Posts
Today's Ripple and Splash ~
Remaining positive can be a difficult thing to do as the dreaded EOG testing approaches. Many of the forums I have been a part of this past week have been filled with lamentations concerning the stress of NCLB and NC standardized testing! From the math workshops being frantically conducted in our county, to speakers and scientists at the 1st Annual Event of the NC Science, Math, and Technology Education Center, to the Annual Celebration of the Kenan Fellows, to my graduate class being conducted via Polycom with educators in Arizona and Missouri, the tone is dismal! This year, above all others I have experienced, seems to be the worst! Teachers are worried, kids are stressed, administrators are in a panic, and the entire school system could implode at any moment!
However, in an effort to provide teachers with tools they need as they review, our Principal asked that all projectors (we don't have one per classroom - YET) be moved to the classrooms of 3-5 grade math teachers. I created some wikis (Gr. 3, Gr. 4, Gr. 5) with math review sites and content, and several teachers have created great PowerPoint reviews to use with their SMARTboards. Now, as you walk down the hall, projector lights are burning, ELMOs are displaying manipulatives to small groups, and kids are engaged in math! Qwizdom sets are being checked out to review skills, and we have had to order more cords and splitters for the increased need! Although not the seamless integration with Problem Based learning I hope will come, it is a start - a hook, so to speak! Maybe, just maybe, after being "pressured" to use the technology, they won't want to give it up!!
Photo: Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining
Remaining positive can be a difficult thing to do as the dreaded EOG testing approaches. Many of the forums I have been a part of this past week have been filled with lamentations concerning the stress of NCLB and NC standardized testing! From the math workshops being frantically conducted in our county, to speakers and scientists at the 1st Annual Event of the NC Science, Math, and Technology Education Center, to the Annual Celebration of the Kenan Fellows, to my graduate class being conducted via Polycom with educators in Arizona and Missouri, the tone is dismal! This year, above all others I have experienced, seems to be the worst! Teachers are worried, kids are stressed, administrators are in a panic, and the entire school system could implode at any moment!
However, in an effort to provide teachers with tools they need as they review, our Principal asked that all projectors (we don't have one per classroom - YET) be moved to the classrooms of 3-5 grade math teachers. I created some wikis (Gr. 3, Gr. 4, Gr. 5) with math review sites and content, and several teachers have created great PowerPoint reviews to use with their SMARTboards. Now, as you walk down the hall, projector lights are burning, ELMOs are displaying manipulatives to small groups, and kids are engaged in math! Qwizdom sets are being checked out to review skills, and we have had to order more cords and splitters for the increased need! Although not the seamless integration with Problem Based learning I hope will come, it is a start - a hook, so to speak! Maybe, just maybe, after being "pressured" to use the technology, they won't want to give it up!!
Photo: Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining
