Its been quite the hiatus. Its good to be back.....
So today we will discuss something that is rather subjective but requires consideration from all. I am talking about your etiquette on the net or NETiQUETTE. All the "rules," courtesies & policies of communication integrate with technology and electronic messaging to form your Digital Citizenship.
This article was quite engaging. It touched on 9 disciplines or aspects of your Digital Citizenship. Etiquette, Communication, Education, Access, Commerce, Responsibility, Rights, Safety and Security are all part of our electronic profile aka Digital Citizenship. Each of these disciplines has importance to teachers, administrators, parents and students alike. The later of course is typically the targeted or threatened party in web-browsing, access and communication. Ribble, Bailey and Ross use the article to deliver a streamlined dichotomy of inappropriate use/behavior versus strategies to counteract such inappropriateness.
As a TECH HEAD I resonated with the Communication (discipline) because through communication we can purchase, share information (public and private) and lose or maintain our safety. And Not only are we at risk in a potential austere environment but we are also modeling behavior (whether we realize it or not) for students and young people alike to mimic. This includes lapses in security or inadequate security measures.
As a PARENT I found agency in the ideals of the Responsibility and Safety disciplines. Both of which speak for themselves when you are a mother or father. The strategies identified to combat inappropriate behavior and actions are sound and rudimentary. They require few resources to implement and can flexible, based on the needs of your target population. With your child or children's safety in mind we should always consider whether our own actions are appropriate. Ask yourself am I being a responsible purchaser (of online products), am I protecting my personal information during the course of my online activities. The strategies listed can help you answer these questions and provide additional support, security and exemplified behavior to the web-browsing and communicating arena.
I recommend that you not -just take my word that this is a good article. I suggest you read it for yourself as the strategies alone are worth the 6 minutes it will take for you to peruse the entire article.
Bailey, D., Ribble, M. & Ross, T. (2004) Learning & Leading with Technology Volume 32 Number 1, ISTE: Eugene, OR
Monday, April 25, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
ViDEO MATTERS!!!
Talk about a WIN-WIN!!!
I was truly impressed with Janet Bremer and Marilyn Clark's efforts to engage students in both community service as well as technology. There are a lot of things to cheer about whether its getting the students to invest in their community through learning, creating a learning environment where technology can be meshed with ingenuity or incorporating other services such as the Art class that provided design covers. The fact that the students worked primarily on their own while developing professional grade products is rather astounding.
In my capacity as an officer in the US ARMY, I have had the opportunity to story board for products and briefs that were used during my time in Afghanistan. This perishable skill is something that many professionals covet and these young men and women are learning how to do this AND support their community at the same time!
Janet and Marilyn are also providing all of us educators with a model of collaboration that works. I am so tired of hearing about how teachers are getting the job done. Its so nice to read, see and feel that teachers can and DO get it done. Being a teacher is not just being someone who can interpret rubric in a particular curriculum. being a teacher is leading students and affording them the opportunity to excel in and out of the classroom. These two teachers are inspirations to me to do better, be better and look for collaboration opportunities within the community.
We can male a difference in both word and action. We can do this with or without support of administrations. And we can achieve, but only with the student in mind!
Bremer, J., & Clark, M. (2005). Filming Compassion. Learning & Leading with Technology, 39-41. ISTE: EUGENE, OR.
I was truly impressed with Janet Bremer and Marilyn Clark's efforts to engage students in both community service as well as technology. There are a lot of things to cheer about whether its getting the students to invest in their community through learning, creating a learning environment where technology can be meshed with ingenuity or incorporating other services such as the Art class that provided design covers. The fact that the students worked primarily on their own while developing professional grade products is rather astounding.
In my capacity as an officer in the US ARMY, I have had the opportunity to story board for products and briefs that were used during my time in Afghanistan. This perishable skill is something that many professionals covet and these young men and women are learning how to do this AND support their community at the same time!
Janet and Marilyn are also providing all of us educators with a model of collaboration that works. I am so tired of hearing about how teachers are getting the job done. Its so nice to read, see and feel that teachers can and DO get it done. Being a teacher is not just being someone who can interpret rubric in a particular curriculum. being a teacher is leading students and affording them the opportunity to excel in and out of the classroom. These two teachers are inspirations to me to do better, be better and look for collaboration opportunities within the community.
We can male a difference in both word and action. We can do this with or without support of administrations. And we can achieve, but only with the student in mind!
Bremer, J., & Clark, M. (2005). Filming Compassion. Learning & Leading with Technology, 39-41. ISTE: EUGENE, OR.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Suggestions, Comments and or Complaints....Redux
Okay, its week 4 now and I feel as though I have the "hang" of things with Blogging. I realize that Blogging isn’t just what you say but HOW you say it. Therefore, I have incorporated colors as a way to augment or enhance certain emotion and data (surrounding the emotion).
My intent is to give the reader what they need in a time that is convenient for them WITHOUT sacrificing the message or strength of message.
If anyone is willing to comment on my use of color in font or the color scheme in general I would be rather grateful....
LANCE-SANITY reigns...........
My intent is to give the reader what they need in a time that is convenient for them WITHOUT sacrificing the message or strength of message.
If anyone is willing to comment on my use of color in font or the color scheme in general I would be rather grateful....
LANCE-SANITY reigns...........
Computer SCIENCE needs OUR help!
My reading requirement this week took me to the article, "Computer Science Education Looking Back and Looking Ahead" by Chris Stephenson. In this Article Mr. Stephenson discusses many topics (in my opinion too much for the short length of the article) that include but are not limited to; Gender in Computer Science, Curriculum of Computer Science (hence forth C.S.), Origins of C.S., Teacher's Education in C.S. etc...It’s actually a little crowded in the article to really focus on one particular topic.
Now, having a Information Technology background and as recently as last semester enjoyed a JAVA programming course, I fully appreciated the data Mr. Stephenson provides in this article. However, if C.S. is not your first second third or fifteenth love, you may find this article a little drab. "Chris" even states a certain "drab doom and gloom" in the piece.
As a teacher I imagine that being able to articulate where a student can go in the industry can be quite beneficial to your education philosophy as well as your lesson planning. However, if you are not the most savvy of computer literate teachers this article may not be of grand interest to you. For the sake of Social Justice you may want to read about the current Gendering of C.S. to promote such opportunity to young ladies who have at the minimum an interest in C.S.
If you are to be entrusted with teaching a C.S. curriculum please read this article as it provides teachers with an almost "WARNING" of what's ahead of you in the realms of C.S. You will have to compete with a lack of resources such as hardware & software. You will have to foster an understanding of requirements for the administration as well as general education requirements versus Advanced Placement (AP) requirements. And you will have to compensate (somehow) for a lack of teacher development programs specific to C.S.
In summary, consider reading this article if you are looking to browse the possibility of a C.S. curriculum in your future or if you have students that aspire to go forth in the C.S. field. Take the article's gems of data and apply them accordingly; origination of programming and gender as a divisor in the field. In my opinion you can relate these two topics at the minimum to ANY curriculum you plan to implement.
This PSA has been brought to you by...."LANCE-TACULAR...dontcha just wanna TEACH EVERYONE" and "TEACH!!!!! Because we NEED YOU TO..."
Stephenson, C. (2002). Computer Science Education Looking Back Looking Ahead. Learning and Leading with Technology , 30 (2), 6-9, 44-45. ISTE: EUGENE, OR.
Now, having a Information Technology background and as recently as last semester enjoyed a JAVA programming course, I fully appreciated the data Mr. Stephenson provides in this article. However, if C.S. is not your first second third or fifteenth love, you may find this article a little drab. "Chris" even states a certain "drab doom and gloom" in the piece.
As a teacher I imagine that being able to articulate where a student can go in the industry can be quite beneficial to your education philosophy as well as your lesson planning. However, if you are not the most savvy of computer literate teachers this article may not be of grand interest to you. For the sake of Social Justice you may want to read about the current Gendering of C.S. to promote such opportunity to young ladies who have at the minimum an interest in C.S.
If you are to be entrusted with teaching a C.S. curriculum please read this article as it provides teachers with an almost "WARNING" of what's ahead of you in the realms of C.S. You will have to compete with a lack of resources such as hardware & software. You will have to foster an understanding of requirements for the administration as well as general education requirements versus Advanced Placement (AP) requirements. And you will have to compensate (somehow) for a lack of teacher development programs specific to C.S.
In summary, consider reading this article if you are looking to browse the possibility of a C.S. curriculum in your future or if you have students that aspire to go forth in the C.S. field. Take the article's gems of data and apply them accordingly; origination of programming and gender as a divisor in the field. In my opinion you can relate these two topics at the minimum to ANY curriculum you plan to implement.
This PSA has been brought to you by...."LANCE-TACULAR...dontcha just wanna TEACH EVERYONE" and "TEACH!!!!! Because we NEED YOU TO..."
Stephenson, C. (2002). Computer Science Education Looking Back Looking Ahead. Learning and Leading with Technology , 30 (2), 6-9, 44-45. ISTE: EUGENE, OR.
Monday, February 21, 2011
VIRTUAL FIELD TRiP (VTF)- CiRCA ROBOCOP 1987!
VTFs are here and you EDUCATORs need to take advantage of them!
First Question...What is a VTF??
Answer: VTF stands for VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP. VTF (interactive synchronous & asynchronous) is a tool (usually website) that utilizes text, audio or video resources to provide information about a specific topic.
Asynchronous VTF is similar to the tours you may see online when shopping for a home. You can walk into the house and pan X amount of degrees while you hear an audio narration of the particulars of the home.
The interactive synchronous VTF provides real time interaction with an expert or specialist on a particular topic of interest. Two way communications is the intent of such an apparatus. An example of this would be the cool CISCO commercials with the kids video conferencing from half way around the world some expert in his or her field.
Second Question....Why should I be interested in VTFs??
Answer: Virtual Field Trips are a pretty good idea when you consider some of the challenges we educators face now-a-days. The $$$ needed to sustain transportation prevent many students from visiting museums, parks and observatories. Many of these entities have the capacity to provide VTFs so why not engage them? Ultimately you are extending an opportunity to a student that has been compromised by budgets and distances beyond the capacity of your district or school board.
Third Question....Okay, I’m interested but how do I do this?
Answer: You will need some hardware and Bandwidth to support VTFs. These items may already be installed at your school site as many schools have adopted a standard that requires some type of long distance education. Speak with your IT dept to ascertain your capacities.
You are limited only by your imagination! Imagine being able to bring the museum or expert to your classroom for a question and answer session....No wait! You don’t have to imagine anything. YOU CAN BRING THEM TO YOUR CLASS VIA VTFs!!! Now, Go and do great things SUPER-DOOPER, TECHNICALLY SAVVY TEACHER!!
Zanetis, J. (2010, March/April). The beginner's guide to interactive virtual field trips. Learning and Leading with Technology, 10-23. ISTE: Eugene, OR.
First Question...What is a VTF??
Answer: VTF stands for VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP. VTF (interactive synchronous & asynchronous) is a tool (usually website) that utilizes text, audio or video resources to provide information about a specific topic.
Asynchronous VTF is similar to the tours you may see online when shopping for a home. You can walk into the house and pan X amount of degrees while you hear an audio narration of the particulars of the home.
The interactive synchronous VTF provides real time interaction with an expert or specialist on a particular topic of interest. Two way communications is the intent of such an apparatus. An example of this would be the cool CISCO commercials with the kids video conferencing from half way around the world some expert in his or her field.
Second Question....Why should I be interested in VTFs??
Answer: Virtual Field Trips are a pretty good idea when you consider some of the challenges we educators face now-a-days. The $$$ needed to sustain transportation prevent many students from visiting museums, parks and observatories. Many of these entities have the capacity to provide VTFs so why not engage them? Ultimately you are extending an opportunity to a student that has been compromised by budgets and distances beyond the capacity of your district or school board.
Third Question....Okay, I’m interested but how do I do this?
Answer: You will need some hardware and Bandwidth to support VTFs. These items may already be installed at your school site as many schools have adopted a standard that requires some type of long distance education. Speak with your IT dept to ascertain your capacities.
You are limited only by your imagination! Imagine being able to bring the museum or expert to your classroom for a question and answer session....No wait! You don’t have to imagine anything. YOU CAN BRING THEM TO YOUR CLASS VIA VTFs!!! Now, Go and do great things SUPER-DOOPER, TECHNICALLY SAVVY TEACHER!!
Zanetis, J. (2010, March/April). The beginner's guide to interactive virtual field trips. Learning and Leading with Technology, 10-23. ISTE: Eugene, OR.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Power = Peril 3.0 you have been warned educator!
Jason Ohler must be a fan of 2001 a space odyssey. I say this because I was put into such a frame of mind when I read his article "The Power and Peril of Web 3.0; Its more than just Semantics." I felt like at any moment HAL 9000 was going to ask me "what I was doing." This may be an acute sense of awareness aka paranoia but I believe this coincides with what Ohler discusses. The use of intelligent tagging for the purposes of quicker access to the infinite amount of data out there will cross the borders of personal and private. The concepts of intelligent & group tagging are pure genius but, I am a bit disturbed at the audacity of such networking. Not because it has been brought forth but because I know its already here. Privacy is a very sacred thing for me. I do not want to consider the indexes and indexes of products that are sent my way because they meet a certain set of criteria or match via intelligent tagging.
When we contemplate education and its processes the tagging insures that we have a considerable amount of information at our disposal. Of course the information and its retrieval will be the subject of inquiry. Will this be a super search engine that is "funded" by products much like the monster Google is today? Will the first 10,000 hits received be because of some type of monetary transaction behind the scenes? What kind of censorship and or standards will be available to children through such a medium? Who will determine the standards? Will they be specific to the US or will there be an international body governing this effort? I want my PLN (Personal Learning Network)!! As Dire Straits plays in the background)
The Personal Learning Network that Ohler discusses is a true treasure trove of opportunity for the learner. I can only imagine being able to receive not merely hits but pod casts, video feeds, charts & graphs or the latest headline news about subject "X." As a future educator i would salivate at giving my students keys to such a vehicle. But until we see some standardization, and some type of hierarchy of information dominance (presumably by educators) i shudder to consider such wide open access to my students. Ultimately it comes down to a question we are still asking even without the net, who determines what is valuable data or knowledge?
As an educator I would like to believe that I have a say in such an inquiry, but with Web 3.0 on its way there is no guarantee that this will be the case! After reading this article i know that i need to be an active member in technology and how it will be applied in the name of the student. Even if the effort is outside of my classroom, my attention is STILL required. I suggest to all my fellow educators to not watch this happen but to make Web 3.0 happen (for the student).
Ohler, J. (2010). The Power and Peril of Web 3.0 its more than just Semantics. Learning and Leading with Technology , 15-17.
When we contemplate education and its processes the tagging insures that we have a considerable amount of information at our disposal. Of course the information and its retrieval will be the subject of inquiry. Will this be a super search engine that is "funded" by products much like the monster Google is today? Will the first 10,000 hits received be because of some type of monetary transaction behind the scenes? What kind of censorship and or standards will be available to children through such a medium? Who will determine the standards? Will they be specific to the US or will there be an international body governing this effort? I want my PLN (Personal Learning Network)!! As Dire Straits plays in the background)
The Personal Learning Network that Ohler discusses is a true treasure trove of opportunity for the learner. I can only imagine being able to receive not merely hits but pod casts, video feeds, charts & graphs or the latest headline news about subject "X." As a future educator i would salivate at giving my students keys to such a vehicle. But until we see some standardization, and some type of hierarchy of information dominance (presumably by educators) i shudder to consider such wide open access to my students. Ultimately it comes down to a question we are still asking even without the net, who determines what is valuable data or knowledge?
As an educator I would like to believe that I have a say in such an inquiry, but with Web 3.0 on its way there is no guarantee that this will be the case! After reading this article i know that i need to be an active member in technology and how it will be applied in the name of the student. Even if the effort is outside of my classroom, my attention is STILL required. I suggest to all my fellow educators to not watch this happen but to make Web 3.0 happen (for the student).
Ohler, J. (2010). The Power and Peril of Web 3.0 its more than just Semantics. Learning and Leading with Technology , 15-17.
to the CLOUD.......Mr. Johnson says!
Wow, I have to admit I was genuinely impressed with this article. In my field of expertise, security is an absolute REQUIREMENT for any medium used to communicate or exchange ideas on. And because of this small (yes i am being facetious) concern, I have shied away from using the cloud. Doug however has challenged my held paradigm. And because of this I will attempt to migrate some of my work habits to "the silver lining." I can appreciate that Mr. Johnson provided the pros and cons to working within the cloud.
I already mentioned one of the cons (security) but I am also concerned with power and bandwidth issues. Power to the gateway that you are utilizing for Internet access and bandwidth being provided to the school. Bandwidth is not CHEAP especially when you are talking DS3s and not just T1 trunks. Ultimately its a numbers crunch for the bandwidth. This brings a unique twist to things.
Will the school have an on-site staff for IT issues much like you have facilities engineers for the maintenance of the school? Will the parents have to support the notebooks used? Will the child be able to take the notebooks home? The last questions are more policy related but must be addressed especially when you consider that all children don't learn the same.
I think the actions and ideas that Mr. Johnson discussed are quite relevant to everyday classroom use not only for the student and teacher but also the parent. Online grade books and posted rubric can be of great benefit. In fact as a parent to a middle school student, I utilize technology to determine how my child is progressing through her courses. As a teacher this would help me to stay on task as well as find a medium to work with parents in -that isn't subject to a schedule or distance.
Mr. Johnson's overall assessment has me leaning towards the cloud and its many possibly applications in the classroom. Of course this ties in nicely with the ISTE.NETS standards of Digital citizenship and Technology Operations and Concepts. The children can be engaged early and often on NET protocols, surfing policies and the use of multiple web based applications. And we as a nation will address the needs of the corporate mongers who profess the need for additional education, not to better the world but to pay homage to the almighty god....PROFIT!!
((Sorry, last statement is a little over the top. But i do feel quite passionate about educating for a better world not necessarily a more convenient one))
I already mentioned one of the cons (security) but I am also concerned with power and bandwidth issues. Power to the gateway that you are utilizing for Internet access and bandwidth being provided to the school. Bandwidth is not CHEAP especially when you are talking DS3s and not just T1 trunks. Ultimately its a numbers crunch for the bandwidth. This brings a unique twist to things.
Will the school have an on-site staff for IT issues much like you have facilities engineers for the maintenance of the school? Will the parents have to support the notebooks used? Will the child be able to take the notebooks home? The last questions are more policy related but must be addressed especially when you consider that all children don't learn the same.
I think the actions and ideas that Mr. Johnson discussed are quite relevant to everyday classroom use not only for the student and teacher but also the parent. Online grade books and posted rubric can be of great benefit. In fact as a parent to a middle school student, I utilize technology to determine how my child is progressing through her courses. As a teacher this would help me to stay on task as well as find a medium to work with parents in -that isn't subject to a schedule or distance.
Mr. Johnson's overall assessment has me leaning towards the cloud and its many possibly applications in the classroom. Of course this ties in nicely with the ISTE.NETS standards of Digital citizenship and Technology Operations and Concepts. The children can be engaged early and often on NET protocols, surfing policies and the use of multiple web based applications. And we as a nation will address the needs of the corporate mongers who profess the need for additional education, not to better the world but to pay homage to the almighty god....PROFIT!!
((Sorry, last statement is a little over the top. But i do feel quite passionate about educating for a better world not necessarily a more convenient one))
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