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Showing posts from October, 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...
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#84: What's Good for the Goose: Personalized PD Pathways

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Have you ever heard the saying that teachers are the worst students? As a teacher who participates in professional development and as a leader who designs and implements professional development (PD), I can attest to the accuracy of this statement. I will fully admit that I am guilty of doing the following during PD time, Designing lessons Grading papers Checking emails Daydreaming Wondering "why am I learning this?" Thinking about all of the other things I could be doing with this time Participating in totally-unrelated activities Sounds familiar? Based on the number of laptop screens that I saw at my last PD session, I think most, if not all of you, can probably relate.  It is time that we rethink the way we approach professional development. If one-size-fits-all doesn't work for our students, why do we continue to think it will work for adults? Last year our admin team was really excited to launch cross-departmental professional learning teams focused on developing SE...
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#83: Equity in Grading: Fostering Intrinsic Motivation

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This is Part 4 in a series on grading and equity.  Throughout this series, I will explore ways we can improve grading practices to increase student achievement and well-being.  Thank you for joining me for this series! This is the last post in a series tackling one of the most emotionally-charged topics in education, grading.  As we enter into a learning space together, I am going to ask that we keep the following presuppositions in mind: We can learn from others even when we disagree with them. The best interest of our students is at the center of our decision-making.  It is possible to agree with something in principle but struggle with what it looks like in practice. Change is not always a bad word. However, meaningful change must be grounded in research not common sense or intuition.  In this post, we will examine how practices like mastery learning, late work policies, and retaking summatives can impact a student's level of motivation. Let's Talk About Moti...
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#82: Equity in Grading: We Don't Talk About Zeros

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This is Part 3 in a series on grading and equity.  Throughout this series, I will explore ways we can improve grading practices to increase student achievement and well-being.  Thank you for joining me for this series! This is the 3rd post in a 4-Part series tackling one of the most emotionally-charged topics in education, grading.  As we enter into a learning space together, I am going to ask that we keep the following presuppositions in mind: We can learn from others even when we disagree with them. The best interest of our students is at the center of our decision-making.  It is possible to agree with something in principle but struggle with what it looks like in practice. Change is not always a bad word. However, meaningful change must be grounded in research not common sense or intuition.  See if you can answer the following riddle: I am worthless as a leader, but when I follow a group their strength increases tenfold. By myself I am practically nothing, ne...
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