Ready or not, here I come! (The onset of 1-2-1 technology)

I am feeling a little overwhelmed. This coming fall we make the change. That's right, the high schools in our district will be one-to-one for the first time this fall. To help me prepare, I've enrolled in 4 grad classes this summer, and am working on a blended learning initiative within the district. Talk about busy!

Although I am busy now, and nervous about the school year, I think it is a very good thing. When we reached the point that all of my students had phones, it really impacted the way I taught. However, even then I was limited because not all the phones had the same features, tools, or apps. With all our students having Chromebooks this year, I will really be able to extend lessons because I will know in advance exactly what tools every one of my students can access. The way I see it, my “bag of tricks” as a teacher just got significantly larger. The real challenge will be for me to learn what tools are available, find ways to bring them to bare on the things I’ve done in the past, and then be creative to find new lessons, activities, and assessment methods that really take advantage of these tools and do a better job of reaching and engaging students where they are.

Facebook in class (sorta)

I’ve tried to encourage students to communicate via message boards about course topics in the past, but with very limited success. Interestingly, the most successful use of message boards that I had was when one of my classes’ forums was hijacked by a student that the authors of “Creating and Connecting” would have deemed, “nonconformist.” At first, I was somewhat bothered by the way this student was using the forum as a social outlet, but as more and more students got involved, I found that the discussion began to build a bridge between their lives in my classroom and their lives outside of class. While they did not generate any groundbreaking mathematical ideas, they did build relationships and created an aspect of the course that was entirely their own. This helped establish an in-class environment where dialogue and discussion happened more easily.

With this experience in mind, one thing that I plan to do this coming school year that will leverage my students’ participation in social networks is to use group chats on Facebook Messenger. I know from personal experience that many students use this tool to communicate with groups in which there is some common interest. For example, in our school band most of the different sections of instruments maintain ongoing chats to discuss issues in band, in their section, or to just joke around with each other (which builds rapport and improves the in-class environment). In one of our chemistry courses, students started a chat mid-year last year and used it regularly to discuss homework, labs, and to study for tests. In each one of these cases, the teacher was not in the group.

My plan for this coming school year is to establish these types of groups for all my courses. I plan to tell my students that I may or may not be online to help them via chat (I will probably establish some kind of on-line office hours), but that at any time, they can feel free to help each other all they want. I hope this will allow them to have an ongoing, free-flowing discussion that will occasionally turn to mathematical topics. Meanwhile, I will be able to monitor the conversation and step in as needed to give a “nudge” in the right direction, or to deal with inappropriate actions and comments, or to just provide a comment related to whatever has come up in the conversation. Over the course of the year, I hope it will help me to bond with students in a way I have not been able to in the past, as well as help them with math. I suspect it will also allow give me the opportunity to talk to students about what kinds or conversations are “collaborating” as opposed to conversations that cross the line into the realm of cheating.

Digital Citizenship

Digital citizenship is a concept I have studied in the past, but never really felt that I had a significant role in teaching and encouraging good citizenship. As a fairly traditional math teacher, my classroom rarely involved online activities. This coming year there are three things changing in my classroom that alter my position in this regard. First, one-to-one technology. Every student in my class will now have a Chromebook, and I will be expected to take advantage of that fact. This means I will have to find ways to incorporate this technology in my class. Second, one of my courses will be taught in a blended format. This means that beyond just the occasional online activity, my class will be spending time in virtual environments, and producing, editing, and consuming digital content. Lastly, I plan to incorporate an aspect of social networking (Facebook Messenger) into my classes. All of these changes mean that I need to ensure, if for no other reason than classroom management, that my students understand what it means to be a good citizen while in a digital environment.

Lightbulb

I love it when I am teaching and a light bulb goes on - for me!

Today I was teaching my trigonometry students about angles. We were trying to expand from the middle school concept of intersecting rays to the broader concept of a rotating ray. Things were going fine:

• Rotate the initial ray about its endpoint to create the terminal side of an angle - no problem.
• Angles are measured based on how far the ray was rotated - simple.
• One degree means the ray was rotated one 360th of a full rotation - gotcha.
• Angles can be measured in degrees-minutes-seconds - HOLD YOUR HORSES!

They weren't ready for that. They kept thinking that if an angle measure was 45 degrees and 15 minutes, that meant it rotated 45 degrees, then someone started a stopwatch and let it spin for 15 more minutes. One girl said that we couldn’t know where the terminal side ends up unless we know its velocity! I wasn't ready for this confusion. I didn't anticipate this misunderstanding.

Flying by the seat of my pants, I tried to emphasis that "minutes" and "seconds" in this context, do not refer to time, but to a fraction of a degree - blank stares. 
Completely off the cuff, I moved on to talk about that 60 was a special number for the people who came up with this crazy stuff. That's why there's 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in a degree - nothing.
That they used a number system that was based on 60, not 10 - so what?
That the concept of 3.2 meaning 3 wholes and 2 tenths would not have made sense to them - kinda weird.
That they would have said something like 6 wholes and 8 minutes.

Then it happened.

LIGHT BULB!

Minutes.
Seconds.

They are the Mesopotamian/Babylonian version of decimals. A minute is the base 60 version of a tenth. A second is the base 60 version of a hundredth. I got excited, I started teaching like mad, and slowly more light bulbs started coming on all across the room.

Man, sometimes I LOVE my job!

A Tale of Two Numbers

I know that I am not really maintaining this blog, but for some reason I was reminded today of a digital story I had to make in a grad class, and I thought I would share it here. I hope you enjoy it.



My video on TeacherTube

My Favorite Conic

** Disclaimer** This blog entry was created as a requirement for a course I took at Central Michigan University. I kinda liked it, and it definately relates to math, so I copied it to this blog. Feel free to play the role of the student and post your own responses!

We all have one (although some of us have so repressed our inner math geek that we are unaware). We all have a favorite conic section! We have selected our favorites for a variety of unique reasons, the sum of which is as unique as we are. Many senators have selected the ellipse, just as many with poor urinary tracks (link1, link2) have done. Baseball sluggers hate parabolas, but artillery generals live and die by them. The folks at Ticonderoga love hyperbolas, as did the Apollo 13 crew.

But what about you, what is your favorite conic??? Myself, I love a good circle any day, especially for desert! Pi anybody?

Return to class wiki.

Video Textbook

This site has a video textbook on the concept of dimensions. I really like the way they talk about connecting the vertices of an object to their shadows as a way to visualize the corresponding object in the next dimension. I think I might use this with my students in the future, especially when discussing higher dimensions.

http://www.dimensions-math.org/Dim_reg_E.htm

Sierpinski Doritos

This is a great video:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMYqzU1nZew

Who knew???

NEWS ARTICLE: School of the Future: Lessons in failure How Microsoft's and Philadelphia's innovative school became an example of what not to do

NEWS ARTICLE: Gates Foundation: Teachers trump class size

You mean that you can’t just throw a bunch of money at education and expect it to get better? You mean quality teachers actually matter? Maybe those crazy Republicans are onto something… Naaahhhh!

Gun Control to Major Tom...

A couple of quick posts re: gun control

First of all, realize that in general I am against gun control, though I do support the idea that guns should be sold with accompanying safety devices (although it is the owner’s option whether or not to use the devices).

Second of all, I am very interested in following the story related to a recent law passed in Montana. It seems that they are using the 2nd, 9th, and 10th amendment to effectively repeal federal gun control laws in their state. The 9th amendment allows the federal government to regulate intrastate commerce, so anything the crosses stateliness can be federally controlled. However, if the courts determine the inverse to be constitutional (which maybe the case as per the 10th amendment), then anything that does not cross state lines cannot be federally controlled. (There are some really interesting things going on here if you are a fan of logic, and the validity of conditional arguments). So, Montana has said that any gun made, sold, and owned within the state boundaries is not subject to federal gun control laws.

This has interesting and obvious implications. It will be neat to see the outcomes associated with this. The most interesting aspects are associated with the legal implications. What other federal laws could be “repealed” under States’ Rights and the 10th amendment? The fireworks should be fun to watch. As a fan of the Constitutional Party, I love the possibilities!!!

On another note, it seems Utah and Texas are considering similar laws, and for you who are worried about your children being able to use their guns, here is a nice puzzle for them.


see more pwn and owned pictures

Now We Know

Well, the time has come...
I am officially done with the class for which I created this blog, and here I am, posting anyway! Some had asked me if I would continue when the class was over, and now we know. In fact, I have made a decision. It seems that there are those amongst us who make a living as professional bloggers. This is an interesting concept to me - get paid for spouting off, but I guess syndicated columnists have been doing that for years. Anyway, I now have a new career objective, to become a professional blogger. I never quite made it as a pro football player, and I'm not a professional wrestler either, but pro blogger, I think that I can do.

Same-sex Education

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have been busy trying to finish up some things for one of my other classes. Currently I am writing my capstone paper on same-sex education. It has really been a good experience. I think it will help me be a better educator, and a better parent.

In my district, we wont be adopting any same-sex classes - it's too expensive. I would like adopt some, at least at some grade levels, and for certain subjects, but it isn't really an option right now. However, I can use some of the things I learned to help me ensure I am reaching students where they are, and with the things they need.

I also think this information will help me with my kids. I think it will help with the father/child relationships, I think it gives be more realistic expectations for their behavior and learning, and I think that it will help me to advocate on their behalf.

I would recommend that every parent and teacher look into the way biology and society have shaped their children in unique ways based on their gender. Michael Gurian and the Gurian Institute are good places to start.

YOU WIN!!!

What a great way to write off the expense of a car on your business' taxes!

xkcd - You Win!!!

Government Warning

Finally, a government warning that is useful.

http://www.gocomics.com/ziggy/2009/04/02

Excused Absences

Here’s the latest readers’ poll on Edutopia.com. “Should schools grant maternity leave to pregnant students?” I have two thoughts about this. My first thought is my answer the to question. I voted yes. I have two simple reasons why I said yes. They have to do with punishment and deterrent. The idea that allowing teens time off from school is making things too easy on them, and that they need to “experience the consequences of their actions” is ridiculous. Study after study shows that newborn babies need loving care from their parents. Denying this opportunity doesn’t punish the mother, it punishes the child. The baby already has a big strike against it, let’s not make it any harder on the baby than we have to. Otherwise, we’ll probably just be dealing with the exact same situation in about 15 years (or a worse situation). The second reason I voted yes is also very simple, one of the main tenants of punishment is deterrent. I find it hard to believe that two teens in the heat of the moment and with racing hormones will stop to consider whether they will be allowed maternity leave before “going all the way.”

The real issue here, in my opinion, is not whether schools should offer maternity leave, at least in Michigan that is not the issue. The reason for that is simple; the Michigan legislature has already determined that schools will offer leave to students – for any length of time and for any reason. You see, the Michigan government does not believe attendance should factor into a student’s grade. As such, our district has recently removed all attendance policies from the district. Not surprisingly, absences are way up. It doesn’t take an Ed D degree to realize that it is awfully hard to pass a class when you aren’t in class enough to learn any of the material…

The sound of silence

I recently read this mini-article on a Spokane, WA (public?) high school that is testing and exploring the legality of a cell phone blocker in the school. The school tested a blocker for 3 days, turning it off during the passing time between classes. The reason I found this article is that I am one of the school improvement chairs at my school, and recently several teachers and committees have suggested that a similar device be employed in our building (all rooms in our school have dedicated landlines).

In my very limited web research on cell phone blockers, I have found that jamming devices (devices that actually interfere with the radio signals of the phones) are illegal, but blocking devices use a slightly different technology and are considered a “grey area” in the law. The previous article concerning the Spokane school stated that the school district is investigating whether the cell phone blocker that the high school tested is legal.

Let me share a little background. In our building (and district wide, I think), cell phones are not allowed in school during school hours. They can be used before and after school. During school hours, including during passing time and lunch, phones are not allowed and if they are seen or heard by a staff member, they can be confiscated without warning. According to the policy, on the first offense, the student may pick up the phone after school in the attendance/discipline office. On the second offense, a parent must come into school to retrieve the phone. On the third offense, the student will be suspended.

The problem is enforcement. The students know that our administrators will not enforce the policy, so while they complain when their phone is taken away, they know there is no real consequence. Teachers also have come to learn that administrators will not enforce the rules; so slowly but surely, most teachers have stopped taking phones except in the most extreme cases. Consequently, phones are out of control in our building. Most of our 1600 students use their phones regularly in school. While most of the use is innocent, often the use is disturbing to class and disrespectful to teachers. Some students have found ways to cheat on tests, and the latest craze seems to be “sexting” in which kids are sending sexual texts and nude photos of themselves to each other.

I don't want it to sound like I am overly critical of our administrators, nor of the teachers who have chosen to not enforce the policy. With all the cutbacks in our district (like other districts) all of our staff members are stretched very thin. On any given day, there are probably more serious concerns in our building than cell phones.

Technology is also against teachers in this battle. Newer phones can use the school’s wireless network, and therefore still have limited use even if a cell blocker were put into place. Mosquito ringtones allow students to receive calls and texts without teachers hearing the phone ring or vibrate, and students find all kinds of ways to send and receive texts without taking their phones out of their pockets and purses.

I don’t know whether cell phone blockers are legal or ethical. I don’t even know if they will be effective with the wireless network available. What I do know is that our school, like many others, needs to find a way to maintain a learning environment in light of the proliferation of cell phones.

Leadership

I recently had to read an article on the implementation of technology in the classroom by Yong Zhao (et. al.). It was a good article, and I gained some insights which I might blog about in the future, but the point of today’s blog entry is a single quote in the article from one of the participants in the study. I’m not sure it matters, but the person who said this is identified by the authors as a male teacher in a “multimedia” classroom in a high school. The teacher is also identified as a military veteran.

"In the military, the bosses said this is what we want done. You’re gonna do it. Now how you’re gonna do it, that’s up to you… you do it the way you think it needs to be done. It maybe will not be the way I chose to do it. But that’s part of being a leader is saying I’m gonna let you do the job, taking a risk. But I think that’s a big problem we have in education is leadership isn’t leadership. It’s administration. And there’s a big difference between leadership and administration. I’m tired of being administered. I’d like to be led for a change."

Just as a bonus, I’ll throw in a quote that I’ve often heard from a gentleman at my church. I don’t know if the quote is original to him, or not, but he says, “Leadership is inspiring others to want to follow.”

Now, I’m not going to sit here and badmouth my school’s leadership for two simple reasons, one is they really aren’t all that bad, and the second is I like my job. But I would like to comment on leadership in general. I for one have felt just like the man in the study when it comes to our nation's politics. I think that one of the things we’ve seen in this country in the past 6 – 9 months is a desire to be truly led. I think we saw that in the presidential election. People said "things are screwed up, and we are going to vote for the party that says, 'we will lead you through the hard work of fixing things,' instead of the party that says, 'everything is going to be fine, just trust us to take care of it.'" I think we saw something similar when Pres. Bush was elected because (in part) he challenged some of the things that had become status quo under Pres. Clinton.

Even many who disagree with Pres. Obama have acknowledged that he is at least taking a proactive approach to a variety of issues, and on many he is straying from his base (e.g. charter schools, merit pay, etc). I am interested to see what happens as we continue to move past the “honeymoon” period and into his presidency. I hope that Washington will begin to shift towards leadership and cooperation, and away from rhetoric and obstruction.

What was, What is, and What could be...

I feel compelled to share a little more about my favorite online comic - XKCD. Initially, upon opening today’s comic, I was a little disappointed. You see the last comic had great potential as a “mini-series” – “The Modern Adventures of Don Quixote” and I was disappointed that Munroe had not taken that route. Oh well, he has been known to write a series of cartoons and then break the series up with n unrelated comics, but that is what could be…

I think Munroe’s best series, however, was his uninterrupted series on the new Secretary of the Internet cabinet post. A great comic with excellent references to Ron Paul, TRON, and ball pits, but that is what was…

As for what is, today’s comic did make me lol, because I so remember having that exact dream while I was an undergrad (not the Power Ranger dream). Thankfully, I have not had it since, so fear not Younglings; there is still hope of a restful slumber.

Now is the time

Well the time has finally come. I have labored in a variety of classes to learn about modern technology that is available to teachers, most recently in EDU 653 where we are learning about wikis (and other technologies).

Some of the wiki-related requirements of EDU 653 were to create a personal wiki and submit work on the class wiki. To help learn about wikis, we had to watch this video by Lee LeFever. (To bad we didn't get to watch this video by Lee LeFever, it has more practical uses for real life.)

While I am far from a wiki expert at this point, the things we’ve done in class and the clever video we watched have inspired me to implement wiki technology in my life. As such, my partner and I for another class are currently writing a research paper on a wiki. She lives about 2 hours away from me, so the wiki makes it easy to share things with each other, without having to drive and meet. I also created a wiki for my family so that we can plan a family reunion / vacation for the summer of ’10.

I guess it remains to be seen if wikis are really the powerful tool that my professor implies them to be, but so far I’m having fun and I guess that’s what counts.

It's not your parents' dirty dancing...

Edutopia is conducting a new poll on student dancing at high school dances (click here to participate in the poll). Of course, it has no scientific value of any type, but I always find the subject of student dancing to be humorous, so I thought I would explain why…

As mentioned in the Edutopia poll, adults have found the dancing of teens to push the limits of good taste since dance was invented. I guess I'm no different. My first year as a teacher I was “invited” to chaperone the Homecoming Dance, and my wife and I naively accepted. We were “dance floor monitors” which is like the chaperone equivalent to the Marine, fresh from boot camp, sitting in the front of the landing craft at Normandy. I’ll spare you all the glorious details, but I did commit to myself that I would never chaperone a dance again.

And that statement is the beginning of the problem. Our school could not get chaperones. Teachers and parents alike refused to do it because it was just too unsettling to watch the activities on the dance floor. Well, after enough complaints and one canceled dance (due to too few chaperones) the administration instituted the following policy:

“Dancing shall be performed in such a way that the dancers will be face to face and vertical.”

And here you see the humor… “Face to face and vertical!” The school’s administration actually had to go around to classes and explain this new policy to students, who of course, would ask for demonstrations and counter-examples.

So that’s the dance policy at our school, and if you really want to get down with the “horizontal bop,” then you’ll have to find another dance floor on which to perform it.