#20 Time Round 2 #EdChat #GaETC

Another year and another great adventure in 20 Time. Last year, I was not sure if I wanted to do 20 Time again because I was so exhausted and I was worried I would never be able to recreate the environment where my students excelled. After the first marking period passed, I am so excited to see what my students are planning on doing.





I used TodaysMeet to have students share what their projects were and then we could all talk about them in class. It is a little change to the process I took last year and it worked well. The students had a bit of a harder time choosing their projects this year and I was worried about the commitment the students would have to the project, but I gave them a bit more time and they came up with some great projects.

They will have their first blog posts up next week and I will share those out. What I learned over the summer and at the start of the year by talking to students who did 20 Time was that they loved having others read their blog and connect with them. It was great to hear that and I look forward to sharing their work and seeing the connections that can be made.

Thanks for all of the support everyone and I'll keep you posted on how all of this goes.

Nick

The @BlackboardK12 BITS Learning Sessions #11 #BbK12Live

I've partnered with BlackboardK12 to share out the awesome sessions they are having this Fall. Educators can sign up to attend and share with other great educators what they have learned. I'll feature the session and the description on my blog each week and on my Twitter account. If you have questions, feel free to shoot a tweet to @BlackboardK12. Have fun learning and sharing!

Putnam County Embraces 21st Century Learning

The Putnam County School System (PCSS) began its personalized learning odyssey with the creation of the Virtual Instruction to Accentuate Learning (VITAL) program in 2008. Since then we have leveraged the tools available in Blackboard Learn™ to create a unique multifaceted program that includes credit advancement, credit recovery, dual enrollment, collegiate high school, interactive video conferencing, and flipped and blended learning. Come share our story and see how a rural Tennessee school district has embraced 21st century learning in order to connect with our students on their terms and meet their diverse needs.

Sam Brooks, Personal Learning Coordinator

Sam Brooks has been very honored to work for the Putnam County VITAL program for the past 5 years, first, as an Onsite Facilitator at a local high school where he "cut his teeth" and gained knowledge of personal learning. Brooks then moved to a leadership role as Personal Learning Coordinator for Putnam County Schools in Cookeville, TN. The VITAL program in Putnam County has grown to include credit advancement/credit recovery, dual enrollment, IVC (live) distance learning, K-12 blended learning, as well as offering professional development for the 20 schools within our district. VITAL implemented a district homeschool, as well as an early college dual enrollment program (VITAL Collegiate High School) beginning in the fall of 2014. VITAL hosted over 30 site visits the past two years from districts interested in the operation of our personal learning program.

Mr Brooks and the VITAL program is very excited to offer a personal learning opportunities to Putnam County students, as well as, students around the Upper Cumberland area. Currently courses are offered for students in Grades 3-12 during the regular school year and during the summer months.

The mission of the Virtual Instruction to Accentuate Learning (VITAL) Program is to provide students with a high quality, flexible, technology-based educational opportunity that allows them to maximize their potential to serve and participate productively in 21st century society in an anytime/anywhere atmosphere.

Mr. Sam Brooks, Supervisor of Personalized Learning for Putnam County Schools, was recognized by the Center for Digital Education as a Top 30 Technologists, Transformers, and Trailblazers for 2014. Mr. Brooks was chosen for this prestigious award based on his work in K-12 education and will be recognized at the national Digital Education Leadership Conversation Conference in Nashville, TN. in October.

Twitter: @vitalk12​

When: Monday, November 10, 2014 3:30PM EST

Sign Up

Don't forget to check out the Blackboard Live App. It has all of the sessions you might have missed and much much more.

Here is the playlist where you can watch this recorded session and other sessions you might have missed.

Week 9 Teaching Reflections #EdChat #NerdyCast

Here are my thoughts on the first 9 weeks of teaching. I love that I'm sticking to this reflection goal. It has given me plenty to think about. I've limited myself to 4 minutes, so I can't talk about everything that comes across my mind, but I really have looked at different areas in much more depth than I have before. I also have been looking at my interactions with students as well. In an effort to keep the students' actions private, I've opted to keep those reflections to myself so students do not watch and think they are the center of the video.

Here is my video on Week 9 Reflections. Feel free to leave any thoughts below.