Lansing EdTech

In this episode, Eric and I discuss a new Exploratory Class schedule at Mt. Hope STEAM. Eric's students are using iMovie to create videos reminding students about school-wide expectations around walking to lunch, playing on the playground, etc. 

This is episode 18 - The Struggle is Real. We're talking about the power of letting students - and teachers - struggle when learning something new. We share an experience with 6th grade students and Google Slides. Lastly, we reference a couple of resources that can help build in some struggle that still integrates with your curriculum. 

References:

Google Slides Scavenger Hunt
Terraclues
Code.org

It's the first episode of the 2017-2018 school year! One of our podcasters, Eric, has a new role. He discusses that transition and we also tackle technology in the classroom at the beginning of the school year. We discuss setting expectations, how to make technology workflows easier, and the importance of modeling proper behavior for our students. We reference Google's Be Internet Awesome digital citizenship curriculum and resources, which you can find at www.beinternetawesome.com

We love to hear from our listeners, so please reach out to us on Twitter @AllisonKEDU or @spicerru. You can also visit my wesbsite at www.mrsktechnology.com

On this week's podcast, we recap our time in San Antonio, Texas at the International Society of Technology Education Conference (ISTE). Eric Spicer (@spicerru) and Allison Keskimaki (@AllisonKEDU) host and discuss our top takeaways, what the next "big thing" is in education, and whether or not "Deep in the Heart of Texas" is the worst earworm in the world! 
Twitter feed we reference - #ISTETC and follow @ISTETC 

We'd love your feedback or to have you on a future episode; email us at [email protected] 

Today's podcast discusses the variety of local conferences available for teachers this summer. We also talk through the advantages of presenting at smaller conference and how they can help you get your "sea legs" so you can present at larger conferences. 

Local Conferences Resource Guide

It's getting close to the end of the year - what do you do wtih all the technology you've been using every day for the past school year? This episode discusses some of the policies and procedures we use to help collect and manage technology. What do you do? 
 

You can reach out to us on Twitter - @AllisonKEDU and @spicerru or email us at [email protected] and [email protected]

On our 13th episode, we tackle the question of whether it's better to just take the technology away, lock kids down into one iPad app, etc., or to have a larger conversation about digital citizenship and ownership of the technology. We discuss how we handle issues with students being off task, how it's similar or different with technology involved, ideas for creating high-quality learning so students are less tempted to be off task, and suggestions on conversations with students about how technology is a part of a larger group of tools for instruction. 
As always, feel free to reach out to us on Twitter @AllisonKEDU and @spicerru or email us at: [email protected] and [email protected]

After presenting at the School Improvement Grant (SIG) Networking Event on the importance of a technology integration specialist to support technology purchases, we discuss why we think TIS positions are crucial for school success. While lots of schools end up purchasing a lot of equipment or software, there isn't always a person who is trained in supporting teachers on how to use that technology to support instruction. Allison and Eric discuss this and more. You can follow us at @AllisonKEDU & @spicerru.

Recapping on our experiences at MACUL 2017. 

Live from the Volt Bar inside the GM Renaissance Center, Eric and Allison podcast about their top takeaways from the first full day of sessions and speakers at MACUL 2017. Listen in to hear about a cool new tool from Google and what the brilliant Sir Ken Robinson had to say this morning about creativity and schools.