Symphony

I chose symphony as my Pink sense. Sort of a case of throwing a dart and going with the sense it landed on. Symphony seemed the least interesting to me on the face of it so I thought I'd challemnge myself. Well, symphony and I are now bff's. What an interesting sensibility and how perfectly it fits into Pink's thesis about the 21st century.

It occurred to me the other day while watching President Obama speak at a news conference that his position particularly calls for a symphonic thinker. Confronted on all sides by a myriad of problems (financial, educational, healthcare, security) it would be easy to say all else is on hold until the economy is fixed. It takes a "big picture" thinker to see that all these things are interrelated and should all be part of the solution. In spite of his critics, the President has chosen to confront all of these problems with bold initiatives - "big thinking" to use Pink's words to describe symphony. 

Symphonic thinking is also suited to so many aspects of education. Seeing the whole child and how curriculum can be designed to bridge a diversity of learning styles requires the synthetic thought which characterizes the symphonic mind.

I'm looking forward to to investigating this sense further and trying some of the suggestions in the symphony portfolio.    

How can I keep from blogging?

David Pogue Rocks ASSET

It's been quite a week. Lots to think about. Met on Marratech this weekend with Dr. Weston and attended Asset on Tuesday.

The conversation with Dr. Weston gave us all a lot to think about. For me, successfully connecting on Marratech was enough to make my weekend. My last attempt was less than stellar. However, St. Sean intervened and this week success was mine.

Dr. Weston's peek at the future of educational technology was fascinating. It addressed so many of the concerns that school districts have about accessibility and student/teacher responsibility. I'm looking forward to continuing the conversation with him in class. It is a conversation I would also like to have in my district's tech committee.

The second half of the meeting with Dr. Weston was devoted to the concept of "voice". We discussed what it meant to us as individuals and what part it played in our vision of our future selves. It really had me thinking. I think it goes back to my original motive for joining TEAM. I wanted the confidence that I observed in past graduates both as educators and "techies". It is that confidence that lends authority to our voices. If we seek change we must be that change and that includes having an authoritative voice.

And then there was ASSET. David Pogue's comments about anytime, anywhere accessibility tied in nicely with Dr. Weston's ideas about accessibility. Our students are "connected". How do we, as educators, exploit that connectedness to inspire and motivate them. Our field should be in the forefront of technology use (our students are!) yet we lag behind terribly. Still digesting everything I heard. Hope we get a chance to "debrief" in class.

Also went to some really great workshops. One was about "Rock Our World" an organization run by a teacher in CA that sets up videoconferencing projects with schools around the world. I would love to do something like this and have even begun to talk it up for next year with a couple of colleagues. The world is getting so small. How exciting would it be to bring it into your classroom.

I'm off to dream.

Lovin' the Mini-P's

Last weeks Mini-Presentations were great. i really think they are becoming one of my favorite parts of TEAM. They are practical and I find myself using them in my class. Joe's iMovie presentation reintroduced me to an old nemesis and I've been playing with it all week. Fun!

And speaking of nemeses, I am absolutely terrified of DreamWeaver. Yikes! What to do? I keep putting off playing with it which doesn't help. Guess I should just jump in. Drowning not an option.

I feel a little at a loss this semester, not as focused as last. Don't know why. I'm anxious to get on with the EEVC project. I feel like it's taking an awful lot of time. Developing the webpage will help. The groundwork is done. I'm ready to move on. I am looking forward to working in PhotoShop as images are what particularly interest me.

Well, onward. I'm off to Play in Dreamweaver.

Yikes! I'm late for Marratech. see everyone tomorrow.

My Dreamweaver Nightmare

Busy week. That snow day was a gift from nowhere, eh? And on a Monday even!

I've been experimenting with some things technological. Unfortunately none of them were Dreamweaver. I am really intimidated by that beast. It is reminding me of high school math class. I know I have the requisite brain power but the whole thing is Greek to me. I have to just buckle down and face the challenge but I keep putting it off. One reason is that I'm not exactly sure what I would do with it once I have it. Don't fancy myself a web page designer.

Learning and Leading is an interesting read. I particularly liked the article on professional development. I think the approach they took was a good way to go. We have this discussion in my district all the time. The professional development that is usually offered is aimed at people who are already on board. Teachers who are intimidated by the use of technology are intimidated by the offerings of tech departments. The district in the article, after assessing ability levels, offered peer to peer, practical professional development. Teachers who were successfully using technology met with less "savvy" teachers in their departments and demonstrated content and curriculum specific ideas and methods. The peer to peer aspect was particularly effective because teachers tended to be reluctant to deal with the "pros" in the tech department. I think this kind of thinking fits in well with our TEAM training. We should be the ones our district will depend on to spread the word. I love sharing stuff I've learned in TEAM with colleagues and it's easy to do informally. Professional development based on peer to peer support seems the most practical way to go.

Well, off to Dreamweaver. Any peers out there want give me a hand??