*This post has been written as part of my professional growth plan through my #ISTE20 scholarship. Taking everyone to the top: from app-centric lessons to true cognitive engagement Presenters: Jessica Herring, Dr. Michael Mills Overview: “Apps usually become the focus of technology use in classroom learning, but in this session, you’ll learn how to take what might start as app-centric lessons and take them to a higher level of authentic, contextual learning and cognitive engagement.” Main Takeaways: App choices need to move beyond “this is cool” to “how does this help to meet or surpass curricular goals” “plant the seeds of… Read More
Follow Friday – Creative Commons
Every Friday I share what I believe to be a notable person/organization/school on our social media pages to assist our staff in the development of their online Personal Learning Network. This Friday I’d like to close out Fair Dealing Week by highlighting Creative Commons. In their own words, “Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization that helps overcome legal obstacles to the sharing of knowledge and creativity to address the world’s pressing challenges.” You can learn more about Creative Commons and copyright licences in the YouTube video below: My most common-use of this organization is their CC Search tool which allows users to… Read More
WOW Wednesday – Sharon Thompson
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. February 22-26th marks Fair Dealing Week and Sharon, who operates our divisional PD Resource Centre, is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to Fair Dealing, copyright, intellectual property rights, and much more! You have most likely seen the resources she displays in her photo within your school buildings such as by photocopiers and printers, as well… Read More
#TechTipTuesday – Fair Dealing Week
Every Tuesday I share a Tech Tip on our social media pages to assist our staff in their use of technology as it relates to their role. With February 22-26th playing host to Fair Dealing Week, all of the posts this week will align with that theme. The MVSD ICT Resources Notebook is linked for public access at the top of this blog, but here are some of my favourite resources that I’ve pulled for review: Fair Dealing Decision Tool As described by Manitoba Teachers’ Society: “The Copyright Consortium of the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) have begun a campaign… Read More
Fair Dealing Week 2021
Every Monday I share a different ed tech quote on our Thompson Classroom social media pages for our staff to consider. February 22nd kicks off Fair Dealing Week 2021 which runs today through to February 26th. The Fair Dealing Canada website describes this legislation as follows: “Fair dealing recognizes that certain uses of copyright protected works are beneficial for society. By placing limits on instances where copyright owners can require payment, fair dealing leads innovation, to the creation of new works and new scholarship. The Supreme Court of Canada increasingly refers to copyright as providing a balance between the rights of users… Read More
Leadership
*This post has been written as part of my professional growth plan through my #ISTE20 scholarship. Edtech Coaches Panel: effective strategies to improve teaching & learning Presenters: Kris Amijo, Jason Gay, Stephanie Howell, Amy Hudson Estepp, Brian Seymour, Jeremy Shorr Overview: “A technology integration specialist and coaches panel from a variety of educational settings will share challenges and strategies that contribute to a district’s technology vision, implementing high-quality, job-embedded professional learning opportunities and integrating digital literacy and citizenship.” Main Takeaways: All support roles in a division exist to support teachers in their role with students How can we get teachers to… Read More
Follow Friday – BYTE Conference
Every Friday I share what I believe to be a notable person/organization/school on our social media pages to assist our staff in the development of their online Personal Learning Network. Being that it is the 3rd Friday in February it can only mean one thing…. it is time for the BYTE Conference! This conference holds a special place in my heart as it was not only the first large ed conference that I attended as a B.Ed student but it was also the start of my presentation experience. Since that time I have been able to attend 6 of the conferences (5 years… Read More
WOW Wednesday – DRCSS Staff
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. As we’ve adapted to the ever-changing teaching environments available to us during the Covid-19 pandemic, an emphasis on physical distance has been essential. In order to make this happen our largest high school, Dauphin Regional Comprehensive Secondary School, has operated on a blended schedule this year. This sees students attend two days a week on a Monday/Wednesday… Read More
#TechTipTuesday – Digital Book Reviews
Every Tuesday I share a Tech Tip on our social media pages to assist our staff in their use of technology as it relates to their role. February plays host to I Love To Read month in our schools which serve as an opportunity to celebrate all things book-related! With February now being half done I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to mesh ed tech with this celebration. When it comes to providing digital library options, MVSD offers divisional subscriptions to OverDrive for ebooks and audio-books and many schools also utilize platforms such as Epic Books and RAZ Kids. One… Read More
Digital Citizenship
*This post has been written as part of my professional growth plan through my #ISTE20 scholarship. The most important skill of the digital age Presenter: Alan November Overview: “There is overwhelming research that the majority of our students do not have strategies to to validate if online content is true or false.. Come and learn how to design highly creative assignments that cover the curriculum and teach students to be web literate!“ Main Takeaways: URL formats can tell users what type of author is associated with that content .org , .edu , .co , .com punctuation such as ~ , –… Read More