Most recent public comments by Renee Wulff https://nowcomment.com/users/65517 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1573602 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1573602 I agree Elly. Ultimately, it is about balance. I think that within the school improvement process teachers can, at times, lose their sense of autonomy and craft. As administrators, we need to be very careful about that balance between allowing educators to explore new tech/ideas on their own that align to their classroom/content. However, I do think that Selwyn is a bit extreme with his just do what is best for you mentality during this portion of the article. That word balance just keeps coming up for us, and I think it's true. Schools must come up with some kind of balance in their approach to ed tech, and all new initiatives/programs/strategies. Sat, 25 Jan 2020 06:59:49 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1569953 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1569953 Elly, I agree that the words dispassionate and disinterested do not sit well with me. However, I do agree that as educators we need to be more realistic, and the truth is at times this means putting our passions and interests aside and replacing them with a critical eye. We often have a really challenging time with convincing our staff to take a step back from their own opinions during curriculum review cycles, and I feel this is what this statement is trying to say. Although, I also challenge that there are times when our passions need to prevail, otherwise, would we ever really have any true progressive change in education? Wed, 22 Jan 2020 20:01:43 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567417 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567417 Although there are some great tools out there, the vast majority of the tech tools that we use in K-12 are managerial in nature. I have some early adopters who have pushed beyond this and are doing some amazing things with Flipgrid, Screencastify etc. (all math teachers) This is not the norm though. Most of the tools my teachers use are to organize their data, track records, classroom management etc. Tue, 21 Jan 2020 18:39:17 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567416 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567416 Although I think he is a bit dramatic in approach, I do agree with the inherent political nature of ed. tech. I also just feel that I could replace the phrase "educational technology" with any educational reform buzz word. Schools are public government organizations, and because of this, there is always a hidden agenda. A few non-ed tech related examples are sex/health education, anti-bullying initiatives, seclusion/restraint, social-emotional learning etc. Every one of the examples above has been drastically impacted in the last several years due to legislators pushing an agenda at the state level. Ed tech is just a piece of the political pie. My question is, are universities impacted by this type of politicization? I only know the world of K-12 public education and I am interested in the politics at play in Universities or private institutions. Tue, 21 Jan 2020 18:36:55 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567410 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567410 I agree that transparency is key, but schools are so political, especially when it comes to funding. Example, a school district near me recently was told that they will be implementing a new curriculum aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards. The curriculum went through no review process, and was pushed on staff for what appeared to be no reason. They hate it, naturally. Come to find out, a large corporation wanted this curriculum in place and funded it. This corporation gives millions of dollars to our schools in the area. So, what do our leaders do? They make these corporations happy to keep the money coming in. Can we blame schools for this? It is power and politics at play, and I am not sure there is any way to get past this because public schools need the money. Tue, 21 Jan 2020 18:30:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567393 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567393 I love this. So practical and a great way to get teachers to utilize technology that is useful and not overwhelming. Why technology leaders feel the need to tackle all of the big ideas in tech for our K-12 educators just baffles me. Instead, let's start with practical small steps and shifts that make sense within our teacher content areas. Thu, 23 Jan 2020 16:46:54 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567390 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567390 This was one the most most powerful sections of the article for me, also great question. When I think of technology undoing something in my career, I think more about our system not my career. I feel technology has "undone" parent communication. Our K-12 educators have learned to utilize Learning Management Systems and email as the only way to contact parents/guardians. There is little to no phone or in person contact being made, and to be completely honest, this is at the expense of building positive relationships with families. Our parents/guardians are completely in the dark about their children's progress because of this "new tech" that had promises of easier, faster, and more frequent communication. Instead, our families feel disconnected, frustrated, and lost. The system is completely broken because of learning management systems, and unfortunately, there is no going back at this point. Tue, 21 Jan 2020 18:24:28 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567388 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1567388 When our district went one-to-one a few years ago we received a grant for a technology coach at the elementary level. The coach was in theory a great asset to our district as she pushed lots of new tech with our new devices. However, from the secondary level I was observing all of this "coaching" happen and this sentence summarizes exactly how I felt about having a tech coach. She pushed things through and was a "charismatic champion" for tech, but true capacity building never happened. What are your thoughts on technology coaches for K-12 districts? Do they really promote technology as a collective effort? Tue, 21 Jan 2020 18:20:23 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1566754 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1566754 From Selwyn's article on the last page, I really struggled with the following statement: "Instead, digital technology should be something that you engage with on your own terms, to achieve your own goals and to address your own needs". When it comes to K-12 continuous improvement plans, this statement really contradicts the collective process we attempt to go through when implementing new initiatives, strategies, or practices. Not sure I can get on board with this type of philosophy where educators just get to do things because it addresses an individual need. Sat, 25 Jan 2020 06:59:49 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1566751 https://nowcomment.com/documents/164893?scroll_to=1566751 When listening to the video one of the assumptions that really stuck with me was that educators, students, and administrators assume that due to the current state of technology (the Digital Age) and the ubiquitous nature of technology today we have to change the way that education looks and functions. Selwyn challenges this indicating that change must be determined not on the prevalence of technology but instead on whether or not that tool will actually support the learning environment in a positive way. I think it is true that as educators we have simply made the assumption that we need to change because of how much more technology is available today, and this made me pause and rethink this idea a bit. How much change is really needed in education due to the increased use and availability of technology? Wed, 22 Jan 2020 09:53:35 -0500