Tech Term of the Week - Cyber

This portion of my blog is to bring techy vocabulary together with traditional curricular, particularly in English, Science, Math and Social Studies. I hope you enjoy the lesson ideas.

We have just experienced Cyber Monday, cyber deals, and there is no end to the fear of cyber attacks and need for cyber security. So where did this word “cyber” originate and what exactly does it mean? You won’t see a mention of the word cyber until the 1940s with a scientist's use of “cybernetics” to mean mechanisms to replace humans. The sci-fi authors had a heyday with that and used the term for years to scare us with robots and cyborgs.  Our current definition, which more or less means anything to do with the internet, comes from novelist William Gibson in the book Neuromancer where he refers to “A graphic representation of data abstracted from the banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity.”  New York Magazine in 1996 penned it perfectly when they described the word cyber as “the perfect prefix” to make any word sound new, cool and “strangely spooky.” For English teachers, the etymology of words is an enhancement to novel studies or vocabulary. Students retain meaning when they understand a word’s history. You can have a great deal of fun with Ngram Viewer by Google. Type in a word and watch a graph display of it’s usage in literature over time. This can lead to some amazing discussion about words that are incorrectly used today. Why not map your vocabulary on Visuwords and checkout some great lesson plans about prefixes and suffixes? Or, lookup your vocabulary on the Online Etymology Dictionary where some of the information for this entry resides.  Etymology is where history and English meet, so there is possibly a great cross-curricular option as well.

Top 50 EdTech Innovations for 2016

Listen to the Flipped Learning Remix podcast presenting all 50 innovations. Also available for subscription on iTunes. Flipped Learning Remix Podcast presented by Troy Cockrum (@tcockrum) and Joan Brown (@digiteacher).

This year's innovations may not have debuted in 2016, but they certainly impacted classrooms this year. If you have others to add, please let me know.

1. Land Lines This is in the “it’s just cool” category but so are many of the Google Chrome Experiments. Users draw on the screen a shape and Google will access the entire database of satellite imagery to find that shape in a land feature. Draw a circle and you might find the top of a volcano. Even better for school, there is the name of the place and a link in Google Maps. Great introduction to landforms for any geography class.
2. Parent Notification Google Classroom (Guardian Summaries) Google Classroom has swept education but some schools found that without information offered to parents, they felt it was not a viable assignment system. Now with Guardian Summaries, those late assignments don’t get past the parents. Google also gives great instructions how to use email that is not part of the gmail system.
3. Google Classroom Topics  - Really this is just a filter of all the assignments, notifications, Q&A in the Stream in Classroom, but for students who have final exams, it is a map of the whole year. Teachers also like the ability to sort and find. You can count on Google to upgrade any search function.
4. Google Classroom open API - Google is an open source platform so when they release the ability for developers to code within their system, magic happens. Now there are numerous online educational accounts that populate rosters and can be assigned directly to Google Classroom. This list of 35 by Kasey Bell is just a beginning.
5. Quizlet Live - I haven’t seen a more revolutionary quiz game for class in years. Combine competition with collaboration and you’ve got Quizlet Live. Teams of 3 discern which of them has the correct answer on their screen before submitting their timed response. Groupings are all done in the app, the teacher just loads the quiz and away they go.
6. Breakout Edu - Puzzles keep the brain sharp, cooperative puzzles encourage collaboration but add in physical movement and you’ve got the brilliant Breakout Edu. Based on the popular Escape rooms, Breakout Edu puzzles are easy to make with a kit using various locks and curriculum based clues to unlock them. The digital versions use data validation in Google forms.
7. Google Timelapse - Take the history slider from within Google Earth and create a video. That’s what the Google Timelapse page gives you. Choose a prominent location on earth like a large city or a glacier. Any teacher discussing human impact on the environment must use this visual to prompt an excellent inquiry lesson. The videos can be embedded or linked in Google Classroom too.
8. Google Expeditions and VR - With Google Cardboard sets costing as low at $1.99 each, teachers are starting to get out of the classroom with virtual reality trips. With over 200 trips, schools can integrate a tour in nearly every subject.
9. Google Docs Explore - Google Scholar is gone and many have lamented the loss, but within Docs there is the explore button in the lower right hand corner that offers similar research tools. It’s as though there is a google search directly in the document without the ads. This is better for students.
10. Google Slides Explore - The same button takes us to perfectly designed templates based on the content of our slides. Machine learning at your fingertips.
11. Google Docs Templates - Open docs.google.com and at the top, in categories, are the modern templates for everyday use, except scroll down and you’ll find a category for education. Lesson plan, note taking and essay templates will get you started right.
12. New Google Sites - Slick, easy one button publish. All available for students to demonstrate their knowledge. Responsive design keeps the site looking good on any device.
13. Images in Forms - Math teachers, Art teachers, and really any teachers can produce assessments with images as the multiple choice options.
14. Adobe Spark - Free from Adobe, Spark helps you design either a narrated video, web story or social media post. But because it is Adobe, everything looks completely professional. You’ll find education examples at the introduction site.

15. Certified Educators Everywhere - Google started the trend years ago with the Google Teacher Academy, certifying experts to integrate Google Apps. Now do a quick search and you’ll find you can be certified for a myriad of other edtech applications: Microsoft, Common Sense Media, PBS, Raspberry Pi, BrainPop, Newsela, just to name a few.
16. Hour of Code - Now with 170 tutorials that are no longer just about 1 hour of learning, but emphasis is on creating year long curriculum in schools. See their Beyond Hour of Code page.
17. Listenwise - In a world where visuals abound, this is a full curriculum devoted to honing listening skills in the secondary classroom. Built around NPR podcast content, there are lesson plans and assessments to help students continue to focus and use the visuals inside their brain.
18. #OpenEd - Also known as Open Educational Resources, OER, this movement toward free, accessible and sharable curriculum is growing. The movement peaked in 2016 when President Obama promoted the need for more help from government.
19. Wizer.me - Worksheets on steroids. Interactive, engaging and graded for you. Every teacher needs this tool in their arsenal.
20. Kahoot Challenges - The interactive classroom quiz game known as Kahoot really began in late 2014, picked up steam in 2015 and then blew the lid off in 2016. Not only did teachers get incredibly creative by flipping the quiz into an introductory lesson to a topic or using it for information during parents night (thank you Sarah!), but the makers of Kahoot designed some more intriguing ideas for usage as well called Kahoot Challenges.
21. Hyperdocs - Lisa Highfill, Kelly Hilton, and Sarah Landis took something easy to design, a Google Doc, and built a grand pedagogy around it. Their book, The Hyperdoc Handbook,  explains how you can develop student centered inquiry lessons from something so simple.
22. Snapchat lenses - Was it a nuisance or a great innovation? Sometimes both. Teachers are nagging students to put away their phones when in reality, students are expressing themselves in new ways in the app. Snapchat lenses and now many other apps using filters and such, can transform a selfie into a work of art. Yes, art teachers are inspired to try it in class. Why not use this as a get to know you or perhaps get to know a literary character?
23. Easier Parental controls (New routers) - The home to school connection has been increased as parents turn to teachers and ask for help filtering the internet, limiting time and basically helping their kids with school. Google WiFi, Torch Routers, and even Disney have new, very easy to install routers that put all the parental controls on an app on your phone.
24. Chromebooks overtake iPads and Chromebooks supports Android Apps - Implications are clear. Schools want innexpensive, rugged, and easy to support devices. Chromebooks have found that niche and they are continuing to make an impact.
25. EdTechTeam Press (or small independent publishers in general) - “I always wanted to write a book.” Stop saying it and go ahead. More independent publishing options are available AND EdTech Team has created one especially for teachers.
26. Facebook Live - This is on the list because of the popularity of Facebook, not the new technology. When facebook added public streaming, now even your grandma can show off her prized tomato. This means that classrooms should not see it as unusual. Just choose the events wisely.
27. Skype in the Classroom - Great page devoted to connecting classrooms with other students around the globe and experts. Lesson plans, mystery Skypes, tours and more. Every teacher should plan one event from this page.
28. Google Forms Quizzes - Efficient, easy to build, and now auto graded! Can’t beat that.
29. Editions at Play books - These are still experimental. Imagine a book that is not printable. The text moves and changes, the pages aren’t really in sequence and well the story unfolds differently. That’s the magic of html 5. See the future of literature and have a class discussion about the pros and cons.
30. DataUSA - A place to visualize and compare data sets on industry, education, occupations and places.  This should be a gem for career counselors at a high school. Compare two occupations side by side.
31. Photos for Class (creative commons) - The nightmare for any teacher is allowing students to search for images and well, they find the ones they shouldn’t. You can avoid that problem by using Photos for Class. Every image is safe, offered with a shareable license AND the citation is provided on every photo that is downloaded.
32. US News Map (playback history) - Access the Library of Congress microfiche newspapers before 1925. However, display them on a map and scrollable timeline. Example: When the term “dust bowl” was used and where.  
33. Quick Rubric - Exactly what it sounds like, create a rubric in no time. Why not allow students to create their own?
34. Smithsonian Learning Lab - See the Smithsonian collection online but guided by a teacher. Yes, teachers and students can create their own collections, quizzes, and allow for discovery. New digital resources being added.
35. PBS iBooks - The beginnings of free, online textbooks. Let’s hope for many more.
36. PBS Learning Media - Now integrated in Google classroom, all the lessons that include perfectly edited video content in short usable segments from great series like the American Experience and How we Got to Now. All searchable and filtered for grade and subject.
37. Playposit New Video Builder - Several video lesson builders have quizzing features but Playposit now has branching logic to remediate or enhance learning AND a discussion forum. That’s taking flipped learning to a whole new level. Way to go!
38. Formative - Another formative assessment builder but with two features that stand above. First is the ability to upload a pdf or doc and transform it into the online assessment. Second is the ability for students to show their work. Keep an eye on this type of EdTech tool.
39. Storybird - Inspiring imagery so younger and older students can produce beautiful books. Free forever too.
40. Canva - If you aren’t a graphic designer, not a problem. Create the graphics you need to look modern and full of pizazz. Students can create free accounts too.
41. Autocrat 3.0 - This mail-merge Google Docs add-on now handles images and hyperlinks. Email out a different image to each student.
42. Doctopus and Goobric upgrades - Now integrated beautifully with Google Classroom and the feedback interface is much more efficient. Teachers can crank through those essays leaving written or audio feedback in no time. This is a teacher must have.
43. YouTube Live - Broadcast your chicks hatching, your classical music concert, an Ignite speech contest; just check the copyright before starting. Talk about authentic audience!
44. YouTube Red - No more commercials, suggested videos. A bit nicer for classroom use than the typical YouTube. If you have the account, best to use it.
45. Lab4Physics app - A science lab on your phone. Using the accelerometer, sonometer, and speedometer on the cell phone, conduct lab experiments with BYOD in school.  
46. Epic pen - Free way to write on anything on your screen. Highlight, annotate, screen capture the works.
47. Webplot digitizer (sheets Add-ons) - Reverse engineer a graph. Scan or import the image and receive data tables, equations.  Perfect for high school math students. Eric Curts wrote a whole list of helpful math add-ons if this one isn't what you are looking for.
48. Readworks Digital - Students practice reading comprehension while teachers can see all the data. Company is a non-profit organization.
49. Action Items in Docs - Give teams “to do” items within a doc. Keeps everyone on schedule.
50. Amazon Inspire - Storehouse of free teaching resources with the power of Amazon’s database. Could become a wonderful resource however, they are still attempting to get teachers to provide more content.
51. Sketchnoting - Note taking for the creative mind. We are seeing more and more classrooms embracing something other than Cornell/Powerpoint note taking. This process tends not to be digital, but with pencil and paper. However, sharing via images is huge in social networking crowds and could be the next big thing in class. (bonus we have 51!!)

Counting the Clicks - Your Classroom Digital Ecosystem

I'm very impressed that my school district has a team evaluating and truly thinking about the digital ecosystem in which we all live, work and learn together. Marketers, huge companies like Apple and Google, all think about the digital ecosystem but school systems, not so much. This is something we didn't have to think about in the past with the Microsoft Office Suite. It used to be rather simple with one suite of tools, one operating system and one desktop computer. But now with web 2.0, apps, media, games, and multiple devices, teachers really need to design not just their physical classroom but the digital space as well so that students can get to the main objective of learning. And even though our 180,000 student size system is thinking about it, each teacher really should be ahead of the game and start design their classroom ecosystem. Just don't think you'll be done with it.

Divide and conquer is a great way to look at it. As with the chart below, the digital ecosystem really is 3 parts, content, creation tools and social communication. If you plan early, these three aspect can be easily linked to one another. Take some tips from the web designers about usability and test your ecosystem. How many usernames and passwords do students need to use? (that's always an issue.) How many clicks does it take to get to the warm-up? Does the content save in the preferred storage location? Can students figure out how to navigate or does it require teaching? If these aren't in place, you already have frustration.

Some teachers have an amazing system for handing out and turning back in papers. Students hand them up the rows, stack them alphabetically, place them in a specific box on the desk, all with great practice and precision. But how assignments are distributed and turned in electronically can be an afterthought. In the analogy of handing papers up the rows, there is thought about those rows, how tall the stack will be, how long it will take. If your school has a classroom management system such as Moodle, Edmodo, Schoology or Blackboard, every teacher should think about how the interface will best work with the content they want students to hand in. Google Classroom has designed a system that although limited, works well for the Google suite of apps and even a variety of other file types.

For our school system, Google Apps seems to take care nearly all three parts of the digital ecosystem but currently there are holes where content doesn't always connect in that environment. As an example, several teachers upload pdf documents only to find students can't really write on them. Our best tool for this is DocHub, a Google Drive connected website but separate company from Google, that allows students to edit pdf documents. However, after editing a document,  turn in is complicated because the edited document created is separate from the original. The better practice, and honestly, a much more pedagogically sound practice, is to redefine the assignment. Any practice where the teacher is asking for fill in the blank work from students may need reflection. Converting the pdf using the Google option to "open with Google Docs" provides teachers that opportunity to create more open ended questioning and leave more space for answers.

LMS's (Learning Management Systems like Blackboard) claim to be a one stop shop, but looking at the diagram, they really lack something in each of the 3 areas of content, creation and social. As an example, I don't know of any learning management system that has a video editor built in, yet student videos are quite common. You may hesitate to allow video production in class or delegate it to that "special" project because it's too cumbersome. Online editors like Wevideo, and the YouTube editor are fine but most students will want to use iPads, phones or a computer with editing software.  Determine early how video will be moved, stored and turned in. I suggest uploading to Google Drive for turn in since the playback tends to be simple. Once you have tested a workflow, establish it early in the year. This is true for turning in any assignments.

You really must have a social communication tool for your classroom (not just email) and many of the LMS platforms have one. But if it isn't as easy to use on a mobile device as a laptop, or it is clumsy, chances are students will resent that it isn't a "true" social platform. If you want blogging, try Weebly for ease of use. If you want a forum, see Google Classroom, if you need texting announcement go to Remind. How students access these communication tools needs to be mobile as well as on a computer, just as you access communication both places. And be sure the instructions how to access all aspects of your course are clear, easy to follow and help everyone stay on the same page. 

Finally, just because the district has a tool available or your friend down the hall is using the tool in class does not mean it is useful or appropriate for your ecosystem. I see a phenomenal overuse of quizing tools like Kahoot, Socrative and others as a time-fillers. If every teacher is quizing students in the same method, the differentiation for your subject area is gone. Find a review method that fits your style but also provides opportunity for growth for everyone in the class.  Quiziz has a nice self paced feature as does Quizlet. Perhaps designing your own with branching logic in Google Forms is really a better option and they can be entertaining as well with video clips included. Did you know that Khan Academy has more than just math? Yes, now you'll find courses in history, economics, music, science and grammar. All self paced with a gamified interface. 

Look how this teacher, Courtney Bennis, developed a Digital Ecosystem for her students over the course of the year. This Prezi was a way to communicate to parents the tools and developing skills of her classroom. You'll see that, not all Digital Ecosystems are created in one day. 

Getting On the Same Page

Educators are talking a lot, and I mean a lot, about both differentiation and individualized learning. Layer on top of that Project Based Learning in which every product or solution will be, yes here is that word, different. Finally Blended Learning or Flipped allows any student to learn at their own pace. But have we forgotten our history?

I would like to use this opportunity to rally for the team huddle. The times in class where everyone comes together to learn together. Let's reference a time in history to clarify why this is important. In the 1950s, during the golden age of television, Hollywood was panicked that the reduction in ticket sales would be the end of theaters around the world. Yet this was not to be, primarily because of what psychologists call the contagion factor. This is the phenomenon that group reaction is much more appealing to us as social beings than individual reactions. In other words, we like the fact that others around us are laughing, sighing, or startled. (I'm not sure of the term for that sound when a person is shocked and inhales quickly.)

Now transfer this to a classroom where every student is working independently or in small groups on a project. Perhaps we have a blended classroom where some of the instruction is digital, some is in small groups. In our high schools or colleges, there could be opportunity for large group lecture but in the lower grades, it doesn't actually exist on a regular basis. So it is up to the classroom teacher to pull together the group. As a learner, perhaps from the old traditional learning styles, I look forward to those moments when we are all on the same page, thinking in unison. I'm sure this is the contagion factor and I see it as part of the appeal of the classroom instruction. We are in the midst of a huge transformation in education that is necessary for our student's learning styles. However, I believe in learning from history. Just as TV did not wipe out movie theaters, neither should independent learning completely remove whole group instruction. I would like to advocate for the last 8 minutes of class, when the teacher becomes the focus, makes all the connections again and creates that class huddle.

There are plenty of studies showing the power of reflection at the end of class but I'm looking for a more meaningful connection from the teacher of what it all means. Something from the teacher, in this student centered world can be as awesome as the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark. You might recall the scene when the box that housed the ark was wheeled into a huge warehouse with similar boxes. Suddenly we all exclaimed "oh no!" realizing the impact that everything Indiana Jones had worked for was now buried in government bureaucracy. Remember that feeling as you spoke with others walking out of the theater? Wouldn't it be great to see students with that experience walking out of class?

Wordsmithing Education

I am both and parent and educator which puts me in an interesting position. I attend parent conferences and see it from both perspectives. I read school publications and read between the lines. I hear about school board decisions and am both agitated and relieved at the same time. The divide many times comes about because of words. There is a lingo, a jargon, a language to education. And today I ran into it several times. I've determined it is a fascinating business.

While working with a colleague on writing a conference presentation description, we bounced the paragraph back and forth. Should we use "engage" or "interest"? "Transform" or "change"? I looked through my twitter feed for yet another adjective to help with a session description. We wanted to entice the conference to accept our session, so sounding new and innovative was paramount. But in the end, there are only so many ways to say that kids are learning and are happy doing so. Yet educators are experts and finding interesting ways to describe learning. I was particularly intrigued by the phrase "deep learning" he used. I pondered what that might mean. It certainly sounded good.

I ran into more terms as I tried to find specific reports to analyze a test. This is the world of data that educators are thrust into with very little knowledge of statistics. (that is another blog post). The myriad of reports to choose from was baffling and I was having difficulty knowing what I might find in each report. Discerning the "test synopsis" from the "test question performance" and the "benchmark report" from the "category results" was a puzzle in itself. Most parents think that educators are looking at a single score.

And finally, I stumbled onto more words in the syllabus another colleague sent me for an ultra modern college course on technology in education. Now here is where you'll find the true wordsmiths of education. The area of technology education is where you'll hear cutting-edge terminology that almost rivals Shakespeare. I stumbled across "connectivism" and "participatory learning."  Aren't those the same as being online and paying attention?  I can coin a new term any day and perhaps it will catch on. But the main goal here is a phrase that has been around for as long as I've been in education; love of learning. If we as educators can encourage every child to seek learning on their own, haven't we achieved the goal? I enjoy the new terms and actually perk up each time I read a new one. So yes, they have my attention and perhaps that is the purpose anyway.

Coding in English Class - Perfect Pair

I'm working with a English teacher on a very simple Scratch coding project. If you are not familiar with Scratch, this is a block based programming environment created by MIT years ago. I've loved it ever since it came out because kids of all ages can create amazing things in Scratch. It's funny, but we rarely think of coding and English going hand in hand, yet as I was instructing the students, I was amazed at the similarities I found.

I started by telling them we wouldn't really be "writing" code but that the sequence of the blocks was very important. The "setting" is vital. Every piece of code must be just right, getting the backdrop and characters (known as Sprites in Scratch) in the correct place, defining which direction they face, how fast they will move, etc...  So similar to writing in many ways. You can't start writing and have no direction.

As we began to create our own blocks, I spoke about computer programmers needing their own grammar rules called syntax. That syntax determines whether the next programmer will be able to read the code as well as whether the code will run correctly. Such a wonderful analogy to actual grammar.

Finally, teaching the logic behind conditional statements is the art of writing a great comparative essay or a great reinforcement to so many subjective decisions about literature. The If-Then-Else block requires students to weigh two possible scenarios and never leave anything out. There are so many applications to using that flow chart concept in English class. Here is an example of a Point of View flow chart that could be also coded using the If - Then - Else blocks.

So our project was a very simple overview of a non-fiction book. In the process of teaching them Scratch, I demonstrated the use of conditionals with the If-Then-Else block. The students are asked to create a very simple quiz game. This is a short video showing how easy it is for students to create this quiz game in Scratch. Imagine being the first English teacher in your school to teach coding!

Dear Google - The Next Thing

Dear Google,
I'm writing this letter to let you know what the next big innovation in education should be. Granted, I am just one person, in one school, with some fabulous teachers, but I'm sure what I'm about to say will make sense to some of you that work in the Google offices.

I believe my school is ready to move forward. GAFE has served us well for about 4 years but now my teachers are losing some of the creativity I saw a few years ago. They are weary of the same docs, sheets, slides, and draw. As the tech coach, I get questions in the hall asking what is Google going to give us next. Naturally there is always something, but they are small increments. 

As for the students, I have a true story that happened today: I walked into a classroom that had many groups of students talking amongst themselves and all on computers or chromebooks. I leaned down to ask a students what they were doing. He said they were filling in a chart. Each student had a Google Doc chart distributed to them through Google Classroom and they were filling in the missing pieces and discussing their answers. However one student said, "If this was shared with all of us we'd be done so much faster."  So in other words, our students already understand the power of collaboration and they are adept with it. That is what Google has taught our 7th and 8th grade.

What we need next from Google is something more. That something more is not just the ability to access the world of information and collaborate with it. We need a way to have a conversation with real experts, beyond the walls of the school, yet within a safe environment. I watched the rollout and fizzle of Google Help Outs. It seemed like such a brilliant plan but it was not integrated where it can make the most difference, in schools.  Imagine if Google were to rebrand it as "Help Out Your School." Experts willing to converse with students, stretch their thinking, collaborate on projects and in general give help to those that need it, when they need it. Students trying to code, trying to engineer something, trying to finish a science experiment and so on, all able to post their need and connect with a person who has that expertise and wants to help students. 

This would take the laborious task off the teacher to try to find an expert to schedule a Google Hangout with. It would take the burden off of parents who don't know all the answers and can't find a friend to help. There is no need for it to be commercialized because many careers encourage helping our youth or doing some type of community outreach. 

I'm sure that Google could find a way to make this work, still be safe, and create a learning community unsurpassed. I certainly would be thrilled to see students not just collaborating with each other, but with someone else beyond the four walls. Think about it, Google.