Comments on: “Innovation Overload”

By: Never mind the technology, where’s the learning? » Blog Archive » You are what you don’t read

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 21:47:12 +0000

[...] Will in a recent post talks about “Innovation Overload”; where the teacher audience presents a, “kind of eerie quiet where the only sound I seem to hear is that of arms folding in defense or heads bending in despair”. It’s difficult to consider change … in fact it’s even difficult for those that want to embrace change let alone those that are tired and want change to go away. Unfortunately, educational technology is all about change and the way in which we fundamentally think about learning and teaching. The aspirations we have both for learners in our care, and for society in general rely on adopting an attitude of change. Technology may provide us with an increasing array of tools to help us cope, but can also be part of the problem as well as the answer. [...]

By: Kern Kelley

Kern Kelley — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 11:40:31 +0000

“In education, you can either quit, complain or innovate!” Marco Torres – Amen

By: Michael Umphrey

Michael Umphrey — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 04:29:08 +0000

I enjoy the new technologies and I've incorporated blogs and wikis into my teaching, though our district doesn't make this easy. Nonetheless, such things don't seem of great moment to me, most of the time. More often they seem a distraction, a way of keeping busy without giving too much thought to the real work.

By: Scott McLeod

Scott McLeod — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 03:05:49 +0000

Woody (and others), take a listen to this 9-minute excerpt from Richard Elmore’s UCEA keynote last November:

http://tinyurl.com/34db3f
(direct link to .mp3 file)

It’s a phenomenal (and, I believe, appropriate) indictment of teachers’ current beliefs about professionalism and autonomy.

Will, one more thought. It’s great that you’re supplementing your kids’ schooling at home. We’re doing that too. But we have to recognize that we’re only tinkering around the edges…

By: a. woody delauder

a. woody delauder — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 02:22:13 +0000

The whole conversation about changing our approach/methods for teaching is falling on deaf ears. It seems to me that the few teachers that are involved in the conversation, me being one of them, are looked at as a challenger to ones professional ability to “teach” their students. This is one notion that teachers retract from. “How dare you question my teaching stategies”.

Until we as teachers collectively understand our goals in the education profession, this will continue to be the case. I see teachers every day that are just trying to get through the day, worrying about insignificant deadlines, grading stacks of worksheets, attending meetings about our State Assessments, spending hours on spelling curriculum, taking 20 minute bathroom breaks with their class, spending hours after school having conferences with parents that want to know why their child received a “C” on their Math Test. This is what our teachers are focusing on. They focus on getting their students to pass a test in March or April that tests the teachers ability to teach their students memorization and comprehension skills. The focus is lost!

Change will be a slow process as long as the focus lies on the insignificant and mundane. I would be very interested to see a study about what percentage of the school day in an average American Public School is spent on “TEACHING”.

By: Sue King

Sue King — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 01:07:41 +0000

As I work to get the teachers in my middle school to examine their practice in light of (a) the needs, interests, and talents of the kids (b) what we know works with young adolescents (c) research, best practice and the voices of practicioners who are seeing innovations work to engage more students more of the time, I struggle with maintaining hope and perserverence as I “read”the body language of some of the teachers to whom I am talking. I agree with Scott about being satisfied if we were to use high-yield strategies or if we moved intruction and student interactions up on Bloom’s. When I taught in this building (in which I am now the principal) I had a banner hanging that said “Teach for Competence, Not Compliance.” Ten years later, not much has changed – much is all about control and keeping kids in line – and it does get discouraging. Today, after a faculty meeting in which we examined our grading pracice of penalizing student’s grades for turning in work late and including efort & participation in academic grades – I drove home wondering if I can ever really make a difference; if I can ever overcome the resistance; and if I can ever get used to the anger – directed at me often times – for simply posing the questions and attempting to open up a dialogue. Change is difficult, yes – but increasingly it seems to me – that educators – those who should love, value, and prmote learning most – are digging in their heels more and more and refusing to even participate in the discussion about what we could do and what we could provide if we would just be open to the possibilities nad if we would just be willing to work together.

By: Bryan Alexander

Bryan Alexander — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 23:52:52 +0000

I know that digging-in moment well.
It’s usually a sign of lamination with institutions, pulling back to those walls, as some form of a siege reflex.

By: Scott McLeod

Scott McLeod — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 21:39:31 +0000

Will, I believe that one could easily argue that an educational system in which 75% to 85% of students’ work is factual recall is long overdue for an overhaul. For me, it doesn’t even get to the point of “innovation overload.” Heck, I’d probably be happy if schools just did what they already know works. How about greater usage of high-yield instructional strategies? How about some best practice that is conceived in terms a little higher on Bloom’s taxonomy?

By: Lesley

Lesley — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 15:37:34 +0000

Looking forward to hearing your keynote at CUEBC on Friday. Bring your umbrella, they don’t call us the Wet Coast for nothing!

By: Pauline Simard

Pauline Simard — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 15:08:18 +0000

Having just attended the ACTEM Conference, I found the keynote address inspiring. As a result of your address, Will, I began my journey on Web 2.0.
I had a face-to-face discussion with my first period of the day students and they confirmed all you stated about today’s youth. I had 1 student only without a presence, but all others in that room had a web presence, even the 2 students who were not connected to the internet at home had a virtual social life.
So, I asked them to visit my blog (pls-teacher-learner.blogspot.com) and to respond to a research question I posted. They actually were to do the online research last week while I was being inspired by a keynote speaker….
I hope I am using some of the “tools” as intended, but if not I’m still excited…I’ll will evolve and get better, right?
So, I can’t wait to read the second half of your book, Will. I left your address awestruck but motivated.

By: Diana

Diana — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 14:02:12 +0000

For years I have been the one screaming from the rooftops about how we need to change our approach with students. Everytime any group of teachers in my school meets to talk about reform or change, it is like the proverbial rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. We need new schools, new approaches, new resources and new leaders that are able to guide the ranks of teachers through the maze of fear and confusion when it comes to rethinking the way in which we do school. I will be attending a school reform conference this year and trying to work through what are some tangible steps that can be taken to overhaul a system that fails students and teachers alike.

By: Tom Hoffman

Tom Hoffman — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 12:31:48 +0000

One of the great things about the K-12 Open Minds conference in Indiana is that you could talk to regular teachers who are transforming their practice as a result of two simple things. Reliable, consistent access to 1-to-1 (desktop) computing in their classroom (it is there every day, and will be there every day until they retire), and Moodle.

By: Carolyn Foote

Carolyn Foote — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 12:05:24 +0000

Will, had a similar experience myself last week with my own faculty which I am still pondering.

I was questioning some things, and then I saw the article you referenced in the Times, along with another one about runners using technology, and then saw a YouTube video instructing FUNERAL DIRECTORS about web 2.0 tools and how they would be affecting their businesses.

And I thought…whoa….if funeral directors are attending workshops on why they need to pay attention to web 2.0 tools and the nature of change, then shouldn’t educators??

So, while I think there is something to be said for finding a channel in that people can respond to, and pull in, it really struck me (which I posted about) while watching Clarence Fisher’s K12 Online keynote, that some people aren’t accepting that the world is changing, just like some aren’t accepting global warming.

We can’t invalidate the world our kids live in that way, I don’t believe.

So, maybe the friction isn’t always necessary–maybe there’s ways (Clarence’s video being a great, calming example!) of speaking to educators about this, but also, change obviously can cause friction, fear, stress, etc.

Another thought I had last week, is that I think teachers feel guilty. Most of them do work hard, try hard(the ones attending conferences are probably among those, since they went to the trouble to come to a conference). There is a guilt/self-doubt/embarrassment/defensive factor you have as a teacher that you aren’t doing enough, aren’t changing enough, etc., when sometimes you barely know where to begin.

I do think the message that things are changing is making it to the schools. So, how can we help them get started, as you and Chris mention?

You’ve done a great job in your books and speaking to give people a place to begin. How can we help them “begin”?