Kim Cofino's Global Presentation

I have a page and a half on notes on Cofino's presentation. I found it terribly short-sighted and subversive. I'm wondering if anyone else feels the same way? All I noticed was an air of "I am smarter than you because I live overseas." Which, by the way, she spells as "oversees."
Cofino lost me eleven seconds into the presentation when "honered" appeared in the subtext. I became skeptical immediately and perhaps watched her project with a tainted eye.
In Bangkok, which was also misspelled repeatedly for her English speaking audience, Cofino has seen monks using cell phones. This apparently is a big deal because they are adapting to technology because they have found it useful. Kim stresses, that as Americans, we need to do this. Really? She can't find any evidence? This is what I mean by short-sighted. When I was a kid, I told my mother in the morning before school that I needed to be picked up after practice at three o'clock. If practice was cancelled, I used the office "landline" or the pay phone to let her know I would be taking the bus home. Haven't we adapted today? Kids text. Parents text. Parents can text and let their kids know the moment they've arrived in the school parking lot. And the kids get the message- instantly! Too bad we Americans haven't adapted like those monks in Thailand.
I see Cofino's point overall, that yes, technology needs to be brought into the classroom. However, her evidence is lacking. She acts as though Americans can't adapt to anything. Take for example the guy who stresses that living in a foreign culture has taught him to adapt because you never know when a ten minute ride "might turn into a two hour ride." Kim, ever been on Interstate 95 heading into Boston during rush hour?
Cofino failed to leave me with a sense of urgency about establishing a global community in the classroom. Instead, she left me wondering about what she was really trying to say.

Changing My Twitter Name

Okay, I was skeptical about Twitter. All I knew about it was that professional athletes were getting themselves into trouble with their Tweets.
I have seen the light. The "25 Ways" article helped to open my eyes. I am much more responsive to joining a network of educators.
To become more accessible (and user friendly, I suppose) I've created a new Twitter account.
Please follow me at BillSLRHS.

Free Technology for Teachers

While exploring many Tweeter sites I came across this Web blog site which has had a good deal of information, so thought I'd share. The author of the site is @rmbyrne on Tweeter and the link for the post is Free Technology.  In his latest article he addresses several topics, including these most popular of the week.  I find the information on the Web Site informational and relevant, and I do enjoy the Tweets as well!

Here are the most popular items of the last week from Free Technology::
1. Six Easy Ways for Students to Create Videos Online
2. Video - What Kids Learn When They With Digital Media
3. The Teacher Chronicles - Web of Web 2.0 for Schools
4. Most Teachers Have or Will Download YouTube Videos
5. 3 Great Common Craft-style Videos Made by Kids