Technology Counts 2006
Topic: Leadership Issues
Education Week released the 2006 Technology Counts report late last week. The title of this year's report is The Information Edge: Using Data to Accelerate Achievement. There are a couple of new features I found intriguing. An interactive map enables you to view state tech use grades in several categories, and it's now possible to construct a report that compares the states you select.

A bit after the fact...
Topic: Leadership Issues
Well, it's probably anticlimatic at this point, but I still want to post my two cents worth about the Oprah interview of Bill and Melinda Gates that was broadcast last month. I'm sure her heart is in the right place, but it was disappointing.

I was hoping for some serious discussion about the Silent Epidemic report funded by the Gates Foundation. It was mentioned, but there was no examination of the ramifications, not just for urban students, but for all U.S. students. Mostly the program was another expose on the disparities between urban and suburban schools.

Yes, addressing these inequities is important, but if all we do is clean up the physical environment and don't make systemic changes along with it, then urban kids won't be a whole lot better of, instructionally speaking.

I also wondered (again) why it is that program hosts and/or reporters think that quizzing people on the street about answers to a list of facts that have no context or meaning is a good measure of whether or not U.S. public schools are successful. This time the question was, "Name the first 5 presidents of the United States." Of course, only a student in China was shown being able to rattle off the names.

My question is, so what? Granted, I was a little taken aback that at least two interviewees thought that Abraham Lincoln was on the list, but aside from that, I repeat...so what? I sincerely hope that parroting back some memorized facts is NOT a good measure of what students know.

I think we need to ask better questions such as:

1. If (for some unimaginable reason) you needed to name the first 5 presidents of the U.S., and you didn't know, how would you find the information?
2. Identify the defining act or decision for each of the first five U.S. administrations. How do these continue to impact our nation today?

Okay...I'm over it.

The Silent Epidemic
Topic: Leadership Issues
I seldom watch daytime television, but I'm thinking about tuning into Oprah tomorrow afternoon. Bill and Melinda Gates are her guests, and they're going to be discussing the recent report, "The Silent Epidemic." This includes the poll of young adults who dropped out of high school. I think it may be worth checking out.

Podcasting Site
Topic: Emerging Technologies
Pete Resco sent out this link today. It leads you to a Web site created by teacher Shaun Else, who created it for a course. Loads of info here about education applications of podcasting and links to many examples as well.

I did listen to segments 2 and 3 of Denis Doyle's podcast series (link provided in an earlier post this week) on the ferry yesterday. The third segment was particularly interesting to me as the discussion focused on why public education needs to change.

Will get to the last segment, but probably not until tomorrow's ferry trip.

Are Kids Too Plugged In?
Topic: Leadership Issues
CNN provides a summary of the cover story of the latests issue of Time magazine which asks, Are kids too plugged in? The main question seems to be what impact is electronic multi-tasking having on our kids--how they learn, how they think, and how they interact with one another? An interesting read!

Podcast Series on National Education Technology Plan
Topic: Leadership Issues
Denis Doyle, Chief Academic Officer of SchoolNet is hosting a series of podcasts in which national experts are asked to share their ideas about how the National Education Technology Plan can be used to bring about much needed school reform. I've just downloaded them and know what I'll be listening to on the ferry later this week!

Audio File Experiment
Topic: Emerging Technologies
I'm playing around with a site I just found called Odeo. I was able to easily record a short audio clip and am now trying to figure out how to post something that provides access to that clip.

Here goes...

CUE Conference
Topic: Leadership Issues
Whew! A month has gone by without a single post. It's not that I haven't had anything to say...just haven't taken the time to come here and write. I suppose it's just another symptom of information overload.

Oh well.

I just spent a couple of days at the Computer Using Educators (CUE) Conference in Palm Springs. It's great to see that attendance at conferences is on the upswing again. What a good opportunity to hear new ideas, learn about successful models, and meet interesting folks who really want to make a difference.

The plane I took to my next meeting in Sacramento was loaded with people who had been at the conference. It was difficult to not overhear some of the conversations about the conference. One in particular summed things up for me. Two women were talking about their experience in Palm Springs. One of them said that she was really pleased that they'd had the opportunity to go together because she thought that they would be able to talk about their common experience and help one another implement some of the ideas they'd heard. She also said that the time spent at the conference had helped her develop a deeper appreciation for her colleague's dedication to the teaching profession.

Not bad for 2 days!

Another Example of Kids 'Busting' Themselves
Topic: Leadership Issues
The Grand Rapids Press published this article, Kids with booze busted by blogs, yesterday. Seems that a number of students were partying, took photos of themselves, and posted them on their blogs. Some of the students are involved in extracurricular activities that have a code of conduct that states they can be disciplined for this kind of activity, even when there is no connection to school. So...20 kids are facing suspension.

I know that many kids (and some adults) object to administrators monitoring student blogs. However, it seems to me that those students who have agreed to follow a set of rules in order to participate in a particular activity are the ones who bear the responsibility.

I doubt that before blogs these kids would have brought photos of this type to school. Why? They'd have known that there would be a problem if they were caught. So now, new rule: Don't post photos on the Web that will get you into trouble, Seems simple enough!!! I don't see how this is squelching creativity, as some adults have argued.

I am surprised (though I suppose I shouldn't be) that there are parents defending their kids right to break the agreement they made...

Experimenting with Writely
Topic: Emerging Technologies
I guess I've slipped into use of Web 2.0 without realizing it! I've had a growing interest in online communities and collaboration and the place of new tools including blogs, wikis, and online groups in education. This morning I was introduced to Writely. Currently available in a free beta version, this online word processor allows folks to work collaboratively on an online document. I haven't had the opportunity to look at all the features, but simultaneous editing is one, and posting from here to a blog is another, so I'm trying that out right now. (Didn't work. Need to find out more about remote posting.)

In the meeting I've been attending this morning, we started with a document created last night, and folks have been adding notes as we move along. I believe there's a way to track changes, but that hasn't been a need here, so I haven't looked into that yet.

What I am noticing is that the site has the look and feel of a word processor. One drawback I've found with wikis is that digital immigrants have issues with how text looks, as it's being entered. Writely may help with that issue.

More to come...