ConnectedTalk » learning

HOPE

rellis — Tue, 20 May 2008 17:35:52 +0000

Throughout the year I have worked with Ms. Stubits, and her third grade class. We have done a variety of projects throughout the year, but I must say I believe the one we are working on now will probably be the one the children remember most. Ms. Stubits has been sharing a story with her students, a friend of hers has a daughter who had been diagnosed with cancer in 2006, her name is Lily Oetjen and the students have been writing letters to Lily and following her treatment through a blog her mother keeps on CaringBridge. CaringBridge provides free, personalized websites that support and connect loved ones during critical illness, treatment and recovery.

As part of their social studies curriculum the children study government, citizenship, economics, manufacturing, products, and advertising. As a culminating activity they have to make and sell a product, identify their market, estimate quantities they may be able to sell advertise and determine a goal.

This year the children as a class decided they would make bracelets, HOPE bracelets to be exact, and the money they make will be donated to CaringBridge in Lily’s name. For the past several weeks they have been making bracelets, writing persuasive advertisements to post around school for their sale to classmates and the school community. Ms. Stubits has been able to create an environment in her classroom for students to truly tie the unit of study into something tangible in their lives. The conversations surrounding citizenship, being a good citizen in their community as well as their classroom and school helped lead them to doing something for someone else. They have worked hard, are very excited about the sale, feel good about helping someone else their own age that has had some difficult issues to deal with in her young life. I commend Ms. Stubits for involving her students in an effort to make a difference and think outside the box in terms of connecting government and economics for 8 year olds into an experience I believe they will remember for a long time to come.

We hope to be able to have Lily meet this group of third graders through a Skype video chat, Lily lives in Nebraska too far for a field trip from Pennsylvania, but through the use of so many collaborative technologies available today we believe we can make it happen. Visit the links above leave a message for Lily.

Participating in online communities

rellis — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 16:07:15 +0000

With the abundance of online communities and tools now available to all of us there has been a lot of conversation lately of how people use these tools, for what purpose. The conversations have mentioned the fact some are seen as using these tools for self promotion, followings, name recognition, which I admit I believe some people do, but this is no different than what happens in our day to day, face to face lives, is it? We all have the same ability online, as we do face to face, we may chose to ignore what we find offensive, or follow along, either way the choice remains with the individual.

I am, as Sue Waters used to describe herself, a reluctant blogger. I am not skilled in writing, and it is something that does not come easily to me. I feel blogging is a means of reflection, having an opportunity to talk out loud, and maybe have someone listen, and respond who is interested in the same topic, is experiencing something similar or have an opinion on. We are all attracted to content for varying reasons, we are all attracted to different writing styles as well. What matters is this, I have a mechanism to write, publish, and possibly engage in conversations that would not be available to me otherwise. In order for those opportunities to present themselves to me, I also understand I have to make the effort to do the same thing with others, to be a good virtual citizen as well. Making connections, participating in conversations, extending myself beyond my blog to cultivate relationships – just as I do in my life everyday.

I believe we all contribute, we all have a voice and we all make a difference, although not everyone’s contribution and or difference may not be evident through a blog or online. For me my contributions to the greater good may not be through this blog, but I feel my participation in OpenPD with Darren Draper, the presentations we have done together about our experiences in providing professional development in a way not possible before now, have been important, have made an impact on those who attended the classes and the presentations. I know too I make a difference in my district; I am able to learn from those in my network and in turn share that knowledge with those I interact with face-to-face everyday. My contributions may seem small to others, but it is relative, the contributions I make where I work may never be seen by others in the online world I participate in, but that doesn’t mean they do not exist, or I do not matter either. I believe the words on this image apply to all of us,”There are some things we cannot do on our own” and “a strong and cohesive sense of community is essential to expanding opportunity to all of us”, maybe EdubloggerCon in San Antonio will be a time for all of us to talk about our sense of community.

Flickr Image Source user opportunity agenda

Global Communities

rellis — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 01:05:00 +0000

The presentation to public and non public administrators yesterday went very well. Thank you to all who participated in the VoiceThread, it was one of the tools that provoked the most attention, especially after hearing what many of you had contributed to the conversation. The majority of people in both sessions were not aware of the ability for anyone to join online networks, (other than students) but then again many had not heard the term Web 2.0 or Read/Write web either, so we spent time talking about the evolution of the Internet over the past several years as well. From my experience I have found administrators are more comfortable talking about what they don’t know when in the company of their peers, more so than when in the company of their building faculty. Yesterday, there were many questions which were great.

I asked all who attended to be advocates for teachers in their buildings or districts, teachers who may come to them asking to use a tool an IT department may have blocked. I asked them all to believe in their staff, really to go to bat for them, because I know many classroom teachers do not feel as though they could ever “win” against IT. And rather than make the argument themselves, they give up at the first “access denied”. We need to have technology literate administrators, just as Karl Fisch and Terry Freedman blogged sometime last year about it is no longer ok to be a technologically illiterate teacher; I feel the same way about administrative staff as well. How are classroom teachers to move forward without support and understanding of what they are trying to accomplish from their building leaders? If the people in decision making positions are unaware of the tools and the possibilities those tools provide for students and learning then I’m afraid any significant change is light years away.

I hope to be able to have administrative staff development in my district this summer, and I hope as a result of yesterday’s sessions there may also be the possibility of offering something similar for all districts through the Intermediate Unit, as was done yesterday. I get impatient I know, thinking so many in people in leadership roles have no idea of the types of networks and collaborations we have at our fingertips. The resources we have available to one another and the sharing that takes place 24/6/365. I have to find a way to bring that awareness to my district.
Here is a link to a wiki I would like to use in the summer for any staff development I do on social networking, networked learning. Thanks to anyone who contributes.

Teacher as student, again

rellis — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:34:15 +0000

OpenPD is in its second offering, the course has been going very well, wonderful participation, all those attending engaged, tools working extremely well. We had an activity planned for this week as a review of what we had covered last week. The assignment was to create a Google presentation in groups; members of the groups would be mixed, face to face and virtual. All sounds good, right? Well it did turn out great; all groups were successful in creating their presentations and sharing them, working through editing. The downfall was the communication during the creation of the presentation. We decided to use Skype chat, all had Skype accounts, but not all were as familiar with group chats in Skype, myself included and I screwed up. I had difficulty adding people to the group chat, I didn’t have everyone’s contact information, and not all were logged on to Skype so when I tried adding them to the chat it didn’t work. I felt as I did the first night of class in the fall, clumsy with the tools, and rather than assist those in the class with what the assignment was I felt I had the reverse effect and proved to be a hindrance instead. I should have been better prepared, and I apologize for that, at the same time it was a true picture of what it is like for a teacher to be a student in their own class.

It has been suggested it may be in the best interest of my co teachers for me to step aside and let someone else take my place, someone savvier, and someone more literate with the tools. I know I don’t have a string of accomplishments associated with my name, not a blogger that is read or subscribed to, and not someone who falls into the category of any kind of name recognition in the world of education. I do believe strongly not all of us are made of that mold, but we all do contribute in our own way to challenge those we come in contact with to open their eyes to the possibilities we believe are relevant in the shifting landscape of education. I have felt being part of OpenPD has been a contribution I have been able to make, a time of collaborative learning for anyone interested. I have a lot to think about.

Feeling optimistic

rellis — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 01:10:40 +0000

The new administrators are settling into their positions in nicely. I have had a great deal of contact with all of them in the three weeks and I am happy to say I am optimistic with what I have seen and heard from them. One of the many committees in our district is our curriculum council; those looked upon as curriculum leaders in their buildings by grade level and content area. Our new administrators chair this council and we had our first meeting last Monday to give the members an idea of their vision and direction for the district. I lead two presentations with this group last year beginning the conversations of 21^st century skills for students and teachers, learning in virtual environments, trying to nudge those in the room toward thinking of adding new tools into their classroom practice. Our meeting last week continued to emphasize those conversations. Meeting started with Karl Fisch’s “What If” which lead into a discussion of ISTE’s revised NETS for students. The group then participated in a World Café model discussion of the standards.

First course – Identify the four most important educational technology standards for students and indicate why you have selected them. Share your ideas and write them down on the paper on your table. One person from the original group stays at the table to share the thoughts behind the choices, everyone else moves.

Second Course – What are the two standards you would want your own children to demonstrate and why? Write them down. This time a different person stays at the table to share conversations of the choices.

Third Course – Which standard is the most challenging to teach students in our particular district and why?

The results from the third course are:
Standard 5 – Digital Citizenship
Standard 4 – Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making

They were also asked to take the NETS back to their buildings and find out from their colleagues if these standards are represented in their curriculum. I am awaiting the responses to this activity. We will compile all the information, the goal being to have faculty identify where these standards are, or are not present, then use the information as the basis for the work of this council. Unfortunately I am pretty sure they will not find representation in the curriculum which will be ok, because now that everyone is aware of the new NETS for students, pointing out the lack evidence in the curriculum will hopefully bring conversations of 21^st century skills to the forefront. I know it is a round about way to get there, but I will take any help I can get.

rellis — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:15:45 +0000

Darren Draper’s blog post yesterday entitled Who’s Afraid of Digital Natives echoed some thoughts I have had myself about teaching, learning, education in general. I left a response over there, please go and take a look, here I have cross posted what I said there.
Darren, as we all know the future is now, the world has changed and it is not going back. We in education have to face the fact that it is not acceptable to teach the way we were taught. We are doing students a disservice in not using the tools they use in their daily lives, whether it is cell phone, iPod, MP3 player, digital camera, or online tools. We talk of modeling learning for students, the educational community needs to update their skills with the use of tools to engage students in their learning. I agree with you we do need to start thinking about what we do, and how we do it, and it will require time on everyone’s part. Yesterday Carolyn Foote was conducting a workshop and I had the pleasure of participating in a Skype call along with David Jakes, Patrick Higgins, and John Maklary. The conversation centered on connections, how we connect, the benefits of connecting with others outside of our own workplaces, and how the connections help us learn. The primary concern I hear most often from teachers, when introducing something new to use in instruction, is they have no time to learn about technology, it is still considered an add on by many, something else to teach.

David made a great point yesterday, he said we all have to make time to learn these new tools, take 15 minutes a day to focus on our own learning, over time it adds up. Those of us that understand the positive benefits of these educational technologies have taken the time to learn how to use them, taken time to understand their implication for use in teaching and learning. Yes, we are the ones who like technology, over the top to some, but we try, we make the effort, because we see the future, we know we have to do more to engage students. We are trying to make their learning relevant to their everyday lives, because the world has changed, and schools have to change as well.

Our students are connected all the time, I am sure they could explain the contributions they feel their connections bring to their lives and learning. So why not encourage their development, as you said, teach them responsible use, not ignore reality, its too easy to say no iPods or cell phones in school, students will use them to cheat. Instead when do we start to teach them to be good digital citizens, teach them ethical use of the tools? If we would only begin to imagine the possibilities.

When we fail students

rellis — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 01:17:00 +0000

Recently on twitter Konrad Glogowski posted this – When kids don’t do well we often think of what they must do to conform … not of what we’re not doing for them. Students are blamed for not wanting to learn, not caring about school, being lazy, these are the reasons they are not successful. I agree with Stephanie Sandifer, we must begin to look at our classroom practices, and begin conversations on how we can change those practices in order to help all students be successful and engaged in their education. Teaching the way we were taught is not acceptable, it just doesn’t get the job done today. I love what I do, I love being in the classroom with students working with them using whatever possible to engage them, trying all the time to help them find relevance in their learning, develop a love of learning. My own children are “grown up”, one has a master’s degree and is an elementary guidance counselor, the other a college senior. I look back at their education, especially high school, and while they received a good education, it could have been more. Maybe some of my thinking is shaped as a result of what I perceived they missed.
Most students move through school, graduate, go on to higher education, vocational school, or enter a trade. But for some the system fails and it is a life altering failure. Our son’s best friend dropped out of high school at the end of their 10th grade year. He failed his 10th grade year, he was one of those students who was labeled as lazy, one who did not care about school. He didn’t fail because he could not do the work, he failed because the work did not interest him. He was not engaged in his learning, did not see the purpose between what was being lectured to him and the world he lived in. He left school with parental permission to work in his family’s business, a business today that is no longer viable. At the age of 22 his future is uncertain, and he feels as though his options are limited. He spends a great deal of time with us, we consider him our third child, and I can tell you it is heartbreaking to see a young man whom you love, just getting by. He is at a time in his life when he should feel the world holds endless possibilities for his future, instead he feels he has few options. I think of him everyday when I am in the classroom working with students, hoping in some small way I can make a difference in the life of a child, hoping I can help one child avoid a future that is not filled with promise. I hear people everyday talk of students who are lazy, students who cannot learn, but I never hear anyone speak of what needs to change in their classroom practice to bridge the gap for those students who may not be the most interested in school. We all have to be reflective in our practice, when students fail we must look at what we have the ability to change, so it doesn’t happen again.

New tools passed along in rapid fire

rellis — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 01:16:50 +0000

Recently there has been a series of rapid fire introductions to new tools ustream.tv,
operator 11, google presentations all propelled to the forefront through the invisible connections of twitter and other social networking sites many are connected to as part of their learning communities. I have to say at times I feel overwhelmed with all of the discoveries passed on, trying to find the time to look, explore, evaluate, and understand the potential either for classroom use or as a suggestion for use in someone’s own professional development. I have to be cautious of what I pass along, classroom teachers may be likely to try one new thing in a year’s time so I can’t throw too many things at them and hope something sticks. I have to have a clear understanding of how the tools are being used by others in education, have examples to share and talk about. In all of the commotion of new tools I also have to deal with whether these new tools are accessible in my district. Not all are, filtering seems to work differently everywhere. I have to be mindful in this area as well, when something is blocked I have to try to figure out why, and before I ask to have anything unblocked I must try think through my reasons to ask for the filter to be lifted and the ramifications of having the status changed. At times I feel as though I am on a never ending road that twists and turns and sometimes I just wish for a flat stretch to get my own bearings before thinking about sharing one more new tool that has appeared and captured someone’s eye.

Update: How does anyone else do this, how do you decide what has merit to introduce as tools you feel has value, what process do you go through? I am looking for help, suggestions, models to follow, you see in my district I do not have anyone else to bounce these ideas off of and feel at times at a loss for what direction to take. Thanks for your help!

Open staff development – revisions

rellis — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 15:27:16 +0000

Well our first “open” professional staff development session of Social Software in the Classroom took place on Wednesday September 19, and everything that could have gone wrong did for Darren and I. It was an example of technology at its best and worst within the 3 hour time span. We thought we had prepared well, here were our thoughts, and by the way we had tried out the ustream.tv and yugma/skype ahead of time with several other people joining us! Remember, Darren is in Utah and I am PA, we planned on the audio/video stream so all could follow along with what we were doing and participate in conversations during class.

audio/video stream original idea, Darren started the stream, I could not connect, nor could anyone else
move to ustream.tv, seemed to work well, audio issues caused difficulties so everyone could not hear
switched to Yugma/Skype, worked but had people in different chats, we started in one skypechat room and had to move to another, confusing
Sue Waters came to our rescue and offered us a room in Elluminate which saved us, literally

Despite all of these hurdles, the evening demonstrated the extent people will go to help one another in this participatory culture. Once we were started in Elluminate we were able to show Karl Fisch’s video and have conversations about its content and the implications for teachers and students.

I have never taught an online course before so this was new to me, the idea of being able to share screens and talk to each other during our presentations was reassuring, knowing even though we would be roughly 2,000 miles apart we would still be able to see and hear each other, because of the difficulties we went through I learned quite a bit about how I teach. Darren and I worked together on Thursday, talking about the class and what we would change to make the rest of the sessions better. I also told him what I had been going through the night before, which I believe anyone who has ever taught will relate to. Sitting at home, computer connected, online through skype, the connection to Darren made, knowing he is starting, tells me to pick up the video stream, I try – nothing, no connection for me, the co teacher, panic! As the evening moved along, we were able to keep our audio connections, share screens, etc. and have our conversations. What struck me most was the realization of how much I depend on visual cues when I teach. Whether it is with another colleague, co teaching, or the visual cues from my students, I know how to pace the session depending on their non verbal feedback. All of a sudden I found myself with no visual or audio cues. Darren was having some technical issues with headsets in his lab, so when he was away from his computer, I was completely in the dark, with no one to look at or listen to in order to gauge what to do next. I was thinking to myself, do I go ahead and keep talking about how to navigate within wikispaces, how to edit? Knowing he was trying to troubleshoot, I didn’t want to ask any questions, he wasn’t close to his computer, do I ask a question and make him stop what he is doing to walk back to the computer, press the mic, answer me? Or do I wait patiently hoping he will resolve the issue at hand, come back and say we are ready to move ahead? My point being, if we had been in the same room, I would have known what to do, I could have read the faces of the others there, assessed what was going on and made a decision that would have kept the class moving while freeing my colleague to do what was necessary to get everyone in the same place. Something I learned about myself, something I had not thought of prior to this course or as part of teaching. We are looking forward to the rest of the sessions and hope any and all interested will join us at http://socialsoftware07.wikispaces.com Wednesday September 26 6:30PM Eastern Daylight Time.

Open staff development Social Software in the Classroom

rellis — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 01:25:42 +0000

I have an exciting opportunity beginning this week, I will be co-teaching an online web 2.o tools for the classroom course with Darren Draper. Darren will actually have some participants face to face with him in the Jordan School District in Sandy, Utah. I myself have encouraged and invited teachers in my area to sign up, and our participation will be virtual. A few weeks ago Darren blogged about his idea of open staff development. We talk of free open source applications, conducting staff development in the same way seems to be the direction to go. Our course is called Social Software in the Classroom. Here is what we are planning, please visit Darren’s blog for all of the details regarding the applications you will need to install to be ready to go.

Class begins Wednesday September 19 and meets every week for 5 weeks
Time – 6:30 to 9:15 PM Eastern Daylight Time. Click here for your time zone.
We will use our class wikis http://socialsoftware07.wikispaces.com and there will be QuickTime audio/video feed set up by the tech wizards who work with Darren. Please make sure you have the latest version installed, free download, just follow the link.
If you would like to join us please send me a message through skype, robin.ellis1, I will be moderating the skype chat and will need your contact information.

I believe we have a great deal to share, there are many online resources available to be used in classrooms with students, as well as for collaboration among teachers and district colleagues. Please join us, we look forward to meeting and working with you.

Additional information: if you would like to attend please visit the wiki to join the class. If you are only available for a few classes and are not looking for any kind of in service credit you do not have to attend all five sessions.
This course is being offered as a starting point for anyone interested in learning about web 2.0 applications and how they can be used in education. We also welcome all who may be interested, the more people we can share our information with the more we will all learn.