All Blog Posts Tagged 'agent' (14)

Reflections of an Educator - Guest blogger Tonya Thompson

A few days ago, Justin and I got the privilege of spending a few hours with the ever-insightful and inspirational author and speaker Mark Sanborn. We had unknowingly crashed a professional public speakers meeting, and we got a chance to have an experience that was both unusual for us and really, really interesting. While Mark’s speech was directed…

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Added by Justin Tarte on February 21, 2011 at 1:48pm — No Comments

It's never too late...

I got the idea for writing this post while listening to a Taylor Swift song (insert laughter/joke here). Yes, I happen to enjoy the occasional song by Ms. Swift. By no means is this post meant to change the world or is it meant to provide some great insight into an educational problem. It is however, meant to encourage and motivate you.

The song is titled "Innocent," and there was one particular line that struck a cord with me...

"Today is never too late to be brand… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on February 21, 2011 at 1:44pm — No Comments

7 videos that WILL ignite a discussion

One of the biggest reasons I enjoy using Twitter is it enables me to connect with educators from all around the world. Additionally, Twitter has proven to be an efficient and effective platform to discuss pressing educational issues. Unfortunately, most…

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Added by Justin Tarte on February 6, 2011 at 6:58am — No Comments

How do we define learning...?

I will start this post off by saying you will not find any answers here.

At best you might be more confused than when you started. This year

has been the year of change for my German students and myself. We have

been pushing the envelope when it comes to technology integration in a

foreign language class. Overall, I can honestly say things have been

going quite well. Students seem to be actively engaged and interested,

and most importantly they have taken… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on December 27, 2010 at 2:29pm — 1 Comment

5 ways to encourage fundamental change...

This post stems from the thoughts of @gcouros' most recent post Is Change the True Barrier? Change has been and will be for the foreseeable future the most

pressing issue in our schools, our communities, and in our society as a

whole. George's question was simple: What is holding us back...is

"change" at the heart of the problem, or is… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on December 4, 2010 at 6:38pm — No Comments

REBEL - Education Reform Blog - revisit...The factory model does not work for schools...

Tom Whitby has encouraged all education bloggers to write a positive blog on how we should reform the

educational setting. I have decided to revisit a previous post of

mine...

If you have ever walked into a factory that produces a finished good from raw materials, it is frankly an amazing process. Dating back to

the early 1900's, Henry Ford revolutionized…

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Added by Justin Tarte on October 17, 2010 at 2:00pm — No Comments

Criticism hurts...but how you deal with it is all that matters!

The path to growth and development can be ugly at times. Educators are part of a world that is continually changing and evolving, and as such

we are forced to take a leap, and at times take a leap when we are not

ready. Going through all my undergraduate classes at Mizzou we were

always told how rewarding and fantastic the field of education is, and

from where I sit right now I could not agree more. So...the big

question… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on October 10, 2010 at 8:05pm — No Comments

Never underestimate the power of a child...

I watched this video on TED: Ideas worth spreading (which I highly recommend) http://www.ted.com/,

and I have to say I was really intrigued by the topic. Every day at

school I get the opportunity to see students growing and

developing...some more than others, and some not enough. However

inconsistent their growth may be, one thing is for certain...the growth

and development of children can be summed up in one word - amazing! If

we… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on September 22, 2010 at 5:35am — No Comments

Would anybody like some change?

As I often do, I speak with my wife about issues and theories related to

education. Though my wife is not a full time teacher, she does teach

as an adjunct professor at a local community college. Thus, I feel she

is knowledgeable and a worthy audience when discussing educationally

related topics.

Our most recent discussion revolved around how education needs to be

more effective and applicable to the ever changing needs of the student

population. There… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on August 9, 2010 at 6:34am — No Comments

Human nature - why sometimes we should fight to ignore it...

I will preface this post by saying I am only 15 pages into the book, The Death and Life of the Great American School System, by Diane Ravitch. Despite not being too far along in this book, I feel empowered to share my experiences thus far.

In my short 5 years in education I have learned many things, however for

this post I will concentrate on just one. There is one thing for

certain in education...and that is, there is… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on August 4, 2010 at 4:06pm — No Comments

Bring on the learning revolution!

A fabulous resource to educators is available, and the best part about it...it is free! Visit the website http://www.ted.com/ and watch videos about "ideas worth spreading." I chose this

particular video by Sir Ken Robinson because I feel Robinson makes a

wonderful point about education. When we talk about education we need

to forget about the evolution of the school system, but rather we… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on August 4, 2010 at 12:13pm — No Comments

Do you speak their language?

How often do you hear students complaining about a teacher who told them to put their cell phone away, or turn their iPod off? If your school

is anything like my school, then I am sure you hear this on a daily

basis. Integrating technology into the classroom has been a hot topic

over the last several years, and as our society continues to embrace new

technological advances, Education 2.0 will hopefully continue to… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on August 4, 2010 at 12:07pm — No Comments

What should busy administrators be reading (or watching)? - Leadership Day 2010

This is my first time participating in Leadership Day 2010, and I must say I am really excited to be a part of this fantastic movement. As

educators, I would argue we all need to be inspirational and progressive

leaders in our own right; however in education's current form we have

building administrators and central office administrators as our

leaders. Their jobs are extremely difficult, and I can honestly say

most people… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on August 4, 2010 at 12:05pm — No Comments

Why we shouldn't treat schools like factories, even if it is more cost effective...

If you have ever walked into a factory that produces a finished good from raw materials, it is frankly an

amazing process. Dating back to the early 1900's, Henry Ford

revolutionized the world and the way it manufactures goods. How could

one argue with a process that can take different materials and

products, and in one smooth motion put them together to produce a brand

new flawless product…

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Added by Justin Tarte on August 4, 2010 at 11:48am — 1 Comment