Greenwood Hosts GTA's First Google Summit

Presented by EdTechTeam, the summit was a high intensity two-day event that focused on using Google Apps for Education and other Google Tools to promote student learning. Sessions highlighted keynote presenters from all over North America, as well as local inspirational speakers.

Participants included public and independent K-12 educators from as far away as Manitoulin Island, Ottawa, Kingston and Montreal. Twenty-seven Greenwood staff members were among the attendees, ready to learn how to integrate more Google tools into the school's personalized approach to education.

Day 1 kicked off with a keynote address from Holly Clark, an educational strategist with EdTechTeam. Holly's presentation, titled Disrupt Education, examined the impact of "digital disruption" in education and looked at teacher and student empowerment through digital tools.

Attendees then headed to their first of eight sessions for the weekend. Sessions focused on ways to engage students in their own learning, and to have students ask questions about their learning rather than always answer questions from the teacher. Sessions also discussed how technology could be used to better track learning, check for understanding and engage students in ways that were not previously possible.

Among the presenters was Leslie McBeth, Greenwood's Subject Team Leader for Social Studies. Leslie's sessions focused on two different tools teachers can use to facilitate real-world, student-driven learning. (Follow the links for descriptions of her presentations on docAppender and Hangouts.)

Other sessions included:

• eAssessment for Learning Techniques
• Google: The Great Differentiator
• Gamifying Your Class with EduQuest