News or knowledge curator?

Posted on November 10, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

I’ve been reading a bit about how news organizations are having to define the role of editor in the 21st century, i.e. Editor 2.0.

This is a significant shift – one that we in education need to take note of! It’s important because it goes beyond plugging in some web 2.0 tools, like blogging. If the world is awash with information, is being filled with blogs and other media that help keep people informed, and is being enveloped by online social networking as the community ‘glue’ that binds people together (admitedly we are now not talking about the average educator) then newspapers needed to do more than just go online (which all significant papers have done) , and then add some widgets and gadgets.

Having worked as a ‘subbie’ for the Medical Journal of Australia many moons ago, I can only begin to gasp at the changes taking place in media reporting. Imagine being a ‘search’ or ‘tag’ editor!

Scott Harp gives a good run-down of The Editor as Curator of ALL the news on the web. But one of the most radical shifts taking place is that editors are now being asked to curate OTHER news organization’s content in addition to their own.

Scott explains further that Media is now about distributing the BEST content — and the New York Times has embraced this new reality with the launch of its new technology section, which incorporates third-party headlines surfaced by Blogrunner (which the Times acquired very quietly last year — and which uses a TechMeme-like algorithm based on link patterns) and then selected with input from Times editors.

Now all of this is amazing, the more so when I think about how teachers in schools normally undertake ‘media studies‘ with students. The idea of blended aggregation sitting beside what is now ‘traditional’ reporting is (I’m tipping) a very new concept and not included in mainstream/core curriculum.

So really, we teachers need to pick up the pace somewhat – so that we can operate rather like the Times editors, if we are to be knowledge AND news curators for our students.

We need to read, gather, create, and deliver news and information far more creatively, as well as to teach the students to recognize what changes are happening in media reporting.

To help you think about it, drop on over to Will Richardson’s nice example of what a teacher (or student) can do, in his nice example of news delivery for Darfur via Pageflakes.

Photo: Wall Street beauty

Open or closed learning for our teachers

Posted on November 1, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

You know, it is interesting to see how online social networking and use of tools has developed this year in education. Somehow we seem to be reaching a kind of critical mass (at least in my schools) where Web 2.0 tools are not new in concept, even if they are new in practice.

Sue waters writes a good reflection on ownership and online communities. You may like to add your comments to the debate over there.

It’s what the game is all about in schools – getting ownership from teachers! That is the hardest part of all, and the game plan for increasing ownership is not necessarily clear given the continued emergence of new tools online. It’s in the doing that we discover what is possible – no amount of talking will explain social networking and web 2.0 learning.

What I am amazed at is that I am actually getting calls from school principals asking that I provide some Web 2.0 training to their teachers. What I also know is that this is just an entry point – and that 2 hours of training in blogging will only launch 2 out of 10 people on the journey. But you have to start, and the reality is that some teachers need to have assistance every step of the way because they are digital immigrants, and there is nothing intuitive about web 2.0 for many of them. This is not bad, it is just how it is. Others, of course, need no training – they are the gems in our schools and their praises should be sung far and wide.

I am particularly pleased to see universities introducing e-learning in all its Web 2.0 forms for trainee teachers. I’ve watched some interesting developments this year as students from all sorts of places have ‘studied’ HeyJude. In fact, right now, I’m getting blog hits for ‘the essay’ in one of the courses.

But there is one BIG concern I have about all this, whether in schools, or in degree courses training future teachers.

There is a particular depth to Web 2.0 that takes time, and thought – and training for many – that we are not acknowledging, or providing sufficient support for. Those fantastic educators in my blogroll (especially the teachers) are great examples of those who have ‘done it alone’. Those Principals who blog, and who encourage their teachers to reach out to Web 2.0 as platform are (for me) the real innovators in our schools.

Because we are working with digital natives, the whole idea that we can ask them to show us what to do is also incorrect – peer networking and social networking is not the same thing as learning in a social online environment. That’s our job to figure out!

I would like to see a concerted level of support for my teachers. I would like to see more than experimentation in the training of new teachers. Too much of what we do ‘entry level’ and as such is NOT meeting the needs of our learners. The pace is quickening – for sure. Just because Web 2.0 is “out there” doesn’t mean for a minute that it will move easily and transparently into our classrooms.

If you are not convinced that teachers and students are on a learning journey with Web 2.0, then check out the reflection from Jo McLeay on Blogging the and now – student and teacher two years ago, and today! Heck, when Jo was doing this first time around, I hardly even knew that blogs existed. Embarrassing 😦

Check out what Dean has to say about his students who HAVE been blogging. (Dean is a great model and mentor for his students working with current and cutting edge technology) These boy’s blogs helped them to win an IT traineeship amongst fierce competition. Well done fellas!

What we need is a transparent, inspirational, and open strategy…to embed Web 2.0 transformation into learning.

Photos: Open, Closed

Information [R]evolution

Posted on October 18, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

This (rather fuzzy) video explores the changes in the way we find, store, create, critique, and share information. This video was created as a conversation starter, and works especially well when brainstorming with people about the near future and the skills needed in order to harness, evaluate, and create information effectively.

Excellent companion piece to the Machine is Us/ing Us.

School leadership – the six secrets of success

Posted on October 12, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

Michael Fullan provided us with pretty important secrets for leadership 🙂

1. Love your employees as well as your customers – this is essential for productivity.
2. Connect peers with purpose – this is how you give coherence and cohesiveness – We need direction plus flexibility from the centre. The secret glue of cohesion is peer interaction.
3. Bullying backfires – identifying ineffectiveness without being punitive or pejorative in your actions.
4. Learning is the work – be careful – PD is a good way to avoid change! It’s about professional learning not professional development. We shouldn’t learn outside and apply it. It’s the difference between prescription and precision. It doesn’t work to simply make teachers autonomous. Precision means that some things are non-negotiable – and there is no conflict between precision and creativity. It’s the way you gravitate to those things that we know are effective.
5. Transparency rules – its about results and its about practice.
6. Systems Learning – using your knowledge while doubting what you know. Using humility while you move forward.

Photo: Success

Digital kids – learning their own way

Posted on October 12, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

Michael Furdyk hit the mark, during the last morning keynote presentation at the ACEL/ASCD conference.

Here we had (at last!) a clear articulation of the new expectations that are driving the learning characteristics of our students: multiprocessing; multimedia literacy; discovery-based learning; bias towards action; staying connected; zero tolerance for delays; consumer/creator blurring; social networking.

Michael was supported by his own school to take time off during his school schedule to work on his own company! Would you do this?

The opportunity for creativity and innovation was central to Michael’s life, starting right there at school. We need to allow students to grab opportunities, connect them with organisations in all fields that will support their keen need to explore and learn – it’s about a positive supportive learning community!

Michael’s company was instrumental in creating ‘social networking for social good’ at Taking iTGlobal- Inspire, Involve, Inform, providing a window into another world. Using the familiarity of social networking, this site helps students develop an awareness and understanding of global issues and ‘take action’ through projects and collaboration. Explore this – it’s brilliant!

Photo: Window into another world

Participatory culture through wikipedia

Posted on October 5, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

Leigh Blackall : Keynote address: Thursday : From the Navcon07 conference, Generation.com. Where to next? Gosford, Australia.

Leigh’s keynote covered a range of topics – all designed to show how a participatory culture is what will turn learning around – whether through wikipedia or good use of Creative Commons, or more. It was really interesting to hear Leigh talk about Otago Polytechnic, and their shift to Creative Commons for the production of all their learning materials.

Nice one! Bit different from what happens in schools now – and really worth thinking about. All part of the Open Source movement of course – but this is not yet in the discussion horizon in most schools yet. Hopefully the pieces will fall into place sometime soon.

Leigh focussed on modernism and postmodernism, and points to his notes here:

modernism and old schools

Postmodernism and new ~~schools~~ learning

Models?

Here is Leigh in a snippet about participatory culture enabling learning…..

Image: The pieces are falling into place.

E-Learning 2.0 …that’s immersive and personal learning

Posted on September 26, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

Can’t say it better than Stephen Downes.

I want and visualize and aspire toward a system of society and learning where each person is able to rise to his or her fullest potential without social or financial encumberance, where they may express themselves fully and without reservation through art, writing, athletics, invention, or even through their avocations or lifestyle.

Where they are able to form networks of meaningful and rewarding relationships with their peers, with people who share the same interests or hobbies, the same political or religious affiliations – or different interests or affiliations, as the case may be.

From Brandon Hall Research Innovations in Learning Conference, San Jose, September 25, 2007

If you haven’t already done so, add Today’s News in OLDaily to your RSS reads.

Cool class project

Posted on September 25, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

I’m really enjoying reading The Thinking Stick at the moment, mainly because Jeff pushes the boundaries non-stop. I love these thoughts from I don’t want to integrate it, I want to embed it.

What I want..is technology to be embedded into the classroom. Into the learning environment. I am tired of trying to integrate it into a process, a classroom, or a curriculum that was never made to integrate technology to begin with.No, what I want is to start at the very bottom and embed technology tools, skills, and standards into lessons, our classrooms, and our outcomes……What if we truly acted like technology was just part of us, part of education, part of educating students today. What if we start embedding it and stopped integrating it?

Jeff models this every day for us. What about this coll class project – Teen Tek.

Perhaps you have some teens who would enjoy this too. Or perhaps you can adapt this idea for your own students in some way.

Hello to all the students :-)

Posted on September 7, 2007 by Judy O'Connell

OK, I have to admit, this is spooky.

I am sure that Will, or Ewan, or Michael or Sue are used to using their blogs (or having their blogs used) as part of a program of study at various university or other graduate education courses.

However in the last 6 months I have noticed the odd link to course programs etc. in the backlinks to Heyjude. Amazing I thought! Even more amazing when a friend forwarded a copy of their uni assignment to me – a review of HeyJude 🙂

But in the last few months things have been getting busier, and recently there has been a bit more of a flurry.

So R U in ED2203?

I’ve read some of your work, and seen the interesting Web 2.0 tools that you are being asked to investigate and discuss. It’s great to see Web 2.0 getting into uni programs. But I am wondering how much depth is being applied? Who teaches you ‘power’ use of Web 2.0 tools?

I’m alluding here to what I think is the same problem that we face helping our teachers in schools learn about Web 2.0. In the beginning it is always just the basics – and often I find that that is where many teachers seem to stay – missing the full potential for supporting learning, because they can’t get there themselves, and their is no-one to guide them.