geek.teacher

I’m honestly surprised they don’t have “cell phones” on there.

It makes me proud to see high schoolers taking a delightful jab at the march of progress (or lack thereof).  Chris Lehmann from SLA shared this awesome video on the Twitters done by some of the students there which explains the problem with textbooks.  I’d say more, but I don’t want to spoilt it.  Thoughts after the video.

My favorite bit is definitely when he wants to save the image, but realizes he doesn’t have a folder to drag it to.  But every single point is spot on when comparing the interactivity of the learning experience when reading hypertext vs. plain text.

Now, I love a good book, as seen here:

But we need to face facts: texbooks are incredibly lame in comparison to hypertext.  I’ve had to attend a lot of reading trainings the past couple of years as my school fights for AYP, and the key point that’s always made is that good readers interact with the text.  The whole point of a hypertext setup is the interaction.

Of course, this doesn’t need to be just on a computer.  Earlier today I read an interesting writeup by Seth Godin in which he describes changes he would make to the Kindle.  Relevant ones for education in particular:

3. Anytime I send someone a book (see #1) or recommend a book, let me (with the other person’s consent) see the comments they write in the margins of the book as they read it. Imagine being able to read a novel this way with your book group, or a sales manual with your department.

6. Demolish the textbook market as soon as possible by publishing open source textbooks for free.

7. Give publishers the ability to insert quizzes or feedback. This creates a certification or continuing ed or textbook opportunity far bigger than a book can deliver.

In particular, #3 is just the kind of thing that would be awesome for a classroom environment.  Teachers could see the notes that students are taking to help them see if the students understand the material, and students can see what everybody else wrote to lead to a richer understanding.  Add the ability to do a quick gogole.wiki search for any word in the text, you have instant, limitless, connected, and relevant knowledge.

I also very much enjoy the idea of destroying the textbook industry.  Having recently listened to the audiobook version of A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn (please note: that there is a link to the apparently full text of the book.  For free.  Awesome!) and also being a fan of Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen, I can pretty safely say that, at least when it comes to history, there’s a lot that can be improved there.  Being able to quickly and easily look up more information, possibly from a very different perspective, would be a huge improvement.  Science and Math books need some serious improvement, too, as Dan Meyer likes to point out.

This post started as just me wanting to embed a funny video.  Funny how my brain made all these connections as I worked.  Hyperthoughts!

Word’s breaking out on Twitter that the Pennsylvania General Assembly has recently been presented with House Bill 363.  I will henceforth refer to this as the Luddite Bill.  The Luddite Bill wants to amend the PA Public School Code to say the following:

The possession by students of telephone paging devices, commonly referred to as beepers, cellular telephones and portable electronic devices that record or play audio or video material shall be prohibited on school grounds, at school sponsored activities and on buses or other vehicles provided by the school district.  

Needless to say, I have a problem with this.  First, I will let it be known that my school has a ban on cell phones, and, as a faculty member, I have enforced the rule by taking away the cell phones of students who use them during school hours.  That rule is a decision made on the local level, based on the needs and wishes of the building administrators and the school board.  I have no doubt that the rules could change over time or have some added flexibility.  We already provide some of that, as students are now at least free to have their phones and use them after school as needed.  This law would take that flexibility away from us.  According to this law, with few notable emergency exceptions, students would not be allowed to ever bring a phone to school for any reason whatsoever.

A few years ago, I wouldn’t have thought this a big deal, but to take away the option of teachers allowing cell phone use in their classrooms to me now seems ludicrous.  Right now we stand on the brink of a major shift in computing resources available to students in their pockets, with phones as powerful as a computer from only a few years ago.  People who want to ban these tools really need to check out Cell Phones in Learning.  Honestly, if you think we really want you to take away more teaching options from us, you re sorely mistaken.

As a starting point to work to stop this bill, I recommend contacting your legislator and signing this petition.

Update 1: for another perspective, check out Jimbo Lamb’s post here.

Update 2: Jim Gates, Steve Dembo, and Damian Bariexca also have their say.

Update 3: Liz Kolb gets unsurprisingly angry.

Update4: Chris Lehmann and Louise Maine contribute.

Update 5: Jill Machemer uses the word “decapitated” in her piece, and the incredulity to spreads to New York’s Lisa Nielsen and New Zealand’s Greg Carroll.

Update 6: I got mentioned by Techdirt! That got blogs Obsessable and Daily Online Examiner to say something about 363. Thomas Boito and Stefani Hite also chime in.

Update 7: Lisa Thumann tells how she first found out about the bill.

 photo credit: albany_tim

I had my students write paragraphs about what they are thankful for this year, so I figured I would write along a similar trend.  I am, of course, thankful for many things in this world, not the least of which would be my family and friends.  However, the thing I am most thankful for this year in relation to how it has changed (some might say warped) my thinking would undoubtedly be my Personal Learning Network.

A year ago I didn’t have a PLN.  I took the plunge early this year as I started to check out some more educational blogs and found a lot of good stuff.  Those blogs got me into Twitter.  I had signed up for Twitter back when I first heard about it because it sounded interesting, but, as I would imagine many people do, I hit a brick wall early.  I didn’t know anybody on Twitter, and couldn’t convince anybody to join me.  When I discovered the same people writing the blogs I liked to read also tweeted, I jumped back in, following them.  Then I started following people that they were talking to, so I could understand more.  Things kind of snowballed from there.  

While I still continue to follow blogs, and use diigo groups a little, at the end of the day, Twitter takes the crown as the most important piece of my PLN.  I interact with so many different educators from all around the world, getting links, resources, and advice.  I share my own knowledge as well whenever possible, but I get back so much more than I could possibly give.

Some wonderful things that make Twitter so worth it to me:

• As stated before, talking to educators living quite literally on the other side of the world, like Jeff Utecht in Thailand
• Talking to some great local educators I never would have talked to due to them being in different districts, such as Kristen Hokanson and Diana Laufenberg
• The strange near mind-melds I occasionally get with Damian Bariexca and Chad Brannon
• Talking about students having laptops in the classroom with Jackie Ballarini, Chris Champion, and Karen Janowski.  Should we put them into the IEPs?  Should students bring their own laptops?  Can they check them out?
• Early this morning, thanks to Mr. Tweet, I started following Craig Nansen.  he follows me back, notices I’m asking about DSLRs, and gives me tons of really helpful information as I try to figure out exactly what to ask for on my Christmas list.
• The generally goofy humor that occurs when a bunch of nerdy teachers interact, providing some at times much needed comic relief to my day

So, thank you fellow edutwitters.  You’ve given me so much, and I hope to continue to provide back in kind.  Thanks for giving me new material, for stretching my thinking about a wide variety of topics, and, in essence, helping me to develop into a better, more knowledgeable teacher.  Thank you.