Great Resources

Blogs/Websites

SD71 Literacy Resources
Excellent collection of resources for anything related to literacy. Includes everything from lesson ideas to assessment tools to identifying and developing the traits of a successful learner. (K-12)

The Bright Ideas Blog (SD #43 Coquitlam)
A collection of all some of the most exciting things happening in schools in SD 43. Great source for inspiration.

Real Teaching Means Real Learning (Math)
Truly innovative approaches to teaching and assessing math concepts

dy/dan
Creative approaches to math education from a high school math teacher (Dan Meyer) who is working on curriculum design.

Musing Mathematically
The blog of high school math teacher Nat Banting.  "Thoughts concerning the teaching and learning of mathematics".  Awesome and thought-provoking ideas!

For the love of learning
The brainchild of Joe Bower (Red Deer, Alberta). While the main focus of this blog is assessment, it also revolves around a continuous discussion about what is the true meaning and purpose of education. Creative ideas and paradigm challenging posts.

Scott Harkness-Flipping The Classroom 
A SD 67 teacher provides honest reflection on his first shot at flipping his Bio 12 class.

On Learning
Darcy Mullin's blog covering a wide range of topics from the perspective of an elementary school principal. Topics include assessment, project based learning, and the inquiry process (among others).

The Wejr Board
The brain child of principal Chris Wejr, this blog provides cutting edge commentary on the biggest discussion topics in education including motivation, assessment, and professional development. 

Individual Articles/Videos

Why Planning Helps Rather Than Hinders Creativity
Grant Wiggins explains why "merely liberating students from restraints" is not enough to create a truly productive learning environment. Some forethought, planning and structure are often necessary to help students be truly creative.

An A+ Student Regrets His Grades
Powerful statement by a top student in High School who realizes 3 years later that there is a key difference between "school" and "education".

8 Things to Look for in Today's Classroom
Thoughtful post by George Couros that describes the various elements a great learning environment might include.

Unbored: The Power of 'Making' in the Classroom
Decades of research proves the effectiveness of hands-on learning

Why Kids Need Schools To Change
A great article that succinctly summarizes both why our current system is obsolete in many ways, and 5 approaches for changing it.

I Used to Think 
An amazing post about how education has changed, and how what we used to value (and believe) as educators has shifted so dramatically.

Are you Really Engaging Students?
Insightful post that discusses the definition of engagement: what it is and what it isn't. Great conversation  starter. 

Are Kids Really Motivated By Technology? 
A clear (and extremely important) reminder that technology is a tool to enhance student engagement in education and not an end in itself.

Doodlers Unite!
A TED video (5:51) on the power of doodling to focus attention and improve comprehension skills.

If School Is Not Relevant
Powerful article that questions our entire approach to education. Imagine:  "If schools saw their worth not in how many kids got accepted to college, but in how many kids went on to live meaningful and engaged lives and who would point back to their school years as the point of relevancy that was the foundation of it all."

Everything You Know About Curriculum May be Wrong. Really. (Grant Wiggins)
An excellent article with the central idea: "Suppose knowledge is not the goal of education. Rather, suppose today’s content knowledge is an offshoot of successful ongoing learning in a changing world – in which ‘learning’ means ‘learning to perform in the world.’"

10 Things I Can Learn From Primary Grade Teachers
A reminder of some fundamental principles of elementary education, and a rationale for why they should be carried throughout a student's entire educational journey.

Students Speak out on Student Engagement 
220 8th graders are asked the question: "What engages you?"  A summary of their responses is broken into 10 different categories.

Going Tribal
A thought-provoking post courtesy of "The Clever Sheep" which highlights the importance of connecting with like minded progressive innovators and the potential of social media to connect more people than ever before. Note: the TED video clip is a must-see.

What Matters In Our Learning: Student Voice on Assessment and Inquiry
It's hard to find anything more convincing than students expressing their satisfaction with an inquiry based approach to their learning, along with an explanation of the shift in their own thinking. (From "The Wejr Board"with reflections from North Surrey teacher Jonathan Vervaet.)

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