Listen to the interview.

Listen to the intervew.

Listen to the interview.

Listen to the interview.

Top Ten List Legend
Bold Italic = Dave’s list.
Standard text = my commentary from notes and memory of the discussion.

1. Why
- Is it part of an overall plan or strategy? Don’t buy it just because it is cool or new!

2. How MUCH?
- What is the total cost of ownership? Hardware and software is just the tip of the cost. Consider professional development and ongoing support!

3. Who are the cheerleaders?- Who is the primary advocate?

4. Who is the owner?
- Who will provide support? Example: Who owns the Human Resources Systems? The tongue in cheek answer is… If it is working, HR. If it is broke, IT. Just because it runs on the network doesn’t mean IT is the owner but this needs to be worked out before hand.

5. Who is the teacher?- What is the training plan? Often professional development is the first thing to be removed from the budget. This is a mistake. More money should be spent on training than equipment and software.

6. Plastic my boy plastics
- Public Relations for the schools and community. Put on a Technology Expo for your community. Do it on a Saturday and demonstrate what technology is available and how it is being used and have students demonstrating whenever possible.

7. Traffic light management- Simple data management for school leaders. Technology equipment needs to be refreshed (replaced based on a recycle or replacement plan). Having an easy to read database, or list will help school leaders, Governing Boards and the community understand what equipment is available, the age and when it should be replaced. Red, Green and Yellow was recommend to help make the process more visual.

8. Field of dreams- Infrastructure considerations are vital! Before you buy and implement the technology, consider the network requirements and its ramifications on the network.

9. Give assigned seats- Organizational structure must support the operations

10. I’m Sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that.
- Infrastructure limitation (Human and Technical) IT shops don’t like to say no but they have to be careful of overloading their resources. Can it be done with what is available or can staff in the schools be trained to help support themselves?

The best statement was from a school board member sitting in the room who said we all needed to pay attention to what Dave was saying and make sure this information is made available to our communities because we can’t do it without funding and we can’t get funding without their support. I believe she hit the nail on the head!

Even the Army has embraced the change regarding the perception of the value of gaming in the educational process (Check out Army.com). In our “mixed reality” world, the blending of the physical, imaginary, and virtual planes offer us opportunities to see games as the next tool of educational technology.

If you’re thinking why, just check out Whyville.net. The Texas Workforce Commission is banking on its power to capture the attention of students, but especially females in the 11 – 15 years age range. If you’re a more “old school” learner, go to Ventureramp.com to get the free book download, Gaming: A Technology Forecast.

Being a huge fan of the works by Ray Kurzweil, I was excited to hear Brazell reference the futurist in our breakfast session. From mechatronics to micro-mechatronics and nano-mechatronics, our future may be so many years away, but it is truly just around the corner. A future where our students’ success depends upon a broad, deep, interconnected knowledge as opposed to specialized knowledge.

For a visual picture, think of the traditional “blue collar” becoming the new “gold collar.” Schools must have the educational pathways to produce tomorrow’s workers, and those workers are going to be coming out of our technical colleges. It’s not your grandpa’s community college anymore. It’s the integration of academics, career and tech ed, and the Arts that are going to propel our top performing students and schools.

It’s time to shift our thoughts from why this is happening to let’s make it happen now. Our futures and our country, depends on all of us providing our Millennial generation students with the real-world skills. Let’s get at it!

Young Peter dreamed of being an Astronaunt. He thought his best shot at realizing that dream was through a medical degree. Possibilities and probabilities set in, and after seeing the odds of him making the NBA were better than getting in the elite crew of NASA space cowboys, Diamandis went about getting his own ride to the stars.

Don't let me ruin the story for you. Get your kids turned on to science and space travel. Check it out for yourself at http://www.goZeroG.com. While you're out surfing, Google these big ideas: X Prize Foundation, SpaceShipOne and Lunar Xprize.

Don't forget, breakthroughs always start as crazy ideas.

New technologies such as cell camera phones and online teen hangouts are prompting serious discussions about their use and abuse. Recent examples, such as students posting surreptitiously taken teacher videos onto YouTube, have ignited concern about the presence of these technologies in and out of the classroom. What are the legal issues emerging from these new technologies? How schools can balance First Amendment protections with student safety? How should school board policies adapt to these technological advances?

We invite you to join the discussion during the live hour or post your questions now. (Note: The discussion will begin at 1 p.m. Eastern/11 a.m. Mountain/10 a.m. Pacific.)

And while you're at it, be sure to check out the archive of yesterday's online discussion with Will Richardson. He examined the educational benefits of social networking for students and teachers.

5 Doors…
Door Number 1. Great expectation
Door Number 2. Surrender to your senses, develop your intuitive instincts.
Door Number 3. Treasure hunting and creative transformation
Door Number 4. The nurturing environment
Door Number 5. How constraints challenge differences and consumer expectations become creation catalysts.

Looking at this list, some of the items make perfect sense while others, make you wish you were there so you could have heard it first ear.

Great Expectations… Of course, we all strive to meet our goals. Why would anyone create a goal which is low? But what about surrendering to your senses and developing your intuitive instincts? If you are reading this, chances are you do this daily. Think about how many times you hear that little voice or have that gut feeling. Don’t force it down, free it, listen to it. There is no greatness without risk.

Treasure hunting and creative transformation. Who are you? Who is around us? What are our talents as well as theirs? As a leader, you need to seek out talented people and some of those people are in our current organization. But don’t tell them what they are good at, make opportunities for their talent to shine through on its own.
Of course Door number 3 will never work without a nurturing environment. Create opportunities for staff and students to take risk. Maintain an environment where failure is nothing more than an opportunity to try something again in a different way. Just ask the creator of the Post it Note!

Finally Door number 5, how constraints challenge differences and consumer expectations become creation catalysts. We are all faced with funding challenges and these challenges are all the more reason to think outside of the box and find a way to achieve our goals and meet the expectations of our communities.

Unfortunately, I had to go setup at my presentation at this point but I walked out of that hall smiling and thinking this is just the type of environment I want to work in and when I get home, I am going to work to create that environment.

Today, I was so excited to see them being honored for their work with technology in education and they were even presenting at 10:30. Yahoo… Then it dawned on me, I am presenting at 10:30. Bummer, (insert sad face here) but that is okay, great things will be there tomorrow and people who do great things in education love to share. One of the reasons, we stay in our noble profession.

Broward County, Florida decided to move its entire 258,000 student population into a learning environment more conducive to meeting their learning needs. 21st Century literacy skills are the new 'buzz' words for this year, as more schools and districts are being asked to ready students for a more digital workforce of the future. But, for many school districts, they don't provide the right infrastructure to schools to make efforts successful for students.

To me, the key points in this presentation were:
1- Prepare teachers through modeled delivery of instructional strategies demonstrating the appropriate use of technology for learning needs. Broward designed their own DIGITAL EDUCATION TEACHER ACADEMY in three proficiency levels that gives teachers master's level college credit and pays for the class that is delivered through a college campus.
2-Engage students in their learning by using comfortable means of taking in and demonstrating their learning (pod casts, video streaming, etc).
3-Allocate the money to buy the technology and oversee that technology from a district's perspective. This district created grants (really budgets) for schools to purchase the equipment and to receive professional development.
4-Align the needs of schools with teacher prep. programs so that colleges are producing 'digital ready' teachers upon graduation. This alignment occurs through the partnership between the school district and the college that delivers the professional development (and teacher prep).

IF there is a secret ingredient to the success of this type reform, it is moving the entire district toward project-based learning. IT was evidenced through the presentation that students were subjected to critical thinking skills and higher order learning. They learned more and more deeply.

The presentation is posted on the T&L site.

Here's the deal. Richardson says that educators and school leaders have got to get beyond our comfort zone and into our kids' world where networking reigns supreme. Kids have this amazing ability to connect online to learn just about anything. For example, check out this page from Qatar Academy that has a blog and a Flat Classroom so kids can share what they've learned and collaborate on projects.

And that's precisely where learning is taking place among kids. Another example Richardson showed is a site called Fan Fiction where students can write their own chapters to add on to existing books. Then, their peers comment on their stories. Imagine the possibilities for a classroom!

So our challenge is to rethink what a classroom can be and open the world up to connect learners around topics that are important. For a really cool overview of these thoughts and more, check out Richardson's wiki. And join him in today's online discussion on the same topic.

The press release points out,

More than 50 percent of responding school districts reported that they have revamped their curricula to include higher math, science, and technology standards; and nearly 50 percent have indicated they are now using new assessment measures for 21st century learning skills, such as problem-solving, teamwork, and critical thinking. Many districts are also reporting that they are offering more Advanced Placement courses and tests (nearly 42 percent), and revamping their workforce readiness programs (35 percent).

The survey, which was conducted via e-mail during the week of October 1, queried approximately 1,400 registrants of the T+L Conference and members of NSBA's Technology Leadership Network. The group includes technology directors and specialists, teachers, administrators, and school board members.

“We believe this is a good indication that school districts are moving beyond the basic requirements of No Child Left Behind and really looking at the advanced skills that students are going to need to perform well in the workplaces of the future,” said NSBA Executive Anne L. Bryant.

The release goes on to point out,

For the fourth straight year, survey respondents said by a wide margin – 92 percent – that technology in the classroom increases educational opportunities for students. And when asked how technology helped, nearly 95 percent said it helps students become more engaged in learning.

Home access to the Internet for low-income students continues to be a serious issue with nearly 80 percent of respondents saying it was a problem in their districts, which was about the same reported as last year. Districts are improving Internet access for low-income students by providing opportunities in before- or after-school programs (nearly 54 percent), and supporting access for students at community centers or libraries (48 percent).

A new question about the speed of connectivity to the Internet revealed that the majority of school districts rate their speed as a 4 or 5, on a scale from 1 (very slow) to 5 (very fast).

For more information and to read the complete release, visit NSBA's Web site here.

Stewarts Creek Elementary Principal Richard Zago said his school and the neighboring middle school are leading the way in technology as both schools are wireless. Two years ago, Rutherford County Schools completed a 15-year plan that put computers in each classroom. A breakdown of instructional technology spending for the current and the last two years was not available from the school system Tuesday afternoon.

When the system learned the conference would be held in Nashville, Zago said he and middle school Principal Larry Creasy volunteered to show off what's happening at their schools.

Stewarts Creek offers a variety of technology innovations for students to explore. "In addition to a 32-inch television and DVD/VCR combo, each classroom in the Stewarts Creek complex is equipped with a ceiling-mounted projector, remote mouse, iPod and at least five computers. Each grade level has access to a Classroom Performance System (CPS), which allows students to answer questions with the use of a remote control."

Having this technology available to students and teachers offers a rich and varied experience. "'A teacher will also do their job with what they have, but it's nice because it provides so many more opportunities for the student,' [teacher Trey Duke] said, shortly after guiding his fifth-graders through a writing exercise using Reading for Meaning software. The on-screen tutorial showed students how to find the main ideas and supporting details in a story."

What innovative approach is your district taking? Did you attend the site visit yesterday? Leave us a comment and tell us all about it.