NCED Connect Symposium 2025

Ready to revolutionize your coaching practice? Join us for an interactive session that explores how artificial intelligence can amplify your impact as an instructional coach. Discover practical strategies for using AI tools to streamline your coaching processes, enhance teacher support, and foster meaningful professional growth.In this hands-on session, you'll learn how to:Leverage AI to create personalized coaching plans and feedback templatesGenerate thought-provoking questions for more effective coaching conversationsDevelop differentiated support strategies for teachers at various skill levelsDesign data-informed professional development experiencesBuild a digital toolkit that saves time and increases coaching effectivenessPerfect for instructional coaches who want to work smarter, not harder. Leave with ready-to-implement strategies, customizable templates, and a fresh perspective on how AI can enhance (not replace) the human elements of coaching. Whether you're tech-savvy or just getting started, this session will meet you where you are and help you take your coaching practice to the next level.

How can you tell if your programs, professional learning sessions, or initiatives are truly making a difference? This session offers a fresh perspective on program evaluation, turning data into actionable insights. Learn how to efficiently collect, analyze, and share data to measure success and uncover opportunities for growth. Gain access to ready-to-use tools like editable surveys and protocols, along with strategies to showcase your results and guide future decision-making. Whether you're looking to celebrate wins or refine your approach, this session equips you to tell the story of your impact with confidence.

This session explores the role of technology in education, focusing on how to balance screen time and prioritize its purposeful use. With growing concerns about the potential negative effects of excessive screen exposure, it’s crucial to identify strategies that keep technology use intentional, promoting engagement, active learning, and positive student outcomes. Attendees will examine best practices for integrating technology in ways that support pedagogy and foster student interaction rather than passive consumption. Together, we will develop strategies to ensure that technology serves as a tool for enriching education and not a crutch for classroom management.

Managing a school car rider line can be a logistical challenge for elementary schools, often resulting in delays, frustration, and safety concerns for students, parents, and staff. This session will showcase an innovative approach to solving these issues: designing and implementing a custom app utilizing Google Sheets, Awesome Table, and Google’s AppSheet to streamline the process.Participants will explore:The challenges associated with traditional car rider line systems.Create a Car Rider App for use at schoolUtilize a template Google Sheet, AppSheet, and Awesome Table to create the app.Attendees will leave with a usable web-based all to  transform their car rider line experience for students, teachers, and parents/guardians.

In this session, we will discuss how scaffolding the use of a digital tool like Canva can benefit students in terms of products created and enhance learning experiences in the classroom. We would all agree that the more we use a tool, the more comfortable we are with it, and the better the products we produce. Do we approach student products the same way?This session will provide practical strategies and examples to effectively integrate Canva into your teaching practice and easy ways to connect activities, building on the understanding of Canva as a tool leading to a higher level of creativity, more in-depth projects, and ultimately better products, refocusing on the learning and not the challenge of learning a new tool all the time.Participants will discuss how we scaffold learning content and how we apply this concept to tools in the classroom or if we even do. Then, we will walk through a sample yearly curriculum showcasing ways Canva could be tactfully applied and how the scaffolding concept would work. Lastly, participants will get a chance to share ways they have used Canva in the classroom and if they used the scaffolding concept or if scaffolding the use of the tool would have changed student outcomes.

Strategic planning is more than just a document—it's the roadmap to achieving meaningful change. In this session, participants will dive into the essentials of creating actionable and impactful strategic plans. Explore how to bring the right voices to the table, craft a focused work plan, and design strategies that drive progress. Learn how to map out goals, gather data to measure success, and effectively share your results with stakeholders. Walk away with interactive tools, templates, and practices that you can implement immediately to turn your strategic vision into measurable growth for your school or public school unit.

Discover how to maximize the benefits of your ISTE and ASCD memberships in this session tailored for North Carolina K-12 educators. Learn how to access and implement a range of instructional strategies and classroom resources that are readily available through these professional organizations. This session will guide you in exploring teaching materials, professional development opportunities, and instructional tools that align with your classroom needs. Whether you’re looking for subject-specific lesson plans or expert-led webinars, you’ll leave equipped with practical resources to support your teaching and foster student engagement.