Bubbling up the best videos, resources, and ideas for teachers to use in their classrooms.
"...when a multiple-choice question is given to a student in hopes of measuring how well he or she understands something, it manufacturers the illusion of right and wrong, a binary condition that ignores the endlessly fluid nature of information."
I believe Terry Heick is spot on in his lastest Edutopia blog post. (link)
I just finished reading Seth Godin's book The Icarus Deception and I'm was left motivated by the idea that we need to create and ship art--and by art he's means in the broadest of terms. Though I pride myself as someone who creates and shares a lot, I don't think I'm taking enough risk. That is why I'm going to make 2013 the year where I push myself to ship even if I don't think it'll have "universal appeal". I know I'm holding back, but I also know that I'm leaving fruit unharvested per say. Currently, I'm a terrible writer and this is a direct result from not writing and publishing. So here we go, however flawed something may be it's time to create & ship.
In that vain, I came across this great Kickstarter project by way of Mathalicous of a group of educators who clearly not holding back and creating and shipping. There's only a few days left and will likely not get funded, but they're putting themselves out there.
Obama Second Inaugural
Obama First Inaugural
Bush II Second Inaugural
Bush II First Inaugural
Clinton Second Inaugural
Clinton First Inaugural
Bush I Inaugural
Reagan Second Inaugural
Reagan First Inaugural
Carter Inaugural
Ford Inaugural Address (Nixon Resigns)
Nixon Inaugural Address
Johnson Inaugural Address
Kennedy Inaugural Address
Eisenhower Inaugural Address
Truman Inaugural Address
A lot of energy was wasted on arguing for and against the "flipped" model and whether or not it was a sound educational practice. I'm not of the mindset that education can be "flixed" through some yet-to-be-discovered educational model. I am, however, a fan of creating public resources that can be used by students and other teachers.
Teachers are creators and have something to share. With that, I would encourage educators to create and share their lessons and resources. With tools for discovering, curating and sharing resources continuing to improve, there has never been a better time to jump into the creators pool. An easy way to start is by crafting simple videos of the classroom lessons. Videos can be created in the moment or prepared beforehand. By capturing lessons in video format students will have something to refer to and other teachers will have examples to turn to when looking for inspiration for their own lessons.
Resources to get you started:
I had a chance to talk with Jeremy Kesshin, co-founder of CodeHS, a startup that teachers students how to code. Jeremy walks us through the product and shares how teachers are using it. At the end of the interview I ask Jeremy his thoughts on whether or not all students should learn how to code (skip ahead to that part of the video).
Here are three interviews with teachers that are using CodeHS with their students. These videos were prepared by CodeHS.
The holidays are great time to pause and smile. These videos are perfect if you're looking for some 'J' factor in your classroom.
We I hear facts about the number of jobs today that didn't excited 15 years ago and how we cannot predict what proficiencies and skills will be required in the future economy, I keep thinking about how important it is that we provide students with room to explore, experiment, tinker, and create.
Playing with food is a great example because it highlights a child's ability to see things without the societal norms or the standard operating procedures we all adhere to.
The three commercials below, who's combined production and distribution costs easily stretch into the 8 figures, are all creations of people who look at the world a little bit differently than everyone else. The next time you go to correct a student or child for breaking with tradition or expectations, misusing their math manipulatives, or "disrespecting" their supplies, take a moment to ask yourself why.
The video below is a good example for why the developing world, that's right, the developing world, will produce the next wave a great engineers and inventors. Children in the United States, and other first-world countries, lack hands on learning experiences. When they do get a chance to tinker, it is in a controlled environment under the "guidance" of trained professionals; often times in elective or weekend classes. Once the kids arrive home they operate in a hermetically-sealed world where if they need something, they buy it, and if it's broke they replace it.
Vihart: Though technically an employee of the Khan Academy, Vihart stands alone when it comes to amazing math videos on YouTube. Her hands-on approach to math will be sure to engage even the most reluctant of learners in your classroom.
Khan Academy: The obvious king of the mountain when it comes to math videos on YouTube. This invaluable resource is great for anyone looking for a quick tuneup on a math skill.
PatrickJMT: This YouTube EDU guru has been creating straight-to-the-point math videos for over 4 years now. The goldmine of content on his channel is something every math teacher needs in their arsenal of differentiation tools.
Numberphile: Numberphile is just like the a name suggests: a channel where people are obsessed with numbers. They take a look a specific numbers, describe why they are interesting, and how they are come into play in the real world.
Mathalicious: Though this channel is mainly a promotional effort directing viewers to their premium content hosted on their site, the few videos they have are great for getting conversations started in math class.
