Saturday, July 31, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
A Reply,
I'm doing double duty here by pasting an email response to my dear brother Ed in the hopes of updating everyone. There will certainly be more to follow. :O
Hey, Let's talk today. I'm at Metro this morning getting fingerprinted, etc. and processing paperwork. Basically, I've accepted a non-teaching but certificated (licensed) position as "Virtual Learning Curriculum Specialist" for Metro Nashville Public Schools. In this newly designed position I'll be responsible for reviewing and implementing course content for the new virtual high school and I'm hitting the ground running, fleshing out coursework for the 10 full-time students my colleague and supervisor, Kecia Ray, the Director of Instructional Technology at MNPS, has lined up for enrollment starting Aug. 16. Florida Virtual School is a district of itself and served 150,000 students last year, and we can expect our student population to be growing quickly.
This will be a chance to serve kids for generations by designing a school that takes from the best established practices and builds a model that incorporates better ones, including virtual worlds in some guise. I'm buzzed. It took Lee Ann and me a week to sort out this decision once the job was offered, and now I'm committed. I'll be packing up my possessions and leaving 14 years of memories behind at USN this week and moving into my little cubicle at Martin Professional Development Center by Eakin School off Hillsboro Village, which will be the locus of my work for a good long while. Wish me luck.
Hey, Let's talk today. I'm at Metro this morning getting fingerprinted, etc. and processing paperwork. Basically, I've accepted a non-teaching but certificated (licensed) position as "Virtual Learning Curriculum Specialist" for Metro Nashville Public Schools. In this newly designed position I'll be responsible for reviewing and implementing course content for the new virtual high school and I'm hitting the ground running, fleshing out coursework for the 10 full-time students my colleague and supervisor, Kecia Ray, the Director of Instructional Technology at MNPS, has lined up for enrollment starting Aug. 16. Florida Virtual School is a district of itself and served 150,000 students last year, and we can expect our student population to be growing quickly.
This will be a chance to serve kids for generations by designing a school that takes from the best established practices and builds a model that incorporates better ones, including virtual worlds in some guise. I'm buzzed. It took Lee Ann and me a week to sort out this decision once the job was offered, and now I'm committed. I'll be packing up my possessions and leaving 14 years of memories behind at USN this week and moving into my little cubicle at Martin Professional Development Center by Eakin School off Hillsboro Village, which will be the locus of my work for a good long while. Wish me luck.
Let's also look for cooler weather. I have a voucher for airfare from the cancellation of my DC/Nashville flight last week. I'm thinking fish, one soon fall weekend. What are you thinking?
On Tue, Jul 27, 2010 at 11:02 PM, Edwin Merrick wrote:
Anxious to hear about your new job.
Monday, July 26, 2010
ISTE NETS-S in 3D
Hey, ya'll,
I have been remiss in sharing a project I put up one day in ReactionGrid that I hope will provide an interesting destination for teachers interested in learning and teaching in virtual worlds. I did share it briefly at ISTE10 in Denver, CO at the SIGVE Virtual Environments Playground, but I think a few pics online would be a nice addition to the shareout.
This build displays the standards outline for the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), which those of us who follow and utilize this kind of thing know as ISTE NETS. There are three "National Educational Technology Standards" sets, one for students (NETS-S) and one each for Administrators and Teachers, each substituting the appropriate letter for the -S in their acronyms.
See them all here.
And now you can visit a visual representation of them in ReactionGrid, the OpenSimulator-based virtual world that has become a staple of my online explorations. Disclaimer: the owners of this beautiful and functional world are becoming friends of mine, so I'm biased as can be in favor of this platform. If Linden Lab took a few cues from their personalized, helpful, and proactive style of service for educators (or for anyone, for that matter), they would ensure the future of Second Life, a future which has come under considerable speculation lately. Don't get me wrong: I love Second Life. Our Special Interest Group for Virtual Environments networks in there and shares fascinating professional development opportunities in a monthly SIGVE Speaker Session every third Tuesday of every month (taking a break for August as teachers get back into the swing of the school year. It's just that the recent elimination of 30% of their employees included, apparently, anyone interested in fostering an education market. We continue on in spite of, not with the help of, Linden Lab. We hope for positive change, as usual.
But I digress. Surprised?
Here are a few pics from the ReactionGrid project, hosted on ISTE Island 1. When you first login to Reaction Grid, look at "Places" on the login screen and choos ISTE Island 1. When you visit, please know that you are invited to visit ISTE's new headquarters on ISTE Island 2 (teleport at the standards build), part of a new project for that organization. And while you're there, feel free to add resources at each level of the standards that illustrate ways to implement them. Don't be afraid to hit the Build button and share away!
I have been remiss in sharing a project I put up one day in ReactionGrid that I hope will provide an interesting destination for teachers interested in learning and teaching in virtual worlds. I did share it briefly at ISTE10 in Denver, CO at the SIGVE Virtual Environments Playground, but I think a few pics online would be a nice addition to the shareout.
This build displays the standards outline for the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), which those of us who follow and utilize this kind of thing know as ISTE NETS. There are three "National Educational Technology Standards" sets, one for students (NETS-S) and one each for Administrators and Teachers, each substituting the appropriate letter for the -S in their acronyms.
See them all here.
And now you can visit a visual representation of them in ReactionGrid, the OpenSimulator-based virtual world that has become a staple of my online explorations. Disclaimer: the owners of this beautiful and functional world are becoming friends of mine, so I'm biased as can be in favor of this platform. If Linden Lab took a few cues from their personalized, helpful, and proactive style of service for educators (or for anyone, for that matter), they would ensure the future of Second Life, a future which has come under considerable speculation lately. Don't get me wrong: I love Second Life. Our Special Interest Group for Virtual Environments networks in there and shares fascinating professional development opportunities in a monthly SIGVE Speaker Session every third Tuesday of every month (taking a break for August as teachers get back into the swing of the school year. It's just that the recent elimination of 30% of their employees included, apparently, anyone interested in fostering an education market. We continue on in spite of, not with the help of, Linden Lab. We hope for positive change, as usual.
But I digress. Surprised?
Here are a few pics from the ReactionGrid project, hosted on ISTE Island 1. When you first login to Reaction Grid, look at "Places" on the login screen and choos ISTE Island 1. When you visit, please know that you are invited to visit ISTE's new headquarters on ISTE Island 2 (teleport at the standards build), part of a new project for that organization. And while you're there, feel free to add resources at each level of the standards that illustrate ways to implement them. Don't be afraid to hit the Build button and share away!
View from above
Close up of one standard--fly through and enjoy the view
A side view
An example of one resource for one standard: add your own!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Am I Delusional? Apple Summer Learning Institute Shines in the Closet
Okay.
So I just got finished with the two days that comprised the Apple Summer Learning Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. It was not an invited conference, though I was invited as a "Teacher of the Future" from the National Association of Independent Schools. Anyone who knew about it could pay a fee and attend. There are around a hundred? Maybe? attendees. As a learning experience for the educators in attendance, it was great and the conference organizers and presenters all did a fantastic job. All that said, one would soooo expect the organizers and the attendees to be savvy about collaborative arenas and online platforms.
Not the case. I set up a twitter hashtag, but I don't see any way to get it to the participants and if no one's using it but me that's all you get with a search. Since the event is the "Boston Apple Summer Learning Institute" for teachers, the tag I made up is #basli,10 and there ya go. Searching around, I did find this one brief but thoughtful post from a principal who attended the separate session for his ilk two days prior to the one for teachers.
The conference organizers made no concerted effort to share any means of online collaboration. This is Apple, ya'll. They should know better.
The problem, of course, is that they do. And they're choosing not to support this arena of collaboration or allow us to continue the dialog outside of their staged event. Is that because Apple doesn't have a competitive (to twitter) microblogging platform? I don't know. I shudder to contemplate. I've learned a lot here. Sadly, I have little venue to share it.
When I say "us" above I mean the people at the conference of course, but also the people in my PLN who share my notions about how the current (agrarian, teacher-directed) models have failed our students and how serious rethinking is in order. You may not be one of them, but you got to this page, so you may have some interests that flow along this stream.
I met a bunch of change-committed teachers in my BASLI experience, and I'm grateful to NAIS for sending me, but seriously, now, are we here yet, or are we stuck in the last decade? There is no reason for a conference like this to isolate itself outside the robust discussion that gets carried on through social media every day of every week.
Apple, think about the Global Share. I think it will benefit your message and your profit line.
So I just got finished with the two days that comprised the Apple Summer Learning Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. It was not an invited conference, though I was invited as a "Teacher of the Future" from the National Association of Independent Schools. Anyone who knew about it could pay a fee and attend. There are around a hundred? Maybe? attendees. As a learning experience for the educators in attendance, it was great and the conference organizers and presenters all did a fantastic job. All that said, one would soooo expect the organizers and the attendees to be savvy about collaborative arenas and online platforms.
Not the case. I set up a twitter hashtag, but I don't see any way to get it to the participants and if no one's using it but me that's all you get with a search. Since the event is the "Boston Apple Summer Learning Institute" for teachers, the tag I made up is #basli,10 and there ya go. Searching around, I did find this one brief but thoughtful post from a principal who attended the separate session for his ilk two days prior to the one for teachers.
The conference organizers made no concerted effort to share any means of online collaboration. This is Apple, ya'll. They should know better.
The problem, of course, is that they do. And they're choosing not to support this arena of collaboration or allow us to continue the dialog outside of their staged event. Is that because Apple doesn't have a competitive (to twitter) microblogging platform? I don't know. I shudder to contemplate. I've learned a lot here. Sadly, I have little venue to share it.
When I say "us" above I mean the people at the conference of course, but also the people in my PLN who share my notions about how the current (agrarian, teacher-directed) models have failed our students and how serious rethinking is in order. You may not be one of them, but you got to this page, so you may have some interests that flow along this stream.
I met a bunch of change-committed teachers in my BASLI experience, and I'm grateful to NAIS for sending me, but seriously, now, are we here yet, or are we stuck in the last decade? There is no reason for a conference like this to isolate itself outside the robust discussion that gets carried on through social media every day of every week.
Apple, think about the Global Share. I think it will benefit your message and your profit line.
Apple Summer Learning Institute in Boston
I'm at the Apple Learning Institute for Teachers for two days of learning for teachers in Boston, MA, at the lovely Colonnade Hotel. I'll try to post here as I go, maybe liveblog it if the arrangement and access seem just right. I'm a PC guy at heart, or at least I am now, and I'm wondering if the experience these two days will "turn" me. We'll see. Most likely, if you're interested, I'll be tweeting and Facebooking and sharing in other ways, so if you're one of my PLN, be on the lookout.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Virtual Environments Playground Walkthrough
Hola, ya'll,
I'm cleaning up my laptop after travel to Denver for ISTE10 and my wonderful experience with friends and colleagues from all over the country, nay, all over the world.
I'm also preparing for my trip to Boston Wednesday for Thursday and Friday's Apple Summer Learning Institute for teachers. I'll certainly be sharing from there.
In the course of my cleanup, I discovered a number of fun little video snippets that I will store and share as I find useful. Here's the first, a walkthrough of the Virtual Environments Playground on Tuesday. I'd just finished sharing what was going on there with Jan Zanetis of ISTE Live, videoconferencing out to several locations nationally, and at one point in this video you can see Jan continuing to interview one of our attendees for the remote audiences. I think this does a pretty good job of capturing the feel of the event, which lasted for three days, beginning Monday morning, June 28, at 8 a.m. and wrapping up at 1 p.m. Wednesday. Walk through with me...
I'm cleaning up my laptop after travel to Denver for ISTE10 and my wonderful experience with friends and colleagues from all over the country, nay, all over the world.
I'm also preparing for my trip to Boston Wednesday for Thursday and Friday's Apple Summer Learning Institute for teachers. I'll certainly be sharing from there.
In the course of my cleanup, I discovered a number of fun little video snippets that I will store and share as I find useful. Here's the first, a walkthrough of the Virtual Environments Playground on Tuesday. I'd just finished sharing what was going on there with Jan Zanetis of ISTE Live, videoconferencing out to several locations nationally, and at one point in this video you can see Jan continuing to interview one of our attendees for the remote audiences. I think this does a pretty good job of capturing the feel of the event, which lasted for three days, beginning Monday morning, June 28, at 8 a.m. and wrapping up at 1 p.m. Wednesday. Walk through with me...
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Tools for the 21st Century
This came across my laptop screen in my ramblings this morning and it looks so good I want to share it. I use most of those tools myself and if the author's introduction to Twitter is any indication of the rest of the ebook's quality, you need to read it and share it!
Cheerio,
Scott
Cheerio,
Scott
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