You Can’t Beat Free PD! Friday, May 6, 2011
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Collaborations, Conferences, Discovery Education, Tech PD, VLC Programs, Web 2.0.Tags: Cooperating School Districts, Discovery Education, Discovery Educator Network, geocaching, instructional technology, project-based learning, Virtual Learning Center, vlc, Web 2.0
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Last Saturday, Discovery Education and the Virtual Learning Center of Cooperating School Districts hosted a free educational technology mini-conference. The 2011 Spring Virtual Conference was streamed live with guest speakers sharing their knowledge about online publishing, project-based learning, geocaching and more. Thousands of educators from across the world gathered in their homes or at various locations around the globe to learn, collaborate, and network.
As a free professional development opportunity, CSD offered this the live stream event for St. Louis area educators to participate in from our building, plus we offered hands-on training and instructional technology assistance. The participants were able to choose between watching and discussing the live stream of Discovery Educator Network guest speakers or collaborate in smaller group sessions hosted by the instructional technology trainers in the VLC. The participants brought their own wireless device or used one in the Technology Enhanced Learning Environment (tele) of CSD. Our special guest was Discovery Education Professional Developer Cindy Lane. Cindy shared many of the hidden treasures of DE streaming.
Teachers from ten different districts in Missouri and Illinois attended this event. Attendees also received information about the VLC professional development opportunities and how to become a member of the Discovery Educator Network.
“I am so excited about all that I learn every time I come here,” one teacher from Warren County R-3 Schools shared. Two 4th grade teachers from the School District of Clayton stated that they would be sure to come back for the free trainings CSD offers on Discovery Education streaming- those are offered every-other-month on Mondays. The next session- the final one for this school year- is this upcoming Monday, May 9th. Click here to learn more about this free all-day training. Registration is required.
Curriculum, Intervention & Assessment Showcase Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Collaboration, Tech PD, VLC Programs.add a comment
On October 15, CSD’s Virtual Learning Center will host a FREE educational product showcase. District representatives may attend to learn about the latest in educational products related to Curriculum, Intervention and Assessment. Come see nearly 20 educational products and applications demonstrated live and find out how these can enhance your district’s classroom instruction for greater student success.
Attendees will have the opportunity to network, and receive input on how other districts are using these products. Free pilots, giveaways & incentives will also be available.
The Showcase focus is on Curriculum, Intervention, and Assessment. Specialists in the following areas will benefit from attending:
- Curriculum Coordinators
- Department Chair
- Data and Assessment Coordinators
- Alternative school / credit recovery program coordinators
- Differentiated Instruction leaders ~ ELL, ESL, Gifted, SPED
- Reading / Language
- Teacher Leaders
- Instructional Technology
The showcase is from 8 am to 2 pm on Friday, October 15 at CSD, 1460 Craig Road. Attend all day or only a portion of the day as your schedule permits. Check out CSD’s homepage for more information and to see the pdf list of presentations to plan your day. Register to attend at http://bit.ly/aTOsah. If you have additional questions, contact Stephanie Madlinger at smadlinger@csd.org or 314-692-1212.
Curriculum & Technology Showcases Featured at Cooperating School Districts Monday, June 14, 2010
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Several of our member school districts were able to come learn about high quality educational products that help increase student achievement and effective teaching last Friday. The St. Louis Area Curriculum Coordinators Association (SLACCA) chose six vendors to invite to CSD’s first Curriculum & Technology Showcase.
The focus of the showcase was online learning for K-12 students and educators. SchoolTown presented and sponsored the opening speaker, Meg Ormiston. Breakfast was sponsored by Aventa Learning and lunch was sponsored by K12, both groups also presented on their product. Other vendor presentations throughout the day included the Independent High School, SqoolTechs, and Elluminate. Participants came from several area districts. To see photos of the day, visit our Flickr page.
Our next Curriculum & Technology Showcase takes place a week from today, on Monday, June 21. Participants for next week’s event include Elluminate; PD 360; Reading Plus; Recorded Books; SunGard Public Sector | K-12 Education (Performance PLUS); and The Master Teacher. Dr. Bena Kallick will be the opening speaker for the day; curriculum and professional development vendors will be featured the rest of the day. RSVPs are requested; please register here.
In addition, we will be holding future showcases next fall and beyond.
Show-Me a Movie Makes History Monday, December 21, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Conferences, digital storytelling, Uncategorized, VLC Programs.Tags: Apple, csd, digital stories, METC, multimedia, Show Me a Movie, tech4learning, VLC Programs
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The deadline for the Show-Me a Movie contest was last week. Over 160 student produced digital stories came flying in to the VLC. After the holidays nearly 20 educators & experts in digital media will judge the movies in the following categories: Show Me A Challenge, Show Me Your Community, Show Me Something New & Show Me A Story.
Martha Bogart, Program Coordinator, stated that nearly half of the digital stories submitted are in the middle grades, 6th-8th. “More and more middle school teachers are embedding multimedia projects into their curriculum, especially in the areas of Science, Social Studies, and Communication Arts. We are also finding many Character Education & Cultural Diversity movies submitted.”
The winners will be awarded at CSD‘s 27th annual Midwest Education Technology Conference. “A Night at the Movies” reception honoring the students and their teachers will be held Tuesday afternoon of the conference. Popcorn, soda, pretzels and more will be served to all reception attendees. The sponsor of the Show-Me a Movie contest is Tech4Learning. They will have representatives present at the conference and attend the reception, so make sure to register for METC, and attend February 8th-10th.
Digital Stories in the Making Thursday, December 10, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Collaboration, Tech PD, VLC Programs.Tags: Cooperating School Districts, csd, digital storytelling, edtech, Integrating Technology Educator Academy, iTEA, Marzano, Moodle, researched-based instructional strategies, Ritenour School District, Tech PD, technology professional development, tele, Virtual Learning Center
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Digital stories are the 21st century essay.
As part of a year long professional development opportunity, nearly 20 educators gathered in the tele to create their digital masterpiece. These teachers are creating digital stories with the help of the educational technology instructors at CSD. This long-term professional development is called integrating Technology Educators Academy. The iTEA is offered as one of the many VLC programs at Cooperating School Districts.
For the 2nd year, Ritenour School District is participating in the VLC‘s iTEA. With a focus on digital storytelling & using classroom strategies with technology, participants are reading two books, DigiTales: The Art of Telling Digital Stories & Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. Through both face-to-face and online formats, the teachers are learning & sharing lesson ideas, curriculum resources, classroom management strategies and more.
Currently the VLC is providing several academies to area school districts with a variety of goals and expected outcomes. Each academy is created based on the needs, resources, and programs currently in the district or school. All of the iTEA’s use an online course management system so teachers can access the handouts & resources, as well as collaborate & receive feedback 24/7.
iTouch Technology Leadership Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Collaboration, Tech PD, VLC Programs.Tags: csd, delicious, diigo, Google Docs, iPod Touch, Moodle, Tech PD, tla, Virtual Learning Center, VLC Programs
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Over twenty educators from the St. Louis area & Arkansas learned how to integrate technology into their teaching and learning using the iPod touch. The Technology Leadership Academy met for their 3rd time today as part of a year long professional development opportunity offered by the VLC at CSD. This popular academy provides professional development for teacher leaders. As the participants learn about various technologies, they create an Action Plan for their school or district. The Action Plan is developed based on the needs of the school, including steps for integrating technology. Online resources such as Google Docs, Delicious, Diigo & Moodle are used to help collaborate & learn together.
Educators receive an iPod touch as part of the TLA. Michael Porterfield, Instructor at the University of Missouri, St. Louis assisted in the teaching and learning. He shared with the participants how to use the iPod touch for email, movies, images & more. Teachers walked away with great ideas for using them in the classroom and as educational leaders in their schools.
Looking through Magic Glasses Monday, December 7, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Collaboration, Tech PD, VLC Programs.Tags: ARRA, Bernajean Porter, csd, CSD Tech PD, digital storytelling, DOK, Ferguson Florissant, Grappling’s, MSIP, Ritenour, Virtual Learning Center, VLC Programs
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Taking a critical look at the 6 elements of digital storytelling.
Ten lucky high school teachers in the St.Louis area are spending the day with Bernajean Porter, national & international collaborative staff developer. Today’s workshop is part of the ARRA Grant written by CSD‘s Virtual Learning Center staff. Five history teachers from each district, Ritenour & Ferguson Florissant are creating digital stories. This morning teachers are empowered to critically look through magic glasses at the 6 elements of a good digital story.
As part of the grant, the participants will be creating digital stories with one of their classes next semester. Each teacher has also provided 3 lesson plans that integrate technology. These plans have been evaluated using several criteria including the Grappling’s Technology & Learning Spectrum, MO 4th Cycle MSIP, DOK, and McRel’s Researched-Based Instructional Strategies. One of the goals of the grant is that there will be improvement of understanding and implementation of each of these areas.
METC Super Early Bird Extended Thursday, December 3, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Collaboration, Conferences, Tech PD, VLC Programs.Tags: edtech, education conference, Flickr, METC, METC 2010, Ning, professional development, Second Life, Tech PD, Twitter, Web 2.0
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February 8-10, 2010
The Super Early Bird registration for the Midwest Education Technology Conference has been extended to Tuesday, December 15th. The pre-conference sessions on Monday are filling fast. In these full and half day workshops you can learn about Digital Projects, Give Your Lesson Plan an Extreme Makeover, or Learn more about Second Life or Twitter, among other choices.
Be sure to also check out the full list of shorter breakout sessions for Tuesday & Wednesday in the Program Grid. Breakout sessions are organized into 13 topic strands such as Web 2.o, Differentiated Instruction, Leadership & Professional Development & Library Media Center. You can also search the program by keyword, then register online.
Come hear some of the top educational leaders in technology. Wesley Fryer, Deneen Frazier Bowen, Scott Meech & Leslie Fisher are a few of the Keynote & Featured Speakers invited to METC this year. Make sure to follow us on Twitter @METC_CSD , register on the METC Ning, or check out the METC Flickr page to find out all of the latest updates.
SMART Board Class Overflows!! Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Tech PD, Uncategorized, VLC Programs.Tags: classes, CSD Tech PD, interactive whiteboard, Moodle, promethean, SMART Board, SMARTboards, St. Louis, tele, Virtual Learning Center, vlc
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Once again the Virtual Learning Center‘s SMART Board class is full! Our Technology Enhanced Learning Environment, usually referred to as the tele, has educational technology classes, workshops & academies a few times per week. “This is always a popular class,” said Martha Bogart, the instructor in today’s workshop. Many classrooms around the St. Louis area are installing interactive white boards as a new & improved method of teaching and interacting with students. SMART has several studies that show the benefits of using interactive whiteboards. Further research supports the increase in student learning and motivation.
Teachers, along with administrators from Lutheran North, Ladue, Jonesburg, Meramec Valley & New City, came together to learn about how to integrate this technology into the classroom. The basics of the SMART Board were covered in this class. All VLC classes and academies are paperless and handouts are provided in the CSD Tech PD Moodle so teachers can access 24/7. Click here to find out when the next class will be held. You can also check to see the VLC’s other technology courses such as Podcasting, Power Point, Moodle, Promethean Boards, Free Online Resources, Internet Safety, and more.
ARRA Grant Begins Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Posted by smadlinger in Classroom Technology, Collaboration, Distance Learning, Moodle, Promethean Activboard, SMART Board, Tech PD, Videoconferencing, VLC Programs, Web 2.0.Tags: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, BJC's Outreach Center, Cooperating School Districts, Grappling’s Spectrum, Midwest Education Technology Conference, Virtual Learning Center
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As a response to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, two school districts in the St Louis area are participating in a grant written by the VLC staff of CSD. Ten social studies teachers from Ferguson Florissant and Ritenour school districts are receiving 42 hours of professional development, as well as technology equipment to enhance their teaching. The teachers will be creating digital stories with Bernajean Porter. Teachers will learn methods to evaluate their digital media and then teach their students to create similar digital media projects in their classrooms. Participants will also spend a day with Lynne Lang from BJC’s Outreach Center learning about the “Forgiveness Factor”. During the grant, teachers will be evaluated using the MSIP classroom observation form that includes the Grappling’s Spectrum of Technology & Learning. Teachers will also be able to attend one day of the Midwest Education Technology Conference in February. The first session was last week and will continue until May of 2010.
