Sunday, October 27, 2013

Buying into Technology

As 1:1 initiatives are becoming the norm, and more of each school budget is being spent on technology, I'm beginning to grow concerned with the decision-making process many schools have in place when deciding which technology will be purchased. While I know it's imperative that 21st century technology is available to our students and staff, I don't feel confident with how the devices are being chosen. I'm sure there is a lot of thought behind these purchases, but I wonder if the thought is focusing on the right target.

Too Much Money Buying Devices That Have Too Few Uses
It is also my goal that every device in my school is multifunctional and is used outside of education. For around the same price as a document camera (~$500) and SmartBoard (~$1000), I can purchase four 7" tablets, an HD projector, and software that gives a teacher and the students the ability project the tablets onto the whiteboard. Or, I could equip two classes with a 7" tablet, an HD projector, and the tablet-projecting software. So, one classroom goes from having tools with limited uses--not to mention tools used only in education--to a classroom (or two) having real-world tools with multiple uses.

Just recently, a short-throw projector used on a SmartBoard died. Replacing the projector would have run us around $1,000. Thanks to a couple amazing mentors of mine (+Lucie deLaBruere  and +Craig Lyndes) I've become very wary of simply replacing one device with the same thing. Especially one that costs $1,000. So, Craig and I looked into some alternative options. We found that, for about half the price, we could purchase an HD projector. However, it's projection wouldn't fit onto the SmartBoard the teacher was using. Then, with a little more thought, we decided to see if the teacher would be willing to give up the SmartBoard in exchange for an AirServer license for her PC. (We explained that the iPad would become her SmartBoard and that she can have up to four students projecting their iPads at the same time. She agreed. We'll be making these changes in the next week.

I rarely, if ever, look to technology to revolutionize education. However, when the chance presents itself for that revolutionary change to occur, we need to grab hold. As technology ages and fails, we need to get into the practice of not simply replacing a tool. Instead, we need to use these opportunities as a chance to explore options for making changes to classroom practices.

One Device Does Not Fit All
Quite simply, one device cannot handle every task a 21st century learner needs to accomplish, yet many schools purchase the same few devices for everyone. This practice does not make sense, in and of itself, so we need to analyze what tasks each individual has before making large-scale purchases.

I believe it's important for schools to really look at what the needs are of each learner and teacher before buying each learner and teacher the same device. Does it really make sense to buy every kid a full-sized laptop or is a Chromebook or netbook the tool for some ages? Should laptops and desktops be Windows, Apple, or Linux? Would it be wiser to purchase kindergarteners a tablet instead of a laptop? Apple or Android? Do you really need a 10" tablet, or is a 7" the better choice? Shoot, would a 4"-5" tablet do the job for a fraction of the cost? Before anyone answers any of these questions they should take a good, hard look at what needs to be accomplished by the individuals who will be using them.

With that said, I'm becoming more aware of the issues that come with "one-offs", so I understand limiting the devices to a set list.

Allowing Companies To Exploit Education
I'm watching as Apple is making terrible choices for education--making life harder for schools to efficiently implement the devices, while charging more to do so--yet, I'm seeing more and more decision-makers looking at Apple, especially the tablet sector, as the answer. (Case in point: When's the last time you heard someone say, "Have you tried Configurator? It is absolutely AMAZING!"? Or, "I love the educator discount Apple offers!"?)

When one company understands they have complete control, they tend to exploit it for everything it is worth. And, education is a sitting duck because we NEED a major reform, and Apple, Pearson, and too many other companies to name see the opportunity to take advantage of us for their financial gain.

In addition to limiting the exploitation, offering students and staff a variety of tech tools forces them to develop the critical thinking and problem-solving skills necessary to be successful. When we give everyone one device, they learn how to control the one device not why certain actions have the effects they do. While, if a student and teacher experience Apple, Android, ChromeOS, Windows, and Linux, they'll be forced (allowed?) to grow comfortable with technology instead of a single device.

Unfortunately, the more each school pours into one device or manufacturer, the more difficult it is for them to get out of the cycle. So, by the time there's a better alternative--which may not be too far off--teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders are going to be so deeply embedded in the Apple culture (or whichever company it is) that it will seem to make more sense to keep giving Apple our money than to actually make the best choice for education.

Buying What's Cool
Recently, I had a discussion about Apple TV in the classroom. My basic feeling is that Apple TV is an expensive, limited option for projecting an Apple device or, thanks to software like AirParrot, a Windows PC. For $100 you can connect, wirelessly, to a projector. But, it's very possible to do the same without spending that $100. So, what problem is Apple TV solving in the classroom? And, why does this technology cost $100? My argument is that it's got the cool factor. There's not a NEED for it, but it's popular.

The iPad and iPad Mini. Why purchase one instead of the other? Is the Mini really the best tool for the job, or is it just getting the job done? Is there much of a difference between the two? Here's my question: How often could an iPod Touch do the job, for a fraction of the price, instead of an iPad or a Mini? But, since the iPod Touch hasn't seen any major changes lately, it's lost the "cool".

Just so this doesn't become a blog blasting Apple, I've noticed the same is true for buying Chromebooks. Right now, education is lining up to buy devices that many people have not fully experienced. With so few people having had experiences with Chromebooks, how did they become the "must-have" of the year? Is it because they can do so much more than a traditional laptop? Sure, if difficulty with printing and not having the ability to install programs is what you're looking for. Is it just because they are less expensive? Buying 10 spoons at a discount when you need a bulldozer isn't a good deal. Is it because they're cool? Well, they're new, from a popular company, and a variation of what's already out. Cool, it is.


So, I think we, as educators and decision-makers, need to start re-evaluating the process and thinking that goes into purchasing technology in our buildings. Because, technology is the key to success in the 21st century (even the past 14 years of it), and purchasing devices, programs, or apps that have limited functions, are what you're comfortable with, or because they're cool shouldn't cut it. We need to purchase technology based on what jobs need to be accomplished, which people are using it, and how many uses it can have.


(As I re-read this post, I see how some will see a bias away from Apple. While this may be true, it's only because of how prominent they have become in education. They seem to be everywhere, but they don't seem to focus on improving products or practices that focus on making implementation into education more efficient or powerful. The reality is that many companies are falling into this pattern, and we, as the guardians of education, need to make sure we're limiting this financial exploitation whenever possible.

Additionally, I fully support purchasing Apple products, Chromebooks, and any other devices that are the best for what the learners and teachers want/need to accomplish.)

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Google Drive Organization System

In an effort to save my older posts, I'm transferring them to this blog. This post was originally published on September 5, 2012.

If you have ever had 60 students (and countless colleagues) share docs with you, you understand how chaotic and completely unmanageable your Google Drive can get. For the past six years, I have been using Google Apps with students in 4-6 grades and adult learners. In this time, I've figured out a system to help my students and me keep our Google Drives organized and easy to manage.

This system will help you have more success in locating assignments and activities, create a simple way for you to share materials with students (and vice versa), and make it easier to find documents, all while keeping everyone's Drives from getting cluttered with randomly named individual docs.

The general idea is that teachers and students use shared folders to give each other access to necessary material (assignments, activities, etc.), and teachers create document naming requirements to help make the drives more search-friendly. For a more in-depth explanation, and tutorial videos to help you set this system up in your own class, take a look at the Google Drive Organization presentation below.


Thursday, June 27, 2013

What can the Education System Learn from the Gaming Industry?

In his blog post "Jane McGonigal Keynote - Reflection" David Warlick writes "...what would truly help me is understanding the mechanisms that evoke those emotions. How do games do it — and how might formal learning experiences pull those same triggers." The emotions Mr. Warlick is referring to comes from a list shared by Ms. McGonigal during her keynote at ISTE 2013. They are "joy, relief, love, surprise, pride, curiosity, excitement, awe & wonder, contentment, and creativity".

While I'm not an expert in gaming, its educational value, or of the human mind, I think I have a pretty solid idea as to what makes the joy of gaming so drastically different from the anti-joy of classrooms and schools today's (and the past two centuries') education system has to offer. (My thinking comes from my own combination of experiences as a classroom teacher, life-long learner, recreational gamer, and human-observer.)

Before I start my list, I need to stress that there are many important things the average classroom offers that video games lack. (For starters, building relationships, learning social etiquette, and appropriate peer and adult interactions.)

Now, here's my list of why kids receive so many more positive emotions from video games than the classroom:

1) The gamers get to choose the content of their games. If you force someone to play a game they have no interest in, the excitement and joy will look a lot like when in the classroom. In other words, you'll hardly notice it.

2) There is no failing in video games, only having to try again. When gamers realize that a botched effort only means another attempt, they aren't afraid of trying again or demoralized when it isn't successful. Plus, they are much more willing to try different ways to solve the problem.

3) While often completely hidden from the gamer, the learning is vital to success later in the game. This is significant for two reasons. First, the skills are not forced upon the player in some ridiculous, pseudo-level. Instead, they are taught in real-game situations. The second piece to this is that there are no useless skills the gamers are forced to learn just for the sake of learning them. Every skill you need is learned and every skill learned is needed,

4) The assessment technique doesn't take the gamer away from the actual learning or the fun. Unlike our current education system, the gaming industry is similar to the real world. In gaming and most careers, your assessment tends to occur in the tasks required by your role, as opposed to some separate worksheet or task.

5) The skills are introduced in such a way that the player's frustration is limited. First, the gamer has multiple opportunities to practice each skill, in actual game scenarios, before it is vital to their success. Second, if the player doesn't learn a required skill, they don't move on to the next level. This prevents most players from hating a game due to it being too difficult for too long of a time.

6) When a game or task is too difficult, there are dozens (hundreds?) of useful resources — usually videos or blog posts created by their peers — to teach them exactly what they need to know to be successful. (Just-in-time learning is highly undervalued in our education system and our society.) In other words, "cheating" isn't an issue, because, if the skills are important, the "cheating" will be to learn, not to pass a test or complete an assignment. (I should point out that there are still ways to cheat that are frowned upon, but it's not the form where a player finds the answer by observing someone else's work.)

Some will agree with what I have offered here and some will not. But, whatever your beliefs as to why gaming offers students positive feelings that school does not, it's important to understand that education can learn a thing or two from the world of gaming. In fact, the keys to a successful game may truly be the keys to successful learning in everything we do.

Monday, March 25, 2013

A Brief Introduction to Professional Learning Networks

As I get to work with more and more educators, I am somewhat surprised by the number of great teachers who keep to themselves. I'm not sure if this is a habit from days past, or if it is a personal choice, but I do know that this profession needs everyone to share. The easiest way to share (give and take) with as large a group as possible is through digital media. The power of developing a digital PLN is absolutely amazing!

What is that power?  As Michael Zimmer (one member of my PLN) states in his blog, "Imagine for a minute teaching in a school where some of the most influential educators all teach.  Imagine teaching in a school where the administrators encourage new and innovative ways to teach to your students.  Imagine teaching in a school where all those teachers share their ideas and lessons openly without fear of being seen as 'that teacher'.  That is the experience of a PLN.  Sharing ideas and experiences with people who enjoy what you have to share and openly share their personal experiences." (http://edutechintegration.blogspot.com/)  The only thing I would add to that is, imagine needing a lesson or other resource and being able to ask hundreds of professionals for assistance.

Now, how does one go about developing a PLN?  Well, I was first introduced to PLNs by a friend and former colleague of mine through Twitter.  Actually, it was Twitter through Tweetdeck, a very nice way of organizing your social media accounts.  In addition to Twitter, there are countless other digital media options. The most popular are Google+, Facebook, Pinterest, and Diigo. I also have connected with people on Classroom 2.0 and The Educator's PLN.  In addition, I have there are great educator-created blogs, websites, and about a million other resources.
(A word of advice: Take your time in getting involved with the many sites designed to help build PLNs.)  

Using Twitter can be a bit overwhelming, but there are some tips to make it a bit easier to figure out.  The best tips I can recommend are to start out following a small, select group of individuals and to use educational hashtags such as #edchat.  (Basically, hashtags are a way for Twitter to collect certain tweets and group them by those hashtags.)  (I have a column on my Tweetdeck for all messages tagged with #edchat so I get all of these messages in one place.)

Google+, in my opinion, is a bit easier to manage. Thanks to "Circles", organizing your PLN is much smoother and user-friendly than many other social media options. This allows one account to easily separate your personal life from your professional life. (I use them to break down my professional life even further by creating a circle for people at my school, people I know personally, my MVPs, etc.) In addition to creating circles, you can join communities to help you connect with people who are doing similar things as you. (I just joined the "Chromebook EDU" community, and it has already played a large part in my knowledge of my new Chromebook.)

I've only shared a few of the options that are out there, but you can start to see just how impressive PLNs can be. (Feel free to add more in the comments.) So, you can make the choice, keep using the same old resources and talking to the same few teachers or develop your PLN and open up the world to you and your students.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

21st Century Teachers Must Be 21st Century People

Ask any teacher how to best teach students, and many will mention something about modeling. We understand that, if we want students to behave a certain way, we must model that behavior. This is true about personal interactions, work-ethic, manners, or any other behavior.

However, as is often the case, best practice gets tossed out of the window as soon as technology enters the picture. Modeling usually gets set aside due to a lack of knowledge that brings about fear or a lack of understanding that technology is vital to our students' futures. All of a sudden, students are expected to learn without support. We want students to keep their devices away while they watch us pull ours out on a regular basis. We want students to use their laptops only for work, while we are using them for real-life, every-day activities.

The reality is that technology is here to stay. It is guaranteed to change, but it is not going away. Whether it's Twitter, Facebook, or Google+; blogs, websites, or wikis; tablets, laptops, or smartphones; i-OS, Android, or Linux; students will NEED to be competent with technology if they are to have a chance at success in the future.

In my opinion, if we really want to be successful at preparing students to use technology in appropriate, powerful, and creative ways, we need to be modeling. But, how can we model something we can/do not do? Sure, we could all take some professional development courses. But, is that really enough? I do see the value of good PD, but can that actually give us all of the experience needed to model technology-use for the students? I don't believe it can. After all, imagine if our students only practiced reading, writing, and math in school. Could they actually be proficient at any of the necessary skills to be successful in life? That's absurd, right?

If we still have the passion to be teachers, we need to "Like" something, tweet something, post videos on-line, master search engines, use a mobile device, create a circle, or share a bookmark. (You can find a much more complete list of skills here.) And, we need to do these things as a regular part of our normal lives. After all, we wouldn't accept our students telling us they don't have time to read, write, or use math outside of school, would we?

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

(This post started out as a monologue regarding the decision between staying in the classroom and stepping into other positions in education. Then, as I was revising a section, I realized it had become something slightly different.)

There is a serious problem with the education system and it involves the teachers. I'm sure this is not the first time you have heard this statement, but this argument has a slightly different twist.

The problem, as I see it, is that many teachers are beginning to believe the hype that the best-- the most creative, the most dynamic, the most intelligent-- should be doing something more valuable, more profitable, more grown up than working with kids in a classroom. Whether it's becoming a principal, director of special education, tech specialist, or whatever position seems a match for the individual's skills, many believe the best teachers should be looking to move up or move out. (This seems to be especially true in elementary schools, as I have had multiple people tell me--some subtly, some not so much--that I am wasting my talents being an elementary school teacher.)

Now, this post is not a criticism of the educators who believe their real value can only be reached by leaving the classroom. It is, however, a condemnation of the system and society where such a belief can have so much validity.

With time, the best have to step aside. This is not in debate. The problem in education is that many of the most promising educators are leaving before they've even had a chance to reach their prime. Imagine Michael Jordan retiring from basketball after his first championship, The Beatles breaking up after "Please Please Me", or Gabriel Garcia Marquez leaving writing after "Leaf Storm". Although there would have been some level of success for each of these individuals, their various professions would be drastically less advanced.

Of course, it's hard to be surprised when talented individuals want to maximum the benefits of their skills, while minimizing the stresses in their lives. And, when you combine the absurd expectations politicians are forcing upon educators with the disdain society currently seems to have for public classroom teachers, who can blame anyone from wanting to get out of the line of fire?

Here's the idea that the average person doesn't seem to be aware of: education is failing, and it won't improve if the best teachers don't stay in the classroom.

So, the questions are posed: What must be done to keep the best teachers in the classroom? Will anyone step up to make this happen?

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Re-Capturing My Love for the Classroom

Welcome to the very first post of Mr. Allen's Learning!

A couple months ago, while out on a hike with my wife and sons, I made a professional realization. Watching my sons playing sparked a now-forgotten thought about children and their learning.

As often happens, this original thought brought on a few others. The next thing I knew, I was thinking about how far away I had gotten from my goal to bring powerful, real-world learning opportunities to my students. I realized my focus on learning about technology and sharing this knowledge had taken my focus away from my classroom and the children that make that room special.

At some point, I fell in lust with becoming a tech integration specialist. Playing with technology was so much less stressful than the responsibilities that come with working with children, there were so many more opportunities for my future, and it came with so many chances to earn more money. (To say I'm ashamed to admit to this is more than an understatement!)

Just recently, some opportunities, successes, and struggles have reminded me of my love for teaching and just how crazy I was for considering leaving the classroom. Then, just this week, I had some experiences that really drove this point home. Learning with students is so much more fulfilling than finding the next tool, I get to introduce and explore technology with my students in a way that makes a real difference to them, and I get to build meaningful relationships that might change someone's existence.

My goal, as an educator, is to combine my knowledge of technology and my passion for teaching and connecting with students to create the most powerful learning opportunities for my students. As I make progress with this, I'd like to share some of the more powerful experiences and ideas that come from my class.

Although this blog is about me as an educator and the events that occur in my classroom, my topics will come from all of my roles in life: husband, father, friend, elementary school teacher, colleague, wannabe geek, people watcher, teacher educator, student, and human being.

My reason for wanting to share this blog is to inspire other classroom teachers to see the endless potential of technology combined with creativity, to remember that, above all, relationships and learning are what matters, and to stay in the classroom.