Over the last few years, teaching has been changing dramatically. Common core, new devices, new testing have all been driving this change. Many schools are educating students on a GROWTH MINDSET.

When it comes to technology I too often hear teachers say, “I’m just not good with technology.” or “My brain just doesn’t work that way.” We don’t accept this language from our students, yet we use it as professionals.

I recently read an article that digs into ADULTS and the GROWTH MINDSET. Instead of just teaching a growth mindset we SHOULD be MODELS! Reflecting on our own tendencies for a “fixed mindset” will help us to be better models. Embracing new ideas, being willing to take risks, being open to learning ourselves will show students we really do VALUE a growth mindset.

In the education profession we have this fortunate opportunity to end one school year, reflect, refresh and then prepare for the new year ahead. I honestly believe it is through this cycle we better ourselves as professionals and can rise to meet the demands of teaching. As I reflect on this year, these are a few big lessons!

1. We need to be willing to take risks! As I work with teachers the largest barrier is NOT the ideas or EVEN the technology, it is feeling comfortable knowing that your lesson might not go exactly as planned. As teachers and students embrace these risks, they will find some of the greatest opportunities come from the mishaps or the not knowing. We ask this of our students often, but as teachers (control freaks!) we aren’t always comfortable experiencing this for ourselves.

2. Being open to LEARN… Teachers that use technology effectively aren’t “better with technology” they are willing to learn and apply even the most basic skills knowing that it will lead to more growth. People don’t believe me, when I tell them how much I have learned form our Kindergarteners, but truly, we all see things differently and with technology this is a gift. Technology allows and I might say expects us to be willing to see things from multiple angles since there are so many different paths to accomplish a task. As my second graders proudly shared, “We are great at trouble shooting and that is what is most important.”

Which brings me to my next point.

3. Teaching technology is about teaching dispositions.What dispositions do we NEED to develop in students? The two dispositions above would be my starting place, additionally I would say persistence with problem solving and ability to make connections. Teaching a PROGRAM is not teaching technology. Not only do programs change, the programs we use also change.  Building the attributes and viewing technology as a tool to unlock learning is significantly more important than any program. Many people are jumping on the coding bandwagon, but what all of these “coding programs” believe in is developing conceptual understanding of computer science. They will tell you the coding language doesn’t matter, they are changing so frequently, it is the principles of computer science that are valuable.

4. Repetition makes mastery and allows for depth. By repetition I don’t mean drill and kill activities, I mean project based learning that requires students to use technology skills in meaningful and diverse ways. Technology integration has happened when the technology has become invisible. No one talks about how great their colored pencils are, they discuss the merits of the picture created from this tool. Creativity, ingenuity, collaboration can happen when the basics are second nature. If we only spend time in the basics we miss the much larger focus of unlocking the possibilities for learning that can only occur from technology.

5. Seek opportunities that can’t be done with a paper and pencil. In a Science classroom we can discuss the engineering components of a bridge and we can even construct our own bridges. With technology we can go even deeper by video recording our bridge in action, identify flaws in our design after replaying videos, adjusting our bridges and experimenting again. Teachers often look for ways to provide “real world” examples and “authentic experiences”, technology can provide many of these opportunities. Students can have real voice and consider their audience through blogging, research reports can be used to create websites to share this knowledge, mathematical models can be constructed to demonstrate understanding.

As I prepare for next year, my hope is through embracing these ideas we will provide opportunities for students to explore creative endeavors and self expression in authentic ways to connect to our larger world.

My husband will tell you I love to make up words, words that don’t exist but just seem to fit the situation. In fact he has teased me that I shouldn’t be teaching the next generation my made up words!! So when I learned a new term I just had to start using it, APP SMASHING.

App Smashing Defined: The process of using multiple apps in conjunction with one another to complete a final task or project.

This week our first graders got to put this term into action. Based on the idea of Performances of Understanding students got to, “use what they know in new ways or situations to build their understanding.” ALPS Performances of Understanding Article)

1.Students Select An APP: Students demonstrate their understanding of a math fact. Having students select the app is intentional, it builds independence, provides student ownership and encourages students to view technology as a tool to make thinking visible.

2. Screen Shot Thinking: This is the where the iPad becomes more than just a replacement of drawing or modeling on paper!!

3. Time to APP SMASH: Students open Educreations, find the picture they just took in another app, draw and explain their thinking.

The great part about this lesson is that once you have taught these simple skills, students can APP SMASH with any app with very little teaching.

The paradigm of our world and the jobs for tomorrow are radically different than they were 100 years ago. However, when you look into the walls of our classrooms, not much has changed. After teaching for 13 years you KNOW the moments when really thinking and learning is happening. I can tell you that it is not when students are seated in rows and perfectly ordered. Real learning can be messy!

Sugata Mitri, TED talk winner, makes the claim that, “Learning as an emergent phenomenon in a self organizing educational system.” Basically, that learning happens when we are at the edge of chaos. But are we as teachers willing to take that risk? Can we allow students to self organize? What does that even look like?

He says that learning is about intellectual adventures with mediators (that’s us!) asking questions. It all comes down to asking and framing just the RIGHT QUESTION. This is a recurring theme in EVERY professional development I have attended in the last 5 years!

So here is his question for you to consider…How would allowing the internet into the testing environment change they way you teach?

If you want more information about his work visit School in the Cloud or Self Organized Learning (SOLE)

The other day I stumbled on a lesson that ended up demonstrating the power technology can have in deepening student thinking and creating accountability. Using the Socrative tool, I posed one simple multiplication problem for students to answer. Using the Number Talk strategy, students thought about the problem, solved the problem and then went back to their seats to explain their thinking on Socrative. As students finished they came back to the rug, where they could see student answers projected on the screen. I asked students to see what they NOTICED and WONDERED. At the end I asked students to vote on the response that solved the problem in the most efficient and accurate way.*

Students were authentically analyzing student work, finding mathematical mistakes, LEARNING from the mistakes, and developing new ideas for solving this problem. This tool enabled students to think deeply about mathematics in a motivating and meaningful way.

*While I required students to give their name in Socrative, the names were not shown. I did communicate to students the fact that I was leaving it anonymous intentionally so we could focus on the THINKING.