Here's one of four different posters created for our 2011 Drop Everything and Read campaign by Al Smith. Many thanks to Al for his efforts and passion to "getting it right". Bookmarks on the way, too!Get yours at the BCTLA website to download and make copies for your school and/or school district.Next up? Official DEAR … Continue reading DEAR 2011 Kicks Off With New Poster →

As the opening keynote speaker at ISTE 2011 conference in Philadelphia, PA, University of Washington's Dr. John Medina seeks to provide an answer on "what a good teacher might look like".In a passionate and convincing presentation, Medina explains how our brains are wired similarly and not so similarly, and how these affect learning and teaching. … Continue reading The Brain Rule: We’re not all wired the same… →

Well, it seems as though our senior administration with the blessing of the board of trustees has recognized the importance of professional development from the personal perspective, for the need for educators to explore, learn, and collaborate on ideas and foci of their own volition. Top-down mandated professional development was never successful in School District. … Continue reading Professional Learning Project: A Beginning →

Here's what happens on the Internet EVERY 60 SECONDS everyday. Absolutely mind-blowing!Inforgraphic by Shanghai Web Designers

Here's a terrific infographic courtesy of technology blogger Greg Swanson and his colleagues and students.As part of secondary school faculty, this sort of information is really effective me lens through which to view our incoming Grade 9 students and their use of technology and of course a baseline of their level of digital literacy.For more information about creating, … Continue reading Middle School Boys & Technology Use →

In his recent post Difference Between a Bureaucrat and a Teacher thirty-year educator and teacher-librarian extraordinaire, Al Smith, comments that the golden age of education in British Columbia is over. And I don't think that he's waxing poetic either. Teachers and more importantly, BC students and the education system, are in for a huge surprise (and … Continue reading One Heck of a September: The Perfect Storm? →

This past weekend, I helped a group of young, motivated, and enthusiastic young adults (and this was on a Sunday morning!) move and transport over $50 000 worth of lighting, sound, and camera equipment for a day of shooting (film, not ducks) in the beautiful Slocan Valley of the West Kootenays.Our school, L.V. Rogers Secondary … Continue reading Quiet on the Set: Authentic Learning in an Authentic Environment →

In a terrific paper on teacher-librarian advocacy, Dr. Gary Hartzell argues that the only real traction (in terms of advocacy for teacher-librarians) is to strike at the heart of educational administration training. We need to set our sights on the professors and instructors in the hollowed hall of higher learning that help churn out our … Continue reading Hartzell: Despairing of School Library Advocacy →

After only nine weeks since its inception and with nearly 200 members on board, the British Columbia Teacher-Librarians' social network has not been without its detractors.Over the past few weeks there have been several comments on the BCTLA Google Groups forum expressing concern about the extra effort that will be required after joining the new … Continue reading Change IS Necessary →

A young superintendent with a progressive educational mindset. Don't see many of these around...Sadly, we just need about another 40 more of these kinds of people in positions of influence.Chris Kennedy shares his thoughts on what education is in the new media.2011 May YEM from SFU Education on Vimeo.