Tips

“Listening is as powerful a means of communication and influence as to talk well.” – John Marshall

“What, Huh? What did you say?”
“Are you really listening?”

The problem with “kind of” listening is that it can lead to mistakes, misunderstandings, the wrong goals, wasting time and lack of teamwork. As a coach, I learned the importance of careful and thoughtful listening. Yet, I still have to remind myself about active listening. Some people think they are listening but to build relationships that work, they need to listen well. They may be listening just enough to jump in to say what they want to say. Some have trouble concentrating on what the other person is saying so they zone out or daydream while the person is talking. There are others who think they are listening but actually are thinking of all the things they need to do that day. Yet, listening is less important than how you listen. By listening in a way that demonstrates understanding and respect, you build a true foundation for a good relationship no matter if it is between coach and coachee, teacher and students, friends, mother and child, spouses, or team members.

“I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.” – Ernest Hemingway

Here are ten tips to listening well:

1. Decide you want to Listen: Remember the old adage about having two ears and one mouth. Maybe we’re supposed to listen twice as much as we speak. Whatever, it starts with the decision to listen.

2. Come with an Open Mind: It is very easy to come to a conversation with a preconceived idea about the other person and what they are going to say. Give them a chance to surprise you and you surprise them with an open mind and listening well.
3. Hear What They Say: Make sure you can really hear the other person. It is surprising how often people do not realize that they cannot even hear other people. Make that you can really hear them first for effective listening. Let them know if you cannot hear what they are saying.
4. Give 100%: Show you care about the other person or persons by giving 100% of your attention to them and suspending all other activities. If you multitask while listening, you are not listening.
5. Listen 75%, Speak 25% of the Time: This is a powerful tip unless you are giving a speech. Try to allow the other person to speak more than you and listen to them.
   
6. Respond with Interest: While you are listening, you can give both verbal and nonverbal responses such as nodding, smiling, and comment to the other person(s). You can demonstrate you received the message and how it had an impact on you. When you respond, speak at the same energy level as the other person. This will help the person who is speaking that they really got through to you and will not have to repeat what they said.
7. Show Interest: While the other person is speaking, lean forward and maintain eye contact. Be sensitive to their cultural background while listening. Some cultures find smiling offensive. Some people talk with their hands. When you are listening, use similar cultural gestures and actions.
8. Let the Speaker Finish the Point they Were Making: Our brains speed along four times faster than when we speak. Try not to finish their sentences or interrupt. Wait for Pauses. When the speaker pauses, you might be able to jump in and ask a clarifying question. If there are not good long pauses, then wait until the speaker has completed speaking their idea.
9. Show understanding: Just saying “I understand” is not enough. People need some sort of evidence of understanding. You can demonstrate that you understand by occasionally restating the idea they were sharing or ask them a question that probes deeper into the main idea. Try not to repeat what they said just to prove you were listening. Active listening means you can show you understand what the other person is saying.
10. Be Respectful: Let them know you take their views and ideas seriously. Be willing to communicate with others at their level of understanding and attitude by adjusting your tone of voice, rate of speech and choice of words to show that you are empathetic and trying to imagine being where they are at the moment.

“I think one lesson I have learned is that there is no substitute for paying attention.” – Diane Sawyer

Resources:
How to improve your listening skills
Listening Secrets
Listening First Aid
The Art of Effective Listening
Talking is Sharing, but Listening is Caring
Listening is crucial in a Multicultural Workplace
Training in the Art of Listening

Something is happening now. Teachers that are baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1954) are going to be retiring. That means that teaching jobs are going to be available. Lots of teaching jobs will start opening up all over the country and world. Kansas is putting together a plan to prepare for all the teacher retirements and shortages. According to the Kansas City Star, “Administrators were concerned five years ago that there wouldn’t be enough teachers once older teachers started retiring. Then the economy tanked and many veteran teachers decided to keep working for a few more years.”

What is interesting is that teaching is now a second or third career for even retirees according to this article in the NY Times. Walt Patterson who is 65 who had been a local school board member, heard about an opening at the nearby West High School to teach science, and decided to build on his science and math background to become a teacher.

“My wife told me she wasn’t going to keep working while I went out every day to play golf,” Mr. Patteson said. After 10 years in the Navy, where he was a pilot, he returned home to help run his family’s farm in Tracy, Calif. But two decades later, in 1999, when the farm was sold, he was only 53 and he wanted to do something community minded.

All over the Internet there is talk about baby boomers leaving in droves and leaving a teacher shortage. This means there could be an expanding economy. If teachers retire, they leave with a pension and have time to enjoy themselves and spend some of their money on themselves. Money that goes back into the economy.

Michigan is probably one of the hardest hit states because of the collapse of the auto industry. Rick Heglund writes in his article ‘There’s hope for unemployed workers: Baby boomers will retire’: “Michigan’s unemployment rate stands at 14.1 percent as 684,000 people say they can’t find work.”

The Orlando Sentinel article “Teaching: A Hot Career as Boomers Retire” starts off with how many teaching jobs have been lost and why would anyone want to be a teacher. “within the next decade as waves of aging baby boomers retire, leaving districts with lots of openings to fill.”

This means that if you are interested in being a teacher, this is the time to jump in. Especially if you have a math or science background, you will be in demand in a few years. Take some classes. Learn about how technology will play a big part in a classroom and online environment. Things are changing. Jobs are coming. And if you’re retiring and want to work, look at teaching and sharing your vast knowledge you have attained.

1. Find out how each student learns best.

Each student is unique. Find out each students best learning styles using multiple assessments. Have students create a personal learner profile that identifies how they best learn, their strengths, and their weaknesses.

2. Allow students to choose their topic.

Give students a chance to make decisions about how they learn best. Have students pursue their own interests and something they are passionate about. Make sure they address their strengths and their learning styles. Don’t expect everyone to respond in the same way.

3. Encourage teachers and students to co-design the curriculum.

Review the standards with the students so they understand what they need to know and do. Ask students to brainstorm ideas and topics around the standards and examples of projects, problems, and challenges.

4. Ask lots of questions.

Take one topic and brainstorm open-ended questions that have no one right answer but multiple answers and more questions. Provide a framework for students to engage with new learning by making connections, thinking critically and exploring possibilities. Have them brainstorm questions and then prioritize the questions.

5. Teach less, learn more.

Review the lesson so you are not lecturing or the main expert of the content. Make it so everyone in the class is an expert on something or a great researcher so they can find the information they need. Change the seating arrangements so students are in groups or encourage students to redesign the learning environment. Have students find their strengths and be available to help others. When someone has a question about something, have them ask 3 people that have identified they know the topic before you. Integrate the appropriate technology that encourages publishing, creating, and collaborating with other students.

6. Share how you learn.

Talk about your own learning. You are creating a learning community where you are modeling collaboration, curiosity, and reflection. Be an active participant in the learning community. Opening up about you and what you know about a specific topic encourages discourse among your students.

7. Connect, extend, challenge.

Ask your students to write down and reflect on what they learned, if there was a particular learning experience they enjoyed, what helped and hindered their learning, and what might they do different next time. This can be in the form of a blog or personal online journal.

8. Re-evaluate assessment.

Instead of focusing on standardized tests only to measure progress, create meaningful assessment tasks that allow transfer of learning to other contexts. Have students publish evidence of their learning on the internet for an authentic audience such as a blog or ePortfolio. Place as much value on process and progress as on the final product.

9. Define goals and encourage reflection.

Each student can define their learning goals and develop their personal learning plan. They can refer to their progress towards their goals with ongoing self-evaluation and reflection. Provide opportunities for constructive, specific feedback from you, the student, their peers, and their parents. Student blogs are great tools for reflecting on learning and responding to their peers.

10. Focus on learning, not work.

Make sure you and your students know the reason for every learning experience. Avoid giving worksheets and busy work. Start with the Why they are learning something. Ask questions. Encourage questions. Develop with your students learning experiences that support personalized learning and collaborative group activities.

11. Coordinate student led conferences.

Invite students to lead the conference about them sharing their strengths and weaknesses with their teacher and parents. They also share how learning has progressed, areas for improvement, and the process and product of learning. Evidence of learning and the process can be published to an ePortfolio, a VoiceThread, Glogster, or blog.

Cyberbullying is a real concern for our children. Children need direction. I saw what Chris Clementi (kidsnetsoft@gmail.com), a middle school computer teacher and Google Teacher, shared about Cyberbullying. She mentioned that she is very interested in protecting children online and shared with me…

“It is important that students are given the necessary tools to be safe online. This webquest is designed to give them sufficient information to make wiser choices online so that they don’t become a victim to various scams and predators. It is also intended to prevent students from being cyberbullies. They need to understand the ramifications of bullying people in person or by using some digital means to torment their victims.
Their digital footprint can be to their advantage if they navigate the digital “waters” with caution, expertise, empathy and wisdom.”

Chris created Get Wise Online (https://sites.google.com/site/cyberwits/home)

This is a WebQuest on Internet topics where you watch videos on cyberbullying, online safety, social networks, sexting, and online etiquette and use what you have learned to create a multi-media presentation.

Chris provides examples and samples along with templates and forms. Here’s an example of the final product.



Chris’ website:

http://www.kidsnetsoft.com/html/home2.html

Chris’ Book:

https://sites.google.com/site/techintegrationsite/

Thank you Chris for sharing this with the world!

Sharon Eilts, sharon.eilts@sesd.org, is a middle school (grades 6-8) special education teacher for students with autism spectrum disorder. I met Sharon through the Google Certified Teacher program. I have been following her discussions on social media about special needs and the use of technology so I wanted to find out more. I asked Sharon some questions about her curriculum where she graciously shared her answers with me so I could share them with you especially since it is Special Education week & Autism & ADHD Awareness month.

Q1: I am really intrigued about your social studies curriculum. Can you give me some background on the curriculum and why you developed it?
A1. Firstly, it’s a social skills curriculum which I started developing because when I was transferred to the middle school, there was no established curriculum there. I learned about the people, like Michelle Garcia Winner, who have well established therapies and interventions as well as CAP (Comprehensive autism program), but I was pretty much on my own. I wanted the kids to be safe, learn how to have friends, not be bullied, and be as independent as I could help make them. I wanted others to see what these kids can do, not what they can’t.

Q2. What are the Touch/Talk/Trust concepts of social distancing, boundaries, and relationship specific behaviors? What types of activities did you use to learn they concepts?
A2. Those are from the Circles I materials. I believe that is an important concept that curriculum teaches. I incorporate a variety of activities, taking concepts from various curricula. We read, discuss, role play, video appropriate and inappropriate behaviors, de sensitize for teasing and name calling, yes do worksheets too. I try to give the students as many opportunities to practice social skills in a safe environment.

Q3. Why did you have the students create comic strips using ComicLife? Were there any surprising outcomes from this activity?
A3. All students are so in tune with technology. It has been part of their lives from the beginning. I wanted the students to create a story that other students might enjoy reading. I also want them to have some anonymity which Comic Life provides. What amazed me was that there were students who had some difficulty expressing their feelings verbally, but who were able to share significant information through this medium.

Q4. What does it mean to be a “Social Thinker?”
A4. Successful social thinkers are those, in my opinion, who can manage the vagaries of complex change. My students with autism cannot which means they are able to navigate the world of consistency, rules, and regularity, but have varying degrees of difficulty with non-verbal communication, sudden unanticipated changes, or situations that cause them great internal stress.

Q5. I feel many of your lessons could benefit all children. Can you share one lesson that you feel could be adapted for all middle school children?
A5. Wow, all of them would work for middle school students. I think the activities which allow students to participate in the projects, project-based learning if you will, would be very beneficial. It give the students the opportunity to be creators of their own learning within a framework, of course. They get the chance to learn how to do things, learning the what along the way through experiences.

Sharon compiled a great list of resources with her curriculum. Here’s a few of the resources:

• Social Skills for Middle Schools

• ComicLIfe
• Online interactive sites for students on idioms
  o http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2009/07/03/the-best-sites-to-help-ells-learn-idioms-slang/
  o http://www.quia.com/jg/66234.html
  o http://www.funbrain.com/idioms/
  o http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/theclassroom/interactive/
  o http://www.vocabulary.co.il/idioms/
  o http://www.vocabulary.co.il/idioms/idioms-game-slang-game/
  o http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/idioms/idiom_1.html
  • Cyberbullying Websites
    o www.42explore.com/bully.thm
    o www.bullypolice.org
    o www.nonamecallingweek.org
    o www.stopbullyingnow.com
    o www.cyberbully.org
    o www.stopcyberbullying.org
    o www.bullying.org
    o www.dontlaugh.org
    o www.i-safe.org

    Thank you Sharon for sharing your ideas and projects. I really like what Sharon said “giving students the chance to learn how to do things, learning the what along the way through experiences.” To see more of what is happening in Sharon’s classroom, go to her class website is http://sites.google.com/site/mrseiltsclass.

    Tags: curriculum, Learning Environments, Professional Development, special education, Technology

Inquiry-based learning is a style of teaching that is based on asking questions that kids honestly care about and guiding them to find the answers as well as coming up with new questions along the way. Dewey’s description of the four primary interests of the child are still appropriate starting points:

• the child’s instinctive desire to find things out

• in conversation, the propensity children have to communicate
• in construction, their delight in making things
• in their gifts of artistic expression.

It makes sense to teach this way. However, it takes more than just letting go and letting students choose questions. The first year you implement inquiry-based learning is a big paradigm shift. I put together 12 tips that could help you as you jump into the inquiry-based learning approach.

1. Plan enough time to pre-plan, plan, and plan again during implementation. Even though inquiry-based learning is student-centered, planning involves much more prep time.

2. Start with a topic that encourages inquiry. Review your curriculum and choose a topic that you believe will motivate and engage your students.
3. Choose 20% of your time for inquiry. Some teachers are not ready to convert their entire curriculum to inquiry-based learning. You might want to look at transforming your classroom 20% of the time.
4. Flip your classroom for this unit. Create a blog or website to host videos and information about the concepts you want students to understand. You can even video and post your lectures. Ask students to review the concepts you posted on their own. Then use classroom time for sharing, collaborating, lab work, research, writing, and production.
5. Pose real questions. Model open-ended questions where there are no right answers. Consider the following questions about the questions you ask:
   – What do I want to know about this topic?
   – What do I know about my questions?
   – How do I know it?
   – What do I need to know?
   – What could an answer be?

6. Encourage co-designing the curriculum. Share the standards or performance skills with your students that are to be met during this inquiry-based lesson or unit. Since the unit is student-driven, students can develop what assist in what they plan to learn and own it.
7. Develop rubric for assessing learning. Invite students to contribute to the development of the rubric. You can start with a few criteria using Rubistar and then ask students to refine and add to the criteria.
8. Group students for collaborative learning. Divide students into small groups. Encourage each group to develop a driving question that they will work on together, and then let them develop a project based on the question.
9. Have students collect resources. Students can use Google Docs or a Wiki to collaborate as they collect websites, images, videos, podcasts, documents, etc. that supports the topic. asks more questions, and helps answer their questions.
   – What kinds of resources might help me find the answers?
   – Where do I find the resources?
   – How do I know if the resources are valid?
   – How can you ensure responsibility and authority?
   – What other information is available?

10. Monitor progress. Share a checklist with the groups and then ask them to refine the checklist to meet each group’s needs. Then refer to the checklist while developing project.
11. Interpret information. Encourage students to ask these questions about the information they collected:
    – How is this information relevant to my topic?
    – What parts of the information supports my answers and does not support my answers?
    – Does it raise new questions?

12. Present findings. Have students present to each other and ask for feedback and any other questions that their presentation raises.

Learning begins with the learner. What children know and what they want to learn are the very foundations of learning.

When I heard that Larry Anderson wrote an eBook Lead your Own Photo Safari, I had to download it right away. Larry is offering this eBook free for you. I was blown away with the amount of work and collaboration that was put into this endeavor. I’ve known Larry for years and am so impressed with the research and information that he shares with the world. I asked Larry if I could interview him to find out a little more of the whys and hows that went into the development of this eBook. He graciously shared with me his answers to my questions (in bold text) below so I could share them with you:

1. What is a Photo Safari?
From page 25 of the book:
The dictionary definition of “safari” includes these phrases:

a journey or expedition, for hunting, exploration, or investigation
any long or adventurous journey or expedition

So, we can say that a Photo Safari is an adventurous journey or expedition during which people hunt for, explore, or investigate opportunities to write with light. To this, we can add the notion of creativity. That is, as people engage in this expeditionary activity, they apply their unique, individual creative traits so that the images they capture express accurately how they see the world to which they are exposed during the Photo Safari.

In short, my idea of a Photo Safari is an excursion, during which a collection of friends make photographs of locations, objects, or subjects that appeal to the photographer’s eye.

2. Why did you write this eBook?
I have had such success and enjoyment during the Photo Safaris of which I have been a part, so it seemed important to share my stories with others, in hopes that they, too, could participate in the joy I have experienced. Also, I figured that, if I told my story, someone with more experience might read the book and share some secrets with me and my future Photo Safari outings would be even more enjoyable.

3. How did you get hooked on the Photo Safari bug?
I have loved photography for many years. I enjoy being with other people who enjoy photography. So, when I organized and led my first Photo Safari in Washington, DC, I found out, first-hand, just how fulfilling this could be. So, I have continued to expand my planning efforts with each safari. I was “hooked” upon completion of the first actual photo safari in which I participated (Monterey, CA with Pulitzer Prize winning photographer, Vincent Laforet, and a team of Apple Distinguished Educators).

4. When and how did you start your first Photo Safari?
The National Educational Computing Conference (NECC–now known as ISTE) was held in Washington, DC in June 2009. Since I have traveled to DC many times and know the National Mall area quite well, I thought this would be a natural time to conduct my first Photo Safari. Another Apple Distinguished Educator (ADE), Craig Nansen, and I collaborated on leading this safari. We had help from John Maschak (Apple Canada) and Gordon Worley (ADE from Florida).

So, we just announced the Photo Safari within the ADE Community and the registration limit was reached quickly. Then, we had a few other people beg to join us, so we accommodated them. When this safari was completed, we knew we had a winning idea. Of course, being in DC on the National Mall all day didn’t hurt!

5. Why is it important to have a leadership team?
While it’s true that a person can conduct a Photo Safari alone, it is just so much more fun when you can share the excitement with others who have amazing talents to bring to the experience. As the organizer of a Photo Safari, it makes the job much easier when I can engage in “division of labor” and ensure that the safari will be much more effective. A good leadership team is made up of smart people with significant talents and time that they give willingly to the event. So, why would I not use them? The end result is that the participants in the safari gain a much more meaningful experience when a strong leadership team is in place.

6. I know planning is essential but you emphasized pre-planning. Why does most of the work occur before the Photo Safari begins?
Any worthwhile activity necessitates good pre-planning. Examples abound of how we plan for significant events before they happen. Therefore, it’s essential that we, the organizer and the leadership team, spend a great deal of time in delineating the details and working to make sure everything comes to fruition by the time the Photo Safari kicks off.

7. How do you choose the best site for a Photo Safari?
Reasons for selecting an ideal venue vary remarkably. The “best” site can be a local venue, as a group of townspeople embark on a Photo Safari to learn more about their hometown. Thus, the “best” site could be a variety of historical, cultural, or neighborhood locations around your town. Or, you may be conducting a Photo Safari in a major metropolitan area. The choices are many….will you choose a site that focuses upon architecture, history, gardening, civic locations, military settings, or any one of a host of other considerations?

Thus, the actual site is selected depending upon the type of safari with which I’m involved. Most of the ones in which I’ve engaged so far have been dictated by a particular location (Washington, DC; Monterey, CA; Denver, CO; Philadelphia, PA; Phoenix, AZ). So, my leadership team and I selected particular locations because we felt that participants would be fascinated with a venue. And, we’ve had 100% success. We intend to continue this at ISTE 2012 in San Diego. We are already engaged in selecting from a “laundry list” of possible sites for an enjoyable, informative Photo Safari.

8. What are some of the technology tools that you include in a Photo Safari?
My response to this depends upon how one defines “technology tools.” But, as I’ve engaged in Photo Safaris so far, I have used:

• Email
• Skype and iChat (for audio and video conferencing)
• Group texting (to inform participants before and during the actual safari, as necessary)
• Flickr and other photo hosting sites (as a “holding pen” for the select photos made by participants)
• Google Apps (for planning tools by the leadership team, for registration by participants, for organizing transportation)
• Google Earth (to plot safari tour paths)
• Wikis (as sites to host safari information and resources)

It’s possible that there are more, but these are the ones that come to my mind right now.

9. I have a Nikon D40. Is it important to have separate filters and lenses for the Photo Safari?
As mentioned in the book, “Leading Your Own Photo Safari,” it is not necessary to have “fancy” equipment. Yes, there are situations in which your having special filters and lenses will be of great value. In those cases, we will attempt to notify participants that they can bring these accessories along with them.

For example, in the Rocky Mountain National Park Photo Safari, we encountered several mountain streams. The waterfalls and river flow were natural spots for using neutral density filters in order to help slow down shutter speed so the water would take on that “silky” look during long exposures. Also, at Bear Lake, it was helpful to have that neutral density filter to keep the details of the water on the lake while keeping the bright blue sky from getting blown out due to excessive exposure. In each situation, we used these situations as teaching moments. Even people who did not own these filters were able to use the filters on their lenses, provided that their lenses were of the proper size to accept the filters that screw on.

In some cases, it is helpful to have UV filters to help block out glare. We try to educate safari participants. Even if they come to the safari without such a filter, we will have the opportunity to talk about the filters and show them to all interested participants. Again, we leverage this into an educational opportunity. That makes the participant become a smarter consumer, should the time come when s/he wants to purchase a filter for this purpose.

In the case of lenses, we try to use our pre-safari communications to discuss the use of various lenses. Again, if participants arrive with a DSLR (either Canon or Nikon, since these are the most common), it’s possible to share lenses and let participants try a variety of lenses. So, if the people come with two or three lenses, that simply makes the whole experience more valuable to everybody.

But, the basic answer is that it’s not necessary to have a variety of lenses and/or filters. If you do, that’s fine. If not, that’s fine, too. Your D40 will be a valuable tool on our Photo Safari. We’ll make sure of it! (Even if all you have is a point-and-shoot camera…or even just an iPhone or iPad, we’ll still ensure you a successful venture.)

10. Why is communication so important during a Photo Safari? What are some of the tools you recommend?
It is absolutely crucial to plan for a mechanism that allows the safari leader to communicate instantly with everyone. You never know what kind(s) of situations may arise.

In Philadelphia, our large group of photographers divided into four teams. Each team went to one of four specified quadrants of Olde Town Philadelphia. After approximately one hour, each team would rotate to a new quadrant. So, as the safari leader, I sent out a group text to everyone, letting them know that it is time to rotate. Also, I needed to inform everybody when the time arrived for us to gather at the end of the Photo Safari for our debriefing session and to award the “giveaway” prizes. Again, Group Text (an iPhone app) came to the rescue.

I used a free app, Group Text, that worked like magic. It works beautifully with my Macintosh app, Address Book. I merely established a group in Address Book that included all members of the Photo Safari. During registration, I had asked them to indicate the cell phone number they would be using during the safari…and asked them to indicate if they can get text messages at that number. Then, the Group Text app just takes that Address Book group and allows me to send a text blast. Worked like a charm!

11. Is there anything you would like to add about Photo Safaris and your eBook for our readers?
Oh, there are a million things I would like to add. First, I want everybody to know that this activity is more fun than words can express! The advantages of conducting a Photo Safari are innumerable. Teachers can use this in amazing ways with classes of students, but also with parents and other community members. I hope many readers will strive to join us in San Diego at ISTE 2012 for our Photo Safari. Our plan is to conduct it on Sunday prior to the opening keynote….probably an all-day safari, as is our routine. Of course, since this whole idea came from the Apple Distinguished Educator (ADE) family, we will offer first registration rights to ADEs. But, we will take as many others as possible. I suspect our registration limit will again be held to approximately 50 people, due simply to logistical reasons.

I really want to encourage any readers of the book to please let me know of your successes as you conduct your own Photo Safari.

• How did you get the idea?
• How was your planning process different than what I have used?
• What tips could you use to share with others?
• What successes did you have?
• How did you share your photos?
• Who was involved?
• What did you learn?
• Would you want to hold another Photo Safari as a result of your experience on your first one?
• How can you imagine that a Photo Safari could be used in schools?
• Did you have any “Aha!” moments? If so, what were they? What problems did you encounter? How did you handle them?
• Did you experience any discouragements? If so, how did you handle those?
• What aids, resources, tutorials would you like to see developed to help you in the future?

• Should I build a web site, wiki, or anything else that would give you and your colleagues a place to share ideas, experiences, resources, etc.?

And, one more note….there will definitely be an update to the book. Version 2.0 will have many more features. So, stay tuned.

Also, the book will be a central core to a “collection” that will appear in the new, soon-to-be-announced Apple Distinguished Educator channel of iTunes U, so we’ll have more resources to go along with the book…and will give you a broader view of what it takes to plan and conduct a successful Photo Safari.

You can download the free eBook, “Leading Your Own Photo Safari” by going to files.me.com/adelarry/5rre64

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Thank you Larry for being so generous and sharing your passion with the world! Here is Larry’s contact information if you have any questions. Please share any comments for Larry below:

Dr. Larry S. Anderson, Founder/CEO
National Center for Technology Planning
P. O. Box 2393 — Tupelo, MS 38803
662.844.9630 (Voice & FAX) — 662.321.0677 (Cell)
**APPLE DISTINGUISHED EDUCATOR * CLASS OF 2000 **
Assoc. Prof. (Ret.), Mississippi State University
Web Site — http://www.nctp.com
Blog — http://nctpcast(dot)blogspot(dot)com
Podcasts — Think Like A Leader
http://nctpcast.libsyn.com
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Smartphones and mobile devices are changing the business world. Instead of IT departments being able to force a particular set of mobile solutions on the workforce, employees now expect to be able to use the smartphones — and increasingly, iPads or other mobile devices — they bought for personal use. According to data from Aberdeen Group (via ZDNet), about 75% of enterprises now have “bring your own device” policies in place. Read more …

Think about your school and trying to set up a 1:1 program. Look at your students. Look at your staff. Consider how you are currently maintaining and managing your technology. All or most of your teachers and students have smartphones or some type of mobile device. Before your school decides to implement BYOD, ask your teachers, students, and parents these questions:

1. Is your school looking to cut costs?

   Let’s be real. Every school no matter if public or private is having financial issues. The cost of maintaining technology is very high. Much of your costs are for people. If you are a public school, the district has an IT department that management the network, images the laptops on the 1:1 program, controls what programs are added to the image, and oversees the firewall and what websites are accessible to students. This will change.

2. Do you have tech-savvy teachers who are creative and are more the “guide on the side” type of people?

   Sometimes we forget that many teachers already know how to use technology. Most or all have a cell phone. Almost all teachers now are creating their lessons on the computer. What I found is that teachers need their own guide or coach to support them as they lead the way. Like I’ve said in past posts, teachers only know what they were taught. Teachers were taught to teach in isolation and to provide direct instruction. They were the keepers of knowledge who fed information to their students. In designing a program that uses any type of device means that teachers need to move to a different type of entity. This will take time. This is where schools need to put their resources and money. The teacher is the one that matters in the classroom. Learning to “Let Go” is not easy. Everything changes. The relationship between teacher and administration is one of trust where teachers are allowed to take risks. Students take risks and learn from failure. That’s a big jump. I say let’s value this type of teacher or guide and give them the support they need to have students succeed.

3. How many of your teachers and students own a mobile device?

   Do a survey with the different types of mobile devices. Find out if they use the device at school and at home. It really doesn’t matter what type of device if the owner of the device takes responsibility for the maintenance of the device.

4. What types of projects or lessons are teachers doing that includes technology?

   At a Birds of a Feather session moderated by Scott Meech (http://iear.org) there were loads of people with iPads sharing the next big App with the group. It seemed like everyone had an iPad or some type of mobile device at ISTE. Many of the Apps that were shared were free like Science360 hosted by the National Science Foundation along with online free libraries like the Khan Academy (www.khanacademy.org) with over 2100 video lectures. I plan to post again with loads of examples of apps for schools and strategies on how to use those apps in the classroom.

5. What does professional development look like when everyone is using different mobile devices?

   Professional development is changing. It is no longer a stand-up and deliver one shot one day deal. You can use a one day or one hour session to introduce an idea, method, strategy, or to empower teachers to move in a specific direction. I’d like to think professional development is more like professional growth that builds on personal learning goals. If you drive everything around your passion, you want it and own it. Most teachers became a teacher to make a difference. For the past 8 or so years, it has been about accountability, test scores, and keeping the school open. Many teachers have burnt out. Some really good teachers have retired early. Some new teachers are in the profession for the wrong reasons. What if we change what professional development looks like? How about an ILP (Individual Learning Plan) for teachers where they are supported by a coach and are part of several professional learning communities? Every teacher and their situation is different than every other teacher. Just like students. Now with BYOD, they have a different role.

6. What is the different role of the teacher in a BYOD school?

   The teacher is a co-learner with their students and not the sole expert of the content and/or technology any more. No one can be. The world is a different place with Google. You can google any term or phrase. The problem now is for students to know what is authentic and valid and how to think critically on their own. Teachers have to reinvent what teaching is. The school needs to support their experimenting and risk-taking. The teacher is more of a practicing researcher with real people. Each student brings something interesting and special to the class. Now they are bringing their own device.

7. So what does the BYOD classroom look like?

   Students group themselves by topic. There is a lot of noise going on in some parts of the room where other parts of the room there is quiet and intense research going on. The teacher is walking around observing, answering questions, doing research themselves, and letting go. Students may be texting each other and maybe sharing with each other. This is more like the real world. Rules will probably change. Students will own more of their learning. The learning environment will be more creative and innovative. There will probably be open doors or classes held outside. More projects. Less lecturing.

I can think of more questions. Can you? Do you have any for me? I am excited about this direction.

What is your Unique Selling Position (USP)? How do you stand out in a crowd or in social media so you are remarkable and different enough to get noticed by an employer or client?

You can do this by branding yourself. The job market is tough and sending thousands of resumés may not be the right way to get that “job” you want. I am older than most job-seekers but I learned some things about using the tools available to get known. I read this article from AARP and thought I’d share and adapt the tips for you.

1. Find your passion. It’s all about what you believe in and thinking and looking positive about it. Believe in yourself and what you are doing. If you do, others will too. “Accepting yourself is the most important ingredient in the self-confidence formula.”
2. Give an elevator speech.Come up with a short 60 second pitch that comes across who you are, what you do best, and why others should believe in you. Make it authentic, strong, and personal and make it stand out from your competition.
3. Validate your passion.You believe in what you are doing. You are positive about it. Find others that do to. Encourage your believers to share your passion and get the buzz out all over the place. Find your “Google Quotient” using the Online ID Calculator (www.onlineidcalculator.com) to see how many relevant hits your name generates in a web search. Use social media like Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter to build your PLN (Personal Learning Network).
4. Promote your passion. Design business cards that promote you and your brand and give them out to everyone after your elevator speech. Link to your website that promotes you also. Have all of your contact information so people can find you.
5. Come up with your look. Come up with your look and dress the part. You may have a signature accessory, color, or shoes. Just look as professional as you can with crazy boots or wild glasses.

Teachers only teach what they were taught. Most teachers were taught traditional methods of direct instruction. Theorists like Dewey, Piaget, and Vygotsky focused on students being more responsible for their learning. Papert focused on constructivism where students make learning happen. Montessori focused on preschool children learning through play. The Reggio Emilio approach, started in Italy after World War II, encourages preschool children to proactively participate in discovery learning while adults chronicle their progress. Bruner focused his research on discovery learning where students are encouraged to learn on their own through action and experience.

Each student is unique. Students learn at different rates and have multiple learning styles and intelligences. (Garner’s Theory of Multiple Intellligences) When you look at how we teach, most teachers are still at the knowledge or remembering level of Bloom’s Taxonomy. (Andrew Church revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy below)

Teacher-center vs student-centered classroom

Students can be more involved in the decisions of how they learn and what they learn. If they are aware of the standards and tests they need to learn, they can even help teachers design activities that engage them and help them understand the concepts. Most students zone out after 1-2 minutes of anyone talking at them. If they are accountable for a presentation, song, skit, poster, or an exhibit, they take more ownership of the product. The product really doesn’t matter as much as the process, but to the students, it means alot. Writing an essay that only the teacher reads doesn’t mean anything to them. If their peers read their essays, that’s another story. If they have to do a showcase of their work and their parents or others in the school community see it, then they really care. If their work is published on the Internet, then they will work on it overtime, on breaks, after-school. The engagement factor explodes.

So the important piece here is to tie in any projects or student-centered activities with standards. As long as we use tests and standards as measurement of student achievement, we have to do this to show that this type of classroom works. Eventually, we need other means of assessment that are more authentic.

To move to this type of classroom takes time, patience, and being okay with taking risks and learning from failure. That is tough for today’s teachers that are accountable for scores based on standardized tests. What I suggest is to start slowly. If you are a teacher who wants to move in this direction, here are some steps you can take:

• discuss what you want to do with your administrator
• introduce the new Bloom’s Taxonomy to your grade level or department
• identify gaps in learning by analyzing student data
• choose one area where you can design one project or lesson that includes inquiry
• check the resources you have available first before you even start planning
• sit with a coach or colleague to redesign a lesson to include a more hands-on approach to learning
• ask your coach to model some of the strategies for you or explain to your students honestly what you want to do and ask for their help
• involve students in more of the design of questions and the type of products they will be presenting

A strong leader helps. If your students have access to computers and the Internet, they can work in groups. Talking about technology is another post.