iBooks Oops! Finding Limitations With iBooks.

If this project is about learning, then I guess I'm doing well. And if the root of all learning is making mistakes, perhaps epic mistakes, then I am excelling! Let me explain. 

I am an English teacher, and as an English teacher in an alternative setting, I am always looking for books. Not just any books, though. They need to be high interest (I have reluctant readers, mostly). They also are received better if they are new(ish). Perhaps most importantly, they need to be cheap - like most English departments, the book budget starts small and shrinks daily. Thus my excitement when the possibility of using iBooks came about. 

This near perfect solution would work in so many ways: they could be current; they could be high interest; and they could never be stolen/lost/damaged (we allow students to sign out paper books, but we do not let them sign out the iPads). It seemed like a perfect system, and I still think it will work out great. But I have identified an issue. 

I recently stumbled upon this issue in a round about way. Here's my story.

I started by preparing a list of books I wanted to buy, and I downloaded the samples of these books - this way I could peruse the material, determine if it was suitable for class, and go from there. So I chose a book - From Hell, a graphic novel by acclaimed artist Alan Moore. The reviews were convincing - the text was compelling (the story of Jack the Ripper), I liked the idea of using a graphic novel. Great. Until I got home one day and decided I had better read the whole thing - all I'd read was the prologue (what was included in the sample you can download before purchasing from the iStore). So wasn't I surprised when I read the 3rd page after the prologue, and found a rather explicit (if short) sex scene! Now my students are almost all over 18, so this may have been fine - if I didn't get a GRAPHIC NOVEL! 

Nowhere in the description to the book did it mention these types of scenes, it wasn't rated for Adults Only, and without the ability to browse through the entire book (as you can with a traditional book in a brick and mortar book store), I was taken completely by surprise. The prologue included a pair of old men talking and walking by the shore, how was I to know what was coming? 

Needless to say, my students won't be reading From Hell, at least not as part of their school library. I went through the iPads and deleted it from them all. Fortunately, iBooks doesn't require you to purchase a class set (up to 10 iPads can share one purchase - so a "class set" is much cheaper this way) - but I will be more leary going forawrd, particularly when it comes to buying Graphic Novels. 

Does anyone have any ideas for previewing eBook purchases before spending any money? Am I going to have to go to a brick and mortar store, peruse the hard copy book, then retire to my quarters and purchase the now vetted title via the iBook store. I think it's my best option at this point - I just don't want to spend any more money unnecessarily. C'est la vie. 

#ECOO12

I had the opportunity to attend this year’s ECOO (Educational Computing Organization of Ontario) in Richmond Hill this past weekend.  I went with the mission of learning as much as I could about how teachers are currently maximizing student assessment and feedback with technology, particularly with the iPads.  It was also an opportunity to hear about how the education paradigm is shifting...from the top-down, hierarchical “Sage on the Stage” model that most of us probably experienced in our elementary and high school to one where the teacher is a facilitator and coach; students can access anything they need to know in a matter of seconds, but they still need to learn how to be effective in their search for, and use, of information.  

But, to my concern at hand.  I learned about two apps frequently being used to collect student work and allow the ongoing feedback with peers and teacher, and even parents.  Edmodo (@edmodo) (http://www.edmodo.com) is a Facebook-like social media platform that teachers are using with their classes to collect assignments, provide automatic and digital feedback, and post in a safe, social way.  I was familiar with Edmodo a few years ago but the format seemed difficult.  I’m sure the honest reason is that I was afraid of the learning curve I would have to work on.  I will be having my students create accounts and join my site this week.  

Evernote (@evernote) (http://evernote.com/) is an amazing app, available for tablets and traditional computers, with the mission of “Remember Everything.”  As a teacher struggling to keep track of anecdotal feedback using the Notes app on the iPad...read that as, I could handwrite this just as quickly but I wouldn’t be able to read it later on, and I’d probably lose the paper...I was immediately interested in Evernote.  It was easy to find to download to my MacBook Pro and I also found the app easily enough through iTunes.  There are several add-ons for Evernote but I won’t get in to them this early on.  I can’t really describe Evernote with justice, so immediately from the application itself, “Put everything in one place - your notes, images, documents, web clips and audio notes. Find what you're looking for using our powerful search. Sync makes your notes accessible across your devices.”  Again, the app looks daunting.  I’m sure I will find myself frustrated at times this year as I will be learning Evernote alongside my students.  I think it will be good for us as a class though, and good to see that even as I experience frustration and the desire to quit, I need to stick with it for the good of the group.  Part of my contribution to this blog will be to document my learning and trials with these, and other, apps.

All in all, this was a good conference, with some presentations that floored me, and others that underwhelmed me.  I came away with a lot of information that I am still trying to distill.  Please use the hashtag #ECOO12 to read the ongoing commentary that happened with, and among, educators and presenters over the length of the conference.      

Making Progress...Slowly

So we have finally made the last step - we've been cleared by our board to go ahead, purchase apps, books, and films, and get these iPads into the hands of our students. We have been waiting to get cases, but since the roll out will begin with a very few number of selected students, we don't want to wait any longer to wait for cases to arrive. 

In hopes of minimizing purchase duplication we've decided to distribute our purchases. We've divided our 20 student iPads into two groups. All of our apps (paid and free) will be available on all pads, and any free iBooks will be available on all pads as well. However, we've decided to denote half of our pads (#s 1-10) as iBook pads (where we've placed our purchased iBooks) and the other half of the pads (#s11-20) as film pads. We set up two Turning Point iTunes accounts for this purpose, and will make purchases from those accounts accordingly.  

The iBooks has been wonderful. We have a desktop at the back of the classroom that we use for purchasing (signing in and out of itunes accounts as need be) and as soon as I purchase a book from the iBooks store it is automatically pushed to each of the iBooks pads (#s1-10). Some of the graphic novels took a little time to transfer - but not more than a minute. 

I wish the films were as simple. We are starting slowly with the films (because they cost more), and have only purchased two (Paul Haggis' Crash (2004) and Gary Ross' The Hunger Games (2012)). Everything worked very well during the purchasing - clicked "buy", downloaded them both to the iCloud, and they both showed up on the videos "purchased" file on the pads. But when it came to actually downloading the films onto the pads - we've hit a roadblock. Or, rather, a huge puddle of molasses. Now we are choosing to download these wirelessly (we have a rather robust wireless network here at the college) - so that may be slowing things down a little, but this is taking forever!

Currently I am monitoring 3 different pads as they download those two films - and it's coming up on an hour with moderate progress so far. The saving grace is that this, like many other 'teacher tasks' is likely   only onerous on the front end (we don't imagine we'll be purchasing films everyday) - but it is something to keep in mind. The thought that we'd be able to identify a students' interests, locate an appropriate film that also fit said interests (proper DI), download the film and hand the pad to the student. That clearly won't happen. 

It's not the end of the world at all - and once we get the 10 film iPads loaded we should be fine, but there must be a faster way. Any ideas? Is this the best way to accomplish this task? I feel I'm aging as I sit here. 

Cases Cases Cases

We've been shopping for the ideal ipad case for the classroom. Though there are a plethora of choices out there to choose from, finding the one that is best for your class environment might be a bit more challenging. We are testing a couple of bluetooth keyboard cases to evaluate their usefulness in the classroom setting. Early results seem to suggest that if you are just using the ipads within the classroom and on desktops then the keyboard cases can be quite useful. However, if you are moving around a lot with the ipad, or have to use it while standing or in unconventional environments then the cases tend to be a bit cumbersome.

A work around can be just buying a couple of cheaper bluetooth keyboards (tigerdirect.ca is cheaper than the Apple store) that can be interfaced with any ipad. Then you just buy some cases that offer protection and versatility.

Elementary, My Dear Reader...

I was excited when talk of my joining this TLLP project began.  I differ from the other members in that my teaching area is in the elementary field.  I had, at one point, considered myself a fairly tech-savvy person, but I lacked either the creativity to adapt technology into my daily practice, or, I didn't have the technology available to me.  I transitioned to a new school last September and, by some accounts, it is one of those schools facing the "app gap."  I tried making use of the Smart Board on the rolling cart but the lack of wireless connectivity, the need for a 50' ethernet cable, and the logistics needed to move desks and kids to enable the movement of that juggernaut around the classroom proved difficult.  We also have one computer lab shared with approximately 600 JK - Grade 8 students.  How could I help my students bridge into 21st Century Fluencies when I was lacking the technology piece?

Fast forward to this summer.  I began to look at the functionality of 1 tablet in the classroom.  Luckily for me, I had accumulated an array of people on my Twitter PLN (professional learning network) who had experience with tablets in the classroom.  There were also several people posting links to "1 Ipad in the Classroom" websites on Pinterest and other social media venues.  When the opportunity to utilize more then 1 tablet presented itself, I felt like I could embark on my own learning journey, help others in the same situation, and more importantly, help my students.

My focus for the use of the tablets in the classroom is two-fold.  First, and probably least important, is to cut down on the amount of paper used, and hanging, in my classroom.  I love chart paper but, being an adult with attentional and distractibility issues, it can overwhelm me.  If it has that impact on me, I can imagine what it means for some of my 9 and 10 year olds.  With students creating, solving, and sharing on the tablets, and recording or saving these endeavours, I could have evidence of their curriculum and learning skills progress that would be of benefit during reporting.  

The most important reason, and also the main focus of my contributions to this blog, is for me to increase the amount of feedback and assessment my students experience.  The more they are able to engage in that feedback loop of teaching and on-going assessment, they are bound to make stronger gains.  I was familiar with feedback early in my teaching career but it was certainly improved and heightened by this summer's reading of How To Give Effective Feedback To Your Students by Susan M.  Brookhart (2008, ASCD).  My goal is to give my students more, and better, feedback this year and it is my intent that the use of tablets will help me in this endeavour.  I look forward to your reading about my journey and welcome your comments and questions.

Brian      

To Tweet or Not To Tweet

Well, I guess we know where this is going. By now, most of us know what Twitter is, or at least we know that it exists. Like Facebook, and MySpace before it, Twitter exploded onto the psychic consciousness of my students far faster than I could adapt. Leave it to the TLLP to bring me into C21!

As part of this project we have added a Turning Point twitter account (@TPointHWDSB) - and we have been slowly learning how we can use this. Fortunately, the Twitter app for iPad is extremely easy to use and we have learned how to "socialize" without too much trouble at all.

For now we are using the Turning Point twitter account as an announcement tool - since we are only two classrooms within a much larger college, and since our alternating schedule means that we don't always see every student everyday, it can be difficult to inform all of our students about upcoming events. So, we use Twitter for that - with it we can 'tweet' out to quickly advise students about changes to the day, to celebrate milestones (credits completed, OSSDs earned, etc.), and for various community notices (job postings, college presentations, etc.). Since most of our students have either a smart phone or a computer (often both) at home, and because Twitter is used on both devices, it's a fairly simple way to get ahold of our hard to get ahold of students!

We are also considering using it as another curriculum delivery tool, but we have some reservations. Because it is such a new medium, the board is not yet equipped with a Twitter policy, and the only advice we've received from the scant teachers using Twitter in class is that it's important to ensure students only 'tweet' the school account with a 'professional' Twitter account. Sadly, because our students are often transient and usually scattered, this extra step has the potential to slow this process down to the point of making it cumbersome.

Thoughts? Any advice on using Twitter as a curriculum delivery tool would be welcome. 

Where to Begin?

These iPads sure are great...there are so many features, so many APPS, so many nifty things you can do with them to enhance both your work and play. But that's actually my problem. There are almost too many options! Actually, take out the almost...there are too many options. I do use it for administrative tasks, and have found it to be very user friendly and helpful, but in trying to figure out how to incorporate these iPads into my teaching I have come to feel overwhelmed and even lost, at times. I don't know where to begin, mostly because I feel like I need a year or so to get a handle on everything this spectacular little machine can do. And we all know that in a year, these will be obselete anyway, so I'd better get a move on.

I guess the best way to begin is just to begin. But then I get caught up again at 'where'? Searching, reviewing and rating APPS that are useful to my subject is an easy one, but that doesn't feel like I am taking full advantage. Another initial idea is to use Educreations to have the students teach me what they know on the topic...but I'll have to master that myself first. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about using the iPads. I just feel a little 'behind the 8 ball' so to speak, and I want to be able to maximize their use in my class. So it seems like the only thing to do is just to dive in. By the end of the month, I vow to have used an iPad with my students, to enhance my teaching. There, I said it. There's got to be an APP for that...

Gauging Progress

How do you know if you're getting enough done?

This is a question that is floating around the front of my head today. I suppose it's proof that the TLLP project is truly a rich learning experience; I am learning about a new technology (the iPads), I'm learning more about my students (how, specifically, they learn best), and I'm also learning about the specific tasks of completing a project like the TLLP.

We had a good meeting today. We stuck to an agenda (sort of), we divided up duties, we made action items, we attached completion dates to tasks, and we came up with a comprehensive list of future meeting dates (weekly updates and monthly/bi-weekly task specific meetings). But is this enough? For some reason we all generally feel somewhat frustrated that we are not further along.

Part of the problem may be the fact that our project is somewhat dependant on purchasing technology (iPads and the gizmos and gadgets that will maximize their utility as well as keeping them safe and secure). We've had the pads for a few weeks now, but until we get cases and keyboards we are reluctant to begin using them with our students yet. In the interim we have been getting to know the hardware and software, but there is still some disappointment that our students have not yet been able to weigh in on the usefulness of this new technology.

So here is our question: how do we know if we're maximizing this great learning opportunity? We've set a deadline of November 1st to get the pads in he students' hands, and between now and then we will work to develop iPad based experiences/lessons.

If nothing else, we are receiving a great lesson in empathy - our program is self-paced, which means that students are responsible for determining due dates for their work. Many struggle with this new task and struggle at the beginning until they learn how to be the masters of their own time. The fact that we are now struggling with the openness of the TLLP process is it's own valuable learning experience that will only help us better know our unique learner.

Just curious - is anyone else going through this?