Three Types of Conference Tweets

You have a Twitter account. You understand the basics of tweeting. However, you are uncertain what to tweet. You are about to attend a conference or a workshop so you decide to ease yourself into the Twitterverse. Here are three types of tweets you can send at a conference or workshop. If you are hesitant about tweeting, you may wish to just stick with the first type until you gain more confidence.

1.       Identify noteworthy statements by the speaker. What statements by the speaker/presenter grab your attention? You may find a statement noteworthy because you agree or disagree with it or because it inspires, puzzles, or challenges you. List the statement in your tweet and attribute it to the speaker, using the speaker’s Twitter user name if you know it. Include the conference hashtag, such as #NSBAConf, so people following the hashtag will see it. Feel free, but not obligated, to include your reaction to the statement. 

 

2.       Respond to or retweet the tweets of others at the conference.  This is the best way to connect with others and expand your professional learning network. By collaboratively wrestling with ideas, you make connections that may extend past the conference via Twitter.

Follow the conference hashtag and identify particularly interesting tweets. Retweet an interesting tweet without comment. Note in the graphic below that the original tweet is reissued with the notation that it has been retweeted by you so that your followers see it too.

Alternatively, reply to the tweet with a reaction or a question, including the conference hashtag.

If the initial tweet was relatively short or you can shorten it without changing the meaning, you may reply to the tweet by copying the initial tweet into your response and then adding a brief comment. Apps like Tweetdeck make it easier to retweet with comments and questions.

3.       Send links to resources related to the presentation.  When a presenter displays a web site or video or makes references to individuals, organizations, or resources, conference participants may make a mental note to seek more information on these topics later. You can help your fellow attendees by sending a link to a web site related to one of these resources. Copy and paste the URL from your browser to your tweet. Note that Twitter automatically shortens the URL so that it uses fewer characters.

Enjoy the twitterverse. It needs your contributions!

Transformative Work: Work That Matters

Who owns the work? Giving students the opportunity to a make a difference in the world around them increases student ownership. When students do work that matters, that is valued by others, it affirms that they matter. With transformative work, students literally make a difference in the world.

Six York County teachers recently shared examples of student work that illustrate that students of all ages can do transformative work. Kindergarten students worked in design teams to create a gingerbread house for senior citizens. Third grade students marketed gently used toys to peers in other classes using Skype and an eToys Googledoc modeled after eBay. Middle school students created video presentations to teach peers history. High school students restored oyster life in the Chesapeake Bay. Other high school students created nutritious school menus within fiscal constraints. In each of these cases, the fact that others valued students’ work increased students’ sense of ownership. Because providing students the opportunity to make a difference in the world around them is so instrumental in building student ownership of work, Making a Difference is the title of the first column in a graphic organizer relating to these examples of transformative work. The links in this paragraph take the reader to checklists relating to the transformative work of students.



eToys Web Page



Students in the Field
Oyster Restoration

Transformative work is not just relevant, it is real. As @MarcPrensky explains in Teaching Digital Natives: Partnering for Real Learning,

Relevant means that kids can relate something you are teaching, or something you say, to something they know. . .Relevant is not wrong, of course. People do come to an understanding more easily when context is familiar. The problem with relevant is that it often does not go far enough. Real, on the other hand, means much more and goes much further. Real means that there is a perceived connection by the students . . . between what they are learning and their ability to use that learning to do something useful in the world.  (p.72)

Making it relevant increases student engagement. Making it real boosts student ownership even more. As Prensky observes, “Can you think of a better answer to ‘Why should I learn this?’ than ‘To make your world a better place?” (p.73) It certainly is a better answer, as Prensky notes, than saying that you should learn this because “some day you’ll need it.”

Of course students may be authentically engaged in lessons even when they are not doing work that makes a difference in the world. For example, students may be engaged during lessons in which teachers vary activites, incorporate kinisthetic learning, and provide opportunities for peer interaction. These and other lesson characteristics can boost student engagement. However, these lesson characteristics are less likely to lead to student ownership of work than when students are given the opportunity to do transformative work they personally value. No anticipatory set or cooperative learning activity is as powerful for creating ownership as when students are doing transformative work they value. @Delta_dc recently tweeted a reference to spending less time designing engaging lessons and more time helping students find their spark. Giving students the opportunity to do transformative work certainly helps them find their spark.

When students own the work, they are willing to commit themselves fully, even when the work is difficult. Because they have a strong sense of purpose to learn content and/or skills, they make better connections and ask better questions. This leads to deeper, longer-lasting learning. Besides, when engaged in transformative work, students are also changing the world!
 

Prezi Presentation regarding Transformative Work

Spaghetti Boils Over During Student Engagement #edchat

“How do teachers know when students are engaged?” asked the organizers of last Tuesday’s #edchat.  They received an earful of responses!

@Blairteach quipped, “Maybe it's like the Supreme Court definition of porn--you know it when you see it.” @Techsavvyed observed, “You measure engagement in the classroom same way you decide if it's cold enough outside for a coat, you just know.”

Some participants described specific times they know a student is engaged in learning.

@PernilleRipp: “When they go home and blog about it” and “when they groan because you asked them to get ready for something else.”

@8Rinaldi: “When students volunteer to give up snack/recess to Skype with other students in diff time zone.”

@BosleyAmy: “When lunch lady asks about what's being taught bc kids excitedly talking about it during lunch.”

@MarkBarnes19: “When they ask insightful, topical questions that shock you.”

@BroomerJG: “When they can't stop talking about a topic.”

@ahenrey: “When they refuse to go to recess. When their friends come to get them and end up joining the lesson.”

@DebbieFuco: “When they work on their Glogs and Prezis at all hours of the night.”

Other participants identified words they associate with engagement in learning.

Passion @21stPrincipal: It “happens when students are passionately connected with the learning.”

Excitement @LopezBraus: “Isn’t true engagement the same thing as excitement?” 

Flow @MbTeach: “When I think of engagement, I think of flow--completely losing yourself in what you are doing because it's so engrossing or challenging.”

@MrsBeck25, @Cantiague_Lead, @DoctorJeff and others focused on student ownership of the work as another key indicator of engagement in learning. When students own the work, they are not just working for a grade.

@VMC_Teachers: “An engaged student doesn't care much how to ‘win points’, rather than gain knowledge/ability/understanding."

@Elizeducation: “The engaged student is not worried about the grade, but more likely to get a good one.”

@Lhowe100: “You know students are engaged when they don't ask, ‘Is this going to be on the test?"

@TekkieTalk: “I have had students work on projects after a grade has been given because they wanted it to be better.”

@Matt_Arguello: “If they're spending their own time discussing, we've done something right.”

@AndrewTeacher: “When they talk about home or personal change I'm pleased.”

@cybraryman1: “When they take the learning home on their own & want to extend their knowledge you know they are really engaged.”

@Vmc_teachers: “There is a drive, perseverance, a feeling that the student takes it personal rather than as a task.”

The concept of student interest in work/learning extending beyond getting a good grade is at the heart of the distinction that Phil Schlechty makes between ritualistic engagement and authentic engagement. For other posts on Schlechty and student engagement click here, here, and here. @KStansberry asked, “Lots of tweets on engagement (that suggest that it is) caring about more than grades, but can desire for good grades help promote engagement?” Students may be compliant. They may work hard to get a good grade. But this compliance or ritualistic engagement differs from authentic engagement.

@BlairTeach: “Keep in mind there is a BIG difference between ‘compliance’ & engagement.

@Delta_DC: “We need to recognize difference btwn engagement & conformity.”

@StumpTeacher: “We can't confuse engagement with ‘on task’ behaviors.”

@BroomerJG: “Engagement should never be confused with being on task.”

Authentic engagement leads to deeper, longer-lasting understanding. This occurs because students are more likely to analyze, synthesize, and apply information rather than just memorize it. They ask better questions and make better connections. They persist when work is difficult, leading to greater understanding.

@davidwees engagement is often the gateway to learning

@JudyBrunner: “When engaged, students ask meaningful questions and want meaningful answers. They then follow up with more thought provoking?’s.”

@MrsBeck25: I “notice my students are engaged when responses are their own interpretation and not a regurgitation of the text book.”

@Lookforsun: “I do believe perseverance is part of engagement, a very important part.”

So, the latest #edchat certainly expanded participants’ understanding of student engagement, as indicated by positive comments regarding the #edchat. @Ktvee even commented, “True teacher engagement is when your spaghetti boils over because you can't quit talking about engagement on edchat.” @Ktvee, I hope the #edchat was worth the mess in your kitchen!

I hope to blog in the near future regarding other aspects of the #edchat regarding student engagement, including the discussion of whether educators can take steps to increase student engagement.

Special thanks to @jswiatek for maintaining the #edchat archive. To see the archive of the #edchat discussion regarding student engagement, click here. #edchat is held at noon and 7 p.m., EST, on Tuesdays. For more information, click here.

Students & Transformative Work (introduction to teacher presentations moderated by Alan November)

A sixth grade student started a community newspaper in the St. Louis area in the 1970s. Circulation grew to more than 1000 within months. This sixth grade student enjoyed going to the movies. When he turned twelve, he realized that he would only be able to buy a child's movie ticket for one more year. At age thirteen, he would have to pay $3.50 for an adult movie ticket. Recognizing that 13 year-olds could not attend R-rated movies, he reasoned that it was unfair for movie theaters to charge them adult prices. When he complained to his parents, they told him that if he didn't like the prices, he should work to change them.

This young man wrote an editorial in his newspaper calling for intermediate prices for young teens. When other kids in the neighborhood responded favorably, he decided to start a petition drive, eventually collecting over six hundred signatures. I was this kid who wanted to make a difference in my community. And I eventually went into teaching, like other educators, to make a difference in the lives of others.

Years later, I worked as a teacher and head of an alternative school in Chelsea, Massachusetts, just outside Boston. Most of our students were former dropouts who had returned to school. As part of the schools project-based curriculum, students wrote detailed autobiographies. At the end of the year, students and staff cooked dinner for the families of students. After dinner, students read excerpts from their autobiographies to their parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts at the event. The stories were riveting. Many of our students were immigrants from Southeast Asia or Mexico and they described their journeys to America, many of which involved great personal sacrifice and risk. There was not a dry eye in the house. Students had an immense sense of pride regarding the autobiographies because they knew their work was treasured by their family. Students who had not yet written their autobiographies committed themselves fully to this project the subsequent year because they knew they would be creating work of great value.

Working on an Autobiography

Educators sometimes speak of preparing students to contribute to society at some point in the future, after graduation. What if we allowed, even encouraged, students to make a difference in the world around them NOW? This would amount to telling students that they matter and the work that they do in school matters. Educator @AngelaMaiers emphasizes the importance of telling people that they matter. Giving students the opportunity to do transformative work is the ultimate #youmatter message.

Click Here to View #Youmatter Talk

Some teachers in our division already give students the opportunity to do transformative work. Elementary students help their peers by blogging to share book recommendations. Middle school students create and post math tutorials for a global audience. High School students teach elementary students about heroism.

Today, Alan November will moderate presentations by other teachers in our division whose students are doing transformative work as they learn the content and skills of the curriculum. You will hear about students who are incredibly engaged. They commit themselves fully-they own the work- because they value what they are doing. They are willing to persist when the work is difficult because they value the work. They achieve so much more because of their commitment, ownership, and persistence. With transformative work, there is joy in teaching and learning!

Last summer Alan November challenged educators from around the world to give students the opportunity to proclaim "stand on our shoulders.” In other words, give students the opportunity to do work that is valued by others and then have other students build on this work.  Alan is planning a global exhibition of this stand on our shoulders work, this transformative work.

I spoke to Alan regarding the criteria he will use in selecting exemplars for “stand on our shoulders” work. He spoke not just about the nature of student work but of the importance of celebrating and sharing students work in a way that inspires and supports other teachers in doing similar work with their students. This is what teacher-leadership is all about!

We became educators to make a difference in others’ lives. When you share your students’ work with others, you are making a difference in the lives of students and teachers in other classes in your school and in other schools. Thank you for the work you have already done, for the work you are doing, and the work you will do to give students the opportunity to change the world.  #Youmatter

After these introductory comments, Alan November moderated presentations by teachers regarding transformative work by students. Subsequent blog posts will provide detailed descriptions and photos of student work. Please click on the "Join this Site" icon in the right hand column to be notified of new posts.

·        Gingerbread House Project-Kindergarten students worked in teams to research, produce a master plan, create and follow blue prints to make a gingerbread house as a gift to senior citizens.

·        eToys Project-Students in two 3^rd grade classes in separate schools helped create eToy websites, modeled after eBay. The students collected gently used toys, photographed the toys, and wrote descriptions for the websites to market the toys. The students earned play money which they used to bid on toys of students in the other class. The classes also communicated and marketed through Blackboard Collaborate and Skype.

·        History Mystery Project-7^th grade English students worked in teams to create videos to teach their peers about historical topics, such as the contributions of Henry Ford. They used digital tools, including their own technology they brought to school, to create the videos.

·        Oyster Restoration Project-Building on the work of students during the past seventeen years, 11^th and 12^th grade Marine Science students are growing oysters in the Chesapeake Bay to help restore the native oyster population. They monitor growth data on ongoing basis, learning about the estuary ecosystem, other native species and water quality.

·        You are What You Eat Project-After consulting with experts, 11^th and 12^th grade Anatomy students designed nutritional, appealing menus for school lunches within budgetary constraints. They also wrote advocacy letters to congressional representatives and created informational videos regarding school nutrition.

·        Professional Learning Network-Teachers in an elementary school participate in a wiki (using Ning) created by the principal. They post, view, and discuss articles and videos relating to instructional practices.

Kindergarteners Do Work That Matters

Colorful candy constitutes beautiful roofing.  Pieces of chocolate serve as an inviting walkway to the front door.  As gorgeous as the house is, the learning and joy associated with kindergarten students’ work on the gingerbread house is even more impressive.

Students in Mrs. Murawski’s kindergarten class at Magruder Elementary School knew that their work mattered.  One reason they fully committed themselves to carefully designing and constructing the gingerbread house was because they are donating the house to a local senior citizen’s home to bring joy during this holiday season.

At the start of the construction project, Mrs. Murawski convened her students for a design team meeting.  Each student chose to serve on a committee which planned one aspect of the job.  For example, the landscaping committee planned the layout and creation of the yard while the roof committee developed ideas for the top of the house.  These five year old children learned a lot about team work.  Mrs. Murawski commented that one of the biggest challenge for students was "working with a committee of students, making decisions together and realizing that you have to compromise.  As they came together with their research information and began to share the ideas with each other they realized that they may indeed like what they saw in their classmate's research booklet."

Each committee created a blueprint for their aspect of the job and then the class created a master plan linking the work of the separate project teams.  The father of one of the students, who works in the construction business, visited the class to explain blueprints, provide advice, and talk about his career in construction. 

This student stands below the Master Plans.

Although the gingerbread house was prominently displayed near the entrance of the classroom when I visited, signs of the complexity of the project were clear.  Several students showed me the project timeline and explained that listing the steps of the project helped them complete it.  One student proudly held up the blueprint for the front of the house that he helped create.  Another student showed off the master plans.  Click on the icon below to listen to a third student explain how he felt after completing the construction project.

I am incredibly impressed with the strong work ethic displayed by Mrs. Murawski’s students.  Their effort and the quality of their work, however, stems largely from the fact that Mrs. Murawski gave them work that mattered.  Students made choices regarding what work they would do and how they would do it.  They had the opportunity to be creative and to be problem solvers.   They knew they were making a product that others would value.  Hats off to Mrs. Murawski for providing her students work that matters because this project also made a difference for students in terms of the development of important skills and knowledge.  The construction of the gingerbread house was a sweet experience for all involved!

Learning in the Shift Age (welcome remarks at Virginia ASCD Conference)

I want to ask educators in Virginia to think back for a moment to August.  Do you remember what we were dealing with in August?  Hurricanes.  Earthquakes.  A Fire in the dismal swamp (which is finally out, by the way).  I found myself thinking of a music group from the 70s and 80s.

Although Earth Wind and Fire was a great group, the challenges of August were not great.  What were we doing when the challenges hit?  We were getting ready to start the school year.  And our efforts barely, if at all stopped: we just dealt with the challenges.  As teachers, principals, superintendents, as educators, we are expected to deal with any challenge that comes our way. 

Today David Houle, coauthor of ShiftEd, is going to challenge us to deal with change.  He says we are entering a shift age in which we can master the opportunities provided by global connectivity.  He talks about the emphasis on choice, customization, and flexibility and he challenges us to transform schools in response to these changes.

Houle and coauthor Jeff Cobb write,

Embracing and rapidly managing change is fundamental to the consciousness of the Shift Age.  The speed of change has accelerated so much that it is now environmental: we live in an environment of change . . . The old phrase “standing on solid ground” no longer has merit.  If an individual believes she is standing on solid ground and has a clear, certain view of the world, it is now a given that whether it be six months, nine months, or a year from now that person is going to suddenly realize the world has changed while she was busy being certain.

Karen Washington, a first-year principal in the school district in which I work, had an experience in August that relates to this notion of not standing on solid ground. She was facilitating her first heavy duty instructional conversation with her staff when the earthquake hit.  Do you know what she did?  She kept right on--talking, asking questions, listening.  She didn’t miss a beat.  She admitted later that she actually didn’t even notice the earthquake.

When she told me this, it reminded me of another group, REM and their song in which they sing of "the end of the world as we know it.”

Click on the videos below to check out these brief excerpts of the music video.

It wasn't the end of the world in August, but there was an earthquake, and Karen Washington was totally fine.  Will we be totally fine with the end of the world as we know it--with the shift age that David Houle is about to describe?  I am optimistic that you will each be fine because you are here at this conference because of your commitment to learning.  And our professional learning will be a key to thriving in the shift age.  With the shift age we have opportunities for learning that did not exist previously.  A superintendent who wrote an essay that is part of the ShiftEd book spoke of her sense that there will be few boundaries of space time or place for learning in the shift age.

One example of learning that is not limited by time or place is the conversation that occurred during the last few days via Twitter regarding ShiftEd.  Teachers, principals, and superintendents planning to attend the VASCD conference started the conversation and others who would not be attending soon joined.  Comments were posted at all times of day from people throughout and outside of Virginia.

It is this type of limitless learning that will help us deal with the Shift Age and the earthquakes, hurricanes, and fires of the future.   So, let us get started!

Shift Ed Calls for K-12 Transformation

Here are some key points set forth by David Houle (@evolutionshift) and Jeff Cobb in Shift Ed: A Call to Action for Transforming K-12 Education.  Each key point is set forth in fewer than 144 characters.  I wrote them in this format so that I could share some of them via Twitter in an online discussion of ShiftEd in the days leading up to Virginia ASCD Annual Conference, which starts today.   At the invitation of Ann Etchison (@ann1622) and @VASCD, I will be providing welcoming remarks at today’s conference, prior to David Houle’s General Session keynote address. 

Here is a link to the Shift Ed web site: http://www.shiftedtransformation.com/shifted21/

Shift to #teaching 21st century skills unlikely in current K-12 ed system says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

K-12 ed system more of a containment area than place to prep kids 4 21st century says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

widespread disagreement re: K-12 but we need unified vision says @evolutionshift how achieved? #vascd11 #shfited

Stop tinkering w/ ed system & curriculum-instead look at what it needs 2 become says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

How has ed responded to new tech world? It hasn’t says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

We compartmentalize tech driven change so traditional teaching is untouched says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

In 2 many schools #edtech is little more than an add-on says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

Next 20 years are the Shift Age when we master opportunities of global connectiveness says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

Schools must move beyond being purveyors of info says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

@evolutionshift Is connectedness a force separate from “flow to global” or just its cause? #vascd11 #shifted

Connectivity-global culture-power 2 individuals are key 2 Shift Age says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted #edchat

Choice-customization-flexibility explode in shift age says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

Constructivism cited in #shifted is not new-but in time of emphasis on individual is the world finally ready 4 cnstrctvsm? @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

Should we confine kids w/i 4 walls for set time to be fed set content? asks @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

Most of current #edreform is reactionary

Need to shift 2 thinking about #learning experiences not ed systems says supt woodward in #shifted @evolutionshift #vascd11

We need to be creators of #learning experiences says supt woodward in #shifted @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

There should b few boundaries of time space place 4 #learning says supt woodward in #shifted @evolutionshift #vascd11

Students will gradually assume responsibility 4 #learning says supt woodward in #shifted @evolutionshift #vascd11

How much freedom should students have 2 decide when where how 2 connect 4 #learning asks @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

What are skills needed 4 #learning in social networks asks @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

we need to customize means of #learning-should we also customize outcomes @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

Are schools only or even mostly physical places? Asks @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

What do you think of the common core? @evolutionshift

Schools must become better at shape shifting to meet new demands says @evolutionshift #vascd11 #shifted

#shifted web site has additional resources http://www.shiftedtransformation.com/shifted21/