Connected Educator Unconference - iTunes U

I chose this session because iTunes U is something I don’t know very much about. We have the app on our iPads, but I’m pretty sure nobody at my school has used it yet. I knew that there were lots of resources for lessons, but really didn’t understand the magnitude of free help available to teachers using this app.

The session was presented by Rebecca Wildman, a fourth grade teacher at Boyne City Elementary School in Boyne City, MI. Rebecca is recognized nationally for creating engaging and comprehensive iTunes U courses aligned to the Common Core in the area of English Language Arts. The 75 minute session wasn’t nearly long enough, and I wish I could spend more time learning with Rebecca. I’d highly recommend following her on Twitter.

Rebecca showed us some courses in iTunes U. Since she teaches the fourth grade, her courses are more like units. They include a few weeks of work on one topic. When you create a unit you can write your own lessons and presentations or search and use those created by other teachers. You can change and update the content at any time. If you are using videos, books, or other materials that need to be downloaded it is a good idea to have the students do that all at once. Then they can use the course without being dependent on the Internet.

Boyne City Elementary is a one-to-one iPad school, and they are lucky enough to have a strong infrastructure and lots of teacher resources. They also have bought online books for their courses and are using them in the place of textbooks.

After working together to learn how to care for the iPads Rebecca lets her students take them home. Even if they don’t have the Internet at home, her students can access the content. And the great thing is that they can do so with their parents. One part of one of her lessons included having the student read the lesson with a parent (grandparent, older sibling, babysitter, etc.) and snap a photo of themselves doing so. They email the photo to Rebecca to show that they’ve done the lesson.

Students can type their work and email it to the teacher. But they are still able to use pencil and paper if they are more comfortable with that way of doing things. If a student forgets or misuses their iPad they are required to use paper and pencil for their work.

We looked more closely at two units during the session. One was on the Solar System and one was on nonfiction, using the Titanic as a research subject. Both were packed with interesting materials including books to read, videos, documents, images, web links, and apps. Students can use the materials over and over again to strengthen their understanding and knowledge. This frees the teacher to work more closely with small groups or individuals.

We didn’t have time to get into the actual creation of a unit, and I’m sure it took Rebecca some time to put these together. But once they are finished she will have them forever and they can easily be tailored to the needs of her current class.

Rebecca feels strongly that teachers should share ideas and content with each other for free. You can learn more about the way she uses iTunes U at the iPad in Education website.  And if you are ready to dive in, going to the iTunes U catalog and finding courses appropriate to your curriculum is certainly a place to start.

Connected Educator Unconference - Building a PLN

The first session I attended at the Connected Educator Unconference was about building a Personal Learning Network. I am nearing the end of my teaching career, but lifelong learning has always been an important goal of mine, so this session intrigued me. I’ve dabbled in Twitter for the past couple of years. In fact, I think it was instrumental in getting my money returned when my bank card was used fraudulently. But I knew there were ways to use it more effectively, and was ready to dive in.

The session was presented by John Bernia, a middle school principal from Lake Orion. I’d advise starting your PLN by following him on Twitter. He is very passionate about making his school the best place to learn and has lots of great ideas. And his commitment stretches beyond his school. His introduction stated that he is “striving to make the world a better place, one day at a time.” John is a Ph. D. student at Oakland University, and co-founder of EdcampOU and AdmincampMI. He  is also the co-moderator of #edfocuschat on Twitter, a monthly opportunity for educators to connect with authors.

The session started with John making the statement that Twitter is the best professional development tool that we have today. By the end of the session I believed him. His reasons were as follows:

1. Twitter is free.
2. You can access it quickly.
3. It's available on phones, tablets, and computers.
4. It's available 24/7.
5. It connects us to other professionals. 
6. It connects us to resources.
7. You can control your own learning.
8. It develops your digital footprint.
9. It helps you grow professionally.
10. You can use it to recognize students and staff.
11. You can collaborate with other educators.
12. You can find resources to pass along to other staff members.
13. You can talk with authors and/or experts in any field. 

I’ve heard people say that they are too busy to start using Twitter, and as a former classroom teacher I really understand. But those 140 character posts are gold mines. You just need to know how to know how to pan for the gold. And it is really easy.

One important step in using Twitter for professional development is the effective use of hashtags. This page lists some common hashtags used by educators. Searching for them and using them in your posts will bring you closer to people in your field all around the world who want to share ideas.

There are also Twitter “chats”. These are times when people get together and talk about topics of interest. Checking some of the hashtags will let you know when chats are happening. You can just read until you feel comfortable, but I'd suggest jumping in and posting. These people are just as interested in your ideas as you are in theirs.

John told us about the time he wanted a new perspective about a chemistry lesson he was teaching. He went on Twitter and asked if anybody had any ideas about the topic. Within a short time he received an answer from an educator in another country (Australia, if I remember it correctly). He ended up conversing back and forth with this teacher and eventually began counting him as a friend. Talk about having the world at your fingertips!

I had a great experience with Twitter when I missed the MACUL Conference due to illness. The links I found at the #macul14 hashtag led me to blogs, videos, and ideas that I would not have had the opportunity to explore. I started following some of the people who were using that hashtag to begin my own Personal Learning Network.

The presenters at the conference did not recommend using the normal Twitter interface. They suggested Tweetdeck (or Hootsuite for mobile devices). Using Tweetdeck allows you to view posts across several hashtags, each in a separate column. I set up a column for #connectededu, the hashtag that people at the conference were using, and immediately was able to see what people in other sessions were talking about. People are still posting ideas and comments using the #macul14 hashtag so I have that in a column as well, along with #edchat and #edtech. One column is just my Twitter home feed where my non-educator friends post. Twitter is fluid, and I'll probably be changing these columns many times as my needs change. 

This conference made it clear that Twitter is not about what you had for lunch. It's about collaboration and learning. And I'm sure there are other uses that I haven't discovered yet. I'd advise all educators to give it a try.