Edina Digital Age Learning

Mark Edwards , Superintendent from Mooresville, North Carolina spoke about Digital Conversion and how his district has transformed learning at COSN15 . They have done this and maintained a #1 ranking in academic results in the state. His book, Thank You For Your Leadership, details more. Here are my notes: Why Digital Conversion? Moral imperative No textbook in 6 years Equity-All students need access Implications Precision-Detailed Intervention Teachers and students have more information about their own learning Competency is evolutional Teachers that were star teachers 5 years ago, if they haven't grown are not as relevant. Creativity and relevance drive productivity Students are making things to demonstrate learning Mashing up Connectivity and collaboration "hum" Teachers are "Learning Conductors!"  Personalization Students understand it is about them Second Order Leadership Abundant-Custodians and bus drivers can be great le...

Carl Hooker spoke on Analog Leaders in a Digital World. Among other accomplishments, Carl developed the " SAMR Swimming Pool " Model, and I was excited to get a chance to meet him.  Bridget Driscoll,  the first person hit by a car, said she was bewildered by innovation. Do we want to be the ones driving or the ones hit by technology? When it comes to learning, these things are changing about learning: Who What When Where Who (Sorry, I was late to the session. If anyone wants to share this part in the comments below, that would be awesome!) What Analog: Published by experts Digital: Currated by everyone in the room Hooker noted how news has changed from waiting till the paper edition the next day to seeing news happen in real time on Twitter now. The same is true in education today, where CK-12, iTunes U and OER Commons are available now, rather than paying for a textbook that is out-of-date the day it's published. Not only will teachers be creating t...

Today to close out our Action Team Leadership training, our Superintendent, Ric Dressen shared this video. Given that today is Leadership Day , I thought it appropriate to share. Even though it's a commercial, I hope to take the message with me as I begin this new school year! Be Remarkable!!

I had the honor and pleasure of presenting at the 2012 TIES Technical Leadership Conference last Thursday. As the presentation unfolded, I added some anecdotes, and participants had good questions about balance and "what about the Introverts?" I have updated the slides to address this.  It's interesting that even though this presentation is 5 days old, I find myself thinking about how I can improve it! It's something teachers often think about in regards to lectures that we give, but I wonder what it would be like and we turned it around for students? Obviously, at some point there has to be a "summative" but what if you said to kids, "you are free to keep following the passion and exploring"? I'll continue to add notes, and link to what I'm referencing. As always, I appreciate your feedback!