It occurred to me that at my school, most of our teachers take everything so seriously(as do I, some of the time!). So it seems like there is almost some stigma against the idea of taking time to “play,” explore a tool, play with it with your class….

Administrators, too, sometimes convey the attitude that everything should be so serious. Of course they do, with parents, and assessments, and NCLB, and on and on.

Yet innovative companies like Google encourage their employees to play as part of their regular job and it seems like they are pretty successful, doesn’t it?

How does this enter in to your points above? I don’t fully know, but something is nagging at me about it.

Have you ever noticed when a technology workshop is really successful, everyone seems to have this sense of delight and discovery that is pretty energizing? I think it’s because it taps into the notion of playing with something and “figuring it out.” So it seems there is something important about that notion of play and experimentation as a way to inspire teachers to use technology.
If we take using technology too seriously, it’s intimidating.

There is also, as you pointed out, some strange thing that goes on in schools regarding life long learning. Sometimes teachers seem strangely resistant to that notion, and I say strangely because since we are educators, it does seem like we’d be more open to constantly learning and adapting, doesn’t it? And so many educators are, but there’s definitely factions in schools that are not.

I think there is something to think about regarding innovative business models and schools. How do they create nimble, fast moving, adaptable, and FUN environments to work in? What motivates employees in these kinds of businesses like Google to give their all to the company, and stay enthusiastic? How can we infuse schools with more of these qualities?

I’m rambling a bit, but your comments have brought up a lot of questions for me.
Thanks for the thought provoking post!