You are absolutely right and, again, I apologize for my rant. That was one of those hit the send button and immediately regret it things.
Like you say, our vision is all colored and mine is colored by all the excuses people make for not doing the kinds of projects that Jim and Mali talked about. I should have taken a moment to realize that you are not one of those people. Again, my apologies. I should have thought before I posted. Comments like my first one do nothing to increase dialogue and I appreciate your thoughtful reply.

OK….let’s talk. Do you think that what they are doing in Canada is not possible here in the U.S.? Just my thought, but I think we have to engage our students this way in order to affect change. From what I gather you do too but are frustrated by limitations put on us by NCLB and school districts blocking of web 2.0 tools. I am just thinking that we have to find ways to do these kinds of projects no matter what limitations are imposed on us. Their success is what, I believe, will lead to change. Use whatever tools we can, even if they are not what they should be. Make them visible. Demonstrate what can be done even with our hands tied behind our backs. I agree that we need to get the politicians to change, but do we have to wait for the change or do we initiate the change, in part, by engaging our students in projects like these and show our district administrators and politicians what is possible?

Bill: I’m sorry that my comments revealed the limitations I have because of my U.S. context and educational culture. I know we all look at the world through our own set of lenses– and it is important to hear other voices with other perspectives, and to be challenged to think differently. So I appreciate your comments and feedback.

I very likely could have missed many points from this presentation– I was just sharing my responses for what I took from the session. Certainly it IS great to hear about educators helping students get a global perspective, become activists, take their learning to another level– not just learn knowledge and facts, but become advocates for important causes and issues. I definitely applaud that and salute that.

I know there were many teachers in the audience who WERE moved by this presentation (because they talked to me about it afterwards) and that is great. It is and would be unrealistic for Canadian teachers to address issues like accountability and NCLB because their context is different. I actually am in fairly regular dialog with teachers around the world, including Canadians (Dean is one) and try to maintain a larger worldview. I guess my responses to and during this session were colored by my own frustrations with all the tools for global collaboration (wikis, blogs, H.323 and desktop videoconferencing, etc) not being used in my own children’s school district, and being blocked / prohibited.

I’m sorry I gave the impression that I missed or misinterpreted much of what was shared in this session. The ideas, goals, and activities are certainly laudible. I am 100% behind the goal of helping teachers connect with each other and learn together via online and blended learning communities. My work in and for the K-12 Online Conference is one example.

Thanks for your feedback, your comments have me thinking. Remember it is ALWAYS worth it to engage in a conversation with someone who wants to learn and grow, and I certainly think I fit that description as an educator, parent, and learner. I certainly try to be much more than a “disgrntled [sic] educator who loves to sit on the sidelines and complain.”

I agree….my comment was out of line. I think I was just perplexed by his misunderstandings (at least misunderstandings from my perspective). The Ready Fire Aim idea was all about not waiting until you alone know everything, not waiting until politicians and administrators “get it” and create an environment more conducive towards 21st century learning, etc…..if we just wait for all of that, we will never do anything. This is not only NOT a dangerous idea, but a necessary idea if we are to move forward.

Again, I apologize to Wes. I am sure he does lots (else why would he be doing this). I was a little hot headed in my reply, as I couldn’t believe how he “missed” and or misinterpreted so much of what was actually said.

I know that the people I was with and the people who I have talked to were inspired by their keynote address and moved to do something in their classes.

But I too was a little surprised by the tone of the reactions. I found the keynote to be a very powerful demonstration on the power of technology. Aren’t these the kind of interactions we were hoping for a a result of OLPC? Is there a more powerful learning outcome than a child saying, “It makes us proud to know we are changing other people’s lives.”

Quite disappointed on the price of the NBC resources as well.