Category: Blog Prompts

Published April 1, 2017 by

#IMMOOC Live Episode 6 (Final) and Blog Prompts

This is it.

The end of the road for this amazing experience.

I really want to thank all of the people that have contributed for participating, as well as our guests for joining in. A HUGE thank you to Tara Martin, Valerie Zemaitis, and Katie Martin, for their leadership roles in this process.  This made it insanely easy for me to put this together, and I believe that their contributions made it a better experience for participants.  I never once had to ask them to do something; they were on the ball. What a great reminder about the importance of finding great people to lead.

On our final episode of #IMMOOC Live, we will have administrators, Joe Sanfelippo and Tony Sinanis.  These two are amazing leaders in education, and their latest book, “Hacking Leadership“, is an awesome book that shares the wisdom of their respective communities.  Just a note, the time has changed to happen at 8pm EST, on Monday, April 3.

For this week, we are going to make it easy.

  1. Blog about the impact of the process, and/or, book.  We want to hear your thoughts.
  2. Take part in the final #IMMOOC chat on Wednesday at 9pm EST.
  3. Go out of your way to comment on as many other #IMMOOC’er blog posts this week.

I am hoping this was as great an experience for you, as it was for me.  It would mean the world to me if you would recommend the book to others as well if you found it valuable.

I believe the following deeply.

Thank you for not only embracing it, but creating it along this journey.

Sincerely,
George Couros

#IMMOOC2 Blog Prompts

Innovative teaching and learning Innovator's Mindset Joe Sanfelippo and Tony Sinanis katie martin

Published March 30, 2017 by

Week 5 Highlights from #IMMOOC Season 2 Participants

This is a compilation of some highlights in our third week of Innovator’s Mindset MOOC Season 2. To join the conversation, check out IMMOOC.Org,  #IMMOOC on Twitter, or join us on Facebook.

Live Session 5 with George Couros, Katie Martin and special guests Beth Houf and Shelley Burgess, authors of the newly released book, Lead Like a Pirate.

 

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=830vNqgejkk&w=560&h=315]

 

All four participants in Live Session 5 contributed so many meme worthy comments in creating and maintaining a culture of innovation.

How do we tackle barriers to innovation?

Beth and Shelley speak of the importance of  staff and students wanting to run into, not out, of schools with “culture first, culture next, culture always”. Shelley talks of the importance of all stakeholders needing to be empowered to become owners and protectors of the culture of a shared and clear-to-all vision for moving forward. “People will be less likely to tear down walls that they helped build”. Beth firmly believes in “you promote what you permit”. We need to model what we hope to see and celebrate every step along the way. Accountability partners may help us make the progress and take needed breaks for perfect balance along the way.  Katie offers the idea to “start with small steps without waiting for permission” and not waiting until the plan is perfectly planned before launching. George reminds us about the meaning of innovation in that we need to do something different (and better) if we want others to do the same. We then need to have “honest conversations at the most appropriate times” for the feedback needed to make improvements along the way. George stresses that we need to stop being so boring along the journey and make sure to liven things up and have some fun.

George refers to the story of the 5 Wet Monkeys in how we need leaders more than ever to fight the TTWWADI (That’s The Way We Always Do It) Monster; one of our barriers to innovation.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4vJ8l2NfIM&w=560&h=315]

Dave Burgess posted this popular Tweet on barriers to innovation:

Katie Martin Tweets that one way to avoid those barriers is to stop concentrating on them:

We have to reflect on other types of barriers that exist holding us back from innovative practices. This post by Rick Burkett was referenced by George to encourage self-reflection.

#IMMOOC Season 2 participants reacted with amazing reflections to Live Session 5.

Here is an awesome reflection from Grayson McKinney:

And this take away from Alex Lianne Carter:

And more take aways from Jessica Torres:

 

And this compilation of Twitter responses to Live Session 5 put together via Memories by Rebecca Lynn:

How might we measure the impact of innovative practices in education?  How do you know you are headed in the right direction?

In Live Session 5 Beth Houf said that the mindset can be measured. Do we have the mindset of innovation?  You can see the progress in her school through Twitter as their digital portfolio.

Shelley  believes that if there is a clear definition of innovation or goals then progress can be measured.

Katie believes that growth over time can be measured if there is impact of something that we value.

 

Yvette Rosario-Perez writes in her blog, “Evidence of innovative practices in education” on measuring innovation based on the goal of developing life-long learners:

Innovation = Life long learning

The ultimate purpose of  education is to instill a passion, a burning desire, and pursuit of ongoing knowledge.

Innovation can be measured by observing students’ level of commitment to the “voluntary, pursuit of knowledge.”  Do students leave school more curious than they entered? When you speak with students, connect with them, and build deep relationships with them you will be able to “see” the impact of innovation.

John Bennett defines, describes and defends how innovation can be measures in his blog, “Are education changes headed in the right directions?”:

What is our definition of innovative? In his book, “Innovator’s Mindset“, George Couros offers this definition of ‘innovative’: Something is innovative if its outcome(s) or result(s) are both new and better. Therefore changes to education will be innovative only if the student education is both different from previous practice and results in better learning.

What changes are we Considering? I cannot overstate how many great ideas and resulting changes have been introduced by MOOC participants; even a representative list is impossible. For this post, therefore, I will offer my personal list: (1) facilitating learning, not teaching; (2) keeping the approach student-controlled; (3) facilitating the development of four basic skills: Effective Learning, problem solving, communicating, and working in groups; (4) eliminating textbooks; (5) eliminating exams (in favor of project outcomes) ; and (6) eliminating grades in favor of course grades assigned by teachers with input from each student and their peers. It is my thesis that this list is collectively quite different from standard pedagogy. It will be appropriately Considered innovative if the student learning improves.

How can we assess if we’re headed in the right direction? Immediately, it should be apparent that there will be no testing (except for any mandated by government); there will be facilitating, not teaching with minimal if any lecturing; there will be no focus on information chosen as ‘correct’ and included in textbooks; there will be student choices of problems addressed (associated with teacher defining questions aligned with appropriate standards); and there will be no ‘right’ answers, there will be failures to learn from, and there will be development of useful answers. Facilitated properly, these changes cannot help improve education / learning with increased motivated student engagement:

What is one way that blogging has changed your practice or thinking?

Kristen Roe responds to this prompt on blogging in “Blogging…. Really? by saying we all have something to contribute.

In the grand scheme of things I think all educators have something of worth to say, that has value, and can bring new innovative ideas to the table. I want to learn from others. I want others to learn from me. It may be something small but it shouldn’t matter. It only takes one small pebble in the pond to make ripples. That one small pebble can have an affect on so many. I have made connections with educators from all over the world through this process. We come from different backgrounds , different types of schools but in the end we all have one thing in common…. Kids. We want to provide every opportunity we can to the children we interact with each day. In order to do that we have to start with ourselves and those we work with.  If we all throw our pebble in the pond just think of the ripple effects we will create!

Elizabeth Dixon Martin writes that blogging has helped her find her, “Blogging Voice”:

…the blogging requirement for this course has helped me develop a habit of writing, but more importantly, has helped me reconnect with my voice while reflecting on what we have done, what we do, and what we might hope to do here at South Central High School. I actually enjoy and look forward to this opportunity to think and write….

NOW, my next task is to work on developing an audience

Finding this to be the perfect place to put this Tweet by Laurie McIntosh on the importance of blogging or Tweeting:

George  writes in his blog about the importance for sharing “The Vulnerability of Learning” no matter which format we use. We need to share the process of learning, not just the product from learning. He extends the idea for sharing the process of our vulnerability of learning in this video reflection:

In the final thoughts we go back to Part 4 of  George Couros’s Innovator’s Mindset. We are reminded that “The biggest game changers in education are, and always will be the educators who embrace the innovator’s mindset”.  “We must be constantly focused on improving our practice, which means we will never be done innovating, growing, and learning.” It is what George referred to as, “relentless restlessness“.

We are better together and in the end the students are the winners,

Valerie

 

#IMMOOC2 Blog Prompts highlights Participant Posts

#IMMOOC #IMMOOC2 #InnovatorsMindset beth houf George Couros katie martin shelley burgess Valerie Zemaitis week 5 highlights

Week 4 Highlights from #IMMOOC Season 2 Participants
Published March 23, 2017 by

Week 4 Highlights from #IMMOOC Season 2 Participants

This is a compilation of some highlights in our third week of Innovator’s Mindset MOOC Season 2. To join the conversation, check out IMMOOC.Org,  #IMMOOC on Twitter, or join us on Facebook.

Live Session 4 with George Couros, Katie Martin and special guest, Jennifer Casa-Todd.

 

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSzmdE_tnSM&w=560&h=315]

Jennifer Casa-Todd joined us in this week’s live session with her passion to “bring the students to the world in which they live”. If they are living in social media why are we not allowing them to go there in their learning experiences? We will find more on this topic when her book, Social Leadia, is published. Jennifer sends the message that we need to prepare our students with the skills to appropriately use social media. She adds that we need to empower them to be the “first responders” and take the lead in helping others recognize appropriate and positive uses. She calls this being taught digital leadership which extends beyond digital citizenship.

George has a blog on the topic of “Helping Students Develop Their Online Identity” where he explains the “3 Things Students Should Have Before They Leave High School”. In this blog he mentions Jason Shaffer and how his school in Coconut Creek, Florida has a required course starting in grade 9 called Personal Branding and Digital Communication. The message of this course is “Identify your passions, stick to your moral code, focus on your goals and tell your personal story through a variety of social platforms.”

Katie tells us the best way to begin taking kids to social media in school is in first having a conversation of what to you want kids to know, understand and be able to do. Then you find the best tools in technology to fit those needs to get the kids to those goals. She adds that we have to move from a culture of fear with what kids can do on social media and shift it to a culture of believing in the positive of how they can do amazing things. She reminds us of the importance of revisiting our  vision and ask ourselves how we are doing in making progress toward our goals and share what is and is not working to enhance success. Remember, our intent needs to have an impact.

George adds that it is important that all stakeholders are clear on the vision you have for the students so we are on the same route and not making it messy and confusing. Thank you George for adding that those that fear technology aren’t veteran teachers. It has nothing to do with age, but in the mindset one has. “It is how you think and do stuff.”

George challenges us to make their learning public so we can shift the conversations at home from, “What did you learn about today?” to “I saw what you learned today.”

Matt Arend Tweeted out this popular statement:

Here is Lalonnie King’s and Debbie Donsky’s sketch note summaries of Live Session 4:


IMMOOC participants also enjoyed Stephanie Filardo’s post which looks like the perfect meme to use again when this session comes to a close.

Examples of setting the foundation for innovation. Examples of strengths-based leadership to unleash talent and foster innovation.

In Chapter 8, George makes this statement: “What if we stopped operating on a deficit model that focuses on a learner’s weaknesses and started operating on a strengths-based model that builds on the learner’s strengths?” How can we utilize the strengths and expertise of the people in our very classrooms or buildings?

Amber McMath’s blog entitled “Strength-based Blah Blah Blah” will resonate with you as she says that we all know relationships are important, but we need to go beyond knowing someone’s favorite color. “We need to know them deeper in order to provide strength based learning experiences.” She leaves you reflecting on these “What If?” thoughts:

What if…

  • It wasn’t just another “strengths-based blah blah blah” workshop I had to go to about being warm and fuzzy but rather a philosophical paradigm shift that touched every part of our school culture?
  • Teachers purposefully met individually with struggling students to encourage them specifically on what they’d done well that day?
  • Students were not punished for being behind in reading by having an elective class taken away?
  • Principals personally asked every staff member in their building, “What is your dream job? Where do you see your career in a few years?”
  • Superintendents invited a teacher, student, or parent to shadow them all day and see the nitty gritty behind the big decisions that affect everyone?
  • Instead of solely focusing on all the parts of the school that need be fixed, we celebrated the parts that shined?
  • We didn’t just say, “My door’s always open!”? What if we meant it enough that we invited people in to tell them how amazing they are, how valued they are, how sincerely thankful we are for what they bring to the table?

Mena Hill made connections of strength based learning with herself and the Wizard of Oz in her blog, “Leading, Learning, and Growing – Oh, My!”

Not only do I want to challenge my own thinking, but also the thinking of colleagues and my students. If a person is successful in a certain area and wants to explore more, why not? Isn’t that the point of learning and growing?  “Bringing people’s strengths to life” challenges us all to engage in a conversation. Throughout The Wizard of Oz Dorothy asks questions of her friends to not only find out “what” makes them tick, but also “why” they want to grow. When the main characters discovered their true strengths, they are filled with confidence. So start with asking yourself what are your strengths and do your colleagues and students a favor, ask them too.

Kris Kampovitz reflects on the lesson learned of “less is more and focus” is necessary to foster innovation in her blog this week.

I, too have constantly sent emails with links to blogs, articles and research to my teachers.  Links that contain fantastic strategies, ideas, plans etc.. for content and concepts they’re teaching or things with which they’re struggling.  I incorrectly assumed that my own enthusiasm and passion for this information would be just as greedily consumed by everyone.  What I found out was just the opposite.  I had sent so many over the course of a few months that teachers either read only one or two, didn’t even open them, or deleted them all together!  Seriously?  Why?  It was because I, too, didn’t have a focus for the content I was sending. I had sent a hodgepodge of everything and anything I’d come across on Twitter, Youtube, or www.fillintheblank.  With everything teachers had going on, more emails from me certainly didn’t make it to the top of their priority list.  What I have learned, and what was hammered home by Chapter 10, was that teachers want and need these resources, but the resources need to apply to them specifically.

Here is a popular Tweet in our #IMMOOC chat this week from Kirsten Hund:

Gilles Thériault put together this Storify for us based on the @IMMOOC chat on what we can do less so we can dig deeper. (He made a Storify for all of our responses to this week’s #IMMOOC chat. Check it out on his Twitter page.)

Examples of Innovative elements in today’s Professional Learning.

George provided us with an opportunity for innovation when he challenged us to find a blog buddy when reflecting on this week’s reading over Part 3. How many of the elements of an innovative classroom did we use in this activity? How can we provide this opportunity for our students?

Jamie Wiitala’s blog entitled “Time for Reflection” confirms the need for a foundation of relationships in order to get others on board to move out of the “comfort bubble” and allowing time to reflect has accelerated the process. You will love her approach to getting others to change when she says, “You are fine where you are at, you just can’t stay there.”

As our teacher evaluation program continues to evolve, more and more teachers are becoming open to the idea of other teachers coming into observe and collaborate with them.  It makes me sad to see teachers that isolate themselves and have not experienced the amazing thing that is collaboration.  Having the time set aside in our observation cycles for dedicated reflection on their teaching is helping them see the benefits of talking to other professionals and growing together.  Once they realize that we are there as a support system and we are not doing anything evaluative they ease up and participate in the conversation.

She also adds the benefit of Tweeting out and reading for 5 minutes each day on a group # which she discovered on Twitter.

I started a school hashtag, #STMAshares, where my team of instructional coaches started tweeting the things we see in classrooms along with new resources and ideas we are researching.  I have taken time to find the best hashtag’s and the greatest minds to follow.  I try and post every day with things I see, read or try on my own.

 April Padalino refers back to strength-based learning in guiding professional learning in her blog, “Stretch Strengths”.

The same can be said when working with adults.  It is important to build on strengths and show people the way to growth. George Couros states in his book ” Focusing on individuals’ strengths that contribute to the vision of the school helps to move us from pockets of innovation to a culture where innovation flourishes.” I can see this happening in our district.  We have been offered opportunities three times this year to share what we are passionate about through a workshop model of professional development.  We are given the choice how to best spend our time on those days by presenting, attending, collaborating, reflecting, or a combination of these.  While working on the new strategic plan the district asked the staff the question, “If you could create a school, what would it look like?” I have to say it was nice to be asked. Our district appears to be working toward creating a culture of innovation.  I am looking forward to where it will lead.

Did you catch this highlight during Week 4? Our very own #IMMOOC chat co-moderators met face-to-face for the first time.

Michael Buist took on the challenge set by George to compile our favorite embarrassing artists. We have to include this in our highlights this week.

Here is a link to some examples of our video reflections of the week.

One of our assignments this week from George was to blog with a buddy. Connections are being made, conversations are being had, creativity juices are flowing to meet this challenge. We will post those highlights next week. Until then here is a sneak peak of what is to come.

George states, in Chapter 11, “In an open culture, the opportunities for learning and relationships are endless. the biggest winners of this sharing revolution are our students.”

We are better together and in the end the students are the winners,

Valerie

Blog Prompts highlights Participant Posts

#IMMOOC #IMMOOC2 #InnovatorsMindset digital citizenship digital leadership Digital Leadia George Couros jennifer casa-todd katie martin Valerie Zemaitis week 4 highlights

Published March 19, 2017 by

#IMMOOC Live Episode 4 and Blog Prompts

I cannot believe that we are already on the fourth week of the process, and I am even more floored by the learning that is shared by all of you.  Networks are not only a source of knowledge, but they are a source of inspiration. Continue to be that inspiration for one another by sharing your learning; it makes a difference.

This week, we are pleased to connect with soon-t0-be author, Jennifer Casa-Todd, an educator from Ontario, Canada.  We will be talking about her upcoming book, as well as some of the current work that is happening in her role.  There is a slight shift in the original time of the YouTube Live session, and we will be going at 730 PM EST  on Monday, March 20.  Please join us for the live chat, so that you can tweet with the #IMMOOC community and share your questions with us.

Weekly Blog Prompts

Amazing learning shared last week in the three blog post project.  I am going to continue to add a Facebook post so you can share on Twitter as well as there. It is a beautiful way to aggregate our learning.  Here are some of the prompts for this week.  Try to do two posts this week; one longer one, and one shorter one.

 

compliance-does-not-foster-innovation

  1. What examples of strengths-based leadership from the Innovator’s Mindset resonate with you? How might you focus on strengths to unleash talent and foster innovation in your own context?

8-things-to-look-for-in-todays-classroom-badura

2, What elements of the “8 Things to Look For in Today’s Classrooms” exist in your professional learning? What elements are lacking?

3. Choose one of the “foundations for innovation” above…Talk about how you are furthering that in your own settings.  Give concrete examples that others can use.

For the extra challenge, write a post with another participant from #IMMOOC (or even someone that is not in the program). Share that to the #IMMOOCBB hashtag (BB = Blog Buddy).  Thanks for the idea Matt Arend!

Week 4 “To-Do”

  1. Read Part 3 (Chapters 8-11) of “The Innovator’s Mindset”.
  2. Blog and “Blog Buddy challenge, as listed above.
  3. Post a twitter video to #IMMOOC this week and reflect on one takeaway from the 5 chapters (or topic of your choice). This is a great way for people to “see” the other participants.
  4. Participate in the Twitter chat on Wednesday at 9pm EST. (Check the #IMMOOC hashtag to do this)

Again, thank you for not only participating but contributing.  Adding to the process is where you will get the most out of it for the future.

 

#IMMOOC2 Blog Prompts

#IMMOOC innovation in education Innovator's Mindset jennifer casa katie martin matt arend

Published March 12, 2017 by

#IMMOOC Live Episode 3 and Blog Prompts

Thank you for another great week of sharing and learning through the #IMMOOC community.  I have been inspired by the connections that have been made through this process.  We are better together in this process, and in education in general.

We are lucky to have two great principals from the state of Texas. Amber Teamann and Matt Arend are visionary leaders in their work, and we will talk to them about their experience and learning, and we look forward to them discussing elements of Part 2 of “The Innovator’s Mindset“.  Check below for the YouTube Live session happening tomorrow (March 12, 2017) at 8pm EST.

Weekly Blog Prompts

This week, we are going to try a little something different for the blog challenge.  I encourage you to write 3 blog posts on the topics below, but keep them under 200 words. In fact, if you want to use visuals, video, or whatever, that works, but we are looking for short posts.  We want people to try “short blogging”; not everything has to be a college essay, and this might encourage people to write with more consistency by switching it up.  If you write over 200 words, it is totally fine, but try for the 3.

After you post, share out your blog posts using the hashtag #IMMOOC, plus #IMMOOCB1 for the first one, #IMMOOCB2 for the second, and #IMMOOCB3 for the third post.  This way, we will have an idea of how many people completed the challenge.

 

Here are five prompts, but please feel free to modify, or do something totally different.

  1. How do you create or build on these conditions to support innovation? What has been the impact on those you serve?

 

2. What are your connections to the “School vs Learning image? What would you add or modify?

3. Which “what if” question challenges your thinking in the Innovator’s Mindset? What would you add to the list of what ifs?

4. Share some of your best ideas for building relationships and a culture of trust in your position?

5. Discuss your “vision” for education (this can be used as an “educational philosophy” statement at a later date so this might be a nice little push).

6. Your choice.

Week 3 “To-Do”

  1. Read Part 2 (Chapters 4-7) of “The Innovator’s Mindset”.
  2. “3 Short Blog” Challenge as listed above.
  3. Comment to three other blog posts from participants this week.
  4. Participate in the Twitter chat on Wednesday at 9pm EST. (Check the #IMMOOC hashtag to do this)

We lessened the “to-d0” list so people can really try to focus on posting consistently.

I hope that you are enjoying this experience as much as I am. It is amazing the amount of learning people do on their own time just to get better.  Thank you for the inspiration you provide to myself, and so many others.

Have a great week!

#IMMOOC2 Blog Prompts

#IMMOOC 3 short blog amber teamann innovation in education Innovator's Mindset matt arend matt arend is a legend matthew arend

Week 2 Highlights from #IMMOOC2 Participants
Published March 9, 2017 by

Week 2 Highlights from #IMMOOC2 Participants

This is a compilation of some highlights in our second week of Innovator’s Mindset MOOC Round 2 #IMMOOC2. To join the conversation, check out IMMOOC.Org,  #IMMOOC on Twitter, or join us on Facebook.

In Chapter 2 George states that the innovator’s mindset takes on the growth mindset. An example would be  taking a “step further by focusing on using one’s ability to learn to play the piano to create music.” In education, he says we “must focus on creating something with the knowledge that’s been acquired.” He insists that this process requires resiliency, grit and the freedom to fail.

YouTube Live Episode 2 with George Couros, Katie Martin, and special guest, Sarah Thomas.

Share! Share! Share!

How do we get a culture of innovation in our schools?

The overarching theme in Live Episode 2 was the value of collaborating and sharing allowing us to be innovative. Sarah tells us to “Share! Share! Share!” The more we share the more input we get from others to refine and “shine like a diamond”. She saw the need for something new and better and launched Edumatch in 2014. She also found a need for people to grow in developing their “moonshot thinking” and created an actionable plan through “Designing with Passion”.

George adds that we will find more value following a hashtag that matches our interests rather than just searching for people on Twitter. It is through “competitive collaborative” support and pressure from one another that allows for innovative practices. He tells us that a foundation of trust, risk-taking and a culture of growth helps to launch innovative practices.  Katie tells us that an innovative culture requires trust, space, support, modeling and accountability.

Reach for our Inner Fight Club!

How do we promote a culture where everyone is willing to take a risk?

Katie Martin reminds us that those with the best ideas aren’t necessarily coming from those that raise their hands first or are the loudest to be heard. What are we doing to allow the more introvert to share their innovative ideas? How are we breaking down barriers for them? Sarah brings on the great analogy with the movie, Fight Club, when she says that we have to project our confident alter ego to get stuff done; reach for our inner Fight Club.

Everything is in Beta Mode!

Innovation is about taking risks. Sarah reminds us that there are different types of risks and we must jump in “feet first” with our “moonshot” thinking rather than “head first”, but risks need to happen in order to keep moving forward. George tells us that innovation is not about creating something new, but doing something with what we created.

How do we know that our innovative idea is working? Sarah tells us the importance of documenting the journey as the best way to know how our “moonshot” idea is working. It is innovative if it is having an impact on students.

Here is a summary of the Live Episode 2 by Julie Johnson:

Examples of innovation by #IMMOOC2 participants

The highlights in the blogs for this week included reflections, ideas and examples which can help us move forward in the innovative process.

Amy Busby reflects on how to take innovation from pockets to the norm.

So another question I ask myself is what experiences are we providing for teachers to allow them to learn and explore and collaborate with others in their profession? If we feel it is important, we must make time for it. We as leaders get bogged down in the compliance aspect of education as well. There are rules, requirements, policies, and assessments that can’t be ignored. But even with all of those expectations, we must model the innovation we want to see.

My hope is that one of the new adventures we started in our district, Montgomery Master Teachers, is encouraging that type of innovation. The teachers are encouraged to share their ideas with each other through a district Yammer page. We’ve had some take off with this collaboration and others who have been slow to get on board. There have been some great moments where the teachers have shared ideas they’ve done in class and borrowed from each other. They are currently doing a book study together and using Yammer to share their ideas and discuss the book together. So far, this has been a great tool. I look forward to seeing where the teachers take their learning.

Jeff Court sees innovation all around him as a principal who wants to “lead with passion, push the status quo, and support the work that keeps student learning at the fore front of my thoughts and actions”.

I have had the pleasure of witnessing a number of innovative practices occurring over the last year in our K-12 school with 325 students. I have witnessed teachers utilize SeeSaw as a self reflection tool and document learning for parents to witness their grade 2 students growth. I have engaged in creating high school courses that will empower grade 11 and 12 students to create, cover and mashup music that they love. High school students helping to develop a hot lunch program that now serves approximately 130 students a day. This program is literally students helping feed students. Elementary teachers that have stepped outside of their comfort zone to create flexible learning environments to meet the diverse needs of all of their students. Instruction, assessment and feedback for students has to change to meet the needs of all students in these new classroom environments. Each of these scenarios are great examples of teachers that have reflected on the needs of students and were willing to take a risk to create something new and better. Based on their professional journey, they are innovators that I will continue to support their efforts to create better opportunities for students.

Understanding those we serve

As we move forward in this Innovative Mindset practice it is important that we are impacting those we serve.

Keri Snowden adds a question we need to be asking ourselves as we make move forward with innovative practices and doing what is best for students.

What evidence of learning do we see in this student’s creation?
For several years I have believed in the power of looking at student work in shifting a teacher’s focus from what they are doing to what their students are doing. This shift is important because I have known many teachers who think only about what and how they are teaching, how their day is going, how hard they are working, how busy and stressed they are, how frustrating or amazing their students  can be. I have argued that looking at student work is what is needed to deepen PLC conversations and refocus teacher energy on the student experience. After all, it’s the student learning that is the purpose of our work.
Now I feel the need to revise my mantra from “looking at student work” to “looking at student creations.” In a creation, a teacher would see not just facts or algorithms regurgitated onto a page, instead she would see synthesis, prioritization, and communication about a topic or concept. This tells us so much more about a student’s strengths and weaknesses, his “soft skills,” his depth of understanding, and his ability to share it with others.
Susan Aplin looks at what we are experiencing in #IMMOOC2 and asks these three questions to see how we can provide the same experiences for our students.

When I sit back and think about it, this type of learning is amazing.  Learning from 3 different people who were in 3 different places  – awesome.  Learning at a time that was convenient for me – even better.  Getting to hear directly from experts – priceless.

This connection to experts and to people physically out of reach is now available to everyone with internet.  Learning like this is not just for teachers and other professionals, but also for our students.  Are we helping our students find new learning opportunities and ways to connect with experts?

George said, “Everyone has something to say.  Everyone.”  This came as a part of discussion about introverts.  I enjoyed hearing Sarah explain how she is an introvert (like me!), but she has found new ways to share.  Katie continued by pointing out that technology creates opportunities for our introverted and/or quieter students. It gives ALL students voices in (and out) of the classroom….

…We HAVE to make these opportunities available to all of our students.  Are we giving students ways to ask questions, ways to share ideas, ways to reflect and to grow?  

When Katie said, “If you don’t know your kids and what they need, the innovations are frivolous,” she helped remind us that innovation is meaningless without connections and relationships.  George also talked about how time spent talking to a teacher is time he will get back tenfold because of the relationship he’s developing.  This applies to everyone in our school buildings – students, teachers, administrators, etc.

New ideas might be “fun” or “interesting” to people who like to try new things (like many of us in #IMMOOC), but we all must remember that if they don’t connect with our students and improve learning, then we need to rethink them.  Are we keeping our students and their goals in mind when trying new things?  Do we take time to get to know our students and teachers as people?

 

Characteristics of Innovator’s Mindset

We have talked a lot about these 8 characteristics of the Innovator’s Mindset this week. Which one did you talk about the most?

Robin Young reminds us how being networked makes us better in the end rather than being on an island.

Networking has been crucial to my development as an Instructional Technology Specialist.  Recently the 8th grade math teachers wanted me to present ideas for integrating technology into their classes.  This is an area that I have struggled with for a while since my background is in history.  I turned to social media for ideas.   I posted on twitter and on a Google+ community that I belonged to and asked for ideas.  Within a day I had enough ideas and several concrete examples that in the end I was very proud of the final product and the math teachers were happy with their training.  If I had been isolated I would have drug out the same old ideas and tried to sell them again.  Instead I was able to deliver some good ideas that have continued the conversation between us about technology integration.  In fact I agreed today to help develop a minecraft review session for them.    We are also in talks about trying out a BreakoutEdu game soon.    Opportunities that would not have existed without my network of amazing folks.

Joe Robison challenges us to think about  what we are asking students to do with the information they are obtaining.

The question of what students can do with the information they are obtaining is something we need to begin asking ourselves as educators.  As my paradigm has changed over time, and the more I have developed a growth mindset, my philosophy about my students and the information they learn has changed.  I had to ask myself, “why am I presenting this information to students?”  If the answer was only to pass a test, either mine or a standardized one, then I realized I was doing my students a disservice.   If all we are measuring is memorization and compliance, then we are not preparing our students to be future ready.  It is important that we allow our students to use the information they are obtaining in practical ways.  At the end of every unit or topic, I have started asking students to identify a problem they can solve with their new knowledge.  This practice has become so much a part of what we do, that students now go into each lesson looking through the lens of problem solving.  The process has now become one of students continually looking for problems to solve as they are introduced to new concepts.  This concept is crucial to developing an innovative mindset in the classroom.  As a teacher, your job is not to find problems for students to solve, but rather to create an environment where students look for problems to solve.  This mentality is critical to not only having an innovative classroom, but also to fostering an innovative mindset in your students.

Week 2 #IMMOOC Twitter Chat

The theme this week revolved around WHY we all need the innovator’s mindset? Here are just a few of the top TWEETS from the #IMMOOC chat during this second week.

George created a synopsis of this week’s #IMMOOC chat using Twitter Moments in this link.

 

 

Katie Martin was able to provide the whole Week 2 #IMMOOC  Chat into two Storify links provided here for your review.

[View the story “#IMMOOC Twitter Chat 3/8–Part 1 Questions 1-3” on Storify]
[View the story “#IMMOOC Twitter Chat 3/8 Part 2– Questions 3-6” on Storify]

 

Examples of Participant Created Images of Favorite Quotes

This Storify link showcases some IMMOOC2 participant creations this week. These creations highlight phrases that had an impact on us. What seems to be the overarching theme that inspired us the most this week?

[View the story “Favorite Quotes of #IMMOOC2 Participants Week 2” on Storify]

I leave you with an inspiring clip, “What Are You Waiting For” mentioned by AJ Bianco in his blog,  “Do Something Amazing”.

“We need to move from a known to an unknown that is possibly better.” – George Couros

We are better together and in the end the students are the winners,

Valerie

#IMMOOC2 #InnovatorsMindsetMOOC Blog Prompts highlights Participant Posts Uncategorized

#IMMOOC #IMMOOC2 #InnovatorsMindset George Couros katie martin sarah thomas the innovator's mindset Valerie Zemaitis week 2 highlights

Published March 4, 2017 by

#IMMOOC Live 2 and Blog Prompts

First of all, I just want to acknowledge how amazing the participant contributions were from the first week. The first IMMOOC was a great experience, but this one has started powerful right from the beginning.  We have focused on keeping the experience shorter and being in fewer spaces, which we hoped would help, but the turnout has been amazing. We hope you can keep it up!  Please consider finding a “buddy” to keep you accountable to blogging.  Several people in the group have done so and I know it is of benefit when you are getting started.

This week, we are so pumped to welcome Sarah Thomas to the YouTube Live session.  Although Sarah is currently working on her dissertation, she carved some time out for us and we will learn more about her work and EduMatch.  Please join us tomorrow  (March 5, 2017), at 8pm EST on the link provided below (will be updated).

Here are the “Blog Prompts” for the week:

Blog Prompts (Week 2)

  1. In Chapter 1, innovation is defined as a way of thinking that creates something new and better. What are some examples that you consider innovative?  How is it new and better than what previously existed?Image result for innovators mindset

2. Review the “Critical Questions for Educators” in Chapter 2.  Why are these important to understand those we serve in education?  What other questions would you ask?

3. Discuss one of the “characteristics of the Innovator’s Mindset” below in a give an example of how you exemplify this in your work (teaching or leading).

 

 

 

Here is the “To-Do” list for week 2:

Week 2 “To-Do”

  1. Read Part 1 (Chapters 1-3) of “The Innovator’s Mindset”.
  2. Blog on your thoughts on part 1 and share to #IMMOOC hashtag and Facebook group.  If you are able to finish by Thursday, March 9, you may be highlighted in the blog.
  3. Comment to three other blog posts from participants this week.
  4. Participate in the Twitter chat on Wednesday at 9pm EST. (Check the #IMMOOC hashtag to do this)
  5. Share a blog from another #IMMOOC’er to either the #IMMOOC hashtag on Twitter, or the Facebook group page. Try to share someone that you just connected with through this experience and share what resonated with you.
  6. Create an image of a quote from either the book, or from a participant blog post (please use proper attribution).  If you are interested in trying this, check out canva.com.  Please share it to either the #IMMOOC hashtag and Facebook group.

I am looking forward to seeing what is shared this week.  If anything, let’s grow this community!  I hope you are enjoying the book, and more importantly, the learning from one another.

Have a great week!

 

#IMMOOC2 Blog Prompts

#IMMOOC innovation in education Innovator's Mindset sarah thomas

Published February 27, 2017 by

#IMMOOC Live Episode 1 and Blog Prompts

First of all, I want to apologize for the mix up on the dates for the first event. We will be live on February 27th, 2017 at 8pm EST with AJ Juliani and John Spencer.  We will be talking about their book as well, “Launch“, which is a wonderful compliment to “The Innovator’s Mindset“.  To find the YouTube Live session, just bookmark this page and it will be hosted below.

If you miss it, do not worry, because it will be recorded on YouTube (link will still be on this post) and we will also post as a podcast. It is always great if you can watch live as we look for questions from the #IMMOOC Hashtag, but you can also ask questions ahead of time on this form.

Every week, we encourage you to blog about topics from the chapters so you can make your own connections to the content.  Please share these to the #IMMOOC hashtag on Twitter, or on the Facebook group, or both.  What I encourage is that you write one post a week, and comment on three others from the group.  People appreciate knowing that someone is reading and commenting.  If you want to take it even a step further, take someone’s post, pull out a section, link and reference it, and make your own connections. I find what inspires me the most to blog is reading other people’s blogs, and you can see the connection I made to Sheila Vick’s (who participated in the first IMMOOC round and is still blogging strong) post in my most recent blog.

Here are some prompts for the first week (please feel free to use the images in your own post):

Blog Prompts (Week 1)

  1. What do you see as the purpose of education?  Why might innovation be crucial in education?screen-shot-2016-09-17-at-12-38-27-pm
  2. “Change is an opportunity to do something amazing.”  How are you embracing change to spur innovation in your own context?change

3. If you started a school from scratch, what would you see as necessary, and what would you take out from what we currently do?

4. Your choice from the book on the YouTube Live session.

To make it easier, here is a checklist of things to do this week.

Week 1 “To-Do”

  1. Read the Introduction of “The Innovator’s Mindset” (We start off the week with light reading)
  2. Blog on your thoughts on the Introduction and share to #IMMOOC hashtag and Facebook group.  If you are able to finish by Thursday, March 2, you may be highlighted in the blog.
  3. Comment to three other blog posts from participants this week.
  4. Participate in the Twitter chat on Wednesday at 9pm EST. (Check the #IMMOOC hashtag to do this)
  5. If you have not shared your selfie to the #IMMOOC hashtag do so soon as we will announce winners on March 5.

We all understand that people are busy and that you might not be able to do all of the above, so it is important for you to pick what is important. I will tell you this from my own experience of participating in the past, as well as leading this, the more you put into it, the more you will get out of it.

I look forward to learning from you and other this week. Thanks for your participation!

Sincerely,
George Couros

#IMMOOC2 Blog Prompts

aj juliani john spencer part 1 sheila vick start a school from scratch

Published October 15, 2016 by

#IMMOOC Live Episode 5 – Brad Gustafson and Week 5 Blog Prompts

Check out the YouTube Live session with our special guest, Brad Gustafson, on October 15, at 5pm EST (2pm PST).

For Week 5, we hope you can do the following:

  1. Read Part 4 of the book (pages 205-231)
  2. Do some type of media reflection on what resonates and share to the #IMMOOC hashtag.  I want to to leave this more open this week.  Do something that is a little bit tough.
  3. Comment on 3 other participant blog posts.
  4. Blog/Podcast/Video/Your Choice based on your thoughts of the Introduction, or use the following blog prompts to help you (Please feel free to use the images provided in your own posts):

screen-shot-2016-10-15-at-1-39-35-pm

How might we measure the impact of innovative practices in education?

What are you most significant takeaways from the Innovator’s Mindset MOOC?  What will you do as a result?  How will you hold yourself accountable?How are you telling your story, sharing your learning (making great learning go viral), and innovating “inside the box” to make an impact in your community?

Moving Forward

Please keep sharing to the #IMMOOC hashtag as well as the Facebook Group when you are done, as well as other spaces

We look forward to reading your reflections, and highlighting some of them on the Thursday post.

Important note…as we go into this last week, we want people to create some type of summary or final media project discussing their learning from the book.  We want people to do what they are passionate about but to also push their boundaries.

What have you taken away from the book? How will it make an impact on you moving forward?

We have loved the reflections and we know that not all people will take part in this final culmination, but we hope that several of us can finish the project until the end.

Keep inspiring, keep innovating, keep being amazing!

Thanks for all that you do!

George

Blog Prompts Hangouts

#IMMOOC brad gustafson George Couros Innovative teaching and learning katie martin

Published October 9, 2016 by

#IMMOOC Live Episode 4 – Kara Welty and Week 4 Blog Prompts

UPDATE: Because of the poor quality of the audio and issues with technology, we will be redoing this YouTube Live session tentatively at 930 PM EST, on Tuesday, October 11.  Sorry for any issues!

Check out the YouTube Live session with our special guest, Kara Welty (430 PM EST) on October 9):

For Week 4, we hope you can do the following:

  1. Read Part 3 of the book (pages 123-201)
  2. Do some type of media reflection on what resonates and share to the #IMMOOC hashtag.  I want to to leave this more open this week.  Do something that is a little bit tough.
  3. Comment on 3 other participant blog posts.
  4. Blog/Podcast/Video/Your Choice based on your thoughts of the Introduction, or use the following blog prompts to help you (Please feel free to use the images provided in your own posts):

Blog Prompts

compliance-does-not-foster-innovation

What examples of strengths-based leadership from the Innovator’s Mindset resonate with you? How might you focus on strengths to unleash talent and foster innovation in your own context?

8-things-to-look-for-in-todays-classroom-badura

What elements of the 8 Things to Look For in Today’s Classrooms” exist in your professional learning? What elements are lacking?

Choose one of the “foundations for innovation” above…Talk about how you are furthering that in your own settings.  Give concrete examples that others can use.

Moving Forward

Please keep sharing to the #IMMOOC hashtag as well as the Facebook Group when you are done, as well as other spaces

We look forward to reading your reflections, and highlighting some of them on the Thursday post.

Please do not limit your learning and creation to our suggestions!!! We want this opportunity to be one where it is participant driven. We are giving some content, but we want YOU to focus on your creation.  This is a great opportunity to continuously build communities and learn from others.  Because of all of you, I have started my own YouTube channel to share short snippets on education and leadership.  I don’t think that I would have done this without your inspiration.

Keep inspiring, keep innovating, keep being amazing!

Thanks for all that you do.

George

Blog Prompts Hangouts