by Shelly Blake-PlockHere's a bit of one of the most popular posts to appear on TeachPaperless over the last few months. On a personal level, it was also a big reinforcement in my mind as to why networked learning is so valuable.Maps tell a story. And that's what my Human Geography students and I talked about today. We talked about how you could lay a map of something as seemingly innocuous as how people describe soft drinks over the context of patterns of human habitation and find a telling correlation. They were pretty blown away. Until somebody said, "But how do we know that's accurate?"Check out the original post for the full story. Click here for the full account of how our network helped us verify and extend what we learned in class.

by Shelly Blake-PlockThe students on our school's newspaper do a bang-up job. They tend to be the kids I see working early in the morning and late into the evening as teachers are closing up shop and the maintenance crew is getting to work. And they put out a good paper, both in print and online; I'm especially fond of the opinion pages (go figure). Check it out at: http://www.jcpatriot.com/ and follow them @JCPatriot on Twitter.I bring this up not just as a plug for our school's paper, but because I see student run media -- especially online and connected student run media -- as a perfect form of hyperlocal journalism. I think there is a lot to be learned from how student writers and editors cover their "local market" and in the ways they present their findings, investigations, observations, and opinions to the wider world. I would love to see a connected and organized student run media network develop online -- something that could connect student journalists in hyperlocal markets throughout the world... something with a tag like #studentmedia or #hyperschool or #k12voice.I would love to help our students connect with other student journalists out there; if you've got leads, leave 'em in the comments. And thanks.

by Mary Beth Hertz "Can I use a pencil?""Do you have a piece of paper, Ms Hertz?""Can I just please write it down, Ms Hertz?"I get these questions in my lab from time to time. My answer is always, "No," provided the student is not writing down a password or URL to take home or if the student has an IEP or other individualized learning plan.  I answer that my job is to teach them how to use technology instead of paper to solve problems and organize ideas. I am showing them a different tool to use--one that I believe will be ubiquitous by the time they are my age. One that they are already at a disadvantage with because of access at home and lack of proper instruction in the past.It is my belief that my students will be required, like no other generation has in a long time, to replace some of the tools we have grown accustomed to with new tools that often do the same job, only more efficiently and often better.With these tools comes new responsibility.See, not only am I teaching kids how use computers to do more than search YouTube and play games, I am also responsible for sending good digital citizens out into the world. More and more conversation and interaction between people is moving online, and children are joining those conversations at a younger and younger age.Just as teaching with just a pencil and paper no longer suffice, teaching courtesy and manners face to face no longer suffice.  While both are an integral part of our formative years, we cannot stop there. Students who cannot type or navigate a computer will be left behind. Young adults who have not learned how to conduct themselves online will have dire consequences--some immediate, some later in life.I am charged with making sure that my students leave my classroom prepared to engage in an online world in a meaningful, collaborative and respectful way. It is my job to give them the technical skills and the social know-how that will help them navigate their futures.

by Steven W. AndersonThis is a post that has been brewing for a while now....But after a conversation I had a few days ago I think it's time to get some of my thoughts out there for reflection. I totally get passion in education. And really can you be an educator and not have passion for education? Perhaps that is a post for another time. But the way I see it, many have moved passed passion and moved to anger. Again, I totally get that. I am upset with many things in our current system. Sure, if asked, I would give a lot of the "reformers" a piece of my mind. But...It seems like if  you disagree with one side or the other you are perceived as dumb, stupid, or much, much worse. My conversation started out with a Tweet that (to paraphrase) asked if a certain, central figure in the reform debate, that many admire and look up to actually had any ideas or if she just ran around the country telling us what is wrong without actually offering up any ideas. I follow this "reformer" on Twitter and her stream is filled with what comes across in 140 characters as anger. Again, I get that. (Remember, I am angry too.) But my point was that when you had the audience she did last week why not give them something tangible to take back to their districts to try or do? Seems reasonable, right?Normally I don't tweet things like that. I don't. I like the discussion but there are people out there in ol' Twitter land that use the screen as one of anonymity and they believe because they are behind this screen they can say and do whatever they like. Don't get me wrong. Again, I love the conversations. I totally enjoy for my thinking to be pushed. However I have limits....So after my tweet, which I figured would draw some comments I got plenty of, "I agrees," and a few people who disagreed, which was great. I had fun engaging and talking to them. Then there was one who, has passion, but that passion has grown to anger. And if you cross them, say anything negative about the reformer  whom I mentioned earlier, well, you might as well pack up and go home. This tweeter had solid arguments for certain types of reform and the direction we should be going; with many of these arguments I agree. However, it was the personal attacks and just general poor language that really made me lose respect for this tweeter. Disagreement is cool. Makes us think differently and see other sides, but to move from disagreement to creative hashtags, none appropriate to even write here, really just make your arguments look weak. This isn't the first time I have written about this or even encountered it. In a post from late last year I wrote about Education Nation project from NBC and how it was getting all sorts of negative attention from the Twittevers and blogsphere. Again, there I tried to say we needed to move from talk to action. In the most popular post ever on my blog I wrote about why we should all think before we Tweet. For me I keep coming back to this idea that I believe people who use social media or tools like it feel some level of anonymity and they can say, really what ever. What if we were having a face-to-face conversation? Would the person who I had my conversation with this past weekend behaved the same and said the same things? I am doubtful. I am not the only one to notice this trend. My friend Michelle, just wrote a post today about the exact same issue. In it she says; What do we tell kids about comments on blogs, online articles, Facebook status updates?PLAY NICELY.If you disagree, you can do so without attacking another person’s character.If you wouldn’t say it in person, don’t type it online.Remember, there are human beings on the other end.Remember, you are also a human being.Rule #1 is really all you need.So why so much animosity amongst educators in online spaces lately? I would say that the current turmoil in which we find ourselves (perhaps related to education reform discussions) is part of it. But are we practicing what we preach? I don’t think so.Couldn't agree more Michelle. And Seth Godin had a piece a few weeks ago where this last line says simply, "Anger, on the other hand, makes us smaller." We are going to disagree. And you know, that makes us smarter, pushes our thinking and helps us see all sides. But is it possible to do it without anger? Passion, sure. But anger?What do you think? Is this a problem today? Is it a result of the anonymity I say the screen provides or is it something else? 

By Steve KatzAlso posted on my Teach With Video blog.Last week I presented at the KORCOS conference in Korea about my experience having a paperless classroom this year, and my recommendations to teachers who are thinking about moving toward eliminating paper from their classes. Teaching paperless isn't as difficult as I thought it would be, and we have not used paper in my class this year. The Paperless Classroom View more presentations from Steve Katz

by Shelly Blake-Plock KQED's MindShift ran a piece today that I wrote in response to the idea that my 21 Things That Will Be Obsolete in Education by 2020 was a list of impossible tasks. We’re not talking about computers anymore. We’re talking about the way that we connect to one another as human beings.Don’t let the reality of whatever condition your school might be in right now dictate what reality will look like in the future. Shape the future you want to see.Check out the piece and please comment; discussion is energy.

by Shelly Blake-Plock Job Description for an $60 - $80K per year position that I stumbled upon on LinkedIn today:- Develop socially engaging experiences to create stickiness and loyalty.- Identify brand evangelists and celebrity bloggers to virally spread company's value through relevant online communities- Viral seeding: incentivize Influencers to expose brand to their fan bases- Use Smart Monitoring Tools for action-oriented insights from all social media outlets: pages, sites, blogs, etc.- Use Smart Management Tools (TweetDeck, etc.) to manage the communities effectively.Just for fun, would love to hear from you all about what kinds of skills and intelligences you see needed for this position and what kind of teaching and content best prepares a student to enter into a job market where this is a job that would produce a substantial income.For you overachievers: Does/should school meet the demands of the job market?

by Shelly Blake-PlockWine AND Cheese. Laurel AND Hardy. Mick AND Keef. Lennon AND McCartney.The best things in life compliment one another.And so it should be with Analog AND Digital.The new paradigm shouldn't be about exclusion. It should be about dynamics. We don't exclude Paper because we include Digital. Rather, we strive to exclude the static modes of thinking often represented by paper -- but also easily represented by poorly-used digital.The new paradigm shouldn't be about closing down schools and taking learning exclusively online. A computer screen will never replace a football field. A smartphone will never replace a theater. A Skype chat will never replace a high-five.But neither will arguments berating tech alter the fact that digital tech is the context of the present and that we owe it to our kids to educate them in the world in which they find themselves living and not in the world some of us may wish still existed.And so we look to augment one with the other to the exclusion of neither. We seek to bring the speed and democratizing openness of the digital to the solidity of the analog and bring the warmth and experience of the analog to the cool intelligence of the digital.Schools themselves are changing and they will continue to change. So let's use what we've got -- both analog and digital -- to the full benefit they both offer. We don't need a classroom in which to learn poetry. A tree and some shade will do. In winter, we can take inspiration from the museum school model and take the kids directly into the experience. In the meantime, use all that space in the old classrooms to do what those types of building do well: let them be labs, let them be community spaces. Turn your rooms into STEM innovation centers. Let the science loose. Let the math live and let it get messy. Use your on-site tech and know-how to train, empower, and embolden the children AND adults in your community. While we're at it, create those partnerships with museums, historical societies, libraries, state parks, local farms, and public institutions. Spend Mon, Wed, Fri in the lab and Tues and Thurs taking in Van Goghs, or farm animals, or new friendships and alliances through community outreach.Teach English by reading about whatever it is that you are doing. Make art on the move and in the field. Learn history by learning how to talk to strangers; make new friends who are not like you, and listen to perspectives different than your own.Keep those smartphones handy all the while.Turn lab time into bring-a-scientist-to-school time. Turn math into a worldwide problem solving mission. Pull out that smartphone and turn a stroll through the art gallery into an augmented trip through history.Try things out. See what happens.Bring the Analog and the Digital together. The life of the heart and the life of the mind. The mathematician and the poet.Enough with the idea that one thing excludes another. The only thing worth excluding is fear. Fear, ignorance, and banality.Write that out on a Post-It and stick it to your monitor.

Reader Audrey comments on 21 Things That Will Be Obsolete In Education By 2020:The biggest problem among many with your assessment is that once education is a video delivered system (oh the desks will still be there), the state can create a curriculum that limits vision to a single narrative. To imagine that the state would not do exactly that is naive in the extreme. The world isn't available for everyone's success. Look around you. It's a pyramid and in order to keep the largest portion of the population in place, you need them to be compliant. Young entrepreneurial teachers at the top of the food chain are all about their contribution to education via zuckerberg fueled start up fantasies and it's a whole new world paradigms. But they aren't really paying attention to the structure of the system or the lack of opportunity possible for the largest mass of the population. It's a ponzi scheme. I love technology, but it won't save us. Your thoughts?

http://willardeastelementary.edublogs.org/2010/04/22/paperless-earth-day/By David Andrade, cross posted at http://tinyurl.com/edtechguy I'm working on going paperless in my classroom. I'm almost 100% paperless myself, but have many students who don't have computer access so need to print things for them.Here are the tools that I feel are essential to be paperless at school and at home:1. Scanner - preferably one with an auto feeder. This is how I take paper items and make them electronic. I save them as PDF files so that they are easy to view. I'll upload some to Evernote (which can search the text) and attach it to notes in Evernote as needed. 2. Evernote - free, multi-platform system for taking notes, clipping webpages, and much more. You can organize notes, upload photos (Evernote can search text in photos too), attach files and more. It is truly a one-stop, does-it-all, system that is indispensable. 3. Google Docs - do all of your office work - documents, spreadsheets, and presentations - online. Collaborate and share with others without needing to print out files. Can also upload other files to keep them there. 4. Google Calendar - keep yourself organized and on schedule. Create group calendars or share calendars. No need to print them anymore. It can even email or text you reminders for upcoming events or tasks. 5. Google Tasks - tasks is a simple task list that comes with Gmail. Use it to make sure you don't forget to do things. You can also schedule due dates and have it link to Google Calendar. 6. Electronic Gradebook - if your school system isn't already using an electronic grade book, you can use your own for free. Engrade is a free, online grade book that is easy to use, fully functional, and allows students and parents to view their grades. 7. PDF tools - use these tools to create, modify, and mark up PDF documents. Make electronic versions instead of printing to paper. 8. Student online services - Trackclass, Shoshiku, and Dweeber and Note.ly - students use these free services (along with Evernote and Google apps) to take notes, organize their schedule and assignments, and much more. 9. Smartphone with camera - access all of the services mentioned here. Do work anytime. Stay organized by accessing your calendar, task list, notes, and more. And use the camera to capture information and notes. This becomes your pocket organizer. 10. Websites and Blogs - use websites and blogs to post information, files, and other items to communicate with faculty, parents and students. 11. Digital Textbooks and sites - use digital textbooks and reference sites instead of paper textbooks. Accessible anywhere and free. Digital Textbooks12. Smartpones, Tablets, Computers, Netbooks - use these in class instead of paper notebooks and textbooks to access information, take notes, and create assignments. You can even use an inexpensive digital notepad, like Boogie Board, to take quick notes without using paper. 13. Digital assignments instead of paper - have students use Google Docs, blogs, websites, etc. to create digital assignments instead of paper ones. Have them create new things, like Glogs, videos, and presentations instead of the typical paper assignments. 14. Electronic bulletin boards and digital displays (digital photo frames)- use these instead of paper bulletin boards to display messages and notices. Going paperless is not only good for the environment (the increased use of electricity is still less than the power, resources, and byproducts of paper production) but can also save schools money and make people and students more efficient.All of the software/services I mentioned are free and available online through any web browser and available from smartphones. What do you use to go paperless?

by Andrew CoyIt has been a while since my last post, but there are good reasons for that, one of which I would like to take a moment and share.Background and ContextView Larger MapI teach at Digital Harbor High School in inner-city Baltimore. The school was founded in 2002 with substantial support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the objective was to take a failing school in southern Baltimore and reinvigorate it with a vision of 21st century education and technology to service inner-city students in the Baltimore City Public School System (how well this has or hasn't worked and what my thoughts are on Urban Education Reform I will be sharing sooner or later on this blog, no doubt). While Baltimore City Public Schools has been in the news recently for some pretty significant and progressive changes (such as graduation rates and a new teacher contract), these improvements have only recently started to turn the tide of more than 40 years of problems and a failing system.The neighborhood in which I teach is one of the more affluent neighborhoods in downtown Baltimore, but Digital Harbor was one of Baltimore City's first City School of Choice (meaning that students from all over the city can elect to attend the school regardless of where they live). As with other schools in the Baltimore, middle class families send their children to private or charter schools. This combined with the geographic dispersement of students means that substantial parent/community involvement has been a challenge. Some members of community around our school have, however, effectively adopted our school and our students as their own and while relationships with the neighborhood and the students (especially in the early afternoon after the bells ring) has definite room for improvement, a few members of the neighborhood have taken it upon themselves to make a positive impact.Last year these community members organized a fundraising event and in one night raised more than $50,000 for scholarships to students going to college from Digital. I became more involved this year when they came to the school looking for someone to help out with a website and other technical issues. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind for me trying to juggle everything from teaching to web programming to finishing my Master's degree at Hopkins.Reasons for this PostI wanted to write this post for two main reasons.1) a follow up to the last post I wrote about teachers knowing HTML.While what I have done for the DHHS Alliance has gone beyond simple HTML knowledge, I feel strongly that the more teachers teach themselves about technology the more value they can add to their school and the more they can make a lasting difference in the lives of their students (both in high school and beyond). I know some individuals disagreed with my last post, arguing that Web 2.0 has effectively reduced the need for teachers or anyone to actually know HTML, but I still feel that for those willing to make the investment, there will be significant payoffs. Better to program than be programmed (in the words of Douglas Rushkoff), especially if one adopts the teacher-as-leader model of education.2) to invite you all to check out the website i've been working on and highlight some of the silent auction items that are available online.Scrubs from the TV Show Scrubs signed by DONALD FAISON and ZACH BRAFF -- (more info)Signed book "I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to the Blind Side and Beyond!" The Raven’s own Michael Oher, #74, the football star made famous in the hit film,"The Blind Side" -- (more info)ONE night evening package at this premium downtown hotel, THE MARRIOTT INNER HARBOR-CAMDEN YARDS, located footsteps from Camden Yards - Oriole Stadium -- (more info)RACING package including Clubhouse passes for 10 to LAUREL PARK or PIMLICO RACE COURSE, reserved seating, live-racing programs, parking for 10 cars AND a race named in your honor -- (more info)Not available on-line but if interested, can contact me -- (abcoy@bcps.k12.md.us or @andrewcoy)Autographed swimming cap and picture from Gold-Medal Olmypian Michael PhelpsNose Cone from Indy 500 race last year, signed by Helio Castroneves, Scott Dixon, Dario Franchitti, Dan Wheldon and others!Tickets to the upcoming Grand Prix in BaltimoreThe actual event will be at the Baltimore Museum of Industry on Saturday, the 26th of March.Tickets are available on the website if you are in the area and want to come support some of inner-city Baltimore's best students! (who, incidentally, won the 2A Boy's Basketball State Championship this year!)

by Shelly Blake-PlockHere's the scenario: You have been put in charge of creating a brand new education system. Whatever you decide will be done. You are the monarch. You have unlimited resources and everyone is mandated to do your bidding (and they love you and think you are a genius).And they are waiting to hear your concept.One caveat: This being the 21st century, you have to explain your entire concept in 21 words or less.So, let's hear what you've got.

by John T. SpencerI'll take up Shelly's challenge and sum it up in one word:loveLet that be the foundation and you'll see humility.   Start with humility and you'll see authenticity.  Let those be your guide and you'll have paradox.  Real paradox.  Start with paradox and you just might have something that's sustainable. *     *     *I search through my blog reader one summer afternoon and glance at the deafening sound of the echo chambers. "Here are twenty-five badass apps that will revolutionize your classroom!" "Let the kids make decisions for Christ sakes.  We need to unschool.  Liberate the factories." "We need PLC's.  Let us make wise, data-informed, research-based decisions.  Only then will we have schools that truly improve." "Charter schools are the only answer.  The innercity is filled with mediocrity.  We need to reform these places with the flexibility that charter schools offer."Lots of bold answers but not too many questions. I walk outside and feel the grass beneath my bare feet.  I meander toward the the garden.  The tomatoes are turning a bright, bold red.  Tonight they'll transform into a marinara sauce.   Grace. It's humbling.I didn't earn it.  I didn't create it.  But it grew.  Naturally. The boys beckon me to a mudhole in the yard.  They grow and explore and make sense of their world and it's messy, really messy.  We clean up and read books and it's tidy. Then it's back outside where they climb a tree.  Should I tell them they're going too high?  I have no idea.I vascillate between too much freedom and too much safety; too much direction and not enough support; allowing them to live in the imagination and helping them to see their physical world. I don't know what I'm doing as a dad.  It's shrouded in mystery.  It's full of paradox.  But I have a hunch that if there is a "right way" it's the path of love.  Not insipid love.  Not Hallmark love.  Gritty love.  Messy love. Muddy love.A month later, I'm in the classroom.  I don't know what I'm doing.  I have plans.  I have knowledge.  I have six years of teaching experience.  I have a resume that looks impressive.  But the present reality is mired in paradox.  It's messy.  It's confusing.  I meander between too strict and too lenient, too much freedom and too much safety.  I'm not a pundit.  I'm not an expert.  But I have a hunch that if there is a "right way" for my students, it's the path of love.  Real love. Messy love.*     *      *A twenty-first century education needs to be innovative while listening to the vintage voices of the past.  It needs to include creativity while still providing a framework for some common skills.  It needs to respect the balance of freedom and safety.  It needs to understand the complicated and complex human condition.  It needs to be a place that respects the local community while still engaging the larger world. Those are huge challenges with complex ideas.  I don't pretend to speak for anyone beyond myself and my own classroom.  However, if I can approach my classroom with humility, motivated by love for my students, I think I'll be on the right path.

Today's question: How many sheets of paper do you actually use for instructional purposes over the course of the average school day?Comment away... interested to see some numbers.

By David Andrade, http://tinyurl.com/edtechguy Parental and family involvement in school is a major factor in student success. Parents need to be involved in their children's education. They should be up-to-date on news at the school, what their child is doing in school, and how their child is doing in school. They should be talking about school with their children, helping them with their school and homework, encouraging their children to do their best in school, showing their children how important school is to their future, and creating a nurturing, supportive environment at home. Schools need to reach out to parents and get them involved in the school. Schools should also help parents with helping their children succeed. Parents and families can help increase student learning by creating a rich environment for learning at home. Schools can help parents and families do this.  Parents should give students a quite place and time to study, encourage the students to read (just for fun too), monitor their TV and internet use, talk to them about the world and their experiences, and take them to places to gain new experiences.In order for children to succeed in school, and life, they need to be in school, have a supportive home environment and not have to worry about other major issues in their lives. In order for children to have this kind of environment, the community and schools must help parents create a positive learning environment at home, become involved with their children's education, and help parents when there are other issues that are affecting the home, such as childcare and finances. Parents have many responsibilities and obstacles to getting involved in school. Many work multiple jobs or work evenings or nights, preventing them from being able to attend meetings, conferences, and spend time with their children. Many have day care issues that make it hard for them to get away from home. Many also have language barriers or feel like they can’t help their children with school. Some contact teachers at off times via email, take time off from work, bring their younger children with them to meetings, and some use their children as interpreters. Some don’t over come these barriers and are not involved in their child’s education. Schools need to come up with ideas and ways to help parents overcome these obstacles. Schools can work to provide day care to help parents come to evening events. Provide parent classes on how to help their child with school. Provide resources, social events, and make parents feel welcome in the school. Provide workshops for parents. Help them help their children.Technology can help with parental involvement. Email groups, voice messages, web sites, blogs and more can all be used to communicate with parents. Student information systems that parents can access to see their child's attendance, grades, missing assignments. A Parent Personal Learning Network can share resources with parents and connect them to other parents who can help them. School websites can have information, resources, and links for parents. We need to work together with parents, and the community, to increase student achievement and help all students succeed. Everyone, schools, parents, community, are responsible for educating our children. 

Following a link posted by @andyjb, I found myself looking at http://quietube.com/ today and it got me thinking...Is this a great idea that will help allay the fears of admins and parents and help bring YouTube content into filtered classrooms, or does Quietube actually turn YouTube into a virtual DVD player -- thus negating all of the social media content that makes YouTube so rich (even if at times risky) to begin with?What's more important in the YouTube debate: bringing video into our classrooms or teaching students how to engage with dynamic and live social media spaces?

Today's required reading:Does using Twitter make teachers smarter? by Dean Groom.

by John T. SpencerMy students gather in a circle for article reviews. Each pair offers a short summary of the current event followed by a few discussion questions. On this particular day, we meander between talks of democracy, education, death and human suffering. The points students bring up are thought-provoking. However, I'm most impressed by the questions they ask one another. They clarify and ask follow-up questions. They make inferences. They ask connecting questions and critical thinking questions. It's a messy process, but it's beautiful messy. It's art. However, the deeper questions didn't happen in a vacuum. Students have spent hours learning the art of questioning. Here are ten things I've done in class to encourage students to ask better questions:Question Everything: It's become a mantra in our class and it extends all the way to me. As long as a question is respectful, I want students to question their world. This applies to analyzing mathematical processes, thinking through social issues, making sense out of a text or analyzing the natural world for cause and effect. Pretty much every lesson we do includes students asking questions to me, to one another or to themselves - and the boldest of students will ask questions of the world.Reading: I require students to ask questions before, during and after reading. At first, the questions are basic. "What's this story going to be about?" or "Why is that character acting like that?" Over time, however, students think deeper about the text and start asking some profound questions. For example, yesterday a student asked a question about Flowers for Algernon: The main character seems to be happy but ignorant that people make fun of him. Is it better to be ignorant and happy or to know the truth, even when it will crush you?Inquiry Days: Three times a week, we do inquiry days, where students begin with their own question in either social studies or science and they research it, summarize it and then ask further questions. While my initial goal involved teaching bias, loaded language and summarization, I soon realized that students were growing the most in their ability to ask critical thinking questions.Feedback on questions: I highlight their questions in Google Docs and leave comments on their blogs with very specific feedback. It might sound harsh, but I will tell a student, "This question is shallow. You're a deeper thinker. Try asking a question that forces someone to question what they already believe" or "This question is deep, but it's worded in a way that elicits a short answer response. Can you change it so that you draw a longer response?"Model It: In the first week of school, I model the types of questions that require deeper thinking. This happens during read alouds, but also during class discussions. Sometimes I'll ask a really lame question and then say, "Someone tell my why that question sucked?" or I'll ask a deeper question and say, "Why was that a hard question to answer?" The goal is to get them to see deeper questions and to also think about why a question is deep or shallow.Practice It: We do mock interviews, fake press conferences and rotating discussion zones in the first week of school. Instead of spending time on ice breakers or excessive time on procedures, we spend time on learning to ask better questions.Scaffolding: Some students have a really hard time with questioning strategies. So, initially I give sentence stems. At first this was really hard for me. I thought that students would naturally ask questions and grow through accessing prior knowledge. I quickly realized that language acquisition had often been a barrier in asking better questions. So, sentence stems and sample questions became a way that ELL students could modify questions and access the language.Types of Questions: I teach students about inquiry, clarifying, critical thinking and inference questioning. Often the process is messy and there are moments of overlap, but it helps students when they can think, "What needs to be clarified?" or "How does this relate to life?" and from there they can develop better questions.Multiple Grouping Formats: Students sometimes ask me questions. Other times they ask partners or small group questions. Still other times they ask the questions to the whole class. Thus when they do an article summary, they start with individual questions but eventually move into leading a whole-class discussion.Technology: E-mail, Google Docs, instant message, Twitter and blog comments have all become asynchronous formats for asking and answering questions. Technology allows students to take their time in crafting a question while having access to the questions of their peers.John T. Spencer is a teacher in Phoenix, AZ who blogs at johntspencer.com.  He recently finished two books, Pencil Me In, an allegory for educational technology and Drawn Into Danger, a fictional memoir of a superhero. You can connect with him on Twitter @johntspencer

by Shelly Blake-PlockWandering around the cafe today during a lunch duty, I took mental notes on the tech usage by high school students.Counted a half-dozen kids on Skype; one of them was sharing photos from a school event. A handful of kids were listening to stuff on iPods; at least two students were downloading songs from sites I'm not familiar with -- one looked to be some sort of message board (isn't that so 90's?).One student was sitting at a table of gamers making a proxy to hack passed the school's firewall. About a half-dozen students were playing MMOGs. One student was playing a beta version of a first-person game called MineWars, or something of that sort.One student was using Google Translate to read a Chinese newspaper. One student was watching a YouTube video of a ballet recital, another was showing her friends videos of cheerleading practice. One student was busy on his iPhone and a few others were texting.Two students were on Facebook (despite the fact it's, um, "blocked"). And three students were on Twitter -- which is not blocked.No one seemed to be doing any software-based stuff; everything was online. Oh, and from what I could tell, about 90% of the kids were using Google Chrome.Talked to kids about IM'ing and everyone said they used Skype the most (as in, it was always on). Facebook came in second. No one -- as in not a single kid -- said they use Google Chat or Google Talk. They said passwords were a pain in the butt. And they don't like email.By and large, according to the students, Twitter was something you might use for class. Very "business-like". Though one student loves it to follow ESPN writers. In fact, ESPN was mentioned several times.One student was obsessed with Google News -- it's where he gets his news. Another uses four different gaming interfaces "daily". Just about every student said Facebook was the place to be outside of school (as though it were a "place" -- like the mall) -- and several mentioned that the thing they liked about FB was the "privacy". Huh.I think it's a good idea now and then to pay attention to what the kids are doing -- to see what's trending and to see what's not. More than anything, I'm interested in seeing what develops as the "normal", the "standard", and the "go-to". Because the tools we use tell volumes about our needs and desires.

by John T. SpencerI recently wrote a post about the ridiculous nature of standardized testing. Somebody e-mailed me about why an authentic approach might work in some subjects, but not in a subject like math.  So, here are a few ideas of paperless math assessments. Math Blog: This serves two purposes.  First, it's a personal journal where students write reflections on mathematical processes, ask critical thinking questions or describe methods used to solve problems.  However, it also becomes the student portfolio, where they choose items that represent their best work, most challenging works, goals for improvement and areas of growth.  Finally, blogs become a place where students share their processes and have a chance to compare and contrast with one another.  It becomes a peer-led method of formative assessment. Concept Maps: I want to see how students connect concepts from various math standards, a concept map becomes a valuable tool.  I've watched students create their own color-coded and shape-based strategies to add layers of meaning to their mental process.  Debate / Discussion: I think it's sad that teachers tend to restrict debates and discussions to social studies or language arts.  I want to see students engaged in critical thinking discourse regarding the best ways to solve problems or present data.  Sometimes this looks like a half-circle discussion of graphing methods.  Other times I have  students move to places in the room that represent various strategies (where they then discuss the strategy).  The goal here is to assess student thinking process in a way that is verbal and interactive.Projects: Here students have a chance to go in-depth into the math using multimedia methods.  In the case of the budget process, it involved using spreadsheets, shared documents and adding a video or podcast component.  In the case of the eco-friendly houses, it involved hands-on construction models after using Google Sketch-up and doing online research.  A project can be formative, in terms of helping students find applications to what they are learning; but they are also summative, in terms of developing a final product that proves mastery of math skills.  Mental Math: When people hear "paperless," they often assume it means technology.  However, we do mental math each day as a chance to assess each students' mathematical process. Students share their processes with one another on simple scenarios like finding the tip at a restaurant or judging how long a road trip will take. Multimedia Instructions / Tutorials: Here I start with a sample problem that contains multiple mistakes, though sometimes I start with a class brainstorm of potential mistakes.  From there, students create videos, podcasts or functional text descriptions on how to avoid the mistake and solve a problem correctly.  Scenario Response: Similar to Dan Meyer's "What can you do with it?" questions, the students have a multimedia clip and then develop their own problem based upon it.  The idea here is to assess inquiry and process.  So much of math revolves around, "Can I figure out what you don't know?" Here, I get to ask, "Can I figure out how much you actually know?" Students can use any tools they use to solve the problem, including manipulatives.Forms: Sometimes I want a quick assessment of student answers.  I want to know how many solved a specific problem correctly and how each student explained the process.  For that reason, I will use a Google Form and then share the overall class data with students, so we can identify potential mistakes or misunderstandings. Self-Assessment of Skills: I start with a shared document with each skill, written as a student-friendly objective.  A Student will then modify his or her shared document as they learn new skills or concepts.  I have a space for teacher and student feedback, so it becomes a chance to combine objective scoring with customized feedback. Create a Problem: Here the students find a scenario and develop an authentic problem based upon it.  For example, one group used linear inequalities to demonstrate which local taxi services are ideal for specific tasks (going to the airport, going across town, going to the supermarket).  It was relevant to our urban environment and it began with a concept that intrigued them.  Other times, I will ask students to salvage a really bad example of pseudocontext and create an alternative that uses the same skills. Either way, this becomes a chance to assess if they understand the application of a math concept in an authentic context. 

by David Andrade, http://tinyurl.com/edtechguyI recently saw Ben Franklin’s daily schedule and planner on Larry Ferlazzo’s website (which is an awesome resource for educators). I was a long time user of Franklin Quest (now Franklin Covey) paper planners and used their planning software and methods on my first PDA and had heard that they had gotten some of their ideas for planning from Ben Franklin, but had never seen Ben’s planner. It was very cool seeing it. Ben Franklin was a prolific inventor and scientist and believed in being organized and on task. Many of his quotes and ideas are still in use today. If you look at Ben’s schedule, you’ll see that he has two questions he asks himself and then some things he does every day. He asks himself "What good shall I do this day?" and then "What good have I done today?". These are great questions to ask oneself when planning your day and then reflecting on your day, especially as an educator. Review your lesson plans for the day and get prepared. At the end of the day, review how the lessons went. Was there anything that should be changed or addressed next time? I also like how he has standard things he does everyday, like "taking the resolution of the day" and "prosecute the present study". I take these as looking at what my goals are for the day and getting ready to do them. At the end of the day, he puts things away, relaxes, and reflects on his day. This is something we all should do every day. Get up and get ready for the day. Think about what are tasks and goals are for the day, prepare ourselves for these goals, and then go and attain them. At the end of the day, we need to make sure everything is in it’s place, relax and reflect on the day. Putting everything away each night (or at end of school day) helps us to stay organized and on task. We need to relax and refresh our brain with music, entertainment and conversation. And then we need to reflect on our day. How did it go? Did I accomplish everything I wanted to? Is there anything I should change or do better?Today’s apps allow us to stay more organized - calendars, to-do lists, notes, and more. We can have these apps email or text us with reminders so we don’t forget. We carry our smartphones with us everywhere, so we always have access to our data and apps. Heck, there are even apps that can use the GPS chip in your phone to remind you of a task or appointment if you go anywhere near that location (including your shopping list). There are hundreds of paper planners, software and apps, and systems out there to help you get organized and plan your day. But, you are the main ingredient in the planning and execution of your plan. Here are some tips and resources for planning and organizing your day:Basic ideas from Franklin Quest:1. Connect to Mission - what is your mission today, this week, in life?2. Review roles - teacher, spouse, parent3. Identify goals - daily, weekly, monthly, year4. Organize weekly - and plan daily5. Exercise integrity - integrity and values matter6. Evaluate - your tasks, goals, values, and progressUse some kind of planner - purchased or made yourself, paper or electronic, to keep organized and on schedule. Have a daily task list, prioritized. Work on high priority 1st.Have a daily, weekly, and monthly schedule with appointments and obligations.Keep a daily record of events - commitments exchanged, journal entry, thoughts and ideas, agendas, conversations, notes, tasks, etc. Related Articles and Resources:Getting Students and Teachers Organized - tips and resources Great tips, ideas, resources, links (including to paper and electronic planners)Evernote - get organized - free and on all platforms iGoogle as a educational/organizational tool - revisitedThoughtboxes - organize everything you do - great resource for education Wunderlist - free and easy to use task manager Toodledo - An easy to use, free, powerful, online to-do list.

"Educators should..."Let's do a little out-of-compartment brainstorming together. Follow this link to the "Say It Here" GDoc and share thoughts, ideas, pics, snippets, free associations, and philosophical brain tweaks. No rules, just ideas.

by Shelly Blake-PlockWe don't need more "professional" development. We need social development. Or at least we need to recognize it and recognize that the ultimate outcomes we often desire from the best of professional development are actually an outcome of social development. We need a development of human capacity, not an adherence to the rules of our established profession. We need to build our relationships for the purpose of furthering our humanity, not furthering our careers.And we know this instinctually. We know that Rosetta Stone can teach a foreign language as well if not better than a foreign language teacher, no matter how much "professional development" a teacher has; and yet through real relationships and social competence, that foreign language teacher can foster a love of language that trumps the didactic prowess of the program.We know that the best thinkers will end up skipping over much of what we put in front of them to pursue their own interests despite whatever "professional development" we have; and we can either nail 'em for failing to read whatever arbitrary 19th century novel we put in front of them or we can celebrate their independence and the bloom of autodidactism that we have often recognized in ourselves -- not because an expert told us it was there, but because we've had our eyes open for a long time... that's part of the reason we are teachers to begin with, after all.We know that our ability to follow the procedure of a learning strategy will never trump our ability to look into the eyes of a student and say, "trust me".We are teachers and we are in the business of relationships, motivation, and the facilitation of dreams.And so we develop ourselves. On blogs. On Twitter. Throughout the PLN. We have used the opportunity of the tools at our disposal to engage in an older and vastly more satisfying form of professional development than the mandatory in-service. We've developed a relationship with development. We are engaging with our growth and our communal experience in an open, social, and mutually beneficial way.We are all teachers teaching teachers. We are all responsible for each other's development. We are responsible for our profession, yes; but more importantly, we are responsible for our kids' futures. And the future isn't built on "a way" of doing something. It's built on finding a way -- and the emphasis is on the finding.And for all of our theories, all of our curriculum design, all of our talk of standards and guidelines -- nothing trumps the fact that the world is not a well-oiled machine.There is no such thing as perfect grammar. There is no such thing as a right answer.There are only relationships between things.The world is not professional. The world -- at least our communal experience of it and of one another -- is social. So let's keep up this conversation. Let's help one another out. And let's keep our eye on the meandering path of the ever changing social development of that thing we call education and those we call educators.

by John T. SpencerIn the name of "digital citizenship," students are encouraged to engage in social networking and develop an online personna that will serve them well in life. "Keep your comments nice," we warn them. "Make sure to avoid profanity in your blog.  An employer might see it someday." "Hey kid, you might want to be careful about getting shit-faced drunk and posting the picture to Facebook. That vapor trail lasts forever." I get it.  We want students to behave appropriately.  We want to see acceptable use.  We don't want a juvenile mistake to screw a kid up for a lifetime. And yet . . .Sometimes I wonder if we're encouraging students to self-market rather than engage in meaningful interaction.  Sometimes it seems that students are encouraged to post only their best work, ask only the best questions, avoid anything remotely offensive on their Twitter and keep their Facebook squeeky clean. We're asking them to hide. We're asking them to create a brand of themselves that will then be used to self-market for the rest of their lives.  For all the talk of meaningful learning and authenticity, the system often reminds students that social media is a megaphone and therefore, we'd be best to avoid being insensitive or offensive. I ask students to watch what they post online.  Filter it through the lens of "anybody can see this."  I ask students to develop portfolios and post their best work.  I hammer the concept of digital citizenship.  Sometimes, though, I wonder if it's all in preparation for building a brand, finding a niche and the perpetual self-marketing that plagues the adult world.I get it.  I don't want students to be lost in the future.  I don't want them to pay permanently for a mistake made in the eighth grade.  And yet . . . Adolescents need to experiment socially.  Ever worked with teenagers?  Their ups are way up and their downs are way down and they can be brutally honest in a way that adults often curb.  They are figuring out relationships.  They are engaged in friendships with training wheels. Asking students to "be nice" might be great in managing liability, but it fails to reach them at their level and ultimately it fails in the purpose of education.  If I want students to become honest, ethical critical thinkers, I'm not sure the model needs to be Mr. Rogers.I want students to be themselves, unfettered and unbranded.