Educational Discourse

I had a busy morning at the school – there are many things to get done this last week before holidays. I know that I will not get them all done but I want to at least get them whittled down a bit. While doing various tasks I was able to keep up with what others are doing through Twitter and Pownce. Now, Pownce is a tool that allows you to share comments and thoughts with those people that you make friends, similar to what Twitter does. I am looking closely at this tool because I think it might have some use in the school setting so that teachers in the school could begin to use a social networking tool and become comfortable before venturing out on Twitter and other social networks. It might be a good way just to see how these networks work.

I also spent lunch doing some reading.  Dean Shareski has been having a conversation on his blog about the place of social networks and the use of tools for enhancing communication and connectedness. This all leads to what can and cannot be accessed in schools and what teachers will be expected to do, be able to use and be able to pass on to their students through the use of different tools. The two posts that Dean references demonstrate the frustration of people who are running into filters that block certain sites from being accessed. Now, I’ve run into this problem a few times with such things like Twitter and Blogger. I still cannot access my Blogger site from school. However, this is not the point of this post. My main purpose is to ask why we need to have these social networks available?

Dean points out;

Because most teachers do not practice or engage in the same kinds of online activities which for the most part is social networking, it’s going to be difficult for them to model. In addition, they likely don’t consider it a relevant topic of discussion amidst the daily work load they already face.

So, is it relevant to the daily work they face? With the number of initiatives that teachers face, do they have time? Some would say that time isn’t the question anymore. Instead, it is the reality that these are the tools of the youth which need to become part of the fabric of schools. Others would point to particular examples of teachers who are using these tools with incredible success.  One cannot argue with their successes and the incredible things that they are doing. However, it must also be noted that for teachers who are placed in the position of being required to prepare students for passing particular types of exams, there needs to be more than just the push to “get with the times.”

Teachers need to see that their time will be better used by using the tools. If you were in my school, you would not be convinced of this because of the difficulties that we have been having with our technology. We know that the IT department is working as quickly as they can but we are still lagging in computer availability. We’ve had some network issues which have frustrated teachers and students. Myself, I’ve found it difficult to use some of the tools I want just because of some of these issues. This has meant I have had to replan my unit a few times to accommodate these situations.

As someone who uses technology fairly fluently, I see that we need to teach students about the social aspects of these tools and the various morals and values that go along with them. We need to discuss bullying of any kind, we need to work through the appropriate use of tools like cellphones and chat while in a learning setting.  We should be able to discuss how people interact with others but I’m not sure that teachers need to use all these things themselves in order to discuss what is an appropriate way to interact with another person or appropriate behaviour in social settings.

Now, Dean refers to the following quote by Regina Lynne:

All adults who work with youth should be aware of how young people communicate, fall in love and stay connected; I encourage teachers to try social networking services, to have a blog, to text message with their own families and friends. Experienced teachers will not only gain a better sense of the world their students live in — indeed, a world their students are creating — they will have a greater understanding of the young teachers entering the profession.

And I agree, mostly. They need to be aware. They need to have an understanding but, I’m not sure they need to do all those things themselves. As a professional, they have so many different obligations besides just teaching. Maybe, if the social pressures that are placed on schools were to be redistributed to different organizations or people, then the teachers might be able to find time to do these things. However, as I watch this last week of school begin, I know that many of them are looking forward to the break so they can relax and take a break from the various pressures that they encounter each day. Some of them will take time to work online but many of them will use the time to re-energize themselves. They will spend time with family and friends, people they haven’t had enough time for because of the time they dedicate to school. They will reconnect with their personal networks which might include some online interactions.

Yes, teachers might find networking with other teachers to be great. They might find it useful, much like their students find it useful to text each other during class when they don’t feel motivated or surf the web or check email when their professors are not connecting with them. However, in my many discussions with teachers, they are so busy that they rarely have time during the day to go to the bathroom never mind check their email or check their network.  They work with different students, differentiating curriculum, helping their students to acquire the information that the curriculum has prescribed for them to teach. Because they are professionals, they are very aware of what their responsibilities are to their students and not just the academic responsibilities. They are making human connections that many of the students do not have and seeking to guide them through this time of school so that when they leave they can make good decisions. I think they are preparing them for the world after school because so much of that world will deal with interactions and making personal decisions.

As for networking, the I work with  uses various technologies to communicate. The tools work to keep all of us informed and help us to share ideas with one another. We discuss  concerns we have with students in our school, the problems that some of our students are facing and the different alternatives we might seek. We share links and other such information. We use tools that help us to be more productive and help us to stay in tune with the others in the building. For most of the teachers in this school, this is enough networking for them. As we struggle to work with students about bullying, peer relations, drugs, sex, dating, relationships with parents and the myriad of other non-educational concerns that come our way each day, time spent on developing other networks isn’t a priority.

Finally, as for the young teachers entering the profession, I’m not sure about this one. In fact, from what I’ve seen, these teachers are striving to come to terms with a whole host of things that are beyond networking. Most veteran teachers, where I work, are more than willing to lend a hand and assist any young teacher. I’m not sure how understanding texting and social networks fits in with that unless it’s networking with other younger teachers who are overworked and tired. In fact, it’s usually the young teachers who are having a difficult time with the many educational requirements like differentiation, class expectations, marking, parent interactions and covering the curricula that they get and who seek out the veteran teachers. As for using other online tools, I don’t see a whole lot of increase even when the tools are available.

I guess, as someone who has been developing a network for about a year, I do see the positives. However, I’m not all that convinced that it is what every teacher needs to have. There are times when, having thrown out a question or concern on one of the social networks to which I belong, I get no response. Yeah, I learn alot from some of the people but, and I again put this forward not as a complaint but as an observation, unless you are “in the group”, you might not get the networking you believed you would get.  I know that is how it sometimes seems to me whether it is here or twitter or other social networks. To be really connected, you have to spend time developing the relationships and, as an administrator, time with the students is more important than time online trying to make friends who will answer your questions when you ask.

I’ve been able to catch up on some of my reading this past week although I still am looking forward to Christmas and the time to do some more with reflection along the way. One post that drew my attention was over at Jennifer Dorman’s cliotech. Her post Re-Learning Curve discusses an article by Mark Pesce discussing the whole idea of giving all secondary students a laptop.

Pesce has some interesting thoughts about what change this will bring -

curriculum designers have to accept the computer as a powerful, flexible, ubiquitous tool that can be integrated into the curriculum’s DNA.

The curriculum must be redrawn, so that computers are integrated into it, becoming a potent tool alongside the textbook and the chalkboard

Most teachers are digital immigrants, struggling to croak out a few words, while their students are fluent natives, rabbiting on in a language most teachers only haltingly understand. Dropping computers into that mix precariously flips the balance of power from teachers to students, unless educators are given the resources and the opportunity to re-educate themselves.

Other than the abuse of the immigrant/native metaphor, which really needs to  be buried or something so we can move forward but I digress, Presce has really identified the key problems with what is taking place in education:  curricula and its designers are still using the “knowledge presenting” model of design instead of the “knowledge understanding” model. In the first, teachers are to present knowledge to the students and then students are to present back to teachers what they remember.

EARLIER this year, a secondary school teacher from Adelaide told me about his physics class. “I was lecturing about current topics in physics,” he said, “when one of my students corrected me.” One of the theories he quoted had been recently disproved by an experiment, the results of which were reported in Wikipedia. The student, with one ear to the lecture and one eye on the universal web encyclopedia, helpfully provided the update. “How can I stay ahead of the kids?” he wondered.

In the presentation model, there is no hope. There is no way one teacher or even a few are going to be able to stay ahead of the knowledge curve that is going on. Heck, even my own system of gathering knowledge is changing as I move from doing a particular search using google to asking a question within the networks to which I belong and then using the responses to drive my future searching and learning.  With students and their ability to use networks, knowledge gathering and the sharing of information becomes much easier.  (*Note -  we do have to work with students to help them identify information that is reliable and help them develop literacy skills beyond reading and writing.) Students can find the information and report it back to us with ever increasing ease. The shelf life of knowledge teaching is almost up.

Instead, curriculum designers need to identify the knowledge to which students need to be exposed and then go further to identifying something they need to understand from having this knowledge. How they demonstrate that understanding can be determined in a number of ways and may actually require something besides a test. And, giving teachers some credit, I think they know this very fact. Teachers no longer believe they hold the keys to knowledge. In fact, I don’t think they ever really thought that but, instead, have been confined by a system that was designed to bring knowledge to the masses. Unfortunately, we accomplished that goal a hundred or more years ago and have been trying to figure out what to do since then with very little change because no one has been able to agree on what to do. Now, for the first time, we are not being confined by the knowledge anchor. Instead, we are free to explore knowledge and create – and it scares the goosebumps off of people in charge. Really, it does. It replaces the holy grail of power, the test score, with something less definitive but much more useful, understanding.

And this is where I disagree with Pesce. I don’t think it is the students who will be driving the revolution. In fact, the revolution has already started and continues to grow in strength. In more and more classrooms around the world, teachers are communicating, sharing, talking and collaborating using technologies. Yes it seems slow to those who have been pushing from the beginning but, as more and more teachers come to realize that the knowledge is there for the taking, they are seeking ways to develop understanding and, eventually, turn to some type of technology in order to facilitate that process.

The revolution has begun. It is taking place in classrooms around the world and being discussed in blogs and other social networking systems to which teachers are being drawn. Teachers won’t need to stay ahead as they create networks of professionals who will help one another learn and share the new knowledge and begin to develop ways to help students develop understanding.

I believe what is holding the whole revolution from taking off is the lack of teachers who have access to quality hardware, open access to information and, most crucial, the freedom to teach for understanding. With this, the revolution would be over before wikipedia knew about it and no teacher would have to worry about trying to do the impossible – know it all!

Well, I finally got around to doing some yard work this weekend. I was able to dethatch my lawn and fertilize it just before we had rain so, if things work out, I should be cutting twice a week in a week or so! My daughter and I also did some flower planting and did some discussion of what we are going to do with our front yard once we finish in the back with the grass growing. She’s turning into quite the gardener. I also discussed the option of a garden with my sons but they weren’t real keen on having to give up camping to weed so maybe next year.

Today, we had our Early Dismissal and staff meeting. Now, our ED have been working with PLC’s. The last few we have been discussing and working on our School Improvement Learning Plan. This SLIP is required and must be created in collaboration with our School Community Council and sent to the School Division Board for approval. Now, last month, members of our SCC met with the staff to look at developing the SLIP around the area of Safe and Caring School Environment. We looked at the four components and created an area of focus that will be part of our SLIP for the next year. The meeting was a success and has brought school and community together in a few ways.

Today, I had the groups focus on what, they as staff, would like to see as part of the SLIP and where we could go from here. In groups they discussed this and reviewed what they had done. Now, although I think that was a good exercise, what I thought was more productive is that, at their tables, they were to also brainstorm ideas for PD so that we could use our ED more effectively. As they were winding down their discussions, I heard things like “using more technology, doing more with video, using the technology we have better…” which was good. I also know that I have two teachers interested in doing a cross-continent learning experience and I have one teacher interested in doing something with the science project linked to the space station. What is really great, is that teachers are looking at how technology is going to enhance what they are doing and seeing how it will make the learning experience better and not just using the technology for its own sake.

Now, these just didn’t happen. In fact, I’ve been planting seeds since I arrived. I have suggesting that teachers check out some ideas and software but they were too busy or had too many other things to do. So, instead of insisting on big things, I insisted they use email and eliminated the paper memo. I’ve now insisted that they use the staff wiki to list all their activities so everyone can check to see what is going on. We’ve avoided two near scheduling disasters because of it. I’ve started a memo page on the wiki and it will grow. I’m also beginning to question our use of staff meetings and wondering if I could not use some type of software to “transmit” the information to the staff instead of meeting in a f2f meeting. I think this is possible and could reduce the “telling” going on at the staff meeting and we could focus on PD mini-lessons with a topic for the month although I do not want to eliminate the discussions we have because many of them are needed.  Other topics include discussing professional reading or working in our PLC’s on school data or streamlining our attendance and other functions to eliminate paper. There are many topics that fit well with what we are doing as a school but it is good to see that using technology is beginning to be part of the discussion and teachers are interested and enthused.

Planting seeds. It takes so much time to grow and can be really frustrating waiting. I’ve learned if you give them too much water, they drown and die, too little water and they wither up and die. As a gardener you cannot make them grow. You need to weed and take care to make sure that bugs and insects aren’t destroying them and, sometimes, natural events take place that are out of your control. But, with persistence and patience, things take root and grow and you begin to see the fruits of your labour. Growing technology use in the school is not much different. There have been times I’ve wanted to give up and toss in the shovel. However, with the examples I’ve shown and the things that we have done, teachers are really beginning to see the benefit to their students of using technology for all sorts of learning.

I’ve also noticed this same thing in my admin PLC where our group has a wiki we are going to use to brainstorm our ideas for our topics. We are then going to have a conference meeting via the net in order to discuss what we are doing. This, hopefully, will show them that all this is possible and can be done no matter who they are and it can cut down on things like driving just to do some committee work.

Now, like all growing, there are weeds that will pop up but one cannot allow them to overrun the garden. By weeds, I mean things like lack of time, technical problems, uncooperative software, uncooperative students and all sorts of other things. These will happen but if we deal with them, working to try to eliminate them or reduce their numbers, the seeds will grow and flourish and eventually, hopefully, choke out the weeds.

My students always tell me I use metaphors and analogies way too much. However, I’ve learned that in using them, people can relate to something that is really foreign to them  through something with which they are familiar. I began doing this three years ago and, finally, I’m seeing something come up. I don’t know how it will grow but if I don’t tend it and nurture it, then it may not survive.  There are many factors out of my control. As a principal, I’m in the same situation. So, I’ve planted more seeds, having staff as a whole look at areas of PD that they feel would benefit them in the school. Hopefully, some of this will be technology.

Finally, I’ve been doing some conversing with Durff , someone I met through the Horizon Project and we have been discussing having an online “workshop” that would be for technology people who are at the beginner stage and wanting  to progress. Now, my idea was to gather some people who are using technology and have them demonstrate and then answer questions about use of various tools and things they have learned. Just out of curiosity, would anyone be interested in: a) attending such a “workshop” format and b) helping with such a workshop. I’m thinking that many of the things that are done could be saved and posted for use by others later but, in my experience, having a live person to ask questions and use the tools really helps. It would be like a Digital Camp for grown-ups. Let me know what you think.

The school year is drawing to a close and for many people the prospect of time away will mean time not doing any school work. Unfortunately, that scenario will put some teachers further behind when it comes to web2.0 integration. In fact, teachers who are already having trouble with seeing how these tools can enhance their teaching will be farther behind once the new school year begins.  As teachers who are using these tools have observed, the introduction of new tools continues to grow. With little time given to teachers to explore these tools, they are having to pick and choose what tools they will use. With summer vacation coming, it might be time to explore some of the ones that were put to the side during the year.  As someone who tries to keep up with the various tools that are being introduced, I have realized that I need reorganize my time in order to make time for exploring and trying new tools. I then need to assimilate them into my teaching strategies, using them to enhance what is already going on in the classroom.

So, with summer vacation on the horizon, I realize that I won’t be able to take time off from learning. Not that I ever really did take time off but this summer will be a bit different because instead of taking in a summer course or going to a class, I will be plotting out how I can use new tools to enhance my teaching and leading and learning about the various tools that are available. The idea that teachers have two months off, which was always a fallacy, is now completely without any merit since teachers will need to invest time throughout the summer months in exploring and learning new strategies for delivering the curriculum to their students. In fact, there is a great need for teachers to use some of this time to reflect upon their practice and evaluate where new tools would best serve their students.

To add to this, there is a growing number of books that teachers might be interested in reading as they try to become more informed about how this digital shift is affecting various sectors of society. Such books as The World is Flat, A Whole New Mind,  Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything and Everything Is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder a just some of the many titles I’ve seen floating around that seem interesting and relevant to what is going on in education and society. Coupled with this will be my further exploration of SMART goals, reading concepts and PLCs which are the three main areas our school division is focusing upon. Whew, it already seems a bit overwhelming! So what does one do without suffering severe burnout?

Well my plan for the summer is to lay out some priorities for myself and then fill in the blanks with resources that will help me achieve those goals. Since SMART goals and PLCs are two areas of focus for the school division, I will focus my early reading on these two areas. I am going to use a wiki to track my reading and do my planning for the school year. One of my goals is to create a few videos to assist teachers in using some of the tools. Now I know that there are a few RSS videos available so that will be one less video to do! I’m considering a video on how to create a wiki, set up a blog and working within a network like Ning. Again, I think that I will use a wiki to host all these and build up various tools and ideas.

I will also be working on developing my teaching units, going through them and eliminating things that are no longer useful and adding information. I already use a wiki for this so it will be a process of adding and subtracting. Finally, I am hoping to do a presentation for administrators at the beginning of the year and will be focusing on exploring tools that deal with PD and finding information to help administrators gather information for PD. I will be using the pbwikis to do this. They have generously supplied two packages as prizes for my presentations.

Now before you think that this is way too much, you have to realize that I have also planned a few long weekends away, a week long camping trip with my family and I take several afternoons a week to go to the pool, on bike rides or just hang out and watch our newly planted grass grow! I also work for a contractor building houses so I will have quite a few different ventures to occupy my time. Yes. I am a workaholic, to some degree. I don’t sit idle very well but like to be doing something, even if it is reading a book. Afternoon naps are also a highlight of my summer activities. However, the reality is that unless I spend time reading, trying, practicing and using, my skills will not be what they should be and I will not be ready for the year that follows. As a father of seven children, I know that learning is a key to their future and I will spend time with them doing all kinds of wild things (we have a new glide and slide tube to try!). I am also a leader of educators who are responsible for the learning of 200+ children and this is also important. So, without shortchanging my family, I need to work so that I can be my best once the new school year starts.

So, what are your summer plans? Are you going to be exploring new and wondrous tools for learning? How will they fit into your schedule? Will they?

Ever been to a restaurant for a meal and realize that just a bit more salt would really add to the taste of the great meal you ordered. You have the salt passed to you. You take some time to figure out exactly where you will start with the salt and then you begin only to find that some joker has loosened the cap so you end up with the whole shaker on your plate!

How do you feel? What do you do? How do you react?

Well, that is how some of the people who I talked to at the TLt IT Summit07 seemed to be describing themselves. Well, none actually used the above image but it was the image that I came up with from their descriptions. They went in to the conference looking for something that would add to their teaching, making it that much better. However, somewhere during the confernce, the lid to the shaker came off and they were overwhelmed with the amout of seasoning they received during the course of the two days.

Now, this isn’t unusual for a conference. At least I don’t think it is for most teachers. You end up seeing so many great things that you sometimes don’t know where to start. However, in this case, there was some added stress. They weren’t sure how what to do with the meal now that it was covered in salt. They were incapable of cooking it themselves. They knew that trying to brush a little off just wouldn’t work although there will be some who try to do that and end up with a very bad taste left in their mouths and may never venture back to the restaurant or try that meal again to see how great it really might be. Some seek the assistance of a waiter to help them. However, in doing this, some are rude and impatient and do not fully enjoy the meal they finally get. Those that realize that this sometimes happens are able to relax and wait for the replacement meal to arrive. When it does, they begin to savour it, knowing that it took extra time because someone else had created this problem for them.

A whole group of people are headed back to their schools with that overwhelmed feeling. Some are willing to ask for help and patiently wait until it arrives and then they enjoy the meal, taking time to enjoy each bite as they work throught the whole meal. For those who don’t want to take the time to get the help, they end up getting through the ativities but they don’t work and the teacher is left with a bad experience.

Now, one thing that really made me sit up and take notice were the two keynote speakers. Both Ian Jukes and Michelle Noname talked about the need for teachers to begin using the technologies, the idea that students in classrooms are not the same as the students that were there even 10 years ago, that things were changing quickly and there was a need to bring our educational instruction into the new millenium. (They didn’t say it like that but that was kind of the drift.) Now, as someone who has heard this a few times, I wasn’t really too taken aback by what either said and, in discussing this with others, neither were they. However, one of the teachers from the school where I teach was with me and he had too much salt and wasn’t sure what to do about it. So, as we drove back to our community, we discussed and debriefed the various things that he had gathered. This was where some really wonderful things began to happen.

This teacher is a veteran teacher who teaches a whole host of things. As we began our drive from the city limits, coffee in hand, I asked how he liked the conference. His immediate response was

“Great. It was a great conference. But too much information for someone like me. My head is spinning. I have so many things that I only partly understand and that last session I didn’t understand anything. It was over my head. …”

This went on for about 15 minutes as he just talked about all the things that went on. And then it came.

“You know. When we get back, I’m going to do one thing from this conference and you’re going to help me until I get it right. I want to do one thing. There are so many that I can think of but I want one thing …”

The conversation switched as we discussed a few ideas, well, more than a few but one idea would create another. The goal was to do one thing that would impact his teaching. So, if you were me, what would you have suggested and why? Let me know what you’d do to help this teacher to begin the journey.

We spent the whole ride home – 2 hours – discussing the use of technology to increase students understanding and ability to create responses that demonstrate understanding. This led to a discussion of educational learning philosophy which…. It was a great ride home.

I spent the rest of the week trying to get caught up on missing two days. I think I should be there by, oh, mid-July:) But, the excitement that I witnessed as I helped this patron determine to send the meal back and savour what he received, not rushing to get it done. There would be time for dessert, after dinner drink and a nightcap later. Right now, enjoying the meal was paramount.

I’ll let you know what I told him in a few days.