1.
EDU 596: Strategies for Creating Success for
American/International Schools.
Buffalo State, State University of New York (SUNY)
3 Credits
(as per attending EARCOS 2012, Bangkok, Thailand)
Tim Gascoigne
Grade 3 Teacher
Beijing BISS International School
Beijing, CHINA

2. Euling
Ewing
Monroe
(Pre-­‐Conference
Speaker):
Mathematics
Title:
Helping
Learners
Develop
Mathematical
Practices
That
Yield.
This
workshop,
presented
by
Euling
Monroe,
was
a
pre-­‐
conference
workshop
designed
to
challenge
attendees
in
the
area
of
mathematical
practices.
It
took
place
the
day
prior
to
the
start
of
the
EARCOS
‘12
regular
conference
sessions.
I
was
excited
to
be
able
to
attend
and
learn
strategies
to,
refresh,
and
challenge
my
practice
in
the
area
of
mathematics.
My
initial
training
for
teaching
mathematics
in
the
elementary
grades
was
about
six
years
ago.
Since
that
time
I
have
had
a
few
opportunities
to
attend
some
math
professional
development.
I
felt
going
in
that
I
was
fairly
current
with
my
thinking
about
mathematics
but
knowledge
doesn’t
always
translate
to
good
practice.
It
can
be
easy
to
lose
sight
of
good
mathematical
practice
in
the
goal
of
trying
to
cover
many
outcomes.
I
currently
find
this
more
of
a
challenge
this
year,
as
I
am
in
a
new
grade
level
and
teaching
within
the
PYP
framework,
which
is
also
a
new
program
for
me
to
teach
within.
My
goal
was
to
walk
away
from
this
workshop
day
with
some
new
understandings
and
a
challenge
for
implementing
them
into
my
daily
practice
with
the
children.
The
day
began
with
some
good
activities
aimed
at
math
discussions.
I
think
we
often
forget
about
the
importance
of
having
those
oral
language
discussions
surrounding
mathematics.
I
feel
competent
in
having
my
students
“do”
the
math
and
yet
too
often
forget
how
important
it
is
to
have
them
“talk”
about
the
math.
In
my
third
grade
classroom
I
have
a
number
of
ESL
students
meaning
that
this
is
an
area
of
increased
importance
in
the
building
of
their
understanding
and
ability
to
communicate
their
learning.
So
often
they
have
the
knowledge
but
lack
the
ability
to
use
language
to
communicate
it.
Vocabulary
building
was
one
practical
area
that
I
will
be
able
to
implement
in
the
immediate
future
to
my
teaching.
I
always
talk
about
the
vocabulary
words
at
the
beginning
of
the
unit,
put
them
up
on
the
wall
and
then
often
leave
them
there.
I
was
challenged
to
think
of
more
interactive
ways
to
use
a
math
word
wall.
I
now
see,
just
like
a
language
word
wall,
how
important
it
is
for
the
students
to
use
those
words
in
practical
ways
to
build
understanding
and
develop
their
cognitive
thinking.
Having
them
posted
on
the
wall
is
not
enough
for
building
proficiency
in
using
them.
Another
area
of
challenge
and
reflection
is
in
the
area
of
ensuring
that
students
are
not
just
given
activities
but
rather
meaning
tasks
that
have
them
working
towards
achieving
the
goal
of

3. the
lesson.
What
makes
something
a
good
task
or
a
meaningful
task?
In
groups
we
brainstormed
the
answer
to
this
question.
Some
of
the
thoughts
that
were
shared
include
ensuring
that
the
task
is
engaging,
meaningful,
involves
everyone,
is
varied
and
differentiated
and
is
scaffolded
just
enough
to
ensure
success.
I
wanted
to
further
explore
this
issue
and
visited
a
blog
by
Jennifer
Piggott
on
the
nrich.maths.org
website
in
which
she
questions
the
very
thing
we
were
discussing
in
this
workshop.
Her
conclusions
about
good
tasks
or
“rich
tasks”
as
she
calls
them
is
that
they
are
largely
dependent
on
the
support
and
the
questioning
that
is
used
by
the
teacher
to
support
learning.
The
most
important
thing
I
took
from
her
understandings
is
that
it
is
important
our
tasks
that
we
give
students
are
accessible
to
all
in
the
beginning
and
that
they
are
open
ended
enough
to
allow
for
differentiation.
This
is
not
to
say
that
all
students
will
be
at
the
same
level
upon
entry
to
the
task
but
rather
they
have
the
support
and
scaffolding
to
have
access
to
it.
I
have
been
challenged
in
my
teaching
to
ensure
that
I
am
providing
my
students
tasks
that
are
rich
in
nature
and
provide
good
assessment
of
my
students’
thinking
and
understanding
about
the
concepts.
My
final
reflections
on
her
workshop
are
in
the
area
of
the
structure
of
an
engaged
math
lesson.
I
challenged
my
own
thinking
when
this
was
presented.
She
often
referred
to
how
the
structure
of
a
math
lesson
should
follow
the
pattern
of
“Launch,
Explore,
Summary”.
The
launch
being
the
time
when
the
teacher
introduces
the
concept
or
lesson
and
then
circulates
asking
questions
and
then
summarizes
with
the
students
to
consolidate
their
learning.
My
initial
question
to
this
structure
was:
Does
this
format
discredit
the
creativity
of
the
teacher
and
the
freedom
of
students
to
inquire
and
explore
the
areas
that
challenge
where
they
are
in
their
mathematical
thinking?
The
answer
I
believe
is
no.
I
think,
after
doing
some
further
research,
that
this
model
allows
for
more
inquiry
from
the
students
during
the
explore
phase.
During
this
face,
after
a
short
introduction
to
the
problem
based
on
what
the
teacher
has
for
a
goal
in
the
lesson,
the
students
are
left
to
explore
and
get
“messy”.
What
about
the
students
that
struggle?
I
think
that
this
would
be
a
good
time
to
work
individually
with
those
students
who
need
more
direct
instruction
and
explicit
teaching.
I
am
challenged
to
implement
this
model
into
my
teaching
and
ensure
that
I
am
delivering
problems
for
them
to
solve
rather
than
practice
questions
and
teacher-­‐centered
lessons.
The
learning
from
others
comes
at
the
end
when
we
consolidate
what
we
have
learned
together
during
the
summary
portion
of
the
lesson.
It
is
so
important
and
valuable
to
make
sure

4. that
the
lesson
is
not
left
with
students
finishing
the
problem
but
rather
the
teacher
allowing
for
the
students
to
talk
and
discuss
about
how
they
went
about
solving
their
problems.
In
summary
and
reflection,
I
take
many
valuable
points
of
discussion
away
from
this
pre-­‐conference
workshop.
I
am
reminded
of
good
mathematical
discussions
and
how
pivotal
they
can
be
in
a
students
learning.
The
concept
of
a
“good
task”
is
another
area
that
I
will
be
focusing
on
during
my
math
lessons.
Does
the
task
meet
the
needs
of
all
my
learners?
This
will
be
a
question
I
will
ask
myself
at
the
beginning
of
the
lesson
to
ensure
that
the
task
I
give
my
students
is
indeed
worthwhile
one
related
to
the
goals
I
have
for
their
learning.
Finally,
the
structure
of
the
lesson
is
an
area
that
I
will
be
working
on
improving
in
my
classroom.
The
link
below
is
an
additional
resource
I
used
in
writing
this
paper
in
conjunction
with
the
workshop
reflections:
http://www.smartconsortium.org/user-­‐
files/launch%20explore%20summarize%20math%20lesson%20mo
del.pdf

5. Linc
Jackson/Ben
Sheridan
(Teacher-­‐Led
Workshop)
Title:
Integrating
Technology
to
Enhance
Literacy
Instruction
in
the
Early
Years
I
begin
my
reflections
on
this
workshop
with
the
view
of
my
students
as
21
Century
learners.
What
does
a
student
look
like
in
today’s
classroom
compared
to
a
student
in
a
classroom
as
few
as
ten
years
ago
or
when
I
was
an
elementary
student
twenty
years
ago?
We
are
living
in
a
BYOD
(Bring
Your
Own
Device)
age
of
education
and
communication
where
our
students
are
no
longer
dependent
on
the
information
that
we,
as
their
teachers,
are
prepared
to
deliver
to
them.
Instead,
today’s
learner
has
access
to
an
incredible
amount
of
tools
that
will
enable
them
to
access
the
information
we
are
going
to
deliver
to
them
before
we
even
meet
them
in
the
classroom.
So,
do
we
adapt
to
this
change
or
continue
as
if
it
isn’t
happening?
I
take
the
thought
from
one
of
the
keynote
speakers
at
the
conference
who
stated
that
the
generation
of
students
who
are
currently
graduating
from
high
schools
around
the
world
are
the
first
group
of
students
who
do
not
remember
what
life
was
like
BT
(before
technology).
The
question
is
not
do
we
adapt
to
the
change,
rather,
it
should
be
when
do
we
adapt
to
the
change?
I
propose
the
answer
is
now.
I
was
fortunate
to
attend
a
teacher-­‐led
workshop
by
Linc
Jackson
and
Ben
Sheridan
at
EARCOS
‘12.
The
target
age
group
was
K-­‐2.
I
have
taught
those
grades
but
am
currently
teaching
Grade
3.
However,
with
the
1-­‐1
technology
in
my
classroom
I
was
excited
to
learn
about
new
ways
to
have
my
young
students
engaged
and
collaborating
online.
Ben
did
an
excellent
job
of
sharing
his
thoughts
and
ideas
with
the
group.
He
gave
us
examples
of
how
he
has
used
web
2.0
tools
in
his
classroom
to
engage
his
students
and
give
them
other
ways
of
expressing
themselves.
He
has
had
great
success
with
Twitter,
voice
threads,
Google
doc’s,
Skype,
iPads
and
other
tools
with
his
Kindergarten
students.
The
opportunity
to
have
students
develop
literacy
skills
as
well
as
engage
in
21C
skills
is
an
exciting
combination
that
I
am
eager
to
put
into
practice.
In
this
paper,
I
want
to
reflect
on
three
ideas.
The
first
being
digital
citizenship:
How
can
we
teach
important
skills
and
responsibility
to
our
students
without
impeding
their
creativity
on
the
Internet?
The
second
being
on
our
digital
footprint:
What
do
we
as
professionals
want
our
digital
footprint
to
look
like
and
how
do
we
ensure
that
our
students
are
also
developing
this
at
such
a
young
age?
My
third
reflection
is
answering
the
question:
How
do
we
make

6. these
tools
seamless
in
the
classroom
rather
than
an
additional,
imposed
IT
project
initiated
from
the
teacher?
When
I
sent
a
permission
form
home
approximately
two
months
ago
asking
if
a
picture
of
my
students
could
be
used
in
a
dental
magazine
I
had
an
astonishing
response.
The
request
came
from
a
hygienist
who
visited
our
class
during
an
inquiry
into
healthy
living.
I
had
several
parents
decline
the
request
to
have
their
child’s
picture
in
the
magazine.
I
wondered
where
the
concern
lay.
Was
their
concern
about
protecting
identity
or
did
they
simply
not
value
dental
health?
If
their
concern
was
over
identity
protection
I
wonder
if
they
realize
that
their
child
has
a
wikispace
page
that
is
accessible
by
anyone
on
the
internet
who
wants
to
search
for
it.
The
parents
of
our
students
did
not
grow
up
in
this
digital
generation.
They
are
not
“digital
natives”.
Discussing
digital
citizenship
needs
to
begin
with
our
parents
in
the
same
way
that
we
advocate
for
strong
parental
support
for
the
learning
that
takes
place
in
the
classroom.
I
strongly
believe
that
educating
our
parents
is
absolutely
essential
in
furthering
the
dialogue
about
integrating
technology
into
the
classroom
and
providing
a
platform
for
talking
about
these
issues.
Even
though
it
was
not
explicitly
talked
about
in
the
workshop
it
did
strike
a
chord
with
me
as
I
think
about
involving
my
students
in
web
2.0
tools
like
blogs,
Twitter,
and
others.
After
involving
our
parents
in
the
discussion
it
is
important
to
model
appropriate
language
and
responsibility
to
our
students
when
it
comes
to
blogging,
twittering,
searching
Google
and
creating
comments
on
blogs,
wiki’s
and
other
websites.
Our
students
find
it
difficult
to
understand
the
audience
that
they
are
writing
for.
The
understanding
of
“voice”
sometimes
doesn’t
begin
until
upper
elementary.
I
look
forward
to
bringing
these
and
other
ideas
into
my
class
and
beginning
the
dialogue
at
a
school
level
with
other
staff
members
on
how
we
effectively
teach
digital
citizenship.
My
second
reflection
is
on
our
digital
footprint.
I
have
often
goggled
my
name
only
to
find
a
few
returns
from
my
University,
previous
workplaces
and
Facebook.
I
have
a
very
small
“digital
footprint”.
I
realized
through
this
and
other
workshops
the
importance
of
keeping
up
with
technology
and
ensuring
that
I
spend
some
time
building
my
footprint
on
the
Internet.
When
someone
wants
to
search
me,
I
want
to
be
proud
of
who
I
have
become
both
professionally
and
personally.
I
want
my
virtual
presence
to
reflect
my
real
presence.
This
is,
of
course,
a
journey
that
can
begin
now.
After
the
workshop
I
was
inspired
to
set
up
my
own
professional
blog.
This
will
be
useful
for
collecting
my
ideas
about
technology

7. integration
as
well
as
a
space
for
my
lessons
and
projects,
which
in
turn
can
aid
future
employment
or
can
simply
become
a
great
place
for
a
sharing
of
ideas.
What
is
our
role
in
helping
our
students
develop
their
digital
footprint?
I
think
we
have
a
huge
responsibility
to
at
least
model
this.
In
twenty
years
it
is
doubtful
that
the
blog
comment
they
made
on
their
peers
writing
in
Kindergarten
will
be
a
top
hit
on
Google.
However,
modeling
appropriate
writing
and
ensuring
our
students
have
good
citizenship
on
the
internet
will
reap
them
wonderful
gains
in
their
years
to
come
when
it
comes
to
their
lasting
footprint
in
cyberspace.
My
final
reflection
is
in
the
area
of
the
Internet
becoming
a
seamless
tool
in
the
classroom
rather
than
an
imposed
project
initiated
by
the
teacher.
Can
technology
become
a
seamless
part
of
a
student’s
school
day?
Can
technology
be
as
seamless
as
a
student
choosing
a
library
book?
I
think
that
the
answer
to
those
questions
can
be
yes.
I
have
seen
other
teachers
create
this
in
their
classroom
and
I
only
hope
that
my
students
can,
at
some
point,
feel
the
same
way.
Having
a
positive
attitude
toward
using
the
Internet
is
an
appropriate
place
to
start.
If
our
attitude
toward
change
is
positive
then
our
students
will
adopt
this
and
be
excited
about
the
new
possible
ways
of
learning.
Ben,
during
his
workshop,
highlighted
how
possible
this
was.
He
will
present
ideas
and
allow
the
class
to
think
about
effective
ways
of
learning
the
material.
Often
his
students
have
suggested
tools
such
as
Twitter,
blogs
and
voice
threads
to
communicate,
create
and
collaborate.
This
is
the
place
I
want
my
students
to
be
in.
I
want
them
to
value
all
ways
of
learning
and
use
them
when
it
is
appropriate
for
them.
In
conclusion,
I
think
that
we
are
at
a
very
exciting
crossroads
in
education.
Allowing
technology
to
bridge
the
gap
that
we
need
for
our
students
to
develop
skills
that
they
need
and
want
to
have
access
to
is
essential.
I
want
to
be
an
agent
of
change
in
my
classroom
and
embrace
web
2.0
tools
and
online
collaboration.
We
are
part
of
a
larger
community
and
I
am
excited
to
share
and
learn
from
others.
We
do
have
important
things
to
consider
in
this
journey
especially
when
it
comes
to
introducing
this
to
our
students.
I
hope
that
my
reflections
will
be
a
starting
point
for
me
in
my
practice.

8. Steven
Layne
(Keynote
Speaker):
Literacy
Title:
Balcony
People:
Teachers
Make
the
Difference
Title:
Successful
strategies
for
building
lifetime
readers
I
was
fortunate
to
attend
Steven
Layne’s
keynote
address
to
the
conference
on
Friday
morning.
I
was
so
inspired
that
I
chose
to
attend
his
following
breakout
workshop
on
successful
strategies
for
building
lifetime
readers.
In
his
keynote
address,
Steven
eloquently
spoke
about
teachers
making
the
difference
and
being
the
“balcony
people”
for
our
students.
When
I
look
back
on
my
life
there
are
certainly
key
people
that
stand
out
as
being
the
balcony
people
that
have
cheered
me
on
through
good
and
bad
times.
Am
I
doing
this
for
my
students?
Will
they
look
back
and
remember
me
as
being
someone
who
supported
them
in
what
they
needed
and
cheered
them
on
to
better
things?
I
hope
so.
The
focus
of
this
reflection,
however,
is
in
the
area
of
literacy
and
how
I,
as
a
teacher,
am
encouraging
a
passion
for
lifetime
reading.
Steven,
in
his
second
workshop,
outlined
necessary
skills
that
good
readers
need
including
phonetics,
fluency,
comprehension,
semantics,
and
syntax.
He
then
went
on
to
discuss
the
affective
attitudes
(interest,
attitude,
motivation,
and
engagement),
which
are
key
to
developing
in
readers.
With
the
age
of
technology
and
access
to
material
we,
and
our
students,
are
living
in
I
believe
it
is
important
that
we
are
focusing
on
the
affective
attitudes
towards
developing
a
love
for
reading
and
literacy.
I
have
encountered
many
students
who,
if
having
the
language
and
thought
process,
might
say
something
like,
“I
can
read
but
I
don’t
and
you
can’t
make
me!”.
This
aliteracy,
as
Steve
terms
it,
is
prevalent
in
our
schools.
How
do
we
make
the
change
to
developing
lifelong
readers?
Steven
gave
some
great
ideas.
These
will
be
ones
that
I
challenge
myself
to
implement
in
my
classroom.
He
gave
us
some
very
practical
ideas
that
we
could
implement
in
our
schools
and
classrooms.
First,
he
introduced
“The
Golden
Recommendation
Shelf”.
This
shelf
mysteriously
appears
in
his
classroom
unpainted
and
without
reason.
It
creates
a
real
suspicion
and
excitement
amongst
the
students
as
they
wonder
where
it
came
from.
The
next
day
the
students
come
in
and
notice
that
it
has
been
painted
gold.
The
excitement
ensues
and
conversation
erupts
as
to
the
purpose
and
intent
of
the
shelf.
He
then
begins
to
put
his
“favorite”
books
on
the
shelf
and
allows
them
to
be
checked
out.
The
students
are
eager
to
read
the
books
and
they
become
the
talk
of
the
classroom.
What
a

9. great
idea
to
generate
an
interest
in
readers!
I
will
certainly
look
at
doing
something
similar
in
my
classroom.
Another
idea
he
presented
was
the
“Elementary
CAFÉ”.
This
is
setup
with
PTA
support
and
a
chosen
teacher
host.
He
begins
this
at
the
start
of
the
year
and
often
chose
the
P.E.
teacher
to
host
the
first
café.
Students
don’t
often
see
the
PE
teacher
as
a
literacy
teacher
but
this
teacher
is
often
naturally
the
most
popular
teacher
in
the
school.
Using
him/her
creates
great
excitement
amongst
their
students
and
provides
for
a
greater
audience
during
the
kick-­‐off
café
at
the
start
of
the
year.
The
host
chooses
his/her
favorite
book
and
offers
a
question
and
answer
time.
The
librarian
purchases
about
15-­‐20
copies
of
the
book
as
they
will
no-­‐doubt
all
be
taken
out
after
the
café
is
concluded.
The
PTA
provides
food
and
snacks
which
draws
in
reluctant
students.
The
older
students
create
advertisements
and
publicity
about
the
event
and
school-­‐wide
interest
is
generated.
The
café
becomes
a
monthly
(or
otherwise
decided
upon)
event
and
a
love
of
reading
high-­‐interest
books
is
created!
I
love
this
idea.
Steven
is
a
renowned
children’s
author
and
has
published
a
number
of
wonderful
books
that
are
enjoyed
by
children
and
teachers.
His
book,
Igniting
a
Passion
for
Reading,
outlines
these
and
other
helpful
strategies
for
working
with
reluctant
and
oppositional
readers.
I
look
forward
to
reading
further
about
this
and
generating
more
ideas
for
implementation
in
my
classroom.
He
talks
about
how
important
it
is
for
kids
to
know
who
authors
are
and
the
important
role
they
play
in
literacy.
Our
students
can
name
several
popular
titles
that
they,
or
others,
have
read
but
may
be
hard
pressed
to
think
of
the
author
of
these
books.
He
suggests
getting
signed
autographs
from
authors
in
books
and
promoting
author
studies.
If
a
child
enjoys
one
particular
author,
he/she
will
probably
enjoy
the
other
wonderful
books
that
they
have
written.
This
workshop
enlightened
me
to
think
about
literacy
from
a
different
angle.
We,
as
teachers,
can
get
caught
up
in
the
“doing”
of
literacy
that
we
prevent
students
from
“enjoying”
literacy.
I
hope
to
take
some
of
his
practical
ideas,
his
love
of
reading,
and
his
enjoyment
of
watching
children
fall
in
love
with
reading
back
to
my
classroom
in
the
near
future.