The TWAIN blog

Tim Holt from El Paso ISD posted a blog post today about my ability to “speak teacher”. This is a very interesting post about the lingo of teachers and all the phrases they must know with curriculum and instruction. Partial list included in Tim’s post.

Another really great thing on the web today is James Cameron’s AVATAR teaser trailer. I have posted about this before but I think this film will revolutionize film making. Really interesting. I suggest you go to Apple Trailers website to watch the video in High Definition. It is that cool!

I just got back from watching the newest Harry Potter movie and I appreciate how each movie and book challenges the educational system in such different ways. I promise not to give away spoilers from the movie(s) as I go through this.

The school, Hogwarts, is different than other schools. The basic foundation is for meeting students who are different than normal students. It is a school for the exceptionally gifted but those gifts aren’t necessarily tied to knowledge or passing a state exam. Some will become wizards but there are other roles they can prepare for as well.

The paintings of historical contributors to the wizarding world are interactive. They speak and move about in their frames.

Students are sorted not by grades or scores (but by a hat!). If you read the book, the students are sorted into houses based on their personalities and what they may develop into.

The hallways are ever-changing with stairwells moving around and changing direction. Some classes take place outside and in forests.

Teachers interact with the students in the hallways and during dining times. They are ever-present in the hallways and available at all hours of the day. They answer questions and refer students to the library to find more information on what they are searching.

All classes in this school use project-based, interactive learning. Students make potions, learn to fly on a broom, how to levitate objects, and how to plant screaming vegetables.

Textbooks are common in the Harry Potter world. In a previous story, a book on monsters was a monster itself complete with eyes and teeth. But a common thread in all the stories is how the textbooks are the same today as they were for previous generations going through this special school. One such book on Potions in the current movie references how many errors are in the book based on the writing by one of the previous owners of the book.

A scene in the movie has Harry prepare a potion that no one else in the class can solve based on their notes in their textbook; but Harry has notes written in to his book that allow him to solve the task.

All of this said, there is a certain “magic” about Hogwarts that does make it a place of wonder while still being a school. I wonder if the millions of children who read about this wonderful place realized that it was….school. I think this is one of the major reasons JK Rowling made such a successful storyline because most of the story takes place in a school. Not just any school though – a school built on imagination.

The storyline that carries the most themes surrounding public education can be found in “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”. There is a character by the name of Dolores Umbridge who really personifies the danger of state-controlled education. Most of the Hogwarts scenes concern Harry fighting against a teacher who wants to discredit him and get more control of the school itself. Miss Umbridge removes the things in the school that make it so special. She restricts student access and even limits the teacher interaction and lessons they can teach. It is a very dark storyline but I think Mrs. Rowling didn’t just throw this in as a sub-plot. She really is saying something about education and schooling in all her stories.

Based on the wonder of Hogwarts and the world of Harry Potter, can our schools become more like these magical schools?

Can our foundation for schooling be for teaching each child as an exceptional child?

Can our schools have interactivity with images? Is there technology available to make this happen?

How do we sort our students?

Construction issues aside, can we change our hallways? Must the classrooms all look the same? How many classrooms have the same things posted on the walls each year?

Do teachers eat lunch with students? Can teachers be more interactive in the hallways? When students are not in the classroom, where do they go to get answers? Who pushes them to libraries and resources for learning?

Are we teaching kids to fly? Are we letting them learn by doing? Are they getting hands-on experience in a guided practice? Are classes taught outside the classroom?

I like the books because they take you to a place of wonder and imagination but constantly reinforce the need for education. A style of education not seen in public schools. The last book takes the characters out of the safety of their school where they must use all they have learned to fight the ultimate battle. They are tested.

What can we do to make learning, education, and our schools a place of wonder and imagination?

I am in the last days of the 5-day Tech Directors Academy through TCEA. This academy spreads 5 days over the course of a year and these last two are about curriculum & instruction and professional development. Today was C&I and there were some real gems in our discussions.

Again, I cannot put in words how valuable this academy has been to me. I am a first year CTO with minimal training in everything I do. This academy is something I see as valuable to my day-to-day role; but I can see how valuable it could be to the “old-timers” out there too. Just plugging it again again – take this academy. It is really a rich resource for all of us. Both Lori and Kari have been a great team for teaching us. They also provide us with TONS of resources we get to take with us and use.

I think today’s biggest influence on me was the idea of developing a district research model and then how to share it with staff and stakeholders. Lori didn’t get to show how they developed their model but shared how to instruct others to use it. She showed how Bastrop ISD gathered librarians, tech apps teachers, and CTE teachers together in groups to apply the research model to solve a problem. A project-based learning model in staff development.

It is interesting to me because many districts develop a Writing Model but it is rare to have one based solely on research. Personally, I feel that this model is key to our students living in the 21st century. The ability not only to research but to ask good questions to find good answers is such a demand for everyone. We need to teach our students not only to research for classroom projects but to answer those questions we all face in the future:

• What is the best cell phone for me?
• Where should I go to college?
• How can I finance my new car?
• Where is the best place to go on my vacation?

Being able to ask good questions and to find information in a variety of methods is key to survival outside the walls of our schools and the homes of our parents.

What Lori shared was the first meeting with the teachers and librarians – she gave them a problem-based learning scenario and outlined the research method. First she had participant gather in their group: librarians, CTE teachers, and Tech-Apps teachers. Then they were all presented the problem which was that the President needed a brief on Global Warming – what it was and how to solve it. Each participant had a laptop and had to assemble the brief.

After they had their information and shared presentations, these groups mixed together so that they could share how each group researched. The discussion among these groups was about the method for implementing good research. Then the discussion continued to be about how students could implement the research model. And on even into how to incorporate the research model into curriculum and instruction.

This is something I want to take back to my district to develop. It seems so fundamental and that it could be that missing link to connect curriculum, libraries, and technology on a foundation shared by all.

Today’s session was about a lot of stuff but my brain got stuck on this one. I really think this is going to be key to our staff development process. Now we just have to develop that research model. Good thing Lori shared her resources with us in the Academy!

A teacher I used to work with posted a question for me on Facebook about using alternative resources for multimedia presentations. I went to work on it and found about 15 which I shared with her. Her response posted on my wall yesterday:

“I had an ABSOLUTELY AWESOME DAY JOEL!!!! Thank you so much for your recommendations! For the first time, I gave a quiz using the CPS system. (Presto grades done! No grading this weekend!!!) Then we spent the remaining time checking out these awesome websites you sent. My kids are really getting into it. (I need to remember for next time that …  Read Morestudents can’t make an gmail account to use google docs at school.) Sliderocket is REALLY cool! I shared with all the other biology teachers. They thought it was really neat. I also showed them a printout of grades from the quiz I gave via CPS and told them it is done as soon as they are finished. Wow! It makes life SOOO much easier. I absolutely love it!!!! Today was such an awesome day!!!!!“

A few weeks ago, I deleted over 86 of my Twitter groups I was following. I cleared out the blogs I was following and I completely archived this blog.

I lost my voice.

The voice I want to portray in this blog.

I am trying to figure out what I want that voice to be.

I am as Toffler says “learning, unlearning, and relearning” even in my own blog.

I have been continually writing but keeping the posts private. So that I can fine tune my voice. So that I can make sure that what I write is about what I believe and what I want to represent me.

So, I will keep working at it.

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Meanwhile I am happy to report that my previous employer has found a new technology coordinator who is going to take them to new heights! I had the pleasure of extending a hello to this guy and I am really excited for him and the possibilities at that place. They are really forward-thinking and moving into a really good direction. I remember where we were when I started there and I imagine his first few days and weeks just trying to find the cafeteria, a bathroom, and a quiet place to just absorb all the energy of that place.

I remember having a co-worker who showed me the ropes from his side and helped get me situated. I remember the two of us splitting the responsibilities and his help to get me going, meet all the new people, and helping me to be successful. That person is gone from the district. And now, this new guy has inherited all of the roles and responsibilities that were originally assigned to two, then to three, down to one, and now on his own shoulders.

I don’t believe in abandoning the place where I invested my heart and learned as much if not more than what I brought to the table. I don’t believe that I should leave a place to “figure it out” on their own. I also think it is absolutely disgusting to offer to help in exchange for something from them. Isn’t our field to support learning no matter where we are? Aren’t we by nature supposed to help and not hinder?

First do no harm?

I sincerely want ALL schools and education systems to be successful. And I want ALL teachers – and teachers include technology coordinators, librarians, principals, etc. – to be successful as well. Take whatever you need. Share.