On Wednesdays 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. Earlier in August our divisional secretarial team from across all 16 MVSD buildings came together at Division Office to participate in a full day of tech training. This was our first time meeting as a group since early March of 2020 and it was so fantastic to have everyone back to together again. This day was… Read More
PD on the Potty
Near the end of 2019 I implemented the idea of PD on the Potty following a podcast from Kasey Bell. This alternative method of professional development sees the inclusion of fliers placed in staff washroom facilities. Depending on the month these may include: divisional tech reminders upcoming PD opportunities tips & tricks program reviews social media recommendations and more! Not only do these fliers allow you to have a captive audience but they can provide a bridge for staff members who have technology as a barrier in their practice [for these individuals, emails, social media posts, digital resources, etc are inaccessible]. Here… Read More
September ICT Newsletter
With the start of a new month comes a new monthly ICT newsletter. These newsletters are designed to serve as an outreach to all MVSD staff and provide: general ICT updates (software changes, divisional ICT timelines, tech-themed holidays) upcoming PD for the month tech tips divisional highlights These newsletters are sent out to staff via our divisional email but are also shared out through our social media pages and divisional website. September 2022 ICT Newsletter by Kirsten Cali
House of Ed Tech – Episode 207
Earlier this month I had the pleasure of chatting with Chris Nesi from the House of Ed Tech podcast. If you’ve been a follower of this blog for a while you know that Chris’ podcast has been a part of my accessible PD plan for a number of years and his work appeared as part of our Follow Friday series twice: Education Podcast Network Christopher Nesi After being a listener of the podcast for so long it was kind of surreal to be able to see Chris “in-person” (via video call) and put a face to the name. We chatted… Read More
Back to School Checklist
Welcome to a new school year! At the start and end of each school year I find it helpful to share out the following checklist that was inspired by a practice from when I was a classroom teacher. This checklist is designed to ensure the effective and professional use of various ICT elements and support your growth in the 2022/2023 school year. Please note that not all checklist elements may apply to you depending on your position within the division. The checklist itself has each task hyperlinked which leads to a tutorial or video providing more information on how to complete the… Read More
Follow Along with the MVSD Coordinator of ICT
As I was reviewing my files for the 2022/23 school year I realized that it had been quite some time since I took an opportunity to re-share my socials here on the blog. The social media accounts I maintain on behalf of my professional life are designed to be educational and focus on the use of technology in education (at all levels). At a secondary level, they also serve as an example of how an educator may set-up and utilize social media in a professional capacity. Within these accounts you will find: tech tips to use with students or professionally… Read More
Summer Tech PD
Happy New Year! For those involved in education, fall time is our new year and we are ramping up for the whirlwind that is September. When it comes to the ICT Department, my technicians have been hard at work ALL summer: preforming maintenance on all infrastructure and hardware inventorying and setting up new equipment setting up classrooms As we approach the end of August, we are also preparing for our summer PD series which will include: August 29th – Secretarial PD all building secretaries from across the division Updates to PowerSchool, Office 365, shared calendars, and more August 30th-31st –… Read More
Blogging in the Classroom: A Timeline
*This post has been written as part of my journey as a Ph.D student through University of Regina. Students will undertake a major digital project that involves a) the integration of social media in their teaching practice or b) the integration/development of open educational resources related to their practice. Possible examples might include: the design, implementation, and assessment of an open (or semi-open) student blogging project in the classroom Red Grid Minimalist Monotone Project Progress Timeline Infographic by Kirsten Cali
Critical Reviews of Selected Technology Integration Models
Introduction Educators are ill-equipped to analyze educational technology to determine suitability for their programming. The Covid-19 pandemic, and its resulting influence on educational programming, has accelerated the rate at which educators integrate digital tools into their programming (Nantais, M. et al., 2021, p. 34) but Latchem (2013, p. 384) warns that, “educators need to resist the urge to jump at new ideas without thinking of how its implementation can be maximized, what problems may arise, and how sustainable the tool will be for students down the road”. Johnson, Riel, and Froese-Germain (2016, p. 43.) found that 45% of surveyed Canadian… Read More
EC&I Week 11 – Crash Course
*This post has been written as part of my journey as a Ph.D student through University of Regina. Week 11 Blog Prompt Dive into one particular resource [OER] of reasonable size (e.g., a course, video series, other learning resource) and evaluate the course as a learning resource. Would this be something useful to other educators? What is the overall quality of materials? Is this something that can be easily adopted into others’ educational practice? One of my all time favourite OER has to be the Crash Course channel on YouTube. Founded in December of 2011, Crash Course first appeared here… Read More