How Do We Get from Here to There?

With the current state of the economy and job market, the May 25, 2009 issue of Time Magazine caught my attention immediately. The cover article was entitled “The Future of Work”. The general ideas have been written about in other places as well, and I’ve been thinking about how the ideas should (?) impact the way we teach.

• Technology is now and will continue to be a critical component in students’ ability to attain jobs and thrive in the workplace.  Duh!
• Ethics and moral responsibility are coming back into fashion. Yay! Are we doing enough to teach them about online citizenship, rights, and responsibilities?
• We’re all going to have to take responsibility for our benefits and retirement. Are we preparing all students with useful math skills?   Are we allowing them to develop the critical thinking skills necessary to make decisions that will affect them in the long-term?
• Work times, places, and structures are becoming more flexible.  Are we allowing students to develop the critical thinking skills to make decisions that affect them in the short-term?
• Retirement may become a thing of the past. Do students develop a strong work-ethic?
• Green is the way to be. Do our students really understand why, so it isn’t only a fashion?

Even though we don’t have a crystal ball to show us exactly what students will see when they enter the workforce, we can do a lot to make sure they have at least some of the fundamental skills necessary. Many of us will still be in the workforce when those students enter it also.  I wonder if we’ll be ready?

I teach with a staff that works on a highly-collaborative, personal learning community (PLC) model. A couple of years ago I started a staff wiki so we could post and share the resources we were finding, creating, and using.  For the first year, people said it was “cool”, but I was the only one who contributed to it.  Only a few others referenced it.  Now, several grade levels contribute to it and use it on a regular basis. They even started to stress out about the idea that it could ever be unavailable.  I’m confident now that the new wikis I’ve set up for student work will be seen invaluable in time as well.

Next comes our leap into the use of iPods in the classroom. Next year, we’ll be fortunate enough to have a few small sets of iPod Nanos which will be used primarily in connection with reading (at least at first) in several classrooms.  Once again, the “cool” factor has hit. Everyone wants them.  Who is willing to do what it takes to use them effectively?  Who is willing to do the pre and post assessments, participate in the trainings (budget = no extra pay), and manage the equipment?

Patience.
Persistence.
We’ll get there

There has been a lot of talk about using iPods as an educational tool.  Many schools have taken the leap. A neighboring district has a great program called iRead. Bloggers/Podcasters such as Scott Meech have begun really looking at how educators are using them. More and more educators are looking, or at least thinking about the possibilities.

I’ve been trying to figure out which grant I can apply for to get a set myself.  Recently, my administrator came to me to let me know that there are some funds that will disappear if we don’t use them before the end of the year. She wants to purchase a set of iPods with all the necessary equipment before the end of the school year.  Yippee!!

But wait…what happens after we get them?  My fear is that they will end up abused or stuck in a box and forgotten like so many other things. Training has to be included in new technology decisions (and many other decisions as well).  Next year, budgets will be tighter than tight. Whether by finding money, or by requiring teachers attend training to get use of the equipment, it needs to happen.  As much as I want this equipment on campus, I don’t wanted the money and opportunity wasted.

Stay tuned…

I was so excited to go to this year’s Computer Using Educator (CUE) conference.  With Alice Mercer, I co-presented for the first time, and I sat on a panel with Steve Hargadon as well.  I learned a lot, I talked with great people, met new people, etc. I had planned to write a post about it upon my return.

When I got home, several issues became much more important. One friend was going through surgery and wasn’t sure whether or not the cause was cancer (it isn’t).  Another friend with stage 4 cancer, was going through a second round of surgery and was having a very difficult time physically and emotionally. In addition, a large number of the staff I work with received pink slips.  While some may have theirs rescinded, many others likely won’t.

Sometimes you have to take a step back and look at what is really important. Twitter, Plurk, and blogs were normally a regular part of my day.  For several weeks, I set them aside.  Sometimes real, face-to-face life is more important.  With all that we do with kids and technology, I hope we’re remembering to include that aspect as well.

The CUE conference is here in just a few days (March 5-7, 2009).  I am really looking forward to seeing old friends, learning from great sessions, and getting the chance to share a bit myself.

First up is EdubloggerCon/Classroom 2.0 Live held on Wednesday, March 4 before the official conference begins.  It is also planned for broadcast on Elluminate so you can join in even if you can’t make it out to Palm Springs.

During the conference, I have the privilege of being a part of two presentations. The first on Thursday morning is with Alice Mercer. We will be talking about “Using technology to add engagement and inquiry to SES tutoring.” You can find the presentation slides by following the link. The second will be Friday morning. I will join a panel lead by Steve Hargadon entitled ” The Importance of Social Networking in Education”. In addition, I plan to attend as many sessions as I can and learn as much as possible!

It should be a great weekend!

After attending (virtually) a university course presented by Alec Couros (Regina, Saskatchewan) with guest speaker Lisa Thumann (New Jersey) last week, I commented that I felt like I had learned more through personal learning network (PLN) professional development opportunities than in umpteen years of formal education. Tonight I listened to an Educon (an education conference in Philadelphia, PA) recap on Ed Tech Talk. Many of the people in the chat room attended Educon sessions virtually.  Some of those same people also “attended” sessions from other conferences the same weekend. I know I have attended far more conference/meeting/class sessions virtually than in person over the last couple of years.

Like so many others, neither my workplace nor my personal budget allows me to go to all the learning opportunities I would like to.  With the PLN I’ve developed in Nings, Twitter, Plurk, Diigo, etc., I have been able to join in on amazing conversations, class sessions, collaborative projects, and lectures from around the globe. Interactive learning isn’t constrained by my budget.  It only prevents my ability to always be there in person.

Now I’m thinking about how to help students (almost all very low income) to take advantage of opportunities like these now and in the future.

A Couple of Tools to Start

• Skype/VoIP - Hopefully we’ll be able to do this at school soon to communicate with others from our classroom.

• Wiki - Collaboration and sharing, even at an elementary level, is very possible through wikis

A Few Skills to Learn and Keep

• Digital Safety and Responsibility - Lessons here are needed to help students learn how to take advantage of learning opportunities without violating someone else’s rights or having their own rights violated.
• Critical Thinking Skills - It’s all well and good to learn and collaborate more, but it’s not very valuable unless you take the time to really think about and evaluate the information.
• Manners - Be open to listening. Think carefully before you criticize. Be ready to disagree if that’s how you feel, but do so with respect.

This morning, I listened to President Bush give his final press interview.  During his initial address to the press corps, he stated that he had sometimes been “misunderestimated”.  Now this isn’t the first time he has used the term, and it isn’t the only term that is unique to Mr. Bush.  Bushisms can be found in many places on the Internet. I suspect though that many of us have used words and/or phrases incorrectly from time to time.

Regardless of how you feel about the outgoing president, I hope you’ll agree that we, as educators, should be working hard to make sure students have a sufficient grasp of word attack skills, vocabulary, idioms, etc. to be taken seriously and seen as intelligent, educated individuals.  Below are a few resources that can help.  Several sites are aimed primarily at those learning English as a second language, but would be useful even for native English speakers.  For more, check out  Larry Ferlazzo’s blog.  It’s one of my favorites for these kinds of resources.

LessonWriter - Create language arts lessons from any digital text.
Free Rice - A measure of rice is donated to the UN World Food Program for each correctly identified  vocabulary word.  Now other subjects are available as well.
Using English - Includes vocabulary, grammar, verbs, idioms and more.
http://rea.ccdmd.qc.ca/ri/Expressions - Here you can learn the meaning of given idioms.  You can also find equivalents in Spanish or French.
Journey North - Journey North includes vocabulary lessons to coordinate with their migratory wildlife activities.
Word Central - This Merriam-Webster sites provides several ways for students to practice their vocabulary skills.
WordGirl - from PBS Kids

Don’t “misunderestimate” your students.  Together, we can work to help them improve their use of the English language. You might just learn something along the way as well.

Have You been Tagged by the SEVEN THINGS Meme?

I was just tagged by JoNelle Gardner in the meme going around the education blog circles called “Seven Things”.

Here are the rules:
* Link your original tagger(s), and list these rules on your blog.
* Share seven facts about yourself in the post - some random, some weird.
* Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
* Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs and/or Twitter and/or Plurk.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Well, here goes…

1. Before teaching I was in Public Relations/Marketing for a fraternal insurance company.  While going to school full-time, I worked full-time to pay my way through school. I took a job as a receptionist, but after a couple of months I managed to talk my way into a PR/Marketing position. I finally completed my degree, but thanks to a mortgage and because I was taking care of my mom, I couldn’t afford to quit my job to pursue teaching.  After nine years and a painful layoff, I went back for my credential. I guess it all worked out after all. I’m so happy I had that corporate experience.
2. As a kid I couldn’t decide whether I wanted to be a teacher or a chef. My mom started teaching my brother and I to cook when we were about 5, and I was cooking family dinners 4-5 nights a week by middle school. I still love to cook, but I know that there is no way I could hack it in a professional restaurant kitchen.
3. I’m loose-jointed. Wish it meant I was Cirque du Soleil limber. Sadly, it just makes for joints that snap, crackle, pop, and lock a little more than I’d like.  In the second grade when I broke my arm, the doctor had a really hard time setting it because the elbow doesn’t sit the way it should. Thankfully, since I inhereited the trait from mom, she showed him how it should go. I wonder what would have happened if he had had to figure it out on his own.
4. While I was working in PR/Mktg, I also volunteered as an adult-literacy tutor and worked as a tutor trainer throughout the county. It was my way of both giving back to the community and teaching before getting into the classroom full-time.
5. I’m still scared by the flying monkeys in the Wizard of Oz. I’ve seen the movie many, many times and even read the books as a kid, but those monkeys just aren’t right.
6. My photo was used in brochures and I “starred” in a public service announcement for the San Diego County Council on Literacy. Mind you I’m no model or actress by any stretch of the imagination.  They only used me because minority tutors were in very short supply.  I cringe whenever I run across either piece.
7. My faith is important to me. It isn’t something that I completely understand or can explain, but faith is a critical part of who I am.

That’s it for me. How about you?

Scott Shelhart

Dan McDowell

Cory Plough

Chris Bell

Steve Hargadon -Though likely you’ve been tagged already, just had to do it.

Right before the winter break, one of my students moved.  This wasn’t the first one to do so, and won’t be the last. This was one was special. He came from a lousy, lousy home situation and had to move away because the apartments his family lived in are being torn down. He and his brothers are the kind of kids everyone tries to look after. Before he left, I took him around school and had him take pictures of whatever he wanted.  He was absolutely gleeful as he went around school choosing people and places to photograph. His choices were refreshing and unpredictable. He was choosing people, places, and situations that had meaning to him. He couldn’t wait to get the memory book when it was completed.

It was a reminder that technology integration doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated.  Something as simple as having students take pictures can be incredibly valuable.  Photos can be used in any curriculum area and adapted to any grade and ability level. When students have control of the camera, or even choosing online photos, there can be a meaningful connection. That connection can make learning possible.

Well, I blame Bud Hunt for this one…in a good way. He was kind enough to give me an opportunity to help with a project, but I’ve been struggling with how to tackle it properly. When he answered one of my general project questions this morning, I began to think of several ways I could use the new information within the project. The ideas kept building until I realized I was in full brain spin.  If you aren’t familiar with it, hopefully the following xtranormal.com movie will help.

I then thought about how students struggle to find a writing topic in class. My class is currently working on personal narratives, and even though they frequently have stories to TELL me, many have trouble thinking of one when it comes time to write. Making the xtranormal movie helped me to think about how I wanted to help my students. My administrator will appreciate that it didn’t result in the usual email re: a new project I want her to consider :^)  I’ve decided try using small, cheap notepads.  Students can keep them in their desks and use them to write down events from the weekend, evening, recess, memories, etc. They can then refer back to the notebook when looking for writing inspiration.  This is not the only strategy I’ll employ. I’m sure brain spin will lead me to yet more ideas and strategies, including how to use xtranormal with my students.  For now, it’s leading me to thinking about how I can use this movie with the project that started this whole thing.  Thanks Bud!