TOSAs Chat Up Twitter #TOSAChat and #ConnectedTL

This Twitter thing is hot! I know that I"m behind the times, but am working hard to catch up. There are so many educational chats out there, I didn't know where to begin.  Since I will be starting a job as an Instructional Coach in the next week, I wanted to find a PLN (Professional Learning Network) that I could learn with and from. Then I found two, while at the #CUERockStar Black Label sessions for TOSAs (Teachers on Special Assignment) on August 15-16, 2015.

The first, @TOSAChat and #TOSAChat, held its first chat ever on Monday, August 17, 2015 at 8:00 p.m. PST. It was lively! Luckily, I just added Tweetdeck the day before, so I could follow the chat. Holly B. Steele (@hollybsteele) gave me the great suggestion of opening up two columns for the chat, one for old and one for current tweets. I'm going to use that strategy next week! Here is a link to the Storified version of the inaugural chat.

A short 23-hours later, the @ConnectedTL and #ConnectedTL (short for Connected Teacher Learner) began at its regularly scheduled time, Tuesdays at 7 p.m. PST. The hosts of this ongong Twitter chat are @rhondacorippo, @mrvaudrey, and @catetolnoi. This chat is really organized! The chat has a Pinterest Board with resources and posted the questions before the chat, which was really appreciated. That kept me from having scroll fever during the chat, wondering what the current question was...and what the answers being posted related to.

If you are a TOSA, TOSA-wannabe, Coach, Administrator, or Teacher on the lookout for good stuff, I encourage you to check out these chats...and start following some of the innovative teachers in these chats! Start off the new school year by building a PLN that meets your needs, whether as a TOSA or otherwise.

Need to find more educational chats, I suggest having a look at the cybraryman educational chat schedule and list of educational hashtags. Find a PLN that fits!

Run, Don't Walk to the Next CUE Rock Star Teacher Camp

This week, I attended my first CUE Rock Star Teacher Camp at Crescent City, CA. This is the last teacher camp of the 2015 Summer season. What is Rock Star Camp for teachers? First, they are the brainchild of the creative Jon Corippo, Director of Academic Innovation at CUE.org. This movement has morphed from one or two a year for teachers, to 13 Teacher Camps this summer, Administrative Camps, and Camps for TOSAs. Check out the Cuerockstar.org site for updates or follow the #cuerockstar Twitter hashtag for current happenings.

What happens in a CUE Rock Star Camp? First, the shreds start off the day: Each faculty member riffs for two minutes on his or her day's session: one slide only. Each faculty member leads two sessions per day which are repeated so if you miss something in the morning, you can join the afternoon. Sessions are two hours long. They are more about making and doing than sitting and getting. Questions, texting, collaboration, new ideas, new solutions, problems are all encouraged. The sessions are focused on meeting the needs of your students and your needs as a teacher, so you can support student learning.

Sunset over Crescent City Harbor with Pro HDR app and iPhone 5S 

Here are some examples of sessions on the schedule, just in Crescent City (link to the Schedule). In the Crescent City camp, Day 1 is on Google or Apple tools, Day 2 in on STEAM sessions, and Day 3 is on Innovative Pedagogies. Lunch is two hours to allow time to make connections and learn in an ad hoc way with participants and faculty. At lunch on Day 1, we learned how to use Twitter better and introduced the new Periscope app, owned by Twitter. On Day 2, we shared out Twitter handles and talked informally about solutions to challenges, one to one or a few.

What is the secret sauce of a Rock Star Camp? It is beyond the structure and open, supportive culture: it is the people who attend the camp. The Rock Stars aren't the faculty. The Rock Stars are the teachers who come to learn. Some of the Rock Star Faculty I've met this year are: Chris Scott, Art La Flamme, Rae Fearing, Rick Phelan, Tracey Campbell, Charlene Knowlton, and Colby Smart. We have been lucky to share, learn, and celebrate Crescent City together at our host site, the Del Norte High School. Thanks for being great hosts. Rock On, Crescent City!

Up, Periscope?

Have you heard of the new app, Periscope?

Periscope Logo

It is owned by Twitter, and can be used to create a live broadcast. I have seen it pop-up (pardon the pun) quite a bit this summer, between educators whom I follow periscoping (yes it's now a verb) sessions at conferences, to a favorite band, for King & Country, giving fans a backstage, sneak peek into its summer tour.

Want to know more? Watch this brief YouTube by Sunny Lenarduzzi with instructions on how to use Periscope. She also compares it to Meerkat, a similar app.

I have really enjoyed being a watcher of Periscope. This week, I will be joining the faculty at Cue Rock Star Teacher Camp in Crescent City. I will try to Periscope from there, to try it out! Hope to share Periscope with you soon!

Blogging Poll - Share Your Views!

We've now been blogging in Edtech 537 all summer. What have you learned? What are your experiences and plans. Respond to the following poll to let me know:

What is Your "Road Not Taken"?

Why read Robert Frost's poem, "The Road Not Taken"? Why listen to the poet read it? Try listening, then see if you agree with me....

 Video entry Link to text of poem "The Road Not Taken"

As an English teacher, I've read the poem, "The Road Not Taken"  by Robert Frost many times. I read it as a student. I've taught it over several years. Many of you have read it or studied it along the way, too. I've examined it line by line with Freshmen, annotating it along the way. I may get it right when I interpret the tone (the author's attitude towards the subject) of wistful regret when looking back at past choices. I will probably keep learning as I return to the poem over time. Here's the gist of my understanding:

Each of us has a fork in the road, where a choice was made. One direction was taken over another. The "road not taken" was left behind. Like Frost, I have "kept the first [road] for another day!" Whether it is a relationship, a school, a friendship, or place where I lived, I believe that I can return, even as I walk down another path.

Frost's voice soothes us as he closes the poem, stating he "took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference." The cadence of his voice, the pauses and inflections give the poem greater impact and meaning. Do you find this to be true?

So, I wonder what is your "road less traveled by"? Will you take the unusual route, or follow the crowd? I like Frost's advice to find and follow my own road. Tweet out your travel plan or view looking back at a choice using the hashtag #roadnottaken .

Book Recommendation: Power Up by Diana Neebe and Jen Roberts

An audio entry using AudioBoom!

Image Source: Stenhouse Publishers

While on vacation, I've been smiling, highlighting, and nodding in agreement while reading Diana Neebe and Jen Roberts' new book, Power Up: Making the Shift to 1:1 Teaching and Learning, published by one of my favorites, Stenhouse Publishers. I've added a brief audio review of the book below, and will return to add more information later after finishing the book. I plan to use it as a key source for Professional Development next year!

TECH is Diana Neebe and Jen Roberts innovative interpretation of the
SAMR Model created by Ruben R. Puentedura, Ph.D.

Figure 1.5 Power Up

Resources:

Power Up Study Guide

Plug in Power Up Website

Follow them on Twitter:
Diana Neebe: @dneebe
Jen Roberts: @jenroberts1
Hashtag: #PowerUpEd

Note and a bit of a disclaimer:
I first met Jen Roberts in March 2015 when I attended her session on Blogging at the Google in Education Summit on March 21-22, 2015 following the annual CUE 2015 Conference in Palm Springs, CA. I was inspired by her Lit and Tech Blog, overall body of work, and started to follow her on Twitter. When I ran into her again at EdSurge Summit in LA, I knew that I was doing the right kind of PD, since she was there! While virtually attending the ISTE conference (ISTELive), up popped a Periscope, and I was able to attend Diana and Jen's session on Power Up via Jen's Phone. I was immediately hooked! While taking a class this summer, I asked Jen to Guest Post on this blog, to which she kindly agreed. You can see her post here. Thanks Jen and Diana for your #professionalgenerosity !

New Leading Edge Certification - Professional Learning Leader

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Are you starting a new position as a Ed Tech TOSA/Coach of teachers?

There's a new Leading Edge Certification (LEC): Professional Leaning Leader. This is the fourth certification program offered by the Leading Edge Alliance. The first three, Digital Educator, the Online and Blended Teacher, and the Administrator address integration of technology and curriculum to best meet the needs of students. I have completed three of the LEC programs online, and each has met my needs as I develop as an educator.

The Professional Learning Leader supports Instructional Coaches and Tech Coaches needs. Most of the participants in the course I took were already leaders. The course was offered through cue.org, so attracted lots of movers and shakers. That is one significant benefit of the class, which was taught online over an eight week time frame. The workload is generally pretty manageable, certainly less than an online class at a university. Further, the class, which is taught in modules, provides the opportunity to work on units for classes or lessons I was teaching. I always love it when I can double-dip and work once for two outcomes.

Each of the certifications focuses on research-based teaching strategies  For the Digital Educator, I was introduced to TPACK and SAMR. In the Professional Learning Leader course, Malcolm Knowles' Adult Learning Theory was introduced. The theory was the foundation, then we had the opportunity to practice creating using a variety of tools as well as collaborating with other students.

Another key piece of information were details about standards regarding digital and online learning. Two organizations ISTE and iNACOL are key in providing the standards and resources to meet them.

Mike Lawrence, CEO of CUE.org, wrote an article in eSchool News on the Five Reasons Certification is Important for Edtech Leaders, which you can read to get his slant on the topic. The next reason for me was the opportunity to take the class online with Sandy Somera. I was lucky to have her as the instructor in all three of the Leading Edge courses that I took. I'm sure there are lots of other great teachers out there as well, but she has a wealth of knowledge which she is eager to share. She is worth following on Twitter too: @sandysomera.

Breaking News: Eileen Walters is now responsible for the Leading Edge Certification charge at CUE. See this announcement on 7-31-15 from the CUE.org webage for more information.

At the end of each Leading Edge course, each student compiles a digital portfolio, representing the work accomplished in the class. In all three of the classes, we used Google Sites to create the portfolio. The process of completing these certifications prepared me to do well in graduate-level Edtech classes that I'm taking currently at Boise State University (@edtechbsu). They also prepared me to confidently explore digital tools in my classroom and with other teachers. That kind of confidence is fun to earn and share with others.

For a look at a completed Leading Edge portfolio, here is a link to my Leading Edge Professional Learning Leader site. I hope that you consider Leading Edge Certification!