Educational Technology at IU13

As you may know, Google Edu Certification Exams were closed last Spring 2015 to undergo a major update and revamp of the current system and exams.  As of mid July 2015, the new exams were opened as well as new certification system and training center. There are now 2 certifications titled Google Educator Level 1 and Google Educator Level 2. Level 1 is for those who have learned the fundamentals of Google Apps for Education and Level 2 is for advanced users of Google Apps for Education.  Users do not have to attain Level 1 certification prior to Level 2 certification.

Do you remember the Classrooms for the Future Secondary Collaboration Days several Intermediate Units held a a number of years ago back when the PA Department of Ed issued CFF grants?  It was such an exciting few years where so many secondary education teachers received a lot of technology for their classrooms in order to maximize student learning.  As a result, over the years we held several secondary collaboration days providing a venue for secondary educators to get together and collaborate on best practices and tools for student learning. 

Is it time to start preparing for our annual Elementary Technology Conference coming up this December 8, 2015.  We are pleased to announce that our Keynote speaker is this year's closing Keynote at ISTE, Josh Stumpenhorst. His work has been recognized by the International Society of Technology Educators (ISTE) as they named Josh a member of their “Emerging Leaders Class of 2011”.  Click here for more information Josh Stumpenhorst.  We are very excited to have Josh open our day's events with an encouraging and challenging keynote for elementary teachers.

It's hard to believe that summer has already begun for many!  Summer means many different things to different people, but for me summer has always been a time to reflect on the last year and how I can make next year even better!  Reflective practice is so important in education today as we continually evaluate what worked well last year, what didn't work so well, and what can we do to improve teaching and learning for next year!  How will you model life long learning for your students this summer?  I read a few blog posts suggesting activities and practices that all teachers should do over the summer and as I have reflected on those practices, here is my list of 6 must do summer activities: