I have a bobble head of myself on the bookshelves in my office. It's a bit of an Easter egg that you can find in some of my videos. On the surface, this item seems arrogant and excessive. And yet, I didn't buy the bobble…
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A decade ago, I watched a local school district purchase hundreds of interactive whiteboards. Hailed as the ultimate solution for student achievement, teachers attended flip chart trainings. The school district purchased packaged curriculum promising huge results. Specialists observed classrooms to see if teachers were implementing…
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This is my latest article on the topic of Vintage Innovation. Look for the book to come out soon. When we imagine the future of learning, we often hear about STEM and STEAM and things like robotics or coding. But I'd argue that one of…
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So, it's the beginning of the year and all around I'm hearing conversations about New Year's Resolutions. One friend is going Paleo, another is doing Cross Fit, and still, another has decided she's going to read 100 books in a year (which might be doable if you…
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Originally written on December 18, 2015. Each year, I expand on this. I still remember my first winter break in my first year of teaching. I scratched out Christmas Eve and Christmas as true "days off," but then I worked the rest of the time.…
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The future is unpredictable. We know that. So, when we try to design learning experiences that "prepare students for the future," we have to recognize that we don't always know what they'll need. In this article, I explore the counterintuitive reality that the best way…
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Don't forget to scroll down to the bottom of this post to download the Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack. This is a post I first wrote a decade ago, when I was teaching middle school. Each year, I have revised it and…
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This is my third article in the series on vintage innovation. Last week, I mentioned the Astrodome Effect and the idea of embracing both vintage tools and vintage designs in a mash-up with newer technology and new ideas. I mentioned Camden Yards as a place…
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The Astrodome was a modern miracle, a Space Age wonder, with a glass dome, high-tech air-conditioning, and the world’s biggest scoreboard. When it opened in 1965, reporters dubbed it the “8th Wonder of the World.” This was the future. No more bad weather or quirky…
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When I was in middle school, one of my teachers called the entire class up to the front of the room. He held up a shiny golden disc in wild excitement. “This will change education forever,” he said, eyes gleaming. “Someday, you’ll be able to…
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Dr. John Spencer
I’m a professor and a maker. Sometimes I make things. Sometimes I make a difference. On a good day, I get to do both.
