21apples

Growing up Online - PBS Frontline

Posted by arvind s grover Tue, 22 Jan 2008 21:21:44 GMT

PBS Frontline will be airing "Growing up Online" tonight at 9 PM EST. I like Frontline a lot beacuse of their balanced reporting. The fact that danah boyd is featured on the show makes me think they did their homework. I have written here before, and do believe, she is the smartest English-speaking person I've encountered on dealing with kids and the online world. Do not miss this program, or if you do, watch it online at their website starting tomorrow. Here is a trailer for tonight's episode:
Tomorrow on 21st Century Learning, Alex and I will be discussing tonight's show. Hope you tune in to the live chatroom at 12:00pm EST to discuss with us.

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Tags: PBS, Frontline, "danah boyd, "social networking, online, teens, "21st Century Learning, "Alex Ragone, EdTechTalk, education, technology

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Initial Thoughts on POCC

Posted by arvind s grover Thu, 29 Nov 2007 14:27:26 GMT

Wow, the opening session is in a giant room in the Boston Convention Center. i am overwhelmed by how many people are here, how many sessions there are, and how many possibilities I have to explore.

The keynote Frank Wu was exciting, the energy in the room is palpable, and I can’t wait to get started. Still haven’t decided if I will liveblog more than this.

Technorati Tags: Boston, Frank Wu, NAIS, National Association of Independent Schools, People of Color Conference, pocc, sdlc

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NAIS People of Color Conference Opening

Posted by arvind s grover Thu, 29 Nov 2007 14:21:47 GMT

NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools) POCC (People of Color Conference)
Nov 29-Dec 1, 2007
Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Pat Bassett, president of NAIS opened the conference
3 books that he read before the conference

Difficult Conversations
Courageous Conversations About Race
Fierce Conversations

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Gene Batiste – NAIS Vice President
544 Independent Schools represented for POCC

First POCC - First National Conference for Teachers and Administrators of Color in Independent Schools

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Liz Fernandez, and Rodney Glasgow

- 100 student leaders were trained this morning on peer facilitation to lead student sessions all week
- regional action planning teams
- affinity groups with adults by gender

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Boston City Councilman – Charles C. Yancey
- discussing how many POC activists have come from and through the city of Boston from Malcom X
- official document from City of Boston City Council congratulates the SDLC and it’s organizers for its 14 years of training for indep school students
- Charles C. Yancey, Chuck Turner, Felix Arroyo, Sam Yoon
- 2nd proclamation from City Council to the POCC accepted by Gene Batiste

Fire Marshall just closed the building because too many people are standing in the back. Whoops

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Ira Brown (sp?) introducing opening speaker, Frank Wu, Dean of Wayne State University Law School

I’m not obsessed with race, we all are. Even if we’re not actively thinking about it, we still are thinking about it

I don’t wake up in the morning, get ready for work and think, “I’m an Asian American, here I go”

I’ll have an encounter that will remind me that race is important. I’ll be headed down the sidewalk minding my own business. A kid is walking by, he sees me, he smiles, I know what’s coming next. He strikes a karate pose, he says, ching chong, then he laughs and runs off. I could run after him, collar him and call him a bigot. But I wouldn’t, he’s just a kid. He doesn’t realize how hurtful it is to me.

“You speak English so well. To which I reply, gee thanks, so do you.”

“I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired” – Fannie Lou Hamer

Frank Wu does not think the discussion on diversity will ever be over. It’s not a process, but an outcome. Consider democracy, no matter who you vote for next year, to fulfill your citizenship responsibility and the person next year complains about how we voted 2 years ago, when will this thing be over??? You’ll know they missed an important civics lesson. Similarly lies the work of diversity.

”..we will make good on the promise of a diverse democracy.”

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The Windsor School small chorus is performing “The Light of Day”

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Technorati Tags: Boston, Charles Yancey, city council, education, Frank Wu, Gene Batiste, NAIS, National Association of Independent Schools, People of Color Conference, POCC, Wayne State University

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E-Book Reader That Might Be Worth It

Posted by arvind s grover Tue, 20 Nov 2007 16:01:46 GMT

Amazon just announced their new e-book reader, the Kindle. It is pricey, $400, but I think the idea is pretty stellar. A super-easy to read screen (not like a laptop screen) that works in any light and is high resolution. Big previous/next page buttons to help you flip through the books. And you can download books anywhere there is cellular service (with no plan needed to buy). Books are a little expensive, from about $8-16, but at least I can feel good not having to buy paper (while feeling bad about adding more poisonous electronics to the world, hmmm).

I can imagine myself on the subway, on a flight, on my sofa or at my desk reading Love in the Time of Cholera (what I'm reading right now) with the lightweight, simple e-book reader. Some people think it's terrible, but I think they're not focused on what the product is for. It is not a laptop, not meant to be a laptop. Laptops are good at other things, but not for reading books on.

If I had to wish for a use in schools? Well, every student would have a Kindle with all of their textbooks on it. Then, that's all they'd have to carry around, and it is lighter than the average paperback. I would consider one feature - the ability to take notes/highlight digitally on the Kindle. The other feature I'd like to see personally is the ability to send (and lose access to) an e-book I'm finished with to a friend. You could even charge me a buck or two, but passing on/receiving books is one of my favorite past times.

Keep it up Amazon, we're getting there...

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Tags: KindleAmazon e-book reader education product hardware electronics

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Shifting Our Practice

Posted by arvind s grover Wed, 14 Nov 2007 03:15:26 GMT

For over a decade, NYSAIS has run the amazing Conference for IT Managers and Librarians. This will be my sixth time attending. Each of the past 5 years, I’ve been pushed. My understanding, my knowledge, my teaching – it’s all been pushed to a level higher than when I arrived. I joined the conference planning team at the end of last year, and it was then where the idea of an unconference arose. Why would we change something that works so well? “Well” not solely being my interpretation – but the people who come year after year are a testament to it.

So why change? That’s what technology is about, the definition even. It’s about advancement. When something better is possible, you build it. You buy it. But most importantly, you use it. Unconferences change the paradigm of a conference. It’s about the people who are there to attend, not the people who are there to present. This year, there are no workshops on the schedule. No speakers, no sessions, no tracks. Just open spaces, where a facilitator will organize into groups where we can learn and teach from each other. Is it risky? No. It’s been done before many a time, so no real reason to fear. People still will, but that’s not good. We need to be risk-takers are we want our students to be. Calculated risk tasking as adults so that we can bring better education to our students.

Some of the most positive comments we receive are about the exchanges people have in the hallways and over the lunch table. This unconference is about making those conversations the entire 3 days. Let people share their practice and learn from each other.

note: This blog post is a bit hokey – I’m not particularly worried about that though, because I feel like it’s truthful. Oh how these conferences/unconferences get the best of us!

Technorati Tags: 21apples, change, education, future, NYCIST, NYSAIS, NEIT2007, school change, schools

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NYSAIS Unconference Is But A Week Away!

Posted by arvind s grover Thu, 08 Nov 2007 22:57:49 GMT

I love the NYSAIS conference for technologists and librarians. It is held every year that the beautiful and scenic Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY. My colleagues who attend are bright, enthusiastic and friendly, and I learn so much from them in a span of 3 days. Last year we use the New York City technologists (NYCIST) website as our main blogging/discussion site, and will continue to do so this year as well. This year we added a wiki to the mix as well, where people can post topics they want to learn about. The main shift however this year is that it has moved from a conference to an unconference. We have employed Kaliya Hamlin to facilitate the entire 3 days. Kaliya defines an unconferences as, "The space between talking heads and a cocktail party with participant interaction around a theme or purpose. " Attendees always comment on how the best experiences they had was in the hallways between sessions discussing with their colleagues. So, we made the entire conference discussions in the hallways. Sort of. That is the idea behind the unconference. Practically, it means no pre-planned schedule or sessions. We build the entire agenda with the people in the room and the expertise in the room. Kaliya assures us that is works. You can read more about her unconferencing here. We will be live broadcasting as much of the conference as we can at EdTechTalk.com, Flickr photos are here, del.icio.us bookmarks are here, and Twitter friend to follow is here. More details as we get closer...

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Tags: NEIT2007, NYSAIS, NYCIST, Mohonk, del.icio.us, Flickr, EdTechTalk, Twitter, KaliyaHamlin, wiki, blog, Drupal

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