For the past four years I have taught an English support class for students who need a little extra help being successful in school, and particularly in reading and writing. While I typically change up my lessons each year, hoping to grow off of successes and missed opportunities, one unit that has remained mostly intact […]
The triggering question for this module was, “How do we define 21st century learning, and how can we use the definition in our coaching work?” When I think of 21st century learning, I think of the ending of the year 2000 and the Y2K worry of whether technology would survive the transition to January 1, […]
Successful coaching is achieved through three sets of skills: collaboration and communication, lesson design, and technology integration (Foltos 2013). Success with lesson design and technology integration depend on effective outcomes of collaboration and communication. Without a strong foundation of collaboration and communications skills, the peer coaching relationship will not facilitate quality lesson design and technologyRead More
One statement that often causes me to roll my eyes is when people say, “well, it’s easier in theory than in practice”. I find this insight to be negative, dismissive, a way to throw in the towel before even giving something a chance. This being so, I cannot help but keep having this thought over […]
What is essential to successful coaching? Where do you start? This week has been full of knowledge and enlightenment for me. It has been exciting to finally dive into the coaching side of digital leadership. I have grown to feel competent with the utilization, facilitation and implementation of digital tools and how they relate toRead More
“Leap, and the net will appear.” (Zen saying) Overview This fall I began my fifth year of teaching, a milestone in many ways. While I am still at the beginning of my career, I am no longer a “new” teacher. I have greater confidence in my instructional strategies, classroom management skills, and collaborative relationships. I […]
Overview In my studies for my digital education leadership master’s program, I have frequently been reminded that effective teaching strategies are not dependent on the learners or the environment. Specifically, many great teaching ideas I come across for my ninth grade classroom are just as relevant to a group of teachers learning about technology. This […]
Embed from Getty Images Overview The Association for Educational Communications and Technologies defines educational technology as “[…] the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources (Januszewski et al. 2008). While mostly straightforward, this definition begs the question of what processes and resources […]
Overview: At the start of next year my district will be fully 1:1 with Chromebooks. This means that all students above sixth grade will be assigned a Chromebook which they take to and from school during the school year and elementary level students will have access to Chromebooks during the school day. While this increase in […]
This quarter, through the Digital Education Leadership program at Seattle Pacific University, my classmates and I are building skills towards becoming peer coaches in our respective schools. As I describe in an earlier post, peer coaches work with a collaborating teacher to help them to recognize their amazing abilities through questions and periods of reflection, allowing the collaborative teacher to solve their own challenges with the help of a safe, supportive cheerleader on the side. One essential aspect of the peer coaching role is exploring the lesson improvement process, where the collaborating teacher and the peer coach examine a current lesson plan and find ways to enhance what is already being taught. As I move forward with the idea of lesson improvement, I am left wondering how to balance the role of coach without crossing into the position of “expert.” In Peer Coaching: Unlocking the Power of Collaboration, author, Les Foltos, warns readers that “teachers want a coach to be a peer, not an expert” (Foltos, 2013, pg. 19). Teachers don’t want someone to telling them what to do, they want a friend and a colleague to talk though a lesson and share ideas that could enhance … Read More
