A New Year

If I were a resolution-making sort of person, I suppose keeping current with this blog would be high on my list. New Year or not, it's a goal of mine.

So, let's start 2011 by talking about how we use technology in education. Our AUP (Acceptable Use Policy--otherwise known as "the computer form thingie") needs serious revamping. It was accepted by the school board way before I joined the district in 2001, and, by being a 21st century teacher, technology coach, and learner, I violate it nearly every day.

I will only use the Crescent School e-mail program to communicate and interact

with others inside and outside our system. Outside e-mail programs (Hot Mail,

etc.) are not allowed.

Oops...e-mail is so...so...20th century...but I use Yahoo! mail to access various educator groups and the Teacher Leadership Project listserv. Tsk...tsk.. I use g-mail for subscribing to all sorts of educational sites--and to monitor Web 2.0 (uh oh...) sites that my students use. I check my home e-mail to access info sent from the ESD, since our school mail isn't always reliable. And, I have all of my middle school students signed up for Gaggle mail. Hmmm...this isn't looking good.

I will not engage in chat rooms, Internet conferencing, Internet TV, or other similar

communication means using the Crescent School network.

Oh no...I blew it again. My students and I have been using Skype in the classroom to communicate within our school and across the country. We've used the school network to conference via cell phone. I attend interactive webinars and use GoToMeeting to connect with other tech leaders in our ESD. I have my students chatting with each other through Moodle and posting on digital word walls.

I will get approval from the staff network administrator before subscribing to

mailing lists.

Um...not exactly sure who this is. {-: And mailing lists are kind of passe, aren't they? But, I'll admit to subscribing to ones in the past for Everyday Math, TLP, etc., and, well, I didn't ask anybody.

I will not install software on any computer at Crescent School without the

approval of the staff network administrator.

Here we go again...the elusive network administrator. DeepFreeze on the student machines pretty much saves me from myself...but...am I really supposed to contact someone every time I find a great flipchart to download for my Promethean Board?

So, I have to wonder...when this AUP was drafted back in 1995, did they not pay any attention to the AT&T ads? As we draft a new policy this spring, we really need to be forward thinking and look at how the role of technology will be expanded in our real and virtual classrooms. And, we need to create a flexible document that grows and changes as new technologies emerge.

Interactive Whiteboards

Yesterday a group of 19 educators from our school district and beyond gathered to learn more about the Promethean Board. Thanks to Jen Genshock, a Promethean consultant, and Robert Pohl, Coordinator for Instructional Technology in the Northshore School District for providing us with such a comprehensive overview!

Ideally, we'll all construct our own flipcharts based upon our specific curriculum and needs, but timewise, that isn't always a reality, especially for novices. Whether you're building your own flipcharts or tweaking pre-made ones, there's a lot available to make your job easier.

Promethean Planet offers a wealth of teacher-created and commercial resources, particularly for elementary teachers. It's not the only place to find interactive materials for use on your whiteboard (IWB), though.

The National Science Center in Augusta, Georgia, for instance, has put together links to tools that can be used across the grade levels and curriculums. The list is divided by curriculum areas and subdivided into elementary, middle, and high school categories.

Brainpop Educators has resources for the Promethean Board. You may have to join the site to access the tools.

Check out this blog from Australia with some great ideas for using popular apps like Google Earth and Prezi with your IWB.

KScience out of the United Kingdom offers flash animations for science that will add a lot of pizzaz to your lesson--and increase understanding for your students.

High school math and science teachers should take a look at Absorb Learning for free IWB resources in chemistry, electronics, math, physics, and advanced physics.

You can find wildlife films and videos to embed in your IWB lessons at ArKive. They can be searched by species or geographic location.

freezeray is another place to look for visuals for your high school science flipcharts. Biology, physics, technology, chemistry...in fact, I've found some great interactive examples of simple machines in the technology category that I plan to use with my 6th grade class when we study pulleys.

Biology in Motion is a resource I'll definitely make use of in our life science units.

Hmmm....looks a little heavy on science here, but that's what I'm especially interested in using my Promethean Board for at the moment. (-;

Diigo

I mentioned Diigo in my first post; I switched from Delicious to Diigo last fall because I like both the ease of saving bookmarks and the potential for collaboration. Diigo has added a classroom component that I registered for a couple of weeks ago. Right now I'm just waiting for some finalized class lists so I can start inputting student names. This will allow my students to share resources with each other as they work on projects together. I'll be able to set up folders with links instead of constantly creating web pages--and best of all, we can all access it from anywhere!

Thinking about technology

Every teacher should have a blog. Every tech director should have a blog. Well, that's what I've been reading, anyway. So, I'm starting this particular one to focus on technology in education. Not the hardware aspect of it, although my biases may creep in a bit, but about technology tools and how they can be integrated into our already overflowing curriculum. What works? What doesn't? (Yeah, I've had my share of flops...)

The first thing that I'm going to recommend is that every teacher on the planet subscribe to Free Technology for Teachers . The way I make sure to read it daily is to have an RSS feed on my iGoogle desktop.

And, second, get yourself involved in (at least one) an online PLN. Local, regional, whatever...just get involved. A network of other educators that share your focus and interests is invaluable.

Lastly, whether you choose Delicious, Diigo, or another, make sure you're social bookmarking. Diigo is my current preference, with a classroom component that I can't wait to use with my middle school kids this year. Look me up there, and then please, please, please join the Olympic Peninsula group! That way we can share sites relevant to our magnificent little corner of the universe.