Pride in resistance to change.

I had a meeting today about transitioning to a google apps for your domain installation from an exchange server.
 
This sounds like a pretty easy sell, actually. It will save something like $13,500 a year. In the end it was, but not for that reason. It was only easy because admin didn’t have to change their workflow in any way. They would still be able to use outlook exclusively. It would only be the “back end” that would shift. This idea took me totally by surprise.
 
It wasn’t because I want people to completely shift the ways in which they do things just because I think it is better. It took me by surprise because it basically meant that the admin did not want to learn anything that they did not already know. That alone makes me sad. The idea that the current way of doing things is ever “the way” of doing things strikes me as defeatist. I don’t think I could handle setting an institution based on that model. Perhaps that does work for some people, but I don’t see how.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Posted via email from olco5′s posterous

The Most Change For The Most Kids

The most change for the most kids Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (136)

June 27, 2007 12:30PM

It is with some hesitation that I post this podcast. I am a teacher, and I will always be a teacher. However, I have been given the opportunity to do more. I have been recruited (although not formally given the position) for a Technology Integration Position in a nearby school district. This podcast is all about coming to terms with the idea of leaving the classroom so that I might create change and achieve School 2.0 in a larger way. At this point, I am very much interested in following my passion for finding solutions, and if this job provides solutions for more teachers and more students and also for my family, I don’t know that I can do anything other than pursue it. I am, however, still looking for others who have either made this transition or who have rejected it in favor of the classroom. Please e-mail me at benwilkoff@gmail.com if you have any questions or ideas.

Show Notes:

• 00:00:00: Intro to the Great Transition
  The Podcast Blog
• 00:00:58: Karl Fisch put me up to it.
  The Fischbowl
• 00:01:59: Why is the first wave leaving the classroom?
  Slow Motion Distributed Car Wreck
• 00:05:28: The Long Haul Teachers
  Cool Cat Teacher
• 00:07:15: What Should School 2.0 Leadership Look Like?
  Leadership Development for Educational Technology Leaders
• 00:09:27: What happens to the classroom I leave behind?
  My classroom Website
• 00:10:51: Other Factors
  My Daughter’s blog
• 00:11:55: The most change for the most kids
  My Blog

The Most Change For The Most Kids

It is with some hesitation that I post this podcast. I am a teacher, and I will always be a teacher. However, I have been given the opportunity to do more. I have been recruited (although not formally given the position) for a Technology Integration Position in a nearby school district. This podcast is all about coming to terms with the idea of leaving the classroom so that I might create change and achieve School 2.0 in a larger way. At this point, I am very much interested in following my passion for finding solutions, and if this job provides solutions for more teachers and more students and also for my family, I don’t know that I can do anything other than pursue it. I am, however, still looking for others who have either made this transition or who have rejected it in favor of the classroom. Please e-mail me at benwilkoff@gmail.com if you have any questions or ideas.

Show Notes:

• 00:00:00: Intro to the Great Transition
  The Podcast Blog

• 00:00:58: Karl Fisch put me up to it.
  The Fischbowl

• 00:01:59: Why is the first wave leaving the classroom?
  Slow Motion Distributed Car Wreck

• 00:05:28: The Long Haul Teachers

  Cool Cat Teacher

• 00:07:15: What Should School 2.0 Leadership Look Like?
  Leadership Development for Educational Technology Leaders

• 00:09:27: What happens to the classroom I leave behind?
  My classroom Website

• 00:10:51: Other Factors
  My Daughter’s blog

• 00:11:55: The most change for the most kids
  My Blog

What Happens Next Year?

I am very worried about what is going to happen to my students when they leave me at the end of this school year. Not because I think that they won’t be able to handle to rigors of high school life, but rather because I think that they won’t be able to handle going back to a traditional classroom. I wonder what the transition will be like when they know that collaborative tools exist, but they aren’t allowed to use them for school. Will they revolt? Will they create change? Or, will they just take it as another in a long string of disappointments from their learning institutions.

• 00:00:00: Introduction to My Father’s Question
  Heart Rhythm Society

• 00:01:24: Next Year?
  Highlands Ranch High School

• 00:02:39: How my students learn best.
• 00:05:13: Students as Better Teachers
  November Learning

• 00:07:11: Transition as Change
• 00:08:27: Backwards in Teaching or Learning
• 00:10:14: Conclusion to Next Year…
  The Podcast Digg Page

What does support look like in School 2.0?

Support is such an essential part of education, but many of us who are looking ahead to a technologically rich educational experience sometimes forget this. Because we are savvy, we expect others (including our students) to be savvy. I created this podcast in order to flesh out a few of the ways that we can support teachers who want to transition to School 2.0. The basic points that I came up with were:
1. All teachers need an aggregator starter pack.
2. School 2.0 must be framed in terms (and using tools) that most teachers understand.
3. Small groups of teachers must conduct relevant research within the specific school before many teachers will buy in.
4. School 1.0 teachers should engage in assessing School 2.0 products from the small group’s classrooms as a way of transitioning into a more collaborative model.

I have also decided to start including the chapter information and links as part of the show notes for those of you who do not have access to a podcatcher that recognizes enhanced podcasts.

# 00:00:00: Outdated Paper?
Dave Cormier’s Blog (http://www.davecormier.com/edblog/)

# 00:02:04: How does support look in School 2.0?
School 2.0 Wiki (http://school20.wikispaces.com)

# 00:04:20: An Aggregator Starter Pack
Netvibes (http://www.netvibes.com)

# 00:06:16: RSS as Support
xFruits (http://www.xfruits.com)

# 00:08:32: Framing collaboration
Ourtenwords.org (http://www.ourtenwords.org)

# 00:12:20: Collaboration Take 2
# 00:13:35: Supporting Relevant Research
Terry Freedman (http://www.terry-freedman.org.uk/db/web2/)

# 00:15:16: Flat Classroom Assessment
The Flatclassroom Project Wiki (http://flatclassroomproject.wikispaces.com)

# 00:16:50: Summary and Conclusion
My blog (http://yongesonne.edublogs.org)