Posts Tagged ‘change’

Blips not to overlook

January 31st, 2013 by Butch Owens

Radar screenAs we venture forth into 2013, I thought it might be a good time to take a look at some items that should be on every administrator’s radar.  We all need to be developing a plan on how we will incorporate each into our schools.

Learning Management Systems

A learning management system (LMS) is a software application or Web-based technology used to plan, implement, and assess a specific learning process. Typically, a learning management system provides an instructor with a way to create and deliver content, monitor student participation, and assess student performance. A learning management system may also provide students with the ability to use interactive features such as threaded discussions, video conferencing, and discussion forums.  Read more.

Flipped Classrooms

Flip teaching (or flipped classroom) is a form of blended learning which encompasses any use of technology to leverage the learning in a classroom, so a teacher can spend more time interacting with students instead of lecturing. This is most commonly being done using teacher-created videos that students view outside of class time. It is also known as backwards classroom, reverse instruction, flipping the classroom, and reverse teaching.  Read more.

BYOD

Bring your own device (also referred to as Bring your own technology (BYOT), Bring your own phone (BYOP), and Bring your own PC (BYOPC)) is a term that is frequently used to describe the policy of permitting employees to bring personally owned mobile devices (laptops, tablets, and smart phones) to their place of work and use those devices to access privileged company information and applications.[1] The term is also used to describe the same practice applied to students using personally owned devices in education settings.  Read more.

MOOC

A massive open online course (MOOC) is a type of online course aimed at large-scale participation and open access via the web. MOOCs are a recent development in the area of distance education and a progression of the kind of open education ideals suggested by open educational resources. Examples include Khan Academy and free offerings from Stanford and MIT.  Read more.

Google Docs

Google Docs is a free web-based office suite offered by Google within its Google Drive service. It also was a storage service but has since been replaced by the before-mentioned Google Drive. It allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating in real-time with other users. Google Docs combines the features of Writely and Spreadsheets with a presentation program incorporating technology designed by Tonic Systems.  Learn more.

California Student Bill of Rights Initiative

The California Student Bill of Rights Initiative did not make the ballot last November, but had it qualified for the ballot and been approved by the state’s voters, it would have:

  • Authorized school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to claim average daily attendance funding for student participation in approved online courses.
  • Authorized school districts to contract with public and private providers to deliver online courses taught by credentialed teachers.
  • Allowed students to take online courses offered by any school district, regardless of student’s residence.
  • Provided students access to courses required for admission to state universities.
  • Established the “California Diploma”, which would have demonstrated completion of courses required for University of California and California State University admission.

If students need flexibility in their schedule or a teacher in another district has a great online course, students will definitely seek out that option if available—and the ADA would follow the student for that course. Students will no longer be held hostage to what their local district, school or individual teacher of a course is offering.

Huffington article on California online bill of rights

Click image above to read this Huffington post article.

Personal Learning Networks

A personal learning network (PLN) is an informal learning network that consists of the people a learner interacts with and derives knowledge from in a personal learning environment. In a PLN, a person makes a connection with another person with the specific intent that some type of learning will occur because of that connection.  Read more.

Sir Ken Robinson: Changing Educational Paradigms

This is a great 11 minute video by Sir Ken Robinson to open up the dialog about the need to change and adapt our schools to meet the needs of students today and into the future. Pay particular attention to the section on divergent thinking. As Sir Ken points out this is one of the most important traits students will need to be successful in our changing world.  Learn more.

A Question

Let me finish by posing a question. If students truly have a choice about what courses they take and where they take them, will they choose to stay enrolled in a course that is textbook-driven and without access to technology or any expectation to use technology to produce evidence of their learning? Or would they choose a hybrid or blended course with online,24/7, access to highly interactive threaded discussions, media rich resources, and the ability to schedule the class around other commitments and activities?

Take for example this brief blog post.  It starts with a brief description and includes links to other resources for those looking to explore a topic in depth.  Compare this to a one page article with definitions of each trend. Which would provide a better understanding of the topic? Which would lead to a deeper understanding? Which is more engaging?

If you are looking to continue this conversation you should consider attending the Leadership 3.0 Symposium sponsored by TICAL, ACSA and CUE.  It takes place April 11–13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency, Irvine, California.  Learn more.

 

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Posted in Leadership, Pondering, Technology Planning | 3 Comments »

What Technology Do Students Want?

May 2nd, 2011 by Sandra Miller

Boy with smart phoneResults from the latest Project Tomorrow Speak Up Survey suggest today’s  students are looking at a different paradigm in their learning experiences.

Students today are inseparable from their mobile technologies; instant messaging and texting is a way of life.  And they want to use their technology at school.

It’s tempting to dismiss that idea out of hand, but actually,  I’m impressed with the answers kids give when asked, “How would you use your mobile technologies for help with your school work?”  Older students—those in 9th–12th grades— would use them in ways we would describe as traditional.

  • 74% would check grades.
  • 59% would take notes in class.
  • 50% would use the calendar.
  • 44% would access online textbooks.

Younger students—those in 6th–8th grades—want to leverage emerging technologies in different ways to help with their schoolwork.

  • 68% would do Internet research, anytime, anywhere.
  • 53% would collaborate with peers and teachers.
  • 37% would create and share documents.
  • 35% would record lectures/labs to review again later.

While their teachers may cite lack of preparation, antiquated equipment or slow networks as impeding the use of technology in the classroom, 53%t of middle and high school students say the largest obstacle they face in using technology in their school today is their inability to use their own devices!

While many teachers and administrators have begun to approach new ways of using technology in classrooms, this latest Speak Up research says there is more than a gap between what many schools offer and students want—there’s a chasm!  When administrators were asked, “How likely are you to let students use their cell phones?” only 22% said likely; 63% said NOT likely.

By contrast, 67% of parents said they would buy a cell phone for their student to use at school, and 54% would also buy a data plan to support their student’s work.  And we’re not talking only affluent parents.  The Speak Up Survey results did not find significant differences among parents responses for any of the demographics that were tracked.

In fact, parents’ pressure on schools may just be the next trend in moving technology forward in our schools.  Today’s parents use technology daily in their work as well as in their social lives.  The Speak Up survey showed 57% of parents today consider instructional technology to be “extremely important” for their child’s success.  Only 37% of teachers see technology as that important.  Indeed, for leaders wanting to integrate technology in their schools, this is a challenge!

Students definitely have a clear vision of the potential of mobile learning to enable, engage, and empower them as 21st century learners.  Their parents see technology’s value.  As educational leaders we must spread this vision to our teachers and help them acquire the skills and technology needed to teach in more meaningful ways that match the tech-intensive lives of today’s students.

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Posted in Leadership, Pondering | No Comments »

Redesigning How the Job Gets Done

November 8th, 2010 by Gabe Soumakian

It’s hitting us all like a ton of bricks.  Our state is in a financial mess.  The 2010 Budget is put together with smoke and mirrors.  The technology in our districts is aging yet no funds are in sight for replacement. NCLB accountability is getting more challenging as the required proficiency levels increase.  Predictions indicate a staggering number of superintendents and principals will retire in 2011.  We have already eliminated as many positions as we can.  Those of us who remain must adapt to the new normal and, at the same time, somehow promote a culture of innovation that will help us survive with limited resources.

Clearly, we can’t continue to do our work the same way we we’ve done it in the past.  We need some new ideas!  Here are some concepts I’ve come across that hold a lot of promise as we struggle to redesign the future of work, work processes, and learn to manage our resources differently through the greatest era of change in our lifetime.

  • Content, Process, and Relationship.  Content is what you want to achieve.  Process is how and why you do the work or achieve your goal. Relationship is about the networking and the people skills for getting the work done.  Most people usually know the what, but struggle with the how and why.  Success depends on getting all three right.
  • Adaptive Leadership.  Clearly defined problems with known solutions can be tackled through the current structures and systems in an organization.  However when challenges arise that require a new mindset and new ways of thinking and working, an organization needs adaptive leadership that mobilizes people and units that frequently have different needs, priorities and perspectives toward new ways of working and ways of thinking.
  • Culture of Change and Innovation.  No lesser an institution than the U.S. Army is talking “adapt or die.”  We will do well to consider these very intense but great lessons regarding process versus product: “Process is important, but excessive focus on process versus product significantly impedes innovation.”
  • Student-Centric Education.  Clay Christensen, in his book Disrupting Class, challenges our thinking for how technology, learning, and assessment will change how schools are organized and how student-centric education will be the future.
  • Twenty Percent Time.   Google allows its employee to use one day a week to innovate and create their own projects or applications related to Google’s overall mission.  Many of Google’s new products have come from employees experimenting during this twenty percent time.  What if we were to allow our students and teachers to use one day a week to be innovative and creative within the desired curriculum.  What would learning in a classroom look like?
  • Creativity is Extraordinary.  Dewitt Jones defines creativity as “the ability to look at the ordinary and see the extraordinary.”  Finding the first right answer is just doing your job; looking for the extraordinary redefines your purpose and mission through creativity.
  • Knowledge Sharing, Social Networking and Collaboration.  The maxim, “To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research,” has been attributed to Wilson Mizner.  You can’t be an expert on everything,  so set up a network to share and exchange ideas.  Post a problem and you’ll be surprised how quickly your colleagues provide ideas and solutions.  ACSA Region XV Human Resources Council uses AirSet for collaboration. Admin 2.0 is designed by TICAL especially for administrators.   Social bookmarking sites such as Diigo and Delicious are also great tools for sharing and for researching topics previously reviewed using specific research terms.
  • Cloud Computing.  Get away from your hard drive and desktop and venture into mobile computing by living in the clouds.  Cloud computing allows you to access your files, process data, and use applications from anywhere, anytime, anyplace.  This will be the next generation of instructional technology that will be driven by its cost effectiveness and minimal IT support.
  • Print on Demand.   Are you still printing a stack of documents and keeping them in a file? Print on demand allows you to lower your cost by printing what you need when you need it.  By the way, do you really need to print it?  Save or scan your documents as pdf’s, then bookmark them in a web folder for access anywhere by anyone to whom you give permission.

Now’s your chance!  What would you add to the list?  We all learn from each other, so we want to hear your ideas and solutions.

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Posted in Leadership, Productivity | 2 Comments »

Change—it’s more than a wordle

July 23rd, 2009 by Michael Simkins

Building 21st century schools takes leaders who know how to initiate and sustain change.   No easy task!

Initiating and sustaining change is the final topic we address in the School Leader Development workshop.  After reviewing some key resources on change management, the participants work in small groups to identify what they believe are the Big Ideas when it comes to leading a change process.   They write each Big Idea on a slip of paper.  I collect the slips, and then the fun begins.  It’s time for charades!

Eyes roll.  Grumbling erupts.  Passionate protestations ensue.  But I am unrelenting.   We will do this.  We review the basic rules of charades, including the common gestures used in the game.  Then each person, in turn, pulls a slip from the box and acts out a Big Leadership Idea until the rest of us figure it out.

There are two reasons I use this particular activity.  First, it tends to put the participants out of their comfort zones, which is exactly what they’ll be asking of their staffs.  And second, we have a lot of fun; see for yourself!

Below is the list of Big Ideas generated by the superintendents, principals, and other school leaders who attended our most recent workshop.  Click here to see a wordle created from this list.

Monitor, Assess And Adjust
Create Strategic Plan
Cast A Vision
Communication, Voice
Commitment To Change
Sustain Change
Share Vision
Collaboration, Deep Discussion, Task Cycle
Sustain Change, Inquiry Cycle, Internalize
Shared Vision
Relationships
Commitment
Model Process, Acquire Skills Yourself
Discussion And Input
Broad-Based Buy-In
Develop Expert Teams
Group Buy-In
Identify Needs
Teacher Buy-In

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Posted in Leadership | 1 Comment »

Mr. Technologizer Goes to Washington

January 9th, 2009 by Lisa Marie Gonzales
Photo by abbyladybug at Flickr. Used by permission.

Photo by abbyladybug at Flickr. Used by permission.

We love to give political leaders nicknames.  Here in California we have the Governator.   Soon to arrive in Washington is the Technologizer.  I’m sure when Barack Obama ran for President, he anticipated some nicknames, but likely not this one.

I am excited that we will welcome into the White House a real technology-savvy leader! And from one BlackBerry user to another,  I’m thrilled that he has one, uses it, and actually ran a Presidential campaign with it.  My elation has less to do with the product than with the technology itself.  Connectivity of this sort is really linked to change.  Not only does the nation as a whole need to embrace change, each of us does as well.   Maybe our President-Elect’s leadership will be the impetus to get others to be more connected.  (Perhaps he’ll even become the first president to serve as a celebrity spokesperson.  He could make commercials for the “BlackBerry® solution” and donate the proceeds to public education!  Oops, sorry.  I digress.)

As I tout the need to embrace change, I do have a confession to make.  Until two years ago, I had no idea what in the world a wiki or a podcast was.  There are many other programs, gadgets, gizmos, and platforms about which I am equally clueless.   As a Gen-Xer, it’s hard to admit this.  Many people seem to assume that by birthright, I know and can explain it all.  While I have my trusted TICAL cadre members around to assist when I can’t access our latest online collaboration tool, I wonder what others do when they get stuck with technology?  After all, I’ve yet to hear someone at a dinner party proclaim, “What the heck is a wiki?”

When I began to plan an ACSA retreat this summer, I requested members provide suggested topics for professional development.  Many responded with “technology.”  They had the same admission that I did: so much is changing and at such rapid speed that its hard to keep up with it all.  Where do you start?  I was so thankful to get these suggestions, particularly from other Gen-Xers who I would have thought knew it all.

It helps to know that we have high level leaders in the country who “get it” because I think there will be hope for those of us who are expected to know it but just don’t.  Obama’s campaign carried a message of  “Yes We Can.”  Here’s hoping he can also proclaim, “Yes I Can” and continue using his BlackBerry or any new other gadget that may come along during his years in the White House.   It certainly would make those dinner party conversations much more lively.

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Posted in Leadership | 3 Comments »