Microsoft motivates innovative teachers

Nearly 40 teachers were honored by Microsoft at the U.S. forum, where they showcased their projects for a panel of judges from NASA, the Silicon Valley Education Foundation, and the Puget Sound Center for Teaching and Learning Technology.

Armstrong and Streeval explain their project at the U.S. Innovative Teachers Forum

The winning project, designed to cover the Industrial Revolution for a ninth-grade world civics class, uses a tic-tac-toe grid to allow students to select and complete three activities that fall in a row. Streeval said her school had begun an initiative to implement universal design for learning (UDL) into coursework.

“The projects were placed in such a way to force the student to have to use a variety of skills [such as] writing, math, or science,” Armstrong said. “Since the learning styles of students vary, the use of multiple means of learning better meets the needs of the learner. UDL is especially meant to help meet the needs of learners with special challenges, but what has been found is that UDL also encourages learning in all students.”

Students could choose from activities that included making a movie, creating a public service announcement, developing a brochure, writing a journal, compiling music for a CD, designing a poster, and diagramming a timeline. They were able to use the internet and online databases to complete their work.

(Editor’s note: For more information about the “tic-tac-toe” method of offering multiple paths to learning, see the feature: “Technology empowers differentiated instruction.“)

Armstrong and Streeval competed at the Innovative Teachers Forum in 2007 and went to Finland for the Worldwide Forum that year. It was because of that experience that they were encouraged to apply again this year.

“The experience at the forum was incredible. Teachers struggle to find time to collaborate with their peers, even in their department or building. To have the opportunity to collaborate with teachers from around the country is a tremendous learning experience,” Streeval said.

Armstrong added: “It was a great way to start off the new school year.”

Link:

U.S. Innovative Teachers Forum

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