Now that NECC is over and I've had a little time to absorb and reflect on some of the sessions I was able to attend, I've been following up with some of the information I gathered.
One of the sessions was about 21st Century Learners by Ian Jukes. Jukes has a great website called the Committed Sardine. If you want to know more about that, I'll let you do the search, it's not difficult to find. He is a powerful, interesting and energetic speaker to say the least. I must thank Jim for the recommendation.
Through his website I came across the following video that I think, without a question, is worth a view. A reminder that if we need our students to WANT to attend school, we have to make some changes in how we teach. And that alone can make a huge difference in their learning.
Keywords: Committed Sardine, Ian Jukes, NECC
Posted by Arlene Anderson
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Comments
Oh, and about the movie...
I totally agree and am often frustrated by how little time I have to turn my lessons around to an Understanding by Design (Wiggins) format. It's clear that students aren't learning very well with the "traditional approach." Walk into any staff room during lunch and you can hear vent after vent of how difficult it is to get the point across. It's a clear sign that the vehicle for learning needs to change.
I'm a firm believer in project based learning. I'd love to see some professional development this year on that topic. I think teachers need to start first by learning how to work backward and structure meaningful learning experiences where students learn by doing, then bring in the technology as a tool to facilitate those experiences not to be the focal point.