality and what is myth in the world of education. Harry Wong ~ Check out Harry Wong's monthly post on Teachers.Net related to best practices in classroom management. Google Certified Teacher ~ So many school districts are transitioning to Google Apps for Education. It behooves educators to become certified in tools like Gmail and Drive in order to push the envelope with collaboration and communication. Teaching Channel ~ Watch teachers in action as they integrate bet practice strategies to meet the needs of diverse learners. This list can be overwhelming which is why I ask you to pick three to try out. Share this blog post with other like-minded educators and feel free to add more resources to this document or in the comment section below. Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is an ASCD Emerging Leader, Bammy Award Finalist, ClassDojo Thought Leader and Google Certified Educator. He currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Middle School Vice Principal for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.
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