I accepted this challenge from +Rae Fearing as part of the #MakeSchoolDifferent Challenge

To improve educational experiences for students we need to stop pretending that:

1. Our students can't do that.
    How many times have I heard this? TOO MANY. Our students are amazing, they can do so much more than we give them credit for. Give them a chance, get out of their way, and watch them learn.

2. Teachers will use technology to teach if you put it in their room.
     Teachers will always say yes when you ask them if they want stuff. It is in our nature. But just putting technology in a room will not guarantee that it will be used. Teachers need training, they need peers to collaborate with, they need to see great teaching using technology, they need to have a mentor, they need to be told they can do it, they need to be comfortable failing a time or two.

3. One professional learning experience on ANY topic is enough.
    So often in education we keep throwing new ideas and initiatives at our teachers and at our students. We need to choose a few that we are passionate about and STICK WITH THEM. Give teachers time to work out the bugs. Provide layered training. We do that with students right? An introduction, a check in and reteaching for students that need a little extra help or support, an enrichment for those that are getting it. If we want teachers to embrace a new movement or a new program, we need to provide some time and support.

4. There is only one way to show learning.
   Really? If there are seven styles of learning...how come we ask our students to show us what they know with a ONE size fits all project/paper/test? We, as educators, need to believe in our abilities to assess student learning in many ways. We need to give our students freedom to demonstrate their knowledge in a way that works for them.

5. That we need an "assessment" for every standard.
    So often I hear teachers say that they don't have a piece of paper that shows a student's competency on a PARTICULAR standard. Don't you just "know" sometimes? Teachers are professionals and we are smart! We understand that Susie doesn't get fractions and Bob struggles with decoding. Go with your gut. Make the call, give the grade, and back it up with your knowledge of the standards....not a score on a piece of paper from one day in your classroom.