Podcast Response
The interview with Dr. Scott McLeod covered an abundance of new issues I had never considered. First of all, one comment McLeod made was that if one is not actively involved in the newer technology, like Web 2.0 or RSS feeds, one doesn’t know what’s truly around them. With the creation of LeaderTalk, McLeod provides a great technology resource for all administration and educators alike. This forum enables administrators to share ideas, plans, and viewpoints with other administration worldwide, while only having to submit once a month. I was surprised to even consider that administration were too busy to blog! Another element was the concept of understanding social media tools. Last year, I tried to incorporate blogging in my Mass Media class in our district. I realize now that I approached administration ineffectively. It is important to fully understand something before we try to change it, and if the administration I approached had no understanding of the nature of blogging, much less its educational value, of course they would quickly shoot down the idea. Finally, after listening to this podcast and having experienced the team building exercise last week in class, I realize how essential it is to have administration on board when implementing change in a school district. I have a new plan of attack, thanks to Dr. McLeod!
Peg M.
Listen to Podcast151: Dr. Scott McLeod on Administrator Idea-Sharing via Blogs, Digital Social Networking, and Educating Others for the Transition to 21st Century Schools
This Podcast is a Skype interview with Dr. Scott McLeod, the director of CASTLE (The Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education) and an educational leadership/educational law professor at the University of Minnesota. Scott has been blogging since August 2006 on “Dangerously Irrelevant,” and has helped start several education team blogging projects [...]
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Penni Uribe
As a teacher of writing and English, I attempted to organize my thoughts according to Dr. McLeod’s three main topics: Administrator Idea-Sharing via Blogs, Digital Social Networking, and Educating Others for the Transition to 21st Century Schools. To do so is clearly impossible! The three are so intertwined and overlapping that I can’t speak of them separately!
The conversation began about educational leaders involved in blogging. Some benefits for principals and superintendents are free administrators’ blogs, such as LeaderTalk. Within this “edublogosphere,” a new word to me, administrators’ jobs may be made easier by using a blog in place of a monthly newsletter, for example. Blogs are more frequent and shorter than newsletters, and the audience can offer comments or feedback instantaneously, whereas with a newsletter, the communication is much more one-way or one-sided.
Next, the conversation turned to the topic of what has been successful in Dr. McLeod’s classes that he has taught, and how he would spend a six-hour workshop. He replied that he often begins by showing “Did You Know?” and follows it with a 30-minute presentation of other related information. His description of viewer responses being varied by audience types was interesting: corporate people say, “Yes, yes, yes;” teenagers say, “Yes, finally you’re getting it;” educators don’t say much but instead tend to hide, they are scared and overwhelmed. Dr. McLeod said he tries to open conversation and find pockets of success and coaxes them to begin thinking about how to get to a different point. He wants educators to see blogging as a tool, engaging, leading to an understanding of how the world has changed. He says that educators haven’t been forced to deal with technological changes. He seeks to raise educators’ awareness of those changes and asks how we are going to help prepare students.
A third topic was scholarly research versus blogging. Scholarly research ends up hidden in a library and is only reviewed by a few people; on the other hand, blogging is very accessible and timely, it draws feedback from its publication, and it reaches many different types of people, sometimes by the thousands per day, not just those earning Master’s or Doctorate degrees. Dr. McLeod also feels that by using blogging in his classes, his students will become proponents of it later.
Finally, conversation shifted to school law, social networking, cyber bullying, and user- and student-created content. Proactive leaders should be educating administrators, teachers, parents, even students, around the issues. He said that most people have had no training, but school leaders can create the climate where bullying is “disincentivized” and gets disciplined on campus and informed upon off campus. Leaders need to know, though, when they can and can not intervene; off-campus speech that is unpleasant or which causes discomfort may not fit the Tinker standard, it “must be an actual, material, substantial disruption.” Dr. McLeod said that school districts have tried to overreach and have ended up having to pay settlements to students and their families. Schools should incorporate “moderated social networking” like Moodle. We should not be shutting down the tools as doing so tells students that those tools are irrelevant; students have to learn how to behave with them. Students should not have to go home from school to learn how to use those tools, schools should be preparing students by having them use those digital tools. Furthermore, disadvantaged kids don’t have access at home, so we are even more obligated to help them learn how to use the tools at school.
I liked the host’s final comment that “Leaders are the gatekeepers for change.” With NCLB, we can try to make changes at the classroom level, but leaders need to be involved.
While listening to the interview with Dr. McLeod, I found a few key points that I could connect with...
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Dr. McLeod talked about one advantage of blogging as being the feedback which is often quicker, easier and continual with a blog and basically non-existant with a newsletter. I could see this as a benefit of blogging in the classroom because students today appreciate the idea of instant gratification and blogging could lend itself to that.
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I also was interested in the end of the podcast when Dr. McLeod started talking about school's responsibility to expose kids to tools and techniques related to technology in order to prepare them for the real world. I thought of my school district and it was frustrating to think of how technology is viewed. Through this Masters program I have been exposed to several programs that would be worthwhile to use in the classroom. Unfortunately, we are not granted access to many of them. For example, I wanted to blog with my students last year and it took a lot of time and effort in order to get it approved. I could see some teachers just giving up and not going through the "hassle".
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There is also an issue with access to computers. There are some of us who would like the ability to use the computer lab to do worthwhile technology projects with the students, however, access is limited to one hour a week. It is then frustrating to see that some teachers view computer lab time as "free time" for their students to play games while they sit in the back of the room and correct.
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The last comment that he made that I could relate to was the idea of evaluating our purpose as educators-are we here to prepare our students for the future or simply teach them useless content that they will never use. School districts today are becoming more and more caught up in the "teaching for the test". I am often criticized by my fellow teachers because I am not on a certain page by a certain date. When I think of my purpose as an educator, I feel that it is my responsibility to teach children how to learn and to love to learn and I feel that will prepare them for the future more than useless bits of information that they could use to win "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?" I feel that as a school district we should look more at preparing our children for the real world that awaits them and that can only be done by putting more of an emphasis on technology in the classroom.
After reading the reviews below, I would have to say that I agree with everything that is being said. Bullying/inappropriate behavior can be a problem with integrating technology, but I think we have to remember that it can also be a problem without technology. I know it is hard and often frustrating, but that is where I think we have to be careful that we don't let the one or two negative outcomes get in the way of the many positive outcomes that can be achieved.
Lisa Chase
A Posting by Rosanda Green
Before Podcast
I have to admit that this was my very first podcast and I had a very difficlut time accessing it. In all honesty, I am very inexperienced with blogging, podcasting, wikis and so on. In fact, I have only blogged when we hadto in our CEDu 525 class. Last week was my first time using Wikis. Did I even say that correctly? These applications are very new to me and I have not made it a priority to explore them. To be quite honest- working full time, raising two children, and being in this graduate program affordsl little time for enrichment activities. Unless it is an assignment, I just don't get around to it.
After Podcast
Much like Daniel, I realize that this was quite simply excuse making. I need to make a personal effort to incorporate the elements of Web 2.0 into my classroom. It is my responsibility as an educator to prepare our students to implement these communication tools effectively and efficiently. As inexperienced as I am with these "newer" technology tools, I am still considered a technology "geek" in my building. Upon reflection, this expertise that I seemingly hold has to do with information/data systems and prductivity and presentation software. While I am proud of my skills, I realize the importance of supersizing my skills. This podcast has inspired me to move beyond the Practice Phase.
Given the dynamic and rapidly changing nature of technology, we as instructional technology teachers must move to affect change in our classrooms, schools, districts, and maybe even beyond. We can begin with ourselves! If we can achieve this 1 class at a time, what a difference we can make!
This reminds me of the first page in chapter 1: "The best teachers understand that their most important goal is to be an inspiration to children to learn, to dream, and to try to accomplish". Dr. Scott makes a valid point in emphasizing the importance of incorparting these methodologies/practices in the classroom. Students who have experiences with these technology tools today will most likely utilize them in the workplace.... leading to more productive and contributing members of society.
I am not surprised to hear his commentary regarding the surprising numbers of educators who have not embraced the Web 2.0 Movement. I don't agree that all educators are uneducated or naive when it comes to these applications. Change is slow and takes time.
My posting
I myself do little blogging nor do I blog with my students. These concepts of wiki’s, blogs and other Web 2.0 applications are still quite foreign to me and to be honest I feel a little overwhelmed by them. After listening to Dr. Scott McLeod I feel that this is only an excuse on my part for not learning about the technology and implementing it with my students. Like Dr. McLeod said, if we shut our schools out of the Web 2.0 world then we have no place in their future. We all know what happens when we leave the learning of content up to their parents. Our job is not only to teach kids about the content we teach, but also to educate them in the use of technology.
Yesterday, I was doing a debate with my students about the presidential address that occurred Thursday night. The debate was on whether or not we are right in staying in Iraq. I had two diehard Republicans debate with one or two others who were against the war. The rest of the class was non-existent. These voices need to be heard and I think sometimes these voices are too scared to speak up. I haven’t tried it yet, but I think a blog or wiki would be great place to hear that voice and get other perspectives in a relatively safe location. I think the potential is enormous. If anyone has ideas on how to implement a blog or a wiki with 130 students your advice would be greatly appreciated.
One thing that I am happy about with our current administration at our school is they are progressive when it comes to technology. Our new associate principal has set up blogs before with his students and is currently revamping our school webpage so it is friendlier for students and teachers. I know that if I asked him for assistance he would give it willingly. He is also progressive when it comes to ipods and cell phones in school except students still cannot use the cell phone during school hours. I think he and Dr. McLoed are right though. We cannot shut out the technology that are current students are living with. This is the way of the future.
Another thing I found interesting about Dr. McLoed’s interview was his uses of blogs. They answer the question, “Why are they so useful?” First, he stated it is a great place to put out thoughts or ideas and we can get feedback. One of the reasons Dr. McLoed likes the blog is it feels like he is exactly reaching people. He feels this way because people actually respond to him and his ideas. He could publish his research in a library of scholarly articles, but how many people does he actually reach? On the blog he can reach thousands of people and hear what they have to say and these people are not just professionals and doctors. They are Mr. and Mrs. Average American. He also sites that we need to prepare our students for their future and as a result we should be exposing them to as many tools as we can in preparation for their future, in other words of the day, podcasts, wikis, blogs, etc. Another reason to use these tools is because they are a constant source of new information. One of the ways to stay on top of cutting edge technology is to communicate and these tools allow us to do it.
In closing let me just reiterate what Dr. McLoed said throughout his interview. What type of world are we preparing our students for? A world of needless facts or a world of communication? We have the power to change and change we must.
Daniel Simonson
I absolutely agree, Dan. If we don't begin to find ways to inform students about and be prepared to implement use of these social communication tools within our schools, we really are sending students out into a world that they don't fully understand. It seems that the changes in technology should turn the focus in education from filling kids with knowledge that they will need to preparing students to efficiently find and filter through the knowledge they will eventually need to attain. The pace of change is moving so rapidly today that our students will be far better served if they are taught how to effectively learn instead of being told what to learn. It seems very possible that an educational introduction to the social networking revolution taking place online is one way of showing students some of the tools that will be available to them as they grow to adulthood and are forced to learn new skills and to embrace new ideas and movements.
I found Dr. McLeod's comment about his peers fascinating and poignant to the discussion of the value of social networking within education. He said that none of his academic colleagues were latching on to the trends of posting information in blogs and other social networking mediums. He explained that their respect for and focus on the academic journals and peer review trumped his arguments about connecting with an audience and encouraging real change with their scholarship. As a result, their work was not finding any substantial audience and was sitting on library shelves, collecting dust.This seems somewhat symbolic of what may happen/is happening in our schools today. Perhaps our respect and appreciation for the traditional educational models we were educated in will cause/is causing us to be blind to the changes that need to take place to make education more valuable to students growing up in a changing world. Perhaps educators who are unwilling to consider change are no different than those professors and academics. Is our important work, which we put great effort into, actually finding an audience? Is the unwillingness to adapt to change and reevaluate the effectiveness of popular traditional teaching strategies causing students to place our work "upon the shelves?"
I do find it fortunate and refreshing to be in a program with educators who have embraced the changes in our world and who are interested in finding new ways to address those changes by adapting our approaches in the classroom. Unfortunately, I daily return to a community of teachers that do not overwhelmingly share that vision. While I do not believe that blogging or Web 2.0 applications are the "answer" to all of the educational woes we face, it is the unawareness of these changes in the real world that causes me concern. Even hearing Dr. McLeod call educators uneducated and nieve in the areas of social networing and technology is eye-opening and startling. While it is only one man's opinion, educators should never be able to described that way. As educators, we should uniformly be on the forefront of these new trends so that our students can be made aware of these realities in their world.
-Brian Yearling
I agree with Dan as I haven't used blogs or Wiki's with my students. Dr. Scott makes a good point in that having students use them in the classroom will make them more apt to initiate their use in the workplace. They will need to be comfortable using various formats when they transition into jobs. I think that his approach of starting at the top (where the decisions begin and the money starts) will have the greatest impact for teachers and students across the board. And his point was well taken that most educational articles end up in library files with little or no exposure whereas blogs are more accessible AND encourage feedback ! He said that he finds other interesting blogs by checking out the blog comments on sites that he visits so I tried it on his site and found myself wandering for about an hour checking things out.
His comments on the cyber bullying were a bit confusing to me, apparently there isn't much that can be done by school districts?
As long as it is possible to track the origin of a blog (it is possible, right?), then schools shouldn't be apprehensive about allowing user created content. I do recall that with the Wiki's there was a way to track when someone made changes. If this is pointed out to students in the beginning, problems should be kept at a minimum.
I was surprised to hear that he felt that the minds in higher academia haven't embraced the social networking in education. I assumed that higher institutions were well ahead of the game. And his comment about how students are going home to learn the skills needed in the workplace is so true! I think that the reason educators bury their heads is due to the fact that most of the students know as much or more about technology than they do . . . teachers are embarrassed over their ignorance and apprehensive because it is difficult to keep abreast of changes and feel that they don't have the time to commit to it with all their other obligations.
- Janet Yunker- I left a few horizontal rules for the rest of you :)
I also have to agree with Dan and the others about not have used blogs or Wiki's with my students. I have not felt comfortable doing so at this point, but I feel that we need to expose our students with as much technology as we can to prepare them for the workplace. I found it interesting that higher education has not grasp the change of the world toward technology. That is where students look to specialize in a job field and get the practice they need to be successful. This is very representative to the activity in week one's class as far as the high school section was the most difficult to move and if they were tough I suppose post high school would be even tougher.
Dr. Scott McLeod's point on getting feedback on what you write and your work using blogs facinated me. I think that published articles can be long and hardly ever used, but a blog the write can recieve comments, suggestions, and the good feeling that someone out there has read it and was willing to comment. Blogs could work great for peer reviews and help those that have trouble asking for help.
Moving forward is and will be difficult, but we must get there not only for us as teachers, but for our children we teach. We need to prepare them for the ever changing world we live in. I agree with Janet about most teachers someitmes have difficulty with the fact some students know more than we do. As hard as that seems, we as teachers must educate ourselves on the lastest technology to keep up and but also not lose the core information we need to teach.
Rob Grisar
This podcast was interesting to me on many different levels. As a founding teacher in an online school it reminds me how different my experience really is from the experiences of teachers in the face to face school. As a blogger, it surprises me that people still do not understand what blogs are and how the purpose of a blog far overrides a place to post cute pictures of kids or write about how much the author hates a “fill in the blank” subject.
I smiled knowingly when McLeod discussed how fledging administrative bloggers became enthusiastic when they started receiving comments. Comments are the sweet nectar of blogging and I can see why that would hook them. I was surprised that RSS or other feed readers were not part of this process. I think once bloggers form a community the content and writing of the sites elevates for everyone in the community.
One thing I wish Dr. McLeod had covered is how to break the cycle in education where we are using technology to do the same things we could do without technology. I think oftentimes we are not using technology to its greatest advantage when we use it to do something that can be easily duplicated without technology. I think meaningful use of technology at this juncture would focus on self-created, self-published media. Additionally, an emphasis should be on effective electronic communications should be paramount. This skill is needed and will become increasingly necessary as the global community ceases to be a buzzword and becomes a reality.
Anna Lardinois
Podcast Reflection:
The podcast conversation with Dr. Scott McLeod focused on “blogging” in education. I found it interesting that there is an entire blogging community focused on education administrators. I think administrator blogs are an excellent way for principals and superintendents to communicate their successes and struggles with other communities. My question is this: how many administrators truly want their struggles visible for all to see? Who wants their “failures” to be broadcast to the entire internet community?
I agree with Dr. McLeod on how education is behind the rest of the business world in terms of technology usage. It seems that in many situations, technology is used for the sake of using technology. In the business world, technology is used to increase efficiency and productivity. The use of blogs by administrators, teachers, and students can help to increase efficiency in education. Dr. McLeod mentioned that administrator blogs will reach more people than scholarly journals. This could help move education further along in the field of technology, while increasing communication and productivity.
Another thing Dr. McLeod touched upon was “cyberbullying”. Dr. McLeod said that there was very little a school district could do to discipline this. I actually had a little bit of experience with this last year. In my class I use the “BlackBoard” website system---a relatively secure system that only my students and parents can enter, with a password. I had one of my “Programming the Web” classes critique each others’ web pages using the discussion board on BlackBoard. Before I had my class begin to post, I talked to them about appropriate and inappropriate postings. I also mentioned that I would be able to see which students posted the comments. Unfortunately, some of my students did not listen to my warning and they posted some inappropriate comments. Since this was a secure school site, I was able to remove these postings and take corrective action. Perhaps other schools could avoid and/or correct cyberbullying in the future with the use of a similar secure site.
-Kristin Haefke
Podcast Reflection
I agree with Kristin Haefke. I can see how administrators would be very reluctant to post their "failures" on a blog site. Although doing this anonymously might help to generate more discussion and get more honest opinions and feedback. Coming from a district where, for some reason, our failures seem to be more known then our successes, I can see how a principal might be a bit reluctant to put any more failures out there. These blogs could help an administrator see what other schools have done that were successful and hopefully get ideas of how to improve what has "failed" in their own district.
One thing the podcast talked about was "cyberbullying" He discussed there was little a district could do to discipline a student who was "bullying" online. He says one way to stop this from happening is to create a school environment that makes this unlikely, but isn't that a goal of the school anyway. To create an environment where bullying doesn't occur in the classroom, in the halls, or anywhere. I believe that a student could be disciplined or at least talked to about what they were saying. Not only that but if bullying going on outside of the school and it is something that really bothers the student, the school liason officer can be notified and have a discussion with the people involved. In the podcast he says you can only do something if "a substantial disruption occurs", but who determines what is substantial disruption occurs and what makes it substantial or not? Everyones views of "substantial" are different, so setting up guidelines ahead of time for you students might be a good way to alleviate any of this. Also telling them of any ramifications of "bullying" might make them stop and think before doing it.
Kristin Hubmann
I too agree with Dan. It is our job as educators to prepare students for the future, and sheltering them from Web 2.0 is only leaving them behind. However, before we can prepare our students, we must prepare our teachers. I think that McLeod’s blogging network for administrators is a wonderful idea that will hopefully inspire leaders to learn and pass on the knowledge to their staffs. When I think of why I don’t blog with my students I know it is because of the cyber bullying issues. I also don’t feel 100% comfortable in setting up a site. The thought of blogging with 200 students seems to be a bit overwhelming and I wonder how I would respond and monitor everything. I know, however, if my school were to hold staff development on the issue many at our site would love to implement blogging. I can only imagine the impact blogging could have on some of my students. If fact, I bet many of the students who come off as shy in class, would have wonderful things to say on a blog network. Blogging could also help create a better school community for students, parents, and teachers, for all could discuss current issues. Overall, I can’t agree enough that our schools and methods of teaching must change in order to better prepare our students for the future.
Amanda Simon
Podcast Discussion/Reflection
Dr. Scott McCloud's interview podcast provided several insights as to the need for all members of the education to begin the process of adapting a new philosophy on technology integration and implementation in schools. One question that he raised was, "Is our purpose to prepare kids for the future or is it to teach content which kids won't use after high school?" Successful educators would all agree that our philosophy should be to prepare kids for the future, and that future, as Dr. McCloud so expressively indicates, revolves around technology.
Dr. McCloud expressed the need for professionals (specifically educational administrators) to utilize the social-networking technologies to a) gain understanding of how it works and b) learn how other administrators and schools are preparing kids for the world that they will be living in through comments, discussion, and feedback. I found Dr. McCloud’s assertion that several educators and administrators, especially those who have not grown up with technology as a prominent figure in their lives, should use social-networking and other Web 2.0 technologies to gain an understanding of how the world has changed. As a Professor of Education, he discussed the impact of putting technologies into practice versus just discussing theories and writing scholarly articles on such theories. Practice brings understanding, just like using a wiki for this course. Rather than just talking about creating a class wiki, we are utilizing one and thus, understanding how it can be effectively integrated into our classrooms.
During the podcast, the interviewer thanked Dr. McCloud for contributing to the “Did You Know?” presentation. Curiously, I went to the Dangerously Irrelevant webpage to find a link to the Did You Know? 2.0 presentation provided on YouTube. (Did You Know? 2.0) Before watching this presentation, I had believed that I understood how rapidly technology was becoming engrained into all aspects of everyday life; however, I was amazed at the rate of which technology is growing and becoming the center of all communication in our lives. I would encourage all of the members in the course to watch the presentation, and I believe that it could be used to begin the discussion in the various school districts as to how we can prepare our students for the future. The message is made clear with a quote from Albert Einstein stating, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” As educators, we need to be at the forefront of these new waves of technology so that we can better prepare our students for doing jobs that aren’t even invented yet. We need to teach them how to apply, collaborate, analyze, evaluate, create, and communicate so they can be successful in the future. While our overall philosophy of teaching (to prepare kids for the future) has not changed, what we need to prepare them for has, and we need to be willing to adapt. Taking strides in educating school administrators and teachers is the first step.
- Heather Slosarek
As the only non-teacher in the cohort, it's very interesting to me to read the reactions of the professional educators in the group. I have 2 solid pages of notes from the podcast, with 3 to-do items for me when I get to work on Monday. In my current role, I felt that the number one point of the podcast was the need for schools to find ways to train students how to use new technologies safely or risk becoming irrelevant. The section on the power of blogging and its benefits to administrators and principals was particularly interesting. I've been looking for the right way to approach our district admin staff regarding some of these topics, and having the checklist of points from Dr. McLeod may make this an easier task. I believe strongly in the power of conversation to facililtate change, and hope to have our district level directors ALL contributing to a MNSD blog by the end of the calendar year!
Along those lines, the comment that administrative staff are so time-stretched that you (as a change agent) must find different ways to gain interest in using web 2.0 tools. The hints to tie usage to administrative best practices and that short, frequent blog entries can be more efficient that a long monthly printed newsletter are ones that I will definitely stress to our principals. The professional development approaches for principals that Dr. McLeod listed are two that I've already attempted to use, and will take another pass at: 1) raise awareness of tools and why they might care about them, and 2) helping them understand how the world has changed.
Our district leadership team has done a number of readings on change and how to become an excellent organization. The book "Good To Great" is one that fits in well with the items discussed here. I look forward to attempting to find further ways to incorporate this technology into our district, while maintaining a safe and reliable computing environment for all students and staff.
-Bob Boyd
My first attempt at posting a blog / hosting a forum (which I believe is a type of wiki right?) was going great until one student ruined it for all of us.
This happened about a month ago. I set up a forum on Moodle that was about the current marching band season. I wanted to share with my students how I felt it was going, what we needed to work on and most importantly, how did THEY feel about it. We had some nice postings and some good conversations going until someone decided to make a joke out of it. F this and F that and F you were some of the highlights. Luckily, I was up and reading it by 5:30am the morning after this post and deleted it. It was only on the site for 5 hours as the student posted it after midnight. (I found out that by deleting the posting, we could not trace where it came from) I've never heard anything about it, so I don't think anyone read it.
Moodle in our district right now has a hole in it. Anyone can sign up with a key and make up whatever name they want. That is what this kid did. To fix it, I had to shut down the blog and make it / put it somewhere else under a different name. I tried to set up this new forum so I could approve postings before they go "live" on the web, but not one kid has posted anything since. Now that school has started, plus the unbelievable amount of homework we have for this class, there's no way I have time to try and fix this. Bob is so busy I certainly don't expect him to fix it right now either.
I guess my point is, yes, listening to this podcast, I agree that we are behind as educators and need to catch up. However there are going to be problems as we implement this web 2.0 technology as well. I think that if I was a teacher NOT enrolled in a technology masters degree program, I would never try to do this again. I opened myself up to a world of Tinker cases with the one forum I made! It sure disrupted my school day!
Boy, I sound angry. I am not however. The podcast was extremely enlightening. I also have three pages of notes. Bob, you're right about using the "saving time with a blog" argument. Thats the way to sell this to the administration. I thought it would be nice to have a staff wiki/forum at each high school. We need a moderator so it doesn't turn into a complaint session, but I think it would be very useful. At the high school, I constantly hear about how before the renovation the staff felt really close. Now we're all spread out and nobody talks to eachother any more. This could provide a solution to that problem.
-Jamie Beckman
I, like Kristin Haefke picked up on Dr. McLeod’s mention of how education is behind the rest of the business world in terms of technology usage. This was also discussed in our reading. I had not realized schools were more than a decade behind the business world and still trying to play catch-up.
I like Dan have not tried blogging with my students. I am concerned I will not be able to police the cyberbullying mentioned in the pod cast and mentioned by Kristin Hubmann. The students I work with need frequent redirection and discussions on appropriate etiquette while we are in the classroom. I would be afraid of what I would be setting them up for if we started blogging. I need to be unyielding in creating a safe environment where students feel safe taking a risk and making mistakes. As the students mature I will be able to consider using a podcast. Kristin and Jamie's comments based on their experience strengthen my concerns. I need to be sure of what I need to do when a situation presents itself. I also need to keep in mind what was mentioned in the podcast in regards to preparing students for the future and web 2.0 is part of that future. I believe web 4.0 will be part of that future and we don’t know what web 3.0 is, much les web 4.0. We as teachers also need to realize students are learning web 2.0 applications without us. I have seen some myspace discussions where teenagers can post a comment and others are able to respond and/or contribute to the discussion. Few of these are appropriate for school, but they are acceptable in our society.
-Jim Nelson
While listening to this podcast, as with most things that I have read, researched or heard during this cohort, I think of all the things that I could be doing with my students, wishing I could do more, but in looking at the technology centered items I have added to my teaching in the last two years, I think there is still hope for me to try something new.
Dealing with a large percentage of online students forces me to look at the skills (or lack there of) students have in communicating properly in the online world. If we are going to prepare them for the world of work after high school, we need to model and teach them what appropriate web communication looks like. This can be through emails, discussion boards, wikis, or blogs, each moving through the steps of more interaction with other students in their classes or around the world. For those that are afraid to try wikis or blogs (like me) try having students communicate with you via email, or moderated discussion boards. Both are ways to help students learn about appropriate ways to communicate, while not exposing them and you to the legal “headlines” McLeod described.
As a person who is relatively new to blogging, I have to admit that I did not realize the power of blogs beyond the personal rant/rave pages. What a great way to communicate with other people that are in the same situation as me! The fact that Dr. McLeod is involving administrators in this discussion is a great way to move towards more technologically savvy schools, where administrators, students and staff can share their ideas/suggestions/comments virtually.
--Angie Jurisch
Podcast Reaction :: Christopher See
Eight years ago I was working in the software development industry. Even then, blogs and wikis were very new. The geeks in the web development niche began to use blogs to share their methods for working with web code between browsers and operating systems. They used blogs and wikis to help each other solve problems, as well as push the envelope of their development. The efficiencies and solutions they shared had an immediate impact on their own daily work life. Eventually, I watched the blogs I frequented morph into places to share personal stories, with some technical blurbs here and there.
In the company I worked for, there are at least 1000 application development or tech support employees. Only a very small number of them had blogs three years ago. I'm not aware of that number changing much over the past three years. If the early adopters of new technology in a large company are not jumping on blogs and wikis, I do not think we can expect teachers to flock to it.
After returning to education three years ago, I have had staff tell me that they can't see why they would use a blog or a wiki in their classes, since they are just a place to tell personal stories. Some of the writing teachers have been open to the concept to encourage writing. Other staff have not been interested because they cannot envision what to do with a blog or wiki, aside from having students write. For them, this technology would only be used for the sake of using technology, since their students can share in other ways. I have frequently reminded teachers at my school to avoid using technology just to say they use technology. Maybe they use that as an excuse to avoid technology in their classrooms.
Dr. McLeod made an interesting comment that teachers do not have to start their own blog or wiki, but they and their students could participate in other wikis and blogs by reading and submitting comments or articles. This, combined with RSS, can allow teachers and students to get involved and experience the technology without the time commitment required to maintain a blog or wiki. This is a great idea that could be enough to get teachers started in the process. Maybe, after gaining some confidence in the process, a teacher would rather start a blog that is more appropriate for the discussion in their classroom.
We talk about how business has jumped whole hog into the use of Web 2.0 and blogs and the like. According to a Pew Research report from 2004 (http://www.pewinternet.org/report_display.asp?r=113), only 2-7% of adults have created blogs, and 44% have participated in sharing on a blog. While business users would seem to be the biggest users of that technology, there are educators in the mix. Dr. McLeod and others make it seem like everyone in the business world has or participates in a blog, while those in education shun Web 2.0 like a disease. I do agree with Dr. McLeod that, since young users are using these technologies in greater numbers, educators should have a better understanding of the technology and use it as a means to engage students. It would also serve our students well to have educators instill proper ethics in them, rather than let them learn them on their own, Lord of the Flies-style.
Dr. McLeod spoke to the issue of sending students home to learn about using web technology on their own, rather than learning how to use it properly. Part of the problem, though, and it was touched on by others in this class, is that teachers do not always know how to use it. How can they teach students how to use it if they have not used it themselves? Teachers need to be given concrete suggestions for using these technologies in their classrooms. Too often, conferences they go to have presenters that say "you can use this to get more students involved," or "there are many activities you can use this for," but they never say how to use it to get students involved or what activities the teachers can use. If teachers do not really understand the technology, how can we ask them to come up with creative ways of using it in their classroom with only vague discussions about how cool it is as their reference?
Of course, participating in blogs simply by reading them would give many teachers more specific ideas for using technology in their classrooms, be it blogs, wikis, or some other format.
Podcast: Review
Before Reading Above
In my alternative education program, we use journaling exercises daily with teacher specific prompts. I know this exercise would easily translate into the blogosphere. Not only would the students gain valuable real world skills, but it also be used to teach protocol, address bullying, and copyrights as part of the hidden agenda.
So why am I dragging my feet? Our school has jumped onto the Moodle bandwagon and I’m all for it. Our district offers training with 2 graduate credits attached. Unfortunately I’m towards the end of my master’s program, but until I have earned (or received) my lane change, I cannot participate. And since I have received different answers from different people, I might as well wait. Bureaucracy is the leash of innovation. McLeod hinted at the digital divide and generation gap for administrators (and teachers). He addressed the bureaucracy somewhat with schools blocking social networking sites and energetic teachers who hit the wall of administration.
In essence our own action research projects fall under the “scholarly journal” side of McLeod’s argument for cluing administrators into blogging. Our AR will sit on shelves (or hard drives) collecting dust until a future student in this program decides to look at a PowerPoint for inspiration. Stritch could create a central blog where each student is a contributor. AR projects could then receive immediate feedback from peers, educators, or some “dude” anywhere in the world. With educators possessing limited blogging experiences, this environment could provide the opportunity in a controlled and nonthreatening manner.
After Reading Above
Well once again Dan put me in my place. Excuses. But at the same time where do we get the time? Right now I’m dealing with death, truancy (I know… 3 weeks into the school year), dysfunctional families, assignments, and a commitment to standards. Plus, current assessments measure factoids and content, not communication skills. I have seen past WKCE’s. They are not asking the definition for “bf4e” or whatever it is. Bureaucrats want statistics, businesses want skills, and schools are scared. We just blame each other and pass the buck on.
As it concerns bullying, I’m with Jim, Jamie and Kristin. Although I’m encouraged by blogging, having a situation like Jamie’s would rob me of what little sleep I already get. In alt. ed. it is difficult to keep the verbal comments from flying in the classroom. At any second, the verbal sparring could start. I have one student who has been warned about cyber-bullying already. Evidence, although weak, was brought in by a student to the police liaison, not administration. It was the school’s liaison who addressed the issue directly to the student in question. I better stop. I don't want to talk myself out of blogging in the near future.
Paul Pulvermacher
Before Reading Above (I think this is Kim Struve, let Louis know if not)
This pod cast is extremely eye opening. The district I work in is very behind in terms of technology integration. Currently, teachers who are passionate about technology are doing their own fundraising to get technology in to our own classroom. Although, one of the commitments we have made is to help others open up to technology. After watching this pod cast I feel that those that may not be into technology may find this as a reason not to try working with technology. To people who already feel overwhelmed by technology and read that technology changes so quickly may feel that it is a lost cause to investigate this uncharted territory. I think that the opposite is more beneficial. I grew up with a computer in my house for almost all of my life and because I had experience with technology I never hesitate to try new things and troubleshoot when problems arise with technology.
After Reading Above
After reading other postings on this topic, it seems to be clear that educators in this program see the need to integrate technology into the classroom and education as a whole. I feel very strongly that children need to be exposed to technology at a young age. If it is a part of their normal life they will be able to take changes in stride and not be afraid to try new things. Blogging is a great way to communicate - especially for those people not in a public position or not seen by the public regularly. I like the idea of blogging with my students but my students do not type well at all to say the least. This might be a good way to have them get use to typing too. I think a lot can come from this if it is used and regulated correctly. Back to one other point – This all seems great to integrate but when you have minimal equipment it takes great creativity to get these things accomplished.
Podcast151
In the Podcast Dr. Scott McLeod shared his ideas regarding educating leaders in blogging called “leader talk”. He found that administrators were not familiar with blogging. Leader talk is a blogging site that allows principals and administrators to collaborate and share experience with one another. Administrators are very busy, so you have to demonstrate how it can be effective and assist in their role. They have the ability to share and comment on each others blogs. They are social networks where you can teach, learn, and collaborate. Educators have not be forced to integrate technology, not fluent with the tools, and do not understand what types of technology there are in the world. By raising their awareness with concrete examples will provide ideas on where they need to go with students. Blogs are free and easy to maintain and start and are potentially better than a newsletter or lecture. You get people that debate, discuss, share ideas, and expand thoughts, allowing you to reach and conversing people that challenge you. With the assistance of RSS feeds, it allows people to read the latest blog posting without searching, being really convenient and feasible.
By: Carl Dehne
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