Competition from New Models of Education
Excerpt from the Horizon's Report Preview
New models of education are bringing unprecedented competition to the traditional models of
education. Across the board, institutions are looking for ways to provide a high quality of service and
more learning opportunities. Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are at the forefront of these
discussions, enabling students to supplement their education and experiences at brick-and-mortar
institutions with increasingly rich, and often free, online offerings. At the same time, issues have arisen
related to the low completion rates of some MOOCs. As these new platforms emerge, there is a
growing need to frankly evaluate the models and determine how to best support collaboration,
interaction, and assessment at scale. Simply capitalizing on new technology is not enough; the new
models must use these tools and services to engage students on a deeper level.
With these new models of education we must always keep students in the forefront. What is best for the students? With any new models there will be scepticism and hesitation. This scepticism and hesitation should not be taken as something bad. Educators need the time and resources to evaluate these new models and determine if they are truly best for student learning.
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
Friday, April 24, 2015
MRVED Business
Upcoming Meetings
May 8, 2015 Community Ed
May 11, 2015 Principals/TAC combined meeting (11:30 a.m. start time)
May 27, 2015 Superintendents' Council
June 10, 2015 MRVED Board (7:00 p.m.)
June 24, 2015 Superintendents' Council
Communication Tip
I find people who only read the first line of their email incredibly frustrating. This forces their colleagues to send additional emails just to get issues addressed. Nobody saves any time this way. It just creates angst and extra work. Slow down, read the whole email, and respond to all items. When sending emails, keep them short and to the point or you deserve to be ignored. Use numbered lists and bullet points to make your ideas clear and simple to address. If you have tons to discuss, pick up the phone.
May 8, 2015 Community Ed
May 11, 2015 Principals/TAC combined meeting (11:30 a.m. start time)
May 27, 2015 Superintendents' Council
June 10, 2015 MRVED Board (7:00 p.m.)
June 24, 2015 Superintendents' Council
Communication Tip
Read and Respond to the Entire Email
By Kevin Daum, Inc 500 Entrepreneur and best-selling author
I find people who only read the first line of their email incredibly frustrating. This forces their colleagues to send additional emails just to get issues addressed. Nobody saves any time this way. It just creates angst and extra work. Slow down, read the whole email, and respond to all items. When sending emails, keep them short and to the point or you deserve to be ignored. Use numbered lists and bullet points to make your ideas clear and simple to address. If you have tons to discuss, pick up the phone.
Tech Tip- National Library of Virtual Manipulatives
National Library of Virtual Manipulatives
If you are looking to bring your math manipulatives to the 21st century, check out the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives. They have virtual manipulatives for every grade level and area of math. The only downfall to the site is that it needs Java to run, thus does not work on the iPads, however there are a variety of iPad apps that will do exactly what the NLVM does. Bookmark the site today!
If you are looking to bring your math manipulatives to the 21st century, check out the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives. They have virtual manipulatives for every grade level and area of math. The only downfall to the site is that it needs Java to run, thus does not work on the iPads, however there are a variety of iPad apps that will do exactly what the NLVM does. Bookmark the site today!
Help Students Score Higher on Their Tests
This was originally posted a couple weeks ago, but thought it was pertinent to bring it back again.
The reality of testing season is upon us. Whether we like it or not, our students will be tested and tested and tested some more in the upcoming weeks. Besides pounding more facts in their head, what can teachers and parents do? Below you will find a great article on what research says about what students need during the testing season. Hopefully you will find a couple tidbits you can send home in your newsletter or incorporate into your classroom.
Help Your Students Score Higher on Their Upcoming Tests by Eric Jensen
The reality of testing season is upon us. Whether we like it or not, our students will be tested and tested and tested some more in the upcoming weeks. Besides pounding more facts in their head, what can teachers and parents do? Below you will find a great article on what research says about what students need during the testing season. Hopefully you will find a couple tidbits you can send home in your newsletter or incorporate into your classroom.Help Your Students Score Higher on Their Upcoming Tests by Eric Jensen
Horizons Report - Challenges
Blending Formal and Informal Learning
The last of the easily solved challenges presented by the Horizon's Report is the ability to blend formal and informal learning. Formal learning is rooted in 19th and even 18th century schooling. This is where the teacher holds the knowledge and passes on the knowledge to a group of students in a room as the students pass from grade level to grade level. It is the industrial model, or assembly line model of education. With the growth of the internet, and the ability to learning almost anything, anywhere, at any time, a newer, self-directed model of learning has developed. This is called informal learning. We can see this model in science and history museums. People are left to roam around and explore and learn about various topics, many times without someone to guide them.
The challenge arises when these two models clash. How do we still hold true to the industrial model, that society sees as the best fit for education, but yet let students explore and learn on their own? Sir Ken Robinson talks at length about this paradigm shift in education in his TED talk "Changing Education Paradigms". If you have never heard this TED talk, I strongly suggest taking 10 minutes out of your day to hear the words of Sir Ken Robinson. We want kids to be self-directed learners and explore various topics, but the institution of education is still 18th century. How do we effectively make this shift? How can we blend the two types of learning in our classroom? How can we informalize learning in a formal environment? All good questions to ponder! Take a look at your own classroom; Are you still rooted in 18th century formalized learning?
The last of the easily solved challenges presented by the Horizon's Report is the ability to blend formal and informal learning. Formal learning is rooted in 19th and even 18th century schooling. This is where the teacher holds the knowledge and passes on the knowledge to a group of students in a room as the students pass from grade level to grade level. It is the industrial model, or assembly line model of education. With the growth of the internet, and the ability to learning almost anything, anywhere, at any time, a newer, self-directed model of learning has developed. This is called informal learning. We can see this model in science and history museums. People are left to roam around and explore and learn about various topics, many times without someone to guide them.
The challenge arises when these two models clash. How do we still hold true to the industrial model, that society sees as the best fit for education, but yet let students explore and learn on their own? Sir Ken Robinson talks at length about this paradigm shift in education in his TED talk "Changing Education Paradigms". If you have never heard this TED talk, I strongly suggest taking 10 minutes out of your day to hear the words of Sir Ken Robinson. We want kids to be self-directed learners and explore various topics, but the institution of education is still 18th century. How do we effectively make this shift? How can we blend the two types of learning in our classroom? How can we informalize learning in a formal environment? All good questions to ponder! Take a look at your own classroom; Are you still rooted in 18th century formalized learning?
Friday, April 17, 2015
MRVED Business
Upcoming Meetings
April 22, 2015 Superintendents' Council
May 8, 2015 Community Ed
May 11, 2015 TAC/Principals combined meeting
May 27, 2015 Superintendents' Council
Communication Briefings
People often use the word "literally" to emphasize a point: "It is literally a jungle out there," you might say, in an effort show the direness of the situation. But "literally" is an overused word that adds little to any sentence. In fact, its use can be confusing when, as in the example above, it is used in combination with a metaphor: In that case, a better word choice would be "figuratively" - although the sentence will be stronger without either word.
April 22, 2015 Superintendents' Council
May 8, 2015 Community Ed
May 11, 2015 TAC/Principals combined meeting
May 27, 2015 Superintendents' Council
Communication Briefings
People often use the word "literally" to emphasize a point: "It is literally a jungle out there," you might say, in an effort show the direness of the situation. But "literally" is an overused word that adds little to any sentence. In fact, its use can be confusing when, as in the example above, it is used in combination with a metaphor: In that case, a better word choice would be "figuratively" - although the sentence will be stronger without either word.
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