My blog is on the move

Although there is still plenty of excellent content here, all of my new blog posts on education and a variety of other topics are now hosted at www.markbarnes19blog.com.

Please be sure to visit the new blog, Mark Barnes: where conversation begins, today and everyday for inspiring content 365 days a year.

What are you waiting for? Hurry over to www.markbarnes19blog.com now. You'll love what you read.

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom

My Education Talk Radio interview on staff-led PD

Education Talk Radio host Larry Jacobs and I recently discussed staff-led professional development. Here is the interview.

Find Additional Education Podcasts with EduTalk on BlogTalkRadio

What are your thoughts on staff-led professional development?

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom

Do you know about the Reform Symposium?

If you could spend a few hours over a weekend from the comforts of home to transform yourself as an educator, would you?

The fourth Reform Symposium International Online Conference, which comes to you live October 11-13 from anywhere that you have Internet access, can help you transform as an educator.

The Reform Symposium, which features amazing keynote speakers and over 100 sessions on everything inspiring and topical in education, is a webinar-style conference that mixes video, audio and chat into one amazing online learning environment.

The Reform Symposium requires no travel, unless you want to attend from your local coffee shop and, best of all, it will cost you absolutely nothing.

The Reform Symposium is a worldwide e.conference, delivered by the interactive online conference room, Blackboard. If you're thinking, "I don't know what Blackboard is, and I don't know how to use it," never fear, because the Reform Symposium organizers have you covered with this amazing Blackboard Help page.

What if you live in Warsaw, Dubai or some other country? Don't worry, you don't have to miss a second of this amazing conference. Remember, this event is global. Just visit this Reform Symposium schedule page and click on your time zone for a complete listing of sessions.

Want to be inspired? Want to go back to the classroom after the conference as a transformed educator, ready to impact lives like never before? Don't miss the Reform Symposium International Online Conference October 11-13.

See you there.

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom

What is a connected educator?

A variety of posts around the blogosphere about Connected Educators Month got me thinking about how we evaluate connectedness. Is there a widely-accepted definition?

I went in search of this answer by typing the question into a Google search (does that act alone make me connected?). Most of what comes back on that search is only related to the phrase, "connected educator." I did find this article at EdWeek, providing some specific details on the subject.

Photo credit: Principalj.net

EdWeek says the connected educator has a Personal Learning Network, or PLN, embraces blogging and the Bring Your Own Device movement. Although I tend to agree on most points, I'm not sure we've reached a definition yet.

The recent Bammy Awards, honoring connected educators, in many cases, focused on those who have a massive following on Twitter and Facebook, at least in terms of people who aren't celebrities. Admittedly, I used to be enamored with a large Twitter following, envying others in the profession who have 10,000, 50,000 followers or more in some cases.

Upon closer look, though, I realized that some of these people also follow tens of thousands of people, and if you understand Twitter, you likely know that many people have systems in place for automatically following back someone who follows them. You don't have to be a math guru to see how this system might multiply your followers rapidly. So, does having a ton of followers make you connected?

I have written widely on technology use in the classroom. I have a modest 4,500 or so followers on Twitter. I tweet, post to Facebook and LinkedIn and blog regularly about education. I even teach an online course called, Plugged-In. So, am I a connected educator?

I'm still not sure, and I really do want an acceptable definition. So, are you connected? What makes you think so?

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom

Are you a Freedom Writer?

For some reason, I was in need of inspiration today. Even though I'd seen it before, I watched the movie Freedom Writers.

I taught for 20 years, and I like to believe that along the way I made a difference in many kids' lives. Erin Gruwell, though, makes me wonder just how true this is.

As a young, new teacher, Gruwell chose to go where no one wanted to be -- a tough inner-city school, newly integrated, where she was given classes full of the most troubled students. Constantly told she should lie low, that she couldn't help them, Gruwell did everything humanly possible to make her students feel valued.

I found myself wondering how often I was like her, in two decades in the classroom.

If you haven't seen the movie, watch it. Then, ask yourself if you are a Freedom Writer.

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom

Fire the principal. . . well, not really

How much professional development would you receive, if your school had no principal? Depending on the kind of teachers you have, you'd get none or quite a bit.

Photo credit: Trianglewiki.org

Consider the kind of PD you have in the current top-down model. Most likely, the administrators at your school board or your principal decide what PD is provided. If you are like most teachers, in many cases, you may see this instruction as completely worthless.

How would things be different, if you decided the kind of professional development that took place at your school? What if you or your colleagues directed this PD? Isn't it possible that your interest would increase exponentially?

Staff-led PD is not such a wild idea. When you consider what principals present at PD and faculty meetings, most of it could be shared in an email with a few links to articles or videos. Teachers know what they need, yet they are rarely asked what those needs are. So, you want better PD? Try these steps:

• Tell your principal that you and a few colleagues want to design some staff-led PD.
• Poll your colleagues to see what they want (survey monkey is a useful tool for this).
• Find several highly-motivated staff members (these don't always have to be teachers) who are interested in designing a half of whole day of PD.
• Use resources like education technology sites (www.freetech4teachers.com and www.learnitin5.com are two good ones)
• Ask for feedback when your PD is complete.

This is a marvelous starting ground for staff-led PD and a good way to "fire" the principal.

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom

Bammy Awards raise serious issues

Have you heard of the Bammy Awards? Don't feel out of the loop if you haven't. The Bammys, produced by Bam Radio, are an Oscars-type award ceremony honoring educators. Bam, which touts itself as "The voice of the Education Community," is an excellent online radio network that produces high quality education programming.

In 2012, the network created its own version of the kind of popular award shows that honor TV and movie actors, right down to the red carpet. Unlike the Golden Globes or Oscars, though, the Bammys honor educators.

It's about time hardworking teachers get some positive pub, you may be thinking. At first, I felt the same. After further consideration, though, I quickly realized that I am not a fan of the Bammys. And I'm not the only one. Check out the amazing response to Pernille Ripp's Bammy post here.

Ripp is not so much anti-Bammy, as she is opposed to how the ceremony was produced. She specifically takes aim at jokes that were told, which may or may not have been in poor taste, and the lack of actual teacher awards presented live.

My issue is different, as I'm against the whole idea of the Bammys, in their current form. Why do teachers need red-carpet treatment? Why should there be a "Best" librarian or principal? Don't we teach kids that they should love learning for the sake of learning?

I believe the creators of the Bammys are well-intentioned. Where they missed the point is with whom they honor. Being a teacher isn't about receiving awards. It's about kids.

So if Bam Radio wants to produce a big event, even including a red carpet, I say make it 100 percent about students. Put the teachers where they belong -- in the audience!

cross posted at ASCDEdge

Don't miss ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, now available in the ASCD store, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com and Mark's new book, The 5-Minute Teacher: How do I maximize time for learning in my classroom