Thinking Out Loud...

We are not Waiting for Superman, We are Empowering Superheroes

Sat, 25 Sep 2010 21:15:00 -0700

Today, given the lower cost and greater ubiquity of digital media and personal devices, the opportunity to create new tech-enabled experiences that improve learning is greater than ever.

And, so is the responsibility. When 30% of high school students drop out in America (as high as 50% in some urban centers) but 93% of them are online, the need to reach these kids wherever they are, whenever they need it, with whatever tools they use is more important than ever.

via startl.org

Great stuff, from Diana Rhoten.

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Good-bye Printed Dictionaries, Hello Increased Sales?

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:38:07 -0700

LONDON (AP) - It weighs in at more than 130 pounds, but the authoritative guide to the English language, the Oxford English Dictionary, may eventually slim down to nothing. Oxford University Press, the publisher, said Sunday so many people prefer to look up words using its online product that it's uncertain whether the 126-year-old dictionary's next edition will be printed on paper at all.

The digital version of the Oxford English Dictionary now gets 2 million hits a month from subscribers, who pay $295 a year for the service in the U.S. In contrast, the current printed edition _ a 20-volume, 750-pound ($1,165) set published in 1989 _ has sold about 30,000 sets in total.

via ksl.com

This is the first time I remember seeing a major player like this admit that online resources are bringing in more revenue than traditional media.

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Influencing the Influencer

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 22:04:26 -0700

The competition for attention is focused on social networks as brands vie for awareness and consideration. Establishing a presence in Facebook and Twitter is as necessary as it is trivial. In the great social land grab, many organizations are missing true opportunities to connect with the fifth P of the marketing mix, people. It’s less about communicating with those individuals who are already following you online and more about those who aren’t.

To excel in social media, engagement has its rewards but it is through the acts of recognition, empowerment and reward that advocacy extends a brand’s reach across social graphs and social networks, online and in the real world.

via briansolis.com

What does this look like in schools; and can this help me become a better educator?

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Leadership Day 2010

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 21:53:08 -0700

via dangerouslyirrelevant.org

Wondering what leaders in the field of education are currently thinking? This year's list is larger than ever and full of a wide range of excellent posts, written be leaders in the field that have learned that one of the simplest ways to extend kne's sphere of influence is to simply link to others while posting to a blog.

If you're a "leader" in education, then what are you waiting for? (And it sure beats watching TV!)

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Innovators or Cheapskates?

Sat, 14 Aug 2010 07:53:30 -0700

via s3.amazonaws.com

Does this graphic illustrate that North America is lacking in innovation or spending more on research and development?

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Enhancing Teachers’ Take-up of Digital Content - Further Evidence of Intrinsic Barriers to Technology Integration

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 16:26:59 -0700

The Enhancing_Teacher_Takeup_of_Digital_Content_Report commissioned by Education Services Australia (a merger between Curriculum Corporation and Education.au) and written by Professor Michael Gaffney has recently been published.

The Executive Summary explains:

Although digital uptake in schools is increasing, many teachers do not use technology in their classroom.

via slav.globalteacher.org.au

While at ISTE this year, I met an IT Director from Australia that was in a school that had been using laptops with their students for the last 14 years. He mentioned that in spite of his students having such open access to computers, his number one problem was getting his school's teachers to use the technology.

This document alone illustrates that there are multiple factors at play - multiple barriers to technology integration - and sometimes bridging the digital divide requires more than just money and equipment. At times, the largest barriers are those caused by deep philosophical convictions maintained by teachers and school administrators alike.

I'm interested to see how well the recommendations made in the "Enhancing Teacher Takeup" document serve to improve the pedagogical use of technology in Australian schools.

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A Dropout Epidemic

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:11:02 -0700

via datavis.tumblr.com

If I'm reading this right, then it looks like you get what you pay for.

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Is a 'School of One' What Kids Really Need? Well, It Depends.

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:00:28 -0700

What if, instead of casting a wide net over the classroom and hoping to reach as many children as possible, we tailored our teaching towards student's individual learning style?

That’s the idea behind the 'School of One,' an after-school math pilot program at I.S. 339, a middle school in the South Bronx. The focus of an article in the July/August issue of The Atlantic, School of One uses an algorithm that weighs each student’s learning preferences and academic needs and creates a lesson plan that’s updated daily. The classroom is divided into stations designed to target the same skill set using different modalities, from teacher demonstrations to virtual tutoring and online learning programs. Each child is allowed to use the station that most appeals to his learning style and maximizes understanding and engagement.

Launched as a summer program in 2009, the experiment posted a 28 percent improvement between the beginning and end of the program before moving to I.S. 339, where a tech-savvy principal set on boosting student scores went wireless and gave every student access to a laptop. The program is set to expand into the regular math curriculum of three pilot schools next year.

via education.change.org

Mix this with additional curriculum that emphasizes face to face social interaction and I'm sold.

Otherwise I think the 'School of One' concept will only succeed at creating a citizenry incapable of looking each other square in the eye.

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America's Best High Schools: The FAQ - Newsweek

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 18:49:10 -0700

To send a student off to college without having had an AP, IB, or Cambridge course and test is like insisting that a child learn to ride a bike without ever taking off the training wheels. It is dumb, and in my view a form of educational malpractice. But most American high schools still do it. I don't think such schools should be rewarded because they have artificially high AP or IB passing rates achieved by making certain just their best students take the tests.

via newsweek.com

I agree with this statement and with minimal effort could be persuaded that even students that aren't college-bound should be required to take an AP course/test to expose them to some of the rigors of college. Especially if we're serious about preparing students to be college/career ready.

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Another Nice View from The Office Today

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 05:59:18 -0700

I feel bad for those that don't get to see mountains like these every day.

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My initial impressions of the iPad

Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:06:24 -0700

Well, after three hours on the thing, here they are:

- This thing is designed for reading, reading, reading. The NY Times and USA Today app make the Kindle feel like kindy-garten.

- Typingnon thfis thing is a horrinle experience. Yesterday on Twitter I said that I thought that because of the iPad, we were seeing the beginning of the end of keyboarding instruction as we know it. I was wrong. Give me the liberty of my keyboard or give death.

- As bad as typing on this thing can be, working with NO MOUSE is equally delightful. Fast and furious, but with lots of...

- Fingerprints, fingerprints, fingerprints.

- Man, I hope I don't drop this thing!

- I look forward to messing with the Pages and Numbers apps, but think the whole "save your files by emailing them to yourself" idea seems weak (and yes, I'm wary of using iTunes to manage my file sharing). Crossing my fingers that the whole experience turns out better than I'm imagining it.

- The Netflix app: Better than Bit Torrent and legal-er, too.

- It's a big iPod. Really. But the big screen and improved apps are huge.

- The new Mail app is decent, Safari rocks, and the Calendar app seems to be worth it's weight in fingerprints.

- If you're really buying into the whole "there's 150,000 apps out there already in the App Store for your iPad" idea, then you'd better get used to this kind of view.

Yeah, you can enlarge the screen, but then it's pixelated. The good news, though, is that apps are being ported over in droves. I can't wait for Tweetie, reQall, Simplenote and Icy Escort. :-)

- All in all, I'm excited to get this into the kids' hands. Can't you hear it now?

"Teacher... When don we get to play with the big iPods?"

Until next time...

Sent from my iPhad

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I don't think blocking networked learning in our schools is an option. #ut-tcc

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 14:35:39 -0800

Today I heard far too many IT Directors from within our state brag about how locked down their school networks are. What follows is a portion of my response:

Because there is so much learning occuring outside our schools with networked technologies, what can we - as institutions of learning - offer students when we choose to block the avenues for learning with which they're already so familiar? A "better" way to learn? A "more significant and accurate" manner in which their learning is assessed? A first-hand view of the same educational experiece their parents once shared?

Yawn.

I think many of our youth would quickly agree that most of the so- called "better approaches to learning" that don't involve technology feel frustratingly similar to trading today's jet airliner for their (great great) grandfather's horse and buggy. Sure, it's great to experience the feel and smell of the horse, but not when you've seriously got somewhere to fly!

Ironically, if we don't learn to incorporate social networking technologies better into our schools' instructional processes, the only eventual use most of our students will have for school is the venue our campuses can provide to build the personal (and very much networked) connections that can be forged through meeting with peers in the same geographic location. Athletics, extra curricular activities, and special programs will become the central curriculum in any school that doesn't leverage social technologies because core skills can be more quickly and conveniently learned elsewhere.

For these and other reasons, I don't think blocking networked learning in our schools is a viable option.

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The Remaining Purposes of Blogging

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:10:00 -0800

I agree and disagree with Stephen:

I agree with the pundits, blogging isn't really about conversation any more. There was a time when it would have been interesting to map the links from one blog to the next to the next. Now they hardly link to each other at all. Blogging is now more about self-promoters, marketing, news, and some personal reflection. It's not all bad, and it remains pretty much the only place to find a decent thought longer than 140 characters.

via downes.ca

First, I think that recent discussions about open education - complete with traditional cross-linking - demonstrate clearly that blogging still functions as platform for open conversation. How effective that conversation remains is unclear. However, it IS open - and anyone that wants to participate CAN.

Second, I think that Twitter - and particularly those discussions that include the #edchat hash-tag - have replaced blogging in many regards when it comes to genuine conversation about topics important to educators globally. If you haven't participated in the conversation there, I think you should. Definitely eye-opening.

Third, I agree completely with Stephen when he says that blogging is now "more about self-promoters, marketing, news, and some personal reflection." It could be argued that these have always been the motives of bloggers, but I'll be among the first to admit that it really does feel different now. I don't know if it's the size of the population and I don't know that it's bad. Just different.

With this in mind, I wonder if there's still value in having teachers share resources, ideas, and methods through blogging. Seeing Dan question the platform was sure surprising. Because, in a very real sense, he's right. Blogging might not be the right platform for teaching others about the (healthy) lifestyle and technique he's acquired/developed. With so many teachers at so many different levels of proficiency, it can be tough for newcomers to jump in mid-stream.

Nevertheless, how else might Dan - or great teachers like him - reach an audience so specialized, so easily, and so often?

Yes, I have lots of questions. Just thinking out loud.

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Two questions that can change your life

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 13:40:00 -0800

via vimeo.com

Great stuff by Daniel Pink. The two questions:

What's your sentence?
Was I better today than yesterday?

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Splitting a District with Minimal Adverse Student Impact

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:58:26 -0800

In speaking with one of our secondary Principals this morning I was presented with a refreshing piece of information. In his opinion, we have successfully met our primary goal of splitting the district without adversely affecting the students.

We’ve gone through this split now and I would bet that 99% of my students haven’t noticed any difference.

He did mention how a few of the hiccups we’ve experienced with our Student System (Skyward) have negatively impacted a small percentage of his student population, but that all in all he was extremely pleased. I would add that yes, some of our issues with Skyward have been both major and unfortunate.

That said, you wouldn’t believe:

· How much work it has taken behind the scenes to transition as a district

· How relieved it makes me feel to hear a Principal make such an assessment

I know I may be naïve, but I think we’re actually getting there – one small step at a time.

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Further elaboration for @jonbecker & @jethrojones: This I Believe

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 21:33:00 -0800

Building upon this and this, I believe:

Thinking is important.
Writing is thinking.
Writing is important.
Sometimes I write better than I speak.
Sometimes I speak better than I write.
All teachers should reflect.
I am a teacher.
Some reflections are easier to write than others.
Some tools make writing very easy.
Posterous is one of them because email is nearly everywhere I go.
Therefore, I can share.
Sharing can lead to collaboration.
Collaboration can lead to innovation.
Innovation is great.
We should be modeling how to think.
We should be modeling how to innovate.
We should be modeling how to learn how to learn.
Even though these "blogs" serve as a locker for my thoughts, I really do value others' feedback.
I like to think of my writing online as a gut-check for my thoughts: an international think-tank: an asynchronous classroom for anyone interested.
I wish every teacher felt the same way (my kind of invention session!).
I still wish every teacher felt the same way.
I still wish every teacher felt the same way.
But conversations that take place online should never supersede the conversations (that had better be) taking place in our homes, classrooms, and schools.
Face to face personal should always trump online profession.
Priorities are important.
Timing can be everything.
I love to learn and am extremely grateful for the opportunities I've had to improve, reflect, grow, and help others.
I love to think.
Thinking is important.

That's all I have to say about that.

At least for now. :)

So what do you believe?

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Time Shifting and Professional Development

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 08:54:32 -0800

Joel Stein:

Interested in talking more about my theory, I used my landline to call Sherry Turkle, an MIT professor of the social studies of science and technology. She told me people are not only uninterested in Skype, we're also not interested in talking on the regular phone. We want to TiVo our lives, avoiding real time by texting or e-mailing people when we feel like it. "Skype, which was the fantasy of our childhood, gets you back to sitting there and being available in that old-fashioned way. Our model of what it was to be present to each other, we thought we liked that," she said. "But it turns out that time shifting is our most valued product. This new technology is about control. Emotional control and time control." You'd be shocked by how many times two people talking on the phone about people not wanting to talk on the phone have to tell each other they're enjoying their conversation.

via time.com

In thinking about teacher professional development, I wonder if time shifting really is the holy grail - or is the ability to bring in outside participants, regardless of geography, a more valued feature provided by technological advancements.

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Priorities

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 07:57:00 -0800

Doug Johnson:

Whose job do you do first? Some nominees:

the person who signs your timesheet/does your evaluation

the person who is always in your face

the person who brings you doughnuts of appreciation

the administrator of the building

the teacher in front of a class depending on the technology

the student needing to complete an assignment

first come/first served (chronological)

quick easy-to-solve problems first; big time consuming ones later

And I suppose you could ask the same question about the person who gets put on the bottom of the work order pile:

the never-satisfied

the hopelessly unskilled/uninformed

the abrasive

How about it? How should technicians prioritize their tasks?

via doug-johnson.squarespace.com

Great questions. After more than 10 years of providing tech support for schools, I wish I knew the right answer here.

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Statistics of Incarcerated Individuals

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 07:12:28 -0800

Focus your attention on this…

According to the information being distributed to all volunteer personnel at the Utah State Prison, the following statistics apply to their population of incarcerated individuals:

· Average age – 29.5 years

· 50% - Income below $10,000

· 70% - Functionally illiterate (below a 4^th grade level equivalency in math, reading, and language skills)

· 66% - Have a violent history

· 51% - Currently serving time for violence

· 80% - Substance abusers

· 95% - Will eventually be released

· 90% - Male

Another interesting statistic that was frequently referenced is how 54% of inmates were functionally illiterate high school graduates.

There’s definitely something wrong with this picture.

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What Might the Future Bring?

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:41:00 -0800

Allan Collins and Richard Halverson in their book Rethinking Education in the Age of Technology:

If educators cannot successfully integrate new technologies into what it means to be a school, then the long identification of schooling with education, developed over the past 150 years, will dissolve into a world where the students with the means and the ability will pursue their learning outside of public school.

First, I don't really buy it - at least further than how students with the means and ability today are *already* pursuing learning outside of public education.

Should educators figure out how to integrate future technologies into education? Of course - to improve the learning experience. But even if they fail to transform schools into the technological marvels many crave, within the next ten years students and their parents will continue to gravitate toward public schools because of their roles and trusted functionality in teaching skills not addressed in the core: i.e., civic literacy, moral uprightness, integrity, respect, and the importance of maintaining high levels of social capital - skills not easily taught through a reliance on technological works of wonder (not to mention athletics and the level of extracurricular activities only available in public schools).

Should these skills and values be taught in the home? Yes. But sadly, in even some of the best cases, such duties are modernly delegated to the public school teacher.

Further insight into my soul (and why I constantly question the motives of contemporary educators). Just thinking out loud here, feel free to set me straight.

- - -

Quote via Will Richardson.

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