500 Pound Gorilla in the Room

As my more recent posts suggest, my district’s technology team has been having some productive conversations about using online collaboration tools with students and staff.  I”m excited by the positive reactions from our administrators and IT specialists.  However, they have a few concerns….

When is it alright to talk about this?

Photo by: Mike Harbison

 

I”ve been to a few workshops recently where presenters or attendees have either scoffed at or brushed off teachers who raise their hands to say:  “My district won’t let us do that.”  At times, it seems like when a teacher voices that concern, they are treated as if they are unwilling to change.  We’re learning about great tools and how to use them effectively with our students, but we’re ignoring the 500 pound gorilla in the room:  many districts are NOT allowing students to collaborate online…in fact, most tools are blocked for students and teachers alike!!

 I completely support the most common response to those hand-raising teachers; we need to be creative innovators to win over our administrators. ..be agents of change….don’t just believe in it, do it!  (A moving post by Joyce Valenza will fire you up!  Thank you to Media Specialist Amy King for sharing.)

Last week, I attended RTEC(Rutgers Technology in Education Conference) presented by Rutgers University.  Peter Oyler from Apple Inc. spoke about what 21st century learning environments look like.  It was a very good presentation, which ended with an opportunity to reflect on our role as educators to determine if we were truly giving our students the best opportunities to learn and how technology could enhance that learning.  I wondered how many teachers in the audience were thinking what I was thinking, “Yes, I want to do this, but my district….”

The administrators in my district have concerns, and honestly with the number of lawsuits against schools growing, I understand why.  Here are some of their concerns:

• If a child is the victim of cyber-bullying while not in school, but while using a district approved online tool, can the school be held liable?
• If our students use collaboration tools in school in a safe “walled garden” manner, yet chooses to use the tool in a completely public manner at home and that child’s safety is compromised, can the school be held liable?
• Online predators**:  what is the (real) chance of an online predator contacting our students with these tools?   What is the (real) chance of an online predator finding information about a student (name, photo) and using that information to harm/kidnap a student, if we allow students to use these tools?
• Can an AUP and staff/student/parent education concerning online safety and digital citizenship completely protect the district from lawsuits?

**I’m waiting to hear back from Dr. Tim Tyson, who gave a great iSafety presentation at RTEC.  I”m hoping he can share his resources which brought some very interesting facts about online predators to light.  I’ll post about the details when I hear back from him.

I do not have a background in educational law.  I’ve done a few searches for recent lawsuits in this area, but so far haven’t found much at all.   However, I’m assuming that my district isn’t the only district dragging their feet because of potential legal issues.

I will continue to strive to be an agent of change.  I will continue to research, collaborate and learn about this wonderful world in which my students should be participating.   However, until the concerns listed above are addressed, it’s likely we won’t budge.   For me, now is a good time to talk about these issues.

My questions:  Does your district have these concerns?  If not, what legally supports your programming?   Even if you don’t agree with the concerns, are they valid?   What can be done to make my administration feel comfortable about using online collaboration tools with students and staff?

Thanks for reading!

Hi, My Name is Christy and I’ve Participated in a PLN for 8 Months

Information Junkie

Many bloggers post about the joy of reading other blogs, and jumping from link to link…practically swimming in new ideas and information.  (Will Richardson describes it as a dance, and Steve Dembo reminds us to Link it Up!)  To be honest, I often feel what I like to call RSS two-way guilt  (I may or may not be the first person to use that term, but I’m surely not the first person to feel it.)  When my Reader has 100+ posts, I feel guilty that I’ve neglected my ever generous, always stimulating PLN.  After 2+ hours catching up, I feel guilty when my non-educator husband calls from the living room, “Are you still blogging?”  (He doesn’t differentiate between PLN activities..everything is “blogging” to him, mostly to yank my chain. I can’t imagine what you folks with kids do.)  Would some basic time management help?  Of course, but there are only so many hours in the day.  I have Twitter, Nings, wikis, and emails to stay on top of!  Did I mention I’m also a full-time technology AND gifted/talented teacher?   But, alas, I cannot stop…

Believe Me, I’m Not Complaining!

Discovering this “new world” of information 8 months ago is the BEST professional thing that could have happened to me.  (I have Lisa Thumann to thank for a great Web 2.0 workshop at Rutgers University.)  I was lucky enough to attend the Google Teacher Academy in NYC this past November. (Here is my application video) I met amazing people who have the same (and different)goals and ideas as I do.   I’ve encouraged my district administrators to continually add “Web 2.0″, for lack of a better term, to each technology meeting agenda.   Today, I pitched the idea of using Google Apps. for Educators with our teachers and students.  I made this simple presentation, and it sparked a forward-moving conversation.

Go Team!

My Free Master’s Program

I completed my Master’s degree in Educational Technology in 2005.  I’m very proud of that degree, but feel…well…sad, when I think about the hours I spent in musty campus computer labs creating projects that proved my knowledge of Flash (a car driving across the screen) or my superb PowerPoint abilities (creating a Jeopardy game).  In three years, I have never felt the need to recreate either of those activities.  Participating in my PLN, even if my activity is limited at times, is a free, incredibly engaging opportunity to stretch and grow.  I feel the ups and downs that all life-long learners feel:  discomfort and hesitation with the new material leading to confidence and pride with the things I’ve mastered.  I feel like the student from the YouTube video Networked Student by Wendy Dexler.   The last bit of the video describes the role of a teacher as someone who guides, supports and encourages rather than acts as the “sage on the stage”.  Somewhat ironically, I think it reinforces the need for f2f learning environments as well.  I’m very interested in learning and sharing with my peers in my PLN, but nothing beats seeing the excitement on a fellow educator’s face when they say, “My students LOVED this… it was so cool.”

When Will They Learn?

I had a great discussion with Fiance’ over breakfast about current technology issues we’re dealing with at our places of employment.  He is an IT guy for a university, so although he isn’t an educator himself, he supports technology in his department.  He explained that the IT department is investigating the use of (edupunks, cover your ears) Microsoft’s SharePoint.  I’m not familiar with the software, so he sweetly explained how the tools would allow for collaboration between staff members and eventually students. 

My mind jumped from one “ah-ha!” to another:

1. I may not know this software, but I know what it does.  I’m familiar with sharing documents and collaborating on web-based platforms.
2. # 1 is exactly what I want my students to learn!  I can’t possibly teach them every program or tool, but with enough exposure, they’ll develop networking common sense.  They may not know exactly how to use a new tool, but they’ll tap prior knowledge of similar tools to figure it out.
3. OMG.  I’m not exposing my students to these tools.  My district does not currently allow it.  Who will teach them how to use these educational networking tools appropriately and effectively? 

Educational networking tools are blocked in my district, so if the current 8th graders are using them at all, it’s probably for pure entertainment.  Not a bad place to start, but what will they do in 5 years when their college professor asks them to respond to/create a blog or create a multi-media presentation rather than write a paper?   Will the college professors teach the freshmen how to use the tools?  If not, when will they learn?

 Question:  Does your K-12 district have a systemic technology curriculum plan?  Does the K-5 curriculum properly prepare your students for the next step?  If you work in higher education, do you feel students are entering college with “educational networking common sense”?

Hey…You…Guuuuys (and Gals)!!! Part 2

TGI-PLN (Thank Goodness It’s Personal Learning Network)

Thank you to everyone who commented on Part 1 of this post, especially MariaD for bringing to my attention (in very professional, non-D’oh! way) that I had left out possibly the most important part of social networking… sharing and collaborating!  Haven’t I learned that “Reading’ and “Watching” aren’t enough for the 21st Century?  Sheesh…where was my head?

Summer Homework for Teachers and Administrators?  Yippeee!

In Part 1, I posted links that explained RSS feeders and how to get one.  Reading blogs is not enough.  Take full advantage of them… comment.  Leave comments for the author, or for other readers.  Many bloggers will respond to comments so feel free to pose a question or expand the discussion.  When you’re ready, start your own blog!  There are plenty of platforms to choose from.  I use wordpress.com, but find the one that’s right for you.  Edublog is specifically for teachers and students and is free.  Did you say blogs for students?  Why yes, I did.  Check out Scott McLeod’s wiki on K-12 blogs.  Read, learn, create and share. (not necessarily in that order)

Continually Create Your Personal Learning Network

The biggest mystery I faced when I started this journey was “How do I find the good stuff?”.  Why reinvent the wheel?  Why not start by investigating the same “stuff” that other educators and administrators are following?  Easy:  set up a Twitter account.  The Twitter.com FAQ’s states that, “Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers…”  Basically you pick members that you want to follow, based on common interests such as technology and education.  Following someone on Twitter allows you to see what they post.  Then the magic happens.  Professionals from all over the world are telling youwhat they are doing!!  Workshop announcements, new blog posts, interesting articles, webcasts, IT advice…all dispensed in 140 characters or less.  Watch, learn, and interact. (not necessarily in that order)

I Learned Everything in Kindergarten:  SHARE!

Share everything**. (This is something I need to start doing more often.)   Create an online identity.  Be transparent:  the person you are online is like the person you are in real life.  (thank you, Kevin Jarrett) Post photos (professional, personal, your choice) on Flickr.com.  Create a wiki so you and colleagues (inside your building and from across the world) can collaborate on projects.  Stop sending documents as “flat” email attachments.  Give them some depth by creating files in iGoogle Docs, so you can share them with others in order to collaborate!  Share videos (again, professional or personal) on YouTube or TeacherTube.  Just get out there and experience this world.  Help create this world.

Our Students Need  Us To Learn, Share and Collaborate

We can’t teach our students about these tools unless we use them ourselves.  If we don’t share this knowledge with our students, they’ll use these tools without us.  Lack of guidance could lead to cyber-bullying or simply inappropriate online behavior.  So as you actively participate and collaborate online, think of ways your students can do the same to expand their learning and acquire 21st Century skills.

Lastly, thank you to Vicki Davis for a recent post that acknowledges and supports new bloggers like:
Kristi, Matthew Needleman, and Michelle Baldwin.

**Please remember to keep safety in mind.  It is never a good idea to share personal information such as address or phone number and students should never share any personal information!  For an opposing view on sharing, read this post on Connecting the Dots, by new blogger Mike Curtin.

Homer Simpson Clipart from:  Fabiosbest’s Public Gallery

Hey…You….Guuuuys (and Gals)!!!

Attention Administrators and Educators

Maybe you’re a classroom teacher interested in the “next big thing” in education. Maybe you’re an administrator.  Maybe you’re one of my administrators.  I have an important message for all of you.  I want to be part of the Learning Revolution.  I want you to discover the Learning Revolution.  Does “Learning Revolution” sound intriguing?  Want to learn more?  Well, from what I’ve found, there’s no easy way to summarize it.  Summer vacation is approaching so we’ll all have a ton of free time (yeah, right).  Here’s a little research that will fill up your free time and most likely throw your views of education for a loop.  That’s what happened to me:

Visit these sites:

North American Council for Online Learning
“Blocking the Future” by Scott McLeod published on The School Administrator, May 2008
Castle:  UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education Iowa State University
“Middle Schoolers and MySpace”by Bill Ferriter published on The Tempered Radical
“Preparing Students to Succeed in the 21st Century” by Liz Davis published on The Power of Educational Technology
“School AUP 2.0″by David Warlick published on 2cents Worth
“Get Past Teaching Apps:  Build and Use a Student Technology Toolbelt” by Vicki Davis published on Cool Cat Teacher Blog
“The Evolution of PD” by Vicki Davis published on Cool Cat Teacher Blog
“Beyond the Fear Factor with Internet Safety” by Wesley Fryer published on Moving at the Speed of Creativity
“My Greatest Hits” by Liz Davis published on The Power of Educational Technology
“Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators”by Kathy Schrock published on Discovery Education

Watch these videos:

 ”We Think” posted on The Thinking Stick
“Wikis in Plain English”by CommonCraft
“Blogs in Plain English” by CommonCraft
“The Machine is Us/ing Us”  by mwesch on YouTube

 

Read These Books:

A Whole New Mind by Daniel H. Pink
The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman
Here Comes Everyone by Clay Shirky
Everything is Miscellaneous by David Weinberger
The Media Equation by Byron Reeves & Clifford Nass
Redefining Literacy for the 21st Century by David Warlick
 

I’ll also be reading and collaborating on these subjects.  Let’s meet in September to discuss our endless options.  We can discuss professional development, AUP’s, Internet safety, Web2.0, etc, etc, etc.

**Have these blog posts and sites caught your interest?  Want to stay on top of the newest posts?  Set up an RSS Reader (such as Google Reader).  Simple explanation and instructions on RSS In Plain English by Common Craft.

Readers:  Please add to this list…I know there are great sites that I’m missing!  Thanks.

Title from:  The Electric Company Television Show 
Picture by: NECC Button contest winner:  Bill Moseley

Baby Steps

Keeping an Eye on the Prize

I’ve spent the last month gathering as much information as possible about Web2.0 and educational networking.  I’m on Twitter practically everyday, usually just to “listen” and check out the great links that people post.  I read approximately 15-20 blog posts a day.  I came to a stark realization last night while watching a video from Susan Young on Dean Shareski’s site. 

I haven’t taken much time to organize and synthesize my newly found information.  I’m crazy about the possibilities Web2.0 tools have for me and my students but I haven’t taken the time to create very much.  As I’ve mentioned before, I’m trying stir up excitement in the 5th grade students about the possibilties, but unfortunately, it’s unusable enthusiasm.  Educational networking tools are prohibited for student use in my district.  Just because I can’t use the tools with my students doesn’t mean I can’t create samples of what I would/will do with the tools. 

 Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo’s suggestions, I checked out Bookr, an online slideshow site.   Users can pull images from Flickr and create a simple slideshow.  I think it would be perfect for young students…especially as an introduction to online collaboration.  Thanks…more trials to come!

Make Noise, Make Change

To the Future Mr./Mrs. President of the United States of America, Members of Congress and The House of Representatives:

Let’s cut to the chase:  No Child Left Behind scares me.  I’m frightened not only by what’s included in the policy (high-stakes standardized testing, and unrealistic and underfunded goals) but also by what’s been left out:  the use of terms such as social networking, Web 2.0, blogs, wikis, online collaboration, etc.

Thanks to the Internet, I was able to research the leading presidential candidates’ education platforms and was saddened;  Senator Barack Obama, Senator Hilary Clinton, and Senator John McCain, you each addressed the need for educational reform, but didn’t include any plans for Internet-based learning.  

While I was conducting my research, I came across some amazing documents on the Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology website.  One, Visions 2020.2: Student Views on Transforming Education and Training Through Advanced Technologies seems to break the mold of government documents.  Not only is it forward thinking, but real students were interviewed and their desires and needs were published.  Among these wishes were “anytime, anywhere learning”, “online classes”, “working digitally-using email and chat for collaborating on homework and schoolwork”.   Great news, right?

Well, the document was released in August 2005;  the survey of students had been conducted in 2004.  So it’s a few years old.  Then I pulled up the Fiscal Year 2008 Budget Summary  for Elementary and Secondary Education on the Department of Education website.  Surely, the use of social networking tools in education would be addressed.  However, I didn’t even see technology mentioned.  If the Office of Educational Technology is aware of these trends, why isn’t educational policy keeping up?

Good news: It’s not too late to learn about the power of these tools and how they could/will/have revamp(ed) the way in which our children learn.  I’ve learned quite a bit about this buzz in the last month.  I plan to continue learning because I’m becoming a better teacher.  I’m asking you to learn with me….so you become better leaders.

Living Example

Ed. Tech’ers, Web 2.0′ers, Tweeters, 21st Century Learners and Teachers:  I’m proposing that we take this opportunity to show our future leaders and lawmakers how social networking can help learners grow.  Please comment on this post…leave your hopes/wishes/desires/needs/demands concerning the future of educational technology.  If you wish, post links to your blogs, wikis, videos, examples of educational Web2.0 tools, whatever.  I’m sending this post to the presidential candidates, members of Congress and the House of Representatives:  not because I believe they’ll listen to me, but I believe they’ll understand the power of this living document and listen to us.

 Please pass this on to anyone else who is “here for the learning revolution“.  Wouldn’t it be great if Metcalfe’s law  led to a change of our laws!

Thank you!

Spreading the “Good News”

Maybe it’s because I’m sensitive to the issue, but this week, I’ve noticed a slight theme in the Twitters and blogs I’ve been following:  Most of the world doesn’t understand the power of social networking.  Specifically, folks don’t understand how Web 2.0 tools can help allof us learn and grow, especially if used correctly with school children.  Over the past few weeks, I’ve plugged myself in to this world and consider this past-time to be personal and professional research.  I know I have a long way to go, but I’m proud of the progress I’ve made so far.

That being said, I’m wondering why so many people, as Dean Shareski pointed out, think these tools are a fad.  Why isn’t the battle cry for the expansion of technology in our schools louder and therefore more difficult to ignore?   Why are so many districts writing policies which limit or ban social networking, rather than promote their use through safe guidelines and support systems?  One reason could be bad press.

Bad press is better than no press at all?  Maybe, maybe not.  Right now, the majority of key players (administrators, teachers and parents) are not active participants in a social networking system.  I’m guessing they hear about tools such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, etc. via 1) their pre-teen, teenage or college age children or 2) TV or newspapers. 

Parents are led to believe that the sites are a sort of online scrapbook that kids can share with their friends.  Television leads them to believe the sites are dangerous.  (see “Beatrice, you’re way off“ ) Based on those influences why would parents, administrators,  or teachers support the use of social networking tools in school?   What the social networking world needs in good press.

Yes, many very intelligent and highly motivating people are dedicating their careers and lives to making real change in educational technology.  We should all be very thankful to their efforts.  A bit of mainstream positive press wouldn’t hurt the movement, would it?  The last I noticed was the coverage on the Congressional hearing on Second Life by The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.  It may not have been exactly positive, but at least it wasn’t negative.  (side-note:  Did Congress ever come to any conclusions about SL?  If they did, most of the mainstream news missed it.)

I’ll do my part to spread “good news” about social networking.  My next evil plan (muahahahaha…) is to post our school’s photos on Flickr.   Hopefully our teachers, administrators and parents will have a chance to use these tools themselves, and create a more informed opinion.

Absolutely Necessary for Newbies

You’ve Got A Friend…

The great news is there’s another teacher in my district who is interested in breaking open the Pandora’s Box of collaborative technology for elementary students and teachers.  She’s completing a program for Media Specialists and hopes to switch from a classroom position to a Media Center position next year.  (I’ve noticed that media specialists and ed. tech. teachers can become the Wonder Twins for finding/organizing information if given the opportunity to work together.)  The wonderful news is that she’s also Here for the Revolution (check out the button contest for NECC) and is a newbie just like me!  I convinced her to join me at  the Students and Electronic Media:  Teaching in the Technological Age seminar at Princeton University on May 2nd.  She already follows Kathy Schrock, who is presenting at that the seminar, and we’ve promised to share the cool “stuff” we find along the way with each other. 

After I spoke with my new Media Specialist friend, I realized it was difficult to decide which tools are good, important or useful for my students (and me).  I’ve spent the last few weeks gathering information, but left myself little time to weed through it.  My del.icio.us is pretty unorganized…I don’t even know what I’ve saved so far!

You Can’t Live Without…

So I’m asking you to think back to when you started out in the social networking world…back when the possiblities practially caused an explosion in your mind…what tools did you need?  Where should we start?  Please suggest tools/sites/blogs you can’t live without.   Thanks!

My List (under construction):
Twitter
Del.icio.us
Google Reader
People who support this journey!

Parent Communication: “A” for Effort?

Last week, every student in our district received their report cards.  As for the teachers, depending on the grade/school in which they teach, the process in which they reported grades varied.

• Middle School teachers keep their gradebook online using PowerSchool.  Parents are able to keep track of their child’s progress in each class by logging on to the program online.  At the end of the marking period, the software allows the teachers to easily transfer the grades to a paper report card that is sent home with the student.
• In some of our elementary schools, grade 4 and5 teachers follow the same steps as the middle school teachers.  Our IT team worked with PowerSchool to adapt the software to meet the needs of an elementary report card (ex: The addition of check marks for effort/participation/behavior grades).
• K-2 students do not receive letter grades.  Their report card is comprised of approximately 80 check marks that cover practically every objective for each subject.  Some teachers print comments on the back of the report card using a pen.  Other teachers type a paragraph on full sheet labels, print them, cut them out, then stick the comments on the back of each child’s report card.

I help a NCU (non-computer using…yes, really) friend of mine with her comments by typing them for her at the end of each marking period.  (She insists on compensating me for my time.) Rather than printing them on labels, I formatted a Word document to fit the measurements of the report card, so we can run the original report card through the printer.  She likes the fact that her comments are very professional looking, and that by changing the size of the font, she can write much more than before.   My hope is, the more I engage her in computer use, the more likely she’ll be to try something on her own.  She’s retiring this year, and I truly hope she stays in touch…via email at least. 

I bring this up because I wonder how far digital report cards or Web 2.0 tools could take our district.  Or how far they should take our district.  I don’t have children of my own yet, but I know many parents keep report cards in scrapbooks and as keepsakes.  I assume eventually that the parents in our district will be accustomed to digital everything and therefore may not be upset by not holding a hard copy of their child’s report card.  But when will that change be appropriate?

I believe that the more parents know and understand about what goes on in a classroom, the more they are able to help their children, and understand why the children receive the grades that they do.  Web 2.0 tools can help us share more of the classroom experience with parents.  But how much sharing with parents is appropriate?   Assignments, homework, projects, grades, meetings, podcasts of lessons, webcams in the classroom?  Obviously parents are interested, but do they have the time to keep up with it all?

If you use Web 2.0 type tools to specifically communicate with parents about their child’s progress in school, please take a moment to leave a comment describing it.  How far can/should we go?  Will we one day see parent/teacher conferences conducted via webcams?