Do we want our curriculum to become “Institutionalized”?

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/42711295@N05/5001783145/

I read something a few minutes ago that said something to the effect that when we begin using a new curriculum, teachers want to get to the point where they have institutionalized the process, so that it becomes a routine. My question is, do we really want to get to the point where our curriculum becomes institutionalized? Doesn’t that admit that we want to routinize the what and how of our courses so that nothing unexpected happens?

After reading and spending some time thinking about it, this is at the root of many of our struggles in education and making “change” (whatever that is by the way) happen. We want routine. We want the expected. It’s comfortable, reassuring. But it’s also damaging considering how quickly the world is changing. Content continues to expand at a more rapid rate everyday. Students are more diverse and thus have differing needs. And society in general is demanding different knowledge and skills, most of which we haven’t, as an education system, been able address adequately.

We need the unexpected, even though it’s messy and chaotic. That’s how the world works. Nothing of any real value comes in nice little packages.

Leadership Day 2012: Don’t Adopt Technology on a Whim!

Image from: http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/LeadershipDay2012.png

My message for this year’s leadership day is going to be simple: Stop making decisions to adopt technology on a whim! You are damaging your school every time you decide to adopt a new technology initiative, because your faculty, staff, and students cannot be expected to change every time you attend a conference and come back with the latest flyer from the vendor hall. Gather a team that represents all stakeholders in the school and work together to create a vision that has student needs at heart.*  Once you have that vision, bring every resource the school has into making it happen, including technology.

I may seem a little harsh, but I have become frustrated with both administrators and teachers, who lack the common vision for where they need to be and how they are going to get there. When this happens, numerous initiatives are started and the disconnect is so great that it is difficult from an organizational standpoint to support everything everyone is doing. The cliché, a mile wide and an inch deep, is very reflective of where many schools find themselves. Everyone has their vision for what needs to happen, but since many of these visions compete against each other, no one can do them well, not to mention enact meaningful change.

If you find yourself in any leadership position, I urge you to stop and take a step back. Gather key stakeholders that represent your school community and take a deep breath and consider where you want to go. What’s important? What skills do your students need to leave with as they enter college or the workforce? What is the light at the end of the tunnel that each student needs to reach when they leave? Define what that is, and then begin talking about how you can get there. How will you use every resource the school can leverage, including technology resources and funding, to make that vision happen? Most important, how are you going to  build capacity within those around you? Figure out what it is that you need do and do it extremely well. This isn’t going to be easy, but it has to be done.

I want to conclude by saying that once you have made your plans and it comes time for implementation, be sure to encourage a culture where change is embraced. Any meaningful change you implement is likely going to be different from what has been done in the past. Teachers are going to need support and lots of it. If a major technology initiative is being implemented to support the vision, be sure to support a culture where teachers and administrators are willing to work with each other and willing to fail together. Perfection isn’t achieved on the first run, so be willing to re-invent your plans, your techniques, and most important, yourself. The road is going to be bumpy and mistakes are going to be made. Lead by example and take risks that could end in failure,  learning from your mistakes. Be willing to move on to find the right solution.  And above all, be true to your vision and stick it out. Don’t let the static of vendor halls and technological novelties interfere with your vision. Don’t adopt a technological innovation on a whim.

 

*Yes I know schools have these teams, but I often question their effectiveness. How much is what these teams accomplish for show and how much is for real change? Is the culture present within these teams to allow for failure without blame? Is this team really helping your school move forward? If not, maybe it’s time for a change? Certainly not all schools are like this, but I’m sure too many are.

Make time for the important things…

I’ve been busy lately.  If you come here often, you’ve probably noticed that I haven’t done much writing this month.  In fact, this is only my second post this month, but I’ve been busy and writing on my blog hasn’t been the most pressing thing lately.  I mean, c’mon, I have two small children, a busy job, and I’m a doc student!  You’re probably thinking, “Stop complaining, everybody’s busy, suck it up!”  We are all busy in our own ways and as I’ve said before, when you add something to your daily routine, you have to give something up.  Essentially, you make time for the things that are important to YOU!

This is essentially what I’ve done for my doc classes.  I have a professional goal that I want to achieve and I’ve committed to waking up early to do my readings and other homework for my courses.  This may seem like a small commitment for many of you, but for me 5am would have been out of the question a few years ago.  Now, let’s apply this to the classroom.

We are all busy and have only so much time in the day to devote to our courses.  However, sometimes, a new innovation comes along that we are really interested in and want to pursue.  But where do we find the time?  The truth is we prioritize what’s important and make the time.  Just like I’m giving up sleep, you too may have to give up something you really like or want to do.  It’s part of change and part of becoming a better teacher.  You may not want to do it, but if the innovation is something you really believe in and something you think will help you be more effective or improve student achievement, then you make the difficult decision to make the time where you can.  Because in the end, it’s not about you, it’s about what’s best for your students.

As an aside, if any of you know of a good way to stay awake that doesn’t include drinking coffee, PLEASE leave a comment!!!

Technology as an assignment vs using technology to support classroom activities

This is cross posted at http://tqpplc.blogspot.com.

I think there are two ways you can look at technology in education.  The first, and most often way people look at it, is through the assignments students complete using technology.  This could include basically any assignment students are required to do through the use of technology.  I’m thinking digital storytelling projects that require students to use cameras, software, and the like.  But there’s also another aspect that is overlooked, which I’m going to term lesson-based technology use.

Technology use doesn’t need to be an assignment to be used effectively.  Rather, technology can be leveraged in the classroom to enhance the teaching that is already taking place, not to mention the opportunity for something new to happen.  In this regard, I’m thinking of lesson-based things you could do with technology such as: setting up a back channel during a lecture, bringing in an expert through a video conference, or something as easy as having access to the Internet to bring in outside resources and opinions.

But it isn’t always as easy as…which is why many teachers resist. Often teachers don’t have faith in the technology working or that they won’t get the intended outcomes they wanted from the technology.  The locus of control is beyond their grasp and when it comes down to it, we don’t have the required trust in other people, the system, or simply that the technology will work.  Usually this is due to past experience.

That doesn’t mean we have to like it, and I often don’t, which is why I try to eliminate barriers that prevent teachers from doing something really amazing with technology in their classrooms.  Will things go right the first time you try it in the classroom, probably not.  But that doesn’t mean we need to stop trying to make it work.  Innovation doesn’t happen overnight and it often takes a considerable amount of time.  I understand that teaching time is sacred, but only to the extent that we fail to be relevant.

So my question to you is, are there ways you want to use technology in your classrooms?  If so, are there any barriers that I can help remove or reduce to make this happen?

The key to innovations: No barriers

Image from: http://nancymorris.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Brick_Wall.jpg

I once again come back to the topic of barriers and innovations.  This issue came to the forefront on Friday when I was leading a training session on how to use an innovation.  I had been planning for days to ensure there weren’t any issues that would prevent us from getting through the training, but as it were, when I arrived on Friday, there were immediate problems related to the main part of the innovation.  I won’t bore you with details, but it suffices to say that I prepared a back up plan that would have achieved nearly the same results.  However, after soon running into another barrier I quickly needed a back up for my back up.  Needless to say, the day was pretty much shot before it started.

Why am I bothering to tell you this?  It’s plain and simple.  If we expect innovation to take place in our schools, whether at the elementary, secondary, or post-secondary levels, we must meet the basic needs of people to allow the minimum conditions required for innovation to occur.  If we can’t do this, then we shouldn’t expect an innovation to diffuse across a population.  It just isn’t going to happen.  If you think otherwise, you’re naive and need to really consider the system you are working within.

I understand that innovation by design pushes the limits of the system.  Failure is to be expected and should be welcomed.  But it’s what we do after the failure that is the metric of our commitment to innovations.  If we do nothing, NOTHING, then we shouldn’t expect anything to change.  No new innovations, no new plans, no new learning.  Just business as usual.

Are there innovations taking place in your school?  Are you supporting them by removing barriers?  If not, why?

Barriers

I’ve been thinking about barriers a lot lately.  It seems like whenever a new innovation rises to the top, there are a number of barriers we need to overcome before we can take advantage of the innovation.  I’m not sure who said this, but someone once said that “Roadblocks are there to make you show how badly you want something.” I think I agree with this statement mostly, and often find myself trying to overcome barriers.  As a person who typically pushes change, regardless of the form it takes, I’ve had some experiences overcoming barriers and thought I’d share my experiences.

• The first thing I typically do is explain clearly the innovation.  Most people don’t like change because it’s easier to keep doing what they’re already doing, even if there are potential benefits in changing.
• Next I listen to my audience.  People being targeted for change need to have time to process the innovation and they will naturally have questions.  This also gives me the opportunity to address any misconceptions the audience may have about the innovation.
• As questions come up, I try to find examples of the innovation.  If I can’t find an example, I do my best to create an example of my own.  Allowing the audience to see the innovation can help them develop a better conceptual understanding of the innovation and will remove some barriers.
• At about this time, I usually take time to find the people in the school who might be most interested in the innovation and target them for early adoption.  This again expands the opportunity for others to see the innovation while allowing some to actually try the innovation.  This is a crucial time in the adoption process since the early adopters are going to develop a favorable or unfavorable opinion about the innovation.  Therefore I do my best to make sure these early adopters are supported in whatever way they need.
• At this point, I usually am limited to supporting those adopting the innovation and trying to persuade other would be adopters.  The best path to success here is by word of mouth of those who are the pulse or opinion leaders of the school.

This certainly isn’t an exhaustive list of things you can do to overcome barriers to implement change, but these are the common steps I take.  Frustration is often the biggest barrier to change and I find that if there is a process to follow, frustration and other barriers can be minimized.  If you’d like to learn more about change and how to make it happen, check out Diffusions of Innovations.  It’s a bit of a read, but it does give a good perspective on how to approach change.  If you’re the Wikipedia type, here’s the Diffusions of Innovations page.

The Classroom of the Next Generation

I was asked yesterday to be thinking about what the classroom of the next generation might look like as we may invest in the redesign of a classroom here at UNI to use with the grant.  As I was thinking about what I would want in my classroom for pre-service teachers, I came up with the following:

• Moveable furniture that is lightweight and allows for a number of configurations
• Displays mounted around the periphery of the classroom to allow students to work in small groups and for students to display mastery
  • There would be no front of the classroom
  • A larger display or IWB could be used for entire class problem solving and discussion
• A wireless mobile device for all learners, including the instructor
  • Necessary for connecting to the outside world and for changing the configuration of the classroom learning in the 21st century
• Comfortable and easy to move seating, preferably with wheels and cushions
• Video conferencing technology to connect with experts in multiple content areas as well as in the field
• Audience Response System for increasing the number of formative assessments given during the course
• Ubiquitous wireless Internet access, it just has to work
• Writable surfaces (walls, tables, windows, floors, etc.)
• Sound proof teaching rooms
  • Each room needs video conference technology and display
  • Allow pre-service teachers opportunity to teach during course to put theory into practice (I’m thinking a Distance-based PD School type experience)
  • Experts (faculty, teachers, other experts) are available to assist, observe, co-teach, etc.
• Other classroom technologies (digital cameras, camcorders, scanners, slates, etc.)

However, the physical classroom is only part of the equation.  There is a virtual classroom that must also be accompanied with all physical classrooms.  Here is my short list of general features of virtual classrooms:

• Common online meeting space that can be accessed from anywhere, anytime
• Membership to the virtual class should include experts in multiple content areas and experts from the field
• Needs to allow for high levels of collaboration
• Needs to be flexible and user friendly to have as low of a learning curve as possible
• Needs to allow for high personalization at the user level

This is what I see as being crucial for transforming learning in schools.  The role of everyone in the classroom changes.  There is no front of the classroom for the teacher to “teach” from, rather, the teacher moves around the room supporting small groups or individual students.  Those groups will change, which means the basic structure and configuration of the classroom needs to be flexible.

Above is a crude, very crude, sketch of what I think the physical classroom would look like.  (Please excuse my awful drawing skills).  The main point I want to get across is that the classroom needs to be flexible, open, comfortable, and highly structured for collaboration.

What does your classroom for the next generation look like?  Leave a comment!

Check your negativity at the door, it really doesn’t help

After checking in with Twitter this morning I came across this tweet from SAI about how the tone of our comments can kill or propel innovation.  While the article was very interesting, there is a nifty list at the end of the article that breaks down how your tone can propel innovation.  I felt it was a great list and definitely made me question and think about some of the ways I comment and otherwise interact with others.  I have posted the list below, but you can find the entire list here: http://www.brainleadersandlearners.com/ellen-weber/comments-kill-or-propel-innovation/

1. Invent one refreshing solution to replace a routine that leaves you bored or in a rut. It could be as simple as driving to work along a different route. Brain fact: Boredom is more a negative perspective shaped by daily choices,  and stored in brain as a reality.

2. Uplift your work area with natural lighting.  Brain fact: Environments influence your perspective, and a healthy well lit workplace often inspires new outlooks.

3. Thank a cranky worker for even a small accomplishment.  Brain fact: Well being comes grateful outlooks – fueled and extended by serotonin chemical hormones.

4. Give an offender the gift of forgiveness, by letting go of a grudge. Brain fact: Anger, fear, and frustration lead to incriminating perspectives fueled by dangerous cortisol chemicals.

5.  Propose winning alternatives to an observed annoying habit.  Brain fact: Venting leads to negative outlooks, that create new neuron pathways to more complaints.

6. Act as the person you want others to see in you, and that you’ll become.Brain fact: Dendrite brain cells use the outside world to shape positive perspectives, based on what you do in a day.

7. Vary your background sounds and add music for more motivating outlooks.Brain fact: Music changes brain wave speeds in ways that impact moods and alter perspectives.

8. Stir curiosity and engage others by tapping into their interests.  Brain fact: Lectures  or talks can work against listener perspectives because passive listening fails to improve listener views.

9. Shift routines up daily. Brain fact: Hebbian workers rely on unchanged perspectives that kill incentives, limit focus or even shrink human brains with narrow opinions and stilted views.

10. Enjoy differences as assets.  Brain fact: Risk gaining new outlooks today from a person who differs in age, culture, gender, career or beliefs.

11. Sleep well in order to perceive your world well. Brain fact: Brain waves can bring either poor perspectives or peak performance, based on how you activate and manage them in your favor.

12. Research and open mentally to new and different ideas daily.  Brain fact: Hook even difficult facts onto one thing you know already and perspectives grow and expand with learning.

13. Change on regular basis.  Brain fact: Your brain’s basal ganglia stores old perspectives that can haunt you, while working memory holds new facts that upload innovative views.

14. Diversify your talent development to engage new perspectives. Brain fact: Multiple intelligences are common to all, used by few, and can be cultivated daily for mental health.

15. Create rather than criticize. Brain fact: Cynical or critical mindsets literally block creativity, limit talent in you or others, and stomp out innovative perspectives.

16. List key reminders that guide healthy perspectives.  Brain fact: Memory can be outsourced by simple lists that help you remember to free your mind for finer perspectives that frame a day.

17. Inspire novel young ideas. Brain fact: Plasticity enables people of all ages and backgrounds to rewire their outlook in ways that keep the brain younger and more agile.

19. Encourage yourself and others to spot goodness.  Brain fact: Encouragement changes the chemistry of a brain that frames itself for serotonin, and ratchets up good tone for profitable views.

19. Communicate with care, openness and honesty. Brain fact: Meta messages destroy relationships through implications different from message spoken, and can fog friendships.

20. Integrate from ideas and people across many fields.  Brain fact: It often takes an integration of  hard and soft skills to gain wider perspectives that solve problems with the brain in mind.

21. Relax and practice letting worries go.  Brain fact:  Stress literally shrinks the brain, narrows perspective, and kills tone for healthy communications.

22. Seek new ideas from growing relationships. Brain fact: Greet colleagues through speaking people’s names, to stoke perspectives that spread well being.

23. Risk innovation one perspective at a time.  Brain fact: Inspire creativity and invention through teaching others at the same time you also learn and create yourself.

24. Collaborate to propose solutions from new outlooks. Brain fact: Create new neuron pathways collectively and you’ll add diverse solutions to workplace  problems  encountered.

25. Celebrate those who view the world from different lenses. Brain fact: Women’s and men’s brain differ biologically and intellectually, for instance,  in ways that alter perspectives.

Anything make you question your actions?

Use, Integration, Innovation

When I was at ITEC, I attended a session with Punya Mishra about TPACK and one of the talking points he had was around the type of technology adoption we have in education.  He made the argument that there are three levels of technology adoption: use, integration, and innovation.  I think this gives us a great way to think about the role technology has in the learning environment we create for our students.  But I think it’s important to think about how we define each of the terms.  Here’s my definitions:

• Use: Computer technology is employed to complete routine, regular tasks.  The technology provides very little in terms of learning opportunities that would not have been available without the technology.
• Integration: Computer technology is interwoven into the learning environment to enhance the learning experiences of the students.  The instruction changes some, but overall, the teaching remains mostly teacher-centric.  The technology provides some variance in terms of learning opportunities that would not have been available without the technology.
• Innovation: Computer technology is deployed to change the type of learning to be student-centered.  The type of tasks, projects, and activities are very different, likely eliciting critical thinking, problem solving, and higher order thinking skills.  Students are likely working collaboratively with students both physically close and distant.  The technology transforms the learning opportunities that would not have been possible without the technology.

These are my definitions and no one’s but my own.  I don’t have any research to support what I’m saying (although there is an argument that I could find various sources), so take this with a grain of salt.  But I think there is value in talking about what WE think is effective teaching.  It let’s us focus on what we are doing and ask ourselves, “Am I really changing for the better by doing X?”  I think these three terms are a great way to frame self reflection when it comes to technology use in education.  So my question to you is, how do you define these three terms and where do you fit?