Featured Blog Posts – July 2011 Archive (8)

I signed up for RSCON3 after seeing my favorite Tweeters @shellterrell, @dwight_carter and others tweet about it... I didn't know what to expect really from a e-conference, but I put some time aside for the three days to see what this would be all about.  I came to find that there are a lot of people in this world who are doing the same kind of work that I do, with energy and passion that is truly contagious.  This is more then a conference (I have been to those, big rooms... no wifi, listen…

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I recently read a post from Andrew Marcinek, an educator who I greatly respect and often agree with. Are We Chasing Technology or Mastering It? His post however caused me, for the first time after several years of connection, to disagree with him. In his post he asserts that we should slow down the way we expect teachers to learn and use technology as a tool for learning. He makes some valid points. We can never be on the cutting…

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Every three years I force myself to do something that, although it is geared to save me money and provide for my safety, I dread it more than the possibility of Kidney Stones. New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, the DMV provides a Defensive Driving Course for drivers to complete and earn a reduction on their insurance premium, or a reduction on points on their license as a result of traffic infractions. Not wanting to suffer alone, and needing to get the highest reduction possible…

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Once upon a time I was a 7th grade math teacher. I'm not any more. But education still runs deep in my bones so I began working on a thesis project to build an educational framework and to organize my thoughts I made this:

 

 

What do you think? Will this crazy idea work or am I way off base? I'd love to have some…

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As I attend more and more conferences explaining the effect Social Media is having on education, the subject of Back Channeling often comes up. Educators at conferences are beginning to accept the fact that it is okay for audience members to twitter out to their followers the statements of the presenter as well as their own impressions of the speaker and topic. As I explained this to a number of people at a conference this week, I remembered the first post I did on this very subject way back on… Continue

I’ve been reading a lot of blogs, commentaries, and opinion pieces recently and I’ve seen a couple differing viewpoints about what is wrong with education today. Some believe that teachers are simply in the profession not for the kids, but the money, while others believe that politicians are the cause of the problems in education. A third group of thinkers believe that the unions are to blame for education’s ills and need to be eliminated. Allow me to add my own thoughts to the mix and…

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After a wonderful experience at the ISTE11 Conference in Philadelphia, I finally made the decision to get away from any computer and get myself to the beach for a week to decompress. Of course, I have my Droid, so I am still somewhat connected, but frustratingly so. A mobile device doesn’t yet fully replace the speed and convenience of a loaded laptop or desktop. Yet, it is that very inconvenience with only a mobile phone at the beach that enables me to say to my family that I am, for the…

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