Sir Ken Robinson – iLearn Technology

iTunes U: Creative Problem Solving course from TED

February 9, 2012Kelly TenkelyLeave a Comment1979 views

What it is: iTunes U is a true gem that doesn’t get talked about nearly enough. iTunes U is a collection of learning from around the world, available for free at your finger tips. It just doesn’t get better than that! Recently I found a new iTunes U course that I had to share with all of my edu friends. Creative Problem Solving is a course by TED (you know that really super, great conference “talks”) that collects great TED talks about creative problem solving in one convenient place. “These speakers from TED assess the prevailing model of education reform by answering the critical question: How do we create educational environments that maximize how students harness their creative and problem-solving potential? Relevant areas of interest, study and coursework include: Education Policy, Curriculum Development, Assessment, Pedagogy, Career and Technical Education, Project-Based Learning, Whole Child Education, 21st Century Skills, and Multiple Intelligences.” These TED talks have had a significant impact on me and have guided many of my thoughts and “hunches” about education. The collection includes Tim Brown, Emily Pilloton, Gever Tulley, Dan Meyer, Kathryn Schultz, and not one but two from Sir Ken Robinson. 7 episodes in one place for a free course on education that will blow your mind and fire up your passion for education reform.

How to integrate iTunes U Creative Problem Solving into the classroom: iTunes U is a great place to learn for both you and your students! This particular collection is a great place to feed your educator soul and boost your own professional development. If you have the ability to shape PD at your school, this is an AWESOME addition to your time together as a staff. In the past, I have done TED Talk Tuesdays and Webspiration Wednesdays over the lunch break with other teachers. We gathered in the library where there was plenty of room to sit, relax, eat and learn together. The discussion that ensued after watching the TED talk was always rich. This is a GREAT way to build culture and community among your staff.

Over the summer, I started every morning with a TED talk to start my day off with a healthy dose of inspiration. I think I will re-instate this habit while I get ready for school.

At Anastasis, we often share videos as a staff. They aren’t always this inspirational, sometimes we share clips from SNL (HVR, HVR! “Write that down.”) or YouTube. Videos have a wonderful way of connecting us and giving us shared language and inside jokes. Gotta love that!

Tips: TED has other great iTunes U courses including Understanding Happiness and Mastering Tech-Artistry. Next on my list!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using iTunes U Creative Problem Solving in your classroom!

Teacher Tuesday: Sir Ken Robinson, Learning Without Frontiers

March 22, 2011March 22, 2011Kelly Tenkely1 Comment11347 views

Sometimes it is important to just take a minute for yourself. I know as teachers we aren’t very good at doing that, so today I am giving you an excuse…after all, it is #teachertuesday! Last week Sir Ken Robinson spoke at Learning Without Frontiers, the resulting video is a must watch. Go grab yourself a snack, put your feet up and prepare to be inspired and challenged!

I am currently working on a platform (Learning Genome) that will make it possible to personalize learning for every student, so as soon as Robinson went there I was all ears. Here is a break down of that portion:

Education must be personal because children are individuals. All children have different aptitudes, interests, and passions. It is our duty to connect children with their own sense of possibility.
Human resources are like natural resources, they are often buried deep and have to be exposed.
We don’t know what we are capable until we have the opportunity to find out.
A narrow (boxed) curriculum cuts off opportunities because talents have been segregated off from the curriculum.
Students conclude that they aren’t good at anything because they don’t find success in the narrow scope of what is required of them.
Personalized education puts children in touch with their real capabilities, gives children a sense of creativity, and gives students a sense of confidence.
Education must be personal, economic, and cultural.

What challenges do you find in personalizing learning for your students? Do you believe personalizing learning is important enough to take on that challenge?

TED Talk Tuesday: Bring on the Learning Revolution

June 8, 2010Kelly Tenkely13 Comments3383 views

Since I won’t be with the CHC staff hosting Webspiration Wednesday lunches, I thought I would institute TED Talk Tuesday and share an inspiring TED Talk each Tuesday with all of you. TED has a great tag line “ideas worth spreading”. This non-profit brings together people from Technology, Entertainment, and Design. (The scope of the talks is actually much, much wider.) TED.com is a free collection of the very best talks with new talks are being added all the time. TED believes “passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world.”

Todays TED Talk Tuesday is dedicated to Sir Ken Robinson. You may remember this Webspiration Wednesday sharing of Sir Ken’s Schools Kill Creativity. This is Sir Ken Robinson’s newest TED Talk, Bring on the Learning Revolution.

Sir Ken Robinson has such a way with words, the message he shares is profound. I agree with the summation that reform is of no use, the evolution of a broken model isn’t going to get us where we need to go. We need a revolution where education is transformed into something else entirely. I have watched this video several times since its release, about a month ago, and each time I am struck by something new. This time what stood out most for me was the talk about innovation. Innovation is hard because it means doing something that is challenging, it isn’t the easy or obvious solution. It challenges what we take for granted, things that seem obvious. Just before beginning this post, I read an excellent article by Blogging Alliance member Chris at EdTechSwami. He writes: What Educators Can Learn From Steve Jobs. I think Chris makes some excellent points in his post, it all comes back to innovation. Apple doesn’t usually do the expected, in fact sometimes they purposefully step away from what is expected and what seems logical. The reason is that they are finding new solutions and even creating new problems. They are looking to the future and anticipating what is coming next. Sir Ken helps us to see that innovation is difficult because there are so many things in this life that we take for granted. We don’t even think about them any more because they are the way that we expect them to be. It is only when someone comes along and points out a new way of doing something that we realize we have been taking it for granted. In schools we take for granted that there is a linearity to education. We start in kindergarten and move through until we reach the 12th grade, at which point we are encouraged to attend college. What else do we take for granted in education? Classrooms, grades, tests, desks, handwriting, curriculum, blackboards (IWB’s), policy makers, NCLB…

Today I was able to join in on the midday Twitter #edchat discussion. The topic was reform in education and how teachers could be a louder voice. The discussion was a great one with a number of good ideas. I wonder if we are approaching the topic in an innovative enough way? We tend to frame our answers with what we think might be possible. We frame our answers so as to play nice in the policy makers game. What if we didn’t do things their way? What if we came up with a new way? What if we taught kids how to be advocates for their education and learning and gave them a voice? I threw this out there during the #edchat and @bliarteach reminded me of the big push there was for learning about recycling in school. Kids became passionate about recycling and saving the earth, they took it home with them. Soon families were recycling and changing their garbage habits. This worked. I was one of those kids who made my mom wash every piece of aluminum foil so that I could bring it to school and add it to our big ball of recycled foil. I was the kid who was adamant about separating plastic, glass, and paper. I became the adult who still does this. Involving kids in advocating for their own education and learning has the added benefit of helping them to realize the importance of their education. Suddenly they aren’t learning because we tell them to, they are learning because they believe in learning. They have a pride and ownership in their own education. The great thing about involving kids in the discussion is that they don’t take so much for granted. They ask questions and challenge the way that we think.

So, lets figure out all the things we take for granted in education. When we have a clear picture of those things, lets work together to find new solutions. Lets revolutionize education together, lets make the revolution viral. If you can think of something that we take for granted, leave it in the comments below.

(Raise of hands, how many of you are wearing a wrist watch?) 🙂 Yeah, me too.

We Are the People We’ve Been Waiting For

April 7, 2010Kelly Tenkely4 Comments3183 views

What it is: We Are the People We’ve Been Waiting For is an inspiring documentary film that explores education in the UK and challenges us to dream of something more. Big names (Sir Richard Branson, Germaine Greer, Henry Winkler, Bill Bryson, and Sir Ken Robinson) share their experiences with education and offer new ideas for how education can be done. If you are in the UK, take advantage of the free DVD offer and get the full documentary to share with your students. Those of us not in the UK can enjoy clips of the film on the We Are the People We’ve Been Waiting For website. There are several clips from the documentary and each of them will leave you inspired and thinking about how education can be transformed. The site also features some excellent games for students to play. The first game is called “The Test You Can’t Fail”. This little quiz asks students a variety of questions and gives them creative career paths to consider based on their interests. Many of these your students may not have considered and will give them insight into the places they shine. The second game is called “Future Me”, it is a Bebo App that lets students predict their friends future.

How to integrate We Are the People We’ve Been Waiting For into the classroom: If you can get the documentary for your classroom, do so. Be inspired by the documentary as a teacher, but also share it with your students. They need some inspiration for their education and future. This film is sure to offer plenty. If you aren’t in the UK, share the webisite clips with your students. Challenge them to think differently about education. At first, they may struggle with this task (the way my students did), they expect that there is one right answer. This is a sad statement about what education has been up to this point, we have primed them to believe that there is only one right answer with a myraid of tests and worksheets that have told them it is so. Have your students take “The Test You Can’t Fail” quiz, it leads them through a variety of questions and activities. Students tell what their favorite subject is, swat or save a fly, order grocery items in order of price, connect a video game to the Internet and TV, choose what to do when they get lost, design a t-shirt, memorize a phone number, and arrange a computer desktop. When students are finished they are given a list of things they are good at, some surprises (things students may not know about themselves), and thoughts about possible career paths. It seems to work well, my results were education, computers and IT. 🙂 So I guess I am on the right track! Talk with students about their results. Do they agree/disagree? Were their items on their list that they hadn’t considered? It is good to dream with students, it gives them aspirations and goals for the future and lets them know that they aren’t the only ones dreaming.

Tips: In the “About the Film” Section, students can watch videos and read bios of the students that star in the documentary.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using the We Are The People We’ve Been Waiting For in your classroom.