I recently discovered the incredible power of connecting with like-minded people when I attended the ISTE (International Society of Technology in Education) conference in San Antonio last month. There were over 15,000 people there who have the same passion for using technology in their classrooms that I have. It was so great!

When I got back to Nebraska I continued participating in online discussion which were going on in various forums in the NECC Ning (www.necc2008.org) and Classroom 2.0  (www.classroom20.com). In one of those discussions a colleague mentioned that he would like to comment on my blog, but that since it was on Elgg then he could not do so.

I did not realize that only people who are registered users of Elgg on our server can leave comments. Doesn't that defeat the ENTIRE purpose of blogging? We blog to connect with like-minded people. We blog to expand our PLC. If we are ever going to truly network with individuals outside of western Nebraska then we have to get the heck out of the walled garden.

Come check out my new blog which I have decided to call Nebraska Change Agent.

Hope to decide to pay me a visit!

In just a few days I will leave for NECC in San Antonio. Through networking I have managed to make arrangements to meet some really fantastic people. One of them gave me some great advice earlier. He told me to come to the conference "unplugged." In other words I should not overplan. I am trying to narrow my focus to just Web 2.0 and online learning. They go hand in hand so it should be easy, right? I guess we'll see. I just keep reminding myself that I cannot do it all.

This conference is more than just a conference to me. I grew up in San Antonio and spent some of the most memorable years of my life there. I haven't been back to my old neighborhood in 20 years! It is going to be strange to see the house I grew up in, the trees I used to climb, and the pool where I used to swim. I wonder if it will look the same in person as it does when I close my eyes and see it in my mind?

I received a huge part of my education in Texas and now I am going back to continue it. I hope that I learn things there that I can bring back here to Nebraska and share with my colleages. I am so excited about entering the next phase of my career.   

What a difference a week makes! Last week I blogged about the people I am taking an online class with through Chadron. We were given a group project (15 in the group) and told to collaborate on the discussion board. Yeah right. There were two groups of 15 each....it would have been many hundreds of posts. I convinced the vast majority of my colleagues to try to the wiki. They eventually got tired of listening to me (I can be persistent when I want something) and tried it. Here it is a week later and they are inquiring about how to set up their own wiki.

We ran into a few snags, but everything went fairly smoothly. There are still some things I need to learn how to do, but after watching this wiki evolve I can see even more potential in them as a learning/teaching tool than I did a week ago. (www.csconline.wikispaces.com) If you check it out you might want to go back in the history. Instead of simply adding a new page I deleted the unnecessary postings. Now I know better, but it is all part of the learning process. I am just thrilled that I was able to help over a dozen people add something to their repertoire. They may use it again someday. Who knows? Maybe they will become a Web 2.0 addict like me!

A few months ago I read a book by Will Richardson that talks about blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other cool Web 2.0 tools. I took the chapter on blogging very seriously when it said something to the effect that true blogging is not merely journaling. OK---maybe that is true, but you know what? I have had a difficult week and I need to vent a little bit.

I am currently taking an online class through Chadron State College. We have been given the task of completing 16 weeks worth of work in four weeks. As a final project we were to write a paper on a behavior plan for an ED or BD student. One of the students suggested that we would learn more by working on the project as a group. Great idea! It immediately occured to me that we could collaborate using a wiki. I went to wikispaces and in less than one minute I had created the perfect online forum. I sent out a mass email to everyone in my class which included a link to the site as well as brief instructions. What happened over the next two days shook my faith in the future leaders in education. Most of my peers panicked! After reading discussion post after discussion post about how it was "too complicated" I could not take any more.

I posted again begging my peers to just try it. I explained that it was as easy as edit and save, but only a few were moved by my plea. I even posted a picture of me holding a sign that says "Please try the wiki" (See my image on this page.) That was a week ago. Out of 27 or so students only five or six actually tried it. They all remarked on how easy it was. No duh!!! A trained monkey can do it---we are graduate students for crying out loud!!!!

OK---I'm being a little immature. I am just completely frustrated. How are we supposed to teach our students 21st skills when we won't even try to use them! I bet 90% of the teachers in the Panhandle have never even heard of Web 2.0 or 21st century skills. Their excuse usually is that they do not have time to learn them or that since their students do not have access to computers every day that there is no reason to learn it. It is called PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. If an educator is unwilling to learn new things then it is time to step out of the game. Teachers who do not possess the passion for learning have no place in a classroom.

I am still really upset which is ironic because I just finished writing a paper for my grad class on controlling emotions. There are just times when I need to get my feelings out there for the world to read.

One of my passions....OK.....obsessions is finding different web tools to use in my classroom. Last night I came across a site called Voice Thread. It allows the user to add images much like PhotoStory, but it does not have the same purpose. In Voice Thread you put together a slide show with a voice narration. You can import pictures directly from Flickr. After you are finished you can share it one of several ways. You can embed it on your website, email it, or make it a public file on the Voice Thread website. The cool part is the manner in which people can leave comments. In addition to leaving written messages, you can leave recorded messages as well.

I can see so many ways to use this in my classroom. It will be especially helpful when I want to see the process students are going through when they are working on a project. This tool even allows you to "doodle" on the pictures to bring attention to details.

Try it out and let me know what you think.  

I cannot believe the ISTE conference is just a month away! I joined ISTE about a year ago and have found it to be worth every penny.

If you found my blog because you are also attending the conference please contact me. I am looking forward to meeting people who want to share their experiences with using technology in the classroom. Beginning next year I will teach 1/2 time in a face-to-face setting at an alternative high school and 1/2 time in a virtual (online) setting. We will use Moodle to deliver our classes. Our students who come to class on campus will have access to some amazing tools. The primary reason I am attending the tech conference is to learn how to utilize all of the cool things that are out there in my classroom.

I went to an inservice a few months ago that focused on technology. Howie DiBlasi was the speaker who informed us about all kinds of Web 2.0 tools. Out of a room of about 150 there were only a handful of us who have dabbled in blogging, podcasting, wikis, and other things like that. I consider myself to be incredibly lucky to have access (and administrator support!!) to computers for each of my students every day. Many of my colleagues are not afforded this luxury. There are not many other teachers in western Nebraska who are using  Web 2.0 tools in their classrooms because they can't. That is why I am so excited about traveling to the great state of Texas where I can connect with those who are willing to share their knowledge.

The embedded video below has information that should give the world of education some things to consider. Are we using available technology to teach 21st century skills? Are we using available technology to engage students? Are we using available technology to make global connections?

Spring is always a time of great excitement for any teacher. Usually by mid-May we have made it through testing season and the last day of school is quickly approaching. Like all other schools our seniors get out earlier that the rest of the students. The only difference is that we have a small graduation ceremony each quarter. I am never mentally prepared for that last day with them. We typically take roll then we all head to the office for cake. I attempt to take pictures which is darn near impossible to do when my subjects are less than cooperative. After everyone is done eating the seniors are free to go. I had a group of kids last year that I felt especially close to so I pulled them aside to let them know that I would never forget them. BIG MISTAKE! As soon as I started talking the tears started flowing. Last week we had another group finish up and I was not about to make the same mistake! No tears from this woman. NO WAY! Several of them started to get emotional when the party was over. They did not want to leave. They all said they felt a little lost.

What now? That seemed to be the question that they all had for me. They did not realize until just before they were ready to walk out of the building that their lives are going to change forever. Until their last day of school they always knew what they were going to do next year because it was already decided for them. Now it is up to them. It is exhilirating yet terrifying to know that the world is yours to conquer. I hope all of my students go on to try their hand at conquering the world.

For the rest of my students who still have 6 days of school before the end of the year this is my message to you:

*Enjoy the remainder of the time you have in school. Even though you hate the structure I promise you will miss it once you graduate.
* Apply for college BEFORE the scholarship deadlines. Even though you cannot imagine yourself in college now this will allow you to change your mind at the last minute and still qualify for scholarships and grants.
*Quit complaining and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Next time you feel the urge to whine turn on Fox news or CNN and look at what is happening in China and Myanmar. There are always people who have it worse than you do.

VC---------Thank you for a fantastic year.

I have been experimenting with a variety of open source applications during the last few years. The ESU is currently running Moodle (Learning Management), Elgg (Community Building & Blogging), WordPress MU (Blogging), phpESP (Survey), and Gallery (Photo Storage). The whole open source community is very intriguing to me. The creators of this software are willing to share what they have developed. There are open source options for nearly any application you may currently be running on your MAC or Windows machine.

The open source environment has now moved into the course development arena. One of the first items I became aware of is the Free-reading.net site. Free-Reading is an "open source" instructional program that helps teachers teach early reading.

The long term success of the open source environment requires the contribution of a large community of people.  The technology is in place to allow anyone that has an interest to become an active contributor.

I am so excited about all of the exciting things that are ahead of us in the field of education. Over the last few months I have experimented with some of the coolest things to hit the classroom. I tackled wikis last month. This month my focus is on blogging. I have found that the best way to learn how to use these tools is to........well use them! I have learned so much about  technology and how to use it in the classroom since I joined ISTE. (www.iste.org) Check out their site if you are interested in learning more about how to incorporate Web 2.0 tools in your classroom.

Click here to play videoCreate a Post [video/x-ms-wm]

Well we have a RedHat server running:

1. Moodle - Course Management

2. Elgg     -  Social Networking

3. Gallery2 - Photo Hosting

4. WordPressMU - Blog

5. Drupal     -    Website

6. Media Wiki   -   Wiki Site

All of the programs are FREE. There is fee for the server support for RedHat. But I could use Fedora or CentOS as the server software and those are free.

This is going to be great! A group of students from around the world writing about education, teaching, and learning. The logo below is linked to their website, which contains a "What", "Why", "Who", and "How" section. This is an exciting post for me. I have been reading EduBloggers for some time, but the time has come for student voices to be heard.