My Son's Saxophone Lesson

Last night, my son had a sax lesson with a world-renowned teacher - a 6 hour plane ride and a time zone away. Are we independently wealthy and able to fly him across the country for a 60 minute lesson? I wish! Nope, he did it via Skype.

Afterward, I told my husband, who is also a musician, that I didn't think the lesson would have been any different if they were face-to-face. He agreed. There is no time delay. The sound is crystal clear. They can see each other; the teacher can point out fingerings on his own instrument. He can also see the fingerings that my son is doing. When the teacher wants my son to try something, he models it for him. My son plays it for him and receives immediate feedback. At one point, my son plays something. The teacher catches a mistake, jumps in and plays it correctly on his sax. My son picks it up and continues where he left off. There is no pause is the flow. If you think about it, I could be describing a traditional sax lesson.

Typically, when my son goes to a local lesson, he brings a notebook or the sheet music he is working on. As the lesson proceeds, the teacher jots notes on the page about what to play and what to practice. In this case, his teacher simply typed in the chat window. When finished, my son copied and pasted it into a document for reference later.  

You might think that teacher and student can't possibly build a relationship this way. After all, isn't that human connection important in music? The fact is they've never met in person; however, they speak conversationally, crack a joke here or there, and feel the music together.

In a different generation, my son would have had a choice of instructors within, say, a 10 mile radius. Or, if we were willing to drive him a further distance, and if he could do his homework in the car, he could expand his search for a teacher into a wider geographic region. Now, his choices are only limited by the tools his teacher is willing to use.

Music lessons...in a way never before possible.

Administrators and Technology - What should professional learning look like?

An educator I know recently asked what the role of an instructional coach should be when it comes to providing professional learning to administrators. I’ve given quite a bit of thought about this through the years. The instructional coach is in a perfect place to provide professional learning opportunities to administrators. We know what can be accomplished instructionally when technology is used well and with a purpose. However, my experience has been that as much as administrators want to see technology being used in their buildings, they are not quite sure what it should look like. I’ll never forget the Principal, who when asked if he was happy with how technology was being used in his building, responded with a “Yes, when I walk down the halls, I can see the rooms glowing (from the interactive whiteboards).” Yikes! That was a formative moment for me. I realized that although many educators get it, that is not always the case for everyone.

Now comes the question of how best to get the use of instructional technology on the radar of administrators. Ideally, I think that all educators need to find ways to use these tools in their everyday lives. I can almost guarantee you that if I show a new father/mother/grandparent how to make a slideshow or movie of their (grand)children’s  pictures, blog about their hobby, create an interactive Christmas card, customize their reading so that they receive articles and alerts about their favorite teams or hobbies, I can get them to think about how those same tools can be used for reading, writing, speaking, and listening about content. Did you know that there are still, unfortunately, some districts that do not allow school devices to be used for anything personal? Ugh.

Another approach is getting administrators to model for the faculty. After all, unless there is a sense of urgency from administrators, we are going to continue to see only pockets of excellence in any district. Teachers are stressed with so many different initiatives; they are going to pick and choose their priorities. I believe that administrators need to use Google Docs, Padlet, Google Forms, OneNote Staff Notebooks and 1-take videos to model effective communication, collaboration, problem solving, self-regulation and knowledge construction between and among faculty. Then, once the faculty has used these tools, the faculty needs to have a facilitated conversation about how these tools can be used in the classroom to promote critical thinking. Then, make a plan how each subject area or grade is going to use it. The expectations needs to be explicit. Ideally, I would sit with administrators as they design their faculty meetings and communications, the things they do anyway, to recommend tools that could be used most effectively. Most of the communication that happens in faculty meetings could be done virtually. Why not do it? Then, use the time together to have that conversation about how that tool we used for a virtual faculty meeting could be used in the classroom.

The trick is getting in the door to make this happen. That four-letter word is thrown at me – Virginia, if I only had the TIME.

 

Another piece of this is the ability of instructional coaches to make the connections between initiatives and technology. I have heard, “Oh, we can’t do technology this year, our focus is formative assessment or differentiated instruction or literacy across the curriculum.” Huh? If we continue to think of these things as silos, then the connections will never be made. As coaches, we can work with administrators to see how the tools our students have at their fingertips support formative assessment, differentiated instruction, and literacy.

Having these conversations with administrators is not easy. They have so much on their plate. The amount of time they spend on observations overwhelms them. To make professional learning very practical, one of my projects has been to work with administrators on taking a look at the Danielson Framework to develop examples of effective uses of technology for each of the components. It’s a work on progress – one this post reminds me I need to return to.

My Work Here is Not Yet Complete

Since November of 2006, I have been involved in statewide programs. Much of my focus has been on the seamless and appropriate integration of technology into reading, writing, speaking, and listening about content. This week, I had the opportunity to have some serious discussions with instructional technology coaches who have been on that journey for nearly as long as I have. Upon reflection, I realized that, despite the fact that they have been working with their teachers for many years, our conversation still centered around whether we were using an LMS, which one we were using, and if GAFE or O365 was the right answer.

We lamented the fact that each of the schools has determined that there is not time in a student's school day for formal learning of technology. As a result, teachers are unwilling to try new technologies for fear that they'll have to spend a significant amount of instructional time teaching the tool. Our lament continued…, if no one teaches the skills, that excuse for not using the technology will continue to be valid.

All of us are still spending a considerable amount of time thinking about how teachers can post assignments and learning resources, create self-grading multiple-choice tests, and organize their thinking using digital tools. Don't get me wrong. These are all solid results of 1:1's, easy access to carts of tablets, computers, Chrome Books, and BYOD. However, it became clear to me that, 10 years later, we are still focused on logistics. And the folks I was talking with are the coaches who "get it." They understand that the role of technology is to be used to help students grow in their understanding of content, while creating, communicating, collaborating, and thinking critically. These are the coaches who spend time consulting with teachers on their instructional goals, gather data for them during lessons, and then provide opportunities for teachers to reflect on evidence from their lessons.

All of those around the table philosophically agreed that the combination of a master teacher and appropriate use of technology can engage students with content. Injecting job-embedded professional development, instructional coaching, into the mix provides ample opportunity for the continuation of PD beyond the drop-in session. Yet, 10 years later, none of us is where we want to be.

There is still so much work to be done.

Fanning the Flame: Reading and Writing in a Digital Age

Okay, I'm taking a deep breath as I type this, because I know this might start quite the conversation! But I think we’re ready for one.

As is often the case, I spent some time in a Penn Literacy Network class last  week, and we were talking about research related to literacy.

Research tells us that students should have 12 opportunities to write a day. That is not necessarily the standard 5 paragraph essay. It’s writing about content. It is writing as a tool for processing what you are learning. When students process what they are learning by collaborating, even better. Note-making is more powerful than note-taking. Research also says that we learn best when we form our own writing/letters (preferably in cursive). Typing, unless one is a fluent typist, has the least impact on learning, as the “writer” is not generating the actual letters. Why cursive? Writing in cursive fires a part of the brain related to creativity that no other type of note-taking or note-making does. That firing of the neurons promotes quick retrieval of content, even far into the future. Fluid writing, and yes, even fluid typing, builds a deeper connection with the content.  Writing ON the screen, with a good stylus, appears to have the same impact as it would if you were using cursive.

Students are doing research online and reading online textbooks. Research says that the most effective reading (close reading) requires our eyes to move in a Z pattern. This is how we read, while reading the printed page. We read in an F pattern, while reading something that scrolls and is back-lit. Research also tells us that annotating text helps students make meaning of what they are reading.

In his presentation, Joe Ginotti, PLN Director, cited:

Advances in Haptics, by Anne Mangen and Jean-Luc Velay,

National Centre for Reading Education and Research, 2013.

So, how are we addressing this and similar research in schools, particularly in 1:1 schools?

• How does/should the research impact hardware selection? 
• How does/should the research impact the teaching of keyboarding skills? 
• What are the tools our students are using that addresses this research the best?
• Some of our tests are now delivered online. How are students given the opportunity to apply literacy strategies? 
• With so many LMSs now available, we provide our students digital access to many of our handouts. How are they doing text rendering?
• What are the other questions we should be asking?

I know I have my own opinions, and some of you already know them. However, I’m hoping this blog gets a conversation started.

Rejuvenate this Summer by Exploring 21st Century Critical Thinking Tools

My most recent blog for the PA Institute for Instructional Coaching was posted today.

Summer is almost here!  It's time to rejuvenate, refuel and reflect. Picture yourself on a lounge chair, by the pool with your favorite beverage.  It just so happens that you have your computer and wifi as well!  Why not take this time to explore various critical thinking tools and their potential in different instructional situations? 

More...

How Coaches Help Teachers Integrate Digital Learning to Increase Student Engagement and Improve Student Learning

In our blog post for the PA Institute for Instructional Coaching, Stevie Kline and I discuss:

How Coaches Help Teachers Integrate Digital Learning to Increase Student Engagement and Improve Student Learning 

When a teacher comes to you with a new digital tool, how do you keep the conversation around changing instructional practice?

Today, the technology coach and the instructional coach cannot be mutually exclusive. Digital tools are simply more tools to add to your coaching tool belt. Coaches should experiment with the tools so that they know which will increase student engagement and improve student learning.

Do you agree?

Give Written Conversations a Chance

Back Channels. Discussion Forums. Twitter. Oh my!

A teacher recently asked me about students using online discussion forums. This teacher was wondering out loud if this was a 21st century skill, since it hadn't been discussed anywhere in the teacher's professional reading. This conversation made me reflect on when, in the real world, students will have the need to have rich written conversations using expressive language, rich vocabulary, and probing and clarifying questions. I didn't have to look far.

I am part of an online community that numbers greater than 3,000 individuals. The only thing that bonds us is the town in which we live. Our politics, religious beliefs, and sports teams differ. However, there is always something being discussed amongst "friends." Just after my traditional conversation about written conversations, this community was going through some self-reflection. 

Two of the most frequent contributors, without fanfare, had voluntarily left the conversation. They had had enough of what had gotten "ugly." This virtual water-cooler had turned into the wild west, and members had stopped self-policing. The virtual self-reflection had us wondering if frequent contributors were no longer policing themselves because they feared public humiliation or could it have been that they thought the name-calling and threats would be directed at them.

The only reason anyone knew that these two individuals had left the group was because of a comment made by someone else. Thank goodness! As a result, a valuable discussion took place - all as a written conversation. Questions were asked to clarify what had happened. Probing questions were asked about the proper way to interact online. Group norms began to emerge or be challenged. 

Students are part of such communities outside of school, even if educators are not. I propose that one of our roles as educators is to teach our students to be good digital citizens. (See the ISTE technology standards for students.). As I watched the conversation unfold, I couldn't help but think about the valuable learning opportunity to students. How would they respond to the questions that were addressed?

• Should trouble-makers be removed?
• Should those who are hiding behind false identities be exposed?
• If verbal attacks are made, should the attackers be banned from the group?

In any community, online and in-person, negativity is always going to take place. Online communities seem to provide those would not ordinarily speak up with a venue to vent. It's as if sitting in front of a computer screen and keyboard empower the individual. However, just like in-person, one negative comment often breeds another. In a short time, the bullies begin to tag team. What seems like condescending and rude to one person may be funny and joking to another. The most significant difference with online negativity is the fact the comments are in writing and have a long shelf-life.

How can educators model appropriate behavior in an online forum? According to recent research, students should be writing 13-18 times a day -- not just in English class but in every content area. A written conversation on a topic is a way to do just that. Discuss current events. Explain how you solved a math problem. Take on the persona of a character in history, math, or science and have a written conversation with a contemporary using academic vocabulary.


Sometimes those who are part of a written conversation will have the ability to add humor to serious topics, simply because they are writing. At the same time, this venue can also provide bullies with the opportunity to attack those who don't warrant an attack. This makes this environment uncomfortable for those who don't regularly participate, and it can even become uncomfortable for those who do. 

Back to our students…When the characters disagree, they have to figure out how to express the disagreement. When a student's solution makes no sense to another student, they have to respectfully challenge the solution. Providing students with opportunities for written conversation may empower the quiet ones in a positive way. Not providing them with opportunities for written conversation, I believe, puts them at a disadvantage. 


They need practice to prepare them for the readily accessible opportunities they will have to have written conversations as part of online research, the college application process, commenting about books, music, and restaurants, and recommending (or not) local business people. They need to have the chance, in a controlled environment, to think about things such as:

• What does it say about a written conversation when those who actively participate in it - or those who simply read it - consider leaving because of a few and forget that there are nearly 3,000 others who rarely contribute?
• Should written conversations be policed by other members of the group?
• When the opinions in the group disagree with your own or get negative, should you step away for a while?
• When an online community is by invitation or request, should members consider it a privilege to participate?

So, why do adults participate in a virtual water cooler? In my example, it could be that it's a wonderful resource for happenings, information sharing, and community networking. During difficult weather, it has been a lifeline. The number of dogs lost and then found because of this network is amazing. The number of casseroles made for the homeless is awe-inspiring. Opportunities for reputable small businesses to build up their clientele are regularly available.

The things these grown-ups have grappled with are the same things, I believe, your students could grapple with if given the chance to participate in a closed group of their classmates.

• Challenge your own thinking; challenge another's thinking: 
• Is it wise to block people you disagree with? 
• What could you learn from them? 
• What questions could you ask them, to better understand their point of view? 
• How could you share your point of view without alienating others? 
• Be civil: When someone disagrees with you, name-calling and threats are unacceptable. 
• Be supportive: 
• When someone is being questioned about their beliefs, have their back, even if you disagree with them. 
• Civil discourse is key. 
• Support those who stand up for each other, even when it's difficult. 
• It's hard to speak up, when you are concerned about being the next target. 
• Consider perception: 
• When thoughts are put into writing, it can be hard to decipher tone. As a result, bantering may be perceived as a slight. A joke may be taken seriously. 
• Sarcasm is not always read the way it is intended. 
• Write with intent. 
• Be mindful of what you are writing and the tone that you are using. If it is misconstrued, clarify what you meant. 
• Perception is reality, and you may not have a chance to explain. 
• Take it with a grain of salt: 
• Writers may not have given a whole lot of thought to what they've written. Five minutes from now, they may wish they had never written it. 
• Respond; don't react. Give yourself some breathing room before you respond. 

And why is it important that students learn this? In the real world, they could be writing in an environment that includes many "lurkers" who read but don’t write. Those lurkers could be a next-door neighbor, a business associate, a teacher, a principal, a college admissions officer, or a friend with different political beliefs. This is the world in which they live. They simply need to learn how to be good digital citizens. As educators, we need to give them practice.