Soundtrap

It was not long into the first year of our 1:1 Chromebook rollout (2015-2016) that we realized that we needed to find a good audio editing tool that would work on a Chromebook.  Prior to the rollout, students and staff used Audacity on the district's Windows computers and laptops.  Audacity is a great, free, feature-rich program that was relatively easy to use.  Unfortunately, Audacity does not have a web-based version, so we were out of luck on the Chromebooks.

After trying out several tools, we decided to go with Soundtrap.  Soundtrap is a cloud-based program that allows users to create and edit music compositions, podcasts, and other audio files.  It allows for users to collaborate on a project, although the collaboration feature is somewhat confusing for many of our students.

We introduced Soundtrap in the fall of 2016.  Our music teachers jumped on board right away and had students creating music compositions and audio books with music accompaniment.  A handful of teachers in other subject areas had their students use Soundtrap to create podcasts and make simple edits to audio files, but overall we didn't see a lot of use in the regular classroom.  So, when planning our summer PD offerings, we decided to include a focus on Soundtrap during one of our sessions.  Our hope was that if we showed teachers how easy it is to use, and gave them some examples of how it can be used in a non-music classroom, they would come up with ideas of their own of how they could use Soundtrap to support learning.

We were not disappointed.  During our overview, we saw the excitement building as teachers began to talk about ways they could use Soundtrap with their students.  We were impressed with what they came up with in such a short time.  Here are some of the ideas they shared:

• put poetry to music
• create raps
• record student writing
• practice reading fluency (record themselves reading a passage, then re-record themselves reading the same passage, and see if the wave length of the second recording was shorter than the first)
• record readers theater
• add appropriate music to a passage that reflects the tone of the passage
• record interviews
• create original (copyright-free) music compositions to add to videos

I am looking forward to seeing these and other Soundtrap ideas in action during the upcoming school year.

Soundtrap is expanding its education program and has recently created an EduBlog that contains lesson plans, teacher stories and tutorials.

I would be interested to hear how other schools are using programs like Soundtrap with their students.  Please include these by leaving a comment.

Summer PD

This week we started rolling out our summer PD.  As much as I enjoy providing professional development for our teachers, I find the planning to be quite stressful.  It's hard to know what is going to be successful and what is going to cause a room full of eye rolls.

In today's workshop, we tried a couple sessions using the EdCamp model.  Only one of the teachers in the group had EdCamp experience, so this was an introduction for most of the teachers.  Based on the feedback we received, I think it was successful.  Teachers really liked the fact that it was geared specifically to their needs.  Several teachers thought it would be great to offer EdCamp PD during the school year as it would give them a chance to bounce ideas off of other teachers while they're using them in the classroom.

I'm always looking for different models of PD, so if any of you have any good ones to share, please add them in the comments.

Welcome to It's Not About the Technology!

So, this is something I've been wanting to do for a long time -- start a blog.  I actually have a blog, but the only thing I post are links and descriptions of various tech tools and websites.  This blog is going to be about my experiences working in the ed tech field.
I'll start out giving you my background.  I am finishing up my 18th year of being a Technology Coordinator in a small K-8 public school district in the Chicago area.  The past three years, in addition to being a tech coordinator, I have also been an Instructional Technology Coach at our middle school.  Working with students and teachers has always been my favorite part of this job, so my move towards coaching and away from boxes and wires has been great for me.

Those of you who are in the tech ed field will most likely understand the title of this blog:  It's Not About the Technology.  While my jpb titles might imply a love for technology, my true passion is for helping students learn in fun and meaningful ways.  I have seen that done without the use of any electronic devices.   We are in year two of our 1:1 Chromebook rollout, and I often get asked the question:  "How can I integrate technology into my classes?"  My response is always:  "What do you want your students to learn?"  While we usually end up using some form of technology in many of the projects and activities that we try in the classrooms, it's never a requirement.  The focus is always on student learning.

I am grateful to ISTE's Blogging Buddies program for encouraging me to get this blog up and running.  I am looking forward to taking part in this program and learning from other educators around the globe.