On Mondays, I share a different ed tech quote on our Thompson Classroom social media pages for our staff to consider. As we progress through Cyber Security Awareness month I want to continually remind both staff and students about the importance of strong passwords. This will be a topic we continue tomorrow as part of this week’s Tech Tip Tuesday. I thought it would be fun to ask BYTE AI about passwords. The provided prompt was, “How can teachers help students when it comes to secure password development?”, and the response included: Great question! Teachers play a crucial role in helping students develop secure… Read More
Follow Friday – ManACE
On Fridays, 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. ManACE is a provincial organization that I have been involved with since 2013 when I was invited to join as a board member. Since that time, I have been involved with a variety of ManACE initiatives, including multiple terms as president. In the 2024/25 school year I am honoured to be advising in the role of past-president and am very excited to see what fun things the group takes on this year! To learn… Read More
October 2024 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: These newsletters are sent out to staff via our divisional email but are also shared through our social media pages and divisional website. October 2024 ICT Newsletter by Kirsten Cali
#TechTipTuesday – Indigenous Education Framework Supports
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. In 2019, MVSD launched their Indigenous Education Framework: “The guiding principle of this Framework is to ensure that First Nations, Metis and Inuit students in Mountain View School Division will know who they are, where they come from, and where they are going. Traditional ways of knowing will be honoured and through this, their strengths and gifts will be discovered. Students will be empowered to become socially conscious environmental stewards and to be contributing citizens of… Read More
Follow Friday – MAETL
On Fridays, 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. MAETL is a provincial organization that I have been involved with since I started my role as Coordinator of ICT in 2019. Since that time, I participated in their monthly professional development and business meetings, served as vice-president, president for two terms, and am now advising in the role of past-president. Their website describes MAETL as: “MAETL (Manitoba Association of Educational Technology Leaders) (formerly CECM – Computer Education Coordinators of Manitoba) was created in… Read More
WOW Wednesday – Paul Barkman
On Wednesdays, I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Every day 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. This week I would like to highlight Paul Barkman from Gilbert Plains Collegiate. As MVSD continues to grow its eSports offerings at all grades, Paul is undertaking a big project by being the first teacher in our division to offer the Gaming Concepts curriculum. While our other eSports programs run as part of the MSEA league, or… Read More
#TechTipTuesday – Microsoft Educator Center
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 MVSD being a Microsoft EDU division, one of the reminders I send out every September focuses on the Microsoft Educator Center (aka Microsoft Learn). This is a FREE online community platform in which educators can participate in Microsoft-based professional development, connect with other educators, access virtual field trips, find shared resources and more! With so many topics to choose from, this is one of my go-to resources to share with educators who are looking for support in the… Read More
You Don’t Need To Do It All
On Mondays, I share a different ed tech quote on our Thompson Classroom social media pages for our staff to consider. I’ve always been a big believer in doing a few things well as opposed to taking on too many things and not being able to fully commit. There is a huge pressure in the tech industry, with ed tech being no exception, that there is always something, “bigger/better/newer”. While this can be exciting, jumping to something new all the time in education can lead to frustration for both teachers and students (this also extends to families). Before implementing a new tech… Read More
Follow Friday – Manitoba Scholastic ESports Association (MSEA)
On Fridays, 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. With this month playing host to National Video Games Day I thought it was only fitting to showcase the Manitoba School eSports Association (MSEA) for this week’s Follow Friday. ” Manitoba School Esports Association is a not-for-profit organization committed to connecting, informing, and supporting competitive gaming in schools across Manitoba. MSEA is an amalgamation of the former MYEMB (Middle Years Esport Manitoba) and MHSeA (Manitoba High School eSports Association). With the expansion of esports in Manitoba, MSEA was developed to… Read More
National Video Games Day
Did you know that Manitoba is a Canadian leader when it comes to eSports? eSports (electronic sports) involves competition using video games and MVSD currently has an eSports presence at 7 of our 16 buildings (hoping to grow to 10 this year). Today’s post has put together a trove of resources including: Why eSports? eSports PD for Educators There are some great PD opportunities coming up over the next 6 weeks! These podcast episodes were specifically curated to showcase the world of eSports within Manitoba schools : Microsoft eSports Teacher Academy (META) “New to esports? Microsoft Esports Teacher Academy (META) teaches… Read More