Category: Social-Emotional Learning
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The Case for Collaborative Grading: Empowering Students and Reducing Stress
Introduction In the pursuit of creating a more inclusive and student-centered learning environment, I adopted a collaborative grading practice in my English classes this year. The approach involved engaging in discussions with students to determine their midterm and final grades, essentially, I ditched the traditional “teacher knows best” approach and adopted a collaborative grading practice…
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Creating Dynamic Content
Creating dynamic, interactive content is about more than looks or fun – it’s about good pedagogy. Using dynamic and interactive content promotes social-emotional learning, increases engagement, decreases cognitive load, and learning science supports these assertions. Social-Emotional Learning Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the…
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A Multi-pronged Approach to SEL
Starting a new school year always prompts me to reflect on previous years. What can I do better? What do I need to implement? What do I want to continue? What’s different this year that needs to be addressed in a distinct way? One thing that I keep coming back to as a paramount need…
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Bringing a Fruit Roll-Up to a Knife Fight
I was not expecting to talk about fruit roll-ups and knife fights, but who knew how impactful and informative that would be? I had the pleasure of attending a Symposium on Teacher Wellness hosted by the Ontario Teachers Federation a little while ago and am still reflecting back on the learning that took place. I…
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The Future of Online Learning in Ontario
Online learning and educational technology have enormous potential for good and We can level the playing field if we recognize the need to implement appropriate systemic support and have a progressive vision with students at the core.
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Z is for Zen, Zoos and Zoodles
I’ve often heard the old saying lately ‘when life gives you lemons make lemonade’. I’m sure we can all agree we’ve had a fair bit more than lemons thrown at us this year, it’s been more like Jurassic Park run amuck, an outright zoo! What do you do with that? Make zoodles? I’ve long been…
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Learner Variability
What is the one constant in education today? Well, it varies. Something I’ve spent a lot of time on lately is learner variability. This focus grew out of my interest in supporting social emotional learning. In learning about supporting student’s emotional health and incorporating practices and strategies to encourage social-emotional growth I began looking carefully…
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Y is for YOU and other Y’s
YOU John Hattie, in his ground-breaking work Visible Learning, concluded that teachers are among the most powerful influences in learning. He found that a “teacher’s beliefs and commitments are the greatest influence on student achievement” (Hattie 25). Teachers do this by constantly evaluating and assessing, not just students, but their teaching methods and the effectiveness…
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Single Voices, Global Choices Project
Planning is well underway for Single Voices, Global Choices having begun a few months ago. The project, already boasting 107 teachers from 95 schools in 46 countries, plans on centering social emotional learning and connections-based learning by focusing on international events created by the United Nations and other organizations and by analyzing current events. International…
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“X” Marks the Spot
I began writing this series a year and a half ago to explore the many considerations we need to contemplate regarding the changes that will occur in the next decade and what our students will need to be successful in that time-frame and beyond. Access, happiness, mental well-being, reflection, patience, social-emotional learning, and mindset are…
