Adventures in GitHub This semester I am trying something new for teaching A while ago Brian Croxall suggested that what we need in higher educaiton is a Git Hub for syllabi. Or more precisely Brian was suggesting that we ought to alter the frame by which we think about creating, modifying, and sharing syllabi. In his piece for Profhacker Brian suggests that we should think of syllabi as itterative documents, which we borrow, and share with each other. The model for this is GitHub, the platform for sharing coding projects. When coders want to build on the code of other coders they do what is called "forking," basically taking the code from the original creator, and building on it for one’s own purpose (with a link to the original source). I am not going to recast the enitre frame here (although I think Brian’s argument is useful, a way to think about our practice of producing syllabi), instead I want to share how I am going to attempt to do this. I wanted to start producing syllabi in such a way that it was easy for others to see, to borrow, to reference, to iterate, borrow from others and publish in a range of formats (web, print, etc.). The idea here is to write and store the syllabus in such a way that makes it easy to use/reuse, push to various locations, and to "rip-mix-burn" with what others are doing. Rather than go into all the details about why I would want to do this (again see Brian’s post and the links he provides as a starting point) I want to walk thru how I am doing it. This is very much still a work in progress, so I have a lot yet to figure out. The Format: Writing in Separate Markdown Files I started by writing in Markdown. There are lots of reasons I am chosing to write in markdown rather than say a Micorsoft Word document, another word processor, or even in html. The most important of which though is its portability. It is relatively easy (more on this later) to write in Markdown format and then export it to one of the other formats I need (to say the web, or a word processing document). Also markdown has the advantage of having really simple syntax (just a few things to remember) and yet handling everything I need, bold, italics, headers, blockquotes, lists, and links. In fact I have started writing everything in markdown first, including this blog post and my current research articles. It had a really short learning curve, and after just a few days it feels totally natural. I like to write in a program that on the left is the writing format, and on the right is a live formated rendering of what I am typing. This really helped with learning to write in Markdown. I mostly write in a program called Retext but there are lot of options for writing in Markdown depending on what system you are using, and I suspect in the future I will just compose in a basic text editor (but for now the live preview is a nice crutch). For now I keep the schedule of readings in in one file, the course description (policies, textbooks, grading policy etc.), the course information (time, date, classroom, office hours) all in separate files. I actually think that in the future I might separate out the description into a few more files (making it easier for someone to just borrow or "fork" that part of the syllabus). I think the more discrete units that I break the syllabus into the easier it will be to source, modify and credit it. You can see all the files I currently have here. There are other things in that folder (.odt files and .pdfs I’ll get to those in a moment). So essentially to edit the syllabus I just edit the markdown files (the ones listed as .md). The Core: GitHub I am organizing this all through GitHub, or rather publicly sharing it all through GitHub. I actually write and edit the files on my computer and then "push" the changes to GitHub which is updated. This allows others to view, share, and modify portions or all of my syllabus rather easily. More importantly GitHub handles the tracking of this sharing and referencing (forking). So if someone wants to "fork" my syllabus all they have to do is joing GitHub, set up their own account and fork the syllabus. For those unfamiliar with Github you might want to check out The New Yorker Article. Simply put though GitHub is a place for sharing information, iterating that information, and tracking those iterations, whether they are yours or someone elses. Really the ideal platform for sharing syllabi and assignments. And since the files are published in markdown you can actually just read the text right there, no downloading and opening a file. One of the key features of a Git system is that it acts as version control, this way I can easily keep track of the changes I am making to the syllabus. Or, for that matter others can see the changes I have made to the syllabus over time. As the semester progresses I am going to add in an assignments folder where I plan to write up all the assignments as separate files. This will help me to iterate the assignments, to borrow my assignments from others, and to share them with anyone else. Publishing the Syllabus So I’ve started to think across all areas of my writing about separating the text from the particular venue. Just writing in close to plain text (hence the turn to markdown) then exporting the text to whatever format I want, applying the "styling" at the point of publishing not the point of composition. Right now I am using Pandoc to compile all the markdown files, and convert them to various formats (.odt, .docx, .html). In fact the .odt and .pdfs in the link above were produced this way. The "syllabi template" file just applies the styling so that when the markdown files are compiled into a document file it looks like a print syllabus. Doing it this way made it ridiculously easily to put my syllabus online as html but to also produce a print copy to hand out on the first day. The key is that I will only edit the markdown files and have the others be updated. Right now I have to manually update (i.e. tell Pandoc to do this) but in the future I want to get this step automated, so that I edit the markdown file and the website will automatically update, along with the "print" version. This Wasn’t Easy The problem with this is that it wasn’t easy. There was a lot of learning curve both with GitHub and converting files. I could justify this as both related to my field of study and I am interested in figuring this out (not the least of which because I am thinking about using this as a way to share research as well). But honestly this isn’t really a workable solution for most academics, especially the non tech savvy. Even with programs that make interacting with GitHub easy, or file conversion easy, this is still a bit labor intensive. I think now it actually saves me time as I can write the syllabus once and update it across venues easily. But I certainly haven’t reached the point where I am saving myself more time than it took to learn. But I do think both in terms of composition and in terms of sharing this is certainly a model for how we as academics can share our pedagogical resources. Which Brings Me To . . . I think what we need is a way to do this (outside of the CMS’s Universities use), but do it with relative ease. Something like GitHub for syllabi. Enter Coursefork. This seems to be the niche they are going for, easy to use uploading of teaching materials, with the ability to edit, share, and credit others work. I’m not associated with Coursefork, although I have been able to use the Alpha system and they seem to be headed in the right direction. I don’t know if they will succeed or not, but I will say that I hope that something like this does succeed, both in the practical sense (a platform like this would be useful) and a more abstract sense (the idea of forking and sharing syllabi). After spending sometime working like this I am convinced that forking and sharing syllabi is the way to go, we just need practical tools for it, along with the conceptual framework of "forking." Note: I want to give a lot of credit to Andy who not only already did this (so I modeled my workflow after his) but also had put his EMAC 2321 syllabus on GitHub which serves as the reference for the COM 200 syllabus I put up. Unfortunately in the learning I didn’t get the forking right and so my syllabus doesn’t show as a "fork" of his, something I need to figure out how to correct here.

Background Last semester I had the advantage of teaching in the new Communications and Digital Media classroom here at Saint Joe’s. It’s a fabulous space, that just on architecture and design changes the learning environment. (Key technology: moveable tables and chairs.) But the classroom was in part over designed, or at least in some areas, using high end software that was less than user friendly. Case in point: Tidebreak. The idea behind Tidebreak is that any computer in the room can share their files with any other computer in the room, large or small. And even more "snazy" the instructor can "copy" the screen of any computer in the room and display it at the front of the room. So when students are working on projects in groups it is easy to demonstrate one groups work for the whole class. (There are a lot of other features in Tidebreak but these are the major use scenarios.) The problem is the tech is clunky, not easy to set up, and even less easy to use. For me it often got in the way of accomplishing what I wanted, spending time figuring out how to use it, rather than having it fade into the background. Due to the expense of tidebreak, and its less than ease of use, we decided to not renew the license. But I still want a way to replicate some of the functionality in that classroom. Primarily I want a way to share large files easily between computers. Not just from instructor to students but also between students, a large shared drive in the classroom for students to deposit and retrieve files. A use Dropbox a great deal in the classroom to share small files with students, but this isn’t as effective if you need large files. For example if you are working on image or sound manipulation and want to share a bunch of files with students, size quickly becomes an issue. Also Dropbox still replicates the faculty centered knowledge model, distribution takes place from me to the other students. True students could also share files from their own Dropbox accounts, but that quickly gets cumbersome. The Solution Enter PirateBox and LibraryBox. (Click the links for more in depth descriptions.) I must admit I have a bias towards lower tech hardware solutions over higher tech software solutions. Not that this line is entirely clear, but I would rather control the hardware and have something in place than rent a software license to do something. Piratebox and LibraryBox are essentially local hardware solutions to filesharing. They each create their own independent local wireless networks for file sharing, think very local shared drive. That is, in each case you have to be physically close to the "box," and connected to it via wireless. Once connected you can download and share files. This type of setup allows you to upload files to the box (wirelessly) then all of the students can download them easily. Poof low-tech, cheap (more on this later), solution to file sharing. And since this is a lowtech solution I am not so concerned about it breaking (and more importantly not paying a yearly license fee). True I could go the shared drive route, have the University set up a shared drive on the network that students can access and share files. This would probably work for small files, although it would also carry the cost of central authority at the university level where you have to get permissions correctly enabled blah, blah, blah . . . So this summer I set up a PirateBox and a LibraryBox played with both with the intention to use at least one (maybe both) this coming summer. After installing both and playing around with them I think I am going to start though by using PirateBox, although LibraryBox is much easier to use. Why? PirateBox vs LibraryBox Both systems operate on essentially the same architecture. In fact LibraryBox is a fork of PirateBox by Jason Griffey. The crucial difference though is LibraryBox maintains central control, with the main administrator having the ability to control the files being shared. It works better as a system for one person to upload a bunch of files and allow an infinite number of local downloads. That is it isn’t really configured to allow multiple users to upload files (anonymously) and share them anonymously. This can be a good thing though, I imagine in many use cases someone would install a LibraryBox and want to make sure it is used as a local means to share only approved files. This indeed strikes me as the central motivation behind forking PirateBox. make a version for libraries that allow the local hosting and distribution of files, say in a Library, or more creatively perhaps as part of a digital installation like in a history exhibit or art installation, or again in a classroom or lab for sharing files with students. Without central control the library (or whomever is hosting) will run into the copyright problem (people uploading files which infringe on copyright) or egads . . .the porn problem. So from an institutional perspective this central control makes sense. And it should be noted that a serious advantage of LibraryBox is the installation. Although both PirateBox and LibraryBox are set up via the same methods I found LibraryBox markedly easier to install. Jason’s instructions are really thorough and he was really responsive to questions (nothing like customer service even though I ain’t paying for a thing). He even wrote up an extra FAQ after I asked him about PirateBox vs LibraryBox. The install was really clean, no errors, super simple. The only "difficult" part is just waiting for the install to take place (this step takes a bit, in my case 20 minutes). Indeed the only problem I had was in wiping the router and setting it back to factory default so I could try PirateBox (that was tricky, involved putting router in safe mode . . .lots of terminal work . . .blah, blah, not so easy, wouldn’t recommend). PirateBox on the other hand was a little trickier, for whatever reason the documentation was not as clear. Indeed at some point I couldn’t figure something out and looked back at the steps I followed to install LibraryBox to set it up. Eventually I got it working, and I don’t know if this is significant or not but it took more like 40 minutes to install, using the same hardware as I did for LibraryBox, twice as long (don’t know if that is significant or not). But still I am going to go with PirateBox. Why? Because at least for my use PirateBox embodies more of the hacker, decentralized ethos we are trying to convey to our students. I don’t want them to necessarily ask for permission from me to share and exchange files in the classroom. The anonymity and design features of PirateBox are closer to what I want my students to practice and think about. What I Used I used a TP-Link TL-MR3040 which cost me $35. You can actually do it for cheaper but the MR3040 is smaller and can run off a battery so it is far more portable. But if you don’t need portability you can do it for cheaper, just make sure you get one of the approved routers for the LibraryBox or for the PirateBox. The only other thing you need is a flash drive. I got a small 16GB one, but if you envision sharing really large files it might be worth going for one with more storage capacity. My next step is to design and print a case for it, to give it a cool look. And if you don’t want to build your own you could always just buy a LibraryBox, I don’t know if you can just buy a PirateBox. All in all for less than $50 you can create a robust local file sharing system either anonymous and centralized, or anonymous and decentralized. Check back in after the semester to see what how this went, and what my experience with it is.

So I have been thinking a great deal about pedagogy lately, partly because I made the move to a University that focuses on teaching, partly because I am now chair of the department, and partly because I felt that it was just time, that I had a way of doing things and hadn’t spent as much time thinking through whether or not that way of doing things was the most effective, or more to the point whether or not there was reason to change. My Old Laptop Policy I used to have a mostly laissez faire laptop policy. I was of the attitude that students could be responsible for legislating their own attention. I was also persuaded by the idea that in most parts of their lives post-college they would be free to have laptops, or even more generally computing devices, out and use them. Indeed even within academia at things like chairs or faculty senate meetings many people have computing devices out. At most points in your life no one tells you you cannot have your computing device, part of being a professional and an adult is figuring this out: when it is appropriate to use a computing device, when it isn’t, and when it is okay to be distracted and when it isn’t. And since I think about my job as broadly speaking an issue of helping young adults become the adults they want to be then it struck me as a bad idea to take control away from them, to actively police their attention rather than teach them how to marshal their own attention. I don’t teach because I want to police people, I do it because I want to help people learn, and at the core of my pedagogical belief is the idea that students learn best when they are in charge of their own learning. But lately But the last couple of years I have noticed a distinct difference between class discussions when students have devices out in class and ones in which they do not. A few days I begin experimenting with subtle ways to change the class dynamics. It started by creating an activity that required them to close their laptops to do something, write something down, talk to their neighbour etc, and then transitioned into a discussion. If students didn’t open their laptops the discussion went better, was more productive, more students participated, more engagement, more listening. Things would start to shift once students started re-activating their devices. And I have an attendance policy, students aren’t free to miss class, so maybe I needed a device one . . . Potential Policies I suppose their are a range of policies, from the let students do whatever they want as long as they aren’t disturbing their neighbour policy. To the shut off wifi in the room and not allow any devices to be out during class (I guess there is even the more extreme policy of seizing devices if you see them out . . .). No way I would want to go with an extreme solution, making the decisions for the students forcing them to "behave" just wasn’t going to work for me, whether thru technological means (locking the wifi out) or through dictator means (me setting an absolute policy and enforcing). But still . . . I kept coming back to wanting to build a better learning environment for my students. And as most of the research now suggests laptops in the classroom can be a serious impediment to learning. I appreciate the digital network, value it, see its potential for social good. But I also recognize that no technology is neutral and that any piece of technology brings with it affordances and limitations. And the limitations of the ubiquitous connection and plethora of screens and distractions kept coming back to me. I won’t spell out all of my reasons here or point to all the research. Mainly though because I don’t have to, because Clay Shirky pretty much wrote that post already, and I would pretty much agree with everything he wrote. But then again . . . But then again I really wasn’t ready to commit to a full on ban of laptops in the classroom. I considered Howard Rheingold’s policy of only allowing a certain number of students to have laptops open at a time, something he discusses in Net Smart. But I decided against it. Instead I did something else . . . What "we" did . . . The class itself is about digital media, and intro to digital media course. So there is an unusual opportunity in this course to make the issue of attention, distraction, and media not only a policy but a subject of discussion. This class has as one of the texts Rheingold’s Net Smart in which we read the section on attention very early on, as well as discuss some of Cathy Davidson’s work. I began that day by asking them to shut their laptops, turn off their devices as we discussed attention. What followed was a fruitful, and mature discussion about devices, how and why we use them, why they distract us, and what it does to the spaces we inhabit and socialize. And importantly I should say I tried to not make it about "us adults" vs "them kids" which I think is how the debate gets too often framed. I used examples from my own life our experiences where I have been totally guilty of not paying attention. So, at the end of class I decided, actually sort of more or less decided this on the spot (so this wasn’t totally well thought out) to then make the discussion about what the policy in class should be, make the question: how do we in class want to make sure we maximize attention while still respecting individual choice. Different students expressed different opinions, pretty much everything in Shirky’s piece came up (the issue of not only individual attention, but those around, the spiral effect of once a few check out lots do creating a downward spiral). Then I had them vote they got to choose between two policies. Individuals in class can freely choose, although thoughtfully so about their own device use in class. Devices in class are to be turned off, for everyone, unless directly being used for class. The vote was really close in the end something like 9 or 10 for choice #1 and 11 or 12 for choice #2. So in the end that’s the policy. No device use, except when directly related to the work going on in class. I should probably say that I am not totally comfortable with this, it seems still a bit like students are being forced to behave in a certain way. But I like it because the community chose to have it that way after a fruitful informed discussion. I think one of the things that makes me most uncomfortable though is how close the vote was. So I definitely plan on revisiting later in class, letting them discuss the policy again, and maybe we can even create a laptop zone in class, where students can use devices, but only if they sit in those seats restricting the distractions to one area, so those who know its a problem for them can avoid those seats, and also students would have to pre-decide (before class began), and admit that "hey I want to be able to check facebook," in effect uping the transaction cost, but still leaving it ultimately up to them. And all of this might totally fail, as often it does, but hey, then it will just be a reason to have another conversation and re-work things. (Side note to this whole thing, take it for what it is worth, small sample size and all, but the students who were most vocal about wanting to preserve the overall community of the classroom were all women, and the ones who were most vocal about the more liberal policy were all men . . .not sure if that’s significant.)

But not that kind of printer . . . . Background I am teaching a course on 3dprinting this semester (you can see the syllabus here if you are interested it is a mix between theory, history of information & communication, and praxis, printing stuff). It has been a difficult class to construct and think about, in large part because the desktop 3d printing market is so young and these things aren’t nearly as easy to use as computers or 2d printers. The Issue So one of the first "big" choices I faced in teaching a class about 3d printing was solving the hardware issue. Unlike say teaching a class that requires students to blog, I can’t expect them to have the hardware. Indeed, I am pretty much guaranteed that students will not have personal access to a printer so I needed to figure out a way to provide them. This creates a few issues. First, printers cost money. It would be nice to provide enough for each student to have one, but that isn’t probably economically feasible. Right now a printer cost anywhere between $300 and $3000 (okay they can actually cost a lot more than $3000 but for my purposes am playing in the $300 to $3k range). Second is ease of use. The easiest option is to go with Makerbot. It is really just plug and play. Makerbot comes with its own software and is really easy to use. Indeed its ease of use is probably what makes it so popular among educational institutions, especially the secondary ed market. But Makerbots are expensive $2,900 or so. It’s true you can purchase a Makerbot pull it out of the box, load software onto your computer and be printing in 10-15 minutes. And for the most part you can get fairly good quality prints out of the machine. But … Aside from cost there are two big issues here. First is that Makerbots are too easy. Too easy? Yes. Too easy. Part of what I want students to learn is the technology of these things, how they work, their ins and outs, to think about the way they work, along with how they work. By making the machine less easy, it seems less like "magic" and more like something students are capable of intervening in/modifying. Thinking with machines means understanding how to make interventions. The Makerbot’s principle advantage is the software, it is really easy to use, but that comes at a cost, not understanding how the software works. Which brings me to the second problem with going the popular Makerbot route: lock-in. If you learn to use a Makerbot, you get really good at learning to use a Makerbot, but that knowledge doesn’t so easily transfer to other systems. Aside from the deplorable path they are taking in terms of Intellectual Property it seems the Makerbot system is likely to be one of a 3d printing ecosystem that is convenient to use but in which you are locked in, unable to transfer out (similar to say the way iOS works). There are other options. If I wanted to go the expensive route and had all the money in the world, and wanted easy printing I would probably select Ultimakers. Cost and Learning. One of these, ready to use printers, cost in excess of $2000 though. True you can actually get a much cheaper one like the Davinci but they also require that you buy their plastic not just any plastic. Thus, you end up back at the 2d printer problem, where companies sell them at or below cost only to extract higher profits from buying the printer cartridges and ink. No thanks. So in the end I decided to purchasePrintrbots. They are inexpensive, work well, you can tinker with them, and since they are built on the reprap platform aren’t going to be restricted to one kind of plastic. We got a mix of the Plus models and the Simple models. I’ll report back later …

A great presentation on the importance of process from Fred Bentsen (APQC Education), Mark Gabehart (CTO, RoundRock ISD), and Frankie Jackson (CTO, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD). These are my notes from the presentation given at the Texas CTO Clinic 2015 in Austin, Texas.Announcement: Join #etdrive, a Texas wide conversation focused on 3 strands using "push to learn" technology, VoxerChats. Follow these two steps to begin your learning journey now.Source: http://goo.gl/HdmXEkWhile I have audio for this presentation, Fred Bentsen said, "What happens here, stays here." So, no audio. Sigh.My NotesFred asked a few questions to start us off:Why do we use these cumbersome forms?Why do we have to have so many approvals for this?Why does only 1 person know how to do this job?Why do we do this like this?This presentation is about process and measurement.It's time for a new approach. We have to consider Inputs, Processes, and Outcomes. For example:Inputs include Money, Instructional, FacilitatorProcesses include Practices, Hiring/Training, Managing TechnologyOutputs include Test results, achievement gap, AYPYou can only change the outcome if you change the processes; you only change processes for whom the outcome is broken.You can't change outcomes without changing the processes that lead to those outcomes.Everything you do is a process...writing down that process is the first step to transformative change.We can ask questions like:What suggestions do you have to make process(es) more efficient?Why would a person in question want to change process?Processes over time end up with redundant items, while others require delegation.The processes that need to change are the ones leading to broken outcomes.Cypress-Fairbank ISD's story:The District needed improvement in various areas, such as Visioning, ALigning District Plan/CIP, Human Capital Assessment and Development, Energy Management, Conservation and Payroll process.Frankie shared a great slide showing Work History and characterized it as a "Performance Excellence Journey."When we started we didn't have a service level agreement.In discussing goals and evidence of completion, she developed several tiers of service.Tier 1 involved standard response time.Tier 2 involved when something didn't get taken care of within 1-9 days; this resulted in a consequence of an email to the team leader.Tier 3 involved 10-19 days with an email to the managerTier 4 involved 19 days or more without being dealt with. This resulted in the consequence of an email to the CTO and she had to come up with interventions and strategies for resolve this.It is difficult to document processes; until you write down the process, flow, designate responsibility and publish those, you won't be able to fix them. "Mapping the process."Round Rock ISD's Story:view sourceWhy APQC?Challenging economic times, looking at efficiencies, breaking down silos, seeking continuous improvement; linking initiatives, programs and projects; using process and performance management tools.APQC involves systematic thinking about processes. You define real problems and identify pain points that you are having as a district.Some of the challenges include not having a service desk, enrollment registration, online registration, transportation, personnel alignment.APQC suggests ways of moving from "As Is" to "To Be," or how to shift from current ineffective process to processes that will work in the future.This process involves crafting the following:Opportunity statement: This details the problem or current ineffective process.Goal: The solution or corrected process and the desired outcomeMeasures: How to assess successIn Scope: The work that it will take to achieve the goal that is expectedOut of Scope: The work or needs that will arise to achieve the goal that are unexpected or exceed budget.This process is known as DMAIC or Define--Measure--Analyze--Improve--ControlLessons Learned:Continuous improvement is good (growth mindset)Breaks down silosImproves efficienciesUsing APQC tools is good.Now, team members who have participated in the process are asking when others bring them problems, "Did you process map that problem?"Since technology touches all silos, it's important to break down dysfunctional silos.Without upper leadership support, nothing will happen.Model up.We work with people on a daily basis, so we don't want to make people mad at us. So, one approach is to bring someone in from the outside to ask tough questions and put into place an external process (APQC) to facilitate tough conversations [Miguel's note: this highlights the need for crucial conversations].On a related note, I loved this EdNET Insight article, a part of which is excerpted below: For too long, educators, foundations, and the state-federal governments have mistakenly focused only on the right-hand side of the diagram—Pathway 2: Performance Management—to get improvement. I call it the Achilles’ heel flaw of education. Education can never get improvement by an outcomes-only process. You cannot manage outcomes any more than you can manage a golf score to improve your golf game. Outcomes are determined by processes, and if you wish to improve, you must manage the processes that produce the outcomes.* Here’s a ten-step Quick Start Guide to begin:Get training and coaching in PPM.Appoint process improvement teams and process owners.Select three to five key processes.Map the current processes as is to reveal the flow and flaws.Train teams in process improvement and change management.Benchmark in your own district or with best practices districts.Collect and measure data; see gaps and waste in your performance.Do a root cause and process analysis.Draw a process map the way you think a process should be done.Create action plans and implement.Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

This session, Salary Reboot: Rethinking Pay for K-12 Technology Jobs, was held at the Texas K-12 CTO Council meeting on June 18, 2015. It provided some eye-opening statistics about CTOs and job in the edtech field.Announcement: Join #etdrive, a Texas wide conversation focused on 3 strands using "push to learn" technology, VoxerChats. Follow these two steps to begin your learning journey now.About the FacilitatorsIt was facilitated by the following folks from TASB:Amy Campbell, Assistant Director, Data ServicesAnn Patton, Managing Compensation ConsultantLuz Cadena, Senior Compensation ConsultantTroy Bryants, Data Services ManagerTASB HR ServicesPhone: 800-580-7782Email: hrservices@tasb.orgListen to Audio for this presentation MyNotesDice Tech Salary Survey 2014 results | Get full textOut of a thousand school districts, 600 responded. A response rate of 60% statewide, surveying 125 jobs in the survey, 90% rate among districts with 3000+ enrollmentLook at market value, as well as non-school market. These give us a good picture of private sector and public sector. Staff can go work in other places.Private sector does not always pay better than education.Average US Tech Salary Change - 5 year trendin 2010, there were very low increases for technology positions.by 2012, they caught up.Texas salaries are a little late to the game. On average, salaries actually dropped from year to year due to the RIF process in 2011.Cumulatively, there's about a 13% increase nationwide, and only 9% in Texas.Texas Market ValuesComputer TechnicianNon school: $21.92 (San Antonio), $20.24(el Paso), $23.56 (Dallas/FtWorth), $23.90 (east Texas)Salary growth 1.5%, and over the last year, -1.1% decreaseEmployee ratio 2010-2015 has seen an increase of 5%Statewide median hourly rate is $19.77HelpDesk TechnicianNon School: $20.97/$19.04, $19.61/$27.17 (el paso)Relationship between district size and pay. Hourly rate for 10K-25K, $23.50 for hourly rateNetwork Technician: Private/School: $27.85/$21.89 (SA)Instructional Tech SPecialist10K-25K enrollment: $65,52744% employee ratio 2010-2015Statewide median salary: $59,923Network Admin$86K/$62K (SA)CTO$162K/$93K (SA)IT Employment TrendsMotivators: Percentage of employers who offer incentives. 2009:53%; 2014:66%Primary Motivator for 17% was increased compensation12% - more interesting or challenging assignments12% flexible work locations/telecommuting10% flexible work hours3% promotion or new titleChanging employers: of 37% of tech pros that anticipate changing employers in 2015:70% higher compensation44% better working conditions33% more responsibility18% shorter commute17% anticipate losing current positions13% relocation (unavoidable turnover)9% otherHot Tech Jobs in 2015-2016SecurityMobile Device ManagementNetworkStrategies for Hiring and Retaining Tech TalentMove quicklySeparate pay structurePay differently (pay tech people larger salary increases)Adjust pay (salaries are being looked at annually and revised, as many as 2x a year)Create career pathways (have like 3 levels of tech...need to provide value for this)Instructional Tech vs Traditional TechInstructional Tech to CTO Pathteacher/instructional tech specialist to Director then CTOTHe only way to earn more is to become a supervisorTraditional Tech to CTO PathComputer Tech to Network Admin to IT Supervisor to CTOLot more opportunity to earn in your careeryou can stay in a role that doesn't involve supervision until you are more experienced (older)Gender Pay EquityMedian SalariesMen: $91,951Women: $95,883CTO count by gender favors males in that role over femalesOnly 4.6 percent of women work in STEM careers, opposed to 10.3% for men in STEM careers.There are fewer female data points in the data.Men in technology hold far more technical positions (e.g. software engineering)Women hold project management, business analyst roles.CTO Median Salary by Gender and Enrollment Group: There is no statistical impact of gender on salary. No correlation was found in Texas.Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Visit their Web SiteThis week, I had the opportunity to attend the 300 participant TxCTOClinic held in Austin, Texas. The mini-conference was replete with fantastic presentations relevant for Chief Technology Officers (CTOs), as well as chock full of information and data about technology management in schools.Announcement: Join #etdrive, a Texas wide conversation focused on 3 strands using "push to learn" technology, VoxerChats. Follow these two steps to begin your learning journey now.Since I am on a crusade to share great information shared at these events, I was thrilled to find out that TxCTO folks are posting all their resources online. I was also able to attend quite a few sessions--and present one myself with colleagues at http://tinyurl.com/txcto15--and you can find a list of those below.Some of these sessions were 3 hours in length, so if you're wondering, why so few, well, wow, quite in-depth sessions. I'm also grateful to others for sharing their audio recordings.Roundup of TxCTO Blog Posts:Empowering Dynamic Data Strategies (Data warehouse/dashboard preso! Cost effective!)Salary Reboot*APQC Process ManagementCTO Boot Camp*IMA Legislative Update*Digital Citizenship and Cybersafety*Making Connections with Data and Resources**Audio recording included.Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

This session, IMA Update, was held at the Texas K-12 CTO Council meeting on June 18, 2015. It provided some eye-opening statistics about CTOs and job in the edtech field.Announcement: Join #etdrive, a Texas wide conversation focused on 3 strands using "push to learn" technology, VoxerChats. Follow these two steps to begin your learning journey now.Session was facilitated by Abel Villareal (Corpus Christi ISD) and Rosa Ojeda (Waller ISD)Listen to audio of this sessionMyNotes82nd Legislative SessionPrior to IMASB6 Changed Everything (this happened around 2011)IMAbased on 1/2 PSFInstructional Material Allotment (IMA)Allow flexibilityAllows district control over fundsAllows for district to pay for our instructional materialsIMA ProcurementIMA procures state adopted instructional materialsProclamationsDual CreditAdvanced Placement & IBOld Tech AllotmentContinuing contractsNon-state adopted materialTech hardware and curriculum softwareProfessional developmentInstructional materialShipping and handlingEffects of SB6We order instructional materials based on usage, available funds, IMA committee decidesIMA purchasesDistrict owns inventoryTEA holds districts accountableDo not have to pay TEAIMA is used to replace instructional materialsNo state max costPublishers prices increased 60%Proclamations went from 6 to 8 yearsScience and Social studies...contracts last 6-12 years.83rd LegislatureHB5 allowed a publisher delayed payment optionsTEA approves or denies, TEA pays the publishers after Sept 1stInstructional Materials disbursements have to be entered in EMATDistrict receives materials in the summerImpact of 84th LegislatureHB 1474 frontloading bill - approved by Governor Abbott100/0 split 7.7 million in 1st yearSB 31375% of projected IMA budgetfrontloadingDelayed adoptionJune 21st last day to vetoEMAT allocationDisbursements (off list items)Proclamation 2015Social Studies K-12: $2.9MMath 9-12: $761KFineArts: $1.1MScience AP: $94KCont. Adoptions: $1MAdvice:In your district, you need to look at utilization reports.In some districts, you have Curr director, superintendent, tech director. Run utilization reports, and see what was actually used. This constant monitoring is the only way to ensure the money gets recouped.IMA Funding Formula1/2 of the permanent school fund (SBOE authorized $1.05 billion)Based on 5.1 million studentstotal student enrollment500 million = 1 year of bienniumCalculate Entire biennium:$200 per student * student enrollmentNon-State adopted materialIMA ProcedureCampus needsIMA formsApprovalsPDMPrincipalDistrict level depts3 deadline dates:August 1October 15March 15More information was shared in this session but I did not record it. You can Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

This session, Cybersafety & Digital Citizenship in the Classroom, was held at the Texas K-12 CTO Council meeting on June 18, 2015. It provided some eye-opening statistics about CTOs and job in the edtech field.Listen to Audio of this presentation(...and this is the best way to listen, since my notes don't do the presentation justice).Announcement: Join #etdrive, a Texas wide conversation focused on 3 strands using "push to learn" technology, VoxerChats. Follow these two steps to begin your learning journey now.About the FacilitatorsDavid McGeary (@dcmcgeary) and Lynnice Hockaday (@lhockaday5), Harris County Dept of Ed (HCDE)MyNotesDavid gave an introduction with some engaging examplesBenefits of Social MediaHelp teachers learn how to use social mediaEveryone has a voice....it gives quiet kids to engage and participate and be a part of the discussion.Collaboration and engagement outside the classroom...those kids outside the walls, learning how to interact with each other. Students are able to latch on and find out what's going outside of their own classroom.Real world experts...done in many ways such as Skype/Twitter. It takes time to make connections.Teacher-parent communication...constant, active involvement. If you want to make meaningful use of the online space, you've got to be an active contributor in the space. More often than not, teachers don't know how to behave. We have to discuss fluidity, maintain conversations in online space.Training teachers to be good conversationalists in online space so that's very important. Being just a role model online is important.Prepare for employment...% Change in Jobs requesting Social Media Skills from 2012-2013 (Source: Indeed.com)Instagram - 644%Vine - 154%Alternatives to these would be Snapchat and PeriscopeIn the classroom...what does social media look like in the classroom?Instagram - post a picture that becomes a writing prompt. It can be used to connect with parents, serving as a announcements. [Real life example that came to mind]Twitter - Teacher's 1st Amendment Rights...Justine Sacco's life change in one Tweet...#leydenpride exampleMyths: When it comes to Technology, Kids have all the answersI will know when I am infected.My Password is Secure (Worst Passwords of 2014)Internet predators are easy to spotTeachers may not share directory information:  this data may include the student's name, address, telephone number, date and place of birth, honors and awards, and dates of attendance.Web sites created for children are monitored and safe. (e.g. COPPA)Free Security Software is as good as paid. "An anti-virus tool does not protect you from everything. An anti-virus tool won't protect you from your stupidity."Malware comes from Email attachments.Incognito window doesn't record information about youPosting personal information is a bad thing?"...media is actually a triathlon, it's 3 different events. People like to consume, but they also like to produce, and they like to share." -Clay ShirkyEncourage kids to post so much positive things about themselves that it buries everything else online that might be bad.Encourage students to reflect their interests in a positive way online.Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Idea debunked...[read research]Remember the HumanBe mindful of your Digital FootprintHave a positive, constructive attitude towards what you post with others."It always is harder to be left behind than to be the one to go..." Brock Thoene, Shiloh AutumnLooking for partners as part of the Academy in pilot mode right now in Cypress-Fairbanks ISD.Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

This session, Making Connections with Data and Resources, was held at the Texas K-12 CTO Council meeting on June 17, 2015. It provided some eye-opening statistics about CTOs and job in the edtech field.Listen to Audio of this presentation(...and this is the best way to listen, since my notes don't do the presentation justice).Announcement: Join #etdrive, a Texas wide conversation focused on 3 strands using "push to learn" technology, VoxerChats. Follow these two steps to begin your learning journey now.The facilitators for the session included Joseph Christoffersen, Jamey Hynds, and Darlene Rankin, all from Katy ISD.Session description: Directors from Katy ISD will present solutions that have been put in place to connect users with data and resources. You will learn about their solutions for the districts' dashboards, learning management system, and cloud-based portal. Attendees will see how these solutions in Katy ISD keep the staff, students, and community connected 24/7 to resources and information.Note: I have not had a chance to listen to the audio and develop notes for this presentation...yet.Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure