Category Archives: Conferences

TCEA 2010 Closing Session

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Wahl E webKeynote speaker for the TCEA Closing Session is Erik Wahl.

From the TCEA program:

Erik Wahl is a recognized artist and speaker who inspires professionals to achieve greater levels of performance, and who challenges organizations to transcend mediocrity through creativity. He is founder of The Wahl Group, a consulting firm that specializes in helping organizations identify and implement breakthrough thinking to achieve extraordinary results. His program, “The Art of Vision,” is uniquely designed to channel innovative strategies to create extraordinary results. By breaking apart the traditional rules, he challenges to redefine their commonly held assumptions and misconceptions about vision, goals, success, and creativity.

Wahl opens by painting a portrait of U2′s Bono and talking about a Pablo Picasso quote:

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Every child is an artist. Our challenge is to remain an artist once we grow up.

Our challenge as educators is to retain our passion for lifelong learning and tap into our innate creativity and innovation.

Sometimes it pays to take a risk. The reason for any goal that you haven’t achieved can usually be traced back to fear. We exist in our left-brain logical world 90% of the time. We’re naturally resistant to venture into the unpredictable right-brain world because it’s scary.

We must intentionally slow down, step back and look for new and different ways of accomplishing our goals.

Some people play the game, others change the way the game is played. When the end goal is firmly engrained in your mind, it allows you to explore and try different ways of reaching that goal.

To be successful, our kids need to be able to embrace alternative thinking and imagination. We must not hold them back.





Reading, writing and wikis

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In this session, two high school English teachers presented the way that they used a wiki to encourage their students to read.

Goals for their free reading project were for students to read good young adult literature, enjoy it and discuss it, just like people do in the real world.

Step 1. Booktalk good books for kids to read. These teachers worked with their librarian and selected lots of good books to recommend to their students. They used YALSA and TLA booklists, such as Best Books for Young Adults, Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, Teens’ Top Ten and Tayshas. Students went to the library as a class and heard booktalks about a few of the books that had been recommended for them to read.

Step 2. Students complete signpost projects. These were simple projects that students could do to mark their progress as they read. There were several choices of projects – most using technology. Directions for these mini-projects can be found on the Warriors Read wiki.

Step 4. Product. After completing their reading, students had to do a final product. Choices were book trailers, book posters, or a booktalk via podcast. Any digital products were uploaded to the wiki for all students to access.

These teachers chose a wiki to house the content for this project for several reasons. Wikis allow for multiple contributors. All teachers of a subject or grade level can monitor and contribute to a wiki. Students can contribute too!

The Wikispaces discussion tab was another reason for using that particular wiki. Students used it to engage in meaningful discussions about their books any time, any place. That meaningful discussion was one of their goals from the outset.

The fact that students’ digital work was posted for everyone to see really inspired them to do their best.

Collaborative groups meeting electronically don’t have to worry about transportation or scheduling issues.

A wiki enlarges the classroom by providing access to materials, instructions and multimedia all the time, everywhere.

Some tips for the successful implementation of a wiki with students:

Plan the organization of the wiki before you create it

Create student accounts yourself.

Develop a system for grading.

Post directions for activities on the site

Teach netiquette before you begin

Other ideas for using wikis:

READING

Current events discussions

Post an article or link to an article and have students read it and post their own reactions

Have students post links to news stories they find interesting or relevant. Students can view and comment on each other’s posts

Research and link collecting

In groups or individually, students find and post links to reliable articles or websites for a research unit

Discussion Circles

Students post thoughts as they read a novel

Virtual Book Club

Students “meet” online and discuss the book

Links, articles, pictures – anything about the book can be posted to the wiki

WRITING

Brainstorming and prewriting

Students discuss essay topics BEFORE they write. They see their own thoughts as well as the thoughts of their classmates, allowing them to struggle with the ideas before they face the blank page.

Collaborative stories

Provide a story starter (or have students start one)

Students add to/comment on/continue the story

PUBLISHING

Project showcase

Anything students can create digitally can be uploaded and shared with wiki viewers

Documents and multimedia can be “handed in” electronically

Spread information about your classroom, club or project

SUB PLANS

Not for emergency use, but you can put a PowerPoint or post links so students can get the best of you even when you’re not there

Other uses for wikis can be found at readingwritingwiki.wikispaces.com or educationalwikis.wikispaces.com

TCEA Keynote – David Kushner

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The Thursday keynote address is given by David Kushner. David’s bio from the TCEA program:

Author and journalist David KushnerKushner Headshot is the leading expert on the new i-Conomy of digital culture and industry. As a contributing editor of Wired and Rolling Stone and frequent guest on radio and TV from CNN to NPR, he reports on the key leaders and innovators of the information age from the baby billionaires of Silicon Valley (founders of Facebook to YouTube) to the Hollywood mavericks (creators of hit shows Heroes to Lost) and the biggest winners in the videogame business (Rock Band to Grand Theft Auto). He has unique access and insight on what makes this new generation of leaders tick — now and in the future.

I’m live blogging this session, so please excuse any mistakes!

Kushner says:

This is an incredibly challenging time with a new generation growing up with such a different view of the world. The theme now is “empowerment.”

Using technology has always given its users a sense of empowerment. We were Generation Pong – even back then we felt empowered using technology. Kids today have access to ubiquitous technology. They have a different perception – all these new technologies are seen as toys. This is a fundamental shift in perspective.

Research done by the Kaiser Foundation shows that kids have 7.5 hours a day of screen time.

What is it about the screen that rivets them? These aren’t just screens, they are portals into another reality – a private digital clubhouse.

Who is building this new world? In discussions with today’s technology innovators, what they have built was a direct response to their lack of access to technology in schools.

There are three stages for new technologies:

1. Innovation

2. Disruption

3. Acceptance

It’s no longer about teaching “computers” anymore. The tools are there. It’s about something else.

All innovations come about due to a need the programmers have. YouTube was created because it’s inventors wanted to trade videos online.

Game based learning is gaining steam in some areas of the country. There is a school called Quest to Learn where s students are going online and doing role playing activities, working together on missions. Example: Little Big Planet for Playstation – students help creatures on a planet. The assessment comes from the game level that the students reach. In a geography class, students are location producers for a reality show and create a multimedia pitch for their site.

West Philadelphia public school is attempting to build the world’s “greenest” car in an after school program created by one teacher. He had no money, but started by finding some old parts and helped students build an electric go-cart. The program turned many kids around and gave them a sense of empowerment.

Ray Kurtzweil invented the scanner and text to speech software. He has an idea of “singularity.” Technology is increasing at an exponential rate. According to him, we will reach a point in 2039 when computer intelligence will exceed human intelligence and be able to upload ourselves into “the matrix.” This idea is being taken seriously by today’s innovators.

How do we teach/learn in this environment where there is something new everyday? We have to learn how to learn. It’s not about the tools – it’s learning how to teach kids to empower themselves.

We need to tap our kids knowledge. Make them partners in the educational process. Idea: designated tweeter who is responsible for reporting the activities of the class.

John Carmack (creator of Doom) quote: In the information age, barriers are self-imposed.


In the Exhibit Hall…

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IMG00337A quick run through the Exhibit Hall yielded some good information this morning.

At the Discovery Education booth we found details on a virtual field trip to the depths of the Pacific Ocean with Philippe Cousteau. Here is the quote from the flyer we picked up:

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2010

9:00AM – 10:00AM CST

Discovery Education and Education Service Center Region XI are proud to present Texas educators a captivating Virtual Field Trip for Texas elementary school students. Join Philippe Cousteau, grandson of the lgendary Jacques Cousteau and Discovery Education Spokesperson for Environmental Education, as he takes your students to the Seattle Aquarium to explore animal adaptation in the ocean and the mystery of the coral reefs.

Lesson plans and activities, aligned to the TEKS, will be provided to teachers in advance of this event.

Register for this free event (Texas teachers ONLY) at links.discoveryeducation.com/TX

Register by February 24, 2010 and be entered to win a visit from Philippe Cousteau to your school.

Another interesting product we learned about in the Exhibit Hall was Soundzabound. Soundzabound offers a royalty-free music library that can be accessed and downloaded via the web. With students projects moving into the multimedia realm, this is a resource that we are lacking in our district. Definitely something to explore more in depth!

Forms, forms and more forms

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443918201_845e933521Live blogged! Please excuse spelling errors and awkward phrasing.

We are all about data in education these days. How do you collect data about your library program? Sometimes you probably have a survey or a form for people to complete. This session is all about the varied options for using technology to create paperless forms.

Presenter: James Driskill, Frisco ISD

Paperless forms provide security, easier access, time and money savings. Drop down boxes, checklists and other options you set up ahead of time minimize incorrect choices to help the quality of the data you get.

When thinking about paperless forms, don’t be limited in your thinking to the way your form works now. Determine what data you need to get and design the paperless form to get it.

Options for paperless forms:

Microsoft Word – can be routed by email

Eduphoria Formspace – this is in use in many school districts and is new in Mesquite ISD. We will see its use in our district more and more in the future, I believe. Allows for workflow approval, notification, freeflow receipt of forms. One form for all! Has a very easy to use form builder. Integrates with email for auto-notification. Allows export of data to Excel or PDF. Can be used in and out of district. Can have document attached. Can control the distribution of the form.

Adobe Acrobat – Allows you to convert old flat forms quickly. PDF is a universally recognized format. Allows you to keep the original look and feel of the form. Forms can be locked to prevent printing or saving. Requires purchase of Adobe software.

Google Forms – free, accessible, shareable, great reports, can be shared and completed on the iPhone/iTouch. (This is what we have been using to collect library data at the district level in Mesquite.)

The rest of the session was a demo of these various form options in action. Each has its positives and negatives. Due to cost, Google Forms may be your best bet in moving your data collection efforts online.

Image citation: Stack.

Library SIG mtg – Technology and literacy

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IMG00335Live blogged! Please excuse misspellings and awkward phrasing.

The Library Special Interest Group meeting is a mix of literature and technology with free books available for all attendees. The presenter is Dr. Teri Lesesne, speaking on how literature and technology can get along in the library. We need to redefine,  reimagine and perhaps repurpose reading for the 21st century.

What is reading? Not simply sounding out and decoding words!

Literature reminds us that we are all connected. Literature encourages us to think about the “what ifs” in our lives. Literature shows us all of the many ways that we can use words. Literature offers windows and mirrors for us of other people and places.

We need to include the reading of non-fiction in our definition of reading. Reading non-print materials and reading with your ears are also reading. Reading now includes tweets and status updates. Kids aren’t reading less – they are reading things that aren’t valued by researchers who report these things.

Reading doesn’t matter unless we redefine what we mean by literacy. We have to help kids develop strong reading muscles by giving kids great and varied things to read.

Kids today are different and think differently. Kids who will go to college in 2010 have always had GPS systems. They have never used a typewriter. Caller ID has always been available. They have always had the Goosebumps series. Older definitions of literacy don’t apply.

Graphic novels are meaningful for these kids.

Audiobooks and playaways are important too. Most downloaded audiobooks in 2009 were the Twilight series. Most downloaded non-fiction book was Night by Elie Wiesel. (Booklist Online has a great blog about audiobooks).

Kids want to have time to read without “doing something” afterwards. Adults read often without building a diorama after reading. Kids should be able to discuss and share about what they are reading, but not necessarily be tested.

AASL says reading is a window to the world. A foundational skill that allows students to develop new understandings.

One issue is equitable access to books, reading, information. Technology helps us break down some of these inequities.

Kids want to learn in a social context – face to face and with technology.

Better than Life by Daniel Pennac has a Reader’s Bill of Rights. Some of these rights are:

You have the right to read young adult lit no matter how old you are.

The right to read extensively and not always intensively.

The right to demand changes to the literary canon for the 21st century. Read and study something contemporary!

The right to see the movie or the play instead of reading the book.

The right to read books that disturb the reader.

The right to have access to books at school and at home.

The right to read a book with lots of pictures.

The right to refuse to read a prescribed book.

The right to demand a redefinition of what it means to read.

We need to offer kids a new definition of what it means to read if we want to remain relevant in the world of the 21st century student!

Developing a ning… #tcea2010

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Live blogged: Please excuse spelling errors or awkward phrasing!

This session was presented by Elizabeth Perrin and Amanda Jost from Houston ISD, Educational Technology department.

Communication is a huge challenge for a district the size of Houston ISD (200,000+ students) and they were looking for a way to create a network of collaborators. Some options considered were: email, listserv, wiki, blog, ning, skype and video conferencing.

Why a ning? A ning was chosen due to cost (free with ads), personal presence of members (social aspect), voice, multi-dimensional (can do much more than just a wiki or blog – it is a true social network that is targeted to specific groups), easy to use, can be private/secure.

Amanda did graduate research on using a ning to create a valuable professional learning community with teachers in the the district. Background research told her that members needed direction and motivation to participate in the ning. Members would come when the site was first launched for the novelty, but need motivation to keep visiting.

In order to increase usage, the facilitators redesigned the ning, used it to provide links to new resources, discussed issues, and made site visits to campuses. Usage stats show that people used the ning when something was posted. Email reminders and other members posting encouraged ning visits. Lack of participation by members discourages use.

Recommendations for building a ning:

Design – keep it simple and user friendly. Have a prominent spot for announcements, district news links, videos, forum. Have personal pages for members to post photos and other info. Members can have personal communications, chatting, uploading of files.

Resources – Keep resources organized, accurate and updated. Provide RSS feeds for news, district resources, links to safety resources and web 2.0 tools. Ask members what they want.

Gathering feedback – Plan for feedback in advance: how will you get it and what will you do with it? HISD uses Google Analytics, questionnaires and their own observations.

Promoting the ning – Talk about the ning whenever you get a chance!

Things to think about:

Determine what you will post. Have a clear purpose for the ning. Enlist the support of your IT department in keeping the ning open and not blocked by your filter. Post a usage policy for the Ning: what can be posted and who can join.

Maintenance – answer unanswered posts. Review the ning daily and check membership at least yearly. Check how the ning looks to members and how it works in various browsers. Work at developing the ning but give it time to grow.

Future plans – Looking for ways to deepen discussions on the ning.

handouts posted at amandaj.wikispaces.com

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TCEA – Opening Session

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logo_splashI’m in Austin this week at the annual conference of the Texas Computer Educators Association. Every year thousands of technology teachers, librarians and administrators from all over the state gather to learn and network with each other. Mesquite ISD has 30 people in attendance this year! Many of our district attendees will be blogging about the sessions they attend special Ning network setup for this purpose. I encourage you to take a look at their postings and attend the conference with us virtually.

Something new and exciting at this year’s conference is TCEA’s iPhone/iTouch app, available for free on iTunes. It contains all of the information that you usually find in the conference program guide – session information and locations, maps of the convention center and vendor information. As you look through sessions on the app, you can star the ones you are interested in and they will be automatically put on your schedule. It’s so great to have all of this information in the palm of your hand! I’m all about traveling light when attending a conference, so this is right up my alley!

The speaker at this morning’s opening session is Christopher Gardner. Gardner’s life story was the inspiration for the movie “The Pursuit of Happyness” starring Will Smith. His amazing story was published as an autobiography in 2006 and became a New York Times bestseller. If you aren’t familiar with his life, Gardner overcame homelessness to become a successful entrepreneur.

Gardner began his talk by describing a little bit of what it was like to have his life story turned into a movie, then shared with us some of the hardships that he faced during his year of homelessness with a 14 month-old in tow. (That is how real life differed from the movie – at the time Gardner’s son was still a baby, which increases the situation’s difficulty enormously.) What was amazing was his positive attitude and persistence. His story resonates with anyone who has ever had a dream and relentlessly pursued that dream to its fruition.

In thinking about our students, it reminds me how important it is to encourage the students and teachers we work with to keep on trying even in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. What have you done to encourage someone today?

Using TLA Stats and Docs to Share Successes – #tasla09

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Julie Todaro, presenter

TLA recently conducted a public opinion poll of Texas voters to find out how much support there is out there for all types of libraries.

Other sources of data about school libraries:

AASL – Research and Statistics

David Loertscher’s web site

Michael Eisenberg’s presentations

IASL Online

Library Media Program: Data Sources, the School Library Media Specialist

Library Research Service

Resources for School Librarians

The TLA survey was a statewide telephone survey conducted in October – November 2008.

The survey found that nearly all Texans (99%) are an essential part of the educational experience and more than 9 in 10 agree that school librarians are critical to student achievement. The vast majority would support legislation that would require public schools to provide students with a school library and librarian that meets statewide standards. More than 8 in 10 voters across every demographic segment and geographic region support the legislation, including 88% of Republicans, 95% of Democrats and 96% of Independents.

Strong majorities support increasing public funding for school libraries!

Data from the survey shows that the general public feels that school libraries and professional give every child the opportunity to read and learn.

How can we use this data to promote school libraries?

Use it as a message to administrators, school boards, PTA groups, teachers, students, relevant associations and legislators.

Expand the Strong Libraries Strong Scores mini-conference model to other areas of the state, to other associations and organizations and with other related events.

TLA recommends focusing on the unique contribution of school libraries to round out and encourage student development and achievement. Instead of trying to be another classroom, focus on what makes us unique.

Legislative update #tasla09 Day 3

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Jennifer LaBoon, presenter

The 81st Legislative Session ended June 1 with “partisan meltdown” and many bills died.

Two key issues for schools were the K-12 databases and a full-time librarian on every campus. The databases funding made it through, but was not increased as requested. The state library will be doing some “creative” budgeting in order to keep the resources at the existing level. While we didn’t get quite what we wanted, we didn’t lose any ground.

The full-time librarian issue is a difficult one. There has been discussion of this for a long time, but many have been reluctant to press it with the legislators. The hope is that we could possibly replicate the standard for counselors, which are mandated at schools of 500 students or more. The timing must be right to move forward on the issue.

HB 915 specifies that TEA must consider of a school district provides a certified school librarian on a campus as part of the accountability rating for a district. The bill was referred to the Public Education committee, but never got a hearing. Inquiries into the feasibility of a similar bill in the Senate were met with heavy resistance – no unfunded mandates.

HB 3/ SB 3 was the “accountability” bill. Rep. Dennis Bonnen worked to amend the bill to include certified librarians as part of the accountability ratings. The amended language was stripped by the Conference Committee, as were most floor amendments added in the House. Bonnen did not give up, though, and worked with Rep. Rose to add library services to her amendment 72. Unfortunately, all amendments that passed the House were removed by the Senate.

School library advocacy efforts are important and all are encouraged to attend TLA Legislative Day. Legislators really do not realize that every school does not have a certified librarian on every campus and need to be made aware of the situation.

The school library study mandated by the last legislative session was presented in December 2008. It was very positive towards school libraries. Other initiatives include the Shirley Igo Award for PTA members who are supportive of their school libraries. TLA had a booth at state PTA conference and PTA had a booth at the TLA conference. The Spokane Moms are confirmed to present at TLA 2010.

Take home ideas:

Vote! for school board, legislators, congress
Create an administrator of the year award for an administrator who advocates for libraries
Create a librarian of the year awar
Create a Friends of School Libraries grou
Reach out to your PTA group and other civic groups
Attend Town Hall events
Invite legislators to school literacy events
Send thank you letters
Reach out to smaller districts around you
Attend Advocacy Pre-Conference at TLA 2010
Plan to attend Legislative Day in 2011 and TLA in Austin in 2011

Volunteer to help advocate for school libraries at these upcoming events:

PTA Summer Leadership Conference
Austin, July 24-25

TASA/TASB Conference
Houston, October 1-4