Alan November's Thoughts...

The following notes are from: Seminar for Independent School Technology Directors, NECC 2004, New Orleans; and from: Restructuring Brief #18, Asilomar, 1998 http://www.anovember.com/articles/asilomar.html

The revolution is not about technology, but about information and communication. We should get rid of the “technology director/coordinator” titles. The key is communication, not technology.

We need to focus on critical thinking and global communications.

We are in the managing change business - not the technology business.

Three MUSTS:
1. Everyone should read by third grade.
2. Everyone should know Algebra I.
3. Everyone should write well.
To put it simply: Reading, Algebra I, & Writing. Build your technology around these three things. Writing is the number one predictive tool for performance on tests, if a student writes well, they will test well!

Create a K-12 writing program - Two tools recommended are INSPIRATION software and Princeton's Online Writing Assessment which assesses writing so that teachers don't have to do all of the work – this allows for more writing!

Project Based Learning is vital - it leads to invention, innovation, and creativity - the very things an employer wants and requires.

Automate vs. Infomate: automating will give you incremental improvement, but infomating will give you big improvement.

Metaphor - Irony of Grapes of Wrath - the tractor that helped the farmer also killed the land and left nothing behind to farm with - but in the end also has become a necessary part of today's farming practices. In the same way we have allowed computers to plow the field of education, unchecked, and we are leaving nothing behind but to work with - we are ruining it - we need to refocus before it's too late.

CRITICAL COMPONENTS:
1. Critical thinking on information
2. Self-directed learning (someone that doesn't need a boss)
3. Online learning - all curriculum will be online (e.g. http://epgy.stanford.edu/)

Allow video-conferencing to use experts to teach. For example, a school in Brooklyn has the best poets because they are being taught by real poets.

The wave of the future is that all students will have a handheld so that they have all information available at all times.

We must raise academic expectations. We have grossly underestimated what kids can do and learn, but in online learning, they aren't held back by our misconceptions of their abilities, because online learning is self-paced.

We should teach math as language not as a subject. Students must have access to math online all the time so they can learn at will.

The family is the first teacher, not the school - all families need Internet access. This should be a goal in any plan of action.

We need to redesign schools. A school in San Diego that has the highest test scores has been redesigned. Each kid has their own office (shared cubicles really). These self-directed learners come in 45 minutes earlier than their counterparts in traditional education. This is a public charter school. The teacher is the facilitator and the students' learning is the focus. We should transition from teacher-centered education to learner-centered education. (The students also each have a single math teacher from grades 9-12.They are required to take all kids to Calculus. They teacher becomes personally responsible for the proficiency of the student.)

The best learning environment Alan has seen is the Airforce Academy. They have to hire 100% of their graduates. They teach via project-based learning. They are required to design a fighter jet, within budget, within deadline, that meets the needs of the current threats.

A funding source for any new high school design is the gatesfoundation.com. They are funding small schools all around the US with innovative ideas.

We have been wrong a lot about what every kid needs to know about technology. What skills should you teach teachers and kids today that will outlast the technology? That is the key - what will outlast the rapidly changing technology

Parent involvement is the KEY - use $$$'s to get parents involved. Example: use a video camera to tape a kid learning to read and send it home (or live over the web) - it excites parents. Get parents excited!!!

Librarians should be in charge of teaching information literacy.

Mathematica helped all students in a school to get a 5 on the Calculus AP exam.

Example school - Ocoee Middle in Orlando http://www.oms.ocps.net/

On teacher development

If you want to include technology in a curriculum ask: WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO TEACH? WHAT IS THE MOST DIFFICULT PART OF ACCOMPLISHING THIS? Build the technology around these answers. Example: A teacher loved their egg hatching project - problem: they weren't always there to see the eggs hatch - solution: a simple web cam - technology infused into the curriculum to solve a problem - not for the sake of technology

Remember to start with the interest of the teacher - because you don't count - they do! Where do the teachers struggle? Start there - make it data-driven!!!

Create a website of best practices of teachers/students because this excites the teachers.

We should be transitioning to performing all staff-development online. The teachers will experience this new form of education that is quickly sweeping the globe. They will be better able to assist students as a facilitator if they are familiar with the process.

When you need to make a pitch - get someone else to present the policy changes - perhaps someone external? Faculty are more likely to listen to an outside "expert."

Create self-directed learning - teachers must teach students to be self-directed learners.

Students (and teachers) need to be self-directed information processors.

Most-Needed Teacher Skills 1. Socratic method 2. Collaboration (student and teacher - more than one teacher) 3. Teach understanding of the world and it's people - global economy, global learning - global workforce 4. Family involvement

A critical skill that teachers need is to be team-based, collegial, sharing their knowledge and wisdom—not thinking that “these are my students in my classroom.” We have to drop that language. Collegiality, teamwork, is what’s needed. See: Margaret Riel - http://gsep.pepperdine.edu/~mriel/office/papers/whitepaper/ http://gsep.pepperdine.edu/%7Emriel/

Staff developers: please don’t train teachers to use technology without kids. Ask every teacher to bring two or three students. For example, each teacher brings 2 kids to the training session. The kids use computer instead of the teacher. The teacher learns how to facilitate learning on the computer. Have them observe the students (boys vs. girls, learning styles, frustration of kids, etc.). The teachers should have a purposeful focus for watching kids in your workshop -after the kids leave, share what the teachers observed with each other. They learn how to use the technology to facilitate LEARNING. All workshops should have an academic goal – designing an assignment.

All teachers should have a fire-wire camera - it is a core technology.

On preparing students for the work force

We have built the capacity to move jobs anywhere in the world - and they are moving around the world - we need to prepare our students accordingly. We need to teach students how to work around the world - from anywhere/for anywhere.

Any desk job can be done from any location with global internet communications.

China's economy will surpass ours in less than 10 years - that is a sobering reality.

The Indian dream - nice car/home/life of ease and they are so hungry for knowledge that they will do anything to get it - they have a drive - where is ours?

Use concepts that your school board/governing body can relate to such as... Local demographics - Adults from 18-29 years of age - up to 65% return home, do you want your kids living at home with you? Do you want kids that are economically viable or economically dependent?

We must teach students to be economically viable.

Concluding Thoughts

 Don't do “technology” plans -- I want to plan, but I want to write an information communication plan, because if you focus on the quality of the information and the quality of the relationships, then you can include all teachers. If you ask teachers, "What technology should we buy to improve learning?" many teachers cannot answer that question intelligently. But if you focus on information communication planning and you ask every teacher, "What information do you want? What relationships do you want?" then every teacher can participate.

The big change that's coming is not technology -- it's relationships. Connecting people together is the big change. The real revolution is about information and communications.