I Always Had the Power

It has been a while since my last negative post. For me it was a dark moment in my personal and professional life. I was looking for external people and things to fix the problems, not realizing one simple idea: I Always Had the Power.

Not that this idea was some magic wand that made everything better, but I knew I would have to work at making life better. At school I concentrated on what I still loved, the students. That meant working with my classes on projects and sponsoring two clubs this year. On the other hand I cut out everything that was bringing me down. That included many meetings, avoiding negative conversations, and reducing my volunteer rate. Pulling back made me realize that I do great things without being so visible around the building. In the process, I believe the time is respected more by others.


Then there is the other side of my professional life, sharing with others. There is such a joy sharing what I know and what I do with educators. In the past couple of months I was fortunate to fly to California to share iPad lessons, develop a new webinar series for MSET, and present movie-making projects at our district's conference, Powering Up With Technology. What amazing opportunities to meet educators with the same passion for technology in education. Just in the past two days I have received so many kind comments, it is the fuel to stay on a positive track and do what I love.


While life is not perfect, it is improving. The fact that I used my power to make change, that is even better.

Make Time to Play!

There is not one educator that is "really good at tech stuff" that doesn't have multiple jobs and titles in their school. If you are shaking your head right now then you know that these extra duties can really wear you down at times. I will admit that sometimes they are so overwhelming that it distracts me from the part of my job that I love the most: creating with students.

Yesterday I got a rare opportunity: time to play. I was at a workshop with The Art/Tech Guy and other techies during a school day learning a new piece of software for our labs, Frames 4. I got a chance to work with clay and it brought back great memories of Play-doh. I did love those little, yellow tubs and the smell when you took off the lids.

There was laughter, creativity, and learning: who could ask for more? So if you haven't had to play in awhile, I highly recommend it! It was life reminding why I LOVE my job!

In case you were wondering, here was my finished product. There is a million mistakes and for one of the few times in my life, I don't care!

NECC Final Thoughts

I know this is a little late, but there are some reasons behind it. One, I needed time to clear my head after NECC. It was such a whirlwind that I felt like I had a NECC hangover where I knew I had a great time though the details were a little fuzzy. Two, I didn't feel like I had anything to say that wasn't already said better by other bloggers. Over the past days I have read some amazing reflections on the power of a PLN to experiences in the exhibit hall. Third, I couldn't quite put my finger on that one culminating idea that I took away from the conference. Then in the middle of a crowded Panera planning a technology PD day it hit me. NECC 2009 for me was all about the teacher.

NECC 2008 was my first time at the big show and everything I was exposed to was the possibilities of what students could do with access and the right tool. That conference along with the DEN National Institute was my driving force for the entire school year. I was absolutely amazed at the power of Web 2.o and how it gave my students a voice that most of us don't see in textbook assignments, homework, and tests. There was a new excitement in the computer lab and students wanted to produce the best work possible. For me it was a lot of work to keep up with them and to provide the tools they needed to fulfill their visions. It was a rough, but satisfying year as a teacher.

NECC 2009 seemed to be built on this idea that teachers need to take steps to reform, refine, and renew. Starting off with Gladwell's keynote address centered around Fleetwood Mac taking 16 albums to develop a sound and a band that was a success. The debate ending in the idea that students need a place to come together to learn, but that the current brick & mortar schools are going to have to change to meet students' needs. This push for teachers to develop a PLN to really learn from others and stretch their own possibilities. While Web 2.0 was still a big topic, the focus shifted to what types of materials could teachers create with the same tools. Other sessions showed the need to develop projects that were more challenging and that could be on a larger scale through collaboration with other classrooms, schools, or countries. Those teachers that couldn't find what they needed in the sessions took the time to find others to discuss their dilemmas and build solutions.

As I sat in that Panera cafe with my colleague planning out the day's activities, I realized how much NECC 2009 had an influence on me. Instead of jamming in as many tools as possible, the focus is about teachers having the time to play and build. I was able to step away from my methods of learning and really reflect on what my building needs to grow. My hope is that this PD opportunity will be a day that will lead teachers on a path to want to learn more. I am already at work to build a support system to where the teachers will not fill overwhelmed and give up. With any luck, this will bring about as much change to the teachers in this coming year as it did for students last year. Of course you will know the results right here.

Lastly, I wanted to say THANKS to those that made my NECC experience worthwhile. To my growing PLN, thanks for all of the ideas and getting me through the school year where sometimes it seems lonely when there is no one to collaborate with on technology use in the classroom. Thanks to Bernie Dodge for developing the place puzzle concept, my AHA moment of the conference. I will definitely be working on building one soon! Thanks to my district, there are some great people working behind the scenes that provide the access and freedom needed for teachers to grow. Thanks to those who developed Tweetdeck, because it allowed me to get a bigger view of the entire conference no matter where I was located. Final thanks goes to Twitter for not crashing like it did during NECC '08.

Go Ahead, Toot your own Horn!

It is kinda of weird, the more I achieve the less I like to talk about it. When I started teaching and my class did well on a quiz I would shout it from the rooftops, now I rarely share anything in real life. Maybe that is me being a little more mature, or me being a product of my environment. At my school the idea is that if no one gets credit then no one feels left out. Well that is how I see it, but my administration puts it in a way that sounds better. So when I got a phone call from a local newspaper wanting to interview me about getting technology grants for my classroom and the school I was less than thrilled.

The whole process was pure agony. From scheduling the actual interview to my district wanting to censor what I say to the reporter interviewing my eighth grade students. My stomach was in knots for days and was relieved beyond words when it was over.

Then the article came out. It wasn't bad. It was kinda of nice to see my class in the paper since most don't even know what happens in the computer lab. Then I realize that as teachers we should toot our own horn more often.

Even now many are glad to give up a part of their summer break to learn at NECC. We are willing to give up more time to anyone who shows an interest in technology. We are giving up own person time to write grants, set up a wiki, or research resources for others. We are reaching out to our social networks and our PLN because no one in our building "get it."

So take a minute and reflect on the all of the wonderful things you did this past school year. How many students and educators did you help? What were the best projects of the year? Now figure out a way to toot your own horn. Reward yourself with a new gadget, flowers, or even a wonderful ice cream sundae. You deserve it!

I <3 Grants!

Like most educators during this part of year there is a combination of the desire for the year to come to an end and reflection. This year I had to add an element to my end-of-the-year routine and that was finishing grant requirements. Even this post is me avoiding the four more lessons that I have to finish for my grant that got me a set of clickers. I was proud that I sent in my invoices and wrote my article for my MICCA grant that funded video cameras for my 8th graders to tryout the AFI curriculum. I am extremely grateful that the Best Buy grant has no additional required elements. 

While I realize that grants are a lot of work, I also realized that I love grants! Of course free money is a plus when a new era of spending freezes and budget cuts, but that is not the main reason why I love grants so much. Everytime I applied for a  new grant this year it caused to me evaluate the needs of my classroom and the school. The grant writing process forced me to develop innovative projects that would stand out in piles of other application. Most of all winning the grant has forced me to work on the project. I'll admit that I am one of those that come up with a million ideas, but only really work on a few. I learned so much by having to do my ideas and to make them work.

Well I couldn't stop with the end of the school year. Right now I am waiting out the last two days of voting on the We Are Teachers Summer Learning Microgrant. This has been a totally different experience because I had to enlist help from my PLN, students, colleagues, and anyone I could think of to get enough votes to stay in the top 10. The compeitive side of me wants to win just because, but more importantly I look forward to doing this project. I still have hope for my staff entering the 21st century and I keeping trying new things to bring them on board. If you get a chance check out the site please do so. Even if you vote for another project, you are supporting a great idea by a lot of great teachers.

When one Yes isn't enough

It worked! It worked quickly! It really put me in a state of shock. So what is the "it"? A couple of posts back I mentioned this session by Jason Levy that I saw on Ustream about how to change the Principal's "no" to a "yes" when it comes to technology and I finally put his ideas to the test. My thought was to start with a small idea just to see if it would work. The idea was to create a Twitter account for the school so administration could push out alerts, links, info, etc. My old strategy would have been to pop in my Principal's office (she has a great open door policy) and spout out my idea in a couple of minutes. In retrospect, this was a stupid strategy for a number of reasons and was the main reasons why so many ideas died. This time I would bite my impulsive tongue and develop a plan to get the "Yes" I was looking for.

To get the right answer, I had to make sure of a couple of things:

1. I had to make sure my Principal understood the concept of Twitter. 
2. I had to make sure she understood the educational value of Twitter. While I have been on it for awhile and understand this concept, this step was harder than I thought. Especially when you are battling the media and how they are portraying Twitter as a tool to say what is going in your personal like to a bunch of nobodies.
3. I needed to make this process as easy as possible on administration. That meant researching possible account names, how would they have access, and how all parents would have access to the information even if they aren't on Twitter.
4. All of this information needed to be in a format that was easy to follow.

Google Docs and the Common Craft Video series helped me a lot in this project! Even after I was done with the presentation, I resisted sending it off to administration and sent it to a tech-savvy colleague for feedback. This is a big step for me, but I as I have gotten older I understand the importance of peer editing/revision.  Not much to change, which was good but I still didn't share it with the administration. 

Why you ask? I wanted to wait until a Sunday to send. I know that on Sunday my Principal is less stressed, but is still connected to her email account. So I sent it and figured I might not hear back for a couple of days. I got an answer back in MINUTES! She was excited! She took the idea further by asking if this tool could be used with the staff.  It was amazing like a magic trick! 

I can't wait to use this method again! It is a method that really allows me to lead from below when it comes to technology. The whole experience made me appreciate what administrators deal with on a regular basis and the million decisions they have to make every school year.

Is there a downside? Unfortunately yes. When my prinicpal said yes, she also asked it was approved by the district. Twitter is not blocked, so I didn't think it would be an issue. I figured I would use my tech connections to get a quick okay, but it would not be quick. Turns out we are the first school in the district to make the request and that is a problem. A month later it is making it up the ladder to the superintendent for approval. No wonder schools are decades behind. I guess we all have to break down the barriers one "yes" at a time.

Becoming a 7th grader again

In my school, I teach technology integration to 6th,7th, and 8th graders. I lovingly call my seventh graders, "the pod students." See in sixth grade the kids are sweet, eager to learn, and down right scared about the middle school experience. Eighth graders are more mellow, some taller than me, and are looked up to as the cool kids of the building. Then there are the seventh graders with their constant mood swings, their intellect, and their stupidity. Follow one and you may see laughing, crying, fighting, and laughing again within an hour. Most of the time they don't know why they make the decisions they do and they lack long-term focus. Of course this is my own observations and has little to do with solid research.

So, you may wonder what is the point of all of this?

I feel like I am leading the life of a seventh grader these day when it comes to my career. There are these incredible lows where nothing seems to be going right and then the incredible highs where everything seems to be falling into place. The highs of last week were great with winning the Best Buy grant and getting all of my proposals accepted for the MICCA conference. I wasn't as happy as I thought I would be when my principal gave me kudos about the grant at the faculty meeting. At one point I was looking onward to another job, but am the happiest when I am teaching in my room. For awhile I decided not to push technology anymore in my school and now I am working on two projects. It seems like utter chaos right now which probably means I am growing up a little bit.

I don't know where this is headed, but my hope is that I will morph into a cool tech leader.

When One Quarter isn't Enough

As the computer teacher in my school I am part of the Creative Arts team. It is a great group of talented teachers who put up with not getting the same respect as the academic teams (I know this to be true since I was once on the other side). Some of my team gets to see their students all year long like Band or Chorus, but I am part of "the rotation." Every quarter I get a new set of students which is great and terrible all at the same time. Lately it has been more terrible than great...

1. There is not enough time! Since my team is on an A day/B day schedule, I only see each class 20 times. For those in the Web 2.0 universe, you understand my dilemma in deciding what projects to do in that short of time.

2. I never know what the students can do. I know students are capable of anything, but what the students come to me is extremely important for me to plan. I realized this last week when I had planned a project for the sixth grade and many had breakdowns. This actually required me to stop the lesson mid-class and move to another activity this group could handle.

3. Think about the beginning of the school year... What do you have to do to prepare students for learning in your classroom? Now take that experience and multiply it by four. As much as I try to streamline this new period every quarter I still have to take time to get the students on the right track. Just as I get them really ready to create...POOF!... they are on to Art class.

So now that I complained, what is the solution? If I plea for semester classes or even an elective full year course, less students will be able to take my class. I see less than 50% percent of the school now and that makes me sad because students get so little access to technology in other classes. I can't really look to the other instructors who teach this course because they follow the curriculum and don't have this same problem. Maybe the solution is simple, maybe I need to realize that can't do it all in 20 days. Maybe I don't need to think smaller, but bigger!

As I was writing this post, I saw my Plurk tab at the top of the screen. For many of us it has been a way to keep the learning going after f2f meetings, conferences, institutes, etc. I tried Edmodo.com with students last quarter, but it didn't catch on. I wonder if there is a way for me to build an online community for students to keep trying new technology even when the quarter ends? Could Ning be my solution? What do you think? What are you doing at your school to encourage the use of technology? I am making a plea to Eduverse for help so I can start building a solution. I can't think of a better group to ask.

What's in a name?

Juliet:

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)

I love Shakespeare because his writing has stood the test of time and there is always a quote that can relate to your life right at this moment. This particular quote has been roaming around my head since Friday since I had a sit down discussion with my principal. I guess I better start from the beginning.

This year our district started a new student system that integrated attendance, student information, and teacher grade books. It has been an interesting process in getting all of the teachers to use it correctly and on a regular basis. After the monthly Principal's meeting, there was a new report with a list of teachers that didn't use weighted averages in their grade book. My principal wanted this corrected right away so she put the IT guy and myself on the job. Of course it was handled in a couple hours, but it brought up the same raw feelings I have had for two years. While I handle a lot of tech issues and conduct in-service trainings, I am not the Tech Liaison for the building. The person that is essentially does nothing, but has the title and extra pay. So after the mini emergency was under control, I decided to finally ask, "Why not me?"

My principal was very gracious by admitting that she did depend on me more, but did give the position to another person. She said it was unfair and promised to correct the situation in the next school year. It made me feel better at the moment, because I had this resentment built up for so long. Now I just feel embarassed.

I got too wrapped up in having the stupid title. In every way that it matters I am the technology leader in the school. There are always email or phone requests and teachers will always stop me in the hallways for tech advise. All of the administrators depend on me to help them with their tech issues. I run the school's website and am the one to coordinate new technology initiatives. Why was this name so important? As many of us witness a title does not make a leader. I think that while I have evolved as a teacher, this moment was a step backwards.

As 2008 wraps up...

As a blogger I am ashamed that I haven't been posting in awhile, but I think many of us experience this as life gets busier. For me it was the new state technology measurement (this needs it's own post) and finishing another semester of graduate school. I really did miss blogging because of the reflection piece.

This month has been very busy for me on the technology end. I actually got invited to join a district group that is exploring different online conferencing tools. Being the only teacher is kind of making me nervous around the heads of testing, library services, and technology. They are great people, don't get me wrong, and I have known many of them before this but I want to show them my best. I used Google Docs to take notes which impressed the group and threw out some ideas that really started some good discussion on the potential of online meeting tools. The only bad part is that it has put my head in the clouds about future opportunities outside of the classroom. Since my district's budget is under severe strain, I going to re-focus my efforts on being a great teacher while still making the connections I need to for future opportunities.

Then I great early Christmas present, I won a MICCA grant! I get $600 for some pocket video cameras and memory cards. In return for the grant, I have to present in the poster sessions at the MICCA conference. Unlike other grants I got some extra bonuses, free MICCA membership and free registration to the MICCA conference. The MICCA membership is going to come in very handy when getting a room for NECC. Of course no one at school will care since I have gotten no response on winning the Turning Technologies Grant or on becoming a Google Certified Teacher, but I have gotten to the point that I don't really care. I have a freedom in my computer lab that most teachers have to fight for. I have decided in 2009 I am going to embrace being off the radar to expand the projects in my classes.

So what is next? Yesterday I spent some time on grantwrangler.com and found some good stuff. There are some great contests for my students to enter and I even set up a Google Calendar just to reflect all of the upcoming deadlines. As much as I enjoy the time in my PJs and the laptop, I am excited for school to start again.

Ten Tech Goals for the Year

I don't want to spend too much time raving about Plurk, because there are better blog posts and podcasts on that subject. Since school is still over a week away for teachers, I enjoy plurking on a pretty regular basis to gain good resources and to join great discussions. To me the best Plurks are the ones that really get me thinking and where the threads bring different points of view. A couple of Plurks by Steve Dembo and others asked for school and tech goals. Since Plurk only allows for 140 characters, I thought I would explore this topic further. Not that I expect anyone really cares what for goals are for the next school year, but I want my blog to be my Jimmney Crickett. That voice will remind me of what I should do rather than give up when things get rough.

Well here it goes...

1. Come out strong from the beginning! Don't wait for people to make excuses for not using technology.

2. To be available to staff as much as possible to help with technology. It doesn't matter if I have a title or even part of a committee to help a staff member.

3. I should set the example in my classroom. That will require to vary from the Microsoft Office centered curriculum, but that is actually a bonus.

4. Get administration to buy in. I truly believe they set the tone for any new movement.

5. Celebrate the small achievements. I am known for being impatient and wanting to change everything now. Even if one teacher uses one new tool or uses more technology tools they know about, then this adventure will be worth it.

6. Don't burn myself out! I need a strong start, but need to also make it to the finish line. This might require me closing my door and I should do that without feeling guilty.

7. I am going to work to making technology easier for teachers. I have made many guides in the past, but this I plan to add video and cheat sheets for those that don't bother with big guides.

8. Sharing is the key! This is a weakness for the school in my opinion, but I am hoping that will change as people join the new school ning.

9. Not to fall in the negativity trap! It is so easy to get wrapped up in all of the complaining in the building. Instead of joining in I want to ask, "What do you think we could do to change that?"

10. Most of all be patient! This is my weakness, and to combat that I am going to remind myself, "Rome wasn't built in a day!"

Ok Eduverse, keep me honest and let me wish all of you changing education for the better a fabulous school year!