Collaboration in the Digital Classroom

Want to learn more about collaborating in a digital classroom? I am going to offer an online facilitated professional development course called Collaboration in the Digital Classroom. This is from Intel® Teach Elements. Below is a QR code that links to a flyer and video explaining more about the course.

Here is a description from Intel® on Collaboration in the Digital Classroom: 

"Provides an in-depth look at collaboration with a focus on online collaborative tools. In this course, you will see how collaboration helps students develop 21st century thinking skills, deepen content understanding, and prepare them for the global world. You’ll learn how to plan and manage collaboration activities that integrate online collaborative tools—increasingly part of our globally connected workplaces.

• Learn how to find and choose the best Web-based tools to support collaboration
• Learn how to manage and support collaborators
• Understand and promote ethical, appropriate, and safe online behavior.

The course offers opportunities to apply the collaboration concepts with action planning exercises."

The start date of this workshop will be September 23, 2013 and we will end on Friday, November 15, 2013. We will have an optional face to face meeting to cover how to navigate this moodle. The optional face to face meeting will be on Tuesday, September 24, 2013 at 4801 Bethania Station Road in the IRC computer lab from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. This workshop is limited to 15 participants.

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Ten Tips for Personalized Learning via Technology

How is technology being used in the classroom for more effective teaching, differentiated instruction and to meet the needs of every student in the school? This article outlines how one elementary school uses technology. Each classroom in the school has an interactive whiteboard, eight computers and access to digital cameras, flip cameras, remote-response clickers and PDAs.

Here are some tips from the teachers on how they use this technology with their students.

1. Deliver instruction through multiple forms of media
• Teachers access instructional videos, audio clips, animations, instructional games and other available online resources.
2. Gather and use immediate feedback on students’ understanding
• Teachers use remote-response clickers with practice questions to see where to customize subsequent lessons to meet the needs of all students.
3. Give students options
• Using digital media students are allowed to show learning through a variety of media tools.
4. Automate basic-skills practice
• Teachers use Study Island and EducationCity to identify weaknesses in student skills and then assign lessons according to the students’ needs.
5. Practice independent work skills
• Teachers have procedures so students know how to use the technology and what to do if they have a question.
6. Create a weekly “must-do” and “may do” list
• Teachers provide a list of personalized “must-do” tasks that all students need to complete and a list of “may-do” tasks that students may choose from so all students always have something to do.
7. Pretest students’ knowledge before each unit
• Teachers assess prior knowledge and tailor lessons to each child’s needs.
8. Be flexible when plans go awry
• Teachers model good problem-solving behaviors and involve students in devising alternative approaches when technology isn’t available or not working.
9. Let students drive
• Teachers let students lead the lesson at the whiteboards giving them the opportunity to capitalize on their skills.
10. Share the work of creating differentiated lessons
• Teachers work together to plan units of study with activities to meet the needs of all students.

From this list of ideas think of ways to use technology to provide differentiated instruction, feedback and choices for all of your students? Also, how are you using technology to assist in planning with other teachers?

To read the entire Edutopia article:

http://www.edutopia.org/stw-differentiated-instruction-ten-key-lessons

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