Wk 4 Publishing Leadership Project

I plan on presenting this first at the EARCOS leadership conference in October. This conference is mostly for administration and I have had some interest from some administration as other schools go towards a 1:1 laptop program.

I welcome any edits or suggestions you have for my project. This is going to be a work in progress and I know more will be added after the first semester of the 2011-2012 school year. Below are the links to my previous posts on the subject as well as the actual presentation link.

Post #1
Post #2

Presentation link

Week 4 Wimba

I was not able to attend any of the wimba sessions during this month and being over seas doesn't help the collaboration of same time discussions. Because I was not able to make the wimba session I shared my AR presentation with my critical friends and below are their comments on my presentation that I received via email from them.

Blair Mccullough:

Scot the presentation looks pretty good! I think you should add another visual from the survey to the results page, maybe something that shows a different category than the one that you already posted. Also, you need my picture as large as you can put it, maybe as it's own slide, just a suggestion, J/K. 

I like how you summed up the Lit Review page and made it flow with the rest of the presentation. I think that this would work for about a 20 min. presentation that would spark some great questions, good job!

Kristen Byrd:

Great Job! and I think that it looks great too! I like the theme and the visuals that you have with the slides with almost no text. However you might want to get each slide on board with your yellow colored font so that they all look the same. Sounds like a great topic for teachers and administration!

Mark Heil:

Scot, I'm ready for you to present this at the next all staff meeting on Tuesday and see what our heads think. I think that you have some good stuff here and the concept is really good for us to try and put into practice here at the school. I also think that you are actually going to want to wait to present till after maybe one semester of us high school teachers having the one to one and then we could put together something to see their success or comfort level as they actually teach in the program, looking forward to what happens and what you come up with, hope this helps.

Week 4 Art of Possibility

Creating the framework for possibility is my favorite chapter of this book as it forced me to think in a completely different way. I think we all need to aspire to be leaders and as teachers we lead everyday. This type of leadership would completely change the way my classroom would function as well as the staff that I work with. Since I have started to do a lot of staff development I have had to do a lot of leadership roles that I am slowly getting comfortable with but always looking for ways to become a better leader. Constructing a framework of possibility instead of working off others fears seems like a difficult thing to do. I think that constructing a framework of possibility does require some rapport with those that are hearing you or following you. Also, I would need to not have my emotions of the day effect how I lead those that are going through a tough time or during a tough situation for the whole staff.
There are many times when this form of leadership would be so much better than a demanding type leadership. WHen situations get tough, instead of leading or emerging out of fear, create a possible atmosphere where the staff as a whole can climb out of the situation instead of being pulled out by one person.

Week 4 Think Aloud 2

I created a presentation based on my AR project on teacher training in a 1:1 laptop program. Because of the topic I know that a presentation was a better choice for me than submitting a paper to be reviewed. I have had the opportunity to attend some pretty awesome conferences these last two years and I would really like to present at one coming up.

I have attended an East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS) conference before and I plan on presenting at the next one in October 2011.

Along with this conference I plan on presenting at the SITE conference in 2012, this organization was at the AACE conference I recently attended and I had talked to them about presenting at their next available one and this is it. The venue and topic of the organization fits well with my AR topic and will give me a great place to present.

I still would like to present at ISTE 2012 in San Diego, CA but the call for presenters has not gone out yet.

Week 4 Think Aloud 1

Testing the waters.

As I have been trying to come up with how I want to present my AR project I feel like I would like to do a presentation. Even though submitting a paper is a great thing, I think that I can best describe my project through a presentation and with the hopes of actually presenting it I would like to create it first instead of creating it from a paper. I am going to use google presentation to put it together that way I can hopefully get some good feedback from others as I share it around and I will also be able to possibly have others edit it if they feel the need to.

I have been looking to present at the ISTE conference, but I think it might be to late for the upcoming one this summer so possibly the one next summer. I also just recently attended an AACE conference and I would like to present at one of those as well.

Week 4 Blog Comment 2

Week 4 Blog Comment 1

Week 3 Blog 4 Wimba

This weeks Wimba forced me to think for the first time past Month 12. Before tonight I was looking forward to graduation and the end of the program, I was counting down the days till I could have some free nights and no worries. Now I am thinking about what did this all mean? where do I go from here and what will I do with all of this "stuff" in my head? At first this caused a peak in my anxiety that it will never end, but I then realized that all of this "stuff" will make me want to do more for my job and for others that I come into contact with. I was excited to think about how I might be able to make some serious changes in my school and in my career with the results and ideas that I now have from all of this "stuff".

With the thought of publishing my work or allowing others to post a presentation that I make on my findings and what I have learned as a result of research and experiences I get excited for what is to come. I get excited now to possibly expand my work and try out other methods on my co-workers and experiment with different types of programs to help teachers become better at what they do using technology.

I am still looking forward to free nights and no deadlines for assignments, but after tonight I am also looking forward to further pursuing my work and seeing what else I can do.

Week 3 Blog 3 Art of Possibility

Rule Number 6!


As I read this specific chapter it made me realize that this is the reason why so many teachers resist change. This chapter fit perfectly with the discussion board that we had this week as we talked about education and it's resistance to change. As I discussed earlier teachers don't want to look dumb, they don't want to feel bested or inadequate, and no one really does. If teachers could only remember Rule Number 6 I think that change would come much more naturally to the profession. Change would happen as we are up to just try something new, to give the students a different perspective, maybe something out of our comfort zone. Rule Number 6 would allow us as teachers to embrace change and roll with it, it would allow us to make a mistake in class and say "ah well" or to not have the answer to a technological question or hiccup in a lesson and say "we'll figure it out, no big deal". These responses are what make a classroom function as a place of real learning, and not just a room to instruct. Rule Number 6 would allow us to attempt something that we might not have had the guts to before and warn the students that you're not sure if this is going to work but hey we'll give it a try. Not only does this attitude by you allow you to be more free in your teaching but it also sets an example for the kids that it is ok to try and fail as long as you are willing to learn from your mistakes and not let it stop you from trying something else.
Rule Number 6 is a great lesson to teach ourselves so that we can better teach our students.

Week 3 Blog Comment #2

Week 3 Blog #1 Comment#1

Week 2 Art of Possibilty

I think that it is Interesting that we are reading this in Month 11 as we are heading out of the program and on to our new lives as Full Sail Alumni. This book so far has re-iterated what we have been doing this whole time in the EMDT program. It's like we just needed a reminder in words of what it is we have been doing and how it is a good idea for us to do the same in our profession.

The thought of giving an A at the beginning of a class sounds pretty crazy to a lot of people and they would wonder where the motivation to do quality work would come from. But this is the same kind of stuff we have been doing in this program and I have started to do in my own classes at my job. I ask the students to create and I want them to try their best in my class as we learn new programs and tools that they can use for all subjects in their education. I know that they don't all have the same talents and skills so I can't realistically ask them to create the same quality work for everything that we do. What I can ask them to do is to try their best, and they will only do this if they know that they will not be penalized for this and therefore won't be risky. So I took this idea from one the first months in the program (i can't remember which one) and created Risk Free activities that allow students to try different programs and projects with no risk to their grades. In doing this I have seen students give me some pretty awesome things that they normally wouldn't have done and would have just followed the rubric exactly to get the grade. The Art of Possibility spells this out with great examples of how this truly is the best way to get the most out of your students and make them not just play it safe for the good grade.

Week 2 Wimba 2

I think that I will always be battling copyright laws and myself over whether or not I am breaking them. In the wimba session this week I was overwhelmed with all of the things to think about and how many issues/laws that there are regarding copyright, fair use, and creative commons. One thing that I took away from the wimba as it was said more than once was that we need to ask ourselves "can we teach the unit without this"? I need to ask that of a lot of my teachers as sometimes they find things that have nothing to do with their unit or they just think is fun and it is a direct violation of copyright. Can you successfully teach this unit without using that media? It is a very direct question that most of us could probably say yes to, but on the other hand this"piece" of media will enhance my unit and help the kids to better understand it. So at the same time we probably don't need this, it sure would be nice and help me out. I think this is a question that I will struggle with every time I use something that is not mine. There are some blatant cases law breaking when I show a Disney movie just to fill time or when I put songs into my presentations or videos that are not created by me and I have not gained permission for the use of them. Those are easy, but when it is a movie or a picture that would help me describe the situation I am teaching than I would love to use, even if I don't have to have it. I am not sure that this will ever go away...

Week 2 Comment 2

Week 2 Comment 1

Week 1 Wimba 1

I was not able to attend this weeks Wimba as I have not been able to attend the majority of the class wimba's this year. It can be difficult to do this living on the other side of the world, so it is very nice to be able to access the archives or download the session to view later in the week.

This session kind of made me panic a little but at the same time it kept me on my toes which is a good thing as sometimes I feel like I might be losing steam after all these months. I need to be active and not waste time waiting for something to happen as the ships above are. Time management is key and I did appreciate hearing that our priorities might need to change a little during these last two months of the program. I might need to volunteer to take on projects a little less or think twice before I spend a saturday reffing for a middle school basketball tournament. These are all good things as was said but I needed to hear that it is ok to not say yes for a little as I complete the program and do the best job I can on the assignments left.