Unpacking Education & Tech Talk For Teachers

More often than not, teachers and parents think video games have a negative impact on children's learning development. In this week's episode, we explore the power of video games and the core concepts of game-based learning. Join our Digital Learning Specialists as they chat with our special guest, Tammie Schrader—a regional Science and Computer Science Coordinator for Educational Service District 101 in Washington—about how game-based learning promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skill development through game characteristics and principles embedded in learning activities. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

Join our Digital Learning Specialists as they chat with our special guest, Tammie Schrader—a regional Science and Computer Science Coordinator for Educational Service District 101 in Washington—about how to introduce computational thinking into the classroom to foster real-world problem-solving, creativity, and curiosity, while building students' self-confidence. As Tammie reminds us, it is important to remember that everyone is capable of computational thinking. It's a skill, and like all skills, it can be acquired, practiced, improved upon, and refined. Tammie shares how we can make computational thinking fun and engaging for all students. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

Unlocking the secrets of computational thinking, this discussion highlights its crucial role in education today. Listeners learn about the four foundational skills: abstraction, algorithms, decomposition, and pattern recognition. The speakers emphasize how these skills can enhance problem-solving and critical thinking in students, preparing them for unknown futures. Practical strategies and engaging activities bridge subjects like art and technology, showcasing how educators can effectively integrate these concepts into their classrooms.

This week, we meet with Dr. Ellen Dorr, Chief Technology Officer of the Renton School District—a large, urban district in Washington. Ellen has a strong commitment to educational equity, system design, and a deep love for students and their families. We open the conversation with a focus on the successes Renton School District has achieved this year. With a deeper look at what students have accomplished during remote learning, we celebrate the skills we didn't anticipate students learning and their willingness to experiment with us to best meet their needs. We also explore how the technology team brought student voices to the district-wide conversation during the pandemic via empathy interviews. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

This week, we meet with Natasha Monsaas-Daly, Director of Information and Learning Technology for Watertown-Mayer Schools—a small, rural district in Minnesota. Natasha's work focuses on integrating rigorous and authentic instruction, with quality technology tools. She discusses the power of hybrid and remote learning and how these options will continue in the future, challenging us to find solutions for making technology a sustainable option in the years to come. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

As teachers, we provide rich learning experiences for our students every day within the walls of our traditional classrooms. But when we are able to break down those walls and connect with resources beyond our normal learning spaces, we can bring a new level of magic into the learning experience that can inspire and enrich our students at an even higher level. Research has shown that when we can provide real-world learning—like field trips and guest speakers—to our students, they gain academically as well as socially and emotionally. Even with limited budgets and full calendars, we can leverage technology to take our students on journeys and to meet people beyond our classroom doors. In this episode, we explore virtual field trips, to help you design learning experiences that honor student voice and choice, along with practical logistical and pedagogical tips to make it successful. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

Our guest today knows a thing or two about steadfastly leading a school district through a year of unprecedented obstacles. We are joined by Dr. Dan Bittman, Superintendent of Independent School District 728 in Minnesota. In this episode, we celebrate the leaders who rose from every corner of our educational communities: students, parents, teachers, and building and district administrators. We discuss how the pandemic has provided unprecedented opportunities to come together to support one another, learn flexibility and practice adaptability, and extend grace and receive it for ourselves. Visit AVID Open Access to learn more.

Welcome back to Teacher Insights at Tech Talk For Teachers! This week, we meet with Kaia Tomokiyo, a Kindergarten teacher from Renton Unified School District in Renton, Washington. A national board certified teacher with 10 years' experience, Kaia engages students in their learning process through creativity, choice, and voice. Join us as we talk with Kaia to learn strategies to provide choice for our youngest learners as they begin the quest to build their identities. We explore how to create experiences students enjoy, to nurture their strengths, while also encouraging challenge in a safe environment to empower learners. Visit AVID Open Access for the resources mentioned in this week's podcast.

Each student who enters the classroom should feel that they have every opportunity to become successful. Students of color often come to school with experiences that some teachers are unfamiliar with—whether it is language, customs, or beliefs. As teachers, we have the opportunity to embrace these new experiences and learn how to include them in our classroom systems and structures to ensure the success of every child. In this podcast episode, we are joined by Dr. Winston Benjamin, a Social Studies and English Language Arts facilitator in the Renton School District in Washington. He shares his expertise in culturally responsive teaching to begin a conversation about how we as teachers must challenge our beliefs, examine our own biases, and reflect on how we need to evaluate the structures and systems in our classrooms to support all students, celebrating their experience and applying it to their learning process. Visit AVID Open Access for the resources mentioned in this week's podcast.

While the past year resulted in disruption in schooling, as we look forward can we shift the focus of the national dialogue from learning loss to accelerating learning? The pandemic highlighted and widened the opportunity gaps that many students across the country face every day. For more than 40 years, AVID Center has proven that acceleration with social-emotional and academic supports can reduce the opportunity gaps for students traditionally underserved by K-12 school. Join us as we talk with Dr. Lynn Kepp, Vice President of Executive Communication and Project Management Office at AVID Center from San Diego, California. Together, we discuss accelerating learning rather than learning loss and how we might better support students to be partners in learning by developing student agency. Visit AVID Open Access for the resources mentioned in this week's podcast.