Manifesto

See: http://www.themanifesto.ca/festival/2013/

See HipHopEdTO Blog: http://hiphopedto.wordpress.com/

A great weekend of community, culture, celebration and arts! What started off as primary Hip Hop, it has evolved to include many other aspects which I believe lends itself to the diversity of Toronto.

Friday Evening DJ Event: “The Beat” at Adelaide hall featured some pretty crazy DJs, headliner Oddisee got to spin and spit at the event, killing both! The $20 dollar tickets were a bit high but understanding it helps fund the entire weekend of events, I was cool with it. Elaquent and Rich Kidd both put on amazing shows while a few others I didn’t feel showcased the true art of Dj’ing.

Saturday’s George Brown event: “So Much Things To Say: Evolution Summit” was hosted at the sleek waterfront campus and had too many great sessions to name. I attended “Art Education and Empowerment” session with some great #HipHopEd people Sam Seidel (https://twitter.com/husslington) , Francesca D’Amico (https://twitter.com/hiphopscholar82) , Mohammad Ali Aumeer (https://twitter.com/SocialistHipHop)  and moderated by Shaheen Ariefdien (https://twitter.com/capecrusader). The session had many great points brought up in terms of including youth in the decision making process and giving them power.  Allowing youth to use their cultural capital to influence programs and policies that will ultimate affect them.  There needs to be recognition that today’s youth may not see hip hop as we see hip hop, so recognizing there may be a generational gap.  In the secondary and post secondary level often arts are seen as electives/ ”bird courses” which can make participating, teaching and getting a job from them difficult.  Sam shared a great equation: Arts + Education + Hustle = Change x community. He added community as a factor because if you have representation, support and an active community you will see massive gains in the change.

Sunday’s event felt like a true community celebration as the Friday and Saturday events were either limited to youth under 19 (19+ DJ Event) or required a paid registration online.  Yonge-Dundas Square was over spilling with energy and passion.  The performers on the stage did a great job but where I felt the true connections were walking around speaking to the community partners and vendors.  Even though some were selling a product, they all have passion for Toronto arts and most if not all were involved in some other community work. Each 1 Teach 1 (https://twitter.com/E1T1partnership)  program created by Tina Khan (https://twitter.com/mizzteacha)  was there at a booth displaying the many benefits to her program and their printed shirts which looked great.  Ride or Die Project (http://therideordieproject.com/) and Stolen From Africa (https://twitter.com/SFAmedia)  not only had great merchandise but strong roots in community and creating change locally and globally.  Former students had a booth for their own clothing line! Check out (https://twitter.com/_BBALDASSARRE) and Berma (https://twitter.com/_Berma) .

Check out Sam Seidel’s book here – Hip Hop Genius: Remixing Education

Starting at a new school I wanted to get some decorations up in my new classroom. I had some leftover posters and diagrams to turn a bare classroom into a science room.  More importantly I wanted the students to feel that they all can be scientists.  I wanted to show scientists from a variety of backgrounds and experiences that made big discoveries. I started my search on Google for scientists and compiled a small collection that represent my students in terms of background, ability, familial setting, socioeconomic status, etc. We simply can not just present student X with a scientist that was born in the same country as them and walk away expecting something meaningful. They may not have any connection with that scientist and may be more inspired by another scientist from a different country but may share some other commonalities.  By having these posters up all year for students to read when they walk by, or discuss will transform the norm of a Eurocentric view of science and show the contributions across the globe towards science as a whole.

Please feel free to comment on scientists you feel should be included

FYI all information is copied from the source listed by each person and not my own writing.

Download here: famous scientists

Another summer in Taiwan and a super amazing teaching and cultural experience. This year my school was in New Taipei (just outside Taipei) and was very different from the school last year in Taoyuan. This school was more working class than the last and the students were more similar to those I teach in Toronto. They were typical teenagers who loved sports (especially basketball), always texting and using Facebook and excited to learn when it was something they were interested in. The students were great! They loved learning English and sharing their beautiful city with me. They would plan out all the great places to visit and food I needed to try with little maps and directions. I felt I learned so much about teaching as well as about Taiwan. This being my second year, I got to revisit where I enjoyed and check out a bunch of new places. I got to see another type of school in Taiwan and see how the schooling system works. It would be like going to Toronto and going to an elite school and saying you know what schools are like in Toronto if you just go to one.

My class did a great job. They all improved over the 3 weeks and I am sure some improvement was due to getting over their shyness. My Chinese didn’t improve as much as I would have liked as I felt so busy planning and trying to maximize the time. It was interesting that when you ask which language they speak they will say Chinese as most major cities in Taiwan like Taipei, the younger generation speaks Chinese (Mandarin) while the older generations speak Taiwanese and / or Hakka. Their Mandarin is similar to the Mandarin in China minus a few key sounds which when I tried to use google translate. They all laughed and said I am from Beijing.

Traveling for me was amazing this year. My top places to visit was Maokong where we rode a gondola up a mountain to explore tea fields and sample some of the best green and oolong teas. The EAs from our school who were all Taiwanese university students took us to a great place for lunch. It was great to have local people show us around and point out the authentic places. The best night market in Taiwan is Raohe. It is far better than Shilin Night market as I have been to both twice. Some of the best food I have ever eaten and for a great price. Another great trip the EAs took us to was Jiufen and Pingxi. The narrow streets of Jiufen, breathtaking view while eating the their famous taro desert on ice was amazing. We then went to the lantern town of Pingxi where we painted a lantern and made a wish. I was against it last year due to my environmental beliefs of littering but this year peer pressure was too much. It was a great experience. Sun Moon Lake and Taroko Gorge were also amazing and beautiful.  I had many more great experiences but will keep it at that.

I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends again in Toronto but will miss Taiwan. My July home for the past 2 years has been welcoming and so enriching. I am reminded that I have chosen the best career in the world.

I highly recommend to all teachers apply to teach overseas in the summer to share your knowledge but more importantly expand yours.

View from Taipei 101

Jiufan

Taipei 101

Pingxi Lantern

Bubble Tea of Course!

My Class

I am sitting on the other side of the globe, in Taiwan, reflecting on my past school year. This has been one very interesting year.  I think though as a teacher you can’t always separate your personal self from the classroom and this year has been the most intense.  Between personal life situations and the classroom it proved to be a very challenging yet rewarding year.

School has been interesting with getting the assistant curriculum leader of science (dept. head) to having to hear from my friends and the public “who cares you got your sick days taken away, I don’t get any”.  I was very excited to have a 3 year term for September in a leadership role.  Unfortunately due to staffing and cuts I have been moved to yet another school and lost my dept. head position.  I get teased at school, both nicely and not so nicely, that I am the director of education or want to be a principal.  Neither career seems to be where I want to go.  I would miss the classroom too much, as the reason I am there on the front line is for the kids.  Yes the central spots help support the kids, but secondarily by supporting the front line staff.  I love what I do in the class as I have partnered with 2 projects at OISE, partnered with community agencies, great educational tech companies that let me try things in my class and support learning.  That is what I am about.  The freedom to choose to do those extras in my class is so rewarding for me and the students.

It has been great collaborating with so many other educators. Joseph Romano and I have been doing so many great projects in and out of class.  He has been an inspiration as his ability, ethic and knowledge always shows through his work.  From experimenting to iPads to attending conferences it has been a great year.  I have met countless other educators and community workers both in real life and online through twitter that have shaped me as a teacher.  I would never have thought back to when I was a teenager that I would enter a science rap contest with GZA from Wu-Tang Clan.  You should have seen these kids researching, understanding and engaged with science content.  I also met Todays Future Sound on Twitter and they came in with a beat making workshop for the students of my school.  Picture your most disengaged student, who goes on washroom breaks minimum once a class, can’t sit still, has an IEP, now picture them not moving for 3 hours after school with no breaks, no need for an IEP accomidation and sitting while learning about beats.  EVERY student can be a good student if they are learning something they want to learn.  We taught math and science through beats and Hip Hop. Who would have thought.

The strike this year has been a good learning experience for me.  Listening to all sides to seeing our former OSTTF president Ken Coran go from telling us to stand strong against the liberals to watching him now running for them??? But what I cared about the most the whole time is how the kids suffered through not having extra curriculars.  As soon as I could go back I opened the weight room, took kids to the Somali student conference and the African diaspora conference.  The Diaspora conference was a life changing experience and was thrilled to have shared it with such a great group of students.   All kids across the province suffered but it was those kids who lack the finances and support that didn’t get put into paid programs who got hurt.  Having a kid coming up to me saying “sir I can’t afford to workout at a gym but since you don’t open the weight room I have no where to go”, was beyond heart breaking.  I had to look a kid in the eye and say sorry, and what reason could I give him?  All I could say is this situation sucks and this fight between the province, school board, union and teachers is dragging in a lot of people who don’t deserve it.  What did I lose?  Well I paid $15 000 for my masters over 3 years thinking I would get a raise for my rewarded hard work (as opposed a raise based on years taught).  I was denied that due to wage freezes.  I went out to better myself, learn about urban education and still paying that money off.  I spent countless hours trying to get new programs in the school and was accepted by Burton to their program that promotes snowboarding to inner city students by giving them a free bus ride, rentals, instructions and lift tickets to 20 of my students.  Something I lost with the strike.  I can’t even tell you what I gained from that strike.

The most rewarding day I have had as a teacher was watching my former grade 10’s graduate from my old school and students I taught back in grade 9, now at prom at my current school.  Seeing them grow intellectually as well as height has been such a rewarding process.  To hear where they are off to, and to know that they made it was amazing.  The cards dealt to many students are not stacked in their favour yet they made it.  So many great teachers and community supports help fill in the gaps, yet many still don’t make it.  I looked at so many of them and felt what it must be like a proud parent feels for his or her own kids.

The biggest challenges personally were moving out after being home 27 years! It is great to have a place of your own but pretty quick miss the people you have lived with and take cared of you. It wasn’t the bills, hidden expenses, responsibilities and decisions on what to eat for dinner that were that tough. Moving out while your mom has been battling not 1, not 2 but 3 cancers was the tough part.  Seeing the strongest and loving person I know go through so much has been tough.  But it has been great coming home having dinners, going out and visiting where I appreciate the company more than when I was living at home. All my family have supported me so much from helping move, install curtains to backsplashes and just being there.  Friends have been amazing as well and have 6 marriages in a span of 3 months has been fun. Having a great girlfriend to share, laugh and experience great things has been also amazing.  It is about family and friends who want to see you do well, care about you and offer infinite support that I am most appreciative of.

This summer I look forward to my experience of teaching in Taiwan and relaxing in August.  I will be at yet another school in September where I will do all I can again to support students and engage them in school and learning.

So this is a non traditional post for my blog but want to help people travelling with their iphone as it took me so long to figure this out and I could not google it.  Last year I went to Taiwan and was told by both Apple and Rogers to leave my phone in Airplane mode and I will be able to log into wifi but will not get calls or texts (saving me a massive bill).  It was great except I love using my iphone for photos and as a map.  When I got home I realized only photos taken in WiFi zones were geotagged to the map and the rest had no info.  I also used CityMaps2Go (https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/city-maps-2go-offline-map/id327783342?mt=8) and found I couldn’t navigate without being near Wifi.

THE SOLUTION

Click Settings –> Carrier –> Automatic –> OFF

This allows you to choose which carrier or no carrier.  This also leaves your GPS on.  So you can have all photos tagged and CityMaps2Go navigation works as long as you download the map of your choice when you find WiFi.  Airplane mode is great for on the plane but the issue is it also shuts off the GPS.

STEP ONE: Click Settings then Carrier

STEP TWO: Turn “Automatic” OFF and do not select one of the carriers shown.

STEP THREE: Open CityMaps2Go and click the arrow in the bottom left and enjoy navigation (once you pre-download map)

This was done on an iPhone 4S  software 6.1.3 from Rogers

UPDATE!!!!

Some people said they couldn’t get it to work this way, so an alternative way is to just remove the SIM card! I tried this in Taiwan and worked fine all month!

TDSB Global Community Education Initiative A Cross-Panel Science Collaborative

Joseph Romano, OCT and Brandon Zoras, OCT

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 (OCT, BFA Spec. Hons., BEd, MEd), with the Secondary Panel represented by Brandon Zoras (OCT, Hons. BSc, BEd, MEd).

Context

Recently, teachers in the East Region (ER14) of the TDSB were given the opportunity to submit proposals for Action Research grants. These proposals allowed teachers to focus on developing a further understanding and research study of something relevant to their teaching and learning practices. This blog post highlights the joint action research study taken on by TDSB teachers Joseph Romano and Brandon Zoras, focused on connecting the TDSB Elementary and Secondary panels through the Science Curriculum and iPads.

Proposal

The TDSB Global Community Education Initiative gives 21st Century learners a community perspective (with Secondary Students acting as advisors/mentors to Elementary School Students) on current world issues (through the linking of TDSB Panels); from Forces to Structures and Mechanisms to more Science Curriculum themes/units, this initiative could allow students to see their place in their own community, within their own school and beyond!

Using AW, video conferencing (YouTube), Google Docs and other ICT technologies, students will research, create and share information in a community-based Learning Circle, related to the Elementary and Secondary Science Curriculum themes/unit topics; these rich virtual classrooms could allow for broader perspectives and true use of Web 2.0 with students as active researchers engaging in discussion throughout their community with one another

Our Findings

In engaging both Elementary and Secondary students through this cross-panel initiative, we assumed that students would be more engaged in curricular content through the use of mobile technologies.

Our Findings showed that as this initiative incorporated mobile technologies (such as the MCS 2.0 Laptops and iPads), student engagement rose.

Here, a key piece was uncovered. Whereas the MCS 2.0 Laptops allow for an enriched and robust digital creation process, engaging students with the iPads allowed for a much richer experience in not only content creation but also content consumption.

With this, the user interface and tactile experience offered by the iPad allowed students to delve “into” the work/content as they swiped and taped through the Science Curriculum.

iPad Usage

Creation vs. Consumption

Our classes utilized the iPads for more than just consuming information. We successfully created our own content and published online though the iPad. Students were able to film videos and upload to YouTube, Tweet homework answers to our class Twitter accounts, construct wikis on Wikispaces, and collaborate real time on Google Docs. Video conferencing with Skype and FaceTime was effortless as the iPad is an all in one powerhouse.

The iPads were also useful in discovering and learning curriculum content. Students were able to learn through discovery, gaming and manipulation within apps. Below is a list of education-related and Science apps that were useful in this way.

Crowdmark

Many of the ways teachers learn is through experimentation with new tools and strategies that influence not only their own practices, but also the learning of their students. With a focus on streamlining assessment – specific to the moderated marking practice and critical/authentic feedback to students – I facilitated an EQAO Mock Assessment within the school I work at that piloted the “Crowdmark” web-based application.

Overall, Crowdmark allows a teacher (or team of teachers/school team) to generate an assessment, administer the assessment then upload hard copy results to the cloud where student work is churned into digital pieces accessible by anyone on the marking team. Here, a teacher could assess a specific set of students, a specific set of questions, or something in between. Learn more about my experiences in running this EQAO Mock Assessment and piloting Crowdmark by reading “Crowdmark Completes Successful EQAO Demonstration”.

Enter the iPad. As we used Crowdmark to assess student work, teachers chose to use their laptops, desktop computers and iPads. As a fully mobile and iPad optimized web app, Crowdmark worked wonders on the iPad as it laid out a grid of each student’s paged response, along with flashing indicators and icons related to the current “status” of assessment (if another teacher on the team was currently assessing the piece). With the native gestures – tap, swipe, pinch and zoom – we could literally “get into” assessing student work, in a way which was unique and innovative. Past it being something new, it was cool – it excited teachers and made them want to continue to use it to assess, literally engaging them in the process one individualized assessment at a time.

Paper

In the Elementary classroom, we focus much on idea generation and brainstorming as an essential skill in today’s collaborative spaces. Rather than develop static lists using the iPad, we have used the app “Paper” to develop very visual descriptions of abstract and definite ideas and theories.

Through Paper, we are able to use our fingers, or even a stylus, to create visual representations of our ideas that we can save locally on the iPad, email to key stakeholders or even share via common social media outlets. Here, we are taking brainstorming and notetaking to the next level by, in a way, crowdsourcing our ideas by asking of others what we have asked of ourselves (through sharing over social media). Students can work with these pieces as references in creating content, and the like after their initial and thoughtful documentation.

Supercharging this is the integration of AirServer. As described below, we can focus on sharing our work locally, within the learning space it is physically generated, by displaying our sketched out ideas on the screen for all to interact with.

AirServer

Using “AirServer” along with the iPads led to a rich, interactive classroom experience.  The iPads connected wirelessly to my MacBook which was then projected for the class to see.  Students were also able to connect their own Apple devices to the screen to share answers as well.

Notability

“Notability” is one of the best note taking apps I have used for iPad.  It’s advantage over its competitors is that it can be used for handwritten and typed notes within the same screen, unlike Evernote which requires Penultimate to do this. The tools are easy to use and allow for clear writing.  Organization is simple with folders that can be used for each class you teach.  You can important snapshots of sites, PDF, images and insert figures right into the pages.

The other major benefit involved the auto-sync to DropBox and Google Drive.  This was a huge advantage as the notes would automatically upload to a shared folder the students had access to and could download whatever was done in class.  From taking up homework questions, to diagrams and review, no one ever missed a note.

Padlet

We all need a space to drop a note, or quickly jot down a thought. Take that idea and spread it across your classroom, allowing for students and others to engage in the same digital space to offer their input and ideas.

“Padlet” (formally known as WallWisher) takes the conventions of the chart paper and extends them to the possibilities of the iPad. Using the iPad, or any other Internet-enabled device, one can punch in a predefined URL to enter an idea sharing space. WIth Padlet, students and teachers can add simple text to a “wall-like” interface (that can be customized with alternate backgrounds and names) or can choose to upload files, include valuable links and even share real-time videos.

Using the iPad with Padlet it a joy as you can literally tap an idea anyway and manipulate where it lands on the page. Cycling through others’ thoughts is a breeze through its simple arrow feature, making sharing as quick as a flick!

Science Apps

There are also many specific science apps which were beneficial to the students learning and engagement. “Molecules” showed 3D rendering of any molecule. “Cell Imaging HD” showed 3D cells which could be navigated and explored. “Lewis Dots” allowed students to practice Lewis dot diagrams. “Science 360” and “Science House” both offered a large database of science videos. “Nova Elements” contains a beautifully laid out app of the periodic table elements. “Star Map 3D” makes teaching space incredibly engaging with their constellation and star maps.

Conclusion

The iPad is a powerful multi-functional tool used in our classrooms.  The ability to consume curricular content is great but heavily dependent on the apps available.  While the creation of content is far more engaging and easily done from the iPad.  The all in one device can record data, photos, sounds, videos and publish them instantly via social media, cloud storage and websites.  Being able to introduce assessment for, as and of learning is critical for successful classroom technology integration and was easily achieved with the iPads and the various sites/programs.  Having multiple class iPads to a class set would be beneficial but also a bit more of a challenge to manage the images and accounts associated.  Apple Configurator allows for mass imaging and backing up of large sets of iPads. The ability to connect classrooms is something we both would like to further explore this coming school year.  Contact us via our blogs if you would like to connect and #MakeItHappen.

Joseph Romano – http://classpace.ca/

Brandon Zoras – https://mrzoras.wordpress.com/

I had the great opportunity to work with Kurt Macintosh of OISE and formally TDSB on a great project using indigenous knowledge. My students had a great time with the project and attached is the lesson plan below.

Lesson Plan: Ways of Knowing Project

Summary 

Stories have been passed on from generation to generation through various media.  Vocal stories must be passed on while other forms are archived within books, artwork or carved in stone.  21^st century learners have been equipped with the technology to archive stories through a digital format as well as share through social media.  This project enables students to summarize the science knowledge they have discovered through the course and mobilize it in a digital form.  Students were encouraged to incorporate their own knowledge, culture and ideas in the story and format.  They were also told to choose an audience that would benefit from the science knowledge presented.

Some students chose to present to Hip Hop culture with whiteboard videos, others filmed in Tamil to address new immigrants regarding medical imaging and what they will expect here in Canada. Some felt comics were the best way to present what they learned and keep it interesting for the audience members and others posted monologues to YouTube.

Example of Student Work

This also enabled us to enter the #ScienceGenius contest with Dr Chris Emdin, The Gza and PBS News Hour #HipHopEd

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2013/03/-just-ask-wu-tang-clan-1.html