Master Your Mac: Productivity & Workflow to Enhance Pedagogy
Brady Cline
Sometimes students are held back by a lack of basic literacy. Teachers too are often held back by their lack of basic literacy with computers. We expect mastery from our students and in today's world, we cannot be successful teachers unless we can achieve mastery of our computers. Like language literacy, digital literacy requires basic mastery of your tools and conceptual understanding to apply those skills. We will explore both of these requirements with practical tips to help you use your Mac efficiently and workflows to keep you sane and efficient.
Sometimes students are held back by a lack of basic literacy. Teachers too are often held back by their lack of basic literacy with computers. We expect mastery from our students and in today's world, we cannot be successful teachers unless we can achieve mastery of our computers. Like language literacy, digital literacy requires basic mastery of your tools and conceptual understanding to apply those skills. We will explore both of these requirements with practical tips to help you use your Mac efficiently and workflows to keep you sane and efficient.
A workflow is the approach (techniques, tools and timeline) that we use to solve a problem or manage a task. That sounds complicated, but in actuality, we all use workflow every day. An example would be when I want to cook dinner: I need to ensure I have the materials (ingredients), tools (cookware), technique (cookbook or experience), and sufficient time. The more often we do something, the more natural the workflow becomes. |
Discovery Session
We will start by putting your basic Mac literacy to the test, and estimate how much time we can save by simply applying a few tricks. We will conclude with a brief discussion on the importance including workflow planning as part of your lesson planning.
DEEP Dive
We will review some basic tips to keep you organized and efficient on your Mac. This will include essential keyboard shortcuts, settings, navigation and file handling tips. We will also install some tiny utility programs to help you work like a pro.
We will also examine some typical workflows that teachers engage in regularly (see diagram above), and discuss ways to streamline these processes.
Challenges and Takeaway
We will start by putting your basic Mac literacy to the test, and estimate how much time we can save by simply applying a few tricks. We will conclude with a brief discussion on the importance including workflow planning as part of your lesson planning.
DEEP Dive
We will review some basic tips to keep you organized and efficient on your Mac. This will include essential keyboard shortcuts, settings, navigation and file handling tips. We will also install some tiny utility programs to help you work like a pro.
We will also examine some typical workflows that teachers engage in regularly (see diagram above), and discuss ways to streamline these processes.
Challenges and Takeaway
- Learn and use several great keyboard shortcuts
- Organize your files (and clean that messy desktop)
- Choose your favorite productivity tips and make a cheatsheet to share with colleagues
- Analyze your basic workflows and identify at least one change that will make you more efficient