In the afternoon session on Friday, I was blown away by all of the extensions that Google Chrome has to offer. I hadn't ever understood how to properly use the Chrome browser before, but I feel a bit more confident after taking this course. Additionally, I enjoyed learning about different websites such as padlet.com and qrstuff.com (I hadn't known what a QR code was before).
I completed a bit of additional research on Harvard's Project Zero that Jeff mentioned in class and was intrigued by the program. In 1967, Project Zero was founded by philosopher Nelson Goodman to improve education in the arts. Goodman studied arts learning and since "zero" research had been previously completed on this cognitive activity of learning, the research project became known as Project Zero. Researchers have found that learning is a consequence of thinking (NOT vis versa). Today Project Zero's work takes place both internationally and nationally, and has broadened its research emphasis to not only focus on the arts but also on the nature of intelligence, ethics, cross disciplinary and cross-cultural thinking. Harvard offers a 5-day course that all museum educators, prek-12 administers and prek-12 teachers are encouraged to attend. The course focuses on questions such as:
-How can we best inspire and nurture creative thinking and problem solving in our students and ourselves?
-What is understanding, and how does it develop?
-What are the roles of reflection and assessment in student and teacher learning?
-How can participants continue to share and pursue their understanding of Project Zero's ideas with others after the program?
After seeing the price tag of $2,950 per person, however, I was a bit skeptical about whether or not the 5 days could be worth nearly $3,000. I found the website and the video below helpful, as they explain a bit more about Project Zero.
https://vimeo.com/96762490
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/ppe/program/project-zero-classroom
Finally, I absolutely loved how Jeff ended the class; his encouragement to love every single student was powerful and made me incredibly excited to be a teacher.
Not sure it's worth the $3000 as if you keep searching you'll find a lot of their ideas, protocols and systems online somewhere. But it's worth knowing and following. They continue to do great work!
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed the class.....they aren't always the easiest to love and they will push you to the limits at times just to see if you will still love them. But in the end....it's the most rewarding job on earth if you and remember that at the end of the day...this is your job as an educator. Just love and respect them.....we do that...this world will be OK.