Voki Test

Here comes the future...

ThingLink.com

Image via CrunchBase

Just came across ThingLink tonight and it seems like a pretty versatile app.  With ThingLink you have the ability to make your images interactive.  Hover your cursor over the image above and you'll see what I mean.


Upload an image of your own or from Flickr, FaceBook, or a different web source, and then add content tags.  Your tags can have text, sound, web links, videos, or you can even add an image in your image.  Videos tags use YouTube, Vimeo, and TED, while images can be tagged from Flickr, Instragram, and more.  You can make audio tags linking to SoundCloud, iTunes, and Spotify.  There's a lot more ways you can tag an image, so take a look at the examples in their gallery.


ThinkLink images can be embedded on a webpage and shared with other editors.  Lots of possibilities for classroom uses. I don't know if Instagram was worth a billion dollars, but I can see a lot more uses with ThingLink.


Special thanks to iTeach blog for introducing me to this resource.

Online Professional Development

2009 Guam Quarter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Webinars are a great thing to have for anyone who wants to improve themselves.  On Guam, it used to be a big deal for a teacher to get sent off island to attend a summer conference.  Teachers would attend events and then share the information with others when they got back.  Unfortunately, those opportunities decreased more and more in the past decade due to the lack of funding.  Teachers can attend university classes but that isn't an affordable option for many.  The result is a teacher corps that is stagnant in their professional growth or knowledge of new methods.


The good news is that doesn't have to be the case anymore.  Webinar events from around the world can be viewed on your computer at no cost.  That alone should be an eye opener for any school administrator!  Webinars, or online seminars, can take different forms but usually consist of a presenter sharing slides with an audience.  It may also be an interview or a workshop on a particular application.  Most professions require continued training and re-certification, so webinars make a perfect choice for professional development.  Some webinar sources for educators are The Global Education Conference, Classroom 2.0 Live, Future of Education, and SimpleK12.  Google also offers events through their Google+ Hangout feature.  The optimum way to participate in a webinar is to do so live as it is happening.  Each of the sources above use a conferencing application to bring all of the participants together.  Since the session is being conducted in a different time zone, it is important to know when events are happening at your time.  Use a time-zone converter for that if the source doesn't provide on for you.  If you can't make it at that time there is usually a recording of the session posted somewhere.  YouTube and iTunes may have these non-live versions as well as the providers listed above.  Some webinars require registration or may include a small fee, but there's plenty of material readily available for free.  Sign up to receive notifications of upcoming events.


With webinar events, educators have access to great minds like Howard Gardner or Daniel Pink.  Not only can you hear their presentation, but you may have an opportunity to ask them a question yourself.  Online webinars are where I've learned about emerging ideas in education like Finland's educational system and the 21st Century Fluency Project.  I keep a personal blog of the ideas I gain from these events and draw upon it often to shape my own professional beliefs.  There are also marathon sessions offered several times throughout the year that will include multiple back-to-back webinars.  Google's Education On-Air conference starts in a few days and you can look forward to a fantastic Global Education Collaborative conference in November.


The other resource found in webinars is the audience themselves.  Most of the webinars list the participants and keep a running chat discussion going as the presentation plays out.  You'll find people attend these sessions from all around the world.  This side chatter can sometimes be more interesting than the presentation itself.  Usually someone acts a wrangler and provides helpful links to what is being presented.  Some of webinar software allow you to save the chat discussion in addition to the main presentation.  This is helpful because it can be hard to keep up with the chat forum and listen to the presenter at the same time.  The chat forum is a great feature because it lends to the community feel of webinars.  Plus, you don't have to stay quiet during the presentation and you can get out of your chair when you want.  Better still - get involved yourself.  You can add your own comments to the chat discussion or "grab the mike" and ask the presenter a question at the appropriate time.


I think you'll find online webinars a worthwhile experience.  Think of them as opportunities for personalized professional development.  You'll learn new ideas and meet new people from the comfort of your own laptop.  Of course, you may miss out on that all-expense paid trip to Arizona but you'll free up your time to do other things.  This professional development that won't cost you a dime.  Tap into the world's collective knowledge and join a webinar today.   Online webinars are the perfect choice for professional development that won't cost you a dime.

Related articles

• Getting the Most Out of a Webinar (onlinecollege.org)

SimpleK12's Online Education Conference

Attention Education friends – You’re invited to a one-of-a-kind PD event that’s going to be a lot of fun …

and best of all, it won’t cost you a dime!

Come learn with educators from around the world at the Online Education Conference: An international conference that’s 100% FREE!

This PD event has been sponsored by SimpleK12, one of the leading providers of 21st century teacher professional development. Join the Blue Bunnies as they camp out in the SimpleK12 offices for 24 hours straight, bringing you the best-of-the-best conference sessions with presenters from around the world. (Thanks for organizing such an incredible FREE event, SimpleK12!)

Online Education Conference - Details

• What: A 24-hour training extravaganza for educators around the world!
• When: Wednesday, April 25th, 2012 – Thursday, April 26th, 2012
• Where: Online – Join LIVE from your computer or mobile device
• Cost: 100% FREE!
• Register: http://simplek12.com/tlc/webinars/#OEC

What sessions can you attend?

Sessions will be running all day and night … so pick and choose whatever works best with your schedule. There’s something for everyone! 

What can you learn about?

Perhaps the better question is, “What WON’T you learn about?” Conference sessions cover ALL of the latest educational trends and topics, such as:

• Google Earth
• iPads for Education
• Free Web Tools
• 21st Century Student Projects
• Blogging
• Google Maps
• Podcasting
• and more!

What are you waiting for?

Registration is free … but space is limited. Don’t wait – Reserve your seat now before it’s too late! Sign Up Here: http://simplek12.com/tlc/webinars/#OEC

What’s not to love?!

No Travel. No Registration Fees. Lots of Fun. A Great Learning Opportunity. Need I say more?!

Help spread the word about this FREE, international online conference. Tell as many educator friends and colleagues as you can! Don’t let anyone miss out on this incredible learning opportunity!

See you there!

25 TED Talks for Education

Hi all,
I'm sure I shared at least one TED Talk with you during your Gateway training so I thought I'd pass this post from Craig Allen on to you: 25 TED Talks Perfect for the Classroom.  Below is one sample from the collection that covers oceanography - a topic you'd think we'd cover more on our island.  You can find TED Talks on their website and they also have a YouTube channel for Education. 

I haven't seen a TED Talk yet that didn't interest me or make me think.  Hopefully it will have the same effect on your students.

Related articles

• TED Releases Educational Talks For Kids (spottybanana.net)
• TED Ed YouTube Channel Launched, Calls For Content (socialbarrel.com)

A rethinking of curriculum

06-29-07_1515.jpg (Photo credit: kjarrett)Here's a terrific post by Grant Wiggins from Authentic Design: Everything you know about curriculum may be wrong.  Really.  I think it's a must read for educators and especially administrators.  It's a great article to share.  Give others a different perspective of what education can be, or else they'll be stuck with the only idea they have. 

And here's another from Tom Whitby: We Don't Need No Stink'n Textbooks. 

Related articles

• The Mother of all Curriculum "Myths" (queuniversidade2.wordpress.com)

What can swarms of robotic helicopters do for you?

View videos like this and others at TED.com or on the TED Talks YouTube channel.
"Riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the World"

What happens when an adult takes a standardized test?

Image via WikipediaIt finally happened.  The Washington Post describes what happens when an adult takes a 10th grade standardized test.  The December 5th article relays the experience with predictable results: 17% math & 62% reading.  The best part of this story is that the gentleman is a member of the school board.

I proposed an experiment such as this in a previous post about Guam's SAT criticisms.  Perhaps when more adults commit acts of bravery such as this, the greater public will see the folly of standardized testing.  It became clear to the school board member...

“It seems to me something is seriously wrong. I have a bachelor of science degree, two masters degrees, and 15 credit hours toward a doctorate.
I help oversee an organization with 22,000 employees and a $3 billion operations and capital budget, and am able to make sense of complex data related to those responsibilities."

... and yet he failed the SAT.  

So what should we do?  Should we require more tests?  How about SAT testing every 2 years until you reach the retirement age - would that cover it?  Perhaps we should find his teachers and do a thorough re-evaluation of their abilities.  Maybe the schools he attended should be penalized somehow; withdraw some federal funding from them or impose some other financial penalty.  I know, how about we create a special program that would accommodate persons with double masters degrees and manage large corporations?  Maybe we should just label him as a failure or constantly rank him against other adults.

How about this.  Why don't we take a hard look at our educational system.  Let's build a new one that is relevant for today.

Related articles

• When An Adult Took Standardized Tests Forced On Kids (classroomconscious.wordpress.com)
• What College Admissions Officers Look For: Importance of Standardized Tests (education.com)
• Looking at the SATs: prep, cheating, why take them anyway? (drstrangecollege.wordpress.com)

The Wikipedia debate

Image via CrunchBase
I just came across an excellent article that examines if Wikipedia should be trusted and how it should be used.  Truce Be Told from the Harvard Graduate School of Education looks at the pros and cons, and how Wikipedia has evolved over the years.  Read the article and consider how it applies to all sources of information (including this Blog!)

 Now more than ever, as students use the Internet as a resource for school projects, the idea that teachers should embrace is that proper research is accomplished the same way as it always has been.  The problem isn't any particular site; one should always use multiple sources, examine their reliability, and give citation to information gained.  As far as Wikipedia, ...

"Educators can use the site to teach about online credibility, fact checking, primary and secondary sources, crowd sourcing … rather than simply banning it.”

Changing Education Paradigms

Hole in the Wall Experiment

Watch this TED Talk about the amazing results Sugata Mitra got in the slums of India when he filled a hole in the wall with a computer.  Do you agree with Sugata Mitra's conclusions?  What implications do you feel this has for Guam?

• Learning is a self-organizing system.
• Remoteness affects the quality of education.
• Educational technology should be introduced into remote areas first.
• Values are acquired, doctrine and dogma are imposed.

"You can drive children with questions. You don’t have to give them the answers. They can find the answers. If the kids/students didn’t get the “right” answer, then teacher didn’t ask the right question. The teacher needs to change question."

Global Education Conference

 A unique event will be taking place this week in cyberspace. The 2011 Global Education Conference is a free online conference that will connect educators from around the globe in a series of keynotes, presentations, and discussions. The conference begins on Tuesday, November 15 at 1:30am (Guam time) and literally last around the clock until concluding Saturday at 4am. You can find a schedule of the conference here with all the times given for our time zone.  Each session listing includes links for viewing the event or for adding to your Google calendar. 

The presentations will be given using Blackboard Collaborate, a webinar platform we may have viewed in our Gateway class.  Blackboard Collaborate is easy to use but you will need to download a file to your computer for each session and have a working internet connection.  Links to each session are given in the schedule.  Each presentation typically lasts 60 minutes.  Keep in mind that some presentations may be in another language; last year's conference had presentations from 62 different countries.

The conference is a collaborative, world-wide community initiative involving students, educators, and organizations at all levels. It is designed to significantly increase opportunities for building education-related connections around the globe while supporting cultural awareness and recognition of diversity.

The conference seeks to present ideas, examples, and projects related to connecting educators and classrooms with a strong emphasis on promoting global awareness, fostering global competency, and inspiring action towards solving real–world problems. Through this event, it is our hope that attendees will challenge themselves and others to become more active citizens of the world. Let us learn, question, create, and engage in meaningful, authentic opportunities within a global context!

 - conference website

Please take one hour out of the next four days to hear what others are doing around the world.  You may find some presentations lean towards educational technology but all should address the global experience of learning.  Enjoy!

Here are a few links for more information...
Global Education Conference website
Presentation schedule for Guam's time zone
Twitter: #globaled11
 

Related articles

• The Global Education Conference 2011 (murcha.wordpress.com)
• Global Ed Conference Nov 14-18 #globaled11 (coolcatteacher.blogspot.com)

Corning's View of the Future

Better or Different?

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeI've been following the news on Guam's SAT-10 scores with dismay. Dismay, not in that the scores are low, but in the message that is sent to students, schools, parents, and the island as a whole. One sentence in the PDN article stated, "As a whole, local public school students fall below the national average - in all ages at all schools."  The blatant omission by the writer are the words "on SAT-10 tests".  It is an injustice to equate the worth of our children, teachers, and schools solely by standardized test scores.
Guam is by no means unique in the way these test results are given credence as the marker of success in schools.  The main problem with standardized tests is that they provide data on "achievement", and it is these numbers that allow politicians, administrators, and others to remark on that achievement.  You see, it is something tangible- a number, that they can use to describe how the schools are doing.  This is obviously the purpose of the tests, but it is at this point that most people have accepted the SAT-10 as an expert indicator of the overall success of schools.  I'll accept it as an indicator of achievement on a SAT-10 test, but I won't give it credit for judging a student or the overall value of Guam's educational system.
I'm not saying the public school system and its students don't have room for improvement and I'm not saying that there isn't a place for standardized tests, but I am totally against this mindset that SAT-10 determines the value of our schools.  We shouldn't make judgements on a student who filled in bubbles for hours over the course of several days.  Nor should our educational leaders make arching policy changes based on these results.  To chase these scores will just lead us to a system that trains students for a test rather than one that focuses on learning.  We should see it for what it is - a nation-wide trivia contest.
Thinks that's harsh?  I've been playing with the idea of giving adults the SAT-10 test.  How do you think a politician would score?  How do you think a business leader would score?  How do you think you would score?  If these scores are so important then why doesn't everyone take them.  A low score must mean that you are a person of low intellect so we'll send you back to school.  Ridiculous?  Of course, so why do we place such importance on it?
You can easily find much better arguments than mine against standardized testing and the need to reform our educational system for today's society.  This is something of grave importance that should be debated in public and addressed in schools.  I strongly urge you to view Will Richardson's TED Talk below and reflect upon it.  Do you think our schools need to be better or different?  Please pass the video or articles you find on to others and discuss what you think is right.
 

Related articles

• Standardized Testing: The Modern Bloodletting? (downes.ca)
• Tale of a Broken System: A Student's Perspective (Guest Post by Jay Chisley) (coopcatalyst.wordpress.com)
• Talking to the Deans About the SATs (education.com)
• Making the Grade: Evaluating your Child's Education (teacherdaddy.wordpress.com)

Role Models

Here's a video of a senior couple trying to set up their webcam while unintentionally recording a video of themselves.  There may be several lessons to learn from this but what enjoyed the most was their attitude.  They aren't complaining or getting overly frustrated - just trying to figure it out.  (2:39) "Well you do whatever you do.  You'll be fine.  You'll learn; it's gonna take time."

Does this sound familiar?

Recommended by Roberta A.

Teacher Education and 21st Century Skills

The end is just the beginning

©

This past Saturday marked the final offering of training by the University of Guam for the Gateway to Technology program.  The end is just the beginning though as the new school year is getting under way.  My understanding is that over 1,000 public school teachers participated in the training over the past 5 months.  Although there are obstacles yet to be faced, I hope that this is a productive year with many advances made.
 
For my part, I'd like to thank all of the teachers I've met during training.  It isn't easy switching roles and becoming the student, but you all did a great job.  I am energized by your enthusiasm and willingness to learn new things.  This blog has accumulated over 150 posts which is remarkable in that short period of time.  Please take the time to read through the past posts and leave comments for the authors.  I will add new posts to this blog from time to time.  I hope many of you are starting your own blogs, but if you would like to pick up the digital pen again, I can always add you on as an author of this blog.
 
I've received a lot of positive feedback on the Gateway to Technology resource site we used during training.  Many of you have inquired how long it will be available online and the answer is as long as you need it to be.  If you haven't visited it since your training, you will find that I have made some adjustments.  The major changes usually stem from the plethora of tech resources there are to share with you.  I've continuously added content throughout the site but you'll find most of the expansion has taken place on pages for Ethics, Safety, and Additional Resources.  I've added an Announcement page which I'll continue to update as I receive news to share with you.  Additionally there is an Action Plan page where I list some points for you to start the year off with.  In the future, I would like to add a page that provides examples of your achievements.  I would appreciate it if you would share the address for your new website, blog, or perhaps a lesson you used.
   
It is of my understanding that additional technology training will be offered in the future.  Some of it should relate to the new equipment which will begin arriving in the next months, and I believe more advanced training on specific techniques will be presented as well.  I hope I am able to provide more professional development for you.  I would like to present some model lessons and provide you with support as the year continues.  Build your support network with teachers nearby and from afar.  Stay positive and don't get discouraged.  I hope this is a transformational experience for you and your students and I wish you the best of luck.

So New to blogging and learning how to put a blog together...

I am so amazed at young people today, they are so entrenched in technology and don't even realize it.  From texting, Facebooking, and blogging, oh my goodness.  I hope to use some of these forms of communication to help my students learn more about the subjects I teach as well as themselves.

I can see how being anonymous is a good thing for the student, but I also see how this can be a bad thing.  I hope to get more ideas on how to optimize the use of technology in the classroom.  I have so much to learn...