In working with staff from varying tech backgrounds…how can we pull them all in?  While trying to determine a way to hook the audience, I thought, “How am I going to get them to understand the EdTech mindset?”  I knew that my first PD would deal with TPACK and I had a lot to think about…

So, I put on my thinking cap and….TPACKed my TPACK PD!

What’s my goal?  To bring awareness to EdTech ideas, frameworks, theories, and mindset.  To breakdown the information in a way that is relatable and accessible to any level of learner.   (It’s the content!)

How will my learners gain knowledge?  I want them to have the ability to independently or collaboratively grapple with this information.  I also know that I want to model creativity in whatever method I chose.  If I want them to use it in the classroom, I should be using it too!  (It’s the pedagogy!)

What did my learners need?  Something to the point.  Don’t get them lost in wordiness or big ideas.  Make it something digestible and show appreciation of their time- they’re in meetings all day and nobody likes coming out of PD and feeling like time could have been better utilized.  (It’s the context!)

What do my learners know?  Teacher talk.  Instructional strategies, subject matter, content.  They can relate to this!  (It’s the context!)

What tool can I use? Video!  Highly accessible at any time of day and can be a resource they go to in order to revisit the concept as needed.  Also, it provides me with an opportunity to visually represent the concept- taking something more abstract and making it concrete. Keep in mind…people skip ahead while watching online videos (admit it, you’ve done it!).  How can I capture their attention so that they get the full message? (It’s the technology!)

Specific Tools Used:

• iPhone (video capture)
• Tripod, yardstick, and masking tape (you can make a tripod out of ANYTHING…I’ve used the vacuum, cereal boxes, etc. in the past)
• 3 different color transparencies that are used to organize binders (modeled knowledge areas)
• Scissors
• Random tools from my desk for props
• Student-response whiteboard and marker
• One random starburst-cut paper for garage sales (modeled the sweet spot)
• iMovie on my Macbook Pro (used to speed up video, add narration, and add text)

So, I challenged myself. Could I explain the base of the TPACK framework in 2 minutes?  With an awareness that this is not an in-depth view of the framework, I realized that I could create a “Flash PD”.  A quick burst of new or refreshed knowledge.  Why not?!  This can easily be shown at the introduction to a PD or team meeting and be a conversation starter.  Get them asking questions!  I’m looking forward to creating the SAMR Flash PD next!

Here’s a look behind the thoughts/scenes of the creation of “TPACK in 2 Minutes”!

Specific Tools Used:

• iPad 2
• Apps: iMotion HD (stop-motion footage), iMovie (editing, narration), Sumo Paint (images), Skitch (tools label)
• Propped my iPad on a desktop computer to film

TPACK in 2 Minutes by Candace Marcotte is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at candacemarcotte.wordpress.com.