Beyond Podcasting

Last Post?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 02 Dec 2015 19:43:00 +0000

This may be my last post on this blog. I have poured my heart and soul into this blog for years. I will always and forever be Beyond Podcasting - or byndpdcstng, as my Twitter handle says.

But that just doesn't fit me as well anymore. First of all, Podcasting is outmoded. When I started, people scoffed at me about using podcasts and iPods in the classroom. Now? Well, I think they would scoff, but for a different reason. Podcasts just aren't the current technology anymore. And yes, this is BEYOND Podcasting...but most things are beyond that, aren't they?

The real reason, though, is that I have left teaching. I have many reasons for that, and I will be exploring them all in my new blog: Tales from an Ex Teacher.

If you've enjoyed following me here, I would just love it if you would follow me there: http://talesofanexteacher.blogspot.com/. If not, well, that's okay, too.

It has been my privilege to blog here for as many years as I have. Thanks for reading. And who knows...maybe I'll come back? But for now, find me on the other blog. It will not be negative - it's more of a reflection on my career as well as a "What do I do now?"-type blog. With sarcasm and humor - which, if you've read my blog here, you know is my thing.

Thanks again for your readership. It's been an honor.

Susan

Under-trained and unqualified: Teacher as Therapist

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Tue, 21 Oct 2014 14:56:00 +0000

Today has been one of those days, and it's only third hour.

It started with one student we'll call Sara. Sara's best friend died this summer in a tragic car crash, with her in the car. She's been having a rough time dealing with it, but has been doing as well as a senior can do. She's writing letters to him in a journal, she's talking about the "good times" with friends and family. Yesterday, though, she experienced the anger stage (if you are unfamiliar with the Kübler-Ross stages of Death and Dying, they are here). She is a self-proclaimed positive person and is not quick to anger...and yet, there she was. How do I know this, you ask? Because I am a teacher, so therefore I am also a psychological counselor.

The next hour, a student comes in crying. We'll call her Rose. Rose is upset because she was just diagnosed with anxiety and depression, and she is scared of what that means. She has been told she needs psychotherapy - which makes her feel like she's crazy (think: psycho). So is she really crazy? Is she the only one? She looks up to me for an answer.

I am under-trained and unqualified to be a therapist. And yet, here I am. I assume that you are here with me, too. And the funny thing is that I am more trained than the average teacher, as I have a degree in psychology. All teachers are therapists. We get one or two classes in adolescent (or child) psych, and then we are expected to solve ALL OF THE PROBLEMS. This is not practical. It is not fair. But it is. And as with anything, it is what it is, but it will be what you make it.

So, what can you do?

Well, I'm no expert, but based on my studies of psychology and my ten years of experience as a teacher, here's what I know:

1. Listen
Sometimes, a student just wants to be heard. They don't want advice, they just want to know that you care. This is the easiest - and at the same time, the most difficult - thing that you can do for a student. My students know that my door is always open. They are welcome to talk any time.

2. Give advice only when asked. And even then, very carefully.
Sometimes a student does want advice. Be careful here. It's one thing if they ask you about a college, but it's another if they ask you about depression. Have the numbers on hand for the depression hotline (1-800-273-TALK). Have them make promises to you (Promise me you'll be in class tomorrow - I have something really important to tell you.), and then talk to a school counselor/psychologist.

3. Follow the student's lead:
If the student wants to cry, let them. Cry with them if you are like me. :) If they want to just sit quietly, let them. I know that different teachers have different policies on hugging a student - and for good reason. Personally, I am never where other people can't see me, and I only hug a student if they hug first. I would probably not hug a boy unless it was a special circumstance (death of a parent, graduation, etc), but that's just me. You know what you are comfortable with and what you aren't.

4. Direct them to the appropriate people, if necessary.
If they need to talk to a counselor, direct them there. Children have access to free psychotherapy in most states - so direct them to a therapist if necessary. Have them call the hotline. Whatever they need - make sure you have a directory of numbers somewhere accessible.

5. BE THERE
This is probably the most important. Make sure your students know that you are there for them whenever. My students know that they can talk to me any time during the school day, and that I answer email rapidly after school. I am available all the time to them. Beyond that, though, be wholly present when the student is talking to you. I view it as an incredible privilege every time a student confides in me. I know which teachers I would have shared things with when I was in high school and how highly I thought of them. If a student chooses you, it's because you mean a great deal to that student. It is an honor to hear whatever it is that they have to say. So, don't sigh loudly. Don't check your email. Don't look at your phone. Don't check out. Be wholly present with that student. Make sure that they know that for the amount of time that they are with you, that they are the most important person in the world to you. Keep in mind that you may be the ONLY adult that they believe feels that way about them.

So...what did I miss? What is necessary to counsel students?

The Power of the Network....or yelling into the void?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Tue, 14 Oct 2014 19:19:00 +0000

When I first joined Twitter, it was a fledgling enterprise. I joined in May of 2007, just a little over a year after the launch of the site. It was just starting to get recognition in the ed tech community.

And it was a powerful thing.

I would do presentations and ask for a shout out from my Twitter Network, and boy would they come through for me! They would immediately start saying "hi" from wherever they were located. It amazed the educators for whom I was presenting and really showed the usefulness of such a device.

More than that, though, if I had a question, I knew that I could go to my network and have an answer - or a collection of answers - in a matter of minutes.

Things have changed since then. Now there are hashtags and lists. People that used to follow me are now followed by thousands. I think it's amazing how fast it has grown. I can't wait to see what the next big thing will be.

However.

There's almost too much information out there now. I know that I can't keep up with all of the tweets. I certainly don't read them all. Who could? And thus is the problem. Today, I was asked to make a dream list of things I would want in my classroom. If money was no object, what technology would I get? Now, I've worked in education long enough that I have made many of those lists and never seen anything. But, with what little hope I have left, I am determined to make a comprehensive list just in case I can get even one thing.

But what to get? 1:1 technology, obviously. An interactive whiteboard would be nice. Good headsets so that I don't hear the kids recording and listening to their dialogues. But what else?

So I turned to my network. My trust PLN will certainly help me, right?

Not one response. I even posted it a few times, just in case it was getting lost in the shuffle. Nothing.

It reminds me of a song from a marginalized band from the 90's, Burlap to Cashmere:

Whoa....is there anybody out there?

Does anybody care?

Are the people really there?

Whoa....is there anybody seeking?

Does anybody see?

Or are they deaf and dumb like me?

Is there anyone out there anymore? When the Twitterverse was young, people used it as a means for a brief conversation. A way to get quick answers or to end up in discussions. But now....do we just use it as a platform to tell other people what we think?

I've been doing a lot of soul searching since my mom passed, and I've come to realize that I do far too much talking. I'm working on being a better listener - both as a teacher and as a person. I absolutely still voice my opinion, but I try to listen to others before saying anything. And I am learning so much.

The power of the network was one of the most awe-inspiring things I've ever seen. But now? I wonder if it isn't just down to a few select people who are "special" enough to be heard.

So I urge you - retweet things (use the hashtag #celebratewisdom), engage in conversations. We are not alone. We are not in this alone. We are not competing for attention. Everyone - no matter how few followers they have - should feel like they are a part of the conversation and that people are there for them to answer questions, too. Imagine on how much wisdom we could be missing out on. Our PLNs don't seem to be what they used to. How can we get them back?

Flop in the Classroom: Using Google Classroom to Flip a Lesson

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 19:43:00 +0000

As I said in a previous post, I flipped my AP Psych class last year, to tremendous success (94% pass rate on the AP test, anyone?). Not to toot my own horn, but...you know...TOOOOT. :)

I decided to try to do more flipped assignments and units in my intro to psych class. I had great plans to start this day one - and then my mom passed away. The best laid plans, right? So last week, I was beginning to get my feet under me again, and I decided to do a split lesson. They had me for the first half of the hour, and the second half of the hour they were required to go online for the rest of the lesson. They didn't have to finish the lesson that hour, but they had only until midnight that night to submit it. This is very rapid for an online assignment for me, as I often will try to give 2-3 nights to work on something online, since they may not have access at home. This time, instead of using my Google site to submit the assignment, I tried it on Google Classroom.

Talk about a flop.

I imported students the night before. Super easy. Kind of a pain, but it's a one-time thing, so no big deal. I put the assignment up. Awesome. Honestly, I was so excited to give out this assignment. It looked awesome.

Only 17 of my 28 students that hour could figure out how to submit the assignment. One submitted it as a separate post in the stream. (There is currently no way to turn off the students' ability to post in the stream, by the way.) Two submitted it (cut and pasted) in the comments of the assignment itself (also no way to turn off comments). One handed me a paper copy. One emailed it to me. Several didn't bother doing it for one reason or another. What a mess!

I thought it would be intuitive. Read the assignment, then hit the big blue "turn it in" button. It is NOT intuitive to all students. Do take the time to go over how to submit an assignment. For this, you will need to have a student log in so that you can project what they see. As of right now, teachers can't see what it looks like from the student perspective. I hope this will change soon.

Grading-wise, I love it. All of the papers in one place. didn't get 1700 emails (slight exaggeration) as the students shared their assignments with me. I could even grade it right there and submit with comments to the student, so the student is alerted to when I have graded it. Of course, then I have to submit grades into my grading program...but that's a different issue.

I think that Google Classroom will be good. I think it will be the go-to for most teachers. I'm really excited about it. I'm just also reminded what "beta" means - and that it will not be as easy for others as it is for me.

So this one didn't work out. Should I just give up? Of course not. I will be trying again. And again. Until I get it right. By covering basics out of class, I have time for the application piece. Google already knows facts. The kids need to know what to do with them - and flipping the classroom allows me time to do that. So I will keep on keeping on.

What about you? What happened to you when you tried to flip the classroom? What about your thoughts on Google Classroom?

On flipping the classroom, flipping out, and flipping in general.

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 11 Sep 2014 15:15:00 +0000

So much has changed in the last few years...where to begin...

On a personal level, I have divorced and remarried since I last posted here. I have 2 more children than I did. I have taught at 5 schools simultaneously at which I taught 5 different preps. I finally teach an AP class. My mother has passed away, and my father is now a permanent, daily fixture in my family. So much change. So much stress.

And yet.

I am throwing myself into my work and am remembering how much I really love what I do. I love having students appreciate what we do for them. I love to watch them learn. I love to see former students who excitedly tell me what they're going into - and how what I did, in some small way, encouraged them to do it. I love making a difference.

I, like other teachers, am being asked to do more with less. I am teaching 2-3 classes simultaneously for the bulk of my day. I can't do what I used to and expect to be successful. I am remaking my classroom. Last year, I flipped my AP psych class to grand results. Of the 17 students that took the AP exam in May, 16 of them passed the exam. Of those 16, 8 received 3's, 4 received 4's, and 4 received 5's. It was a grand success. While I am tweaking my AP program, I will leave it as a flipped class.

Now it's time to revamp intro. I want my intro to psych class to be fun and innovative. I'm coming up short on activity ideas, however. I want to make it different from AP.

So...what do you do? How did you flip your classroom? What classroom activities have been successful for you?

It's good to be back.

So...are they? Or aren't they?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 02:24:00 +0000

The blogosphere is abuzz with rumors that Delicious is going to be shut down. And then there are other articles - like this one from Yahoo! themselves - that says that they won't. So what to do? Do you believe them? Do you export your stuff, only to find that you just did a lot of work that you didn't have to? Do you rely on Delicious, only to find that one day all of your precious bookmarks are gone?

So...not that you asked for it, but here is my advice. Start exporting. Move over to a different bookmarking site - like Google Bookmarks - and maintain your account at Delicious. See which one you like better. If you still like Delicious, then keep using until they shut down (IF they shut down).

To me, the end of Delicious will be an end of an era. Do we not care any longer what other people are bookmarking? If so, what will this mean for technology and the use of the internet? Will the "next big thing" isolate us more - or ultimately continue to connect us further? I can't imagine my life without the ability to search through tags and have my friends recommend pages for me. But then again, I could never have imagined myself twenty years ago with the ability to talk on a phone while driving or writing for free in a forum for the whole world. So, I guess there's that.

Overly flattered, incredibly humbled

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 04:00:00 +0000

I have to admit, I was not expecting the email today. I had long given up the idea of blogging here. It's not that I don't still try to do cutting edge tech stuff in my classroom. It was that I got busy, life got complicated, and I didn't want to put my energies here anymore. Besides...no one was reading, right?

This is where I was wrong. I received an email that informed me that I am on a list of the 2010 Midwest Teacher Blogs to follow. I can't believe it - I haven't posted in over two years! Then I went to my blog and started reading it....and there are comments from this year.

I am SO sorry to those of you who have asked me questions. It might take me a bit, but I will get to answering all of them. I will post more. And finally, I will try more ideas in my classroom and post them here.

So on that note, anyone have anything they would like me to talk about? Anything you want me to try? I'm up for about anything.

Oh - and thanks for reading. I am humbled by your faith in me.

What will you do different next year?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:46:00 +0000

Over the past week or so, I have had a lot of time to think about how I use technology in my classroom. I am helping to create the Computer and Technology Literacy curriculum that our 7th graders will use in our district, and in so doing, have had to look at what I use in my own classroom.

My findings? I do use more than the average teacher, but I don't do nearly as much as I would like. I think for next year, I am going to try to do even more. How you ask? Just by a little creative thinking.

Here are some of my ideas for next year:

I am teaching a tools class - a fundamental skill-building class. I plan on using online time management applications to help them track their projects and such.
I also plan to show them how to keep an online portfolio, as well as online storage tools, so that "I saved it at home" is never an excuse.
For my French students - we do weekly dialogues, or speaking tests. Instead of having them perform them live, what if they had five minutes in class in which to record it? No notes - just them and a computer? I think that could be powerful - and easier for me to grade, too!
For my psych students - I did a wiki with them, but I think a weekly blog entry might be great for them to really think through what we are doing in class - not to mention make sure they are paying attention.
Again for psych - what if we did a cell phone poll in class? Totally anonymous, and totally fun!

I'm sure there are more, but that's what I've thought of so far. What about you? Do you have any great plans for next year?

Technorati Tags:

Summer, Education, Technology

Okay, I'm back....or am I?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:37:00 +0000

So this was a great deal longer than a 'brief' hiatus. I did, indeed, finish my Masters. I stand now at the end of that educational road, but am wondering where I should go from here. In terms of my education, I could become certified in educational technology, or go for me PhD. in educational technology. Or, I could go totally crazy and become certified to teach something different altogether.

Likewise, I stand in a similar situation regarding my blog. I want to be innovative - to bring up thoughts and ideas that are different than what others have thought to ponder before. Perhaps this is just year-end burn-out still talking - maybe I'm full of ideas that I haven't even come up with yet. Or, perhaps, I am placing too much pressure on myself to be an innovator. After all, I can be an innovator in my workplace by spouting out some of the different information that others have been touting for the past five years. It all depends on who your audience is.

Some of my least favorite student projects have been those where it is obvious that the student has just tried too hard to impress me. Perhaps I am doing the same thing, here.

At any rate, I am back, and I will be posting. If you have any topics that are of interest, please let me know. Also - I am beginning to lay out my consulting schedule for next year. If you want me to come into your school/district, please email me at sroustan [at] fhps [dot] us. Happy summer!

Technorati Tags:

Random, Summer, Technology, Blogging, Edublogosphere

Tech thoughts will return after this brief hiatus...

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 13:52:00 +0000

Yes, I'm still here.

Yes, my family is healthy and doing well.

I, on the other hand? Am crazy.

I have finished my Masters project, and am nearly half done with tennis season.

I am slowly getting my life back. In the meantime, I apologize for my brief hiatus on podcasting and blogging, but I promise that I will be back. Soon. I swear.

I have a lot to blog about, and I miss the network.

If you have any ideas for future posts, or things you'd like me to write more about, comment here! Thanks for your patience!

Technorati Tags:
Random, Beyond Podcasting, (dis)connectivity

Live Blogging: Hall Davidson

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 18:49:00 +0000

Technorati Tags:
macul08, Hall Davidson

Are we really quick to accept technology?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 21:32:00 +0000

UPDATE: My point to this post...which I'm not sure I ever got to...was that Stager was indicating that teachers have a knee-jerk reaction to adopting new technology - that we adopt things without really thinking about the best practice behind it. My point was - really? IMHO, I have found that teachers do have a knee-jerk reaction about technology - of fear. As in, "A Cellphone? In a classroom? But students could cheat and text each other answers and...". I don't know any teacher who uses technology in a classroom setting who has a knee-jerk reaction of "This is cool! I don't know how I'll use it, but let's try!" Am I wrong? What do you think?

=*Live Blogged - Please excuse spelling/grammar errors.*=

I'm sitting in Gary Stager's session on being careful with what new technologies that we let into the classroom. He is bringing up some valid points - just not in a way that I would. He is coming off really negative - not sure if that is intentional or not.

One of the points that he is bringing up is that there is nothing new in education - he is saying that we are still saying the same things today that we were hundreds of years ago. The "Newly Ancient" philosophy - that we should take the old and find a way to make it new -which I totally agree with. He pulled a quote from 1917 that directly related to what we would consider to be best practices.

However, I feel that some of his generalizations are not fair. He mentioned that high school English teachers only make projects because it is too hard to grade 300 English papers. I don't know what it is like at every school in the country, but in our high school, our English teachers to projects and papers. And they spend hours grading them.

He also said that Twitter, while good for quick questions, is not effective as a personal learning network. I strongly disagree with that - as I have bounced many theoretical notions off of my network. In fact, those are some of my favorite conversations with my network.

Also, I checked out his website: http://www.stager.org/macul and I was disappointed in his review of Friedman's The World is Flat. Friedman makes a great argument for the globalization of the world...and I'm not sure you can argue with him. While the theories have not changed in the last hundred years, the tools have - and the kids have.

I'm agreeing with Stager now, though - he is talking about adding Higher Standards - and that is very true. Just like the type of knowledge is shifting, you must add higher standards or you soon won't be expecting anything from students.

He's now comparing the difference between community and community of practice. You can be a part of a community - like a city - and not know about everything and everyone in it. Likewise, a community of practice, you don't need to know everything and everyone in it. A community of practice must grow. He's saying that the community of ed techers celebrates newbies, but there often isn't anything for those people who are either intermediate/advanced. Very true. "Entry into the community is based on a willingness to mimic the behaviors of the masters." "Common commitment to progress" You must do something together, and have shared stories and histories.

Overall, an interesting session. He started off a bit negative, but I think there was a message of hope there somewhere. Interesting thoughts, though, about technology and education and being careful as to what/how to integrate.

Technorati Tags:
Gary Stager, macul08, Twitter

MACUL part deux

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:44:00 +0000

So, obviously my last post was a waste of a good RSS, but it has a point. I was leading a session on Web 2.0 for beginners today...and we posted that as our "first" blog entry.

It was so much fun to do that session today! I really wish that we had even MORE time - next year, that is definately a 4-hr session!

At any rate, if you are a new reader, welcome! If you did a technorati search and got here, welcome! If you need the link to the wiki we worked on, it is here: http://web2ools.teacherlearning.wikispaces.net .

Then, I ran over to Jason Ohler's session on the future of tech in ed. Very interesting stuff - wish I could have hit the whole thing and not have missed the first part!

Too much to process, and I have another presentation this afternoon....

Technorati Tags:
Jason Ohler, macul08, web 2.0

Web 2.0

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 13:32:00 +0000

I'm standing in front of a group at MACUL.

MACUL 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 21:32:00 +0000

It has been an interesting couple of weeks, to say the least. I will, at the end of this week, have been out of my classroom 5 of the last 10 days. This has made my life insane (but in a good way).

Last week, I was able to take part in a meeting to re-vamp our Middle School Comp. Lit. course (working title now is Computers, Technology & Literacy). What a neat meeting - we made so much progress, and the idea of all students coming out of the MS as literate as these new standards...it warms my heart!

Then, I was fortunate enough to present at the MS Summit, sponsored by the MI ASCD. A very fun/thought provoking day! It was an honor to be presenting at such a gathering of people.

Now, on to MACUL 2008, where I am not presenting, per se, but will be helping out in a few SIGTE sessions. I'm hoping to pull together a Twitter Cafe, of sorts. It won't be publicized, but if we tweet it, they will come. I'm hoping to walk away with new ideas, but also just come back refreshed and ready to take on the world. It will be fun to be an absorber of info this time around. I don't get to do that much anymore, so it is special when I get that opportunity!

I may not post reguarly for a bit -and I apologize in advance. I have my 3rd and final chapter due on Monday...and with MACUL, and sub plans...well...we'll see what happens. :) If you have read my last post, and are interested in reading more, let me know and I'll post some more! Although I'm kinda thinking that I'm either putting you to sleep or boring you to death...

I'll post when I can! See some of you at MACUL!

Technorati Tags:
MACUL 2008, ASCD, Summit, SIGTE, Twitter Cafe

Do we teach teens to problem solve?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 12:54:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by byndpdcstng using Utterz. Replies. mp3

UNpurposely disconnected and Theoretical Rationale, pt.I

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 03:20:00 +0000

Bless me, readers, for I have sinned: it has been a month since my last posting. Oy. I've been tagged in a Meme that I haven't gotten to yet - but I will, I promise! I could give a number of excuses, but the moral of the story is that I am trying to finish my Masters' project (one more chapter to go - W00T!), and simply have not had a chance to be online much. Well, not for anything "fun" anyway.

I thought I'd share a bit of my work for you - if you are interested. And if you aren't? Umm...tough? Stop reading? No - please don't. Feedback would be nice. :)

Anyway, this is my Theoretical Rationale behind a Read/Write French Curriculum. This is part one of three (or four, depending on how long this is). If you use it, please quote it. It is copyrighted through the University but attributing it to this blog is alright with me.

Please comment on this - and let me know what you think! Here it is:

One cannot deny that in the past century, more change has taken place than in any other. While this change was heavily technological, these changes affected most everything else; from commerce to healthcare to recreation, technology has drastically and forever changed the way the world interacts.

Interestingly enough, the theoretical rationale behind the creation of a technology-embedded French curriculum comes from a journalist, not an educator. Friedman, the author of this interesting work, talks about three eras of what he calls Globalization. The first era, Globalization 1.0, began when Columbus set sail in 1492 and continued through 1800. Friedman writes “…in Globalization 1.0, the key agent of change…was how much brawn – how much muscle, how much horsepower, wind power, or, later, steam power – your country had and how creatively you could deploy it” (Friedman, 2007, p.9 ). Globalization 1.0 united the world in a competitive way that, until 1492, really had not been seen before.

Similarly, Globalization 2.0 also changed the way the world interacted. Globalization 2.0 spanned the years from 1800 through 2000 (not including the years of the Great Depression or the World Wars). Friedman says “[t]his era shrank the world from a size medium to a size small. In Globalization 2.0, the key agent of change…was multinational companies” (Friedman, 2007, p.9). These years, which also included the beginning of the dot-com era where cross-world communication became possible in minutes rather than weeks, began to allow for cross-global collaboration in the workplace.

Work Cited:
Friedman, T (2007). The world is flat: A brief history of the twenty-first century. New York, NY: Picador.

Technorati Tags:
(dis)connectivity, Beyond Podcasting, education, Flat World

The Power of the Network, Part II

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 01:04:00 +0000

Last Tuesday, I asked those who read this blog to comment on my post and tell me where they were from. I also told my Twitter network about the blog post. Before the end of the school day, I had 9 comments from various places. It is now up to 14. Not too shabby for a quick shout-out blog post.

Here is what this tells me. Slightly over a year ago, I decided that I ought to have a blog for my presentations, so that people had a site to go to when they had questions. This blog was created for the people in those sessions - all of whom were in Michigan. Of the 14 comments, how many were from Michigan? Two. How many of those Michiganders had been in my session? Zero. That's not to say that my original readers aren't still around, but it is intriguing to me how the readership of this blog has expanded.

Secondly, it tells me that my personal network of people has substantially grown. Several of the comments mentioned that they followed my blog in a reader, but others mentioned that they found me through Twitter. Very few teachers my age have networks outside of their own schools. It is definitely an advantage for me - and for the other teachers in my school, as I bring back everything that I learn!

Third, it is a humbling reality check. What we post - whether or not we think it has any impact - is being read by someone, somewhere. I've been thinking a lot about this lately. My psychology classes just completed an "online text" on a wiki. At first glance, I was so proud of them! In many ways, I still am, but they don't seem to understand that their audience is a global one. Four groups (that's 8 kids) blatantly plagiarized some/all of their wiki. How can we prove to students that people really are reading what they post - and that it could include the original author of the material? I'm still hashing out how I want to handle this with the next batch of kids - stay tuned for that.

As I begin my Masters project, I am keenly aware that at no other point in time have we ever had such power in our networks. Equally, I am aware of the discrepancy between the learning styles needed for the mass collaboration era versus the industrial revolution-style training that is occuring in our schools. As we are helping our students prepare for their future, are we showing them the "Flat World" that Friedman spoke of - where knowledge is the new global currency? Or does it look more like this:

To all who commented on Part I: Thank you. To all who read this: continue the dialogue.

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Image Citations:

twitter_mosaic, "Moulin Rouge Mosaic." Twitter Mosaic. 14 Jan 2008. 25 Jan 2008 http://www.twittermosaic.com/.

Clark, William A.. "The Human Network (part one) - "Gagged." Flickr. 26 Apr 2007. 25 Jan 2008 http://www.flickr.com/photos/spacesuitcatalyst/473939792/in/set-72157594509690807/.

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Technorati Tags:

Network, Beyond Podcasting, Blogging, Education, Flat World

You're On Notice!

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 14:30:00 +0000

I thought I'd share this, just because it cracked me up.

Bucket List Meme

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 19:21:00 +0000

Oh my - I've never been tagged in a meme before. I feel so special! Now, to steal from Jen:
The Bucket List meme was started by Jeff Pulver and is based on the movie. It seems to have not evolved much and is still essentially a list of things you hope to accomplish in 2008. This is seriously not easy - there is always so much I want to do....but here, in short, is my 2008 Bucket List (in no particular order):

~turn 25....again.
~get through the Strasbourg Exchange...and then do it again for next year.
~attend NECC (probably won't happen, but a girl can dream, right?)
~use online textbooks (that are written by my former students) in all my classes.
~embed technology in all of my classes - every lesson, every day.
~do more presenting, AND more attending (of conferences, that is).
~finish my Masters degree (goal: April 2008).
~move and/or get a mini-van. Or both.
~enjoy my life and stop stressing about things that - in the end - don't really matter.
~Chillax.

I'm sure there are more, but these are the ones that come to mind right away. And now, to tag people:
Liz, Vicki, and Darren - you're it! :) Happy meme-ing. And Happy New Year!

Technorati Tags:
Beyond Podcasting, Bucket List, Meme, Random

Survey 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 17:49:00 +0000

It is time for the Education Blogosphere Survey. Take a minute and do this survey - it really doesn't take very long, and I think that the data that we will obtain from it will speak volumes! Oh, and if you haven't commented on my last post, please do so - new "explanation/results" post coming soon!

Deadline (for the survey)= January 26, 11:00pm, (GMT-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada)

Technorati Tags:

EduBlogosphere, survey, blogs, blogging, education, McLeod

The Power of the Network? part I

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 13:55:00 +0000

This is going to be a strange post, as posts go. I am curious about just how extensive - and global - the power of the network really is. If you read this on a Reader/Aggregator of some nature, please visit my site directly. If you read this post - for whatever reason, please comment and tell me what country you are from (if you are from North America, please give me state/province, too). I know this sounds strange, but it has a point, and I will tell you what that is in my next post.

I know this takes time and effort on your part, dear reader. Thank you in advance for taking a quick second to do this!

Technorati Tags:
Beyond Podcasting, network, blogging

Purposefully Disconnected

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:14:00 +0000

First of all, a very happy 2008 to one and all! May this be the year that real, measureable change occurs in our schools - not just with individuals, but across the board. (Hey, a girl can dream, right?)

My apologies for my lack of Twitters, postings, utterz, and so on. It has not been for a lack of things to say, but rather an experiment, if you will.

As many of you know, this is a fairly tough year for me personally. I have a new prep (which I LOVE), I'm finishing my masters this semester (we hope. Incidentally, my project will be called "French I 2.0: Using the Read/Write Web in the Classroom" or something of that nature. I will be creating a total web-based curriculum for my classroom. Stay tuned.), my father has been sick (and is *knock on wood* cancer-free. Thanks for all your support/encouragement), and so on. This has brought a fairly profound change in my way of thinking.

I decided in early December that - no matter what - I would not take work home. Period. Nothing. No lesson plans, no grading, nothing. This meant that, in order to agree to this, I had to remain focused on the "important" stuff at work. I cut out Twitter, I cut out Bloglines, etc. And here's what I found.

Nothing really changed. I still intigrated technology in my classes, I still read articles on new technology, and I maintained a passion for change in our education system. So why be connected, then? What's the point?

With all that I was able to get done, I did not feel like I accomplished as much as I did when I was connected. While I was more relaxed at home - and had more time for my family - I did not feel like I was fully doing my job. I felt like, in a way, that I was letting my network down. I wondered if they would still be there for me - despite my absence.

I conducted another experiment: I asked a fairly in-depth edtech question of my Twitter network. I had many people respond that they were glad to see me back, but no one answered my question. Here's what I realized: you get from the network what you give. I hadn't been around to answer others' questions, so why should they answer mine? That seems a bit harsh, but I think that's true of every relationship - there has to be a give and take.

I had let my network down; I wasn't there for them. So here is my goal for January. I want to remain connected - I want to be there for my network - but I want to leave my work at work as much as humanly possible. This time, I want to be disconnected at home when possible, but remain connected at work.

Stay tuned for a post on how that worked out. It is important for your family and friends that you are purposefully disconnected, but if we are to function in this new, flat world, we must spend at least some of our time purposefully connected, too.

Technorati Tags:
Twitter, Bloglines, Beyond Podcasting, (dis)connectivity

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 16:24:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by byndpdcstng using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Personal Tech Use?

noreply@blogger.com (Susan Roustan) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 18:12:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by byndpdcstng using Utterz. Replies. mp3