the end is near

So the AQ course on technology in education is coming to and end....but not my use of technology in education....both the education of my students and my own education.   Today I will be attached to my laptop once again...it has become another appendage....as I work with my teaching partner on MxWeb writing final reports for the year. It is amazing that, although we spend so much time creating electronic files, my dining room topography is mountains of paper piles.

This course has taught me a great deal...including being able to recognize how much I already know, and of course, how much more there is to learn.  New programs, websites, apps etc. appear everyday.  It would be impossible to keep up with everything, and not everything is useful to me.  Being selective, sharing personal experiences and learning from others is essential to the effective use of technology in education..and in general.  A person could easily spend thousands of dollars on equipment and programs unnecessarily....only to find they have a lot of useless stuff.  Listening to peers and checking out free trials is a great start.

Computers and technology in education are essential, but that is not all there is to 21st Century Learning.  It is choosing the best tool for the job and knowing how to use it effectively.  Sometimes a pencil and piece of paper are still the best tools.  As educators we need to assist our students in the choosing of tools and how to best utilize them.  Having the fastest computer or newest tablet is irrelevant if you don't know how to effectively operate them.  And with the rapid pace that things change in technology, the valuable learning is in the ability to adapt, explore, apply and not fear....difficult skills to teach...but essential for success.

Thanks for the Memories

So the power point presentations were completed and the Closing Ceremonies a success.  It can be very difficult to create a presentation that contains all the pertinent information and images, but that doesn't drag on forever.  The accompanying music or sound bites also play an important role in the presentation and can help elicit the desired response.  Knowing the audience and the purpose of a presentation is key.  Unfortunately, we had two audiences and one presentation which made things more difficult.  We had to please the  Grade JK to 6 students during the morning assembly, and alumni of a variety of ages in the evening.  The students did enjoy seeing how kids dressed in the sixties and seventies, and of course, how their teachers used to look (except for Mr. Rush, who still looks exactly the same).

Working with the students to create the presentations was a great deal of fun, and for the most part, a positive experience. The biggest problem was time.  Everyone was overwhelmed with preparations for the open house, along with EQAO and regular studies, plus sports, dance and artistic endeavours. The fact that the materials from the archives were not available until a day before the 'big day' also left a big whole in our collection of images.  Our original intention was to present life at the school 'Through the Years' by grouping images by the decade. We wanted to accompany each set of images with popular music from that decade. A serious lack of photos from the seventies while creating the slide show necessitated a change in plans (these photos arrived the day of, and were put on a bulletin board).  Instead the images were organized into staff photos, class photos, and event photos and the soundtrack was of a more sentimental nature (Good Riddance by Greed Day, Here I Am by Bryan Adams and Sarah McLachlan's I Will Remember You).  The presentation concluded with a salute to contributions of staff, students and community in a segment expressing how even though there are big changes happening at our school, some things will remain the same. In the end, it all turned out pretty good.....even the weather co-operated on the big night.

Live, Love, Laugh, Learn

the good ole days .... brought forward in time

I have been in charge of collecting photographs and memorabilia for our school’s closing ceremonies.  The Student Leadership Group and I are working on a power point presentation and we are also running a slide show during the open house. So I have been scanning in photos, downloading emails and my external hard drive has been passed around over the past few weeks.  I now have a collection of over 15 000 photographs on that hard drive…which by the way is approximately 8” x 6” x 1.5” in size.  Can you imagine how much space 15 000 actual hard copy printed photographs would take up?  The average photo album is  approximately 10” x 12” x 3”… taking up about 4 times the space of my external hard drive….and at 8 photos per page and maybe 75 pages per album…..well, you get the ‘picture’.

We have been using visuals in education since I was in school, back in the Jurassic period.  …but that usually meant pictures in books, ditto copies or reel to reel films from the National Film Board of Canada that never seemed to arrive when you were studying that topic…or relate to much of anything else at all (yes, I am that old).  Visual Learning has evolved immensely since those days, and especially in the past few years.  We now have immediate access to visuals of any nature from anywhere in the world, or the universe for that matter.  We can download videos and show then to our students that are appropriate to the subject and topic we are teaching whenever we want and as many times as we need to show them.  And better yet….our students can create their own digital visual creations and videos to demonstrate their learning!!

So back to the closing ceremonies and  all those photos…..how long will it take to show 15 000 photos in a slide show if each is displayed for 10 seconds?  I think I have some more editing to do…..

a picture is worth....

There are 6,800 known languages spoken in the 200 countries around the world. The number of human languages spoken and the number of different dialects that exists in the world remain a mystery. Of these different forms of communication only a few languages are understandable to the greatest number of people, one of which is visual language. Paintings found in Egyptian caves, Mayan astronomical glyphs and the ancient Chinese pictographs are visual images that still continue to communicate to today’s historians. Visual language serves as an important form of cross cultural communication, but is key as well to navigating an increasingly image and multimedia-centered landscape of information. Many visual literacy research studies and projects have been conducted to provide further understanding in the importance of developing visual literacy skills in order to thrive in our fast-paced, networked 21st century world.

http://sites.wiki.ubc.ca/etec510/Visual_Literacies#Visual_Literacy_and_Technology_in_Education

Visual Literacy … A picture is still worth a thousand words….

…..or maybe a million or so………….

digital imagery meets classic cars

Remembering Bruce

Today we laid my Uncle Bruce to rest, four months shy of his 90^th birthday.  He had seen a lot of things.  He had done a lot of things.  And he had collected A LOT of things.  Bruce’s passion for classic cars was well known and the parade of beauties that followed him to the cemetery….well I’m sure it made him smile.

It’s hard for me to imagine what life was like growing up in the ‘dirty thirties’ or training military men how to drive Bren Gun Carriers during the Second World War.  Bruce had many stories to tell, and he did share them with all of us over the years, with a sense of humour that will be greatly missed. 

But even at 44, my life as a youth is vastly different than that of my own sons.  I remember the days of cameras with film and having to wait two weeks for developing on to find out the flash didn’t work properly and I had nothing but blurry and dark images to show for my time and money.  Movie night meant going to the theatre, sometimes 2 or 3 times to see the same film, and if you missed it maybe it would appear on a double-bill at the drive-in the next summer. Eventually you might find the movie in VHS release. Television was in colour of course and we had cable, but we viewed according to the big networks’ schedules.  Oh, and phones were connected to the wall with a wire.

Today, not only do we carry our phones in our pockets, we can take photos with them, instantly see our image and email it to anyone we know or post it on the web within seconds without moving from the spot.  Satellite television and internet streaming allows us to see just about anything we want, and according to our schedule.  Visual imagery is overwhelming, immediate, and sometimes difficult to authenticate. 

We had a chuckle today at the funeral for a few of us had casually commented to colleagues this week, “Is it wrong to take a camera to a funeral?”  No, we not a gruesome group, but we knew on such a bright, sunny afternoon Bruce’s cronies would be cruising in their classic cars.  It was quite a sight to see.  No, I did not take my camera….but there were sure a lot people holding up their cell phones out in that parking lot.

finding time to learn

So I guess blogging is not my forte....neither is homework.  It's not that I feel it is unimportant.  On the contrary it is of utmost importance to me...that it in itself is the problem.  It is for me...so it tends to get pushed to the end of the list behind my kids, my husband, other family, students, teacher partner, etc....

I was lying in bed awake at about 4am and everything seemed so clear.  I wrote my blog in my head, planned the program template and artwork for the closing ceremony, decided on the kids final task for science, figured out my next  AQ assignment and sorted out shopping lists.  Everything was calm and quiet ... and all goals attainable.  It is at times like that I wish I could plug a USB cord into the side of my head and transfer all of the data to my laptop....because once my day actually started....nothing seemed clear or do-able anymore.

While working through my ever-growing list of things to do, it has become painfully obvious that no matter what technology is available, if you don't know how to use it...it really isn't much use. I have recently loaded Photoshop and Illustrator onto my laptop.    They are great programs and will be very useful in the creation of artwork and media and a million other projects.  The problem is I don't know how to use the programs properly.....just another thing to learn.  And I WANT to learn....that is why I got the software.  That is why I am taking this course.  I guess I should start by learning how to schedule my time more efficiently and prioritize time for my own learning.

Building the Perfect Rubric..Better Call Mike Holmes

Assessing Educational Software...Make it Right!  But How?

Our current assignment is to create a rubric for the use of assessing educational software.  Rubrics are ‘a scoring tool for subjective assessments… (that) allow for standardised evaluation according to specified criteria, making grading simpler and more transparent.’ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubric_(academic)  The rubric is designed to make assessment, though still subjective, more consistent. It seems to be an evaluation method unique to education, but I am not sure if that is entirely true.

Students are often given a copy of the assessment rubric when a task is assigned so that they are aware what the instructor is looking for, and placing value on, for evaluation.  (Although rumour has it that EQAO rubrics are not developed until after a group of tests have been graded…hmmm?  If this is true…do they go back and re-assess that group after the rubric is created?  Of course this is only rumour, conjecture and personal thought.)

Rubrics are useful tools in assessment.  They are beneficial to both the ‘assessor’ and ‘assessee’ because they outline standards and criteria for evaluation.  So why do I still have such a difficult time creating them? 

We have been given a criteria checklist to help us create our rubrics and assess a selection of educational software.  Before looking at what other people feel is important criteria I decided I needed to decide what is important to me and my students.  I started to think of the negatives I have experienced and what would make a program more useful.

The first issue I thought about, probably because I teach a lot of math, is the need for Canadian content.  I have come across some interesting resources, only to be confronted with American money and inches and miles.  For obvious reasons, such software or programs have limited appeal in the Ontario classroom.

My second concern is the languages the software is available in and any extra cost involved.  I am currently placed at a ‘dual track’ school with a growing French Immersion population.  My teaching partner and I are the only English Grade Three class this year and have tried to team up with our French counterparts with some success.  It is very important to us as an entire school that we foster integration and the philosophy that we are in fact ONE school.  This can be a difficult reality to attain if the resources are not consistent.  I feel it is important that software be available in both French and English, and preferable without extra expense to the school.

To ‘piggy back’ on the idea of bilingual software, I would like to comment on the growing diversity in our schools today and the number of different languages spoken in our families’ homes and in the classrooms.  Technology is a great way to build bridges between cultures, but only if the software is available in a variety of languages.

The ease of use is also important when assessing software…for both the student and the educator.  If it takes too much work to figure out how to use a program and how to make it useful, it will not get used. 

Availability is another concern for me when introducing software into my teaching.  It is wonderful to have a selection of programs available to our students, especially assistive technology, but what real value is it to the individual if it is only available to them at school and on their school laptop that must remain at school.  It severely limits a student’s ability to work at home and many of the licences are far too expensive for parents to purchase.  Accessibility and ease of use are definitely two important features for educational software.

So those are the ideas where I started…but definitely not a rubric.  Those thoughts now belong in a table as justifiable criteria....an assessment rubric for educational software.

Now you see it………..

With only a little more than two months of school left, the to-do list seems to be getting longer and longer.  That is because this June will see more than the end of a school year; it will also see the end of our school…as we know it, that is….

As mentioned before, a new school is being built on what used to be the playground and the original building will come down sometime over the summer (if all goes as planned).  I am currently involved with the closing ceremonies committee and we are planning a ‘big event’ during the first week of June.  The typical open house associated with Education Week has been postponed until the evening of the closing ceremonies and classes are to design their displays for the evening around the theme:  Thanks for the Memories.

One of my duties on the committee is to create an invitation that will be sent to select ‘dignitaries’ from the Board and the community.  The principal thought that it would be nice to have student art on the front of the invitations.  I agreed that it was a good thought, but the logistics and short time line would make it difficult to realize.  I have to admit, I was also a little worried about printing off 100 invitations and just passing them out to kids to draw on the front.  No offence intended, but there would be no control over what type of artwork we would get back. So time for Plan B.

A huge juxtaposition between the old school and the new school is technology.  Rundown and resource deprived will miraculously turn into shiny and new techno-mania.  I thought I should work this concept into the creation of the invitations somehow.  Digital cameras were given the school leadership group (6 Grade 5 and 6 students in a precursor to the student government that will be developed once we are a full JK to 8 school).  The students were instructed to take pictures of the building and things in it, but not people.  Using cameras and computers (‘new’ technology) we will create and print invitations that depict the very reason we are moving into a new building….the deterioration of the old one.

All I can say is ‘WOW’…..the students did an amazing job with the cameras. The angles! The content! The compositions! The photos exhibit the amazing things that are happening in the school as well as the condition of the building and resources we are working with every day.  Every picture does tell a story.  We will go through the images next week and decide which ones we would like to use.  I am creating a template for the invitation and we crop and drop the photos into place.  I can’t guarantee that every invitation will be unique, but they will definitely be a large variety.  It is quiet exciting for the group and for me so see this idea come to fruition.

The group is also going to create a slideshow for the evening showcasing photos from the past 46 years. They are in the process of choosing music from the past four decades to create a soundtrack for the presentation and will be scanning old photos into folders on the computer over the next two weeks.  Even with limited resources, we are making use of technology to generate both printed and electronic creations for our closing ceremonies.

These are very visual products of technology.  My teaching partner and I were recently discussing how ‘visual’ teaching has become these days.  Our classrooms are filled with anchor charts and samples of student work.  We incorporate the SMARTboard when we can access it and use illustrations, charts and videos to supplement our lessons.  These strategies are great in the classroom because they help us reach so many students.  Even those students who are not specifically ‘visual learners’ will still benefit from these types of resources.  Most students that is….My teaching partner will have a student in her classroom next year who is completely blind.  When we have become so accustomed to visual resources, how can we fully include a blind student into the classroom?  With the technology that will be available to her next year, there will surely be devices and techniques to benefit both her and the student….but what are they?  As I have pointed out, even the technology we currently are using is very visual based.  So now that we are getting more comfortable with visual technology….on with the audio!

MyTwitFace

What do you get if you mix your social networking media?

Okay, lame joke…..but I have to admit, I did laugh the first time I heard it.

My sister was talking about her lunch out with a friend the other day.  Apparently there was a group of secondary students at the next table.  She said each pulled out their cell phones and began texting as soon as they sat down.  There was laughter, giggles and grunts but their eyes never left their electronic devices.  Fascinated, and nosey, she ‘discreetly’ watched the group, only to discover by their reactions that they were actually texting each other.  Is that what the world is coming to?  I doubt it….I hope not…..but my son does send me online messages from the basement and refuses to talk on the phone unless it is an emergency….

I do Facebook.  I text.  I spend far too much time on the computer.  I also own my share of pencils, paintbrushes and retain a capacity for verbal exchanges with other humans….and have even been known pass a few comments along to the neighbourhood squirrels as they hang from the feeder at eye level when I open the blinds on the patio door each morning (no, they do not answer me).  My husband bought his first computer during his third year of his B. Eng.  I bought my first laptop over 20 years later when I started Teachers’ College.  Both my boys, in Grades 8 and 12 respectively, have their own laptops and cell phones.  Times have changed, and continue to change…VERY QUICKLY!

Initially I thought it would be difficult to create a post on techno-devices in education because the school I am currently placed at is so devoid of new technology.  We do not have internet drops in the classroom; there is one SMARTBoard in the library and a mobile SMARTboard that was borrowed from another facility.  The laptop used in the library was purchased by parent fundraising about seven years ago.  For the teachers who are interested in ‘technology’…..most carry around more power in their pockets with their cell phones than what is available as teaching resources.  My teaching partner and I pay for our own Wi-Fi and bring our personal laptops to our portable……if I only lived a block closer we could use my home internet!

And yet, in September when the new school opens onsite, we will be one of the most technologically advanced in the board…or so is the plan.  Will we be ready?  What is the point of a SMARTboard in every classroom and computer pods if we are not prepared to utilize them?

The kids are ready.   But most kids are not intimidated by technology.  Computers, iPads, internet, cell phones are as familiar to them as a HB pencil is to me.  Cell phones and iPods can be used for scheduling, task reminders and even voice messaging.  To think I paid $150.00 for Dragon Naturally Speaking and now you can download the app for free.  Students can record themselves and email the message to their computers for editing and then email their assignment to the teacher.  Holy $#*%! 

Technology as a learning tool?  Definitely!  But like any tool, we need to learn how to use it in its various forms and then educate our students on how to make use of their devices for learning.  A large number of students are very ‘techno-savvy’ but even more only think they are… but in reality they are truly only experts in email, messaging and video games.  We need to explore this new culture together and learn the language so we can communicate clearly and effectively. …Make SMARTuse of our SMARTboards, SMARTphones and whatever other SMART devices appear on the scene by next week (by the way…RIM release the PlayBook today).

I admit I use Facebook because I am curious as to what is going on with friends and family and because I love beating my sister at Scrabble.  I do not read the ads or use it for professional networking (actually, most teachers I know still get nasty looks from principals for being members on the site….except from the principals who are members).  I seem to spend more and more time ‘connected’ but not in a SMARTway.  I am sure I could use my time more effectively.  Maybe I should use my time to figure out how to use my new cell phone.  Oh, I can make calls, answer calls, and text…..but I still need to carry around an old fashioned paper agenda and will always wear a watch.  I did just find the stop watch and timer … not to mention the recording  feature …..I really am frustrated with the touch screen on the phone though.  It never scrolls to where I want it to go! 

Will I ever feel comfortable without my landline and HB pencils?

NO.

But I sure do love my laptop.

Education over Limitation: Internet Safety

How do I feel about the internet and keeping our kids safe online?

We can’t deny it, though some may still try, the internet is a fact of life.  Shielding our children from that scary place known as the World Wide Web is not only impractical in 2011, it is impossible.  Embrace the unknown.  Enjoy the adventure.  But be prepared, pack the proper tools and educate yourself and your children/students for a safe and wondrous journey….after all, would you go backpacking in Tibet without a little preplanning and research?

I think the ‘gradual release of responsibility’ is a key factor to internet safety with our children.  Researchers and experts tell us to keep the computer in a public place in the home and monitor our children’s internet usage (Internet Savvy Parenting Keeps Children Safe.  Meghan Howard.  2005:  Spinning Your Web Consulting Services Ltd.).  Monitoring is only the first step in the process and realistic only for the younger children.  We must remember that we will not, and cannot, always be looking over their shoulders.  It is important to teach as well as monitor:  Education over Limitation.

It is important to build trust and respect with our children/students in regards to internet usage.  We need to provide rules, such as not giving out personal information online, and to explain why it is not a good idea.  It is important to remind them never to arrange meetings with people they have met online and to remember that ‘Not everyone is as nice, cute and funny as they may sound online.”  (Internet Safety Tips for Teens.  www.opp.ca). And we must start teaching and modelling these rules as soon as we start letting our kids use the internet.  How do you plan to explain meeting your new boyfriend online when you tell your kids never to arrange face to face meetings with someone they met online?

Then, as our children show us they are following the rules and are being responsible, we must trust them.  If we are open, honest and respectful, hopefully they will demonstrate the same character traits.  They will be willing to tell us if someone says something online that is unpleasant or even threatening.  If a search turns up something inappropriate they will inform their teacher or simply ignore it (rather that making sure everyone in the class knows how to find that photo online).  They will be respectful of internet safety even when there is not an adult looking over their shoulders.

The internet is everywhere: computers at home, school and at almost every friend’s house, online games, cell phones.  Learn and then teach your children how to install privacy settings and security software and why they are important.  Be aware that internet filters and monitoring programs can be disabled so it just might be better to teach your student where they should and shouldn’t travel on the internet rather than trying to prevent access to certain sites.  Prepare them for the journey.

It is difficult to teach our children about internet safety when they know more about computers and navigating online than we do….but we can’t shelter and protect them forever…trying to deny access is not the answer.  The internet is here and now and part of their lives.  As parents and educators, I feel we must become internet aware and help our children/students be the same. As they show they are being responsible they will earn more freedom and have us looking over their shoulders less and less.  We can’t realistically monitor all internet usage….keeping the computer in a public space in the house no longer applies when an individual can carry the web around in their pocket on a cell phone.  I believe it is not a case of being the internet police, but providing the knowledge and tools for the safe and fascinating journeys the internet can provide… not being web-phobic but being web aware.

what the blog?

It appears blogging was not high on my priority list, even though it is a requirement for my course.  Somehow, I just never managed to get back to this during the week.  Of course, three days with the stomach flu didn't help my productivity....but it does make a point.  Blogging?  Is it a sustainable form of communication or sporadic in nature?

My first introduction to blogging was from 'media' types. Radio and television personalities often maintain blogs as part of their profession.  I always wondered about 'ordinary' people who blogged.  Did these people think what they had to say was really that important to the rest of the world? And when I did follow personal blogs, like a colleague's trip to Italy last summer, I somehow felt like I was invading her privacy, even though she invited us to follow along.  I guess my first step in understanding blogs came when I started thinking of them more as interactive bulletins boards rather than electronic diaries (although, in truth, it depends on the blog).  So how can these blogs be useful in education?  And are they sustainable?

Another colleague was very enthusiastic about setting up a classroom blog.  In the beginning it was a huge success, but interest waned as time went on.  With so much else going on, it was hard to maintain.  I think the blog was an addition to programming rather that a replacement of another form of communication, making it redundant and just extra work.  Other teachers do find blogs useful and are able to maintain them throughout the year.

Teachers who previously created web pages for their classrooms find blogging an easier format to update with current information and assignments.  The blog format also allows for interaction with and between students.  The teacher who administrates the blog can edit out any inappropriate posts and correct any misinformation.  Blogs can also be viewed by parents so they are up to date with class information.

Neither of my sons are bloggers, nor have they been involved in an 'edublogs' for school.  Facebook and Twitter seem to be the more popular format for them and their peers.  But those are social communication platforms, whereas blogging seems to becoming more of an information platform.  I do however wonder about the current accuracy of data presented in "The Educated Blogger" by D. Huffaker (2005: AACE Journal, 13(2),91-98) where it is stated that "51.5% of blogs are being developed and maintained by ages13-19".  If blogs are being effectively utilized in education, I suppose this could be true, but I don't feel those statistics are indicative of students in my area.

I do like Huffaker's ideas about using blogs for literacy development and storytelling.  Students can improve their computer skills, learn about internet communication and work on story development and writing skills by creating or posting to a blog.  It makes me think of the 'story tellers' and verbal history of many cultures and of the past.  This electronic story telling could be our new way of passing down our history from person to person (in comparison to a textbook or other formal produced text or media).

It is important to reinforce with students that blogs are personal statements and opinions, and that information posted in a blog needs to be verified if being used as a resource.  But when understood properly, this aspect of blogging will help students understand the perspective and point of view of others (as detailed in "school library blogging".  K. McPherson. Teacher Librarian. Seattle.  Jun2006. Vol.33, Iss5, pp 67-69).  The blog also gives students the opportunity to answer a question or add to a discussion when they may not feel comfortable speaking in class.  It gives the individual time to think through their answers and post their thoughts when they are satisfied they have expressed themselves successfully.  A blog takes the pressure off of the immediacy of response in a live classroom discussion.

If using the blog format in the classroom, security is definitely a consideration as it is with any school internet usage.  It is important that the administrator monitor the blog and its participants.  Students need to be aware of safe internet practices, and a blog can be a useful format to education them in this area of knowledge and experience as well as whatever the current subject/discussion of the blog may be at the time.  Internet security will be the focus of a future blog.

So, am I sold on blogging as an educational tool?  Not yet.  But I am becoming more interested in the format and its potential as a communication tool and an interactive bulletin and discussion board.  Am I ready to start blogging with my students?  No yet.  But when I start planning for my new placement in the fall it is definitely a tool I would be interested in investigating further with my students.

Getting Started

So the old school is coming down, and it's replacement is being constructed right before our eyes on the original playground.  The current building has one stationary SMARTboard and one borrowed mobile SMARTboard unit....and only a couple of classrooms have internet drops.  The plan for the new build....high tech...hopefully with a SMARTboard in every classroom, computer pods between some classroooms and whatever else we can raise money for between now and September. Even though I am an LTO at the school, and will probably be moving on in the fall (although I would definitely love to stay), the entire process is very dear to my heart.  This is the school both of my boys attended from kindergarten to grade six.  I volunteered here for over ten years.  Staff members encouraged me to take a leap of faith and return to university at age 40 to get my teaching certificate and have continued support me throughout my journey. 

So all this talk of new technology has led to my decision to take an AQ course on the subject.  When I started teachers college almost five years ago, my computer experience was limited to checking emails and playing a few games with my sons.  It was quite a surprise to receive laptop specifications along with my reading list.  With the help of my boys and classmates I learned how to explore the web, message and create power point presentations.  I have continued to take advantage of learning opportunities that have come my way but am by no means an expert on the subject.  I am looking forward to expanding my knowledge while taking this AQ course and hope you will enjoy following my journey.  See... you can te(A)ch a old dog new tricks!