The Fear of Change

– by Randy Lyseng

Change is all around us.  In the words of Karl Fisch, Shift Happens!  (see the latest Did You Know video on YouTube.  But how do we respond to teachers who grapple with technology change in the classroom?

On the ISTE Connects Blog this morning, I found a great post about Dennis Baron’s new book  A Better Pencil. Here’s an excerpt of the post:

His new book takes a look at people’s fear of computers having a negative impact on various aspects of human interaction, including common complaints that instant messaging (IM) is ruining the English language and that Facebook is causing us to be anti-social. Baron argues that we don’t need to be concerned. He feels computers are improving writing and actually making us more social. And what I found to be most interesting is his view that this fear of ‘changing technology’ is nothing new.

And it’s true…it is nothing new.  In the final phase of my student teaching, my cooperating teacher used the Gestetner printer and refused to use the photocopier. I preferred using Mechanical pencils in University vs. the standard HB.  I was able to use a calculator in my grade 12 diploma exam…this first year it was allowed (1985).  Some teachers are petrified of using the new SMARTBoard in their class and prefer to use the overhead and project it on their SMARTBoard instead.

Megan Dolman, the author of the post on ISTE Connects provides us with some great advice for working these hesitant teachers:

When you come up against people that are hesitant to implement technology it may be a good idea to remember what Baron is saying: this fear of new communication tools is as old as the pencil. Reassure them that just as the telephone didn’t lessen the need or desire for face-to-face conversations, Facebook and other social media won’t either!

The times…well they are always changing.

AISI Cycle 4: TIPS participate

As an active participant in the AISI Leadership Team (ALT), TIPS members will be reporting on issues in technology planning that relate to the AISI project.  One of the roles defined for members of the ALT is that they “…engage in the communication/knowledge dissemination of the AISI Cycle 4…”.  As such we will be using this blog from time to time to relate information that has been  presented to members of the ALT or appears on the AISI Cycle IV website.

An ezine article on 21st literacies is referenced in the above website.  The article begins on page 4 of the issue.

Alberta’s International Space Station Event

Alberta’s International Space Station Event is set to take place on September 23 at 9:25 AM.

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To ensure that all Alberta students have the opportunity to share in the experience, the question and answer session between students in Palliser Regional Schools and astronauts aboard the International Space Station will be available by live streaming and broadcast on Shaw Cable.  Everyone is encouraged to share in this once-in-a-lifetime event.

To access the live streaming feed, please click here.

To test the site in your school or district please visit http://www.learnalberta.ca/content/csastream/stream.html.

Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology

The first fully online issue of CJLT is now available at http://www.cjlt.ca/index.php/cjlt.

The Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology is a peer-reviewed journal that welcomes papers on all aspects of educational technology and learning. Topics may include, but are not limited to: learning theory and technology, cognition and technology, instructional design theory and application, online learning, computer applications in education, simulations and gaming, and other aspects of the use of technology in the learning process. Manuscripts may be submitted either in English or in French.

People to follow on Web2.0

Here are some key people to follow on via Twitter and RSS (blogs) on implications and integration strategies for using Web 2.0 tools.

• Will Richardson – author of Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts – http://weblogg-ed.com

• David Warlick – http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/

• Wesley Freyer – http://www.speedofcreativity.org/

• Karl Fisch – http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/

• Scott McLeod – http://www.dangerouslyirrelevant.org

Big picture stuff would be Don Tapscott – http://www.wikinomics.com/blog/index.php/author/don-tapscott/

Establishing New Learning Environments

National Educational Technology Standards for Students

http://www.nectec.or.th/users/htk/it-education
Traditional educational practices no longer provide students with all the necessary skills for economic survival in todays workplace. Students must apply strategies for solving problems and use appropriate tools for learning, collaborating, and communicating. Todays learning environments must incorporate strategies and tools that prepare students for their futures. The following chart lists characteristics representing traditional approaches to learning and corresponding strategies often associated with new learning environments.

Digital Footprints

This blog entry is a great reminder of the digital footprint educators and students leave behind: “I can see a day in the not too distant future (if it’s not already here) where your “digital footprint” will carry far more weight than anything you might include in a resume or CV.”

Of course, this has huge implications for the education field.

For the full article, please see:http://betch.edublogs.org/2009/05/14/footsteps

Teaching with Twitter?

Just read a great post from Ewan MacIntosh’s blog about the power of social media used by teens and a recent example in Moldavia. He also talked about the English Government’s plans to ‘teach Twitter’ and the perhaps better-formed plans of the Scottish Government to include text messaging and social networks language in the fabric of language teaching and learning [pdf].

Conversation Prism

This is a great graphic that helps chart online conversations between the people that populate communities as well as the networks that connect the Social Web.

The Conversation Prism is created by Brian Solis et al. and is thea living, breathing representation of Social Media and will evolve as services and conversation channels emerge, fuse, and dissipate.

Other social networking models are also available as well.

Generations 2009 Charts

Generation Y, aka the “Net Generation,” does not dominate every aspect of online life. That revealing statistic and many others like it come from Pew Internet and American Life’s recent “Generations Online” report which takes a look at how the different generations of users – from Millennials to the G.I. Generation – use the internet.

The web is still largely populated by younger generations as over half of those online are between the ages of 18 and 44 years old. But these days, larger percentages of older generations are going online and they are doing more activities while there.

According to Pew’s research, Generation X is most likely to shop, bank, and look for health information online, but boomers are just as likely as Gen Y to make travel reservations online. Even the older Silent Generation is competitive when it comes to email, although that could point to the fact that email is an activity that is trending older.

Source: Read and Write Web

In this study, the Generations are defined as follows:

• Gen Y (millennials) – Born 1977-1990, Ages 18-32
• Gen X – Born 1965-1976, Ages 33-44
• Younger Boomers – Born 1955-1964, Ages 44-54
• Older Boomers – Born 1946-1954, Ages 55-63
• Silent Generation – Born 1937-1945, Ages 64-72
• G.I. Generation – Born -1936, Age 73+

Generations 2009 Charts

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