Colorado mLearning Collaborative

I'm happy to announce the launch of the Colorado mLearning Collaborative, a small group consisting of  Colorado educators working to support 1:1 learning initiatives in Colorado schools.
The Collaborative's purpose will be to share ideas and strategies as they relate to supporting technology integration and instruction.
We had our first meeting in February and hope to grow our numbers by the next get together scheduled for April 11th.  If interested, feel free to peruse our website and contact me for more information.

Using PhotoStream in Education

I love the idea of making better use of iOS's PhotoStream in education.  A teacher can create a PhotoStream of specific images they'd like students to be familiar with and share that particular PhotoStream with their students.  The ability to identify objects, species, or varied symptoms may seem a bit geared to low-level Blooms memorization; however, there are times when it is absolutely necessary to be able to recognize something the minute the object is seen.  That's where PhotoStream can come in handy.

To create and share a PhotoStream with others follow these steps:

1. Select the photos you want to share.
2. Do one of the following:
   • Click the Share button in the toolbar, choose Photo Stream from the pop-up menu, and click New Photo Stream.
   • Drag the photos to Photo Stream in the Source list, and click New Photo Stream.
   The New Shared Photo Stream dialog appears.
3. In the “Shared with” field, type the email addresses for your invitees.
   To enable your invitees to access the shared photo stream from an iOS device, you must provide the email addresses associated with their iCloud accounts.
4. In the Name field, type a name for the photo stream.
5. If you want to share your photo stream with someone who doesn’t have an Apple device, select the Public Website checkbox.
   Note:   People who view your shared photo stream on the web cannot comment on the photos. They also cannot view the comments posted by you or by others who subscribe to your shared photo stream with an Apple device. If you would like someone who doesn’t have an Apple device to see the first comment added to a photo, you must post the comment first, before inviting the person to view the shared stream.
6. Click Share.

Your invitees are sent an email and a notification asking them to subscribe to your shared photo stream.

Apple Distinguished Educator Institute 2013

I'm waiting at the airport to catch my flight for the 2013 Apple Distinguished Educator Institute with all sorts of emotions. I'm more than excited to begin a journey of discovery filled with seeking new knowledge, collaborating and networking with others and being introduced to innovative ideas so that I can continue to do the same with the amazing educators I work with in Manitou Springs.

I saw a quote the other day on the Apple Website:

“Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” - Apple, Inc.

I like this quote and though I'm too humble to think the innovative practices we are employing will change the world they will certainly have impact on the students who will, collectively, change the world. My goal in Austin will be to gleam all I can to make good on that quote.

I'm also really nervous. These ADE'S are rockstars who produce amazing content and have been my mentors for many years. Now, i'm working side by side with them and that's a bit daunting. Yes, I'm a bit out of my comfort zone.

I'm curious too - what exactly will the next few days hold? The advanced agenda is out and I've taken several surveys but what exactly is in store remains to be known. There certainly is a lot of excitement in the twitter-verse.

Mostly, I'm humbled to be awarded this title and will do my best to live up to the expectation.

I'm also a little bit stoked. Okay, a lot stoked.

So what exactly is an Apple Distinguished Educator?

From the Apple website: Apple Distinguished Educators (ADEs) are part of a global community of education leaders recognized for doing amazing things with Apple technology in and out of the classroom. They explore new ideas, seek new paths, and embrace new opportunities. That includes working with each other — and with Apple — to bring the freshest, most innovative ideas to students everywhere. ADEs work closely with Apple to lead innovation in education. ADEs advise Apple on integrating technology into learning environments — and share their expertise with other educators and policy makers. They author original content about their work. They advocate the use of Apple products that help engage students in new ways. And they are ambassadors of innovation, participating in and presenting at education events around the world. Being part of the ADE community is much more than an honor — it’s an opportunity to make a difference.

You can find out more by visiting the Apple ADE website.

Can you see why I'm excited, nervous, curious and mostly humbled to be a part of this amazing group of educators? Let the games begin.

 

Lisette Casey

Why Wouldn't I? Thoughts on Using Technology for Technology's Sake

Frequently I'll hear the statement, "We shouldn't be using technology for technology's sake." There is no argument that educators must be purposeful in their intent when it comes to lesson planning in order to meet district and state mandates while continuing to design learning opportunities for students that are engaging and authentic. Much credence has been given to this statement and, with the advent of applications that often mimic low level thinking skills like word searches, then I might agree. But technology and access to technology has changed and lately I'm beginning to feel like this statement is more of a crutch or reason not to use technology than one that is truly focused on the educational goals and outcomes of learning. The only people I hear making this statement are those either resisting the use of technology or those trying to convince the resistors to use the technology and letting them know the intent is purposeful. I'm not convinced this statement is doing much to help children learn. In fact, I'm pretty sure it's slowing teachers down and giving students yet another reason to lose interest in school and learning.

The use of technology in education has helped me be more effective with my time and organization. It has aided in my teaching and learning by bringing countless resources to my fingertips just in time for upcoming lessons and units. When a new application or device becomes available I'm interested in it's use because I want to increase my productivity, get more connected or simply investigate a new way of doing something. Students should be using technology to raise awareness of issues relevant to them by starting conversations and taking action. Students need to use the technology in order to find answers to questions and connect with like minded (or not) people. The idea of using technology for technology's sake has never let me down because technology is brilliant and opens doors to unimaginable places and things, especially in the classroom. And, if the technology takes a bit of time to learn and perhaps even slows me down for a bit, I consider myself better off because I've spent some time in the problem solving/troubleshooting mode and come out on top.

If I consider the fact that teachers are professional, able bodied learners whom I trust to create lessons that focus on learning and critical thinking, why wouldn't I want them to use technology for technology's sake? One creative idea will often lead to another and so it goes in a technologically rich, connected classroom that collaborates and produces and shares incredible pieces of work because a teacher isn't fearful of using technology, sometimes just for technologies sake. Why wouldn't I?

 

Lisette Casey

The Need for Paper and Pen

Experience and time have led to the need to retire the phrase "you will still see paper and pen" when talking about classrooms in a 1:1 environment. The statement is antiquated and equivelent to the idea of continuing the use of a slate and chalk in post 19th century classrooms despite the advent of the paper and ballpoint pen.

We must continue to grow with the tools available and stop validating the tried and true tools of the past. The need to reassure others that despite the technological changes of today, despite the respectfulness of using a modern tool for modern learners, we honor and value the tools of yesterday.
In the early days of our 1:1 adoption we gave a lot of school tours and often found myself pointing out the use of paper and pen. You won't hear that statement from me anymore. What has changed? Time has been on my side. I've had 2+ years to grow in a dynamic environment filled with mobile devices and student choice. I've seen learners grow with a tool that expands the boundaries of their education and learning experiences. I've seen teachers shift control of content and decision making to their students. Mostly, I've seen information, paperwork, news, and social media explode in an online environment.

Weeks may go by without my need for a piece of paper or a pen. That doesn't mean I'm not writing, it just means the mode of writing is beginning to look very different from my experiences in the past and vastly different from the experiences of my parents and grandparents. And, it means, more than ever before, educators must begin to be aware, to accept and be willing to model, use and expect this new form of writing in the classroom and let go of the need to hold onto tools that are becoming irrelevant in our changing world.

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Embedding Youtube Video into BlogPost

Embedding a Youtube video into Blogger post is quite simple.

1. From Youtube, select the share button located beneath the video
2. Select Embed
3. Uncheck Show suggested videos when the video finishes (Located beneath the embed code)
4. Copy the code provided in the expanded box
5. Edit the blogpost where you want to embed the video
6. Click the HTML tab at the top of the post and paste the code into your post
7. Publish your post

Note Taking in a Blended Environment

As many teachers move toward student directed learning many begin substituting classroom lectures for video.  This allows students to move through class material at their own pace and review material on an as needed basis.  There are a few apps and online web applications that make iPad note-taking in this environment a little easier to accomplish.  The trick is to find browsers that allow for multiple windows on one screen.

Side by Side (free) is a multiple-window reader/browser with offline reading and note taking capabilities. It turns the iPad into multiple resizable reading devices working in parallel.  You can browse webpages, download files, read documents, or take notes on each split screen.  Watch the video on one side of the screen, take notes on the other.  There is a pro version for side by side available for $1.99 but the free version works just fine for this task.



sling Note ($2.99) is another app that pairs a web browser and a notepad or a calculator and a notepad side by side.  Again, you can watch the video on one side of the screen and take notes on the other side.
What I like about slingNote is that you drag and drop objects from one side to the other, a nice feature for note taking from a website.  You can also insert text boxes and use a stylis with ease on the note taking side of the page.  slingNote integrates with Dropbox nicely and allows for opening of the notes in other applications.

VideoNotes is a neat new web based tool for taking notes while watching YouTube videos. VideoNotes allows you to load any YouTube video on the left side of your screen and on the right side of the screen VideoNotes gives you a notepad to type on.  It's a little buggy on the iPad due to VideoNotes being web-based, at least for now.

The caveat of course is that once students are aware of side by side browsing they can use the app for any task, including online testing.  This creates a pressing issue for teachers to redesign test questions that can't be answered by using Google.