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Posts Tagged ‘Delta’

My “Top 3” List for 2011

Posted in Change, Personalized Learning, SD45, Social Media, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 21, 2011| 13 Comments »

I compiled a “Top 3” list for 2010 (here), and am thinking of turning the “Top 3” into an annual tradition.  Many of my 2010 choices could have held for this year, but I wanted to highlight new people, blogs, resources, etc.  These year-end lists are a great way to raise topics, discussion and debate, and shine some light onto areas that may have received less attention than I thought they deserved as the year went along.  I look forward to your own “Top 3” thoughts for 2011.

Top 3 “Culture of Yes” Blog Posts – these posts have generated the most traffic this year:

1.  My Take on Librarians

2.  Preparing and Supporting Teachers to Integrate Technology in the Classroom

3.  A Little Bit About Mrs. Caffrey

Top 3 BC Teacher Blogs I Follow:

1.  Keith Rispin, West Vancouver

2.  David Wees, Vancouver

3.  , Lytton

Top 3 BC Edu-bloggers (not current teachers or school administrators)  I Follow:

1. Mike McKay, Surrey

2. Brian Kuhn, Coquitlam

3. Tom Schimmer, Penticton

Top 3 Digital  Learning Trends in Schools:

1.  Everyone has a blog — students, teachers, administrators, district staff.  From a few dozen to a few hundred (or more) in B.C., in just one year

2.  Personally Owned Devices — more jurisdictions are including PODs as part of their digital-learning strategy

3.  iPads — from school pilots to being one of the most popular presents at Christmas, they are finding their way into more and more classrooms

Top 3 Professional Development Events I have Attended:

1.  GELP – Global Education Leadership Program

2.  West Vancouver Opening Day with Stuart Shanker

3.  MindShare Learning 21st Century Canadian EdTech Summit

Top 3 Used (and often overused) Terms in Education for the Year:

1. The Flipped Classroom

2.  Technology is just a tool

3.  Taking to Scale

Top 3 Books I have Read this Year that Influenced My Thinking:

1.  Nurtureshock by Po Bronson and Ashley Merrymen

2. Spark:  The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John Ratey

3. What Technology Wants by Kevin Kelly

Top 3 School-related Videos from West Vancouver (that I bet you haven’t seen)

1.  Students at Cypress Park talking about their project with the Obakki Foundation – Kids for Clean water

2.  Caulfeild Elementary sharing the story of their iDEC Program

3.  Students at West Vancouver Secondary and their lipdub from the spring

Top 3 School-related Videos from B.C. (that I bet you haven’t seen)

1.  Students from School Completion and Beyond reflecting on the BC EdPlan

2.  An introduction to Learning Commons in BC

3.  Delta School District Vision Video

As I finish my first full year as Superintendent, I continue to love using my blog to reflect, share and engage.  I like David Eaves‘ notion that the blog is a great place to work out the mind.  I look forward to continuing to connect in 2012!

Chris Kennedy

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My “Top 3” List for 2010

Posted in Change, Personalized Learning, Professional Development, Social Media, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 20, 2010| 20 Comments »

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

2.  BCSSA Fall Conference

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:

1.  personalized learning

2.  backchannel

3.  21st century learner

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!

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