Google Docs Add-Ons

This week's tech tip is a shout out to Eric Curtis and his Control Alt Achieve post about Google Doc Add-Ons.

These are similar to Google Chrome extensions except that Add-ons install directly into Google Docs and provide added functionality. [Note: Add-ons are also available in other Google products like slides, sheets and forms.] Some of these can be really powerful. Check out this top 20 list for a few to start exploring!

Future Ready Skills

A focus on the "why"
This tech tip will be a little different. Rather than providing a list of fun, new tech tools, I'd like to focus on the "why" and the "purpose" of tech-rich learning environments based on ideas that came from two sessions at the 2018 TIES Conference in Minneapolis. Both sessions were presented by Jaime Casap, the chief education evangelist at Google: his keynote address, "The Problem Solving Generation," and his breakout called "Principles of Inquiry Based Learning."

In both sessions, Jaime emphasizes the skills our Generation Z students will need in our new tech-infused economy. Here are a few highlights.

The future (and present) economy
In short, he says, "The future is about digitization," which is impacting everything. He goes on to mention that "Change happens gradually and then suddenly. We are in the suddenly part."

Much of this change will be fueled by technology and robotics. He points out that jobs that can be replaced by robots will be replaced. Essentially, this means that many of the repetitive, basic labor jobs that currently do not require a great deal of specialized skill will be automated, and workers who have traditionally been in these positions will need to transition to jobs that require more complex, higher order thinking skills that cannot be easily automated.

New skill sets
According to current economists, our students will need the following skills in this evolving economy:

• Problem solving
• Critical thinking
• Creativity
• Collaboration
• Ability to learn

These skills sets are nearly identical to the 4 Cs model we've been implementing at ISD728.

Because problem solving will be at the core of these job skills, the big questions our students need to prepare for are . . .

• What problem do you want/need to solve?
• How do you want to solve that problem?
• What do you need to learn to solve that problem?

Embedding these skills into our classroom
To prepare our students for this, we need to embed these skills into our educational system. Casap argues that education is "no longer about finding information . . . Information is a commodity that has no value. It's about what we do with that information. It's about turning that information into intelligence."

Indeed, we need to be asking students questions that they can't just Google. We need to push them beyond recall of facts to problem solving and creativity.

Based on his research, Casap claims that "creativity will drive work. Creativity is what will separate us from the robots."

Collaboration is another key

As educators, we also need to build in opportunities in our classrooms for students to become better collaborators.

"Education is set up as a single player sport," says Casap, "The problem is that we live in a team based world."

He goes on to explain that when Google hires, they look for "leadership," which to them means "collaboration, consensus building, problem solving and the ability to step back and evaluate." These are skills our students need to develop.

What can we do?

We can begin transforming our classroom with a few key strategies.

1. Create opportunities for our students to identify and solve problems with others.
2. Build in opportunities for students to seek out and find answers to their questions.
3. Allow students to create. 

In fact, if students are allowed to problem solve and create with others, they gain nearly all of the skills their future employers are seeking.

Reminder: Your building media specialists are ideal resources to help you embed these types of activities into your classroom. This is their speciality, and they'd love to work with you!

Interesting facts about computer science education and employment in Minnesota:

• There are currently 13,477 open computer science jobs in MN.
• The average computer science graduate makes $91,000/year.
• In 2015, there were only 195 computer science graduates in MN (only 15% female).
• In 2017, there were only 1201 AP computer science AP exams taken in MN (only 20% female).
• Only 59 schools currently offer a computer science course in MN (only 18% of schools).

**Stats shared by Casap during his 2018 TIES keynote (December 2018).

Tips for Collaborating in a Digital World

Collaborating in a Digital World
As with communication, most people are more practiced collaborating in a face to face environment. Increasingly, however, this collaboration is moving to our digital world. Working together virtually can be more convenient, efficient and allow everyone an equal voice.

• Making Connections
• 4 Cs: Collaboration
• Blended Learning: Extend and connect collaboration between face to face to virtual environments.
• Differentiation: Collaborative tools allow students to learn from each other and offer input based on their unique skills.

Collaboration

1. Give students opportunities to collaborate in an online environment. 

Increasingly, we work with others in an online or virtual environment. Technology has allowed us to close the gap historically created by time and distance. As educators, we can provide students opportunities to collaborate virtually. Here are some digital tools to get you started having student collaborate.

• Nearly anything Google--Docs, Slides, Sheets, Drawings, Sites, Forms, Drive and more! 
• Padlet (post notes, images, video, links)
• Flipgrid (video discussions)
• Mindmeister (mind mapping)
• Ziteboard (whiteboard)

2. Give students opportunities to collaborate face to face while using digital tools.

Blended learning should not isolate students. We still want them to be working together to learn and solve problems. While digital tools and online learning will often be part of this process, it's important to find ways to "blend" the face to face collaboration with online or digital work. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Assign roles to help get all students involved. Check out these group role table tent template in Slides (shared as an earlier tip).
• Students create something together using an App and then upload it to both Seesaw portfolios.
• Students create something together digitally and upload their final product to both students' assignments in Schoology (slideshow, writing, Google drawing, websites, etc).
• Student groups work in a Project Based Learning environment and then collaboratively find a way to communicate their work using digital tools.
• Students use digital directions and tutorials to work together to solve an offline problem or create an offline product.
• Students work in teams to create a video or audio production using WeVideo or Soundtrap.
• Students use online sources to research solutions to collaborative problems.
• Students review using Quizlet live (where everyone must contribute).
• Student teams work to solve Breakout EDU lockbox puzzles or Digital Breakout EDU challenges.

3. Teach students collaboration skills.

Part of being a student is learning how to work with others. As teachers, we can play an important role in teaching the art of collaboration, compromise, etc. Here are a few ideas for helping students on this journey.

• Teach students how to respond to each other online (also included in last week's communication post). 
• Online Discussions: Tips for Students (University of Waterloo)
• Online Discussions: Tips for Students (Carlton)
• 10 Teacher Tips for Online Discussions (Educause)
• Practice! A good idea is to conduct a practice discussion in Schoology with a non-academic topic. Mixer or ice breaker activities are perfect for this! This could also be done in Seesaw with students replying to other student posts.
• Provide sentence stems. These can give students guidance as to phrasing their responses. Here are a few examples.

• "You said __________________. Have you thought about ________________?"
• "I especially like your point when you said ______________________. I like it because __________________________."
• "You said you __________________. What inspired you to do this?"
• "I have a question about __________________. What did you mean by this?"
• "I'm not sure I understand __________. Could you explain it more for me?"
• With online discussions, encourage students to support comments with evidence (quotes, stats, examples, etc.).
• Assign students with roles and consider rotating these, so everyone must be involved.
• Design projects so everyone has individual accountability while still having a group goal.

Tips for Communicating in a Digital World

Communicating in a Digital World
Most people have lots of practice learning the dos and don'ts of face to face conversation. We can see pretty quickly if our words have been taken offensively, out of context or just misunderstood.

In an online environment, that feedback is often delayed, and our messages are sent without the help of facial expressions and tone of voice. Because of that, we should consider online communication as a new artform and something that our students will need to be taught.

• Making Connections
• 4 Cs: Communication
• Blended Learning: Foster collaboration, not isolation, even when online.
• Differentiation: Online communication allows for multiple means of communication--text, audio, video, images & links.

Teach students how to communicate in an online environment.
While there are commonalities in all forms of communication, the online environment requires some unique skills. As more of our communication takes place online, we need to empower our students with the new skills they will need. Here are a few tips and resources to get you started.

• THINK before you post.
• This model has become very popular with teachers. 
• Get free posters here.
• Leverage multimedia and the power of online tools.
• Think about how online communication allows for that is different from face to face. 
• Limit your words.
• Show what you tell.
• A picture is worth a thousand words.
• A video is worth a thousand pictures.
• Link to your sources or additional information.
• Embed content.
• Make the communication interactive.
• Use proper online etiquette. 
• Here are just a few of the many resources available online. 
• 7 rules 
• Netiquette 
• Online Etiquette 
• Social Media
• Online Communication Skills (from open.edu)
• Online Discussions: Tips for Students (University of Waterloo)
• Online Discussions: Tips for Students (Carlton)
• 10 Teacher Tips for Online Discussions (Educause)

Find Safe Places to Learn and Practice.
Seesaw
For our youngest learners, Seesaw is probably the best place for students to learn online communication skills. The platform is limited to a safe audience of teacher, peers and parents.

• Journal Posts--Start with simple posts to the student journal.

• Talk about "wow" work or what makes work worthy of sharing.
• Talk about what is appropriate to post online and how it should be said.
• Post a picture with a caption or voice over.
• Record a video talking about the day's learning.
• Write a note to parents or teacher and read it to a friend before posting. 
• Teachers should only approve work that meets the class expectations for online communication.
• There might be no audience more motivational to these students than their parents, so get parents connected and allow students to post some of their best work for their parents to see! Even our youngest learners can post a picture or video.
• Seesaw Blogs--Set up your classroom Seesaw Blog and connect with another classroom. This can give your students a safe introduction into an audience beyond their classroom.

• Practice posting to the blog as a class. (modeling)
• Choose some of the best work in the class to post to the blog.
• Communicate directly with another classroom to share ideas and learning beyond the walls of your classroom or school!

Schoology

For our learning in grades 3-12, Schoology provides an excellent place to learn and practice online communication. Again, the audience is limited to teacher, parents and classmates.

• Discussions--This is probably the safest place for students to learn how to communicate with peers in an online environment. 

• Teachers can teach, model and monitor good online communication. 
• Consider starting with non-academic topics to get students engaged and give them fun topics with which to practice. These help build skills and classroom community! Here are a few examples.
• Introduce yourself to the class.
• Talk about a favorite hobby or trip.
• Discuss plans for the future.
• If I had three wishes . . .
• Daily bell ringers can also be done through discussions to get students primed for the day's learning and allow for regular practice communicating online.
• Updates--Typically teacher set this to view only for students. However, once students show they have mastered the skills of online communication through discussions, this could be opened up for student comments. Remember, however, that parents can see these replies!

Branching out!

As students get more skilled with online communication, consider offering audiences beyond the classroom. When students have an authentic audience beyond the teacher, and optimally outside of their classroom, their motivation changes beyond just getting a grade. It gives them a more authentic reason to do well. In short, make it real! Here are a few examples to consider:

• Skype or Google Hangouts--This is a great way to connect with another classroom or with experts outside of your classroom. Mystery Skypes are fun, and experts (like park rangers, museum experts, skilled professionals, etc.) are often willing to connect if you reach out to them.
• Gmail--For our older students, email can be a way to conduct interviews with experts beyond the classroom. These primary sources can be insightful and allow students to gain confidence seeking out answers to their questions.
• Webites--Websites are everywhere and an essential means of communication and information sharing in our current economy. For younger students, Google Sites can be created and shared only with a trusted audience (not wide-open on the web). For older students Google Sites or sites created with Weebly or Wix can be published publicly on the web to authentic audiences.

Happy New Year (with time capsules and virtual puzzles!)

Happy New Year, everyone! 

Welcome back! I hope your holidays have been restful and rejuvenating! It's always nice to take a break from the business of our professional lives and recharge a bit. It's also energizing to start a new year with a sense of new beginnings. Personally, I'm excited for another year of learning and growth!

Virtual Time Capsule
If you want to check in on your New Year's Goal next year at this time, you may want to try out the website https://www.futureme.org/ . It allows you to send a message to yourself in one year, five years or ten years. This could be fun for students as well--sort of a virtual time capsule!

Online Puzzle Maker
Just for fun, feel free to try out these virtual puzzles. If you like them and would like to make your own with your own images, visit http://www.jigsawplanet.com/. It's fun, free and easy! (If it's too easy, you can increase the number of pieces!)

Happy New Year 2019

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