Tag Archives: teachers

Yapper of the Month: Michael Fisher

  • Yapp spotlights Michael Fisher as a featured user in its Yapper of the Month series.
  • The post shows how real people use Yapp in practical and creative ways.
  • Readers looking for customer inspiration and community stories will benefit most from this feature.

YAPPER OF THE MONTH: Michael Fisher, Educator & Author

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Michael is a Kannapolis, NC, native now working in Buffalo, NY. He first discovered Yapp last May at the edJEWcon educational conference in Jacksonville, Florida. As an educator teaching other educators how to integrate modern learning into the classroom, he was sparked to investigate. His first app ended up taking him about seven minutes to create, and he was hooked.

In his recent book, “Upgrade Your Curriculum,” Michael introduces app-making as a new skill that kids will need. “We’re trying to get teachers to see that the more students do their own work, the more they’re going to own the learning,” he said. For Michael and the education community, apps and technology are launching pads for learning at the highest level: creation.

Technology in the classroom gives students and teachers a way to get global feedback for edits and revisions, Michael said. It opens the world up for students to experience and gives them knowledge that they can and will hold on to. The learning, he said, comes from the research and connection that technology presents. A student can submit a link, justify why it gives the answer to the question, and then receive instant concrete feedback from an instructor that won’t go in one ear and out the other.

Michael’s other favorite apps include TMZ and IMDB for their easy design, Flipboard’s social magazine, and xTraNormal’s mini movie maker.

You can find Michael online at @fisher1000, in print in Cure for the Common Core and Upgrade Your Curriculum, and blogging at www.digigogy.com.

Yapper of the Month gives us the chance highlight one of our awesome Yappers each month. Know someone whose been sharing the Yapp love? Let us know!

Teachers’ Appetite for Tech

  • Yapp explores teachers’ growing interest in technology as a tool for communication and learning support.
  • The post highlights how digital tools can fit naturally into education settings.
  • Educators and school leaders interested in classroom tech adoption will benefit most from this article.
A survey by PBS LearningMedia published on Mashable says that teachers have an appetite for more inexpensive technology to engage students. We agree!
Teachers, here are a few ideas of how Yapp can work for you:
1. Class parties and after-school activities — Need to remind parents who signed up to bring what snack? Want to make sure parents know to pick up their kids at 5 sharp? We know parents sometime need as much schooling as kids do. 🙂
2. School assemblies, field trips, plays and special days — You can send push notifications with Yapp, which means Johnny won’t wear flip-flops on field day. 
3. PTA, school board meetings — Keep the meetings that impact education top-of-mind for participants. 
These are just three of the endless possibilities of how teachers can use Yapp, what are your ideas?