Follow these great Hip Hop Ed People on twitter!!!

@amilcook @chrisemdin @tdj6899 @raptjr @doc_scottb @husslington and me @brandonzoras

Thank you all for the great #HipHopEd chat discussing Harlem Fake / Shake and the co-opting knowledge.

For my part in the talk skip to 17 min mark! 🙂

Video recorded by Amil Cook

Since the event the amount of emails and energy I have received from people has been huge.  In the works is setting up an event in the next month or so to keep up the momentum!  Thank you all for coming out!  Special thanks to presenters and Justin Zoras for filming and editing the final product.

Please use hashtag #HipHopEdTO and #HipHopEd (especially Tuesdays at 9 PM) to continue to build and connect.  A blog has been set up at http://hiphopedto.wordpress.com

Video is in 4 parts below!

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Part 4:

Let’s Talk Hip Hop, Thursday March 7th 2013,OISE, Toronto Canada

More Info:
http://hiphopedto.wordpress.com

For Prezi Presentation Click Here:
http://prezi.com/g7pfc95madkt/hip-hop-ed-to/?kw=view-g7pfc95madkt&rc=ref-722281

Twitter:

#HipHopEdTO
http://twitter.com/#HipHopEdTO

Video and Editing: Justin Zoras

Presenters: (In order of appearance)

Mahlikah Aweri of RED SLAM

http://www.myspace.com/redslamcollective
http://www.youtube.com/user/RedSlamCollective
http://www.neighbourhoodartsnetwork.org/members/red-slam-collective

Brandon Zoras, Teacher TDSB, M.Ed Urban Education OISE/University of Toronto

https://mrzoras.wordpress.com
https://twitter.com/brandonzoras

Sam Seidel, Author and Educator

http://hiphopgenius.org/
http://husslingtonpost.com/
https://twitter.com/husslington

J-Rebel, Community Educator, Mentor, B-Boy,

Don’t Believe the Hype Program Creator
jrebel1@hotmail.com

The Real Sun, Community Educator, Artist,

Don’t Believe the Hype Program Creator
sun@therealsun.com

Today has been a super tough day.  I was using the mobile computers in the classroom and we were waiting for everyone to get logged into the site and one student had a music video on.  It turned out to be a former student rapping and I told him I knew him.  The student let me know that he was just arrested.  I went online to Google it and sure enough he is up on almost 10 major charges and is now 18 years old so his name was published.  My heart felt like it stopped and just an overwhelming feeling of why him?  What he did wasn’t right, but I feel behind all that he is a good kid.  We can’t choose the cards we are dealt when we are born and I can’t imagine how I would turn out to be dealt his hand.  I taught him in 3 classes and to see him progress with school, smile and just be a regular teen was amazing.  This is why I love inner city schools.  I see him in the music video angry, violent and letting everyone know he isn’t afraid to shoot anyone.  I just wish I could have done more when I taught him, engaged him more, helped him get a job so he didn’t have to hustle.

Realistically I know I have helped so many students and I can’t take the blame onto myself.  Last month seeing another student on the news losing his brother, having another stabbed just over a year ago in the school and then recently another one stabbed.  These are KIDS who have been forced to grow up too quickly, learn hard lessons from the street and in many cases pushed out of success.  I am thankful for caring teachers, community organizations like boys and girls club and pathways that pour endless time and emotion into helping these boys.  We need places for them to be safe, learn skills, get them jobs, speak with caring adults/mentors and don’t give up on them!

I am still buzzing from the energy, enthusiasm and experience that filled the room last Thursday at OISE.  The wealth of participants made the event and Sam, J-Rebel, Sun and Malikah really inspired the room.  From what started as a conversation on twitter under the #HipHopEd hash tag (Tuesday at 9 PM) between Sam Seidel @husslington and myself @brandonzoras weaved into a great event.  The room was filled with community, teachers, educators, artists, professors, researchers, and hip hop enthusiasts.

Prezi Presentation: Click Here

Malikah from Red Slam Collective opened the event by smudging and presenting a drumming act along with vocals.  Through the introduction of the people in the room, we all soon found out Toronto has a massive Hip Hop scene with caring people who want to see youth do well.  I opened with a short bio and presented some of the classroom strategies I used in my classroom and projects that involved Hip Hop.  Sam Seidel inspired the room with many messages that resonated with the group.  He discussed working together and “sharpening swords” with each other to not just celebrate the successes we have with Hip Hop Ed but to critically analyze and give feedback.  He encouraged the Toronto group to “Think Bigger, Keep It Real and listen to students” to grow.   He showed us his video on Remixing High School Education, and also what happens at The High School for Recording Arts.  J-Rebel and Sun shared their program “Don’t Believe the Hype” and experiences working within the community and schools.  They emphasized having community groups working in our schools is such an important task.

What happened next was a conversation that made the room explode!  Participants from every possible background started discussing how to educate (both in and out of traditional schools) using hip hop.  Much of the conversation revolved around the tough time the community has navigating large institutions like schools boards and higher education.  Funding was a top problem amongst community groups trying to get their program off the ground and into schools.  Many teachers shared their positive experiences with integrating hip hop and community into their classes but were asking for more.  Professors wanted to know who should teach hip hop education, what is the qualifiers for this.  Community members and artists wanted people to understand that often they felt schools welcome them in for a workshop or demo but often it is a one shot event that doesn’t offer support for the community.  The conversation was far from over.

Lastly networking happened where people got to meet face to face with each other to discuss their own programs, best practices, future ideas and also give congratulations.  I am going to be as bold to say this is the start of something huge, not Hip Hop Education, as that has been happening already but I am talking about this network of caring hip hop enthusiasts.  They all care about their communities, roots and the futures of the youth.

With this being said, we will be starting a blog http://hiphopedto.wordpress.com as a resource, collaborative and collective area where events will be posted and ideas shared.  Please email me any resources or if you would like to a collaborator on a regular basis.  In discussion as we speak, is to set up meetings on a regular basis and hear from the community.  We would like to keep the #HipHopEdTO hash tag alive where we can post about Hip Hop Education in Toronto.

I would like to sincerely thank all those that attended and presented.  I was moved beyond words by the turn out and true wealth and knowledge that was brought. The YouTube recording will be available shortly for those interested!

Let’s keep this alive.  Let’s Talk Hip Hop!

Brandon

Hello All!

I am very excited about our up and coming event on Hip Hop Education. We have only 2 spaces left!

The evening is designed to be open, free flowing and allow for maximum participation and networking. We will have a very brief opening by myself (Brandon), a short introduction by Sam Seidel followed by Joseph (JRebel) and Sun speaking about their program Don’t Believe the Hype and then we will start into the conversation!

Before the event please check out Sam Seidel’s Video vimeo.com/22591307
His book will be on sale at the event (Pricing TBA I believe it is $25)

I have included a small sample of academic journals on Hip Hop education below for those looking for a more academic background.

https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0B-j-vSDHldERQVNXeHl0Ri1oZEE/edit?usp=sharing

I do not have all community resource links. Here is a Google doc for those who want to view more Hip Hop Education links. I have it set to be able to edit, so please just add to the bottom of the list any great sites, programs, information about related to Hip Hop Education, especially here in Toronto.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TFphUR_f4I_UqbPjD8hW735eVXzzKU_NYp7_FYehcdk/edit?usp=sharing

We are asking those attending to fill in the following Google form. It will give us a better idea of who will be in the house next week. I would like to share your name and email with the entire group so we can keep the connections going. I will only share your name and email if you fill in the email section below. If you do want to share your name and email please include it. If you do not want to share please fill in the form but leave your email blank and I will not include you. After the event I will email only those indicating a master list of names, occupations/associations, emails to those who would like.

Excited to meet you all!

Brandon

http://hiphopedto.eventbrite.ca/

Calling community workers, educators, teachers, artists  & hip hop enthusiasts. Join in on a critical conversation about integrating Hip Hop into education.

Format will be a short presentation by Sam Seidel followed by open conversation.  We will have time to make connections to allow for future collaborations.  Bring business cards, flyers, contact info with you.

Sam will have copies of his book for sale or you may purchase here.

Presentation – Open Conversation – Networking

Location:  OISE

Second Floor Room 2-286

252 Bloor St West

Thur Feb 7th 2013

5:30 PM – 7:00 PM

Featuring:
Sam Seidel, Educator and Author “Hip Hop Genius: Remixing High School Education”
http://hiphopgenius.org/ 

Moderator

Brandon Zoras, Teacher, M.Ed Urban Education
brandon.zoras@mail.utoronto.ca

Room Capacity is 35 People.  This event is designed to be a conversation of Hip Hop and education.  If ticket is sold out please add to waiting list and I will email you as soon as a space opens.  

Homework before event.  

1) Check out Sam’s video http://vimeo.com/22591307

2) Think of some ideas of integrating hip hop into education both in a formal school setting or a community

3) Bring a contact card / business card to make connections

This past semester our Grade 11 Biology class was paired virtually with researcher / professor Dr. Ilona Skerjanc from University of Ottawa.  Virtual Researcher On Call (VROC)’s program “On the Fly” matches a researcher from a higher education institution to a classroom for multiple check ins within the semester over ClearSea video conferencing software.

Dr. Skerjanc was an amazing partner for our class.  She not only shared her work and experience in biochemistry but mentored and became a role model for the students.  Dr. Skerjanc enriched our biology class with ground breaking research she is doing with stem and muscle cells.  She made connections between grade 11 biology and the work she is doing currently.  Students were highly engaged in her talks, asking questions, making connections to our course work and getting a feel for a career in science.   Dr. Skerjanc also spoke about personal life choices and how to balance a family while being a researcher / professor.  She emphasized to the students to do what makes them happy and most importantly enjoy the work they are doing.

Students reported:

–       getting ready for university, it was great to hear from a professor about what university is like

–       the video calls were informative and exciting

–       hearing career opportunities first hand was great

–       Dr. Skerjanc cared and made a connection to the class

She was great compliment as I also started in biochemistry but never did graduate work in biochemistry, so the students go to see two different pathways from the same undergraduate program.

Thank you Dr Skerjanc and the VROC team for such a great experience for the grade 11 biology class at Cedarbrae C.I. at TDSB.

Brandon Zoras and the Cedarbrae C.I. Biology class.

Below are two slides and a video she shared with us of beating cardiac cells.

http://rup-movie.glencoesoftware.com/video/10.1083/jcb.201007063/video-1

I have been following Chris Emdin since my thesis on urban boys and science.  I have found my way to the other researchers and Sam Seidel who’s book is being shipped to me as we speak!  I was intrigued when I first heard the research on integrating hip hop into education, as well as education into hip hop.  I think both fields have a lot to learn from each other, even though hip hop has only been around a small fraction of the time education has.  For those who just think its about rapping the periodic table, you couldn’t be further from the truth.  It is culture, a way of life, an existence for many of our students.  From participating in #HipHopEd chats on Twitter, to reading scholarly articles and books, I see Hip Hop Education as a way to increase engagement, build community and keep students in school!    

I am hoping Toronto can get on the Hop Hop Education scene as hip hop is happening right now in our community.  It happens after school, at programs like the Remix Project, and even I seen a kid at the Apple Store using garage band, recording a song in the store.   It needs to be happening formally in higher education, school boards and used as a pedagogical tool in our classrooms.

This series on hip hop education is amazing and throwing all the talks from the series all in one place.

Check These Sites Out

http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/metrocenter/hiphopeducation/

http://iume.tc.columbia.edu/

All Videos from IUME’s YouTube Channel

This article has been developed as a collaborative effort between 2 Toronto District School Board (TDSB) teachers/ICT Leaders, who both hold Positions of Responsibility (POR) at their respective schools. The Elementary Panel is represented by Joseph Romano, with the Secondary Panel represented by Brandon Zoras.

The TDSB is on the verge of change through the innovation and development of learning spaces, teaching strategies and definitions of Education means in the 21st Century. We have considered these shifts, as outlined within the video below, and as a result have developed our practices along models of 21st Century Communication, Collaboration, Creation and Critical Thinking.

The goal of this article is to share effective practice of technology integration within the schools we work and through the experiences we have had. By no means is this article meant to act as an exhibit of “best practices”, but rather, acts as an auto-ethnographic means of sharing and display.

We hope that we are able to shine light on some of the ideas we have had that have worked for us, within our schools, to support our colleagues and students. We welcome any comments, questions or like in the appropriate section below.

Who Are We?

RED

Joseph Romano, OCT, BFA (Spec. Hons.), B.Ed., M.Ed.
ICT Lead Teacher & Junior Division Position of Responsibility (POR)
Golf Road Junior Public School
www.classpace.ca

BLUE

Brandon Zoras, OCT, Hons. B.Sc., B.Ed., M.Ed.
Science Teacher & Assistant Curriculum Leader of Science
Cedarbrae Collegiate Institute
www.mrzoras.wordpress.com

Teaching has always been my (Joseph Romano) career aspiration, a goal which led me to the Concurrent BFA/B.Ed. program, and later to the M.Ed. program, all within York University’s Faculty of Education. I am currently teaching ICT and am the Junior Division POR at Golf Road Junior Public School, at the Toronto District School Board. My teaching practice is rooted in my belief in students. I strive to promote the worth of all students by capturing and directing their intellect in ways which foster their holistic growth.  Overall, I hope to build upon my own leadership capacity through the support of others in the development of their own culturally relevant and responsive technologically-driven pedagogical practices, to ensure that the educational experiences of their students align with authentic 21st Century strategies and skills for successful teaching and learning.

Starting off working in the community programs during my teens, led me (Brandon Zoras), naturally into teaching. During my undergrad degree in Biochemistry, I entered the Early Teacher Project at U of T Scarborough. I continued with my B.Ed. in the Inner City Education option and then pursuing my M.Ed. program in Curriculum, Teaching and Learning in the Urban Education Cohort at OISE/UT. I am currently teaching secondary science within TDSB and in the POR Assistant Curriculum Leader of science at my school.  I believe technology can be used to increase engagement and close the achievement gap when used properly. Teachers need the tools and leadership to integrate and utilize technology in their classrooms.  

Our Research Interests

My thesis and research is centered around Urban Education and Science Education.  Specifically what is causing urban (inner city) boys to stop taking sciences past the mandatory grade 10 course. Many factors came into play regarding teacher trust and relevant, hands on activities and experiments. Another large factor was integration of technology. Students felt more engaged and enjoyed activities and assessment which involved technology. Technology from use of netbooks, virtual simulations, collaboration on a wiki, global collaboration and video conferencing.

My research interests are centered on explorations of Educational Technology, specifically the Virtual Worlds. Currently, I am continuing my research focused on Virtual World Pedagogy (VWP) and the impact it may have on the transition from conventional practices of teaching and learning towards contemporary digital teaching and learning spaces. In researching and developing this pedagogical design structure, Jenkin’s Participatory Culture and Lessig’s Read/Write and Remix practices generated a Constructionist framework. Through developing my own Learning Management System (LMS), I was able to uncover the process involved on the part of the teacher, and what those actions meant in terms of designing authentic, meaningful and relevant learning experiences through the use of Web 2.0 spaces. To learn more about VWP, please visit my Research page.

ICT Leadership In Action

Currently, our ICT Leadership is focused on the development and implementation of the new TDSB MCS 2.0 Initiative. With this, we are focusing, across panels, on addressing teaching and learning from a perspective that supports the development of 21st Century teaching and learning skills. We have developed leadership opportunities and have built capacity by focusing on:

• Communication
• Collaboration
• Creation
• Critical Thinking

Mobile Computing Strategy 2.0 (MCS 2.0)

A. Overview (via Increasing Access to Technology at the TDSB)

Nearly 18,000 laptops have been delivered to more than 360 schools across the Toronto District School Board. The laptops are being used by students from Kindergarten to Grade 12, giving [students] access to technology that will transform the way they learn and help prepare them for how they’ll use technology in their future careers.

Working with Metafore Technologies Inc., the TDSB is leasing the laptops over a three year period as a cost effective solution to purchasing technology, which changes quickly.

Schools submitted proposals exploring the ways they would use the technology to engage students and the laptops were distributed based on these submissions. The laptops are being used by students in a wide variety of classrooms, including Kindergarten, Math and Special Education.

B. The Proposal

After a review and diagnostic assessment of which areas of our SIP (School Improvement Plan) needed more attention and could benefit from the direct integration of technology/ICT, a colleague and I developed our Proposal that considered the development of 21st Century teaching and learning skills across teaching and learning.

Building capacity was key, and we aimed to do so by focusing on a tiered ICT integration platform. First, we considered the school-level by aiming to target specific goals from our SIP. Next, we looked to the board-level to focus on the TDSB ICT Standards. With this, we focused on “Critical Thinking & Problem Solving” as well as “Communication & Collaboration”. Finally, we sought an external reference through our inclusion of Project Based Learning (PBL), based out of the Buck Institute for Education. With this, focus was paid towards technology as an essential tool for learning and towards the development of self-management and project management that encourages collaboration in some form.

PDF: Golf Road Junior Public School – MCS 2.0 Proposal

Already having one mobile cart due to the Nelson Digital Pilot, a second cart for the department would be an asset. Two science teachers and I put together a 10 minute clip of all the ICT strategies we embed into our lessons. We successfully were granted a second cart.  

C. The Roll Out

Technology is only as good as the person using it. Simply rolling out the carts into the schools with little to no PD would lead to lack of use or at least to not at the full potential.  Will teachers just have students typing up assignments or using them to connect and collaborate on a global scale?  

Within the school that I work at, we are currently developing a “Culture of Innovation & Transformation”. With this, our focus is on Professional Learning and developing our skills as educators within an increasingly challenging and changing world. Our focus is on building capacity and ensuring that teachers are able to not only work with ICT tools, resources and practices, but are also able to support students along similar endeavors through teaching and learning.

D. The Implementation

Key to the success of MCS 2.0 Initiative at the school-level, in my experiences, is consistency and creativity. Working through the vision described within the “A. The Proposal” section and through the support(s) of a variety of Professional Learning opportunities, we have implemented the laptops within our classroom quite smoothly and without major issues. Our success is most likely linked to our preparation and common goals in planning the effective use of these technological resources.

School-wide, our laptops are set to facilitate the development of 21st Century skills that may be integrated across subject areas. Within an Elementary setting, this is critical as subject-specific content may not always drive the effective use and merit of implementing any type of technology. Here then, teachers within our building continually strive to complement and support the subject areas/topics they are teaching by lacing their program with ideas, opportunities and connections relevant to Communication, Collaboration, Creation and Critical Thinking through ICT.

My two greatest use of netbooks involves the creation and collaboration of knowledge using wikis.  Students can create fluid documents that can be shared and updated throughout a semester. Participating in the Global Teenager Project allowed students from around the world to collaborate on wiki. We posed questions regarding environmental sustainability with schools in Toronto all the way to Kenya.  We looked at local issues that have a global impact and saw what other students are doing around the world. The highlight involved using Skype to collaborate with the Chavakali School in Kenya on sustainable environmental practices.  A second use involving video conferencing is Virtual Researcher On Call. Through their Experts On Demand program we were able to do video conferencing with researchers and professors on a variety of topics. Students asked top researchers in their fields questions on ethics, educational pathways, enriched science and the importance of research.  

E. Our Work Within Classrooms

I hosted a demonstration classroom with a focus on using technology to increase engagement amongst applied level science students. The mobile computers were used to collaborate on and communicate which power source would be best for a new island in the middle of Lake Ontario. That lesson was later published in STAO (Science Teachers Association of Ontario) online newsletter.  Teachers watched the lesson, debriefed and then planned on how they could implement this lesson with their own twist.

My role as a Position of Responsibility (POR) within my building, has allowed me the opportunity work with a variety of teachers, in a variety of grades, in the development of our own learning with regards to the use of technology within our learning spaces. In this model, I work with willing teachers for 1 period at a time in the development of ICT-related lessons/content during regular instructional time. We work together under these conditions to support student learning through use of the MCS 2.0 laptops, and other technologies. Key here is not the sharing of “best practices” but the development of a culture of sharing and building, where both teachers involved take something from the experience in the support of student success.

F. The Data Collection

We will be monitoring our Data Collection efforts against the parameters we have established within our Proposal. Here, we are focusing on collecting data at 3 separate times throughout the school year, related to the MCS 2.0 Initiative, first at the beginning of the school year, at the mid-year mark and finally at year end.

In collecting our data, we will be tracking student success related to common assessment results, such as Comprehension Attitude Strategies Interests (CASI) & Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA), Grade 3 & Grade 6 EQAO results and Grade-specific Project-Based Learning tasks, resulting in a culminating task(s).

Data driven, proven results need to be acquired to keep ICT initiatives going. 4 years of science course data based on failure rate showed a significant increase since implementation of ICT strategies. We will be testing achievement data again at the end of the school year. Data in the form of student interviews were conducted during my thesis and all agreed technology in science class engages, increases learning and allows them to apply the transferable skills associated with technology to science and vice versa.  

G. The Professional Learning

I have developed several workshop-style Professional Learning sessions that take this framework into account. Within each interaction, staff aim to develop themselves in terms of understanding a particular ICT piece, but as well as the pedagogical merit and design needed through the incorporation of specific ICT pieces.

Our Professional Learning is structured to be fluid in nature, rather an static and “one-off”. With this, we work toward the development of skills and competencies during designated times and in specific spaces, but our learning also transfers to applicable situations and experiences here practicality tests our learning and theories.

Presenting with the Global Teenager Project at the Educational Computing Organization of Ontario’s conference this past fall allowed me to show teachers the possibilities of mobile technology and global collaboration. Furthermore last winter I presented at TDSB Eureka Conference for science teachers. Offering a hands on PD session where teachers got to sit down in front of a computer, create a wiki along with a class assignment was great. Giving teachers time to become comfortable with Wikispaces, tailor my suggested project to their own students allowed for an authentic assignment that was ready to deploy the next day.   

H. The PTAC Meeting

Since our school had a cart for our pilot with Nelson, we had some time to try it out and figure out what works and well and what doesn’t.  Having Principals and Vice-Principals to our school was a great opportunity for them to take ideas back to their own school and offer PD when their cart arrives. Principals got a 101 session from our current dept head and then down to a few teachers classrooms that were using the carts that day.  It was refreshing to see admin ask logistical questions such as netbook safety, wi-fi, that we also were unsure how it would be handled. We also had the admin that wanted to see the maximum we could do with the technology….turns out we still haven’t reached the infinite possibilities yet.  

Final Thoughts

Developing capacity within the scope of 21st Century teaching and learning is indeed a tremendous task.  A critical step in innovation within our board requires nurturing the Professional Learning and opportunities taken on by our staff members – this starts with leadership in our schools.  Through our work, it is hoped that teachers will see our innovations first hand, and will make steps towards implementation that match and support their curriculum. and programing

Our focus on communicative, collaborative and creative efforts supports our teachers and students. In our roles, we are not modeling “best practices”, but practices that have worked within our practices, within our spaces. Each stakeholder in the field of education has the ability to lead through ICT integration and driven pedagogical designs/practices – we must all strive to #MakeWaves by #ShiftingGears.