Educational Discourse

I was going to write a post about some of my latest work with online desktops. However, I came across a post by Tim Stahmer over at Assorted Stuff that was very interesting. Now, I had to take some time to listen to the podcast that Tim refers to in his post so that I could better write this post.

I listened to Jon Gordon’s interview of Andrew Keen about his book The Cult of the Amateur: How Today’s Internet is Killing Our Culture and was, well, bewildered. Now, Tim highlights the following quotes from the interview.

Former Silicon Valley entrepreneur Andrew Keen says web 2.0, which is shorthand for user-generated content like blogs, internet video, wikis and podcasts, is a mass of poorly produced, uninformed materials that’s eroding the pillars of society by replacing professional media.

In his new book Andrew Keen compares internet users who make blogs, wikis, and internet video to monkeys banging away on a keyboard.

“The problems that the music business is having, the problems that the newspaper business is having is intimately, profoundly connected with the rise of user generated content media.”

“One of the problems is that the internet allows people to steal things.”

“I would be thrilled if people were reading mainstream, reliable newspapers and then wandering around the blogosphere to supplement their reading. What concerns me is when blogs become the primary source of information. The problem with that is it’s so unreliable. They’re so vulnerable to corruption. They’re often written anonymously. They often have interests, economically, politically or ideologically behind them that we’re not able to acknowledge.

Now, some of the things that Keen says are true. There are many things being stolen and used by others on th net and it is a problem. We are also seeing that there are those who are using the anonymity of the internet as a way to do things that they would be unable to do in a face-to-face situation. And, the music industry has taken a hit with the proliferation of mp3 downloading. However, what really struck me was the comparison of

internet users who make blogs, wikis, and internet video to monkeys banging away on a keyboard.

Right off, it struck me because I write a blog and don’t consider myself a monkey (although I know there are people out there who would agree with this comparison or probably worse ) I then began to think about all the blogs I read and the information that is hosted in these blogs. Now, I may be a monkey but I surely don’t consider the likes of Stephen Downes, Chris Long, Christopher Sessums, Vicki Davis or Scott McLeod to be monkeys. They are very educated and knowledgeable people whose ideas and thoughts are not just bangings on a keyboard.

I find this to be another case of someone, in this case Keen, who is struggling with the incredible changes that are taking place in our ability to access information and desperately trying to maintain that there is a truth and that the professional newsreporters are the ones who have it.

They’re so vulnerable to corruption. They’re often written anonymously. They often have interests, economically, politically or ideologically behind them that we’re not able to acknowledge.

Sorry, that quote is describing the bloggers not the reporters but, in my experience, this can be said of some of the information that one gets in the newspaper and on tv. I know that reporters are suppose to deliver unbiased information. However, the unbiased opinion depends on what one believes about the subject. Take this whole post. I am biased towards blogs and therefore am ready to defend my use of them and my using them to gather information for myself. Why? Because I consider myself able to read through information and detect bias and then, depending on the level that I see, either accept that it doesn’t get in the way of the rest of the information or disregard the information because the bias too heavily interferes with the information. And that is what really bothers me about this whole idea.

Yes, there are things on the blogosphere with which I don’t agree but then I need to determine whether I just let it pass or I do some more looking to see if it is my understanding that needs to change in some way. This is where our schools and what we do there is so critical. With the changes taking place in information access, information exchange and how people view “truth”, we need to help our students determine fact from fiction and develop the critical thinking skills that will question things that do not seem to be right. This will mean questioning the major news providers, seeking to determine if in fact they are providing us with unbiased reporting. Learning to exchange ideas and create new understanding from old is an essential skill that our young people will need. Relying on “experts” to continue to tell us how to think and what to do may not be the saving grace that Keen suggests. In fact, I would say that many of our problems as a society, stem not from individual questioning of what is presented to us but, instead, a mass of people who do not critically question what they are presented. Could this not be the reason we are facing an obesity crisis in North America and, if the “experts” are to be believed, a future diabetes and heart problem crisis in the near future.

I don’t think that people are suddenly running amok, banging on keyboards just to contradict what is being presented in the newspapers or on television. In fact, much of what I read is really discussion and reflection of a book or an article. I would suggest to Mr. Keen that the take some more time to look at what is on the web a bit more closely. Yes, you run across many self-indulgent egoists that really know nothing of what they are writing about but use the shock value to get press. But, I find that in the papers in some of the columnists. I just have to be more selective in what I read. And more discerning. And more critical. It makes me think in new ways and imagine possibilities that were not there before.

As for Keen, I really see someone who is seeing a way of life slip through his clenched fists and this is his way of railing against the injustices he observes. Quite frankly, it brings the elite in contact with the general public, something they have never been happy about. Only this time, it may be that climbing back up to the elite status may mean something totally different and that really scares people like Keen. For us monkeys, such a book that is so doomsdayish can only mean that the shift is happening, albeit slowly. We still have many things to do and there are plenty of others who will continue to malign what is happening on the internet and point out only the negative. But, as I have seen and been part of, there is so much good that is also going on that we continue. The negative factors have always been there and the net just gives them a place to gather more quickly but, if we realize this, positive pressures can be brought to bare on them. In much the same manner that we have had to streetproof our children because of the changes that society has seen, well now we must netproof our children and part of that will be to help them discover how to distinguish the good from the garbage. It’s the least we can do!

For a more indepth look at the book (Can you tell what the author thinks?) see here.  Also, see Andrw Keen’s site where he’s promoting his book. A blog no less!

I’ve been looking at a few online desktops over the past few weeks. One of the reasons is that I’d like to see if these could provide our students with an alternate way to work and save their work. Right now, students cannot access their work from anywhere but the school. What I’d like to try is to have them work with an online desktop so that they can access their work from any computer. I’d also like to have them build up some RSS feeds and have a place to keep a calendar and other things. I figure that an online desktop would be the easy way to go. So, I’ve been looking at a few of them.

Desktoptwo - this desktop has all the things that I’ve been looking for in an online version. The nice thing is that students can save here, go home, download the work or, if they wish, work online. There is an RSS reader, notepad, calendar and many other utilities. It’s free and it looks like it could have some tools that students might be able to use for things unrelated to school. I’m going to be giving this one a complete workout because the others aren’t quite as developed.

eyeOS - I like this except it lacks productivity apps. The writer is okay but there is no spreadsheet. I like the games that come with it - better than solitaire! I’m getting pretty good at the tubing one! There is RSS and email.

Zimbra -This one I came across recently. It looks promising with it’s online/offline functions. I’m having a bit of trouble with the setup but once done, I’ll let you know how I like it.

Zoho - I like each of the apps. I’m waiting to use the desktop version. If it works as well as the apps, it will definitely give desktoptwo a run. I like their wiki page!

Google desktop - I’ve loaded it but it’s not what I was expecting. I haven’t tried any of the other Google productivity apps yet. I use Google Reader and have set up a Google page and I’m going to give Google Notebook a try.

What does this mean? Well, I’m going to be linking to the different blogs and using the different apps to see how they function in real time. So, if you see my blog with a link to another, it’s my way of trying out some of these different things. This link to my desktoptwo blog is my first attempt to use one of them. I wrote a little article to see how it worked.

Last week, we had a very hectic schedule at our school. Somewhere along the way we almost double-booked our Tuesday night with drama and parent-student-teacher conferences. At this point, I decided that we should move away from the classic form of letting each other know what was going on, which is to tell the secretary all the dates that things are happening, she puts them on her calendar and then the rest check. I suggested that we use pbwiki and our own site to publish all events in the school. I ended up with a bunch of backlash, people complaining of having to do “one-more-thing” and other such complaints. Now, usually I can handle this type of rebuff but for some reason that day I couldn’t. I like to know what is going on because it is important to me. I think that being able to see all the different things happening at the school is important to all the teachers. So I pouted.

Yes folks, I, as administrator felt sorry for myself and pouted. Now, it didn’t last too long and I got over things. Some other people suggested we try it but there was not a unanimous decision and it was dropped. So, today, I brought it up again only this time, instead of wording it as an option, I suggested that, for the sake of everyone in the school, all events are to be added to the calendar. The routine is to put it on the calendar and tell our secretary not necessarily
in that order. There has been a link icon made for the teacher’s desktop so all they have to do is click and go. Because we are using the pbwiki site, the calendar is also compatible with my ical so I have all the information from school on my personal calendar so that I can see what is happening and can quite triple booking myself.

As the educational leader in my school, I use concensus decision-making and, as a group, we tend to work towards doing the will of the group. However, when it comes to technology, we’re just not doing much. Now, I see the tremendous possibilities to using technology and am using pbwiki for my own class. As I grow more comfortable with the tool, I can see that it will provide valuable assistance to me and students in developing their ideas and looking at areas that they are interested in while still maintaining a curricular focus. The calendar function is very easy to use and really provides an awesome idea of
what is going on. I’ve had the staff wiki going for about 3 weeks and there are some who are checking out the calendar but it is not reaching its potential.
Today, as I skimmed over the various blogs, one that caught my eye was Bill MacKenty’s post on how to make technology work in education.  Bill listed three things that will create more use of technology.

The effective use of technology in education depends on three things:

1) The relationship of the teacher to the technology
2) Effective and real in-class support for technology use
3) Relevant and real connections between content and the technology.

Now, I’m not going to discuss the merits of the above. You can check out the post for that. What got me thinking about all this was Dean Shareski’s post his work with teachers and technology. I think what they are doing is tremendous but what really
caught my attention was this

It’s noteworthy that Ev, who is a teacher of 30 years is, retiring this year. She is doing so somewhat reluctantly because she is feeling like she is just on the verge of exploring a new way of teaching and learning for her students. She is a true learner.

How is it we have teachers in their 30 years that are willing to go and try and learn and, and yet we get young teachers, as indicated in Will Richardson’s blog about a conversation with some beginning teachers, that aren’t.  The part I like is

The general sense from the group was “yeah, but” once again. Yeah, but we have these kids who are going to abuse these technologies if we open them up. Yeah, but we’re going to be out there on our own if we decide to use these technologies. Yeah, but I don’t have enough time to make this a part of my own practice. Yeah, but, etc. (And please, if any of those in attendance are reading this, feel free to chime in.) At one point I said something along the lines of “you know, there’s a lot of pressure on you in my circles because many people think nothing is going to change until the old guard retires out and you guys take over.” Well, that didn’t float very well.

The comments that follow are worth the read as are the one’s that Dean pulls out. So, where does this leave us? Pouting!

Well, that is where it left me for awhile when I saw the resistance that people were having to this technology thing. I then started to think that we need to do what is best for the students. We need to make decisions, not on what is comfortable for us but what will be best for our students and their learning and their future. So, as Kimberly over at G-Town Talks has said

I’m completely exasperated by the collective resistance to change in every arena. Why is it so incredibly hard? Why are so many people completely comfortable residing in the status quo? I agree with Dan, the current teacher candidates probably became teachers because they’re comfortable in the system as it is. I should start trying to hire teachers who weren’t successful in school. I’ll add interview questions that ask, “what did you hate when you were in school and why?” “What do you want to do differently?” “What do you think and what are you curious about?”

I know our teacher candidates aren’t any farther ahead than we are–it takes curiosity, guts, and determination–and that’s available at any age.

Well, Dean is seeing this with his work. I, too, see that teachers will embrace the technologies but they want it to be something that will add to what they do and not require extra-ordinary amounts of time.

Well, pouting didn’t help. It didn’t look good either, my lip hangs down way too much. So, I decided that sometimes, as an educational leader, I need to take teachers
where they don’t necessarily want to go. We now are officially using the calendar. I’m tracking the number of people who visit to see how it is being used. Last week, I had an incentive for all staff - a draw for one person to receive $50 worth of classroom supplies and you had to have your page into me in one day. It worked, everyone entered. But that isn’t the answer:(

Are we stalled? How do we develop that critical mass in the face of all the testing and data-driven decision making models making the rounds (what alliteration!!! ) As administrators, what options do we have as we watch our teachers face the onslaught of testing? What chance do the newbies have when they are critiqued by how well students do on their test results?

By no means am I thinking that this will go away but, facing the changes that are taking place in society and the resistance to change we are experiencing in education, what is needed to spur things along? Many thought that the retiring of the old guard would do that. Indications are - NOT! So, that leaves us looking at ways to get more teachers to feel like Eva - on the edge of something great. Man, I wish the pouting had done it because that would have been so simple. Hey, it works for my 4 year old sometimes. But he’s cuter when he does it. Maybe we need to get Daniel Pink’s “A Whole New Mind” to become standard reading for all people involved in education so we can at least begin the conversation.

As I look forward to Easter Break, I know that I’ll be pondering this as I look towards next year, wondering what we need to do to increase the use of these tools. I’ll also be finishing a few books and doing some other things. But I know the week will pass quickly and when we return, staffing and school course selection will be hot topics. I thought March Madness was over Dave!

Today, as I was sifting through a landslide of RSS feeds, I was inspired/amazed by the number of enteries that were referring the the Kathy Sierra case and the stop  cyberbullying day. What has struck me about this really is that for the first time, we’re seeing a mass movement that is saying that this type of behaviour isn’t right, shoud not be tolerated and those who are doing it should be held accountable. I agree on all parts. But what will be done in this regard.
Some have suggested greater security of the internet while others have suggested that this may cause government legislation. The debate over free speech will continue as it always does as people continue to try to hide behind that idea in order to justify saying whatever they want.
However, for me, this is much larger. As this plays out in the public eye, the children are watching how the adults of the society are reacting to what is happening. For many adults, this is a non-issue since they have no idea what a blog is or what it can do. However, for the youth, they will follow what is happening because it is not by what we say but by what
we do that we pass on our values and understandings to the youth. They model what they see.
As educators, we know all too well that many of us began teaching, not as individuals with our own unique styles but as a teacher who had been molded by the impressions made upon us as we worked our way through school.
In almost a month, we will experience the one year mark of a student who committed suicide. I’m worried. The reactioins of the adults hasn’t shown them how to deal with such grief.
People want to tell them, but the examples just aren’t there.
Since then, we have organized a Community Care Council that is working with people trying to inform, educate and discuss how we can help to avoid such another tragedy after having 4in the last 9 years.
The students on our council have said loud and clear that they need the adults to lead
the way. If we want to really get to the root of some of our problems, then the adults have to be the ones that begin to solve their problems. If we want to erradicate bullying, then how parents act at sporting events
and with each other has to change. If we want to reduce the use of alcohol and drugs, well the adults have to lead, not just saying it’s not okay but showing that it’s not okay. If we want violence against women and childrent to end, then we have to do more than just speak against it. If we say that cyberbullying is bad, then there needs to be something to deter people. What? I have not clue but what boggles my mind is that adults can’t figure out why kids do things to other kids yet don’t see that many of them are doing exactly the same thing. So, if there is a drug or alcohol problem, the kids are telling us that the adults need to clean things up to be the examples for the kids.

As we draw closer to the day, I worry that the kids are going to follow the examples of the adults, which has to everything but look at themselves. Now, as an adult, I’ve talked with some of the kids and told them that I do accept a smal part of responsibility because I didn’t notice the signs and didn’t grab hold of the hints that were thrown my way. But, since then, I’ve done something about it in an effort to better prepare myself to help someone else. Many others have said that they don’t want such a tragedy to happen again, that this needs to stop. Yet, when we’ve had workshops or other things, our turnout has been poor. “It’s the schools job” is what I’ve heard. Well, my message is that it isn’t the school job. We have a responsibility but it is the job of the community to protect the children. People say they agree but…..
For the last year, I’ve been organizer of the council. This year I step aside. I believe in the idea but I’m realizing we can do a million things. Until the adults realize that it is their actions and not their words that the children are following, we’re skating uphill!

So, the stop cyberbullying day is great. It’s a step when adults begin to say that this is not allowed. But, the actions will speak in greater volumes than anything written. Will people begin to change how they treat one another online and off line? Will we see an increase in what is not allowed? Will free speech be matched with all the responsibilities that go with it? Will the cry of the people be for fairness? Will the children on the net see a change in the way that adults act and portray themselves.

Or, will this be another “Do as we say, not as we do” event. If so, then be prepared for such actions, not only to increase but to intensify. We’ve brought the problem into the light. How we handle it will, I believe, set the stage for future net interactions. Joining the cyberbullying group is great. But, in real terms, what will we do? What will you do?

Me, I’m inviting a speaker in to talk to the parents. The kids will do fine if we but show them the way. They want to see us “Walk the Talk”. How will you measure up?

I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues!

My reader’s overloaded, I just don’t know where to start.

Explode stats are sinking, goin’ through the floor.
My Technorati’s baslined, my clustrmap gone flat
Oh, I don’t know what to do ’cause
I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues.
Miguel’s at four a day, Stephen at 6 or more.
Scott’s new blog’s a hit and Kimberly is shinning bright.
Jan’s a selected principal and Darren’s hit the news.
But me, no where, not close, ’cause
I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues.
I’ve eight blogs in limbo, can’t find the words that fit

I’ve got a hollow in my stomach like a huge, dark pit.

My Super’s doin’ surveys, oh I don’t want to know.
Some days this seems so senseless ’cause

I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues.
Report cards are comin’,

can almost see their whites!

I know I’ll spend this week

with mostly sleepless nights.

Meetings, presentations; all this week do fall,

Sure don’t want to hit another wall ’cause
I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues.
My nano’s runnin’ low,

Friedmann’s lookin’ flat,

Pink’s New Mind is started,

But I’ve double read the intro!

Nothin’s goin’ right, all seems to be in knots ’cause
I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues.
Saw the green-eyed monster

rear it’s ugly head

as I watched each new blog

knowing that they will be read
but mine just won’t appear ’cause
I’ve been strugglin’ through the bloggin’ blues.

As a writer, I’ve usually been able to work through those times when things weren’t flowing. However, this past week, I’ve hit a new wall and I didn’t know what to do. For those of you who’ve been reading, you’ll have noticed that my blog production has dropped to almost non-existent and my topics seem to be all over the place. Well, they are because I’m going through a mid-principal crisis and I haven’t been able to put my thoughts in order. My “want to do” is really interfering with my “have to do” making it very difficult to get anything done. As a closet poet who should probably stay in the closet, I find that many times when I have an overload of things that are on my mind, I need to make my list, which you read above. Now, I’m also trying the “To Do” list thing but I still haven’t mastered it so I’m putting to paper what I’ve been wrestling with over the past two weeks or so.

Thinking about being a Principal?

What follows are some things that I’ve come to realize are what’s causing me so much angst. I start off with the “You too can work on this committee” problem and then provide a few advice points. Nothing magic - more a reflection for me.
For those who are just looking at moving into a principal position or who are just starting, a word of advice. Watch what you saddle yourself with because what might appear to be a simple committee may turn into something with a life of its own that uses your energy as its source of existence. You can identify such things by:

No apparent idea of the length that it will last.

No concrete mandate or guidelines.

It is the passion of someone else.
There are no specific outcomes identified at the outset.

For me, I decided that this was the year I take on two such projects. So, as this week begins, I see myself completely overwhelmed by what I need to do and perpare for the next four days. I have three presentations that are all bouncing around inside my head but have yet to see the dawn of the digital-day. I’m working on becoming a professional meeting person this week. I think this is my practicuum week! And… to add just a little more excitement, I’ve a parent who has begun to make me their pet improvement project. If only I could change a few of the ways I do things would be okay. Right now I have personal issues?!
Second point of advice. Be sure you select carefully those hills you will fight and die on. Not all of the things that come your way are worth the war. It took me a while to figure this one out. But after a while I began to see that if I fought for everything I thought was right, I wouldn’t have the energy or the suppport to do those things that were “essential” for students. Now, I’m much more selective. However, that doesn’t mean that I always choose correctly. In this case, I chose wrong and stood when I probably should have gone immediately into negotiations for an agreement that would have satisfied both parties. Now, the war has started. The parent, for all you who are new to this, will, and can, use any means necessary to obtain their goal. You, as administrator, will need to dig deep into your personal integrity bag to withstand the desire to also do whatever you feel is necessary. This is not about you winning anymore. You will need to decide what is best for the school and the students. My experience is that you need to demonstrate that whatever anyone says, you are a person who “walks the talk” and who has in mind the best interests of all students. Refuse to discuss the subject with anyone, except those in higher positions. Take care in what youd do and, after your initial reaction, which you alone will know, turn to getting on with the business of school. I’ve learned that to dwell on the negative really eats up so much energy that could be used for other things.
Third point of advice. Seek out the wisdom of others. Talk to other administrators or people that you trust. Much of what we do is personal relations. For me, that has not always been easy. I have a rare disease that sometimes inflicts me at the most inopportune moments. This disease, called FEETINMOUTH dementia is caused when I stick both my feet in my mouth and then, with not a leg to stand on, fall on my head causing the dementia which makes me keep opening my mouth and shoving more of my feet in. As time has passed, I’ve learned to stop before being struck with a bout of the disease which usually leads to months of rehab. Instead, I listen, nod and ask a question or two. I then explain that before I answer or say too much I’d like time to do some thinking. This allows me to seek the wisdom of others, work through things and formulate a response that will still have me standing at the end.
The last point. Learn to leave the work at work. I don’t know how many email stories I’ve read about this type of thing but it is an absolute requirement. To be your best, you cannot be obsessed. Things are important and sometimes you will need to work late nights and long hours. But not all the time and when you leave, let the problems remain in the halls. They will be there when you return. Again, it has taken me some time to do this, medication and therapy have helped too! It is something that I’ve worked on being a somewhat obsessive person. I’ve discovered that by leaving things at work, I can return to them with a fresh perspective and, most times, see a way to bring about the beginnings of a solution. With this is the understood idea that you can’t own all the problems of the school nor can you fix all them. You must work on what you can, influence what you can and point out what you can. However, there are things that were there before you began. In order for these to be corrected, the person involved needs to see there is a problem. That is part of what you do, helping others see where they can improve and providing the resources for them to do that. But, you cannot make them, just as I cannot get my son to eat green peas without threats of some sort. I’ll leave this one because dealing with a teacher who doesn’t want to change has caused many a tree to die and this post wasn’t to be this long anyway.
I am beginning my week with the realization that I have two very important meetings in two places at the same time. Why do I do this to myself??!! Like I said at the start - a mid-principal crisis!