Goals-Building a pipline of sutdents who are prepared to enter the university with STEM degrees.

75% of AZ 275 physics teachers do not hav ea degre in phyxics. ASU physics classes for teachers is available.

Online engeneering textbooks–there are opportunities.

nsdl.org-great resource.Lots of their postings are on iTunes U is also excellent too.  courses are up from universities and there are lots of stem pieces there.

World of the future–transforming life–

demand for online learning.high school classes will be in an initiative.  in 21st century skills, the stuents need to learn

Partnership for 21st Centurry Skills -they have 6 skills and key elements we need to go. 21stCenturySkills.org.

Adaptive Curriculum presentation where we use online curriculum to enhance learning.

Based on “flash” activity objects.  objects can be manipulated and use problem-solving.  This is supplemental curriculum, supporting core content. Typically enhancing the most difficult concepts, an standards-based.

Teachers can use this as a teaching tool, as a closure tool, as an independent tool for students.

This software is excellent in fostering collaboration and learning, dynamic discussions and problem solving.  It will be available to the HS level this fall.  In our district we have been part of a pilot using this curriculum at the HS level in Math and Science, I believe.  The teachers all report that it is amazing, in that it enhances the teaching and learning moment.

The rest of the materials that accompany the system are amazing.  Not only are there printable work pages, there is also a variety of teaching strategies to help with implementation.

I am so excited about this session.  I respect Irma and am anxious to learn how to grow this in my district.  

What are our current issues:

She started with a poll from Polleverywhere.com.  What is your biggest professional development challenge?

Showing a publication  called”  Professional Learning in the Learning Profession–a report.  we do great with the one shot workshop, but we fail at the sustainable learning.

Another publication:  Grow you Personal Learning Network. Leadership and Learning magazine.

Allows educators to prticia\pate in formal and informal modes of pd

teachers assume greater responsibility foro their guided PD

As a professional developer:
Create a professional learning network

Formal pds and informal pd otpportunities offered through ideal.

Webinar solutions:

wimba

dimdim

eluminate

Using the tools, we could try to create even a static presentation and upload it to iTunes U and then using the google chat feature conduct a synchronous session.

Showing IDEAL and the opportunities there for Personal Learning Professional Growth and Learning. 

In Discovery Streaming, there are ASCD Videos in there for all sorts of topics.  Idea:  Show a movie and then post a discussion forum for the community of practice.

Collaboration Tools:

Interest Groups-you can use these groups to increase group collaboration.

Then also Google Apps for Education.

Personalized Start page in IDEAL Google Apps, lets you create your page.  

Google Sites:

this is a quick way to build a webpage that houses al of your resources.  You can use this google sites to create  a workspace.  

iE.  Make a math site, add a calendar, recent announcements, recent files, sites block.  

In IDEAL go to >Collaboration Apps

>Sites, 

>Search Sample Learning Network

NSDC.org,

I am attempting to live blog this, but I am rusty.  

Search:

Link:

• whos linked to that site

Related:

• find out what sites are related to the site

Define:

• Youll get the definition

allintitle:

• restricts a search so that all the keywords must appear in the title.

allinurl:

inurl:

Use the Advanced Search in Google–using series of words.  Using quoates, get something specific.

PDFs, PPTs, DOC, type:  exmple:  21st century learning filetype:pdf

Scholarly searches:  filetypes:pdf site:edu

The tilda:   ~   means an educational webpage.

<Here he is talking about lots of different types of searches.>

Have you checked the : “more” button on the front of the google Site?  

There is even an “even more” button.  

He talks about 80 things you can do with Google.  

Talking about the Google Apps Education edition.  Talks about the power of collaboration and this groups.

howie@frontier.net–share your story with him.

He is talking about blogs in the classroom.  <I want our teachers to send him our blog and podcasting pages to him to see what we are doing!>  

He will share his presentation that has links etc.  Talking about doing blog searches.  search using the two letter coutry codes to see multiple perspectives of a topic.

So many things in Google, that are tools FREE available.  I believe this is building everyday!

How do we unblock things in our schools?  communicate and collaborate together to decide what you need, what projects you will be doing, and what sites you need to be unlocked. 

Search engions have “bots” that go out to your sites.

Directories have categories.  this may be easier.

sketchup. gooogle.com/download.  This is a free tool.  It is a fun tool.

Google Language Tools:  less than good.

Google Groups–you can form your own groups.  

Google Moon.  google.com/moon, google.com/mars

Google.com/sky

Anyway, many different things you can use in the classroom.

Drhowie.com

Go there to see all of the classes he teachers, and download his handouts.

My work with the AZ K 12 Center, helped open those doors, last summer when one of my participants in my Digital Storytelling Workshop at the Tech Camp that I was teaching happened to be a 7th grade teacher from my district.  We had never met before but her principal had paid for her to attend this excellent technology camp which I will write about in my next post.  At that time, I remember her writing a reflection saying she was going to use Digital Storytelling in her classroom during her Immigration Unit. 

Sure enough I got a call from her, in mid-first semester, saying she was ready to plan the unit!  This teacher is Jill Kratzke, and she is, I found out later, just a 2nd year teacher.  This was a surprise to me because of her willingness to jump in and take the risk, plan and implement this project.  She was welcoming and invited me to co-teach with her, and what a gift that was to me.

I appreciate her for inviting me in and letting me participate in this project from start to finish.  Here is a link to the project.

I sent this project to my twitter network when we were finished, and then I decided to send it to Wesley Fryer, knowing he is especially interested in Digital Storytelling.  He sent me such a nice note and then posted a note to the ISTEConnects blog.  How nice! 

I am very excited about this project.  Currently I am working with a small group of  6th grade special education students in Jill’s school(Desert Arroryo Middle School).  Additionally, I am teaching the process to a group of five teachers at an elementary school, Desert Willow Elementary School in our district.  This is an interesting school, because it is a Spanish Immersion Program, where students are learning Spanish during their Social Studies classes.  One of the 4th grade teachers in that building Kira Dubin just won a competitive statewide grant to do Digital Storytelling in her class, and she received 17 netbooks, among other things…..This has implications across the board for every student and every learner. 

I am so fortunate to be invited in and help facilitate.  That is the best and morst rewarding part of my job.

This was a little class I was in during the MEC conference.  It was a good little class about how to recreate your online coursework.  The big take away was make things modular, so that you can pick and choose your content, based on the needs of the students. 

Good plan.

Below are the live blog notes–Like I said–It was a short class! 

program

brainstorm

standards

modular

Create modules of sections of courses…keep it modular so that all stdents get the same Material, but each teacher teaches their order and manner they choose.

This will not work on classes that you are scaffolding and building background.

Decisions:

length of class, standards to complete, how funded, type of class, who would attend, where do we place it?  How long to plan for it –1 to 3 years….?

Stadards,

Ask wat is the top priority?

Brainstorm?  What do you have, what do you need?

Common Syllabus….

STandard testing?

The presenter is extremely organized and asks her teachers to be organized.

My ig take away, is modules!

Referenced the book:  Distrupting Class

Making the point of when the transistor radio came out way back when.  They saw a market, and the music, the industry changed — now the people were buying radios who were not buying large ones.

Same thing for Online Education….

At first, it was not very successful:  used for those who needed credit recovery, bad completion rate, etc.

Now we know more about how technology interfaces with students……

Now–How to motivate students using Technology…..

Number one motivation is their interaction with teachers……this holds true with online. That’s why the shells, and the online purchased curriculum is not that great.

Keller’s ARCS Method

• Attention
• Relevance (related to expectancy)
• Confidence
• Satisfaction

This did not work for students—over all…..

then the other model was based on the research of Rheinberg, Vollmeyer, and Rollet

Three expectancies: consider….

What constitutes Success

Degree of responsibility and freedom

Learned approach and can be modified.

Basic to relevant education

How to diagnose

1.  AOE-Action Outcome Expectancy

• These students take responsibility for their learning
• Will not tolerate busy work
• Learning must have relevant goals
• Grades are not a motivator

<So these students are interested in learning for learning sake……>

2.  Outcome Consequence Expectancy-People-Oriented Students

• lets teachers or others set agenda
• highly motivated by grades
• takes responsibility for personal performance…..

<These stuents are still low in numbers….>

3.  SOE-Situation Outcome Expectancy-Comfort-Oriented Students

• Total responsibilit for learning is gien to others
• Will do only what is the minimum to survieve
• Seldom follows set agendas

How do you deal with each type of student:

AOE

Technology assists:  Immediate fedbace, brancing, authentic projects, higher order discussions

Teacher approach-Coaching (+ and – feedback)

Instruction Design:  ARCS

OCE

Tech Assists:  Immediate feedback, ineractive tasks, synchronous conferencing, threaded discussions

Teacher Approach:  Cheerleading (+feedback)

Instruction Design:  ARCS

SOE

Technology Assists:  Immediate feeback, levels of progress, rich visual environment wi/o distraction.

Teacher Approach:  Coaxing( 0 feedback)

Instructional Desigh:  Video Game Format……(need to establish relavence)

Volitional Snags:

• Serendipity Effect (unplanned)
• Distracters (planned)
• Dependence (waiting to do something until told to do it)
• Text-based ennui (boredom)
• ADD/ADHD syndrome

Astleitner’s Checklist

13 things that you need to design a good online class:

1. reflective learning
2. cognitive motivational emotional learning
3. considers strenghs of students
4. knowledge acquired and applied in various contexts
5. basics and higher order thinking..

Applications for the 21st Century

• We need a branched approach where we build on their strengths and needs
• Personalized programs-based on needs of the students
• Human-Technology Interface
• Disruptive Innovation-it might get messy but that is a good thing
• Life-Long Education-we want to help students be life long learners…we want them to value education
• Economics

Good discusson about their school–Premavera Learning: American Virtual Academy.

Schedules of when the teachers will be online.
They publish this for the students, so that they get the support “online” when they need them.. Do not use webcams at al, but they use the white board sessions with “adobe connect” where they share desktops.  They don’t expect that ll of the students are online at the same.  They will be able soon do IMing to their teacher.

Assessment:  Standard MC, Projects, threaded discussions.  all of these are the ways they are assessed.  Eachlesson they do get assessed and then they can get retaught if hey don’t do well.  They then do get mid-terms, etc.

Student/TEacher interaction is 2-3 times more than that of regular teaching.

How do you diagnose the expectancy levels?  Ask”what do you want out of this course?”

He had music on when we walked in. the Music sets the mood…..in K 12 environments, it works….do we remember when we took classes in college?  Can you set the moood ther?

How do you set the mood in an online course?

PASSION-a word on the screen—-the most important thing a teacher to have…..passion.

Today, passion –how do you transfer your passion into the digital environment?

In 1999-75 colleges wre using online learning.  Tod Conaway, went to Walden University (online)

Most models follow the structure of text based info, then forums.

Let’s agree”

• The instructions personality impacts student learning
• There is more that is learned in a class than “the content”
• Online instruction makes a “personality” difficult to develop or create.

Online instruction is important to create the environment that we learn in..

• we need ambiance–what does it look like in a face to face classroom, what does it look like  “online”?
• How is it created?  art, sounds, the tome, the istructor’s personality
• Does it impact student learning?

Role of the online instrucion:

• pedagogical role
• social role
• managerial role
• technical role

So the closer you get to someone the more you learn–the more open you are to the learning environment. This is true in the F2F classroom….how true in the Online class.

Online Ambiance:  Banner, background,

What does the role of the instructor play:  How does he instructor put this all on line?

There is more to the LCMsystem than the system.

• You can bring “in” all of the things you want to use for collaborating,
• If you deliver your content within a website, you can do HTML easily
• Roles of the instructor
• Web 2.0 is a great place and great ways to bring in content

The way that you are present in your courses is important.

You want to give them students your passion and enthusiasm…..

• you should put a video, lots of pictures, knowing they will go and Google you.

<great discussion about what should a teacher/online instructor put on line…..I really believe that we need to reach out to our students and risk and offer to them a bit of ourselves.>

Examples:  online weekly videos about what the week’s learning willl be.  A video series from one HS social studies teacher in costume taking on personnae of hisorical figures.

<tegrity-lecture capture program……>

Using video to introduce online classes, is a great way to do this–using Camtasia.

Free programs:  jing.com, Screencast.com, Audacity, dimdim, skype, ning,picassa

connections with students……your personality can be so much more…..

So, this is excellent, and was very good.

Now he is an instructional designer, to help teachers

6 Trends in Educational Technology

Cathy Poplin, Deputy Superintendent of Department of Education in Educational Technology, is talking about the trends in Educational Technology.

Below are the notes(Live blogged) for this session.  I  will say that it was interesting and informative.  Good to have the data,  and the information as we move forward in these times of no money.  I feel very validated and confident that we in Cave Creek are maximizing our technology use in many areas, and we are continuing to push forward.  I look forward to our piece of the Ed Tech pie………)

1.  Large scale 1-1 impleentations are still alive and well.

• the implementation plan is important–
• the mobil cart is not what they are talking about
• many districts are continuing down this road
• the ELTF (eLearning Task Force) — one to one learning is what they are looking at — to look for funding –they feel this is key2

.2..Learning Management Systems

• Back board
• Propriatory systems are opening up now, and letting people put in there own content.
• Open source ones are maturing…….
• It takes alot to manage this
• Blended learning is powerful.  IDEAL in Arizona has SAKAI is a LMS within IDEAL and it is wonderful and free within the IDEAL network

3.  Online assessiments

• immediate feedback
• record keeping
• formative assessment
• IDEAL has formative assessments-in the form of Multiple choice to print off.
• In an item bank
• By July, there will be single signon for students, and students will be able to have online assessments for students

4.  Mobile student computing

• all kids have cel phones — texting is alive and well…….
• they are using mobil computing
• in grade 9 nearly 70 %have phones,
• 80% has Mp3
• Kindergartners too, over 40 % of kids have these mobile devices too.

5.  Interactive White Boards-

• This is a huge push
• in IDEAL there are many resources
• Content will begin to explode in a few years….

6.  Internet Bandwidth Crisis

• Big broadband issue–not enough
• ELTF has looked closely at broadband in ARizona
• E-Rate task force is also being looked at.
• Behind the scenes there is much happening..

From the Speak Up data, there was much to be interested in:

What do kds use out of the classroom?

Gaming, downloading music, social networking,, communications.  

In many places these are blocked in districted and agencies.  We need new policies so that these are available.

Schoolwork?

writing, online research, creating slideshows, videos, webpages, IM with classmates, online research.  

#1 trend for students:  our students are becoming Free Agent Learners

ONLINE LEARNING:self-directed learning, un-tethered to traditional school, expert at personal data aggregation

MOBIL DEVICES:Power of connections, creating new communities, not tethered to physical network

BAMING, MULITIMEDIA CONTENT:Experiential learning – make it real, content developers, process as important as knowledge gained.

Teacher Trends:

Online Learning is increasing…30 % prefer it 

• scheduling
• pacing
• time
• consider IDEAL coursens

33% have explored incorporating online learning in class

in IDEAL July 1 students can come on line, and teachers can do blended learing

Virtual learning too.

The National trend is up

ADE will be offering a Pilot for AP courses especially 

Online learning is growing 30 % annually,  2000-40000 enrollment, in 2006-700,000 enrollment.  

The course was unavailable is the numer 1 reason the person took the course. 

Our terrible trend in Arizona is that our funding has been cut by half…..we needed benchmark and accountability

The annual report, Arioana gets a D- for access to technology.  Our use is good, and we are maximizing our technology that we do have…

Federal stimulus–12,400 million for EETT.

We will get double the usual amount–create 21st century classrooms.  Laptops, whiteboards.

IDEAL

ATTAIN:  Achievement through Technology and Innovation:  Emphasises models that work.  Pd, and research model.

New Ed tEch Standards and Tech Plan

Statewide Instructional Technology (SIT) Project

I have to say I am proud of many of the accomplishments of some of our teachers who are working so hard to do more, be more, and reach harder and deeper into the lives of the students they teach to make an impact.  Those are the teachers I want to be like and strive to be like.  Teachers like Dawn Olson, who is an unwavering support of the district and her school, while supporting her teachers at the building at which she teachers 2nd grade.   Immersed in the everyday act, art and science of teaching, she reaches in and truly knows each of her students and teaches to their strengths.  Through the use of technology integration, seemlessly she engages them into the everyday fabric of school and the important outcomes she must see them achieve.  

But Dawn is not alone in this endeavor.  She has colleagues within the district who risk and reach every day to engage their learners as she does.  Heidi Befort, Marie Frantz, Jill Kratzke, Geoff Johnson, Dominique Flamm, Jeanne Damman the entire language department at the highschool.  All of these folks are reaching and engaging where there is little technology to go on, but a dream of something more.  

In each school there are pockets of learners who benefit from those teachers who just won’t stand for the same ol’ thing.  They dig and search and collaborate and communicate on behalf of their students in order to engage and teach, and facilitate and help them grow to new heights.  These are the teachers I look up to.  I appreciate all that I have had the opportunity to enjoy in terms of the collaboration and kindness, invitation and hope for our students so far this year.  I know that this is only the first half of an amazing year of hard work and growth for so many.  

Thanks to all of the teachers of Cave Creek who have worked along side me and invited me into their classrooms and been so kind to me as we travel along this journey together on behalf of our students.  Hopefully we will have a chance to see some funding across the district from an election that will benefit our students’ learning and growth.  

We need to continue to look forward and grow and push and teach our students how to be global citizens.  They are not going to learn this on their own.  We need to prepare them for their future.  It is up to us and that means teaching with the tools that they use and are accustomed to.  Sure it is a shift.  Sure it is uncomfortable.  For us.  Not them. The students are using all sorts of technology and web applications and software that are catapulting them into the 21st century.  We need to be very careful about how we take our next steps….

We need to be part of the answer.  Part of the solution.  Part of the vision.  

Well, anyway, this semester got away from me here in this blog, but I will try to come back.  I have been itching to write, but not having an avenue–I have been thinking too big.  I’ll start here.  I’ll get back to business.  Over break will be a good time.  Good time to refresh and breathe.  

So here’s to breathing!  Happy Holidays.  I will be back real soon!  I have lots to tell you about what I’ve been up to these past months.  Very interesting stuff, and good too!  As a learner and a teacher.  I’ll write soon………

This is a wordle, from the site wordle.net.

But the beauty of a blog like this is that I can stop for a minute and reflect, and help myself and my team prepare to focus on the tasks at hand as we move into what looks to be an incredibly busy and interesting year. 

Here in my district we have lots of technology integration across the spectrum.  Many many teachers are working hard to engage their learners in a variety of ways.  With a new set of principals, (we have new principals at every level) we have an opportunity to move the district even further into the 21st century.  These educational leaders come to us with new experiences and ideas as well as insight as to what other districts are doing.  So we have new people in key roles across the district, ready to support and model technology integration in smart and interesting ways.  I feel the stage is set, unlike it has been set before, for an increased shift and step across the line from the teaching to the learning. 

My Technology Cadre, the Professional Development Team that I have the priveledge of working with made up of two teachers from each school, is poised to move their practice more into the coaching role and step up to an even heavier leadership role in the area of mentoring for technology integration.  Some of our schools even have excellent incentive plans in place working with the PTOs to highlight teachers and teams that are working hard to engage students using 21st century tools.  That is the doing of our Cadre members and their out of the box thinking.

This year is shaping up to be one of innovation and motivation all across the district.  I personally have been in the classrooms of 11th graders teaching Audacity, and also in an 8th grade classroom teaching Digital Storytelling.  I have other mentoring and modeling scheduled all across the district.  We have the iPods in the Classroom project ongoing, and ready for a new round of 70 more teachers to participate.  We have semi-flat classroom projects in the works, and also a professional development brochure almost ready to be published to offer onging systematic professional development to teachers who want to earn hours and learn some excellent techniques along the way.

When I began this position in this district two years ago, I had a vision of how I saw things going.  Of course coming out of the classroom straight to a district level position, I had a major learning curve.  Along the way there are several things that I learned and continue to rely on as I move forward in this role as Technology and Instruction Specialist:

Absolutely keep Student Achievement and Student Learning as the baseline in any decision we make.
Relationship-Building is the most important first step in any new job, area, project, etc.
Listening to needs is key to understanding how to support teachers.
Finding early adoptors is a wonderful thing.  They are great to help with momentum, and evangelizing for the new learning and techniques.
Planning for implementation needs to be inclusive-meaning that we need to involve teachers, administrators and appropriate district personal in the decision-making.
Collaboration with others is key to facilitating out-of-the-box thinking.
Things take time–but never give up the creative thinking.
Teachers, Administrators, and District Office Personnel all want the same thing-What’s Best for Students–And every conversation needs to be based on that.

Finally, We cannot afford to teach the way we have been taught.  WE have to innovate our practice, to teach creativity, problem solving, and global critical thinking.  But we have to model this in professional development.

I am proud of the way my Cadre, and district has moved along in the pursuit of engagement and student achievement with 21st century skills.  As we move forward this year, modeling, implementing, evangelizing, and collaborating, we will move our students forward and better prepare them for their world.  I am so excited for this year, and all of our opportunities out there.  I am thankful for the risktakers that have embraced me and some innovations so far, and am hopeful that more will follow suit! 

Here we go!!!

Title of this is :  From Personal Knowledge to Global Contribution:  He is broadcasting this live over UStream.  Changing our concept of school.  He is warning us that his perspective is very different.  He is wanting to really challenge our thinking and about school.  Acknowledging AZ K 12 Center for honoring the work teachers do.  

He is talking about the Phantom Tollbooth–quoting from the book.  His point is that when we get older our perspective tends to get stuck.  He thinks that perspective is everything.  He wants us to step outside of our professional practice from different angles.  Analyze it differently.  Reconsider what we do with children.

Ask:  Is it our most powerful work?  If not, what is keeping it from our most powerful work?  How can we make it our most powerful work? 

He is talking about his family-his grandfather and grandmother.  Taking us on a tour through Google Earth, of his home town.  That many businesses are closed.  That his home town has the highest crime rate, highest rate of men incarcerated.  What was once a wonderful place is now the worst place. How did this happen?  

Outsourceing-jobs began getting outsourcing.  Quoating Daniel Pink’s book, about the left brain people (NCLB) is just as important, but it is no longer sufficient.  

The nature of work has changed. So much more outsourcing.  Radiologists.  33% of our workforce work as indipendant contractors.  How does this impact schools?  24% of the work force are the working poor.  They acrue debt, not savings.

If we are going to survive, we have to be creative.  Talking about the creative guy who provided computers for a school, and they all work together to help cancer research, by using the computes at night, linking the “brain Power” of the computers he supplied to the school to further scientific research.  So by day the computers were used by the students.  By night they were a huge force and powerful brain for the scientists.  Thinking outside the box.

So really Dr. Tyson is trying to make the point about the creative brains that are in our classrooms.  We have got to tap into the students and their creativity.  We have got to really enhance and honor our students and respect the fact that they are creative and help to create this type of child. Dr. Tyson says there is a whole lot more to life than to teach them the same type of things.  Let’s focus on rules, rituals, routines–but let’s get creative.

He is talking now about his grandmothre, Ruth Tyson.  And also John Dewey. Ruth was a leading educator in Pritchard Alabama,(His home town) and very traditional.  But John Dewey was living in the same time and he had progressive ideas about eduation.  This was years ago.

Here is the big question:

Who owns the learning? 

Usually the teachers are doing too much work.

So much, everything has been transformed.  Everything but school.  School has not changed at all.  He is not trying to be gloomy and doomy.  But he is thinking of opportunity, and new beginning.  New opportunity.  Taking things from 500 years ago–Gutenbergs printing press.  This was revolutionary–it has determinaned the destination of civilization.   Now our digital tools are not going to have so much impact.

School should:

• authentically engaged learners
• create and foster self-directed learning
• provide project-driven instruction
• create independant problem-solvers…
• …who are empowered by technology innovation
• all within a collaborative learning community
• be relevant
• insist on contribution

Kids want relevant school.  They love learning, they just hate our tool set.  People began coming to the Mabry site, and wanting to come to their school wanting to know how they did those projects. 

Talking about authentic assessment.  He hates grading.  Grading kills learning.  He is talking about this point, illustrating that the learning stops at the test.  But really learning is never done.  How are we going to authentically assess student work?  

The concept of childhood is new, according to Dr. Tyson.  The children years ago had to work hard at early ages on the farm and elsewhere.  Their contribution was essential.  When does meaningfulness start?  How old do we have to be for our lives to assume a level of significance that matters?  job, marriage, what do we have to do?  when do we make a difference?  This is a key question.   The answer is now.  today.  You can make a contribution that people respect and admire.  The choice is theirs.

If you create something that is exemplary,  What do  you have to say that is so important that everyone on earth needs to hear it?  Your work will be published.  This is the challenge to push to the children.  The students rise to the challenge.  What’s on their minds?  

He went on to talk about some students who created some movies.  a student said:  making a movie is like learning on steroids.  

He showed movies and movies and how they are impactful.

It’s about you the educator–collapsing the distance between children and meaningful education.  Make a difference now today.  We chop up the curriculum into easy to test pieces.  We rob them of the whole picture.    We have a once in a lifetime opportunity.  Use a new toolset to change our profession.  Let’s not waste it.

When I was a classroom teacher, several years ago, we had pen pals from another school in our district.  We did iChat with them.  I had my iSight Camera on and the other classroom had their iSight Camera on. At first we did a group Chat, where we read a story to the class, and then we introduced the kids to one another.  (they had written a first letter back and forth prior to the chat).  Then we let them chat with each other over the course of the year.  This might have been the beginnings of a flat classroom project, I suppose, except that other than writing letters and getting to know one another, learning social etiquette (in third grade), there was no job to do.  No mission to accomplish together.  I had not even thought of that.  

So I wanted to take this class and really see what these wonderful gals were doing with this flat classroom project.  See what I could learn to take away to my district teachers.  Well, I have to say, that not only did I gain an understanding of the project itself, but with the expert teaching by Julie and Vicki, I received one of the best “professional development” experiences ever.

We started “low tech” by coming up to the front in our chairs to visit, talk and receive input about the project as a whole.  By beginning this way, for me, they broke all of the barriers that sometimes come with technology PD where teachers come in and instantly get on the computers and proceed to places unknown.  To start this way was so basic and natural, but such an aha for me.  Something as simple as that.  I begin my Digital Storytelling classes just this way, (we don’t break out the computers until at least the second session) but I hadn’t thought of doing other educational technology PD this way.  I will take that tidbit back and where it fits I will use it!

So we talked and learned about the project and then received cards with a simulation on them.  Each of us was assigned the role of a person and a team, as well as an assignment.  These were real people and real assignments and real teams that existed, that they had created for the project this past year, and that they were sharing with us now.  My role was as a girl student.  I was in the green group.  And our assignment was to work together to plan a research project that had to do with one aspect of a topic.  Based around the 6 principals from Daniel Pink’s book A Whole New Mind, they split the project up into three groups.  Ours was:

* Uploading – Why we should be promoting Web 2.0 tools for sharing information

Here were the objectives:

    * Communities uploading and collaborating on online projects. Examples include open source software, blogs, and Wikipedia

    * Provide an outline of essential Web 2.0 tools (Blogs, podcasts, wikis) and discuss developments and trends in the participating countries

    * Discuss essential social and ethical issues to do with using Web 2.0 tools in both education and business.

    * Provide current scenarios and examples of using Web 2.0 as an effective collaboration and communication tool

    * Daniel Pink’s Category: Story and Empathy ( Story and Empathy – A compelling narrative combining persuasion, communication, and self-understanding. This video will tell a story and cause the viewer to empathize with the characters.)

…so that meant that through the portal of Story and Empathy, we had to work together on those 4 objectives, collaborating and communicating, researching and explaining this “uploading” topic through the eyes of story and empathy.  But here is the kicker…In my group there were 4 participants.  Ok, easy enough.  But we were released to go back to the computers.  And we had to stay there and work ONLY through the WIKI. (We could not talk to one another) Also, not only did my group have 3 participants in the room, we had a gal working with us from Alabama.  She was IN Alabama working with us.  

So let me help you visualize this scene for you:  Thirteen teachers sitting at the computers, the session was being ustreamed (video’d and live broadcasted for the world to see and also the participants in other parts of the world were learning at the same time with us.  They were up at the front with us, just virtually), there was a back-channel chat that Vicki had going, so that the others around the country could be at the ready to begin the project. 

So Vicki and Julie created this brilliant simulation for us to take the next hour and a half and together work through the joys, struggles, and the process of the Flat Classroom Project.  Something we NEVER would have understood through a powerpoint presentation.  My Professional Development AHA is obvious.  As I have stated on earlier posts during Gary Stager’s class on Project Based Learning, and Thomas Guskey earlier this summer, if I have learned nothing else this summer, it is that quality professional development has teachers experience, engage, communicate, collaborate, and produce.  Same as quality instruction in the classroom.  whoa!!!

So this project was very exciting.  Ultimately we would have created a video together, but of course due to time this was not feasible. It was a learning experience just introducing each other on the wiki and then trying to do the research and updating the wiki.  At one point I had found my way to a rogue page, one someone had created just off the site.  I was doing my inputing there, doing research about the empathy of the situation with the little girl who took her life because of the cruel mom posing to be the mean boy.  (This is the story and empathy part of our project-getting to the understanding of what can happen and what it can mean)

Here is my entry:

Current News 1

There was an incident in the news where there was a girl who thought she was befriended by a boy on “MySpace”. The relationship turned sour and it ended. “Josh” turned out to be the creation of a neighborhood family. It turned out to be a mother down the street of a girl who was in a fight with this girl. But the jilted girl committed suicide. Her parents want the people who made the fraudulent online profile to be prosecuted. Girl’s mother says law enforcement officials say the case doesn’t fit into any law.

SOURCE:http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/11/17/internet.suicide.ap/index.html

(See, the students have to site everything they do.)  Anyway, I was updating the wrong page, and then my colleague form Alabama, Laurie Fowler,  saw what I was doing and she started fixing it for me!!!  Such a great team.  My team was Awesome.(Go Green!)  We just got to work and began collaborating by starting the research and then just starting small and updating the wiki page.  Each of us sort of took a spot and started. Other teams sort of were at a stand still, not too sure how to begin. (which is totally real word-you’ll have groups dive right in and others not so much)  I can see that a real project would have to be divie’d up and spelled out a little more precisely but what happens in this type of project is that the students do the dividing up of work.  There are team leaders appointed.  The students decide who does what, and the best part is that on the wiki page, using Wikispaces, every update, every entry is automatically posted on the history page.  So the group, and the teacher can actually see who did what.  So the students who might normally not engage in a group project are held accountable.  There are other wiki products out there, but I loved what Vicki said about Wikispaces.  ”I’m a geek, and I want my wiki to work” and she can always rely on her Wikispaces wikis.  Plus the other features of this free product make it the clear choice for this project. 

Anyway, the simulation came to a close way too soon, but I walked away with some excellent food for thought, plans, and learning.

Through this project and this 3 hour class, which was really a 2 day workshop honed down into 3 hours, I learned a few things about Flat Classroom Projects:

• Lots of planning upfront by both teachers-collaborating.  This is actually a great way to model for students how to collaborate.
• Have set outcomes-making learning meaningful.  It has to be meaningful.  This has to be a project that both groups of students come to the other side with meaningful outcomes.
• Teachers need to stay involved-and brace for the obvious glitches.  Technology is can be messy-and teachers need to be wiillng to take that risk, and just jump in.  I read an educational blog by one of my yodas, Brian Crosby,  called “Learning is Messy“-and isn’t it true that if it is worth doing, it takes effort?!  This is not a “sit at your desk while the kids work” project.
• Making learning relevant-this project will make learning relevant to the students.  I know that the pen pal project that I had my third graders do took on a whole new meaning when we began to skype and communicate together. I can only imagine what this type of project would do to two classrooms full of engaged pre-teens or high schoolers.  I think that it would just up the ante that we all are searching for in our classrooms to engage our students and take the word “boring” out of their vocabulary.
• I learned lots more about wikis in general-how to edit, tag, look at the history, and understand the whole wiki site as a “site”.  Also I learned how to make a table of contents.
• That I want to share this with people in our district–and I think I can get some takers, in fact I know I can.

I really wanted to go to the broadcast last year.  But it was my birthday and I had gone out for dinner that night with a wonderful friend.  This year I was not going to miss it, so I made sure I was there early.

One by one and a few at a time we gathered there.  Convening together as The Women began to get connected.  So inviting and nice.  There was Cheryl Oakes, trying to connect the internet.  Vicki Davis, helping get connected and connecting the back-chat.  Lucy Gray, in for Jen Wagner was there too, so nice and friendly.  And finally, Jen Wagner was there over the Skype.  So the women were ready and Cheryl began her WOW for the week.  Just like that they were online and connected.  I was sitting close by watching and participating in the back-chat.  So much fun.  Many folks couldn’t be there, so they were wondering who was sitting there and what was happening.  We were trying to tell them what was happening, while things were getting set up.

Anyway, then after The Women took turns telling their WOWs, Vicki came around the audience and invited us to get up and say our WOWs.  I got nervous.  But some of the people went right up there, so after a few minutes, I told Vicki I would go, too.  She put me “on deck” and then … it was my turn.  Cheryl couldn’t have been nicer.  She handed me the mic and I don’t even know what I said.  I will post the link to the webcast here.  It was so nice to be involved and invited.  

Here is the amazing “Connect” part.  I had only met Cheryl once before.  She had been someone I had been listening to over a year ago, before last year’s NECC.  We met in person in Atlanta, and visited there.  This year she remembered me and was so warm and nice to me–just like we’d been friends all year.  We reconnected during this NECC, and I hope to be better at staying in touch.  I also met  Jo McLeay, from Australia, just an incredible person, and we ended up in the Flat Classroom Class together the next morning.  Peggy George, from my state was there, and we seemed to see each other everywhere.  The other women that I met were so helpful and kind.  It was just such a great evening of sharing and connecting.  I had been wanting to meet Vicki and finally had my chance, and also, was happy to meet Lucy.  I think I met Jen last year in Atlanta, or at least we had visited over the internet once or twice.  Just the nicest people.

The transformative part of this entire situation is that we are all basically strangers, but we are not strangers at all.  The power of the internet and the ability to connect and convene, to reach out and risk reaching out your hand, so to speak. to others, and find them reaching back, that is a wonderful feeling.  Perfect strangers, but all there for the same reason.  The sharing and connecting was truly amazing.

Thank you Women of the Web, for the invitation, the innovation, the connection, the opportunity to convene, and the transformation of one of many of your listeners into a better educator because of your efforts, kindness and “reach out.”  You are truly an amazing group of women.  I am so proud of you all and happy to have met all of you.

• is the problem solvable?
• is the project monumental or sustantial?
• who does the prompt satisfy?
• what can they do with that?  – It has to fulfill an important end.

A good prompt:  So important.  When we set the bar high, when there is an audience, the kids will do well.
(I agree with this—always when I have set my standards high with worthwhile goals, my students have thrived and risen above my expectations.) 

Gary states these points:

• a good prompt will challenge students and motivate them.
• you need to provide appropriate materials
• you need to provide sufficient time
• you need to provide supportive culture and expertise

Students who do the most work are the students who are the ones who sometimes don’t usually do it.  It is a win win for all.

Courage–be brave to move into this type of teaching.  Push others and do the right thing.  

Q: was:  How do you get Principals to understand what you are doing in your room during project based learning?  Principal should be a kid watcher and — a kid watcher sees what ‘s happening in the room.  She sees the absolute process that he is engaged in.  

LESS US, MORE THEM–Gary Stager.

Kids need time to define projects, but Teachers need time to define projects too.  Reflect, refine and reload these projects and do them.  Continue to take the projects from good to great.  Project-based learning takes time, years to get good at this.  

The best project is the one that the kids do not know the anwer.  Meet with like-minded people, but then go back and share, talk and come back to one another and begin.  Transform!

SmackDown Session:  This is a session where folks got up and shared a favorite web 2.0 tool.  They each got 3 minutes.  ONLY. 

The buzz is amazing about the EduBloggerCon.  This was a conference within a conference that is created by the participants and for participants who are there because of their love of this idea of open dialog with other like-minded people regarding all things educational technology.  I was there for half the day and enjoyed the discussions and visits.  There was a session about Leadership and Tech that I blogged about already and then a session called a “Smack Down” which was really a lightening session of three-minute presentations of cool technology applications that people like.  Really impromptu, well as impromptu as you can get with 100 people.   (I’ll post another blog post for this)

Anyway, the buzz is that the feel of that EduBloggerCon was or was not quite the experience that it was set out to be.  I thought it was–the conversation was interesting.  But I did think that the conversation did tend towards the “cannots” and “we can’t move along because….”  sort of the “Yeah Buts..”  As Will Richardson Twittered during one of the conversations.  I think the worry is that the “UnConference” feel of the EduBloggerCon was sort of lost.  Well, not having last year to compare with, I felt it was wonderful.  I may not have agreed with all of the discussion, but I did appreciate being involved and invited.  There was a back-channel going on, where even if you didn’t raise your hand or speak out, you could “tweet” your feelings about what you think about.  I’ve not been involved in that before.  It was a relief to be able to “say” my peace without actually talking.  I do regret not putting my two cents in because I have very strong opinions about the subject of leaders and best practices and some ways to help move practice forward.  So I’ll have to wait until next year, and that’s ok with me.  Maybe I’ll even have more to contribute by then!!  :)  

All in all, it was a great day!

Came in late to this class–Steve’s talking about Wikipedia.  I came here to this session to see if I can enhance my understanding enough to go back to my district and solidly share about what OpenSource is.  After this session, I definately was better versed in my understandings of the whole thing.  I appreciate Steve’s clear descriptions and easily understood explainations of the beginnings of the movement.  I have a clear vision of what we are doing here, and what’s happening. 

Below are my notes from the session:

CreativeCommons:  Sharing and how to share with permission–how to understand the liscensing behind creative commons.  I like that because it seems to allow open communication.

Web 2.0–Wiipedia–Open source helps us create the products we end up buying.  That is the heart of open source.  

Foss or Floss

Free Open Source Software or Free (Libre) Open Source Software

Free means no cost, or free means free to use and change. Free in open source software use – it is meant to be free to use.  ”free” means initial cost.  But there is of course there is a cost–training, implementation.  

Richard Stallman:  scary picture:  :)  at MIT there was a free exchange of programs.  Code was exchanged. Since then it was not alowd to share programs.  Richard was an instigator of sharing software.  To be able to look at the code and share it.  He started the free software movement.  This was a fringe movement.  This was relabled as “open Source”  –softeware you can look at the “source” code.  

He had a great vision because as we all have no money in education, we now have lots of opportunities to use and obtain programs at no cost.  he had 4 freedoms:

0:  freedom to run the program

1: freedom for redistribution for any purpose

2: freedom to study how it worked

3:  freedom to  improve it

BECTA:  this is a study in Britain touting the benefits of using open source tools.

If we want our workforce competitive, we need to be teaching them open source softwares

GPL:  Key GNU Pubic License Terms

• lisensee may run the program
• licsencee may copy and distribute verbatim copies of the program source code
• may create deritive works of the program
• may distribute deritive works.

This is an amazing thing to me.  I came here to this conference to learn, and connect with others whom I have met and not met.  People who I have wanted to meet, who actually I feel like I know.  (if that isn’t too quirky??)  So far, I have not been disappointed.  I have gotten reacquainted with Cheryl Oakes from Maine, who I have learned so much from online.  We sat today and chatted about things and it was very natural.  She is such a nice genuine person who was kind enough to remember me from meeting me last year.  We shared a few sites and info.  We’ll visit again probably.  I also had a chance to visit with Wesley Fryer, the educational technologist and blogger at Moving at the Speed of Creativity, and probably one of my most important “teachers” when it comes to my 21st century attitudes and learnings.  He took time to coach me on my blog and how to spruce it up a bit.  So nice.  As we were sitting there, others came and went, and introduced one another and it was all so natural.  

So what is my point?  Well, this is a Computing conference.  But you know what, it is an EDUCATIONAL Computing conference.  I have already had lots of learning and it is only officially the first day.  So much of the time we are stuck on the tools of our trade.  What are we using, or who’s using what.  But I think, really when we get right down to it, we are all learners here, and really we are learning and sharing.  Growing.  This is a collective learning environment, where we are all like-minded people here for the same cause.  How can me make education more effective for our young people….  And then engaging in the conversations around that topic.  Tools or no tools, the conversation is the same.  What works for kids and teachers to make the most impact.  What a gift to be a part of that conversation.

Additionally I am really looking forward to sharing these resources with my Cadre–my team of teachers, my peeps,  who are the ones who are closest to the staff and the teachers.  They will be really excited to see this training and to engage in this common language..

What a gift to have experienced this and to have an opportunity to bring to my district a level of professionalism with technology integration.  

The “back Channel” or one of them for this session was twitter, and as I was watching twitter and listening, even though I had not the courage to speak out publicly (maybe next time) I felt confidet to tweet a comment to several of the leaders regarding comments being made.  Basically, I feel like it is about time we STOP the madness of the we/they. To be honest, I’m sick of it.  Administrators, of course, want to get involved in the classroom with the students–they are the LEADERS, the INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERS of their buildings.  David Jakes stood up about this time and stated his opinion about the fact that the administrators do need to learn the technology and pedagogy of this century. (This was in response to a line of discussion that was saying that the principals do not need to nor do they have the time to learn.)  As the instructional leaders of their buildings, they need that first hand knowledge.  I totally agree.  They want what’s best for their students and teachers.  And I submit, given all of the resources in the world, they would support all of the best practices in the world.  

Those who do not embrace technology as a viable, necessary and integral part of the teaching 21st century best practice tool box, need to be led and shown the reasons why.  So I believe that if we are talking about leadership, we are also talking about the higher administration, superintendents, associate superintendents, directors, curriculum specialists, etc.  These folks ALL need to “get it” if we are going to have a pedagogical shift.  Some do.  Others don’t.  But it is up to the folks in the room, us, the “choir” to preach this to anybody who will listen.  I believe if we show the data, if we reveal the motivation, the engagement, the excitement about studying spelling words in a new way, and project-based learning, and global flat classroom projects, etc., to the folks who need to see it, then we will move in the right direction.  

Now, I have been called “Pollyanna” before.  I do believe in things working out better than expected.  ( Julia) But I really believe if we are who we say we are, 21st century minded educators, then we can deliver the proper message.  Chris Lehmann stopped by and chatted for a minute, and we agreed that the administrators, and teachers ALL want their students to succeed.  People in this business are good, solid hardworking people.  If we come to the table knowing that we all want the best for the students, I submit that we will get just that.  But the leadership has to be there–and that leadership is US.  You. Me.  The Principals.  The administrators. The directors.  The teachers.  The students.  All of us who have the common focus of increased student achievement and student engagement.  Who WOULDN’T use the best tools out there at their fingertips to achieve success with their students?   

Let’s get out there and spread the word.  The title of this session was “If Leadership Doesn’t Get It, Nothing Will Get Done”.  Well, leaders, we get it! Let’s get it done!!

Well,  I’ve been meaning to write this post for the past three days.  It has been on my mind for at least as long.  But on Thursday it was my birthday, and yesterday was my daughter’s birthday, and, well, it’s just been so busy.  I was spending a better part of the week preparing to be gone for most of the month of July

But that’s how it goes, isn’t it.  We have great intentions, and try to get things done, but let’s face it.  There’s not enough time in the day!  My husband gave me a beautiful mountain bike for my birthday.  I Love it.  I hope it will help me find some balance.  I’m sure he does too. 

But right now, I am so excited about this conference. It has been a big focus on my mind for the past few weeks.  Do you know what I mean?  I have been thinking about this for a while, gearing myself up for the learning, collaborating and fun it will be.  I know it will be a wonderful week of learning and growing.  But besides all of that, I know that I will meet and even deepen further some of the relationships I have made at past conferences. 

There has been a ”Social Network” created special for the NECC, and boy has this taken off.  Anybody can join, even if you are not attending!!  So nifty.  You can keep track of what’s happening.  Stay totally connected. So many people have connected through this social network.  No Wonder the “kids” love social networks.  If you get it to be as robust as this Ning, it really can become a powerful and engaging thing.

Also, lots of different kinds of people are in there.  We are all educators to be sure, but all of my yodas are there, and they are active, friendly, and interested in seeing this go and fill out.  They are complementary to so many of the others’ posts.  It is really so great. 

And then there are “groups” within the Ning that you can join depending on what you are into.  I am a member of the “Digital Storytelling” Group, the “EduBloggerCon” Group, the “Moodle” groip, the “Blogs and Wiikis” Group, and one other one, too.  They are organizing get-togethers, and  talking to one another.  The most interesting thing is that we can organize ourselves into groups according to likes and interests. 

We can take this idea and apply that into the classroom. What a great way to differentiate learning.   I know some teachers are lucky enough to be able to use this social network in their classrooms.  A teacher could begin a social studies unit, say, and then set up a Ning on her website.  Within that she could set up mini groups, or even let the students create their own, based on what they want to learn and collaborate about.  Or groups could take sides of an issue, research different topics, and then have a place to share, collaborate and communicate.  WOW!

Anyway, back to balance, I am wondering how to achieve it in my life when I am totally engaged in my own learning,  My mom was telling me the other day that as a child I loved people.  I was easy going, and got along well.  Then someone said to me, “now she loves computers”. The person who said this to me didn’t understand at all.  Because at that moment I saw a vision of my computer as a window, and as an instrument to so much more than “a computer”  it is a window into others, conversations, interesting events, and possibilities for kids. 

Am I weird?  Is there anybody out there who feels the same way as me?  I guess that’s why I am so excited for this week.  Like-minded people together, and most of us will understand each other’s excitement when we “get” a new application, or make a new “connection”.  We can just be and have fun learning and growing from each other.

So yes, I love computers.  But really, I love the opportunities, learning, fun, and personal growth I have achieved from being involved with computers in the computer age.. 

I am still on the airplane.  When we touch down I will be going straight to the EduBloggerCon.  All of the people whose blogs I read, or twitter tweets I read will be there.  So many of these people have been my teachers from afar!  I have learned so much about this age in technology and education, and teaching children from them.  And we will all be in the same room.  Oh My Gosh. 

I am so thankful to Dr. Burdick, my fearless leader, for sending me.  I hope to bring back so much for the district and for my technology cadre. 

Ok, Here we go……..

I have to say that I did learn so much from the Leadership Conference.  The ideas and thought processes that Dr. Thomas Guskey brought to the table were pretty spectacular, considering that I do this for a living.  I appreciate all of that learning, and also feel validated in some respects.  I have a better understanding of why, for instance, some of the initiatives in our district have failed or not worked or been received as well as anticipated.  He spelled out the ground work to make it happen in a more open and a way that might be more acceptable to teacher leaders.  

That doesn’t change or take away my disappointment about our Summer Institute and the fact that it was not attended well.  I will hope that as we move forward I will be able to communicate my learnings from this summer’s leadership training to my team and share some of the strategies I learned.  Like:  to take the needs survey not exactly literally, but as an indicator of underlying currents of needs.  Like the questions behind the questions…(you know the book?)  Also, to try to avoid classes after school, and perhaps do them on Saturdays?  Maybe I’ll do a survey for that one…

Well, I know that next year will be better.  

The Digital Storytelling Class went extremely well.  I did learn some things for sure, and I will be implementing a couple of different things for the July Camp Plug and Play.  I LOVE this class, and hope to teach it in my district this fall.  I really think it is so incredible.  It is the perfect marriage of art and writing, story and image.  It is such a wonderful way to celebrate ourselves, our loved ones and our lives.  I absolutely love it.  

Now next Saturday I travel to San Antonio to attend the NECC conference.  I am so excited to attend and be part of that experience again.  Last year was my first year and it was an experience I will never forget.  This year I have several classes planned, but some free time as well.  I will attend the Flat Classroom class, to learn how to generate and create a Flat Classroom project within my district.  Also I am in a class for Technology Specialists.  That should be very informative.  I hope to get there in time for the last half of the Edubloggercon, the Unconference, where the bloggers get together and blog and talk and interact together.  I just can’t wait.  

Then it will be back to July Tech Camp.  And in the mean time I am Moodling with the Moodlrooms group of MRCTs  (Moodlerooms Certified Trainers), trying to become a certifed trainer.  

Pretty busy, huh?????

Summer.  Who ever said teachers had “summers off”? 

Evaluating professional development:  there are many ideas that we look at when we think through the evaluation process.  But it is something that we naturally do.  

1.  Participant’s reaction to the experience.

• Is the temperature right, are the materials appropriate, is the food good, are the conditions for learning appropriate…….

2.  Participant’s learning from the experience.

• Have the participants learned something and are walking away from the experience with more than they came?

3.  Organization Support & Change

• Is the organization ready to make this shift?
• Building principal is the Critical Element.
• The principal needs to actively participate or the message is that the experience is not important
• When the practice at the school is in conflict to the new learning that has just taken place…. it sends a poor message, and is detrimental to the relationships and structure of the whole PD system.

• Impact on the students?

outcomes for today:

1. Understand these five levels.

2. Each level builds on one another.  If one breaks down then the next one will not happen.

3.  When you plan professional development, the order is in REVERSE.

• First issue that comes up is what you want to accomplish and the evidence of that accomplishment.  
• Then thinking what new knowledge of skills needed to accomplish these skills. What are the practices we need to gain to accomplish this work?  
• Is the organization ready to think about this endeavor?
• What do we want the students to learn?
• What are the conditions I need to put in place to make it happen?

Two Premises that will guide our work:

1.  Ideas are more important that vocabulary

• We seem to be changing the vocabulary but the ideas are the same–
• inservice>staff development>professional development>professional growth> professional renew>human resource development>professional learning

If you want to concentrate on the quality of what you do, don’t worry about what you call it…

2.  We are in desperate need of good information on Effective Professional Development.

• “What Works” Clearinghouse Evidence Standards-(check it out)
• He showed data from this study
• Any change in student improvement resulted in a 40 hour instruction series
• Content–was all focused on curriculum and pedagogy 
• Then teachers could adapt at their discretion based on their students

But these studies are limited–we really need more information on effective professional development.

We don’t have best practices we have better practices.

Part II of the morning:

What makes professional development effective?

We need to think differently about planning professional development.

1.  Program topic?

• The topics don’t matter–it is important, but some times the very important content can be presented to a selection:  needs survey–old way–these are problems, concerns, dilemmas and wants.
• Selection needs to be aware of the symptoms of needs.  teachers are in demanding roles, so we need to interpret the symptoms of their needs, and then translate that to proper PD.  
• Shrink the ratio of the involvement in learning between the time they are there, and the time they spend on learning.
• If you manage learning well, you don’t have to manage the learners. (Bloom)
• See the symptoms, and interpret the needs.

2.  Program Planning?

• There must be more to your planning and PD than raising the test scores.
• Should be planned collaboratively between the district and site level.
• Across buildings.
• Contextually relevant
• Find ways of collaborating and engage people with you on the topics.

3.  Program Participants?

• Mandatory or voluntary?  research says it depends.  On what youwant to accomplish
• If your focus is to share info-mandatory large scale session serves well.  1.  gives all a shared knowledge base; 2.  fives you shared vocabulary; 3.  dispels rumors.
• But when you move to implementation it must be voluntary.  Then who is going to volunteer?  the ones who are the most talented and effective.  The resistant ones will be the ones who need change the most.  So you go with the ones who will choose it first, then be visible with the results, so the slow-to-engage will become interested.  Focus on the results.  (not the people)  It is what they do.
• When the results become well known the interest will spread.
• Plan 3-4 years out–sustained efforts

4. Program leadership?

• It is not who shares the info it is what they do.  Inside people or outside people–same
• Person presenting has to appear credible.  (inside or out)
• Ideas have to be seen as valuable and useful; relevant to their world.  Have to be able to relate to the setting
• If you bring in anybody who talks down and is demeaning to them this will be bad.  Get references and talk to others.
• It is not who but how they present the material to them.

Two things parents want to know at open house

competence (not years of teaching)

if the person cares about their student

in parent/teacher conference–if the first thing you communicate is grades, it shows you don’t know the kids.  

5.  Group size?

• Size depends on the topic and objective

6.  Program timing?

• According to research, best time to do pd is summer
• Removes teachers from ongoing responsibilities of the classroom
• Sub plans are a pain
• Worse time-after school

7.  Length of training?

• Larger magnitude of training, the longer it will be
• Structural change offers opportunity if you change positively what you do with the structure
• If you invest in the learning about the format, then results were seen

8.  Types of Activities?

• Are adults different from kids?  no.  
• What makes for excellent pd is the same for kids
• Learning stiles, intelligences, engagement, interests, sharing, motivating
• Good PD looks alot like good teaching.

9.  Extent & Complexity of change

• The more extensive the change you are asking, the more extensive the PD must be.
• Teaching is an intervention

10.  Follow-up & improvements?

• The most vital dimension of effective PD
• The most neglected
• Principal can have a vital role
• Structured opportunities will be imperative to the success of any professional learning experience

So what WILL make PD Effective?

1. Always begin with a clear focus on learners and learning.

• If you plan well, evaluation takes care of itself.
• If I start by saying my outcomes, I have a basic framework of my evaluation.

There must be clear goals along with assessment procedures to document progress.

• Ralph Tyler-basic principals of learning
• Decide what you want them to learn, decide what evidence there will be to tell you verify that they learned.
• The most valuable criteria of education is student learning
• Teaching and learning is absolutely linked.
• 3 step planning:  1.  How does the activity relate to the school mission; 2.  What are the intended student learning outcomes?; 3.  What evidence best reflects those outcomes?

Clear goals help moilize everyone and keep efforts on task.

goals prevent distraction by peripheral issues that wast crucial time and divert energy.

2.  Engage in rigorous self analysis.

• Requires the courage to ask tough questions
• The skill to find honest answers
• Whether it works is defined by what learning takes place, not what we do…or our experience in teaching it.
• Look at what went well, and what didn’t go well and then change your practice or method.
• Need structured opportunities for collaboration–you get quality support and guidance on how to improve

Researching your goals requires a clear sense of where you are.

• And where you are is determined by where your students are as determined weekly
• All the time….
• Ask who is not learning, why, and what can we do about it?

3.  Recognize change is an individual and organizational process.

Remember the stages of concern

• 1.  personal
• 2. management
• 3. impact

motivation–kids are motivated by success. research shows.  

• Think of the video games….what is the purpose of pacman?  gobble up dots…..what is interesting about this or relevant?  you get to improve your score

how do you get the personal concerns–needs survey:  Here Dr. Guskey was referring to the fact that all a needs survey is is a way to identify personal concerns.  But we can tell lots from those personal concerns.  And we need to consider those when we are considering planning for PD.  Sort of the Question behind the Question .  What is it that REALLY will help the issue.  What is the REAL need?

Consider the order of change

• Teacher attitudes and beliefs
• Teaching practices
• student learning

which comes first?  practices first, student learning then attitudes. (Huge aha for me)

Experiences shape the attitudes and beliefs.

Don’t try to change the attitudes and beliefs.  Try to change the practices and then the student learning will come.  Then possibly their attitudes will come.  As student learning happens:  small change, small change in attitudes.  large change in student learning, large change in attitude.

Most vital element in the professional learning is the follow up.  We need to look for evidence and come back to it during the year.  

How soon can you see results?  2 weeks.  If you don’t see results in this time, teachers will give up on the change.  They will not want to waste time.   

This same order of change holds for students as well.  If students’ experiences change, their attitudes will follow.  (Remember the Titans movie:  Denzil Washington’s character insisted on a certain type and level of behavior.  The team saw results and started to win.   The attitudes and respect for one another came later).  Change the experience, the attitudes and beliefs will follow.  From the district level, this is another huge aha for me.  I believe that as I move into next year, and shape and plan my professional development activities and experiences for teachers, I will REALLY focus on quality and modeling of this type of pedagogy.   The better quality of instruction and experiences, the more likely I will be able to move teachers in the direction of technology/curriculum-infused classrooms.  

4.  Think BIG, but start SMALL

• Do a measured process.  not in the first year is everything going to be accomplished.  
• Start small in one subject.  build up.  
• Annual pd plans do not work.  you must have a vision.  3-5 years out.  year one-trial.  year 2, practice and year 3 implementation……
• Use a systematic set of steps.  support must be systematic
• Change is dynamic and large scale but always will be implemented through a series of smaller steps.
• Have a grand idea but with small steps.
• We must balance the urgency for improvement with the need to validate effectiveness. FORMATIVE.

5.  Ensure the procedures are ongoing and professionally embedded.  

• Change and embed with the procedures.
• Look at what is the current structure and then what will fit within that structure
• Allow kids to get better and do better.  Allow them to learn from their mistakes and let them do better.  
• Why do we not let students fix their mistakes?  They must engage in it.

Change is a natural and recurring process that is essential to all learning environments.  Change is essential to the teaching process.  

6.  Work in teams to maintain suppport.

• Teams need to be mixed up.  not just grade levels or groups.  be sure to include resource teachers and gifted and talented students.  Midwest publications are great.  games magazine.  
• Apt initials.  take the famous person, and describe them using adjectives with the first letters of the person’s name. egg bearer= easter bunny
• Take your initials and come up a phrase that describes you.
• Find about these and more by using collaborative teams.

7. Use available resources

• Use your curriculum resources and guides that have been developed.  don’t let hem sit on the shelf.  keep them living documents.
• Teachers typically plan in terms of materials and activities.
• Show how the activities can blend with the plan

Major models of pd

1. training
2. observation  / assessment
3. involvement in a development / improvement process
4. studygroups
5. inquiry/action research
6. individually guided activities
7. mentoring

8.  Include procedures for feedback on results

• Most effetive feedback is the aha moment on the kids.  you must build feedback from students.  immediate, short, directly tied to where you can see iprovements.  
• As coach or mentor, you must make them see that what they are doing key to success

9. Provide continued followup support and pressure

• Implementation dip-sometimes the effectiveness suffers and there should be a perfect marriage of support and pressure.
• Support with pressure.  you can do this, but you must do this. (serve and volley tennis game vs. the base line game.)

At each level we must consider 
a.  What questions are addresed?
B.  How will information be gathered?
C.  What is measured or assessed?
D.  How will the information be used?

1.  Participat’s reactions

• did they like it?
• was their time well spent
• did the material make sense
• wil it be useful
• was the leader knowaledgable & helpful
• were the refreshments fresh and tasty
• was the room for the right temperature
• were the chairs comfortable?

B.  How will information be gathered?

• questionnnaires and sureveys adminisstered at the end of the sessions

C.  What is measured?  

• Initial satisfaction with the experience

D.  How will the information be used?

• To improve program planning, design and delivery

2.  Participant’s learning

A.   What questions are addressed?

• did participants acquire the intended knowledge and skills?

B.  How will information be gathered?  

• paper and pencil instruments
• performance assesments/tasks
• simulations-pretend and role play–adapted to the goals you set up
• demonstrations
• participant reflections
• participant portfolios

C.  What is measured or assessed?

• New knowledge and skills of participants

D. How will the information be used?

• to improve the content, format and organization of the program

3.  Organization support and change

A. Questions:

• was implementation advocated, supported and facilitated
• was the support public and overt
• were problems addressed quickly and efficiently
• were sufficient resources made available
• were successes recognized and shared–think “stickers”
• what was the impact on the organization
• did it affect organizational climate and procedures?

B.  How will information be gathered?

• district and school records
• minutes from follow-up meetings
• questionnaires / surveys—once per month–structured, directed, short
• interviews with participants or administrators–even little visits-impromptu
• participant reflections/portfolios

C. What is measured or assessed?

• The organization’s advocacy, support, accommodation, facilitation & recognition.

D.  How will the information be used?

• to document and improve organizational support
• to inform future change effort
• you must plan backward.

4.  Participants use of New knowledge and skills–rubrics–this is what effective implementations looks like and this is what I’ll see when I know it is implemented.

A.  Questions

• Did participants effectively apply or implement the new knowledge & skills

B.  How will information be gathered?

Observe only 4-6 pieces of evidence–any more are too many

• questionnaires/surveys
• interviews with participants and their supervisors
• participant reflections
• direct observations
• video or audio tapes

C.  What is measured or assessed?

• Degree and quality of implementation
• you must look at both of those dimensions.  mutual adaptation…….teachers must adapt any innovation in their context.  

D.  How will the information be used?

• To document and improve the implementation of program content

5.  RESULTS:  Student Learning Outcomes

A.  What questions are addressed

• what was the impact on students
• did it affect student performance or achievements
• did it influence students’ attitudes dispositions or behaviors?
• are students more confidant as learners
• is student attendance improving–first unit taught needs to be the easiest and most achievable unit so that all students achieve.
• are dropouts decreasing?

B.  How will information be gatherd

• school records
• school records
• questionnaires/surveys
• interviews with students, parents, teachers, and administrators
• participant portfolios

C.  What is measured or assessed?

• Cognitive (performance & achievement
• Affective (attitudes & Dispositions)
• psychomotor (skills & behavior)

D.  How will the information be used?

• to focus and improve all aspects of program design, implementation, and follow-up
• to demonstrate the ultimate impact of professional development.

There is a difference between evidence and proof.  Managers know how to do things right.  Leaders know the right things to do.

We need to know the right things to do.  We need to take a stand.  Be courageous and take a stand.  Take a stand based on what you believe in—-you know the right things to do.  If it doesn’t make a different for the kids don’t do it.