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Showing posts from April, 2022

101. The Transformative Power of AI

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Folks, let’s face it. Our classrooms are going to look a little different this year. AI, specifically ChatGPT, is going to change the way we design learning experiences and assess student mastery. I’ll be honest, when I first explored the ChatGPT platform I was terrified. As I have dug deeper into the technology and its capabilities, I realized that while it does pose significant challenges — it also presents us with some pretty amazing opportunities. In this series, we will explore what AI is capable of, its implications in the classroom, and how it can benefit both teachers and students. Let’s start by examining where we have been, where we are currently, and looking forward to where we are going. Whether this is a trip you wanted to go on or not, the AI train has left the station and it is time for all of us to jump on board. From Card Catalogs to Artificial Intelligence I belong to the micro-generation called Xennial. Xennials are considered to be a “bridge” between Generation X a...

#71: Student Well-Being: Culturally Responsive Teaching & Learning

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This is PART 3 in a series on student well-being. Throughout this series, I will explore what recent research has revealed about ways to create an environment in which all students can thrive. For this series, I will be diving into my file of half-written articles and dust-covered books to learn more about topics like mastery learning , youth mental health, culturally responsive education, culturally proficient SEL, the psychology of learning, the use of praise, equity in grading, and universal design of learning. "It's important to meet people where they are, not where you would like them to be." - Arlette Watwood Culturally Responsive Teaching Culturally responsive teaching is a framework designed to accelerate the learning of all learners by connecting students’ cultures, languages, and life experiences with what they learn in school. These connections help students access rigorous curriculum and develop higher-level academic skills. Culturally responsive teaching is...

#70. Student Well-Being: Youth Mental Health First Aid

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This is PART 2 in a series on student well-being. Throughout this series, I will explore what recent research reveals about ways to create an environment in which all students can thrive. One of the reasons that I really value writing this blog is because it forces me to examine the "why" behind what I do professionally. As educators, we rarely have the time (or energy) to stop and think about why we do what we do. We are overwhelmed by the everyday demands of teaching; lesson planning, instruction, remediation, grading, etc to really take the time to dive into educational research. I have piles of books and articles and a queue of podcasts that got sidelined while life happened. For this series, I will be diving into my file of half-written articles and dust-covered books to learn more about topics like mastery learning , youth mental health, culturally responsive education, culturally proficient SEL, the psychology of learning, equity, and universal design of learning. I...