Rethinking What I’ve Always Done

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Books, Education

It started with a Facebook conversation last winter.

Someone posted a New Yorker article from December 2018 questioning the novel To Kill a Mockingbird and the character Atticus Finch’s place in literary and cultural history. It sparked quite a conversation about this fictional character who I have so enjoyed exploring with my 9th graders for the last 16 years.

[Quick recap: Mockingbird is narrated by Scout Finch, who recounts her early childhood as she and her brother Jem are faced with the dark realities of race in 1930s Alabama when their lawyer father, Atticus, chooses to defend a black man falsely accused of raping a white woman.]

The social media conversation wandered into the why and how behind our teaching of To Kill a Mockingbird, and I casually commented that “TKAM is much more about Jem’s coming of age rather than Scout’s… I feel like Jem is really the main character even though Scout is the narrator.”

A reply from a fellow English teacher opened my eyes to a new perspective:

“That’s exactly the problem!” She wrote, “Even when we teach books with girls as narrators they are still focused on the lives and experiences of boys!”

Ten years ago, I would have probably brushed off this comment…or worse, leapt to argument: So what if Jem (a boy) is the main character? What’s the big deal?

Continue reading →

The Equity of Alternatives

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Assessment, Education, Education Policy, Uncategorized

Offering alternatives to students is, ostensibly, a great thing to do. We can all agree that individualized learning that inspires every student to meet their own potential is ideal. However, it is wrong to assume that we can legislate such alternatives and extra options into existence, especially in small, rural schools.

As an educator in a rural district, I have spent many years observing how our students often have less access to the options that are readily available in larger and urban districts. For instance, in addition to fewer electives, we offer few opportunities for students to take AP or dual credit courses, forcing many of our best scholars to travel forty miles to a community college as Running Start students. Additionally, where other districts had classes to support students who failed the state assessments in math or language arts, we did not have the resources or staff to offer such dedicated courses. Instead, because we are committed to our kids, our staff has worked outside of the regular schedule to support them and create Collections of Evidence or prep for test retakes.

The fact is, in small schools, it is most likely that everyone gets the same offerings, and individualization can be difficult, because it is expensive. Granted, many small schools have gotten very creative to offer programs to their students that go above and beyond the core offerings. There are online programs that support individuals as they explore their interests, and many great educators in small schools offer outstanding and creative programs that would be the envy of the larger districts. Such enhancements in rural schools depend on administrators and teachers with extra energy and creativity to spare.

So, now we have the ultimate in alternatives- an alternative to passing the Smarter Balanced Assessment. New legislation rather vaguely outlines how the state assessment is no longer directly tied to high school graduation. Almost everyone is celebrating this change and hailing the final victory against high stakes testing. I am less enthusiastic.

You see, what happens next is still a mystery. House Bill 1599 (summary on page 31) effectively delinked the statewide assessment from graduation requirements, BUT it did not let anyone off the hook for proving mastery in language arts and math. Students will still take the test, and passing it is the easiest and clearest way to prove mastery. The bill also added a lot more to the High School and Beyond Plans that students must have. Districts will all have to determine what is meant by “graduation pathway options,” and they will have  to adopt academic acceleration policies for high school students. It sounds like we will have more requirements, but not more money.

In small rural districts, that means figuring out how do the most with the least support. And who misses out? Students do.

When the state steps back and puts more on the districts, it can be a benefit. However, look at it through the lens of a small district educator. I predict that determining mastery of core subjects will become the responsibility of local entities. In large districts, that will still require a level of accountability. It is possible that the people in charge of determining the students’ mastery of a subject in a larger district could be both qualified in the subject and not the direct instructors of the students in question. In a small district, when a department has so few people in it, who makes that call? Who has the expertise? Who is accountable for the instruction received by the student? Is it the same person?

So, what if we are allowed/expected to offer courses that replace the assessment? We implement the instruction. We score the work. We make the determination. It sounds great, if you are ethical, equitable, and without bias. But, are you? And that doesn’t even address the issue of how small districts will have the funds to offer such a class for a small handful of kids.

I know, I know… the test has problems with equity and bias, too. I’m just saying that these are ongoing issues, delinking the test or not. And, more importantly, solutions to these problems are very different in small districts, and small districts have very little pull on the legislature.

Having common requirements for students can be limiting, but, in many ways, it ensures that all students get the education our public schools promise to provide. All districts have their challenges, and small, rural districts have some extreme challenges when it comes to offering a variety of courses. When we loosen up the requirements for schools and give way to local control, we are going to see problems with equity. Where is the oversight for this? How do we pay to support it and monitor it? How can we ensure that students in every district in Washington are still getting the skills they need to be successful?

I know that the one thing a small district does have is the opportunity for all players to sit at the same small table and come up with common solutions. Our staff will do what’s best for our kids, and I imagine it is the same all over Washington. I sincerely hope that it is.

I would love to hear some other views on the subject. Are you seeing only positive outcomes from the change? Does anyone else worry about the consequences? Let’s talk about it.

 

On Leveraging Technology—Part Seven

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Education, Social Issues, Web/Tech

Well, it is June. I’ve been writing about technology all year (for the most part) and I hoped to have come to some conclusions by this time. All I know for sure is technology is here to stay, and I can hope we begin to use it, and implement it, thoughtfully. Or, for those who already do so, to continue thoughtful implementation.

Often I worry I’m making a bigger problem out of this than it really is. I mean, technology has always advanced over time and humans and societies adapt. But this technology seems to come with specific and deeply problematic long term issues both for cognitive and physical development of children. I tend to be affected by my environment in moderate ways. Therefore, too much screen time leaves me bleary and with headaches. I know this is not the case for everyone. Though this week, I’ve had two conversations leaving me confident that I’m not the only person with these concerns. My child’s ophthalmologist said that since the school district moved to 1:1 implementation, her office is selling more and more glasses to kids who do not have a stigmatism, but need glasses with blue light filters to prevent headaches from extended screen exposure.

I’ve also heard students discussing in class, hallways, and in their final papers how concerned they are about government, the environment, and society in general because they see their own generation as one so distracted and ignorant they feel no sense of hope for positive change. That seems dismaying. It seems a rite of passage to me for teenagers to feel their generation will improve on the faults and errors of the previous generation. To be misanthropic as a seventh grader or a junior in high school, seems problematic.

My juniors were given a final research paper under the theme, “the language of social media.” No one has a positive take on this theme. There are some balanced perspectives. My favorite phrase so far is, “the conundrum of constant connection,” read by a student who delivered her paper via reading it off of her phone. She stood before us and criticized the medium while utilizing it. A perfect visual of the benefit while presenting thoughtful questions of concern. Some have humorous explorations on how the language is used, or has changed. One student is writing a wonderful exploration of slang, and catch phrases. It is funny and engaging. Most are writing about how social media causes isolation, depression, a sense of time wasted, and—yes—a misanthropic view of the world.

I don’t really know how to help them. How does one change the larger habits of a society? Especially, pleasurable habits. Aldous Huxley and George Orwell keep being called upon in their papers. One student said, “if in Huxley’s day a citizen was handed a smartphone and told, ‘here, this will allow you to be in contact with anyone you want all the time, but will record everything and monitor your location—the citizen would decline in a split second.’” These students seem convinced we are the frog, in the kettle, the stove on, and the water warming without our awareness. But they also seem to feel, that there are some frogs who know the water is warming and are fine with it. And some who feel the pot’s sides are so steep, escape is impossible. Though there are some resisting this. Some are grabbing on to Clay Shirkey’s wonderful ideas about accepting everything from the internet. We get amazing things (Wikipedia, genius, go fund me, kickstarter, improved research abilities, citizen reporting from previously closed societies, etc.). This is just our cultural moment.

I want to offer them hope, because I believe it is possible. The hope comes from them. From people. From our ability to stop, look at someone we are working with and to see them. To see their humanity, despite differences of any kind. Hope comes from the “civil conversations,” of Krista Tippet. Comes from the student who reads books in their spare time in classes, rather than hopping on social media. From the student who uses their phone mindfully as well as for distraction.

Last week, I participated in an international literary festival. I met writers from Greece, Ireland, New York, Florida, and Spain. We were a diverse group—different ages, languages, skin colors, sexual orientations, life experiences. By the end of the week, we were old friends, for the most part. Mutual respect, the ability to listen, and a focus on language brought us together. Now technology will keep us in touch, email, facebook, etc. I see these same qualities in many of my students. I hope I’ve cultivated their desire to engage with these things in their life now and in the future. That’s where my hope lies—there, and in the belief that they will see it within themselves and their peers in the not so distant future.

Going Global, Revisited

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Education, Professional Development, Teacher Leadership, Travel, Uncategorized | , , , ,

Last September, I wrote a blog as I was just starting a 10-week course with the Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms program. As I wrote that blog, I was just learning about global competencies for myself and my students. It has been eight months since then, and it feels like a lifetime. I’m not the same teacher I was at the beginning of the year. I’m better.

Rabat, Morocco

Let me explain how it happened. In December, after my 10-week course, I was assigned to a cohort destined for Morocco.  It was stressful finding out that I was in the cohort scheduled to leave the earliest, as they are spread out over the spring and summer months, with Morocco being the first of the five cohorts to go. We had just over two months to prepare to be out of our classrooms for three weeks.

In February the Fulbright TGC fellows attended a symposium in Washington D.C. where we learned more about global education and met teachers from Morocco and other host countries. We had security briefings and cultural trainings in preparation for our trips. I met with my cohort face-to-face, while other cohorts for other destinations (Peru, Indonesia, Senegal, Columbia, and India) met to learn the specifics of their journeys. It was exciting and overwhelming, especially since there were only two weeks between the symposium and our departure!

During the time between the symposium and my trip, I frantically scrambled to prepare my classes for my absence and myself for this otherworldly experience. I began a dialogue via WhatsApp with my amazing host teacher, Rachid El Machehouri, an English teacher in Tangier. As he built an agenda around my interests, it became exciting and real. I was on my way to Africa to visit teachers and students.

Junior high students, Tangier

 

And so it was that for three weeks in March I traveled to Morocco with my Fulbright TGC cohort. The experience was life changing. Any trip abroad, especially for a fairly inexperienced traveler, can feel like the whole world is finally opening up to you. But, this was more. I got to experience classrooms and teaching in another country.

In my first blog about Global Ed, I introduced elements from ASCD’s Global Competent Learning Continuum, a rubric that measures a teacher’s global competencies. You can explore the full continuum here.  

 

Now I would like to connect these ideas to the new teacher I am becoming. Likewise, if you are a teacher with the opportunity to bring the world into your classroom, either virtually or through your own travel experiences, I commend you. Your students are definitely better for it. Measure yourself by the same rubric. We all have room to grow.
Teacher Dispositions
1. Empathy and valuing multiple perspectives
2. Commitment to promoting equity worldwide

FEELING: I felt that I was strong in teacher dispositions from the start, but I have a whole new metric now. What can top the experience of being in a room full of Muslim students on the day of a massacre in a New Zealand mosque? Do you think I had the chance to value a different perspective from my own? When those students showed me compassion as the outsider, how did that impact my own idea of empathy? My commitment to teaching compassion and promoting equity grew tenfold.

Teacher Knowledge
3. Understanding of global conditions and current events
4. Understanding of the ways that the world is interconnected
5. Experiential understanding of multiple cultures
6. Understanding of intercultural communication

KNOWING: With travel and the learning that accompanies it, a teacher’s knowledge cannot help but grow. I learned so much about North Africa, about Muslims, and about Moroccan people. I learned about how we are all essentially alike, despite our differences. I witnessed the way a multilingual culture gracefully moves between languages, valuing linguistic diversity and encouraging communication of all types. Moroccans openly communicate verbally and nonverbally. They don’t shut out strangers. It is shocking and illuminating, as it contrasts so starkly with how Americans are often cut off from others. Continue reading →

Thrilled about a new mandate? YES!

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Current Affairs, Education, Education Policy, Life in the Classroom, Professional Development |

On May 9th, Governor Inslee signed a law that surely will affect our most vulnerable of students deeply. This new law reads: “Beginning in the 2020-21 school year, and every other school year thereafter, school districts must use one of the professional learning days funded under RCW 28A.150.415 to train school district staff in one or more of the following topics: Social-emotional learning, trauma-informed practices, using the model plan developed under RCW 28A.320.1271 related to recognition and response to emotional or behavioral distress, consideration of adverse childhood experiences, mental health literacy, anti-bullying strategies, or culturally sustaining practices.

I cannot believe it. This is such an incredibly positive step in the right direction! I am especially excited to see trauma-informed practices included in this new law.

Last month I wrote about the importance of teaching students self-regulation skills, especially in regards to how they would like their lives to play out. The challenging part is having the insight as a teacher into the impact of trauma on students to help these students regulate. Often their regulatory behaviors are counter-intuitive it would seem and only when you know the motivations driving them do they begin to make sense. Insights are not always enough though. You have to be able to act on this knowledge. An equally difficult aspect of helping students of trauma is to have the skills required to respond to emotionally laden situations in a healthy manner. Up until now, access to this knowledge and these skills have been limited. This is the case no long. Now, the question becomes, “Can this knowledge and these skills truly help, and if so, how?” Continue reading →

On Leveraging Technology Part Six–Essential Questions

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Education, Education Policy, Life in the Classroom, Web/Tech

I keep trying to put down the topic of technology in the classroom, and I keep finding it impossible. Last week two things arrived in my inbox.

The first is a short article summarizing decade long research comparing reading comprehension from a screen with comprehension from paper. The conclusions were unambiguous: reading from screens harms comprehension compared to reading from paper.  This is one of the first articles I’ve read in some time offering such clear conclusions:

“More evidence is in: Reading from screens harms comprehension.”

“One likely reason: Readers using screens tend to think they’re processing and understanding texts better then they actually are.”

Virginia Clinton, heading up the study says, “Reading from screens had a negative effect on reading performance relative to paper.”

and,

“There is legitimate concern that reading on paper may be better in terms of performance and efficiency.”

Reading this threw me back into memory. Sitting in the Henier auditorium, at the community college where I work part time, listening to a recent PhD graduate from the University of Washington (forgive me for forgetting her name), report her research findings on reading comprehension and technology. Her findings seemed contradictory to me. She reported finding that young readers reading from iPads comprehended the content at similar levels but were slower in reporting it because they were interested in describing the technology.

For example, if a student read a paper copy of a picture book and was asked comprehension questions they immediately discussed the content. If a student read the same picture book from an iPad and was asked the same comprehension questions, they discussed what buttons they pressed, and the interactions with technology before they discussed content. The researcher presenting dismissed the delay, but it stood out as alarming to me. As a parent and as a teacher efficiency is important to me. My top rules for technology in my personal life and in my classrooms are:

  1. It must add to life
  2. It must not distract from life

Continue reading →

Family is the basis of society

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Elementary, Life in the Classroom | ,

Last month I wrote about the history of character education in American schools and drilled down to the character traits and values the Basic Education Act in our state outlined as important for schools to teach. One of these values is the concept that family is the basis of society. In other words, family is the foundation upon which our society is built. Let’s check in on the state of American families from yesteryear to today to see how our foundation is holding up.

According to Pew Research, in the 1960s, almost 73% of children were being raised in intact homes with their parents of origin. Today, only 46% of our students are coming from home where they have an intact family of origin. Not to put too fine a point on it, but this means over half of the children in our classrooms have felt the trauma of family break up and may be grappling with the complexity of living in a blended family. How do we teach about the importance of family when literally, the majority of our students will not grow up in an intact family?

We could talk about the about the different family structures out there. Unfortunately, no matter how you spin the numbers, study after study shows children coming from an intact family of origin fare the best when it comes to behavior and academic achievement. There are exceptions to the rule, but society is not built upon exceptions; it is built on the norm. We need to help our students develop the skills they will need to participate in healthy family lives as adults.

One lesson to teach…maintaining an intact family takes self-regulation skills.

Many times I have told a student escalating in conflict to hit the “cool it” seat outside my door. There the student can sit in simmering anger, chose to practice the breathing reminders (or not) and simply take a moment. I check on them. Have they breathed? Are they ready to talk? It is not until they have cooled enough and breathed enough to talk and hear words that I go and sit with them. I hear them out. We talk about the pain and shame that usually was the root of the conflict. We talk about how good it was to get away for a moment to clear out thinking. We talk about what we could have done differently so the anger did not get so hot. We talk about many of the other self-regulation skills we have learned in class.

And then I ask, “Why do you think it is important to learn to manage your feelings and manage conflict?”

If the student is fresh to the experience of the “cool it seat” they replay with, “So I don’t get in trouble.” That is true; for now. Back to class the student goes.

My repeat offenders hear an additional lesson. They hear a variation of the following:

“Hey, we seem to meet out here a lot. I am thinking I need to let you know a secret of life. Think you’re ready for a secret?”

What kid doesn’t like an insider secret? There is almost always a nod or at least a shrug of “Whatever” that really translates in my teacher’s mind to, “Please, give me the secret to ending this. I need to stop doing this same dumb thing. Help me out.”

I pull my chair closer and lean in. All kids know the best secrets are told leaning in.

I begin. “The thing is this. You do not magically get handed a pamphlet on how to handle anger and frustration when you are handed your child in the hospital. You do not get handed a book about how to love someone when you get married. If you think your own child or your wife someday could never make you as angry or frustrated as your classmate, you are beyond wrong.”

Repeat Offender just stares back. Still listening, but not hearing it yet.

“How mad that kid made you by taking your pencil and lying about it? That is nothing compared to your own 15 year-old sneaking out and lying about it. If you think for a moment that your wife won’t make you want to slam your fist through the wall from sheer frustration, you don’t get what loving and living with someone for a long time means.”

Repeat Offender usually says something snarky about not having kids or not being married. I always look them straight in the face and simply say, “True, but you are a kid. So, maybe you know how it feels to have a parent out of control…”

Most of the time there is a small wince. I hate that wince. It means they know.

“You job at this age is to learn to manage your emotions and your actions so that someday you have the skills to deal with your child without treating them like you just treated your classmate. You are here to learn how to keep your fist unclenched and at your sides instead of into walls. You are here to learn to hear the words of someone else, even when you are mad at them.”

Repeat Offender nods.

“Do you know why you need these skills?”

Repeat Offender knows somewhere in his heart, but does not know how to say the words.

I help. “You need the skills of self-regulation so you can have a happy life. So you can have a happy family.”

There is not a lesson I can teach about family being the basis of society. There are only moments I can grasp as teachable. If even one of my Repeat Offenders hears me and takes their need to learn self-regulation to heart, it is one more chance for a family to be kept intact in a healthy way. Healthy families are the basis of a healthy society.

*For the record, physical and emotional violence are not the only causes of families to fall apart. There are many other ways in which self-regulation plays a role in creating healthy family dynamics. There are also many other ways I teach self-regulation. Those will be the subject of my next blog as they connect to the other areas teaching character and values in the classroom.

Teach Challenging Books

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Books, Current Affairs, Literacy

I first floated the idea of teaching Claudia Rankine’s book Citizen: An American Lyric at Lincoln on The Nerd Farm podcast. One major point of discussion was that despite being first published in 2014, the urgency of this book is felt on every page. It feels like it was written for this moment.

Within a few short weeks, listeners flooded the mailroom with donated copies. I was a little nervous. I teach about race, class, and gender but I’ve never taught a book like this. I’ve taught poetry but I’ve never experienced a book of poetry that defies what I learned in college. In the back of my mind lingered the most daunting question of all: can I, a white woman, do justice teaching a book about racism, microaggressions,and intersectionality?

Not one to shirk challenge, I talked my student teacher into team-teaching the text. We found exactly three resources for teaching this text–a reading guide from Graywolf Press and two teacher blog posts from higher ed. For one month, my juniors wrestled with the language, structure, and themes of this book.

Despite the unfamiliarity of poetry as a genre and the “untraditional” way Rankine breaks any expectations of form, Rankine is accessible in a high school classroom setting. Every high school student needs to experience poetry, art, and language the way Rankine creates it. This year when I prepped for the unit, I found, more articles from college level classes, and several university teacher guides signaling to me that I’m not the only one feeling the timeliness of this text.

With the rise of hate crimes, public displays of racism and the casual way these are presented by media, I’m especially convinced that now more than ever, students and teachers need to grapple open and honestly with the discomfort of these issues. In particular, white teachers should teach books that make them uncomfortable or are out of their “range of expertise.”

For students of color, they tell me they need this book because it validates their daily existence. They want to read a Black author who excels at the art of language. They want to feel they are not alone.

For white kids, they need to see a black artist at the highest level. They need to be challenged as perpetrators and beneficiaries of white supremacy. They need to consider how intersectionality shifts and shapes power.

For teachers, we need to teach books outside our comfort zones be in content or style. We need to use our platform in the classroom to amplify authors our students might never experience.

For white teachers, we need to create safe spaces to have open and honest discussions about race in America–where we aren’t threatened by disagreement, where students of color feel confident expressing their thoughts, and where we don’t’ “not all white people” the conversation.

Instead of being fearful of these difficult conversations, we need to be brave. No matter what race we are, we need to collectively read and discuss more books like Citizen. Maybe then we will actually do something to loosen the grip of racism on our country.

Professional Development: Yes, and…

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Uncategorized

How many times have you groaned about sitting through professional development? How do you feel about a parade of presenters telling you yet another way you can do your job? Do you get excited about trainings? About conferences? About the newest in education-related publications?

 

Admit it. You have been part of a conversation or two that has scoffed at “PD.” It comes with the job, right?

I’m afraid I don’t have an answer to the onslaught of professional development that most teachers in most districts experience. It’s part of the cycle. However, I have developed a certain method for making any training or professional development experience more meaningful, and more enjoyable, too! It comes straight out of my theatre arts class.

I teach improvisational theatre to my students. One of our basic tenets of improvisation is the idea of “Yes, and…” Here is what Wikipedia says about this mindset:

“Yes, and…”, also referred to as “Yes, and…” thinking, is a rule-of-thumb in improvisational comedy that suggests that a participant should accept what another participant has stated (“yes”) and then expand on that line of thinking (“and”). It is also used in business and other organizations as a principle that improves the effectiveness of the brainstorming process, fosters effective communication, and encourages the free sharing of ideas.” (For a good article that explains it more fully along with videos, go here.)

You see, “Yes, and…” is a great way to manage any professional development. You say “yes” to the idea being shared, truly considering it, and then you add your thoughts and ideas to incorporate it and expand upon it. It works. It’s engagement. Imagine if all of our students had a “yes, and…” attitude!

“Yes, and…” gives value to both the new idea and your own ideas, too. I have begun using this attitude myself in any situation that requires me to deal with opposing or conflicting ideas. I don’t immediately shut off communications. This change of attitude has really paid off for me recently. The big “Aha!” moment came to me in Tangier, Morocco, during my international field experience with Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms (a program you should definitely check out- here).

You see, traveling to North Africa to learn about the Moroccan education system and culture was not a glorified vacation. It was work! It was often eighteen-hour days filled with tours, hikes, co-teaching, interviews, and language mix-ups. It was challenging and exhausting. There were definitely moments where I wanted to shut out the new and different and just be the old me. Then I realized – quite suddenly – that I had to “Yes, and..” this whole experience. So, I got myself up, dusted myself off, and posed for some more pictures, shook some more hands, and stumbled through another multilingual conversation. (Want to see how this adventure played out, check out my travel blog- here.)

From there on out it was a blast! I had no reason not to be all in. I accepted all the new learning, realized it was mine for the taking, and added my own input at will. It was not being done to me. I was part of it. Yes, I was having to adapt to new ideas, and I was shaping those new ways with my own experience and creative input.

We know that a productive and positive mindset is crucial for learning. Do we apply this to just our students? What about us? We need to think positively and absorb what we can use in every learning opportunity. Think about that at your next dose of professional development.

Shameless plug time: There is an amazing learning opportunity on our horizon. The Washington Teachers Advisory Council is hosting their third conference next month. This conference takes place at beautiful Cedarbrook Lodge in Seatac on May 4th and 5th. Lodging included, it will cost you only $100-125 to attend, which is a steal! At this conference, you will encounter an all-star lineup of presenters, panelists, and speakers, including 2019 WA Teacher of the Year Robert Hand and 2018 National Teacher of the Year Mandy Manning. Sessions will include topics like transforming special education inclusion practices, educating to advocate, innovating education with STEAM, social emotional learning and character education, and much more.

You should begin your professional development mindset shift by saying YES to learning from the best educators in your region, AND sharing your own innovative ideas as well. To register, go here.

Do you have any “Yes, and…” experiences to share? I would love to hear about them. Please comment below.

On Leveraging Technology—part five: a sorting

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Education, Education Policy, Professional Development, Web/Tech

On Leveraging Technology—part five: a sorting

When I started writing about technology in the classroom back in October I began with these central questions:

  • How do we teach mindful use of technology to students who are already immersed in technology?
  • How do I deal with the inherent assumptions in the previous question that imply such immersion is negative?
  • Is such immersion negative?

A host of other questions has arisen from my explorations.

Context: My district decided against one-to-one technology adoption after passing our technology levy. The district my children attended adopted one-to-one. The comparison has been interesting. Of course, the comparison is not perfect. I’m a teacher in one district, and a parent in another. Obviously different perspectives. I’ve also made some clear decisions about my kids and technology, and technology in my personal life, which I laid out in the first post.

Here I am at the end of March, the longest month, and where am I really with answering these questions?

Continue reading →