What's up, doc?

Google docs.
Some of my colleagues are using this shareware with their students, and with relatively good results. I have been told recently that our school will be switching over to Google docs next year; I'm sure it'll be a learning curve for many of us. In it's most basic form, it will give us a good place to store things, instead of eating up storage space with the X and Y drives we've been using. I have no practical experience with Google docs, so I'm looking forward to getting some direction regarding its use and functions during this course!

Some students don't find it helpful, but their reasons tend to be on an individual level, not a wide-spread area of difficulty or concern. I am uneasy about storing EVERYTHING on it, so I'm going to ask students to back up important things on flash drives and with hard copy, as appropriate. Too often, if tech fails, it tends to fail spectacularly. I believe in covering one's bases, as Murphy's Law has a whole new addendum that covers technology...and one must be prepared for every eventuality!

What to Choose/What to Use

In my tech for educators class, we've been asked to investigate some forms of tech that we don't currently use and/or know much about, and determine their usefulness in our classrooms. I have to be honest; we have a ton of "toys" available to us at my school, and we've been enhancing our programs with their use for a long time. I haven't, however, utilized podcasts or skype in my classroom or in my lessons.

I spent a bit of time yesterday talking with one of our tech ed teachers at school, as she is both knowledgeable and approachable, and she will also help teachers and students in any way possible. I asked her about podcasts and skype, and how I might use them effectively in my high school English classes. We brainstormed a bit, and I have decided to try both in the coming school year.

Students enjoy creative writing, but they are often shy about sharing. They also don't always have a keen sense of audience when writing or sharing. I think podcasts might be a fun and useful way to get them to not only consider audience, but also be more willing to share their own work, as the audience is, effectively, anonymous. Skype could be valuable as a way to connect some of my author friends with my students, in a cost effective and immediate way. Working with published authors, and hearing them read/speak about their work and the writing life, is always such a good way to engage students. Too often we are limited in our contact due to budget constraints, time, and distance. Skype would be a great way to connect everyone in a fairly relaxed way, and would bring literature and writing to another level for the students.

This could be very exciting, and has few obstacles that I can see, other than getting our IT guy to let me download skype to the classroom computer. That may take some doing, but who knows...I can be pretty convincing, especially since it will save money...ah, budgets. What a weapon to use in all negotiations...

Men have become the tools of their tools.
Henry David Thoreau 

Point to Ponder.

I often wonder about "computer literacy" and other similar classes taught--and required--at most public schools today. I am not at all against the use of technology, but I find it puzzling at times that we spend years and years teaching students how to use the computers at their disposal, quite often predominantly focusing on function. At times, the classroom teacher feels compelled to essentially short-change students when it comes to exposing them to other curricula, or they try to teach the curricula via technology, "killing two birds," as it were, "with one stone." Students first need to be taught how to think, to question, to plan and follow a line of inquiry; the computer, and all other forms of related technologies, are tools. We don't spend enough time helping students formulate good questions, or to think in ways that make newer and deeper connections. This task takes time, and thought, and not rushing forward to search out someone else's answers. The computer is an awesome tool, but one must also teach students to respect its limitations as well. If we don't know what we are hoping to find out, what we want to achieve, then we are driving the information highway without a destination; we won't know when we have "gotten there."

My first class is scheduled to start tomorrow, and I am curious about what we will be doing. I use a lot of technology in my classes already, but I am also aware there is much more I could incorporate. My goal is to balance tech with tradition, to expose my students to a wide variety of options that are available to them. My philosophy has always been to use the proper tools for the task at hand; sometimes digital tech is the best option. At other times, crayons, pens, pencils, glue and a more hands-on approach is the right choice. Too often, I see students jumping straight to the computer and it's applications, instead of thinking about what medium would best suit their end-goals.

We shall see what comes about! Stay tuned...

The Grand Adventure Begins

I am embarking on a quest to incorporate more technology into my cozy little word-smithing world. This should be a grand adventure; while I am still more comfortable drafting with pen or pencil, the immediacy and ease of instant communication venues has a certain allure.

We shall dwell in the ether together, you and I. I assume the "you" will be in the multiple sense; you (all) and I (singular) will seek to marry the urgent world of the digital universe with the timelessness of thought.

Off we go....