Sure, it is the end of the school year. Sure, we all are exhausted from all of the tasks that we have been asked to do along the year. Sure, we are tired from the work that has been completed outside of the school day hours. But it is important to take the time to reflect on the awesome work that has been accomplished in 16-17 school year.
Over the course of the year, I have enjoyed hearing about the success stories that teachers have had after a lesson. Not staying in the same place and doing the same lesson can be very beneficial. Pushing one’s self is an important trait for all teachers and learners to have. It is like the Blockbuster vs. Netflix situation. Blockbuster did not move with the times and push themselves to think differently with their business model. Netflix however decided that it was important to change their business model as human interest and demands changed over the years. Netflix is still around because they decided to push themselves.
I know that I speak on behalf of the tech department at BHS when I say that we are very proud of what has been accomplished tech wise. Bulldogs have done some GREAT work! Here is just a sampling of some of the great things that have been implemented this past school year…
Google Classroom
- More teachers this year implemented Google Classroom into their courses to help students and teachers keep organized
PearDeck
- Wellness 1 teachers used PearDeck for the first time to get student viewpoints with the topics at hand
- French teachers used PearDeck as a vocabulary enforcer where they had to ‘dress the snowman’ based on the clothing vocabulary that they were learning
Adobe Spark
- Students in The American Dream classes used Adobe Spark Video to produce a PSA
- Students in Marine Biology used Adobe Spark Page to curate information based on their findings from a field trip to the Boston Museum of Science (they documented their experience by taking pictures to use in their Adobe Spark Page). The teacher also created an Adobe Spark Page to curate all student work from the class to share with everyone else.
- Students in Power of Nature classes used Adobe Spark Page to showcase information about particular volcanoes.
- Adobe Spark Post was used to share information to the bulldog community through its social media accounts
Presenting at Conferences
- For the first time, the Bedford School District hosted its own Tech conference on a district workshop day where all employees in the district got together to talk about best practices with tech integration. There were many, many staff members at the high school who stepped up and presented at the conference. It was a cool experience for everyone to learn from each other!
- Many high school staff presented at Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference for the first time. Topics included: The Changing Landscape in a 1:1 Classroom, Librarian & Tech Collaboration, and #GoogleAddict.
- Several staff members have already agreed upon sharing their knowledge at our 2nd annual district conference next school year in October
Becoming Social Media Savvy
- Counseling department helped produce a topic a month relating to social media for students and staff. These topics were discussed in advisories.
Breakout EDU
- At the beginning of the school year, staff participated in a Breakout EDU. Since then, many teachers used the Breakout boxes in their classes.
- Some teachers challenged themselves to participate in a digital Breakout during a Workshop training.
Hyperdocs
- Staff members throughout all disciplines created hyperdocs to help students discover, explore, apply, and share their learning
Google Keep
- Several teachers have stayed organized over the year with using Google Keep
- A couple teachers have explored around with DocStickers
GeoGebra
- Geometry teachers used GeoGebra this year to help students visualize their learning – seeing as though all students have Chromebooks and the tool that they had before did not allow students to use with their Chromebook
Team Drive
- Several teams and committees, such as the Leadership Team and the Self Management Committee, realized that they could be more efficient if they utilize the Team Drive feature in Google Drive
Google Expeditions
- Counselors gave college virtual tours to Juniors in advisories
- Google Expeditions were also given in math and science classes
- Google recognized Toni Taylor’s use of Google Expedition in a weekly Tuesday tweet
360 Filming
- Film students explored around with creating 360 films for the first time
- Teachers traveling with students to Machu Picchu during intersession used a 360 camera to document the experience – this will then be used in Spanish curriculum in the future
Screencasting
- Several teachers in different disciplines implemented screencastify chrome extension. This was used either to film a project, record oneself with a piece of writing, or record a presentation. This has particularly been helpful in American Sign Language, and Humanities courses.
Osmo
- Our life skills students were exposed to Osmo for the first time this year. They have had fun with making pizzas and giving change, using tangrams, exploring around with coding, spelling, and performing math operations.
1:1 Visits
- Teachers willingly opened up their classrooms to visitors from other schools who were interested in learning how Chromebooks were used in BHS classes
LOTS TO BE PROUD OF! Obviously, I do not have every single new thing that happened this year. This is just a sampling of what I could remember. (If you think of something that I should add, let me know). Good things have been accomplished. Looking forward to the new possibilities next school year. #proudbulldog
And that is my Spiel…
Ok, yes…the sound of Netflix went through my mind as I started typing. Each year, Jess Gilcreast (High School librarian), and I think of creative and different ways to provide professional development for the staff that we work with. We have tried it all, or at least seems that way. Whether it is providing ‘learning at your own time’ opportunities through Google Classroom, in person trainings, or online book chats through Twitter. We strive to keep things ‘fresh’ and continuously push the limits.
Craig M Sheil 