There is currently a tremendous amount of uncertainty about what our schools and classrooms will look like in the months to come. Ramsey, however, was able to support our teachers' continued professional growth by introducing them to a pedagogical approach that would be engaging and effective for students in either an in-person or a distance learning environment. His enthusiasm for teaching, genuine authenticity, humility and sense of humor helped him to develop quick connections with each of our teachers, across all disciplines. And his continued willingness to collaborate with our teachers as we venture forth into the "educational unknown" together will be a huge asset to our faculty's preparedness for whatever lies ahead.
- James Spillman, St. Joseph's College Institute
I had the privilege to learn from the awesome Ramsey Musallam at an all-day Professional Development at Merced High School, in Merced, CA. Teachers from all subject areas, Instructional Coaches, Induction Mentors and administrators were all able to learn from the “cycles of learning”, “sparked by curiosity” that Ramsey presented. I was so inspired by his passion, strategies and content shared, that I have been presenting a modified version of “Spark Curiosity” and I guest blogged about this for Alice Keeler. He had us experience a simulation of the 5 E Lesson Plan, where learning was sparked by engaging us in a topic and creating “curiosity” through images, video or demonstrations, followed by his “Hero’s Journey” lesson plan. I highly recommend bringing Ramsey out to your school to help your staff ‘spark curiosity’ each day with students, leading to deeper learning and engagement.
- Marcia Carrillo, Merced Union High School
Our district of over 100 high school science teachers had the pleasure of hosting Ramsey for our institute day in August. Our teachers are of various ages, stages in their careers, and have varied levels of understanding and implementation of the NGSS. We brought Ramsey in with the hopes that he would have the ability to reach all of these teachers through a relevant, practical, and inspirational presentation. Well, simply stated, he nailed it. His presentation included so many real-world examples of how a lesson has the potential to hook a student through an inquiry approach, help them question and explore possibilities, and then present and justify their answers. All of which addressed the many components of the NGSS. Not only was his presentation excellent for our teachers, he was a true professional to work with. Months prior to our meeting, he listened to our needs and goals and worked to create a presentation unique for our district. It was obvious that he was not a presenter with his simply his own agenda, his agenda was to help to meet our needs. I cannot say enough about his professionalism, energy level, sense of humor, and inspirational education insights on how science can and should be taught in the classroom.
- Todd Meador, Hoffman Estates High School
Ramsey Musallam's keynote exceeded our high expectations for our unique audience of after school educators at our culminating event for STEM learning in expanded learning programs. With humor, insight, and wired bananas that served as his mouse, Ramsey inspired the educators' to cultivate students' curiosity through inquiry. Ramsey was intentional in acknowledging the learning that the educators' had engaged in throughout the year, with an emphasis of the BSCS 5E Instructional Model. He seamlessly illustrated the 5E Model through the Hero's Journey, encouraging educators to spark students' curiosity, provide the space for them to explore, and quench their curiosity. He is a wildly creative educator, exceptional speaker, and a true champion of inquiry and innovation!
- Darcy Lomeli, San Diego County Office of Education
Ramsey Musallam transforms the way teachers view student learning. Ramsey's insight into the cycles of learning and how teachers can best meet the learning needs of each student can change the culture of any school. His energy, enthusiasm and passion for helping teachers use technology to amplify the learning process is contagious. After the amazing feedback we received after Ramsey keynoted our conference we knew that we would ask him back the next year to continue the collaboration, relationship and inspiration from his presence at our conference.
- Molly Schroeder, Ed Tech Team
When I look for a keynote I want someone that can move an audience to the edge of their seats with stories, authenticity and critical thinking. Only to then, put them at ease with practical hands-on strategies that they can see themselves doing. For us (integratED PDX), Ramsey Musallam was the master of this delicate balancing act. We were honored to have him.
- Darren Hudgins, OETC
Ramsey keynoted at the CVCUE conference (Central Valley Computer Using Educators). He was an amazing speaker, funny, interesting and most important relevant. Even with a catered lunch Ramsey ranked higher than the food, which never happens. It's been 2 years since hey keynoted and people are still talking about what an amazing experience it was. Highly recommend anyone get to where ever Ramsey is speaking at, he is worth the trip.
- Alice Keeler, Fresno Pacific University
Dr. Musallam is a much sought after speaker for K-12 and higher ed educators, active community members and business leaders interested in Flipped learning and student-centered classrooms. As a keynote speaker for our annual conference, FlipCon13, his hour-long presentation received outstanding reviews. He personalized his session for his audience, actively involved the attendees, and met them at their level of involvement – not speaking at them but with them. I have worked with Ramsey for other state and national presentations and his professional demeanor is evident for groups of 20 to 2000.
- Kari Arfstrom, Flipped Learning Network
I’ve had the opportunity to hear Ramsey speak four times over the past three years and he was a great keynote speaker at our Third Annual Summer iPad Institute! His ability to engage an audience with current stories from his own classroom teaching experiences is key to his “street cred” with teachers and staff. He encourages all of us to focus on using technology WELL, finding the sweet spot between the intersections of technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge. Ramsey also challenges us to create situations for involuntary curiosity to engage students, creating conditions for the essential catalyst to spark students’ interest in learning.
- Dave Eisenmann, Minnetonka Unified School District