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A New Year

Well, I can say I am NOT a regular blogger. I don't like writing much, but I want to push myself to do things differently this year. Update... Our school went 1-1 this year with tablet computers. Not like an iPad, you know, the tablet with the pen (stylus, for those keeping track.) We are using the Toshiba M780. I am happy to say, things are going very smoothly. This technology in my opinion has a "killer app" for schools that I cannot understand why it isn't mentioned more or promoted more. The "Tablet With Pen" (TWP) first arrived in our world about 10 years ago. I know, there was technology, but not until Bill Gates introduced Tablet PC (defined by Microsoft as a pen-enabled computer conforming to hardware specifications devised by Microsoft and running a licensed copy of the "Windows XP Tablet PC Edition" operating system) at Comdex in 2001 did we have access to a TWP en mass. Back then it won awards, but not until now, I believe, did the technology work well. To be honest when I started my current job 3 years ago, I had my doubts. Now, I have none. In fact my only complaint about my iPad is that a pen is not an option. I would like to write in the Notes app and have it convert. Typing is okay for the platform, but I want choice. I recently went to a tech conference and tried to use my iPad exclusively. ( I love to take notes, it keeps me busy.) The best part was the start up. I could move from session to session and boot up instantly to start taking notes. 2nd, at a conference like this not having to worry about battery life all day was really nice. I usually carry a 3to1 plug for when all the outlets are taken, but with the iPad I didn't need to worry, the battery lasted all day. Then I sent my notes to my school email in Outlook. When I got back to school I opened the emails and hit "Send to OneNote." This way all my notes were where I like to keep them.

1st year Technology Coordinator

Well, as I enter the last quarter of my first year as a technology coordinator I have a few reflections, ideas, brags, and other stuff. I should mention that I was a Mathematics teacher for 22 years. Twenty years in a junior high school. We used technology a lot. Then, looking for a new challenge I moved to a high school in the same district for 2 years. Tried to move forward with technology, but overworked and under appreciated. On my way to NECC I clicked on the career link and ended up in my dream job. We will be fully 1-1 in 2010-2011. My job is to help teachers get there in a meaningful way. Anyway on to the other stuff.

First, I dislike the title of "Technology Coordinator." It should really be Technology Integrationist. That is what I really do. The only thing I am coordinating is my family life with this new job. Which is going really well. My job is really interesting, I get to "start over" in technology. I have lived through various stages of going 1-1 with laptops and within two years I get to help teachers prepare for 1-1 in entirety. It has been a blast. It has also been very rewarding.

Tools my teachers have used; many wikis, Voicethread in language classes, blogs, NINGs for book groups , Skype to talk to a school in India we partnered on a project with, podcasting of lessons, Virtual Forbidden city, Dragonspeak to grade lessons, OneNote to interact with students on a more timely and efficient manner, Venier probes in science, TI-SmartView in Mathematics, the lab went from nearly always open to almost always full (three people came to me the same day to complain for the first time, I knew then we were making progress), POV-ray for math, NuCalc for math, deep breath, 3 grading programs (need to fix that), new website ( almost all post regularly to), new cameras for 10 teachers, technology wiki, blog (trying), Twitter (whitechrisf1, the f1 is for Formula One race cars, do you know how many Chris Whites there are?)

Sometimes I don't feel like I'm doing enough, but them I look at that list and feel an amazing amount of pride. We have really accomplished a lot this year. I am so lucky to have a staff that is so willing to learn new things, an administration that has let me create the job around the way I want to do things, a boss that believes in me and how I am doing things and recognizes me for it, colleagues that make it possible in the tech dept, and two peers in the other divisions of the school to help me learn more about the community and the "ropes."

R U Crazy Busy?

I read an interesting article by Dr Hallowell in his "Crazy Busy Tip of the Week." He states, "The deluge of data available today has so overwhelmed the average thinker that we can't act on what we have...What separates the great innovator from the mere data gatherer is the ability to stop gathering data and think about what has been gathered...Make sure you aren't collecting data just for the sake of covering all bases, and take the time to think creatively about what you already know." I was lucky enough to hear him speak at the ISACS (Independent Schools Association of the Central States) conference in Minneapolis recently. I subscribed to his newsletter on a Crazy Busy Life and have enjoyed reading the letter on about a monthly basis.
http://www.drhallowellsblog.com/dr_hallowell/crazy_busy_life/

First thoughts.

Well what does one say (type) in their first blog? I guess the first things is that I hope this doesn't become and obsessive habit. I am a technology "coordinator" for the Upper School of an independent school and I want to link podcasts from students to this blog. Here it goes...