Coaching with Kinders

This school year, I had the pleasure of working with three kindergarten classes and their teachers. I was amazed by the talents of these five-year-olds!

Attention Teachers of Students Grades 5-12!

Here is an opportunity to share with your students- from the Michigan Council of Women in Technology!

Leaving Dearborn: A Tribute to Heroes, Visionaries, Friends, and Students

It is with bittersweet emotion that I announce my departure from the Dearborn Schools. On May 2, 2023, I will be joining the team at Wayne RESA as the Learning, Innovation, and Technology Consultant. Dearborn has been my home for 23 years as a teacher and technology...

GPT-Proof Writing Prompts

Here are some examples of ELA (English Language Arts) prompts that are designed to be GPT-proof: Write an original short story about a character who experiences a major life change, such as moving to a new city, starting a new job, or going through a personal crisis....

What do the Technology Coaches do?

Like most other districts across the country, the Dearborn Schools employs Technology Coaches to support teachers, students, and administrators. But what exactly do they do?

Giving Audio Feedback on Student Work + Tips

“Hundreds of studies of feedback have been published and reviews of these studies routinely conclude that feedback is the most important or nearly the most important variable affecting the amount and quality of student learning.”

Among my favorite things about educational technology is that it can help teachers give more effective feedback. One way to do that is using audio feedback.

Resources to Start the New Semester

As we get started with a new semester, here are a few resources and reminders to help you get started on the right foot.

Encountering AI in Student Writing

There’s a lot of buzz lately about AI in writing. How do we counter this phenomenon? What should we definitely not do? And can we actually work with it?

Before You Hit Send

Some additional thoughts on email if you’re an educator…

Email for Teachers

One of our most useful tools and, sometimes, one of our greatest sources of torment is email. When things go well, it can be our greatest ally in communicating effectively with students, parents, and colleagues. However, it can also be a source of tremendous stress if...

Stayin’ Alive Center

Check out the Tech Coaches’ Podcast
ArchiTECHs of Learning

Our latest blog posts…

EduProtocols

EduProtocols

One thing that may be helpful for teachers in an entirely digital environment is to have a framework off of which to build lessons. A group of teachers and edTech folks have put together several of these and called them #EduProtocols. These can be used for things like...

Resources You Can Share with Parents

Resources You Can Share with Parents

The following are some resources parents may need to help their students to be successful and to navigate the tools we have available. As we approach parent-teacher conferences, you may wish to share some of these with parents. Most of these resources have been...

A Quick, FREE, Formative Assessment Tool You Can Use!

A Quick, FREE, Formative Assessment Tool You Can Use!

As we know, formative assessments are a great way to drive instruction. Using immediate, on-the-fly checks for understanding can steer a lesson in a matter of seconds, and also help teachers form differentiated groups quickly and efficiently. When we were in the “classroom”, a whiteboard was the perfect tool for this purpose. Now that we’re online, you can still use them.

Creating, Using, and Managing Rubrics

Creating, Using, and Managing Rubrics

A rubric is one of the most valuable tools for teachers when it comes to formative assessment. A good rubric allows teachers to... communicate expectationsset boundaries for student workgive standardized feedback The rubric creation process is also a valuable PLC...

Grading by Marking Period in Schoology

Grading by Marking Period in Schoology

Now that we are in our second marking period, teachers are looking for a way to show only assignments and grades for the current marking period in the gradebook. This is a fairly simple process, fortunately!

Now What?

Now What?

Certainly, even if we’re only learning how to use these tools to get us through the pandemic, it is not in vain–our learning is still worth it for the sake of kids. But we can begin to focus immediately on how we can use this (and future technological developments) to transform the ways we teach and the ways students learn.

Missing Something?

Missing Something?

We are getting a lot of panicked messages from teachers who cannot find their Schoology courses. If you fall into this category, try this first.

This Week’s Tech Coaches’ Corner

This Week’s Tech Coaches’ Corner

Please join us for this week's Tech Coaches' Corner. On Wednesday, Bob will be talking about setting up grading groups in Schoology. His session will begin at 3:15. On Thursday, Amy will be talking about setting up breakout rooms in Zoom. Her session will begin at...

Tech Coaches Corner is Today!

Tech Coaches Corner is Today!

Just a reminder that Tech Coaches Corner begins today! Today’s topics are Essential Settings for Zoom Meetings with Bob Harrison at 3:15, and Adding External Tools and Linking Specials in Schoology at 4:00 with Amy Gwizdz.

girl logs into Chromebook with student number written on card

Technology for Lifelong Learning

As technology increases exponentially, learners in the 21st century have the opportunity to go far beyond the boundaries of the traditional classroom.  The available technology provided by the Dearborn Schools allows students to interact in the digital community, collaborate with peers, and engage with the world from their seats in our classrooms.  The possibilities for learning know no boundaries online.  Learn how to help students become lifelong learners in the digital community.

Our Goal

The goal of instructional technology coaches is to help teachers become effective at using technology to provide the most technology-rich, positive learning environments possible.  To this end, we believe effective teachers…

  1. Facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity.
  2. Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments.
  3. Model digital age work and learning.
  4. Promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility.
  5. Engage in professional growth and leadership.

from Standards for Teachers.

collage of students working on Moodle

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