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What We Learned at the TCEA 2020 Convention & Exposition

by Lori Gracey
written by Lori Gracey

Austin was the learning capital of the world last week as TCEA 2020 and its attendees moved into the convention center. If you couldn’t be there, here are some of the hot topics and amazing resources that were shared.

STEAM Is Big

Sound Pedagogy + Technology = Accelerated Learning

Apps and Tools Can Add Excitement

More Educators Are Interested in Esports

Other Big Topics at TCEA 2020

If you want to see all of the Tweets from the convention, check out this Wakelet from Deborah Zeman. And finally, if you want to see even more of what was shared at the 2020 convention, be sure to download the TCEA app. Many presenters attached their handouts to their sessions in the app and you have full access to them.

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copyright-free images
Good TeachingTechnology Applications

Copyright-Free Images for Student Work

by Lori Gracey
written by Lori Gracey

Finding copyright-free images for students, or teachers, to use in their digital projects can be a challenge. And yet we know that the addition of images to any project is important for learning and retention. TCEA members and staff had some recommendations recently in the Community for where they go to find exactly the right, free, legal picture.

Here are a few of our favorites:

  • New Old Stock Photos – This site has a number of vintage images that are great for use in history, sports, and science. The images from WWII and NASA are particularly wonderful.
  • Unsplash – If your students need beautiful, artistic images and photos, they’ll love this site.
  • Photos for Class – This is a free website that allows students to search for and download images that are safe to use in schools with the Creative Commons license. And it has an automatic citation tool that comes with each photo.
  • PxHere – While a terrible name for a site, the photos in this collection are stunning!
  • Google Advanced Image Search – Teach your students how to use this powerful tool. It gives you enormous flexibility in tailoring your search results. In addition to specifying the image’s color, size, and file type, you can choose Filter Explicit Results to block inappropriate pictures. You can also specify the usage rights to include various levels of reprint permissions. Once you have set the parameters, a search bar will appear. Fill in your search terms and note that the toolbar at the top of the window shows your image preferences for that search. You can easily adjust these settings for a new search using the toolbar’s drop-down menus.
  • FindaPhoto – Rob Lora from ChamberofCommerce.org describes their tool as a ” free tool for easily searching through millions of stock images.” 
  • Freepik– This is a great website that offers free stock photos and other images, icons, templates, banners, clip art, etc. you can use all year long.

TCEA members are a brilliant, sharing, collaborative group of educators. And they had some great recommendations for sites to find just the right illustration or photo.

  • Kristin Robinson of Palmyra-Macedon Central School District recommended Pixabay. Not only does it offer stunning photos, but it also has copyright-free videos.
  • Amy Gwizd of Dearborn Public Schools offers Pexels, another site with both images and videos.
  • “The Metropolitan Museum of Art has released 375,000 images from the Met Museum for free… I imagine some of these will not necessarily be appropriate for all ages, though,” says Jonah Juarez of Hudson ISD.
  • From Randy Rodgers of Seguin ISD comes the site Creative Commons and their search engine.
  • Matthew Kitchens of Burleson ISD offers this advice: “NASA content – images, audio, video, and computer files used in the rendition of 3-dimensional models, such as texture maps and polygon data in any format – generally are not copyrighted. You may use this material for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages. This general permission extends to personal Web pages.” Read the specifics from NASA Media Guidelines here. Here is NASA’s Image and Video Library.”

And finally, if you’re looking for even more sites that are usable by your students, our own Miguel Guhlin has an exhaustive list of not only photos, but also audio, fonts, videos, and editing tools. And he’s created a Wakelet that you can add to, or, if you have a free Wakelet account, you can make a copy of.

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Google Sites header with a gold bell and red whistle.
Google Tips and Tricks

Google Sites Bells and Whistles

by Peggy Reimers
written by Peggy Reimers

For the longest time, Google Sites did not get much love from its developer. Updates and new features were rare. And let’s face it — the classic Google Sites was not user friendly.

Oh, how things have changed since the Google Sites was released in 2016. The new Google Sites R-O-C-K-S! You get a lot of bang for your buck (or no bucks, if you have a G Suite for Education domain) as new bells and whistles are being released all the time

Below you will find seven stupendous additions to Google Sites. I have also created a Google Site to highlight and explain each bell and whistle. Check it out here.

Table of Contents

If your website is quite long and you want your user to quickly jump to sections, set up a table of contents.

Steps:

  1. Make sure you are at the top of your page
  2. Under Insert, click the Table of Contents
  3. As soon as you use the Headings format in a text box; this will appear in your table of contents section.

You have the option of hiding words when the eye-shaped icon appears, allowing you to customize your table.

Add a Button  

Use a button for your users to access a URL or a page within your site.

Steps:

  1. Under Insert, click on button. 
  2. Name your button.
  3. Copy/paste your hyperlink.

You have a choice of filled or outlined buttons, and the button will be the color of your theme’s check-marked color.

Google has provided the Image Carousel to show multiple images in one space.

Steps:

  1. Under Insert, select Image Carousel.
  2. Next, select your images.
  3. Click the gray + button (you must have two or more images).
  4. Resize your image carousel.

Under the settings gear, you can show the “dots” that represent each image so that the user can cycle through your images manually, too. You can also show captions, program the carousel to auto-start, or change the transition speed.

Add a Divider (or Two or Three)

If you need to separate your horizontal sections, use a divider. It’s a common and useful tool and very easy to use.

Steps:

  1. Click on the section of the Google Site where you wish to place the divider
  2. Under Insert, select Divider

Add a Favicon

A favicon is the small icon associated with a URL which is displayed on a bookmark list. A favicon helps you locate a website quickly if you are using your bookmark bar. 

Steps:

  1. Click on the three vertical dots on the menu bar.
  2. Select Add Favicon.
  3. You will need to upload your image and then X out.
  4. Publish the website.
  5. Bookmark the website and you should be able to see the favicon.

Not every image will work with a favicon. Keep in mind that they should typically be small and without too much detail.

Add a Custom Map

Custom maps can be a nice addition to your Google Site. First, you will need to go to Google Maps to create your custom map before inserting your map in the Google Site. 

Steps: 

  1. Go to: https://www.google.com/maps/about/mymaps/.
  2. Click on Create a New Map.
  3. Click on Untitled Map and give your map a title/description.
  4. Click in the Search bar for a location.
  5. Click Add to Map.
  6. Now you can change pin color and icon.
  7. Repeat steps 4-6 to add more locations.
  8. Go back to your Google Site and insert your map.

Collapsible Text

This is the newest trick on the block. If you have a large body of text and you do not want it to take up space on your website, collapsible text is now available.

Steps:

  1. Under Insert, select Collapsible Text. Automatically a heading and normal text box will appear. 
  2. Enter your text in the appropriate places.

Now your user will be able to expand and collapse text boxes on command. 

No longer is Google Sites the outcast of G Suite! Go forth and create amazing websites with the new Google Sites bells and whistles. Plus: Google is constantly adding new features — so be on the lookout!

Featured Image designed by author.

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Michael Bonner
Good TeachingLeadership

TCEA 2020 Featured Presenter Michael Bonner

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

Michael Bonner rose to prominence when a music video he helped his second grade class produce went viral. As the views racked up, people took notice, including TV host Ellen DeGeneres, who surprised Bonner by interviewing and showcasing his work on her popular talk show. 

After that, Bonner’s career took off. Continuing to teach, he also travels the worlds helping inspire his fellow educators to use fun, unconventional ideas to connect with students. That’s why he’s one of our featured presenters at the 2020 TCEA Convention & Exposition. 

As a preview for his much-anticipated talk, we chatted with Bonner about his career and the lessons he’s learning along the way.

“The Problem Was Really Me” Says Michael Bonner

Bonner’s success didn’t start in front of cameras and on global stages. It started with failure.

He began his career at South Greenville Elementary in Greenville, South Carolina. “I was teaching the essential questions: who, what, where, when, why, and how,” he says, “and I thought I did good with the lesson.” He laughs. “But only two of 20 [students] passed.”

That hit him hard. “I was like, ‘What is going on?’ And I started to point the finger at the children, not realizing the problem was really me.”

So he tried again, this time giving his students an end goal. “I said, if 14 of you pass, I’ll make a music video for you. And they look at me with determination, and it was something different, even for second-graders.”

They passed on the next try. So Bonner helped produce a video featuring the students about the lesson and quietly uploaded it on Friday. He didn’t tag Ellen; he just posted it for the class to see the reward for their hard work and mastery.

Unconventional Education

But through the magic of internet vitality, the video spread. “That video has a life of its own,” he says, “and ever since that moment, it’s been a wonderful thing, because it proves to me that it’s okay to be unconventional in education.”
Now at the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Michael Bonner believes his notoriety comes not just from the energy he brings to his students and his personal talents, but to his desire to understand how people work and learn. As a young teacher, he picked up on it quickly.

“I quickly found out that children from all different backgrounds have the capability to learn. It just takes a teacher who’s willing to fight through biases and give the proper instruction needed to be successful.”

After the Ellen appearance, schools and educators began to reach out, asking for Bonner to speak with educators about the ways he keeps his students engaged. It quickly grew. In the past three years, he’s presented at more than 130 events around the world. “It’s been a really great way to meet with teachers who really want to improve the education system,” Bonner says of his international speaking engagements. 

Originally, Bonner thought he’d work in psychology. It seemed like a steady human-centered job with good pay. He didn’t want to follow a psychology PhD course, however, though his interest in the field has remained consistent. He says it helps him understand and work with students, coworkers, and well, just about everyone.

“Understanding neuroplasticity, how the brain works, it’s been a great supplemental piece of who I am as an educator. Using psychology in the classroom has benefited me so much, because social-emotional learning is a real thing.”

He’s convinced that educators must continue their focus on understanding the populations where they teach, and using that understanding to connect with the students under their care. That understanding, he says, can only come in concert with administrators, students, and the community at large.

Bonner hints that this understanding — of diversity in communities and even between individuals, as well as the leadership required to bring it together — will be a major part of his featured presentation at TCEA 2020.

“And we’re gonna rock it out. I guarantee.”

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teacher in classroom
Good Teaching

Coaching for Results, Part 4: Accelerated Growth

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

How do you coach for high-effect size instructional, technology-enhanced strategies? In the first three parts of the Coaching for Results series, we explored coaching models. We also spent time clarifying vocabulary. In this blog entry, I will share five action steps to achieve accelerated student growth.

Reviewing the Components

Think of the components as reactants in a chemical formula that results in a product. The product? Accelerated student growth. It might look like this:

HESIS + STI + SCC –> Accelerated Student Growth

The fusion of the three reactants yields accelerated student growth. Isn’t that amazing? Of course, it’s not as simple as a chemical formula. The three components that must combine include the following:

  • High-Effect Size Instructional Strategies( HESIS). Describes evidence-based strategies highlighted in John Hattie’s research. Static info on the strategies leaves you looking at what worked in the past. The latest, best source of fresh insights is online. Instead of books, use Corwin Publishing’s Visible Learning MetaX database. It’s an interactive database that allows you to pull up the HESIS and supporting research.
  • Strategic Technology Integration (STI). Addresses the use of ed tech tools. Those can include many available now, such as EdPuzzle, Padlet, G Suite EDU, Microsoft EDU, etc. The goal of these is to “elevate” the HES Instructional Strategies.
  • Pupil-Centric Coaching Efforts (PCC). Diane Sweeney (@Sweeney_Diane) suggests instead of starting with teachers, we begin with students. It’s a powerful shift in perspective from traditional coaching. To do that, Diane includes a results-based coaching tool (view Google Doc version). The tool provides an excellent model to follow.

Innovation flourishes at the juxtaposition of ideas, so let’s put these ideas together.

Action Steps Overview

As you know, Weston Kieschnick (@Wes_Kieschnick) inspired these steps in his book Bold School. To get a greater effect, I’m going to suggest we include some of Diane Sweeney’s work on coaching tools. There is quite a bit of overlap in Diane’s and Wes’ approaches, so it makes sense to combine them.

Action Step #1: Develop and Pre-Assess Learning Outcomes

Focusing on learning outcomes enables both teacher and coach to develop student-centered goals. What’s more, focusing on learning outcomes lets you connect to standards-based goals. Weston suggests several questions. One of the important ones is What priority standards will you focus on? If you were going to write these as “I can” statements for students, what would they look like?

Tip: Avail yourself of resources for the standards. These include The TEKS Resource Center, the TEKS, and the ISTE Standards for Students.

It’s worth pointing out that the effect size of the Teacher Clarity Goals is d=.75. This makes Teacher Clarity a core teaching factor that influences learning. Unlike other high-effect size (HES) instructional strategies, it affects everything you do. Here’s an example of Teacher Clarity for this blog entry:

  • What am I learning today? A process for combining research-based instructional strategies with technology tools to achieve standards-based learning. Follow up with how to best coach (and be coached) in a pupil-centric classroom.
  • Why am I learning this? Knowing how to integrate technology into effective, evidence-based strategies to achieve curricular objectives is critical. Knowing how to coach and be coached in this process is important. The more we all know, the better.
  • How will I know that I have learned this? I’ll be able to apply effective strategies, educational frameworks, and pupil-centric coaching (PCC).

Note that clarifying these goals in a consistent way can impact students. Do this for every lesson, and your students will gain almost two years of growth in one year. Isn’t that incredible? Some educators craft these in shorter statements that begin:

  • Today we will…
  • So we can…
  • We will know we have it when…

As you identify desired academic goals, Diane Sweeney recommends collecting some baseline data. She suggests you assess who is proficient, almost there, or below. You can use a variety of pre-assessment instruments (including ed tech tools that make this easier).

coaching

Note: Effect sizes displayed in the chart above have been updated in the Visible Learning MetaX database.

Action Step #2: Select Your High-Effect Size Instructional Strategy

In this action step, you will reflect on the academic standards and skills you want students to know. Weston suggests asking questions that are quite practical. For example, which specific HES instructional strategy will you leverage to meet goals? Diane poses a relevant question of “What instructional practices will help students reach the goal?” Two follow-up questions Weston suggests include:

  • What will I as the teacher be doing?
  • What will students be doing?

For example, the teacher may rely on direct instruction (effect size of .59).  In regards to the second question focused on students, we have to ask which strategy works best? High-effect size strategies fall into several categories. Understanding these may assist you in selecting one.

Approaches that help students’ surface-level learning may not work for deep learning. This is true in reverse (deep learning strategies may not work for surface learning).

Match the right approach with the appropriate phase of learning. – Hattie, Fisher, and Frey (Visible Learning for Mathematics, 2017)

These are organizational categories for educators, but they are more to students where they serve as stages of learning. Click the strategy to learn more about it.

Gaining a deeper understanding of high-effect size instructional strategies can be difficult. Remember to come back to the two questions by asking yourself, “What will you and your students be doing in the lesson?” This will assist you.

Also, you should keep your use of strategies simple. For example, as teacher you may choose to use Direct Instruction or Explicit Teaching. Use these to answer the first question, “What will the teacher do?” and then map out what you will do. To answer the second question (student), consider whether this is concept/skill focused. Select a strategy from the surface learning category. If it’s deep learning, use one of those strategies. Once you have decided on what you will be doing and what students will be doing, you’re ready for Action Step #3.

coaching

Action Step #3: Decide on the Digital Tool(s)

Was the temptation to jump to Action Step #3 overwhelming? For ed tech advocates, the rush to select a digital tool is strong. So many tech tools are available now, it’s tempting to use as many as possible. To better explore this, you’ll find several sections below. Those include 1) Finding Free Tools; 2) A Quick Example; and 3) Coaching for Digital Tools. Let’s begin our exploration.

Get the Google Doc that matches high-effect size instructional strategies
with technology tools

Finding Free Tools

Which tech tool best aligns to a chosen high-effect size instructional strategy? While I have some suggestions available (which appear in Part 5 of this series), check these ideas out:

coaching

1. TCEA App Lists. How do you determine what apps are game-changing and which should you skip? Check out this collection of apps. You will find an iOS, Chrome, and Android app list.

2. EdSurge Product Index. This community-sourced database offers quite a lot, including a list of classroom-related activity software, apps, and more.

3. EdTech Advisor. This exclusive platform curates new digital tools and aligns them to the ISTE Standards. You can find digital tools (e.g. apps) via a search dashboard that also allows you to search by grade level, product type, and more.

4. Miguel’s List of Free Tools. Want to find free digital tools? Check out my free resources. They include Free Resources for Teachers and Free News Sources. Also, Copyright-Friendly Media includes a list of free tools, apps, and websites. You may want to read this blog entry, Buncee-Based Learning, to see how to match one strategy to a digital tool.

The challenge isn’t finding digital tools. It’s knowing how they “elevate,” as Weston K. points out, a HES instructional strategy. A bit of wisdom: You may want to unleash many HESIS and digital tools. Resist the temptation. Choose just one strategy for students and look for technology that makes it better.

In Part 5, I will share a lesson that aligns to each of the action steps. For now, let’s take a look at an easy one, a digital tool many of us have access to, multimedia slide decks. Multimedia slide deck tools abound. Some you may be familiar with include G Suite EDU, PowerPoint, Buncee, and Prezi.

Source: Joel Bednar (@jsbednar) Tweet

A Quick Example

Use a multimedia slide deck in two ways. For the teacher, you can use it as a way to organize information for direct instruction. With direct instruction, you present material in a straightforward, sequential manner. You control the content or skill. This works great as a way to introduce students to fresh ideas they may have no or little prior knowledge about. That makes it a great surface learning approach.

For students, you want to give them a systematic approach to understand the content. With a textual passage, summarization would work. Again, students are learning about new information unfamiliar to them. They summarize the main ideas of a text (fiction or non-fiction) in audio format. Then put the text excerpt on the slide. Their summary may appear in slide notes. To the slide, they add audio.

Summarization enjoys a learning effect size of 0.74, which accelerates student growth. Students can also include a variety of media that expand on their summary.

Coaching for Action Step #3

An instructional coach can play a key role in narrowing down both the HESIS and digital tools, but a solid knowledge of Hattie’s strategies and digital tools is critical. It is important to ask these questions:

  • How will student achievement increase because of the strategies and digital tools selected?
  • How will technology deepen the impact of a high-effect size instructional strategy? Will it add or subtract from the learning?

Coaching support, as Diane Sweeney points out, focuses on:

  • Creating learning targets
  • Collecting student evidence during class
  • Analyzing student work
  • Establishing success criteria
  • Planning collaboratively with the teacher
  • Sharing learning and insights to enhance content and pedagogy

coaching

These components are critical to success. Coaches may need to bring in an educational framework.

You may also need to use something like Willard Daggett’s Rigor and Relevance (more) framework. Use a research-backed edtech framework (you can find several online at this site).

In the final segment of this series, we’ll continue our exploration of action steps and you will get suggestions for digital tools that align to HES instructional strategies.

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flexclip
ChromebooksWeb 2.0 Tool

FlexClip: Make Online Video Editing Easy

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Wish you had a wealth of education-centric video templates? Need to create a video resume or advertise your school? FlexClip offers many opportunities for this. Come along as I take a walk through of some of its features.

Updated 12/2020: See updates at the end of this blog entry.

What’s the FlexClip Story?

While you may not have heard of FlexClip, you probably have heard of Pearl Mountain Limited. They have authored audio and video editing desktop software for years. Now, with FlexClip, their goal is to simplify video creation and editing via a web-based tool. It’s designed to be easy to use to create professional videos. To do that, they have created a wizard to guide you, as well as a library of templates.

How Much Does FlexClip Cost?

Web-based video editors seldom come with a lot of features for free, so FlexClip won’t be a replacement for a powerhouse tool like WeVideo. If you want top-notch video editing, you may want to defer to for profit or open source editors. Some of my favorite video editors (e.g. Shotcut) appear online. Take a peek at my Copyright-Free Media and Tools wakelet collection.

FlexClip is available in three pricing structures, as shown below:

Note that the free version includes the FlexClip watermark. It limits total length of videos to one minute with at most twelve projects. Worse, the video quality is low at 480 pixels at standard definition (SD). You will need to pay to get to three minutes of video or five minutes. This becomes apparent when you seek to export your video creation, as seen below.

A rule of thumb is to keep videos under two minutes. Can you get your point across in two minutes or less? You’ll have to with FlexClip. If these limitations fuel your creativity, then keep reading.

Wizard Assistant

Having a guide to get you started working with video can be a time-saver. FlexClip’s website includes video templates for many areas you can adapt. For example, consider the seven templates for education:

Once you select a template, you can add a storyboard, video, photo, or recording. The wizard walks you through adding dynamic text animations. What’s amazing is the wealth of audio clips, as well as the ability to import your own. You can also record yourself using your microphone.

You can enhance your video with various components. Let’s take a quick look at each.

Storyboard

FlexClip enjoys a rich storyboard. You’re never at a loss to discover a new way to organize media and text on the screen. When you add a storyboard or slide, you get access to stock media (e.g. videos) such as what appears below:

You can also add your own photos or rely on FlexClip’s extensive library.

It’s amazing what combinations you will be able to come up with.

Dynamic Text

“I devour tall tales, short stories, and man cubs. Care to join me?” asks Shere Khan. In this short promotional video, Shere Khan from Rudyard Kipling’s story, The Jungle Book, appears. It was so easy to create this slide, then add creepy music. As you can see from the dynamic text options, you have much to begin with.

Looking for an easy to use video maker and editor? FlexClip gets the job done. You can see my slight deviation from the video template online. Give FlexClip a spin. It’s great fun for short projects that you can blend into longer ones.

FlexClip Updates (12/2020)

In December, 2020, FlexClip announced a few updates to their product, FlexClip 2.0. The updates appear below:

  • Save time uploading multiple videos at once with the bulk upload video feature;
  • Copy and paste styles in a click of a button;
  • The undo and redo functions in case you make a mistake or change your mind;
  • Built-in screen or webcam recorder;
  • 400+ new video templates to fit almost all occasions;
  • Add 1,000+ stickers to make your designs more fun;
  • Apply text animations, overlays, and watermarks in a fresh new way;
  • Support resizing a video to square (1:1), vertical (4:5), landscape (16:9), portrait (9:16), and widescreen (21:9);
  • Optimize video export speed and performance;
  • Share videos directly to Dropbox or YouTube;
  • Some other functionality improvements, etc.
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Google Tips and Tricks

Our 2019 Google Resource Roundup

by Diana Benner
written by Diana Benner

It’s that time of year again. Every year, I gather together all the fabulous Google resources from our blog. This year, we have had so many amazing posts on topics ranging from Google Earth to implementing high-quality instructional strategies using Google tools.  Check out this incredible list of Google blog posts from this past year categorized by topic/tool.

Canvas

Calendar

Chrome

Chromebook App Hub

Chrome Extensions

Classroom

Docs

Earth

Gmail

Instructional Strategies

Library

Sheets

Slides

Various Google Topics and Tools

In addition, don’t forget to check out the 2016 Google Resource Roundup, 2017 Google Resource Roundup, and the 2018 Google Resource Roundup for even more phenomenal Google blog posts. As we move into 2020, stay tuned to more fabulous posts by joining our email list to ensure the latest content gets delivered right to your inbox and you never miss any of these wonderful resources.

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ChromebooksContent AreasEducational TrendsGood Teaching

Fun with a Holiday Fliphunt

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

Add some fun to your holiday season and learning by completing this holiday fliphunt. You’ll find a variety of options so you can start with any of the tasks. All you need is the Flip app on a phone or tablet and enter the code fa530c13. Or, if you are using a Chromebook or laptop, then you can point your browser to https://flip.com/fa530c13. Enter the guest password TCEAGuest if you do not want to log in with your Microsoft or Google credentials. Since this fliphunt is open to the world, don’t share your first and last name when recording. Instead, make up a holiday name or use a different fake name to protect your identity. To make it easier, consider printing out the holiday fliphunt tasks sheet.

What Is a Fliphunt?

A fliphunt is a fun way for students (and adults) to share their learning, interact with content, or just get to know each other better. Participants refer to a task list that is provided with the specific fliphunt that gives a variety of activities to record. Younger students and “newbies” to Flipgrid may find it easiest to work in pairs as they collaborate with other pairs to complete the tasks. Unless otherwise noted, you can start with any task on the sheet. You can find out more information about fliphunts by reading other blog posts I’ve written on the topic.

There’s Even a Reward!

Complete all the tasks on the holiday fliphunt this month and I’ll email you a special certificate recognizing your accomplishment! To receive your certificate, complete the following:

  1. Use your fake name which should appear as the Display Name (if not, edit the display name to be your fake name).
  2. Use the hashtagged task title (#tradition, #song, #worldgift, etc.) as the Title. (see the graphic below for an example)
  3. After you complete and submit all seven tasks, Send Me an Email to let me know. Tell me the fake name you used so I can verify your submissions and your real name for the certificate. I’ll email you a PDF certificate to recognize your accomplishment!
Video submission screenshot

More Winter Resources from TechNotes

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archive
CTO/CIOLeadership

Social Media Archiving in Texas Schools

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

“What’s the retention policy for email?” asked a recent participant at the TCEA SysAdmin event. Another tough, companion question might be, “How are you archiving your social media?” As schools transition from newsletters to blogs, tweets, and Facebook posts, archiving expectations arise. The need for archiving public information on smart devices is increasing. Digital public information, subject to open records requests, doesn’t care where it may appear. It may pop up on private devices and email/social media accounts. New laws make the pursuit and tracking of that data legal. Are you ready to provide archived social media? Let’s explore how others have done that and what schools can do now.

“The general forms in which the media containing public information exist include… email, internet posting, text message, instant message, other electronic communication” (Source: Goverment Code Chapter 552, Public Information)

Social Media Archiving in Texas

Did you know that your district’s social media posts are a state record? Social media falls under the Texas Public Information Act (updated September 1, 2019). Let’s take a quick look at open records requests, as well as records retention.

Open Records Requests

As a technology director in the past, I assisted my school district Central Office to respond to open records requests. This often meant providing information in digital, encrypted format to the district’s lawyers. First, though, I had to dig through an email archive (e.g. Google Vault, Datacove) to find pertinent information. With the wealth of social media sharing going on, I shudder to think what that process would have looked like.

Open Records requests under the Texas Public Information Act for social media content must follow the agency’s Open Records (or “Public Information”) Requests Policy. (Source: Open Records Requests, Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) Social Media resource Guide)

Imagine digging up tweets from a Twitterchat or posts on Instagram and Facebook. Stephanie Hawkins cites Texas law in her informative article on the topic. Review the Texas DIR’s Social Media Resource Guide, and you’ll find more expectations.

Records Retention

Peruse this section of the Guide and you’ll find the following:

Content posted by the agency or the public on an agency’s social media website is a state record (Government Code, Section 441.180(11)), and is subject to State Records Retention requirements in Government Code Chapter 441, Subchapter L,441.180-205.

That means that public schools may soon find themselves digging through their staff’s social media shares. What’s your organization or school district’s retention policy for social media? You may want to take another step back and consider what your social media policy is for your district. The Texas DIR’s Social Media Resource Guide offers some detailed recommendations that merit a close reading.

Is Your Tech Department Ready?

Are technology departments staffed to provide social media posts from staff? Worse, what happens when staff delete offending social media posts? What will you do then? A common strategy for individuals involves deleting offending content. They may even disable their account. This makes the offending posts tough to get to via traditional means. That strategy is not available to organizations. Consider the following:

An agency may be prohibited from deleting social media records, regardless of its established records retention policy, if the record is the subject of legal claims or actions (Government Code, Section 441.187). In addition, state and federal courts require the preservation of relevant records if a judicial or administrative action is reasonably foreseeable, even if such action is not yet initiated.

Do your district leaders work with data on their personal/home smartphones or laptops? If so, government entities now have the power to require access to public information stored on those private devices. On September 1, 2019, the Public Information Act (PIA) was updated. Senate Bill 944 gives government officials the power to look at public information on private devices. This means you need to find a way to document and keep records of communications, no matter where they originate or are kept.

Reflections on Social Media Use

Do you keep your private and public work separate? You may need to in light of SB 944. Most of us keep our private and public data on one device. We use private devices to handle public information. Many teacherpreneurs do this, but they may need to reconsider their “one account for personal and work” approach. Educators are reaching out via social media. They use social media in powerful ways that enhance teaching, learning, and leading. What happens when that open records request comes in for social media? Will it sweep up personal tweets, Facebook and Instagram posts? What about Snapchat in the Classroom? Some juggle many accounts in one app, while others use one account for private and public. Let’s take a quick look at two relevant areas.

Area #1: Disclaimers

While many post disclaimers, they may not be as effective as they once were. Disclaimers can be problematic for employers, but not for the reason you might think.

The more you control [employee accounts and employee behavior on social media], the more you will be legally responsible for everything that happens” (Source: Heather Bussing, “Eight Reasons Social Media Policies Backfire,”HR Examiner)

Educators are relying on disclaimers as a way to distinguish between private and public. While this may work for now, they also need to develop a strategy for rendering to Caesar what is Caesar’s. That is, public information traded on private devices and accounts.

Area #2: Social Media Management

Instead of trying to channel both public and private information through one social media account, some separate the two. That means they have two (or more) accounts for each social media service. If called on to produce public/work information, it’s easy to provide the username and password for the work account. No risk to private or personal information of the employee occurs. Tools like Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social) make it easier to funnel content automatically. Facebook and Instagram have also worked to make multi-account logins possible. This makes it easier to see and share to work-connected accounts. It also simplifies the number of apps you have to have on your device. Instead of needing four to eight apps, you can switch accounts as needed with the native app (e.g. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter).

Problems Ahead: Towards School-Issued Social Media?

If you use your private social media account for sharing public information, you may run into a problem. What would happen if your private account got swept up in a review trying to capture public information sharing? Some may come to the same realization I did. Keep private and work separate, even if your disclaimers are in place. Until now, it was a free for all as to who created social media accounts. We may soon find ourselves using school-issued accounts. Can you see yourself with a school-issued Facebook? How about Twitter or Instagram? Now imagine yourself logging into those accounts with a single-sign on (SSO) solution. That might end the problem that schools face. In the meantime, social media archiving solutions may be an intermediary step. Remember, “courts require the preservation of relevant records.” So, how do we do that? This video may provide some insight.

Social Media Archiving (SMA) Solutions

Getting a SMA solution may help technology departments and assist those who don’t have time to dig across social media in response to an open records request. Email archiving solutions sprang up in response to demand and now social media archiving solutions are appearing. Here are a few for your consideration. Pricing for most was not viewable on their sites.

  • ArchiveSocial: It is a social media archiving solution for public agencies and K-12 districts. Use it to maintain public records of social media. Per their website, “ArchiveSocial connects directly to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to capture and preserve the content on your pages – ensuring you can easily respond to records requests.” View their ebook, Solution Overview. You can find a price overviewon their website.
  • Jaethon: In use by NorthEast ISD in San Antonio, Texas, Jaethon offers both email and social media archiving. They offer an ebook and onsite videos to expand your understanding.
  • MirrorWeb: Adapted from their website: “Significant moments occur on websites and social media channels all the time. We want to save them. So we provide digital archiving of online electronic publications.”
  • PageFreeze: Adapted from their website, it takes compliance and litigation off your plate. It automates archiving your websites, social media. You can access the archived items via a cloud-based dashboard.
  • Smarsh: “Helping regulated organizations to capture, archive and supervise the newest communication channels to meet compliance and e-discovery challenges head-on.”

In their ebook (linked above), Jaethon points out the following benefits of adopting a social media archival solution:

  • Capturing and archiving messages and posts through a variety of capture
    methods, from proxy-based to endpoint capture;
  • Stopping unauthorized access and limiting liability through access controls, rogue account identification, identity management and disclaimers
    • Stopping rogue posts with pattern-matching technology;
    • Notifying admins about where stopped posts originated with alerts
    and reporting;
    • Implementing restrictions on messages that contain time-sensitive data or words and patterns that require further review with supervisory
    measures and
    • Automating all of these processes

Start Thinking About Social Media Archiving

Now is a good time to begin to think about your district’s needs in relation to social media archiving. Let me know if you have any questions or discover even more solutions!

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G Suite EDU
ChromebooksGoogle Tips and Tricks

Overcome Five Challenges in G Suite EDU Classroom

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Looking for G Suite EDU goodness? Then you need look no further than this blog post. In it, we’ll explore a few ways educators are using G Suite EDU tools to resolve classroom challenges. Let’s take a moment to review some of the main challenges that educators face.

A quick list of challenges includes:

  1. Providing individualized feedback to students
  2. Encouraging collaboration with experts and peers
  3. Learning Google Classroom
  4. Viewing educational YouTube videos in the classroom
  5. Locating top Chrome apps and extensions

Ready to get started? Here we go.

G Suite EDU Challenge #1: Individual Student Feedback

In this video, Sean Thompson shares how educators can more easily provide individualize feedback to students who then review the feedback and then hold formative, reflective discussions one on one with you.

The video uses two tools you may be familiar with, along with a third you may not. The third tool is one you may be unaware of, the Autocrat extension. Autocrat features a simple description that belies great functionality:

Autocrat is an easy to use, flexible document merge tool. It makes creation of PDF or shared Documents from a spreadsheet straightforward. Autocrat is a multi-purpose document merge tool. It allows you to take data from a spreadsheet and merge it into a document via a template.  Tell Autocrat which fields to merge via <>. Then, let Autocrat mass-generate personalized documents.  You can also send the documents as email attachments.  Or, when new forms are submitted, let Autocrat automation take over. This automation means less oversight from you, making your job easier. (Source: Adapted from Autocrat G Suite Marketplace)

The other two tools include Google Forms and Sheets. You may want to watch other videos in this series.

G Suite EDU
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G Suite EDU Challenge #2: Foster Collaboration via Expert Cards

Wish you could have students self-identify as guides on the side for other learners? You might want to try this approach that Zak Kolar suggests. He writes:

I used these “expert” cards with 5th graders for a Google Sites project last year. Students who are more experienced place “expert” cards on their desks. That signals to other students they can answer questions related to a certain area. Those areas include inserting images, creating links, changing layouts, etc.

Zak points out that this approach frees him up to circulate and answer tougher questions. Adapt the approach for both technical and content-related challenges. Teaching students self-assessment can be helpful. When students learn to check or assess their own learning, this can be quite powerful. As such, you can see a gradual release of responsibility when students own their learning. They may begin with you checking for understanding, but as they gain confidence, they move on to self-checks. As they gain knowledge, they can becomes aides to others.

You can see specific ways in these links:

Why make the effort to empower students to self assess? John Hattie explains that students are accurate at self-assessment. As their own critics, they set goals and want to achieve them. To do this, students might follow a specific process that culminates in expert cards:

  1. Students set goals for themselves. Teachers provide descriptive feedback to help them know what they need.
  2. Pupils predict their performance before they begin a task or series of tasks. For a quiz or test, students compare their actual performance with their prediction. 
  3. Learners then reflect and reconcile the difference between the two. This enables students to gain insight. Are they meeting their set goals on a specific assessment? (Source: Chris Bettiol) 

Self-reported grades empower students. Zak’s expert cards appear as the visual acknowledge of student expectations well-met.

G Suite EDU Challenge #3: Learn Google Classroom

Every time I use Google Classroom, I’m amazed at the new features. As you might imagine, the wealth of new features makes keeping up difficult. Let’s explore three miscellaneous questions that have come up about this tool.

Question #1:  “If a person gets added to Classroom later in the term, does he/she receive all the assignments? Does the new person get earlier assignments and stuff?”

Response:  “Yes, that person will have all of the stuff that everyone else in the class has.” (Source: Heather Dawson)

Question #2: “I am a robotics teacher at 4 schools. I have a different Google Classroom at each school that I access with an email address for that school. I have created a quiz at one of the schools. Is there a way to move that quiz to each of the other classrooms without entering the information again?”

Response: “Make a shared drive or a shared folder that all of your email addresses have editing access. Then anything you put in that folder will be accessible to each classroom.” (Source: Laurie Anastasio)

Question #3:  “How are you using G Suite EDU to maximize efficiency? That is, when creating standards scales, data/standard tracking (teacher & student)?”

Responses: 

  • “I made a standards based “gradebook” for my 3rd grade co-teacher. Used Sheets. You could make a master copy for yourself and import the formulas. This will make an individual one for each student and share that with each student and parent. You can also use Autocrat to have the info pulled from your sheet into a google doc. Then, have it share with students and parents.”
  • “Two videos on grading with rubrics (Video #1: Create Rubrics | Video #2: Grading with Rubrics).”

Challenge #4: View YouTube Videos in the Classroom

How can my students watch YouTube videos without advertisements? That’s the substance of questions I’ve received. Another G Suite EDU user asks the following: 

“I have a set of videos a teacher has asked students to watch from YouTube. I can access them as an administrator, but for students, it says the video is unavailable. “This video is restricted. Try signing in with a Google Apps account.” Student attempted with both GAFE and personal accounts and still could not access. Any ideas?

There can be several responses that result in a positive outcome. Most rely on what your school district’s policy is on YouTube. For example, some schools may put a block on YouTube for students when accessed via wireless (a.k.a. WiFi). Teachers may have to submit those web links to allow for access.  Unfortunately, another possibility may include student honesty. Jennifer Brower states the following:

This happens to students under 13 who have signed into YouTube and give their real age. Hooray for them not lying, but it means YouTube now restricts them from a lot, even if we have approved the video. Tech hasn’t found a way to get around it as it is YouTube’s policy that under 13 isn’t supposed to have access.

Other educators may choose to use websites like Viewpure, Safeshare. Another possibility for ad blocking includes a Chrome browser extension Video Adblocker for YouTube. Want an alternative solution that is cost-free? Use Wakelet to create a video playlist. Learn more about this solution via this Wakelet on creating a YouTube Video Playlist. Learn more about Using YouTube Videos in the Classroom.

Challenge #5: Top Chrome Apps and Extensions

Want to start a fight in the teachers’ lounge? Ask “What are your top Chrome must haves for approved student apps and extensions?” and you will be sure to get it started. Here are some responses in alphabetical order from other educators. How would you rate this list? What would you include or remove?

Note: Descriptions excerpted from the Chrome Web Store.

  • Clever: Clever is a Chrome extension that enables students and teachers to log in to their applications.
  • Draftback: Draftback lets you play back the revision history of any Google Doc you can edit.
  • Fun Text: Applies fun effects to your text, such as Rainbow, Growing, Upside down, and much more. 
  • Goobric: Facilitates rubric-based assessment. Includes two different Chrome extensions and works in collaboration with the Doctopus Add-on for Google Sheets.
  • Grammarly:  From grammar and spelling to style and tone, Grammarly helps you eliminate writing errors and find the perfect words to express yourself. You’ll get suggestions from Grammarly as you write.
  • Insert Learning:  Insert instructional content on any web page. Teachers can insert questions, discussions, and insight directly into any website. When students go to that website, they can respond to those questions and discussions. They can also take their own notes.
  • Kami: Allows you to take any existing document and enhance it in your browser. Annotate scanned PDFs, as well as write, draw, type, comment, augment.
  • LastPass Free Password Manager:  LastPass saves your passwords. It then gives you secure access from every computer and mobile device. Only remember one password – your LastPass master password. Save all your usernames and passwords to LastPass. It will autologin to your sites and sync your passwords everywhere you need them.
  • LucidChart Diagrams: The easiest way to draw flowcharts, mockups, UML, mind maps and more.
  • PearDeck:  Pear Deck is an add-on for Google Slides that will allow teachers to ask students questions. Students will be prompted to answer your questions as you advance your slides. Read these TCEA blog entries featuring PearDeck.
  • Read and Write:  Offers text-to-speech to hear words, passages, or whole documents read aloud with easy-to-follow dual color highlighting, and more. Read this TCEA blog entry. 
  • Screencastify:   Capture, edit and share videos in seconds. Read TCEA blog entries featuring Screencastify.
  • WriQ:  WriQ helps teachers assess student writing, provide valuable feedback, in Google Docs.

Looking for more ideas? John Sowash has a nice list online. And here’s my list. Remember, avoid Chrome extension overload for yourself and students by introducing a new extension when needed and not before.

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