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Scarcity and Collaboration: An argument for 1:1 initiatives

A couple of weeks ago Kate Olsen posted on her blog about getting hassled by one of her colleagues. Part of the hassling included a mention of her hogging the computer lab so others couldn't use it. That touched off some thoughts that had been floating around the back of my head for awhile.

Following is an excerpt from my comment on her post that briefly summarized my thinking:

Two years ago I was one of very few teachers who used the laptop carts on a regular basis. As a result, I could get them whenever I wanted (they even let me store a cart permanently in my room). Now there are 5 or so teachers that regularly use computers in their classes. While there has been a little increase in the number of available computers in the past 2 years, there is definitely more demand on the computers.

[...] The big problem I see is that the limited supply of computers with increasing demand may prevent tech-savvy teachers from sharing their expertise with those less familiar with technology to keep the demand for computer resources lower. This is simply unacceptable. Who benefits from this arrangement? It certainly isn’t the students.

One of the best sources of knowledge available to teachers who might be interested in integrating technology are other teachers who are already actively using it.  However, in schools with fewer computers available than students, for a tech-savvy teacher to share their knowledge means they run the risk of reducing the amount of time computers will be available for them to use. One of my primary concerns when planning lessons that require the internet or online tools (other than the school filter)  is that other teachers will sign out all the computers during the time when I need to use them.

Can I really be upset at these teachers for using technology? No. Should I withhold my expertise from them for selfish reasons? No, and I hope I haven't consciously done this. However, if each teacher at my school wanted to use the laptops even just once a week, there'd be a major fight over who would get them.

Aren't we in the business of supporting educators in the teaching of 21st century skills? The scarcity of computers in most schools (in my opinion) serves to prevent all teachers from utilizing technology. It seems to me the logical conclusion is to provide a laptop for each student. Known as a 1:1 program, many schools across the country are getting great results from it being thoughtfully implemented. I'm not purporting to be a 1:1 expert. All I'm saying is that if we want schools to be places where students learn to be competent citizens of the 21st century we need to provide them with the tools to do so.

What to do? I'm a bit of a lame-duck at my school (I'm moving to Connecticut this summer), so I feel my power to effect change has been diminished. However, we can all do a little to support these initiatives.

  • Teachers: talk to your principals, tech directors, school board members, etc. about the importance of teaching 21st century skills. Also, if you're not sure how to utilize technology, demand professional development time. This doesn't have to be an expensive keynote speaker, it could be a workshop by another teacher in your district.
  • Students: demand your teachers and principals provide an environment where you have the opportunity to learn and exhibit your 21st century skills. If your principals hear hundreds of requests for more technology to facilitate learning each week, then they're going want to take action.
  • Parents: talk to your students' principals and school board members about the importance of providing environments that prepare your children for their future. Again, if the school board hears several requests every week, they're much more inclined to "find" money to fund it.

For further info on 1:1 initiatives:

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Learned selfishness

A little background: This year, I essentially threw out all large tests in my classroom. I still utilize small quizzes, but I wasn't feeling the validity of large tests. Instead, I developed what I call "artifacts." Essentially I have the students create something (a book, song, comic, presentation, etc.) that demonstrates their knowledge of the content area. I give them the ability to choose the format in which they will display their knowledge, but give them a rubric (I know...not everyone's favorite) that describes what content their artifact should include.

For my second semester Earth/Physical Science class, when I started thinking about designing their final exam project (as opposed to a formal written test), I had what I thought was a great idea: I'd have them design it themselves from the ground up. I figured they'd created multiple artifacts by this point and are familiar if not comfortable with the format; why not let them design the rubric?

I put them in groups and assigned each a different section of the trimester to go over and decide which parts were important enough to be included in the final exam project. I gave them a pep talk about collaborating together to create something useful for the entire class.

Noncommunicative At best, this is how they worked.

The normally very chatty class was the quietest it may have ever been during that time of "collaboration." Quite frankly, there wasn't any collaboration. Indeed, there was very little cooperation. It was essentially groups of individuals working independently of one another.

After that class period, I had time to reflect upon the utter failure I had just experienced. I was at first upset with the students for not trying to work together, then with myself for not structuring it well enough. However, in the end I realized the problem was much bigger than any of us.

Our entire educational system is based upon individual achievement. Sure, students are exposed to group work, but in the end it's always their own grade their worried about. Grade conscious students are essentially taught to take over groups to ensure they get a good grade, while less motivated students quickly learn ride the coat tails of those who will do all the work for them. The problem in my class was that these students do not know how to collaborate. The concept of completing something for the good of the community (rather than the individual) was foreign to their school experience.

I decided to take a few steps back with them to explain why I feel collaboration is an important skill, and then explain what it means to collaborate in the classroom. I showed them the Did You Know 2.0 video. I explained how I (and a multitude of others) feel that collaboration is an important 21st century skill. I explained how I felt their lack of collaboration was as much the fault of the system as it was their own.

I then set them up in new groups, and asked for essentially them same thing, but now with a little more background and clarification. I got a little more collaboration, but it was high maintenance. In essence I felt like I had to drag the collaboration out of them. I suppose that should be expected after 10 years of being taught selfishness at school.

This opened my eyes even further to the shortcomings of our current school system. What type of system encourages people to shun others for their own benefit? To not share their knowledge base lest someone else gain from it? I don't feel like I was throwing away much of the current "schooliness" in asking students to collaborate in this way. I felt like it was just a baby step toward a better model of school, yet it took a huge amount of energy for me to communicate what is essentially "sharing."

Halfway through writing this post I happened upon Clay Burell's post attempting to define what he commonly terms as "schooliness." In it, I see much of the frustration I've been feeling towards the system that tends to punish community, collaboration, and independent thinking. Surely we can do better in our schools. Our students deserve it.

Photo credit: Bright_Star via Flickr
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Design, presentations, and the power of the network

Dread! It all started with dread.

The last week or so, my classes have been covering material that I made PowerPoint slideshows for several years ago. While at the time, I put in lots of images and even embedded some video, I found myself dreading to give those presentations to my classes. I started pondering whether there wasn't a better way to utilize slideshows than what I was doing. I became discontent with my presentations

As if the heavens could hear me, wisdom rained down upon me.

Wisdom Bit #1: This fall, I happened upon Lawrence Lessig's talk on copyright at the TED conference. While the subject matter was interesting, I was enthralled (& engaged) by his simple use of visuals and high-contrast text. It made me want to go design my own presentation right then and there (it was a pretty busy time for me, so I didn't). As I became discontent with my presentations, my thoughts went back to his presentation.

Wisdom Bit #2: On a tip from Wes Fryer on his blog, I've subscribed to the Practical Principals podcast. In the first installment I was able to catch, Scott Elias discussed a presentation he gave on how to give engaging presentations. In the show notes, a link was provided to his presentation. I checked that out, and liked what I saw. The wheels were turning...

Wisdom Bit #3: Wes Fryer wrote a post discussing digital storytelling and dual-coding theory. Essentially, dual-coding theory states that when a speaker reads information off of a slide, very often the audience can become overwhelmed because there are two images to pay attention to (the speaker and the projected text). I found this very interesting, as I had previously been under the assumption that reading and projecting the text was helpful to students, as it provided both a visual and auditory pathway for the information. It's funny what information we believe that isn't really true.

Wisdom Bit #4: Clay Burell shared a presentation he gave and also wrote a bit on good design in presentations to boot. I especially liked his tip to include a "narrative thread" in presentations. It provides a something for people to grab onto, and combined with slides with relevant images (and very little text), people have to listen to hear the story.

Wisdom Bit #5: At the end of Clay's post, he provided a link to Dan Meyer's blog post on how to present. He pretty much reiterated what I had already heard and read from Scott, Wes, and Clay; but it was an excellently written post with great examples. I think what I took away most from this post was his statement: "If I can look at your slidedeck and determine the full content of your presentation, it's carrying too much information."

Direction! Finally, I had direction.

I think what struck me most about this process went far beyond my integration of a new and improved method. The online network that provided the wisdom is the big story here. Though no one whose wisdom was included in this post put their content online with the specific thought of helping me escape the doldrums of antiquated presentations, the simple task of accessing distant knowledge is pretty amazing in itself. The sources of my wisdom were located in California, Oklahoma, Colorado, Missouri, Korea, and California again. It was totally asynchronous, and exactly what I needed. I don't have a well-developed edtech network yet, but just because I can't tweet a question and get back 50 responses yet doesn't mean I can't take advantage of the network.

Yay, Network! Thanks, network. You're the best!

Stay tuned. I'll post my old presentation compared to the new one.

Photo credits: Medo/Fear by xaimex, BLESSINGS FROM THE SKY by dharmesh, Map and Compass by Inky Bob, and Be Positive by José Miguel Serrano

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What is "Sustainably Digital?"

It took me awhile to come up with the title for this blog. I wasn't quite sure where I wanted to go with the title. I had a vision for what I wanted the blog to be- reflections and thoughts on my attempts to integrate technology into my classroom- but I wasn't sure what title best captured that sense. I wanted it to be something catchy and clever, and ultimately I'm not sure I succeeded in being either. Perhaps you'll think the title more clever once you understand where I was coming from.

The idea behind "digital" in the title is pretty straightforward. This blog's focus is my integration of technology into the classroom, and digital describes the way computers store and transmit information. Since computers are digital devices the term digital seemed to be a good fit (though interestingly enough, smoke signals and the abacus are also digital systems)

The notion of sustainability is borrowed from my experience and interest with environmental science. In that realm, sustainability is the idea of being able to meet the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future. It's a way of thinking about development, natural resources, and consumption that shifts the focus from only worrying about what we're doing today to concern about future generations as well.

In the context of this blog, the idea of sustainability refers to integrating technology into the classroom in a feasible manner. I'd like to avoid hypothetical situations and focus on methods that I could actually carry out. I'm not interested in technology integration that would take expansive amounts of time, huge budgets, or that have unrealistic expectations of the teacher or student.

Technology is here to stay. Teachers need to start utilizing the tools available through the internet and computer usage. Districts and administrators need to start allocating budgets with that future in mind.

Here's a couple posts that I've seen recently that resonate with some of the ideas I've expressed above:

  • I Can't Make Educational History- But We Can (from Beyond-School) : The class described might be a little beyond my technological means (it's a 1:1 school), but I'm constantly impressed with the things Clay Burell is attempting with his students. My hope is that efforts like his will show the power of full, fearless integration. We need more positive examples like this to convince the naysayers.
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The New Endeavor

This all started after deciding to not make any New Year's Resolutions. I don't like resolutions. They're over-used and under-achieved. If I want to change something, I tell myself to simply make the change- not publicly resolve to do something then later feel guilty for not doing it.

However, I often find myself spending time during my time off during the holidays reflecting on my life. During the active school year I often feel so busy planning, preparing, grading, etc. that I don't feel I get a chance to sit back and reflect. Over break I had the time, and during this time I had a epiphany.

The revelation follows: I regularly have used an RSS aggregator (originally Brief in FireFox, but now Google Reader) to keep up with my favorite environmental & educational blogs and websites. In small times during classes, my planning period, or before and after school, I often browse through 100 or so articles & postings. I don't necessarily read them all, but I greatly enjoy reading some of the articles and bookmark those that I found interesting or intriguing. In doing this I ran across Michael Wesch's "Information R/evolution (video embedded below)" I realized that I have been consuming massive quantities of online information without giving much back. Sure, I have a blog that my family and maybe a couple friends look at, but I haven't been creating, critiquing, organizing, or understanding. I had only improved slightly upon reading a newspaper. I had failed to realize that I could also be writing the newspaper! Thus the resolution (shudder) was made to actively comment on articles. Thus I came to the conclusion that it was time to really analyze what people were saying online and then let them know my analysis. Thus, this new "space" became inevitable.

If you're caught in the slog of school life & getting bogged down trying to integrate technology into your classroom, check out Michael Wesch's videos on YouTube. They get my heart pumping.

As promised, Information R/evolution: