"We are doing digital badges too. I use cred.ly to manage distribution. Badges can be made on site or uploaded. I make mine with shape tools in PowerPoint and upload them," says Joel Adkins (Crandall ISD). He continues, "I didn't think teachers would care for them. I thought they would think they were a waste of time. I was wrong!"Diana Benner (@diben on Twitter)--Read her blog, Sprinkle Innovation--from TCEA has a great blog entry on the subject of badges. This blog entry below captures some of the most salient points that I found worth noting for later using the Liner app (getliner.com) app on my iPhone. Listen to Practitioners Share About Their District's Use of Badges:Note: The following audio files were harvested from the Voxer chat, #TECSIGchat, a free, Texas-wide open educator group. Get Voxer on your computer, iPhone/iPad, or Android mobile device! It's free! Get more information here - http://tinyurl.com/tecsigchatinfo or share Voxer link at http://tinyurl.com/tecsigchatJoel AdkinsListen to Joel Adkins: "We are doing digital badges too. I use cred.ly to manage distribution. Badges can be made on site or uploaded. I make mine with shape tools in PowerPoint and upload them. I didn't think teachers would care for them. I thought they would think they were a waste of time. I was wrong! Teachers print them and hang them on doors and desks. Some add to their webpages too. They love them!"Listen to Dr. Roland Rios share about Ft. Sam Houston ISD's use of badges.Audio Recording #1 - Celebrating Teachers BadgesAudio Recording #2 - Sharing Badge Google Site with everyoneAlthough I've encountered many examples of badges online since folks started, I was tickled when I actually began considering using badges in my district when I received the following from Joel Adkins (@mradkins from Crandall ISD)....Badge generated by Joel Adkins (Crandall ISD) using Cred.ly Web SiteChristy Cate (@christycate) has also been kind enough to share her insights into badges via Voxer, and she introduced me to Denton ISD's Instructional Technology badges. I remember my first contact involved asking questions like, "Wow, did they design all the professional development videos that have to go with a badge system?" The answer was quite astonishing--teachers are expected to simply submit a description of HOW they are using a particular technology (e.g. Google Classroom) in their work. How and where they get their professional development is up to them...which makes sense given that how-to videos abound for free on the Web. You don't need Instructional Technology to spend so much time developing How Tos unless they are specifically customized for work in your District.That said, I'd like to add a few resources I've been collecting regarding badges as I work to embed badges in my technology professional development plan:As Diana Benner, Joel Adkins and Dr. Roland Rios mention, some are using web sites like Cred.ly. Other potential sources include micro-credentialing sites:Open Badges in 2016: "...when we build a distributed ecosystem of educational credentials together, we will give people the tools to manage their digital footprints themselves, without requiring a relationship with any one particular mega-corporation. We believe that by working together in the open, we can build systems that improve access and equity of educational and career opportunities."Digital Promise's MicroCredentials for Educators: "Educators earn credentials at the beginning of their careers, but they learn new skills every day. Through our educator micro-credentials initiative, Digital Promise is building a coalition of educators and partners to develop a micro-credential system that provides teachers with the opportunity to gain recognition for skills they master throughout their careers."Charting Student Growth with Digital Badges: "Educators are hopeful that a flexible assessment model called digital badging is a way to bridge these gaps and describe student attributes that are currently left unacknowledged."The Teachers Guide to Using Badges in the Classroom: Some district web sites who have embraced badges:Prosper ISDDenton ISDWestwood Regional School DistrictFSHISD Harlandale ISDExamples via TCEA Blog:Lubbock ISDDeKalb ISDWhile I have considered that digital badges for tracking professional learning, districts like Ft. Sam Houston ISD have taken an approach to celebrating expressions of learning. Dr. Roland Rios (TCEA Vice-President, Conventions for 2017, BTW and online at @drrios) celebrates badge-making by visiting teachers in their classroom (when students are present) and making a "big deal out of it." Some teachers, he reports, then feature those badges on their classroom web sites and in print format in their classroom.One of the modifications I will probably make before launching this in my district is to add recommended videos. For GoogleApps, I will be taking advantage of ShakeUpLearning's 5 Awesome Resources for Badges in the Classroom and Alice Keeler's work!MyNotes for Badges for Professional Learning by Diana Benner (@diben)" During the presentation, I mentioned rewarding teachers who come to training by giving them a badge.The technology team at Lubbock ISD immediately stated, "Rewarding our staff with badges for completing staff development has really motivated them.If you are looking for ways to motivate teachers to attend professional development, try incorporating badges.Badge ResourcesClass Badges - Class Badges is one of the more popular badging platforms.Class badges allow the teacher to easily award badges aligned with learning goals.Credly- Credly allows teachers to create badges, upload their own designs, and give credit through the platform.It is available as a web-based version and an iOS app.Create a Badge with Google DrawingCreate a Badge with Google Drawing- If you have ever thought of creating your own badges, Google Drawing is a great tool to use.Read Alice Keeler’s blog entry on how easy it is to do.For All Badges - For All Badges is an iOS app that works in conjunction with For All Rubrics to align your rubrics with badges.For All Badges also integrates with Mozilla’s Open Badges platform, and allows students (or staff members) to save badges to their "backpack.Open Badges - Open Badges allows teachers to create and issue badges that do not have to be tied to a certain platform.Take the Badges 101 Quiz to see how it works and to earn your first badge.With badges, teachers who take the time to learn now have a way to be acknowledged for that learning.And we all know that recognition from our peers is the sweetest reward.Encourage them to include their badges in their email signature or print and post them in their classroom.You can even publicly honor them by "presenting" the badges at a faculty meeting.Here is Lubbock ISD’s Digital Learning Badge site, a great resource.If you are incorporating badges into your professional development, we’d love to hear from you.We love badges - they make learning fun and reward teachers for all of their hard work!Here is our badge site: https://sites.google.com/a/dekalbisd.net/dkinstructionaltechnology/ This note was created from Liner.By Miguel GuhlinOriginal: http://www.tcea.org/blog/pd-badges/?utm_source=TechNotes+01%2F26%2F2016&utm_campaign=TCEA+TechNotes+01.26.16&utm_medium=emailHighlighted with Liner: http://liner.link/baZ5L

LISTEN to Miguel Welcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)FUN FIND - EVERNOTE & EVERCLIP | LISTEN"This is Miguel Guhlin on TCEARadio with a FUN FIND…Find great stuff on your mobile device? Curate your content with two iOS/Android friendly apps, Evernote and Everclip. Find links online to them at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16 via TCEA16 Radio page. These easy to use apps enable easy content clipping, and make content simple to share. Don’t forget to follow the #TCEA16 hashtag for more great finds."See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

LISTEN to MIGUELWelcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)1- CONNECT WITH @MGUHLIN "This is @mguhlin on Twitter, Instagram and Google+. I can’t wait to CONNECT with great educators at the upcoming Convention. Be sure to follow #TCEA2016!"See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Dr. Roland Rios (@drrios) did a phenomenal job setting up the Voxer in the ELL Classroom workshop! As you'll hear in this podcast I recorded while assisting the Doctor (grin), I had the good fortune to introduce him to Voxer, and then he ran with it to be ready for a last-minute Voxer in the ELL Classroom workshop at the ELL Academy held at the Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) 2016 State Conference!Listen to Dr. Roland Rios and Miguel Guhlin(Length: 22megs; about 1 hour listening time)Also, at the end of the session, participants had the opportunity to share how they would be using Voxer in THEIR classrooms or in their sphere of influence. Here are what some of them said:Listen to Participants' Idea for Voxer UseBy the way, if you're at TCEA on Tuesday, February 2nd, please drop by Miguel's session on When Email Fails! You can find his resources online at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16View Slideshow:Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

"Every day learning and sharing," I observed one evening to myself (yes, I was talking to myself! Doesn't everyone over 45 do that?), "has sure gotten easier!" I quickly ran over the catalog of phenomenal tools for everyday learning and sharing that I've encountered in just a short time!Listen to Podcast(not yet available)1) Telegram - If you haven't seen this WhatsApp-like app that is available for free, provides end to end encryption for private chats, and group chats that can include up to 200+ members, and works on every modern mobile device (e.g. Android, iOS, Windows, your computer's browser) available, then you're missing out! It seemed like the natural tool for a school district to turn to when the internet went down. And, since everyone seems to be equipped with a mobile device that has it's own internet, I'm not surprised that it's taken hold.2) Voxer - Looking for an easy way to make curricular connections, as well as faciliate audio/text/video-based professional learning? Then look no further than Voxer. While Periscope is a wonderful just-in-time video app, you can't beat Voxer for how easy it is to create a "chat" which is just another moniker for "community of learners" who can share information. In my mind, it combines the best of social media tools like Twitter and Plurk with Periscope, enabling fantastic connections.3) Blab.im - Another neat way to connect with others includes Blam.im--available on your iOS or Android device--and facilitate video chats that can be easily recorded and saved. What's more, some are using them in lieu of Google Hangouts and other tools as ways to instantly connect with others at a scheduled time.4) Flipboard - If you haven't encountered Flipboard, it's a great way to curate content and share it with an audience. You can have multiple ezine contributors/editors, and they can view content available online via RSS feeds, news and media, as well as Twitter. All of this great content combines in a portable, mobile electronic magazine ("ezine") that is quite convenient to have access to.What app are you taking advantage of to facilitate every learning and sharing in your environment?On Tuesday, February 2nd, at 10:00am, several of us will have a chance to share some alternative solutions that we use when network/internet fails, including Telegram and Voxer. I hope you'll join us at TCEA16 ! If you can't, just check back here for a podcast of the presentation, as well as links below:Everyday learning and sharing opportunities abound with social media, PLNs, and just-in-time communication apps. In this panel presentation, you'll hear from campus and district staff who have embraced social media as alternative ways to support their staff, communicate effectively, and scaffold learning and sharing for all. Getting the app is easy, changing human habits hard. Listen to how these leaders have helped transform their practice and that of their campus teams.  Open Google PresentationApps You Can Use to Facilitate CommunicationTelegram - View Tutorial for School DistrictVoxer - Using Voxer to Streamline School Communicationsvia Edutopia. An excerpt:Voxer is described as a free app that combines the best of voice, text, and photo messages into a high-tech walkie-talkie, creating a powerful, modern, personal and team messaging tool.Remind - Remind for School CommunicationsOther Communication ToolsToolCostUseAdvantageFacebookFreeSeguin ISD: District, departments, campuses and classrooms use to share events, links, videos, news.New Braunfels ISD, Comal ISD(Campus News)Ease of use, variety of media, patron proximity (It’s where they already are.)TwitterFreeNew Braunfels ISD- district newsSeguin ISD--districts news, some teachers/programsManor ISD- External communication and Internal celebrations; Monthly Twitter Chat (3rd Tuesday, #ManorISD) for teacher PD credit. Del Valle ISD - district account (district announcements, events, etc.), Instructional Tech dept account (tech news, training announcements, etc.)Comal ISD(district and campus announcements)Easy, many already use Twitter, searchable.SchoolwayFreeFree, push notification, scalableEdlio$6000Navarro ISDpost on website and Tweet at the same timeSchool MessengerDel Valle ISDLiberty Hill ISDRound Rock ISDSeguinNew Braunfels ISDcall, email, tweet, and post to site at the same timeYour VoiceFreeGoogle SitesFreeshare with everyoneRound Rock ISDnot limited by platformGoogle CommunitiesFreeRRISD:  Multiple communities that have become the basis for learning community chatter and sharingManor ISD- Leadership Team and Novice teacher programmust be a GAFE district, but is easy to use and attractiveRemind.comFreeSeguin: Teachers, coaches use to send reminders, news, etc.Comal ISD: Used in the high schoolsK12 Alerts$3000Navarro ISD text, email, and voice messagingCall, email, tweet and at the same timeWordpress?RRISD: Transitioning all sites above teacher sites to a robust WordpressComal ISD: many teachers have transitioned to Wordpress from IWeb. Can populate content across multiple sites and our Comm dept can control style and improve info flow.ZoomGoogle HangoutFreeManor ISD-Video Conferencing Zoom is part of ESC 13 serviceshttps://www.zoom.us/ Face to face conferencing across district without rushing around to meetings.Google HangoutFreeTelegram AppFreeThis app can be loaded on staff phones (iOS/Android/Win) and can run parallel to District network when Voice/Internet communications are out.Here is a brief tutorial of how ECISD uses it - tinyurl.com/ectelegrams ParentLink AppCost $$$Enables an app to be share info with parents, students, etc. that is flowing from RSS feeds across district. Loads specific calendars, etc.ParentLink also provides for a phone/SMS text messaging system for contacting parents. Develop a Strong School District Communication Strategy- http://goo.gl/5RFK07 Inform...Listen...Engage- http://goo.gl/FXLaj2 Dunlap Community Unit School Communication Plan- http://goo.gl/0ze0ll Round Rock ISD Communications- https://roundrockisd.org/departments/community-relations/communications/Georgetown ISD Communications- http://www.georgetownisd.org/Page/331 Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

LISTEN to MiguelWelcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)FUN FIND - VOXER | LISTENThis is Miguel Guhlin on TCEA Radio with a favorite app pick. Want to participate in fantastic conversations with global educators? Get the Voxer app and join teachers, principals and superintendents who are sharing their learning as it happens via Voxer Chats. Find out more online at the TCEA Radio Shares page at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16  Find out more at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16 . And, for goodness sake, don’t forget to follow the #TCEA16 hashtag to become a connected educator!You can also check out New Teachers to Voxer (check out their blog), which features great tutorials and provides for a Voxer "sandbox" to learn in, as well as #tecsigchat for Texas educators learning and sharing at the intersection of teaching, learning and leading with technology!See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

LISTEN to MiguelWelcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)AUDIO RECORDING | LISTEN"This is Miguel Guhlin on TCEA Radio. Attending TCEA and can’t take notes fast enough? Ran into an old colleague who’s sharing wisdom about a topic you just have to remember for the week after TCEA? Ask the session presenter or your friend if you can audio record her! You can use these two free apps to quickly record audio--for audio notes, a podcast, whatever. On iOS, use the free Voice Record Pro app and on Android, use HiQ MP3 Recorder or Voice Recorder (free). All feature easy saving to Dropbox and other cloud storage locations. Chromebook users can rely on MicNote for short 2 minute recordings or upgrade for $20.  Find out more at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16   and #TCEA16 is the hashtag to follow if you want to listen in on my recordings!See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

LISTEN to MiguelWelcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)SCAN PAPER TO PDF | LISTEN"This is Miguel Guhlin on TCEA Radio! Don’t want to carry all those great handouts from presenters and exhibit hall solution providers? Then don’t! Get the one of these apps for easy scanning of paper documents, save them to Dropbox or GoogleDrive! My favorites scanning apps for iOS include the cheap $.99 iScanner, Readdle’s Scanner Pro ($2.99). For Android, try CamScanner. Share what you can scan via a blog, Dropbox or Google Drive and add the hashtag #TCEA16 ! Find out more at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16 See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Listen to MiguelWelcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)Identity Crisis PreConference Promo | Listen"Are your end users juggling too many logins and passwords to various systems? If that's the case, you may have a problem with account management, also known as identity management! This is Miguel Guhlin in TCEA Area 20! You can find me online @mguhlin via Twitter and/or Voxer. In this segment, we'll be having a quick conversation with Virgil Kirk, Systems Interface Specialist and Identity Management Guru for the East Central Independent School District. You can find him online via Twitter @virgilkirk. In his session, Identity Crisis: Managing User Accounts, he shares several solutions to a problem districts across the Nation are facing as they go digital with...well, everything!1. For our listening audience, Virgil, tell us about what you are here at TCEA 2016 to share.2. If there was ONE take-away you wanted participants to get from your session, what would it be?You can find more about Virgil Kirk's presentation online at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16. And, of course, be sure to follow the #TCEA16 hashtag!See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

LISTEN to MiguelWelcome! Bienvenidos! This is the page of TCEA Radio Contributor, Miguel Guhlin. Connect via Twitter @mguhlin or Voxer @mguhlin. Below, please find my latest contribution to TCEA2016 Radio! Find out more about TCEA Radio! (Hint: Get the app for iOS or Android first!)SHARE CONTENT EASILY WITH READDLE DOCUMENTS | LISTEN"This is Miguel Guhlin on TCEA Radio!  Are you a classroom teacher that needs to quickly share content with your students from your iPad or iPhone? Maybe you need Readdle Documents, a free, no cost file manager solution! This versatile, all-in-one solution provides ebook compatibility, the ability to access GoogleDrive, Dropbox, set your iOS device up as a server for easy access from your computer or other mobile devices, a music player and ebook reader! It is a must-have app for iOS users! Once you start using it, you’ll wonder how you lived without it and stop spending money on other apps! You can find more information out at http://tinyurl.com/tcea16 Be sure to follow #TCEA16 hashtag to learn more!See more online at : http://tinyurl.com/tcea16radio Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure