September+2012

September 25, 2012
Yesterday Nick Martin had another article in the Winnipeg Free Press about the "bring your own device" program at Dakota, and about technology in high schools generally. Here is the link: [] For me, there were a few surprises in the article, but at least they were mostly pleasant surprises. Lloyd Axworthy is a proponent- glad to see the [|chancellor of Winnipeg's most progressive university] make a comment about the need for teachers to adjust to working with information technology instead of against it. It was a surprise to see Lloyd go on the record with such a positive comment. Conversely, it was not much of a surprise to see that U of M Prof [|Denis Hylnka] sounds reactionary and cautious. Technology in education democratizes learning, and there is less of a need for an oligarchy of experts. The Academy has always been an oligarchy of experts, so liberalizing the use of tools that facilitate knowledge building can be threatening. Anyway, I hope that Dr. Hylnka (who teaches about tech in education) does not really think that writing is being threatened by the presence of laptops in classrooms.

In some ways, the biggest surprise was that the article was printed at all. While the TV and Radio media treated the story as a one-shot curiosity, the Free Press is digging a little further. Good to see, because stories like the Dakota story are likely to become more common in the next few years. [|Ron Canuel of the CEA]is a good example of the kind of thoughtful and Canadian voice that is realizing that the next significant shift in how Canadians educate their children has to do with the meaningful inclusion of information technology. I was glad to see that Nick Martin and the Free Press dug a little further, found Ron to talk with, and even managed to get a comment from the [|Minister of Education] about broadband service for schools!

Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised by the way that people respond and react to BYOD in high school. I know that the program at Dakota involved a great deal of planning and forethought, and some hand-wringing as well. The pilot year with the Grade Nines was a success. Most students, parents, and teachers see the value of student-owned info-tech as a persistent feature of class room life. Sure there are problems, and there is always value in a sober second look. However, nobody is drunk on technology or blinded by the glitter of the flashing lights. We have a balanced approach, blending the "old ways" with the new, and we keep the end goal in mind. What is the goal? To prepare young people for adulthood, of course. Education has always been an acculturating and civilizing process; moreso even in high school than in the younger grades. Educators have always used the best tools available to best prepare their students for life now and down the road. After all, we want to pass the best of what we are on to our youth, and we all know that life can be full of surprises.

September 19, 2012
CBC Radio, Global T.V. and the Winnipeg Free Press came through my class today as part of our media tour of the Bring Your Own Device program at Dakota Collegiate. Skip to 8:01 of the newscast- you'll hear from our superintendent Terry Borys and also from my colleague, Joel Shimoji. Many of the shots are in my class (all of the students reading //True Grit//). I'm in there for a second as well, kind of like "Where's Waldo". media type="custom" key="20873218" The tentative tone of the Global News story focuses on the dangers of student distraction and the upfront costs to parents. I suppose these are the quick and easy stories to tell. Improved student engagement, immediacy of relevant up to date content and the establishment of digital citizenship skills in a controlled and monitored educational environment are a bit tougher to relate in a short news story.

CBC radio also had a story from my class on "The World at Six". Skip to minute 24 if you can. the easiest way to do so is to download the show as a podcast in iTunes and go from there. Here is the link to the show, but you can't easily skip forward: http://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/cbc-news-world-at-six/id250083757

CBC TV also has a story from our school today: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2012/09/19/mb-school-laptops-mandatory-dakota-collegiate.html Funny that the one parent who shows up in the story is opposed to what we are doing. I could find thirty who think this is an awesome thing for their kids if CBC would like some balance.

CTV News ran a story as well that highlights the social studies classroom of Brad Fallis. CTV's story was balanced on the whole, citing that students still use all of the traditional learning tools along with the laptops as well. Once again, the focus becomes on the "tools" more than the "teaching", but it is difficult to show the changes in class dynamics or pedagogy in a short story for the news. To find the story, follow this link: [|CTV News at Six, Wednesday, Sept 19.] and skip to 13:19 for the Dakota Collegiate story.

I'm sure that the Free Press will get their coverage out soon, but I have not found anything yet from their visit today. [] I really appreciate Nick Martin's take on what we are doing here at Dakota. It includes a great deal of student voice, and overall I am finding that what the article reflects is true; students are appreciating having laptops as another learning tool for their daily education.
 * Here is the Free Press article from September 20:**

It seems like the jury is out on BYOD programs. Obviously I am a proponent; I see the benefits, and my students and their families have decided to go along with what the Louis Riel School Division is asking, and they are bringing their own laptops to class every day. However, cost is a stumbling block for many, and while we have a good thing going at Dakota I wonder if it will gather steam and grow, or plateau, or slowly fade away. Hmmm...the last option I can hardly imagine now that we are so used to having the internet at our fingertips in English class...it would feel like a return to 1985, and not in a good way, [|Marty McFly.]

There are likely one or two more media reports that will be generated from the media tour at Dakota today, and if I find them I'll link them to this page.

Isn't there a curse that suggests something like "May you live in interesting times" ??

If so, I suppose I'm cursed. But I'm enjoying it (so far).

September 17, 2012.
I am still not over the novelty of meeting people that I started following on Twitter. For the "Twitterati" out there it must be pretty normal and expected that sooner or later you'll bump into folks at a meeting, a symposium or a conference who share the same interests. Last night I had a chance to sit down in a room with many teachers that I would have never known were it not for Twitter. [|Dean Shareski] and the good folks at [|Discovery Education] put on a P.D./P.R. function in downtown Winnipeg, and it drew a bunch of us out of the woodwork. Neat to see how a Google+ hangout can be leveraged as a presentation tool, and it was fun to hear from other Canadian teachers share about their teaching practice in a variety of contexts.

The whole idea of shared learning and networked learning is an idea that folks like [|Alec Couros] (U of R) and [|George Siemens] (Athabasca U) are working on. I summarize some of those ideas in my own phrase "what we know, we know together". It seems to me that gone are the days when anybody could really claim to know enough to say they knew it all. Expertise is needed, but so is a reliance on a network of others. The ability to network with people instantly and rather simply is also messing up some of the compartments of knowledge that used to structure the way we thought about academic disciplines. Sure, Architects and Engineers have always had their turf wars, but now the lines between any two fields are being blurred. Do nurses and teachers have anything in common? I think so. I have been reading the papers my sister has to write for her university nursing courses. While the idea of multi-disciplinary knowledge and cross-disciplinary connections are old, old, old, I think it is the disciplines themselves that are now evolving. Anyhow, what we know, we know together.

Tomorrow will be a curious day for my students. [|Our school]is welcoming in the media, and at least a few cameras and a couple of print media reporters will be here to check out our Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) environment at Dakota. I've been scheduled to have a few of the media folks come through my Grade 9 class tomorrow morning. In part, I wonder a bit about the attention now, since some of this is starting to feel like the usual for me. However, I know that what we do here at Dakota is not like a lot of other high schools. I know that there is some public interest in how we ought to approach information technology in schools. Should it be a subject like any other? Should it be allowed in classes? Should it be expected as a preferred way that we communicate about learning? What happens if we do require students to use computers? Maybe more importantly, what happens if we forbid computers in classrooms?

I know that the best blog posts are clear, concise, and cogent. I also know that these five non-indented paragraphs hover about the ideas of networked knowledge, and our responsibility to share what we know. Somehow I view this media visit tomorrow in that light. We have a good thing going here at Dakota. Students are learning, and they are using the same kinds of writing utensils they will need in their adult lives. That is, they are using web-connected computers for the sharing and creation of knowledge. Pens and pencils? Sure. We use them too. But that was then, and this is now. We need to share what we know about connecting school and learning to the changing face of communication in our broader culture.

Critics decry the tinny hollowness of a "like" in Facebook compared to the affirmation that comes with a real smile or a genuine handshake. I am not so sure that the one was ever meant to replace the other. A "like", a smile, a handshake, or even a pat on the back all serve as forms of affirmation. It was good to shake hands with a few of the folks I follow on Twitter. It was affirming. I think we're learning together, and I think that's what this education thing is supposed to be about.

September 10, 2012.
It is so great when somebody takes the plunge: media type="custom" key="20788654" Allie is one of the Vice-Principals at Dakota, and he has been a constant support to the early adopters on staff who have done whatever thy could to help make the LRSD 1 to 1 Pilot a practical reality. Please suggest edu-tweeters for him to follow!

For those of you who are curious about all that is going on with Dakota's foray into 1 to 1 blended learning I invite you to come and listen to my presentation called "Teaching in a BYOD Environment" at either 10:45 a.m or 2:15 p.m. on October 19, 2012 at [|Embracing the Edge] in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Check the link for all of the details. I do plan to write a bit more here about the September start up, but I have to wait a bit since I'm in the throes of new classes, new students, and a new room to teach in as well. September 2012 is proving to be a season of change. All the best to all of you who, like me, are learning scads of new names, figuring out new units, and grappling with how best to leverage the technology that we have to enhance the quality of the learning that goes on in our classrooms. May it be a banner year.