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Showing posts from 2018

Empathy is not optional

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I wonder how we might treat others if one of our deep beliefs holds that empathy isn't optional. Be humble and intent on monitoring our judgments We might not know the narrative of others -- strangers, family, friends, colleagues, staff, and students -- and we could miss an opportunity to be kind,  serve , and dignify another human being. Empathy  is not an occasional event like window-shopping, with multiple options to consider.  Empathy  is the marrow of relationships, that comes from humility, encouragement, and taking notice of humanity. Daily challenge Look for inspiration of empathy in action.  Take advantage of opportunities to make a difference. Ask, "Who might I need to be in order to treat others the way I wish to be treated?"  What might the world be like if we didn't approach empathy as an optional practice?  How might a commitment to empathy influence schools and classrooms?

Amplify Voice through Social Media #CUE18

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Giving students a platform to exercise their voice, and listening to learn and understand, makes an impact on learning, academic discourse, class/school/district culture and climate. Some of the highlights and resources gained from learning with @JoeMarquez70 's at #CUE18 , includes: Digital Citizenship -- address this daily Invite a Guest Moderator to the backchannel  Back Channel Tools Today's Meet ZiteBoard AwwApp Class Hashtag Collaborating, Learning Artifacts, Annotating Tools Google Classroom in conjunction with qbbuzzer Google Sites Flipgrid Perusall Edji YouTube with Vialogues NearPod Connect with the world beyond the four walls: Note: I am sharing some resources and successes from Joe Marquez, and please understand that I have not vetted the privacy policies for AB 1584 compliance   yet .  What are some other success stories of amplifying student voice? How else might we promote academic discourse? 

Fake News and Visual Literacy #CUE18

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Fake news is not accidental reporting with a few mistakes, it is intentional and designed to look real. According to Dr. Lesley Farmer , of California State University at Long Beach,  the motivation behind creating fake news is often to profit, gain influence, assert power, and sometimes to entertain. As critical consumers and responsible contributors, we should be skilled in  discerning validity and disseminating reliable information. Images, like all text, communicates a message. Hence, we are to "read" the visual and glean meaning grounded in evidence.  However, we might not retain the objectivity to critically evaluate the message when strong emotions skew our perception. When a communication reinforces or challenges our core beliefs, it might blind us from objectively stepping back to ask questions such as, "What's the narrative? Who is communicating it, and why?" California's ELA/ELD Framework explicitly draws attention to the broader topi