Web 2.0 Demystified

Here is the rest of the video series presented by Discovery Education.

Open House Video---Go Chets!

Open House from Rachel Bridges on Vimeo.

My Wish for the New School Year

As the new school year begins and students pour into classrooms around the state, there is a sense of new hope and fresh beginnings. Schools that didn’t meet standards are ready to tackle the difficult job of meeting or exceeding goals, and schools that didn’t meet AYP have their work cut out for them. Those schools that meet AYP and are excelling know that to keep making progress, they must keep doing what they do, only better.

Infusing technology into the mix of state mandated testing and expectations is challenging, but is critical for our students to keep up with the pace of our world. Thankfully, companies like VoiceThread have made a concentrated effort to help teachers do their thing, (only better) and safely use technology to inspire students.

It is my hope that this year brings knowledge, common sense, and reflection to those who attend schools and those who run the schools. It is no easy task being a student, a teacher, or an administrator. I wish no greater gift to all than to be a learner in whatever role you play in the game of education. Have a great year everyone! Game on!

On the Subject of Internet Safety...

Those of you teachers using Blogger to create your class/school/teacher blog may want to take a safety precaution and remove the random "blog-out-of nowhere" navigation bar at the top of your screen. I got this code from @holtsman


Here is the cut and paste version, and below is a screenshot of where it belongs (click it to enlarge):




Basically, go into Layout, then edit HTML. It advises you to save a current copy in case something happens, and if you don't save a copy, then something will happen, and if you do save it than nothing will happen, so just save a copy somewhere on your hard drive like they recommend. Then add the code.



#navbar-iframe {height: Opx;visibility: hidden;display: none;}



It might save you a heap of trouble.
Just sayin'.

Games in Education

This is a very interesting video that I found here . (Games Designer in Brazil)

Why Blog?

How Geeky am I?

Marierush's Geek Chart

Coveted Job in Education

The topic of jobs in education is a timely one for me, as I have been giving it a great deal of thought. I think we may be missing out on some fabulous growth in education by not truly harnessing the power of the Internet’s collaborative abilities. Last week, while virtually attending National Educational Computing Conference (NECC), I literally booked marked thousands of resources, and read more blog posts than I am even able to admit to. I have found myself truly engaged in a conference, and I am not even “there.”

It really has me thinking about the power of technology in educational settings, and the importance of engaging all teachers in this new way of communicating. That being said, there are very few schools here in North Florida that have embraced the digital age. I do know of one school that has really taken the flow of new technologies and they are rolling with it. They send one or more teachers to the conference each year, and the attendees blog about their experiences at the school professional development blog. They have a Google Certified teacher who leads the digital learning.

I know of one teacher in the Jacksonville area (Duval and Clay counties) who has the job that should be in every elementary, middle, and high school. The job role that should be available in every school is: Drumroll please…Digital Literacy Coach. The job entails teaching digital literacy, technology integration, and teaching both students and teachers how to safely harness the power of the Internet and technology to boost the end result, student engagement and achievement.
Ask a child. Would they rather read a book about building a circuit, or would they rather actually build one online? Would they rather tell about what they have learned, or show what they learned?

If you know of any other schools in the Jacksonville area that have embraced the notion of digital literacy and are poised to get the training to the teachers to engage the students, please comment or DM me on Twitter @elemteachers. I’d love to visit and write about you!

NECC 09

I had the pleasure of virtually attending the National Education Computing Conference (NECC) in Washington D.C. last week, and met many amazing people with amazing ideas about how to best teach our children (and ourselves) using new technology. With breakout sessions like “Develop Deeper Understanding with Digital Primary Sources” and “Classroom Learning Stations: iPods, Palms, Laptops, Nintendo DS, and SMARTBoard” there was something for everyone. Being able to attend the conference without leaving my home was a true treat, and allowed many other people who could not attend to join in the learning about teaching and teaching about learning frenzy!

Using hash tags in Twitter allowed those of us to keep up with all that was going on whether actually attending #necc09 or #notatnecc09 (I was proud of myself for creating the “not at” tag!) If you plugged those tags into Twitterfall, then a world of information literally dropped (and continues to drop) into your hands.

My next few posts will include what I consider to be the highlights of the conference, and I will be including information from north Florida area folks who actually went to the conference!

Virtually Attending NECC

Awesome Ideas!

PLN's

The Future is Here...Meet Them

I find this really powerful, and it so aligns with my thoughts about educational technology, and the old-fashioned thinking that goes on in many places regarding computer use. Technology adds depth to learning, and teaching children to use these new tools is our responsibility as educators. It is not an option. It must happen. I have written about this notion here and here, and I suppose I will keep writing about it, until I can get into the classroom and teach it...

Cameron is the bomb!

Digital Courtesy

Digital Courtesy should be a mandatory class for anyone responsible enough to have an e-mail account. My suggestion to make this required coursework in which the students would practice proper techniques with their teacher until they are deemed "digitally courteous." Here is a sample course outline:

Digital Courtesy 101

1. Be concise and to the point
2. Answer all questions, and pre-empt further questions
3. Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation
4. Make it personal
5. Use templates for frequently used responses
6. Answer swiftly
7. Do not attach unnecessary files
8. Use proper structure & layout
9. Do not overuse the high priority option
10. Do not write in CAPITALS
11. Don't leave out the message thread
12. Add disclaimers to your emails
13. Read the email before you send it
14. Do not overuse Reply to All
15. Mailings > use the bcc: field or do a mail merge
16. Take care with abbreviations and emoticons
17. Be careful with formatting
18. Take care with rich text and HTML messages
19. Do not forward chain letters
20. Do not request delivery and read receipts
21. Do not ask to recall a message
22. Do not copy a message or attachment without permission
23. Do not use email to discuss confidential information
24. Use a meaningful subject
25. Use active instead of passive
26. Avoid using URGENT and IMPORTANT
27. Avoid long sentences
28. Don't send or forward emails containing libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks
29. Don't forward virus hoaxes and chain letters
30. Keep your language gender neutral

Image by dampeebe via Flickr

31. Don't reply to spam
32. Use cc: field sparingly

source: http://www.emailreplies.com/

Repeated failure to abide by etiquette rules should result in immediate revokation of digital privileges, or at the very least the function of "send" being disabled from the e-mail/cell phone client.

Or revert to dial-up, whichever is most painful to the offfender.

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• The 25 Golden Rules of E-Mail (ethelthefrog.com)

Follow Friday, and Why Technology?

It is "Follow Friday" on Twitter, and I enjoy jumping around and looking in to see who is doing what with regards to educational technology. I literally stumble upon really great stuff! Today I landed on Ben Grey's post (see excerpt below) which was triggered by Kelly Hines post. Then I read the comments on Ben's post, and the first comment led me to Peter Pappas post, which got me thinking.

"Something has been happening lately in education, and the implications are a bit unsettling. People are beginning to ask a cogent question, but I fear it's being framed for the wrong reason. I'm hearing more and more important decision makers asking, "Why are we using technology?" ... If tomorrow you had to stand in front of your Board of Education and respond to the question, "why should we continue to use and pursue technology in our district," what would you say?"

Why should your district continue to use and pursue technology?

Ben is correct, it is not an easy answer. I believe that this is a critical pivotal time in educational technology, and in education in general, and I believe that as such, there will be a large number of children unprepared for the rigors of life in a technological world. There is such a disparity across the United States in regard to the "haves and the have-nots." Schools that have full technological integration, where teachers and students are communicating freely and safely across states and countries are countered by schools that have just received connectivity but have not had professional development to harness the power of web collaboration. It depends whether a district is using the computer as a single user interface, or using the computer to dig richer and deeper into the educational standards by teaming with other educators and students around the globe. As Ian Jukes says, "It is about the headware, not the hardware." So, I suppose that technology in education could be expendable if it is not used properly. Bummer.

Various school mottos say:

• The Race For Excellence Has No Finish Line
• Committed To Excellence In Education
• Preparing Students

  Image by Getty Images via Daylife

  For Success In A Changing World
• We Work Best When We Work Together
• Teaching: Turning Today’s Learners Into Tomorrow’s Leaders

The US Department of Education states: "ED's mission is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access." Specifically, there is an entire Office of Educational Technology (OET) dedicated to technology in education, which has developed the School 2.0 eToolkit . "It is designed to help schools, districts, and communities develop a common education vision and explore how that vision can be supported by technology."

Getting back to the question, why should districts continue to use and pursue technology?

Because we have stated, at the U.S., state, and county levels that we agree to "foster educational excellence." Simply put, it is our responsibility. That's why. Thoughts?

Read the Words Sample

www.readthewords.com

Me: Digital Immigrant

The In-Between Generation Meets the Digital Natives

I think I am the "in-between" generation--somewhere between the typewriter and the iPhone. I believe I am called a “digital immigrant.” I am desperately trying to learn new technologies, and to understand how they relate to what teachers need to support learning. I'm having an Etherpad conversation about learning these new technologies with some colleagues at my school, and it always comes down to time. Time that we have committed elsewhere, for learning that was taught from the teacher to the students. It was one delivery method, very linear, with lots of paper, lots of handwriting and in my opinion, quite boring.

Now, don’t get me wrong here, I realize that sometimes we need to “go back to basics,” but seriously, is that how adults like to learn? What is it? It is somehow learning the skills to teach these new digital media children, or digital natives. It’s about self-study, self-direction, independent learning infused with collaboration. It’s about asking, combining, respecting and daring. It’s about teaching them to think and discern. It is about using the technology we have, and not being afraid of it. It is about dropping some old things and bringing in some new things, even if we aren’t “perfect teachers” of it.

It is about what sixteen year old Kyle Hutzler wrote, “Many of you, I am sure, are familiar with

Image via Wikipedia

the quotation from Thomas Edison to the effect that movies would come to replace textbooks (and by implication teachers), as you are with the similar claims made about radios, television, and the Internet. Let me say unequivocally that while I believe in technology's promise in education, there is no computer program, no podcast, no book that I would not willingly replace with a great teacher. Technology enables learning, but it does not teach.”

There, he said it; we aren’t replaceable by technology and new digital media. I say we come out of our comfort zone and give it a go. I say let’s ask them, the students. “How did you do that?” “What is the most interesting way for you to learn?” “What can we do together to help you remember?” As awkward as this may feel to veteran educators, the children are counting on us to be their guidance.

Fumbling or not, we can make a difference.The children, the digital natives, don't need our perfection, they need our direction. New digital media is here. Let's figure it out together, and make learning a collaborative and engaging activity which encourages creativity and innovation, for all.

Build Your Vocabulary!

Things May Not be as They Appear

Isn't that the truth!

see more pwn and owned pictures

Thought of the Day

I spent the better part of today setting up a Twitter account for a dear friend, and within minutes, we were up and running--but then I felt the need to really customize it for her--hence the "day" thing. You know, I absolutely love designing and researching. I love the quest for information, and I truly enjoy scouring the Internet for teachers and friends.

I went out to lunch today (one can do that when one is unemployed!) and one of the lunchbunch noticed a friends' purse. It was a small purse with a very unusual look. One of the gals really wanted to know where to buy it. Game on. Within minutes, I had located many similar styles, and I felt this ridiculous surge of success. I just love helping people, and I love especially to help people by using technology.

If I could find a job where I get to encourage, learn, teach, and grow, I'd be the happiest camper on earth. If it involves children, even better--I want them to seek information too, so just in case someday, someone asks where to buy a racy purse, they will know how to find it!

Trying something here...

I don't think I can moderate this, so I am trusting you...

AMap

Back to Basics

This is such a gentle and thoughtful perspective on life. Enjoy!

Enjoy Life

View more presentations from Angel Castaño.

Looking Forward

I am looking forward to my next teaching gig--in a creative, supportive, and forward thinking place...I wonder where I'll end up!

Thanks for your kind words of encouragement from near and afar, they bouy me!

~Marie

Earth Day Resources

I have been scouring my Twitter universe for great sites that pertain to Earth Day. Most of them are posted here, but some of them require more than a 140 character description. Earth Day – a time to teach your class about our environment and how to preserve our planet, is such a global (pardon the pun) opportunity for education.

Going without shoes to represent the need for shoes for children around the world, social media and it's impact on the fight against malaria, recycling efforts, global warming and climate change---wow! I think we need an Earth year, or possibly an Earth life, which now as I typed it made perfect sense.

I hope your Earth Day provides you with opportunities to not only teach your students, but learn from them. This will be their Earth.

Schoolhouse Rock

Rocks!

New Boat Please, and Rock It

Image via Wikipedia

I had an interesting conversation with a fellow parent of young children last night, and when I said I was a teacher the conversation quickly turned to "What can we do? Our school just lost an art teacher and 12 classroom teachers." It got me thinking.

Teachers are typically in the profession because they are compassionate, caring people who are clearly not out for a 6 digit income. They work tirelessly to help each and every student reach their core potential. Teachers are generally peaceful bunch who are uncomfortable rocking the boat. I see how hard each and everyone of them gives selflessly, and put in so many hours for their children.

I have been out of the classroom for 7 or 8 years (working as an educational consultant for the DOE, the Florida Center for Reading Research and UCF) and am back as a long term sub for the remainder of this year. Because of budget cuts there is no money for a technology teacher for next year. Globally we are shifting to a technologically collaborative world, and we are cutting back on technology for children? I think we need to think about it. I know we are not eliminating it--it is still there, but there will be no digital leader in my school. That makes me sad, because I see how connected these children are, and how much they want more opportunities to stay "connected."

It is time to rock the boat. Not the old boat. The new boat. The one with updated GPS that will help us make, not find, the money to support our children, our future. Contact your legislators.

Skype, and a Reunion

Image via Wikipedia

So, today, it finally happened. I had been dreaming about connecting my kids and teachers with the outside world, and I did it today, in the greatest way! I had Ms. Donna Hicks Skyped in from her duty in Iraq. She is a 6th grade teacher in our little school, and she has been missed.

This is the first of many interactions I hope to share with my students and faculty. The sixth grade is discussing potential careers, and so I am setting up a series of calls where the children can ask real people in real places in real professions how it really is. If you have a cool profession, or know someone who does, please, please contact me here or here . If they don't have a video camera, that's fine, we can do an audio chat. I'd like to figure out how to get a variety of professions--and usually when I set out to figure something out, I end up somewhere new, so I'll see where this leads. I have the 6th graders at 9:00 am EST.

In the meantime, thanks to Donna Hicks for being the catalyst for new types of learning for our students and teachers. What she didn't see in the webcam were the glistening eyes of caring, from afar!

Okay, How Cool is This? World, Please Meet VoiceThread.

How Can Microsoft Help Me Teach Better? Hmmm...

I'm thinking and blogging about this because a) a trip to NECC is on the line and I am a sucker for free things that I can't even dream of affording, and b) because I am floored and thrilled that the question is posed. Being asked to provide feedback to facilitate my learning based on my needs at the school level is a masterful question, and one which I greatly appreciate.

"Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important." ~Bill Gates

There are many teachers out in the trenches with older schools and even older hardware and it

Image by Wesley Fryer via Flickr

really isn't about that anymore. Our new challenges are based on, (and I love this quote) by Ian Jukes, "headware, not hardware." The states indicated by red in the image here have embraced both the hardware and the headware.

My biggest dream is for a safe and reliable webspace where teachers who are grasping to learn new technologies can take their children and learn together by creating blogs and wikis's, and collaborating with others without fear. A consistently unblocked "go to" place where Secondlife type learning, and Skype-ing and Twitter-ing are secure. Let's teach elementary students to create their own personal learning networks.

I think Microsoft can continue to help me by doing what they already do. They ask questions of the people they serve, and develop based on needs, not a predetermined agenda. Life changes, technologies change, and faster then ever now. Training such as the NECC scholorship allows folks to continue their personal learning. As we look ahead to the next generation of terminal thinkers, the greatest teachers will be those who empower their students. Our kids are depending on us, and those who embrace these new challenges will be the new favorite teacher--and I want that for every teacher!

By the way, if this was a test, then all that stuff above is pertinent, but the bottom line is about the children---what are they without teachers who keep up with technology, and how can Microsoft afford to not make that happen?

Image via CrunchBase

If You Give a __ a __

What a wonderful activity, and so visually stimulating and thought provoking. I love it when teachers take the reins and do things just one step better than they did last time! If I remember correctly, this was the first time this teacher put a VoiceThread together. Enjoy!

Wonderful Tribute to Our Troops

Patriotic Video from Melanie Holtsman on Vimeo.

Some Thoughts, by Guest Blogger, Kyle Hutzler

First, allow me to thank Mrs. Marie Rush for the opportunity to offer some brief thoughts on technology and education. Even as a so-called "digital native," I find myself awestruck every time that the Internet unites me with someone who shares similar passions or ideas.

Many of you, I am sure, are familiar with the quotation from Thomas Edison to the effect that movies would come to replace textbooks (and by implication teachers), as you are with the similar claims made about radios, television, and the Internet.1 Let me say unequivocally that while I believe in technology's promise in education, there is no computer program, no podcast, no book that I would not willingly replace with a great teacher. Technology enables learning, but it does not teach.

Technology in Primary Schools

I remember in the first and second grade that a woman by the name of Madame Boyd would come to our classes every two weeks or so to teach a brief lesson in French. Of course, by the time she came again two weeks later, very little was retained. I credit her, however, with instilling in me a love for foreign languages - one that I began to pursue in earnest in middle school with Spanish and now, independently, French.

When I set out to teach myself French two years ago as a challenge, I was intimidated to learn by audio podcast because I am not much of an auditory learner. Shortly after I began - and made the mistake of buying an Idiot's Guide to the language - I learned that my local library offered online access to the Rosetta Stone language learning software. And so began an effort to devote fifteen minutes a day to learning French. Alongside this program are two exciting online services - livemocha and babbel - that offer a community of speakers to chat with (although so far I have only done so in Spanish) and vocabulary exercises. And, of course, I have two really good books - a beginner's reader and a grammar workbok. I have made enough progress over the past two years that after talking with the French professor, she is more than willing to allow me to sit for the French I and II finals this year if I would like.

I can't help but juxtapose this experience with that I encountered in elementary school when we made our way in single file lines each day to the computer lab for thirty minutes of practice in reading and math. Today, I can't help but think of that time as wasted - nothing more than doing worksheets on a screen - and imagine what it would have been like if my classmates and I were able to have begun immersing ourselves in a foreign language at 7 or 8 years old.

As we think about technology in education, we must be very honest with ourselves about the potential value added. I question the value-added of a touch-screen Smartboard in every class - but I praise the schools who are offering courses and opportunities unavailable in their own schools to their students through virtual learning programs. Let's not invest in technology that promises marginal improvements - but in the services that fill gaps in what a school is able to provide on its own.

Data-driven Learning

The ability to enhance diagnostic awareness and measure performance trends is one of the top reasons why teachers embrace technology in the classroom. I argue that a respect for data-driven learning should be no different for students as well. My school has invested in a digital library of AP tests for students to practice with. What my peers and I have often valued most is the program's ability to break your results into categories, allowing us to determine our individual strengths and weaknesses. This is incredibly valuable as we now approach our last, feverish month of review before the AP test. Given an awareness of our areas of weakness, we're able to make judgments


Don't be Afraid to Think

In February, the Washington Post ran an article on the impact that text messaging is having in the office, the schoolhouse, and at home.2 What struck me most was a recommendation by a professor at George Mason University to his colleagues to limit their sentences to no more than eight words. An earlier, highly-recommended piece by Caleb Crain in the New Yorker on the end of long-form reading quotes a professor who laments over the incoherent snippets of thought that her students are content to call essays.

I encourage you to stand firm against this devolution and continue to embrace complex thinking in your classrooms. Apologists for video games rightly note that the complexity of objectives, short and long-term planning, relationship management and coalition building rival many real-world experiences. The challenge, however, is how do we translate the skills developed in a virtual environment to the classroom? How do we teach students to harness their intuitive understanding of the complexities in a video game and clearly and logically present a real-world issue with a similar degree of complexity on paper? It starts with understanding that there are some thoughts too profound and too complex to fit into a tweet - and that that is a good thing.
Let's not accept technology as an excuse for lowering standards - or capitulate to the criticism that schools that ask their students to read and to write frequently and with discipline are somehow courting irrelevance. Schools cannot lose the war for high-level thinking.

I close with two thoughts: One, let us remember that technology is only as powerful as the people who harness it. And two, let us never embrace technology solely to make learning "cool" when we have failed to first make learning "work" without it.


1. Future Hype: The Myths of Technology Change. Bob Seidensticker. p103. about what days and for what subjects we should be staying after school. Efficient review "clinics" (arguably the most individualized instruction we experience all year) means that we as students stay engaged and aren't overwhelmed. What's most exciting is that these judgments are being made by the students themselves, not the teachers, giving students an opportunity to be stakeholders in their education.
2. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/21/ AR2009022101863_pf.html
3. See Steven Johnson's Everything Bad Is Good for You as one example.

This 16 Year Old is Amazing...

http://www.americaneducationpaper.blogspot.com/

I have invited Kyle Hutzler to drop in and let us know what technologies he feels are imperitive for today's students. I found him on Facebook, and I hope he is able to comment!

*update...he will visit! Thanks Kyle!

A New Generation of Learners

I think I am the "in-between" generation--somewhere between the typewriter and the iPhone. I am desperately trying to learn new technologies, and to understand how they relate to what teachers need to support learning. I'm having an Etherpad conversation with some folks at my school, and it always comes down to time. Time that we have committed elsewhere, for learning that was taught from the teacher to the students. One delivery method, very linear. Lots of paper, lots of handwriting.

What is it? Learning the skills to teach these NDM (new digital media) skills. It’s about self-study, self-direction, independent learning infused with collaboration.

Now, I might be going out on a limb here, but it is true. There simply isn't enough time to catch up and keep up with technology. There never will be. So, what do we do?

I say we come out of our comfort zone and give it a go. As awkward as it may feel, the children are counting on us to be their guidance. Fumbling or not, we can make a difference.

The children don't need perfection, they need direction. NDM is here for now. Let's just do it.

Save the Words

What a fabulous vocabulary resource!

The Eye Generation

Johanna Riddle - Engaging the Eye Generation from Melanie Holtsman on Vimeo

Twitter Treats

I uncovered two great resources today via Twitter:

http://twitter4teachers.pbwiki.com/

This is a list of all the teachers using Twitter and sharing lessons and teaching methods from around the world.

Here is another—

100 Helpful Web Tools for Every Kind of Learner

http://linkyy.com/m

(I shortened the URL with Kathy Schrock's sons' new gizmo, LYNKYY so it wasn’t so scary!)

Preschool Technology

http://kideoplayer.com/

Love this for the tiny ones...

Tweets out to Twitter Friends

These people teach me every day. Literally...I have a question, I get an answer--from somewhere around the world. These folks are tireless in their mission to keep children engaged in learning the "new" way...and have visions we can only dream of! Thanks my new Twitter friends!

Get your twitter mosaic here.