Educators Answer the "What Question"
@korytellers
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What do you do as an Educational Innovator?
Kory Graham: I think the one key thing I do that makes me an educational innovator is the fact that I never get too caught up in all the edujargon and edubuzz. My focus is always on my students and figuring out the best way to help them become life-long learners. Also, I ask A LOT of questions. :)
Kory Graham: I think the one key thing I do that makes me an educational innovator is the fact that I never get too caught up in all the edujargon and edubuzz. My focus is always on my students and figuring out the best way to help them become life-long learners. Also, I ask A LOT of questions. :)
@LemarrTreadwell
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What ways can Social Media serve as a valuable source of Professional Development for educators?
Lemarr Treadwell, M.Ed.: Social Media: Hook or Help? Without the guidance of a connected educators students teach each other. Social Media then becomes a Hook!
Lemarr Treadwell, M.Ed.: Social Media: Hook or Help? Without the guidance of a connected educators students teach each other. Social Media then becomes a Hook!
@Educator_P
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What what makes an effective Urban School Teacher?
Chandra Peay: Dedication and a zeal for your students to succeed.
Chandra Peay: Dedication and a zeal for your students to succeed.
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What factors traditionally thwart the completion of the dissertation?
Dr. Lyn Walden: In my opinion, the primary reason doctoral candidates fail is they do not follow directions. Universities provide an abundance of information, and dissertation chairs and committee members are direct with their requirements. However, all too often, doctoral candidates do not read all the information provided by the university, and they do not adhere meticulously to their chair or committee members’ requirements. If candidates would simply follow all directions without fail, they could save themselves much aggravation, time, and money.
Dr. Lyn Walden: In my opinion, the primary reason doctoral candidates fail is they do not follow directions. Universities provide an abundance of information, and dissertation chairs and committee members are direct with their requirements. However, all too often, doctoral candidates do not read all the information provided by the university, and they do not adhere meticulously to their chair or committee members’ requirements. If candidates would simply follow all directions without fail, they could save themselves much aggravation, time, and money.
@fastcranny
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What is your education mission?
Dr. Amy Fast: My mission is to inspire students to harness their passions and pursue their purpose. Imagine the society we could create if we not only helped children to reach their full potentials but also excited them with the possibility that they matter beyond their wildest dreams and that their presence in this world contributes something uniquely valuable.
Dr. Amy Fast: My mission is to inspire students to harness their passions and pursue their purpose. Imagine the society we could create if we not only helped children to reach their full potentials but also excited them with the possibility that they matter beyond their wildest dreams and that their presence in this world contributes something uniquely valuable.
@kellygrade6
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What does advocacy look like from inside the school house?
Stephen R. Flemming: Advocacy inside the school house can take on a variety of different forms depending on what it is the faculty member, staff member, parent or student is advocating for. Advocacy could be a series of emails to school administrators drawing attention to particular issues with teaching and learning, curriculum, the school building, etc. Advocacy within the school house could also mean crafting creative ways to draw students into tackling social justice issues, i.e. drafting and sending letters/emails to school administrators to protest deplorable conditions in school buildings; setting up meeting times with teachers or the principal to urge them to purchase more diverse reading materials, etc. At the end of the day, those closest to the need are in a unique position to contextualize that need for the audience that needs to hear it most.
Stephen R. Flemming: Advocacy inside the school house can take on a variety of different forms depending on what it is the faculty member, staff member, parent or student is advocating for. Advocacy could be a series of emails to school administrators drawing attention to particular issues with teaching and learning, curriculum, the school building, etc. Advocacy within the school house could also mean crafting creative ways to draw students into tackling social justice issues, i.e. drafting and sending letters/emails to school administrators to protest deplorable conditions in school buildings; setting up meeting times with teachers or the principal to urge them to purchase more diverse reading materials, etc. At the end of the day, those closest to the need are in a unique position to contextualize that need for the audience that needs to hear it most.
@tampagirl70
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What is the Most Important Resource for ELL to Have for Academic Success?
Dr. Cristina Rodriguez Chen: The greatest resource an educator or education system can give an English language learner (ELL) is time. These students come from different areas of the world, sometimes from within the United States and have varied experiences based on their particular socio-cultural and economic background. For ELLs who come from more educated families, their transition into US public schools is very different than those who come from more impoverished, less educated homes.
Regardless of their backgrounds, the greatest resource that can be given to ELLs is an opportunity to learn and to develop their primary language first before immersing these students into all English settings. As educators, we sometimes fixate so much on standardized tests, state and federal mandates, that we fail to remember that each child is unique and comes to us with a varied set of skills and needs. These students must be given the opportunity to learn in a non-threatening, risk free (low-affect) environment. Once child has mastered his first language, learning the second language should come very easily.
Dr. Cristina Rodriguez Chen: The greatest resource an educator or education system can give an English language learner (ELL) is time. These students come from different areas of the world, sometimes from within the United States and have varied experiences based on their particular socio-cultural and economic background. For ELLs who come from more educated families, their transition into US public schools is very different than those who come from more impoverished, less educated homes.
Regardless of their backgrounds, the greatest resource that can be given to ELLs is an opportunity to learn and to develop their primary language first before immersing these students into all English settings. As educators, we sometimes fixate so much on standardized tests, state and federal mandates, that we fail to remember that each child is unique and comes to us with a varied set of skills and needs. These students must be given the opportunity to learn in a non-threatening, risk free (low-affect) environment. Once child has mastered his first language, learning the second language should come very easily.
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What are the reasons parents/families should take an active role in the education of their children?
Genevieve Demos Kelley: As parents, we can model for our children intellectual curiosity, a love of reading, habits of critical thinking, and respect for different viewpoints. When these dispositions and attitudes are a natural part of our children's home life, they lay the foundation for the learning that happens at school.
I also believe that parents need to insist that we be included in school policy and budgetary decision making at both the local and district level. Feedback from parents and families can provide valuable to administrators and board of education members. When parents stay engaged with the system, we show school officials that we value a school culture that includes collaboration and transparency.
Genevieve Demos Kelley: As parents, we can model for our children intellectual curiosity, a love of reading, habits of critical thinking, and respect for different viewpoints. When these dispositions and attitudes are a natural part of our children's home life, they lay the foundation for the learning that happens at school.
I also believe that parents need to insist that we be included in school policy and budgetary decision making at both the local and district level. Feedback from parents and families can provide valuable to administrators and board of education members. When parents stay engaged with the system, we show school officials that we value a school culture that includes collaboration and transparency.
@RickJetter
Forest Of The Rain Productions: "What does it take for an educator to become an author?"
Rick Jetter, Ph.D.: Educators who become authors are passionate about telling the world something to help students succeed and systems improve . . . AND, they write, keep writing, and never give up!
Rick Jetter, Ph.D.: Educators who become authors are passionate about telling the world something to help students succeed and systems improve . . . AND, they write, keep writing, and never give up!
@brea_ratliff
Forest Of The Rain Productions: What Does Equity in Education Mean for the 21st Century Learner?
Brea Ratliff: I believe equity should be the foundation of our children's educational experience. Our old systems of "one size fit all" are no longer appropriate, and it is imperative that the individual academic, intellectual, social and emotional needs of each child be considered in the classroom. In addition, the resources provided for children - including the most important resource of having an experienced, certified classroom teacher - shouldn't be negotiable. Teachers and school administrators should receive the necessary resources to participate in collaborative experiences through which they constantly learn about the latest research and best practices. How else can a professional be expected to provide equitable experiences when they don't really know what constitutes as an equitable experience? When access to necessary resources become negotiable, it stunts the growth of everyone in the school community, and equity becomes harder to reach.
Brea Ratliff: I believe equity should be the foundation of our children's educational experience. Our old systems of "one size fit all" are no longer appropriate, and it is imperative that the individual academic, intellectual, social and emotional needs of each child be considered in the classroom. In addition, the resources provided for children - including the most important resource of having an experienced, certified classroom teacher - shouldn't be negotiable. Teachers and school administrators should receive the necessary resources to participate in collaborative experiences through which they constantly learn about the latest research and best practices. How else can a professional be expected to provide equitable experiences when they don't really know what constitutes as an equitable experience? When access to necessary resources become negotiable, it stunts the growth of everyone in the school community, and equity becomes harder to reach.