Browsing articles tagged with " powerpoint"

Getting excited about an idea, not a tool

Feb 7, 2009   //   by Ben Wilkoff   //   Uncategorized  //  2 Comments

So, for a while in our district has been very excited about certain tools that they have invested in. At various times, they have been excited about SchoolCenter, iWork, Garageband, Powerpoint, Smart Notebook, and quite a few others.
 
While I have never been a real big fan of this type of technology integration, I can understand it. It exists so that most people have something to hang their hat on at the end of the day. It exists because it is so much easier to implement a tool than it is an idea. An idea (at least a good one) requires rethinking every tool and its usefulness; it requires questioning a strategy that is based on tools.
 
So, I have to say, when I put together the presentation earlier this week on asking the really big question of “what is the web for?” I didn’t think it would be taken seriously. I thought that it would be looked at only for the tools that are behind creating learning networks and role-specific portals. Well, at least so far, I have been proven wrong. All of my conversations this week have been without the specific tools that have bogged us down so many times before. I have actually heard other people say that tieing together all of the project-specific tools is a much better way than tying us to any one tool. I’m not sure how long this conversation is going to last, but you can bet that I will be riding it for all that it is worth.
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CAGT 2008: Technology and Community

Oct 10, 2008   //   by Ben Wilkoff   //   Uncategorized  //  No Comments

Presentation (both live and PowerPoint):

Technology And Community

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Cell Phone Back Channel and Idea Network:

Audio Reflections:

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Topics and Links from the presentation:

  1. Make the Community Visible
  2. Make the Community Inclusive
  3. Make the Community Public
  4. Make the Community Always-On
  5. Make the Community Lasting
  6. Tending your community
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The Ripe Environment: Change cannot be Institutionalized

Jun 26, 2008   //   by Ben Wilkoff   //   Uncategorized  //  No Comments

Well, when I first started blogging about The Ripe Environment, I didn’t know that I was being edupunk, but now that I have read the powerful thinking behind the theory (Students 2.0, Stephen Downes, Bavatuesdays, D’Arcy Norman) and I believe I was. I don’t know that I really want all of the baggage that goes along with labeling myself, but I truly believe in the idea that change is about people not processes.

It takes a person to create change because vision isn’t enough. It is great to create documents and blog posts and do research projects on creating change, but unless a teacher in the classroom does something differetly or a student asks for more in the classroom, there is no way that things will shift one iota.

I happen to love the nitty gritty.

I like talking about working through significant roadblocks to change. I like convincing others that change is worth their time, that it is important.

And not just any change, we need to be moving toward Authentic Learning with such passion and ferocity that it cannot be boiled down a powerpoint presentation. Passion doesn’t come from such things. Passion only comes from a place of specific experiences, not a generic goal of creating change.

The Ripe Environment should not be about creating a hope among people that there is a movement afoot, that technology is the silver bullet or that golden jargon will save us all. The Ripe Environment is about personally expressing a need to do things better and focusing on what better really is.

I have to constantly tell myself that learning is sacred. I do it for myself. I do not share because I know what is best. I share because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is only through this act of rebellion that change will occur within others.

(I may be abstract in talking about this concept from time to time, but I really do want to talk about the personal stories and experiences that create change. Share yours in any way you know how.)

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links for 2007-11-26

Nov 26, 2007   //   by Ben Wilkoff   //   Delicious Links  //  No Comments
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links for 2007-11-21

Nov 21, 2007   //   by Ben Wilkoff   //   Delicious Links  //  No Comments
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