Technology Spurs testing culture? - DRAT!

This interesting Washington Post article is brief walk through history from ancient greece to NCLB.

It appears that teachers are focused on inputs and politicians on outputs. That can't be good. I've always suspected some such problem myself.

Jim :-)

A time to chill out? - Thornburg Blog Post

On District Administration's "The Pulse" blog David Thornburg posts an awesome rant and call to action.

See it here.

My favorite line is, "broadband access can be a distraction to the teacher whose lifeless uttering might otherwise compete with real-time research being done by students in his class." Ouch!! :-)

You go David.

Jim :-)

ps- I must say that I have admired David T.'s work since I was a 1992 Master Teacher at the WNET Teacher Training Institute in NYC. He keynoted there and was amazing. He has been inspiring teachers to "think big" for a LONG time.

The Poverty of Abundance - McKenzie

For an excellent article on info-glut and kids see this one from Jamie McKenzie.

http://fno.org/oct06/poverty.html

I think you will find some excellent thoughts here. When you are done, then search out the rest of his site for other fantastic ideas. This is staff development one-stop shopping. For the best experience though you have to have the man himself present the ideas at a pre-conference session. Good stuff.

(BTW- I am in no way affiliated with Jamie. I just like his persistence and his gutsy and honest ideas.)

Jim :-)

"Happy Thanksgiving"

Why teachers don't use ICT.

Terry Friedman of "The Educational Technology Site: ICT in Education" conducted an on-line poll asking, "Why don't teachers use ICT?" You can see the results at this article.

Although I am sure these results are "unscientific" I applaud Terry for asking a good question. Good questions are amongst the most valuable things in the world. Even if the results are not perfect they will lead to meaningful conversations ...which should translate to better educational experiences for kids.

Jim :-)

T& L speakers challenge educators?

Hi All,


Educational technology trade show's theme: Today's students need high-level skills to succeed.

Yah think?

Thanks for the breaking news out of the 1989 SCANS report.

As far as the "world flattening" commentary about China, see my earlier post about that one. (scroll down to 1/9/06 to see it.)

Also, I find it interesting that more than half of this article (the last two pages) were dedicated to highlighting corporate entities from the exhibit hall. Shouldn't that have warranted a different article title so I could miss that section? May I sugest, "Educational Technology Corporations Seeking your eRate Dollars!" (You realize I am being kind here.)

Jim :-)

Second Life??

I posted this on another blog of mine but thought you might have an interest in this also...yeah, yeah, I'm skeptical...but it is worth investigating!

HI All,

As if manging my first life wasn't bad enough, here come a web space known as "Second Life".

Second Life is a 3-D virtual world entirely built and owned by its residents. Since opening to the public in 2003, it has grown explosively and today is inhabited by over a million people from around the globe.

You create a virtual person, known as an avatar and literally make your way through this world. There is an economy based on something known as a "linden dollar" which I believe can actually be converted to real money for people who would rather buy these virtuaa assets rather than earn them!

Why would I post this info on the RW Blog? Well, I recall a number of years ago joining a community run by Compuserve known as "World's Away" and finding it absolutely fascinating. The problem was that on-line time was expensive and 56.6K modems were too slow to effectively utilize the real-time aspects of the world. Now, given our new lap tops and high speed connectivity, it is actually time to see whether or not this idea has merit, free of the technological restrictions of the past.

This CNN article from 11/14 even suggests that, "A growing number of educators are getting caught up in the wave. More than 60 schools and educational organizations have set up shop in the virtual world and are exploring ways it can be used to promote learning."

Let's say we wanted an island for our organization well here are the specs..."We offer a discount to verified real world educators and academic institutions (e.g., universities/schools) or 501(c)3 non-profit organizations that will be using the regions to support their organization's official work. For these organizations, small islands are priced at US$980 for 65,536 square meters (about 16 acres), and monthly land fees for maintenance are US$150."

I know this is a far out concept but it may be time to consider the merits of virtual spaces. My 9 year old daughter is currently fascinated with a virtual space called "Club Penguin" in which she exists as a panguin, owns an igloo and, from what i just heard, an LCD TV! I kid you not! Ask any kid under the age of 11, with broadband, about it. Given the popularity of these spaces with the under-10 set they will certainly be ready to utilize an Avatar as an undergrad.

Jim :-)

Hi Tech toys and educational gains?

I'm back!

Thanks for your patience with me. I took a couple of months to deal with some family things and to explore a couple of other fun side projects. The most bizarre of which is my use of purevolume.com under the pseudomym "jimmyandthekeyz" *see http://www.purevolume.com/jimmyandthekeyz to express my disappointment with Pluto's demotion! :-) Seriously, I am not really THAT upset! :-)

Anyhoo.. in an article written by Lucy Ward of The Guardian, it appears that an English government study has suggested that electronics for infants and pre-schoolers may not be as educational as once thought. Apparently they are no more effective than traditional ways of introducing literacy and number skills. The bottom line is that they found that "such toys were neither harmful nor "particularly beneficial". This really flies int he face of the advertising which preys on the guilty "my kids might not get into Harvard if I don't buy this" feelings of sub-urban uber-parents.

I will probably place this under my "DUH!" file, but given that it is closing in on Xmas time I thought it might be nice to share this info.

Peace.
JIm(my)

Edison's Prediction Revisited-revisited

HI All,

This article in Converge was written to address ed tech critics who point out budgetary concerns and lack of research to support tech's role in raising test scores.

Let me start out by saying I like anyone who sticks their neck out there. We need more of this because it encourages conversation, and conversation results in learning and sometimes change.

First point... "Corporate leaders don't fuss and worry about technology spending the way education critics do". In my experience they do support the purchase of tools that will make their employees more effieicent, but on the other hand, if the expense does not make a measureable difference in achieving their goals they will drop it like a hot rock. The fact is that the blackberry, lap top and videoconferencing make, or saves them, money. Our bottom line is learning. Can we always say the same? Often yes...then keep funding it. If not, let it go and apply the money to reducing class sizes.

Next..."To suggest, as some education critics do, that we eliminate things that foster both communication and creativity in the classroom is ridiculous. But that is exactly what they are promulgating when suggesting technology should be limited in the classroom." That is too simplistic and creates a false dichotomy. I'm not sure if I've ever "promulgated" anything but there may be other issues to consider when one looks at tech use being limited by a school. It's important but isn't the only thing in increasingly shrinking school budgets. I, dare say, it isn't the always the evil critics trying to limit the creativity and communication of the classroom environment.

Next..."If there is no benefit in using pen and paper in the world that we work in, why should we demand our students stay in the pen and paper world?" I agree with you on this. Digital tools are the way I am reacting to this article. My own kids are immersed in them. The question I have is, when you consider the cost of computers for a writing class relative to traditional pen/paper journaling etc. Is it worth it? You can't dismiss the costs of training, hardware, software, infrastructure etc. associated with their use. Is my son becoming a MUCH better writer because of these tools? If so, we need them. If not....

You got me on the sports thing. I see their value but those expenditures are ridiculous. I would apply a similar argument there. Is it really worth that much? The only thing I can say though is that tax payers are funding this. If they want "friday night lights" because it is part of their culture, I guess they will continue to support it. I'm with you on that one.

It is also my experience that tech is enthusiastically embraced by students. They love it.

I am offended. I will not accept your attack on "old school" teachers. Are you kidding me? Most of these veteran educators realize that they have no access to a lab on a regular basis because it is being hogged by a handful of over-zealous teachers. They also know that they produce results without tech and wonder why it is being forced on them. They also aren't being offered respectful (i.e old school???) staff development that addresses learning and not the software. Lastly, the often unreliable computers are a crap shoot when it comes to actually producing work. I know that you are writing this article from some fantasy school setting but enter a random public school some day and check out their learning lab. That's old school.

The closing is emotional but weak on facts. It states..."Perhaps that is ultimately the main complaint naysayers have against using technology in our schools...they don't want to change, even for the benefit of students." Talk about an ad hominem attack. This is blatantly untrue and doesn't serve your argument well. Of course critics care about kids. They may care about the waste associated with some applications of ed tech. You don't have to have computers to have a constructivist curriculum. Granted, there are amazing ways to use computers in support of that style of teaching but to suggest that it can only take place if evil luddites will embrace ed tech is wrong.

Have at me. You know you want to. Let's keep the conversation going.

Jim :-)

The Pulse and Postman's "Crap Detector"

There is a new blog designed for debate (not unlike this one...AHEMM) called The Pulse. It is being produced by the District Administration Web site. It offers a dream team of commentators including, Gary Stager, David Thornburg,UCONN's own Dr. Dyrli and others.

Check it out...and get involved.

I particularly like this Gary Stager post which referred back to a Postman speech given at the 1969 NCTE conference, Bulls#@t and the Art of Crap-Detection.

Don't you just love the 60's? We need a little of that moxie right about now.

Jim :-)

The divide still exists....really?

I'm telling you, I am tempted to start a web site called edtechDUH.com so I can link to all of the painfully obvious conclusions reached by journalists and researchers.


The article from 9/5/06.

This one points out that there remains a digital divide. I agree.

Some of the conclusions are a classic "causation vs. correlation" deal. Is it really that not having access to the internet,"narrows their ability to even think about the kind of work they can be doing,?" ...or could it be that the conditions that lead to a lack of internet accessibility...aka poverty that contribute to that more?

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for closing the digital divide. I have even been personally been involved in helping to do so. My issue is that some feel as though once we do that things will be dramatically better. I'm not so sure. The achievement gap is more pernicious then that folks. The root causes will remain unless we get serious as a society about solving the root causes and really start caring about these kids.

jim :-)

Kids and Tech: How much is too much?

This is the question asked in this article at Tech News World.

http://www.technewsworld.com/story/features/52677.html

Now, I've never heard of tech news world, but it is an interesting question that relates to the purpose of this site.

Are we producing a generation of kids who are over-wired and have no patience? Or is this a glaring generalization that feeds on the base fears of achievement driven suburbanite parents?

Let me know what you think!?

Jim :-)

School Web Pages and Ads

HI All,

Long time, no blog. This issue caught my eye. It is a new version of the old, "a soda company wants to buy us a wicked cool billboard, should we accept it?", problem.

School web sites mostly underperform. This is understandable. There generally is not enough time or resources to dedicate to it so a teacher and/or a group of kids usually get the task. These generous souls (myslef included when I was in the classroom) offer much of their free time to this task and should be applauded. The problem is that there is often no systematic way to update the information in the various categories and so you get images from the October pep-rally staring at you in April. Web savvy parents who expect to see breaking news being covered on the site are sadly disappointed. Initial enthusiasm for the work wanes as the year goes on and an important resource is under utilized by all.

(A personal note... Ms. Betsy Nagurney does a great job at Scofield Magnet MS with little to no help. http://www.magnetmiddle.org)

So, a company says we'll step in and run the site and make it look fresh by sending all sorts of info feeds to it and all you have to do is watch the advertising on the site to compensate them. One could understand why a school might take the bait.

The issues are: 1) Should we be subjecting our kids and parents to the advertising? 2) Shouldn't a school district have the internal resources necessary to support this kind of work from within, in this day and age? 3) Do you think that an outsourced job on a school web site will carry the same meaning as an in house production? Should we not be thinking about the lost authentic learning opportunity that it represents for the kids who Would be involved?

What do you think?

Jim :-)

NELMS myspace.com article

My, My, MySpace.com


This is the connected generation. They are the “digital natives”. What defines them is the instant and continual access they have to one another across multiple media! The other day I asked my son to check up on a friend who I just found out was ill. He responded that he checked her AOL profile, discovered the nature of her illness, IM’d his friend for her cell number and already spoke to her and after sending her an electronic “get well soon” card from bluemountain.com. She was apparently doing better. My son is 14 and THIS is what we are dealing with.

Now along comes myspace.com a dream tool for the ”tween” who is desperately wanting to connect with friends and control their own PR,. ( I know there are other social networking site but this appears to be the clear winner with middle schoolers at the moment.) If the need to stay connected with your peers is a burning fire, think of myspace.com as lighter fluid!

What is it?

Myspace.com, according to Wikipedia.org, is “an interactive, user-submitted network of blogs, profiles, groups, photos, MP3s, videos and an internal e-mail system.” It is fourth most popular web site in English on the web. As such, it is worth a lot of money to advertisers and has the likes of Rupert Murdoch sinking hundreds of millions of dollars into it. (580 million to be exact)

How does it work?

You sign up. Middle school kids usually lie about their age in order to get this right. The minimum age is 14 or older. Let’s just say it isn’t policed very well.

You create a profile page. Here you can say things about yourself, describe who you would like to meet, your interests and favorite movies and music. You can also provide personal info about yourself, your school , and your lifestyle. This is where it can, obviously, be dangerous for a non-savvy early adolescent. If a myspace.com user doesn’t go to “account settings” and adjust their “privacy settings”, limiting their profile to “my friends only”, the whole world will have access to this profile. Other ”account settings” will allow you to change your password, set IM privacy settings, group settings and block certain users.

You then send the web address, or URL, of your MySpace page to your friends and relatives and they can apply to be your “friend”. The user then can approve these people and this “friend” then is granted additional abilities to interact with you. Control of this list of friends is essential to staying safe(r) while using the site. If you find that your child has hundreds of friends, I would dare say, they are probably too accepting.


What do kids do with this?

Basically kids use this to continue their in school rants, to flirt, to create a persona that they want the world to see, to stay connected, and sometimes to bully one another.

They also can use it as a form of social stratification by keeping some kids in or out of their “friend list”. You can select eight friends to appear on your “top 8” friends list within you r profile. These typically represent you best friends. I am SURE that more than one middle schooler has been found crying outside of a guidance counselor’s office over their removal from a friends “top 8” list.

Also, I have noticed that kids are using it as a way to distribute photos and movie clips. This is more worrisome due to the fact that it reveals way too much about the person and some of the photos can be inappropriate.

It is typically pretty innocuous. This is basic adolescent chatter, but as you would expect, kids will test the limits of this medium also.

How do you stay safe on this?

MySpace.com actually posts a fairly reasonable set of safety tips on their web site. Click the words “safety tips” on the very bottom of the page and discuss these with you child. This is probably not the most visited section of the web site.

Here is what they say to parents, from their web site:

•Talk to your kids about why they use MySpace, how they communicate with others and how they represent themselves on MySpace.

• Kids shouldn't lie about how old they are. MySpace members must be 14 years of age or older. We take extra precautions to protect our younger members and we are not able to do so if they do not identify themselves as such. MySpace will delete users whom we find to be younger than 14, or those misrepresenting their age.

• MySpace is a public space. Members shouldn't post anything they wouldn't want the world to know (e.g., phone number, address, IM screen name, or specific whereabouts). Tell your children they should avoid posting anything that would make it easy for a stranger to find them, such as their local hangouts.
• Remind them not to post anything that could embarrass them later or expose them to danger. Although MySpace is public, teens sometimes think that adults can't see what they post. Tell them that they shouldn't post photos or info they wouldn't want adults to see.
• People aren't always who they say they are. Ask your children to be careful about adding strangers to their friends list. It's fun to connect with new MySpace friends from all over the world, but members should be cautious when communicating with people they don't know. They should talk to you if they want to meet an online friend in person, and if you think it's safe, any meeting should take place in public and with friends or a trusted adult present.

• Harassment, hate speech and inappropriate content should be reported. If your kids encounter inappropriate behavior, let them know that they can let you know, or they should report it to MySpace or the authorities.

In my opinion they are off the mark on their 5th bullet. In order to stay safe, DON’T add strangers as friends and DON’T meet people you do not know. Ever. Period. This has resulted in many terrible situations that we are all too aware of. I put my foot down on this aspect of social networking.

**If you decide that you don’t want to deal with this and want to delete your child’s profile they offer instructions for doing so at this address… http://www1.myspace.com/misc/RemovingChildProfiles.html**

BlogSafety.com suggest that parents be reasonable and open and that they communicate often with their kids about this, They also recommend a central area for internet use in your house. (My own son doesn’t currently have, or need, web access in his room. Although, he could rig access to it from his PSP or cell phone. Drat!) Lastly, they suggest that you get your kids to share their MySpace page and profile.

As was reported recently on eSchoolNews, it is increasingly a part of the curriculum for incoming college freshman also, where the web site of choice is facebook.com.

What are some other opinions on this?

One one side. Gary Stager, the prolific ed tech writer and knock-out presenter, thinks we all just need to “grow up”(see http://snipurl.com/uccn). He states, “Schools endanger the very students they seek to protect when they bubble-wrap kids and the curriculum.”

On the other hand, eSchool News on-line points out the increased need for discretion on-line, particularly while on sites like Myspace.com. The article states, “Besides the obvious danger of posting personally identifying information, they say, the potential exists for embarrassing information to come back to bite students later in life when they apply for college or a job.”


The bottom Line

As the father of a 14 year old, this isn’t as easy for me. This isn’t some abstraction that I can easily be philosophical about. This is a reality for my son and his friends that I am already dealing with. As a parent, I have to wade through the “ick factor” on this to really understand this tool.

I also have to balance my need to provide a climate of trust with the necessity to play out my role as parent. My son knows that I read his page from time to time. I know that if I push too hard it would be easy for him (he’s a clever little bugger) to create an “underground profile” that he could keep changing that would keep me out of the loop. We currently live in a state of myspace.com détente.

Have I confronted him with content that was posted on his page by his “friends”? Yes. The result has been some interesting conversations. I was able to pose questions like, “How did you feel about that posting?, “Why do you think he/she is portraying themselves in that way?, What do you think your mother and I expect from you?, How do you have your privacy settings set-up? Can you show me your friend list and tell me who each of these people are?”

Without my ability to have this conversation my son I would be more worried. But, frankly, I remain concerned. Does this mean that at some point in the future I won’t take away this ability to use this site if it is abused or it becomes too big a distraction. No Way! I still retain my ability to be the bad-guy. In my opinion, I have to, if I care about my son.

So, there is the frustrating dichotomy. The tension is between the need to provide a trusting environment in which my son can learn and grow and the need to provide a buffer zone of safety around him at all times.

What do you think? Respond below!!!


Additional resources:
• Wikipedia Entry for Myspace.com
• Netsmartz.org
• WiredSafety.org
• GetNetWise.org
• BlogSafety.Com

OK...on three...DUHHHH!

Hi All,

The title of this post was completely unfair (and mean spirited), but I mean, really, is this study necessary?

Teacher development key to tech success

Could it be possible that anyone from the world of ed tech would doubt this?

Hello?....McFly.

This quote from the eSchool News article..." Although teachers report they are using technology more frequently for both instructional and administrative tasks, they also worry that obstacles such as a lack of access, time, and money are keeping them from integrating technology effectively into the curriculum, the study found. "... is SOOO what Larry Cuban was talking about in Teachers and Machines.



(A book that was produced prior to easy access to the internet and WWW, copyrght 1986.)

Thanks for the study CDW-G but I am truly astounded that this still needs confirmation.

Are US classrooms "left behind"?

That is what this eSchool News article is suggesting. This is unacceptable and annoying.

The link

Jim :-)

ps- long time no post! :-)

5 lessons on using ed tech

Hi All,

I thought that there were some interesting thoughts in this article from the THE Journal http://www.thejournal.com/articles/18654 and then as I continued reading on I became extraordinarily distracted by the imbedded and surrounding advertising! I mean...c'mon guys! If you print a copy of this article I am sure you'll be able to get some great ideas with being thrown into a media induced seizure!

Jim ;-)

EETT phone home?

The SEDTA released the following info.

SETDA Dismayed by House's Action to Abandon Technology in Schools

House Vote Devastates Efforts to Maximize Student Achievement and Improve America's Competitiveness by Eliminating Enhancing Education Through Technology (NCLB Title II, Part D)

ARLINGTON, VA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 06/07/2006 -- The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) today urged the House Appropriations Committee to fill the gaping hole left by the House Labor, HHS, & Education Subcommittee's decision to eliminate the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program in FY 2007.

"We understand tough decisions must be made in the Appropriations process, but eliminating EETT shows a gross misunderstanding of how critical this funding is for schools. EETT's activities have led to demonstrated, measurable improvements in student achievement in Math, Science, and Reading. Moreover, schools have used EETT funding to purchase data systems that are critical to fulfill NCLB's accountability requirements and to close the achievement gap," said SETDA's Executive Director, Mary Ann Wolf, PhD. "As the nation gears up to be more competitive, it makes no sense to cut a program that provides teachers and students with the technology resources that are improving teaching and learning and allowing our nation to compete effectively in the 21st century workforce."

SETDA calls upon the Full Appropriations Committee to level fund the EETT program at $275 million in 2007 (at minimum), which represents a 61% cut from 2004 funding level of $696 million. The House Appropriations Committee must reject the notion that the job of technologically outfitting our schools is done, particularly since many schools still lack that appropriate technology systems to: 1) report and address the progress of every child, 2) close the achievement gap, 3) improve teacher quality, and 4) provide rigorous instruction to all students.

Maybe the world is actually round?

Hi All,

Gary Stager has expressed his wonderful disregard for the ubiquitous "flat world" concept in this response. We all know the premise of Friedman's "The World is Flat" by now, particularly if you have had a recent computer issue solved by an eloquent person from Bangalore. It is interesting to see someone actually step back from it for a second and question it.

It is always interesting how the human mind, that desperately wants to make sense of the world around it, will grab on to ideas that "feel right". This sort of relates to the earlier "freaky" post. I am not sure who is more correct, Gary or Tom, but I like the fact that Gary is making me think.

All the best.

Jim :-)

Should we all "get over" myspace.com?

Hi All,

In an article for districtadministration.com titled, "Guess Why They Call It MySpace? It's time for adults to grow up" Gary Stager makes the case that all of us need to basically "chill-out".

He states, "Dependency and fear retard the learning process. It is difficult, if not impossible, for students to develop moral values and solve ethical dilemmas when school never allows them to make a decision or mistake."

He also takes a stab at the ed tech community when he states, "The educational technology community has a similar level of paranoia manifest in discussions over whether students should have their own floppy, be allowed to save on the hard drive, surf the Web, send an e-mail or use a USB key. It is impossible to discern the lines between genuine safety concerns and tyranny."

I've had the pleasure of learning from Gary in person. His creative and important work has demonstrated his concern for kids. I think that he makes some very good points. They are at least worth mulling over, after you take a deep breath.

If you don't agree with me I'll simply take you out of my "top 8". So there.

Jim :-)

Is tech injuring children?

In an article on C/NET.com, by Stephanie Olson, she explores this question.

My gut tells me that most kids probably won't suffer RSI injuries due to gaming or computer use. This doesn't mean that we shouldn't be more concerned about ergonomics in classroom/lab computer use or in game design. I know for a fact that my computer lab was not ergonomically designed and that the line of sight to the monitor and the posture of the kids while working was not ideal. (To say the least!)

I have come across articles concerning black-berry related injuries and since 1998 we have have been apparently concerned about "Nintendo Thumb". (I kid you not.)

Stephanie points to some real data that suggests that prolonged use of bad computer habits could ultimately result in RSI injuries. This is definitely something for ed tech enthusiasts to be aware of and concerned about.

Jim :-)