Technology Badges

As the new Technology Integration Specialist in my district, I was looking for a way to recognize teachers who are already doing an outstanding job integrating technology into their instruction. 

In my research, I kept coming across badge programs. The more I researched, the more I found really great ideas in how to organize such an endeavor. And so I got to work and was ready to introduce the Badge program at the beginning of February. 

Photo by @BethanyLigon (February 2016)

Our district has just around 200 certified classroom teachers. And in the first two weeks I've handed out 120 badges. Because I'm the only TIS for our K12 district, this has kept me busy in reviewing the artifacts that teachers are sharing - which happens to be some very cool stuff. I can do walk throughs and see what happens on a daily basis. But with teachers submitting their best evidence to me, I am seeing some super fantastic ideas that I am now able to share with other teachers. 

Teachers are able to earn badges in the following categories:

• Google Tools
• Active Engagement Tools
• Assessment Tools
• Presentation Tools
• Blended Learning Tools
• Social Media Tools
• Communication Tools

The best part for me, is that teachers are able to request training on exactly what they want. It's not a one size fits all professional development setting anymore. But it's me meeting with one teacher or a small team of teachers who want to grow their instructional toolbox in a specific area or with a particular tech tool/app. And because I now have documentation on which teacher is proficient on each tool, I can use them as a resource as needed.   

Another "best part" for me is the teacher's reaction when I walk into their rooms on a Thursday afternoon to hand them their badge. Yesterday, a teacher literally jumped up and down and clapped her hands because she was so excited and then her little first graders started cheering for her. That totally made my day.

Offering my BEST to you,
Bethany.

Has your school/district implemented a badge program? How has it been working for you? What's the best part? Anything you'd do differently?

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Digital Task Cards with Google Slides

Happy Monday to everyone!

I've been spending part of my day today thinking about and Googling and Pinning various ideas for Task Cards. There are some really fantastic ideas out there about how to implement task cards into your instruction so that students remain engaged.

My specific interest today was attempting to find ways to create digital (paperless) task cards. All of sudden, the examples dwindled to next to nothing. How sad.

One idea that seemed like a no-brainer (and therefore, I replicated it) was to use Google Slides.This example I found online does a nice job of demonstrating how this digital work can even be differentiated. 

What I chose to practice in my sample below is to actually have students respond on the slides. Because we have access to Google Classroom, this method would be simple to keep paperless. 



The other thing that I did on these cards was to create hyperlink for hints. Go ahead and try it out! The slide deck is active and those links should take you to another item that would be helpful to complete the task. That's the thing that I LOVE about the digital factor that may or may not be available on a paper version of task cards. Sure a teacher could use QR codes or even Aurasma, but if you don't have time to fiddle with those, this option may be just what you're looking for! 

Offering my BEST to you!
-Bethany

• Have you used task cards in your instruction? What about using a digital or paperless format? What works best in your classroom?
• Can you think of a way to make a digital task card assignment collaborative with students? 

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