Discovery Education Speakers Bureau

In a time where there has never been a greater discord about instructional methods, student learning processes, and the needs of the business world, it is imperative for administrators to provide an educational environment that is conducive to change and adaptation while addressing the concerns of standardized testing and parents perception of what education should be. Administrators are responsible for providing effective staff development and must provide leadership that is directive, facilitative, and nurturing. Learn how administrators can provide systems of communication that are clear, consistent, easily maintained, and limit the impact on classroom instructional time.

If students could be taught using the skills and tools they have today, and teachers provided instruction that worked to meet the needs of the world tomorrow, what would it look like? This session will give a glimpse of what is taking place in far too few classrooms across the world today. Pulling examples from lessons using digital stories, Google Earth, podcasts, blogs, wikis, and many Web 2.0 resources, educators will get a glimpse of what education can look like. Integrating current technologies with instruction will provide increased student motivation, development and use of higher-order thinking skills, and better connectivity with the needs of the world today.

Nothing is more frustrating to an educator than professional development that is not relevant to the classroom or does not enhance their teaching experience. To teach students in the 21st Century, teachers need quality professional development addresses the critical, yet frequently unemployed skills that teachers and administrators can use to enhance daily teaching, decrease time spent on activities other than teaching, make a measurable difference on standardized tests, and construct a culture of student focused activity. This session will help you separate the “fluff from the stuff” and mine the untapped resources within your own school resources. The session also speaks to the need to make staff development more than a one day session that has little long-term impact and turn it into a sustainable model that will directly affect teaching for years to come.

With budding Steven Spielbergs in every classroom and with free or affordable software available for teachers to facilitate the needs of the “You Tube” generation, it is helpful to know tricks that make a basic digital story look like feature movie. Through simple tweaks and basic skills, teachers can introduce their students to special effects that will enhance their creative expression. We all remember the Star Trek “Beam me up!” sequences and movie characters with ghost-like, silhouetted images. You do not have to have a million dollar budget or fancy equipment to achieve the same effects. Utilizing programs such as Adobe Premiere Elements, a digital camera, and little creativity, you can take your students’ digital stories to new and exciting heights.

With budding Steven Spielbergs in every classroom and with free or affordable software available for teachers to facilitate the needs of the “You Tube” generation, it is helpful to know tricks that make a basic digital story look like feature movie. Through simple tweaks and basic skills, teachers can introduce their students to special effects that will enhance their creative expression. We all remember the Star Trek “Beam me up!” sequences and movie characters with ghost-like, silhouetted images. You do not have to have a million dollar budget or fancy equipment to achieve the same effects. Utilizing programs such as Adobe Premiere Elements, a digital camera, and little creativity, you can take your students’ digital stories to new and exciting heights.

You’ve heard the term in the media, trade publications, at staff developments. Even Congress is talking about it. But what is a “21st Century Student” and what makes him different from the student of a decade ago? Their brains are developing in a different way. They are processing information differently than any students before them. They learn new skills in entirely new manners. They have skills that many adults cannot conceptualize or are not comfortable with, so we limit their use in the classroom. By understanding the students we are teaching, as well as what preparations they need to be successful in the future, educational institutions can adjust their methods of instruction to better meet the needs of these students.