The word “gather” has its roots in Old English from two words: geador (together) and gaed (good and/or fellowship). In July, 20 teacher educators from across the U.S. gathered for a weekend to talk about the ways in which we could support each other in teaching, researching, and living out the core principles of connected…
This year in San Antonio at AERA I will be giving several presentations about Transformative Teaching, Connected Learning, and organizing for social justice in education. Here is a schedule and some descriptions if you are here and would like to join, or, if you can’t make it and would like to read more, please ping…
For most of my academic career I have researched teaching and learning using the traditional institution-centric approach of anonymizing all the people and places that I study. As of late, I felt that while this helped identify general trends, it did not help scholars, teacher educators, and teachers get a true picture of what is…
I am excited to announce the publication of my new book, Transformative Teachers: Teacher Leadership and Learning in a Connected World (Harvard Education Press). Building off of the positive energy and interest that was generated by my Transformative Teacher Profile blog post series in 2015, this book is meant to shine a light on the…
Have you been “schoolified?” Do you find yourself: -Separating your personal interests, feelings, and relationships from school? -Going through the motions to get to the end? -Afraid of saying the wrong answer or doing something the wrong way? -Thinking of play is as nonintellectual and work as passionless? -Working to learn only what you are…
I look White. Due to the structural racial inequities embedded in American society, I have benefitted from White privilege. And I have a Black heritage. My father had a White mother and a Black father. He grew up in the 1950’s, when such marriages were forbidden in many states, and he was treated and categorized…
The Tri-State Teacher Convening (Program; Eventbrite) , a free, massive, teacher-led professional development gathering organized by teachers, for teachers will be held this Friday evening (10/16) and during the day Saturday (10/17). The convening brings together many teacher-led professional networks and educators from the area to connect and share ideas. On Saturday, I will be doing a talk…
As the new school year approaches, educators from kindergarten through higher education (myself included) are in a transitional period that can be cause for both great excitement and a sense of dread. These last few weeks before school are a time to re-think how we have done things in the past and create new plans and possibilities for our classrooms.…
“…And if three people do it! Can you imagine three people walkin’ in, singin’ A bar of “Alice’s Restaurant” and walkin’ out? They may think it’s an Organization! And can you imagine fifty people a day? I said FIFTY people a day . . . Walkin’ in, singin’ a bar of “Alice’s Restaurant” and walkin’…
In this post, we share five How-To Guides for facilitating literature circles that help learners uncover the power of stories. The guides range from grades Pre-K-6th grade. About Literature Circles: Literature circles (sometimes called book groups or literature groups) are book discussion groups organized around a book, theme, genre, or author. Students must learn to be…
In September of 2014, I decided to embark on a a teaching odyssey of sorts. I went on a mission to learn about how to use (and teach about) open digital badges in the classroom. This post is the third and final in a series of my reports on my journey. The first two posts…
If the principles of social network theory worked perfectly in real life, I would have met Sydney Coffin at least 20 years ago. Overlapping school friendship circles, participation in the same teacher networks, and shared professional interests in literacy and social justice link us in many ways. As it was, we met a few months…
Last week I described why I decided to take a chance and try open badges in my college course, #ED216 (Literacy in the 21st Century). I promised to return with the “How” this week. What I have learned over the last few weeks in this course is that by and far, developing a badge policy and…
I often tell my students that good teaching means taking risks, tinkering, and taking on a challenge. It supports your professional growth and keeps you passionate about the work. This is the beginning of a story of a challenge I set for myself – using open badges in a college classroom. As I shared my…
I will be joining in the Connected Courses class/community/rabble-rousing in September as a co-learner and co-facilitator – check out http://www.connectedcourses.net for more info and a sneak peak!
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