A teacher in our district (SD70 - Port Albern), Jim Lawson, forwarded an interesting message from a colleague, Rob Purgavi, a teacher at that Alternative Trade Exploration Centre (A-TEC) in SD79 - Cowichan Valley.
The message was an announcement that the foundation of CVAS2 (Cowichan Valley Open Learning Co-operative) Learn Math Foundations wiki was in place.
This wiki was created through a local school district, using a 'learning initiatives' grant.
The wiki is meant to be a support for previously existing paper-based packages, and it takes advantage of free sites such as You Tube and Khan Academy. The website, IXL, which requires a subscription is also one of the links.
There are three things that I find most interesting and notable about this event.
1. Since the wiki is an editable web page, any members can add to it, making it a working document that will continue to grow as people add resources and content. Request for membership seems simple, and the editable web page seems to truly be all about, not only meeting the needs of students and teachers, but also acting as an OER site that can be shared freely.
2. It is exciting to see teachers embracing this type of open-educational resource. It has been my experience that most teachers are more than willing to jump on board a concept that makes sense, and that will enhance student-learning.
3. According to the sender of the original email, Rob Purgavie, the idea for this web page started with a teacher, Patrick Kinghorn, at a BCAEA (BC Alternate Education Association) conference, a number of years ago. This webpage creation provides another example to why making connections with colleagues is such a vital component in our growth as professionals and individuals.
The message was an announcement that the foundation of CVAS2 (Cowichan Valley Open Learning Co-operative) Learn Math Foundations wiki was in place.
This wiki was created through a local school district, using a 'learning initiatives' grant.
The wiki is meant to be a support for previously existing paper-based packages, and it takes advantage of free sites such as You Tube and Khan Academy. The website, IXL, which requires a subscription is also one of the links.
There are three things that I find most interesting and notable about this event.
1. Since the wiki is an editable web page, any members can add to it, making it a working document that will continue to grow as people add resources and content. Request for membership seems simple, and the editable web page seems to truly be all about, not only meeting the needs of students and teachers, but also acting as an OER site that can be shared freely.
2. It is exciting to see teachers embracing this type of open-educational resource. It has been my experience that most teachers are more than willing to jump on board a concept that makes sense, and that will enhance student-learning.
3. According to the sender of the original email, Rob Purgavie, the idea for this web page started with a teacher, Patrick Kinghorn, at a BCAEA (BC Alternate Education Association) conference, a number of years ago. This webpage creation provides another example to why making connections with colleagues is such a vital component in our growth as professionals and individuals.