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Education Technology

Project Based Learning Helps Us Overcome Technology Addiction #RealPBL

By Ross Cooper Leave a Comment

The following is an excerpt from the eBook, #RealPBL Deleted Scenes, which contains excerpts that didn’t make it into the final draft of the book, Project Based Learning: Real Questions. Real Answers.

Background Information: Here’s the final section from the Introduction that didn’t make the cut. Whereas the previous section stuck around for awhile, this one was written and then deleted shortly thereafter. While we believe the problem posed by this section – tech addiction – is worth addressing, it is covered throughout the book, in one way or another.

PBL Helps Us Overcome Tech Addiction

Toward the beginning of both of our teaching careers, we admittedly participated in what we now call “the technology pissing contest.” In short, we were always on the lookout for “cool tools,” ​and we wanted to be the first ones to use them at our school, even if we had to construct overly contrived activities.

Take, for example, these directions from an iPad project:

Using iMovie, shoot a silent scene of two actors portraying characters from a novel. Save the video to your Camera Roll. Open the Tellagami app, and use a solid green image as your background. Have the avatar in Tellagami explain what is going on in the silent movie scene. Finally, use DoInk Green Screen to combine the video created with iMovie with the Tellagami commentary. Save the finished product to the Camera Roll.

When we teach in this way, and we just have to use certain technologies with our students, we plan by “beginning with the technology in mind,” as opposed to planning that begins by considering what we want students to ​learn. And, we know our teaching is in the wrong place when students first and foremost believe their goal is to learn all about [insert technology].

This overemphasis on technology isn’t just a problem that exists at the classroom level. Based on our experiences, countless schools and districts are heavily investing in devices, sometimes as if it’s ​the answer​. Then, to make sure money isn’t wasted, teachers are required to use these tools, and technology walkthroughs are implemented on a wide scale.

While we fully appreciate schools and districts moving toward technology integration, it has become increasingly obvious to us that technology amplifies (for better or worse) what’s already taking place. If we have a dynamic teacher and meaningful learning, technology can help to elevate these conditions. If we have a lackluster teacher and insignificant learning, not only will technology not help, but its entity could potentially mask what’s truly transpiring.

In addition, technology can be defined as something that was invented in our lifetime. For most of our students, these technologies aren’t a novelty but rather a way of life. We need to do what we can to ensure student access, but then we don’t need to take the use of these tools and hold it up on a pedestal. Also, the majority of the time, our students know more about these tools than we do, but we don’t ask them for help. As a result, our students miss out on valuable opportunities when we’re hesitant to use technology because we haven’t fully “mastered it.”

On a classroom, school, and district level, many of our technology-related problems (as well as other problems) dissipate when we prioritize pedagogy by integrating technology into meaningful teaching and learning, not the other way around. Or, as ​Michael Fullan ​succinctly puts it, “Pedagogy is the driver, technology is the accelerator.” (And in some instances, technology is the roadblock.)

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Filed Under: Curriculum & Unit Design, Education Technology, Inquiry-Based Learning, Project Based Learning

Introducing the HIP-E Framework for Levels of AUTHENTIC Tech Use

By Ross Cooper 1 Comment

I’ve always thought that education frameworks are a bit of a double-edged sword. Yes, they often help us to simplify complex processes by making them easier to understand, but at the same time we run the risk of dumbing down or compartmentalizing what we’re doing by taking something that’s complex (but valuable) and turning it into concrete steps or stages.

In the world of educational technology, the most popular framework is easily the SAMR Model (read about it here), which I was first introduced to back in 2011. Three brief thoughts on the model:

  • On many occasions I’ve heard educators heatedly debate where their lessons fall on the SAMR Ladder. For me, this is splitting hairs. We should simply be asking ourselves, “Are we first and foremost meeting the needs of our students, while using technologies to accomplish what we couldn’t otherwise do without the technology itself?”
  • When we obsess over SAMR, we’re potentially doing wrong by our students. Just because a lesson is “above the line” (modification or redefinition), doesn’t mean worthwhile learning is happening. (For an example, see one of my previous posts, The Problem with App Smashing.)
  • If we focus our professional learning on solid pedagogy (without overemphasizing technology), educators will usually find their own ways to leverage technologies to enhance what they’ve learned. As I mentioned in a post on student-run Edcamps:

Christina [first grade teacher] was able to incorporate various technologies into her classroom, despite the fact that none of our Writing Workshop professional learning explicitly focused on technology. We learned about the Writing Workshop framework (along with the Units of Study), and once she developed a deep understanding of these practices, the natural next step for her was to enhance what she was doing with a combination of technologies that (1) were already available to her, and (2) she explored through a webinar. Furthermore, several other teachers have also taken it upon themselves to do the same.

I do believe the SAMR Model is a fine starting point for those who are at the early stages of regularly integrating technologies into their instruction. But, I have found that an overreliance on a technology framework places too much emphasis on technology (surprise, surprise), and not enough of a focus on the actual learning that’s taking place. One way to view this problem is that there’s nothing wrong with the model; it’s how you use it.

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Filed Under: Education Technology, Literacy

Book Review: Learning Transformed #LT8Keys

By Ross Cooper Leave a Comment

It was about a year ago when I was first told that Eric Sheninger and Tom Murray were writing a book for ASCD, based on eight specific ways to make our schools current and relevant. (Eric is a former High School Principal, now a senior fellow with the International Center for Leadership in Education. Tom is a former Director of Technology and Cyber Education, now the Director of Innovation for Future Ready Schools.)

Since this announcement, (1) the book was named Learning Transformed: 8 Keys to Designing Tomorrow’s Schools, Today, and (2) and it has been endorsed by educators and influencers that include: Sir Ken Robinson, Arne Duncan, Linda Darling-Hammond, Daniel Pink, Robert Marzano, Michael Fullan, Andy Hargreaves, and Heidi Hayes Jacobs.

When Learning Transformed came out about a month ago, I was able to get my hands on a copy, and it immediately moved to the top of my pile of books to read (given the reputations of its two authors, as well as the endorsements).

Yesterday I finished the book, and here are some of my initial thoughts.

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Filed Under: Education Technology, Leadership

Book Review: Cultivating Communication in the Classroom

By Ross Cooper Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago I was able to get my hands on Cultivating Communication in the Classroom by Lisa Johnson. And, if you don’t know who Lisa is, then you should. She is an Educational Technologist at Eanes Independent School District in Austin, Texas. And, I have been following her work for a handful of years over at her blog/website, techchef4u.com. So, of course I was excited to hear her book was being published and she’d be sending me an advanced copy. (The book is now available, by the way.)

As my district, Salisbury Township School District, continues to explore the 4 C’s – communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity – Lisa has written a book that focuses on what she cites as the C that is often times neglected, communication. She adds, “While there are multiple books available to support creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration, very little content is available to support students with communication – the highest rated of the critical 4 C’s among employers [from a 2012 American Management Association survey].”

Considering the direction of my district (and education, in general) I could see Cultivating Communication in the Classroom being used by K-12 teachers when planning lessons, and/or it could easily be leveraged as a textbook for a communications course.

Lisa’s intentions mimic my thoughts:

The ultimate goal of this book is to provide a success-ready resource that will support educators with designing learning experiences that allow students to flex these communication competencies, while providing students with tools and authentic opportunities to foster the continued growth of these skills throughout and beyond their secondary education.

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Filed Under: Education Technology

Tell Your Story: Role Reversal

By Ross Cooper 1 Comment

tell-your-story-role-reversal
photo credit: Nolan’s preschool teacher

In The Power of Branding, Tony Sinanis and Joe Sanfelippo define branding as, “The marketing practice of creating a name, symbol, or design that identifies and differentiates a product from other products.”

Tell Your Story

As a classroom teacher, there were a few ways in which I differentiated my classroom from others:

  • My students were regularly engaged in project based learning.
  • My students consistently used various technologies in meaningful ways, such as to demonstrate a deeper understanding of content, to display their work for an authentic audience, etc.
  • Parents were continuously made aware of the learning that was taking place, as the classroom website was updated on a daily basis, and I was always posting student photographs and work to a Picasa Web Album. (At times I experimented with Twitter and Instagram, but as a teacher they never become my “go-tos.”)

Since becoming an administrator I have continued to champion the importance of schools and districts leveraging technologies (amongst other avenues) to connect with stakeholders. And, because most of these stakeholders are already on social media, taking advantage of these mediums has become the popular means to “meet them where they are.” I should also mention, much of my efforts in this area have been inspired by the work of Tony and Joe.

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Filed Under: Education Technology, Leadership

Digital Portfolios and Blogs: Use Authentic Technology, Not Technology Made for School

By Ross Cooper 46 Comments

Student publishing is a topic Erin Murphy and I explore in-depth in Hack 10 of our upcoming book, Hacking Project Based Learning! (Update – The book is now available here!)

Currently in my district we’ve had some preliminary talks regarding if/how digital portfolios could be implemented on a wide-scale. Of course, while the focus shouldn’t necessarily be on the technology, one of the first questions asked by everyone (both in and out of district) always involves what type of platform we have in mind.

While these portfolio talks are only in their infancy, and we currently have no certain idea what will actually happen (in regards to what technology is chosen and with the portfolios in general)…I do strongly feel that, if possible, we should always be looking to use an authentic tool (e.g., self-hosted WordPress or WordPress.com) as opposed to one that has been made for school (e.g., Kidblog or Seesaw).

Here are three reasons why:

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Filed Under: Education Technology, Literacy

How to Transform Step-by-Step Directions into Inquiry

By Ross Cooper 9 Comments

How to Transform Step-by-Step Directions into Inquiry

In a previous post we explored a potential problem with prepackaged STEM products (or STEM in a box). In short, the problem is when schools and districts invest more in them than they do in their teachers. Because, if the ultimate goal is to leverage these resources to promote inquiry-based learning (which it should be), some form of professional learning is most likely needed, as opposed to simply handing over the goods and believing their potential will be maximized.

Now, let’s examine how teachers can take a product with step-by-step directions and transform/reconfigure it in such a way that inquiry-based learning is promoted…For the purpose of this post, we’ll look at how I previously accomplished this task with solar powered cars, but I believe these same ideas and steps can be applied across countless products/contexts.

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Filed Under: Education Technology, Inquiry-Based Learning, Professional Development, Project Based Learning

Why Your Tech-Obsessed Conference Presentation Stinks – and How to Make It Better

By Ross Cooper Leave a Comment

Why Your Tech-Obsessed Conference Presentation Stinks - and How to Make It Better

This post was originally published on EdSurge.

In general, technology in the classroom is no longer a novelty, and solid pedagogy trumps those lists of “cool tools.” Yet time and time again, conference presenters lure in attendees by fixating entirely on apps, tech toys, or anything else hot on the market or App Store.

We can do better.

While all of these technologies may get us excited, the reality is we are absolutely ignoring the hard, necessary work when we decide to prioritize dog-and-pony technology shows over working together to move instruction forward for the benefit of our students. With these thoughts in mind, here are five ways for educators (and some of you entrepreneurs, too) to rethink technology-obsessed conference presentations.

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Filed Under: Conferences, Education Technology, Professional Development

The Problem with Prepackaged STEM Products

By Ross Cooper Leave a Comment

The Problem with Prepackaged STEM Products

This post was originally published on Tom Murray’s (@thomascmurray) blog. 

Over the last handful of years we have seen an explosion in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. And, coinciding with this movement has been an influx of new STEM-related products that are school friendly. Some of the more popular merchandise includes littleBits, Snap Circuits, and Spheros.

The Problem

While there is no doubt in my mind many of our students will benefit from these products, and I do wish they had been invented while I was still teaching fourth grade…something is missing if we’re not doing much than placing these items in the hands of our students and teachers, crossing our fingers, and hoping for change.

At the end of the day, these are tools or resources that can help in shifting mindsets and culture, but I do believe an overreliance on them means too much time and energy is being spent in the wrong place.

[Read more…]

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Filed Under: Education Technology, Inquiry-Based Learning, Professional Development, Project Based Learning

The Problem with App Smashing

By Ross Cooper 1 Comment

The Problem with App Smashing

This blog post was originally published on Kerry Gallagher’s (@KerryHawk02) blog, Start with a Question.

According to EdTechTeacher, “App Smashing is the process of using multiple apps to create projects or complete tasks.”

According to Wikipedia, inquiry-based learning “starts by posing questions, problems or scenarios – rather than simply presenting established facts or portraying a smooth path to knowledge.”

The Problem

On many occasions, I have seen/read about App Smashing being leveraged in a way that is entirely anti-inquiry. In instances such as these, an overly contrived and smooth, risk free process is followed, all for the sake of a “cool” product.

Here are directions I pulled from a real project:

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Filed Under: Education Technology

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I’m an administrator in New York and the coauthor of two books on project based learning.

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