The Fresh Classroom by @PaulKelba

"Nature is the perfect inspiration for truly disruptive innovation. It is where we can find examples of both exquisitely simple, and complex, designs anywhere we turn." Shawn Parr I can confidently proclaim as a educator leading field studies for the past two decades: solitude and joy in nature is by far the best way to deepen students feelings for the natural world. One would assume you should leave the distracting gadgets at school; but, like many things in life, it is imperative to go against convention and mix things up. After a pilot field trip a few years ago with tablets on a field study, I witnessed only positives in regards to student learning and genuine engagement. No matter what size of the journey, here are some ideas of using that tech so students can extend learning.      Enhancing Fieldwork To be able to enter real-time data in the field is key for researchers, a few organizations are making this a priority in schools.  Enhancing Fieldwo...

This years weekly 'outdoor labs' with the grade 9 science class has lead to countless unexpected discoveries and local connections. We spend between an hour and two hours walking from the school to a local park outside the classroom, once there I use every possible teachable moment to visit the core curriculum in science and math. Every year I see the same awful trend: if my activity I deliver is prescriptive, such as a lesson on environmental chemistry (for example, a textbook lab measuring PH of compounds with a variety of tools), the students demonstrate little to low retention of content. Students are inherently interested in the activity due to the introduction of a tool that directly connects with the curriculum but drop interest in minutes as they have little connection with the learning, extrinsic motivation. If the activity is non-prescriptive: take an assignment where students must design a brief survey for another grade 9 class on pollution in their community (...

As a reflection for Edcampyyc I wove the three conversations I attended with my enthusiasm for Project Based Learning (PBL in this post). Session 1 Moving Beyond Grades PBL is a key activity in respect to moving beyond grades or as  @joe_bower  puts it: "grades are an artificial inducement for teachers to get students to do what they want them to do."  Standardized test preparation does not need to appear to go "out the window." It can be formative assessment embedded effectively into the PBL itself. Use the stems to create your own and as Bower simply put it (quotes from my tweets): "Formative assessment tells us sts should not judge successes/fail BUT use it as information" @ joe_bower now lobbing grade grenades @ # edcampyyc Session 2 Open and Connected Learning @courosa  supplied the youtube eye candy, leading us to conclude open and connected learning can easily transcend a classroom to a level it can never return back to. This d...

The Urban School of San Francisco  on the corner of Haight and Ashbury street is such an impressive locale and structure, one could easily settle that its location is the focal point of the school's vision. It was anything but that. There is a mindful edge, to what seems, everything about this place. Sitting through classes and bearing witness to a feel of the school, it is fair to say 'Urban', as referred to by the faculty is a glimpse of everything hopeful in education. What constitutes a feel of a school? Some highlights: It's a simple concept, they walk their talk . Administrator Kristen Bailey explains at Urban, high school is an important experience in its own right, not merely a stepping stone to college. By far a concept that is so easily diluted in marketing paraphernalia; however, one can easily conclude this school embraces the moment within students. Their core values  are apparent in the air of self-motivation within a regular class. "...

My classroom is not as fun as is used to be. I am keenly aware of the reason why, alternating two content delivery styles this year in my grade 9 science/math classes: Project-based for a month, then clearly defined activities and quiz's for another. This begs the question: Does a classroom where enjoyment is not readily apparent, correlate to the level of student learning? I have found (as many do) when I cover the curriculum with textbook work and online activities/reports, I can be entirely accountable to covering all expectations in the curriculum. The downfall is the classroom becomes less enjoyable when sacrificing the carnival-like atmosphere of experiential learning...it's a case of messy (experiential) vs. smooth (coverage). Time for a head shake and forward-thinking. I presently find myself in the cog of our mechanic schooling system, fraught with a student-teacher disconnect, lack of engagement and a culture of 'tough love'. Meaning the cruel...

Recently I was privileged to present at two conferences during the same weekend, the view I had of professional development was one of curious delight. One gathering, 12000 educators strong, is two days of inspirational educational keynotes (Sir Ken Robinson, Pasi Sahlberg) while the other was two dozen educators with two local educational heroes speaking, while the rest of the sessions the attendees were charged with generating the synergy. Although they appear on opposite sides of the spectrum, the two formats solidified my belief that professional development does not work if a culture is received.  At the large PD gathering, CCTCA , the passive lecture I had prepared went well. The audience was clearly keen on sitting and listening so I talked away. The feedback was positive but no one other than the speaker had any chance to contribute to the session. I have found this creates a dialectic of quickly forgetting key points and noting down resources to be filed away who ...

As buzz words go in education, the 'blended learning' model has been steadily increasing as an accepted delivery within classroom education. Blended learning, a challenge to teacher-centered classrooms, is no more technical than it sounds, basically encompassing a fluid use of face-to-face, on-line and group collaboration of some sort. Outdoor education is a powerful example of experiential learning that is far too often compartmentalized as extra curricular. Praised by many; however, its value localized with wellness and character building.  As ironic as it seems, outdoor and experiential education stands to benefit by the current integration of   technology. Teachers concerned with blending the classroom , as Cailin Tucker recently explained in a recent NPR article: "are using technology to replace elements of in-class instruction, classroom time can be leveraged to deepen learning. [Teachers] can embrace project-based learning and create student-cen...