Reflections
photo credit: MumbleyJoe
So I've been preparing for both an upcoming day of in-service workshops with the teachers in my daughter's district and also my presentation for the MACUL conference.
The in-service is going to be two sessions, about three hours each, dealing with personal learning networks (PLN) and the usual web 2.0 stuff. I am very excited because I have been asking them about doing this for a couple of years now and I am finally getting the opportunity. I have planned a pretty open session as they are bringing their laptops and I plan on letting them play and hopefully ask a lot of questions!
As I have been planning these presentations I am continually amazed at the amount of information, tips, tricks, ideas, etc., that have come pouring from my own PLN. My Twitter, delicious, and Google Reader accounts have been invaluable resources in putting these presentations together.
The wikis that I have developed to support these presentations are chock full of links to places that I have come across thanks to my PLN. I was finally able to sift through and put to work all of those RSS feeds that I put a gold star next to. I was finally able to leverage my delicious links that I started collecting two years ago in anticipation of my impending district presentations.
Take a look at my PLN and my delicious links and hopefully you will be able to glean the same kinds of wonderful information, insight, and knowledge that has made my presentations all the better.
P.S. I will present links to my wikis after I have finished the final touches and presentations.
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Post Spring Break Hangover
OK, Spring Break is over and it's time to get back to work. I had a great time with my new nephews and their Mom and Dad. It's hard to beat family and food at the Hofbräuhaus. I had a good presentation today with my daughter's teachers. I presented quite a bit of information and it appeared to be well received. I can only hope that I'll be asked back to present again and continue to be able to share technology and Web 2.0 with the staff and maybe the district. It's late and I'm tired! Maybe tomorrow I will get to posting on some of the links that I've been accumulating.
Web 2.0 as a Communication Aid
Will, has a great take on using Web 2.0 to help aid communication in a school district.
I know it would require some front end loading, but if districts were using wikis to house curriculum and encouraging teachers to work off of them as they move through the year, noting, tweaking, fine tuning, reflecting, etc., it would be one way that they could begin to make good use of a Web 2.0 tool and make it easier to connect to what other folks are doing. Not to mention the growing of some very important local network connections (which then, of course, could be expanded out.) And the other piece, of course, is that it’s a “safe” way to get started at least in terms of not having to deal with student participation issues.
These are some of the same things that I have been trying to get going in my daughter's district. I guess I'll just keep on trying. One day at a time!
What does the Future Hold?
photo credit: Maze Walker
David Warlick, if your not reading his blog you should be, asked a couple of questions related to the future of education. For those who care (and for those who don't) here's what I had to say.
What does the future hold for education?
As the father of two young children, 3 and 6, this is an important question to me. I want my children to experience all of the positive things that await them in public education. Friends, field trips, sports, music, etc. I also want them to experience all of the things that some public schools have not embraced fully, blogs, wikis, social networking, etc. So I think that the future holds tremendous potential IF schools can get away from this mentality of test, test, test and toward one that embraces the social aspects of technology and all the promise that it holds.
What do schools and districts need to do to prepare for the future?
Schools need to embrace these social technologies from the top down. The districts need to include RSS feeds for their homepages that alert parents to snow days, upcoming events, vacations, etc. The district administrators need to embrace the potential of blogging to both their parents and staff. If the administration won't embrace these technologies, where's the hope for the teachers? There needs to be opportunities for teacher training. All this means is time for the teachers to learn and play with these new technologies. It doesn't have to be expensive either. With the new technologies and the number of conferences being streamed and archived and the accompanying wikis, etc. The information is out there, they just need time to find it and use it.
What will this future require of me?
I think the biggest hurdle will be getting teachers to change roles. They need to start moving from expert to tour guide. The information is out there, the teacher is no longer the only expert that these kids have access to. With the amount of information that is out there it should now be the teachers job to guide the students through the learning process, not just speak it at them.
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Recent Posts
- The Classroom Still Matters – Freakonomics Blog – NYTimes.com
- Public Financing Supports Growth of Online Charter Schools – NYTimes.com
- EducationNews.org – An Interview with Jamey Fitzpatrick: Michigan Virtual University
- Social Media Revolution 2 Refresh
- May Webinar Focuses on the National Educational Technology Plan
My Tweets
- Sept 16th Online Teaching Webinar, please join us! - http://goo.gl/n5Em 3 days ago
- @garystager I was not aware of my ability to pick out sarcasm in Twitter until your latest tweet... 4 days ago
- The Coolest & Hottest Wendy's Training Videos Ever http://bit.ly/9K6o9v 4 days ago
- RT @RobUsdin: Apparently today is 90210 day. Well whattaya know! 4 days ago
- Single Ladies http://snd.sc/adLCPM via @SoundCloud widget #unhearit Beyonce plus Andy Griffith? Genius! 5 days ago
What I’m Reading
- What I like about you: What teachers need from administrators (Day 2) September 7, 2010 dr.scott.mcleod@gmail.com (Scott McLeod)
- Street Gangs In Mexico City September 7, 2010 Larry Ferlazzo
- “America Out Of Work” September 7, 2010 Larry Ferlazzo
- “Assessing A Teacher’s Value” September 7, 2010 Larry Ferlazzo
- What Would Anne Frank Say About Anti-Muslim Sentiments? September 7, 2010 Larry Ferlazzo
- 10 Ways to Get Free Money & Classroom Supplies September 7, 2010 noreply@blogger.com (Mr. Byrne)
- First Day Of School Tomorrow… September 6, 2010 Larry Ferlazzo
- “Forget What You Know About Good Study Habits” September 6, 2010 Larry Ferlazzo
- Happy New Year September 6, 2010 Tim
- eL SIG Meeting Featuring Tom Nixon On Virtual High Schools September 6, 2010 mkbnl