The section in the chapter about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) applications definitely fits into the “That’s So Neat” category for me. Although the chapter is somewhat complex, I think I understand the gist of it. It is exciting to read about future instructional systems that will diagnose learning needs, learning aptitudes, and styles; and develop tailored instructional strategies based on learner responses. Systems that combine information content with automated teaching and learning environments will result in the creation of combination information push (based on expanded use of intelligent tutoring systems) and pull (allowing learners to construct their own learning experiences) learning environments. The chapter includes an example of an adaptive learning environment that integrates the information pull (I-PULL) function. Woods (2001) refers to a math tutor system called the QUADRATIC tutor that uses scaffolding and contingent tutor design principles. First, information is “pulled” from the learner through the use of questionnaires and pre-programmed learning assessment exercises that will yield information about the amount and type of help the learners seek when they are provided tutoring assistance. It can assess the extent to which learners will self-correct and if they refuse or are overly reliant on extra help. This kind of information can help assess how individual learners best “learn how to learn.”

The notion of artificial intelligence learning environments raises questions about whether or not the true likeness to human intelligence in the form of learning is demonstrated. The authors believe that the rise of this amazing technology will occur at a modest level in the next decade “due to the developments in related fields.” The investigation of critical performance issues such as decision making, knowledge acquisition, and situational awareness related to information processing is ongoing.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY

I have two favorite activities: map-making and web site/page design. Both are wonderful and easy to use educational tech tools for students and teachers alike. I especially liked the creative aspect of design which I didn’t fully appreciate until I designed the web site. For students, knowing how to use each of these tools will be useful in their post secondary activities in multiple ways, both in advanced education and the work place. My son is a successful film editor and has demonstrated his incredible skill utilizing high technology for multi purposes such as television commercials, documentary film, corporate promotions, etc. It is astonishing how much can be done with the use of technology. And the use of educational technology programs can greatly improve and accelerate teaching and learning.

I also greatly appreciate learning about and using our wiki. What a great way to interact and share information with immediacy and efficiency. This class has been difficult for me however, given my limited knowledge and “swiss cheese” skills I am very grateful for how much I learned. I know I will (and have) used this new-found knowledge.

This application is wonderful for photo editing. It is very, very simple to use and the tools to edit photos work well and precisely. I would absolutely recommend it to teachers and their students for almost any project that would use photos. The application allows for some creativity and certainly a better quality as edited. I uploaded a photo from my website and sharpened, adjusted color and cropped it until I got exactly what I wanted and was happy with the result. I thought of a wonderful way to use this application in my role as a special education administrator. At the end of each year, there is a sort of “wrap-up” send-off meeting with special education staff. A great send off would be to use photos taken (this will have to be for next year) of staff in action with their students and each other, edit them and project them in a presentation using narration and music as a way to review the year and acknowledge the incredible work they do for kids.

Google Documents (office suite)

I looked at Ajax and Zoho as well, but found Google Docs more user friendly. This is also probably due to the fact that I am more familiar with google in general and use it all the time. Some of the features I like are the drop down menu under NEW doc which includes spreadsheet, presentation, and folder. I like the simplicity of the page as well. There aren’t extraneous visuals that can distract rather then help. In general it is great to be able to interact with the web within this office suite and organize information immediately. I would recommend this application for use with students…helping them learn how to use the application can foster organizational skills imperative to the efficiency and quality of work output. Maybe backpacks will become obsolete Staff can benefit from this tool in the same ways. And we all know how much staying organized correlates with our productivity!

The authors of the chapter cite evidence to support the fact that learning is enhanced with the use of rich media such as motion and animation visuals vs. still visuals, words and graphics vs. words alone, visuals with audio narration, and simulations which makes learning-by-doing an option. This applies to all learners, including disabled learners. However, in the spirit of “rich media,” the uses of technology developed specifically to address the different areas of disabilities is rich indeed. I attended an incredible technology conference this past fall in Minneapolis that was all about assistive technology for disabled learners. The technology included everything from simple pencil grips to complex voice-to-text models for students who have processing disorders which can include significant problems with transferring information from teacher lectures to note taking. An excellent example of technology for disabled students is a screen reading device – the Kurzweil 3000. This technology is especially effective for students with dyslexia. It works by having text book pages scanned and then a high speed machine coverts the written word into digitized text. Then the text is recorded onto a compact disc. On the screen the text is highlighted in colors – the current sentence is highlighted in yellow and the word being read is in bright green so that the words can be seen and heard at the same time making it easier for the user to understand what is being read. The software allows the student user to adjust the reading speed and choose from different synthesized text. Talk about your rich media!!

Rich media in general, if fine tuned to specific educational purpose, can contribute to the promotion of learning for all students. We are fortunate to live in an age where all children have equal access to educational experiences.

The first page of my web site is an example of what a finished product might look like give the instructions to locate a peace corp volunteer’s blog or web page, communicate with a past or present volunteer and design an informational page about that person.  Personal opinions from the author about how it might feel to go to a remote place in the world to live and help could also be added.  I know I have talked about my daughter’s experience before, but it is such an extraordinary thing to do that having students learn in a very up-close and personal way about helping regions of the world struggling with poverty, disease, starvation etc.  seems a critical learning experience.  It heightens awareness about the realities of other ways of being in the world,  provides information about cultural differences, and helps to develop critical thinking skills.  A student’s research and web site composition could be just one way to learn about the Peace Corps.  Inviting a volunteer to come in and speak about their time in the Corps would be a wonderful addition to this learning.  My example is relatively simple – targeted for 4th to 6th – but the assignment could be adapted for upper grades as well where tech skills are more developed and more complex web sites could be developed. 

The second page is an assignment for students to develop a page about the the country of Malawi.  This could be another part of the overall web site including the Peace Corps Malawi experience.  Other pages might include information about traveling to Malawi, other places in the world where there is a Peace Corps presence, etc.   Again, there could be other activities about the Peace Corps, Africa in the development of an entire unit.  Enjoy…

http://jan.drake1.googlepages.com

In considering significant paradigm shifts in education such as applying more intensive, research based interventions for struggling learners before a referral for a 504 plan or special education services is made, it is clear that this will require the development and monitoring of a strategic plan, the use of baseline data and later data analysis, as well as promoting organizational change; all referred to in the ID TM role. These are competencies that need further development if I am to be an effective agent for training and change. Strategic planning assumes knowledge of the “big picture”. With all of the changes in the state and with the advent of new, important initiatives it can get overwhelming quickly. It is critical to stay focused on the overarching purpose as one can get mired in minutia and resistance. Data analysis is needed as plans are prepared and implemented. An effective administrator knows her strengths and weaknesses and needs to know how to delegate and manage educational and support specialists. Our district is fortunate to have an excellent technology team that helps with all aspects of data collection, interpretation, dissemination, etc. However, I need to continue to increase my knowledge and skill in this area as performance outcome data drives strategic planning and change. Promotional skills for organizational change require thorough knowledge, confidence, and leadership. These are emerging skills as I continue to present information at department meetings, administrative work committees, and community agencies.

One of the changes that will have to be in place by fall 2009 is the writing of standards-based IEPs for students with disabilities.  This is a departure from the way these plans of service have been written in the past and PD will be necessary.  Using a screencast turorial to demonstrate the process may be efficient and effective.  In a couple of actions and with an audio narrative, references can be made for all of the essential components related to composing a standards-based IEP.  The Michigan Department of Education website has all of the state standards and content expectations necessary for a Michigan Merit Diploma.  To begin the screencast I would show a composite of a student with a specific learning disability in a content area, e.g. math, and skill deficits would be identified.  Then the grade level content expectation lifted from the MDE site would be cast on the screen.  All the while my narration would give the explanation of the process.  There would be further demonstration about how to relate the skill deficit area to the expected content and then the composition of a standards-based goal and objectives that would support progress toward the goal, in the way of a static screenshot of organized steps and/or a decision tree model.  There could be examples of each core content area.  A conversational demo is also a possible way to communicate the information.  One of the teaching staff could ask questions which would drive the demo.   With developing skill in screencasting, more could be done to enhance the demonstration and further engage the viewer…especially with information as dry and, in some ways, intimidating as significant changes in writing IEPs.  Screencast enhanced videos as referred to in Jon Udell’s article, can include splicing in live video – Q&A for example - or screen animation to create a bit of humor.  Again, this is another example of valuable ed tech  ways to educate and inform. 

Whole school transformational change requires the “buy in” of its stakeholders. Whether it is in p-12 education with a focus on the exploration and implementation of newly developed instructional models, or in institutions of higher learning where the faculty developer needs to make more palatable the idea of improved ways of teaching course content, the roll out or pre-launch is critical. Ecological systemic change in p-12 education requires a process model to facilitate change. The GSTE (chapter 21) includes the identification of a set of core values underlying educational improvement that all stakeholders accept, as well as some discrete and continuous event activities that promote engagement in systemic change. If these first phase processes effectively engage the stakeholders, the stage is set to move forward. Likewise in higher education a faculty developer must be skilled in the assessment of readiness of the faculty, negotiation of change, presentation, and dealing with resistance in order to develop and integrate instructional redesign. An excellent example in Chapter 22 is the community service role required of Australian academics as a way to ensure that government initiatives are followed through and that stakeholders accept, understand and implement needed change initiatives.

Facilitating change, mentioned as the second theme, needs a process focus, rather than the more prescriptive product focus. In higher education there are organizational structure models such as the unit team approach “Generator Model” (chapter 22) that begin with unit leaders working together to put together an instructional blueprint and is followed up with instructional strategies committees leading to a sample module and finally total unit development. The Step-Up-To-Excellence model for whole school redesign begins with pre-launch preparation and a District Engagement Conference which involves educators in the creation of a new new strategic framework. These ideas and structural models have the potential to be effective in all levels of education, p-12 through higher education. The bottom line is that the most effective way to succeed in educational transformation is the focus on process and organized systemic change efforts rather that the product focus which is a more top-down prescriptive approach.

http:maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&h1=en&msa=0&msid=111003088469965773326.

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Matthew H. Edney, director of the History of Cartography Project at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, calls the widespread use of mapmaking “revolutionary” and goes on to state, “Now with all sorts of really very accessible, very straightforward tools, anybody can make maps. They can select data, add data, communicate with others. It truly has moved the power of map production into a completely new arena.”

My experience in producing my own map surprised me because it was so simple and so much fun to do. For students it fosters many areas of learning including creativity, organization, and technology use, to name a few. This is a tech teaching tool that, to me, is exciting and can easily engage students ….. It makes me think about my long ago classroom teaching days when rolled-up pull-down maps and desk top globes were the central tools. It creates a yearning to be in the classroom again and use the incredible technologies of the day with students.

In chapter 21 there is impressive information regarding P-12 educational change, particularly the focus on piecemeal vs. systemic change.  In Michigan the recent mandated Merit Curriculum has prompted districts to review pre-MMC curriculum design and align itself with a much more rigorous state standards and content expectations.  Some districts will need to completely overhaul P-12 achievement standards.  This is a huge and daunting task and piecemeal change won’t do the job.  It is an exciting time to be involved in education in Michigan where raising the bar for achievement for students has been long overdue and where transforming education will require a systemic change model.  The Guidance System for Transforming Education outlined in the chapter provides process guidelines to help facilitate a successful districtwide systemic change effort.  The GSTE includes a set of core values about the change process, a chronological series of activities for engaging in systemic change, and activities that need to be addressed continuously throughout the change process.  There are also Pre-Launch Preparation activities designed to prepare the school system to engage in systemic change.  This can significantly influence the success of the district’s transformation.  The Step-Up-To-Excellence (Duffy) process identifies steps and procedures related to whole school improvement.  Case studies are included in the chapter that give snapshots about the implementation of these  change processes.

With the advent of High School Reform, elements of school redesign is necessary.  Policy makers on state and national levels need to acknowledge the complexity of systemic transformation of school districts and provide support the considerable expense needed for successful change.