Filed under: Instructional Leader, Leadership | Tags: 21st Century Schools, AASL, Digital Citizenship, Educational Leadership, Remixes, Support Policies
I feel strongly that, in today’s world, students need to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviors that will help them to be model digital citizens. While I like to think that it’s black and white, I’m learning that it’s much more complicated than that. Our school librarians have been working on organizing the American Association of School Librarians Standards for the 21st Century Learner so that we can use them throughout the high school. Below are several of the benchmarks that are related to academic integrity.
- Understand what constitutes plagiarism and refrain from representing others’ work as their own.
- Demonstrate understanding of intellectual property rights by giving credit for all quotes, and by citing them properly in notes and bibliography.
- Abide by copyright guidelines for use of materials not in public domain.
- Legally obtain, store, and disseminate text, data, images, or sounds.
- Abide by the Acceptable Use Policy in all respects and use Internet responsibly and safely.
- Explain First Amendment rights and the process available to defend them.
- Demonstrate understanding of intellectual freedom and First Amendment rights.
- Demonstrate understanding for the process of copyrighting their own work.
- Analyze the consequences and costs of unethical use of information and communication technology (for example, hacking, spamming, consumer fraud, virus setting, intrusion); identify ways of addressing those risks.
OK, these seem to make sense and, after all, they are designed with the 21st century student in mind. Wait, before you decide, take a look at this documentary, entitled RIP! A Remix Manifesto. (it’s 85 minutes long, but it is worth the time).
What do you think now? Funny that the 21st century standards don’t even mention Creative Commons. If you want to explore the topic more, check out the Everything is a Remix site.
Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader | Tags: change, Educational Leadership, Homework, Learning, project based learning
I find myself constantly looking at practices in school and asking, “How will that change in a 1 to 1 setting?” A recent article by Bambi Betts entitled Do Your Homework got me thinking about how homework will change. Now, I understand that it won’t change overnight, but I’m optimistic that it will be transformed. Let’s start by getting rid of the term “homework”. The name just doesn’t seem appropriate for many reasons.
1. Let’s replace “work” with something related to learning. While the tasks may not be easy, work just doesn’t seem to be the right term. Students may be Skyping with peers or experts half way around the world, selecting online resources that help with their learning, recording instrumental rehearsals to playback and use to improve performance, creating producing screen plays, and other interesting activities.
2. Since the learning will take place anywhere, let’s forget about “home”. With portability the learning takes place anywhere. In the coffee shop, on the bus, in the mall, at the pool, at the vacation resort and various other places. Anyone have a interesting story on where students were learning?
3. The new term will somehow need to communicate that the activities will be less teacher driven, and more student driven. We talk a lot about student centered classrooms and how students will tailor design the learning experiences to fit their needs. If they think that they can reach the target by watching and responding to a podcast or Skyping with native Spanish speakers, then so be it. The learning principles that Betts mentions, “independent and unguided learning; that learners learn differently and at different paces…”, support a student centered approach.
Betts goes on to say,
It would be student-driven as much as possible, increasingly so as students acquire the skill. Consider a 10-year old learning to play football. Does she limit herself to what the coach told her to practice? Over time, with increasingly less guidance, she learns what she needs to practice.
Anyone have ideas on new terminology?
Photo Credit: Is this your homework, Larry?
Filed under: Instructional Leader | Tags: Educational Leadership, Learning, Research, Software-based learning
Photo by blogefl
Cross posted on 1 to 1 Schools
As a principal who promotes new models of teaching and learning with technology I frequently get asked, “How do you know that the use of technology helps students learn? Can you show me research?” I have a variety of answers and I can provide them with several research studies showing positive results. But, recently, someone shared this research report with me and I am trying to figure out how to react and respond. How would you respond to these findings?
The article entitled
The study took 3 groups of community college students who were taking College Algebra and put them into three different classes.
“Both online and televised variations of College Algebra were created and offered. Web support pages for on-campus sections were created and filled with thirty hours of streaming real-media and mimeo lectures, practice tests for each chapter, and quizzes for each section of the text. A course guide containing more than one hundred pages of worked examples, study tips, and additional support was written, and has been sold as a supplement to the course. Supplemental instruction and peer tutoring programs have been implemented to support College Algebra. Additionally, the math department established experimental sections of College Algebra that would abandon the text and internally developed support materials for the course in favor of a computer-aided instruction (CAI) model.”
The students in the traditional lecture class outperformed their peers in both the computer aided instruction (CAI) model and the online and television model. This is even after they controlling for differences in teacher grading. The articles finishes with the following statement.
“These results have implications for the way institutions schedule and deliver curriculum. CAI courses are held in computer labs which cap the number of students in a class. Traditional lecture courses are able to serve more students. Not only do students perform better in a traditional lecture course, as measured by final grade, but institutions of higher education can deliver instruction more efficiently on a per student cost using traditional lecture.”
Help! I need to better understand how to respond to these types of studies.
Image Credit: The Lecture Bored me to Death
Filed under: Instructional Leader | Tags: 21st Century Schools, change, Educational Leadership, Learning, North Carolina Curriculum, project based learning, Technology Support, Textbooks, Web 2.0
This past week I was helping my 4th grade daughter with her social studies homework and I noticed that her textbook, Macmillan/McGraw-Hill textbook, North Carolina, was published in 2003. She was working on Chapter 11 which covers the state, local and national governments. Now, it doesn’t matter much that the general and historic information is from 2003, but the book shows photos of the then senators, Elizabeth Dole and John Edwards. The publishers are probably happy when people like Donnie Harrison, Wake County Sheriff (his photo is in the book as well), are re-elected. It really got to me that one of the mini activities was to have the students read a pie graph showing “Where Each State Tax Dollar Goes”, from 2001.
So, what would it be like for a teacher to not pick up books from the book room at the beginning of the year? What if he/she just said, “I’m going to use the book as a guide and use current resources and tools to wing it”? It may be liberating. It will likely be difficult because ‘winging it’ will require providing students with access to technology and the web.
Fortunately (so I thought), a couple of days after our homework session I noticed through eSchoolNews that Pennsylvannia had started a Digital Learning Library. I searched in the 4th grade curriculum for activities/resources on government. I was a bit dissapointed to find the following:
- A link to an assignment where students create a mobile showing the 3 branches of government using paper, yarn and colored pencils.
Click the link at the bottom of each page
- A Foundations of American Democracy Crossword Puzzle
- Lesson documents from the Oswego City School District
- More textbook like documents on State and Local Documents
- This Word Search on The Declaration of Independence
- This lesson on government leaders that states that Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer are currently the senators from New York and that George Pataki is the “present” Governor of New York.
While these materials are linked to the state standards and benchmarks and they are easily accessible, they are very similar to what the text offers. The information is dated and, in terms of thinking skills, these are low level thinking skills. It appears to be more of the same.
I can see that it is going to be some serious work to provide students with meaningful learning experiences without using the textbook. What about these options.
- Create a Resource on Local, State and National Governments for the Public – Take the structure of the textbook and the digital library resources and have the students create a wiki that can be viewed/edited by the rest of the world. This would guarantee that the information would be current.
Include:
- Covering the Primary Elections – At the time of the unit there were primary elections going on in North Carolina. What if the students embarked on a project to cover the primaries with a focus on local, state and federal governments? The early voting polls were open for 10 days and the site was very close to school. What if the kids went and taped interviewed of volunteers, voters and candidates during this election period? The audio or video clips could then be edited and compiled to share with other 4th grade students around the world. The students could have researched the candidates, just like voters did, to learn more about the issues.
- Analyzing State Budget Figures – Turns out that the it’s a bit more difficult than I thought to find out details on current state of North Carolina government budget figures. Maybe that is a good thing. With help, the students could locate the information, compile it into a spreadsheet and then present it in the same type of pie chart that the book uses.
- Web Resources – Look for links to news reports, videos and other media that relates to the topic.
If I was a 4th grader, I know which I would prefer. Too bad that the teachers and the students don’t have the tools to provide these types of learning experiences on a daily basis.
Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, 21st Century Schools, change, Educational Leadership, Teachers, Technology
Cross posted on 1 to 1 Schoolsnet
As I visit 1:1 laptop classrooms I have been trying to put myself into the shoes of a classroom teacher who has just had their world turned upside down with the introduction of these new 21st century tools. I’m learning that it’s not easy for educators to make the transition and that it is very easy to continue old habits. We are definitely creatures of habit and the most simple example is of the teacher who tends to rely on lecture and class discussion. In this case the teacher will use the technology to make presentations and the students will take notes (hopefully by using the computer).
Those of you in schools that have already taken the plunge can relate to that initial feeling of, “Now what do I do with this machine?” I plan to explore this over the next several posts but would like to introduce it with this great video, ‘The Class’ DU innovation Class. It’s a parody of The Office and it shows a teacher who is struggling to change his habits.
Filed under: Instructional Leader, Leadership, Manager, Visionary | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, 21st Century Schools, Educational Leadership, Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, Research
Cross posted on 1 to 1 Schools.net.
I frequently hear negative press regarding laptop initiatives and it seems like the positive stuff is quietly released. Jeni Corn and Phil Emer from the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation 
recently reported preliminary findings from their evaluation of NC 1:1 Learning Collaborative to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee. I’m pleased to say that they have positive results to report. I’m fortunate to be able to visit several of these schools this month and I look forward to observing classes and hearing the stories of the leaders, teachers and students.
Instructional Practice
1. Teachers increased use of technology for both planning andinstruction.2. Teachers and students reported ready Internet accessincreased the frequency, reliability, and quality of communicationacross the school.3. Teachers moved from assigning independent work tocollaborative, project-based lessons.4. Teachers shifted to technology-enhanced modes of assessment.
Student Performance
1. Attendance was above 92% in all 1:1 schools and remained virtually unchanged over the three-year period.
2. Dropout rate across the 1:1 Cohort A schools decreased, on average, between 1% and 2%.
3. Student engagement increased in the 1:1 learning environment.
4. Students’ 21st century learning skills increased in the 1:1 learning environment.
5. Student standardized test scores do not improve rapidly , but evidence from other states has found increases over longer implementation periods.
They also offer a list of lessons learned that should be considered when implementing a 1:1 laptop initiative.
NCLTI Lessons Learned
1. At least six months is required for planning and preparation.
2. Consistent, supportive, distributed leadership promotes adoption and buy-in from teachers and students for the 1:1 learning innovation.
3. Ongoing content-based professional development is imperative.
4. Technology Facilitators play a significant role.
5. Student safety and acceptable use must be addressed without limiting access in ways that interfere with educational uses.
6. Classroom management strategies and tools need improvement.
7. More effective approaches to technology infrastructure and support are needed.
Filed under: Instructional Leader, Leadership, Visionary | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, Action Plans, Data, Educational Leadership, Leadership, Standards, Technology Plans, Vision
Check out this new post on the 1-to-1 Schools Net on creating a vision for student success in a 1-t0-1 laptop environment. I haven’t figured it out yet, but I’m working on it. It’s actually a very exciting project!
Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader | Tags: 21st Century Schools, Digital Directions, Educational Leadership, Languages, Learning
Cross posted on 1 to 1 Schools Net.
I saw this article yesterday in Digital Directions from Education Week and it’s been on my mind ever since. While I’m actually a huge supporter of the use of technology in teaching and learning for languages, I believe that there are problems with the way thinking that is portrayed in the article. Now I don’t know what the situation is at the school and I’m not in their shoes, but it seems to me that their view is myopic and that they are not looking at the big picture of the future. The future (and the present for many schools) is not in fixed labs where students and teachers have to be in a specific location for learning to happen. The future is anytime, anywhere ubiquitous access.
The article mentions that Robotel’s language lab software packages range from $500 – $1500 per seat. I’m assuming that this does not include hardware costs since the article states “software”. Based on this figure, the Holmdel foundation raised $150,000 and, according to the article, they had three choices on which to spend it.
The Holmdel foundation was presented with three options for a large fundraising campaign this year: the language lab, LCD projectors in every classroom, or installation of wireless Internet throughout the school building. The foundation chose to raise money for the language lab, Bals says, because parents felt it was important for students to learn to speak other languages, especially in preparation to compete for jobs in a global economy.
What if the money could be used to increase overall student access to technology and also provide students and teachers with access to tools that will help with learning languages?
Let’s take the one classroom scenario that Scott M. Hansen, a vice president of Sanako Inc., presents in support of the language lab solution.
… Advanced Placement language courses require students to undergo an oral exam that may take 15 minutes of speaking directly to the teacher. In the past, teachers would have to pull each student to the hallway for the oral exam, while other students kept themselves occupied in class. Depending on the number of students in a class, that activity could take the whole period.
With a digital language lab, says Hansen, the students can take the oral exam, using their headphones and microphones, all at once. Their comments are recorded, and the teacher can listen to each student later.
Let’s say that the school instead decided to invest in a number of laptops for students to check out so that they have access to a portable machine. With a wireless network, they can work anywhere in the school. I propose this scenario in support of investing in wireless, mobile access:
While the students are waiting their turn to speak to the teacher they can be …
- recording their own orals using Audacity, which is a free program. They can then listen to their recording and self-assess their work or they can have a peer or the teacher review their work later on.
- collaborating on a story using photos on VoiceThread, which is available for about $1/ user per year. Voice Thread can be used in all subject matter classes since it’s not just geared for learning a 2nd/3rd language.
- studying vocabulary, listening to pronunciations, or taking short quizzes for formative assessment by using one of many iPhone apps that are available for a minimal cost.
These are just three low cost options that I brainstormed within a matter of 30 minutes and these provide the teacher with a larger bag of tricks to use as he/she deems appropriate.
Lastly, this topic is a timely one since my family and I are beginning to learn Portuguese to prepare for our move to Sao Paulo, Brazil in July. One of the free tools that we are using is Livemocha and my wife and I are very impressed by the quality of this free web 2.0 resource. Aside from the video/audio lessons our written and oral work is critiqued by Portuguese speakers from around the world. Our responsibility is to do the same for users who are studying English. Livemocha has:
- courses in 36 languages
- over 160 hours of lessons for each
- helpful tips from native speakers
- a focus on conversation skills
While I’m not a language teacher, as a 21st century educator I’m for providing the students and teachers with the the portability that these other tools and a laptop provide. To me they make more sense than investing in a fixed lab with costly software and hardware solutions.
Filed under: Change Agent, Leadership | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, 21st Century Schools, Educational Leadership, Leadership, Planning, Technology, Technology Plans
I just recently started posting on the 1 to 1 Schools Net which is a blog that was established by CASTLE and Nick Sauers is the principal blogger.
Check out my latest post entitled Leadership and the 1-to-1 Bus.
Flickr by Edge of Space
Filed under: Change Agent, Leadership | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, change, Educational Leadership, Leadership, Technology Plans, Vision
Cross posted on 1 to 1 Schools
As someone who is passionate about providing students and teachers with ubiquitous access to technological tools for teaching and learning I am shocked when 1:1 initiatives fail or when critics block progress. Yes, there are actually schools that have dropped the program. I can’t even imagine what it feels like to be a student who turns in his/her laptop when the pilot fails.
When planning for a 1:1 laptop initiative I suggest that the leadership team be prepared for the critics, cynics, killjoys and prophets of doom. Seymour Papert in Pamela Livingston’s book 1-to-1 Learning: Laptop Programs that Work states, ”expect opposition and know that it can be beaten”.
What can we learn from the failures?
- Lack of a shared vision throughout the community
- Laptops frequently breaking down (either through accident or student misuse)
- Students not using the technology appropriately
- Disconnect between the curriculum and 21st century learning
- Network speed did not meet the needs of the users
- Laptops were viewed as a distraction
- No evidence of improved student achievement
Don’t get caught saying, “That was 2007. Things are different now.” Take a look at the November 9, 2009 article from the Asheville Citizens-Times, entitled “A laptop for every student: Asheville High makes technology push” . While the article highlights the excellent work that the leaders of the Asheville City Schools are doing to raise funds and plan for a 1-to-1 initiative, the best information comes from the reader comments that follow the article.
These three unedited quotes will give you an idea of the tone of the dialogue.
KeithOberman wrote:
“It would be a total waste of money to give every student atAHS a computer and allow them to take them home. AHShas some outstanding teachers and students but they alsohave some students and I use that term liberally that are not at AHS to learn. Take for instance the studentthat had a gun in his locker last week. I heard he is stilla freshman academically but much older than a typicalfreshman. What do you think would happen to a computerif he was allowed to take it home. I can tell you this muchit would never make it back to the school. Come on AshevilleAdministrators this idea you have is admirable butnot practical. This policy should be scraped or alteredbefore it is put in place.”
manx911 wrote:
“It is NOT the responsibility of the school system to provide the tools that are needed to satisfy the curosity of learning. It is the PARENTS!! Be it homeschool, private school or whatever it is the responsiblity of the parents.”
MrsGerber wrote:
“Looks to me like this generous offer using my tax $,will end up causing more harm than goodFirst off if you give a kid a $2000,00 computer what will prevent him/her from selling it for drugs?It will be a magnet for bullies to steal from other kids, taking someones lunch money will be a thing of the past, now just stael their computerCan parents be held accountable ?Next after this, why not give each student a car, that way they can get to school easier?”
The good news is that this is excellent data for leaders to use when planning and implementing a successful laptop initiative. Those who are successful address these issues and tackle them head on. I recently spoke to a technology director who is involved with a very successful 1:1 laptop program and he shared with me that his first experience in a public school district in Canada failed. No one ever said that it was going to be easy, but we do “know that it can be beaten.”
