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January 23, 2008

Prioritized spending

I just finished reading the article, Research Windows: The Two-Year Bump by Robert Kadel in the Dec-Jan issue of Learning and Leading with Technology, the magazine of ISTE. Kadel goes on to criticize the funding agenda and realities of the E2T2 provisions of NCLB. He describes how funding is generally used to purchase hardware and software in schools under the budgets of short-term grants. He goes on to question how this 2-year bump in tech spending really helps the schools, teachers and students.

The article is really focused on what research should be done to examine the effect of E2T2 spending and spending patterns. However, to my mind there is a much bigger question. Why do we in education still treat technology as a one-time expense? Why do we fund this with special, competitive grant money? Why does education regard technology as a "special" when every other business uses technology as the cornerstone of increased productivity?

If you leave your classroom and Windows 98 computers today, you might pick up dinner at McDonald's where the computerized cash register routes your order through the networked terminals at each station. Then stop off at Home Depot to have the computer mix paint for you. Is it any wonder that we often have trouble impressing our high schoolers that we know how to best prepare them for the future?

Posted by Pat on 11:17 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 1, 2007

Thinking about Web 2.0 Tools

The Sept./Oct. 2007 issue of the Educause Review has an interesting article called Wikis and Podcasts and Blogs! Oh, My! What Is a Faculty Member Supposed to Do? by Patricia McGee and Veronica Diaz. What particulary caught my eye was a chart which relates the new "web 2.0" applications to the kinds of work that goes on in every class, the function or purpose for the task and the tools to get the job done.

Web 2.0 Applications

from the article

Type	Function	Tools
Communicative	To share ideas, information, and creations	Blogs Audioblogs Videoblogs IM-type tools Podcasts Webcams
Collaborative	To work with others for a specific purpose in a shared work area	Editing/writing tools Virtual communities of practice (VCOPs) Wikis
Documentative	To collect and/or present evidence of experiences, thinking over time, productions, etc.	Blogs Videoblogs E-portfolios
Generative	To create something new that can be seen and/or used by others	Mashups VCOPs Virtual Learning Worlds (VLWs)
Interactive	To exchange information, ideas, resources, materials	Learning objectives Social bookmarking VCOPs VLWs

In working with schools and teachers, we get such a limited amount of time and so few opportunities to do professional development that we fall into the trap of talking about the tools and training on the skills for those skills. What we really need to do is to focus on the problem to be solved and then apply the appropriate tool. Of course, the ideal would then be to have the teachers be able to get support in using the software as they need it...

Posted by Pat on 2:40 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

July 3, 2007

IPod or No IPod?

The month of June brought two stories that are hard to hold in your head at the same time.

Schools banning iPods to beat cheaters

From eSchool News staff and wire service reports

June 1, 2007—

Banning baseball caps during tests was obvious--students were writing the answers under the brim. Then, schools started banning cell phones, realizing students could text-message the answers to each other. Now, schools across the country are targeting digital media players as a potential cheating device.

Devices such as iPods and Zunes can be hidden under clothing, with just an earbud and a wire snaking behind an ear and into a shirt collar to give them away, school officials say. ...

Prepare for the SAT Test, or Play With Your iPod? Have It Both Ways

By MARIA ASPAN

Published: June 25, 2007

High school students cramming for the SAT test have traditionally relied on thick books full of practice exams, sharpened No. 2 pencils and intensive tutoring sessions. But now a traditional test preparation company is offering some options for the iPod generation. ...

To me, all of this underlines the fact that we, as educators, really need to be doing things differently within our schools, while the rest of the world changes so much around us.

Posted by Pat on 11:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 26, 2007

Why is this so hard?

I finally had a chance to look at the Software Implementation Checklist for Educators from SIIA. This is a helpful document for making sure that new software is successfully integrated into the curriculum. Here are the 10 steps they recommend.

The following basic concepts underlie all effective software implementation:

1. You must have objectives before you plan.


2. You must plan before you implement.


3. You must involve all stakeholders in the planning process to some degree, and obtain their buy-in for performing their assigned responsibilities.


4. Your plan must include an evaluation component and criteria for determining success.


5. You must assign an effective leader, with appropriate decision-making authority, to manage the implementation.


6. The physical environment and equipment for the implementation must match the requirements for which the software was designed.


7. The staff involved in the implementation must receive adequate training in all aspects of the software’s use.


8. The end users of the software must have the prerequisite knowledge and skills specified for the product’s use.


9. The entire implementation must be monitored and the resulting issues resolved.


10. Each stage of implementation must be informed by the evaluation results from the previous stage.

Now, my question is why do we have to have these guidelines? Why isn't this common sense? And yet, you can find these kinds of well-thought out, formally published guidelines in every field. The report goes on to provide checklists and suggestions for making each of these steps happen, so it is very useful.

The problem I see very often is that we never even get to points 1 and 2. Of course, I've also heard that most people spend more time planning for their annual vacation than they do for retirement. But that's another topic for another blog!

Posted by Pat on 11:02 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack