Our Schools, Our Stories: The Wayne County Public Schools Podcast

Meet Valerie Jernigan, Instructional Technology Facilitator at Goldsboro High School. Mrs. Jernigan has developed a Student Tech Team at GHS through a grant awarded from the North Carolina Business Committee for Education (NCBCE). Students are learning to repair Chromebooks, teach their peers about cyber safety, and even starting their own podcast!

Richard Nobers discusses his new Drone Technology course at Rosewood High School. His students are engaged and excited to learn. He also discusses future plans for this course and the students who are taking part.

In this episode, we meet Jamisha Raymond, a CTE teacher from Wayne School of Technical Arts. Mrs. Raymond teaches Coding with Minecraft and her students' abilities have really taken off.  Listen to this episode to learn more about Minecraft for Education and some of the accomplishments her students have already attained.

District Math Coordinator, Andrew Bass, came in to talk about his Hybrid Math I course for advanced 8th Grade Students. Created to fill a need in Wayne County Public Schools, Mr. Bass discusses how it all began, what his course looks like, and how he uses Blended Learning Strategies in the delivery of this course. By teaching this class, Mr. Bass provides opportunities for students who may not otherwise be able to take Math 1 at their middle school. 

Dr. Ashley McBride and Lauren Boucher (from NCDPI) stopped by to chat about all the benefits available to our staff with their ISTE Memberships. This year, every certified educator in the state of NC was given a professional membership in the International Society for Technology in Education. ISTE is the world’s most dynamic edtech community, and teachers can make use of a wide variety of resources available.

In this informative episode, Robin Wilson, Instructional Technology Facilitator at Eastern Wayne High School, discusses cyber safety for students. She speaks about being responsible with the information you share, the importance of always being aware of your digital footprint, and protecting both your personal information and your reputation online. Ms. Wilson shares tips to help all of us make better decisions about how we use technology and social media. 

Laura Taylor is heading up a new hybrid Teacher Cadet Program district-wide. Students work face-to-face and online as they learn more about becoming future educators. Listen to learn more about how Blended Learning makes it possible to spread this program to every high school in the district.

Lesli Ducasse, Instructional Technology Facilitator at Southern Wayne High School speaks of the importance of students becoming content creators and some ed tech tools for them to use.

Some of Lesli's favorite programs for students:

Adobe Express for Education

Canva for Education

Google Drawings

Google Slides

Melissa Sanders is a 4th-grade teacher at Meadow Lane Elementary School. This year, after participating in the NC Rethink Education Blended Instructor course, she felt compelled to start implementing the strategies learned. She's had great success with her students. They are all growing and because her kids always have something else to do, rigor stays high and her students stay on-task, removing behavior problems from her class. Mrs. Sanders is finding great success in serving as a facilitator in her classroom as students work on project-based learning tasks, and managing small-group instruction made possible with strategies like choice boards and playlists.

Melissa participated in NC Rethink Ed's Blended Instructor Training. Learn more about this course here:NC Rethink Ed Blended Instructor Course

Learn more about the NC Rethink Ed Blended Learning Initiative here:NC Rethink Ed

You can also visit the NC Rethink Ed learning hub on GoOpen where you can find a wide variety of resources, including blended learning courses already created you can download, personalize, and implement today!  NC Rethink Ed Hub on GoOpen

Welcome to EdTech Journeys, the podcast where we explore the ever-evolving world of educational technology and its impact on teaching and learning. Our mission is to help educators in the Wayne County Public Schools system and beyond stay up-to-date with the latest EdTech trends, tools, and best practices in Eastern North Carolina. In each episode, we'll sit down with experts in the field, teachers, and administrators to discuss their experiences and share insights into how blended learning and technology integration are transforming education here in Wayne County. So whether you're a seasoned EdTech pro or just starting your journey, join us as we embark on a new adventure in learning.

Transcript:

Welcome to Ed Tech Journeys, the Wayne County Public Schools podcast, where we explore the ever-evolving world of educational technology and its impact on teaching and learning. Our mission is to help educators stay up to date with the latest Ed Tech trends and best practices. In each episode, we'll sit down with experts, teachers, and administrators to discuss their experiences and share insights into how blended learning and technology integration are transforming education. Join us as we embark on a new adventure in learning. This is Ed tech journeys with Robert Yancy.

Hello, and welcome to Ed Tech Journeys, the podcast that explores the intersection of technology and education. I'm your host, Robert Yancey, and I'm excited to share our podcast with you today. Our podcast focuses on blended learning and technology integration and how our teachers are using it in Wayne County Public Schools, a school district located in eastern North Carolina. As a district, we're constantly exploring new tools and platforms to enhance our educational approach. Ultimately, our goal is to create a personalized student-centered learning experience that prepares our students for success in the 21st century. This podcast will serve as our platform to share what teachers across the district are doing, what's working well in their classrooms, and to learn from each other. It's also an opportunity for the community to get more insight into what kinds of learning opportunities our schools are providing for students and to hear about all our students' successes. 

That's all for this special teaser episode. If these topics pique your interest, please subscribe today. Now, let the journey begin.