To Google or Not to Google...

That is the question.

One of my awesome colleagues gave me a Google Chromebook to experiment with a couple of weeks ago.  Chromebooks are an entirely interesting departure from the traditional laptop, one that I thought I should share...or at least share in context to some current trends in technology in education.

(cue 2001: A Space Odyssey theme song)

Devices at School...So, what do we buy (or use)?

It seems to be the hot button issue in our current instructional technology-integrate now educational environment that students need access to computers every day in meaningful and relevant ways.  In other words, the days of walking to the computer lab are grudgingly coming to an end.  Wireless and remote access is here to stay (yeah!), but how do we accommodate for having devices within our classrooms and what devices are we really talking about?

To be honest, I don't have a solid opinion yet, but I can give a brief comparison of pros and cons to get us started on making educated decisions.

Just a quick comparison chart I made.



Laptops

PROS

Since desktops are becoming obsolete for normal users (yes, they are in fact), laptops and netbooks are becoming the computer of choice.  Laptops take the "heavy computing" load...specialized programs, photoediting/moviemaking, Itunes, gaming... They have the CD/DVD drive, multiple USB ports for accessories and the ability to connect directly to a projector or flat-screen TV and are mobile.  They also have excellent screen size, integrated camera and microphone and a full-sized keyboard.

CONS

Relatively heavy compared to other devices, laptops still have the same virus and security issues as desktops, tend to slow way down over time due to a number of factors and need updates and "cleaning" to remain functional and efficient.  My major complaint with laptops is that after 2-3 years, they are relatively out of date.  You also get what you pay for...cheaper laptops are, well, cheaper.  Great laptops like Macbooks are over $1000.




Netbooks

PROS

The mini-me of the laptop world.  Fully functional computing in a highly mobile package!  Small, lightweight, great storage and relatively inexpensive compared to other options.  You can get the same or similar programs on netbooks that you can on laptops, provided you have an external DVD/CD or can download them.

CONS

No DVD/CD drive presents challenges when installing software and the small screen size and keyboard makes typing and viewing "interesting" for us older users.  Netbooks have similar security and virus concerns that laptops do.



Tablets

PROS

Tablets (iPads, Galaxy Tab, Kindle Fire...) are the consummate media consumption device, lots of apps to do all sorts of things, touch screen, easy for all ages to manipulate and use effectively.  Tablets are truly a multiple use device limited only to your own imagination...ebook reading, movie viewing, emailing, videochating, web surfing, photoediting/moviemaking, gaming, etc...If you can find an app for it, there really is not limit.  Tablets also come with the ability to connect to cellular service (3G) so access anywhere, anytime is possible.

CONS

If you can find an app for it...

Tablets are not really meant for heavy computing, regardless of what people might tell you.  For example, typing an lengthy report, with graphics and charts embedded into it is a challenge as is creating spreadsheets and other work-related documents.  Price is also a consideration.



Chromebooks

Back to my original conversation...Chromebooks are an interesting blend of tablet and laptop.  Chromebooks, as the name implies, are Google products that run the Chrome operating system (also available for laptops).  The Chrome OS is entirely web-based relying on the beauty of Web2.0 tools and web apps for productivity and entertainment.

PROS

Super fast startup time...8 seconds...and shutdown time.  The inability to install software on a chromebook makes virus and security software irrelevant.  Viruses and malware cannot install themselves on a chromebook ensuring dynamic internet speed, as the does the lack of internal storage space.  Chromebooks also have full keyboards and a wide selection of apps from which to choose.

CONS

While there are apps for most of our daily needs (like word processing), chromebooks require you to find "work arounds" for many other tasks...like video/photoediting.  The other real downfall of the chromebook is that it requires Wi-Fi connection to work.

FOR A DEMO of a chromebook, let me know.


My Uses

• For work, I use a Chromebook almost exclusively.
• For enjoyment, to check my email, read a book, etc... I use my iPad.
• For heavy computing, I use a netbook.
• If desperate, I use a laptop.

Please share your uses!

Video Storytelling

I bought a relatively expensive SLR camera several years ago, particularly to take pictures and videos of my kids playing sports.  While the quality of both video and digital photos is still high quality with this camera, I find myself "forgetting" to take it to events.  Why is this?


More and more, single use devices, like cameras, are falling by the wayside for "normal" users.  By normal, I mean people who are not photographers or photography enthusiasts.  So much easier to bring an IPhone, IPad or Android phone to events to take photos or video.  Consider the functionality:

• Instant photos/videos
• Relatively good quality...around the 8MP range for camera phones
• Instant upload to YouTube, Facebook, etc...
• Convenient size for purse or pockets
• Multi-use devices

I am finding myself investing more and more time in learning how to use my IPad and my wife's IPhone in creative and interesting ways, exploring apps, finding places to take interesting pictures and videos.  In this process, I am actually taking MORE pictures of my kids than I was with a regular camera.

Some helpful tools that I am exploring for personal and professional uses:

IMovie for IPhone or IPad ($4.99)

Just like the awesome desktop version, IMovie lets you make quick and easy movies on the IPad or IPhone, adding music, narration and effects with a short learning curve.  Also allows you to edit your videos quickly and efficiently and share online through YouTube, Facebook and others. 

Silent Movie Director ($0.99)

SMD lets you create fun videos to share.  1920s style black/white or sepia silent films, 60's-70's retro and other special effects.  

Sonic Pics ($2.99)

Sonic Pics allows you to create and edit your photos, putting them into a dynamic slideshow.  Add narration and effects to create a video documentary!  Slides are also exportable in m4v format for viewing in Itunes or other Apple device.

Strip Designer ($2.99)

POW!  Use photos from your phone, IPad or downloaded from Facebook to create stunning digital comic strips.  Add features and fonts, captions and word bubbles

The applications for classroom use of these apps are virtually limitless.

New Technology Helps Burn Calories At Work

Well...OK.  You really don't burn too many calories, but this technology is certainly coming and has real potential for use in the classroom and home.

Microsoft, makers of the XBox Kinect--a gesture recognition gaming system--announced at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show that Kinect technology will be coming to Windows in February.  What does this really mean?

The primary point of interest in gesture-recognition computing is that it "frees" users from the device.  Computing--finding and manipulating technology, using programs or apps, watching TV--will not be dependent upon traditional input devices (keyboards, mouse, touch screens, remotes).  Gesture-recognition frees the user from having to have traditional points of contact with a device.  And here I was eyeing up a touch screen computer!

Combined with increasingly cost efficient LCD and LED TVs and projectors, this makes sitting in front of a computer for presentations, work in groups or even basic computing less important.  The potential is limited only to what we can imagine at this point.  My favorite quote from Steve Jobs might apply:

Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.

Some innovative "hackers" (aka designers), for instance, have developed Kinect technology for use at hospitals.

Microsoft also announced recently that they are developing Kinect Sesame Street TV, a completely interactive game/TV hybrid where children can throw a ball to Grover (on the screen) and he will catch it...an he will throw it back, among other features.

Finally, a new way to shop for clothes is being tested.

So...this is cool, but how does it impact my educational practices and improve student learning?

Once the technology becomes more effective and gesture sensitive, the ability to get away from the board--blackboard, whiteboard, and even the Smartboard--frees the educator to move around the room and makes EVERY surface a learning environment.  The Kinect or other gesture-recognition device also:

• Reduces the need for schools won't need to buy $2000-$6000 Smartboard (with projector) and affix them to the wall when it can buy an $700 projector (or less) and a $250 Kinect (for computer).  Coupled with the fact that the price of technology (Apple excluded) generally goes down over time, these estimated prices might be high.
• Allows students of every age and ABILITY to interact with their own education.
• Accounts, almost automatically, for student differences and abilities.
• Moves education from a 2D environment to a 3D environment

As I reread this post, I think I am vastly underselling or underestimating the importance of this next step in our technological evolution.  I hope that some of you who think farther outside of the box than I do can come up with more...?

Feels Like Christmas!

Welcome to our Pre-Christmas "Educational Technology" sale...well, not really a sale since it's all FREE.  Once you check these out, you will understand my enthusiasm.

BEST APP I have ever seen:  Splashtop

PROS...Splashtop allows you to control your desktop (PC, laptop, netbook...) from your IPad over WiFi.  Your IPad (IPhone, Droid...) turns into a mobile version of your desktop computer.  You can access documents, work on programs that normally are not available on IPad (Smart Notebook, for instance), watch flash videos (yes, I said it...flash), play online games and access documents from your hard drive.

CONS...Slight lag time when playing flash games, but that is to be expected since you are accessing another computer via wifi.

ADDED BENEFIT...Since you can control your desktop with your IPad at this point, if your desktop PC or laptop is connected to a smartboard...you can control the smartboard as well.  To be honest, I haven't tested this out yet, but have it on good authority from my techie co-workers that this will work nicely.  Think of the ability to walk through class and still use your Smartboard while you help a student at THEIR desk.

Look for me at school for a demo!


BEST "I Should have thought of this" ONLINE TOOL:  YouTube for Schools and the KHAN Academy

PROS...YouTube Education and the KHAN Academy collect educationally-related YouTube videos and provide a safe access point for students and teachers to find relevant and meaningful videos for classroom uses.  I particularly like the KHAN's selection of videos (almost strictly for MS/HS) and how they incorporate videos with exercises and the ability for students to post questions.  Social media at its best in the classroom.  Tons of math demonstration videos.

CONS...Videos are selected by the organization running the site, which means you are stuck with what they think is appropriate.  At this point, the videos look pretty solid to me.  A great way to categorize YouTube videos and find them easily.


BEST "New" Website to Follow:  Edudemic

Well...it's new to me!

PROS...The subtitle of the site really tells it all, "Connecting Education & Technology."  Great lists of tips and tricks, newsworthy items, lists of useful websites, and even some irreverent educational humor litter this site.  For the most part, there are some excellent ideas and inspiration for your own ideas here, as well as trending items in technology.

Sample Items:

• 30 Great Blogs by Students
• 9 Tools for Using Wikipedia in the Classroom
• Today is Update Your Parent's Browser Day (article)

I will definitely add the feed to my list of daily reads.

CONS...Slightly overwhelming to start, too many links upfront but they are broken up nicely on the navigation bar at the top.


I hope this is a start, maybe some tools for you to peruse over holiday break.  Please have a safe and healthy holiday season. -P

The Reader's Guide Meets the Campfire

I like what Thomas Frey, futurist (yes, apparently that is a title), has to say about the nature of libraries:

...libraries are going through an age of rebirth. Intent on making them the crown jewels of the community, cities from Vancouver to Prague are investing heavily in public libraries, producing opulent, multi-story structures equipped with cutting-edge technology. From rather hidebound monuments to knowledge laboratories, libraries are now evolving into interactive research and leisure centers. Yet this change, impressive as it is, is only the beginning.

This is our current digital transformation in the library profession.  But as I begin to visit more school libraries, not just those I work at regularly, I see that school libraries have a long way to go.

In professional discussions with technology committees, teachers, students, parents and virtually anyone who will listen, I like to be the voice of reason when it comes to technology or social media use in classrooms and libraries.  I believe in the Total Cost of Operation (TCO) method of integrating infusing technology and media into our curriculum.  How much does this cost?  What is the maintenance and upkeep?  What type of training do we need to do first?  Is this a device or skill that transcends into everyday life?  How are student needs being met? And so on...

I think, for the most part, we are moving in the right direction.  I'd like to move faster...wouldn't we all?  The trends that I find disturbing relate directly to the state and nature of library operations in schools...or what I will refer to as the "roadblocks" of our new information centers.


Roadblock #1--The One and Only Authority Syndrome

The last 6 libraries I visited had PRINT (yes, print...as in paper) copies of the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature.  I must be naive, but I thought HW Wilson stopped printing that 15 years ago.  At $235 for previous years and close to $500 for the current year, isn't that money better spent elsewhere?

I do admit that the Reader's Guide is great on those chilly early autumn days when I watch Badger games outside with campfire...

Let's try to break the habit of doing what we did in the past because we did it in the past.

P.S....all these articles are listed in Badgerlink...and they are FREE (for Wisconsin)!

Roadblock #2--The Dinosaur Syndrome

Reference books are the dinosaurs of the information age.  Like all good dinosaurs, they look nice on the shelves but gather a lot of dust.  They have a certain level of "gravitas" for research, meaning they are heavy and cost too much.

Call me crazy...but who reads reference books?  I can spend 15 minutes teaching a student how to find a one-paragraph entry in an encyclopedia, almanac, or other content specific reference book or 15 seconds teaching them how to find the same information on Infoplease with links to other articles.  Once done learning how to use the encyclopedia, the student can use those lookup skills on other alphabetized reference books.  But not all reference is made equal, some are chronological, some are thematic, some are location-oriented.  Once done learning how to use Infoplease (or other similar database), the student is able to search anywhere because search engines and databases are made virtually equal.

Call me a revolutionary...but as our students hit the "real" world, they will be expected to find and use information rapidly, accurately and remotely.  Let's teach them to use computers, phones, and tablets to do this.

Roadblock #3--The Study Hall Syndrome

As Frey describes, libraries are becoming interactive research and leisure centers.  If I have a study hall of 15-25 students in the library every hour of the day, how can we promote research and leisure activities?  How can we host a class that wants to use the library to research if we don't have space for them?

But in so many of the schools I visit, the library is not only the "land of misfit toys", home of all the equipment and furniture that people don't want, it is also the home of students who don't have class that hour.  We need to change our perspective of the library as a PLACE to hold things (books, AV equipment, people...) to an interactive SERVICE or a PROGRAM, providing information and technology expertise to students, staff, administrators and parents.

Libraries (and librarians or media specialists) are no longer reservoirs or a places of finding information, but  gateways, facilitators, cheerleaders, information experts, advocates, collaborators, conspirators and consultants.  

I, for one, am pushing the transformation.