Multi-faceted Refractions

At the beginning of the school year, I schedule time to meet with the students in each of our grades to talk about our acceptable use policy and how students should conduct themselves on campus. I also use this opportunity to talk to the students about Internet Safety while using the various tools at home.

For the past eight or nine years, I have been focusing on the negative messages…

Don’t share your passwords

Don’t give personal information about yourself

Don’t download software

Don’t do this

Don’t do that

Don’t, don’t, don’t

Rather than focusing on the negative aspects this year, I am thinking about acknowledging the fact that our students are active in social networks, from Club Penguin, to Webkinz, to posting movies on YouTube, to using Facebook, to using school sanctioned tools, such as Moodle threaded discussions and wikis in the classroom. We expect our students to use these tools within the classroom and increasingly, we are asking them to use these tools to collaborate with students outside the classroom.

So this year, I am trying to craft a message along the lines of a twitter message that Steve Dembo sent in June, which has prompted me to think:

If people were to Google you, what conclusions would they make?

From observing your on-line communication, what kind of person would they believe you are? What type of thinker are you? What skills do they think that you have?

From looking at your digital self, would people think that you are full of creativity or are you a copy-cat, mimicking the works of others without any new original thought?

What do you do if your work is being misappropriated? What if you discover that there are images of you on other’s sites which are unflattering or potentially damaging?

I know that if others were to Google me, that they would get a once sided view of me as a Director of Technology and that it does not fully reflect the different facets of my life. I highlight several of them in my eight random things. There are some that my closest friends may not know about me.

I am hoping that this gets students understand that everything that they do has a consequence. Some are trivial, but others may be more long term and potentially damaging to their reputations and meeting goals that they have set for themselves. I am trying to develop a message that is sticky, that students will hear and remember, and hopefully take seriously.

I look forward to reading and hearing what others are planning, what their approaches to this all important first meeting are going to be. The messenger needs to deliver a new message or students will tune us out and miss out on our wisdom.

I remember when I was younger filled with the excitement and anticipation of a new school year. I would make sure that I had all of my supplies and books in order, ready to experience the new year. Now, nearly 40 years later, I still feel the rush of enthusiasm overtake my body as we head into the first day of school.

For the 2007-2008 academic year, today was the first day. This was not the first official day when all teachers and staff are required to return for our opening meetings. Nor was it the first official day when students are required to attend classes for the first day of school. No, today was the day when the students arrive on campus for their athletic pre-season, when the administrators return to switch from the more relaxed summer flow to a more hurried pace in anticipation for the return of teachers and students. The summer renovation and maintaince projects take on a greater flurry and frenzy of activity in order for them to be completed by the start of school. More teachers are popping in more frequently, transitioning from summer mode to the pace of school. Yes, it is fun watching the school wake up from a slumber in anticipation of all that is good to occur within the walls once again.

Personally, it is at time to wrap up summer development projects and pay more attention to making sure that everything is ready for the start of the year; that computers are updated, clean, and ready for work, that new accounts have been added and and others pared away, that software has been updated and changes have been documented. While frenetic, I enjoy the adrenaline that is generated by all of the work that needs to be completed. I do have to sometimes slow down, breath deeply, count to ten so that I am not overwhelmed.

I am really excited about the start of this school year in particular. For me, last year was a transformative year, from immersing myself in the new technologies, to developing a personal learning network full of great people and deep thinkers who challenge me daily. I have had the privilege of working with our First Grade team, a Fourth and Fifth Grade lead teacher, our LS and MS Spanish teachers, our Seventh Grade team, our US French teacher, our Eighth Grade humanities teacher, a history teacher and a science teacher on new curriculum units which have and will utilize components and new tools for collaboration and communication. This week, I am meeting with our new Chemistry teacher who wants to create Flash screen captures to make available to students and our Sixth Grade humanities teacher who wants to make some changes. We are rolling out 24 tablet PCs to teachers, and are creating nine more spaces on campus with permanent projection available.

Another indicator that this is going to be a great year is the fact that I am spending five hours with the principals of our three divisions, elementary, middle school, and high school to teach them about the new technologies. We had our first meeting today where we discussed the big picture and wikis. This led to several great conversations about how we were going to share and implement these ideas to the faculty this year. I know that this is a very important time of the year and I am thankful that they are choosing to spend some of their precious time learning and discussing these important topics. The impact on the students should be very profound this year.  And I am ecstatic that I am able to take part in all of the excitement.

One of the significant experiences that I had while on a writing hiatus, is attending the meat space version of mySpace, the Vans Warped tour. Traveling with my personal guide, my daughter and I attended the July 28th show in Chicago. For those of you who are unaware of this cultural phenomenon, we spent six hours on a hot and humid Saturday, trying to listen to parts of the 60+ bands scattered across eight stages at the venue. Because of other commitments, we left early and could have spent the final three hours trying to squeeze more into already packed day.

Once we purchased our tickets and entered the venue, we had to find out who was playing when at the show. The listing of bands is attached to a blow-up sign. There were several bands that my daughter wanted to see, including Boys Like Girls (of course they do), Hawthorne Heights, New Found Glory, and Alkaline Trio. Not knowing what to expect, I brought the book that I was reading at the time, Cult of the Amateur, fully expecting not to enjoy myself. But boy was I surprised, and I actually found a few bands that I really enjoyed sampling. These bands include Big D and the Kids Table, The Graduate, and May Day Parade. Maybe it was the fact that I am older, but most of the bands that I enjoyed the most played at the main theater, in the shade with a cool, easterly breeze coming from the lake. I guess I cannot take the heat, so I stay out of the kitchen.

In addition to sampling the many bands, I spent time walking around the bazaar that is set up. Each band is given a small display area, which their various CDs and paraphernalia can be purchased. There were also several commercial setups, from Vans to Trojans (imagine my shock when the young woman asked if I wanted a free sample in front of my 15 year-old. I do not know who was more embarrassed.) There were also several public service booths, from PETA to Living Green to How to Live a Vegetarian lifestyle. My favorite was the PETA booth, where they were handing out “I am not a Nugget” stickers. It was like live mySpace advertising.

In addition like on mySpace, you could “friend” the members of the bands who would appear either at their own or a sponsors booth to meet and greet, chat with new fans, and sign objects. My daughter purchased a new set of Vans which she had signed by so many bands and people, that even she lost track of who signed where. These organic, friends groups kept popping up throughout the venue, allowing people with similar tastes, the opportunity to connect with a band that they liked.

Noticeably absent, at least from both of our views were open use of substances and haze that I remember seeing when I went to events, like the Toledo Speedway Jam in 1979 (REO Speedwagon, Blue Oyster Cult, and headliner, Ted Nugent) as a young man. This was actually enjoyable. Maybe the Just Say No campaign is working.

At the end of the day, we traveled home, sunburned and exhausted, we critiqued the bands we had heard and some we had not seen while scanning through the compilation CD we purchased (50 bands/50 songs/Five bucks). Not bad for 10 cents a song. Cheaper than purchasing them on iTunes and more legal than downloading them from LimeWire. We had a nice day and I wouldn’t mind going back again next year. Maybe, I will be asked to go again.

I have been tagged by Charlene Chausis for the eight random things meme. Since this is the first time that I have been tagged and I need motivation to get back to blogging, I have decided to participate.

Here are the Rules:

* Post these rules before you give your facts
* List 8 random facts about yourself
* At the end of your post, choose (tag) 8 people and list their names, linking to them
* Leave a comment on their blog, letting them know they’ve been tagged.

My random facts:

1. My mother was a Tupperware lady, successful enough to be #5 in the US in 1977-1978 and appeared in one of the commercial, “The fresh idea” campaign and print ad
2. I am a member of the Society for Baseball Research (SABR) who has been published in two books in 1986 and 1987
3. In addition to being the Director of Academic Technology, I am also a co-founder of our Science Olympiad team
4. For the past four years, I have also been the lead adviser for our schools yearbook, the Mirror
5. I attended Northwestern University during the “streak”, a 34 game losing streak that was not broken until the middle of my junior year. Best question and answer asked by a corporate recruiter to a friend of mine, “Describe something about yourself which demonstrates your willingness to persevere.” His answer, “I have been a walk-on football player for a team that hasn’t won a game during my collegiate football career.”
6. I was a two time winner of the Chalktalk competition at the University of Michigan Mathematics Olympics, as a sophomore and a senior.
7. I have completed 10 triathlons, the last being in 2002, even though I detest running. I need to start doing this again.
8. After spending most of my life in the Rust Belt (Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois), I got to travel to Europe while on a sabbatical. We were in London for the July 7, 2005 bombing. This is when I realized how small and flat the world really is.

I am tagging:

1. Arvind Grover
2. Alex Ragone
3. Carolyn Foote
4. Jeff Whipple
5. Kimberly Moritz
6. add your name here
7. add your name here
8. add your name here