The PalmOS is all I need

No. It's not. While the Palm OS was in many ways ahead of its time, it is currently the furthest thing from what I need.

But as I was looking at a PalmOne Tungsten E2 recently (yes, recently... dug up from a supply closet during an inventory audit) it got me thinking about tech, the evolution of tech, and the frequent resistance of users to adopt new technologies.

But I'm glad it's not just in education...

Perspective is an interesting thing

In life we tend to get use to seeing things a certain way. We expect things we see to look & act the same, the way we're use too, all the time. Sometimes, however, it is possible to look at things differently. Looking at things differently, from different angles or with a different mindset, is called perspective.

I found this great video that I think demonstrates the importance of perspective.

Screen time - my Grandmother would love this debate

When I was a but a boy I remember my grandmother telling my to stop reading so much. Constantly having my head in a book was bad for my eyes, she said. My parents' rationale for a two hour per week TV allotment was that any more and I'd go blind and rot my brain.

Has anyone gone blind from too much reading or TV watching? Are there documented cases of rotted brains due to too much ESPN or Nickelodeon?

Sunshine'd on #edtech

This post has seen many titles around the interwebs: "Sunshine Awards" or "You've been Sunshined" or "The Blog Homework Meme," but they are essentially all the same thing.

I was looped in to this by Beth Holland of EdTechTeacher. I first "met" Beth over a year ago when I was chosen as a presenter for the EdTechTeacher iPad Summit 2013 in Atlanta. I didn't have the opportunity to actually meet her in person until NYSCATE this year in Rochester. I have long been a fan of both Beth's blogging/tweeting and that of her organization, EdTechTeacher. I was quite humbled when she included me in her "I've been Sunshined" blog post.

So, thank you, Beth, and my apologies for taking so long to get my own post up...

The problem with Common Core? No lobbyist...

As the Common Core State Standards take hold of the collective masses, I have come to a realization as to why there is such vehement vocalization about it...


... they don't have a lobbyist. Or social media manager. Or press secretary...

Hour of Code - I don't get it...

December 9th starts the big Computer Science Education Week and "Hour of Code," and while I'm not against learning to code per say, I find it ironic, and unnecessary, there is such a push within education for all students to code.

When I tell people I disagree with the notion that all students should learn to code, I generally get confused looks in return. My background is in tech. I worked for Ziff Davis Publishing in the late 90s producing streaming media content in the early days of online video. Back then the big player on the web was the Progressive Networks player, which became Real Player. Who here still has Real installed on their systems...?

No one? Hmmm....

Not exactly my point, but making it's way there...

My first #appsmash (including some OS smashing too)

I have toyed around with the idea of app smashing for a while, but have never made any real attempt at a cohesive piece. This was largely due to the fact I have trouble making things without a distinct purpose. I found a purpose and started smashing...

5th Grade Bloggers

In the ongoing experiment about the best ways to use various tools within the elementary environment I have been letting one class create, design, and curate their own independent blogs via Blogger under our school's Google Apps for Education domain. Ideally we will expand beyond this one class, but at this time a single class is the ideal setting to test the limitations & possibilities of independent student blogging.

Social media in our K-5 school

This post was originally written as a primer for parents on how the staff & students use various "social media" tools as part of the instructional day. It originally appeared on the PS10Tech blog

I am often asked about how we use "social media" here at PS 10. It is a question that is both very simple & easy to answer and one that is also complex and nuanced. Let me elaborate...

Social media as defined by many people includes things like Facebook and Twitter. According to the Department of Education's social media policy for staff, social media is defined as:

Fast. Cheap. Good. Pick two...

It's an old adage. I'm sure everyone has heard it before. Everything has 3 options; fast, cheap, good. You get to pick any two...

... Fast and good isn't cheap
... Fast and cheap isn't good
... Good and cheap isn't fast

Generally it speaks to products. A computer might be cheap & good, but it won't be fast. A fast computer that is good, won't be cheap. A fast computer that is cheap won't be good.

The same applies in teaching. Especially when working in a project-based setting. No good project was done fast. And any fast project probably wasn't good.

Teaching students to create something, anything, takes time. Especially if it is a new genre, subject, platform or software. If you want students to have a specific item to present to showcase their abilities, you want them to know the nuts & bolts, how to create it from scratch, so they can truly own that work & speak deeply about what they are putting forward.

For a student to have a solid final project, you need time. It takes time to be good. It can't be rushed. If it's rushed, it won't be good (or even worse, it might amount to a glorified worksheet and won't be authentic either).

If you want a project done fast & good, cancel the rest of the day's program and spend the day on the single project. A good product, start to finish, doesn't get produced in 45 minutes. A fast, cheap, project is one that gets done to check a box or satisfy a demand. The final product of a good project is a product the students are invested in, have a connection to, and can speak deeply about.

Fast. Cheap. Good. Pick two, pick the right two...