Surfing the Wave

I wrote the following for an online PD class I am taking. The prompt was "unintentional learning." I thought it might be worth sharing here.

I am in a constant process of learning and changing. Most of my learning can be attributed to my online personal learning network. As I learn something new I bring it back to the classroom to my students. Many times this results in me having to tell them something that contradicts something I told them a week ago.

I feel that I am modeling for them the important processes I go through as a learner, and I believe that is more important than doing things a certain way. I remind students and myself that "learning is messy." I even hung a "Learning is Messy" sign on the wall, right across from my desk. When things sometimes start to feel out of control, it helps to remind myself that learning is not always neat, orderly and quiet.

As I find value in new processes, such as blogging, I feel compelled to share these with my students. I am sharing things almost as quickly as I am learning them myself. Activities like blogging are not fixed. There is hardly a right or wrong answer and it is difficult to anticipate students' needs, interests or possible problems that may arise.

I've come up with the analogy of surfing to describe some of my work with students this year. This is where I came up with the surfing analogy. I began a class blog with my 4th graders this year as part of a global blog pals communication project that was started by Kim Cofino, a teacher at the International School of Bangkok, Thailand. So many different things happened once we started blogging. There were times when the fourth graders would leave the lab after an active session of blogging activity and me running like crazy around the room, and as soon as they were gone I would sit down at my computer to try to learn more so that I could continue to help them do what they wanted to do.

It was exciting and motivating, but at times it felt out of control. I realized that student-directed learning can feel out of control, much like surfing. Sometimes you have the wave and you're up on top. Other times the wave is going too fast and you're just hoping to make it without crashing. And sometimes, you go down, under the water, and have to swim to the surface to catch your breath and start again. But you always go again, because it's exciting and worthwhile.

Image credit: Michael Dawes flickr photostream

Why I Was at NECC09

After reading this post and this post about vendors at NECC, I thought I would offer my perspective to the mix.

I was a first-timer at NECC this year. When you add up plane flight, hotel room, conference fees, food and other costs, especially in an expensive city like DC, an experience like NECC is a pricey proposition for a private school teacher like me. In other words, I might have spent another NECC reading tweets and blog posts instead of writing them, if not for a lucky break.

You're thinking I won the lottery, right?

I wish.

I was at NECC this year because of my relationship with a vendor.

This vendor-teacher relationship has been building for a few years now. It was something that happened naturally, yet, in my experience, was anything but common. I understand now that this is just how Tech4Learning operates. Yes, they are a commercial organization. They exist to make money, and I sincerely hope they make boatloads of it.

I don't think any of us begrudge anyone else for making a living. I think the tension, if any exists, between vendors and teachers is that teachers, by the nature of what we do, are usually not business-minded. We are often not in the position to decide where money is spent, and many of us regularly spend our own money on supplies for work. There are stereotypes and bad experiences to contend with- the sleazy salesperson, the hideous customer non-service with companies who sell a product, then run and hide. It can get in the way of our pure-minded notions of education. But, let's face it-everything costs. Educating kids well costs money. Putting on a conference like NECC costs money. And I've never yet attended a conference where anyone was forced to enter the exhibit hall.

I thought this comment, by Dean Shareski, on Lee Kolbert's blog, said it quite well-

An important post. You clearly distinguish between vendors who truly want to make a difference and provide meaningful products and those just interested in a sale.
Kinda reminds of the divide we currently see in education between those really wanting to make a difference, recognizing there has to be a different/better way and those who just want to collect a check.

I completely agree.

It has been a transformative experience for me being involved with a company like Tech4Learning. First of all, they make great software. They seek student and teacher feedback as they develop their products, and it shows. If that's not enough, check out their website to see the free resources they provide including a lesson library, a ning for teachers to share projects and the high-quality, non-software-specific Creative Educator magazine.

I considered it an honor to be able to represent Tech4Learning at NECC and to have the opportunity to share some of my students' work in their booth. I found myself hanging around to watch the presentations of fellow teachers. I certainly didn't have to spend my time in the Tech4Learning booth with so much to see and do and experience at NECC. I was drawn there, quite simply, by the quality of the presentations. After each presentation attendees were given a full-version CD of Tech4Learning software. No hard sell.

I'm about to wrap up, but I'd like to share a story. This, to me, says all there is to say in answer to the question of whether companies can care about anything other than profits.

I teach at a Jewish school with a dual-language curriculum in English and Hebrew. We have trouble finding software for the macs that supports Hebrew. When I first purchased Pixie, we used it to make Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) cards for some students in Israel. Through her own network (which at the time did not include me) Melinda Kolk, Director of Professional Development at Tech4Learning got a look at those cards. Can you imagine my surprise and gratitude when I received an email from her asking if it would be helpful if they added the Hebrew alphabet to the Pixie sticker library?

Small private schools do not wield the big-dollar contracts of large public districts. I'm sure it would be easier and more profitable to ignore us. Unless, of course, you really care.

Learning at Lunch

Learning.

Who decides when it happens, where it happens, how it happens?

I guess this question has been around for as long as we have. All kinds of assessments and other ways of quantifying and qualifying learning have resulted. We, all of us, educators and non-educators alike, discuss and disagree. What matters?

We must have proof! Proof of learning, to me, is change. When we have learned something, there is some type of change--a change in behavior, a change in vocabulary, ability to articulate, other new abilities, a change in the way we do what we do, even a change in the questions we ask.

So, I thought I would share another story in hopes of clarifying my own views. I, for one, learn through writing and through words.

This is the tale of The Scrumptious Lunch-

Time flies.

Four years have passed since I traded in my California teaching credential for Florida certification. My Florida teaching certificate expires next June. I must provide proof of my professional development activities (and, of course, pay a fee) in order to reinstate the piece of paper. I am nothing if not a seeker of PD, but I made some mistakes along the way in terms of getting the required documentation.

Last summer, I authored an online course for teachers called Tackling Tough Text for Professional Learning Board. It was my first time using moodle and my first time, outside of a school project, creating an online course. I also facilitated the course twice. I figured that was worth a few credits in terms of my ongoing professional development. Teachers can get PD credit for teaching a college course. However, when I requested credit for this experience, I was flatly denied with the following explanation,

"Teachers don't learn from teaching."

Seriously????

I was floored by this offhand dismissal that any teacher knows is utter nonsense. I tried to argue my point via email, but was again flatly denied. It's in the realm of things in life that make no sense- bureaucracy rules, jumping through hoops. I know better than to spend too much time or energy getting upset.

Part 2: In order to get credit for the time spent learning at NECC, I submitted my request beforehand. Along with my written request I had to attach a description of sessions I would attend. I knew that I would be attending an all-day TIE event on Saturday and The Constructivist Celebration on Sunday, so I submitted write-ups describing those activities. The write-ups for each day included a one-hour "scrumptious lunch."

Now we get down to the nitty-gritty. Should I be able to get credit for the lunch hour?

Time spent networking with my colleagues and discussing teaching is, in my humble opinion, valid learning time. The fact that I can enjoy a scrumptious lunch at the same time does not inhibit my learning in the slightest.

I will be submitting my request for PD hours to include lunch.

Google Earth Model Lesson Presentation

Ok, after saying I can't live blog, I'm now going to try it. :)

Session is called "Caravans and Google Earth" Presenters: Ellen Dierkes, Dana Livne and Renee Hawkins.

It's a model lesson (5th grade). Here's the presenter's website.

One-to-one laptop school, moodle school

"Caravans" came first, teachers were using, role-playing simulation game.

Tech teacher suggested integrating with google earth.

In game Caravans, students travel the world and do tasks .

All start in San Diego, assessed based on "travel dots." Students get travel dots based on things like map skills, learning languages, creating artifacts, etc. Travel dots earn gold pieces. Goal of game is to get gold pieces to collect artifacts for a museum. Here is description I lifted from the site where the game is sold-

She says it sounds complicated, but it actually works very easily once kids get started they are self-motivated, able to work independently.

Each caravan has to research and plan their journey. Can focus the game on particular areas of the world or can do the whole world.

Students work in caravans in their classroom, then when they come into the lab (once a week, 40 minutes) they learn html coding and work in google earth.

Each caravan group is responsible for creating place marks in google earth with text description and photo or video clip. Students use html, also create a template with important factual information about country. Each caravan responsible for a region and creating 4 place marks for that region. Then other students take tour of that region by exploring place marks.

Start with an already-created place, show kids how to right click, go to properties and copy html code that is already there to use as a starting point for writing the new code.

Here are the resources from the presentation.

Not another post about NECC09

NECC Day 3- I'm sitting in the blogger's cafe, laptop open. There are about 30 other people here, some just talking, many typing away. I've skimmed some of the blogs in my reader and checked out a few links from twitter.

NECC, NECC, NECC.

Everyone's manically sharing and reflecting. (For some excellent NECC posts check out this blog.)

It's not that I feel I have something so unique to add to the NECC soup of blog posts. Yet, I must blog!

I've been working hard to take in as much as I can. Of course, there's way too much. Hence the beauty of all the blogging. I can share others' NECC experiences, too, if I'm willing to read.

Writing and reflecting is one way I can begin to process and truly learn from this tidal wave of people, projects, ideas and words.

I'm amazed by the people (and there are many) who seem to be able to process and share in real time. I am not one of those people. I've been taking notes in some sessions, just listening in others, have taken a few photos, but I can't begin to understand what I have really learned until I have more time. Writing is, for me, an important part of the process.

I'm that kid in your class who needs a little time to think.

NECC Reflections Thus Far

Going to keep it short and simple. At a conference this large (HUGE, ENORMOUS, OVERWHELMING!) I want to get the most out of each minute. This is my first time at NECC. Also, I tend to be a person who needs some time and space for reflection in order to learn. Yesterday, the first "official" conference day I made the following personal discoveries:

•I am beginning to tire of the famous "conversation." Early in day I found myself sitting at a "session" (not sure if that is the correct word) of NECC Unplugged. The discussion was 21st Century Literacy, a concept in which I have high interest. One of the speakers talked a lot about "the conversation" and how it's not going anywhere, no one is making any changes. I left feeling somewhat discouraged by the generalizations made about teachers. "We" are doing this. "We" are not doing this.
I dislike the generalizing of teaching/education. I always have. "We" are all different and unique. You don't know me and don't know what I'm doing or not doing.

•I obviously have "issues." :) Just want to make sure I clarify that I have the utmost respect for all of the people who are speaking and presenting. I believe wholeheartedly that they speak with nothing but positive intent. It is just that I am finding maybe, at this point, listening to more of this type of talk is not the most productive use of my time.

•I have spent a great deal of time in the Tech4Learning booth listening to the incredible educators they have showing samples and strategies. I could certainly be called biased, as I am extremely humbled and honored to be one of those educators this year. You'll have to trust me, though. It's not bias. These are the kinds of presentations that leave me wanting to run back to the classroom (ok, well, run back as soon as summer break ends) and start playing/learning in fun ways with students.
Again, this is just where I am, personally, right now. I don't want to hear any more people who don't work directly with students telling me what I should do, how I should teach. I get it! I am enjoying hearing real teachers show and tell what they are doing to make learning student centered, engaging, higher-order thinking, meaningful, etc.

If you are a K-5 (or K-8) educator looking to see examples and strategies from people who are doing great things in schools, I recommend the Tech4Learning booth. Here is the schedule.
I saw Liz Allen's presentation "Research without Copying" yesterday and recommend it highly. She will be sharing it again today at 2:30 pm. I am also looking forward to hearing Dr. Henry Olds "Kids, Cameras, Computers, Creativity and Cognition" today at 4 pm.

Just to let you know, I don't work for Tech4Learning !!! Just sharing some of my thoughts. Putting the laptop away now so I can pay attention to Gary Stager!

Partner Rubrics for Elementary School

I wanted to take a moment to share a rubric I created for my 5th graders to use after working on a project with a partner. Thanks to my network, especially Carey Pohanka, for responding to my request for examples of  rubrics used to evaluate collaborative skills. It was very helpful. 

"Remember, you will get to share your feelings about working with your partner at the end of the project. And remember that your partner will also be evaluating YOU as a partner." 

With that simple statement, I was able to head off several issues before they became "full blown." Not only does filling out the rubric give students a chance to be heard, it also reinforces the skills that are expected.

Partner Skills Rubric

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Study Guides, Notes, School Work collaboration partner

The Best Plan

the Preface

I sometimes feel compelled to stay "on topic." EdTechWorkshop-- it's about education and/or technology, right? But it is my unique path that has made me the person who cares about educational technology enough to blog about it. I feel that some of my stories are worth sharing even if they're not about what I'm teaching tomorrow or the latest cool new thing I've found online. So I hope you will bear with me if I sometimes go off course. I offer my thoughts and experiences as that which I have to share, and I hope that someone learns from or even simply enjoys reading them.

The Planner

I often hear people proclaim with pride, "I'm a planner."

What I sense they are saying is "Subconsciously I know that life is unpredictable and some things are out of my control. By being a planner, I stay in control!"

Ah well. Good for you.

I, Andrea, am not "a planner." This seems to really bother people. I had almost become convinced that it was a regrettable personality flaw. But, you know what they say about plans.

When I rode my bike through the US, Mexico and Guatemala, my traveling partner, Daniel, and I had a saying, "The best plan is no plan, and that's our plan." It worked well for us-- time and time again something amazing would cross our path at just the right moment.

Here is one story of a time I didn't have a plan but everything worked out better than fine. Around 15 years ago I had my first teaching job. This job was actually two part-time jobs at the same school. One of the two jobs was that of environmental/outdoor ed. coordinator at an inner-city public school in San Francisco. I took all of the kids in the school on overnight camping trips.

If you know me at all, you know that I was passionate about the work I was doing and threw myself into it wholeheartedly. So when I heard about a large experiential education conference in Texas I thought, "that sounds interesting. I'd like to go to that."

When I asked my principal if I could go, she gave me a strange look. She told me that the school would not pay my way, but that I could go and still get paid for working. So I signed up as a volunteer for the conference which gave me free admission. I found a super-cheap plane ticket to Austin. And I packed my bags. I had never been to Austin, never been to a professional conference, didn't know another soul who would be there and did not know where I would stay once I arrived. Obviously this was before the days of having access to people, places and information online. As I headed to the airport, I began to question myself. What in the world was I doing?

I arrived at the conference hotel in time for the volunteer orientation. As I sat in the circle with the other volunteers I wondered where I would sleep that night. I noticed a woman looking at me and smiling. At the break, she walked over and asked if I knew Ken W. Know him? He was a close friend!! She, too, was friends with him and reminded me that we had gone hiking together when she was living in SF, and he had come to visit. Now she lived in LA and worked for an environmental ed organization there. They had sent her to the conference.

When I confided to her that I had made no plans for a hotel room, she generously invited me to share hers. She was supposed to have come with a work colleague who couldn't make it last minute, and she had a nice double room.

We had a great time together at the conference, and it sparked a friendship that lasted for many years.

It reminds me of a vivid dream I once had. I was planning a trip with a co-worker (a planner). He was busy collecting maps and plotting the route. He became frustrated with me because I didn't have a map. I told him I didn't need a map, I would follow the signs.

And that is pretty much what I have always done. While I have never stayed in one job or one house or even one place for too long, I have always felt that I am exactly where I am supposed to be. I have always been pretty happy where I am at the moment. So who's to say that planners are superior to non-planners? I think the best plan is to try to accept ourselves and others. Most of us are doing the best we can. It's not as if life is a race to the end.

All Cakes Deserve the Best Ingredients

I've been trying to come up with an analogy to express why I dislike pull-out as a means of addressing special needs, specifically pull-out enrichment for gifted and talented students. I dislike labels to begin with, and I believe good teaching is good teaching and all students benefit from a strong, well-integrated student-centered approach to learning and a school culture that values and encourages excellence. Please note: I understand that there are some

special needs that are extreme and that may require pull-out programs and other resources. My point is that excellent classrooms can meet the true needs of many different learners. Not enough of these classrooms exist.

Let's think of each child as a cake that we are baking. In reality, there is no comparison to the growth and development of a human being to a cake. I know that. Let's move on.

There are many different kinds of cakes. That is the way it is supposed to be, right? All cakes are good. A chocolate cake is not supposed to be a banana cake, nor any other kind of cake. Each cake strives to be the most delicious cake it can be.

Many ingredients go into creating the cake. Since this is about education, let's talk about the important ingredient of education. Have you ever tasted a cake made from a boxed mix? I liken this to a "boxed" curriculum--worksheets and textbooks. These days there are some pretty fancy cake mixes out there, made with better than average ingredients and producing a darn good cake. These mixes, like a private education, cost a pretty penny. But no boxed cake mix can compare to a homemade cake, baked with quality ingredients. Think project-based, differentiated classroom. The best ingredients are good for all cakes. Fresh, organic eggs and high-quality butter are not going to turn a chocolate cake into a carrot cake, but they will enhance both cakes and help them be the best they can be.

Some bakers believe that their cake should be "pulled out" of the regular oven and baked in a convection oven. The convection oven is accelerated, and true, the cake may bake faster. However, their ultimate destiny is no different than that of the slower-baking cake. Each becomes the cake they were meant to become.

Some bakers insist on worrying over their cakes. They think if they constantly open the oven to check on the cake's progress, they will improve its outcome. Not so. They actually interfere with the all important process of cake development. All a baker can do is make sure that his cake is given the best possible ingredients and then love and appreciate it.

image: Graduation Cake Guy from CarbonNYC's flickrstream end note: had I searched flickr for cakes first, I might never have written this. Wow. I mean WOW. There are some crazy-talented cake artists out there. If you want to see some amazing looking cakes go search flickr!

Best-Ever Banana Bread

We may be talking soon about baking cakes here on ETW. (oh no, what does it mean when you give your blog a nickname?)

I promised this recipe to a twitter friend who asked me to post it to a blog. Since this is my "main" blog, I thought I might as well share it here. Not ed nor tech, it may still be the best thing I've ever shared here. That is cause this banana bread is GOOD. And easy. And really, really good. Everyone loves it. I just made some the other night. And I did try to take a picture to post, but the picture just didn't do it justice. So no picture.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

1/2 cup canola or veg oil

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/3 cup buttermilk

2 or 3 very ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients except chocolate chips until you have a nice, smooth batter. Add chips. Pour into 2 greased bread pans and bake at 350 deg. for about 45 minutes. The chocolate chips will sink to the bottom.