I’ve just concluded 3 good days of professional development for staff members in my school. I had a wide range of skills (which was great) but everyone had a great attitude: willing to try stuff. I didn’t want these sessions to be a “how to” but “how can I”. Sessions focused on integration where I was able to showcase different technology tools like Twitter, Scratch, and Comic Life and how these tools can be useful in the classroom or lab setting. Here are the titles of the sessions, for what it is worth…
Communicating with Parents and a Global Audience
Getting Digitally Ready for the School Year
Using Digital Media to Document Student Achievement
The great part was that I just facilitated the sessions and everyone involved contributed something to the sessions. This allowed me to learn from them as they were learning from me.
It was nice to ease back into the school year by having these sessions because everyone was thinking about the possibilities rather than the limitations that we get caught up in during the school year. I’ll write more later but I want to be able to enjoy whatever is left of summer (despite the fall like temperatures) for a little while.
1 response so far ↓
Michael,
I like the distinction between “how to” and “how can I.” If teachers ask how can I use technology to complement what I want to teach and learn, I believe we will have an easier time getting them on board. I am told by teachers that they do not want the requirements to add technology to their lessons if it means more work and they do not see the added value. I may have said this before in other posts but I have been on many project teams where the participants did not want to be there and were compelled by management. It’s an uphill battle and a pull from others is so much more pleasant than a push from you. Thanks for all your help with the technology questions this term.
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