Month: November 2009

Image by Stephen Edgar – Netweb via Flickr

I installed Windows 7 on my machine about three weeks ago and per my usual procedures, that meant that it was time for me to re-boot my Tablet back to factory Specs this weekend. I have this “terrible” habit of wanting to try new things (software/applications), different system settings, just simply experimenting with the new system and messing things up to the point I have to start over.

That is where I ended up last night – I almost made it a month this time, so I am getting better.  This experimentation allows me to get to know how the system works, what I like and what new programs that I want to use to make me more productive and then get my computer into the configuration that I want it.  Then I don’t mess with it nearly as much.

So I stayed up until 2:00 A.M. this morning re-booting Windows 7.  It wasn’t hard, just time consuming, the updates take the longest.

I continue to be totally impressed with Win7!  It does everything it is supposed to do at least from my perspective – as an end user.  I can go in as deep as I want to, but to date, I haven’t had a crash or any problems that I didn’t cause.  It is far superior to VISTA or XP.

After a bit of thought, I have decided that I am going to forget about trying to use the same software/applications on my HP Tablet that I use on my MLTI MacBook.  I use the Windows machine a lot more right now and just want to be as comfortable as possible on it.  Besides there are counterpart programs for most everything on either system, it just where the commands are located that can be confusing.

So what are the programs that I choose to use:
Fences:  The most noticeable newcomer to my laptop inventory is Fences, it is a desktop organizer that allows me to organize my desktop in a logical manner, so that it looks a lot better than it used to and I can quickly find my icons, but best of all it stays that way (at least so far).

Browser:  Actually I am finding IE8 works fantastic in Win7, it doesn’t bog down like it used in VISTA and renders the pages really quickly, but it doesn’t have a good side bar function, so that I can follow Twitter/Facebookin my Sidebar.  Flock handles the social media as well or better than any of the other browsers and can use most of the Firefox add-ons, so I will use it as my secondary browser.  I used Flock almost exclusively for about 8 months and then at my other job, couldn’t use the Social Media functions and drifted away, now I am back.  A good balance will be to use IE8 for work/updating the system and Flock the rest of the time.

Productivity:  Microsoft Office – I had the 2010 Beta on before I re-booted, but it had too many other programs that I don’t need/want, but it is going to be better than 2007.  Realistically, I don’t need much more than Word, Excel, Powerpoint and OneNote.  I will probably re-load the Beta later soon, but for now 2007 does what I want.  I do love the ribbon interface, it is just so much more intuitive for me than the other interfaces out there.

I am not a fan of Outlook and have always searched for something different, but haven’t found anything that really impresses me as a mail manager/calendar/task manager application.  Since Google Mail & Calendar can now be used offline, I am using them, but they are not the solution I am looking for.  Who knows when they get the 2010 version a bit more stable, it might be closer to the solution I am looking for.  If their task manager was a bit more like Basecamp or Zoho’s Planner with the ability to control how it prints better, I would embrace it.

I have been using Google docs for my cloud application because it is platform independent and I can use it on my HP or the Mac.  It is simple and education friendly, others have written a great deal more about how well it works. I could have used Zoho, but it appears to be more a business application and while quite useable for educational purposes, does not embrace schools as fully.  However, of all the cloud apps I have used, I  like their User Interface the most.  I still haven’t got an invite to Microsoft’s Office in the Cloud, so that is still a question mark, if it works like Office and I can access it using the Mac, you can guess what will be my new cloud app.

Bookmarking:  Delicious – simple, stable and it works across computers and O/S.  Diigo was just too complicated and does more, much more than I need, but is a lot of people’s choice.

Social Media:
Twitter – simple to use and quickly gets the word out, without it would not “know” near as many people on the web.  I have Tweetdeck on my machine so that I can follow different # and for #edchat on Tuesdays, but otherwise I don’t use it that much.  I am not a Twitterholic and I prefer to follow my stream in a sidebar of the browser.

Facebook – the easiest way to keep track of family and friends.  I don’t “Friend current co-workers or students here, I believe in a separation of work/home.  My boundary is until a student graduates high school, I won’t “friend” them in Facebook.  Still not that crazy about it, but it is better than it was and I guess I would miss not knowing how some of the people that I really like are doing.

LinkedIn – my professional site, I use it intermittently, but probably should update it more often.

Photo/Image Manager – Picassa: I don’t like its file management system compared to some others and it is difficult to copy an image to LiveWriter, but that is the only beef I have with it, otherwise it simply does everything I want.  I use Picnik to quickly and accurately re-size my photos.  Also Flock’s integrated image management system works fairly well to grab web images – resizing them is an issue though therefore – Picnik.

Blog Writer – Windows Live Writer: it is simply the best and most versatile blog writer out there today.  It does have some issues getting the Blog Configuration correct, but that is pretty minor in the face of all it does right.  Also editing a previous entry that is not in the Live Writer library is not easy to do.  Now if they could just get to the ribbon interface with it. I will try to use Flock’s blog editor for a while or maybe re-try using Google Docs and see if I can get it to work with this Blog and find out how to add Categories/Tags…that would probably be the best route in the long run, but this blog writer selection is still a work in progress

Video/Music Player: Windows Media Player, it is simple and plays most everything I need.  If I need something that Windows Media Player can handle, I have VLC in my download file and can quickly load it, I just haven’t got around to it yet.  I don’t like the iTunes interface, but when I want to use my iPod I have to use it (Songbird was just too buggy) – that is why I went out and bought a MP3 player, so I wouldn’t have to use my iPod.

Tools – Glary Utilities: after looking at a bunch of different ones, this one did more of what I wanted.  I will probably load Secunia back on because of how it reports weaknesses in your computer’s security.

PDF – I went out and bought Nitro PDF Professional last summer.  I like the ribbon interface and the price I paid was outstanding for a full-featured PDF editor/creator.  So far I am very happy with my choice and have deleted Adobe from my Tablet.

Security – Microsoft Security Essentials:  Have used a bunch of the free ones and when it’s free Norton and really wasn’t all that impressed by any of them.  I figured I might well go for the integrated approach and have the big bulls eye on my computer.  Microsoft will either get it right or I will get hammered :).  Hopefully, they will get it right.

Blog Host:  Finally, my blog.  If anyone has read any of my blogs I have used Blogger, WordPress, Edublogs and some others.  I don’t want to be in charge of the back-end management of a blog – otherwise I would still be at Aging Reluctantly. Unfortunately, I am one of those inveterate tinkers when I can be. I found that I was always changing something on my theme instead of actually writing.  That is why I chose WordPress.com to host this blog.  I have some control over the themes and widgets, but will have more time to write now that I am not looking at tweaking the theme.

Game – Oblivion:  I need something to get away from working all the time and I do enjoy this desktop Role-Playing Game and it is good escapism from the rigors of the real world.

I have attempted to seriously simplify my software and applications that I use down to a minimum and unless something totally blows my socks off, will continue to use them.   Otherwise how else will I get to really know the software or application beyond being a superficial user.

I do plan to continue to look at new apps as they come out, but in order to kick something off this list, they are going to have to be cloud based with a desktop sync option be platform independent and like I said “totally blow my socks off”.

That is what the this Special Education Teacher is using today on his newly re-booted Windows laptop.

Required disclaimer:  I have not received any compensation from any of the above products.  What I have written is a review my thoughts/experience on each of these applications and how I use them.

Image via Wikipedia

I think I just figured out this afternoon why I am not warming up to the Macbook Pro that has been issued to me by my school district and keep using my HP Tablet with Win7 for almost everything.  It isn’t just because I have been a long-time Windows user who hadn’t used a Mac before October.

The differences between Win7 and Mac are actually much smaller at this point and time than they ever have been, so if I can use one, I can use the other and do to a certain point.  No it is much deeper than that.  I think what is holding me back from accepting the Mac is something that I said in my first sentence “that has been issued to me”.

The Mac is not mine…it is a MLTI machine and I can’t do the tweaks, put the software on that I want or set it up the way that I want to.  It belongs to the school/State and they control everything about it.

The other thing is I know that anything that I put on the Mac, has to be backed up somewhere, because I have to turn it in after the school year is over and then be re-issued another one next school year and have to start the whole process over again. (this was not true and when I verified it with IT, I get to keep it during this summer).  So why on earth would I want to invest all that time and effort into personalizing this Mac to fit my needs, when in 7 months I turn it in and it gets re-imaged.  For some this might be an ideal situation, but for me it doesn’t work very well.

I can’t put Parallels or other similar software on that will allow me to run M/S Office on my issued Mac – Word is the one piece of software that isn’t duplicated on the Mac Don’t say use Pages, NeoOffice or Open Office they are not the same, I have used them and I do not like them.  I do like Office’s Ribbon interface and prefer to use it whenever possible – enough that I purchased Nitro PDF because it has a ribbon interface.

If I wasn’t a Special Education Teacher I could take a lot closer look at Google Docs now that it has offline synching.  I am finding that for my classroom work I create in Word and upload everything to Docs, so that I can access it cross-platform from any computer.

The answer would be to go out and buy a Mac.  I had thought about it seriously, but financially that is not a consideration at this time.  That way I would have most of the same software my students have to use and be able to help them with it better than I can now.

If I owned the Mac I would also be able to “personalize” it to my preferences and needs.  As it stands right now, my issued Mac is a backup to my Windows PC – in case something happens, like I forget my power cord or leave my PC at home.

It is too bad really, because as I see my students use it and begin to use it more myself, I see a great deal of potential for having one.  However, unless I hit the lottery or come into some unexpected cash from something (or find a really cheap deal or a trade on a used one), I guess I will “suffer” with my HP tablet, which isn’t really suffering at all.  I have it setup pretty much the way I want it – finally.  I guess I would also have to get rid of the HP because otherwise I would just keep going back to it.

Anyone out there want to trade 13 inch Mac book for a 12.1 HP tablet?   I would have to really think about it though, still don’t know if I would pull the trigger, but it is something to think about.

So it isn’t about Mac vs PC.  It is really more about the fact that I haven’t given the Mac a good opportunity to show what it is capable of is, because it isn’t mine to personalize.

Now if some of you Mac experts or MLTI gurus out there can steer me in a different direction. Please give me that info so I can delve deeper into my issued Mac.

Who knows maybe someday, we will see?

Image via Wikipedia

Last night I participated in #edchat on Twitter as I have done on most Tuesday evenings at 7:00 P.M., since I returned to teaching.  I love the discussion, but it is almost turning into “we squeak”.

What do I mean by “we squeak”?  Almost every session that I have participated in seems to have at its core a recurring theme brought up EVERY WEEK of how bad standardized testing is, other teachers not embracing technology, blocking and controlling IT departments, lack of admin support for technology, lack of interest/participation by parents.

There is a lot of venting and complaining about how bad things are, but not too many substantive ideas on how to improve things (I know it is tough to do in 140 characters or less).  I am perceiving a certain sense of powerlessness on the part of many teachers who participate in this Twitterdiscussion group.

WE ARE NOT POWERLESS!  We may not decide what will be taught in our classrooms, but we do decide how we will teach teach it.

We are experts in what we are teaching or in my case back on my way to being an expert.  Yes I did use the word EXPERT, because that is what we should be, are or will be in our fields.  I have heard that it takes about 10 years to become an expert and that is what I am shooting for to be considered an expert in Literacy, Educational Technology and Special Education before I retire.  I guess that means lots of reading, writing, attending seminars, classes and being active in online communities as a part of my professional life.  It means not sitting on our laurels that we earned years ago and staying current in our fields.

If we do not have these expectations for ourselves, then how can we hope to appear as professionals, to those we teach or in the Court of public opinion, which in many places we are loosing right now.  Each teacher must be an expert in what they are teaching or preparing to be one, how else do we keep our creditability?  In other words that means we have to be at the very least Highly Qualified Teachers (HQT), wow that has a familiar ring to it.

Standardized tests are here to stay.  Sorry but that is the reality we have to accept.  Testing is not going away, so how do we use this focus to help our students?  I am not sure yet, but we have to find a way.  I know that there are much smarter and more experienced teachers/administrators than I am, working on this issue right now.  We have to keep our eyes and ears open to others who are having success and build off what they have learned.  No I don’t like Standardized Testing anymore than anyone else, but it is and will be a part of being a teacher in today’s world for the foreseeable future.

IT Departments and Administrations that lock down the internet.  Okay so they make it inconvenient for some of us to use applications that we would like to use in our classrooms.  My school district has a very, very aggressive blocking policy and I am trying learn to live within our policies  and learn the procedures to get what I want done in the classroom by working with IT and administration, NOT just bitching about it. Get to know your IT people, show them (and admin) the applications and the good they can do.  Work with them, they might even agree with you, but they may have marching orders to keep that you don’t know about.

IT is not the enemy, but they do have different priorities then you do.  Ask them to help you in the classroom, to see the effect of the limitations that you see or perceive, maybe they have an alternative you didn’t think of to use.  They are a great resource, but only if they are on your side,if you alienate them, they can really make EdTech more difficult than it has to be.   Don’t ask to eat the whole pie at once, keep working at it, you might be frustrated at first, but consistency and showing that what you are doing is working for the students, does a lot more than whining and complaining about what you can’t do.  It does get you what you want – eventually, without alienating those who can help you most.

Complaining about other teachers not embracing technology in the classroom.  If a teacher chooses to not use tech in their classroom, that’s their problem not your’s, but by making it your problem, you are allowing it to affect you negatively and increase your stress level.  I know you are worried about how it affects the students they teach, but if you can’t control or fix it let it go.  LET IT GO.

If you prove that your use of technology is providing superior results in the classroom, than you might be surprised at who comes and asks for your assistance.  Most of these teachers want to do what is best for their students, but are not convinced of technology’s actual effectiveness – to many it is still just another fad.   If those teachers don’t begin to use technology effectively in the classroom, then eventually they will become an island and become rather inconsequential or be forced by new administration (when it comes and they will) to use what works for today’s students – not what has always worked for them.  Either way this issue is beyond your control (usually), focus on what you can control, it is a lot less stressful for you.

Administration not Supporting Tech.  When was the last time you were told you could not use technology in your classrom? There may be a shortage of computers for 1:1 or the equipment is outdated but get creative – use what you have.  We may not be able to use a certain application i.e. YouTube, blogging platform, Twitter, etc. but most administrators and school districts try to buy us all of these nice shiny computers, LCD project, smart boards and the approved software that goes with them (sometimes without asking if we really need it or know how to use it).  Remember sometimes an overhead projector is the technology that is actually needed for that lesson.  Use what is approved, be creative, download YouTube at home and use it during your observation by an administrator.  The biggest thing is work within the limitations set by policy (otherwise you set yourself up for disciplinary actions) use what you can creatively – then push the boundaries when you can.

Keep showing administrators the effectiveness of what you are doing (maybe that significant increase in test scores from your students, compared to those who don’t use EdTech will do the trick?).  Again don’t try for the whole pie at once, be patient.

Uninvolved parents.  This is a whole blog in itself.  It is up to us to keep reaching out to them.  Many parents have had horrible experiences when they were in school or with schools and are badly intimidated by a “teacher” (any teacher – yes even you or me) and it is difficult for them to overcome this “teacherphobia”.  Remember that the next time you talk with a parent, some of them automatically flashback to Mr. or Mrs. _________ and shut down.

Parents also know their kids better than we do, no matter how much or well we believe we know their child 90% of the time.  If we come off as condescending or only speak to them when their kids are being negative, of course our relationship with them is going to be strained.  Parents can be a teacher’s greatest advocate, but we have to take the first step and sometimes keep stepping forward to have them help us educate their child.

Finally, when was the last time an administrator was in your room, telling you how to teach?  For me there has been no one in my room since I started on October 5th, other than my Teaching Assistants.  The administrators stop by once and a while to ask how I am doing but that is it.

I am and so are you – expected to teach our students within the school’s curriculum, that is what we are paid to do and we are supposedly experts at teaching.  How we actually do present the information is usually up to us, there are not too many schools that dictate how each class will be taught.  I find that in teaching I have had a great deal more independence and latitude about what I do in my office (the classroom) than any other job or field I have ever worked.

Therefore, if my pay and/or evaluations are going to be tied to test scores, I am damn well going to teach in the manner where my success or failure is something that I am, comfortable with, fits my style and personality.  I don’t plan to teach to the test, but I do plan to teach my curriculum effectively and in a manner that I believe I will be most successful for my students.

I personally believe that using technology to teach in the classroom is the best way for all students to succeed in life and on Standardized tests.  If I teach my students in ways they can learn, then scores on Standardized Tests scores will take care of themselves.  But the bottom line is it is up to me – about how I present my material and lessons in my classroom and I suspect it is the same way in the majority of classrooms today.

I am not naive and understand the pressures that many teachers are under, but we are not powerless about how we teach in our own classrooms – WE MUST REMEMBER THAT.

Why did I use the image at the start?  Because that teacher does not have many of the advantages that we enjoy in our classrooms, but he is still teaching.  Remember we have tools at our disposal that were unheard of just 10 years ago.  It is up to each one of us how we incorporate Educational Technology into our classrooms, not anyone else.  So as Nike says “Just do it.”

It is after all your choice.

Remember it is about the students