Meme: Passion Quilt

 

http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/archive/bestof/

I am passionate about creating passionate students and teachers. I chose this picture since astronomy has been much on my mind lately. We are looking for funding to replace our high school's planetarium program with new hardware and software. It ain't cheap - about $60K for the package.

I've never been a big astronomy buff, but I was in awe of this new means of "exploring space." Imagine not GoogleEarth, but GoogleAllTheKnownUniverse. In a totally 3-D immersersive environment. You do go where no person has gone before - from Earth's atmosphere to a point so far away even our galaxy is but a speck of light.

We in education spend millions on dry textbooks, drill-and-kill software, inumerable paper worksheets, and useless testing. What if we took just 10% - or even 5% - of our budgets and spent in on things that actually got kids excited about learning - like an immersive trip to the stars, really good library books, educational games or field trips to interesting local history sites. What would be the ROI?

I've always found that people who want to learn are easier to teach. 

Steve Dembo over at Digital Passports tagged me with this meme. Thes are the rules:

1. Post a picture from a source like FlickrCC or Flickr Creative Commons or make/take your own that captures what YOU are most passionate about for kids to learn about…and give your picture a short title.
2. Title your blog post “Meme: Passion Quilt” and link back to this blog entry.
3. Include links to 5 folks in your professional learning network or whom you follow on Twitter/Pownce.
   

Jane Hyde, Rob Rubis, Rob Darrow, Sara Johns, and Susan Ens Funk are hereby tagged.

Beginning rubric 4 - word processing

This a continuation of the 2008 revision of the CODE77 rubrics - Basic level. An introduction is here.

III.     Word processing (1995)
Level 1    I do not use a word processor, nor can I identify any uses or features it might have which would benefit the way I work.
Level 2    I occasionally use the word processor for simple documents which I know I will modify and use again. I generally find it easier to hand write or type most written work I do.
Level 3    I use the word processor for nearly all my written professional work: memos, tests, worksheets, and home communication. I can edit, spell check, and change the format of a document. I can paginate, preview and print my work. I feel my work looks professional.
Level 4     I use the word processor not only for my work, but have used it with students to help them improve their own communication skills.
 

IV. Word processing (NETS I.A., I.B. V.C.) (2002)
Level 1     I do not use a word processor, nor can I identify any uses or features it might have which would benefit the way I work.
Level 2     I occasionally use the word processor for simple documents that I know I will modify and use again. I generally find it easier to handwrite or type most written work I do.
Level 3     I use the word processor for nearly all my written professional work: memos, tests, worksheets, and home communication. I can edit my document using commands like copy and paste, find, undo, and save as. I can spell check, and change the format of a document. I can paginate, preview and print my work. I can use tables within my documents. I feel my work looks professional.
Level 4     I can save my document as a text or rtf document so it can be opened by others who may use the same word processor I use. I take advantage of collaborative writing/editing environments when available. I use the word processor not only for my work, but have used it with students to help them improve their own communication skills.

 V. Word processing (NETS ?) (2008)
Level 1     I do not use a word processor, nor can I identify any uses or features it might have which would benefit the way I work.
Level 2     I occasionally use the word processor for simple documents that I know I will modify and use again. I generally find it easier to handwrite or type most written work I do.
Level 3     I use the word processor for nearly all my written professional work: memos, tests, worksheets, and home communication. I can edit my document using commands like copy and paste, find, undo, and save as. I can spell check, and change the format of a document. I can paginate, preview and print my work. I can use tables within my documents and insert graphics. I can save my document as a .pdf file. I feel my work looks professional.
Level 4     I can save my document as a text or rtf document so it can be opened by others who may not use the same word processor I use. I take advantage of collaborative writing/editing environments when available, including online word processors and wikis. I can suggest an open source word processor for those who wish or need to use one. I use the word processor not only for my work, but have used it with students to help them improve their own communication skills.

Other word processing tasks? Next up: V. Spreadsheet use  

Tech-free library schools?

In trying to figure out why the school library media profession has not had a bigger impact on the integration of technology, I suggested in a earlier post that sexism, schizophrenia and collaboration strategy may be some of the causes. But several off-blog comments suggested a 4th reason: schooling.

This comment was typical (used here with permission):

I did not want to go public and post this on the blog because I am a new graduate from library school and I'm looking for a job.  The postings about integrating the technology into the curriculum is so important.  However, someone should tell the folks training the media specialists how to do it!! There are no technology classes in library school; you learn as you go.  I had to be my own advocate and go to workshops on my own to learn how to operate things like Smartboards.  Library school does a great job training you for being a media specialist of the 70's but not for the 21st century. 

I have to say my own library program was BC - Before Computers. Well almost. I did take a 1 credit class on BASIC programming using a terminal hooked to some kind of mainframe at the University of Iowa in 1979. We also had a teletype machine and learned the skills of chemical photography, dry-mount pressing and laminating. (I think I got a D in the last one. Wrinkles.) 

As an adjunct faculty member for Minnesota State University, Mankato's library program, I taught Internet classes as long ago as 1992 or 1993. These were the days of the line interface, Gopher and "“FTP.SUNET.SE>get linc111.txt.”  The class got very excited with Stephen Collins from the University of Minnesota visited one evening with this amazing new tool called Mosaic. And the last class I've taught for MSU's library school was an online class on "Current Trends in Educational Technology" in 2003.

In other words, my personal experience has been the opposite of the young writer's above - that library schools (some anyway) are leaders in teaching new educational technologies.

Readers, your experience? What was good and what was missing in your library training in regard to technology? 

Photo from Drexel archives.