Sunday, December 13, 2015

Why All Educators should attend TIES Conference - Weekend Version


My #TIES15 experience kicked off with a learning session on the utilization of TouchCast which is an iOS application that can be used as an interactive video platform.  The end product can then be distributed to engage and enhance communication in our school community.  For an example of the use of TouchCast please view the video below.



As I was learning from Chris Turnbull of St. Paul Public Schools, I developed a list of ways to utilize TouchCast for communication purposes.  Although this list is long, it is not all encompassing.
  1. Chromebook Deployment and Student Experiences
  2. Scarlet Letter Book Talk - HS English Class
  3. Math Mountains in 1st or 2nd Grade
  4. High School Social Studies Debate
  5. Paraprofessional School View
  6. Custodian Pride
  7. Kitchen Staff Nourishment
  8. Caring Clerical Staff
  9. Teacher Pride
  10. Upcoming Events
  11. Boastful Bits
  12. Board Happenings
Later in the day, Mr. Erler (#JWP Elementary Principal) and I engaged in a workshop that focused on the Chromebook Classroom.  We learned about a variety of extensions that make life easier for teaching, learning and leading.  Some of those extensions that I discovered were "Send with Gmail" and "1-Click Timer".  Each of these added efficiencies to my specific leadership.  Here was a nice google video shared:



On Sunday morning I joined a former colleague, Holly Christian (@hchristian) in a Blogger and Google+ workshop.  We learned a variety of techniques to improve our educational blogs and communication strategies.  The instructors also provided us with solid information in terms of improving efficiencies when utilizing social media to promote our work.  One Chrome extension they suggested was "Buffer".  For instructional leaders and innovators, you need to seriously consider downloading this extension and utilizing it when wanting to share articles discovered online.

Sunday afternoon's learning session was experienced with both Mr. Erler and Mr. Babcock (HS Principal).  This session was lead by Dr. Tony VonBank and was focused on innovative leadership in school districts.  The room was filled with outstanding educational leaders from the great states of Minnesota and Wisconsin.  Dr. VonBank shared several talking points regarding Innovation Game Planning.  He did a great job creating an interactive environment.  One of the points that I felt resonated the most with me was that we need to be the leaders of learning.  If we, as instructional leaders, are expecting staff to implement technology tools in classroom instruction, we must lead by example.  Period.

In addition, this guy was spotted in the classroom learning right along side us...


Nice to have you present @gcouros!

I can honestly report that I went four for four on the day which is not only great for Joe Mauer!  Each of the sessions I attended was outstanding and filled with rich content to inspire my work as an educational leader.




1 comment:

  1. Hi Bill! Glad to hear you got some great ideas with Touchcast! I have the "Studio in a Box" kit which came with a lapel mic, green screen, and stands for the iPad/iPhone. We should set up a mini studio in my room! Maybe we could get some excellent students to be your production team!

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