STUMBLE!

Have you tried stumbleupon.com?  I am sitting with my student, Elixabeth, and she has just shown me really cool site where you write in your interests and it finds sites for you... make lists from it, etc.  I am about to try it.  More later!

On letting go: Thoughts after the webinar with Jeff Utecht

Jeff Utecht is positive and enthusiastic about technology and what it can do in a high school setting. I really enjoyed listening to him speak and having the conversation with him about the use of technology in schools.  I also read his article on blogs as web-based portfolios and I watched this digital story work, Romeo and Juliet Heaven Scene, from one of his students at ISB. 

I wish I were him sometimes.  I raised a jealous eyebrow when I reviewed his work and listened to him speak.  I know what resources there are out there and I know that if I tried hard enough, I could probably make my way into a job like his, where there is a lot of money and support for programs in art, language, cutting edge educational practice and an educated public running the school that allows room to move in terms of technology and taking chances with it.

But I am where I am because I choose to be... it is where I set out to be when I decided to be a teacher.  I won't say that I am not as fortunate as he is.  I am.  I make my choice to be where I am and it is not by default.  However, where I am represents the majority of education whereas where he is represents a very small minority.  Now, I am not a negative person but I do have to deal with the stack of cards I have and I have to figure out what I can do with my resources and my kid-pool and my laws and controls.  That isn't to say these things can't be changed but, if I want them to change, I have to change them from within and that will take time... I am working toward this but I have 75 students NOW.  I have to do for them now... so, my biggest question I wound up with after the call, once I put my ego aside (no, your point in teaching is not to be a super hero movie star teacher that doesn't have a real life outside of the classroom) was this:  What can I do?

I am now able to view his work as something that can be modified rather than something to envy.  And once I did that, I realized that the free tools online are certainly enough to start from.  I think googledocs is a great place to start.  I know that, if I can find a way (and I will) to acquire cameras, we will be able to do digital story telling.  And I am looking into a grant to get a bank of laptops for my creative writing class so I don't have to fight so hard over the lab at school.  There are ways.  

In any case, I have continued to peruse his blog and will continue so that I can steal all the ideas I can find.  I will think of myself as Robin Hood of Technology...  :)

Good Ol' KWL!

What did you know?
I knew some pretty basic Web 2.0 tools from previous classes and I knew some of the lingo; podcasts, googledocs, etc...  but 

what did you want to know
I wanted to know how to really use them and why I should.  I wanted to know what ways I could integrate technology into my classroom in meaningful ways that create an environment of learning and self discovery.  

what did you learn (or not?) -
The first thing I learned is that digital books are great.  I learned that I often hold on to old ways of doing things because they are comfortable but that if I stretch and try new things, it only takes a while to get over the discomfort before I start seeing returns.  I learned a little about being an activist... that there is a need for activism in schools in order to make sure that our children are ready for the world we are only just forming.  I learned the confidence to try new things and to be open with my kids and explain that this is my first time too... so let's learn together...  

How will you use what you have learned in this course to further your technology integration into your own classroom?

I will "Just Do It" like the Nike commercial.  I really appreciated the time I was given to do the final project and that I chose to do the class wiki because I honestly feel like I am really getting ready for next year.  It is making me feel braver about trying new things and different approaches even to thinking about technology.   I am SO MUCH looking forward to doing my digital story telling project.  I learned to amke connections and to ask questions.  I learned that I still love to learn and that this uncomfortable stretch is worth everything... if it means getting my kids to be ready to face what is ahead.  Great class!

Final Week: Including Celeste

What can I say?  I am a total sap and actually teared up the first time I saw this story and this time, it had the exact same effect.  The funny thing is that it isn't because the little girl is sick or because she can't attend school but it is because of all the things that can be done and that someone cared enough to make the time and technology work in his favor in order for her to be included.  I loved how the kids explained how skyping worked and that they were very reflective about Celeste's inclusion in this class. And then there was Celeste, herself, happy, acting her age and really participating in the classroom antics.  Can we forget that she has leukemia and that she isn't actually in the room? Yes.. in a way we can because she has access to tools that make sure, no matter what, this little girl's voice is heard and she is learning from and is part of the learning in that classroom.  I am so proud of that teacher for doing this and showing others how to as well.

Week 11: Why I don't have a Personal Learning Network. Yet..

Of course, NOW, I think it is really important to have a personal learning network.  At first, when I was reading this assignment, I misunderstood and thought  it was going to be about PLCs.  I have had a lot of experience with PLCs  (Professional Learning Communities).  I think they are very similar—in fact, I think you can have a PLC through a PLN!  

Do I have a PLN?  Not formally, other than the classes I have been taking.  Honestly,I hadn’t really thought about it.  The real reason I have been taking classes in computer/internet applications is that “technology” and “21^st Century Learning” are the buzzwords/phrases  in education right now.  I have been in a multimedia class, an Integration of Technology class and now, this class, Teaching and Learning in a networked classroom but I still feel like a stranger in a strange land.  In the past months, I have learned more than I can keep track of in my head so, really, I have been relying on my classes (instructors), my fellow students and my colleagues for advice, inspiration and techniques.  I know that soon there will be a time when I am going to need to be able to find a lot of this information outside my personal world and so I definitely see the value in creating a network.  I have to say I am really liking the whole blogging thing…  it makes a huge difference to me to get my thoughts out in a visible way and the comments and suggestions are very helpful. I also like my brand-new Diigo toolbar and all the opportunities I am still uncovering through it's use.  I do, however, feel quite overwhelmed with the RSS feed and some of the other Web 2.0 tools we have that filter and hand us information.  Reading Miguel Guhlin's posting on Wes Fryer's Moving at the Speed of Creativity weblog at least made me feel like I am not alone.  Here's a quote from Guhlin's posting on Personal Learning Networks:

"As someone who awoke to that fact just a few years ago, I am continually astonished at the rapidity of change. In fact, I had my first — and so far, only — panic attack in July 2005, when driving down the highway to work, I realized that the world is changing faster than I can keep up."

Personally, I have always been very good at multi tasking in terms of my physical social world, but the networking thing online, while exciting, can be very daunting. I know it is going to be something I will become familiar with and I also know that, while it is always uncomfortable to learn something new, ultimately, the discomfort is worth the return.  I guess, in a way, this is a good lesson to have anyway as I am always asking my students to trust me and to be uncomfortable... always promising them that it will be worth it.

But, here I am.  And, yes..  I should have a PLN.  Anyone want to be in one with me?

Week 9 Chapter 8 reflection

Chapter 8, Web 2.0, New Tools, New Schools

This chapter really spoke to me, personally, in several different ways.  This year, I taught two special needs, remedial English classes; one  for tenth graders and one for seniors.  I think that I have learned more from working with these kids than any other classes.  They aren’t particularly motivated and many struggle with things I consider to be rote-simple.    I have had to learn to adapt many of my lessons and ideas for success (in fact, my entire understanding of what it means to write/be a writer) as a result of working with these kids.  They are the ones that do and would benefit the most from technology. 

Most of the boys (and yes, both classes have been all boys… an interesting fact that brings up other avenues for discussion, right?) who, at their recent testing session, showed they were at the 2^nd and 3^rd grade level of reading and writing.  They are broad spectrum learning disabled, dyslexic, or ADD/ADHD.  The thing that drives me crazy is that they are all very bright and capable students… they have just learned that there is one way in school… a way that usually excludes the way they think and their abilities.  These kids are great thinkers but poor writers in the traditional sense.  Technology offers many possible ways for these kids to express their intelligence, understanding and need to communicate, from voice to text software to podcasts in place of essays, I find the web to be a huge asset to their learning. 

In the book, chapter 8 has a section on LD kids, specifically:

Hasselbring (2001) argues that in many cases, “students with disabilities have a greater need for accessing technology than do their non-disabled peers. This may be especially true for those students who need technology just to function within the school environment, such as students with sensory and physical impairments” (p. 16). Students with learning challenges are now able to have access to podcasts, learning materials, and videos, and at times that suit their individual schedules. Additionally, the multimodality of these tools allows students to learn in ways that best meet their learning styles.

(Schrum, Lynne (2007). Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools (Kindle Locations 3088-3092). International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). Kindle Edition.)

I think this is an important concept that technology is finally allowing us to really consider… that we must reach them through their strengths and not simply always expect that they will meet us on our turf when it is not a level playing field for them. 

Week 9: Using Web 2.0 tools in school

Unlocking the tool kit - Should public schools open up access to all web2.0 tools, including allowing students to blog, or watch youtube videos? What do you think?

I think that schools should have open access to web tools.  Kids are going to abuse the system but they always have.  When I was a kid in school, we used to pass notes back and forth.  No one banned us from using pens and paper as a result.  The "What if" video/slide show from week 8 is a great example of how, historically, we are always resistant to change but that, in retrospect, it seems really silly because we have to change.  I think we have a responsibility to teach our kids how to filter what they are exposed to, themselves… AND we need to teach them how to behave in a manner that is both safe and respectful/self respecting.  The only way we are going to be able to do this is through teaching them to work the internet, Web 2.0 applications and social networking sites.  Youtube, blogs, wikis, facebook… all of it… cell phones, laptops and ipods… they are all tools but we treat them like weapons and contraband.  This stuff is the norm of the lives of these kids but we tell them that the tools they use personally and at home are wrong.  We don’t teach them how to use them wisely and then we punish them for using them in school-inappropriate ways.  We need to get in with what they know and are able to do in order to hook them into what we are teaching.  We need these tools and we need to know how to use them to our advantage.

Week 9 Brian Crosby and Project Based Learning.

The video entitled Passion-basedlearning in action: Brian Crosby at TEDxDenverEd was really inspiring.  Brian Crosby, who is a 4^th grade Nevada teacher is the epitome of a project based teacher.  I love the way he teaches.  I love the thematic way he incorporates every subject through multiple ways of thinking about things and project-based learning. You know, as a high school teacher, the thing I thought about the most after viewing this video was we are doing high school education WRONG.  I have been thinking this subliminally all along but as I am writing this, I am discovering what I mean by this.  Elementary schools have one or two teachers that teach all the subjects for a small (hopefully small) group of kids.  Why is it that for high school, we divide the subjects up?  I am never able to mind my own subject.  I am forever incorporating social studies, art, science, etc into my lessons.  I have been wondering lately, why it is that we have separate English classes…. What is English?  The language that we speak?  Grammar?  Communication?  Literature?  It is nothing if it is not tied to everything else we are and do… 

I like teaching thematically.  I want every assessment to connect… I want to teach using projects.  I really think this is the way to go and that you can inspire students to be interested and love learning.  I have so many thematic units chasing around in my head…  Crosby’s video definitely got me fired up about developing them.  The workload for creating these units is both exciting and daunting.  I feel like there is never enough time or support to get this kind of learning experience properly planned and executed… especially when you have 150 students in a year spread over a multiplicity of classes!

He did such a great job of incorporating so many tools and resources and he made it look effortless!  I mean, these kids were creating videos, blogging, skyping, writing and responding to others, reaching out to the global community in a multiplicity of ways… AND he met like a million core standards for science, math, reading and writing and technology.  I want him on my team!

I liked some of the concepts he mentioned at the end when he quoted the letter from the high school teacher who said that  “Active learning” means empowering students to become learners and that there is a difference between working with a student who knows how to be “taught” and creating a “learner”.

I also agreed in his global, categorical view on who should have access to a good education…  He discusses how this type of environment should not be the exception, nor should it be the norm only for privileged students.  It is definitely a way of teaching that is worth the effort… but I think a little restructuring of the school is necessary to accommodate this type of environment.    The wiki site administrator wrote under the video:

“The lessons Brian shares in this video were NOT easy to teach. Project-based learning, challenge-based learning, or passion-based learning is NEVER easy. It takes a LOT of time. It takes lots of planning. And it takes lots of passion. When it is done well, however, it can lead to unforgettable learning experiences and the kind of "deep" skill development for students which can't help but "stick" for a lifetime.”

Week (7) & 8: Connectivism and Constructivism

“How can we influence the educational system in the United States or even our own school district to embrace connectivism? Should we?”

It is funny.. I have been having a conversation in my head that parallels these questions this very week.  I have been thinking a lot about my teaching style and have been feeling very critical of it lately. My style (both personally and professionally) is to have two or more books, news articles, The New Yorker, NPR, documentaries, films, music scores and interpersonal conversations, etc., all going at once.  This is how I bombard my students.  When we read a book, we look at themes, structure and personal connections.  We question it intellectually and emotionally, looking at both author intent and reader experience.  Often, they are overwhelmed.  My honors classes find me so far out of the realm of what they’ve experienced that they are sometimes uncomfortable and vacillate between feeling like I am too hard and too easy.  I have heard both in a very short span of time. I give them self directed projects and experiment with many different activities and lesson styles and often will say “Let’s learn this together”.  Until recently, this never really made me feel weird or anything.  I always thought this was a good thing.  Now that I hear in the news that there is something “wrong with teachers”…  that we are somehow at fault for what people seem to be defining as the breakdown in our educational system, I am looking hard at what I am doing and trying to make sense of it.

What I teach can’t be quantified on a standardized test.  What does that mean?  I don’t know.  I think my original intent was to be the teacher from Common Craft’s “The Networked Student”—the teacher as learning architect.  I really like that idea but I don’t think it is what the American people want in their schools.  I know I should be confident in my process and in my education but at the moment, I am questioning everything.  I don’t know what is wrong or how to fix it.  I know that technology is making things completely different from what we have ever experienced before and that nothing will ever be the same but I couldn’t tell you if my hunch about how to do things is right.  I feel like I am groping around in the dark just like everyone else.  I wish I was confident in the answers I am giving but I am not. 

How do we move from a hierarchical system of learning and thinking where there are experts and novices and welcome such a radically different system of change in which the learner creates his or her own experience through networking and participatory action?  In answer to the question, I think that while my hunch says to embrace the change and let the reshaping happen, realistically, I know that our education system does not approach anything with a ready embrace…and  there is no way to speed that process up…  That is not to say I don’t have faith that it will happen…  I just wonder if it will take a tragedy or a miracle to make it happen!