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Mindful that the digital conversion moves to the 7th grade next year, 6th grade teachers at Windsor Mill Middle School shared their year-long experience and insight via a World Café during a faculty professional development. Teams gathered at color-coded tables hosted by the 6th grade veterans. Teachers brainstormed responses to questions via a communal ‘table cloth.’ The prompts asked teachers to consider the major shifts they anticipated for a 1-1 Learner-Centered Environment with regard to device management, room set-up, behavior management and establishing classroom expectations. Teachers also pondered how technology can be used to enhance instruction and not lead instruction. Teams talked and talked, then talked some more, and came away wiser, with tools and understandings to continue the work.
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The Mid-Atlantic Conference on Professional Learning visited Windsor Mill Middle School to study the day-to-day workings of a Lighthouse School immersed in the one-to one digital conversion. Over 50 participants from Florida to Vermont arrived early in the morning to benefit from the hard-won wisdom of the BCPS offices involved in the transformation in learning. A highlight of the day was the Learning Walks when visitors observed the use of formative assessments, targeted small-group instruction, customized and personalized learning, and student collaboration in the classroom. Teachers and students alike were delighted to hear the feedback that reflected a common theme: “Love the hands-on inquiry and level of student engagement” wrote one visiting teacher, “and a culture that promotes deep thinking.”
During the darkest months of winter, Windsor Mill Middle School’s Lighthouse Room lived up to its name as a beacon for learning. In February, teachers gathered with the offices of Curriculum and Instruction and Digital Learning to delve deeply into the art and science of designing powerful instruction that infused the purposeful use of technology. S.T.A.T Resource Teacher, Sandra Schmidt coordinated the two-day in-house professional development, bringing in content-area and technology experts to plan lessons with teachers from 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. Social Studies Department Chair, Richard Kline, said it was “beneficial to have the opportunity to work with both our content area experts and the Office of Digital Learning.” And indeed, the collaborations proved successful. Teams created lessons that melded Newton’s Laws of Motion and Pirate Ships; asked how Civil War technology changed the course of the war; and examined the connection between India’s Independence movement and self-actualization.
Google Expeditions brought the world to Windsor Mill using only cardboard glasses and a phone. Google and its Expeditions program, a virtual reality platform, travel the globe visiting classrooms and allowing students to immerse themselves in panoramic journeys from the bottom of the ocean to Curiosity’s trek across Mars. Students at Windsor Mill spent the day traversing continents to ancient monuments, diving into kelp forests, and flying to the dark side of the moon. Every student had his or her own favorite journey, but without a doubt, the question on everyone’s lips at the end of the day was, can we do this again tomorrow?
As with any new initiative, especially one involving loads of technology, there are bound to be problems that arise. So how do teachers and students deal with these unexpected issues? Recently, 5th grader Kelsey Annis shared, “The track pad on my device was not working well for a while, and then one day my device just wouldn’t turn on at all. I let my teacher know, and after we tried to charge it with a different charger and she checked the battery, she sent it out to have it fixed and I got a loaner. I got my own device back a few weeks later and it is working well.”
At Rodgers Forge Elementary, teachers notify the school’s tech team of a problem using an online technology request form. The request is usually acknowledged within that school day, and it is handled by the Daly representative or one of the school’s tech liaisons. “We usually have about 2-3 issues to handle on any given day,” says Rodgers Forge STAT teacher, Jen Piet. “Most are easy fixes that require basic troubleshooting. For others that need additional repairs, I submit a help desk ticket in order to have it fixed.” A recurring problem over the past few months has been general day to day issues that have arisen with the BCPSOne learning platform. At times students are given an error message and can’t even log in, while other times teachers cannot log in to a specific portion of the platform to access curriculum, assignments, etc. This can sometimes be resolved by using a different web browser or simply closing out the program and logging back in. Other times, teachers and student have expressed frustration and have had to find another way to complete the activity on the spot. Second grade teacher Beth Siuta commented, “While I feel that BCPSOne is a forward thinking platform, it certainly has had growing pains this year as more teachers and students are using it. There have been times I cannot access the curriculum which is frustrating since we no longer have hard copies. The students have also had days when they could not access their lesson tiles, so activities and lessons had to be changed at the last minute. I have learned to always have a back-up plan.” BCPS appears to be committed to improving and fixes these bugs as they are brought to their attention. Fifth grade, Nora Sevidal, stated, “Even though the devices have problems sometimes, they still are really helpful as a tool to help us learn and understand new things in a fun and engaging way.” Submitted by Alijah Lewis - 1st Grade Student & Jessica Whorton - S.T.A.T. Teacher, Church Lane Elementary Church Lane first graders were excited to explore with their devices and how it can enhance their learning. Alijah Lewis shares his story and what he likes about the devices. Submitted by Lydia Hamilton - 5th Grade Student & Katie Schmidt - 5th Grade Teacher, Rodgers Forge Elementary Fifth grade students (along with Kindergarteners and fourth graders) did not receive the devices for this school year. Does this mean they aren’t using as much technology in the classrooms in our Lighthouse Schools as students in other grades? Check out what Rodgers Forge 5th grader Lydia Hamilton has to say about her experience this year! Submitted by Doug Elmendorf
Principal, Chase Elementary This post originally appeared in EdTechReview “We finally get to have a computer or device for ourselves” is what one of our third grade students said when interviewed by our school system’s TV station. It was not only the first day of school for students at Chase Elementary, it was also the first day of a 1:1 device environment for all students in grades 1-3. At the end of the 2013-2014 school year, our school was one of ten Lighthouse Schools selected to “pilot interactive and blended instruction as a model demonstration site” as part of the Students and Teachers Accessing Tomorrow (S.T.A.T.) initiative (www.bcps.org). While our primary foci in this initiative are curriculum and pedagogy, on day one, all eyes were on 6-8 year old children and the HP Revolves that each of them received a few hours after summer break came to an end. Despite the TV cameras, boom mics, and temps over 90 degrees in classrooms, our first day in a 1:1 environment was quite successful. Success, in this case, was demonstrated by students’ ability to log on to and manipulate their devices to participate in meaningful learning activities. This initial positive and rewarding experience was important as it propelled us forward in our effort to provide learner-centered instructional environments for ALL students in our schoolhouse. We attribute our success to three essential factors. Teachers understood WHY we are doing this – We have laid the groundwork and explored the “why” behind this initiative before it was ever introduced. At Chase, teachers understand that we aren’t going to help students prepare for jobs of tomorrow by teaching with methods of yesterday. High quality technical assistance was available – The school district’s leadership had the foresight to make sure high quality technical experts were in place to troubleshoot device concerns, when they came about, in a manner that was quick, effective and built the capacity of our staff to troubleshoot their own issues in the future. Our parents and community partners “get it” – Monthly “Coffee & Conversation” meetings with parents, ongoing communication via social media outlets, newsletters, and face-to-face meetings have helped parents to understand the “why” behind this initiative, much like our teachers have as described in #1. The following video, produced by BCPS-TV, shows how all of our stakeholders embraced this essential move forward in providing our students with the skills necessary to be successful in the 21st century. http://vimeo.com/105134212 Here are some of the glimpses: Submitted by Rachel Pfister S.T.A.T. Teacher, Fort Garrison Elementary Fort Garrison staff explore the question, "Why 1:1?" Submitted by Jen Piet S.T.A.T. Teacher, Rodgers Forge Elementary Rodgers Forge teachers explore the question, "Why 1:1?" |
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