creativeStir

This Name... and Direction...

2021-10-21T08:25:00.023-04:00

It's been awhile!

I've always told students I've worked with 'Keep Moving Forward...'

That's what I've been doing.

My shift from full-time education and part time consulting into full-time consulting continues...

and demand keeps growing.

AP Consulting LLC continues to evolve. Something is developing. And it's exciting. And liberating.

Looking back over those Projects and all of the innovation around them... I've worked with a lot of great people. We created a lot of great opportunities for students and adults.

I'm not done. It's just evolving.

All the best, and my sincere thanks for reading here and in the ol' rLab blog back in the day.

Adam

...

Colchester Cannons Moving Forward...

2021-08-09T13:49:00.008-04:00

I proudly worked with the Colchester Cannons American Legion Baseball club for 16 years in a variety of coaching, tech and mentorship roles. My son played in the program for six years with three years on the Jr team and three on the Senior team. I decided some time ago that my sons last year as a player would be my last year coaching. For me, it wrapped up thirty years overall of coaching youth baseball.

When it came time to help the new Cannons administration create new opportunities I proposed it was time for a website and social media refit. I also told them I was happy to help.

The Cannons are a special organization in Vermont American Legion baseball. Unlike many new for-profit travel teams, the Cannons deliver a first class experience to kids and families at a low and all-inclusive cost. Ttravel, meals, hotels, plane tickets, clothing, gear or game fees are all included. The program has traveled mightily over the years and in 2022 the team is headed to... Hawaii.

Building a new website for the program and ramping up their social media efforts was a fun trip down memory lane and to help pave the way for more community building, education, travel and great baseball.

Check out the new website at: https://www.colchestercannons.org

#Vermont #AmericanLegion #AmericanLegionBaseball #SummerBaseball

Um...

2021-08-09T13:16:00.001-04:00

So, you fired your Network Administrator because they reached the top of the pay scale, reduced another person's job to part-time and now your network is slow, unreliable, service is poorly rated and users are frustrated... and 'tech' is 'mission critical?

"Yes."

Wow. Ok. Let's begin.

#education #edtech #vted

Good Karma in Times That Are Not Normal

2021-02-10T09:58:00.000-05:00

COVID19 times.

These times are not 'normal.' Sometimes we just need a reminder.

In some consulting projects of late I've been encouraging people to push employees and students a little less. Offering flexibility, getting to know their circumstances, helping them find equipment and support they need can really go a long way.

As a business or individual who is enjoying some success of late... it's a good time to reach out to provide some support for people that are struggling. You never know what incredible connections and perceptions that might create... or how it will fill your soul.

Good karma 💝 Here's to it.

It's Time

2020-06-02T21:28:00.005-04:00

“you always told me it takes time. it’s taken my father’s time, my mother’s time. my uncle’s time, my brother’s and my sister’s time. my niece’s and my nephew’s time. how much time do you want, for your progress?” - james baldwin pic.twitter.com/JkE8w7up9Y
— nadirah (@hinadirah) May 27, 2020

It's time.

A President who sits in the White House, disconnected from reality, encouraging hate and attacks other leaders in crisis is disgraceful. This is not leadership. It's demagoguery.

A few things to read:

Uprisings and Education

Don't understand the protests? What you're seeing is people pushed to the edge: by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Dismantle White Supremacy: Ben and Jerry's Open Letter. My thanks to an ice cream company that still seeks to make the world a better place. To paraphrase their old slogan, 'What's the doughboy (in the White House) afraid of?'

What if... 'this time' we moved ahead, bravely, to address hatred, racism and oppression. What if we made real changes. What if we kept the discussion going rather than let another protest fade into history with little to no results.

Getting Twitter Cards from Blogger Posts

2020-05-21T12:46:00.002-04:00

Twitter card / previews not showing up from Blogger posts? Try this.

Backup your blog first.

Go to Templates and Edit HTML.

Control (PC) or Command (Mac) - F to find

<b:includable id='post' var='post'>

Then paste in:

<meta content='summary_large_image' name='twitter:card'/>

<meta content='@yournamehere' name='twitter:site'/

<meta content='@yournamehere' name='twitter:creator'/

<meta content='www.yoursitehere.com' name='twitter:domain'/

<meta expr:content='data:post.firstImageUrl' name='twitter:image:src'/

<meta expr:content='data:post.title' name='twitter:title'/

<b:if cond='data:blog.metaDescription'>

<meta expr:content='data:blog.metaDescription' name='twitter:description'/

<b:else/>

<meta expr:content='data:post.snippet' name='twitter:description'/

</b:if>

<meta expr:content='data:post.sharePostUrl' name='twitter:url'/>

Replace @yournamehere with your Twitter name, then replace your website here with your full blogger site name, including the https://

Click save.

Go to yu blog and copy a post link, not the home address.

Then go to https://cards-dev.twitter.com/validator and paste in your blog post url. click 'Preview Card' and it should pull correctly. Might take a minute, too as mine did the first time.

I've been sticking with Blogger for my personal / part-time consulting site. It's where I started and there's some nostalgia in there, I guess. There are more robust options out there, but it keeps working with some mods like this on occasion.

I do wonder though when might a major refit be coming with a WordPress, Squarespace or Wix style functionality.

We'll see.

Keep tinkering.

AP

#blogger #twitter #twitterValidator

Tourist Destinations

2020-05-18T09:48:00.001-04:00

Photo from Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN

Traveling to Venice in 2013... the crowds were overwhelming. I asked a local resident what it was like to live there.

There's no doubt that I struck a chord.

"Venitians, true Venetians, are now shit. Almost every house now, our beautiful homes, are being purchased from outside and chopped to apartments. So many of my friends, true Venitians are leaving because it is too crowded. They are tempted greatly to sell for money. Real jobs to make a living are harder to find. Businesses are being bought by investors who for hire part time jobs. Too many people come here who don't appreciate the beauty of Venice. It is a place to go, to check a list. Cheap tourist sale dominates our beautiful streets. Our city is suffering from so many people being here. A quality life to live here is no more. We are asked to do more and more, to keep up with overwhelming demand. This can not be sustained."

The heartache and frustration was just incredible to witness. The gentleman thanked me later for a "true conversation, 'gave me an enormous hug and held my hands while he thanked me.

I can't post the audio... as I don't have permission from the person or really any way to contact them at this point.

I've thought of this conversation so many times since, and it's part of my travel writing I'm still working on. Posting this here today came from reading this article from CNN this morning.

It's thought provoking, I hope. How much is the beauty and heritage of such places destroyed by the lust for commercialism and profit? Is there help for generational families stay in a historical area like this? What an be done? What should be done?

Always knocking it seems is the lust for more... more luxury, more excess, more stuff...

Convo snip of the day...

2020-05-13T16:28:00.001-04:00

Nan: What'd you do today?

Grandson: Nothing. I sat on my ass all day and watched movies.

Nan: That's ok. You can't really sit anywhere else.

Lol...

#GrandmotherLogic #CommonSense

Happy 30th, Hubble!

2020-04-26T12:49:00.001-04:00

The Hubble Telescope turned 30 FridayApril 24, 2020.

While isolating on Earth it's refreshing to look to the stars.

Check Nasa's image gallery on Flickr, 30 Images, 30 Years and the commemorative video on Nasa's Hubble site to take a trip.

Happy star gazing!

Um... No. Just. No.

2020-04-25T17:48:00.004-04:00

An actual headline story... trying to save lives.

It's hard not to laugh at this... but then you realize the President said this in a press conference:

“I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute. One minute. And is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning? Because you see it gets in the lungs, and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that."

Donald Trump.

Comedians and satirists must be approaching exhaustion at this point. Unfortunately, health care workers are, too..

The sad part... some may choose to follow the President's advice on this, just like the hydroxychloroquine fiasco.

Keep sayin' it... I fear this is just the beginning of crazy.

Happy Earth Day

2020-04-22T21:16:00.001-04:00

It's clear.

The relentless drive for more, for convenience at all cost, continued environmental abuse, and excess clearly isn't going to work out over time.

At least I hope we're in agreement on that.

The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing some positive change in the environment. Agreed that it's not the way anyone would prefer it happen, but still, it's having some positive effects.

But... the effects of so many being at home long term is evolving, too. Trash. Recycling. Sewage.

How will we respond? Business as usual or... a commitment to something better? Something sustainable?

What if we approached healing the Earth with the same resolve as the lust for growth and excess.

Just imagine? Or Real action?

There can be a bright future ahead.

Here's hoping.

I know a lot of kids who are counting on us.

#earthday

The News Pandemic

2020-04-08T10:58:00.000-04:00

Hannity. Rush. Dobbs. Ingraham. Pirro. Nunes. Tammy. Geraldo. Doocy. Hegseth. Schlapp. Siegel. Watters. Dr. Drew. Henry. Ainsley. Gaetz. Inhofe. Pence. Kudlow. Conway. Trump.

Today, we salute the Heroes of the Pandumbic. pic.twitter.com/35WLDgoHcf
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) April 3, 2020

"This might just do nobody any good."

Edward R. Murrow

Dangerous times.

The COVID-19 pandemic.

I'd offer we have a News pandemic, too. Have for some time.

The decay of true un-biased journalism is a deadly intellectual virus sweeping across the United States.

“To be persuasive we must be believable. To be believable, we must be credible. To be credible, we must be truthful.”

Edward R. Murrow.

To get my read on the world each morning I browse over BBC, NPR, CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, Washington Post, NY Times, LA Times and Huffington Post. I look at the bias in headlines and then seek to forage my own opinion.

I also read articles from The Guardian, Mother Jones, Vox, Reuters, Raw Story, Time and others.

... and I understand who owns news outlets.

I do glance at toward Fox News on occasion, mostly to see their severely slanted spin in comparison to virtually everyone else. I took 30 minutes today for the first time on a long time to watch a Fox News broadcast. Fox News is not journalism, rather a collection of editorial spin bent on conspiracy theory delivered like an anxiety laden soap opera. With an agenda.

I see more and more evidence that many news outlets seem to be following suit simply to respond to chaos and accusations. More outlets lean toward editorializing much of which is increasingly combative and laden with satire and sarcasm.

I get it. It's hard not to get caught up in heretical disregard for the truth or even intellectual discourse. The lust to spin opinion in place of fact is a dead-end road.

What if news outlets were truly impartial? Impossible when news outlets publicly endorse a candidate, a political party or set of social values... as fact.

Without a doubt, the President of the United States is also fueling this conspiracy theory madness, as are many of his most ardent supporters. Contradiction, double speak, identifying any fact presented if it contrasts with your current opinion as 'fake news.'

It all seems like a big contest with literacy and citizenship paying the price.

The Twitter clip above, a summary of the absurdity of polarizing rhetoric and then backtracking as if previous statements didn't exist, the constant barrage of conspiracy theory to spin a particular political agenda is void of scientific reason, and the truth.

What is the solution to this?

It's hard not to think of the effects of a decade or so of teaching to the test that lacked moral and ethical development and cast out intellectualism.

I can't help but think about the influence and growth of 'Reality TV' over the years. The bombardment of shallowness, boundless obsession with materialism excess and fashion, unrealistic body image, blindness to the state of affairs of the world in which we live, and a mind-numbing march of conjured conflict.

As I watch all of this happen, I keep thinking about Edward R. Murrow's famous speech to the RTNDA in 1954, and his legendary battle with Senator Joseph R. McCarthy at CBS News.

McCarthy made wild statements that lacked fact. He used the power of media to call people out, to shame them and cast doubt. Using a seat of political power to do so is so very dangerous.

Here's an excellent recent read called 'What Would Murrow Do?' by Dan Shelly, Executive Director of the RTDNA

"Murrow’s McCarthy exposé used film and audio clips featuring McCarthy himself, and then used responsible journalism, a/k/a facts, to point out the contradictions and half-truths the senator had uttered. He then put the onus on his viewers to examine the facts and reach their own conclusions, consistent with a statement he made on another occasion, under a wholly different set of circumstances, “A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves.”

Dan Shelly, Executive Director, RTDNA

Shelly points out:

"To be absolutely clear, my intention here is not to draw any equivalency between Senator McCarthy and President Trump. Rather, it is to wonder whether – or even if – having Edward R. Murrow around would have an impact on resolving the near complete breakdown of civil public discourse through which we suffer today."

How will this media trend evolve? Will incredibly biased journalism become more common place? Will 'opinion' and 'feeling' continue to march over fact?

How will, how can unbiased reporting reach more people?

Whatever the case, this media barrage of opinion vs fact is exhausting. And it's dangerous. The human condition continues to play out in front of us like the children on the island in Golding's 'Lord of the Flies.' Group up, create some conflict, feed and spin that conflict, that conspiracy theory and try to kill each other.

Back to that question, 'what's the solution to this?'

Perhaps schools. A push to teach about the impacts of social media and the news.

Perhaps news outlets. Ratings, competition, and ultimately money... doing some soul searching on how your message is truly impacting lives. Perhaps treating the news more objectively rather than a pep rally might help.
We can do better. I hope we can. Maybe a reset via some isolation, slowing down, readjusting priorities toward the human condition and the environment will replace the relentless lust for expansion.

To all the journalists out there hanging on to their integrity, doing unbiased, factual reporting based on expert analysis, may you get a raise and find some peace of mind that there are truly people out there listening.

To those pretending to be journalists sensationalizing spin for ratings, to those promoting your personal opinion and personal beliefs as 'the truth,' you are conjuring hatred and bias in the world.

CNN's new 'Facts First' approach is promising. But I hope it continues without polarizing editorializing. I hope, like some of the political satirists are doing, CNN and other news outlets put video clips side-by-side for people to see and evaluate.

In the meantime...

Promote the facts. Stand up against hate speech. Keep working to help people understand what citizenship and community really means.

Here's a summary of Murrow's speech that frames the great movie 'Good Night and Good Luck.'

Murrow spoke about the use of television then, which easily applies to both television and social media today.

Let the words sink in. Pass them on. It's been 66 years, 1954 - 2020, which is a long, long time we've had to make progress.

AP

Tips for Learning, Teaching or Working Online

2020-04-06T12:58:00.000-04:00

"It all seems like common sense, until you have to do it."

Shifting to working and learning, teaching and working online can be a difficult adjustment. Here are some tips I've learned in all three realms over the years.

Setting Up Work Environments is Key

Not everyone has an ideal environment to work online. Setting one up for yourself takes some thought, care, and is a great discussion topic with peers.

Couch, Bed and Floor Work? Lend some thought to:

the angles you are looking at a screen

what's happening with your shoulders

how your back is supported

angles that your hands and wrists are on the keyboard, trackpad or mouse

Slouching on a couch or a chair seems ideal at times, but
it's a challenge over time to your body. Check the angles and demands on your body, especially over time that cause stress.

Not everyone, especially when adjusting to a pandemic, has an isolated space to work. If common living spaces don't work try setting up on a desk or table in a bedroom. If you do, shut off the tech when it's downtime, perhaps even cover it up with a sheet when you are offline. Waking up to your desk in the line of sight isn't always an awesome feeling.

Changing Positions Helps
I change positions multiple times per day when I work at home. I'll often take more relaxed positions to do some reading or creative development work and more traditional desk positions to do production work, especially ones that involve repetitive motion by typing, mouse or drawing work.

Standing
I also work standing up at times, at a counter or by lifting my workspace with boxes or the like. I don't have a standing desk... but have worked at them and they are a great investment.

Lap Desk
There's quite a bit of research and opinion out there on the potential harm of setting a laptop on your legs for prolonged periods of time. Personally, I avoid it as much as possible. A board, a book, a lap desk of the like can help reduce the temp on your legs, allow the laptop to breathe and give you some piece of mind ; )

If you can use a porch or a deck, some steps, or even sit by an open window, get some sun and some fresh air, dive in! ; )

Hey, you're at home so move about! Stretch, sit on the floor, pushups, sit-ups... or just lie on the floor and take some stress off your body... but you might need to set an alarm though ; )

Working online can often extend into more hours and create stress on your hips, legs, back, neck, etc. Along with being active, take some time to stretch, walk, and care for yourself. If you are used to standing and moving about, sitting a lot can be challenging. Take some time to how your shoulders, wrists and your butt feels and make adjustments based on what you need.

Scheduling, Project Management and Sync vs Async Work

Project Management and Conjuring Artificial Deadlines
Does it really have to be done today? Is the deadline real or artificial? Can better project planning and some flexibility reduce stress? Emergency triage situations come up, but they often can be controlled. Set a schedule and pace that doesn't burn you out.

You know that time when you crush three hours of work in hour? If you do, you're likely familiar with the times when one hour of work takes three or more, too. If it's not syncing, take a break. Seek advice from a peer in an online chat or call them up. Do something to shift your focus. Grab a drink or a snack. Change your scenery. Give yourself a chance to have some social time. Adjust the deadline and give yourself some time to think something over. Pressing through might not be the answer. It's easy to forget all these normal tricks when you work from home.

Like project planning above, a huge part of working online is the discussion on synchronous vs asynchronous work. When does this work have to be done? Is it important for the person to be online during 'normal business hours' or can they adjust based on their schedule? One employer I worked with recently asked for help with two employees that were having a lot of trouble getting things done. Both employees, due to the pandemic, had moved home to work and also had young children learning online as well. I asked the owner to conjure up a discussion based on "how are you feeling?" and "what do you need.?" The interruptions both were experiencing during the day were staggering with young kids at home. One moved to evening and the other to 4 hours blocks at different times and the problem and stress went away. Moving work or learning to the time when it works best for the person might, and did solve the problem.

If you're teaching, and finding yourself used to or pushing for synchronous time with students... try a regular scheduled time once or twice a week and then allowing some flexibility with the work.

Multi-Tasking Biz
I won't address the great debate of multi-tasking here except to say, some focus helps me get things done. Social media feeds, videos, access to personal accounts in other browsers can distract you from getting work done.

Be Patient and Kind to Yourself
Working or learning online takes some skill development and patience, especially if you've never really done it before. Pushing harder isn't the answer. Set small goals. Learn. Reflect on what went well and what didn't. Think over how you feel and how your body is responding to the space you work in and make positive adjustments over time.

Go for a walk, eat lunch or take a short break without working. Set a time to work and then step away. It's easy to fall into the trap of working constantly when you're working online and get burned out.

Global Pandemic Life and Adjustments
I reminded a teacher recently "about that pandemic out there." They just needed to step back a bit and cool down. These are not normal times. Ramping things up takes time. It's easy for people to feel isolated, stressed, and have some depression. Adding stress isn't the answer.

Go big, stay home ; )

Break Things Up
Change things up. Get off the screen and exercise, cook something that usually takes too much time (like donuts!), play a game, read, draw, make something, clean out a closet or a junk drawer, get somethings ready to donate, make a new drink... or just listen to the outdoors. Doing nothing, yes actually nothing, is ok, too.

I love working online... but learning how took some time, and it changes with how I'm feeling and what I need. Listen inward ; )

Hoping that you stay safe and well.

AP

Listening to that Inner Voice

2020-03-04T07:40:00.000-05:00

Did some rain delay artwork at the 2018 VT Legion Baseball Championships ; )

Sitting with some coffee, listening to the dog snore at my hip, watching the trees blow and reflecting is a good way to start the day.

Spring is in the air.

For the first time since I was five... I won't be playing or coaching baseball this year. Thinking this through, even in the sabbatical I took in the Spring of 2013, I coached in the Summer season and then the All-Star tournament.

It's feeling a little weird at times not to be prepping at all for the upcoming season...
creating and updating player profiles to focus on areas to improve, reviewing team strengths and weaknesses and developing practice plans, building and updating scouting reports and trends on other teams and coaches, identifying areas to improve the youth programs, fundraising goals and schedules, planning field upgrades and renovations, writing college recommendations, etc. At other times though, more often than not the break from it all is feeling just fine.

For thirty years the 'official coaching season' began with high school baseball in mid-march, then a Summer season and then building an All-Star tournament team that carried into August. In reality though, the whole coaching season included Winter workouts each Sunday beginning in October, Fall baseball carried that into October, running coaching clinics, camps and year round fundraising filled up the 'offseason' each year.

My approach was immersive. I get that. I always felt the need to 'do baseball' that way. Immerse myself in it to find every opportunity to help each player and build a sustainable program, one with a community feel around the sport.

In the 2012 season I started to feel 'it'... the desire to take a step back and do other things. I stepped away from head coaching roles and reduced my work load somewhat with assistant coaching roles. I made the decision then that when my son was done with his youth baseball career - if the fates allowed, with high school and American Legion, I would be done coaching as well.

I've been redirecting all that prep time so far with reading, studying great artists and innovators, graphic art explorations, catching up with some old friends and... literally... taking a break. Long walks, dog time, exercise that's not 'squeezed in,' meditating, stretching, doing exercises to rejuvenate my shoulder after two surgeries and countless hours over the years of throwing batting practice, drawing, taking more time to eat and literally... doing 'nothing' sometimes. All the hours coming up that I used to dedicate to practices, games and travel will be more of the same... with some music and fabrication mixed in. It's time to get the guitar fixed and to get back to singing. It's time to take out the torches and building tools again, mix in some electronics, some programming, apply some artistry and have fun building some stuff.

I've turned down offers to help baseball programs, some tempting and some not so much - and I'm flattered for the opportunity, but it just feels right to step away.

I took great pride in helping kids learn to play, to love and appreciate the game and to build community in every way, shape and form around it. I have so many stories of kids heroics, how games turned for better or worse, incredible wins and losses, the joys and challenges of mentoring, parents - the good and the bad, and the great times with peers along the way and friendships that developed. I'm truly blessed to have had the opportunity and support.

A file cabinet of baseball coaching knowledge sits in the storage room here in the house. For now it'll just sit there. I've thought of mashing it together into a 'here's what I've found that works' type book or something, but there's tons of that material out there now and I'm not sure if revisiting it all has value to me at the moment. Perhaps it will in the future, we'll see. As I'm purging items on a path to minimalism we'll see what happens with all of it.

I've got some plans to go to some games with friends. You might see me pacing a bit. I might feel the itch when I see another coach or coaches let their players act poorly, when I see a coach hollering at a player with no instruction, or seeing the opportunity to seize a moment as a coach... applying a strategy to win a game. Regardless of whose playing, I'll be applauding great effort and skill all the time.

The dog is still snoring. Another cup of coffee is calling me for some reason, and then it's time for a walk and listen to the wind in the trees. Maybe some cardio work, maybe not.

Celebrate the work you've done, the success and failures, and embrace the need and desire to change and stay fresh and healthy. Listening to that inner voice is key.

Keep moving forward.

AP

Taking Time

2019-08-05T08:10:00.000-04:00

It's time to take some time. After a very interesting temporary gig with a startup company and wrapping up another Summer of coaching youth baseball, my last one - the 30th - I'm off to explore a couple innovative consulting and learning opportunities.

Makerspaces, research jaunts on some of the premier designer minds in the world, reading explorations, brainstorming ideas, and some think time on two projects I've been working on is on the radar. We'll see what else comes up along the way.

I plan to surface in early December. If you want to get in touch, please send me an email and I'll get back to you within a few days.

Keep moving forward...

Adam

Interdisciplinary Makerspaces in Education

2018-10-03T10:50:00.002-04:00

Is your school or collegiate makerspace 'interdisciplinary' or just another isolated class? Does it invite in community expertise and artistry? Does it host events?

Opening the doors to new ways of thinking and collaboration can reap huge rewards.

#makerspace #innovation #edtech #vted

Building Personalized Learning Plans and Blended Learning Opportunties

2018-06-02T13:29:00.001-04:00

Visual of Student Exploration Projects in One Semester.

I've been reading a lot of great Twitter chats lately about building Personalized Learning Plans and Blended Learning opportunities.

I started on those paths back in 1995 by building a Student Help Desk program at South Burlington High School and then dove in full steam as a teacher in 2005 at Burr and Burton Academy in the development of the rLab project until 2013. Students chose their own projects in the lab and it led to incredible results, growth, and challenges to traditional academic constructs. In many ways, it was ahead of its time. My explorations on the two threads continue to this day.

Here's a look under the hood of the rLab at Burr and Burton Academy where this work really took off, lists of topics students explored and more about the paths that developed.

I've learned a lot about creating and building these opportunities, the challenges they bring to traditional 'school' practice, assessment strategies therein, incredible project archiving options, promoting student voice and leadership, demonstrations of learning through meaningful portfolios, making and maintaining community and mentorship connections, and mentoring teachers in these practices. I continue to take consulting jobs on these topics (and others) to help K-12 schools and higher education institutions innovate, build systems, and train teachers in personalized learning. Let me know if I can help.

Keep moving forward... ; )

Unity VR, AR... and 'Innovation'

2018-05-11T14:02:00.001-04:00

'Innovation' can be an overused word. How do you define 'innovation?' How does your school or business define it?

I've always promoted the development of and thrived in 'innovation labs' as places to get things started. You know, places where you try new things, new approaches, new ways to design, think and explore challenges and ideas. My house at various times is an innovation lab, and I've built a few in education.

The trick is moving innovation out into the routine. Even if it improves practice or opportunities, sometimes it can meet resistance.

I've been experimenting with VR and AR lately... and in an exploration setting, there's a lot of great things to dive into in this field. I've chosen Unity3D on this front (free for the hobbyist, education, personal use).

What schools and businesses have 'true' innovation labs? Are they isolated or based in rich collaborative practices?

How can VR and AR be used to reimagine... the places we live, problems we need to solve, new ways to visualize something, or how we work?

Opening new doors takes time-tested and new approaches. There are new ways to visualize things, experiment, and collaborate. How do you or your workplace dive into 'ideation?'

Build new opportunities. Keep moving forward. Keep learning. Never know what might evolve.

Rethinking Community Service Day in Schools

2018-05-04T13:11:00.001-04:00

I've been thinking about 'community building' quite a bit lately, more so than usual.

I ran into a friend who's in her 10th year of teaching yesterday, and when I asked her how things were going, she talked about, as many k-12 educators often do... 'triage.' Events and initiatives were piled on, and budgets fell to cuts again, key support positions riffed, PD time was scarce and dominated by initiatives, and then she dove into a description of her schools recent 'community service day.'

She said that faculty was asked to plan activities in the community, kids signed up, and the entire school marched out on one day to do community service work. Projects ranged from yard work, a lot green up efforts, to scientific testing, to nature walks, and bike tours. I asked her how 'bike tours' helped build a sense of community... and she laughed. Kids, she described, often loathed the activities as busy work and 'free labor' and she was worried they lacked connection in real and meaningful ways. Then, after one day, community service was over.

What if 'building community' was a grade level theme... all year?

The concept of grade level themes was introduced to me from the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia about eight years ago. For each grade classes at SLA are driven by theme focused lenses:

9th: Identity
10th: Systems
11th: Change
12th: Creation

So, if you're a 9th grader, every class, math, science, humanities, art, etc., is exploring 'Identity' as a theme to focus academics into something meaningful to kids lives. The result, especially in a project-based and inquiry-driven school, is that the students make meaningful connections to their place in the world.

What if a school used 'building community' as a project lens to focus every academic course and outreach project together at one grade level? What if teachers got a whole year of PD time to plan? What connections would people make? What academic disciplines could work together instead of functioning in their silo? What could students gain by knowing who is working in their community, in what jobs, and more about the area history and needs?

Schools can be robust community centers. It just requires thinking differently. Changing some thought paradigms about silos in education, about the school as a citadel, about one and done type activities - to check off on a list, can help connect kids, families, and communities on much deeper levels.

#vted #education #communitybuilding

Work-Life Balance: It's your ship.

2018-03-09T21:38:00.000-05:00

I got an email from a former student asking if I had time to talk this morning. After we agreed on a time and connected, I could hear immediately they were pretty tense.

After a bit of catch up time, personal details aside, he said he'd been in a new job for five months, on salary, and has been routinely asked to work over 80 hours a week 'to get the job done.' He'd been asked to work weekends, come in for meetings as early as 5 am, and stay late at the drop of a hat, sometimes as late as 1 am.  Messages came in related to work 24/7 with expectations for 'timely response.' He also said he'd been asked to travel spontaneously with overnights four times so far with less than 24 hours notice. No matter how late you stay apparently, employees are asked to be at work the next day on-time at 8 am, no matter what the circumstances. The pay, he relayed, could be considered slightly above average for their position, but by no means would it be considered extraordinary or even exceptional. He said the office has some modern trends: a ping pong table, free coffee, free sandwiches and salads on Friday's, and free 15-minute employee massages in-house once per month.

I asked how he was doing and if he loved the work. "I did," he said. "But, I'm burning out. I can't get away from it and take a break at this pace. I feel exhausted every single day. By the time I do get a few hours off, I don't feel like doing anything. I have no time to see my wife and son or friends. I haven't done anything for so long except come home, eat and sleep. Things are getting tense at home because I'm literally never there to do anything."

He said it all hit wall recently because he requested a total of four hours off last week to bring his five-year-old son to two dentist appointments and was told he had to file and take CTO (Combined Time Off) to do so. Taking this time, he explained, means less vacation, later on, something he already feels he sorely needs because of burnout.

Then he asked what advice I had for him.

I asked him if he had any mentors at work. "What?" he replied. I asked if he'd been assigned any mentors at work, someone he could talk to about challenges in this new positions, expectations, if their take on if this was normal, etc. "No,'" he responded. "Someone showed me the ropes of my job for about a week, where to find things, where files go, and training on one application we use, but nothing like you're talking about."

I reminded him that in five months of employment, he'd worked over ten months already - "you've doubled your hours per week, each week, for five months."

I shared some of my trials over the years. I wish I could say I've always managed work-life balance well in my career, but I haven't.  It's a constant juggling act. I've worked myself to the point of exhaustion a few times and also crossed that threshold twice over 25 years and into health problems. I decided in a couple of those instances to 'press on' and slowly make the adjustments I needed to restore work-life balance. In a couple of others, I felt it was just necessary to move on because stress/dysfunction and 'end game' didn't make sense. In all those cases, 'real' mentorship programs were non-existent and left me thinking how valuable they could have been to change the culture.

So I gave him the following advice: "Strike up a conversation with a peer who's been there for a bit, explain your question, and ask how they address these issues. Leave the stress out of it, just stay factual. It'll help you gain some perspective. Then talk to your supervisor and explain your situation and circumstances. Ask them to clarify their stance on your question and see what they say. If the answer remains to take CTO time to bring your child to the dentist, and 'do whatever it takes to do your job,' as in 80+ hours per week, and 24/7 availability, then analyze the end game.

End-game, meaning, 'what are you getting out of this and what's the projection of how this will play out over time?' That will likely lead to three options: 1. You love the money and think it's worth it as long as you can put up with it. 2. You love the job, see this demand as temporary, and that it will or can improve. 3. Endure it for the time being and it'll give you time to start polishing your resume and move on if you don't want to live this way.

I often think of the mentorship programs I saw available to new teachers when I was in New Zealand. You taught with a mentor in year one, were mentored half-time in year two, and then in year three were turned loose. Faculty, department, and mentor meetings were part of the weekly culture no matter what year you were in and the school schedule was built to promote this level of collaboration. I interviewed more than 25 teachers, a small but effective sample group over many schools; I didn't meet a single person who didn't think this type of mentorship program was instrumental to success, teacher retention, and overall creativity. In all, they felt the program led to less burnout, better collaboration and camaraderie, and improvements in instruction and services to students. Go figure.

In a high percentage of schools and businesses I've worked with, ongoing mentorship programs, save a bit of training at the onset, didn't exist.

What if we valued mentorship programs more readily in schools and businesses? What dividends can bloom from a robust mentorship program?

Mining people's well being, their health, and destroying their family lives won't lead to more productive employees or, I'd dare say, a functional society, company or school in the long run. The perks of a ping pong table, free coffee, or 15-minute massages for employees once per month might not compensate for the dysfunction that brews at home from working two full-time jobs, the mental and physical health challenge of being on call 24/7 and disconnecting from your home life.

We all hear stories about 'the corporate life.' More, faster, and sacrificing nearly any and all personal time for 'the work you love.'  It's a choice, really. That's all it is.

I know people who work two full-time jobs or close to it just to make ends meet. Some work incredible hours because it's truly, what they love to do and are able to find some balance in the immersive hours that 'floats their boat.' Some others I know commit to this schedule by choice banking on the financial rewards later on. Some others still who work part-time, cover their expenses, and explore more freedom. One thing is for certain though, the weather patterns will change. Choices of how to live, how much you spend, and what 'bs' you can and are willing to put up with are all important considerations. Your mental and emotional health are important to monitor. Burnout won't help you or anyone in your life. Regardless, it all comes down to a series of analysis, reflection, and charting a course.

The demands will keep coming. The changes will keep coming. It's up to you to decide how much rough weather your ship can take, how much sail to put up based on the wind, which direction to go, set a course, and grab the rudder.

Inventing, Reinventing, Sustainability... and Leadership

2018-01-08T14:48:00.000-05:00

I've helped a lot of schools and districts explore this question:

"What's not working?"

...and then:

"Why isn't it working?"

When things get busy though, it's easy to ignore those simple questions and go into triage mode for long periods of time.

Identify the most pressing, recurring problems the organization has by talking with people. I find that strong themes always emerge from those conversations.

Take that data and map it out.

Take the top item and then explore the root cause of that problem.

The root cause.

Then dive into fixing it. Set things in motion. One. Problem. At. A. Time.

It's amazing how quickly a pile of problems can disappear, how much morale can improve, and how it can open the doors to new growth.

That's how you grow. That's how you gain momentum and inspire collaboration. That's how you build trust. That's how you inspire a 'keep moving forward' mindset and avoid stagnation. That's how you open the doors to innovation.

Then repeat that process as you keep growing. Don't grow stagnant in current routine or knowledge. As innovation changes things, process and operations must be reviewed again and again.

If schools continue to grow... so must the mechanisms and roles within them. Constantly.

Leaders need support to do this work. Without that support... ills will linger. Morale will drop. Support systems will get stressed. Core values and mission will drift, and innovation... will become just 'another thing to do' and so much potential will be lost.

#vted #education #business #growth

Charlie Wilson

2017-12-14T17:59:00.001-05:00

I'm so sad to learn that my friend and colleague at VITA-Learn, Charlie Wilson, passed away yesterday.

Over the last 25 years, I've admired Charlie's tireless advocacy for students, innovation, and creativity in schools.

Charlie's been a mentor to countless people in Vermont education over many decades. All Charlie's work was threaded with genuine compassion.

I found myself laughing, just once today, as I remembered...

Charlie joked with me a few years ago that not hiring me back in 1993 for a Network Administrator position at Shelburne Community School was one of the worst mistakes he ever made in education. I told him "if that's the worst mistake you ever made, you've done really well over the years." I'll never forget how he laughed that day, and how fun it was to listen to the stories that followed about his paths in education, the triumphs, the trials, and the ideas he was still hoping to work on.

I had another great conversation with Charlie this past November at VT Fest. As usual, he was full of ideas and bouncing new ones about what we could do to expand learning opportunities for kids.

Rest in peace, Charlie. Thanks for all your work here, kindness, friendship, and innovative spirit.

We're going to miss you here.

Student Voice and Real Publishing

2017-12-12T18:03:00.001-05:00

I get often asked what blog platform is best for students, and why I chose Blogger for this website.

As for what blog/web platform is best for students... I think that depends on what age group we're talking about.

Evaluating what your schools 'Digital Policy,' whatever schools call it at your site, says is worthwhile. Many schools haven't updated these docs in a while, and quite a few others I've read are, well, insanely restrictive.

Here's the rub, I think... promoting kids, especially high school kids, to publish their work to a real audience in blogs/websites.

In our work in the rLab from 2005 - 2013, students created 'real' blogs to showcase their work. It was a meaningful portfolio of their work, resume, professional website... and story. Publishing to a worldwide audience rather than creating a portfolio jammed with work they would throw away when they graduated always made sense to me... and to students. Students had platform choice in the lab, and most students chose WordPress.

'Real' blogging for students created natural interdisciplinary threads to explore. Theme/s, layout, visual, writing, featured content, audio, video... it's a long list all centered around design and finding a voice.

I read a post on this topic from Audrey Watters a couple years ago about called The Web We Need to Give to Students, and, like all of her writing, it's well worth a read. I wish more High Schools, Technical Centers, and Colleges / Universities would follow suit.

So... why did I choose Blogger for creativeStir?

Bluntly, it was a quick solution way back in the day. For basic functions, post and make a page type stuff, it works well, but it certainly has limitations. Blogger shares it's login under the Google Apps umbrella which I still find convenient, and it's mobile app back in the day worked quite well. I've learned some workarounds to increase Blogger capability, but it still isn't pretty, or a modern publishing platform by any means. I used Blogger for the Vermont State Baseball Coaches Association for all the same reasons. WordPress and other platforms have always far outmatched Blogger capabilities. I loved helping students learn to support each other using WordPress.

WordPress was the ticket for work at VITA-Learn, conference websites for Dynamic Landscapes and VT Fest, and for Burlington Technical Center.

Here's an updated rundown of the basic differences between Blogger and WordPress rather than rehash it here.

I'll move creativeStir from Blogger to WordPress at some point. It's time. Actually, it's been the for a while, but I haven't made it a priority.

So back to that Ed portfolio discussion...

What if schools revisited how they are asking students to 'present' their learning? What are your thoughts about each student could benefit from their own website/domain?

#vted #education

Tim Comolli

2017-12-08T11:27:00.000-05:00

I received word yesterday that my dear friend, mentor, and educator extraordinaire, Tim Comolli, passed away.

Tim was an innovator, a pioneer in education and student mentorship. His work in the Imaging Lab at South Burlington High School here in Vermont, the awards and grant writing are all eloquently recapped here by Sandy Lathem far better than I could.

I've spent countless hours seeking Tim's council and friendship over the years. We spent a lot of time... laughed, cried, talked through our faults, and counseled each other on the difficulties of innovating in education, especially in public education.

Tim helped me immeasurably over my career and life. He encouraged me to follow my heart and teach full time. His jovial personality, hearty and infectious laugh and radio voice were only outmeasured by the genuine compassion that came through in every conversation. I gained strength and perspective from his insight, humor and generosity, endlessly.

I couldn't count the number of times I left Tim's office, lab, or home with my sides aching from laughing so much.

Since I got this news... I've been reading again the countless emails and handwritten thank you cards Tim has sent me over the last 20 years. It's a recipe to laugh, cry, and above all... I'm so profoundly sad that these times with Tim have now come to pass.

Tim used this footer at the end of every email he sent, and it speaks volumes I think about his life.

"For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see,

Saw a vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be..."

-Tennyson

I'll miss our talks about life, my old friend. I'll miss seeing the joy in your face when I tell you about my kids. I'll miss talking about education, the future, and how our past shaped our lives. I'll miss our debates on where the best pizza is these days in the area, and hearing what movies really taxed all the speakers in your house.

Rest in peace, Tim. Thanks for your friendship, kindness, and all your innovative work here.

We've all been so very fortunate to have you in our lives.

What's Your Message?

2017-11-16T22:46:00.000-05:00

Building Better Ideas...

through ideation.

Building possibilities = building learning.

It's about more than posting information with tools.

It's about...

... people.

... listening.

... collaborating.

... exploring connections.

... storytelling.

... showing people hope.

What can you offer in your message that inspires curiosity?

Be brief.

I love exploring these challenges.

Love it.