Breakout Session 1

Google Earth Field Trips and Projects

Come experience a Haunted Paris tour I did with my French students using Google Earth. Learn some tips on how Google Earth can be used to bring the world to the classroom in World Language, History, English, Math, and possibly other disciplines. This session will help you engage and plan your own virtual field trip.

Mirrors: Encouraging Students to See Themselves by Leveraging Technology Integration in Secondary Instruction

This session focuses on an overview of the Conway High School diversity quarterly “Mirrors,” an intersection of secondary course curriculum, technology, and empowering advocacy for young people. Participants will analyze the website, view its resources, and discuss ways they think technology integration can benefit young learners in a plethora of ways. The purpose of this session will be to engage educators in thoughtful reflection about why diversity matters, how we can embrace it through curriculum, and what the potential impacts of that dynamic are.

Using Nearpod to Enhance Student Interaction

This session will introduce Nearpod and the various tools that are available. In this session, you will learn how students can join a Nearpod session, navigate from slide to slide, view who is actively engaged in the lesson, view student responses, show and hide students' names, and how to start a Nearpod lesson.

Using Case Based Learning in Online Courses: Taking Critical Thinking to the Next Level

This session will examine how using case-based learning in an online class environment encourages preservice teachers to analyze and approach potential issues they may encounter in the field. We will focus on structuring case-based learning to stimulate guided inquiry, promote critical thinking and problem solving, and cope with ambiguities. This session will also highlight creative ways for students to develop case studies.

Teaching Online Science Labs

In this session presenter and participants will discuss ways to overcome issues that come with teaching science labs online. The presenter will share how to ensure that students get the content they would typically receive during a face-to-face class, how to reach all students, and how to use different methods to achieve success in an online lab setting.

Office 365 & Google Workspace, so what’s the Fuss?

The session looks at the idea of blending platforms when creating content for the classroom. Using the best feature of multiple platforms together, and getting teachers to understand that it is not about preferences, but strategies building content for students and collaborating with peers.

How to Assess Your District's Digital Learning Growth

Do you ever wonder if your district's approach to digital learning is on the right track? Do you worry that with all the new digital learning tools and advances, you may be losing the focus on student learning and use of instructional time may not be as purposeful or as efficient as it could be? Let the Digital Learning Unit team share with you approaches they are using to move toward more specific ways to help schools achieve overall excellence where digital learning and student learning are synonymous. Learn about the Model Digital Learning School Program being implemented to assist schools in identifying ways to move the line of progression for innovation and learning. Participants will be asked to evaluate the program in its earliest phase to share feedback regarding the rubric, processes, and standards. Participants will also have the opportunity to join a premium “preview” notification group to be the first to learn about the progress and the opportunity to participate once the program is fully vetted for pilot implementation.