I love year-in-review lists, so I’ve come up with one of my own — the “Top 3” in a variety of categories. A great way to spur on discussion and debate. I look forward to your own additions.
Top 3 “Culture of Yes” Blog Posts – these posts have generated the most traffic this year:
1. Printing is not Meant to be Convenient
2. A Recipient in the Sharing Revolution (thanks to Dean Shareski for sharing this post)
3. TedxUBC (Post 1 and Post 2)
Top 3 Jurisdictions I Want to Learn More About:
1. Revelstoke — latest graduation rate is a provincial best 98%
2. Ontario — their recent PISA results in reading is something from which we can learn
3. Finland — in almost every measure, they continue to lead the way in education
Top 3 B.C. Principals Influencing My Thinking and Work in our District:
1. Cale Birk — his post on collaborative time was particularly helpful
2. Gino Bondi — he is pushing the change agenda and thinks differently about high schools
3. Chris Wejr — a great champion of thinking differently about assessment
Top 3 Professional Development Events I Have Attended:
1. TEDxUBC
3. Twitter (pretty much on a daily basis – and it doesn’t cost a cent)
Top 3 Social Media Tools I’ve Used More of in 2010 Than Before:
1. Twitter — it is changing the game with professional development
2. Slideshare — wish more teachers would use it to share PowerPoints
3. YouTube — it was only a couple of years ago this tool was blocked in schools
Top 3 Used (and often overused) Terms in Education for the Year:
2. backchannel
Top 3 Used (and often overused) Quotes in Education for the Year:
1. “It is not about the technology” (guilty of this one)
2. “The 21st century is more than 10% over”
3. “Creativity, now, is as important in education as literacy” (or other Sir Ken like quote)
Top 3 Canadian Educational Reform “Blueprints” Worth Reading:
1. British Columbia – A Vision for 21st Century Education (pdf)
2. Alberta – Inspiring Education
3. New Brunswick – Creating a 21st Century Learning Model of Public Education (pdf)
Top 3 Education-related Videos from B.C. (that I bet you haven’t seen)
1. Digital Immersion Class Video – from Riverside Secondary in Port Coquitlam
2. Barry McDonald – Boy Smarts from TEDxUBC (Barry is a Langley teacher)
3. The North Delta Secondary Focus Group Initiative
Top 3 Education-related Videos from Outside B.C. (not featuring Sir Ken)
1. RSA Animate – Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us
2. Project-Based Learning Explained
3. Alfie Kohn vs Dwight Schrute (thanks to Larry Ferlazzo for pointing me to this one)
The best thing I did professionally this year was start this blog. Thanks to all of you who engage with me here on a regular basis. I look forward to more discussions to come — there will never be a shortage of topics.
Happy Holidays!
cultureofyes.ca 