Chapter 6: Leadership and New Tools

            This chapter begins by listing six qualities that individuals must have in order for a school district to achieve success on the 21^st Century.  They are:

·         Individual excellence

·         Organizational skills

·         Courage

·         Results (goal-oriented)

·         Strategic skills

·         Operating skills

I thought the twelve reasons for an Administrator to Blog were very interesting:

·         Sharing news and events:  Large amounts of people can quickly and easily view upcoming events, awards, or schedules.

·         Progress monitoring:  Ability to show the progress of projects that are going on at the school.

·        Status alerts:  People can be notified quickly of last- minute cancellations of events.

·         Marketing:  Allows schools to save paper in order to distribute newsletters or other important information.

·         Public relations:  Administrators are able to post their own versions of stories and allows others to post their feedback.

·         Community building:  It allows the school organization to feel more like a community since everybody has the same access to information.

·         Customer relations:  The public feels as though they are more involved with the school if the principal publishes events and alerts as well.

·         Branding:  This is good for parents who are looking to enter a new school district, and want to find a “good one”.  By having an online blog, it can make parents feel comfortable that information is easily available and update accurately.

·         Creating ‘customer evangelists’:  It allows people who really care about the school to promote and encourage parents of future students to attend.

·         Thought leadership:  The ability for schools to put out on the web new thoughts or ideas about possible changes in the school and allow feedback from the community.

·         Advocacy:  Schools can inform the community about upcoming legislations that may affect the school system so they can become aware and voice their opinion.

·         Replacing the school Web site:  Some schools have used blogs as a key feature to their website because it allows others to communicate and leave feedback.

More schools are turning to free web-based tools, such as Blackboard and Moodle, in order to allow their students to complete assignments and see their grades on line from anywhere and at anytime.  Although the information is free, administrators also need to keep in mind that the upgrades, maintenance, support, and hardware are not free, and can sometimes become expensive.

It is important to look at the cost and benefits of using open-source software for schools.  There are five steps in determining the value of the investment:

·         Estimate costs:  initial and ongoing costs

·         Assess risk:  the probability of success of the project

·         Calculate anticipated savings and revenues: out-of-pocket costs, better efficiencies, user productivity, or future cost avoidance

·         Measure qualitative benefits:  besides money, how could the school and community benefit from the project such as obtaining a goal or mission

·         Evaluate results:  review the anticipated costs, savings, and benefits versus the actual costs, savings, and benefits

“Students and staff have access to Web-based applications and information, and users can control almost everything – the content they read, the ideas they espouse, and the presentations they create.  Today’s users control the tools of production and can reach the world with their ideas.” (pg. 135)

NETS • A Standard

      4.      Support, Management, and Operations – Educational leaders ensure the integration of technology to support productive systems for learning and administration.  I think this standard applies to the chapter because it describes how educational leaders should develop, implement, and monitor policies and guidelines to ensure compatibility of technologies as well as implementing and using integrated technology-based management and operations systems.  It also relates to the chapter because this standard talks about allocating financial and human resources to ensure complete and sustained implementation of the technology plan, integrating strategic plans and other improvement plans and policies to align efforts and leverage resources, and finally to implement procedures to drive continuous improvements of technology systems and to support technology-replacement cycles.

Citations:

Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0, new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: Intl Society for Technology in educ.

Chapter 5: Professional Development

Seven major steps and recommendations for implementing technology in our schools:

      ·         Strengthen leadership
      ·         Consider innovative budgeting
      ·         Improve teacher training
      ·         Support e-learning and virtual schools
      ·         Encourage broadband access
      ·         Move toward digital content
      ·         Integrate data systems
                       (U.S. Department of Education, 2004, n.p.)

Five-step evaluation program:

·         Participants’ reactions – evaluation at this level identifies the appropriateness of a program’s content, process, and context.  Was the content appropriate?  Was the presenter knowledgeable?

·         Participants’ learning – What are the participants’ beliefs toward the professional development topic, and has the event changed those attitudes and beliefs?

·         Organizational support and change – Does the organization have the tools, services, and policies in place to support the training experience once teachers return to the classroom?

·         Participants’ use of new knowledge – Did the participants implement what they learned?  Did it change classroom practice?

·         Student learning – Did the experiences improve student learning?  In most cases, that should be the most important question to ask.

Situated Cognition – defines learning as a process of participation in communities of practice.

Situated learning – where learning takes place in a specific context.

“Most learning occurs naturally through activities, contexts, and cultures, but schools too often abstract learning, ‘unsituate it’, and teach concepts removed from natural contexts and applications.”

pg. 103 (Lave, 1998)

Strategies to support virtual communities:

      ·         Establish regular times for team interaction

      ·         Send agendas to participants beforehand

      ·         Designate a team librarian

      ·         Build and maintain a team archive

      ·         Use visual forms of communication where possible

      ·         Set formal rules for communication and/or technology use

Virtual communities have the obstacle of needing to encourage participation.  In order to help encourage participation some tips include to create an environment of trust, eliminate confusion by making sure the participants understand how the community works, create productive dialogue ./ make learning interactive, have teachers share what they are doing on a regular basis, and give constructive feedback and support as a facilitator. 

Blogs – they can allow teachers to become comfortable with and understand the Web 2.0 tools and can be used to create their own professional and personal networks.

Podcasting – these can be used in order to have professional development training sessions, lectures, and ability to visually share ideas.

Wikis – allow members of a community to participate together in order to create a goal, plan, direct, or simply discuss the way a new activity is working.

NETS • T Standard

5.      Productivity and Professional Practice: I think this standard applies to the chapter because it allows teachers to use technology to enhance their productivity and professional practice.  It also relates to the chapter because this standard uses technology resources to engage in ongoing professional development and lifelong learning and continually evaluate and reflect on professional practice to make informed decisions regarding the use of technology in support of student learning.  This standard also describes applying technology to increase productivity and to use technology to communicate and collaborate with peers, parents, and the larger community in order to nurture student learning.

Citations:

Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0, new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: Intl Society for Technology in educ.

Chapter 4: New Tools in Schools

Cool Schools

            New technology is being tested at schools in order to create a learning environment, which is based on teamwork, communication skills, and critical thinking.  With this technology, students are able to receive real-time feedback.  Such a system contains, assessment rubrics, communication tools, curriculum, and live grade books.

Using the Tools for Learning

·         Writing Process (blogs): taking the place of a hand-written journal for classrooms

·         Collaborative Writing (wikis): students are able to work together on the web and teachers can track which students are participating

·         Student Feedback (podcasting): students are able to record their reactions and easily share them

·         Digital Storytelling (flickr): it combines photographs, music, and writing and allows students to create their own media story

·         Digital Diplomacy: allows students to easily share their digital stories with others including all over the world

Classroom Applications

·         English and Literature

            o   Teachers are beginning to use blogs in order for students to easily share their ideas with others

·         Media Literacy

             o   Teaching students to check the reliability of the web source they are getting their information from

·         Social Studies

             o   Students are able to record interviews with others about history and post them on podcasts

·         Journalism, Broadcasting, and Video Production

             o   Schools are now publishing their newspapers online as well as broadcasting them on the web

·         Math

             o   Teachers have begun posting questions online and allowing students to work together and learn from each other

·         Geography

             o   Students are able to look at a 3D map of the world and some cites allow students to add their own information to the map on what they are learning

·         English as a Second Language and English Language Learners

             o   Students are able to compile the information they have learned into one location and be able to easily look back at it

·         Science

             o   Students can create and watch videos of experiments and watch them and learn from them

There are so many tools used in today’s world that students and teachers can use in order to learn, teach and collaborate with others.  The applications that can be used for educational purposes are endless.

NETS • T Standard

3.      Teaching, Learning, and the Curriculum:  I think this standard applies to the chapter because it allows teachers to implement curriculum plans that include methods and strategies for applying technology to maximize student learning.  It also relates to the chapter because this standard facilitates technology-enhanced experiences that address content standards and student technology standards.  Teachers can also apply technology to develop students’ higher-order skills and creativity.

Source:

Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0, new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: Intl Society for Technology in educ.

Chapter 3: New Tools

Web 2.0 Meme Map

·         Strategic Positioning

             -          Using the web as a platform

·         User Positioning

             -          User controls their own data

·         Core Competencies

             -          Services that are not packaged software
             -          Architecture of participation
             -          Cost-effective scalability
             -          Mixable data source and data transformations
             -          Software above the level of a single device
             -          Harnessing collective intelligence

v  O’ Reilly Media Inc. 2005 (Solomon, 47)

AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) applications allow the web to load and refresh data quickly.  Another web tool includes open-source which is where the software allows users to edit, study, and enhance the source code for programs which allow the program to evolve. In order for users to be able to easily find search results, webpage creators create tags that are applied and related to the content.

Basic Web 2.0 Tools

·         Blogs – A web log created by a user in order to share their personal views and perspectives.

·         Podcasts – Allows users to distribute multimedia files quickly over the internet and to personal devices.

·         Wikis – A webpage which allows users to collaborate in writing, editing, and adding content.

·         Social bookmarking – A website which contains links to a users’ most visited sites.

·         Photo sharing – Users are able to post photos to the website so others can easily access and view them instead of through e-mail.

·         Photo editing – Allows users to use a website to edit and enhance their photos.

·         Video showcasing – Users are allowed to upload videos to the web for easy sharing with the public.

Web 2.0 tools are beginning to incorporate basic desktop tools which are available for free on the web.  These basic desktop tools include Microsoft Office which includes word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations.  Other helpful tools that are available on the Web include:

·         Electronic portfolios

·         Calendars

·         3D modeling

·         Social networking

·         Surveys and Polls

·         Drawing

·         Mashups

·         Instant Messaging

·         Internet Telephony

“Open source provides a rich and growing set of applications that
can be used as learning tools and other
software that is designed specifically for learning” (Solomon, 72).

Educational software is becoming more effective and planned into curriculums for schools.  Educational applications are available on the web and can be used on any operating system which makes it very accessible for students.  Students can learn very well from these tools and collaborate easily with other students.

NETS • T Standard

2.      Planning and Designing Learning Environments and Experiences:  I think this standard applies to the chapter because it allows teachers to plan and design effective learning environments and experiences supported by technology.  It also relates to the chapter because this standard allows teachers to design developmentally appropriate learning opportunities that apply technology-enhanced instructional strategies to support the diverse needs of learners.

Citations:
Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0, new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: Intl Society for Technology in educ.

Chapter 2: Students and Learning

“Students [are] digital natives, people who live in a world where technology is omnipresent.  Parents and teachers [are] digital immigrants, well-meaning adults who have to work at being comfortable with technology.” (Solomon, 26).

            Students in today’s world are affected by technology in their lives very much on how they live and communicate, and even when and how they learn.  All the technology helps students very much stay connected and ahead of the curve in learning the new technologies.  However, this can cause concerns for parents and being able to block certain cites.  It can also cause concerns for students with potential job opportunities based on what they might be posting.  Young people are involved in social networks on-line based on their certain likes.  This allows children to feel like they belong to a certain group, even if they are sitting alone at their house. 

 

“The kind of learning students do with these laptops will define how well they will perform the rest of their lives.  Thomas Friedman points out the importance of teaching greater collaboration skills, creating sustainable community of learning, cultivating the entrepreneurial spirit in all, and encouraging synthesis skills” (Solomon, 34).

Six Cognitive Processes of Learning

            1.      Remembering – retrieving, recognizing, recalling
            2.      Understanding – constructing meaning of messages
            3.      Applying – carrying out a procedure
            4.      Analyzing – breaking material into parts
            5.      Evaluating – making judgments
            6.      Creating   - putting elements together

The Knowledge Dimension
            1.      Factual knowledge – knowledge of terminology, details, and elements
            2.      Conceptual (declarative) knowledge – an understanding of the interrelationships among the basic elements
            3.      Procedural knowledge – an understanding of how to do something, methods, criteria
            4.      Meta-cognitive – knowledge of cognition and awareness and knowledge of own’s cognition

 (Solomon, 35).

 

            Constructivism is a learning process where the learner constructs new ideas which are based upon past or current knowledge.  Students build what they learn on the knowledge they already know and collaborate on problems in order to understand.  Project-based learning encourages students to learn through inquiry-based methods and emphasizes learning activities.  The current challenge is harnessing new technologies in the ever-changing world in order to keep students interested and learning.  Digital story telling could become a major factor because it allows students to write blogs, wikis, and podcasts in order to communicate with others.

NETS • S Standard

1.       Creativity and Innovation:  I think this standard applies to the chapter because it allows students to demonstrate creative thinking, construct, and develop innovative products and processes using technology.  It also relates to the chapter because this standard allows students to apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, and processes.       

Citations:
Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2007). Web 2.0, new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: Intl Society for Technology in educ.