The paperless bulletin board...

As someone immersed in technology I find it very difficult to maintain a traditional bulletin board outside the computer lab.

I hate printing.

Free Apps for free apps...

One of the best ways to get use to the wide variety of possibilities of the iPad is to take advantage of free apps.

Here are a few free apps that alert you to when other, paid apps, are on sale. Once you "purchase" an app, free or paid, you get all future updates for free too. So, if you find a $4.99 app has gone free one day, download it, it's free, and you'll get all future updates for free too. Any app is worth a test run if it doesn't cost you anything...

My #edtech mantra...

In preparing for a professional development session I wanted to come up with a parting thought, an attempt at wisdom to bestow upon the attendees at the end of the session. I thought long and hard about where I am, where I've come from, what I know, what I've learned, and what tomorrow might bring. I came up with this...

Don't be afraid to fail, don't be afraid to start over, don't be afraid to ask for help... it's technology, it'll change tomorrow anyway....

Mantra is a strong word, but I feel it sums up how I approach technology. The iPad didn't exist 4 years ago. Who knows what what we'll be using 4 years from now.

Try, break, fail, fix, try again, succeed. Rinse and repeat. It'll all be new again soon anyway...

Flash is the Printed Worksheet of #edtech

I will preface this by saying what you are about to read is a bit of a rant...

... being concerned about using Flash is like worrying the photocopier wont print all your student worksheets...

The UFT's Standardized Test

I will preface this post by saying this is not intended to be a pro vs anti teachers’ union piece. The intention is to get some feedback on some things that dawned on me recently, during the New York City/United Federation of Teachers negotiations regarding teacher evaluations....

Crowdsource Your Professional Development

One of the biggest dilemmas facing all teachers, administrators, and the field of k-12 educational education in general is how to provide enough professional development, frequently enough, to truly benefit your staff.

As with everything in education there are no easy answers, there is no perfect solution, and of course, there is often no funding. All that said, none of those are reasons to not provide professional development opportunities; the key is to think of professional development a little differently...

The #edtech Platform Wars - iOS vs Andoid, Mac vs Windows

I’m a Mac guy. I make no bones about it and absolutely no apologies. I am a fan-boy, a geek, a Kool-Aid drinker -- whatever it is you feel like calling me, I freely admit to it. However, when it comes to spending technology money in my school, and evaluating technology for the educational setting, I put those feelings aside and look for the best, most efficient and cost effective strategy possible. And the one that fits within our purchasing guidelines... Nothing kills innovation faster than bureaucracy...

Tech Coordinator & Tech Teacher: Why you need both & why they both need to teach...

Takeaway: In 2012 it is imperative students & staff have the benefit of dedicated professionals on both sides of the technology aisle, a computer teacher & a tech coordinator supporting staff with implementation. It's also important both positions work together & share duties, to best integrate technology througout the school community...

Most schools these days have a computer teacher. Or a technology coordinator. Sometimes both are the same person. Some schools have neither. It is imperative that all schools have both, not only in title, but two different people doing the two vastly different tasks. But they both need to teach...

The Teacher-Centered iPad Deployment

Takeaway: With a tendency to resist change and askew technology, sometimes it's wise it introduce it gradually, with direct benefit to teachers, before rolling out to students. Teacher excitement & buy-in goes a long way to a successful student program


The last few years have seen a boom in the idea, terminology, and philosophy of the “student centered” or “child centered” classroom - basically, taking the teacher and making them secondary to the learning environment, crafting the room and the instruction around the needs of the students, not those of the teacher. It is easy to argue one way or the other. When I rolled out the iPad program at my school, PS 10 in Brooklyn, I was 100% the ardent supporter of the “teacher centered” model. When it came to iPads, students took a back seat.

No, I Don’t Teach Typing

Takeaway: After years of the same question, I felt it was high time I answered the question, and explained my rational. No, I don't teach typing...


Every year, at least a dozen times a year, I get asked if I “teach typing.” Why do I place that in quotation marks? Because in general, when people ask, they are referring to basic keyboarding skills. Home keys and such. And no, I don’t “teach typing.” But that doesn’t mean I don’t teach students how to type. But what is more important is that I teach far more than typing. I see students once a week and in my professional opinion, with over nine years’ experience as a computer teacher, “teaching typing” is a waste of time. Time is better spent on technical skills, core technology knowledge base, and creative productivity.