In 1994, Seymour Papert, the mathematician from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who was a pioneer in using computer programming to teach mathematics to young children, suggested that the history of computers in schools could be deconstructed into three phases. First, there was a brief time when innovative educators had computers in their classrooms and Read More
68: #edtech for Educational Leaders: Choose Two IT professionals confirm leaders, including educational leaders, want systems that are: Inexpensive; Designed and installed quickly; Of high quality. When faced with those three design needs, the IT professional usually responds with “choose two.” While this is often done in an attempt to introduce humor into the conversation, Read More
73: Edtech for Education Leaders: IP Addresses I continue to have conversations with school leaders who lack basic understanding of the technology they (accurately) claim is such a vital part of their schools. While I am encouraged that we have professionals who backgrounds in education running schools rather than professionals with backgrounds in IT running Read More
74: Diversifying the Fleet of School Computing Devices School and technology leaders have interesting choices when purchasing devices for students and teachers that they did not have even a few years ago. Whereas they once purchased desktop or laptop computers, they can now choose from: Internet-only notebooks (i.e. Chromebooks)—These are inexpensive devices that are easy Read More
I have become numb to the messages, tweets, blog posts, and other social media summarizing “the top x tools to do y with technology.” The x is a number that is way too large… if you are pro-porting to be an expert by going public with your recommendation, then tell me *the best* tool in Read More
75: What Plato Said About Writing The role of microcomputers in curriculum and instruction has been debated since they first arrived in schools; some advocate for quick adoption of every new tool while others advocate for avoiding digital technology altogether. Disparate perceptions of emerging information technologies among educators is not a new phenomenon. In his Read More
Appropriate Proper Reasonable As an undergraduate science major, I came to understand quantitative data; we measured what we observed in the laboratory and in the field and we summarized and evaluated it to draw conclusions about the world as we saw it. Patterns in numbers were our window into the systems we studied. As a Read More
70: Vygotsky and the Zone of Proximal Development Lev Vygotsky was a Russia psychologist who worked in the early part of the 20th century before he died at 38. Many educators who adopt methods that are commonly called constructivist ground their pedagogy in ideas he developed. One that is particularly useful in designing all curriculum Read More
A theme that recurs in my blog and in my other writing is the importance of theory in education and educational planning. I maintain the position that theory is a vital part of teaching and learning and leadership because it helps us understand exactly what matters in what we do. We can focus on relevant Read More
“So, is my school’s technology good enough?” is a question that principals and curriculum coordinators and superintendents ask—of course they don’t usually ask it when their IT coordinators or staff are within ear shot. The reality is that most school administrators do not have the expertise to assess the IT for which they are responsible. Read More