Technology without Training Isn’t Very Useful

Trying to make a long story short, I’ll start by saying I ran into a great blog post today that describes “a school, without a full time information specialist (librarian), is a lot like me trying to plan the most efficient use of our few hours in London, without Internet.” The blogger, David Warlick, is an educator in Europe at a conference. He was talking about lack of ready cheap access to the Internet in London AND a recent occurrence in the Minnesota Legislature.

Well his blog led to a blog by Doug Johnson, that talked more about the school library/technology association’s bill “that would have given all Minnesota students access to the services of a professional library media specialist throughout the school day didn’t make it out of yesterday’s Senate Education committee yesterday [February 27, 2008].”

OK I know it’s not technically a broadband issue. And I know that as a librarian (not practicing, but still card-carrying), my view is biased but I still had to mention it because one of the byproducts of broadband technology is the exaflood of information. Think of how you get info today – blogs, web sites, email lists, email from friends, email from nasty strangers (spam), YouTube videos, online presentations, TV, text messages, radio (in the car, at home, on the computer), newspapers (online and off), RSS, the list goes on and on.

Do you think kids are any different? They aren’t. Information comes from all angles – and without training from a media specialist/librarian – how are they going to learn to separate the wheat from the chaff? Kids need to be able to filter and organize information today and you don’t pick that up by osmosis – you are taught information literacy skills. If you aren’t, you just might be moving to Nigeria where they have elected you king, all you have to do is send a check for $50,000 in advance.

Minnesota Kids Help Host Megaconference Jr

I was so pleased to see ThisWeek reported on Scott Highlands Middle School’s participation in Megaconference Jr. on Feb 21.

Scott Highlands Middle School is located in Apple Valley, Minnesota.

Megaconference Jr is an amazing. Here’s the description from their site:

Megaconference Jr., now in its fifth year, is a project designed to give students in elementary and secondary schools around the world the opportunity to communicate, collaborate and contribute to each other’s learning in real time, using advanced multi-point video conferencing technology. Presenters design and conduct videoconference-based presentations and activities focused on both academic and cultural issues. Participants are able to address questions to presenters and to collaborate with geographically diverse peers in collaborative learning activities, thus building international cultural awareness.

Scott Highlands Middle School was one of 12 schools around the world to act as VJ for the conference. It’s a big honor!

Muse for Internet2

Thanks to Kathy Kraemer at TIES for sending me this fun news on a new Internet2 tool — Muse. If you are an eductor, it’s worth checking out. If you know an educator, it’s worth passing on. Actually even if you are just kind of curious about Internet2, this is worth checking out.

Muse is a new social networking tool (similar to Facebook or mySpace) that makes it much easier for the variety of K20 community groups both in the United States and internationally to discover and connect with each other around the use of advanced network-enabled teaching and learning resources and applications.

One of the things that I think we saw at the Broadband conference last week was the power of the Internet not just to bring communities from around the globe together – but also to bring local communities together. In some ways on a cold, snowy winter day that can be just as valuable in Minnesota.

Once you have signed up for a Muse account, you can search for people, projects and organizations in Muse as well as post new projects, opportunities, news and resources. You can also add people to your friends list, message them, and track their interests, projects, and resources. That being said, even as a guest you can learn a lot about Intenet2 and innovative uses of Internet2.

As a librarian (OK at this point I may be more like a recovering librarian than a practicing librarian) I was very impressed with their search tool. The tool is new so there isn’t a ton of examples or info on the site yet – but the framework is great.

Libraries & Internet Access

Thanks to Ann Higgins for sending me an article on libraries and Internet access (Libraries strained by Internet use).

Libraries are bursting at the seams with people wanted to access the Internet. Here are some of the interesting stats from a recent survey (Libraries Connect Communities: Public Library Funding & Technology Access Study 2006-2007):

1. 73 percent of libraries say they are the only source of free public access to computers and the Internet in their communities
2. More than 30 percent of Americans do not own desktop computers or have Internet access at home.
3. Visits to public libraries are way up — 1.3 billion in 2004, compared with 821.6 million a decade earlier
4. “The queues at library computers are growing for three primary reasons, the survey said: Students seeking educational Web resources (67.7 percent); job seekers sending résumés and applications online (44 percent); and people trying to learn computer and Internet skills (29.8 percent).”

I was just talking about this with my brother in law today. When I moved to Ireland, it took 2 weeks to get broadband at home. The longest, crabbiest non-pregnant weeks of my life! I used the libraries everyday. Even when the library was closed I sat outside with my laptop glomming onto their WiFi.

So life was hard – but at least I had my laptop. For those who didn’t they got exactly 1 hour online. You had to sign up in advance – at least in the afternoon. Often you could walk right in before noon – if they weren’t having classes. My brother in law apparently didn’t have a laptop; they were stuck with 1 hour shots of Internet access when they were here from Australia.

I think access here is much like it is at home. I’ve certainly seen the same from afar. The computers at our local library were almost always filled – certainly filled after school. If a kid wants to go online they need a parent to watch – and say you’re kind of watching and kind of doing your own work from your laptop, sometimes they chastise you. (That is true in Ireland and Minneapolis.)

Anyways the article goes on to talk about how the libraries are jammed. They need more money – but they don’t really offer a solution. It seems as if it’s getting tougher for the libraries to even maintain regular hours. But as libraries close patrons losing more and more – with the loss of the Internet access.

The libraries are often held up an a bridge closing the digital divide – but they can’t do a great job if they don’t have funding to stay open, get broadband, and have computers, staff, and space to provide access!

Resource for Educational Videoconferencing

Thanks to Kathy Kraemer at TIES for passing on the following to me. If you know of an innovative educator, please pass this on to them. I think that videoconferencing can be such a great tool in the classroom.

I am sad to report that in Dublin my kids don’t have computer class anymore - and the old school in MN didn’t seem to take advantage of opportunities like this.

Greetings (and apologies for cross-posting)!

It’s time to start networking with videoconferencing colleagues for projects and events this school year.
Start your year off by registering for TWICE’s new Collaborations Around the Planet. “The more people you know, the more videoconferences you can do!”

Collaborations Around the Planet is a large scale global directory and professional network of educators for videoconferencing project collaboration. TWICE, in partnership with Polycom, created this tool on the new registration database for Read Around the Planet (www.twice.cc/read/). TWICE is Michigan’s K12 videoconference organization.

While the site is hosted by TWICE, the tool is open to and designed for all educators using videoconferencing, just like Read Around the Planet.

There are two URLs for the website:
http://projects.twice.cc/
www.polycom.com/education/PCATP

Register for a new account. Or, if you participated in Read Around the Planet 2007, use the Forgot Password link to reactivate your account. Add websites to your profile, a picture of yourself, and click My Projects to check off big videoconference events you’ve participated in to receive badges & stars next to your name. Search to find friends and build your videoconferencing network.

Come November, you’ll use this same collaboration tool to manage your participation in Read Around the Planet.
As most of you know, RAP is TWICE’s signature event, celebrating reading by connecting classes around the planet.

Share this flyer with your local videoconference coordinators and interested teachers:
www.twice.cc/CAPFlyer.pdf

Questions? Need assistance? Contact Sue Porter at sue@twice.cc.

Janine

NOAA Announces New Funding For Environmental Literacy Projects

I got the following from my favorite TIES list. I thought that it would help spread the word - but also I just found it fascintating to read about the spherical display systems.

Title: Spherical Display Systems for Earth System Science-Installations and Content Development

The NOAA Office of Education has issued a request for applications from institutions with interest in developing exhibits featuring spherical display systems showing Earth system science, or developing science modules for these display systems. Spherical display systems are sphere-shaped “screens” onto which global data and other imagery can be shown. Awards will be offered in two priorities, with priority 1 supporting installation of spherical displays systems into public exhibits and priority 2 supporting development and evaluation of Earth system science modules for the spherical display systems. The purpose of these awards is to support the incorporation of spherical display systems and compatible, educationally effective environmental data products into public exhibits. The goal of this program is to build environmental literacy among the general public through increased use of NOAA and NOAA-related data and data products in informal education institutions. See NOAA’s Education Plan for more details on this goal and strategy: http://www.oesd.noaa.gov/NOAA_Ed_Plan.pdf. It is anticipated that recommendations for funding under this announcement will be made by January 30, 2008 and that projects funded under this announcement will have a start date no earlier than April 30, 2008, and possibly as late as March 30, 2009.

The deadline for applications is 5:00 PM EDT on October 30, 2007.

Visit http://www.oesd.noaa.gov/funding_opps.html for the full announcement and additional information.

Best EDU Sites in Michigan

My favorite list from TIES just sent me a link to the Berrien County ISD Teacher’s Choice Awards for Best Content Providers. Berrien County is in Michigan. That’s all I know about them – but I enjoy seeing favorite web sites in any industry (especially education) when they have been selected by the industry because it usually means site really are good.

Many of the winners were awarded because of their Internet 2 programming – videoconferencing and more. That’s great for kids but sad for us grownups who wanted to check out the cool content. One winner I’ve mentioned earlier in the blog is Megaconference Jr. As a former librarian, I’m also pleased to see that the Library of Congress made the cut.

eLearning in Glencoe-Silver Lake High School

I just learned (from my new favorite listserv from TIES) that Glencoe-Silver Lake High School was featured on Kare 11 news for their cool tech programs.

Glencoe-Silver Lake recently participated in a program sponsored by NASA that allowed students to communicate directly with folks at NASA. The article mentions other projects as well.

The article mentions that this is possible because of a “technology called a CODEC”. The Codec is actually the machine or program that (I think) encodes the signal for transmission, storage or encryption and decodes it for viewing or editing. In my not so technical mind I think of it as a modem that turns the signal from something I can transport (across the phone line) to something I can access (see/hear/use) on my computer. (Here’s a better definition.)

Broadband is obviously also necessary for these cool programs and projects. I just think it’s important to point out that broadband is required. I think it’s often assumed, which is great. But sometimes people forget that you have to plan and pay for the assumed part of a program.

Internet 2

Yesterday I met with Kathy Kraemer from TIES. It was easily my best meeting of the week! We seemed to have so many things in common – we both have worked intensely with the Internet since the mid 1990’s. We each lived in Spain. We have lots of mutual friends. We met so that Kathy could tell me all about Internet 2 and TIES’ role with Internet 2.

It made me wish that I worked at TIES.

Speed Matters Report

You know how one thing seems to come up repeatedly in a few days. In Literature, it’s called motif; there’s a word for it in real life too but I can’t remember it. Well, Speed Matters has come up a few times for me this week.

I blogged about Speed Matters in February – but it came up again yesterday in a blog comment from Laura Unger. And now I’m reading a report from Speed Matters sent to me by Bernadine Joselyn, sent to her by Mike O’Connor.

As the publication states, “This position paper consists of five separate parts. The first provides a working definition of high speed broadband and provides examples that illustrate why it is necessary. The second part identifies some of the consequences resulting from our failure to enact a national policy for universal high speed broadband. The third part focuses on the importance of such a policy for jobs and quality services. The fourth part provides examples of other countries that have successfully implemented national policies. The final part provides a list of specific policy recommendations. By adopting these recommendations the United States would utilize the power of both the public and private sectors to promote the common welfare.”

While stylistically it’s very different from the primer on FTTH I read yesterday; it is a little bit like a primer on broadband. It too would be a great resource for a policy maker or community leader. I should note that it was created by the Communication Workers of America – so clearly they stand to gain by nationwide upgrades in their industry, but it also gives them the edge as far as knowledge goes. I like the fact that one example they give of a broadband application is from the CWA: “The CWA/Nett Academy provides online training and certification including the only online Cisco certification and training program in combination with hands-on activities directed by trained CWA proctors in CWA union halls.” So they’re practicing what they preach.

One point they make, and one I’ve heard repeatedly lately is that countries that are leaders in broadband have national policies. They provide very specific steps towards creating a national policy.