This year we lost an English teacher because our student numbers are down. Part of the reason that this is happening is that students have the opportunity to take English classes during the summer and online. They are taking advantage of early college and dual enrollment in order to get college credits during high school. At lunch recently, we had …
Many people are discussing the changes that are happening in education toward a more relevant, personal learning system. Some believe that this push to make learning more interesting and engaging for students will stunt their ability to persist when they have to do more rote boring tasks that are inevitable in the realities of the world and their futures. Laura …
What is the connection between personal learning and transferable skills like collaboration and groupwork? Since I just taught a class on groupwork and Vermont is working towards more personal learning, I have been getting this question from many educators. There seems to be a misconception that personal learning is somehow individual learning. There are many images of “personalized” learning where …
If you still think social media is just a frivolous way to waste hours of time, think again. There are many meaningful ways that social media is being used in education. I still waste a lot of time of Facebook, but here are three ways I’m not wasting time on social media. Connect A couple of years ago, I began …
The “Selfie” Mindset If you have ever seen yourself on video, you know how uncomfortable it can be. This discomfort is a very efficient way to make change. All the behaviors, gestures, tones, words that were never noticeable to you all of a sudden become clearer than a freshly washed window. In his book Focus on Teaching, Jim Knight argues …
Last year, I read Chip and Dan Heath’s book Switch and in chapter 2 they discuss the idea of using “bright spots” to make sustainable change occur. This also reminded me of a strengths based approach to change where the focus is to build on strengths in order to effect change. As I visited schools this year, these ideas kept coming up …
My early experiences in math were uneventful. I played with manipulatives and talked about math but I didn’t know I was doing math or developing mathematical thoughts. If anything, I was ambiguous about the subject of math because it just seemed a part of the world and I didn’t connect it to the title of “math”. Once I entered public …
This time last year, I had just returned from my induction into the the Rowland fellowship. It was the first time that someone had given me full autonomy for my professional learning and it felt amazing. I was so grateful. I set out to inquire about how Enosburg Falls High School could implement ACT 77 in a way that was …
When I wrote my Rowland fellowship proposal a little over a year ago, my main concern was to make sure that mandated personal learning plans didn’t become another superficial piece of paper that had little meaning for students. Over the past year, I have made a lot of discoveries and confirmations. I think the number one issue that has taken …
What does it mean to be “smart” at math? Traditionally, one who is fast at math is good at math or smart at math. If it comes easily that is considered a good thing. I recently visited several schools that are communicating a different message about math. I also attended the Creating Balance in an Unjust World Conference at one …