Feelings

Elluminate....sigh

It doesn't seem to matter how many times I participate in Elluminate sessions I don't feel comfortable. I like the look of Elluminate and I like listening, but I am definitely not comfortable with the medium. I think I spend too much time waiting my turn. If I feel uncomfortable, how many others feel even worse than I do myself?

Probably the best aspects of these feelings is that I am out of my comfort zone. I am challenging myself; my norms. I probably should get used to this feeling.

As a learner I should recognize this feeling in others, teachers and students alike. I'm comfortable in a classroom and I'm comfortable with technology. What are those students and teachers doing when they are feeling uncomfortable.

How am I responding/reacting to their needs?

photo by: jbuc

Go Diigo Go...

I have finally taken the leap and have currently created a Diigo account.

Why create a Diigo account if you're an avid Delicious user?

I have used Delicious personally for 3 years and have used this with my students for 2 years. Everything was relatively easy till they required the use of a YAHOO account for new users. Having students create the account was too much for me. Much like a Google account; there are a lot of other sites the students automatically receive when they sign-up with YAHOO.

I have been a bit disillusioned with Delicious and have been reluctant to sign-up and start again with something new. I miss using social bookmarking with my students so I've decided to try out Diigo!

Much to my surprise when I visited the site I can get a free educator account! WhoooHoooo (ok time to put the propeller hat on again) I'll blog again on this when I have a chance to really 'play' with Diigo.

Go Diigo Go!

My love affair with RSS

I was first introduced to RSS feeds during a presentation by David Warlick at the Leading and Learning conference. It was one of those spine tingling moments that literally made the hair on my arms stand up. This presentation helped me truly understand the power of technology to bring the information to me.

It is really difficult to explain the excitement I had when I left that room that day, but it returns every time I have the opportunity to talk about RSS to someone. Personally, I use RSS in two distinct ways:

1. for professional/personal development
2. to streamline class room activities.

I follow nearly 400 people on Twitter. It seems that when I follow one person it quickly leads to another person... and so on... Of those 400 people most are somehow related to the education field. Some of the people are highly entertaining, some are very intellectual, but they all share a willingness to take me on their learning journey. Most of these people have blogs, which you can see on their Twitter profile page. I often follow these links and I scan/read their blogs. Those that somehow connect to me I add to my Google Reader; a task that takes less than 30 seconds! Whenever those people now make a blog post I can see it and read it in my reader, I can also share it with those that I follow in Google. To be able to see and read all this information that is relevant to me has profoundly changed me.

The second way I use RSS feeds is to follow certain searches. Now following my name on a Google search is a rather pointless exercise for me, since their is another family within Canada that shares my family name (see earlier post). However, I do follow many other search feeds. For current events, I'll follow several feeds (usually using Google News searches) related to a topic I'm covering in my Social Studies classes. These feeds are organized on my Igoogle page. Its very easy to put up on the Smartboard and the students can see the information as it comes. It would be just as easy to use a service like Pageflakes. I have also used it to follow and do collaborative searching using Delicious. Using delicious I would get the students to use a common tag when searching. I would then do a search in Delicious for the specific tag (make sure its a unique tag) and follow that feed. I could then follow how my students were sharing and researching in "REAL TIME".

....love is in the air....

PLP Day One

Wow! What an amazing day. I can't even fully explain everything that occurred today!

• It was great seeing an entire room of people actually engage in a PD opportunity
• I was able to see people actually give Twitter a chance
• I am part of an amazing team who is going to have a blast learning to learn

I'm excited to know where this journey will take me. I'm feeling inspired!

Thanks Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach

What have I signed up for?

Homework...

Wow...

Cool!

I'm not completely sure what I've gotten myself into. I have a feeling it may be a joyride I haven't taken since I started this often forgotten blog. It was Christmas 2008 started my journey in networked learning. At the time I was filled with excitement and energy from the blogs I was reading which is what I'm similarly feeling once again.

During this time I've tried to share my enthusiasm with this type of experience. It has not been an easy sell. Twitter is undoubtedly my favourite network learning tool. As I reflect on why I continue to love Twitter, I also think about the 346 people I have chosen to follow. (emphasis on I)

This is MY network. It reflects what I have found compelling. I guess if I were to hold up a mirror it would be a reflection of me. I also wonder why I have chosen to follow who I follow? Many of the people don't have a clue who I am, but in their own way they have had an impact on me. Because I get to choose who I follow and which blogs I read the challenge continues to be to network with people I disagree or am challenged by.

This probably encapsulates the reasons I look forward to PLP. I don't know what to expect. I don't know the challenges I'll face and I don't know the people I'll face.

photo courtesy: adebⓞnd

Collaboration and editing...is there a difference?

I've had my grade 8 ELA students working on creating a Wiki page as their end of unit assessment project.  Part of the project incorporates student collaboration where they have to visit three other student Wiki pages and "help" them achieve at a greater level. 

What I did not expect was many of the students rushing to other pages and leaving messages like, "Way to go! Great Work".  I'm still not sure how the students equate a pat on the back and meaningful collaboration as the same thing.  Often they were going to the pages of students who were already doing a great job.  These students would be the most difficult to collaborate with due to their high level of understanding.  I had to stop the class several times to explain the difference between a "way to go!" and what is required to actually help each other with the project.  I kept asking myself why this was so difficult for many of them and I had really spend time modeling what was expected for this collaboration.

The thought finally came to me that they are often or have often been asked to "edit" each others work.  What would be easier editing a page with little or no errors or a page with a tremendous amount of errors?  These students had already found the easy way.  Asking the students to make meaningful collaborations where they could directly add content to another student page was foreign to them.

As a teacher this process was very rewarding.  Students became aware that it was much easier to collaborate and help those who were having difficulties.  It may have been more work, but I hope that they have had a chance to see the value of this process.


I look forward to spending my time and seeing the finished projects.

A Rant of sorts..

The full effect of the 90's effect to school's in Alberta that were meant to level the playing field between have and have-not schools has really been evident the last few years. The fact that the market is determining how many teachers our school has from year-to-year and the evaluation of teachers as per their government test mark has done nothing for the profession of teaching. The decision makers may say that we're not being assessed, but we are ranked and compared within our schools, between classes, between divisions and compared to the world!

This market strategy is also evident in our "association vs. gov't" where everything was about the money. We as a profession have done nothing but to do ourselves a disservice by focusing on compensation instead of actual quality.

We absolutely need a shift in thought to better education at ALL levels. I am finding it increasingly embarrassing the "Walmarting" of the education system. There HAS to be a better way.

I'm hoping that the current economic meltdown can make the average person realize that many things should not be run by 'market' forces. Some things should not be and can not be quantitatively judged! Everything has been about statistics and we have manipulated the numbers like every 'good' hedge fund manager of the last 10 years. I've been thinking that we have become our own Ponzi Scheme and the house of cards will collapse upon ourselves.

Are the indicators out there already?
Lack of respect for the profession...
Focus on 'things'...

A shift HAS to occur and it must happen soon!

photo courtesy: dhamzza