Passion-based learning in action: Brian Crosby at TEDxDenverEd
Do you consider yourself a passionate person? What are the things about which you are passionate? Are you passionate about kids and helping kids learn? Are you passionate about opening up new vistas of experiences and understanding for others which - absent your intervention - they might never experience? Are you passionate about creating moments of unforgettable learning? Learning that is SO engaging, so motivating, so interesting, and so fun - that those fortunate enough to experience it will NEVER forget it? Nevada elementary teacher Brian Crosby is this kind of person, and this kind of educational leader. Brian gave the world a seventeen minute glimpse into his 4th grade classroom a few weeks ago in Denver at the TEDx event. I strongly encourage you to set aside seventeen minutes of your day and listen to what Brian had to say.
Brian shares SO many elements of fantastic learning in this video, it's hard to know where to begin. This video is a great one to share with faculty at your school at a faculty meeting to spark subsequent conversations. What did we see Brian DO that was right for kids? How did he structure a learning context which was authentically engaging for students? How did he weave the use of technology tools like blogs, wikis, videoconferencing software, and student laptops to help his students connect with an authentic audience and share their individual voices with the world? How did the assignments and learning tasks Brian's students completed meet state standards? Why do we need to foster these kinds of learning experiences in our classrooms TODAY, and how can we do that?
The lessons Brian shares in this video were NOT easy to teach. Project-based learning, challenge-based learning, or passion-based learning is NEVER easy. It takes a LOT of time. It takes lots of planning. And it takes lots of passion. When it is done well, however, it can lead to unforgettable learning experiences and the kind of "deep" skill development for students which can't help but "stick" for a lifetime.
Brian Crosby is the kind of teacher all our children deserve, and we all should learn a great deal from him. Project-based learning (PBL) is not an activity at school that should only be reserved for the "gifted/talented" (GT) kids, or kept in the closet until state tests are over in late spring. PBL is something in which we should engage year-round. It takes time. It takes hard work. It takes passionate, committed teachers. And it bears fruit sweeter and more impactful than any other learning context in our schools today.
photo credit: Deanster1983
The video "Inclusion," from which Brian included a short clip in his TEDxEd presentation, has been downloaded over 500,000 times to date. Follow Brian on Twitter and read more of his inspirational (as well as challenging) ideas on his blog, "Learning is Messy."
Take a few minutes to watch Brian's inspirational presentation in Denver. Share it with other educators and parents you know. Then go grow some PBL fruit. 
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In the Middle of Different
My name is Dawn Danker and I’m the Information and Academic Officer for Yukon Public Schools. I’m blessed to be in a district where we are focused on a vision for Excellence in Education through the means of providing dynamic opportunities to our students. We are building environments where our students can begin to explore their place in a global society and ultimately a global workforce. We view technology as an important element to accomplishing that goal. We are always exploring great tools, techniques and pedagogy that will support our vision for our district. It’s been through those times of exploration that we have been provided some great opportunities to gain knowledge to better our understanding of relevant elements for our schools.
Recently I received an email informing me that my name had been submitted as one of the nominees for a new program provided by Apple, called the Apple Academy. I was asked to fill out a form and send some biographical information as well as my thoughts on education and technology. Fast forward a few weeks later and I received the email telling me I had been selected as one of the 95 leaders from across the nation to participate in the Academy. I’m telling you, it was a complete and total honor to be selected into such a great cadre of technology educators and leaders. The Apple Academy’s goal is to provide us with thought provoking conversation along side skills, tools, and resources of value as we plan to support our schools. It’s been amazing!
My PLN has become so much richer this week because of the people I have met through the Apple Academy. I know that might hard to believe considering the amount of great information that has been delivered over the last four days of our training, but I promise it’s true. It speaks to the level of talent and knowledge in the training. I have met some really fascinating folks from all over the nation. We have leaders from Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, and California just to name a few. I now have a great network of folks with some amazing ideas and resources. I’m looking forward to connecting with them in the future to help build a better community for my schools with the help of their expertise.
Over the last several days our group has been exposed to all the iLife and iWork applications on both the Macbook and the iPod Touch. We’ve been discussing best practices on classroom management of those tools, differentiating instruction for students, and creativity in the classroom. I have been given many resources for providing quality professional development for all educators. My favorite part of the session has been our utilization of the iPad. We were exposed to many great apps and how they integrate to the Macbook, but I think the most transformative part came when I realized how integrated the components are on the iPad for classroom utilization. There’s no booting up on an iPad. You touch the button and you’re off and learning. This device paired with cloud computing makes it a tool worth further exploration. Imagine...the iPad has only been out three months. What will it look like in a year? *insert me dreaming big*
On Tuesday of this week we had the opportunity to visit the Apple campus, fondly referred to as “The Mothership.” I know many folks have visited this amazing and phenomenal environment but this was a first for me. The first wow moment was seeing the oversized screens showing, in real time, all the apps being downloaded in iTunes, second wow moment was viewing the three Emmy awards to Apple for their progressive accomplishments in the digital world, but I thought the employees were the most amazing aspect. The employees were dressed in what most places would be considered less than business casual. All the employees looked professional, but it wasn’t your “typical” professional dress. Why would you need to dress “typical” if you don’t work in a typical work environment? In my head I could hear fellow educators commenting on the unprofessional nature of the employees based on their attire, somehow equating that would transfer into an unprofessional workplace. What I could see was an uninhibited work environment. I was thinking over the elements they had removed to help their employees focus on being creative and being productive by taking away the need to “be” something based on their outward appearance. As I watched all the employees I couldn’t help but wish for such a great work environment for my kids. Is it too much to wish for a job that lets them be who they are and allows them to focus on their work and the creative elements? I hope not. My kids are young and I have a few years to keep wishing for that kind of environment but for now, they are in a pubic school system that is totally contradictory to the environment that would foster a creative culture. (Disclaimer: My kids don’t attend the school district in which I am employed.) I know not all work environments resemble that of Apple but many large corporations are taking a note from Apple and trying to create a similar environment for their employees. I think in the future we will see more of these work places.
As a guest blogger, Wes requested we try to spotlight a recent ah-ha moment. Mine came this week. In the middle of attending this fabulous training, networking with some great folks, and visiting some great work environments, I received a call from my 15 year old daughter telling me our new iPhones had been delivered by Fedex. She wanted permission to go ahead and set her phone up. I began doing what every parent would do by asking her a myriad of questions.
It sounded like this:
Al: Mom, can I set up my new iPhone?
Me: Wow, I guess...I think you should plug it in and charge it.
Al: I already charged it.
Me: Wow, okay. I think you will have to hook it up to iTunes.
Al: Mom, I already read the instructions. My old phone is backed up and I just need to remove my SIM card. I know I need to confirm my information with AT&T and sync is back to iTunes.
Me: Okay, *insert long sigh* I guess my answer is Yes, please set up your iPhone.
As I hung up the phone I began to think over the conversation we had the previous evening with one of our trainers, who happens to be 24. He and my daughter live in a world where technology is the norm. They both have grown up in an environment where technology just IS what they do and how they do it. I can’t help but think if teachers could see the world inside the Apple campus and have one of those experiences where you realize “they” already live in that world and so do we. It’s in this moment that I realize I’m in the middle of something different. We don’t NEED to teach kids HOW to use it...we need to focus on the process and allow them to freely create. For us...we need to focus on our learning. This all challenges me to be in this world with them. It’s not like it used to be, it’s different. I like being in the middle of “different”... I want to BE DIFFERENT.
Podcast351: Leading Schools with Digital Vision in a Bubblesheet World (part 2 of 2)
Part 2 of 2: This podcast is a recording of a presentation by Wesley Fryer on June 16, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at the summer administrative leadership conference for Northeast ISD. This was a 2+ hour presentation, so the recordings have been separated into two parts. See the podcast shownotes for links to referenced videos and resources. (Audio from shared videos has been edited out of this recording.) The session description was: Much of the world has gone digital, so must learning at school. Creativity is vital, and good leadership matters. Stagnant, accomodation-level technology integration makes technology investments in our schools a waste of money. School leaders can and should encourage teachers to use digital learning tools in transformative ways to open new doors of opportunity for students as well as parents. By focusing on creating, communicating / sharing, and collaborating, principals can help develop a shared instructional vocabularly with teachers which is focused on student engagement. Without creation, there can be no creativity. How will you let your students create? How will you give students choices? How will your students teach the curriculum? These are essential questions to ask together with teachers, as we seek to effectively (and legally) "talk with media / pictures" and leverage the constructive power of digital media tools for learning inside and outside the classroom.
Podcast351: Leading Schools with Digital Vision in a Bubblesheet World (part 2 of 2) [78:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (847)
Podcast351: Leading Schools with Digital Vision in a Bubblesheet World (part 2 of 2) [78:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (847)Show Notes:
- Part 1 of this presentation shared as an audio podcast
- Referenced videos and links
- Presentation slides and videos on SlideShare
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OLPC 2012 Tablet Video and more from San Antonio this week
Yesterday I shared a presentation with administrators in San Antonio, Texas, and was delighted to meet Honor Moorman in person at the event. Honor is a teacher at the International School of the Americas, and students in her 21st Century Global Leadership class last Spring created some fantastic videos as culminating class projects. Pre-service teachers in my undergraduate "Technology 4 Teachers" class at the University of Central Oklahoma studied digital storytelling the third week of the spring semester, and were required to:
Choose a video published as an independent learning project by students (at the International School of the Americas in San Antonio), link to it in a blog post, embed it in your blog post, and leave some constructive feedback for the author following our constructive feedback rubric.
It was wonderful to be able to share this story and highlight the outstanding project-based work of Honor and her students in front of an audience of 300 campus administrators in Northeast ISD!
Honor took very thorough notes of my almost three hour session yesterday, and posted those to her blog. At the conclusion of my presentation, I mentioned and showed a picture of the OLPC 2012 tablet prototype which Nicholas Negraponte says will sell for $75. Honor found and included the following video in her post, which gives even more background about this exciting project.
If this video does not inspire you with hope for the digital possibilities for learning in the future, I'm not sure what can. Of course learning is about FAR more than "just" hardware devices, but the devices ARE critical! As Alan Kay says, "The predominant technology in the classroom defines the predominant learning tasks." That's why we're still using paper and pencil to complete most of our assignments in schools today: Pencils predominate. This must change!
I love my iPad and am a vocal advocate for it (I shared several iOS apps in San Antonio during my preso including Evernote) but I'm also eagerly looking forward to the commoditization of touch-tablet technologies. ALL students need and deserve access to these technologies and the capacity to CREATE as well as consume content on them. OLPC continues to blaze vitally important trails for digital learning when it comes to issues of accessibility and COST.
Honor's post is the most thorough set of notes I think anyone's ever taken and posted from one of my presentations. Northeast ISD, San Antonio, and her students specifically are SO LUCKY to have such a connected and digitally literate teacher in their midst!
After my presentation, it was fun to join NE ISD educators Jim Baldoni and Misty Belmontez for lunch with Miguel Guhlin. Misty coined a great title for Miguel which I think we all should use from now on: "Sensei of South Texas!" (If it wasn't for my kids playing Club Penguin, I don't think I'd have recognized "sensei" as a Japanese word for teacher or mentor.) Miguel continues to be one of my primary "educational yodas" (borrowing that term from Marco Torres) and it's always a joy to get to spend time with him in person.
After I posted my session slides to Slideshare yesterday, I was delighted to learn Slideshare supports viewing presentations in a non-flash format on an iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad.
I'm delighted to see SlideShare providing this type of iOS compatibility.
In addition to these slides, I published an audio recording of the first half of the morning as a podcast, and also have a wiki page of session links / resources.
One of the most important pieces of advice I shared with San Antonio principals yesterday was the following list of "The Three Hows." These are questions I recommend principals ask teachers before, during and after classroom instructional observations:
- How will you let your students create?
- How will you give students choices?
- How will your students teach the curriculum?
Without creation, there can be no creativity! Hopefully administrators in San Antonio will be encouraging their teachers and students to do MORE digital creating next year!
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advice, blog, creativity, education, leadership, learning, notes, principal, school, technology, texas, create, san, antonio, sanantonio
Live and archived Ustream recordings from the Castilleja Summer Learning Institute
Tomorrow in Palo Alto, California, I'll be spending the day with teachers at the Castilleja School finishing off their "Castilleja Summer Learning Institute" with a focus on digital storytelling. Our schedule (available as an event on Facebook) will include a presentation by yours truly from 8:45 - 10:45 PST on the topic, "An invitation to tell digital stories." The keynote will be streamed live on Ustream, and you're welcome to join us!
Presentations from the past three days were also Ustreamed live and archived. Check them out! I'm quite honored to be included as a speaker with this distinguished and august lineup!
Tuesday Dr. Helen Barrett spoke about digital portfolios.
Wednesday Dr. Sylvia Martinez focused on project-based learning.
Today Dr. Gary Stager presented on 1:1 learning.
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1to1, based, education, learning, pbl, portfolio, project, school, technology, workshop, california, eportfolio
Tried and True Tips for Working in the 1:1 Environment
These are my notes from Kristy Lovett (teaches HS Art 1-4) and Erica Carey's (HS consumer science) afternoon presentation at the Crescent Public Schools' 1:1 learning conference on 4 June 2010. The title of his session was, "Cross-Curricular Teaching (Electives/Core) in a 1:1 Environment." MY THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS ARE IN ALL CAPS.
MY ASIDE: THE STORYCHASERS MOBILE LEARNING TEAM BLOG IS A PLACE FOR EDUCATORS IN 1:1 SETTINGS TO SHARE IDEAS.
Don't just tell kids to go research online about a topic
Kids need to find the difference between reliable
- Example: Tree Octopus
I have a facebook page (which is blocked at school) for feedback for parents and students
- can give extra credit if parents will email
Classroom Management
- need laptop guidelines: we have those in every class
- consistent rules, and consistent consequences
Curriculum development
- start with a plan
-- course outlines
-- PASS footprints
Make your lesson plans digital! Don't be intimidated! You can do it!
Create a visual learning environment
- words can only recall images we've seen before! Use lots of images
Good sources:
morgue file
www.free images.co.uk
www.imageafter...
3 biggest mistakes teachers make when using technology in the classroom
1. Technology is not used in a focused manner
2. Technology is the focus
"You call this a multimedia production? This is a slide projector and a bed sheet!" - Archibald Asparagus
3. Inadequate planning (have a plan, make sure your sites are open at school)
Don't re-invent the wheel!
- so much information is out there!
- search for it!
- find a forum for teachers of your subject to get ideas
http://arted20.ning.com great for art teachers
- members here from all over the world
- I am working with a teacher in China now to send them some of our artwork, and they are going to send us theirs
- We are working with a classroom in Germany thanks to a German exchange student we had last year
Also we have a 1:1 Ning for Oklahoma schools
MY ASIDE: OF COURSE IT'S CLOSED/PRIVATE, SO NO ONE OUTSIDE THE ARRA GRANTEE GROUP CAN SEE ANY OF THE CONVERSATIONS HAPPENING THERE...
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Cross-Curricular Teaching (Electives/Core) in a 1:1 Environment
These are my notes from Kristy Lovett (teaches HS Art 1-4) and Erica Carey's (HS consumer science) afternoon presentation at the Crescent Public Schools' 1:1 learning conference on 4 June 2010. The title of his session was, "Cross-Curricular Teaching (Electives/Core) in a 1:1 Environment." MY THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS ARE IN ALL CAPS.
MY ASIDE: THE STORYCHASERS MOBILE LEARNING TEAM BLOG IS A PLACE FOR EDUCATORS IN 1:1 SETTINGS TO SHARE IDEAS.
"Of Bridges and Blue Suede Shoes," cross-curricular connections
- best PD sessions always have 2 things: chocolate and door prizes!
This entire press is available online, created with Dreamweaver!
http://www.crescentok.com/staff/klovett/ofbridgesandbluesuedeshoes.htm
today we want to talk about making curricular connections, and helping make curriculum RELEVANT for kids
-we want to share projects we've done and have worked for us
Why Elvis?
- he was the KING
- on the cutting edge, the trend setter
- you will have to adapt
One for the MONEY: our goals
- promote cross-curricular teaching
- equip teachers with cross-curricular info and strategies
- provide tried and true tips for success in 1:1 tech/digital teaching environments (from non-techie people)
- challenge you to create a technology facilitated cross-curricular lesson
Cross-curricular teaching is a bridge over troubled waters
- involves a conscious effort to apply knowledge, principles, and or values to more than one academic discipline simultaneously
TV dinner teaching: everything is separte:
- today we spice it up, mix it together!
Cross-curricular teaching makes students operate on the higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy
- businesses want to hire people who can think for themselves!
- that is my main teaching goal!
- create students who are capable of adapting, doing new things, making the world a better place
Motivation
- motivation doesn't last but neither does bathing... that's why we recommend it daily! (Zig Ziglar)
- Eisenhower: Motivation is the Art of getting people to do what you want them to do...
Retention: B Franklin - Tell me I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.
This is our story
- cultural diversity fair (every other year)
- TAH Grant - Civil War
- TAH Grant - World War II
- The Origins of FAiry Tales / German Romanticism
- Germs and Hygiene
- Careers
With the TAH grant this year, we took a week out of our curriculum and EVERY class studied and taught the civil war
- family life in Civil War, made and ate hard tack, analyzed diets of people during the Civil War
Quotation on the wall: "The wise are glad to be instructed, but babbling fools fall flat on their faces." - Proverbs 10:8 (NLT)
It is so much easier using the Internet to differentiate the curriculum and give students more choices about their learning
Our entire staff taught a unit on WWII because of the TAH grant
- propaganda posters (was very interesting because the students' projects were very politically correct, yet propaganda is usually anything BUT politically correct)
- students couldn't bring themselves to take a current issue and make a statement / make propaganda about it
Civil War studies: did Winslow Homer (an artist who traveled with Civil War troops, did illustrations for magazines like Harpers)
- Lincoln was one of the first people to EVER use political photography, he had to sit for THREE MINUTES per photo when they were taken (WOW IS THIS EVER AMAZING!)
- students received a grade in English for the essay, and a grade in Art for the artwork they created
Careers example: Get grade in English and in Careers
Germs and Hygiene project
- students taught preK kids a few years ago the proper way to wash your hands
- science instructor had kids swap everything on door handles and elsewhere in the school, then they GREW those germs in cultures
- then the art teacher helped them create posters of the germs in large scale
- used black-light reactive powder first, before the lesson, and used it as a way to show where the kids hadn't washed or other places they had rubbed their hands...
studied fairy tales in English, talked about differentiating
- painted Caspar David Friedrich
In March I lost five years of work, all my pictures
- get a terabyte drive and backup!
(MY THOUGHT: ALSO CONSIDER PUBLISHING TO FLICKR!)
communication is the key for cross-curricular unit success
- find out what others teach and what you have in common
- more conversations!
- example: moving abstract expressionism to the same time of the year the history teacher is covering post-WWII economy
1- Theme: must engage your students
2- Grade-level appropriateness
3- Focus- a single sentence that represents the direction and focus across curriculum areas
4- Objectives: specific to subject area PASS objectives
Most sites on Google for cross-curricular projects are primary/elementary
Use ALL your resources
I don't like videotaping myself and putting it out on the internet, I feel very vulnerable
- I do PowerPoint podcasts
5- General Activities
- web-based podcasts
6- Discussion
7- Culminating Activity: creative project that can be evaluated across subject areas
8- Assessment- subject rubrics
9- Communication, Communication, Communication
My online curriculum:
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
From Lesson Plans to Online Curriculum by Jim Askew #ok1to1 (Amazing open Chemistry curriculum)
These are my notes from Jim Askew's afternoon presentation at the Crescent Public Schools' 1:1 learning conference on 4 June 2010. Jim teaches chemistry at Crescent, develops curriculum with Crescent teachers, and leads their TAH (Teaching American History) grant. The title of his session was, "From Lesson Plans to Online Curriculum." MY THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS ARE IN ALL CAPS. See my notes from Jim's morning session today as well.
MY ASIDE: THE STORYCHASERS MOBILE LEARNING TEAM BLOG IS A PLACE FOR EDUCATORS IN 1:1 SETTINGS TO SHARE IDEAS.
I JUST NOTICED AT THE TOP OF THE CRESCENT PS WEBSITE, IT SAYS "TIGER SEARCH DOES NOT INCLUDE WIKIPEDIA."
Jim's homepage on the Crescent Public Schools' website. Jim has a phenomenal website about web-based instruction.
If you tell kids to type in a URL to start a lesson, it will take you 10 minutes to get them to a website
- those are the kind of problems you'll run into
MY QUESTION FOR JIM: WHAT ARE YOU ABLE TO DO WITH THE ONLINE CURRICULUM THAT YOU COULDN'T DO BEFORE. JIM'S ANSWER: NOTHING. INTERESTING.
What I am going to share with you today is 15 years of online curriculum work. Your curriculum is not going to look like mine to start. Don't let this discourage you.
The virtual learning environment is where you are able to do things DIFFERENTLY that you couldn't do with just a textbook.
When I was hired my superintendent said, "I don't care about your test scores. Find out a way to use the laptop in class with students every day." The culmination of Jim's learning and educational philosophy is available on his Web Based Instruction Internet Resources website.
Now let's look at my online curriculum for chemistry. Remember this is the culmination of fifteen years of work.
WOW! THIS IS AMAZING!!!!
I retired from full-time teaching 3 years ago. Mr Sheiver stole me away from Mr Parks with an offer to help us with curriculum development and teach 1 chemistry class. The rest of the day I play with curriculum.
Anywhere in the curriculum where you see a tiger paw, it is a podcast
- those podcasts are on the web, NOT on our "podcast server"
- I have EVERYTHING on my box
- I am fanatical about redundancy
- 30 years of teaching is on my box (computer)
- I have converted/ (digitized) everything
My box / computer belongs to Crescent public schools, but all my curriculum fits on a flash drive that I can take with me if I need to.
MY THOUGHT: THIS IS WISDOM.
What do I do with podcasts?
- I teach using PowerPoint for class discussions
- I took those PowerPoints, sit down in my nice, quite office, and created these podcasts
- I had to shorten them, because I believe when it comes to curriculum students have a maximum of a 10 minute attention span
- kids MIGHT watch something for 10 minutes, but they are NOT going to watch it for 30 minutes
I kept all under 10 minutes
- if a student is absent or wants some review other than looking at print, they can use those
- I don't teach with those, they are supplementary
The versions of the PowerPoints I'm using have been done in the last year
- I've had PPT since 1995
- Those PPT files are not on the website, but the podcasts are
There is a link that lets you also switch to an alphabetical list.
Now showing us his actual Moodle site (we're logging in as guest)
Guests on Moodle can't see student material: They can just see teacher-prepared materials
Moodle will let you do polling
- polling is really just a single multiple choice question
- that polling device is built right into Moodle
Moodle topic discussions are asynchronous
- this is the virtual learning environment
- this is what REALLY makes the 1:1 learning environment special
You can teach kids how to think and learn without laptops
- but this asynchronous environment is what makes 1:1 so special
When I came to Cresent, teachers had been instructed to build their online curriculum in Moodle
- I don't have to know any HTML in Moodle, I can save as a text page or a webpage
- I am really a dinosaur when it comes to technology
- I want to build this on MY BOX
- I want it ALL on my box, THEN I want to upload it to the web
- I do not like the idea of going to Moodle and building my curriculum there
- If Moodle goes down, then I can't get to my curriculum (I would have to connect to the Moodle server)
In this room if I was teaching and the network blew up, I don't even know it if I'm working off my curriculum saved on my box
- I am constantly tweaking my curriculum at home in the evenings
I live less than 2 blocks away from the school, but if our Internet server is hit by lightning / we lose power, servers can go off and then I can't get to my stuff
- I can tweak everything except Moodle
That is why I'm not a real big fan of building everything in Moodle
- we build in Moodle for security reasons, and for a confidence reason (if you know just you and your kids can see it - you don't have to worry about what other teachers in the world think about what you are doing.)
- I am confident enough to put my own work out there, but most people when they start building their own curriculum aren't that confident
MY THOUGHTS: WOW! THIS IS A HUGE ISSUE IN TERMS OF SHARING, TEACHER CONFIDENCE, ETC. I AM SO THRILLED THAT JIM HAS HIS CURRICULUM ON THE OPEN WEB AND IT'S NOT ALL LOCKED UP ON THE CLOSED WEB / THE DISTRICT'S MOODLE SERVER. I "GET" THAT MANY TEACHERS ARE NERVOUS ABOUT PUTTING THEIR WORK ONLINE, BUT I THINK IT'S INCUMBENT UPON US AS EDUCATORS TO OPENLY SHARE AS MUCH AS WE CAN. THESE ARE VERY IMPORTANT ISSUES TO REFLECT ON...
Technology can help you engage students who don't want to be motivated
- some kids are very intrinsically motivated
- some kids are motivated by grades
- the laptop can help you reach those kids who don't really want to be involved
If you are using the steps included on the blue card in your packet, "The Perfect Web-Based Lesson Plan," it is guaranteed you will be able to enagage even those students who don't want to be engaged.
- that came from the DBQ project (document based questioning - a commercial outfit that is paper-based)
- I stole it!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Document-based_question
On Copyright law: If you are using things for instruction with your kids in your classroom, you are within fair use. You don't have to worry as long as you are not selling it.
MY COMMENT: THAT IS NOT QUITE THE ENTIRE STORY ON FAIR USE.... I THINK THIS IS A COMMON MISCONCEPTION... THIS IS DIFFERENT ESPECIALLY WHEN WE REPUBLISH THINGS ONLINE. FAIR USE HAS 4 ELEMENTS, AND TRANSFORMATIVENESS IS KEY...
I am not paperless in my classroom, I still hand out lab handouts
Start your online curriculum development NOW!
http://crescentok.com/staff/jaskew/WebBased/converting.htm
Every one of my webpages has been created from scratch using TextEdit.
MY THOUGHT: WOO HOO! LET'S HEAR IT FOR OLD-SCHOOL HTML CODING! (THIS MAY MAKE SOME OF OUR PARTICIPANTS PASS OUT HERE, BUT I THINK IT'S GREAT... NOT BECAUSE I THINK ALL TEACHERS NEED TO LEARN HOW TO CODE HTML, BUT BECAUSE THIS BRINGS BACK A LOT OF MEMORIES AND SHOWS HOW POWERFUL BASIC WEBPAGE AUTHORING SKILLS CAN BE!)
Before I came to Crescent, I broke down my pages for 1 concept per page. You can do that now with a very small number of "tags."
I started this iterative process, building my curriculum bit by bit
- when I started adding assignments, I had to start thinking about how long this would take
At some point I learned students do NOT like to scroll down through webpages
- this is the reason I broke everything down by concept
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Teaching English in a 1:1 Classroom by Julie Cook #ok1to1
These are my notes from Julie Cook's morning presentation at the Crescent Public Schools' 1:1 learning conference on 4 June 2010. Julie teaches multiple levels / grades / courses of English. MY THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS ARE IN ALL CAPS.
MY ASIDE: THE STORYCHASERS MOBILE LEARNING TEAM BLOG IS A PLACE FOR EDUCATORS IN 1:1 SETTINGS TO SHARE IDEAS.
ASIDE: INTERESTING THAT THIS CLASSROOM IS PACKED (ALL CHAIRS FILLED) AND I AM THE ONLY MALE IN THE ROOM.
I have taught here at Crescent for 18 years
I have so much to tell you I almost don't know where to begin!
I am very glad to hear
- telling strangers what you believe is risky
Understand: you cannot remove the teacher / student relationship from the 1:1 environment
- I keep hearing a lot of people that don't know what they are talking about say: "Oh, you're 1:1. What do you need the teacher for?"
- there is a perception that teachers don't teach anymore in a 1:1
- that is absolutely not true
- you are working VERY hard in a 1:1 environment
LIke a parent saying, "I'm going to parent you so hard your head is going to spin"
- sometimes our kids feel like that
- in my afternoon session I'll tell you more about that
The 1:1 environment does NOT take the teacher out of the equation
- it also does not have the student exclusively interact with a machine
- teacher/student interaction is still the most important thing
Best thing about this: it provides equity (virtual environment)
- there are no "haves" and "have nots"
We've been doing this for 2 years now
- main things I've noticed now in year 2: in vocabulary we were 9 lessons ahead this year
- I was able to deliver it faster... more... better
- that is 90 more words the kids were exposed to this year
- we still had more time at the end of the year
- goes back to what was said: when you are designing your curriculum, everything you do.... you don't have to start over the next year!
- all of your work is still there
We are not holding the kids back
- you have kids at the top, in the middle and at the bottom
- top end kids are not having to sit back and wait for everyone else to finish
- they can move on
You are required to put your work out there a week ahead, but why just a week?
- remember we have lots of different opinions...
- my thought is: put the whole year out there
- all of my curriculum is "out there" for my kids
- it's not a secret (quizzes are an exception, maybe when and where extra credit will come)
- everything else is wide open
One of my students got so excited about Romeo and Juliet, she read it early in the year on her own
- students who are excited can work ahead
- students who want to work ahead can
Example: basketball student who knew he needed to get ahead before basketball season started
- he worked ahead
- same thing with Ag kids, band kids, others
- kids can get it... (they take laptops with them, motels where they stay have wifi, they can work on their lessons there)
When my students are finished with assignments for my class, if they have something else to work on they will move on to other coursework: math, history, etc.
- students don't have to have any books with them, they have everything they need in Moodle
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Moodle
- I can't say enough positive things about Moodle
- mine is organized by topic
MY COMMENT: IT IS GREAT TO SEE JULIE'S CURRICULUM IN MOODLE! I AM INSPIRED THINKING ABOUT WORKING AGAIN IN MOODLE FOR MY UNIVERSITY CLASSES, AS I DID IN 2005.... WE LEARN SO MUCH WHEN WE GET IMMERSED IN AN ENVIRONMENT...
None of your prep time is wasted
- even if you don't want to show something you've created in Moodle, you can just "hide" it
- you can do a topic or calendar format for Moodle
- I don't feel comfortable using a calendar format
- I was a little concerned about that at first, I thought someone would tell me I couldn't do it that way
I LIKE THAT APPROACH AS WELL-- I THINK IT FOCUSES MORE ON THE LEARNING AND THE IDEAS, RATHER THAN THE SCHEDULE. IDEAS AND LEARNING ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE CALENDAR.
Moodle: All of the great things you find at all the workshops and websites you find can be archived in your Moodle pages
- they will stay there forever
- you can create quizzes that are automatically graded
- if you have examview (I don't) you can upload those questions to Moodle
We've been learning how to capture flash video and embed those into your pages
- no download time or buffering, they play smoothly
Moodle takes a lot of frustration out this for me and others
- everything just works
You can capture videos out of YouTube (there are fantastic ones) and then copy them into your Moodle
- YouTube won't make it through your content filter
- YouTube is not all porn
Think of it this way: you are creating your own textbook
- you have looked through all the texts and samples, and wondered why
- you find those resources you want and use them!
Gutenberg Project is a GREAT site
I am a big believer in audio books and the value of hearing the story
- something happens in the brain when you can SEE it and hear it at the same time
- my rule: if I am going to provide this for you to hear, you are at least going to be a passive reader with your eyes to make the connection
- there are lots of free audio books
I love Libravox
- just Google it
We love Macs here!
- there is a built-in text to speech option, it is standard on a Mac
- you can create your own keyboard shortcut/combination for that
- highlight the text you want, then press your keyboard shortcut: The computer will read it to you
Podcasts
- I create some, my kids create some
- we showcase some of those podcasts
THIS IS GREAT TO HEAR. I THINK, LIKE HOWE PUBLIC SCHOOLS IS DOING, ALL SCHOOLS SHOULD HAVE MODERATED, INTERACTIVE ENVIRONMENTS FOR SHOWCASING AND SHARING STUDENT WORK.
We are web-based but not paperless
- my kids must bring paper and pencil every day to class
I ASKED JULIE IF ANY OF HER STUDENTS' WORK IS PUBLISHED ONLINE WHERE WE COULD VIEW IT LATER... SHE SAID SHE COULD PLAY IT OFF HER MACHINE, BUT SHE'D HAVE TO CHECK. I THINK SHARING STUDENT WORK IN A MODERATED, INTERACTIVE ENVIRONMENT IS A "NEXT STEP" WE'LL HOPEFULLY SEE CRESCENT AND OTHER SCHOOLS MOVE TO.
We use WallWisher many times to get student responses
- sometimes kids respond differently if they know it will be something
Saving things forever
- we have a process in place for our kids to archive EVERYTHING they do digitally
- this is called a "digital locker"
- it exists on our server
- everything in the student's digital locker lives forever, except for their own music, movies, personal pictures etc (we don't host student personal media like their iTunes library)
- ALL student projects and school work are archived online FOREVER as long as they are at Crescent
Kids here keep their same computer year to year. That provides incentive for them to take care of their machines
- We take computers in over the summer and wipe them clean
On Moodle we have links to teacher webpages
- first thing we did years ago, we used Dreamweaver to create teacher webpages
- requirement was: it had to have our picture and our contact info
- say who I am, get to know me a little, and how to contact me
- since then we have gone to iWeb pages
- looking back at our old pages we look like we were kindergarteners...
- Mac just makes it look pretty! (I give them the credit for that)
- teacher webpages have just explodes
I am not a Dreamweaver person, I never "got it"
- once I started using iWeb, I don't know how many pages off my homepage I have now!
- it just goes on and on!
- we also have links to outside activities
We use Discovery Streaming
We have a podcast server (Podcast Producer, super easy to use)
Participant question: Is there a place where you've written all these links down somewhere on your district site to share with us? (Answer: No - I SAID I'M TAKING GOOD NOTES AND WILL SHARE A LINK!)
You are putting together all these links as your own textbook
I THINK A KEY ELEMENT OF WHAT WE NEED FOR SCHOOL TRANSFORMATION IS ENCOURAGING / ENABLING / EMPOWERING TEACHERS LIKE JULIE TO SHARE THEIR CURRICULUM AND OPENLY LICENSE IT. HOW WONDERFUL FOR ALL THE ENGLISH TEACHERS IN THE ROOM WOULD IT BE, IF JULIE'S AMAZING ONLINE CURRICULUM WAS AVAILABLE FREE (UNDER A CREATIVE COMMONS ATTRIBUTION-NONCOMMERCIAL-SHARE ALIKE LICENSE.)
You are protected, your kids are protected, everything is secure
I work on Moodle EVERY single day
- we were very exhausted when we started
AT some point I realized (in the past) I was shoveling work at students
- there is NO reason everything we do has to end in a 50 question test
- we have focused too much on summative assessment
- we need to do more on formative assessment
- if you just find out at the end that "they didn't get it" that is often too late
- this doesn't mean you have to take a 50 question test at every step
You don't want to just pretest, let the kids go, and post-test
- if you would, you
- not everything has to be evaluated / assessed with a test
- as we go along, we have many discussions
I used to hate teaching Romeo and Juliet
- this year I got excited about it because the kids found out it was really dirty, and really funny
- example: in 1 class period we had something like 60 "a-ha" moments
I titled my "Romeo and Juliet" block this year, "Stupid Kids Making Stupid Decisions"
- this approach really worked to "hook" my kids today
When you learn/realize the kids didn't get it, then back up and do it again
Kids hate research, obviously
- they hate to cite things
For research this year, I asked kids to give me five topics that they would really like to research and are interested in
- I took those and weeded some things out that there isn't much info out there on
- they picked their topic and I told them there are two main things:
1- organization
2- citation
Kids felt a lot better about it presented in this way
- some still didn't get some subtleties
- some got pieces of attribution, others didn't
- no one's looked the same
I WONDER IF THEIR USING A TOOL LIKE BIBME.COM FOR BIBLIOGRAPHIES?
http://www.bibme.com/
We are NOT just regurgitating facts
My story:
- the year before we passed out these laptops
- we had to decide what to do
- we didn't have a mandate about how to deliver the curriculum
I don't get Dreamweaver or Firefox...
- some people seemed to get those really well
- some people wanted to deliver their online curriculum via their webpage
- I was scared of that
- Our tech director introduced me to Moodle, it was template driven
IT IS SO GREAT THE TEACHERS HERE AT CRESCENT ARE EVANGELIZING MOODLE AND A LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM SO STRONGLY! I THINK THAT WAS AN ELEMENT MISSING FROM OUR SDE'S ARRA REQURIEMENTS... AND IT'S A CRITICAL PIECE. THIS IS SUCH GREAT INFO FROM JULIE.... NOT JUST INFO, LESSONS LEARNED AND TEACHING PHILOSOPHY STUFF TOO...
You can't expect to do it all at once
- one thing that disappointed us was that (at the time) no one was promoting Moodle and had created anything
- it is so hard today to stick out our necks, because there is still that fear.... someone else has probably done something better
- we didn't have models of Moodle use, to learn from other people
I NEED TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT REMOTE LEARNER'S SYSTEM FOR SHARING CURRICULUM BETWEEN MOODLE SERVERS
I was fearful initially that someone would micromanage my curriculum, tell me not to use the "topic" format for Moodle
- that never happened
Our administrators know there are many paths to get to the same place
None of my Moodle pages are finished, I work on them every day
Our Moodle site is locked down for the protection of our teachers and our students
- for today only, I have opened up guest access to one of my Moodle courses
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Jim Askew on Individualized Online Curriculum and Transforming Learning #ok1to1
These are my notes from Jim Askew's morning presentation at the Crescent Public Schools' 1:1 learning conference on 4 June 2010. MY THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS ARE IN ALL CAPS.
MY ASIDE: THE STORYCHASERS MOBILE LEARNING TEAM BLOG IS A PLACE FOR EDUCATORS IN 1:1 SETTINGS TO SHARE IDEAS.
I've been blessed to work for 2 of the most progressive administrators in the state of Oklahoma: Steve Shiever and Scott Parks.
Why do you teach the way you do?
- it's the way we were taught
- it's what I believe
If you truly believe in the way you teach, don't let me or anyone else tell you you're wrong
- if you teach because that's the way you've always done it, you might be in for a rude awakening in about 70 days
Your teaching philosophy ought to "fit" the way you teach
anyone been asked for a written version of your teaching philosophy
- I am a Socratic, constructivist facilitator
- these are the three key words I boiled down my teaching philosophy to
I teach with questions
- I use questions to make critical thinking a reality
- I truly believe we build our own knowledge by taking what we already know, getting info from the environment, and then putting them together to create new knowledge
- I believe facilitators make things easier for people. I make learning easier for my students
That is why I teach the way I teach
What are your 3 major teaching goals? (these were ideas from the audience)
- teaching kids to learn
- helping kids be successful outside the classroom
- teach them how to think
- inspire students
- make them into productive citizens
If you can't list off your top 3 goals for teaching, you might have a tough time in 70 days
What will the 1:1 laptop program allow you to do better?
- engage students
- encourage creativity
- empower students
- work on critical thinking
You CAN engage students
- there are all kinds of other things students can be involved with
With 1:1 laptops, teachers are MORE important than ever!
Today's students are EXPERTS with technology
I DISAGREE WITH THIS. I THINK KIDS ARE MORE FEARLESS NAVIGATORS WITH TECHNOLOGY, BUT THIS DOES NOT MAKE SOMEONE AN EXPERT... THEY CAN BE GOOD SELF-DIRECTED LEARNERS, BUT THAT IS NOT UNIVERSAL.
Kids will find their OWN interesting things to do if you don't provide them
- Mike tells us often, "It's a classroom management issue"
- Internet filtering isn't the solution to off-task behavior
What is the product of education?
- a well developed mind?
- learning
In the 1 room school house, the "3 R's" were the product
- public ed was a success
- kids didn't HAVE to go, they only got to go when dad let them leave the farm
The high school movement
- for the first half of the 20th century, everyone agreed
- public ed was a success
- you should read about this if you haven't
- more subjects, specialization, memorize facts so you can use them
Today:
- teachers aren't doing their job
- public education is failing
- we need to fire teachers
What changed?
- lots of societal changes
- society, parents, technology etc
How did parents change from the first half of the twentieth century to the last half?
most of these things that changed we have NO control over
- we need to focus on things that HAVE changed
WWW
- December 25, 1990
- blame TBL: Tim Berners Lee
- before 12-25-1990 computer screens were all text
- after: HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol)
- we got links
The Internet is composed of an estimated 1.8 billion connected computers
- it is computers connected
WELL, IT IS ALSO PEOPLE BEING CONNECTED!
The WWW is composed over over 1 TRILLION pages of INFORMATION
- you need to know the difference between the Internet and the WWW
- many people use those terms interchangeably
- technically: the WWW is where the information is in webpages
The WWW changed the learning environment forever
- no one yet knows what this learning environment will look like in 5, 10, or 50 years
I AGREE WITH THIS!
Now showing 2 photos 98 years apart: 1909 and 2007
- what is different
- people are moving in both pictures
When the environment changes, Skill Sets change!
Computers and the Internet are NOT learning tools
- this will be blasphemous for some of you
- remember what Mr Shiever said, our way is not necessarily your way
- this is MY philosophy
- they are part of the ENVIRONMENT in which today's learning takes place!
THIS IS A USEFUL CONSTRUCT. ANOTHER WAY OF SAYING THIS: THE ONLINE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT IS LIKE WATER. IT IS WHERE WE LIVE. IT DEFINES OUR ENVIRONMENT.
If we focus on the tools, we lose sight of the environment
- the laptop environment changes EVERYTHING
- for you as a teacher, a parent
- for the mechanic down the street
I WOULD ADD: FOR US AS LEARNERS!
You know what a paradigm is, right? (This isn't a joke.) It's a proven way of doing things successfully.
- 1:1 laptops change the paradigm: not only for students but also for teachers
"Just Google It"
- 2 billion google searches every day
- that doesn't even include the other search engines
You got to be careful: Just cause it's on the web doesn't mean it's true!
- computers remember things VERY well
Now showing the new Bloom's taxonomy
- for today's HS and MS students, memorizing facts is... pretty much POINTLESS
math facts: Math teachers I don't want to get into a major discussion with math teachers about math facts
- there are 2 points of view on this: both have good positions
- when I say something against memorization, I don't want to step on toes about math facts
ASIDE: PROGRAM "MASTERING MATH FACTS" IS THE BEST PROGRAM
We don't have to memorize facts before we use them
Anyone know this guy? (showing a photo of Rand Paul, R Senate candidate, KY)
- strongly supported by the Tea Party
- he has 2 primary agenda items for education:
1- Dump the US Department of Education
2- Wants to get rid of NCLB
What would that change if NCLB went away?
- MY COMMENT OUT LOUD: LESS FEAR OF BAD THINGS
- teacher fear of failure might go away
- test pressure would go away
Since NCLB was enacted in 2001, it has accomplished nothing
If NCLB would go away, teachers woulda gain
MOST of today's standardized test questions DO NOT measure RECALL
I AM WONDERING WHAT TEST HE'S TALKING ABOUT. OF COURSE AS A PARENT I CAN'T TAKE OR EVEN SEE PEARSON'S TESTS THEY CREATE - IN THEIR ENTIRITY. THEY RELEASE SOME QUESTIONS, BUT NOT THE ENTIRE THING. NO ONE IN OKLAHOMA HAS GONE TO COURT, AS I THINK THEY DID IN TEXAS, TO FORCE RELEASE OF TEKS/TAKS TESTS.
Now showing Biology EOI (end of instruction) question from Oklahoma (a released item), and a US History EOI question
- both involve higher order thinking
- this released test question appears to have a misprint, say "effort" instead of "effect"
now PISA Question (Program for International Student Assessment)
- this is the assessment that says US schools are 24th in the world and our teachers are horrible
- those statements are not based on Oklahoma EOI results
Reading question about a paragraph and charges/tables on Lake Cad, last question, "Why do you think the author chose to start the graph in that year?"
- that is all about higher order thinking
If you are teaching to the test, that is not a bad word, but you need to recognize the test is NOT a recall test
- too many teachers "teaching to the test" don't really grasp that today
- it is NOT a "Remembering test"
- they don't have to remember everything from your class
If mulitiple choice tests are used in a 1:1 environment, they should look EXACTLY like the standardized tests
In 1:1 environment tests must challenge students to FIND and/or USE information
- MC tests that measure recall WORTHLESS
- remember this is MY opinion (this isn't necessarily the opinions of my current and former superintendent)
Teaching today is NOT about content standards
- you don't have to do away with NCLB to not be so concerned about standards
MY ASIDE COMMENT: INTERSTING NO ONE HAS SHARED OR SHOWED ANY VIDEOS TODAY YET
The common core standards which have just been adopted are probably NOT going to change anything at the high school level
- grade schools, however, might have a heart attack if Oklahoma adopts these
- Oklahoma governor HAS said Oklahoma will adopt common core
However, it's not about content standards today
- it's about cognitive science
- look in your packet for the card about cognitive science
[insert image here]
humans have always learned the same way: We learn WHAT we want, WHEN we want (or NEED) it
- if we had held this conference on June 4th last year, how many of you would have come?
- the MORE we NEED it, the more EFFORT we put into it
If we don't WANT it or NEED it, we DON'T CARE ABOUT IT!
- now you care about this 1:1 discussion
recognize your students are JUT like this, just like you
- you have to make your classes relevant for students
- you have to help your students WANT It, move from the "I don't care" mentality
MY THOUGHT: CLEARLY JIM ASKEW IS A GREAT EDUCATOR TO WORK WITH, HAVE ON YOUR STAFF, BE IN CLASS WITH. THIS IS GREAT TO HEAR FROM HIM!!!
Students actually LIKE to solve problems (under the right conditions)
Teachers must get it RIGHT for every student
- not too hard, not too easy
The 3 Proofs of Education
1- What do you KNOW?
2- What can you DO with what you know?
3- What are you WILLING to unlearn, then relearn?
The Texas textbook wars: why such a big deal?
- If you could write your own textbook, what would you put in it?
You can't just tell kids when they come into your class, "We're going to learn about Pluto today. Go out on the web and see what you can find."
- we can't just throw away the textbook
- you have to make decisions about what goes in the textbook
Your online curriculum IS the textbook
My online curriculum is 15 years worth of work, and I tweak it all the time
Digital textbooks are STILL textbooks
- if you just wanted to put a textbook on a laptop, you should have bought new textbooks or a Kindle
Someone else's website is built for THEM
- imagine how empowered your students would feel empowered if you told your teachers you can build your own relevant curriculum / write your own textbook
THIS IS RIGHT!!!! PREACH ON, JIM!
Pick your 10 most important concepts
- if you are an EOI class, go through objectives and released items and pick 10 concepts
- say "If my kids had fully learned these 10 concepts, they would have passed this test"
- if you are an English teacher with 107 PASS objectives, this can work for you
Build your curriculum around these concepts
OF THE OVER 3000 PASS OBJECTIVES IN OKLAHOMA, OVER HALF OF THEM ARE IN LANGUAGE ARTS.
Involve your students in ACTIVE learning.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Welcome to Crescent PS: Teaching in a 1:1 Laptop Environment #ok1to1
These are my notes from the opening session at the Crescent Public Schools' 1:1 learning conference on 4 June 2010. MY THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS ARE IN ALL CAPS.
MY ASIDE: THE STORYCHASERS MOBILE LEARNING TEAM BLOG IS A PLACE FOR EDUCATORS IN 1:1 SETTINGS TO SHARE IDEAS.
14 of the 19 Oklahoma schools involved in our 2010-2011 ARRA grant are here. About 140 educators.
First, comments from Crescent superintendent, Steve Sheiver
It will take you 3 years to implement your 1:1 properly, so just expect that.
Be sure to maintain that team concept
- when people come to visit, everyone needs to be on the same page
- if you are a teacher in the classroom, and you say something to a visiting parent like "I don't like these things any more than you do," you've just shot your team in the foot
Professional development is key
I can't say enough good about the 1:1, to emphasize the way I feel
- everything the kids have in textbooks can be on that laptop
- we are in the process of changing the way we teach
- we are teaching kids how to learn, this is a critical transition
New federal, national standards are pretty general
The better you prepare for your classes in advance, the better they will go
The teachers you are going to hear from today have "been at it" for 2 years
Remember it will take 3 years to implement a 1:1 program
- State question 744
- we've had to cut 12% of our staff the last 2 years
-reason: our legislature is restricting money for schools
- if we can pass question 744, that is the only way we can turn that around
- it is not going to be a popular issue
Now we're going to hear from our librarian in the media center
The role of the "old school librarian" was "keeper of the books
- today we are:
- leadership provider
- program administrator
- information navigator
- technology facilitator
We have had a genealogy class for several years
- a family heritage project
4th graders here are using net books
- doing research on them
Ways our library supports our 1:1 project
- family history project
- students teaching students
- mini museum
- media center website
We are a "hybrid" library
Think about this quotation from John Dewey: "If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow."
Now hearing from our art instructor, Christy Lovett
- how many of you are self-proclaimed technology people?
- those who are not, you are "my people!"
- it has taken me a full 2 years to jump on the tech bandwagon, it's taken me 2 years to adjust
My messages:
- it IS possible
- it is a lot of fun!
You can still use project-based curriculum in any content area
- research shows PBL increases retention by 42%
- kids process images 60,000 times faster than text
WELL THAT IS NOT EXACTLY RIGHT, BUT THERE ARE MANY MORE NEURAL CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE EYES AND BRAIN THAN THE EARS AND BRAIN!
Now hearing from Mike Wininger, tech director for Crescent PS
How many people are 1:1 experts in the room?
- people will suggest you have to leave Oklahoma to find experts in 1:1
- raise your right hand
Don't let anyone walk into the room and tell you the way to do 1:1
- the way we are doing it here at Crescent might not work for you
How many people are nervous or scared about what is coming?
- this is scary stuff!
Here is a little snapshot about virtual learning environments
- our 1:1 overview
- I came here in 2004, Mr Shiever came in 2003
- 2008-2009 we were 2A
2006: 30 Macbooks
2007: 70
2008: 115
60/80/120 GB hard drives
have 3 XServes
- moodle, email, data server, OD master / imaging, mobile accounts
Our network, we have a 7.5 Mbps connection
- fiber backbone
- airport extreme
We started with just 1 wifi hotspot in 2004
- even today, our entire campus is not wireless
- library and HS you should have no problem connecting here
1:1 progression here
- Steve Shiever in 2003
- ?Staff development every Wednesday
- lots of conversations, lots of exposure to new ideas
Staff development - (repeat 3x)
- it's not about the box
- high priority
- staff development should be your theme song
2006 we received cart of laptops via OK ACTS
Conversation to commitment
- teachers committed
- preparation: web/moodle
- we talk about our successes and failures
You will spend more time screwing things up at first, but that tide will turn
Preparation is KEY: get things to the web
- even in 2004 we were talking about Moodle: building for the web
- get your "face" out there, even just a generic webpage
- that was before the Facebook craze
- we've been talking about virtual learning environments for years
Course management
- moodle
- Acellus Math
- science, history, english, electives
This freaks many educators out: talking about moving away from the textbook
- "What are you going to do if there is no textbook tomorrow?" That is where you need to spend time mentally, thinking.
We spend a lot of time thinking about web production
- we stumbled onto Moodle, we didn't invent it
- If you haven't heard of Moodle, write this down
- Moodle is free, and that will make your administrator happy
We continually encourage teachers to publish on the web
- people are in all different places with this
What's the best definition of a virtual learning environment
- what does it look like?
- my wife teaches with the Univ of Phoenix, I don't like the way they do it
Why is a virtual environment important?
- you have to have a space to manage this
- my vision of a virtual school is everyone at home
Doesn't that scare you?
- it makes us think the public won't pay teachers if there are not kids in the room
- we aim for that (kids at home) because
we are a hybrid school (that is Jim Askew's term)
Most important job in your community: building relationships with kids
- most important client in your life: kids in your town
We are not really wanting an entirely virtual school
- we want to see kids each day, encourage them, pat them on the back
Teacher's view
- students have to be safe and protected
- you have to have someone with a vision, and that's got to be on everybody's list
- this is exhausting: you are going to be tired, wiped out!
- most teachers want more time and training
What did we learn the past 2 years? We have to be more consistent
Student's View
- if you don't ask kids, often they won't tell
- moodle vs the web: we made EVERYONE go to Moodle (to make this a virtual, hybrid class) we MAKE everyone publish to Moodle
- responsibility issues
We have had kids now ask for assignments and work a week ahead!
- kids want consistency
We are not "there" and we never will be
- it never stops
- it does get easier
- next year you don't have to start all over
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
iPads for Administrators?
This week I received a phone call from a friend in a large Texas school district, who I met about five years ago when I created a series of videos about technology leadership as part of the Gates-funded Texas Technology Leadership Academy. He asked me my opinion about purchasing iPads for school administrators in his district.
I definitely love my iPad, and continue to be amazed by its capabilities. The question of whether or not limited district technology funds would be well spent on iPads for principals, superintendents and directors requires more than a yes / no answer, however. Like many questions, the answer to this one depends on several factors.
In a school district in which all students (over grade 3,) all teachers and all administrators ALREADY have district-provided laptop computers which they are permitted to not only use at school but also take home and use, I think iPads might be an outstanding purchase. Tablet technologies have been around for many years, but this new generation of touch-sensitive tablets as well as the bounty of creative applications which are being brought to market seem to herald a new day. If all learners in a school district ALREADY have a wireless, personal learning device, it would make sense for district funds to be spent on a cutting-edge learning platform like the iPad for administrators.
We need leaders in our school districts who both understand and model technology literacy and fluency. To this end, it DOES make sense to empower administrators (as well as teachers, librarians, and students) with personal digital devices. I think, however, a smartphone is a better choice at this point than an iPad or another tablet device for a school administrator. The iPad doesn't fit in your pocket. While I love the lightweight, 1.5 pound weight of the iPad, its functionality does not YET allow it to be a complete replacement for a laptop computer and the everyday, productivity-focused applications which an administrator would run on it. The iPad is sexy, it is eye catching, and it's cutting edge. If school administrators don't already have iPhones or another type of smartphone, however, I think the decision to purchase iPads for them would be premature.
There are not many things my iPad can do at this point which my iPhone cannot. An iPad can share a Keynote multimedia presentation directly to a LCD projector, while a non-jailbroken iPhone today cannot. An iPad can run iPad-specific applications with greater resolution and screen space features than an iPhone, and some applications (like iBooks) which are ONLY available on the iPad. The proliferation of applications for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad is likely to keep growing at a dizzying pace in the months ahead, which could open new doors of productivity and computing possibilities for school administrators as well as others. School officials deciding how to spend limited technology dollars should focus on the most important reasons and purposes for purchasing educational technologies, however, and that analysis should point in one direction: Student Empowerment.
photo credit: One Laptop per Child
As educators, parents, and citizens of our communities, we should NOT be satisfied with school systems which continue to perpetuate an analog learning status quo. The age of the Internet is here, and that means EVERY learner (regardless of age) should have access to mobile computing platforms. Do all the students in your district have their own laptop computers? The answer is a resounding 'NO' in most of our Oklahoma schools today, as it is in most other U.S. states. (Maine is the primary exception which comes to mind.) One to one computing is an imperative today for twenty-first century learners, not an option. Technology purchases in schools today SHOULD reflect the importance of equipping leaders as well as followers with digital learning devices. Unless all certified staff and all students older than third grade already have district-provided laptop computers, however, purchasing iPads for administrators is analogous to buying more water to throw on a swimmer who is already in a swimming pool.
Would many of our school administrators enjoy using an iPad? Undoubtedly. The iPad IS a "magical device." Would limited district technology dollars be well spent purchasing iPads for administrators? In most school districts, NO. Those funds should be committed to teacher and student laptop initiatives, which have far more potential to positively transform teaching and learning than purchasing a new, high-powered tool for principals.
There is one case I can think of where iPads for a group of administrators would make a LOT of sense, and that is for a grant-funded technology leadership professional development setting. Rather than provide participants with reams of articles and paper, all the instructional materials for participants could be provided electronically. Using Stanza, for example, existing digital text files could fe converted to open eBook format. Leadership-specific video presentations from the K-12 Online Conference could be loaded onto the iPads, or better yet... Administrators could learn to subscribe to and download those free, high quality PD resources themselves! Administrators could use their iPads to document classroom observations using customized Google Forms running in Safari. The impact of these activities on technology leadership skills and visioning for NETS support could be significant.
Does your school district have a plan for moving EVERYONE into a 1:1 learning model? If not, get on it. The kids are ready. All your teachers are NOT ready, but they never will all be. You don't need an iPad in your hand to be an innovative and forward-thinking educational leader. Sure it might help you feel cool, but it can't inspire and move you like a school full of students equipped and empowered with their OWN mobile learning devices.
It's all about priorities.
Technorati Tags:
1:1, ipad, laptop, leadership, learning, onetoone, school, superintendent, administrator, principal, purchase, purchasing
Podcast347: Be The Change You Want To See In Schools #i11i #vanmeter
This podcast is a recording of Shannon Miller's presentation with her students at the Iowa 1:1 Institute in Des Moines on April 7, 2010. The title of their presentation was, "Be The Change You Want To See In Schools: Integrating Technology and Making Connections to Create Change." Shannon is the teacher librarian / media specialist / technology coordinator at Van Meter School in Iowa. All the resources referenced by Shannon and her students in this fantastic presentation are available on a Google Site she created, which is linked in the podcast shownotes. This is the first year of the 1:1 laptop program at Van Meter Schools. It is clear to me that Shannon, administrators at Van Meter, as well as students and teachers have embraced a powerful combination of ingredients to not simple "do school" as it has traditionally been delivered in classrooms, but rather intentionally seek to transform the teaching and learning process. As you'll hear Shannon describe in her presentation, educators at Van Meter are helping students connect with their own passions in different domains. Students are not only writing and publishing about these topics, they are also reaching out to other experts in other places with Skype, Twitter, and other technologies. Van Meter schools are on the forefront of the learning revolution, and it was a treat to hear from Shannon as well as her students who are literally on the "front lines of change" at Van Meter. Please refer to the podcast shownotes for additional links and resources related to this presentation.
Podcast347: Be The Change You Want To See In Schools [47:59m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1397)
Podcast347: Be The Change You Want To See In Schools [47:59m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1397)Show Notes:
- Presentation Resources from Shannon Miller (Google Site)
- Shannon Miller on Twitter: @shannonmmiller
- Follow Van Meter updates with their district Twitter hash tag: #vanmeter
- Van Meter Community Schools, Iowa
- Van Meter Library VOICE Google Site
- Van Meter 1:1 Laptop Learning Initiative Google Site (all 1:1 resources, forms, etc from Van Meter)
- Van Meter Library VOICE Blog
- YouTube video by Van Meter student Maddy Darrah sharing how she connected through the library VOICE blog to author Amy Efaw
- Student Prezi about Van Meter student technology group C.E.W.L. (Computer Efficiency Workers League) helps integrate technology and troubleshoot problems/questions students & teachers have (by Marcus Benton)
- Van Meter student Michael Kinley has created a blog "Mike's Tech News" and has a YouTube Channel to showcase several technology tutorials and school projects
- Van Meter student Josh Porter created an iMovie, "What Technology Means To Me" for a Facebook contest and a Van Meter Technology News Google Site to share technology news
- 2010 Iowa 1:1 Institute Wiki
- CASTLE: UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education
- My text notes from this session
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Do District IT Staff Spout FUD at Macs, Linux, or BYOT Proposals?
School district IT staff can be very closed-minded when it comes to alternative computing platforms. To be fair, however, as HUMAN BEINGS we can all be closed-minded when someone suggests changing fundamental aspects of our daily lives or worldview.
photo credit: Amy Mud Pie
I frequently visit with teachers who say things like the following:
Our IT staff would never support Macs. We have to use Windows systems.
or
Our district would never consider using Linux. Our technicians just know Windows.
or
We would never allow students to bring their own computers to school and use them on our network. Our IT department has trouble already managing all our district-purchased computers.
Last Saturday Kevin Honeycutt penned the post, "Intruders? Can powerful, new devices work on your network?" In the post, Kevin quotes Texas technology director Tim Holt reflecting on these questions of alternative operating systems and BYOT (bring your own technology) student learning initiatives. Tim says:
Many of the issues about network security, in my experience, are often brought up by technical people that have little or no training outside of the Windows world. Many networking people in education today received their training in the 90’s when essentially, Windows was the only game in town. Since then, of course, the world has moved towards more common standards and the same rules for Windows work on Macs and other devices as well. Innovative school districts realize that the flood of devices hitting their networks are coming from all types of manufacturers. Cell phones, iPads and iPhones have forced us to look at how we can embrace student use of technology. There actually is a movement by many districts called BYOT, or bring your own technology, where schools are welcoming student’s personal technology because schools cannot afford it for everyone. The FUD that is often spouted by these network administrators, when you really get down to it, is because they have not kept themselves up-to-date on the bigger pictures of networking. And that, in the long run, is a training issue more than anything else.
In case you're wondering, in this context "FUD" refers to "fear, uncertainty, and doubt."
Are leaders in your school district taking a serious look at Linux as a viable operating system for student computers? How about proposals for using other mobile computing platforms, like iPod Touches? Do administrators in your school understand the source of "IT department FUD" could be "training issues," as Tim asserts? Certainly attitude issues can play into these responses as well, and it may be difficult to separate and identify the two.
Whenever people are completely unwilling to consider a reasonable idea or alternative viewpoint, it's often a sign of trouble. Few people relish the idea of having their world turned upside down by needing to learn an entirely different set of skills to be successful. Being willing to LEARN and RE-LEARN is a hallmark for success and effective work in 2010, however. This is not only true for students and teachers, it's also true for IT staff members. Alvin Toffler said it this way:
The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.
We need highly literate servants not only leading our classrooms, but also staffing our school district IT departments. The same is true for vendors who perform IT roles for many schools. For that reason, I agree with Kevin's concluding remarks:
What I hope is that people in Tim's position will be as open minded as he and his team are and will really explore the possibilities of incorporating these engaging, useful and potentially world changing devices. What is clear is that without vision from tech directors and administration, as well as teachers, none of these new tools will be much more than toys. I predict that many people will resist even the idea of allowing these tools to live organically on their networks and will see them as intruders. What I hope is that tech leaders find ways to embrace them because the world we're preparing kids to be successful in already has.
How is the vision of your school's leadership team?
photo credit: Unhindered by Talent
If leaders are focused on students and student learning, it's likely the FUD felt and reflected by school constituents at all levels in these times of rapid change can dissipated and transformed. If the focus is on something else, it's likely FUD will rule the day.
Technorati Tags:
1:1, 1to1, change, ipad, ipod, laptop, learning, mobile, school, operating, system, byot
Podcast346: Discussing Digital Literacy with Educators in the New Literacies Collaborative
This podcast is a recording of a Ustream presentation by Wesley Fryer on 16 April 2010 to educators at North Carolina State in the New Literacies Collaborative. We used a Google Moderator Topic Series to solicit questions for this open forum. Tablet technologies, 1 to 1 laptop initiatives, digital literacy, and helping students improve their critical thinking skills by making the shift from media consumer to media prosumer. Some of the questions addressed were: Will tablet technologies transform the predominant ways people use technology to work and communicate, or is it a passing fad? Mis-information seems to be at an all time high in our political world. How can we help students become good consumers of information, well informed citizens? How are disciplines affected by digital or new literacies? Do tablet technologies have a significant advantage over smart phone technologies for educators? How do you see literacy changing in the schools your work with? How is 1:1 changing how we define literacy? and for that matter how do you define literacy and the new literacies? How much of a limitation to 1 to 1 in education is the lack of flash on the iPad? I've used Flash based online resources extensively with my students.
Podcast346: Discussing Digital Literacy with Educators in the New Literacies Collaborative [61:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1097)
Podcast346: Discussing Digital Literacy with Educators in the New Literacies Collaborative [61:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1097)Show Notes:
- This presentation in flash video format on Blip.tv
- Video Presentation on Blip.tv (Flash format)
- This presentation in m4v (iPod compatible) video format from Blip.tv
- Google Moderator Series on Digital Literacy
- One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Project
- OLPC Tablet Protype for 2012
- Sugar on a Stick
- Linux on Netbooks by Jim Klein
- Partial chat transcript from this Ustream presentation
- Open Educational Resources (OER) - Iowa 1:1 Institute (podcast, SlideShare and Google Presentation)
- Technology Trends in Higher Education -April 2010 (podcast, SlideShare and Google Presentation)
- Powerful Ingredients 4 Blended Learning wiki
- Technology 4 Teachers Undergraduate Course (Spring 2010 - University of Central Oklahoma)
- We all can learn a great deal from a great kindergarten teacher (blog post about kindergarten teacher Maria Knee, her students and classroom)
- Media Education Lab at Temple University
- Celebrate Oklahoma Voices Learning Community (>550 videos)
- Celebrate Oklahoma Voices Project Wiki
- Storychasers
- Wesley Fryer on Twitter
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