Glogster - Limiting student accounts

Just a quick post in case you missed it. Glogster is limiting free student accounts to 100 on any accounts created after February 28th so if you are thinking of signing up - now is the time to do it!

The Power of Web 2.0

If anyone ever doubted the power of You Tube - would this have ever happened without this venue? And if it did, would we have ever seen it?

Generation YES, and a New Administration

Just read the article Adding Student Leadership to Your Technology Plan by Dennis Harper which was very insightful in describing ways to try to get schools and teachers to move forward in the use of technology and 21st Century Skills in our classrooms. Involving the students in the development and execution of the Technology Plan allows for better insight for the adults into the ways students use the technology and would motivate greater acceptance and embracing of the tools by the students. Our kids today are Digital Natives, a term coined by G. Alex Ambrose in his video Googlios: A 21st – Century Approach to Teaching, Learning, & Assessment. In that sense, then, who better to aid in the professional training of these tools than our students themselves? The article talks about the GenYES initiative wherein students and faculty together claim ownership and responsibility for collaborating and teaching each other the myriad tools available, and together they develop a Technology Plan, which includes students serving as full participants in all aspects of development and execution. Harper starts his article with the statement that 92% of people in the schools are students, and most technology plans focus on the role of the other 8%, being the faculty. He goes on to say that “this is especially unbalanced given the fact that today’s students are increasingly savvy about the role technology plays in modern life.”

As a case in point, I had students after school today and I was struggling in trying to find and capture a video segment online. A student came up to me, suggested I do a few things, and he had fixed the problem. I know for a fact that our kids are much more tech savvy than most teachers, and use the technology daily in the ordinary facets of their lives. What a better resource for teachers and school administrators than our kids to help develop a technology plan that works for them!!

GenYES is a technology initiative that reaches out to students to involve them as full members of a team to develop a school-wide technology approach. The article states six ‘time-tested’ ways to involve students in the writing of such plans, including having students serve on committees, using students as trainers and support systems, as tech support agents, resource developers and communicators, as well as peer-mentors, peer-reviewers and peer-leaders. All these help to foster and create ownership by students of the approaches taken, and also ensure that the needs and tools that students use are incorporated into any executed plan. The article then discusses strategies that help schools migrate from the ‘talk’ to the ‘action’.

This article hit home in the sense that our school district is beginning a search for both a Superintendent and an Assistant Superintendent. I suggested to school committee members and peers that our search criteria should include the investigation into an administrator who can be a visionary when it comes to technology and 21st Century skills. The installment of a new superintendent is certainly a perfect opportunity to help set direction, leadership and a clear strategy for taking our schools into the future. If this administrator can set aside traditional approaches, and encourage the embracing of our students and inviting them to participate in the development of a modern technology strategy, then we will have certainly turned a new page for our schools and 21st Century skills.

Why Twitter Will Endure

For: The Twitter Skeptic
From: A former Twitter Skeptic

On Twitter, anyone may follow anyone, but there is very little expectation of reciprocity. By carefully curating the people you follow, Twitter becomes an always-on data stream from really bright people in their respective fields, whose tweets are often full of links to incredibly vital, timely information.

The article can be found here as well as on our wiki page.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/03/weekinreview/03carr.html?pagewanted=1

Changing times ...

Remember those tiny candy hearts with the imprinted messages we gave and received on Valentine's Day? I saw an article recently about those hearts. New messages include: text me and tweet me.

More Info. on Fair Use and Copyrights in the Classroom

I found a presentation entitled "Steal This Preso! Copyrights, fair use, and pirates in the classroom!" by Mathew Needleman, a second grade teacher. It makes a nice companion to the reading for the next session of the course. It is cleverly done and fun to watch. He mentions his blog, which contains links to sites dedicated to media in the public domain. These links will be very useful for teachers who are committed to using Fair Use guidelines. The title of this post links to the presentation.

Drew Schrader: Keeping the Literacy in 21st Century Literacy

The title of Schrader's presentation drew me in because it covers a topic that has been a concern to me since I began learning about 21st century tools and skills. I have always worried how easy it might be to put the tools before the content and ahead of good teaching practices. Schrader has those same concerns and used this presentation to give teachers concrete stategies for using online tools in a meaningful way.

He had three ideas, all geared toward high schoolers, but I can see using 2 of them with my 6th graders.

The first idea was to use a tool called Sreentoaster when demonstrating Think Alouds. Screentoaster allows you to record both the computer screen and your voice as you narrate what you are doing and the thoughts you are discussing. With the availability of online books, Schrader sees the potential for pulling up a text and demonstrating ways to access the text, ways for students to "metacognate about what they are reading." He envisions this being a tool to help increase comprehension. Students can potentially go back and watch these various presentations on how make meaning from the text, listening to their teacher's words again, reminding themselves of comprehension strategies that easily could have been forgotten after only hearing them once.

I can see how this can be used as one of many tools that help teachers help students develop the ability to comprehend a text. I like how it is not doing anything that a teacher wouldn't try to do with other tools- it is just giving us another option for how to help our students learn. The recording feature makes it really stand out for its usefulness and its ability to improve what we already do.

The second tool he described was Diigo, and he suggested using it to annotate text that you assign your students to read online. Diigo allows a user to highlight areas of text on a webpage and add sticky notes that contain extra information. He had both an article and a book that he used as examples and showed the various notes he put in the stickies. All were aimed to remind students to look for details or to point out a particular technique used by the author.

I would love to try this with my students. I am most often encouraging my students to read more and not simply scan all webpages. Maybe highlighting the headings of sections I want them to focus on would be helpful in making sure they read those entire parts. The sticky notes would help when used as reminders of what to be looking for; they might keep students on track. I can also envision them playing with just the sticky notes and ignoring the reading. I would hope that would lessen as the newness wears off.

The last tool he described was Prezi and he suggested using it for Mind Mapping. I would not be comfortable using this tool for helping my students organize their ideas. I am much more confident that this would work with high schoolers; I think using paper and pencil with my 6th graders does the job just fine. It seems a bit too sophisticated for my audience.

I appreciate Schrader's concern for content and his desire to give his audience concrete ideas that will be useful in the classroom. I also appreciate his willingness to admit that he has been guilty of putting "a neat tool ahead of good practice." It seems very easy to do, especially if you are new to the tools yourself. I like both his ideas and his reminder to always keep the learning goals in mind.

One last note- he mentioned a book titled I Read It, but I don't Get It. I missed the author's name, but Schrader described it as an essential read for teachers, especially at the high school level.

Video: The Lost Generation

Below is a video that was shared by a colleague at work today. It was originally shared on YouTube, so some of you may have seen this.  I found this to be both very creative and thought-provoking, especially for those of us that work with adolescents. This is not one of the K-12 videos we are all working on, but a video showing keen insight on behalf of the teen herself.  Maybe you had seen this before, but if not, take a few moments!

One Approach to CIPA : Little Kids, Big Possibilities

When Kelly Hines began her presentation discussing CIPA, I have to admit that I looked back at the topic to make sure I had chosen the right link.  However, as I listened to her opening rationale I found myself nodding in agreement.  So often, I am intrigued by a website and want to use it with a class only to find that it is inundated with ads or links to an inappropriate site.  Very seldom do I let students even use search engines unless I am sure that I can ensure that they will only see results that are for children.  This need for vigilance makes me, at times, a hesitant user of the Internet.

I was interested to see how Ms Hines approached adherence to the law and found sites that she deemed  child friendly.  The first site she discussed was Wallwisher.  I had not heard of Wallwisher before and so I used her access link and found that it was as described.  The ability for children to post notes and then to manipulate them as a class could definitely be useful.  I was a little perplexed about how she had students post  during a movie (someone who visited her link, asked if the students had laptops but there  was no answer to their question when I viewed the wall) but that was only one example.  

The next link she provided was Wordle - a site I enjoy both personally and professionally.  I was concerned about using the site with students since some Wordles are not really topics you'd want students to see but under FAQ in the Wordles site, I found that they give complete directions for how to block areas of the site that could be problematic.  

Less helpful, was her discussion of Comic Creators because I didn't hear any specific websites (or perhaps missed them) that would allow students to create their own comics.  I do agree that comics capture student's interest (just look at the surge in "graphic novels") and would motivate writing.  I did a search and found http://www.readwritethink.org/MATERIALS/comic/  that looks promising.

The last site covered was the social networking group edmodo.com.  A place where students can share ideas and files, reflect and take polls.  Again, it was helpful to have a link to explore that didn't require me to sign up.

I enjoyed this presentation the most so far of the ones I've watched for a couple of reasons.  It allowed me more in-depth coverage of the sites she discussed, gave good examples of practical classroom uses and provided links for hands-on practice.  It also was very age appropriate for the grade levels I teach.  

Kim Cofino: Going Global k-12 Conference

I watched Kim Cofino's conference back in December but luckily took a lot of notes, so I am able to summarize my thoughts here today! Her video really opened my eyes to the varied ways people deliver and receive an education, depending on where they live and what kind of school they attend. I'd never given much thought to international schools, simply because I have never really been exposed to them. I knew they existed, of course, but that was about it.

It seems that the children she interviewd have a fairly broad persepective of the world and know a fair amount about cultures different from their own. I think that is great. The children I teach don't have much opportunity to mingle with people from different countries, and this video showed me some of what they might be missing- the authentic experiences which deepen understanding, the ability to embrace new experiences, and the flexibility to adopt new communication styles when needed. It also illustrated just how important learning about cultures is, especially if you are not able to immerse yourself in one.

I enjoyed her use of Southeast Asia as a metaphor for 21st Century Learning. I thought it was a clever method that made the qualities more memorable- it certainly seemed to make sense. It made me wonder- are public schools and educators in Southeast Asia using 21st century methods in their classrooms? Since they seem to have such a handle on the way they work?

I was introduced to a new concept- 3rd culture kids. I'd never heard that term and am glad to know what it means.

More than ever, I feel a longing to travel and experience new cultures. I struggle with a feeling of confinement and limitation that comes from seeing the innovative ways other educators are getting out and about in the world. It makes me want to go beyond my small -town -America borders and challenge myself to do things differently in a new place. Why am I not teaching in Thailand???

Well, there are lots of reasons. Not the least being that I enjoy what I am doing here. And I am learning through this course that you don't necessarily have to be in a place to get some experience of it- that is what online tools are for!

We're off to see the Wizard

Joyce Valenza is one of the powerhouses of the library world.  Somehow she manages to teach, blog, present, wiki, create pathfinders, innovate and probably makes a mean batch of brownies also.  When I saw that she was one of the presenters at the online conference, I had to watch her.  I ended up with a 5 page handwritten (how non 21st century of me) list of websites and apps.   I was pleased to see how many of them we had covered in class.  Now, I'm rethinking the project on demonstrating our digital learning.  I'm not sure if I'll change it but I want to try out some of the new tools to see if they would be a different way to approach the project.  

If you watch her presentation, be prepared for the possibility of being a little overwhelmed - did I mention I had five pages of links?  I almost wish she had broken it down into shorter videos - maybe one on online safety and ethics, one on research, one on creativity & innovation and one on collaboration.  I would have liked to have seen more examples for each website, they sounded so intriguing.  But, I can put on my own ruby slippers and follow the yellow brick road of links that wait for me.  I'm off to see the Wizard!

Going Global:Is it the chicken or the egg?

Which came first?  The chicken or the egg?  After listening to the keynote speech on Going Global, I wondered whether becoming a "third culture kid" is the result of living in different cultures so that "where you are from is hard to answer" or is it a mindset that some people have, even if they've never left their hometown.  Certainly, I've known narrow minded people who have traveled the world and expect it to be the same as the U.S.   Also, I've met people who are open minded and  questioning without leaving home.  I tend to believe that our students can be  just as tolerant, appreciative and empathetic as those in International Schools without ever leaving our country.  It is one of our jobs as teachers to expose students to other cultures and to bring the world into our classrooms if we are to truly prepare them for the future.

We now longer have the luxury of believing that we can be an island onto ourselves.  Our economy is so intertwined with the economies of other cultures that we need to know how to collaborate creatively, to adapt and to look at the world globally.  Again, we have the chicken and the egg question.  Did technology create a global economy or is it a response to the creation of this economy.  Either way, we must be proficient users and teachers of technology if we wish our students to be successful.  

So, I am going to try to be better at exposing my students to the world.  One way I will start is to use Kim Cofino's advice and work toward creating my PLN with different countries.  Step one - "learn by lurking."  Wish me luck!

K12 Conferences

Classmates,

I have had little luck with the "You Might Be a 21st Century Leader If..." presentation. I would, however, like to recommend Jen Wagner's "If You Host It, They Will Come."

You can read my summary at http://stoweslrhs.blogspot.com/

Wagner's presentation offers several ideas for compelling on-line projects. In fact, I couldn't wait for the presentation to finish because I wanted to e-mail my sister, a 3rd grade teacher, about one of the projects.

So, I took a deep breath... (k-12 Post)

So, I took a deep breath and tried again. I browsed the list K-12 Conference videos and clicked on "You Might be a 21st Century Leader If ..." Okay, I was attracted to the title- the whole Foxworthy spin. I clicked and started the video... Click..click..scratch...click. The presentation bounced from PLAY to PAUSE to LOADING... Feeling frustration mount, I aborted the video. I went back to the menu and clicked on "Slippery Rocks and Hard Places." A presentation by Dennis Richards. (See how I eliminated the chance to get frustrated again?)

Richards identifies twelve gaps that we as teachers and learners "must all acknowledge, experience and understand if we are to move toward the emerging new story of learning." Ahh, structure...

Richards states that we must prepare our students to be "lifelong learners." The world demands "adaptability and flexibility." Referring to the students, he states, "We owe it to them to understand this reality."

For each gap, Richards provides a "bridge" to success. He does not demand that we do certain things nor does he tell us what we are not doing as a culture. He says not to "discard" what we have learned but encourages us to think about our techniques in a fresh way.

Take Bridge #8- Collaboration. I was particularly attracted to this bridge because of the way I've been leaning in the classroom over the past few years. I have discovered the value in team work as individuals can bring their strengths to an assignment or project. Richards sees collaboration as "an opportunity to share." With this opportunity, individuals can become better informed. Informed individuals can adapt, are flexible, and are well-suited for the process of life-long learning.

My New Year's Resolution? Become more flexible. Step One- return and view "You Might Be a 21st Century Leader If..."