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BYODCTO/CIOCybersecurityEducational TrendsLeadershipProfessional Learning

Should Voice Assistants be Banned?

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

Based on several comments on a previous blog post, Alexa: Your New Teacher Assistant, along with a few questions I’ve received via email, it seems there is a definite knee-jerk reaction by some districts to incorporating voice assistants in classrooms. While voice assistants are new technology and evolving quickly, I don’t think that necessarily makes them dangerous despite the recent scare with the Alexa emailing a recording to a person on a connected contact list. In all reality, stories like that one should reinforce the need for what most schools are already doing: providing training in the effective use of technology for educational purposes.

Responding to New Ideas with New Policies

When I look at some of the knee-jerk reactions that have taken place, it seems very reminiscent of when BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) was being praised (or scrutinized) in districts across the nation within the last decade. Those that accepted BYOD as a viable environment within classrooms thought through making sure their networks were secure, reviewing their policies, procedures, and practices, and even tailoring professional development to help teachers understand how to have BYOD in their classrooms. Districts put together their list of best practices, had open discussions with teachers, principals, and parents, and recognized that some educators may need more time before they can confidently support students in a BYOD environment.

Join the Conversation

I think we should approach voice assistants in the classroom in the same manner. Regardless of whether we use Google, Amazon, or Apple, or some other off-brand that pops up, we need to make sure that good thinking precedes it and lays the foundation for why we are doing what we do and how we do it. Since I’m guessing that voice assistants aren’t going away, it would behoove us to be part of the conversation that helps develop this technology to be valuable to education. Instead of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, consider having open meetings to discuss uses of AI devices, their connection to the curriculum, and how they can be incorporated in meaningful ways. If we don’t encourage students to evaluate the information they receive based on its credibility, authorship, or accuracy, then we have shortchanged our students and only provided a newer, trendy way of mindlessly copying/pasting information.

When I was an Instructional Technology Director, I was frequently frustrated by the technical side of the house. It seemed like they just wanted to say no to everything. Once I realized that was an asset and their perspective was really to provide as safe of an environment as possible, it became easier for me to change my communication from, “This is what I think we should do.” to “This is what I think we should allow our teachers and students to do. How can we do that in a way that is safe?” If you are in a campus or district and find yourself in a similar situation of being surrounded by those that don’t want to change (no matter what the change is), consider approaching them from this perspective.

Share Your Expertise

Are you already using voice assistants in your office or classroom (even secretly)? Let us know what you see as the pros and cons of the technology. What would be your recommendation to a teacher wanting to jump in and run with it? What advice would you give that would hopefully be useful not just for this technology but for future technology yet to be conceived? Remember, at the end of the day, it’s not really about the device.

If you are a technology director (or a technology director wannabe), we’ll be starting a new cohort in September with our Technology/IT Director Certification where you will find helpful live webinars and online courses to keep you current and help you stay ahead of the curve. Let us know if you are interested or if you have any questions.

 

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napkin pd
Google Tips and TricksProfessional Learning

Napkin PD: Transform Learning with Google Tools

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Teachers often struggle during professional development sessions, wondering how to make connections between how-to at the workshop and classroom learning. Diana Benner, Peggy Reimers, and I did some napkin PD planning and came up with a solution. Here’s a chance to get hands-on Google experience with six different project stations that offer the opportunity to explore lesser-known Google tools. These tools enhance critical thinking, communication, creativity, and collaboration.

napkinpd

Developing PD on a napkin with Diana Benner, Peggy Reimers, and Miguel Guhlin. Let’s explore these ideas in more detail.

Essential Elements

Before we jump into the project stations, let’s review a few components common to each. Each project station includes three components:

  • Explore
  • Adapt/Create
  • Share

In the Explore portion, participants develop background knowledge in the key concept shared. In the Adapt/Create, they make connections between their own experiences as learners. Two ways to accomplish this include adapting an existing work in light of new information. The second way is to create a new product. After they create or adapt, they share that online with a global audience. An additional component is listing what Google tools will be used.

Project Station #1: Inquiry-Based Learning Developers

In this station, participants will explore inquiry-based learning (IBL). Why continue to introduce IBL in professional learning? IBL creates engagement in both teachers and learners. Research has shown it has several benefits. It can:

  • Boost students’ learning in inter-disciplinary studies
  • Motivate students to learn, developing flexible, real-life, problem-solving strategies
  • Deepen critical thinking skills
  • Use of knowledge in new areas (Source)

Learning to ask the right questions and then finding answers that work remain critical to the work of educators and their students. To that end, it’s important to scaffold the use of IBL in the context of modern tools. Not unlike Dr. Bernie Dodge’s and Tom March’s webquest activity, new approaches adapt IBL for modern technology.

  • Explore: In this station, participants are given twenty minutes.
  • Adapt/Create: Participants, having explored hyperdoc exemplars, rely on a template to develop their own hyperdoc.
  • Share: Participants share their hyperdoc creation or modification with others via a sharing space, such as Google Forms tied into a Google Sheet or link their hyperdoc in an existing Google Doc created for that purpose.
  • Tools: Google Docs, Google Slides

Project Station #2: Research Explorers

One of the first uses of the internet for teachers involves encouraging students to use it for research. It’s important to clarify expectations for research-based activities. While research should be embedded in the context of an inquiry-based learning lesson, some additional expectations can be set. Students can be expected to:

  • Craft a research question
  • Locate and gather appropriate sources
  • Consider and assess the quality of the sources
  • Seek patterns in the data
  • Develop a position about the research

Given that the internet is a deep ocean of information, it’s important to assist students to engage in content curation using frameworks like the Big 6, Super 3, and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). While there are many online research tools that could be introduced, one of note is Google Scholar.

“I usually start with Google Scholar or Google just to figure out what the topic is. Once I have a better idea, I’ll go deeper,” says Leslie Harris O’Hanlon. “For example, if it’s a history paper, I’ll use the online library catalog, or sometimes there are e-books online through the university” (Source).

  • Explore: Participants experience the power of Google Scholar as a tool to find journals, save document sources in a personal space, and obtain citations. First, participants go through the process of developing a research question using the infographic from UC San Diego Library as a guide. Then they complete the steps.
  • Adapt/Create: Participants begin with a general topic, then narrow the topic down with How and Why questions, not unlike what is shown in the image below:

  • Share: Once participants have identified a topic using Google Scholar to identify research and information, they can create a Google Slides PDF ebook or Google Docs.
  • Tools: Google Scholar, Google Docs ePub export or Google Slides PDF ebook

Project Station #3: Engaging Experiments

Mix up learning for your students. Create engaging and relevant learning experiences for students with Google’s Art and Culture. Better yet, try out one of the Arts & Culture experiments. You can find gaming experiments that enable students to interact with images, solve puzzles, and more. This map-based approach enables students to organize their research according to location and impact, which is appropriate for various topics. Students combine research, life stories, images, and video to make a compelling case for their research thesis.

  • Explore: Encourage participants to explore existing Arts & Culture experiments and then reflect on how current content in their curriculum goals could be aligned.
  • Adapt/Create: Participants use puzzle maker to create a game puzzle, or cultural crossword puzzle.
  • Share: Once participants have finished it, make it available via a Google Form or common space or backchannel (e.g. Padlet).
  • Tools: Google Arts & Culture puzzle maker

Project Station #4: Toontastic Reporters

Whether you have students synthesizing information from a variety of sources and then reporting it in front of a green screen (read tips about setting up your own inexpensive green screen, as well as see examples) or creating reports with Toontastic, students can learn quite a bit. Putting students in the role of journalists has a powerful impact on their own ability to curate and construct knowledge. Consider the following benefits:

  • Students develop the critical thinking skills needed to be smarter, frequent, transliterate consumers (and creators) of information
  • Students learn to tell between fact and opinion
  • Learners explore how to become better-informed citizens and voters (Source: The News Literacy Project)

One approach to achieve this involves presenting a problem and then inviting students to create a report that presents facts.

Wait, There’s More

Ready to get going with these project stations? Consider adding two more, if time allows. Two more final project stations include casting teachers in the roles of Flipped Learning Creators and Digital Breakout Artists.

In the former, flipped learning is explored. Participants learn to create screencasts, embed assessments with EdPuzzle, or engage in post-reflection activities with Google Forms. In the Digital Breakout Artists project station, participants learn how to create engaging activities that involve clue finding and problem solving.

Turn Napkin PD into a Reality

Want to schedule TCEA professional learning for your school district that focuses on inquiry-based learning? Fill out a TCEA logistics form, as well as attend our face-to-face conferences and the annual TCEA Convention. We can help you turn your napkin professional development plans into a reality.

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Photo by Arlington Research on Unsplash
CTO/CIOProfessional LearningTechnical Support

Growing Your Technical Support Staff

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Visit smaller school districts and you may find a situation that emphasizes high performance. A small team of dedicated technical support staff, all working hard, even overtime, to solve tough problems. For these technology support heroes, professional learning opportunities are on the job or at an infrequent conference. In fact, most learning happens when technicians take the initiative to learn on their own.

No professional learning, however, translates into low pay, making it unfeasible for technical staff to earn certifications on their own. In conversations with technical staff, low pay and time was mentioned as an obstacle to their pursuit of training and certification opportunities. Peer training is not available since no one on staff is at a sufficiently high level to provide training to others. While this situation is common, better outcomes are possible.

A Proposal for Improvement

In one of my former school districts, I submitted a proposal entitled Staff Development for Technical Support Staff. The proposal recommended that my school district (as an enhancement to the technology department budget) fund the Computing Technology Industry Association’s (CompTIA) A+ training for all district technicians. What’s more, the district would also pay the first attempt of the cost of the certification. Certification and training would be linked to job descriptions and advancement.

Identifying Costs and Providers

In researching the cost of specialized training and supporting staff in obtaining certification, the cost worked out to approximately $11,980. Courses varied in cost, as did the cost of certification exams. One challenge involved finding who would provide training. I first considered local community colleges, but these were too far away from my school district to be feasible. What’s more, the cost was quite high.

After further research, a colleague suggested TestOut’s LabSim. The costs at the time identified for my team included:

  • CompTIA or equivalent:
    • $800 per course
    • $300 per certification exam
  • Cisco Certified Network Assistant (CCNA):
    • $695 per course
    • $300 per exam
  • CompTIA Linux+ Training
    • $495 per course
  • VMWare Server Support
    • $3,500 per course

These costs were a necessary investment. Most of the team lacked the technical expertise to get things done. Most were high school graduates who lacked any specialized technical training or certifications. They were hired because they professed an aptitude in computer and simple network support. Having a great attitude towards customer service was also a hiring qualification. As a result, it’s easy to have a team with great attitudes but little to no enterprise level technical training. If that’s a problem in your school district, then consider what a difference specialized training can have on their lives and the quality of service in your district.

Planning Implementation

Prior to launching the initiative, these implementation phases were identified:

Infographic created by author
Infographic created by author

In addition, a commitment form was put together for all technical staff to sign.

Key Expectations

Some of the key expectations shared with technical staff included the following:

  1. All technical support staff will be given the opportunity to complete CompTIA A+ training available through the district’s chosen provider.
  2. Successful completion of the CompTIA A+ certification exams should be the final result of agreeing to this commitment.
  3. Keep an electronic log of how time is spent each week with four clock hours spent (more instructions on how to log time will be shared).
  4. Team members will be expected to join a study group that will meet periodically, the schedule to be determined by the group and study leader.
  5. Advancement requires current CompTIA A+ certifications (two exams).
  6. Technicians that complete CompTIA A+ certifications will be eligible for promotion pending positive job appraisals at the discretion of the director of technology in consultation with human resources and payroll departments.
  7. All proof of certification must be submitted no later than July of each year (sooner is better).
  8. Support the district for two years once training and certification have been received.

As you might imagine, the final expectation sought to allay upper administration fears that staff would disappear after earning their certifications. Several staff members earned CompTIA A+ certification and/or CCNA.

Make Things Better

The goals of this proposal included providing staff development opportunities to district technical support staff that enhances their services to the district. It also established a baseline for growth and demonstrated the district’s commitment to better service through learning. Ready to make things better? Get a copy of this proposal to adapt for your own purposes.

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instructional technology
Announcements/Important DatesLeadershipProfessional Learning

Where Instructional Technology Heroes Gather

by Peggy Reimers
written by Peggy Reimers

Coach. Guide. Partner. Hero. Words that they use to describe your just-in-time support.

These are the words your co-workers use to describe you and their relationship to you. Job titles come and go, but your functions remain the same. If you bear the responsibility of any of the accompanying job titles, then know that TCEA is your guide on the side. Digital Innovation Specialist? Campus Technology Specialist? Instructional Technology Facilitator? Instructional Coach? Join us at the academy for heroes, the TCEA Campus Technology Specialist Academy. The Academy takes place November 15-16, 2018.

The backside of my colleague Diana wearing a Wonder Woman cape while holding a google adapter bag and computer.

Powerful Toolkits

Eager to make positive change a reality in your situation? Ready to develop rockin’ toolkits that will serve you and those you serve? Then look no further than the 2018 TCEA Campus Technology Specialist Academy. At the Academy, you can share your hard-won insights and wisdom. You can also learn with others who serve and make a difference in schools. The Academy isn’t just about new technologies. Instead, it is focused on how to best engage K-12 and adult learners.

Call for Proposals

When the call for help goes out, you are the one that answers. Answer the call for proposals available online.Click to submit a proposal now. The deadline is May 31, 2018.

Past Workshops

Here are some of the sessions shared in previous years:

  • 30-Day Challenge for Professional Development
  • Teachers Train Teachers
  • PD Like a Ninja
  • Our Journey Toward Increased Teacher Leadership
  • Motivating Unmotivated Teachers and How to Inspire Teachers to Adopt Technology

Where Heroes Gather

Don’t delay! Come to where heroes like you gather. The deadline for submissions is May 31, 2018.

Featured image photo by author.

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great presenter
LeadershipProfessional Learning

What Makes a Great Presenter?

by Lori Gracey
written by Lori Gracey

As someone who’s been around for a few years, I’ve heard my fair share of presenters. Some were amazing and made me want to weep with joy and follow them to the ends of the earth. Some were unbelievably bad and made me cry for other reasons. And most were very well-intentioned people who, unfortunately, just never caught or were able to keep my attention.

The Science of Being a Great Presenter

What I’ve learned from all of these presenters is that there is definitely both an art and a science to holding an audience’s attention, whether that is audience of two or a group of 2,000. The science is fairly easy to duplicate:

  1. When asked to speak or present, find out what the audience really needs first. You may be asked to talk about Chrome extensions for literacy; but what they don’t tell you, unless you dig a little, is that they are really looking for innovative ways to restructure learning in their ELA classrooms. So don’t be afraid to ask a lot of questions to find out their true desires and what they are really looking for.
  2. Plan your content in the way that you are comfortable. I myself think in PowerPoint. That helps me organize my content and makes sure that I don’t miss key concepts. But the bullet points are just for me and not for my audience. How does your mind like to plan?
  3. Over plan. I have never had someone complain to me that I had too much content for them. If I don’t get to it during the presentation, I can always share it with the attendees through a Google Doc later.
  4. Make it interactive. Regardless of how many people will be listening to you, you have to plan opportunities and ways for them to get up, mingle, talk to each other, think, reflect, and experience. It doesn’t matter how hard that is to work into your content, just do it.
  5. Arrive at the presentation site early, get set up, and mingle. My staff will tell you that I am always early, and that is true. But there is nothing more irritating for a district or campus than a presenter who’s late. So get there before you have to be there and get set up. Test your equipment and the Internet. Then, spend the rest of the time before you start talking with the attendees. Find out the mood of the room and what they think they will be hearing. See if they’re having a good day. Let them get to know you a little as a person and not just the “head” who’ll be talking to/with them for the next X hours. Laugh. Smile.
  6. Don’t spend a long time introducing yourself. A good speaker introduction should, in my opinion, take no more than 20 seconds. That’s because the audience won’t be impressed by your credentials. What they will be amazed by is your content. So get into it as quickly as you can.
  7. Have fun. No one wants to listen to you be serious for any length of time. Even if it’s a serious subject, you can allow a little smile to come in once in a while or even a laugh. Learning resonates more with adult learners if we can tie it to a strong emotion. Other than fear (and no, you don’t want to scare your audience), joy is the next strongest emotion. So help your audience experience joy while learning.

The Art of Being a Great Presenter

Now that you’ve got the science of presenting down, it’s time for the art. This is much, much, MUCH more difficult than just following the steps above. What really what makes a great presenter is (drum roll, please): the ability to tell a powerful story that your audience can relate to, that is interesting, that is moving in some way, and that makes them want to change. After all, that’s why they’ve come to listen to you because, at some level, they (or their boss) want to see change take place.

So take a close look at your content and the audience’s needs and determine what the story is that must be told. What will move them? What will excite them? What is the most important concept that they need to take away with them? How can you craft all of that together so that it is memorable and makes them want to take action? While thinking through this process, I find it helps me to look at photos on the Internet about the key ideas. I want to see what moves me and then think about how I can use that idea (but not necessarily those photos) for my audience.

Once you have your story, then you create whatever you’re going to use to present it with. Don’t get hung up on whether it’s PowerPoint or Prezi or Google Slides or whatever. Just make sure it is visual. Great presenters tell their stories through the use of pictures and not text.

 Our visual system evolved to process images essentially in parallel, whereas text, which only appeared a few thousand years ago, requires our visual system to scan individual characters, one at a time, recognize them, and piece them together into words, then sentences, and so on… (source).

The final piece of being a great presenter is passion. In order for your audience to believe you, to buy into what you are “selling,” and to be willing to change because of what you are saying, you must be passionate about it. The content you are providing must matter to you greatly and you must show your listeners that it matters. They can probably get the same content from 100 people on YouTube. So what makes you different is your belief that this is truly important and life changing. (If it isn’t life changing, then why are you spending your time sharing it with them?)

You Can Be a Great Presenter

Practice does make perfect, even in presenting. The science of being a great presenter can be easily mastered. And even the art can be improved upon.

I would love to hear your thoughts on what makes a great presenter. What lessons have you learned? What ideas do you have to share with others as we all strive to become better at sharing our message? Please share with me at lgracey@tcea.org.

 

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Microsoft
MicrosoftProfessional LearningSTEM/STEAM

2018-2019 TCEA Microsoft Professional Learning Opportunities

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Are you an Office 365 school district and wondering how to maximize professional learning opportunities? Then bookmark this blog entry so you can check what exciting professional learning opportunities are upcoming this spring and summer. In this blog, I’ll share some of the events taking place that you will want to attend. Remember that in addition to these activities, you can always request a dedicated session, like Area 2 has done for a two-day Minecraft: Education Edition Academy.

Did You Know?

Want to sign up? Go to http://ly.tcea.org/attend to register for Lunch and Learns! TCEA Lunch and Learn events do require a TCEA membership ($49). If you have one, then the event is free.

Benefits of Attendance

What is in it for you? Attending TCEA Microsoft workshops and academies garner several benefits, including:

  • Membership in the free, Texas-wide community of Microsoft Innovative Educators (MIE). You get to interact with educators in public/private schools, as well as Microsoft, who are committed to accelerate your learning. Come learn with us!
  • Earn digital badges and certificates via the Microsoft Educator Community (MEC). All workshops, academies, and events earn you points that enhance your status in the MEC. And those certificates and badges can be easily printed to share with your employer.
  • Share your insights with others about using Microsoft products in your work. How are you using Microsoft Teams to transform communications in your district? Assist others as you learn more yourself.

If those aren’t enough reasons, you will also get access to a wealth of professional learning via TCEA, a non-profit education association dedicated to advancing teaching and learning through the use of technology.

Did You Know?

Join the TCEA MIE Facebook Community and connect to Texas educators from all around Texas, as well as Microsoft folks.

2018 Upcoming Professional Learning Opportunities

Attend these regional events in Fall, 2018. Registration is open now. Click links to access information form and registration link for each session.

October, 2018

November, 2018

Questions about content?

The facilitator for all sessions listed above is Miguel Guhlin, MIE Certified Master Trainer. Reach him via email at mguhlin@tcea.org or on Twitter @mguhlin

Professional Learning for Summer 2018

Robyn Hrivnatz, Keynote Speaker, 2018 TCEA Microsoft Academy

An amazing amount of TCEA learning opportunities abound. Let’s focus in on a few where Microsoft professional learning will be available.

Webinars

Not able to join us for face to face sessions? Then be sure to jump start your learning with online professional learning offerings via our Lunch and Learn series as well as other offerings. See you soon!

Did You Know?

TCEA features a team of MIE Certified Master Trainers, Certified Minecraft Trainers, as well as Google Certified Trainers and Administrators. They are ready to help you learn, whether that involves a technology audit or amazing professional learning experiences.

But wait, there’s more! Check out this collection of one hour, free webinars from Microsoft on a variety of popular topics. Topics include the following:

  • Six Steps for Building a Collaborative Classroom with Microsoft Teams
  • Bring the World to Your Students with Skype in the Classroom
  • Build a Digital Classroom with OneNote
  • Authentic Assessments with Forms, Sway, and More
  • Ten Things You Can Do with Office 365 Online that You Never Knew

Don’t wait. Time to get busy learning.

Past Events

  • 9/27/2018 – 1-Day Physical Computing and Its Role in Education – FREE EVENT
     Location: Arlington, TX
  • 9/13/2018 – MIE 1-Day Office 365 Teacher Academy (BYOD) – FREE EVENT
    Location: Arlington, TX
  • 9/1/2018 – MIE 1-Day Office 365 Teacher Academy (BYOD) – FREE EVENT
    Location: Edinburg, TX
  • August 2-3 – Two-Day Minecraft Education Edition Teacher Academy: This exciting two-day event, closed to the public, will be available for Burleson ISD teachers. If you would like a similar event for your district, please let us know. Location: Burleson, TX
  • July 12-13 – 2018 TCEA Microsoft Academy: The keynote speaker will be Texas educator and Microsoft Fellow Robyn Hrivnatz. In addition to sessions that will have an immediate impact on your classroom and use of Microsoft tools, attendees at the Academy will also be able to earn badges. Digital badges will be available in the Microsoft Education Community. Two  six-hour academies will be available. The first is the Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) Certified Trainer six-hour session. The second is the Minecraft: Education Edition Certified Teacher. Location: Austin, TX
  • July 17-18 – Minecraft Teacher Academy: Attend one of the all-day Minecraft: Education Edition academies being held at the Denton ISD Technology Integration Academy (TIA). You can register online at the TIA Conference website.
  • July 24-26 – Technology Learning Extravaganza: Come join us for three days and gain a wealth of knowledge and first-hand learning experiences in our Technology Learning Extravaganza in San Angelo, July 24-26. The sessions will provide educators learning opportunities to enhance knowledge in a variety of Microsoft-related areas such as Office 365, OneNote, Minecraft, Makecode, and more. Location: San Angelo, TX
  • July 31 – MakeCode for Micro:bit and Minecraft: Education Edition: The micro:bit is sweeping the globe as an accessible, inclusive approach to computing education that combines the magic of making with the power of code. The maker education movement has proven to engage and interest girls and other nontraditional CS student populations through creative, personally meaningful projects. Learn how combining the maker mindset with computational thinking can result in transformational learning experiences for all students.By the end of this session attendees will know how to construct and download simple programs to their micro:bit, and they will know where to find curriculum & resources for their classrooms. You will also learn how to use MakeCode to control the Agent in Minecraft: Education Edition. This is a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) hands-on session for all levels (no prior computer science experience required). Location: Austin, TX
  • June 4 – MIE 1-Day Teacher Academy: Ready to begin your journey as a Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE)? You will get certified as an MIE and receive support and guidance on this journey. Location: Laredo, TX (Area 1)
  • June 10-12 – Elementary Technology Conference: Read more about this conference online. There will be several Microsoft sessions offered at this event. Location: Galveston, TX
  • May 9 – PBL in the Minecraft: Education Edition Classroom: In this session, you’ll learn how to design Problem/Project-based Learning (PBL) experiences in virtual worlds like Minecraft: Education Edition. Participants will also experience PBL lesson-based design opportunities. They will develop a lesson plan, build a sample student product, and engage in world building. Location: Amarillo, TX (Area 16)
  • May 15 – Productivity Tools for Administrators: This conference will feature a variety of Microsoft tools that can enhance your productivity as an administrator, an administrative clerk, classroom teacher, or docent. Sessions offered will allow you to earn MEC points and/or digital badges and certificates. Location: Austin, TX (Area 13)
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webinar series
Professional Learning

Perfect Your Craft with TCEA’s Webinar Series

by Joe Vasquez
written by Joe Vasquez

As spring turns into summer and lessons plans take a back seat to both adventure and relaxation, it’s a great time to think about perfecting your craft through personalized learning. Whether you’re attending onsite professional development events or looking for the best online, anytime learning opportunity, TCEA has the resources to perfect your skills and provide you with the tools you need to enhance student learning through our popular webinar series: Lunch and Learn and Get Your Google On.

TCEA’s Online Webinar Series

Geared to connect and share in real-time with educators across the country, our online library of recorded webinars has a broad array of information on technology and teaching topics. As a member, you have access to over 80+ hours of free professional development through our on-demand webinar series accessible to you through the TCEA Member Benefits Community Group, 24/7. That way you can learn on the schedule that’s right for you.

Lunch and Learn

These short tutorial webinars are offered every Wednesday from 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. CDT and can be watched live through May. Or you can access them in our online library of recorded webinars in our Social Community. They provide innovative ideas on how to best reach learners using a variety of technology and teaching subjects. Some of this year’s webinars have focused on topics like alternative apps and tools to extend assistance for students, helpful ideas and activities to make learning fun, and useful resources to increase productivity. Explore the archives or check out the schedule of upcoming webinars to find the resources that will most benefit you.  

Get Your Google On

Offered the first Thursday of each month from 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CDT, these webinars allow you to build your knowledge of Google products and services to enhance your classroom curricula. Topics have ranged from how to use Google Cast for education to how to create eBooks using G Suite for Education to how to use Gmail with ease, to name a few. You can participate live in the discussion through the end of this school year or access the recordings at your convenience in our online community.

This summer, kick back with a glass of lemonade in your hand and engage in anytime, anywhere learning through our Lunch and Learn and Get Your Google On webinar series. Simply log into your TCEA account and access the on-demand webinars in the Social Community at your convenience. Don’t miss the opportunity to develop your skills further and increase your knowledge of the latest ed tech resources and tools for your students.

Not a member? Click here to begin your journey to advancing teaching and learning with TCEA.

 

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discount
Announcements/Important DatesProfessional Learning

You Don’t Want to Miss This Convention Deal!!!!

by Kristy Breaux
written by Kristy Breaux

As the person in charge of putting on TCEA’s biggest event every year, I have to tell you that I’m struggling to contain my excitement for the 2019 TCEA Annual Convention & Exposition. With the big move to San Antonio next year, we have so many more opportunities to expand and grow the best conference for impacting education. Here are a few of the things I’m most excited about:

You Get an Upgrade! You Get an Upgrade! Everyone Gets an Upgrade!

New this year, in a larger and more flexible convention center, we are increasing the amount of presentations and hands-on workshops and opening them up for all of our tech-loving, future-transforming attendees. That’s right – no more Basic and Premium registration. All attendees are receiving Premium status to attend an unlimited number of presentations, hands-on workshops, panels, and interactive learning sessions.

A Bigger, More Robust Exhibit Hall

TCEA’s exhibit hall is THE destination for CTO’s, superintendents, and campus leaders to explore everything from furnishings for innovative learning spaces to software for managing day-to-day tasks to transformational tools for improving campus and district student success. Because of this, thousands of innovative educators register for an “expo only” pass and spend hours in the hall. This year, we’re inviting those of you who can’t make it to the whole event to dip your toe into the full convention experience by including up all Friday sessions for you to attend as well with your Exhibits Only pass.

ESSA

Yep, that’s right, I’m excited about the increased funding for professional development available from the Every Student Succeeds Act. The money allocated for ESSA can be used this year to attend a conference with a focus on successful technology integration (like ours). You can read Jennifer’s post on ESSA here and follow her all year long for updates on legislative activities. With increased funding, you can bring all of those educators to the conference and ensure that transformational learning takes place on your campus.

Technology Funding Increased in ESSA Budget

In 2019, We’re on a Mission, 24/7, to Engaged Learning.

No, really, we’re on a mission. Did you know that San Antonio is home to four other missions besides the Alamo? The TCEA 2019 Convention & Expositionhistoric features of the city, combined with the architectural beauty, really do make this one of my favorite destinations. If I had to encourage you to make one stop outside the convention center, it would be to The Saga at the San Fernando Cathedral in the historic Main Plaza. The 24-minute laser light show projected against the cathedral uses every inch and curve of the building to produce a memorable experience. It happens every Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 9:00, 9:30, and 10:00 p.m. Oh, and it’s free.

Former San Antonio Spur Tim Duncan Is Our Opening Keynote.

Okay, this is not true. It’s my wishful thinking for my dream conference. And, clearly, the Admiral himself would be the closing keynote. A Spurs fan can dream!

Exclusive Promotion

For the first time in TCEA’s long history, we are opening registration in advance for a very limited time with a super early discount rate for those of you who, like me, who can’t wait to start planning for the 2019 TCEA Convention & Exposition. May 1-31 you will be able to register at the super early rate of $269 (and that’s for all the workshops, presentations, exhibit hall, interactive features, and panels). No discount code is needed, but the reduced registration price ends May 31. Registration will reopen on September 13 at the price of $289.

You can subscribe to this blog for future updates (see the big red box to the right), follow @TCEA on Twitter, or like us on Facebook.

Save the Dates

  • May 1-31: Exclusive Early Registration Promotion
  • May 31: Call for Presenters Closes. Join the league of ed tech educators sharing leading trends in pedagogy, educationalleadership, and technology best practices.
  • September 13: Registration and Hotel Reservations Open
  • Feb. 4-8, 2019: TCEA Convention & Exposition in San Antonio

TCEA payment policy requires payment to be received within 30 days or your registration may be canceled. If paying by purchase order, a copy of the purchase order must be received within in 30 days and we ask that check payments on purchase orders be received within 90 days.

 

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ChromebooksGoogle Tips and TricksMicrosoftProfessional Learning

Summer Academies to the Rescue!

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

Now is the time to start thinking about how you can recharge yourself after a long school year. At TCEA, we have the perfect opportunity for you: summer academies. You’ll find that everything is designed to get you the information you need to get you further ahead of the curve for next year AND take your skills deeper. For each academy, we have a superb lineup of talented presenters, relevant concurrent sessions, opportunities to mingle and expand your professional learning network, and good food. You’ll leave with great resources and ideas to share with your district/campus as well as implement in your own practices as a skilled educator who’s using technology to impact students.

Adobe Academy – June 19-20

Adobe users unite! You’ll find this the perfect academy if you use any of the Adobe products yourself or if you teach your students how to use them. Innovative uses, clever work-arounds, and new features will be shared to give you the solutions and steps you need. And, if you are new to Adobe, you will find several sessions that will help you get up to speed and boost your confidence. Adobe pros haven’t been left out; our presenters have clever ideas that are worth listening to and taking note of.

Microsoft Academy – July 12-13

Make a point to attend our first annual Microsoft Academy to boost your skills in Microsoft products including Office365 and Minecraft. This is going to be a great gathering! You’ll also be introduced to mobile coding with Creative Coding through Games and Apps and gain a deeper understanding into Microsoft Makers projects and 3D Builder. You will definitely find this packed full of topics that you can’t get at other learning opportunities.

Chromebook Academy – July 26-27

Even if you don’t have a Chromebook, but use Google Suite for Education, you will find these sessions filled with new and great ideas that you can take back to transform the way your students learn. Be sure to bring a friend so you can divide and conquer on the sessions and then share with each other at the end of the day!

As you can see, there are several great ways to recharge this summer. Whichever way (or ways 😉 ) you choose will inspire you for another year of making a difference as well as enhance the skills that you use on a daily basis. If you have more questions, or are interested in group discounts, contact Ashley Weiler at 512-450-5450 or aweiler@tcea.org.

 

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FundingProfessional Learning

Seeking Funding for Professional Growth

by Kristy Breaux
written by Kristy Breaux

Summer is quickly approaching and you are probably beginning to make plans for some much needed R&R. While the summer break can be a sacred, quiet getaway, don’t forget to squeeze in a little time for you to explore some new tools and gather a few new ideas to make the 2018-2019 school year even more memorable for both you and your students. Here are a few tips on getting funding for your PD needs this year:

Ask Your Principal

Ask your principal to include PD funding in the school’s budget. This is the time of the year when principals are creating their budget requests for next year. There may even be some unused funds you can use for some summer PD.

Request a Tax Refund

You may know that you can save your receipts for supplies and claim a deduction on your taxes, but did you know that professional development can also be a deduction? You can learn more here.

Share Your Passion with Parents

Many elementary teachers are given a profile form from the homeroom parent requesting gift ideas for holidays and special occasions. Link them to your crowdsourcing pages like Donors Choose which can raise funds for attending a conference or securing new equipment for your classroom.

Look for Special Promotions

While not all promotions will apply to you, it may save previously allocated money that you may be able to ask for later.  Our May 15 event offers a free registration for district leadership and a 50 percent discount for administrative support at the campus level. An event later this fall will offer free registration for technology directors – you know you want them on your good side when the technology hits the campuses!

TCEA Educator Awards

Each year TCEA recognizes phenomenal educators in multiple categories. Both the winners and finalists receive cash prizes in addition to their recognition. So, this fall when you see the nominations open, nominate yourself or another stellar educator and start thinking about how to spend that money.

Know Your Funding

Do your research and know who in the district to ask for funds from ESSA, Title I, Title II, and other district-provided education foundations or grants you can apply for. Make sure they know your passion and how your continued professional development will benefit the district and your students.

Educators Are Heroes

Many organizations support their local educators. Seek out grants from organizations you belong to, including the PTA, religious institutions, Kiwanis, or Rotary Clubs, etc.

Grant Writing

You may think of grant writing as tedious and time consuming, but some grants can be simple. Many local companies are seeking out educators ready to make waves in STEM, makerspaces, and other buzz worthy education transformations. Smaller, local companies may have an easy grant application process. Here’s a blog from Dr. Bruce Ellis on available grants you may find helpful and another resource from Miguel Guhlin on grant writing tips.

There is funding available out there. You may just have to be the “squeaky wheel” to obtain some of it for your professional growth.

 

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