Fred Koch – Technology Coach

Last night the technology coaches made our annual presentation to the Board of Education for our school district. Each of us created a short video as our way of “reporting” to the board. Our Board of Education is very supportive and the truth is, if it was not for their support and vision, our positions would not exist. So we always enjoy the opportunity to toot our own horns at a board meeting.

Here are two of the videos presented last night. The first is my Technology Coach Report and the other is an Animoto video I created as part of Mr. Schumacher’s presentation on the NEO 2 initiative in our district.

Fred Koch’s Technology Coach Report – November 2009 (3:35)

NEO 2 Laptops In Action (1:26)

I originally created the Cherokee School Showcase and the Sheridan School Showcase websites so we could publish some of the fabulous student-created projects that were being made in our schools. And about a year ago, I introduced Weebly, a fun and easy web-authoring program, to our teachers. The result is that we now have 37 teachers from Cherokee and Sheridan with their own Weebly websites. There are also seven more in the works. That’s pretty exciting!

So the question became, “Are the showcase sites still necessary since so many teachers are now able to publish the projects of their students on their own websites?”

My answer is “yes” because I believe that parents and other visitors to our school websites should have multiple access points to see the work of our students.

That lead me to the process of updating each showcase site to include examples and links to these wonderful student projects. Take a moment to  browse through these showcase sites. You will see lots of authentic projects brought to life through VoiceThread and video projects. And if you see something you really like, leave us a comment.

Here is just one of my favorite video projects from last Spring presented by The 4 Ghostly Girls of Sheridan School.

Following up on their hugely successful “Here Come The 123s” and “Here Come The ABCs” rock music pioneers They Might Be Giants have just released “Here Comes Science” – an amazing CD/DVD combo.

There are quite a few “adult” music artists producing music CDs for children, but to my ears, TMBG continues to offer some of the most creative and musically hip music around! Their first CD release for kids, “No!” was a big hit with my young music students when I was teaching music. “Violin,” “No!” and “Where Do They Make Balloons?” (which they chose to sing in the Spring Music Program) were always heavily requested on “choice day.”

So here are two video versions of one of my favorite songs, “Meet The Elements” from the new project – first is the animated rendering from the DVD, the second a live performance from a recent appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

My suggestion? Buy two – one for yourself and one for your child’s teacher.

“Meet The Elements” – from the DVD

“Meet The Elements” – Live from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

On September 24, 2008, fellow technology coach Laura Montgomery and I were fortunate enough to be invited to participate in the Google Teacher Academy training held in Chicago. It was a great experience because we were able to meet and mingle with some of the country’s most outstanding technology educators who were there to facilitate the presentations. David Jakes was there, so was Steve Dembo, Lucy Gray and Kern Kelly, just to name a few.

The 50+ attendees were mostly teachers from all disciplines and grade levels. But within the first hour, Laura and I met Dr. Rich Voltz. He is a former teacher, former principal and former superintendent who now is the Associate Director for the Illinois Association of School Administrators in Springfield, Illinois. The IASA’s mission is to “support school leaders in the pursuit of educational excellence through continued school improvement.”

We soon learned that Dr. Voltz spends his time traveling the state, country and world helping administrators get more comfortable with the tools of technology for teaching and learning. And in August, Dr. Voltz was in our district presenting his workshop Web 2.0 Tools for Administrators. Dr. Voltz is a firm believer that in order for teachers to be tech savvy their administrators need have a clear vision of the power of technology in teaching and learning, and most importantly, lead the way by example.

Even though we are not “administrators” Laura and I were invited to the presentation. The majority of administrators in attendance came away motivated to, as Dr. Voltz says, “Just try one thing – whether it is a podcast, or a blog, or creating a short video for your district’s website.”

I was honored because a few days later Dr. Voltz asked if I would like to be interviewed on his upcoming podcast for administrators. I jumped at the chance. He was interested in how I use video to engage students and how we, as a district, use our “technology coaches.” So on August 26, Podcast 106 was recorded for the IASA Professional Development Website. If you’d like to hear this “enhanced” podcast, click here.

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Aren’t you intrigued by those quotes that some people use at the end of their email messages? Of course it is their unique opportunity to make a statement about what they hope for or what they believe.

I saw a quote a couple of weeks ago that has stuck in my head ever since. It appeared in an email from Carol Broos (Google Certified Teacher). I have shared it with quite a few teachers, who after hearing it usually nod their head in agreement. Here it is:

“I don’t want my son to be limited to learning only what his teacher already knows!”
- John Couch, VP of Apple Education

Powerful. Yes?

So I did a quick search through some emails to see what other folks are putting up as their signature message, or online bumper sticker. Here is a small sample:

Jerome Burg / Apple Professional Development Consultant
“We look at the world and see what we have learned to believe is there.”
- Aaron Siskind

John Vitale / National Sales Manager, Full Compass
“There is no end to learning.”
- Robert Schumann (composer)

Sharon Eilts / Apple Distinguished Teacher”
Unless someone like you cares a whole lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
- Dr. Seuss, The Lorax

Cornelius DuBose / Director of Technology, Lake Forest School District 67
“When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.”
- Benjamin Franklin

Do you have a favorite? If so, add it in the comment section.

Oh, and don’t forget… “Humpty Dumpty was pushed!”

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Though I have not been blogging since school has been out, I am accumulating articles and blog posts that I want to share with you.

One of my goals for the coming year is to have more in depth conversations with teachers and administrators about issues that are meaningful as they relate to “technology” and teaching and learning.

The question about the importance of technology integration in the classroom has been around for years and it is a conversation that continues to be a hot topic. Today, David Warlick posted the results of two polls where he posed the questions:

1. Can a teacher be a good teacher without using technology?

2. Is a teacher, who is not using technology (computer, Internet, etc…), doing his or her job?

Before you go to Warlick’s post and see the poll results, think about how you would vote on these ‘Yes or No’ questions.

I don’t want to give it away, but I do want to share some of Warlick’s thoughts. Again, go to Warlick’s post and read the whole piece. It is worth the time!

Warlick got me thinking with this paragraph. How about you?

“I use to say that you should use the tool that was appropriate to the job.  If you can do it with a paper notebook and paper encyclopedia, then those are the tools you should use.  I’ve changed, though.  Actually the world has changed.  Today, our prevailing information landscape is increasingly networked, digital, and abundant.  Information behaves in new ways that are impossible in an exclusively published, print-based world.”

He goes on to cite examples and remind us of how today we have content at our fingertips – we no longer need to wait around for the 6:00 news or the daily newspaper to get our information. And Warlick contends, and others agree, that this shift has made it imperative for us, as educators, to rethink what it means to be literate.

What do you think?

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