Adaptive and Assistive Technologies (ATs)

What policies or procedures do you have in place for adaptive and assistive technologies (ATs)?
Neither Pleasant Plains School District nor Pleasant Plains High School has policies in place for adaptive and assistive technologies. General education teachers routinely infuse AT tools into their classrooms for all students. The special education department reviews each student individually and determines the best adaptive and assistive technologies necessary for that student, making the AT part of the IEP for the student.

Does your school/district have ATs? If so, what are they?
According to the PPCUSD8 Technology Plan, the district does not have any adaptive or assistive devices. However, the special education and general education classrooms have ATs that are routinely used.

While it is not a global practice at the high school, in several general education classrooms, PowerPoint presentations are made available online for students to access before, during, and after in most classes; assignment and project instructions with due dates included are made available online for student and parent access; essay and project rubrics are made available online for student and parent access; and classroom expectations and policies are made available online for both students and parents. In addition, textbook companies such as McGraw-Hill, the provider of our Glencoe Literature books provide a digital textbook for pc’s/mac’s that allows students to take notes, listen to professional readings of the literature while reading along, highlight text, do a quick search for text, zoom in/out, and place post-it notes on the pages of the text.

Like most teachers, I have learned to be creative in my classroom in creating ATs. I have converted text from articles, websites, or essays to pdf so students with reading difficulties could listen to Adobe Reader read the passages aloud as they read along. I have also tracked down audio versions of literature either through the internet or through the library when necessary.

Pleasant Plains High School has continuously been striving to increase reading skills for all students with various reading strategies. Some of these strategies include the use of graphic organizers in all content areas possible. Pre-reading, reading, and post-reading strategies are also highlighted in all content areas. Ongoing professional development in reading strategies has been a core of Pleasant Plains High School.

According to J. Peterson, the use of AT tools in special education classrooms includes an OCR scanner that reads aloud printed text to the student, Jamestown Reading Navigator software for increasing reading skills, books on tape/cd, spellcheckers, a social skills software program, and math textbook company software for notes and tutorials (personal communication, June 21, 2011).

Are there other AT tools that you have used and have found beneficial in your classroom or school?
I use McGraw-Hill’s digital textbook with my American Literature students and am pleased with all of the ATs available within it. It was interesting to see students from all skill levels access the tools, which seemed to erase any stigma a student with reading difficulties might have. While Edyburn mentions that “the traditional textbook has become a representative symbol of an inaccessible curriculum” (2008, p. 62), it appears that textbook companies have begun to create tools that have become valuable assets in the classroom for all students. In addition to the textbooks, I have used Google Docs to share class notes/presentations with all students and Primary Pad to save collaborative classroom written discussions that all students could access afterwards. This past year one of my students, who is dyslexic, researched Spaaze for a speech project about a web 2.0 tool that can be used in the classroom and liked it so much that he began using it to stay organized.

References

Edyburn, D.. (2008). Research and Practice. Journal of Special Education Technology, 23(4), 62-65. Retrieved June 21, 2011, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1767837251).

Educational Technology Issues

What are your personal concerns about education technology?
One of my concerns regarding education technology is that education technology is not and likely will not catch up with business technology. In preparing students for college and career readiness, the technology that schools are using is already behind that of business technology. Students may well be using technologies that businesses have already cast off. The endless game of “catch-up” that schools play to get as close as possible to using relevant business tools is a concern. However, if educators are addressing the 21st Century Skills, then students will have the efficacy to handle new technologies as presented to them.

My other concern getting teachers to accept the concept of life-long learning and create a culture where Personal Learning Networks (PLN’s) are the norm.

What technology issues are affecting your school/district?
While the district, like most other districts, is faced with the issue of funds for technology, the main issue is professional development for educational technology. There are so many web 2.0 tools available as well as cloud computing, that even hand-me-down computers/laptops are making do when necessary. The real issue appears to getting teachers trained to use technology that pertains to their curriculum and be able to use that technology to improve student learning. Professional development of the past has been a one-size-fits-all model that will not suffice any longer. McCombs (2010) discusses using “regular daylong collaborative planning sessions, [where] teacher leaders provide mini-lessons that highlight new technologies they have used in their classrooms since the last planning session” (p. 12). Administration and teachers at Pleasant Plains school district have just recently begun discussions for professional development activities similar to this.

Based on issues identified by your classmates, how have you resolved them (or how would you resolve them?)
Funding issues have been addressed by soliciting monetary or hardware donations from local businesses and booster organizations. Since the Pleasant Plains student population has a small percentage of low-income families, the district often does not qualify for any grants. However, several teachers have found organizations such as Donor’s Choose to be helpful.

As president of the Pleasant Plains Education Association the past two years, I strongly advocated for 21st Century Skills. I introduced both the faculty and administration to the concepts of PLN’s and pushed for collaboration between teachers. I facilitated Teacher Share websites at each building where teachers could post various project plans, rubrics, classroom management ideas, Web 2.0 tools, PLN nings to join, and, finally, twitter hashtags for collaboration. As I got teachers to start talking and sharing with each other, I started to have discussions with the administration regarding professional development. While the plan in the past for professional development has been to demonstrate a technology tool to teachers with the expectation that they will just “go use it,” the administration and I discussed the need for Teacher Technology Share Fairs where tech-savy teachers can demonstrate tools that they use. We then discussed giving teachers multiple professional development blocks of time to work independently or in teams to plan lessons that incorporate technology tools that make sense in their individual curriculums.

As administrators and teachers work together to build this model of professional development next school year, they will also need to look at collaborative evaluations of the professional development to allow for adjustments as they progress. Smolin and Lawless (2011) note that “by engaging stakeholders in both the processes and the outcomes of evaluation, professional development can be dynamic, responsive to the needs of a greater number of stakeholders, and sustainable over the long term”(p. 97). Professional development regarding 21st Century Skills is a long term need. Having a good plan going into the Professional Development and an evaluation tool to make sure professional development is effective only makes sense.

References

McCombs, Brenda. "Culture of Collaboration." Learning & Leading with Technology Nov. 2010: 10-13. ERIC. Web. 13 June 2011.

Smolin, Louanne, and Kimberly A. Lawless. "Evaluation Across Contexts: Evaluating the Impact of Technology Integration Professional Development Partnerships." Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education Spring 2011: 92-98. ERIC. Web. 13 June 2011.

Reflections on Educational Technology

What is your personal definition of education technology?
My personal definition of education technology is that technology first, and foremost, a tool using in teaching the curriculum of the classroom. With that stated, I also believe that it is highly important to infuse technology into the learning process whenever and wherever it makes sense. Infusing technology into the curriculum will not only align with the way students learn, but will also provide the much needed 21st Century Skills students need to be ready for college and their future careers. Teaching technology tools just for the sake of learning the tool is preparing students for 21st Century Skills. Integrating the tools into lessons as a means for the learning process is the right path. I have been a driving force in my district advocating for technology as such a tool in the classrooms. I have organized Teacher Share websites for each of our district buildings where they can more easily share what works and possible uses. I feel that communication between teachers and time to explore are crucial to staying current with education technology.

How long have you been in educational technology? During this time, what are some changes in technology that you’ve experienced in your school/district?
As a high school English, speech, photography, and yearbook teacher at Pleasant Plains High School for 14 years, I have been an advocate of using technology tools in presenting lessons, in the learning process, and in the product created by students. Printed out word processed essays have evolved into collaborative Google Docs, blogs, emailed research essays, video essays using VoiceThread, etc. Speech class has progressed from presentations within the isolated walls of the classroom to global communication and involvement in flatclassroom projects such as the NetGenEd Project. Photography technology has grown out of the darkroom and into a fully digital photography class focusing not just on the photography skills and photo-editing skills, but also on an online digital portfolio that students can maintain to promote their art. Finally, yearbook class began with film cameras and UPS mailings of photos to the publishing company – a process that currently consists of digital photos as well as text placed in InDesign software and electronically submitted to the publishing company. Next year the process will transition to online software that students can access on any pc in which they have internet availability.

How has technology impacted your approach to teaching?
As a geek, I am continuously researching ways to improve not only my curriculum, but also fresh ways for students to acquire the knowledge and to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts. I have found that my methods have evolved each year as technology has improved. In the last couple of years, as technology has allowed, I have reached out to colleagues in other areas to create collaborative projects that our students could work on together, even challenging myself and my students to get involved in global projects. I encourage backchannel chatter in Google Chat and use Today’s Meet chat during class to open the classroom discussions to include everyone. I am available to my students through email, twitter, and telephone if they have any questions. When I first started teaching, I never thought about how learning can and does occur outside the classroom. I have been able to “be there” for student questions, comments, and demonstrations through technology that I would have missed otherwise.

How much has the process of teaching and learning changed over the last 100 years?
While teaching and learning have made significant changes over the last 100 years in terms of learning standards, reactions to globalization, etc., the major shifts in education are occurring during this century. Student learning has become an important part of the equation. Barbara Chorzempa identifies areas that new teachers need to address to make themselves proficient teachers (2011). These areas include developing a literacy base, creating a positive classroom learning environment, and preparing students for 21st Century Skills (Chorzempa 2011). These areas have become the hot topics of education. Teachers are encouraged to improve themselves not only through mandated continuing education requirements, but also through a culture created by our colleagues throughout the world to maintain literacy in both our areas of study and in technology. Nings like the Educator’s PLN and Classroom 2.0 are just two amazing ways that educators can stay connected and collaborate. Teachers have also tapped into Twitter, using hash tags such as #edchat and #edtech, among others, to collaborate. Personals Learning Networks no longer involve asking advice of the teacher in the room next door – teachers are now able to connect with their peers around the globe.

Chorzempa, B.. (2011). Don't Get Left Behind! Improve Your Experiences as a New Teacher. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 47(2), 72-75. Retrieved June 9, 2011, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 2219873841).

How Cool Is That?!

photo by John Langley

Wow! What an amazing experience!

Towards the end of a meeting packed week that also included finalizing senior grades and assisting seniors with their graduation slideshow as well as a successful Student Summit for the NetGenEd 2011 project and a photography/art show at the PPHS Ice Cream Social (a fine arts festival), I was running out of steam. I was so worn out tonight that I was wishing that I could call in sick tomorrow, knowing that I could not because there is too much to do.

What rejuvenated me was a chance look at Facebook where I noticed a post that two English students were working on their Post-Modernism Final Exam Project and were streaming the session live on Ustream with the assistance of one of their friends. How could I resist? Shortly after I started viewing the live stream, they got excited that they had a viewer, and I commented on Facebook that it was me. I watched and commented for a while. The students even discussed setting up a regularly scheduled live show - how cool is that?!

I am so thankful that I was able to be an observer of learning outside the classroom. It fired me up again. I don't feel the weight of everything on my "to do" list now. I feel refreshed and ready to go! I could see that the students were excited that I was watching them work and that I was interacting with them during their live performance. Their creativity and ability to make "work" into "play" made me forget about the work I have been doing. One of my personal goals as a teacher has always been to make learning fun, and another has been to create a culture of creativity and problem-solving. These students hit the mark, and I was priviledged to be able to participate.

I also began to reflect on the "work" of one of my colleagues, who posted a song on Soundcloud this week. Ms. McGovern posted "Words for the Wise" to her seniors and "Rockin Guitar Class" among others. How cool is that?!

What about that Student Summit? Students presented in a web conference of a global project while Flat Classroom Project co-founder Julie Lindsay attended from the other side of the globe - how cool is that?!

Students and parents viewed the award winning photography that was on display during the Ice Cream Social - students were eager to show off their work to their family and friends. The choir and band sounded amazing! I actually got the tingling chills that you get when music is so good that it becomes an emotional experience instead of just an auditory experience. How cool is that?!

How do I cap off this week? I get to present a PPEA scholarship to an amazing student at graduation this weekend. How cool is that?!

How do you avoid burn-out? What keeps you fired up and motivated? Leave comments.

How students want to be taught

I have often throughout my teaching career striven to teach students the way that they learn. I take pride in providing a fun and engaging education for students. While I often guess or ask a select few students for their opinions on projects (and luckily have been correct in the past), this time, after having students read an excerpt from Don Tapscott's Grown Up Digital for their NetGenEd project, I decided to have students blog about it. Students consistently mentioned in their blogs that teachers who teach the way that they were taught should rethink their methods. Following are some passages from student blogs regarding education:

"This topic is something i feel very strongly about. After reading about Tapscott's 8 norms, i really realized teachers I come in contact with every day need to change the way they teach. We are in the 21st century in the year 2011. This is the future! So i have to wonder, why are they still teaching the way they did 20 years ago? School is about the STUDENTS. If that means changing up the way you teach to actually get the students involved and interested, then do it. There shouldn't be a question about it. We are bored in the classes that are still using worksheets from 15 to 20 years ago. Everything is evolving in the way we live, so why isn't our education, the most important thing, not doing the same? Interaction is key."

"The first things that teachers must realize is that instead of being angry for our push for complete freedom in the classroom, teachers should embrace the fact that we enjoy taking charge of our own situations and put that into their classrooms."

"Lessons should be entertaining, fast, and collaborative."

"For several years teachers have been using the same teaching techniques. They stand in front of a classroom and lecture about the given topic. Students are supposed to write down and take notes of what the teacher is saying. They give you heavy books and handout worksheets for you to read a[nd] fill out. What theses teachers need to understand is that although this an effective method, times have changed and students learn in a different way now. I believe that with the use of technology we can improve education greatly. This a more modern and effective way than just the old lecture and book work. Give the students something they are familiar with, and something that they will want to use. . . . If we can get teachers to upgrade their lesson plans and teaching styles we can prepare our students better for the future."

"Teachers should try to use the internet for some topics when they're teaching. If they find a video on YouTube, let's say, then they can show their students the related video and get them involved more."

"The importance of personalizing a students education could be the difference from someone graduating and dropping out."

Having honest discussions about Education with students is critical. We need to keep in touch with How students learn as well as what peeks their interests. Lessons need to prepare students for the 21st Century Skills so they are prepared for the next stage in life.

Trial Run for Global Project

As the speech class approaches the start of the global collaborative NetGenEd Project, they will be prepared.  The class has discussed the digital age, how today's students learn, communicate, etc.  The class watched and discussed PBS Frontline's Digital Nation.  Students blogged about digital communication and learned how to use Diigo to share research bookmarks.  Students then worked on a project that simulates a portion of the NetGenEd Project - working on a wiki.


Students each researched a digital communication tool and contributed to the class's 21st Century Communication Wiki.  The assignment required students to post collaboratively to the Digital Communication page; use class time wisely; post criticisms on the discussion tabs of their peers' wiki pages; and on their individual wiki pages, post definitions and examples about the digital tool researched, show how that digital tool can be used for social/personal use, show how that digital tool can be used for business, and show how the digital tool can be used for education.  Some of the digital tools that students picked to research seemed a stretch, but even those surprisingly had business and education uses.

Students are currently working on the Video Assignment of the wiki.  Just as the NetGenEd Project will ask of them, they are required to request that someone else does one of their video scenes for them.  After they have all scenes of their videos edited together, the videos will be embedded on their respective digital tool page of the wiki.

While my objective was both to enhance the students' understanding of digital communication and its uses for business and education and to expose the students to the tools that they will be using in the NetGenEd Project, it was also a lesson for me.  I found that the fear to post is not isolated to working with someone across the globe - it can also happen when working with someone sitting right in the next seat.  The class has two weeks to tie up the loose ends before we start moving full force into communication on a Global Level.  I am looking forward to helping students overcome those personal barriers and prepare for global communication.

2010 Plainsman Wins Awards

Congratulations to the 2010 Pleasant Plains High School Plainsman yearbook staff for winning the following awards in the Illinois Journalism Education Association Yearbook Contest:

Third Place in the Best Overall Yearbook
Third Place in the Copy Writing category
Second Place in the Photography category
Second Place in the Graphics category
Third Place in the Coverage of the Year category

Congratulations to last year's yearbook staff on their accomplishments!

Wiki-Wiki-What? Magic!

"Why isn't this course counted as a computer credit?"

That's a great question . . . I am certified to teach English, but not business/computers.

"Can we ask Mr. Ward [the high school principal] or Mrs. Brandon [the high school guidance counselor] to allow your English class to be counted as computer credit?  We do as much with technology in this class than we do in computer classes."

That's true . . . Mr. Ward checked into that a couple of years ago.  According to the Regional Office of Education, since I am not certified in business or computer technology, I am not regarded as a highly qualified teacher in computer technology.

"But . . ."

Yeah, I know.

While this conversation occurs between students and myself multiple times a year, it doesn't hinder our lessons and projects, nor my style of teaching - geared to prepare students for their futures.  Students just completed the project portion of their semester exam this weekend, analyses of American Romanticism on the PPHS English 332 Wiki.  In striving to create assessments that will realistically test the students over the material and skills that were covered throughout the semester, I decided a continuation of the Wiki created by last year's English students, analyzing American Modernism, was the logical choice for 3/4 of the semester exam grade.  The other 1/4 will be determined from a grammar test on the designated semester exam day.

Perfect!  In the Wiki project, student's will be able to show proficiency in analyzing, evaluating, and writing as well as collaborating and offering constructive criticism.  In the grammar test, students will be able to show proficiency in identifying parts of speech, phrases, clauses, parts of the sentence and in determining words that are being modified by phrases or clauses.

Following are the project expectations:

Project Expectations of American Romanticism Project (3/4 of Semester Exam grade)
Using the Literature Book and additional credible, authoritative sources (no dictionary, encyclopedia, wikipedia-type sites, or spark-note/e-note-type sites), define all Aspects of American Romanticism. Everyone is required to post the Aspects of American Romanticism page. Each student will sign up to analyze one Romanticism short story and one Romanticism poem. Mr. Langley will create pages for each work of literature as students sign up. Students will post their essay assignments and video assignments to the wiki page corresponding to the work of literature they are analyzing.

All work on the wiki is due no later than 12:00 p.m. (noon) on Saturday, December 11, 2010.

Failure to use citations, using citations incorrectly, or claiming another’s work as one’s own is plagiarism and will result in a zero grade for that portion of the assignment.

Reports that are missing components or not formatted properly will not be scored. Be sure to complete all components of the assignment. Late or incomplete reports will not be accepted.
Scoring
The project is worth 300 points of the Semester Exam with the following breakdown (The remaining 100 points of the Semester Exam will come from the Grammar Test on Semester Exam day):

Using Classroom time - up to 25 points (points will be logged each class period)
Posting to the Aspects of American Romanticism page - up to 25 points
Essays:
Each essay (2 essays) - up to 100 points each (Rubric) = 200 possible
Post honest, helpful, and respectful criticisms on the Discussions Tab of 10 of the Romanticism Works pages - up to 50 points



The Following assignment will be on each page created for the work of literature:

---

Create a video presentation summarizing your report on each author and embed it into the page

---

Delete this text and replace it with your embed code for your video - be sure to use MLA parenthetical citations and place your Works Cited list at the bottom of the page



Write an essay discussing the following points:

1. Thoroughly show how the work of literature fits the definition of Romanticism.
2. Show how the writer’s life affected his/her work.
3. Show how the work compares in style, character, theme, etc. to other works by the author and to your other assigned work.

---

Delete this text and replace it with your answer - be sure to use MLA parenthetical citations and place your Works Cited list at the bottom of the page

Once again, the level of writing has made me gush with excitement.  The comments on the discussion tabs have also demonstrated that students are aware of the style rules of formal writing.  The fact that the wiki is a real world product, a research venue for others on the internet with material cited from credible sources, make the learning magic even more powerful.  I love magic!

Writing for a Global Audience - Classroom goes Real World

Students are energized after finding out that their writing is being read globally.

It just got real . . . Real World!  "Canadians love me!" and "Look, Latvia is reading my blog!" and "Wow, they found my blog by searching for Thoreau and Gandhi!" bounced around the classroom.  Today, students were introduced to the Stats tab of their blogs.  It was eye-opening and became a competition for bragging rights for the blog with the most countries viewing it.

Doing their summer reading journals on a blog for their Accelerated English classes (A4 and B1, this group of students have been blogging for me since June.  When school started back up in late August, the blogs evolved into a creative writing journals as well as a means to publish literary analysis assignments.

Students were told from the beginning that having their writing online meant that the world would see their writing.  Writing this year has been much better than in years past when the writing was just between the student and myself.  There are still some minor grammar mistakes and some typos here and there, but the work is considerably more polished than the work that was stuffed in the "in box" organizer of the past.

Now that the students have realized that people are reading their blogs, they are more attentive to their writing.  Some were confused that people were reading their blogs but were not commenting.  They have heard of  "lurkers" before, and we discussed how most people are comfortable reading the blogs, but not so comfortable adding a comment to a blog of someone that they do not know.  I told them that it is a matter of time before they start seeing comments from people that they do not know.

Because the quality of writing and analysis has been increasing, I also announced that I will be choosing a Student Highlight a few days each week.  I will tweet out a student's blog on #edchat and #engchat.  I will announce the blog as a Student Highlight and will ask for comments.  As page views increase, I am confident that the writing will continue to improve.

The audience just went from "public" to "scholars" in a matter of moments.  While they are excited to see their published writing being viewed, I am ecstatic to see them so excited about their writing!  The energy in the classroom is amazing!  Throughout my teaching career I have been striving to bring bits of the Real World into the classroom - now, bits of the classroom are being taken to the Real World.

Hitting a Moving Target

photo by HikingArtist.com

I realized today that students in my classes are analyzing material deeper than in previous years. Students are thinking critically more often and are striving to meet my expectations, expectations that are progressively raising as students approach the bar. What's different? Are the students smarter than previous year's students? No. I, like several of my colleagues, have created a culture of increasing expectations, and most students have accepted that striving for the bar is the right thing to do. Our moment of glory is seeing a student try, and, if unsuccessful, problem solve and keep trying.

Why do my colleagues and myself continuously maintain high expectations? Why do we spend extra time making our lessons more meaningful? Why do we research, collaborate with our PLN, model our ideals? The answer to each: because that's what we do. We put in the time, we give what we can - even when a few of our colleagues are "collecting a paycheck" and others are in it for the pat on the back. We are 21st Century Educators. We prepare students for their futures.

Now, I don't live in a fairyland - I understand that there are students who just don't want to try. I am not naive in understanding that there are those who do, those who can't do, and those who won't do. As educators, we can often make an impact on those who do and can intervene with those who can't do. The won't do group has to make the decision for themselves - sometimes we can reach them, sometimes we cannot - we have to accept that for what it is.

Upon reflection, I have to recognize that today's students are challenged much like students of the past. So, really, what's different? In my classroom the tools are different. Information is readily available in the moment. Research is spontaneously occurring each class because students have the Internet continuously available. Collaboration through backchannel chats are spontaneously taking place in Google Chat. Technology tools have enabled students to complete research, collaborate, create products, etc. much faster than students of previous years. The benefit: we have Time to analyze, dig, explore. Student work is public (posted to websites, blogs, wikis, web videos, etc). Students ensure that their work is of good quality since anyone may see it.

As students' abilities change, the target changes.  21st Century Skills align with this concept. Teachers who push there students for quality work typically are doing all the right things that the "educational gurus" say teachers should be doing. Even so, it's a great affirmation to be able to say, "Yeah, I do that already." So, as long as teachers challenge their students, the target will continue to move.

American Education Week, Professional Development, and Your PLN

This week is American Education Week (November 14-November 20).  Thank you to all Educators who do their best to be the best for our students!


Just as recently as a couple of years ago, Professional Development used to mean going somewhere else to attend a conference.  The teacher(s) and/or administrator(s) who attended the conference would then pass on the knowledge and ideas gained to the rest of the staff.  Professional Development may now be attained without leaving our building.

Online conferences are available for a variety of educational topics.  Several online conferences are a fraction of the price of attending an "away" conference.  A multitude of online conferences are available for free and may either be attended live or viewed as a recording afterward.  Classroom 2.0 and The Educator's PLN are excellent organizations to join to stay in touch with the freshest ideas in education in the United States and around the world.  I am amazed that I am able to sit in on an online session with the greats of education - not as a zombie at a table in a hotel banquet room, but as an active participant.

Professional Development has shifted.  It's time that we shift with it.  Check for online sessions on 21st Century Skills, Core Standards, RtI, PBIS.  Talk to administrators about attending online workshops and conferences.  View recordings of workshops at faculty meetings.  Get in the habit of sharing your ideas with your colleagues.  Give each other choices.  There often is no perfect "right way" in education, but choices often give educators bits and pieces of inspiration to formulate plans that work in their individual classroom.
In addition to talking to the teachers you work with (your close Personal Learning Network), join PLN's for educators.  The best place to start is by joining Classroom 2.0 and The Educator's PLN.  Talk to your colleagues about sitting in on an online session with you or view the archived presentations of past sessions at your leisure.

Thanks to Steve Hargadon, I received the following notice of the 2010 Global Education Conference.

The free, all-online 2010 Global Education Conference takes place this coming week, November 15 - 19, 2010!

We currently have 397 sessions from 62 countries scheduled, as well as 63 keynote speakers--an amazing lineup.  Please take a look at all that is taking place:  http://www.GlobalEducationConference.com.

The conference is a collaborative and world-wide community effort to significantly increase opportunities for globally-connecting education activities. Our goal is to help you make connections with other educators and students, and for this reason the conference is very inclusive and also provides broad opportunities for participating and presenting. While we have an amazing list of expert presenters and keynote speakers, we will also have some number of presenters who either have not presented before or have not presented in Elluminate--please come to encourage and support them, as they are likely to be a little nervous!

There is no formal registration required for the conference, as all the sessions will be open and public, broadcast live using the Elluminate platform, and available in recorded formats afterwards. There is a limit of 500 live attendees for any given session. To verify that your computer system is configured correctly to access Elluminate, please run the self-test at http://www.elluminate.com/support.

Please tell your friends and colleagues about this event, and watch for the Twitter hashtag #globaled10.  See you online!

Steve

Steve Hargadon
Conference Co-Chair
steve@hargadon.com
www.stevehargadon.com

Visit Classroom 2.0 at: http://www.classroom20.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

As always, the most important thing we can do as educators is to be the best we can be for our students.

Students Collaborate on Virtues Ben Franklin Style

Photo by Tony the Misfit

The first thing to understand about collaborative projects is that they are messy.  Everything has to be treated as a learning experience:  from the preparing of students by teaching the tools necessary for the project to covering the background material necessary for students to actively participate in the project.  As with any project, something (or multiple things) will go wrong.  The 21st Century Skills require students to problem-solve issues that arise. Preparing students for that possibility by explaining that there may be unforeseen issues with the project, and students are expected to take a proactive approach to those issues is a mandatory precursor to starting any collaborative project.  Students and teachers must overcome their fears of the unknown and 1) try, 2) problem-solve, and 3) have fun and learn as they go.


The collaborative Rationalism Project between Pleasant Plains High School and Farmington High School American Literature students brought some magic moments.  Project coordinators, John Langley (myself) of Pleasant Plains High School and Josh Piper of Farmington High School, perfected the project in its second year while two new teachers were added to the collaboration, Candi Graham of Pleasant Plains and Marti Copple of Farmington.  205 students partnered up to research Ben Franklin's system for following his personal virtues.  Student partner groups worked in a Google Document where they each posted an initial biographical sketch of themselves and their 13 to 17 personal virtues.  The partner groups then collaboratively selected the seven virtues that their group would follow for a seven day period.  While Franklin had thirteen virtues and followed the virtues in one week segments, the high school students incorporated their virtues into a seven day schedule.  On day one, the student group followed virtue number one, and at the end of the day, each partner wrote a 250 word minimum journal entry in the Google Document described how he/she lived that virtue that day.  On day two, the student group followed the second virtue as well as the first virtue (much like Franklin, adding on one virtue at a time until he lived all thirteen virtues) and then journaled in the Google Document about each virtue.  Each day the next virtue was added until all virtues were practiced on the seventh day.  This Student Rationalism Project document is an average example of student work from this year's project (student names were changed to just the first initial of their names).

Student communication was a dilemma during last year's project.  Mr. Piper and I had assumed that students would think of the multitudinous means of communicating with each other.  However, communication proved to be a stressful concept that diverted student attention away from the focus of the project.  This year, we eliminated most of the stress of communication by identifying possible modes of communication:  cell phone, texting, Facebook, email, Google Chat, chatting in the chat bar of the Google Document, etc.

While there were still glitches in the project, they were mostly related to the everyday glitches of human nature: some students did not post by deadline or did not communicate well with their partners.  Since this was a possibility, students were prepped with the idea that if their partner wasn't following through, then they would have to take charge - similar to what would have to occur in the business world with a business collaboration.  Students faced with this situation did just that, took charge and completed the task.

Most students came out of the project expressing that they had a newfound respect for Benjamin Franklin.  Students also noted that they gained insight into the Rationalism literary period as well as gained insight into their own personal value system.

Rookie teachers Candi Graham and Marti Copple took on the challenge of learning Google Docs tools and reached outside their comfort zones to offer their students the experience of collaborating with a student from a school 74 miles away.  By the end of the project, both teachers were using Google Docs with ease and were troubleshooting project issues that arose.

As the objectives of the project where to not only provide students with a Rationalism experience, but also to provide students with the experience of working with someone from a distance, both sets of objectives were met.

Puritan Exam Project example

synopsis of the presentation goes here

This presentation includes slides that will walk students through the Publish/Embed process to get the presentation posted within the blog.

Backchannel Chatter in the Classroom

Backchannel chatter is the use of any type of texting communication by students while a lesson and/or discussion is in progress.  Previously, this texting was frowned upon by educators and looked upon as a distraction.  After all, students are expected to be respectful and pay attention to the discussion, each other, and, above all, the teacher, right?

In previous classes, I experimented with allowing the students to use Google chat.  It was an interesting experience, but really had no point.  I was determined to find a way for students to communicate during class without losing focus.  Over a year ago, I had bookmarked Today's Meet in Diigo.  I hadn't given much thought to it until I saw a twitter post over the summer about a college professor using Twitter as a discussion tool in her classroom.  Monica Rankin, a History Professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, found a way to increase class discussions by giving everyone a simultaneous way to answer, comment, and be heard.

Rankin inspired me to find a way to imitate this in my own classroom.  I considered that in an oral discussion students are limited in there responses - in a text discussion, responses are only limited by the time it takes to key in the comment or question.

As with any online experience, I prepared the students with my expectations of use and proper netiquette.  Today's Meet allows for the chat to be set up in increments ranging from two hours to one year.  I boldly chose one year, keeping in mind that I would not be allowed to delete student posts and that no sign up is required to post (only typing in your name).  I expressed that we would be using the chat as a professional tool and that students should log in with their first name only (their real names - there was some goofing around as they learned the tool).  I let the students know that the chat was there for class discussions: sometimes we would use the chat in place of oral discussions, and sometimes they would use it to discuss another angle of the classroom discussion during an oral discussion.  Either way, it was agreed that students would stay on the general topic when using the chat.  Students were excited that they would be able to look back at the posts throughout the school year and were equally excited that at the end of the school year, all of the posts would still be there.

The first few days using Today's Meet were a little hectic.  I had to reteach the expectations of using the chat and model the use of it by projecting the chat during discussions.  I verbally commented on posts and commented at the end of each class to praise students on their ideas and remind them again of expectations of use.  After using the chat for two and a half weeks, I have been amazed at the level of discussions that have been produced.  I use the same chat for two accelerated junior English classes, and the students from each class look back at previous posts to see what the other class discussed.  Students have begun to comment more freely about their thoughts and opinions of the literature and the literary periods through the chat.  Backchannel discussions have started over angles of the literature that I had not intended to discuss.  Occurring simultaneously with the oral discussions in the classroom, I was excited at how easily the students slipped back and forth from the online conversation to the oral discussion.  There was no reason to be left out of a discussion, either one.  I acquired the feedback that I craved when I set up my lesson:  did they "get it"? Did they understand the writing style of the literary period? the culture of the literary period? how the culture, historical events, etc. shaped the literary period and vice versa?  YES!!! . . . and I had documentable proof that I could show to my colleagues like a giddy kid showing off a birthday present saying, "Check this out!  Isn't this awesome!"

The most rewarding moment so far happened in today's class.  The oral discussion was bombing . . . I couldn't pull the comments out of them.  The awkward silence that I let occur . . . the one that usually gets someone to step up and comment . . . grew into unbearable moments of deafening silence.  I announced that the chat seemed to be having a much better discussion going than the oral discussion, and that we were going to continue our discussion in the chat.  I went over to my laptop and fired off a few questions and began having discussion with several students simultaneously.  The discussion blossomed into the level of intensity that I had expected from the oral discussion . . . then . . . surpassed it!  Students were watching me type on the screen and were answering my post before I could even click the "Say" button.  They were responding to other student comments - asking each other questions - praising each other's comments/opinions - WOW!!

I would score the chat and backchannel chatter experience with Today's Meet as a huge success.  Students were provided with a tool to make their voices heard, to be active participants, and proved that they could handle the responsibility that comes with posting online in a public venue.  What if they didn't have that venue?  What if?

Preparing Students for the "Real World": Social Networking and 21st Century Skills

Wow!  I just found out this past week that the grant my school receives that covers the funding for the T1 line mandates that Social Networking sites are blocked.  With 21st century skills emphasizing collaboration, communication, technology literacy, and social skills, you can imagine my, as well as my administrators', surprise.  Educators are responsible for preparing our students for the future - whether it be the business world or the next level of education.  The discussion of how to catch up with technology and with the business world is, and will, continue to be ongoing.  Obviously, until the issues of education funding is resolved and education is given the attention needed to prepare students (not just adequately prepare, but fully prepare) for life, educators will continue to improvise and "get by."

While there are several alternatives to Social Networking sites (Edmodo, Twiducate, etc.), these are often reduced or "dumbed down" versions of the actual Social Network sites.  It appears that the impetus that drives blocks on Social Networks is both Fear and Ignorance.

Fear historically causes people to lash out at things that they do not understand.  I understand that there is fear of lawsuits for students bullying, intimidating, and disrespecting others.  I understand that there is fear of inappropriate social connections between adults and children.  At the same time, I also believe that it is the responsibility of educators to teach Social Networking skills and etiquette (netiquette) to students so they know how to use those tools appropriately.  Betty Ray makes that point apparent in her blog Making the Case for Social Media in Education.  She emphasizes that educators must model appropriate behavior regarding Social Networking:

 "It is quickly becoming our duty as educators in the 21st century to guide our students towards responsible use of social media. We teach sex ed, we teach healthy living, we teach about drugs, we teach character ed., and on and on. We do these things each and every day, yet we are ignoring the aspect of our students' lives that is larger than all of these things (and completely interconnected with them as well). It is our duty to our students to start modeling responsible use of social media and encouraging them to follow our lead. We can no longer afford the veil."

People who are not taught Social Networking etiquette run the risk of making the mistakes that we often hear of in the news.  People do not consider that information (text, photos, videos) posted online shape the impression others have of them.  By teaching netiquette in elementary schools (and reinforcing netiquette values throughout the educational system) as soon as students begin using computers and the internet, Integrity will be instilled.

Ignorance (not knowing how Social Networking can be used in the classroom) is a further factor that promotes reluctance to allow Social Networking in the classroom.  My personality demands that there must be a purpose for a tool before I use it in my classroom.  I have found countless ways to utilize Twitter, Facebook, etc. with my students.  As with any classroom tools, expectations/rules must be discussed so students use the tools properly, safely, and respectfully.  My yearbook class has a private Facebook group and a public wiki.  My photography classes have online digital portfolios.  My speech class and English classes have public blogs.  With each of these technology tools, the risk of bullying, harrassment, intimidation, etc. is present.  Students are expected to adhere to Mr. Langley's Digital Classroom Expectations.  Social Networking expectations would be no different.

Recently, educators collaboratively came up with The 30 Newest Ways To Use Twitter In The Classroom.  I am continuously amazed at the amount of advise and information that I glean from other educators at the #edchat and #edtech Twitter hashtags (the #edtech link goes to a live feed using Tweetgrid).  I have learned, collaborated, exchanged ideas more this past summer using Twitter than I have in any workshop in the past ten years elsewhere.  With that said, I would love to bring that same experience into the classroom with my students.  Again, as educators, we are used to improvising and adapting to create experiences that will emulate the real world.  I challenge educators and legislatures to accept that the time has come that we need to stop shielding our students from the real world - we need to functionally prepare them for the real world with real experiences.

The next real challenge is to educators themselves:  are you teaching students the same way every year?  Are you allowing yourself to become comfortable?  If so, Why? We got into education to make a positive impact on students lives and education.  It is our responsibility to stay up-to-date with not only learning styles of students, but also with the tools of the real world.  It is our responsibility to create a safe learning environment for students by teaching them the proper etiquette/netiquette of new technology/tools available.

With the dilemma that I am currently in, I will concede to adapt and use technology that simulates the "real thing," but I will also continue to educate educators, administrators, parents, legislatures, etc. about the need to prepare students for the "real world" by using tools that the "real world" is currently using.  I challenge educators, administrators, legislators, and parents to work together to find a realistic solution to prepare students for the real world.

You don't remove all of the electrical outlets in your house because you are afraid your child will be electrocuted; you instead teach your child about safety regarding electricity and the importance of using electric devices responsibly.  Instead of sheltering our students from "real world" tools, let's teach our students the responsible, ethical way to use Social Networking and 21st Century Skills so they are truly prepared for the next level of their lives.