2 Years of iTeachers

A little while back I taught a graduate course for the University of Saint Mary's in Minnesota titled iTeacher in St. Cloud, MN.  My co-teacher and I focused specifically on the integration of iPods and iPads into our learners' curriculums, hence the name "iTeacher."  It was a really fun week where I learned a lot about teaching and iOS devices and our learners walked away with some solid implementation ideas.

One thing I am really proud of when I teach a course like this is that I leave my learners with the resources to come back to after our time together is physically over.  So I went ahead and created a simple and quick Google Site for our course.  It has on the resource page a whole host of items that may or may not be helpful to someone as they look at, decide on, or implement iOS devices in their environment.  Access to that page, and the entire website, can be found by clicking this link.

That week was a lot of fun, but one of the more valuable experiences for the learners there was when I stopped the direct instruction and came and sat down with them and discussed what I personally had learned from directing iOS deployments and programs for the last two and a half years.  They asked that  I would share this list with them on my blog.  So here goes, in no particular order, my personal reflections:

• Have a plan.  I think this goes without saying, but you would not believe the number of school districts that I have consulted with that do not have a clear direction or idea where they are going with the iOS devices in their school setting.  Who is going to use them?  How long are they going to use them?  Who will be syncing them?  Have you checked your wireless and made sure that it can handle a large number of iOS devices on it?  Which model of app purchasing are you going to deploy in your environment?
• Do your research.  There are a lot of people out there that have written much on the topic of iOS integration within curriculums and school settings.  What do they say?  What has been the most effective?  At The FAIR School we are consistently hosting schools and individuals alike that want to know more about our programs, what we are doing, and how we make it work in our classrooms.  Have you visited another school?  Do you know what they do with the iOS devices after the day is over?  How do you store them throughout the summer?  How are they actually implemented into the curriculum?
• Have support lined up.  Syncing these devices takes time plain and simple.  Who is going to invest their time to make sure they are done correctly and efficiently?  Are you going to use a Mac or a PC for syncing?  I will say that if you use a PC expect syncing to take hours longer than using a Mac.  Apple has specifically made a tool for syncing devices, but it can only run on a Mac - typical.  It's worth the look at Configurator if you plan on having more than 20 devices for sure.  Also, where do you go when a question comes up?  What support network can you reach out to?  Who will answer your question in a timely and appropriate manner?
• Have a schedule set-up.  This is one of the items that we added at The FAIR School last year in quarter four and something that I wish we had done years ago.  This schedule now lists specifically when each iOS cart will be synced and I can put in, based on my schedule, how long it is going to take.  In addition, I plan a meeting about a week prior to syncing and make sure that the Golden Master iOS device is ready and set-up exactly like my teachers want.  This alleviates the stress when they go to open a cart and the app they need for instruction is not listed there.  This schedule is also shared among the other iOS teachers so they have a good handle on when other teams are syncing and what my availability looks like as well.  However, most importantly it allows for me to keep my sanity instead of syncing the devices on a random schedule or whenever an instructor found "a really great app."  One final thing on this point to consider is the length and time software updates take.  I still remember the days of taking one iPad at a time and running a software update.  You think it takes a long time now, think about back then!  Thankfully the resources came along to use Xcode and now Configurator to make the process move a lot faster, but it still will take a while.  Plan a few days to make sure everything is set back up after a software update.  Consider also if you really need to do a software update.  Sometimes it is better, especially with iOS 6 coming out, to wait the school year before updating unless there is some compelling reason to move quickly to the new iOS.
• Have the money stuff figured out.  Purchasing apps in iTunes is one thing, but purchasing apps in the Volume Purchasing Program is something totally different.  Make sure to do your research and have your Program Facilitator set-up and decide as an organization which roles you are going to give to individual teachers or staff.  Who will be purchasing apps and how will they get them to the students?  One other big consideration is trying out new apps.  I make it a point to have some funds on hand to test out applications for my teachers.  I don't want to spend $100.00 on an app that will not work in their class, but I will spend $1.00 for them to try it.  I have no problem purchasing one code and then sending it to them to evaluate.  
• Have your policies in place.  How will students carry their iOS devices to their seat?  How will they interact with them at their desk?  What happens if a student drops a device?  What about if they break their headphones?  Any of these concerns cause a technology director to toss over in bed at night.  Having these set policies and plans in place make your program move forward a lot quicker and more efficiently as well.  One thing we teach our elementary students is to hug their iPad when they walk back to their desk from the cart in the same manner that they hug a book when they get it from our leveled library.  If the students already know the language, why reinvent the wheel just because it is a different medium?  
• Setup the expectations.  Just like we have expectations for our students in the classroom, we also have expectations on our staff for use on the use of iOS devices.  In elementary we mirror the implementation of the iPads with our Daily 5 program and PALS.  Together these two tools allow us to say that at Day 1 the iPads will be in place within our classrooms and by Day 10 they will be part of the rotation within at least one of the five activities - mainly listening to reading.  After that we have a few other expectations, but it sits on our teachers to hit the guidelines that we set for them.  Furthermore, we had the expectation that throughout the summer all our iOS using staff members would come to a training we set-up called "iPad Camp."  They dedicated their mornings to really integrating the devices into their curriculums, talking about expectations, and overall deployment as a team.  It was an effective and useful week and something that would not have happened without the expectation that they were to arrive each day.
• Don't confuse the purpose.  iOS devices are awesome tools to aid in instruction and learning within the classroom.  Period.  They should not be confused with anything else such as a gaming device, play toy, or a classroom teacher.  This specific purpose should allow your teachers to drive home the implementation of them early and allow them to be used specifically and intentionally within your classrooms.  Keep that in mind as you or your team plan.
• Think about implementing a core set of apps school or district wide.  As part of "iPad Camp" we determined a specific and core set of applications that will be loaded onto each iPad district wide.  These ranged from things like Accelerated Reader to PDF-Notes to the iTalk Recorder.  There were not many applications, but every decided that the continuity required for students was essential moving forward.  In addition, they also decided on the naming of folders to be very similar.  For instance, everyone has an LTR folder on their iPads (LTR stands for Listen to Reading), but the content within that folder is different for each classroom or grade level.  This overall decision will only help to strengthen our program moving forward as we are on the same page school and district wide.  It will not matter who they had in 1st Grade because there is at least a core set of applications that will look familiar.
• Think about the basics.  How will the iOS devices be stored and locked up each day?  How will you care for them?  Are the students or staff responsible for cleaning them?  Will you purchase styluses?  What about back covers?  Headphones?  Keyboards?  Each of these decisions needs to occur even before the iPads arrive within your building.  Are you in an environment where the devices need to be shared?  Then what does that look like and how much time will each teacher have with them?  Is there a method to shift hours or time if a specific instructor does not utilize them well or does not implement them at all?  
• Model, model, and model some more.  I think it goes without saying that students do not pick up a concept the first time they interact with a piece of technology.  Continually model for your students how to handle the device, how to use the organized folders on you iOS devices, and how to use one finger to move from app to app.  Students love the iOS devices, but sometime they forget the expectations, rules, guidelines, and best practices you have setup in your classroom.
• Figure out the long range implementation plan.  Everything that deals with our iOS devices goes back to the individual instructor's scope and sequence.  The iPad has to be tied into the curriculum in meaningful and relevant ways.  We frame it as a tool and we use it as a tool and nothing else.  Then when teachers have looked at their scope and sequence we have them match apps with their standards and then also fill our an app rubric to match each app.  We want to know that the apps we are syncing have been tested and really do fit with the educational goal at hand.  These types of documents also provide a more linear discussion among teams and schools as to who is using what, where, and why, which only leads us to strengthening our iOS program.
• Celebrate your successes.  More often than not the year goes by and no one ever says "Good job," "Well done," or "What a difference that has made in your classroom," but I encourage you to take the time to meet with your team(s) and really celebrate what you are doing.  Share it with the world and continue to reflect on what you have learned so that the next day, month, or year is better than the last one.

That's my list of reflections for now.  I am surely forgetting something, but the ride has been incredible.  To think of a device that only five or six years ago was not on the commercial market and is now in our classrooms and successfully implemented is a huge accomplishment for both me and many of my fellow colleagues around the state, country, and world.  Keep up the good work being iTeachers!

Why Do All the Good, Free Tools End? - Part 2

     I wrote previously about the demise of CoverItLive as it moved to a paid-per-click model.  I also wrote about its immense impact on the educational experience in my classroom and others that I have worked in before as well.
     I am here to say that my faith and use of CoverItLive has returned.  I mentioned that as a nonprofit educators were encouraged to send them a message and "a Customer Support representative will get in touch with you."  I went ahead immediately when this message came out and filled out the response form.  Brittany responded to my message with an email and said this:


Thank you for your application. We’re pleased to tell you that you’ve been approved for a free version of our account for educational use in a classroom. I’ve made the following changes to your account to set you up.  I’ve created what we call an Enterprise Account (EA) for you named “FAIR School Downtown," which is now designated as our “Custom Plan” with non-profit status, which means no charges, unlimited access. I’ve associated your individual CiL account with this EA account.


     This is great news!  Thank you CoverItLive.  Obviously I cannot guarantee that you will have the same results, but it is nice to know that there are some companies out there that still recognize the importance of providing a free tool to educators. 

Summer Break Begins...Or Ends?

Summer break bring about thoughts of barbecues, warm weather, and good times at the cabin.  However, for most technology staff the summer is the busiest time of the year.  This summer for me has been no exception.  I have spent the past two weeks and the holiday hanging out with friends, family, and relaxing.  I did get a little work done at FAIR School as new equipment has begun to arrive in our building.  Actually a lot of new equipment has come in and I expect our yearly shipment of 9th grade computers today.  Here we go!  I also had the awesome opportunity to teach two graduate courses for Saint Mary's University – iPads, iPods, and iBooks Author and Google Applications for Education.  There will be a lot more on these endeavors coming soon, but for now I wanted to let you know that the vacation time from writing on this blog is over.  It is a nice change of pace to step back, take a short break, and enjoy the weather, but the time has come.  Our 1:1 programs do not get ready by themselves (roughly 300 MacBooks to get ready for grades 9-12 and 160 iPads in grades K-2) not to mention the full compliment of staff computer changes, network additions, new software coming in, and staff development trainings to conduct.  The time has come put the head down and get some things accomplished!

New equipment about to be processed

One exciting change is that we will working with JAMF Software and the Casper Suite for this upcoming school year to manage and oversee all our Apple devices district wide.  I have seen with this software package in action, tested it out for a few months, and I can truly say this will make the job of any technology director, integrationist, or your normal technician a lot easier.  It has some high level functionality (remote wipe, scripting commands, and inventory control features) as well as basic functionality (package imaging, deployment of apps, integration with Configurator, and self service) that I am really excited about.  You know that only a geek looks forward to installing a very complicated software suite!  We got to a point in our district that overseeing and deploying over 1,000 Apple devices was a bit much for three people to manage on a daily basis.  So we looked at a mobile device management (MDM) solution and landed with JAMF Software.  Outside of their great product, I enjoy the fact that these guys are local (Minneapolis, MN), so if I have a question or something is not working I can go knock on their door.  Honestly though, this company is leading the way in the area of MDMs and I look forward to deploying this solution later this month.

Even though I took a short break from writing, my mind has not stopped working on some great upcoming posts.  Here are a few of the topics:
-2 Years of iTeachers: My personal reflections on a running and working with our 1:1 iPad program.
-The Role of a SMART Board Today: What can we do with one in today's world that we cannot do with an iPad?  Where do we find SMART Boards located?  Why should we still buy them?
-The Twitter Craze and Why You Should Get Involved: A reflection on what I have learned about using Twitter over the years and the reasons for getting a Twitter account.
-Should We Start Differentiating in Graduate Courses: A close look at teaching a recent Google Applications for Education course and the need to flip and differentiate the instruction.

Summer Staff Training Here We Come

Summer time brings about thoughts of grilling out, time on the lake, and sleeping in for most.  However, for technology staff like me it also means the busiest time of the year.  We have roughly a thousand devices to re-image and configure over the next two and a half months, new software to implement, four summer programs to support, and if that wasn’t enough there is always the summer training for staff.  In our district we specifically ask our teachers and staff what type of training they are looking for and then go out and try to schedule what we can.  This summer I am particularly looking forward to a week of training, creation, and specifically integration of our iOS devices throughout the district.  Everyone will be coming together from Kindergarten through second grade, middle school teachers, special education, and even a few high school teachers to plan, dream, and really figure out how we can take our successful 1:1 iOS Program and make it even more effective.  Stay tuned for more information on this week in early August.

However, for staff that do not have iOS devices we also will be running a variety of training sessions throughout the summer.  We have done this a number of times before and have even used Google Forms for them to register.  Then to confirm their registration and send reminders we send out text messages to the staff.  Our principal had the idea roughly a year and a half ago to begin communicating with staff during the summer in a way that would be appropriate and easy for them – text messages.  They wouldn’t have to login it to their school email account and the messages would be kept short.  So far this process has worked out really well and we look forward to communicating with our families via text message more this fall.  Staff can never get enough training though so we are consistently reaching out and trying to find methods and ways for them to learn things on their schedule.

One way of solving this problem is through video tutorials.  As a school district we invested in a large video tutorial library through a third party a year ago, but then we decided after our one year review that not enough of our staff watched the videos to justify the cost we were paying.  Yes, we maybe could have done a better job implementing them into our environment, but we were also up against a staff that is stretched thin already and asking them to watch video tutorials in their free time seemed a bit silly.  So instead we are moving to create an in-house video tutorial library of important things staff need to know.  For instance: how to check your email, how to submit your grades, where the purchase requests can be found, and who to call when you have a technology problem.  All of these videos will be housed in the Videos app as part of our Google Apps for Education Suite.  The majority of them will be private and not viewable to the public, but all our staff will be able to access them with a click of a button.  It will be nice, slick, and a lot cheaper than our third party solution.  Probably the best part about this solution is that the content we create can be directed specifically for our staff.

However, every once in a while an opportunity to assist with staff development comes up and it is just to good to pass up on.  Such was the case when Tyler Hellemann (@MrHellmann), a cohort member from my UNI Masters Degree Program, sent me a message asking if I wanted to help him create a Google Form video.  Of course I agreed and we set off creating a collaborative document with an outline and parts of the script.  We decided early on that we wanted to complete the presentation together, but then after looking around and trying a variety of different tools we decided it would be easier to just film it separately and then put the two pieces together.  So that’s exactly what we did.  He used Screencast-o-Matic to capture the audio and video on his end, exported it, and then sent it to me.  I used Jing Pro to capture my audio and video, exported it, and then dropped both pieces into iMovie.  After a little tinkering we came up with this video:

Clearly this video isn’t going to win us an Oscar or Emmy anytime soon, but the content about how to use a Google Form hopefully got across.  We thought it did and that’s why we will be using this video during our summer and fall technology trainings at our respective schools.

Please enjoy this time of year – whether you are imaging computers, training staff, or hanging out on the lake – because summer is here!

Creative Commons 101

In class recently we have been discussing Creative Commons (CC) and licensing the work we create.  Personally, I heard about CC back in Colorado at a technology conference and was a little confused.  There appeared to be a number of rules and stipulations all around the copyright issue, but then there were also many exceptions to that rule.  Honestly, I absorbed the information and let it sit on the shelf for the past four years – until now.

Creative Commons is a big deal.  We all create things, post things online, and want to be credited for our work if others use it.  In a perfect world we would always be contacted if someone wanted to use our work AND we would always contact the author of a work we would want to use.  Let's be realistic though, this does not always happen.  Therefore, in an effort to help us learn the basics of copyright and Creative Commons our professors put together this great enhanced podcast.  If you still have questions after this podcast, another great resource I found for educators  is also a post on The EduBlogger called "The Educator's Guide to Copyright, Fair Use, and Creative Commons."

After reading all the resources and doing some own personal reflection, I figured it was my time to get into the Creative Commons arena.  I write, create, and publish stuff online and I might as well keep my copyright, but allow people to copy and distribute my work – provided they give me credit.  I can do this easily with a Creative Commons license.  Then I was thinking, what would be the easiest and quickest way to try this out?  How about getting a CC license for my blog?  And that is exactly what I did.  You can see the posting over on the right side of the screen and the license from CC as to how people can use my content as well.

In the spirit of the Distributed Learning Community I went ahead and created this video of how you can create a CC license for your blog:

These same general steps apply with an image, text, or other media format.

Do you have a CC license for your blog?  Why not?  I hope that you look into the information on CC and get a few licenses.  It just makes sense in today's world!

Why Do All the Good, Free Tools End?

It seems as though another good Web 2.0 tool has bit the dust, metaphorically speaking of course.  CoveritLive has gone to a paid per click model.  Bummer, right?  If you are not familiar with this tool here is the basic description.

I was personally introduced to this tool back in the winter of 2009 during student teaching in CO.  Back then it was a bit underdeveloped, but the functionality was still flat out amazing.  The ability it had then (and still has today) is to create an interactive chat and embed it into your blog.  The educational application for me was to use this tool in class discussions.  In addition this tool had a moderation pane that allows the comments to be approved prior to them being posted.  This tool worked really well for classroom discussions, but it had a variety of other features that worked in an educational setting (quick forms, links, and stats).

Unfortunately, like many Web 2.0 tools, this has gone to a paid version.  It did have a paid option in the past, but for education it was strictly free.  For those that wanted to receive more options there were of course paid options.  However, now there is only one free option.  Here is their new language around the new cost options: "Our pricing is defined by the number of clicks - that is, people actually clicking into the live events on your website or mobile app - you accumulate over a billing period."  The number of clicks for a free account is 25 per month.  This is a bit of an impossible threshold for an average teacher.  When I am teaching a novel and want to have discussions about it using this tool I generally have two or three discussions a week and each of my 25 students is accessing and clicking on the CoverItLive link.  And I only teach one class!  Imagine if you taught five sections with an average number of students at 25 and had two discussions a week for four weeks.  That equals out to roughly 1,000 clicks per month.  Under the new pricing that teacher or school district would have to purchase the "Lite" account for $49 per month.  Granted I would still strongly make a case for purchasing this, but the frustration remains – it was free and now it is paid.  What's up with that?

Finally, in their nice email explaining all this to their customers they did state that for education or other non-profits to contact their Customer Support Representatives for other pricing options.  I, naturally, went ahead and contacted them earlier this week.  I have yet to hear back from them, but when I do, I will be sure to update this post.

Until then I will begin the conversation with my teachers and figure out who is using this tool and count the monthly number of "clicks" we might have.  Yet another good, free tool that has gone paid.  Bummer.

Have you used CoveritLive before?  Did you enjoy using it in your classroom or educational setting?  Why do all these free tools start to be paid?  Will you look into the paid version(s) of CoveritLive?

VoiceThread and Van Meter Schools

In class this week we were asked to use a Web 2.0 collaboration tool called VoiceThread.  At its core VoiceThread is a "conversation in the cloud."  Think Google Docs merged with Google Voice and Video in a simple, easy to use interface.  Check it out here.  Have you used this in your classroom before?  I know our Biology teacher has used this tool multiple times before, but I never really understood the power of it until this class assignment.  It was great to see slides, PDFs, and a video while other people comment in real time along the side.  My cohort members have logged in at different times and left comments on different slides so it was great to see what they said.  Overall, I am very impressed with this tool and look forward to using it in my classroom in the future.

The VoiceThread that we looked at today was all about Van Meter Schools in Iowa (Map).  A key component that we looked at was their promotional video.  There are really four things that I noticed in this video that I wanted to comment further on in this post:

1.) Van Meter Schools is a K-12 model that has some really cool things going on.  It reminded me a lot of the district and school that I work in currently.  We are also K-12 and our class sizes are small as well.  We have also integrated technology throughout the curriculum – from iPads in elementary and middle school to MacBooks in our 8-12 grade classrooms.  For more information on Van Meter Schools or FAIR School click the links.  It was great to see another school doing similar things as we are in Minneapolis.

2.) Van Meter Schools have embraced technology.  It appears that there are a lot of school districts that are doing this across the country, and many of them with iPads specifically.  Here in Minnesota, Lakeville Public Schools just rolled out 1800 iPads in their buildings.  Whether iPads, MacBooks, or some other tool, the end result is that Van Meter has embraced the technology.  They understand that technology is a cornerstone in education today and this is referenced on their Teaching and Learning Technology page as well.  Technology is a large part of what they do there.  The same emphasis appears at FAIR School in specific reference to our 1:1 MacBook program.  Check out more information about that program here.

3.) The town of Van Meter and the school district appear very progressive.  They have moved ahead of other Iowa and midwest schools to embrace this technology.  In fact, they have done it with overwhelming community support as well.  That appears to be a large hurdle in today's world – How to get the public to understand the need for students to have access to technology.  In Inver Grove Heights, MN (a southern suburb of Minneapolis) their technology levy has been defeated twice.  Check out the moving and realistic press release by the superintendent.  Having technology as part of the curriculum is an important piece of the educational landscape across the country today.  It fits in directly with the Iowa Core Curriculum and the revised Minnesota standards as well.  However, how many school districts crave for the community support that they have in Van Meter?

4.) Van Meter gets the idea that technology is a TOOL to aid in education.  The English teacher in this video says: "The laptops are a source for information.  They don't make the teaching, they make the teaching easier."  How true is this statement?  Too many school districts get caught up with the big shiny object (iPads more often than not today) and do not really have an integration plan.  After a little digging I found Van Meter's Library Science Curriculum.  What do you notice about this?  The big thing that I saw was that skills that are very specific and scaffolded throughout the grade levels.  In our school district I believe most of our students can accomplish the skills in K-8, but then our official media classes stop.  It would be great to hear more about how Van Meter meets these high school curriculum requirements.  Too often I think we "assume" that technology literacy is taught in our high schools.  Is it really though?  Can our students accomplish everything on Van Meter's high school list?  Can they do it effectively?  This is a skill I want to look at specifically in our high school throughout the summer.  Students need to continue learning about technology in high school, using the Partnership for the 21st Century Skills as a framework, in order to be successful in the future.

How do your students or schools use the P21 skills?  Have you heard about all the awesome things going on at Van Meter Schools?  How do we teach media and technology skills in high school?