Niceness or enabling: a fine line

I had the chance today to give a talk I don't often do - one about changing teacher attitudes toward technology. One of the sections examines the importance of "niceness" on the part the tech staff. Well, on the part of anyone for that matter. It's based on a corny old column.

I even promote niceness in my Machines book.

2.    It’s always, always, always better to be a nice person than an ass.
You will make mistakes at home and on the job. So keep this in mind: People will forgive your mistakes if you are generally a nice person; they never forget them if you behave like an ass.
One of my technicians once warned a teacher: "I am beginning to think it is easier to make you mad than to make you happy. Remember, you are a lot more fun to watch when you are mad." The teacher got nicer.

But after the session, I found myself giving contrary advice: "Too rapid a response to tech requests simply enables those who do not wish to learn how to diagnose and repair their own problems. Make a polite excuse which gives the person making the request 30-40 minutes to see if he can't solve the problem himself."

Tough love?

Here's another tough question: How do you deal with the teacher who "punishes" students by denying them access to the library or computer lab? I had no good answer for this question...

Is Technology Making a Difference? Update 5

These checklists are based on what I call the Johnson Hierarchical Technology Planning Model that looks something like this:

A more complete explanation can be found here.

Anyway, over the next 5 days or so, I will be putting my checklists for each level of planning on the Blue Skunk. I invite readers to please add, delete and/or comment to these.

Established Infrastructure
The district will have a reliable, adequate, cost-effective, and secure technology infrastructure that supports the learning, teaching, and administrative goals of the district. Indicators of success:

Effective Administration
The district will use technology to improve its administrative effectiveness through efficient business practices, communication, planning and record keeping. 

Extensive Resources
Technology will be used to provide the most current, accurate and extensive information resources possible to all learners in the district and community in a cost effective and reliable manner at maximum convenience to the user.

Enhanced Teaching
All district teachers will have the technology training, skills and resources needed to assure students will meet local and state learning objectives and have the technological means to assess and record student progress.

 Empowered Learners
All students will demonstrate the mastered use of technology to access, process, organize, communicate and evaluate information in order to answer questions and solve problems.

• Integrated curricular use of individual skill practice and simulation software titles
• Planned use of proven computerized instructional systems
• Integrated curricular use of subject-specific technologies such as science probes, graphing calculators, accounting software, and CAD programs, etc.
• Planned use of adaptive technologies for special needs students
• Planned use of reading promotion software (Accelerated Reader, Reading Counts, etc.)
• A written information literacy skills curriculum that includes grade level benchmarks K-12 in research and technology use
• Information and technology literacy competencies formally integrated and written into each content area course curriculum.
• Units at each grade level team-taught by classroom teacher and library media specialist tied to the curriculum and information and technology literacy curriculum
• Assessment tools for information literacy units
• Method of reporting information literacy and technology skill attainment to individual students and parents
• Method of aggregating information literacy and technology skill attainment and reporting results to board and community
• Plan for continuous assessment and revision of information and technology literacy curriculum
• Plan for teaching and assessing safe and ethical technology use by students
• Opportunities for students to participate in distance learning opportunities
• Other?

Is Technology Making a Difference? Update 4

These checklists are based on what I call the Johnson Hierarchical Technology Planning Model that looks something like this:

A more complete explanation can be found here.

Anyway, over the next 5 days or so, I will be putting my checklists for each level of planning on the Blue Skunk. I invite readers to please add, delete and/or comment to these.

Established Infrastructure
The district will have a reliable, adequate, cost-effective, and secure technology infrastructure that supports the learning, teaching, and administrative goals of the district. Indicators of success:

Effective Administration
The district will use technology to improve its administrative effectiveness through efficient business practices, communication, planning and record keeping. 

Extensive Resources
Technology will be used to provide the most current, accurate and extensive information resources possible to all learners in the district and community in a cost effective and reliable manner at maximum convenience to the user.

Enhanced Teaching
All district teachers will have the technology training, skills and resources needed to assure students will meet local and state learning objectives and have the technological means to assess and record student progress.

• Basic professional productivity skills for all teaching staff
• Basic Internet skills for all teaching staff
• Professional growth targets for teaching staff related to improving instructional practice
• Understanding policy and ethical practices regarding technology use by teaching staff
• Assessments to measure status of teaching staff competencies in technology
• Formal training opportunities for developing technology skills
• Just-in-time training opportunities for developing technology skills
• On-going mentoring, trouble-shooting and assistance for staff when developing technology skills
• Technology skill evaluation as a part of teacher evaluations
• Technology skills assessment as a part of hiring process
• Access and training in electronic gradebook use
• Access and training in curriculum system use
• Access and training in dataming/ warehousing drill down capabilities for individual students and groups
• Access and training in student information system use for grade reporting and attendance
• Access and training in creating on-line information for parents, students and the community
• Access and training in creating distance learning opportunities (web-based and/or interactive television) for students
• Other?

Empowered Learners
All students will demonstrate the mastered use of technology to access, process, organize, communicate and evaluate information in order to answer questions and solve problems.