I just watched a great video that was recommended on Twitter by Alec Couros. The URL is http://www3.nfb.ca/webextension/rip-a-remix-manifesto/?film=11 and the video is called RIP: A Remix Manifesto. It discusses the notion of copyrighting ideas and explains the devious and greedy history behind copyrighting. I had no idea that a living organism could be copyrighted!
It was fascinating to listen to a former Clinton staffer explain the planned shift in the American economy from things to ideas. I had no idea that allowing low-wage manufacturing jobs to go to Asia was a conscious decision. The Americans miscalculated badly - they believed that they could convince the WTO to enforce American copyrights of American ideas. Their intention was, essentially, to create a closed intellectual world in which they would have to be paid for any use, extension, or manipulation of any idea they claimed to be their property.
American copyright laws extend even to medications for diseases such as AIDS. Thankfully, some countries, such as Brazil, are defying these laws to produce copies of these drugs at a fraction of the cost. This is an illustration of how amoral copyrighting can be. If we are to move forward and prosper not as a nation, but as a planet, we need to combine our thinking, not keep it private.
The video then discusses the creation of creative commons - a digital space where music is shared, altered, and recreated. This is a truly profound concept and I think it is particularly relevant to education. The PLC movement is a start, but on a really small scale. Technology provides the keys for educators to create our common spaces and develop our craft as a collective. The days of hoarding unit plans in dusty filing cabinets must end - by working together and thinking together, we all gain.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Cool - I just had my first meaningful interaction with a human-being on the internet. Actually, it was Steven King from this class who gave me some tips with respect to Tweetdeck - a really cool tool. I can definitely see the potential in this tool, especially for educators. I vow to experiment with Twitter every day and expand my list of contacts so that it becomes more than a novelty.
Exciting Times
I am being converted. Last night I was at school until 10pm doing spring planning, which involves setting up a power point for the Board of Education (whose power to tax has been stripped - bit of a sore spot there) to justify our programs and their expenditures. I basically took over the technology section of the power point and I plan on explaining to the Board the benefits of collective thinking among teachers, students, and human-beings in general!
We need to fundamentally change the way we think of the internet - it is not a huge encyclopedia filled with static information, but a living, learning digital organism that provides a medium that can connect us like never before.
Interviewing young teachers this spring has also been enlightening and encouraging. Almost all of the teacher candidates under 25 mention wikis, blogs, and many other webtools that will enable them to connect to the entire educational establishment as well as to their students in ways they never could before. Exciting times.
We need to fundamentally change the way we think of the internet - it is not a huge encyclopedia filled with static information, but a living, learning digital organism that provides a medium that can connect us like never before.
Interviewing young teachers this spring has also been enlightening and encouraging. Almost all of the teacher candidates under 25 mention wikis, blogs, and many other webtools that will enable them to connect to the entire educational establishment as well as to their students in ways they never could before. Exciting times.
Last night I sat in on "Women of Web 2.0". It was very interesting and casual in nature and I found that it afforded plenty of time to surf the various sites they suggested. It was particularly interesting because it basically consisted of regular educators who have been actually using these various technologies. I think that the boundary between theory and practice is being bridged in a very meaningful way in this sense.
I did, however, find some of the speakers to be self-important. They frequently expressed their utter disdain for those not using these technologies and showed no hesitation in patting themselves on the back for being such wonderful educators. I think it is precisely these types of attitudes that are preventing the more rapid normalization of the web 2.0 concept. It is also these types of attitudes that make me feel self-conscious and keep me in 'lurker' mode. I congratulate most of the people I have met online, especially the ones in this class, for being so open, accepting, and understanding. There are some, however, who could stand to stop looking down on educators not in the technological loop and start helping out to bridge those gaps.
I did, however, find some of the speakers to be self-important. They frequently expressed their utter disdain for those not using these technologies and showed no hesitation in patting themselves on the back for being such wonderful educators. I think it is precisely these types of attitudes that are preventing the more rapid normalization of the web 2.0 concept. It is also these types of attitudes that make me feel self-conscious and keep me in 'lurker' mode. I congratulate most of the people I have met online, especially the ones in this class, for being so open, accepting, and understanding. There are some, however, who could stand to stop looking down on educators not in the technological loop and start helping out to bridge those gaps.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Over My Head
I am trying to understand, I really am. However, I consistently feel like an imbecile during our weekly online sessions. Many of the terms our speakers, my classmates, and our guests are throwing around with obvious comprehension are totally foreign to me.
Honestly, I have never used google and wikipedia so much! Even the simplest terms such as "Web 2.0" were foreign to me at the outset of this course. I usually write down a list of terms as the speakers are presenting and spend the week trying to figure out exactly what was being said.
The good news is that I am making progress. I understand the notion of "Web 2.0" and many of the related terms and concepts. Using them is, however, proving to be somewhat more difficult. While I have a plan for my digital project, it is still a work in progress.
The most important thing about my meager progress is that I am starting to enjoy 'playing' online and interacting and creating new material. I understand why many are claiming that we are on the verge of an educational revolution in terms of how we use technology. At first, I scoffed at the term "revolution", but I have come to agree.
Honestly, I have never used google and wikipedia so much! Even the simplest terms such as "Web 2.0" were foreign to me at the outset of this course. I usually write down a list of terms as the speakers are presenting and spend the week trying to figure out exactly what was being said.
The good news is that I am making progress. I understand the notion of "Web 2.0" and many of the related terms and concepts. Using them is, however, proving to be somewhat more difficult. While I have a plan for my digital project, it is still a work in progress.
The most important thing about my meager progress is that I am starting to enjoy 'playing' online and interacting and creating new material. I understand why many are claiming that we are on the verge of an educational revolution in terms of how we use technology. At first, I scoffed at the term "revolution", but I have come to agree.
Private Education
I found it interesting and unfortunate that Will Richardson, last week's speaker, is putting his children into a private school. I have a fundamental problem with the notion of the privatization of education. I view it as elitist and an instrument of social and economic segregation.
In Canada, we like to claim to live in a tolerant, multicultural society. In a diverse nation that is composed of hundreds of linguistic, ethnic, and religious groups, we do not share many common experiences. As such, the commonality provided by our public education system affords one of very few common experiences and is, therefore, an important instrument of national cohesion.
We must examine what exactly it is that makes us Canadian. I believe one of our fundamental national tenets is tolerance. To endorse any educational system other than public is to turn our backs on tolerance and encourage economic and social elitism. It is important that all of our young people, rich and poor alike, are exposed to our tremendous national diversity in order to foster understanding and tolerance. A private system works directly against that goal by creating tangible and intangible barriers between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots'.
I truly believe in what I am doing in the public education system and I will prove my belief by enrolling my own children. I always find it interesting that teachers and proponents of emancipatory pedagogy and social improvement occasionally endorse educational segregation.
In Canada, we like to claim to live in a tolerant, multicultural society. In a diverse nation that is composed of hundreds of linguistic, ethnic, and religious groups, we do not share many common experiences. As such, the commonality provided by our public education system affords one of very few common experiences and is, therefore, an important instrument of national cohesion.
We must examine what exactly it is that makes us Canadian. I believe one of our fundamental national tenets is tolerance. To endorse any educational system other than public is to turn our backs on tolerance and encourage economic and social elitism. It is important that all of our young people, rich and poor alike, are exposed to our tremendous national diversity in order to foster understanding and tolerance. A private system works directly against that goal by creating tangible and intangible barriers between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots'.
I truly believe in what I am doing in the public education system and I will prove my belief by enrolling my own children. I always find it interesting that teachers and proponents of emancipatory pedagogy and social improvement occasionally endorse educational segregation.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Teacher/Student contact on Facebook
I found it interesting to hear, during last evening's class, that many teachers are in contact with current students on Facebook. I have discussed this topic in a previous post, but I feel I must state my opinion, as a teacher and an administrator, more clearly.
I realize that Facebook can erase barriers as a social networking tool, but I think it is important that there are some barriers between teacher and student. In a world of sensational media, we, as educators, must safeguard our professional reputation against misconception and misunderstanding. Specifically, while there are teachers who are well-meaning with respect to using a tool such as Facebook, there are also those who are unscrupulous. Children are vulnerable, and their safety, as well as the safety of the professional reputation of teachers, must be protected.
We must be cognisant of public perception. Having students as 'friends' on Facebook will certainly have perceptual ramifications. I refuse to put my career, as well as the perception of my profession, at risk in this way. I am not comfortable with having any contact with any students that could be construed or misconstrued as personal. I don't find it necessary to have contact with my students in this way and I advise teachers in my charge to avoid such relationships.
I realize that Facebook can erase barriers as a social networking tool, but I think it is important that there are some barriers between teacher and student. In a world of sensational media, we, as educators, must safeguard our professional reputation against misconception and misunderstanding. Specifically, while there are teachers who are well-meaning with respect to using a tool such as Facebook, there are also those who are unscrupulous. Children are vulnerable, and their safety, as well as the safety of the professional reputation of teachers, must be protected.
We must be cognisant of public perception. Having students as 'friends' on Facebook will certainly have perceptual ramifications. I refuse to put my career, as well as the perception of my profession, at risk in this way. I am not comfortable with having any contact with any students that could be construed or misconstrued as personal. I don't find it necessary to have contact with my students in this way and I advise teachers in my charge to avoid such relationships.
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