The Centenial Man

Wow. This post makes 100 posts (and 3000 views). I never stick with anything this long. I want to thank both of my readers for taking part in the conversation. I guess that I am now obliged to review some of my best/favorite/most talked about posts.

It all started September 25, 2007 with this post. Donna DesRoches got me started at a PD session she put on. I decided to use my real grown up name on the internet. (Or as real and grown up as I could manage!) You can actually Google my name now.

While my first post was not very memorable here are some others that are remarkable either because I liked them or they generated some conversation.

Difficulties and Roadblocks Already?

This early post wasn't anything special but it did spark discussion. It showed me the possibilities of blogging. Did I mention that I love when people argue intellegently with me?

Mixcraft - Music Making for the Mac Challenged

According to Google Analytics this page still accounts for 20% of the traffic to my blog. Who would have figured?

Time Lapse Holiday Cheer

This post was about creating time lapse videos. I had initially posted the video directly from YouTube - then I went into Blogger to add more information. In the time between posting from YouTube and going back and editing the post (About 30 minutes) Dean Shareski had already found the post and commented. The really funny part is that I was going back into the post to add a link to his blog where he had done something similar.

Mine? Mine? Mine?

A post about copyright and education. I got some good responses with this one. I am still thinking about the issue and when I get time I will get back to it.

How to Engineer an Objective Pedagogy

This one was fun. The best part is that the people involved still haven't gotten the joke.

My Students are Screwed

I took a bit of a risk on this one. I talked about things that are usually swept under the table. I keep expecting to get in a little hot water over it. Nobody has been willing to touch it in the comments either.

The Value of Time

In lots of my posts you will find me complaining that teachers don't have enough time. Here I think I found part of the reason I don't have enough time.

My Rants

Turns out my carpool was right. I do rant a lot. Here are some of my favorites.

Twisting on the Internet Swings

Yep - got kinda mad here.

I want a New Job

No this post was not about quitting. I was just plain mad (again). This post is interesting because it was picked up and quoted out of context by Dan Meyer. Here was my response to him.

So What Have I Learned?

I have learned to complain a little less - (or at least a little more constructively).

I have learned to write more posts that actually add to the conversation - not to just repost what somebody else has said.

I find that part of the value of writing is just for me to make my thoughts just a little more concrete. Writing it down just helps me work through the ideas. This blog also helps me archive my writing.

I have also learned to just write. Many posts where I waited until I had the time to get them just right never got written. One paragraph just in time is way more valuable than an essay too late.

Lastly, I have learned that just because I think I have something worth saying doesn't mean people will read it. Damn. Because I do. Really. Honest.......

A Quick Question

(Careful........This just might be a trick question.)

My Students are Screwed!

My students are screwed. They have been from long before they walked through my classroom doors.

I am sure that you are all wondering what the heck I am talking about. Patience. I will get to it - but first you need some background knowledge.

Lets start with Malcome Gladwell's book Outliers. Read it. It rocks - and it will make you look at amazing people like Wayne Gretzky and Bill Gates a little bit differently. Haven't read it? Not going to get to it soon? Ok - here is the basic information that pertains to what I am talking about.

In Outliers there is a chapter about mathematics - more specifically about how Asian students tend to do better in math. Gladwell says that there are two main factors that explain the test scores. He calls them cultural legacy. The first is that numbers are handled differently in most Asian languages. They make more sense. If I were to have a race a Chinese person in counting to a hundred (in our own languages) they would win almost every time. It is just the structure of the language. The second factor (and more important factor) is the fact that a large percentage of Asians come from a rice farming background. Rice farming is VERY labor intensive. Successful rice farmers work much harder and much longer than other types of farmers. Asian students have grown up in that type of environment. They learned how to work very hard. They grew up with a cultural legacy of hard work. (Every single successful outlier in Gladwell's book worked very hard to get where they were.) Gladwell explained that mathematics is easier when the language makes better sense - and when you work hard towards a solution (No surprise there!).

So how are my students screwed? All of my students are First Nations. (Ok maybe 2 aren't - but the rest definately are.) What cultural legacy has been left to them? Thanks to a wonderful system of government handouts many of them come from an environment where they don't have to work. They will be provided for if they choose to not work at all. (Keep in mind that only a pittance is provided - I realize it is not an easy life or a good life.) If you go back before Europeans were in the picture that was not the case - but wasn't that too many generations ago for it to truly be a huge part of many of their cultural legacy? Also keep in mind that this is a generalization and does not apply to everybody. I have students that I would be willing to hire outside of school because they are hard workers. The point I am trying to make is that my students have to fight a very uphill battle in order to succeed in math (and I never even touched on language issues!). They have to fight that battle because of where they grew up and what they saw around them.

So what do I do about it? No, what am I failing to do about it? - because that is what is happening. My students are failing - which means that I am failing because I have failed to do enough about their new cultural legacy. One more time - (and yes I am begging for help here) - what can I do about it?

Opening the GATES to Education?

Bill Gates - he's maybe not the evil megalomaniac that he gets made out to be.  This guy is actually pretty smart.  Watch his TED talk.  The first half is about mosquitos and malaria.  It is ok (especially the part where he releases live mosquitos into the audience) - but then quickly get to the good part - the part about the education system.  (Well the American education system anyways).  I don't agree with everything that he says but his message is definately worth listening to.  He approaches education from a slightly corporate mindset.  While initially I find that disturbing I have to think about it.  He is the key part of a highly successful and innovative company (despite what the Apple propaganda wants you to believe.)  He knows how to succeed and he knows how to effect change.  He IS worth listening to.

Bill Gates does push the current bandwagon - data and assessment.  His message about it is different though.  Don't use the data to identify who is weak and what teachers are terrible - use it to celebrate those that are good.  Put them up as examples and say - "Here is a good teacher - his/her students learn more over the course of the year.  Learn from this teacher."

He also talks about KIPP schools (Bill Gates likes them - no that does not make them evil).  If you have never heard of KIPP schools then you should read up on them too.

Watch it.  Listen with an open mind.  As I said before - he IS worth listening to.

Mine? Mine? Mine?

Who owns what we create?

I mean as teachers - if I create something on school time who does it belong to? Is it mine? I made it. Or does it belong to the division? We did make it while being paid by them. (For that matter when exactly does school time end? I am paid on a salary not by the hour.) If I leave am I obligated to leave a copy of what I created? Do I even have the right to take it with me?

If an architect designs a building - it belongs to the company they work for. An engineer's work belongs to the firm. Who does my work belong to? Do I even have the right to offer it up as Creative Commons work? (Like virtually all of my work is?) What is the story with university research? Does it belong to the researcher - the university - or is it a shared copyright?

I know that there are special exceptions in the Canadian Copyright laws for education but how far does it go?

I don't know. But for the record - (to any of my bosses) - you can use anything I create, just keep me happy enough and we won't have to get into the discussion of whether I can take it with me.

Photo Credit http://www.flickr.com/photos/pugno_muliebriter/1384247192/

The Value of Time

I have been thinking about time. We always complain that we don't have enough time for collaboration. There is not enough time in the day to get together and work with other teachers.  We are to busy teaching. Administrators need to give us more time for collaboration. We need time to have those meaningful conversations with our peers. (complain, complain, complain)  Yes, I am part of that crowd.

I think I have found an hour a day of regularly uninterrupted collaboration time. Nobody is really going to like the answer.

It came to me when I thought about this past year in teaching. It had been my busiest yet. I am always feeling rushed. The only real reason I could come up with was the fact that I switched carpools. My new carpool always wants to leave right after school. Always. In fact they often call me on the intercom to hurry up. I knew this when I joined but I am too frugal (cheap) to drive myself every day.

I am sure you can see where I am going with this. How many of us are out the door shortly after the bell? We all use similar excuses - I need to get home to my family, I have prior engagements, I am to burnt out at the end of the day. How many other jobs do you get to put in 6 hour workdays? Oh but I do my work at home. Ya, so much for your argument about family.  Add in the fact that it is harder to collaborate with others from a distance.

One hour at the end of the day would give us lots of time to get things done (both together and alone). Think how much better we would do if we were not trying to squeeze in collaboration during time we are supposed to be focusing on actually teaching.

You Betcha I want to say Yes!

Dan Meyer of dy/dan fame picked up one of my rants a while back.  I just found it now.  Here is what he said:

Just Say Yes?

Gary Ball, edtechnophile:

I want to be a Yes Man. I want to be a Lets Find a Way Man. I want my job to be finding ways to say yes to educators requests. Educator: "Can I do/have (insert random skill/technology/tool)?" Me: "Heck ya - that sounds awesome. I am not sure how but lets find a way!"

Mark Weston, Dell's educational strategist:

Asking the question, "Does technology improve student learning?" is the wrong question. The question should be, "Does technology support the practices that improve student learning?"

After reading the comments and thinking about it for a while I wrote this reply.  I figured that I should share it here.

Dean Shareski has the essence of what the post was actually about. You are quoting me a bit out of context.

No division could afford to keep me (or any good teacher) fully stocked up with all of my (our) whims. There has to be some sort of system of checks and balances to see that funds are truly spent on technology that supports students learning (and the practices that improve it). However I was not ranting about whims. Any conversation that starts out with a NO probably won’t get far. I want to be heard out and considered before I get a no (and please leave out the capital letters and the exclamation mark).

Innovation and creativity (which we need more of) sometimes involves picking up something new and asking “What can I do with this?” It involves playing with the new shiny thing and finding interesting ways it is useful.

I do agree that we need to have the conversation about how things will improve or support student learning. Anything that does not in some way improve student learning is money wasted. I don’t advocate blindly saying yes. I do advocate for innovation, creativity, and the conversations that should come with them.

As I have said before - I enjoy when people disagree with me or challenge me (as long as they do it intelligently.)

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