I have converted the static webpage version of “My Pedagogic Creed” to a Wiki version. By using a wiki to make edits and changes to my own pedagogic creed, changes and revisions to these ideas can be easily accessed and compared. My version is based on John Dewey’s slightly more famous version.
Archive for December, 2005:
Habits of Mind
It is amazing how web 2.0 interactive dialog facilitated by hyperlinks can create pathways for creative inquiry. Thanks to a blog comment by Jim McNelis and his reference to a post by Tom Hoffman on “Any Future Problem Solving Alumni Out There?” I found Essential School’s page for “Habits of Mind” today. According to Ted
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Presentation Simplicity
In his blog post “Gates, Jobs, & the Zen aesthetic,” Garr Reynolds highlights differences between the presentation styles of technology gurus Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Reynolds includes the following quotation to support his ideal of simplicity in presentation style from Dr. Koichi Kawana: Simplicity means the achievement of maximum effect with minimum means. In
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Bringing the American Revolution to life
On our current holiday vacation, our family has been immensely enjoying the book “1776″ by David McCullough on audio CD. I have studied the American Revolution in the past, of course, but had not heard most of the stories McCullough recounts about soldiers, citizens, and leaders on both sides of the battle lines in Boston,
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Ararat, Armenian Genocide, and Student Research
Several weeks ago I watched the fairly complex and engaging film “Ararat.” If you see it on DVD, I recommend you also watch the director’s commentary to learn a great deal more about the film and its point of view. The movie is not really about Mount Ararat, but about the Armenian genocide which took
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Leadership Vision Key for 1:1 Success
I received an email this week from Tom LeCloux, who was a high school principal for over thirty years and intensely involved in the 1:1 laptop immersion project at Oak-Land Junior High School in Lake Elmo, Minnesota. Tom’s message reinforces what I have observed, echoed, and heard previously from leaders like Angus King. Oak-Land’s laptop
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VPN Speed Hits and Himachi (Hamachi)
It is really important to use a VPN connection to secure the information (including usernames and passwords) that your computer sends out when you use a public WiFi hotspot or hotel wired-Internet connection. Here in Pagosa Springs, Colorado at the Holy Grounds Coffee Shop, I am getting a pretty decent download speed without a VPN
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2nd rejected TechEdge article
For the second time this fall, the Texas Computer Education Association has rejected an article I have written and submitted about educational technology. I have been a regular columnist for TCEA since the fall of 1997, with an article published in every issue of the TechEdge (37 articles to date.) These are all archived online
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Dog Noses
I love dogs. And for some reason, I think some photos I have seen and taken in the past of dog noses are really funny. I saw tonight that Flickr has a new “cluster” feature where you can see tons of photos of dog noses. Cool!
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Can’t lawyers find anything better to do?
This is really ridiculous. Can’t our society do something to curb the financial incentives which exist for lawyers to pursue ridiculous cases? I would much rather see these people actually doing something VALUABLE with their lives rather than making headlines like this. According to today’s Business Week article, “Wikipedia: “A Work in Progress”: …on Dec.
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Laptops as sustaining tech in Virginia
The December 1, 2005 article “The Digital Divide: Some teachers use the laptops every day; others call them ‘expensive paperweights’ from Alexandria, Virginia reveals that most reported uses of the laptops by teachers and students involve “sustaining” rather than “disruptive” technology use. The article author heralds students being able to research online, and cites critics
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South Dakota Laptop Initiative Proposed
According to the December 7, 2005 article “Can Schools Afford Governor’s Laptop Program?” South Dakota governor Mike Rounds is pushing for a statewide laptop initiative for every 9th – 12th grader. Apparently at this stage, districts could opt-out of the program, which I think would be a mistake. I agree with former Maine Governor Angus
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Podcast27: Medicine, Engagement, and Keys to Technology Integration
Medical doctors are struggling like the rest of us to keep up with the pace of change in society, largely driven by technology. In this podcast I share 2 recent stories with a family practitioner and a heart surgeon here in Lubbock, discussing how technology driven change affects their daily behavior as well as continuing
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EFF and Publicknowledge
If you are interested in the cause of free idea exchange, you should know about (and support) the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Public Knowledge. These are both digital rights advocacy groups engaged on behalf of citizens on the issues of copyright, fair use, and government regulation of our digital information landscape. Do you know who
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Lessig Method presentation
Lawrence Lessig is a favorite writer of mine, his blog is exemplary and his book “The Future of Ideas: The Fate of the Commons in a Connected World” should be required reading for every teacher with students in 3rd grade and above. The Presentation Zen blog post, “The Lessig Method” of presentation reveals that Lessig
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Great K-12 podcast examples
Educational podcasting is still pretty rare, at least in Texas schools in my perception, but more great examples of creative teachers and students using podcasts are available than ever before. Here are some new ones I learned about recently along with a couple I’ve been listening to for awhile: STUDENT PODCASTS Radio Willoweb: Podcasts by
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Podcast Creation Guide
Apple has published a free Podcast Creation Guide (31 page PDF file) that would be an excellent resource guide for anyone working with teachers who want to learn about podcasting on Macintosh computers. After introducing podcasting, the process involved and the respective file formats, the guide covers options for recording podcast content with QuickTime Pro,
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Morning with Marc Prensky
I spent some time recently driving to and from work with Marc Prensky, hearing him share some great insights about engaging digital natives in our classrooms and the value of games in helping students develop and refine problem solving skills. I actually did this by listening to podcasts of Marc’s keynote address from the Christa
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Preparing teachers of digital immigrants
Dr. Michael Searson is the Dean of the College of Education at Kean University in Union, NJ, and recently did a wonderful interview about teacher education and our digital environment / the need to prepare teachers to teach digital natives. This is the best podcast I have heard to date that addresses these issues by
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Skype Headsets, Pamela, WeeMees & Videoconferencing
Skype is continuing to become more mainstream: adding more features and users and getting more attention in the news. In November, Skype announced it would begin selling headsets compatible with its VOIP network at Radio Shack this holiday season. I am not getting rid of our home landline yet, but if we can have landline
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