Happy anniversary to “nashworld.“  This post is the 65th of the year, and it comes exactly one year after my first post on April 21st, 2008.  Wow.  Looking back at that post, it was quite clear I was full of questions for the coming year of study and reflection, but very shy of answers.  In fact, this blog was initially titled “virtual southside” that first month.  My first plan was for this space to be a group blog to facilitate PD for our brand-spanking-new tech cohort starting in June.

Forming a purpose

Then I found Ning.  In one weekend, it was clear to me that this platform would be a far better, and more flexible, match for our school’s edtech PD mission.  It also served to bring some comfort for our staff in the world of social media.  Though we control membership to the site, it is certainly a more free-wheeling place than a simple group blog.  It was the decentralized nature of a Ning network that I loved.  I didn’t want to drive “virtual southside.”  I didn’t want anyone to drive.  I wanted to be merely another loud voice on a very enthusiastic and speedy bus.

So after a quick rename, nashworld became more of a personal place for reflection, sharing, and synthesis of thought.  I do drive this bus.  However, I had my first guest move up from the passenger section just this month.  Though I certainly do have an amazing passenger list here, this is where the metaphor breaks down, for the readers of this blog certainly help steer my thoughts and words with their comments.  To those of you who have put in your two cents here, I thank you greatly.  You have helped to develop many of the thoughts and beliefs I currently own.

Year One Archive

A couple of months ago, when I started to really reflect on what blogging has meant to me over the past year, I decided to create a different type of archive for the blog.  If you look up, you’ll notice that just to the right of the “About” page is a link to a new page entitled:  “Year One Archive.”  This page lists every post I have written over the course of the year by month-  with somewhat of an abstract-like summary.  I hope this provides yet another way to navigate the site.  It certainly isn’t a quick and efficient way, but it does provide a bit of a different approach.  The archive page also serves as an interesting chronological history of the past year.

Archaeo-blogology

In fact, after that first post in April…  I didn’t write another that month.  I didn’t even write one in May.  During that month I was working hard on both Virtual Southside as well as my first shot at social media for an actual course I teach.  June, my most prolific month, was the result of using the blog  to fulfill the requirements of a really lame online grad course on “educational technology.”  Truly the worst course I have ever experienced.  You can easily tell this by the lame posts and lame books and movies and edtech articles from five and ten years ago.  Jeeeez.  I wish I hadn’t looked back over those just now.

Things got much better when school started and I began to feel a true mission for the blog.  When November began, I followed along with Steve Dembo in his 30 Days to Being a Better Blogger adventure.  That experienced helped tremendously.  Also in November, I was actually even nominated for a 2008 Edublogs Award.  You can imagine my surprise as such a green little blogger, but that was no doubt extrinsically empowering.   I am certain to post several more reflective pieces on things I have experienced, learned and accomplished over the past year.  Stay tuned for those.  As soon as my grad program is completed in May…  I have a lot of things to explore yet.  Grad school, a new baby girl…  it’s a wonder I could pull off any of this at all.

To community

Most of all-  thank you.  Thanks for coming here.  Thanks for reading.  Thanks for commenting.  Thanks for joining in the discussion.  Thank you for helping to steer my personal learning mission over the past year.  I cannot thank each and every one of you enough.  The thinking I do about the things you say… is worth a graduate course in something each time.  In reflection over this past year, I can for certain that the biggest thing I have gained from blogging is people.  I now have current and future collaborators on from all over the country.  We have and will collaborate on projects that will no doubt extend not only my learning, but that of my friends and colleagues in Saint Joseph.  I am humbled by the professionalism, creativity, and generosity of people in this newly-generated community.  Thanks isn’t enough.

Artwork:

According to a teacher survey administered by CDW-G, a provider of brand-name technology to educational institutions and government agencies, the “use of computer technology translates into higher student achievement and improved parent-teacher communication.”

Like many survey reports, we are then presented with a laundry list of statistics that describe the tech-opinions of teachers from what seems to be a reasonably random sample. Right off the top, the highest percentage of respondents posting a favorable response were 85% of teachers who said that indeed, “classroom computers improve student performance.” Due to the nature of such a bland prompt, this is score is likely the product of many smaller factors working together. If we are measuring performance based on the many facets that make one successful in life today, this is highly encouraging. However, if in fact we are measuring student performance by the all-consuming NCLB test-score standards, one has to wonder why any other number matters at all.

So how exactly do we arrive at the 85% figure? Well, judging by the scant data presented in the article, we aren’t entirely certain. For example, the next-highest positive response (74%) indicated that teachers feel “computers improve students’ attention in class.” Considering that fact alone, many teachers might be compelled to say yes to the “student performance” question. 63% of respondents said that technology increased their communication with parents. Again, in a very loose sense, this fact could prompt a teacher to claim that this fact too increases student performance. Finally, 58% of teachers surveyed said that posting homework assignments online increased completion rates. And really, this one personally hits home. If I can remember childhood like I think I can, my parents having full access to all of my assignments that were due would have certainly shifted all of those lazy B’s into solid A’s.

However, the plain fact here is that none of those separate issues in question say a thing about “student performance” in regard to actual test scores. Now, I will be the first to speak up for the fact that test scores are certainly not the ultimate measure of student performance. But they are the only thing in this list that actually includes the content that our kids are (or aren’t) learning.

In my opinion, the most important information in the article concerns the feelings teachers have towards training for technology use. 76% of teachers felt that training is the key to increased technology use. In this increasingly complex world of education, this number makes more sense than perhaps any of the others. Digital immigrants need to be ferried over into the land of ones and zeroes. Training is the most important aspect of anything complex.

The final piece of this information contains an interesting tidbit as well. CDW-G also found a correlation between the number of hours of teacher training and their belief in the benefits of technology. What stands out as odd are the three categories which indicate hours of “computer training” in the past year. The three categories are “0″, “1 to 5″, and “more than 5″. 45% of teachers with no computer training felt they were beneficial for student learning, while 60% of those receiving five or more hours of training responded favorable for technology.

If all it takes to win 60% of our teachers is five hours of training in an entire year, then I think we can easily empower all teachers. What if five to ten hours of job-embedded training were built into the yearly schedule of teachers. This number, while still quite small by many award-winning professional development standards, is immediately doable and surprisingly effective.