Technologically Literate

In August I will be going around to 9 of our schools and talking to the faculty and staff.  As the new Technology Integration Specialist, I am going to briefly cover who I am and why my job has become necessary. 

Using information from folks like Ian Jukes, George Siemens, Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod, I pieced together a presentation that I hope will get the point across.  My point, the kids are alright, we are the ones that need change.  It is my goal to introduce 20 teachers to professional networking and begin the process of changing educational practices here in DuBois, PA.

This was done with the web application Spresent and it seems to work best in full screen mode (lower right).

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Cross posted at The Bloggers’ Cafe

     In my effort to explore connectivism as a learning theory (see Conduit is King) I immediately find myself wondering, what is the most difficult part in shifting practice.  I am a child of the 20^th century.  I can’t help organizing and structuring information.  I shop with a grocery list for crying out loud.  I personally begin with the most difficult, leaving items or ideas that I consider easy(er) for last.  In the case of redefining knowledge and the learning process I am drawn to the idea of recombination.  Recombination is the act of taking anything (information, web pages, videos, ect.) and manipulating it to fit you and your specific need.  Personalization causes concern for us “industrial learners.”  (I am using industrial learner in the context of 20^th century folks who experienced a linear education from “the experts.”)   
     To us, recombination is frightening, recombination is letting go of ownership.  Industrial education had/has a structure.  We were taught there was a beginning and an end to things and that there is a specific place to go to receive information.  Set information was/is chunked up in to periods of time only to be reviled when you are ready.  It had nothing to do with you as individual it was/is a function of time.  Unfortunately for those of us with one foot in the past and one in the present, a flood of information and tools made personalization both an option and a necessity.  Teachers and schools have become white noise in the competition for a child’s attention largely because a child still has no ownership.  I believe that getting teachers to let go of content and to encourage exploration could be hurdle number one on the path to education reform.  Siemens says, the ability to connect, recombine, and recreate have become hallmarks of knowledge today (p. 82, Knowing Knowledge)  For educators to foster those abilities they will need to offer up information (possible unfamiliar information) and ideas that are intended to spark connection, individual recombination, and unique creation.
     But what will they talk about, what will they learn, and what will they create?  Predictably followed by, how will I assess it?  Those questions are indicative of a person concerned with their perceived authority.   My questions are, how do you tell a person that has been teaching a subject for any length of time that content is secondary, if not completely irrelevant to process?  Content and its mastery is the measuring stick of our profession.  I could not be considered a practicing professional until I passes a multiple choice test on communication models.  (Those have come in real handy)  Also, do they know how they themselves learn let alone how 150 students learn?  Finally, is it the responsibility of professional development to take on such an undertaking or must it be an individual choice?
 

Inbox (1) PD Opportunity: from kpruitt
You are cordially invited to a professional development workshop that will explore the process of learning.
 

Re:  From: teacherx
Are you kidding?  I have been teaching for 10 years!  What are you going to tell me about learning?  My kids learn, look at the scores!  PS.  Quit spamming my inbox, I am busy making sure kids know about the Fertile Crescent!
 

     Even now, knowing what I know, it is a little unnerving to let this post go.  I know that others are much farther along in this line of thinking and to them this is just the 1000^th definition of the same problem.  What causes even more trepidation is that this information will be posted where anyone can accept it, reject it, mix it, mash it and recreate it as they see fit.  I can only imagine what it must be like for educators who spent decades achieving the goal of content mastery. 
 

To accept recombination, you have to let go of ego.  Who among us is willing to do that? 
    
On a personal note I want to thank Jen, Ryan, and Darren for their efforts.  I look forward to participating in a growing network of change.

Ken Pruitt/DuBois, PA/Tech Integration Specialist

Who should be involved in curriculum work? 

With the wide spread use of collaborative web application the question should be why isn’t everyone involved in school curriculum?  Using a wiki or Google Document a district has the power to offer business, industry, universities, and the community at large a chance to make their voice heard.  The real selling point, all of these groups can participate at their leisure. 

I am in the initial stages of trying to use this technology to accomplish similar tasks.  I have authored several Google Documents inviting the key players to collaborate.  Currently I am only dealing with administration and educators with a stake in this particular project, but I am excited about the possibilities.  Wouldn’t it be beneficial to have a virtual mentor that is an expert in the field you are writing for?  How about a representitive from the state agency to explore grant possibilities while making sure that you have the updated standards?  

Will education ever open up enough to let this happen or is this just another idea that would take too much effort?      

First, what’s going on with edublogs?  I have spent more time waiting for these pages to load then I do writing. (Yikes!)  I keep getting SQL errors.  Maybe it is time to just keep everything with blogger.

I had a great conversation with a professor that will remain nameless.  From this conversation came the realization of what is actually missing from online universities. How about personality?  We mow through class after class, never really getting to know the highly educated mind behind the grades.  I think that is a shame.  What good is an all-star faculty with PhDs if all they really need to do is grade papers?  I am sure there is a program that will check for APA citation. 

Online universities are slaves to their own system.  It’s their books, their curriculum, their method of learning and assessment.  There is no room for creativity on behave of the faculty or the students, just a regurgitation of their resources.   I am currently on the tail end of a technology integration degree from WaldenUniversity.  Overall I am pleased with what I have learned, but after talking with the professor I have realized how much I have missed out on.

We learned at NECC that the company or persons that embrace new technology the quickest are the ones that survive.  Here’s hoping that the online institution takes a hard look at it self and realizes how far behind they are falling.  In my opinion, if you want to change, you need look no further than the qualified professionals that already populate your ranks. 

In the words of William Wallace (okay, Mel Gibson) “FREEDOM!”    

Clarification – In the past year I have learned a great deal about how learning occurs and that is thanks to Walden University.  I think they do a wonderful job in connecting MI Theory and Learning Styles.  I am a better professional because of continuing my education with Walden.  I just wish I had more opportunity to learn from the experience of the faculty employed by Walden.   

Derek Baird sent along a flyer for the 2007 Yahoo Teacher workshops.  Thanks Derek.

Use the new Box.net file sharing box and see the flyer for yourself. 

Balance.  In personal life, and in professional life, we all need balance.  Balance in the way we approach, balance in the way present.  Comfort can disguise itself as balance.  Routine is easily misread as “I am doing a great job.”  I have been blown out of my routine both in my personal and professional life.  Personally, the birth of a child has weighted the scales towards extreme exhaustion and has left the counterbalance, mental clarity, dangerously teetering. 

Professionally, my wish has come true and I accepted a new position.  It will be my job to help our teachers prepare our students for the future.  That’s right, little ole’ me attempting the most dangerous job in all of teaching, teaching the teachers.  Of course I am extremely pleased with my new position, but I also realize the choas I just called for in my professional life.  No class schedule, no regular students, NO SUMMER OFF.  What have I done???  

As I sat back and enjoyed the holiday weekend, I was mindful of the battles abroad (My sister leaves in a week, stay safe Traci) and of our battles right here at home.  I am proud of the men and women of military and wish them all God’s speed.  I am also proud of the work we are doing for the education of our children.  As a parent and as a peer, I know that the future of education is in good hands with you folks around.  With your tireless efforts to improve education, you will help provide our students with balance.  I know that some day, God willing, those students will provide our world with it to. 

Hopefully this blog will soon start to take on it’s original intent, to share the journey of technology integration and professional development.  So if you are growing tired of my scatter brained reflection, fret not, soon you will also experience the wonderful world of my scatter brained ideas for technology integration.  I start writing new NETS curriculum June 11th.  Wish me luck.

I have been away for awhile.  The more I thought about blogging the less I felt I had to say.  I like the simplicity of the Tips blog I keep for the district, but in that blog I kinda stepped into it deep.

While I was on paternity leave I posted the Scott Mcleod rant about Margaret Spellings and her, let’s say, less than thorough exploration of how the government should position itself on technology in the classroom.  I applaud Scott because according to his new post Ms. Spellings would like to hear from the rest of us.  Since I re-posted and since I am genuinely hoping this is not just an appeasement tactic, I feel the need to offer my two cents.  (Not associated with David Warlick or his two cents blog)

Here is my email, tell me what you think, and then send your own:

Secretary Spellings:

I teach 7^th grade communications at DuBois Area Middle School in DuBois, PA.  I have three years of classroom experience and I am actively working on my master’s degree in technology integration.  Technology has improved our schools and classrooms immeasurably.  The consistent and concise flow of information has allowed both administration and staff to have what is necessary to make decisions about individual educational needs.  Paper costs have gone down due to the use of an electronic database and student engagement is on the rise due to learning occurring in context. 

In my opinion, as an educator and technology coach, the integration of technology has dramatically increased my efficiency and effectiveness.  An access to current data through professional networking along with online organizational tools has provided me with the most precious gift in education, time.  I use that extra time to develop engaging material and to connect with 120 students on a personal level. 

Technology on its own does not have the power to prepare our students for the future or come close to meeting the 100% proficiency goals set by NCLB.  However, a knowledgeable educator, with access to the right information, can help build a foundation that will give students the tools they need to be successful in any avenue they may choose.  I am not usually in the business of telling the federal government how to operate, but in my opinion, if you want globally competitive students that are meeting the lofty goals set by NCLB then you need to invest in district specific support systems.  Do not try to mandate an across the board position, but give the districts the support and resources they desperately need to develop and implement specific plans that benefit their situation.

Thank you for your time and the opportunity to voice my opinion.

Sincerely,

Kenneth B. Pruitt

Educator

I cannot say that I am as engaged in my graduate work as I should be.  Life often interferes and one must do what one can.  I am attending Walden University online and I am partially through a graduate degree in technology integration.  The class I am currently in is a study of habits of mind developed by Costa and Kallick (check older posts if you want to read about that) 

This week the class is learning more about rubrics within the discussion of teacher to student feedback.  This is what I submitted for discussion this week:

As we move our way through the degree program I try to adopt things that change weakness into strength.  The problem is that, as a new teacher, I find I am not often aware of my weak areas.  Feedback is one area where I have grown in this degree program.  I like to think of myself of a nice guy.  I talk with my students as much as I can and I try to reinforce the behaviors that I think are appropriate.  I have come to find that, although the students consider me easy to talk to about life, the classroom feedback I provide them is very general.  “Good job, well done, here is a good grade.” I am a guy against grades that is providing feedback in almost exclusively grade form. 

Lately, I am trying to incorporate more thought and even further action in my day to day feedback.  I comment on the overall design and color schemes of projects.  If possible I quickly bring up other examples and ask them to compare.  I ask if the students have come across interesting information related to their project.  I try to do what I can to spark a conversation about the content that the students are covering. 

Although I use rubrics, I don’t think I clearly explain why I do the things I do.  It is my goal in the future to include the vocabulary of feedback into the everyday classroom so that the students not only understand what I want, but can also see and understand it in situations outside of my classroom.    

Yes, I love myself; however, the purpose of posting this is to hear from other, more experienced teachers about the feedback they provide.  It may be teacher to student, teacher to teacher, or how you set student to student feedback.  Here is a cross section of  the people I would love to hear from:

Jim Gates

Ryan Bretag

Vicki Davis

Teacher Dude

Jennifer Dorman

Karl Fisch

Anastasia Goodstein 

Anyone else that wants to comment on the value of feedback in education.   

  It looks like the time has come to meet the boy that has already changed my focus on so many things.  Like I said before, waiting bites, but it’s the waiting that has allowed my wife and I to explore our lives in relation to his.  We have discussed religion, politics, education, and of course love.  Late last-night we came to a conclusion that all of these things have common threads.  We figured, after the need for power, the strongest thread is that when you involve human beings in any of them you often end up with more problems than solutions.

Take your pick on religion and politics, but I am continually taken back by problems public education creates for itself.  I am realitivly new to education and I cannot count how many times we have killed an idea because it didn’t work previously.  I also, cannot begin to tell you how many knee jerk reactions I have witnessed when the “newest” idea or education savior comes rolling into town.   

Let’s face it, we are all different.  Our communities and school all require specialized attention that only we can give.  So why do we keep mucking it up with the past?  If you read or listen at all, you know that education will shift and that we will all be okay.  The only thing left is us and the transition.  Only we have the power to dictate how that shift will occur.  Will it be a long and drawn out fight with hurt feelings and lost jobs or will it be a community effort where some professional (or ego) sacrifices are made for the good of the student?

Not to long ago, Jim Gates made a simple yet powerful statement.  I was venting some professional frustration to him and what he said gave me an “ah-ha” moment like I haven’t had in sometime.  He said, “Eventually you have to ask (teachers/administrators) is this as far as we are going to go?”  Is this it?  Are you at the peak of your professional practice?  Can we honestly say we are reaching out to our students and they are making the connections that will help them be successful?  Or, are we telling ourselves that this generation is lazy and stupid and there is no hope for them. 

Do you think the kids say the same about us?             

“Whatever kind of technological programs educators decide to develop, the primary consideration should be the purpose of using the technology.” -Gary Burnett 1994

As I work my way through a graduate degree, I get the opportunity to page through some interesting research on the value of educational technology.  Being the great procrastenator that I am, I sometimes spend time perusing older publications that technically, shouldn’t apply to my fancy on-line degree.  After all, this is the 21st century and technology has changed the way we live and work.  Information and social interaction are just a click away.  Schools have technology standards the must adhere to.  We have come along way in 13 years right? 

In 1994 Gary Burnett was studying how technology could improve urban schools.  Burnett was aware that the landscape was changing and that all of the research of the day pointed to the importance of technology skills.   He did not dispute the facts, however; he saw the need for some forethought.   See if this sounds familar.

(Burnett 1994)”The methods and purposes of computer use often differ radically from school to school and from district to district: sometimes computer use enhances learning for all students and sometimes it simply confers a new technological sheen on the low-level programs…In some cases, they are present in the schools but are not being used for any clear purpose at all.”

 As we start to leave the 2006-2007 school year behind (state test are done, we’re done, right?), I wonder, how far have we really come in 13 years.  Sure the tools are changing, and access to information is changing, but where are we really?