Comments on: Raising the Profession…or Not

By: Sam

Sam — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 02:57:45 +0000

Why are the folks who are not educators making decisions that are directly related to education? Is it because they went to school and therefore feel they know what is best for kids? I don’t tell my doctor how to do surgery, or a race car driver how to drive, so why is it okay for folks who have no formal schooling on schooling to make such big decisions? Yikes!

By: JuiceCC

JuiceCC — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:51:36 +0000

I totally agree with you, as a teacher myself in inner-city Baltimore, I’m always asked the same questions, so why do you do it? You can be making so much more money for the hours you put in? It’s quite sad that our society here in the states sees educators the way it does. In countries such as Finland and Sweden, public education is phenomenal. This is because teachers are respected as if they were doctors or lawyers, thus creating a system where some of the smartest people out there want to get into this profession.

By: Deb White

Deb White — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:44:23 +0000

Like Joyce, I am a pre-service teacher; I am student teaching this fall. My graduate program required a short “using technology in the classroom” course. It was a joke: Course topics included things like how to use Word, Power Point, and a doc cam! Mind-numbing.

Most of what I’ve learned about the potential that web 2.0 applications and collaborative learning tools have for improving student development and engagement has emerged from personal explorations, webinars, and other self-initiated training. I look for opportunities to share what I learn about “social tools as learning tools” with other new teachers; we have valuable conversations about ideas and tips. As professionals, we must continue to help each other connect with innovative and meaningful ways of guiding students to learn about their world and themselves through a variety of methods, including social networking.

Will, your statement about referring to social networking tools used for purposeful education as “learning networking” hit the nail on the head. Our language can shape more positive attitudes toward best practices, and I plan to use “learning networking” when appropriate. Thanks for your insight!

By: Jane

Jane — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:55:01 +0000

All too often, a teacher with internet knowledge/skills is viewed as “suspect.” WHY would he/she have those skills, if not for skeezy purposes? Check the rubber room of almost any distract; a goodly percentage of teachers in there are there for knowing “too much” about the internet.

By: Eric

Eric — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 22:55:05 +0000

I graduate in May 2010 with a BA in history/education and am retired military. Can I come teach at your school?!

By: Diigo Update (weekly) «

Diigo Update (weekly) « — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 00:32:39 +0000

[...] Weblogg-ed » Raising the Profession…or Not [...]

By: mrsdurff

mrsdurff — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:08:11 +0000

We MUST use technology in spite of silly filters. We MUST risk our jobs – the kids in our schools are our future – dare we risk them for our own comfort? I’m not willing to do that. I will continue to risk my job everyday by using technology, especially that which is banned. I don’t know about the rest of the teaching profession, but I answer to a higher authority. I just am who I am. In the words of Chris Lehmann, “We can’t let fear stop us from doing the right thing.”

By: Brian Crosby

Brian Crosby — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:13:05 +0000

Hi Dar – yes. This is a link to our class wiki page. Note the “Our Projects” heading towards the bottom. They should keep you busy for awhile. : )

http://crosbyclass.wikispaces.com/

Hope that helps!

By: Weblogg-ed » “Willing to be Disturbed”

Weblogg-ed » “Willing to be Disturbed” — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:38:14 +0000

[...] this week, I wrote a post bemoaning the ways in which the system treats teachers when it comes to technology and I hinted at a different reality for one school I’ve been working with. Well, that school [...]

By: Gary Stager

Gary Stager — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 02:47:54 +0000

I’ll keep this simple…

1) I’ve been saying publicly for years that this is an issue of professionalism and the work environment. Unions should be taking this seriously.

2) I have urged ISTE FOR YEARS to create an advocate (dare I say?) Standards for How a Computer Should Function When Used by a Professional Educator or Student. They love making lists of “thou shalls” but refuse to take a stand on the single issue that undermines any other related to technology use in schools.

Send Don Knezek at ISTE an email and ask him to issue a policy statement and advocacy at the federal and state levels. Don’t buy another ISTE product or pay your dues until this happens.

3) So much for the “overwhelming power of teacher unions and tenure.”

By: Charlie A. Roy

Charlie A. Roy — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 23:15:28 +0000

Too often administrators fall into the trap of projecting the worst faults of the few onto the many. We do it with kids we do it with staff. I’m the principal of a school where we believe in providing our staff with the wide open web. The only things we filter are porn. Everything else is open and fair game: google, youtube, facebook, twitter, myspace, have at it is our attitude. Use your judgement, model appropriate behavior, and for goodness sake don’t make the tech director or the principal the one to decide what is appropriate and what isn’t. If it isn’t appropriate I’m sure to hear about it and then I’ll come find you and make your life miserable because we’ll that’s what we principals do. But I’d rather spend my time policing the village idiot (and every staff has one) than approving url requests from aptly trained well meaning teachers.

We need to move beyond the fear mentality. I’m personally much more frightened by my fax machine. Who knows what will come spitting out of it at any minute and I can’t filter it. Be afraid…… be very afraid.

By: Karen Henke

Karen Henke — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:31:32 +0000

distrust, not distruct

By: Karen Henke

Karen Henke — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:30:46 +0000

As I've been speaking to CTOs about the barriers to offering Web 2.0 in the classroom, I keep hearing that it's teachers and how they need more professional development. Digging a little deeper, I've come to agree with what you've written there is an underlying distruct between district administrators and teachers, and, I would add, that many teachers distrust students and what they will do with technology. I also believe that these policies are definitely making it more difficult for talented teachers to stay in the classroom. I blogged about this recently: Matching Teachers to Learners

By: Shreya

Shreya — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 13:57:16 +0000

I completely agree with you. Whenever I have told people in the past that I’m a teacher, their reaction is that much disappointment. I believe that if we can get our nation’s leaders and policy holders increase awareness and create plans, such as the NCLB, that actually requires the use of technology in the classroom and teaching. Many administrators feel that they cannot require teachers to use technology. But, if they do, and all teachers come on board, we can increase our visibility in the community and show the public how teachers are preparing students for the 21st century. Obviously, education is a reflection of our economy and society and by better educating our students and equipping them with technological skills, our future state of the economy will improve. It start at a higher level and this is what is needed.

By: Dar Hosta

Dar Hosta — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 13:45:36 +0000

Brian, do you have a web site that showcases these community projects you do with your school? Or a blog? Anything? It sounded so wonderful I wanted to know/see more.