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. One of the projects I was excited to undertake when I took on this role was curating our divisional social media pages. The purpose of this project was: – to help build community– to assist with effective and appropriate use of these platforms– to establish some level of consistency in regard to messaging While our official numbers fluctuate every year due to staffing changes, we are currently over 60 accounts across various social media… Read More
WOW Wednesday – MVSD Staff
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. It is the first day of school with students and we are running at full capacity across the division! Naturally, our first WOW Wednesday has to highlight ALL of our divisional staff. When it comes to the world of ed tech, a big change that affects all of our staff from K-12 is in response to an… 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 flyers placed in staff washroom facilities. Depending on the month these may include: Not only do these flyers 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 is a peek at the new “tissue” hitting stalls this week! With it being the start… Read More
September 2024 ICT Newsletter
Welcome back to school! 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. September 2024 ICT Newsletter by Kirsten Cali
MVSD Back-to-School ICT Checklist 2024
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 2024/2025 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
August plays host to our prep period at Division Office; a time where we increase our outreach to staff and (re)share the ways in which our portfolios can assist them in their unique teaching context. For myself, that includes sharing the various ways in which I attempt to reach staff, which includes social media. 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… Read More
Summer 2024 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: As we approach the end of August, we are also preparing for our summer PD series which will include: This is a busy week for everyone across the division but it is one marked by enthusiasm and a sense of renewal. I always look forward to welcoming people back, catching up, and learning about how my department can support… Read More
ICT Team Overview 23/24
I have officially finished my 5th year here at MVSD as Coordinator of ICT. Given the placement of the maternity leaves of my two children, this is the longest single stretch of employment for myself in the field of education and I am incredibly thankful for the role that I have. I have been able to work alongside the same ICT team since I joined the division and my enjoyment in this role has a lot to do with the strength of this group. We are continuing to add new initiatives (esports, data literacy, increased infrastructure, etc) and this group ensures… Read More
#TechTipTuesday – Summer Holiday Tech Prep
On Tuesdays, 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. It is the LAST week of our End-of-Year Checklist series. If you are jumping in now, you can check out the previous posts: Here in MVSD, the remaining items on our formal checklist are almost exclusively internal reminders for our staff. These include things like what to do with their devices if they are heading into a leave of absence (LOA) or changing roles, how building renovation schedules may affect tech access/storage in their spaces,… Read More
Time to Recharge
On Mondays, I share a different ed tech quote on our Thompson Classroom social media pages for our staff to consider. Guess what!? Today is the LAST Monday of the 2024/25 school year! This time of year is always chaotic for those in education. When I shared this graphic last year I commented on the fact that the spring of 2023 had been a challenging one for our communities. At the risk of coming across as a “Debbie Downer”, 2024 has also not been easy. Our school division has been highlighted in various media outlets throughout the spring such as: While I… Read More