In learning how to create significant learning environments, I realized that backwards planning is the most effective way to design a course. I have always considered what it is I wanted my learners to have when they part with me at the end of a training session. By starting…

When I first heard about the growth mindset this past Fall, I thought that it was missing something. In my research to learn more, I stumbled upon Duckworth’s Grit Theory and immediately felt that this was the critical missing part. Yet as time went on and I deployed these…

Research has shown that professional learning requires 5 key characteristics to create change. All too often, people who lead these courses fall back to the comfortable method of the sit and get model, negating the very lessons they are trying to impart. In the current century, it is time to…

As I crafted my UbD, I kept thinking about the Fink 3-column table I made in my last assignment. The goal of both of these lesson planning strategies is to have the teacher make decisions that will allow the students to connect the dots instead of collecting the dots.…

Most people take a vacation by thinking about what they would like to experience on vacation. The vast majority of people do not hop in a car and just pick a direction, start driving, and hope for the time of their life. “By failing to plan, you are preparing…

“Insanity in individuals is something rare—but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs it is the rule.” (Nietzsche, 2014)     After fourteen years the current model of professional development has still not changed significantly. Educators are given exciting ideas to implement, but translating those new concepts to the classroom…

I currently teach high school seniors in a large public school in Alvin, Texas. While this is my main job, my secondary job is helping with educational strategies through professional development for the other five high schools in my district regarding the development of astronomy content for Alvin ISD.…