KONY —- The real story, well at least one parents view of what it actually did accomplish!!!

I was happy to have both my son and daughter come to me and ask about KONY and the issues that are being presented in the video. I explained to them that it seems that everyone is talking about the Kony 2012 video, which has received more than 80 million views since it was posted.  My 12 year old son explained to me that it is part of a campaign by a non-profit group Invisible Children to bring awareness to the rebel leader Joseph Kony who’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has been terrorizing Ugandans and people in the Congo, the Central African Republic and South Sudan since the 1980s. The narrator in the film states that “Kony stands accused of overseeing the systematic kidnapping of countless African children,” and, “brainwashing the boys into fighting for him, turning the girls into sex slaves and killing those who don’t comply.” My son was heartbroken knowing we actively work with two charities in the Congo, one for rape victims and the other for HIV positive students, helping them get access to medicine and schooling. So this was something we had already known about and he wanted to know why Kony had not been brought to justice.

The group is targeting young people and, from what I can see on Facebook and Twitter, it has raised support from youth around the world.  In some ways I’m happy, especially that my son is taking more of an interest in global politics. It’s amazing to see young people engaging with issues beyond their immediate lives and thinking about the plight of other youth thousands of miles away, my son I am sure remembers the terms I always say to him and my daughter “think globally and act locally”. Not to disregard global issues but be the change you can be in your own community and then expand, we need help here in the U.S. and other places as well.

This leads to the issue of critical thinking and media literacy.  As an Internet safety advocate, I’ve been saying for years that one of the most important skills that young people (and older ones too) need is the ability to think critically about what they see online. Whether it’s a pitch from a company, an invitation to meet up with an appealing stranger or even a news items or an opinion piece from a pundit like me, it’s important to look beyond the page — or in Kony’s case, the video. Use a search engine and whatever other tools you have to learn more about anything that you’re on the verge of buying into. Ask your online friends but also consult as many expert sources as you can.  There is often more than one side to a story and even well intentioned campaigns by decent people can have nuances worth exploring.

I can say that, all in all, the story did its job by promoting the fact that there is injustice in the world. It is also a teaching moment for all children and their parents which will hopefully elicit conversations about all content and can teach students about empathy and world issues.

The difference between Learning and Instruction

One thing I am proud of is that I am an avid reader as I was reading an article tonight I thought I should write a post about it and share my opinions. The article appeared in American Educator which, essentially, argues that educators who believe in the value of experiential, problem-based learning, are misguided fools, and I thought OK let’s see where this misguided fool has gone wrong. The article titled: ‘Putting Students on the Path to Learning: The Case for Fully Guided Instruction’, written by Clark, Kirschner and  Sweller seeks to basically put an end to any debate  around which mode of learning is best: partially-guided instruction (as seen in discovery learning, problem-based learning, or inquiry learning) or direct instruction. Where does this fit into the blended/hybrid world?

It’s a long article, so I’d urge you to read it for yourself, but not at night unless you have insomnia. But the basic premise of it is something like this: advocates of constructivist approaches to learning are wilfully ignoring decades of rigorous research who proves, beyond doubt, that for novice learners, (defined by the authors as almost all of us) fully-guided instruction is the way to learn. I spoke recently to a colleague who is undertaking her PhD at USC and this was one of her issues that the research they are using to frame arguments is from the 70’s and 80’s!!

I don’t know about you, but my hair on my neck rises when I see professors seeking to “put an end” to debate to make something the final word, it just wreaks of absolutism. I have issues with this as there is a detachment from schools or education and researchers many times to the reality of school today. Some of them might need to get out of their ivory towers and actually go to a school. If that’s the case then I have a few arguments to counteract their points.

There is, however, another aspect to this kind of academic arrogance that gets under my skin and raises my hair, or as I would have said a few years ago “pisses me off”.

Why do these arguments get presented in such a manner? Who said it was either/or? And, of course, minimal guidance during ‘instruction’ is pretty pointless – it barely counts as guidance.

This article points to an even bigger question, for me, though. What do we mean by ‘learning’? The authors imply that learning is simply about reaching into the long-term memory data banks to find previous ‘worked examples’ which will provide a solution to presented problems. They cite chess masters as prime examples of this, are you kidding me “chess masters'” where is their creativity or innovation? They state that by being able to beat several opponents at once by retrieving data on previous moves from their memory banks is the base for the research model. I don’t know much about chess, but I do recal Bobby Fischer emphasising the importance of speculation and intuition.

In a future where a connected mind is likely to be at a premium, should we not be seeing ‘learning’ as more than just store-and-retrieve? Sure, their ideas might help you pass a standardized test (which is another post in itself), but will it help you put two ideas together to create a new one? And, if a student becomes engaged (and inquiry and problem-based approaches seem remarkably good at engaging students) aren’t they going to be more likely to apply some discretionary energy into learning more about concepts and theories, because doing so could explain why an experimental didn’t work fully? We do know that, if knowledge isn’t re-visited regularly, we lose it. This explains why most of us can’t remember much of what we rote-learned in our childhoods, no matter how guided the instruction. If we weren’t engaged at the time of the instruction, we aren’t likely to want to re-visit it.

Solving problems, recognising the part our emotions play when learning, following hunches, daydreaming might seem to Profs Clark, Kirtchner and Sweller as ‘inefficient’. I would love to have the opportunity to argue that they all help engage the learner and without engagement, there’s no deep, or lasting, learning. It is about passion based, passion driven learning with guidance from behind.

This is a true example of how this concept is in real life,  visit Caine’s Arcade, in the video below, and ask yourself if you think that he will have long-term memories of how he solved problems through experience, experimentation, emotion and intuition? BTW a week ago when I was first sent the video (thanks Ana) I watched it five times, just to watch the look on the boys face as he saw his dreams coming true as he built his “field of dreams”. Let me know what you think..

Link to Caine’s Arcade video…http://vimeo.com/40000072

Presentation at Alaska Society of Technology Education–Using Web 2.0 Tools to Meet the Needs of the 21st Century Learner

Presentation Details:
Title: Venturing into the Clouds: Using Web 2.0 Tools to Meet the Needs of the 21st Century Learner
Time: 8:30 AM AST
Duration: 00:58:53
Description: The Future of Cloud Computing: Innovation, Service, Sustainability, Performance and how it Affects Educational Outcomes for our Students. Economic uncertainty and competetive pressures are fundamentally raising performance demands n all aspects of education. From students and teachers to parents and administrators, the pressure to succeed has never been greater.

Success hinges on developing talent to focus on innovation and growth n the global economy. Businesses are now basing their trust and focus on cloud technologies because they offer freedom, reduced cost, and sustainability, whereas education has not. This keynote intends to show advantages of simplification and standardization to support utilizing the cloud to its fullest potential in an educational setting.

The Gamification of Education….

Our program on using google tools to engage learners…video by students.

Teacher Professional Development???? My take on Teacher Improvement and Professional Development. What do you think?

Warning: this post may incite, annoy or even anger some people but I am hopeful that it will also encourage and motivate change. I am coming at this post from the point of view of an educator for many years, a staff developer and a lifelong learner. I believe there are so many issues today with the fact that people believe “Teacher Professional Development” to be as simple as going online or attending a conference or a single day workshop for a few hours. The single day workshop commonly referred to as “drive-by PD” and many of the other models are not successful. The main reasons are because they are not ongoing, sustainable and high quality. Quality teacher professional development is a real issue and will always be an issue.

Let’s start with the problems. One is that “Professional Development” by definition assumes you have an innate skill or proficiency. My belief is that the term should be broken down into three specific terms. The initial term or concept should be “Professional Exposure”, giving others exposure to an educational expert. For new, impressionable teachers, this is important because they are most likely to get pumped and run with the new ideas. We must ensure however that the correct and appropriate effective pedagogical approach is being implemented. Also, when the concept is being implemented, it must be assessed correctly at the appropriate Depth of Knowledge level or taxonomic level. I personally have seen many teachers implement a program without fully knowing how to implement or assess it.

The second term “Professional Improvement” takes the concept that you already have some inkling of the concept and are going to improve it. This is crucial to the success of all teachers or individuals being that one must be a lifelong learner and have the inner drive to improve.  If one does not have the impetus for learning, then self-improvement will not happen.

The final term “Professional Development” (PD) and the ideal for this is something that is built upon concepts of effective PD. This occurs through coaching, reflection, or reviewing results. It may occur individually, in pairs, or in collaborative learning teams when educators plan, implement, analyze, reflect, and evaluate the integration of their professional learning into their practice. It occurs within learning communities that meet to learn or refine instructional strategies; plan lessons that integrate the new strategies; share experiences about implementing those lessons; analyze student work together to reflect on the results of use of the strategies; and assess their progress toward their defined goals.

Before schools can adopt these new 21^st-century standards for teacher professional development, Hirsch (of Learning Forward formerly known as the National Staff Development Council) said there are some prerequisites: (1) Educators must commit to ensuring that all students succeed, (2) Educators must be ready to learn continually, (3) School district leaders must understand that professional learning involves collaborative inquiry and learning, and (4) School district leaders must understand that educators learn in different ways and at different rates.

Learning Forward’s seven standards for professional learning that increase teacher effectiveness and results for all students are:

1. Learning Communities: Groups of teachers who are committed to continuous improvement, shared responsibility, and collective goal alignment.
2. Leadership: Skillful leaders who develop capacity, advocate, and create support systems for professional learning.
3. Resources: Prioritizing, monitoring, and coordinating resources for professional learning.
4. Data: Using a variety of sources and types of student, educator, and school system data to plan, assess, and evaluate professional learning.
5. Learning Designs: Integrating theories, research, and models of human learning to achieve intended outcomes.
6. Implementation: Applying research and sustained support for implementation of professional learning to foster long-term change.
7. Outcomes: Aligning outcomes with educator performance and student curriculum standards.

The issue with professional development many times is that the person responsible for organizing professional development, do so in ways that alienate rather than engage and assist educators. Those organizing the professional development may not be clear about specific improvements in educator and student performance that should result, or may not carefully determine what steps will lead to the desired performance levels. In addition, educators often complain that they are required to participate in poorly conceived and ineffective professional development leads to complaints professional development that does not address the real challenges they face in their schools and classrooms. They resent “one-size-fits-all” professional development that targets large numbers of educators from very different schools and classrooms who have students with different needs. Also, the professional development may not consider educators’ varying levels of motivation, interest, knowledge, and skill. This is the rationale for the differentiated approach to PD just as we differentiate with our students.

All schools should be places where both adults and students learn. Unfortunately this doesn’t happen. Most of the time, teachers and administrators develop their own knowledge and skills, which they model for students. This can be dangerous if it is not done properly and could have detrimental effects on student learning and their success. The concept of continual or ongoing development creates a culture of learning throughout the school and supports educators’ efforts to engage students, expected of a lifelong learner. An organization that organizes team-based professional development or professional learning networks and expects all teachers and administrators to consistently participate — though for different purposes, a different times, in different ways — shows that the organization values and is serious about all educators performing at higher levels. As a result, the entire school is more focused and effective.

With my experiences in education, it is my belief that research has shown that teaching quality and school leadership are the most important factors in raising student achievement. For teachers, school and district leaders to be most effective, they need to continually expand their knowledge and skills to implement the best educational practices. Educators learn to help students learn at the highest levels. They need to be able to move from exposure to improvement to finally and most importantly, professional development and SUCCESS!!

STEM Update 3

Study Shows AP Program Igniting Learning for Thousands of Youth
A rigorous study just released by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) finds that students who were part of the Advanced Placement Training and Incentive Program (APTIP) “took and passed more AP courses and exams, and enrolled in college in greater numbers. Most of this increase occurred at four-year colleges and private universities. Affected students were also more likely to persist in college, to earn more college credits, and slightly more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree. In addition, affected students were more likely to be employed and earned higher wages.”

Green Schools and Students’ Science Scores are Related
A nationwide survey shows a positive correlation between Green School practices and student achievement in science. The study was conducted by the University of Colorado Denver’s Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences and presented last week at the Green Schools National Network conference in Denver. Schools that took part in the survey observe GreenPrint core practices as defined by the Green Schools National Network (GSNN).

Low Retention of STEM Faculty Raises Concerns 
AWIS in Action! – February 2012
A recent study published in ScienceDaily indicates that men and women faculty members are now being retained in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) at roughly the same rate, with the exception of mathematics departments. Funded by the NSF-ADVANCE Program, this is the first large-scale longitudinal study on faculty retention, and researchers found that the median number of years male and female faculty stay at an institution is 11. This means that half of the faculty hired this year will be gone in 11 years, which is a real problem for research universities which have competitive startup packages and expensive recruitment strategies.

STEM Update 2

USA Science & Engineering Festival Gears Up for Second Celebration
Plans for the second USA Science & Engineering Festival, a national celebration of science, are moving full-steam ahead with less than 60 days to go. The Festival, first held in 2010, was created to increase public awareness of the importance of science and excite the nation’s youth in the fields of science, science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) by presenting the most compelling, exciting, educational, and entertaining science festival in the United States. Taking place April 28-29, 2012 at the Washington, DC Convention Center, the Festival already proves to be bigger than last year and will feature over 3,000 different hands-on activities and experiments, and over 100 stage performances.

STEM Updates…very cools stuff going on

Google Seeks Young Scientists to Compete in 2nd Annual Science Fair
Google is currently looking for the brightest young scientists from around the world to submit interesting, creative projects that are relevant to the world today. The second annual Google Science Fair is an online international competition for individuals and groups of students between the ages of 12 and 18. Google encourages students to start by identifying real world problems that they are personally curious about and interested in exploring.

Two Great Opportunities for Students…

Doors to Diplomacy: Projects Due March 15
The U. S. Department of State and GlobalSchoolNet.org sponsor the “Doors to Diplomacy” educational challenge – to encourage middle school and high school students around the world to produce web projects that teach others about the importance of international affairs and diplomacy. Each student team member of the winning “Doors to Diplomacy” Award team receives a $2,000 scholarship, and the winning coaches’ schools each receive a $500 cash award. Additional prizes may be provided by sponsors.

http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsndoors/aglance.cfm

International CyberFair:

International Schools CyberFair, now in its 15th year, is an award-winning authentic learning program used by schools and youth organizations around the world. Youth conduct research and publish their findings on the Web. Recognition is given to the best projects in each of eight categories. This White House-endorsed program encourages youth to become community ambassadors by working collaboratively and using technology to share what they have learned. Students evaluate each others projects by using a unique online evaluation tool. In partnership with the World Future Society, students are also encouraged to also share their dreams for the future – by thinking about the possible future, the probable future, the preferable future and the preventable future. Projects that best illustrate “future thinking” are invited to the World Future Society international conference in Toronto, Canada, July 2012, WorldFuture 2012: Dream. Design. Develop. Deliver.

http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsncf/