Mark's Musings

A New Life on The eDGe

2010-05-10T09:12:00.004-06:00

I found myself with a few spare minutes this morning so I thought I would quickly post some initial thoughts on the Entourage eDGe.

In my efforts to go paperless, I grabbed my eDGe and headed off to 3 days of meetings last week. I experienced a little anxiety attack as I am used to having a pack of pens at the ready and my small notepad. It was strange showing up with my little cocoon case, my Blackberry and nothing else.
Long story short...I was very impressed. I found the eink side very easy to take all of my notes, store them, and retrieve them later. It is true that there is a slight bit of lag as you write but not enough to be disruptive. It felt almost as natural as writing on regular paper except for the fact that people kept coming over to see what this "funky" piece of tech was. It was also fantastic to be able to switch to my novel of choice by the press of one button. I don't need to be distracted but there was some downtime and I enjoyed filling it science fiction thrills and chills.
The tablet side was a trip down the lane fantastic! I felt like I was in Star Trek as I paid bills, read and responded to emails, scanned my RSS feeds, and seached for the latest news using just my finger! I prefered using the stylus for longer email messages but the virtual keyboard also worked well without it. For all you librarians and library fans...the eDGe utilizes epub files which means downloading books from libraries is a breeze!
There are a few things that definitely need some attention:

First of all, my hotel's wireless network was down which meant the WiFi on my eDGe was useless. The people at Entourage thought of this by providing a USB ethernet adapter option BUT they are sold out!!!! I hope they correct this soon.
My internet experience was also limited by my inability to access a lot of online video. If they want this machine to be a real contender then this needs to be rectified and soon. The 21st century is multimedia rich and so this device needs to navigate that world effortlessly. According to the tweets I have seen, this will be fixed with an update very soon. Supposedly very soon may mean this summer as they emphasized to me they want to be fully functional before the start of the next school year.
The lack of an app store also was a little frustrating. As an innovator...okay geek...I accept the fact that I will have to put in some effort to utilize new technologies. I toured forums and blogs to find apps and to find the tips necessary to install them. As a geek I view that process almost like a badge of honor. Most people (and me after the novelty wears off) just want to be able to effortlessly find, install, and utilize their apps. Once again I was assured that this is in the works and will be rectified soon so......we wait patiently.
Oh yeah....one of the reasons I picked the eDGe was because it seemed more versatile than the iPad. It has USB ports, audio recording capability (works great) AND a camera. Too bad the camera isn't functional yet!!!!

The Entourage eDGe is a fantastic tool. I am thrilled I invested in this product. Judging by the number of principals who questioned me about it, the eDGe has the potential to take the world by storm. I just hope that their "very soon" to do list will be completed sooner rather than later. At the moment I fully trust this to be the case. Their staff has been highly accessible to me as a customer and they seem genuinely determined to be ready for back to school shoppers in the summer.

Education, Tech Integration, Star Trek and Goofy?

2010-04-06T14:42:00.022-06:00

I believe that much of what we need to know about the universe can be found in old Star Trek episodes. My musings about successfully integrating technology into schools solidified this claim for me.

Short Version:

Successfully integrating technology leads to the technology almost becoming invisible as the users get to focus on what is most important (see video 1 below). Investing in users' confidence and capabilities can empower them to overcome any obstacles technology can throw their way (see the second video below). Technology integration is about investing in people first and foremost.

Longer Version:

Integrating any technology obviously involves planning. In their article "All Aboard!", David and Margaret Carpenter (2008) break down some key aspects to consider. They utilized the Honk Kong International School as their model for this article and here is some of what they found in regards to integrating technology into instructional practices:

Empower teachers - Teachers at HKIS had intense workloads combined with high expectations. Allowing teachers to take the lead and collaborate with other stakeholders was very effective.

Focus - HKIS didn't try to rewrite the manual on education; they took manageable chunks and constantly reviewed their progress.

Collaborate - Very simple...a collaborative focus allowed integration to flow more smoothly horizontally and vertically across the curriculum.

Define everyone as learner - "classroom teachers learned new technology and information literacy skills alongside their students." (p. 20)

Include Curriculum - It needs to be mentioned that all of the above steps involved a concerted effort to involve curricular changes/implications to their integration efforts.

Take a look back at the above list and ask yourself "What was central to the integration plan...the technology? the users? the curriculum?"

TPACK is another model that looks at the integration of technology. Keep the above questions in mind as you look at the quote and the image from their website below.

Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) attempts to capture some of the essential qualities of knowledge required by teachers for technology integration in their teaching, while addressing the complex, multifaceted and situated nature of teacher knowledge. At the heart of the TPACK framework, is the complex interplay of three primary forms of knowledge: Content (CK), Pedagogy (PK), and Technology (TK)...True technology integration is understanding and negotiating the relationships between these three components of knowledge. A teacher capable of negotiating these relationships represents a form of expertise different from, and greater than, the knowledge of a disciplinary expert (say a mathematician or a historian), a technology expert (a computer scientist) and a pedagogical expert (an experienced educator.

Sorry for all the highlighting but the above information is crucial. The implications of the above videos and quotes on education in the 21st Century are huge. While some may be looking for specific tips, I am not at that point yet. I am still stuck at wrestling with the big picture and with all of the connections between this topic and countless others.

Implications

1. Investing in people is paramount! It has always amazed me how the characters in Star Trek just seemed to know how to fix, adapt, and utilize every piece of technology especially in the heat of battle. Sure, the technology was amazing but at some point in the past there must have been some amazing PD opportunities that solidified their skills. Imagine how different the episodes would have looked if Starfleet built starships but filled them with people who feared technology and had no clue how to use it?

2. Solely focusing on access is counterproductive! There is a huge concern about the digital divide in our nations and especially in our schools. The temptation to focus on access issues by purchasing computers is great but...what if these expensive hardware roll out plans are actually feeding the digital divide?

When new teachers enter the classroom, many are armed with a variety of
technological tools to enhance their curriculum, but too often,a digital divide
exists between teachers and students. Without reform and the empowerment of
teachers and students, schools will widen the digital divide and create an
unavoidable abyss. (Mullen & Wedwick, 2008, p.66)

This quote further supports the TPACK model above and its focus on the complex nature of technology and human knowledge. Mullen & Wedwick go on even further to bring up other topics such as 21st century skills and novel definitions of literacy. I have experienced the frustration of being thrown into a sea of new technologies without any clue about what to do with them. I remember feeling angry, stupid, anxious...but I never considered the broader ramifications. This limited definition of technology integration ("if we buy it they will integrate it") not only harmed me emotionally but actually may have widened the digital divide, undermined efforts to instill 21st century skills in my students, and greatly hampered the level of literacy in my school.

3. Evaluate who we are before we plan where we want to go! Every context, every individual is highly unique. This uniqueness has to fuel or temper your integration plans.

Do we acknowledge/understand the uniqueness of the 21st century? (Ian Jukes, Wesly Fryer, Dawnelai , Jackie)

Do we have standards and/or curricular mandates that guide/require technological integration? (ISTE, AASL, ShirJorg)

Do we acknowledge/understand the uniqueness and the desires of our students...our peers? (Cynthia, Digital_Nation, Marc Prensky, Jane McGonigal,eSchool News)

Do we embrace risk and freedom as things staff and students NEED to learn or do we shelter them at all costs? (Doug Johnson, YALSA, cippic, Nicholas Bramble, Cool Cat, unquiet librarian)

Is professional development paramount to our success or do we tacitly believe professionals are MacGyvers who magically know all, see all, and can fix all? If we do see professionals as learners, what priority, effort, and resources have we put behind their learning? (Natasha, Ruth, me, ETPD, Konrad Glogowski)

Our efforts to integrate technology will be facilitated or impeded by our answers to these questions. For instance, if we don't even acknowledge the pervasiveness of technology and that society demands novel skills from effective citizens, then integration efforts may be weaker or nonexistent. If we acknowledge the importance of 21st century skills BUT our view of risk directs us to filter everything then our integration strategies will follow suit.

One final thought. Integrating technology is not new. I came across a video today of a fictitious teacher who in his eyes had probably successfully integrated technology into his classroom. Watch the video through the lens of the above questions and ask yourself "Would this teacher embrace change?", "Should this teacher embrace change?", and "Who is benefitting from his use of technology?"

Nonhyperlinked Resources:

Carpenter, D. & Carpenter, M. (2008) All aboard! Learning & Leading with Technology, December/January, 18-21.

Mullen, R. & Wedwick, L. (2008) Avoiding the digital abyss: Getting started int eh classroom with YouTube, digital stories, and blogs. The Clearing House, 82(2), 66-69.

Professional Development, Complexity, and Mutual Responsibility

2010-03-31T10:44:00.021-06:00

This week's exploration of technology professional development was probably one of the most intensely reflective weeks I have experienced in a long time. 1000 words is insufficient to describe this reflective journey so....here we go.

Short Version:

Like snowflakes, every professional is highly unique and complex. In order for each professional to develop we need professional development opportunities that honor this uniqueness and complexity. Shifting topics in seminars does not actually produce diverse experiences. Responsibility for the effectiveness of professional development falls on the shoulders of the designers AND the participants.

Setting the Stage:

A) If the learning opportunity is passive, doesn't meet the needs of the learner, and the designer doesn't understand the participants then development is unlikely:

Click here for a humorous but poignant example.

B) Each individual has unique and specific needs, wants, histories, beliefs, experiences, working contexts, and perceptions that can make meeting their needs very demanding:

Judi Harris in her four part series "One Sized Doesn't Fit All: Customizing Educational Technology Professional Development" (2008) does an excellent job of exploring these complexities. Over this four part series she lists the following factors to consider in terms of technological professional development:

learning needs/preferences

personal/school/district goals. In Part 1 of her series she lists awareness, curriculum integration, shifts in instructional techniques, curricular/instructional reform, organizational change, and social change.

technological adoption style. In Part 3 of her series she suggests four highly distinct groups: innovators, early adopters, late adopters, and laggards. Individuals from each group vary in their openness to utilitzing new technologies and their ability to navigate the bumps and bruises along the way to adopting these new technologies.

curriculum content

pedagogical slants

and the list goes on

Kimberley Ketterer (2007) deepens adds to this discussion of complexity by exposing that different professionals prefer to learn in different ways.

Coach - "They are willing to take risks at integrating technology into their curriculum as long as they have support and encouragement from a colleague tbey can trust" (p. 21)

Nurture - "They need a nurturing teaching partner who is willing to help develop and model lessons. Someone to provide encouragement to move forward applauding small achievements while at the same time, continually building self-confidence." (p. 21)

Nudge - "only attend tecbnology integration workshops when attendance is mandated. They need to be gently pushed, prodded, and cajoled into learning how to integrate technology." (p. 21)

Hopefully the above points will support my claim that polarizing teachers into two camps (new school and old school) is not accurate.

As professionals we spend countless hours on differentiated instructional techniques for our students...why don't we apply the same principles to ourselves?

Implications:

1) We need to redefine ourselves as learners above all else. If teachers, administrators, librarians, and educational tech. support staff did this then maybe we would afford ourselves the same level of expertise and attention we give our students

So much of professional development is throwing everyone in a room and having them learn the same stuff. Maybe there is some choice in the offerings, but by and large there is very little attempt at creating a customized professional development curriculum for teachers...Teachers are learners. If they’re not, they shouldn’t be teachers. In a world where we can engage in our passions through the affordances of connective technologies online, we need to be thinking about how to personalize the learning of the adults in the room as well as the kids. Will Richardson

2) Individualized development plans with a communal flavour is the recipe for success.

Technology-related professional development is undergoing a transformation. Previously, teachers were expected to become proficient with technology through a series of sessions and limited support resources (Plair,2008, p. 71)

According to Plair (2008) many plans lack the personal touch and the time investment needed to allow teachers to master the technology. Harris (2008) concurs:

"Research evidence indicates that 30 hours of focused professional development,
on average, is required to change teachers' professional practice...most
teachers probably have not had sufficient time or opportunity to engage in
the kinds of professional learning necessary to help them to use educational
technologies in new ways to assist their students'learning." (p. 18)

Personal learning networks may hold the key:

"A Personal Learning Network or PLN is a dedicated learning environment unique to each individual. What does that mean? It means that this is a place where people create their own environment which helps them to grow/learn. This can be done in many different ways through collaborating, blogging, social networking, etc. What makes PLN’s so great is that they are different for everybody but their goals are usually the same. That goal is to learn and share knowledge and to find a passion and follow it to the best of your ability." unquietlibrarian

In short, money and resources should be put behind teachers connecting with other professionals. These networks and communities mean more than sharing resources; they are mini research teams, instant "geek squad" tech support crews, midnight hour "Dr. Philish" emotional support teams, instantaneous/specific feedback syndicates and best of all...groups of professionals sharing real life examples of technological best practices. Thanks to web 2.0 tools there are countless ways to establish these networks with little or no expense. Cathy Nelson, David Kapuler provide some ideas on what these networks look like and how they can be set up.

3) Leaders are needed to make technology integration possible. Scott Macleod very bluntly asserts that "administrators are the only individuals with the ability to redesign school
organizations. They set the vision, control the budget, reassign personnel, empower others, alter school culture, establish priorities, facilitate buy-in, reallocate resources, and ensure organizational alignment." I agree with him that administrators are key as they can get creative to free teachers up to pursue professional networking opportunites and to play with technology. I would go one step further and say it is also the teachers' and librarians' responsibility to demand this type of leadership and creativity. If we don't demonstrate a desire for more effective professional development, if we don't persistently vocalize how present models hobble our effectiveness, and if we don't actively pursue technology integration ourselves then we are just as culpable for our inability to meet the needs of 21st century learners.

I am out of room for this week. Take a tour of my blog postings. I am the evidence for the power of sustained and focused professional development. Since September I have been part of a digital professional network and I can confidently say that I am a completely new teacher ready to tackle the 21st Century. Imagine the state of education if system wide professional development empowered every educator to make the same claim.

Nonhyperlinked resources (all of these are must reads):

Harris, J. (2008). One size doesn't fit all: Customizing educatonal technology professional development. Learning and Leading with Technology, February, 18-23.

Harris, J. (2008). One size doesn't fit all: Customizing educatonal technology professional development. Learning and Leading with Technology, March/April, 22-26.

Harris, J. (2008). One size doesn't fit all: Customizing educatonal technology professional development. Learning and Leading with Technology, May, 22-25.

Harris, J. (2008). One size doesn't fit all: Customizing educatonal technology professional development. Learning and Leading with Technology, June/July, 24-27

Ketterner, K. (2007). Coach, nurture, or nudge: How do you learn technology best? Learning and Leading with Technology, May, 21.

Plair, S. (2008). Revamping professional development for technology integration and fluency. The Clearing House, 82(2), 70-74.

Trust and Privacy in a Knowledge Based Economy

2010-03-22T11:20:00.017-06:00

Setting the Stage

"The knowledge-based economy: Developed economies have traditionally relied on the production and sale of manufactured goods, like steel, cars and consumer goods. In the modern knowledge-based economy, it is the creation and management of technology and information that drives commerce and the creation of jobs." Canada’s Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA)

"There's an old saying. It's never the problem you see that gets you, it's the one you don't see. So it is with secondary uses of personal information. This hazard arises when information is collected for one legitimate and authorized purpose, and then later used for another, unauthorized or illegitimate purpose." Canada’s Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA)

"Privacy seems to come down to trust. Trust that the people in charge are considering my best interest." Dawnelai's Blog

Short Version
Living on the internet is like walking through a mall with a group of corporate execs and shady characters with notepads documenting everything you do. The business execs learn what they can so your next walk through their mall will be more fruitful for you and for them. Who knows what the shady characters are doing...they're shady. Thank heavens for the giant bouncer you are walking with (the government) as he/she is trying to make sure you and your info are okay.

Longer Version

Canada's Office of Consumer Affairs offers a lot of great information about how public our privacy actually is:
1) "When we make a phone call, use our bank machine, or make a purchase at the store, we leave an electronic record of our whereabouts and habits."
2) Modern technology allows all the digital pieces of our travels to be collected. This includes info from cell phones, faxes, answering machines, debit cards, credit cards, emails....the list goes on.
3) Almost anything I do online creates some sort of record on my computer and on my internet service provider's servers.
4) You can delete your trails on your computer but:

"every time you connect to the Internet, you create an electronic record -- a data shadow -- that shows every web site you have visited while on-line. This kind of shadow is temporarily recorded on your Internet service provider's (your "ISP's") computer. Whether it is deleted frequently, or kept permanently depends on your ISP. Now governments have asked service providers to keep that data, to help fight the war on crime and terrorism." (OCA)

5) Communicating online through emails can be risky. Your messages can be intercepted and even if you are at work your correspondence could be viewed by your employer. Encrypting your email is a good idea.
6) Data cookies may be advertised benign and nonspecific information but they do say something about you and they are used to influence your online experience. If someone gathered all these little pieces of info. they could get a fairly accurate picture of who you are.

Watch the following videos about cookies and privacy settings. They are informative. As you are watching, ask yourself whose interests are truly being served? Do I trust the information being offered from a corporate entity who exists to make money?

Now compare the above message to the message in the video below. Before you watch below...ask yourself "Are social networking tools designed for me to share or for others to learn about me?"

So What?

I really appreciated my colleague's posting on this issue entitled "Privacy…we just can’t hide.". Dawnelai directed me to a quote by Danah Boyd who is quickly becoming a digital mentor to me:

"People of all ages care deeply about privacy. And they care just as much about privacy online as they do offline. But what privacy means may not be what you think.

Fundamentally, privacy is about having control over how information flows. It's about being able to understand the social setting in order to behave appropriately. To do so, people must trust their interpretation of the context, including the people in the room and the architecture that defines the setting." Danah Boyd

I believe educators have the moral and ethical responsibility to teach students the critical components of trust. In Danah and Dawnelai's writings they reference trust. In the above quote, trust was linked to understanding and interpretation. If schools are going to spend millions of dollars on technology and in training librarians and teachers how to appropriate the strengths of web 2.0 then we need to equally focus on staff and students being critical consumers. Everything we do online leaves a trail. We trust the government and our ISP's to guard that trail and to make sure we have some measure of control over what is done with our information. We trust our friends and the friends of our friends to honour us by following unwritten codes of social conduct when it comes to our information. We trust businesses to protect our information as we believe they want to keep us as repeat customers.
The key words for me in Danah's quote are "interpretation and context". Schools need to become institutions filled with people who are professionals at critically interpreting immediate and broader contexts. For instance, it is important that we teach staff and students that the information they place on a social networking site actually may become the property of that site. This may not be a big deal if all people involved in the immediate context understand the rules of the game.

But what happens when the broader context changes like we are experiencing now? In order to protect us from terrorism and intellectual piracy, governments and corporations are changing how privacy and control are interpreted/experienced.

"In accordance with our conceptualization of the privacy of the act of reading, libraries have traditionally treated the privacy of readers as sacred. Privacy is a central, core value of libraries. This is the reason for librarians’ anger over provisions in the USA PATRIOT Act that can force libraries to reveal information about the reading habits of their patrons to the FBI and other government investigators."
http://libraryjuicepress.com/blog/?p=68

"In 2007, the Conservative government amended copyright legislation. Under the new rules, making illegal movie recordings became a criminal offence punishable by six months in jail and a $25,000 fine.

Brand is concerned the enforcement of those piracy laws could violate Canada's privacy laws, because in order to monitor illegal uploads and downloads online, authorities would have to monitor a person's entire internet connection, he claims.

"Any prohibition on downloading works — that has a huge impact on the sort of privacy side of things. In order to know that I'm not downloading any works illegally, you have to monitor my internet connection. That's not the kind of society that I want to live in," Brand said"

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2010/03/17/bc-copyright-movie-pirate-conviction.html

This week was an eye opener for me. I am still pumped about teaching in the 21st Century. I was just reminded in a new way that we can't play school or hide our heads in the sand. If we take either of those options, our students may continue to express their fundamental freedoms online with no true understanding of what that may mean in an imperfect world full of rules, interpretations, corporate interests, and political contexts that are constantly in flux.

Creative Commons and A Tale of Two Traumas

2010-03-07T09:50:00.015-07:00

Childhood Trauma #1

When I was just a lad sporting a lovely but lopsided afro (trauma for another posting) I often suffered from canker sores or aphthous ulcers if you prefer. One day I asked my mother how to get rid of them. Her instructions were to use a glass of hot salt water, and she emphasized hot. I took her advice without question and went on to rectify my problem. Long story shorter, I began drinking salt water!!! As you can imagine, something didn't feel quite right inside but an how could my mom be wrong? Much later, when she found out, she had a laugh and corrected me. "Gargle son, what would make you swallow salt water?" Traumatic.

Learning about intellectual property and copyright law has been a similar experience. Over the past week I have realized I have based much of how I teach on interpretations of other teachers' interpretations of these issues.

Key Lessons and Corrections:

1) Copyright Laws are Complicated: Okay, this belief was true. I defy any kid let alone any busy teacher to make sense of Canadian copyright law (Document found here). These laws do establish the rights of my students' intellectual property which is basically anything their minds can produce (Butler, 2005) but not the ideas themselves (intellectual freedom wiki). They establish what other people can and can't do but the language is so complicated it often turns people like me off.

2) Copyright Laws can be Restrictive: This I knew but Professor Lessig opened my eyes to how restrictive. He shared that our new digitial world founded on the idea that every user is a creator and the key function of creating is sharing. He also shares that copyright laws were created before this common reality and therefore limit the freedoms of creators who genuinely want to share. This brings in the new alternative...Creative Commons (Take the time to watch Professor Lessig's video below)

3) Creative Commons = anti-trauma device: Creative Commons is a relatively new movement(created in 2003) that provides creators of content a simple, clear, and effective way to share (not restrict the use)their content. In short, with the use of a few basic symbols people who access your intellectual property will know exactly how they can use, copy, remix, and share your property. Bye, bye insanely huge legal documents. For a full explanation view the video below and click here.

4) Educators aren't gods: Early on in my career multiple colleagues shared with me that as a teacher I could copy pretty much whatever I wanted as long as it was for school. As long as I could label the activity as educational...I was untouchable. Much of what I believed is actually only partly true and the myths I believed are common to many teachers (Matthew Neeldeman) Once I looked at Canada's fair dealing exceptions many of my materials are in direct violation of our laws. Did you know there are strict time restrictions on how long teachers can have recordings of television or radio broadcasts? Did you know that there "are no guidelines that define the number of words or passages that can be used without permission from the author. Only the courts can rule whether fair dealing or infringement is involved" (CIPO)

Implications and Trauma #2

My dad didn't really set curfews. He allowed me to decide when to go to bed. I interpreted that freedom as it didn't really matter to him or anybody else. I selectively ignored his important statement "Don't let your night life interfere with your day life." I stayed up super late every night and it took me a long time to realize that my dad, my teachers, and countless other people were impacted during the day by my poor decisions at night. You think I would have learned quicker as my dad always made a point of getting me up early after my latest nights.

1) Students have rights - I was reminded teachers and librarians have been tasked with protecting and facilitating students' intellectual freedoms. According to Lamb (2007) this includes allowing our students to participate in rich experiences that the read/write web has to offer. She also includes removing restrictions and increasing access. This fits perfectly with utilizing Creative Commons licenses and materials. If they have access to materials that were designed with sharing in mind, they can freely wander, borrow, and create...legally!!!

2) What we do matters - It seems weird saying this to teachers but...our students learn about how to exercise their rights and their freedoms from us so we need to know what we are doing. Mike Ribble (2008) wrote about the importance of digital citizenship to our students. In this article he outlines a four stage model for teaching digital citizenship. The stages are awareness, guided practice, modeling and demonsrtation, and feedback and analysis. Key statements from this article:

"Awareness means engaging students to become technologically literate....Students need to learn what is appropriate and not appropriate when using different digital
technologies." (p. 16)

"Following awareness activities, educators need to provide their students
with opportunities to use the technology under their guidance by focusing
on “appropriate use of technology.” (p. 16)

"Adults need to be positive role models of good digital citizenship so
students can follow their example." (p. 16)

I was short changing my students by not acknowledging issues like copyright and intellectual property. By modeling a wreckless abandon approach as I surfed, copied and pasted from the net I was modeling poor digital citizenship. In short, how can teachers participate in any of the above activities if they refuse to educate themselves and fully acknowledge the value intellectual property? Or as Jennifer Janesko asks "If we, teachers and parents, do not clearly understand copyright and fair use issues, how do we properly teach our students?" (2008, p. 9)

3) Change takes time - My colleagues and I discussed about how quick and easy it is to ignore copyright and just do whatever we want...after all it is for the kids. Learning about copyright laws and finding highly effective and engaging creative commons content will take time. BUT if we communally explore the commons we can help each other out (Click here to get started or try ccMixter)

4) Ignorance and apathy have consequences - Some people make their living through their intellectual property...through their creative works. Haphazardly stealing from others just because technology makes it easy harms real people. One of my colleagues this week shared how the intellectual theft of her husband's artwork profited the burglar but hurt them. Our actions do have consequences and we as educators need to act as if this is true and instill this truth in the hearts and minds of the next generation of digital citizens.

Non-hyperlinked Resources:

Butler, R. (2005). Social responsibility: Intellectual property defined. Knowledge Quest, 34(1), 41-42.

Janesco, J. (2008). Do students respect intellectual property? Learning & Leading with Technology,May, 8-9.

Lamb, A. (2007). Intellectual freedom for youth. Knowledge Quest, 36(2), 38-45.

Ribble, M. (2008). Passport to digital citizenship: Journey toward appropriate technology use at school and at home. Learning & Leading with Technology, December, 14-17.

Digital Divide...Simple to Spell...Complex to Fix?

2010-02-22T10:48:00.029-07:00

If you live in North America, it is hard to escape the existence of and the growing reliance on digital technologies. For many, being digitally connected is a given, an expectation, a right. Even our cars have gone from being modes of transportation to being highly mobile digital communication devices:

This technological shift appears to be creating a divide nationally and globally. These digital divides are "the imbalances in physical access to technology as well as the imbalances in resources and skills needed to effectively participate as a digital citizen. In other words, it is the unequal access by some members of society to information and communication technology, and the unequal acquisition of related skills. (Wikipedia)

In the above quote this divide is caused or manifested in people's lack of access to technology and their lack of skill to use the technology in complex manners. Notice it also frames this divide in terms of people being digital citizens (we will come back to that one).

At first glance it seems easy to address this divide or technological imbalance. Pump money into infrastructure, ship computers nationally/globally, and hire trained digital citizens to make sure everyone is up to speed.

The divide has more components than skills and access. This is where it gets really complicated. The digital divide actually mirrors other divides in our societies along racial, gender, socioeconomic, cultural, religious, and political lines:

(Thanks Dawn for finding this)

The American Association of School Librarians suggest that policies that dictate institutional purchasing of technology and filtering content influence this divide. They also suggest "motivation, cannot be overlooked. That is, we’re seeing children, teachers, media specialists, and administrators all having different motivations to either adopt, ignore, or actively thwart learning innovation with Web 2.0 tools" (AASL October 2008).

I fully admit that the last two semesters of learning about Web 2.0 has whipped me into a bit of a panic. I live in a remote, fly-in community. We are progressing with our technology. As teachers we see the value of this advancement but a true sense of urgency and panic hit me when I came back to Alberta. I gained the impression that the world has changed almost over night in a way never imagined before. George Sciadas' research calmed my nerves by putting this present digital divide into perspective:

Despite perceptions about the meteoric rise of the Internet, fast as it
may have been, the penetration of television in people’s lives was
faster1. The penetration of the VCR was also very fast, particularly
during its first decade. While the speed of adoption among commodities
differs, their penetration is generally characterized by accelerating
growth in the initial periods, which eventually gives way to decelerating
growth. (p. 2)

In short, technological divides have happened before and to some degree these divides shrink with time. His research did support, however, that our present digital divide is expanding in Canada between the poor and the rich...which obviously is an issue of concern.

Major Question Leaders Need to Answer:

Is the digital divide a cultural/political construct based on the assumption that there is one right way of being?

In the YouTube video above, digital technologies and related skills were defined by their ability to allow America/Americans to compete in the global economy. Wikipedia's definition of digital citizens describes them as being able to complete duties such as filing taxes, child registration, and other commercial endeavors online. These examples and countless others support Sonia Liff's assertion that the existence of and the plans to eliminate the digital divide have agendas behind them. For instance, research has shown that boys and girls use digital technologies differently (Looker & Thiessen, 2003). Sonia Liff picked up on this and shared the risk of defining women as poor users and men as good users. This would lead to policies and programs to improve women. This approach ignores the key question...what do women want to use technology for? Other presenters besides Sonia Liff emphasized that one set of policies/projects to eliminate the divide doesn't fit all as different nations/cultures perceive technology differently and therefore would use it differently. These thoughts came from the video below (thanks Natasha) and is well worth a watch.

Implications for Educators/Leaders:

1) Be aware - We need to be aware of how we define success. We have an agenda in schools. Educational gurus that are pushing the educational envelope have complex and unique skills in mind for digital citizens (ShirJorg, Jackie, Joyce Valenza). Even though many students are using web 2.0 tools they would still be considered on the bottom of the divide as they may not be using them in the way we define they should be.

2) Avoid simplistic responses - Our gut reaction is to buy, buy, buy. "If students and teachers have access then we are okay." Focusing on hardware while ignoring policy, the skills your teachers have/lack, the infinite ways users perceive and interpret experiences with technology is short sighted. Add the existing socioeconomic, cultural, gender, political barriers in your school/community = limited success or complete disaster. Danah Boyd does an excellent job of exploring these elements in the digital world (Click here. Make sure you read her papers)

3) Think context - Solutions do exist but they likely will be unique to your area. You can learn from others though. Thanks Dawn for examples of contextual solutions.

4) Respect play - My peers and I discussed at length the importance of teachers being competent technology. If teachers value and have the skills then they can help battle your local digital divide. Administrators...please get creative with scheduling and create space for your staff to play with technology. I guarantee you will see results :)

For further ideas check out Dawnelai's blog.

Non-hyperlinked resources:

George Sciadas completed a report entitled "The Digital Divide in Canada" for Statistics Canada. This report can be accessed here.

Looker and Thiessen (2003) compiled research for Statistics Canada. I referenced their report that you can access here.

Digital Natives,Immigrants, and Pioneers: Going Beyond my Gut Reaction

2010-02-04T16:52:00.007-07:00

Background:

Before this week I had not heard of the terms "digital natives" or "digital immigrants". My brief journey through this topical landscape ended up being far more emotionally charged and confusing than I had expected. This emotional involvement and confusion was not unique to me and seemed to be fueled by one Marc Prensky's views on the subject.

A couple quotes from his paper "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants" (2001) will help set the stage:

It is amazing to me how in all the hoopla and debate these days about the decline of education in the US we ignore the most fundamental of its causes. Our students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach. (p. 1)

It‟s very serious, because the single biggest problem facing education today is that our Digital Immigrant instructors, who speak an outdated language (that of the pre-digital age), are struggling to teach a population that speaks an entirely new language. (p. 2)

He identifies digital natives as the first generation to grow up in a world permeated by digital technology. Digital immigrants are older generations who are drafted into this digital world but are fundamentally different from digital natives. He suggests and defends the idea that digital natives' actual psychological and mental processes have been altered by the environment they have been raised in. So much so, that widespread educational changes including utilizing fast paced, digital media/video games, need to be incorporated to meet their needs. His follow up paper "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Part II: Do They Really Think Differently?" (2001) explores some of the research that supports the premise that our brains are far more malleable than traditional thought acknowledged.

Initial Response:

I admit that I became quite offended, skeptical, outraged, hurt, and reflective when I first read Pensky's thoughts.

Joyce Valenza shared my skepticism:

I've also wondered about Prensky's (and other educational futurists') contention that kids' brains have significantly altered over time because of their exposure to digital technology.

She also found his work to be divisive and so broad that they ineffectively reflected the diversity of technological experience/affinity in any generation. Our class discussions this week also went in this direction. We all seemed to acknowledge that our world has changed due to digital technology but we struggled with the idea that we were immigrants and somehow innately at a disadvantage in this new world. We didn't buy the idea that by birth all digital natives were instinctively or innately digitally altered.

I quickly went from conflicted and confused to confident...almost cocky as Kathy Schrock expressed my thoughts perfectly:

I did not grow up with technology. It grew up with me, and I was there every step of the way. I think those of us who have been there since the beginning, and have adopted each technology as it came about, should not be called digital immigrants. I do not turn to the printed manual first. I always choose reputable Internet sites to locate information. And I do speak the correct language (and still do not accept Google as a verb!) There are very few technology skills that are foreign to me.

Preach on Sister! I am a pioneer! I began to dismiss Pensky. When I took some time to reflect and dig deeper, I realized my gut reaction was emotional and I was closing my mind to a key fact...I do believe education needs to change and it is mostly due to the influence of technology. Tech has fundamentally changed how we do things...how we live.

Present Stance/Implications:

Anne Collier (unknowingly) drew me back to Marc Pensky when she wrote:

Many news reporters grew up in a very different (mass media) environment, as did a lot of parents, educators, and other news consumers. So we're seeing and participating in a distorted picture of social media and how youth use them if we're viewing young people's use through the traditional news media and our own mass-media lenses. (NetFamilyNews.org)

Danah Boyd (amazingly brilliant) also gave a presentation that drew me back to Pensky and some final thoughts/implications I would like to share. The video is long...but worth it. My comments are mostly basked on the first half hour.

1) Adults need to acknowledge differences. Terms we grew up with like friends, community, meeting, sharing, privacy, etc. are still spelled the same but have totally new meanings. Our students live these new meanings that aren't constrained by physical space. If we don't acknowledge and make room for these new meanings, our effectiveness as leaders will be greatly diminished.

2) Adults need new skills...especially critical thinking. Up to this point I have been focusing on 21st century skills for my students. Up until watching Danah Boyd's presentation I was working on the tacit assumption that I possessed the skills that the students needed. Short version....I have to critically approach students online identities as they likely weren't created with me or the world in mind. I am an outsider that is ignorant of the influences/context that created that persona. In essence, I have to learn the new rules and language of social media before I can meaningfully engage/educate my students.

3) Modalities change but people don't. Educational leaders need to avoid confusing a change in technology with fundamental shifts in the human condition. I don't know enough to argue Pensky's assertions that brains have changed but I do know enough to recognize common traits between generations. Digital natives have grown up with new ways to do what humans have always wanted to do....connect, be known, find significance, belong to community, find meaning, experience acceptance and the list goes on. When I was a kid we found social status by the friends we were seen with. When my grandfather was a kid, social status was improved by owning a TV or switching from horses to cars. Now days this same process is governed by who comments on your blog or how many texts you do in a day.

4) Focus on individuals and growth. Educators need to continue to develop their skills and improve their practice but when push comes to shove, our schools are full of adults full of life experience that our students need. Pensky actually emphasizes that the new generation needs to gain our ability to reflect which comes from our wealth of experiences.

If we focus on divisive generational descriptions, then we alienate everyone....immigrants, pioneers, and natives alike (Anne Collier concurs). If we ignore fundamental changes in the world, we may be more comfortable but our students and our profession will suffer.

Nonhyperlinked Resources:

Prensky, M. (2001) Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-5.

Prensky, M. (2001) Digital natives, digital immigrants, part II: Do they really think differently? On the Horizon, 9(6), 1-9.

Technology, Standards and High Jump

2010-01-28T11:24:00.034-07:00

Last week's look at 21st century skills leads perfectly into this weeks exploration of the standards we set to help students and staff achieve/acquire these skills.

The American Association of School Librarians (AASL)has laid out an amazing document called Standards for the 21st-Century Learner. This document is based on the beliefs:
1) Reading is foundational.
2) Inquiry is vital.
3) Behaviour should be ethical.
4) Technological skills are crucial.
5) Access should be equitable.
6) Information literacy is complex.
7) Individuals need to learn unique thinking skills.
8) Learning is social.
9) School libraries are essential.

These beliefs provide the framework for an extensive set of standards in four key areas:

1) Inquiry/critical thinking
2) Decision making/creativity
3) Ethical/productive knowledge sharing/citizenship
4) Personal/aesthetic growth

The International Society for Technology in Education developed their own standards called National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Summarizing their beliefs/standards would take more room than I have here but the following statement should give you a taste:

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®) is the premier membership association for educators and education leaders engaged in improving teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in PK-12 and teacher education.

NETS has standards for students, teachers, administrators and technology leaders. Student skills are ultimately the focus in the areas of creativity, collaboration, information fluency, higher order thinking skills, citizenship, and technology. (Click here for a more detailed look)

Marjorie Pappas (2008) has an excellent summary of both standards systems including contrast and comparison charts. She also bottom lines the purpose for these documents:

Technology initiates change at an exponential rate, and information technologies are at the heart of the information literacy standards. No Child Left Behind and a growing body of research about both teaching and learning have changed education over the past ten years (p. 22)

That final quote hit me more than the standards themselves. For some reason a switch flipped and I realized that I personally and professionally haven't acknowledged a technologically induced societal/educational change. I still have some sort of mental barrier that views technology as cool but not as fundamentally crucial to the success of my students. How can this be? I am the tech guy for my school? I love sci fi and I teach mulimedia rich courses.

Shortly after I read Marjorie Pappas I paused to look at what I was doing. I had two monitors running with 13 tabs open plus Tweetdeck (five columns worth) and iTunes downloading podcasts. 5 days out of my week are like this almost 6-8 hrs per day.

HOW COULD I HAVE MISSED THE POINT THAT JOYCE VALENZA, WESLEY FRYER, WILL RICHARDSON, AND OTHERS HAVE BEEN MAKING? The world has changed. The rules of the game have changed (see Jackie's Thoughts on Web 2.0). As a learner and as a professional, I am exhibiting the skills that my students need. I am 35 but I can honestly say that I don't know how I could do what I do without my technology, collaborative, creative, and problem solving skills. These are the very things the creators of AASL's and ISTE's standards are focusing on.

One major implication to stress here...how powerful can technology standards be if the people tasked to implement them don't fundamentally acknowledge their necessity? This goes even further...how can information specialists like librarians establish their place in education if other educational leaders don't understand/acknowledge the technological shift in the world? Zmuda and Harada (2008)touch on this link between acknowledgment of need, standards development, and standards implementation but they use the term mission:

Such clarification of what the learners must do to achieve mission goals defines for all staff what good business looks like in the library media center. Good business is work (instructional activities and assessments) that develops student learning around the goals that are most important (again as defined by the mission). (p.43) This article is a must read so please see the reference section at the end of this posting.

Successful students/staff need to work in an environment where the heart (mission) drives the mind (standards) and the limbs (people) of an organization. This is a cyclical relationship as the people of an organization are the heart of the organization.

In my opinion, many schools in the North aren't ready to implement NETS or the Standards for the 21st Century Learner. As leaders we are just beginning to recognize the need for the skills outlined in these documents. Once we corporately acknowledge this need, then these standards will be essential to focus our efforts and alter our practice. At present I am using these documents as conversation starters within our technology planning group. A place to start anyway.

My classmates have expressed a different scenario. They have the heart and the passion but within their Canadian context they lack clear/concise/practical standards or direction to define their roles.

One final scenario included schools with 21st century missions and some standards in place but had problems finding new teachers with the skills to pull it all together. This scenario hit home that the issue of new standards and skills impacts learners of all ages...including post secondary learners (Marcoux, 2008).

What does all this have to do with high jumping?

In order to complete my degree I had to take an athletics course. Part of this course consisted of a high jumping competition. In essence my world had changed and I needed to acquire a new set of skills. High jumping was no longer something I watched on TV. It became an essential skill to my success as a learner/professional. Sure, I could jump. Sure I could have found anyone on the street to teach me how to jump but for me to succeed I needed to know how to do it right. Thank heavens for my coach who had a heart for the sport, competed in the sport imself, stayed on top of the latest training techniques, and was an expert at helping others to meet the required standards. This complete formula is what we need to support our learners today.

I will close with a question and a quote.

This following quote is directed at librarians but it applies to all other educational leaders as well:

Learning standards are as important as librarians consider them to be. We have to be sure that as a profession we both master and model the skills that students are expected to demonstrate. (Dickinson, 2008)

Question: Who should serve as the high performance educational/technological coaches in our schools to help staff and students meet these standards?

For those of you interested in more of the specifics of AASL's and ISTE's standards, visit Ruth Elliot's blog.

Non-hyperlinked resources:

Dickinson, G. (2008). A place to stand. Library Media Connection, 26(6), 10-12.

Marcoux, B. (2008) New standards-refreshing our work, again! School Library Media Activities Monthly, 24(7), 18-20.

Pappas, M. (2008). Standards for the 21st-century learner: Comparisions with NETS and state standards. School Library Media Activities Monthly, 24(10), 19-26. Fantastic comparison/contrast/summary.

Zmuda, A. & Harada, V. (2008) Reframing the library media specialist as a learning specialist. School Library Media Activities Monthly, 24(8), 42-46.

It is all about SKILLS

2010-01-24T14:02:00.021-07:00

Skills have been vital to the success of our species since the dawn of time. For some reason, the 21st century seems to have renewed educators' focus on skills. This may be in part to the rousing, unifying call of the great 21st century philosopher...Napoleaon Dynamite.

The best synopsis comes from The Partnership for 21st Skills website. Their framework suggest the following skills are critical for 21 century learners:
-Learning and Innovation
-Information, Media, and Tech.
-Life and Career Skills

While none of the above categories may seem unique to this century...many educators view this century as being unique. This perceived uniqueness is drawing many to redefine core concepts to education...especially the idea of literacy. I personally find this interesting as I have always viewed literacy as being simple. Personally, I viewed literacy as being able to comprehend written and/or numerical information where ever you may find it. Take a few moments to watch the video below. As you watch, count the various types of literacies that are referred to. Some of them go way beyond my limited definition and refer to skills that don't even involve text (ie: outdoor literacy, emotional literacy, etc.) Also ask yourself "Are the listed skills unique to the 21 century? Are the skills unique only in terms of their focus? Are the skills unique in terms of the tools present to put them into practice? Is there any real uniqueness at all?"

I personally believe that many of the skills they list, especially skills like critical thinking and creativity, are not unique to the 21st century. George Manthey agrees:

For me, it's hared to think of a century in which it wasn't important to think critically as well as be analytical, creative and collaborative. (2009, p.11)

Think of the Aztecs, Galileo, Aristotle, Archimedes, Mayans, Newton, Darwin and countless other examples of individuals and civilizations in the past that required analytical, critical, communication, and collaborative skills to survive and excel.

When I ran into the next video I realized that my focus...my interpretation of what I was reading about 21st century skills was wrong. Maybe people from this movement aren't stating that these skills are only important to this century. Maybe they are stating that these age old skills have a new twist to them now and are even more important given the challenges we are facing. Watch the video and reflect on the implications of a society that reflects the stats they share:

George Manthey (2009) eloquently summarized some of the thoughts that ran through my head and some of the thoughts that have obviously sparked debate in other circles:

I'm not sure why I should be surprised, but I am when I learn that teaching critical thinking, analytical and technology skills-as well as teaching students to be creative and collaborative-has become controversial. There seems to be a bit of a backlash against such skills, often called 21st century skills. The concern is that if such skills are emphasized, it will be at the expense of core content(p.11)

I don't know why my gut reaction to this topic was "Okay...here comes another fad" but that was my reaction. After watching the videos and revisiting The Partnership for 21st century Skills website I realized I was wrong. This organization and other educational leaders are actually asking me as an educator to do my job....better. For instance, math and science curricula focus on the tools used in these areas as well as communicative, collaborative and innovative skills required to understand and succeed in related fields. Do these documents state that we are only to use the tools that Galileo had at his disposal? I don't think so. If doctors, astronauts, lawyers, city planners, interior designers, counselors and countless other professionals have always sought to used the best tools and skills available, why would this trend stop at the 21st century? If our kids are growing up in a would inundated with media...why wouldn't we pursue directions/skills/practices that would allow us to prepare them to navigate their world safely and effectively?

I would like to suggest that this topic of 21st century skills is important for teachers and students alike. Watch the news for the next week and track all of the stories related to just the topic of attention and technology. How we interact, form friendships, listen to the people we care about is being altered by technology. Parents, kids, teachers, students and almost every other group in North America is trying to learn how to live meaningfully in this type of world. With this in mind, watch Howard Reingold's lecture (at least from the 6 minute to the 20 minute mark where he focuses on the basic skill of attention) and then ask yourself how effective education/educators could ignore responding to the unique needs of our time.

What really struck me this week was reading the thoughts of my fellow classmates. My classmates are leaders within education who excel at what they do. One shared that her students prefer to stay within the box rather than wondering creatively. Another classmate shared a vision of education where learning went beyond the walls of the school and meaningfully impacted the very communities the students lived in. Another shared the tough issues students face when they aren't nurtured at home for various reasons. Most of our thoughts around 21 century skills/education came back to education meeting the needs of each individual student. Meeting these needs walked hand in hand with topics such as collaboration, community, creativity, accessibility and fairness rather than knowledge or content. None of us believe that content isn't important but we seem to be excited about the opportunity the 21st century is giving us to make learning meaningful for us and our students.

The big question...How can educators raised in the knowledge/independence/individuality addicted 20th century learn how to teach in a 21st century world that is founded on connection/collaboration/creativity?

Nonhyperlinked resources:

Manthey, G. (2009). The knowledge vs. skills debate: A false dichotomy? Leadership, 39(2), 11.

Very thin link between Eli and SLW

2010-01-16T17:49:00.020-07:00

This past week I was introduced to a variety of information about libraries, librarians, and the realities of both in light of Web 2.0. I am not a librarian but what I read created an instant connection (in my mind at least) to the premise for the new film The Book of Eli. If you are familiar with the film...don't run away! Give me a chance to explain. If you aren't familiar with the Book of Eli film, take a quick look at the trailer below:

Short Explanation:

People in the know are noticing a huge shift in the educational landscape generated by the read/write web. They sense that this shift is "laying waste" to how education was done and is generating a new way (world) of researching, learning...interacting with knowledge. Librarians are a group of heroes that are charged with proactively responding to this shift, protecting the key elements from the old world, and developing new skills to aid the students/staff of the present and future.

Slightly Longer (but less dramatic) Explanation:

The Threat: Obsolescence and Ineffectiveness (not nuclear in any shape or form)

"While the influences of Web 2.0 may vary in regions around the world, there can be little doubt that the challenges raised by new technologies must be addressed by the entire school library community.
Without facing the new realities of how people use information and communication or digital learning technologies, we risk a real danger of becoming isolated as print-only learning environments. We need to draw on our traditional leadership in building collaborative teaching and learning activities in order to engage students in new learning environments which harness their innate interests in new technologies and connect their in-school and out-of-school literacy practices."(SLW 2008)

What should libraries do to become relevant in the digital age?
They can't survive as community-funded repositories for books that individuals don't want to own (or for reference books we can't afford to own.) More librarians are telling me (unhappily) that the number one thing they deliver to their patrons is free DVD rentals. That's not a long-term strategy, nor is it particularly an uplifting use of our tax dollars.(Seth Godin)

Listening to podcasts and reading blogs/manifestos gave me the impression that librarians are excited about their profession but the source of their excitement is also generating fear or concern:

It is the best time in history to be a librarian. We have rich opportunities to teach and guide in new information and communication landscapes...perhaps our biggest nightmare is the lack of urgency in our profession. Educational change, technological change, and funding reductions are pressing in on all sides. (Joyce Valenza)

Librarians are signaling that change is happening and they are taking on Denzel's role. They are braving the new world, with new skills, and with new passion.

What needs to be protected or what is truly at risk....libraries? librarians? or something else? I would argue that, unlike the movie, physical objects aren't the focus in this discussion. True, powerful, and meaningful research + critical thinking skills are being lost and librarians are trying to respond to this educational extinction crisis (okay...a little drama left).

The Response (no kung fu required)

Joyce Valenza initiated a wiki (click here) on the topic of librarians. This wiki hit home that the most effective response to the above threat is human....not technological. Two statements from this wiki emphasized to me that a philosophical shift...a fundamental change in the discourse held by all educators (librarians, teachers, administrators, ministers, parents etc.) is the key:

The library is not just a place to get stuff, it is a place to make and share stuff...Know your physical space is about books and way more than books. Your space is a libratory.

Imagine how different the movie trailer above included Denzel and about 100 000 partners who all shared the same level of capability, vision, and focus. That probably wouldn't make a good movie but that is what is needed in education. Joyce's manifesto is a useless document if only one person in each district fits that description. If a school division became permeated with leaders who believed schools are physical places where youth explored creation in all its forms....imagine the implications and the possibilities:

1) Libarians would no longer have to ask how "to begin to make the school library program indispensable to the success of every learner at [their] school?" (thanks Cyn). They would have a whole community reflecting alongside them.

2)Libarians would no longer have to ask how to "involve other teachers, administrators, parents, and students as stakeholders in defining library program goals that support school goals" (thanks Cynthia). The whole school would be founded on this premise of involvement.

3) Staffing models and hiring practices would be altered to make sure a strong core of specialists are hired, supported, and utilized in staff professional development. These specialists would likely be creative in nature and highly skilled at navigating the technological and informational universes (sounds like a librarian to me....thanks Dawn).

4) People like Joyce Valenza would no longer have to push librarians and other educators to stay current with their skills. The general culture and the individuals within that culture would demand this as stagnant individuals/practices would contravene the core value of creativity. (Click here to read more about Joyce's charge)

In closing, I want to emphasize that fundamental skills in our students are what is at risk. My discussions with colleagues this week kept coming back to this perception. We perceive a difficult road ahead as we try to impart effective research and thinking skills on the next generation. Our experiences and research supports the fact that the presence of technology alone does not guarantee that youth will gain these complex skills (Todd, 2008).

Simply put...Denzel in the movie "The Book of Eli" could probably save the future without the physical book, but the book couldn't save the future without Denzel. Our students will succeed even if libraries as we know them cease to exist but their future is bleak without specialists like librarians.

Nonhyperlinked resources:

Todd, R. (2008). Youth and their virtual networked words: Research findings and implications for school libraries (14),2. School Libraries Worldwide, 19-34.

Happy New Year! An Early Look Back at 2009.

2009-12-02T11:20:00.001-07:00

We are getting close to the time where people begin to look back at the successes and challenges of the last year. Music channels outline the movers and shakers of the year. The movie industry post their biggest earners and their biggest flops.

This blog and the intense exposure to Web 2.0 was a totally new experience for me so I thought I would follow suit and look back at this exciting process. Posting this reflection early will hopefully keep my thoughts from getting lost in a sea of gems like the one below:

Web 2.0 Highlights

1. Creativity - I have never considered myelf to be a creative person. After all, when you are colour blind you try to stay with the basics so people don't laugh at the fact that you colour oceans on maps purple instead of blue (sorry...traumatic childhood moment). Starting this blog has drawn out creativity I didn't know that I had. To be honest, it is hard not to be creative when tools like Blogger, Jing, and GoAnimate (my favourite) are so easy to use and to embed into my blog. As cool as text is by itself, text with video and images is infinitely better. This leads me to my second highlight...

2. Free - If you are a teacher, a librarian or a parent then I don't need to say much more. Once I got over the belief that everything that is free is useless, my experience grew. If you need to do something on the net...there is a free quality tool out there for you.

3. Connections - Social networking is something that every educator should have the opportunity to play with. While I do see challenges such as exposure to inappropriate content, monitoring students and the content they post, etc. (click here for my posting on the subject) the benefits are phenomenal. I would recommend Ning as a place to start as it does provide some management control and the Ning community is ripe with great educational opportunities. For instance, I am participating in an open ended conference with over 650 other people from across the world. Not only do I get to hear from great keynote speakers/bloggers, I can chat with them, ask them for direction, grab resources, and potentially invite them to partipate in my online activities. Beyond this, I am making new connections with highly skilled people with common interests and struggles which means my traditionally closed door classroom is now wide open to fresh eyes and new mentors. If you haven't signed up fo the K12 Online Conference click on my badge on my sidebar. It is amazing and it is FREE.

4. Reality check - I have to be honest. Blogging can be disappointing if you don't see tons of comments on your posts. I began with the belief that my blog, my tweets, my discussion postings meant something to me but not to anyone else. They felt like one way conversations. Just this last week I was proven wrong. One colleague joined the k12 online conference after reading something I posted, another started a Delicious account, and a fellow classmate contacted me by email to share how much she appreciated our online discussions (Thanks Canadanz. Check out her blog here.) The stuff we post can become conversations, can impact peoples lives, and in turn can enhance our own experiences if we give it a chance ( ).

Challenges...not Lowlights

As an educator I try to adhere to the idea that even the darkest moments funamentally will point me to an even brighter future. 2009 definitely proved that to be true....

Challenge 1: Not everything is as easy to do as they say it is.

Challenge_1

Challenge 2: Avalanche of information anyone?

Challenge_2

Challenge 3: Praying for Time.

challenge_3

Challenge 4: Death by filter.

Challenge_4

Where do we go from here?

I said 'we' because my plans will hopefully include entice my family, my colleagues, my region, and my students to join in. What I have in mind I can't do alone.

1. Focus - I am in the middle of choosing the tools I am most passionate about. I don't want to go back to work with 50 great things. Out of all the tools I have used the ones that I feel every teacher in my region should experience are:

a. Social Bookmarking - We are constantly on the move and the amount of luggage we can carry is highly limited. Being able to use anyone's computer to access and share our favourite sites...priceless. While I am using Delicious, I honestly feel Diigo is a strong option that many will love.

b. RSS Feeds and Google Reader - Our isolation means that accessing PD is exceptionally hard. Our community expects a high level of teacher involvement outside of school which means researching in free time is tough. Having a steady stream of personally identified information of interest coming to one spot...priceless. Add this to the potential of having online student work coming to us instead of having to go look for it (Richardson, 2009). Fantabulous.

c. Blogs - I think blogging may be a good first step for many teachers. Our region is focusing on literacy so everyone is looking for engaging ways to engage students in reading and writing. This incentive combined with relatively easy set up procedures and the ability to personalize blogs will be appealing to many. The fact that our email system (First Class) supports a completely in house alternative will also likely be a plus. Using First Class, students could generate blogs safely behind the firewall of our regional network. They get to interact with other students while we get the peace of mind of knowing they are fairly well protected.

d. GoAnimate - This tool is fantastic and it can support our computer courses and our literacy initiatives. Many classes call for storyboarding skills, editing text/video, combining multiple forms of media and other complex skills. GoAnimate is highly accessible to everyone and it allows you to focus on the objectives at hand instead of complicated programming/interfaces. Plus it is wicked cool :)

2. Research - I need to go back with as much information as I can about how schools are already using web 2.0 tools effectively. As mentioned I am part of the k12 online conference. I am actively following "Moving at the Speed of Creativity Podcasts" (you can easily find the following podcasts through iTunes). These podcasts by Wesley Fryer dig into the big picture stuff like why social media (#334), how to develop social media guidelines (#323), designing 2.0 schools (#312)and the steps needed to make technology available to everyone in our schools (#335). These should be mandatory listening for every educational leader.
These podcasts directed me to schools in the states that are totally reinventing how they do school. I am reading up on these schools so I can learn from their mistakes and potentially support changes in my neck of the woods (http://k12blueprint.com/k12/blueprint/. Excellent place to start.)

3. Advocate - I have already initiated conversations with key technology people in my region. I have invited them to participate in my learning and I have asked big questions like do we have a five year plan for technology? How can we educate students about online behaviour when the internet is heavily filtered? How can we advocate for creative timetabling to allow staff to play with these effective tools? Can we identify at least one teacher from each school that I can work with to implement these tools to prove their value? It seems to be working as I am being consulted and informed of many exciting developments.

4. Practice -"As a teacher, blogging will have a profound effect on their reading and writing skills. They will be able to get outside feedback and build on their already existing knowledge. They will learn to build their own PLN based on the blogs they follow and the information they learn from those blogs and the links they lead others to and to where they have been." (http://learningtogether-laurie.blogspot.com/) It is one thing to read about how things work and another to put things like blogging into action and confirming their value for yourself. My son struggles with writing but he is highly social and loves to learn. He has shown great interest in my blog and I heard him say last week that he wished he had is own blog. Before Xmas I am going to set up a blog with him that he and key people in his life will have access to. This will give an opportunity for me to see if the above claims of blogging are true and I will gain great experience in how to actively manage an elementary student in an online environment. I can't wait.

The End of One Journey...the Start of Another.

This blog entry could go on forever. I don't know when the last time was that I was so excited about possibilities and change. I planned on doing one last GoAnimate entry for 2009 but my internet is very unstable. So I will end this entry with quotes from two inspirational leaders in the Web 2.0 world.

"Level 1 seems to be “getting” that there are all these new tools and technologies out there and that we can now publish all sorts of content really easily. And that kids are already using social networks and that these tools are cropping up more and more in classrooms around the world...Level 2 takes it a step further and implies that “getting it” means that there is some real change involved in what’s happening right now, that it’s not just about tools, but about connections and building learning networks for ourselves and for our students...That to really “get” what the implications of all of this might be, you have to really be willing to really think differently." (Will Richardson)

This summarizes my journey over the last few months. I have gone from merely recognizing the existence of these tools, to understanding that there is some sort of change going on, and now the overwhelming evidence presented to me has forced me to fundamentally change how I view myself, my students, and the way I approach my craft. My experiences have shifted from being fun for me, to being fundamental for the future of my profession (still fun though).

"For the successful learner, learning is not the end -- but the process they use to achieve goals and the feeling of pride and satisfaction in their accomplishments. Learning literally has a different feel for them. It is not just a matter of going to school, listening to the teacher, and completing assignments on time. Not measured Instead, learning springs from within; is felt in their minds and hearts.

The successful learner is someone who learns how to learn in the fullest sense of the word. They are heroes because they have taken their given talents and strengths and combined them with hard work, ambition, attitude to get where they are going.
" (Angela Maiers)

It is easy to see from that quote why Angela is an award winning blogger. Over the last few months I have been a successful learner probably for the first time in decades...at least to this degree. Grades never truly entered the picture on this journey. I pushed myself. I participated. I took risks. I communicated through novel modes of communication. I joyously shared everything I did with anyone who would listen. I gleaned from anyone who would communicate with me. I altered my lifestyle and my aspirations based on what I learned. I questioned almost everything. These are all things I wish for my students.

As tough as this journey has been so far, truly submersing myself in Web 2.0 under the guidance and support of the Web 2.0 community has put me in the position of being a learning hero (great term Angela)for my son and my students. I wholeheartedly agree with Angela that "it is only after exploring learning success in a broader sense, that I really understood how to teach students to be successful learners and not just wish it upon them. (Angela Maiers) I hope this understanding spreads like wildfire through my circles of influence.

Next challenge....exploring the psychological, neurological and social impacts of Web 2.0. The new journey begins....

All of my classmates have much to offer but the following people truly helped me through the roughspots and they have much knowledge to share:

http://lisavanness501.blogspot.com/
http://lorisedes501blog.blogspot.com/
http://josephnorrie.blogspot.com/
http://crystaledes501.blogspot.com/

Inspirational voices for change:

www.speedofcreativity.org
http://weblogg-ed.com/
http://www.angelamaiers.com/
http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334.html?nid=3714
http://wiki.k12onlineconference.org/ If you haven't signed up already...get in on this conference. This resource alone will leave you set for years in terms of resources and networking opportunities.

Each of the above not only stress the importance of change, they also provide specifics about how to make those changes.

Keeping up with the latest in social media news:

http://mashable.com/
http://k12blueprint.com/k12/blueprint/ Social media, one to one computing...in action in schools.
http://www.makeuseof.com/

Blogs and Aggregators...a Match Made in Heaven

2009-11-27T14:54:00.042-07:00

The Big Picture

Many historical events have stopped the world in its tracks. Events like the theory of relativity, the invention of the printing press, and the birth of Tim Hortons rank right at the top of the monumental events list. But ultimately, stories of love continue to strike our souls at the very core. Many of you may be thinking of New Moon but before those vampires hit the screen, the biggest love story of all time was...
Randy the Macho Man Savage and Elizabeth.

The Proposal

The Response

I still remember where I was for this wedding....Barbados, drinking sour sop punch and sweating like a mad man. What is the point? Blogging and feed aggregators are two tools that were meant to be together. Any teacher or librarian who chooses to bask in their radiance will be changed forever. Don't believe me?

My First Experiences with the Lovely Couple

Before September I hadn't met either partner. I didn't know what blogs were and I definitely didn't know what 'RSS' or feed aggregators were (hmmm...sounds like aligators). This posting could go on for days so I want to focus more on the relationship between the two tools rather than breaking each down individually. If any of you are unsure about what blogging is you are reading one right now and my colleague did a great posting about the basics of blogging (Click here) Check out the links under "Google Reader Wonderfulness" on my sidebar to tour blogs and to find blogs about blogs.

The learning process has been long so I will give you brief highlights in the screencasts below.

1. blog_and_RSS1

2. feeds

3. Blog_and_RSS2

4. Blog_and_RSS3

The Couple's Impact on Me and Society

1. Self Efficacy - I am a person who wears many hats. Many of the roles I play in my personal life require skills that I don't have. As a dad, this fact drives me crazy. My mom always talked about how her father and mother would show her everything she needed to know. She walked side by side with them as they demonstrated the skills that she needed. Fast forward a few decades, I come along, both my parents worked, and the information age kicked into overdrive. Now I have to figure things out on my own. My son, my professors, my wife, my in-laws all seem to turn to me for advice or throw things my way that I am ill prepared to deal with. Having a planet full of bloggers and simple data collection tools such as Google Reader and Bloglines mean that I can learn what I need to know at any time. Even silly stuff like not knowing how to cook yams for his supper. Click. Click. Subscribe. Voila...recipes, tips, tricks, coming out the wazoo. I used to workout so people ask me for weight management tips. Besides referring them to a pro I can say check this out.

2. Move at my own pace without offending - One pitfall of feed aggregators is that they don't stop. They constantly bring you more...more...more. In fact, an hour ago I had only about 200 unread items, now I am at over 700. You can and will feel overwhelmed. The advantage to these tools is you are one step removed from a conversation. If you decide to ignore the incoming information or if you decide to mark them all as read so they magically disappear, no one is offended. Unlike Twitter where you are interacting directly with a community, these tools make learning all about you. Read what you want, when you want and nobody else is the wiser. For other management tips or considerations, check out Crystal's blog under Personal Implications (Click Here)

3. Join in...everybody's doing it - Take some time to read or listen to people like Joyce Valenza, Mack Male, Will Richardson, and Wesley Fryer. The constantly hit home that the web is now a venue for participation and conversation. If someone blogs something that strikes my fancy or gets me going...I don't have to sit idle. I can do my research, generate my own blog posting, and link my readers directly to the person I am responding to. I am part of the game. I am not on the sidelines anymore. This makes the internet far more exciting, personal, and alive.

"I suspect that the world-reach thrill of blogging might be novel and might wear off. But it occurs to me that the true power of working within an audience, as opposed to performing in front of an audience (writing to the teacher, what you thing the teacher wants to read), is the power of conversation. It’s knowing that somebody (even the guy in the next row) is reading what you are writing (not measuring it), and that the reader may respond to what you’ve written, pushing you to rethink and respond back." (http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/?p=2020)

4. Positive pressure to improve - My son and I are about to start our own blog before Christmas. Knowing that people are going to read our stuff, that they will be able to use Google Reader to track our writings, and that they may choose to stop following us is exciting/challenging. Blogging pushes us to become better bloggers for our reputations' sake and for the sake of our community (http://www.copyblogger.com/off-track-writing/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Copyblogger+%28Copyblogger%29&utm_content=Google+Reader).

5. Styles of learning - I don't have research to back up this point. As my thrill over Google Reader calmed down a little, and as I reflected on the story I told about my mom growing up, a thought struck me. What happens to a society where reading and communicating online becomes the ultimate form of learning/interacting? I was fortunate to grow up with parents and grandparents that forced me away from my Vic 20 to go out and build, fix, and experiment with new things. My parents forced me to put my book down and try new experiences. I spent 6 hours in front of my computer today just touring blogs, flipping through my feeds and learning through conversation. I had to yank myself away once I realized my son needed to eat. What's the point? As cool as these tools are, they shouldn't replace all other forms of learning. I will have to continue the tradition and say "Son, enough reading about BBQing or how to rebuild an engine. Let's go do it"

How can This Relationship Help My Profession?

Much like the Macho Man and Elizabeth, aggregators (like Google Reader and Bloglines) and blogs are powerful on their own but together they can be magical.

1. Resources - Have you ever been on a tight budget? Have you wandered around education fairs wishing you had the cash to buy everything? Concerned about the environment as you print off copies of articles or lesson plans for colleagues? Blogging is free. Accessing blogs is free. Highly skilled professionals are sharing infinite mounds of good stuff through these free tools (check this out). You can share these resources paper free (thanks for the idea Wesley and Will).

2 & 3. Enriching + Time Saving - Will Richardson (2009) drives home the power of blogging to engage students in rich learning experiences. He also suggested an idea I wouldn't have come up with on my own. Imagine a world where students' work was not only interesting but it automatically came to you instead of you having to travel around to find it:

"If you already use Weblogs with your students, the uses of RSS should be pretty apparent. Instead of checking out all twenty-five (or thirty, or more) student Weblogs every day, you could just collect their work in your aggregator using RSS feeds. That way, you can scan through all of the class content in one place, make sure it's all appropriate, and clich through to a particular post if you want to comment on it." (p. 77)

4. Be or have a guest speaker in a whole new way - I live in an isolated community. If you watch Ice Road Truckers or the new show Ice Pilots, it will give you an idea how hard it is for me to get people in to my class or for me to contribute to another person's class. Josh Hanagarne opened my eyes to a new possibility. He did guest postings on other peoples' blogs. Potentially I could have specialists in various fields actually do posts on my blogs which will automatically be passed on to my students and colleagues through their aggregator of choice :) Here are a few other lessons Josh learned:

By November 1 I had written over 50 posts. 42 of them had aired on other blogs. Here is what I learned:

•A lot of bloggers seem to have a fear of guest posting. Get over it or be happy with your current rate of growth.
•You will meet awesome people.
•Those people will act like you are doing them a favor by borrowing their traffic.
•You are doing them a favor, provided you give them something they can use. I love to have guests!
•This marathon approach is not for everyone. Do not try to write more than you are capable of. Test yourself but don’t flame out. I have a masochist work capacity and I still wound up with more than I could handle. I thought I would get the 80+ posts written before November 1. Life, sleep, the flu, a book proposal, and kettlebells all conspired against me.
•Don’t commit to anything that will prevent you from taking care of business at home(page). There’s nothing more pointless than writing a killer guest post and having all those new visitors land on a dancing Hello Kitty graphic that’s a year old.
•Don’t pretend you know things you don’t. If you can’t talk about stocks, either find another approach or turn it down. Don’t be a poser.
•Don’t be afraid to say no when people pitch ideas to you. You made the rules, right?(Click here for the full posting)

Oh and he also mentioned the slight benefit of a drastic increase in people subscribing to his blog. A nice little perk...

5. Protect yourself by Projecting yourself - It is sad to say but due to the position that leaders such as educators hold, we have to be vigilent in everything we do. Our codes of ethics and professional conduct combined with our natural instincts for self preservation have always kept us conscious of how we portray ourselves in public. Thanks to the new read/write web and the Google monster...public has a totally new meaning. Blogging, publicly sharing your links/feeds, linking yourself to other reputable people and other online practices can help you generate a digital footprint to be proud of. Wesley Fryer is a major proponent of actively generating your footprint. (Click here to explore further)

There are so many more tips, tricks, applications, and implications surrounding blogging, RSS feeds and aggregators. I can't possibly cover it all (check out my followers as many of them will be adding to this conversation as well). Ideas are constantly...wait...one more.

6. Social Bookmarking - This just hit me....how can a teacher remember why they subscribed to a feed or a specific post? What if you used your aggregator to bring in the information and as you read you used your Diigo account to highlight key points, add notes, and generate conversations? Not only will you have a permanent record of why the blog posting was important to you, you can actually network with others in a different way. (If you are new to social bookmarking check out my archived posting or Joseph's)
Give blogging and Google Reader or Bloglines a try. The relationship they share will likely enhance your life, the lives of your colleagues, and the lives of your students. Possibly even more than the Macho Man's wedding did :)

Nonlinked References:

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Twitterverse and Infinite Meteors

2009-11-17T14:00:00.026-07:00

Okay...the title may seem a little vague but by the end of this post hopefully it will become clear. I have technically spent more elapsed time around Twitter the last few months than any other Web 2.0 tool and yet I feel inadequate and unprepared to add to the cosmos of information about it.

Quick hint#1: How many meteors per minute would generate the most amazing light show you have ever seen?

Three Stages of Personal Learning:

Stage 1: Clicking Blind

Stage 1 Screencast-2009-11-17_1240

Stage 2: Desperately Seeking Accomplished "Twitteronomers"

Stage 2 Screencast-2009-11-17_1320

Quick Hint#2: How many meteors per minute would totally ruin a meteor shower for you?

Stage 3: Returning to Ground Control

Stage 3 Screencast-2009-11-17_1437

Social Implications

I think it is important to look at the broad social implications to tools such as Twitter. At the end of this posting I will provide links to sites that give specific applications of Twitter to your daily life but I found the "bigger picture" stuff to be most interesting this week.

While I could bounce around from resource to resource, I would like to springboard off of an impressive transcript of Danah Boyd's presentation at the Web 2.0 Expo in New York (click here for transcript). Some of her thoughts more eloquently describe the intended message behind my concept of "infinite meteors".

Quote #1: "Consider what it means to be "in flow" in an information landscape defined by networked media and you will see where Web2.0 is taking us. The goal is not to be a passive consumer of information or to simply tune in when the time is right, but rather to live in a world where information is everywhere. To be peripherally aware of information as it flows by, grabbing it at the right moment when it is most relevant and valuable, entertaining or insightful. Living with, in, and around information....Being in flow with information...it's not about perfect attention, but it is about a sense of alignment, of being aligned with information."

Twitter and other social media are definitely about being in tune with the world around us. They are about being surrounded, immersed in diverse experiences and connections. Twitter and other similar tools such as texting and instant messaging focus on the present. What is my point? I am concerned about what direction this intense emphasis on immediate information combined with the growing cultural drives to (1)be in the flow 24hrs a day and (2) have our peripheral senses/attention constantly jammed pack with stimulation. As I am typing this I have Tweetdeck chiming constantly with updates from Twitter and Facebook. Next to me I have my Blackberry registering an inflow of text messages and email updates. For good measure I have two screens operating so I can work on this post while keeping up with my two email accounts. When I go downstairs to relax, I will turn on my xbox which now has full Facebook and Twitter capability. When I head into town my Blackberry will be constantly chiming with updates from 2 email accounts, Twitter, Facebook, Blackberry Messenger, Times Magazine, Macleans Magazine...and the list goes on.

I feel like this meteor shower of information that started off as stimulating, beautiful, and inspiring is now approaching a critical social juncture for us which leads to quote #2 from Danah Boyd.

Quote #2 "People consume content that stimulates their mind and senses. That which angers, excites, energizes, entertains, or otherwise creates an emotional response. This is not always the "best" or most informative content, but that which triggers a reaction.

This isn't inherently a good thing. Consider the food equivalent. Our bodies are programmed to consume fat and sugars because they're rare in nature. Thus, when they come around, we should grab them. In the same way, we're biologically programmed to be attentive to things that stimulate: content that is gross, violent, or sexual and that gossip which is humiliating, embarrassing, or offensive. If we're not careful, we're going to develop the psychological equivalent of obesity. We'll find ourselves consuming content that is least beneficial for ourselves or society as a whole."

Imagine what it would happen if a meteor shower hit every night for 15 years. Each successive night the number of meteors that illuminated our sky grew in number exponentially to the point that no dark sky remained. Imagine the stages we would go through as a society...slight amusement, wonder, awe, concerned, scared, annoyed, avoidance accepting, dependent and numb. By year 15, people's lives would be fully dependent on the light the meteors provided and yet consciously they wouldn't even acknowledge their presence. You would even have a whole new generation that is born and being raised based on this dependency.

I don't want to come across all doom and gloom. I just think everyone including parents like myself need to consciously look at what is going on. There are consequences to the road we are on.

What will happen to my son if I make the conscious decision to limit his access to social media? How will my work suffer if I make the choice not to have internet access at my house? How will intergenerational relationships survive when you have one generation who is in the flow and another who isn't? How will my view of graduate professors change if they aren't immersed in the flow and I am? How can businesses and communities in the Northwest Territories compete when so many of them lack adequate connections to the flow?

Danah Boyd goes on to discuss other equally important challenges such as democratization, power imbalances, and homophily. If nothing else it may draw you back to making sure you have a conscious purpose (http://www.crowinfodesign.com/downloads/twitter_beginners.pdf) for things like Twitter instead of just going with the flow.

Professional Implications
Despite the challenges listed above. Twitter does have potential for professionals in the world of education:
1) Instant connections with other teachers about what is going on in your classroom (http://twitter.com/dstresca)
2) A consistent flow of encouragement between professionals (http://twitter.com/LitCoaching)
3)Up to the minute updates between the providers of technology and the educators that use it (http://twitter4teachers.pbworks.com/Interactive-Whiteboard-People)
4) High interest content instantly accessible from experts in cool fields such as astronomy (http://twitter.com/NASA)
5) Twitter taps into the natural drives of youth which opens the doors for more engaging lessons (check out this news story)
6) "Self Awareness and Reflective Practice" (http://mrslwalker.com/index.php/2009/03/29/nine-great-reasons-why-teachers-should-use-twitter) I have enjoyed conversations between and with educators that are struggling through real issues or who are experiencing the joy of real triumphs. I have traditionally used Ning or Facebook for this but Twitter may be slightly quicker and more portable to support those surprise reflective moments.
7) Interactive presentations that can better respond to the needs of the audience. Imagine being in a large conference where you can receive Tweets right into your Powerpoint to guage the effectiveness of your presentation or to take poles of your audience to support your stance with highly local data. (Tools to support this)

There are many other potential applications for Twitter but I will close on a couple big picture considerations.

First of all, much like kids who become aware of meteors for the first time, teachers will have to adjust their focus to fully participate in what applications like Twitter have to offer. Instead of just focusing on the world inside the four walls of your classroom, you will have to truly open your professional life to other professionals and possibly your students and their parents. Certain mysteries held behind close doors will become transparent to the broader community which can be humbling but it also opens the door to new possibilities...new lasting connections.

The final consideration is for administrators, parents, and community members. Take the time to get to know the staff within your schools and your divisions. If people like Danah Boyd, Joyce Valenza, Wesley Fryer, and Will Richardson are right then the world's focus is changing. Education is being influenced by new generations of star gazers that aren't content to watch the meteors as they pass. They want to hop on, go for a ride, and to invite everyone else to share the experience. Support your staff and students as they consciously wade through the Twitterverse. It will take time for meaningful educational change to happen. Join in on the conversation and help guide practice instead of closing doors because of perceived risks.

Finally, don't assume that a closed classroom door means that students aren't learning. Who knows, the kids on the other side of that door may have spent the day mingling with astronauts, researchers, activists, and heads of state. Are experiences like this worth the risks? You decide....

My place in Twitterdom

Mark's Neigbourhood (Exploring Social Networking)

2009-11-13T18:46:00.013-07:00

Learning about Mark's Neighbourhood

Once upon a time when I was five years old, I lived in a neighbourhood called Petrolia in south Edmonton. How did I learn about my neighbourhood? Well, here were the basic steps as I remember them.
1) My parents drove me around the neighbourhood to show me all the people and places.
2) My parents talked to me about my neighbourhood and how to be safe as I gained more and more freedom.
3) My teachers forced me to memorize my address, my phone number, and other key numbers so I could be safe if I got lost or if I needed help.
4) Police officers and block parents came into the school to teach me what to look for in things to avoid and places to run to if I needed to.
5) My parents followed behind me as I walked to the places they told me were safe in my neighbourhood. Then my dad would praise me about what I did right and correct me if I skipped or ignored rules learned in the previous steps.
6) Once I had passed all the above tests, I finally got to tour my neighbourhood with friends on my bike with very strict guidelines.
7) My final emancipation to truly claiming my neighbourhood came when I was 9 or 10, when I was allowed to bike on my own to and from school, my friends houses, and even the local mall.
Learning about my 21st century online neighbourhood was similar. Four or five years ago, students in computer classes started touring something called Bebo. I assumed it was a regular webpage until I noticed their pictures, their comments, their top then lists, and all their friends were listed. I thought this was cool but this was quickly shut down as parents and colleagues began noticing profanity, references to substance abuse, inappropriate images and detailed personal information on these pages. Fast forward a couple staff meetings....Bebo and the like were banned and it was our job to police our students to make sure the evil was kept at bay.
Fast forward a few years, I notice staff and friends with Facebook pages. This didn't seem evil as they were sharing about deep stuff like family members who had passed away, memories about high school, and aspirations for the future. I took a leap and joined in and voila....roughly 280 friends later, tons of useless add ons later I am fully Facebooked. No more carrying around photo albums or wondering what my old chums are up to....Facebook opened the door to allow me to explore my social neighbourhood with ease (cool thing is...I don't need a bike with a banana seat to tour this neighbourhood).
Enter EDES 501. It is suggested to me that other neighbourhood touring/creation tools exist. I created a network through Ning (http://teachnwt.ning.com/) that allowed colleagues and myself to freely share resources, ideas, coping strategies, best practices....each other without having to fly or drive thousands of miles. In a very short time, they joined, added their own images and new conversations began. The professional neighbourhood that I thought had disappeared when I moved away was reestablished....until the great filter tragedy (more on that later). The more I explored other peoples Ning networks the more excited I became at the possibilities because it appeared to be more "adultish" and powerful than Facebook. This was cemented by joining an actual online conference through Ning that instantly exposed me to countless professionals that existed in my global neighbourhood that I didn't even know existed (instead of just embarassing jr high photos being posted by old girlfriends).

Personal Social Networking Ramifications

1) Redefining "fake" - My childhood neighbourhoods consisted of people, pets, smells, sounds, allergens (oh...hives), metal, cement, churches and junk food. All of these elements were real. My friends and I had imaginary friends but even we knew hangin with real friends beat fake buddies any day. 20 Years post 80's...

An alternative perspective sees virtual worlds as three dimensional social networks-online environments where users meet and interact with each other and collaboratively create and edit virtual objects" (Davies & Merchant, 2009)

Social networking sites take out the concrete and physical contact and force me to focus on the invisible parts of neighbourhood life...namely connections and shared purpose. Instead of seeing these sites as being full of imaginary friends, I am accepting these sites as tools to connect me with people who genuinely want to shoot the breeze about things we mutually care about. It is just hard getting used to creating virtual objects in virtual environments.
2) Neverending teenage syndrome:
Take a quick look at the vids below.

I loved being a teenager and I love working with teenagers but...social networking does seem to amp up some teenage like qualities that I struggle with. In the first video, he talked about people being not only able to see you but also all of your connections...24 hours a day. While this may facilitate getting together with old pals, this also opens up people snooping into my business and possibly misinterpreting relationships/links I have with other people. The second video hit home the frustration I have had with Facebook mostly. Now prying eyes can see all my affiliations, surf through to make whatever assumptions they like, and leave ambiguous comments that may be misinterpreted by others (short version major drama potential...bad teenage memories). I am still uncomfortable with my personal connections being so public. I am even more uncomfortable with seeing other people battling it out online as text, images, and video are far more permanent. Instead of just having to explain yourself to a couple people....you may have hundreds of people to be accountable to. This is why I think I prefer Ning as it affords me more control.

Professional Implications of Social Networking:

The video below is by no means extensive but it will give your eyes a break from reading and a few things to think about.

GoAnimate.com: Global Neighbourhoods by nwtbajan

Like it? Create your own at GoAnimate.com. It's free and fun!

I truly believe that if we take the time to learn how to introduce students to social networking like my parents introduced me to Petrolia, students and staff will be empowered to explore, to connect and to grow. If my parents had locked me in the house to protect me from my neighbourhood instead of guiding me...what would I have faced after I moved out? What will happen if we do the same with social networking in schools?

Next week....chatter about Twitter!

Multimedia Sharing

2009-10-30T21:03:00.040-06:00

Learning the Multimedia Way.

According to Wikipedia, "multimedia includes a combination of text, audio, still images, animation, video, and interactivity content forms." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multimedia)

Step 1: Reflection.
When I sat down and saw the title..."Multimedia Sharing" my mind began to wander. One question kept resurfacing...aren't many of the tools I have already explored technically multimedia sharing tools? Another permutation of this question is the classic..."Aren't lunch and dinner the same thing?"

I toured Photobucket which included the ability to share video, images, and text (click here for a recap) . When I looked at YouTube, multimedia and sharing capabilites were definitely there. Even my trip down podcasting lane led me down unexpected multimedia adventures....thank you to Audacity.com and YouTube.com for saving that day (click here for a recap ). Other resources I have used such as Jing.com, podbean.com, iTunes, goanimate.com, and box.net all include mixtures of media and some ability to share this content. What is the point of this rambling reflection? This first step made me realize that I have been exploring the implications of multimedia sharing since the start of this blog. So have my colleagues (check out "My Followers"). So I focused my learning process on two novel tools rather than multimedia sharing itself, as I have already been exposed to that concept.

Step 2: Follow other peoples' trails
Voicethread.com and animoto.com became the novel tools of the week. Instead of jumping into playing...I followed other people. Our class trailfire led the way (http://trailfire.com/joannedegroot/marks/217496). This resource exposed me to Voicethread's introducation video. Check it out here: http://voicethread.com/#home. That video invited me to play but I fought the urge and followed the trail further and ran into Joyce Valenza's thoughts on Animoto. If she gives praise such as the quote below then the tool is worth looking into.

"Animoto is a magically-easy way to grab attention, produce professional-looking public relations products, archive an event, visually showcase our best, and create new visual contexts" ((http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334/post/1560024356.html). )

Joyce's stamp of approval combined with my old trusty G4tv.com meant reflection time was over. If you are really new to all of this and you are short on time...check out the video below.

Video Games - E3 2009 - Attack of the Show

Step 3: Play Time

When I read "magically-easy" I was a skeptic especially in light of the problems I had with embedding podcasts. But to my surprise...Animoto was magical.
Take a look at the workspace. Have you seen anything more bare bones and direct?

The site claims that they do all the work and everything is super easy and fast. You be the judge. I put them to the test and I was able to create (we will discuss this term later) all of these permutations in less than 15 minutes using images from Photobucket

This tool was perfect for this week as my schedule was insane. Even though I am familiar with other software, I couldn't have met my deadline without the speed of this process.

While I didn't have as much time to dig around and create with Voice Thread, I was dumbfounded by browsing other people's creations. If you are short on time (as most teachers are) check this video out and see if your mind explodes with possibilities as mine did.

Have a little more time now?? Check out one more sample and notice how comments can be done in several ways. Think subplans. Think problem solving...ooops, getting ahead of myself.

Personal/Social Implications
Mark as a learner - I wish I had run into Voicethread earlier. I am in an online course that requires group work. Imagine how much easier and fun it would have been to edit/comment on our presentation using this mulitmedia application instead of countless emails? I love the idea of being able to "see" who is commenting, hearing what they have to say, and then being able to read their suggestions/praise. Asynchronous multimedia discussions = more fun than text based correspondance.

Mark as a business tycoon: I don't have my own business but my wife is a figure skating coach. She has to look her best and be her best in order to gain and retain clients. Animoto would allow a quick clean way for her to advertise her skills and to showcase past successes. Denise Wakeman and the Blog Squad use it for business purposes and seem to be happy with it (http://www.biztipsblog.com/2009/04/animoto-is-a-super-easy-video-tool.html). One has to keep in mind though that you are at the mercy of the magical Animoto Gods for your finished product. You have very minimal creative control and to those of us who dabble with Adobe Premiere, Elements, iMovie, and other applications...we like creative control. I personally like tinkering with the pans, the zooms, the close-ups, the credits, the timings...this is all part of creating (more about this below but to wet your whistle...If you always get store bought lasagna are you a cook?)

Okay, I can't hold off anymore and I really would like your input...your comments. I will use images and video followed by a question about tools like Animoto and their impact on society.

Now that you have had time to interpret the above media...did you notice a progression? Are tools like Animoto truly making creation more accessible to the masses or is it an illusion? Are the skills, talents, and deeper levels of appreciation that come with explicit creative control important or is the end result paramount? Am I part of the creative process if I click buttons and let other people...other software do the nitty-gritty stuff? Please add your comments below.

Professional Implications:

This is where I want to focus on Voicethread. It is a tool that was created with education in mind. I wish I had access to a scanner to share my notes with you.

Voicethread offers educators and students:
1) Variety - The variety is generated by the participants. No two threads are alike. Each frame is potentially surrounded by rich text, audio, and images. Each participant can draw to creat emphasis or suggest corrections. Is your dominant hand broken? Maybe your mouth is wired shut after surgery. Almost everyone can contribute due to the mulimedia interface between user and content. Differentiated instruction anyone?

2) Appropriate levels of control - Both Animoto involve user generated content. This brings in many similar concerns that using sites like YouTube raise.

"Not all the videos in Youtube are positive and appropriate for children to view. Even the comments of some videos left by others to see have quite a bit of profanity in them. Blocking the use of the site in the school is not the answer. Is it not our responsibility as educators to teach children what they should do when they come across inappropriate content or profanity?" (http://cindyswansonedes501.blogspot.com/2009/09/exploring-youtube-and-teachertube-has.html)

Voicethread puts control into the hands of educators rather than broadbased filters which means professionals that are in the context of the activity can be involved in the education alluded to above. Voicethread allows teachers to moderate comments before they are posted if need be. Students can't invite people from outside their group to join in unless the teacher/administrator provides those permissions. Threads are private by default rather than public and the list goes on.

3) Options for highly filtered environments - If your school has a strong firewall, the people at Voicethread even provide information on how to adjust permissions so it can function in your environment. As a computer support person I love this attention to detail.

4) Edit without alterations - Revisit the above samples and tour others. You and your students can mark up the content, the doodling is linked to the commenter, but when everything is over...boom! The original is untouched. This may reduce the fear some students have about allowing others to edit their work and it leaves the onus on the user to make changes.

5) Enhances experiences for users at all levels - Are you only comfortable with taking pictures? Do you sit next to someone who does the best digital media presentations ever? Whatever content you generated on your own, whether complex or simple, can be easily integrated into a rich online discussion. This tool enhances your work instead of doing all the work for you or requiring you to learn a whole new set of skills.

The above features and others can be found by touring their site. Click here to start.
6) Safe environment = chances for student growth - Within the Voicethread environment students can develop and become moderators and miniadministrators themselves (http://digitallyspeaking.pbworks.com/Voicethread).

Considerations:

1) Bandwidth - If you work in a school you are very familiar with this battle. Both Animoto and Voicethread will tax your bandwidth if they are heavily used. Unfortunately schools without broadband connections may be excluded from using these tools.

2) Competitive vs Collaborative - I hadn't even thought of this before I came across this posting. Click Here If you have had any experience with YouTube or Twitter, competition and comment battles can easily ensue. Collaborative comments/skills will have to modeled and taught. Teachers will have to watch this closely as a multimedia comment war could easily undermine the whole process.

3) Access to equipment - This simple fact can't be overlooked. Simple access to a variety of tools will make this a truly multimedia experience. If students only have access to a keyboard then much of the power of this tool will be lost.

Phew!! This was a long one and there is so much to share. I will leave you with one final comment, a few resources, and then I await your input.

Tools like YouTube, Animoto, GoAnimate are powerful tools but they were not designed for education. This means that educators have to work hard to repurpose them for that environment (see my posting on video sharing) . Out of everything I have reviewed, Voicethread has impressed me the most as it was created with students and teachers in mind (there is that word "create" again).

Resources worth a look if you want more specific ideas on how you use Voicethread:

Math ideas -http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2008/05/math-playground-cooperative-project.html

Excellent wiki about Voicethread uses - http://voicethread4education.wikispaces.com/

Slideshow with 17 ways to use Voicethreads - http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhn2vcv5_245f2nkv3g3

Make sure you check out "My Followers" as well. Many of them are delving into this world as well.

A Skeptic's Chaotic Journey through Wikiland

2009-10-23T14:50:00.036-06:00

Personal Learning
More than any of the other web 2.0 tools I have explored, wikis have shown how well my past educational experiences have engrained certain beliefs and assumptions...especially when it comes to learning.
The first wake-up call was the fact that I had no prior meaningful experience with wikis. Unlike other tools I can't claim "I am old...I didn't know". My claim is "I am old...I chose not to know because I don't care".

Before you click away let me explain. Back in the 80's and 90's reliable, important and valuable came from very limited sources. These sources were textbooks, dictionaries, and giant encyclopedias. What did these all have in common? Some brilliant unknown adults who possessed real knowledge, passed this knowledge onto those who learn. Those who learn generate content but this content was to be marked, to get attention, to express angst...and to get the attention of the hot girl three desks over (old school notes...classic). In university the same basic rules applied. In my undergrad degree I was never asked to generate, comment on, or contribute to academically respected materials.

So...when wikis came along I instinctively scoffed. Wikis have no credibility or use other than glorified note passing. Before this semester I had only seen Wikipedia about five times. I directed my students away from these sites as no socially created could be reputable.

Experiencing the value in other web 2.0 tools during this class, such as blogs, social bookmarking, video sharing, and podasts, so I decided to give wikis a real shot.

Screencasts of Learning Process.
Wiki Learning 1

Wiki Learning 2

Personal/Social Implications
I really struggled with this section as I focused mainly on professional implications.
Personal implications:
1) I am being forced to redefine how I view information. I was very comfortable in a world where there were experts that I went to in order to learn. Socially created knowledge forces me to relook at this and ask are other forms of knowledge/experiences valuable? How and when do I utilize socially constructed sites in my masters courses? Are sites such as wikipedia as or even more credible due to the number of peers that review the content?

2) As a father, how much do I push my son and his school to utilize wikis and related tools? According to Richarson (2009) and Wesley fryer in his "Get Wiki with it" podcast (http://feeds.feedburner.com/speedofcreativity/podcasts), these tools are critical to my son's motivation and success. My son loves learning but not school. If all I get home are worksheets and written notes, how can I approach the school to say that my son needs more engaging materials such as wikis. I want to be able to see his work instantly instead of waiting until report card time.

3) Can wikis improve my social life? By joining various communities and generating my own wikis, will this help meet my social needs. I love being around people. If my friends and I were going to coordinate a trip we would call each other or utilize facebook. If we were to design a larger project we would likely utilize email or social collaboration tools such as Sharepoint (www.sharepoint.com) as we are more familiar with them. I have to say that I didn't enjoy having to join various communities in order to have editing rights. I understand the reasoning but these security measures made wikis just like any other site for me. Unless I have an invested interest or know the creator of the wiki I will likely still tour the web myself in a 1.0 fashion rather than seeking to meet and network with strangers.

4) As a hobbyest...I have to admit that having the power to actually participate online instead of just absorving excites me. For instance, I love astronomy. Checking out Nasa is awesome but creating, chatting, and designing web content with other enthusiasts (http://macsingularity.org/astrowiki/tiki-index.php) creates new possibilites. If I do want to participate in creating interesting sites I will likely have to learn some HTML. While wiki sites are easy to use, the most enthralling wikis include complex formatting, interactive elements, etc. (http://webtools4u2use.wikispaces.com/)

5) As an individual in the Google world...I can help create my online identity. In the podcast "Get Wiki With It" (http://feeds.feedburner.com/speedofcreativity/podcasts), Fryer stresses the importance of creating your online identity instead of letting Google and other people do it for me. Being able to write to the web using a variety of tools using wikis and blogs will allow me to do that. As mentioned before, I would likely use blogging and other tools over wikis on a personal basis.

Professional Implications/Considerations

1) Kids will be kids - The power of wikis is in their ability to encourage participation, self as well as communal monitoring, and various technological skills. "In using wikis, students are not only learning how to publish content; they are also learning how to develop and use all sorts of collaboarative skills, negotiating with others to agree on correctness, meaning, relevence and more. In essence, students begin to teach each other" (Richardson, 2009, p. 61). Despite these benefits, students may still attempt to post inappropriate comments or to disrupt communal work. This inherent risk means educators must select tools that incorporate "back up plans" such as reversion tools that can restore the wiki to an unblemished state (http://wiki.wetpaint.com/page/Wiki+Risks; Schwartz, 2004)

2) Keep your wikis active - As long as wikis are actively used and edited, the chances of glaring errors, formatting issues, incorrect information, and/or inappropriate content shrinks. Teachers that make sure their wikis don't sit dormant and that students/colleagues constantly access them allow the wiki to be a safer and more credible place for students to access content (http://wiki.wetpaint.com/page/Wiki+Risks; Wesley Fryer's "Get Wiki With It podcast")

3) Educators may have to redefine how they do business - As mentioned earlier, I had a set pattern on learning that I wasn't fully conscious of. I viewed and experienced learning as interacting with objective absolutes as presented by people/resources who accurately portrayed these truths. Opening the door to a more social model of content generation will undoubtedly shake this foundation:

when the pre-service teachers from the Wikibooks class were engaged in the process of developing and editing the Wikibooks by choosing their topics, finding information, using their judgment for citations, designing the questions, and reviewing and rating their peers’ writing, they became less certain about knowledge in that they were experiencing the construction of knowledge. Such Web-based knowledge construction and learning process has shaped these pre-service teachers’ more constructivist epistemological beliefs in terms of certainty of knowledge; namely, a view of knowledge as tentative and evolving rather than fixed and unchanging. (Ren, Baker, & Zhang, 2009, p. 441)

The above quote came from a study around wiki constructed textbooks. How post modern can you get. I need to look into this more. Could our students actually provide direct input into the materials they use? Wow!

4) Access to technology - If we are to keep our wikis current and if we want students to be part of the process then the old model of having specified computer classes needs to disappear. If web 2.0 tools such as blogs, and especially wikis, are going to be utilized then students and staff need access to computers, hassle free and high speed internet...consistently during the school day. This may mean that one computer per child will have to become a reality rather than an item on our wishlist. How frustrating would it be to have highly collaborative and engaging aspects to learning in your school that students would have to wait in line to use. A great example of student generated content.

5) Trust - The last point I will mention is the fact that parents, students, teachers, administrators and other stakeholders will have to trust the process. Schools will have to do a lot of ground work to make sure that students are educated, guidelines are practiced and in place, parents are consulted and informed, teachers are properly trained, and that appropriate software/online tools are selected. The risks of collaborative learning on the world wide web are here to stay and impossible to avoid all together. The more time we have our students online, the greater chance they will run into sticky situations. If everyone is prepared, however, even these glitches can be opportunities for learning instead of the broken straws that threaten the use of technology in schools.

I would usually go into specific examples of how wikis can be used but the above issues need to be addressed before the tools are turned loose.

Nonlinked References:

Ren, Z., Baker, P., & Zhang, S. (2009) Effects of student-written wiki-based textbooks on pre-service teachers' epistemological beliefs. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 40(4), 429-449.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Schwartz, L. (2004) Educational wikis: features and selection criteria. The international Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 5(1).

Professional Implications of Podcasting.

2009-10-19T20:49:00.008-06:00

8 attempts to try and complete this posting using the explored technology and did I mention about 6 hours. I am starting to go crazy but I have tried searching for embedding tips...Blogger doesn't host content. I tried to trick Blogger by generating the podcast as a video...this partially worked but then Youtube shutdown for maintenance. I then subscribed to www.podbean.com which looks like a great free site. My podcast uploaded but for somereason it doesn't play despite several attempts.

Final attempt...upload a video file to photobucket and try to embed it here. I praise the technology but all is not golden just yet. I know that if any of my colleagues faced this problem...goodbye podcasting. I will obviously need to find out if using Adobe Premiere Elements to generate my mp3 was the problem.

I am sure the next posting will go smoother....

Part 1:

Part 2:

Podcasting's Personal Implications

2009-10-19T16:06:00.008-06:00

The following is a podcast of my musings on the subject of personal and social implications of podcasting. Due to time constraints I had to create it as an MPEG1 file as Blogger has a few limitations. In the future I will have this rectified.

Podcasting...a new, hipper, public broadcasting system?

2009-10-19T14:17:00.015-06:00

My podcasting learning process...

Prior to this week I owned an iPod and I new what television broadcasts were. I probably new in theory what podcasts would be but I didn't really care to dig into what they were. I figured that I knew how to work mp3 players (learning how to turn of my iPod took a week...how sad), I had more music than I needed, I listened to my old radio shows at night...what more could I need. The "pod" in podcasting made me think of iPods (obviously) that are banned in my school so there was no real need or desire to learn more.

Then Will Richardson (2009)came along and the first trailfire video for the week ( )and introduced subscribing to FREE, automatically updated podcasts through iTunes.

Wait a minute...I live on iTunes there is no podast sect....

Oh, how did i miss that podcasts link just below "TV shows" on the left side of the screen. Maybe it is because there isn't a link at the iTunes store where I get movies...

Oh, there is a link at the top of the screen. Once I got over the embarassment of not knowing everything I thought I new, the real playing (I mean learning) began. I subscribed to a wide variety of podcasts ranging from technology to dance grooves.

Instantly, I had 10 podcasts downloading to the computer and with a click and a drag I was off. Richardson (2009) had me nervous as he talked about the nonprofessional finish to podcasts but each of the ones I accessed was fantastic. The great thing was I could listen to stuff I wanted without commercials and without having to listen to tons of stuff I wasn't interested in. This always bothered me about travelling with mom and dad as a kid. We all liked the comedies on CBC radio but we couldn't stand the rest. But guess what we had to do...listen for hours on a road trip to often catch just a 15 minute clip (no offense CBC). I think a lot of kids in the 80's would have been happier if mom and dad could have just downloaded the best shows and skipped the rest.

Then I began accidentally learning about podcasting's potential through a podcast (http://feeds.feedburner.com/speedofcreativity/podcasts...check out podcast331). Here I was instantly drawn into a seminar for FREE that demonstrated the use of podcasts as it refered to podcasts. Don't get me wrong...I love reading but being able to learn on the move excites me. By the time I reached my destination my head was full of new ideas and because a voice was attached to the information I seemed to retain it better.

After I spent time listening to podcasts, our trailfire (http://trailfire.com/joannedegroot/marks/217493) drew me in deeper. In short, it led me to sites that led me to other sites that demonstrated the professional uses of podcasting. I honestly lost track of time listening to the podcasts, bookmarking links, writing notes on applications for my class and emailing my tech guru to discuss potential barriers to podcast usage in my classroom. The level of engagement I experience was almost equal to when I play video games. That hasn't happened all semester with my readings (don't tell my prof) but being able to listen, follow along, pause the broadcast, surf, comment, etc. was amazing. Despite all the tasks I was wholly focused on learning and making connections

This drew me back to Richardson (2009) who suggested using Audacity to create podcasts (http://audacity.sourceforge.net/). After a short download, I was able to easily create and store two podcasts that will fill in my thoughts around podcasts and their personal and professional implications.

There are only a couple blemishes to podcasting I have found so far:
1) Pledge drives - I loved public broadcasting channels but I hated the pledge drives. Even though podcasts are generally free I found a few solicited for funds at the start of every new episode. I realize that I may have to put up the bucks to keep the services I love going but...every episode? And how "free" does that sound if they want me to pay for it. Be aware.
2) Audio needs friends - I found that I enjoyed podcasts that directed me to other media or pages that included podcast links combined with video and text information. If I just had to sit and listen I could become bored. But if I listened, read comments, followed links...fantastico.

For further information on personal and professional implications check out my posted podcasts. If you want to experience some of the sites I mentioned yourself, check out the following links:
-http://www.inanimatealice.com/. Not podcasting but an amazing mix of audio, text, and images.
-http://www.edtechtalk.com/. Huge fountain of information including a great podcasts around almost any 2.0 related topic you can think of.
-http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/. Great site looking into impacts of the digital age on children and learning.
-http://www.justonemorebook.com/. Elementary school podcasting in action. Don't have time to read all the new kids books. This site may have a podcast review for you already.
- http://medinger.wordpress.com/2008/03/05/in-the-classroom-kid-podcasts-of-good-masters-sweet-ladies/. More student podcasting. Imagine the possibilites.
-http://www.speedofcreativity.org/. Great site full of blogs and podcasts around utilizing 2.0 tools in education.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

GoAnimate.com: Learning about Social Bookmarking

2009-10-03T22:11:00.001-06:00

GoAnimate.com: Learning about Social Bookmarking by nwtbajan

Like it? Create your own at GoAnimate.com. It's free and fun!

Mark's Learning about Social Bookmarking cont...

2009-10-03T15:11:00.021-06:00

As mentioned in my animation, bookmarking seemed so bland that I never even thought people would try to improve it. Too be honest, it wasn't until I played with delicious.com that I realized how arrogant and dated I was in this area. I take pride in my brain's ability to remember countless numbers, useless facts, and the like BUT this has been stressed to the max since I moved North and have had to teach classes from grade 3 to 12 and sometimes 17 different classes per year. Combine that with managing our network and university courses...my brain is outmatched. In fact, playing with delicious brought back memories of times in class that I desperately needed a specific website, couldn't recall the URL, and had to accept a lower quality lesson because I didn't have things at my finger tips. I can't believe I am going to say this but think social bookmarking ROCKS!!!

Personal Learning:

This tool is going to make it hard to separate the professional from the personal applications...but here we go.

As a purely online student I am facing new challenges this semester. I am being "forced" (willingly and happily I might add...please keep reading) to collaborate with others online. Back in my day collaboration was called group work. I used to hate group work. I just want to get things done and move on. In all three of my courses this semester I have noticed that my professors are focusing on having discussions with my classmates rather than just responding to posts. This has been a huge challenge for me and delicious.com combined with other tools such as this blog are making this easier. Each of us have different schedules and live in totally different time zones even. Instead of having to coordinate Skype times to share our research progress and professional readings we can access that research whenever we want through the delicious.com inbox function, connecting directly to each other's user accounts, or generating a common tag language unique to us and only us. This would take some of the inconvenience out of the picture. Some have tried this approach and they have found it far more efficient than long email streams but still doesn't know if it is improving things:

"The ability to tag resources instead of e-mailing them to each other is incredibly collaborative and time-saving," says Kunnen. "While we can't yet determine that it's improving our professional development, it certainly is making the exchange of information easier among those who take the classes." (Villano, 2009, p. 4)

I would argue that anything that is time saving for me is likely improving my life. I would agree that more research needs to be done to evaluate the true effectiveness of this tool.

As a life long learner with an 8 year old, social bookmarking also is attractive. Social bookmarking would allow me to:
-improve my cooking by accessing countless recipes and the best part...no messy drawer full of recipe cards. Cheesy creamed corn anyone?
-explore others findings around reading, writing, and behavioural interventions for my son who doesn't love school (intervention central)
-track down highly rated online classes for guitar
-do advance research around topics my son loves but I honestly don't have a clue about and the list goes on.

The advantage is that I don't have unsolicited or out of control amounts of email coming into my box and my RSS feeds stay mangageable. The added bonus is that delicious.com is easy enough for me to teach my son and my mother-in-law which means it is something the three of us can do together no matter what our interests are.

Social Bookmarking and Professional Applications:

This is where I am glad we are pushed to dig a little deeper into the technology we face.

Richardson (2009)suggested diigo.com as a more powerful tool for teachers. One of his suggestions really struck my interest:

"...when you bookmark a page with your Diigolet tools, you're not just capturing a link; you are making a copy of the whole page for use later on." (p. 93)

This feature means I can count on my information being there when I need it regardless of URL changes or blogs disappearing. This functionality also means that I can highlight and comment right on my bookmarked pages! Not only can I add little notes and tags like I can with delicious.com, but I can actually interact with the content like I would my hardcopies.

Due to time constraints I haven't had a chance to play with Diigo but the site tutorial (http://www.diigo.com/learn_more/collaborate) showed that instead of my colleagues just reading my bookmarked material, they can see my highlights, they can see my notes and we can discuss the page...right on the page. Talk about possibilities:
1) Our internet in the North can be very suspect so having full bookmarks available offline (Richardson, 2009) takes a little more fear out of my lessons.

2) With increased focus on differentiated instruction I could generate groups for my students to subscribe to. As I add content students would be notified so they could parouse the latest offerings (Richardson, 2009). I could have separate groupings for different types of students. Some with prehighlighted material and minimal notes to guide students who need the extra direction. Other groups could just include inquiry questions from me that would spur self directed learners into searches of their own.

3) In my courses professors post discussion questions separate from the material to initiate discussions. Diigo would open the door for discussions literally on the material. Multicolor highlights and sticky notes would mean we could discuss the material easily within its context. Check out the video below that inspired this idea.....

4) I am not a librarian but...what if a trained librarian could generate a group for small schools like mine who often lack dedicated or fully trained librarians? The highly skilled librarian could gather the latest and most effective materials. In order to lower the intimidation factor the librarian could include highlights and basic notes to fill in some gaps. This material could be available for an infinite number of schools without requiring infinite resources.

5) You can use social bookmarking tools to develop professional learning communities across infinite space. I was the only high school science teacher in a fly in community. I desperately wanted to collaborate with others in the same postion. Combine blogs, RSS feeds, and Diigo...bam! Distance doesn't matter.

I do have a couple concerns.

1) Can I adjust to my students doing things in new ways? Fully incorporating a social model combined with a growing pressure to deliver strong results has required many managers in business to redefine their roles. They are no longer the top of a hierarchy as many of their responsibilities are spread out across many individuals. This has meant that managers have had to adjust and accept new roles as facilitators and supporters of success ( Schermerhorn, Hunt, Osborn, Currie, 2005). In schools this means that I will have to find new ways to teach as I am no longer the possessor of all knowledge and the focus of all discussions. Students will be regularly exposed to data well beyond my expertise. They will have the opportunity to have more control over their own learning. How will I have to change in order to still guide, protect, and correct them when necessary? Am I willing to change my definition of professional to allow students to become more like colleagues in learning?

Similar to above...

2) How do I tell the difference between collaborating and cheating? Jakes (2009) presented scenarios in which students could use social bookmarking for shortcuts. They could let their peers do all the hard work and then just bookmark other people's bookmarks and call it a day.

"Many would consider this cheating and would equate the process to a situation in which one student photocopied several resarch articles, left them on a table, and then another student came along and took them. Yet anyone with a del.icio.us account knows that calling the actions of the above student inappropriate is absolut nonsense and that the ability to reach into another account to see resources is part of the game." (Jakes, 2009, p. 50)

I am very aware that students sharing to the point that one learns and the other doesn't drives me crazy. I don't have any answers as of yet as I haven't experienced these tools in action but I do know that I am going to have to let go in some ways and find new ways to assess learning.

As cool as these tools are, they do symbolize that the business of education will no longer go on as usual which means some long but exciting days ahead (Hargardon, 2007). I will close this posting with a quote:

"We still have a long wat to go before we understand, and negotiate systemically, what these collaborative sharing environments mean to student learning. No wonder these tools, and the environments they create, are labeled disruptive." (Jakes, 2009, p. 50)

Nonlinked Resources:

Hargardon, S. (2007). A little help from my friends: Classroom 2.0 educators share their experiences. School Library Journal, 53(10), 44-48.

Jakes, D. (2009)Cheater or collaborator? Tech and Learning, 29(12), 50. It can be found at this link as well http://www.techlearning.com/article/21674.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Villano, M. Wikis, blogs, & more, oh my! Campus Technology, 21(8), 42-44.

Tubes Infinitely More Useful than Buckets???

2009-09-26T16:15:00.026-06:00

While I enjoy they idea of photosharing, the idea of sharing rich, dynamic, eye-catching, and entertaining video seems to hold much more promise than still images alone. While this technology does scare me as a teacher, I think its benefits far outweigh the risks...if I do my job right!!

Personal Exploration of Video Tubes

While many video sharing sites exist I figured the best use of my time would be spent on the major bandwidth player YouTube. To be honest I enjoyed this week's homework the best. What better way to learn about the media other than exploring it yourself? I spent hour after hour touring the gems that people like me are contributing to society. Move over Spielberg and Lucas! The consumer is in the game and we are creating classics ranging from:

to

.
I lost all track of time and actually forgot my purpose for the exploration (more on this later). Before I reigned myself in, I just had to find a way to catalogue my trip and to contribute to this giant soup o' fun. I signed up for an account which is the best thing I could have done. Having an account meant I could take control of my experience. As a member I can now subscribe to channels and save my favourites with a simple click. Even cooler is the fact that when I log in, a list of recommended channels and videos (based on my viewing habits!!) are the first thing I see. Sharing my videos was just as easy. A one click upload and Markvision is broadcasting.

And sharing the videos using my blog seemed far easier than my Photobucket experience. No error messages. Just a copy and paste and my blog is instantly multimedia!

Personal 'Tubing' Applications

As an individual I love to laugh and to learn. As you have figured out by my blog, I usually live in a remote area that can make this challenging. For instance, I have decided to take up guitar to help fight off the winter blah's. While books are educational, subscribing to guitar channels full of lessons by highly skilled musicians...way better!

I have found that doing my courses this year requires me to sit for hours on end. As a student, I am finding that things can become....a little boring (my teacher side abhors that term). Having video and other interesting media incorporated into my courses and available for a few minutes of distraction, can revitalize me enough to have a longer and more productive time at the computer. While this application may seem insignificant...it isn't. YouTube can be a life saver!

Beyond my own personal edification, the increase in bandwidth opens doors for me to stay in touch with my family as I travel and it can create new active hobbies for my son. Instead of him becoming an obesity statistic by having to sit and watch other people's inventions, he can be inspired to create, edit, and share his own. The act of creation engages his mind and his body in ways that books, audio, and passive media can't. This makes me a happy daddy as anything he is into can instantly become a learning experience and after he posts his videos, he gets feedback that can encourage him to continue in that activity.

Professional "Tubing" Applications

The application of video sharing to my job as an educator drew me into revisiting YouTube in a different way and to good old fashioned reading. Davies and Merchant (2009) poignantly stated that YouTube was not designed for schools and therefore "users need to know how to tread a path that will feel fruitful and safe" (p. 56). In my experience, students gravitate to videos online for entertainment purposes. Any chance they get they use YouTube to watch music videos and to post the fun things that they did on the weekend. Left on their own, they will likely not get anywhere close to the objectives that I feel we need to cover.

I will make the bold statement that without skilled teachers, video sharing would be a useless application within the walls of our schools. Mishra and Koehler (2009) inspired this thought by reminding me that many of the tools I use in my class weren't designed for me as a teacher:

“Technologies including standard productive or office software, blogs, wikis, and GPS systems were not designed for teachers, and as such, teachers must repurpose them for use in educational contexts. Such repurposing is possible only when the teacher knows the rules of the game and is fluent enough to know which rules to bend, which to break, and which to leave alone. This requires a deep experiential understanding, developed through training and deliberate practice...” (p. 16).

Some have taken the approach of repurposing video sharing by creating a safer alternative like TeacherTube. On this site students can find video lessons on just about any topic. Others have utilized spaces that combine basic video sharing, with live streaming video, photosharing, blogging, and wiki's to create huge professional development communities online. I participated in an hour long session on edtechtalk.com around blogging and wiki's in schools. In that hour I heard about blogging, I could type in questions that would be answered in real time, I saw recorded lessons by professors, I saw student blogging at work, and I got to experience the repurposing of Web 2.0 in action!! If it floored me...how powerful could this be for my class.
Further exploration showed that some teachers are using YouTube to generate whole units for their students . Check out teachersfirst.com.
Science is a highly visual experience (Park, 2009). My science students can record their experiments and use the video to analyze their results. If this video is shared then students can learn from each other and they can enter into deeper discussions around issues such as experimental error.

Motivation is a big problem in classes like Science but as Park (2009) put it so well:

“Thoughts that dominate the adolescent mind include “Look at me,”and “Look at what I can do.” Using this as motivation, we can encourage students to be the stars in events that display concepts in science.” (p. 34)

Hence...my love of video.

While safety is a huge concern (Branzburg, 2007; Richardson, 2009), there are a few things we can do to minimize risk:
1) Create a website with the pertinent videos embedded into your site. This means the students won't have to be exposed to extraneous material that may be inappropriate. Blogging makes this quite easy to do (Branzburg, 2007)

2) Utilize tools like quietube.com. This tool just plays the video and blanks out all other content. Click here to see it in action.

3) Download the videos from YouTube. I didn't have the chance to try these sites out but according to Branzburg (2007), sites like zamzar.com may be helpful with this. Creating downloadable videos would open the door for students to take lessons on their travels which would be a huge help up North where attendance is such an issue.

There are so many more applications to explore but I am out of time. Please consider taking the time and encouraging administrators to give you the time to become comfortable with video sharing and streaming video. But remember the tool is to be used. It isn't to replace highly skilled educators:

YouTube can inform, but there’s no substitute for a teacher’s selection of content, instructions, and running commentary. Teacher input adds depth, poses additional
questions, encourages students to look at details, and makes connections that align the video with school curricula and standards. (Everhart, 2009, p. 33)

Nonlinked Resources:

Branzburg, J. (Oct 2007). You can take it with you: how to integrate video segments in curriculum--without worry.(How To). Technology & Learning, 28,(3). p.40(2). Retrieved September 26, 2009, from Academic OneFile via Gale

Davies, M., & Merchant, G. (2009). Web 2.0 for schools. New York: Peter Lang.

Everhart, J.. (2009). YouTube in the Science Classroom. Science and Children, 46(9), 32-35. Retrieved September 26, 2009, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1755933371).

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. (2009, May). Too Cool for School? No Way!. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(7), 14-18. Retrieved September 26, 2009, from Education Research Complete database.

Park, J. (2009, June). Video Allows Young Scientists New Ways to Be Seen. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(8), 34-35. Retrieved September 26, 2009, from Education Research Complete database.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Is Education Ready for Photobucket?

2009-09-18T16:23:00.009-06:00

How do I tour a bucket?

Back in the 80’s buckets were simple, powerful, intuitive tools. As a young man I used them for various vital tasks like filling with dirt, picking up dirt, and moving dirt. On the occasional Sunday my family would get fancy and turn the bucket over so we had an extra chair for company. As I toured something called “Photobucket”, I realized that I wasn’t in the 80’s anymore. But this Web 2.0 tool turned out to have many similarities to good ol’ faithful.

Like old buckets, most of Photobucket was easy to learn how to use. I began my adventure by watching how other people used it. People used it to create albums, scrapbooks, artistic backgrounds, inspirational posters, and to make others laugh. Beyond photos, people even shared videos of all kinds.

After hours of searching I got my own bucket to try. I effortlessly uploaded pictures from my computer and arranged them into albums and even a dynamic slideshow. Editing photos is fun and easy. I looked at scrap booking but if my wife found out I was scrap booking online, guess what my Friday nights would be spent doing?

As my life isn’t that exciting, I also borrowed from other people’s buckets and added them to my own, my blogs and my social networking sites. This is where my major frustration kicked in. Nothing is more frustrating than a bucket with holes in it. Sharing my memories through my blogs and my social networking pages should be simple and intuitive. I found out, however, that sometimes you can spend hours trying to find the right feed to click, entering multiple passwords, and copying large amounts of html just to find out that the feed/images/video won’t show up how and where you want them to. But for the most part, the skills of clicking and dragging were all I needed.

Is the bucket useful to me?

Old buckets didn’t have lids so we didn’t store stuff in them that we didn’t want to spill out. Photobucket and other sites are advertised as robust sites to backup thousands of my photos. Even though I don’t have tons of photos, my wife and son do. Having their images and video stored online would definitely help. Beyond the storage, the technology of tags, combined with simple album creation, would mean that our extended family in Barbados, South America, the USA, Norway, and Central Canada could easily tour our memories. No more scary trips with our backup drive in tow.

Is the bucket useful to my profession?

I am excited and anxious about using this new fangled bucket. First the excitement. I work in a small northern Aboriginal community. Effective learning is participatory in nature (Davies & Merchant, 2009). Our community’s history is being lost as elders pass away and as tragedies claim physical cultural artifacts. Sites like Photobucket would allow old photos and videos to be preserved and to be shared relatively easily in our classes for years to come. My Northern Studies and Experiential Science notes could include content from my students’ families.

Beyond the above, our isolation wouldn’t hamper our ability to share professional resources as we would simply be a click away. I ran into a great video for my next dance unit that I couldn't perform in my wildest dreams. The access to these images also could enhance photography classes, animation classes, art classes, history classes…AND this stuff is FREE (nothing excites a teacher or principal like a FREE bucket).

The anxious part deals with the feasibility of this tool in light of privacy issues, protecting our students, present school computer use policies, and the increased use of internet filtering. Our internet is managed through a government office that has increased the amount of content they filter. Our computer use polices at present prohibit students from posting any personal content anywhere on the net. Serious discussions with Elders would have to take place as traditionally their stories and images can only be used with their permission. Like myself, others believe schools can be safe places to learn about many aspects of life. Some go as far as to suggest that there is a major movement towards 2.0 based education (Richardson, 2009). But until all stakeholders begin to redefine life in 2.0 terms, allowing this tool to be used openly by my students in school will likely continue to generate friction and conflict (Davies & Merchant, 2009).

Has anyone found a way to harness the power of photosharing in schools so we don’t have to face consistent battles with filters, angry parents,inappropriate content,overly curious students, and the like?

Traditional print resources:

Davies, M., & Merchant, G. (2009). Web 2.0 for schools. New York: Peter Lang.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

3 seconds on Photobucket and you can edit anything.

2009-09-17T16:41:00.003-06:00

Photobucket is another useful tool. The power is in the plethora of options....the struggle still remains in seamless, flexible, intuitive and glitch-free ways of sharing with other online applications.
Other than the cost factor...is it still easier to edit at home and upload content to one site instead of trying to navigate mulitiple online applications?

Kanye...the key to engagement???

2009-09-17T09:15:00.000-06:00

One struggle that we often face in the classroom supporting or fostering student motivation. Some of the content we cover doesn't seem pertinent. Some may argue that our educational system is dated and needs to be reworked but that is another discussion.
After watching the Video Music Awards the other day and the backlash on the net, my mind began to swim. Our students do have vivid imaginations, they are creative and they are constantly looking for ways to express themselves. Not every student however is an artist or a computer programmer BUT they can work a camera, they can work with digital media, and with minimal guidance they can use Web 2.0 tools to bring their imaginations into the visible realm.
So...how can we as educators tap into that to bring Social Studies, English, Science, Math, CALM to life? Take a look at the parodies that mash together seemingly unrelated ideas into provocative, discussion worthy, and entertaining finish products worthy of a portfolio. I will say in advance that some of the parodies in the following link wouldn't be able to be used in their entirety in class due to language but the Hitler and Obama clips are very well done. http://mashable.com/2009/09/15/kanye-west-parodies/.
Imagine students generating mash-ups and parodies around poetry, historical political dissensions, critiques of colonial ambitions, pivotal scientific discoveries...and the list goes on.
Thoughts? Concerns?