Productivity Decoupled from Employment

Erik Brynjolfsson’s TED talk “Race with the Machines” has a powerful idea. Due to technological advances, human work has become decoupled from wealth and our productivity decoupled from employment. In turn this leads to an ineffectiveness of traditional ways of measuring the economy — especially as a way of viewing innovation.

http://www.ted.com/talks/erik_brynjolfsson_the_key_to_growth_race_em_with_em_the_machines.html

Lots to think about here. Another “distribution problem”? His point related to the industrial revolution is especially fascinating…. it took about thirty years (e.g. all the managers had to retire) for factory procedures to change when electricity was introduced. While the managers were in place, the factories ran as they had done with steam power – not taking advantage of what the new power source had to offer. The same 30-year cycle appears to be necessary to make best use of computers.

Are MOOCs an example? I certainly understand the arguments that MOOCs are incomplete. But couldn’t MOOCs be a valuable part of a new model, that includes teachers in a somewhat “guide on the side” role with the MOOC content being the central organizer. A different post-secondary economy would be required but maybe the new managers will see it that way — looking more at learning and less at the notion of formal education. Those who really hate MOOCs, often pointing to high dropout rates, lack of support and variable quality, seem to me to be missing the potential of MOOCs (or similar environments) to assist learning. Should we get rid of books since, after all, a person might start to read one, not like it and decide to move on to something else?

Update on May 6 – Bonnie Stewart’s interesting blog post!
http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/university-venus/not-hand
“….MOOCs started, in a sense, as a recognition that the credentialing equation was hollow…“

CEET Meet collections now launched on iTunes U.

CEET is the Community of Expertise in Educational Technology. It includes a grass-roots Ning social media site, http://ceetbc.ning.com, helping educators create, use and manage digital resources to support best practices.

“Join CEET to to get advice from experts, exchange ideas and resources with peers, ask questions/get answers, and discover ways to improve teaching and learning with technology.” You can do this via discussion forums, shared videos and other resources, and through CEET Meets, which are free and open online professional learning opportunities via Moodle. You can go to the site, join a current or upcoming Ceet Meet or view the archives.

Recently, a small handful of collections derived from recent CEET meets has been made available via iTunes U. I’ve had the privilege of working with Mark Hawkes on the development of these initial collections.

The way to access these resources is to
1. go to iTunes
2. pick the iTunes store
3. search the store for CEET (or Community Expertise Educational Technology)

As you probably know, iTunes U is based on the engine that was initially developed by Apple for music downloads. The iTunes music download experience is widely used and very familiar to many. The iTunes U brand has the benefit of being very recognized in the educational field and the number of collections will be growing in the near future as our plan is to create templates so that any CEET participant could create materials for iTunes U. The template would reference back to the CEET Ning site to ensure that iTunes U users would be aware of other CEET resources. iTunes U is great for content delivery, but lacks the social component that is important to CEET’s overall success.

iTunes U collections are accessed just as downloadable music would be via iTunes – on a computer or a mobile device. As their name suggests, a collection is a group of theme-based resources and can include PDFs, video files, audio files and each collection is accompanied by sidebar weblinks. Once a user has accessed a collection, in many ways, the environment is not qualitatively that much different from a website with annotated links.

It is important to note that CEET Meets are teacher-developed and the CEET iTunes U collections are based on these. The hope is for BC teachers to be directly developing their own iTunes U content at some point in the very near future.

If any of this is of interest to you, please go to http://ceetbc.ning.com

The CEET materials on iTunes U are breaking some new ground for Canadian Pro-D. K-12 content and postsecondary content suitable for teacher pro-D is widely available via iTunes U. This content comes from many parts of the world but Canada has not been a big player at this point so it’s an exciting time for Canadians to start becoming a part of this.

iTunes U and Me

A few days ago Apple/ iTunes U announced that it had opened its course development process in a way that is intended to encourage anyone to develop a small number of personal courses without any institutional verification. I’ve been working on a contract to rework some K-12 pro-D for delivery on iTunes U, so this has been of special interest to me.

• http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/

It’s an important change that’s described in several places:

• http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/new-policy-lets-anyone-post-materials-on-itunesu/38201
• http://www.padgadget.com/2012/07/26/apple-updates-itunes-u-app-for-ios-with-new-tools-for-teachers/
• http://www.theverge.com/2012/7/25/3187012/itunes-u-update-lets-teachers-skip-verification-process
• http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2407643,00.asp

The iTunes announcement refers to private courses – ones that won’t appear in the catalogue. That’s the opposite to the work I’m doing, where it’s hoped that many people will find our content through searches of the iTunes collections (which are different than courses).

It appears that students will access the private courses via direct links — and iTunes courses can only be accessed via an iOS5 device. For those of you who have explored iTunes U via iTunes on your computer, it’s important to understand that when you access content in iTunes on your computer it is from a collection, not a course. There’s definitely room for confusion here!

I recommend that anyone considering developing iTunes U courses (or collections) should spend some time looking through existing courses and collections to get a sense of how the environments work and how they differ from the idea of an LMS (learning management system like Moodle). iTunes courses now offer searching, sharing and other features — but don’t expect discussion forums or student assessment tools. It’s really about content delivery.

I’d love to communicate (via this blog) with anybody who’s planning to try this.

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Here are some links I’ve found recently, relating to iTunes U and some of the issues you might encounter if you’re developing content.

iTunes U General information:

Are universities reluctant to use iTunes U?
Summary: Is iTunes U a viable platform for school systems to implement?

• http://www.zdnet.com/blog/igeneration/are-universities-reluctant-to-use-itunes-u/16064

Charlie Osborne for iGeneration, May 5, 2012
Five things that could make Apple’s new iTunes U a winner
iTunes U may seem like an afterthought, but it could be the glue that holds Apple’s educational concept together.

• http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-31747_7-57362307-243/five-things-that-could-make-apples-new-itunes-u-a-winner/

Scott Stein January 19, 2012
Driving the Classroom with iTunes U
FEBRUARY 19, 2012

• http://speirs.org/blog/2012/2/19/driving-the-classroom-with-itunes-u.html/
• fraser@speirs.org

Resources related to having educators to create their own iTunes U courses or collections

• http://electriceducator.blogspot.ca/2012/04/how-to-build-course-for-itunesu.html
• http://www.cidde.pitt.edu/itunesu-create-content
• http://technology.pitt.edu/mobile-services/itu/itu-help-resources/itu-guidelines.html
• http://www.preston.ac.uk/index.php/itunesu-support

Focus on Search Engine Issues (obviously not applicable to the private courses):

The enigma of the iTunes app search algorithm
Andrew Cohen, 11/28/2011

• http://blog.brainscape.com/2011/11/the-enigma-of-the-itunes-app-search-algorithm/

What factors does the search algorithm for the iTunes App Store take into account? Does it place a higher priority on keywords, description, etc? Shane Kittelson, 2011

• http://www.quora.com/What-factors-does-the-search-algorithm-for-the-iTunes-App-Store-take-into-account

Alternatives to iTunes U
Massive online learning and the unbundling of undergraduate education

• http://benjaminlima.wordpress.com/2012/07/17/massive-online-learning-and-the-unbundling-of-undergraduate-education/

How curation tools can enhance academic practice

• http://markcarrigan.net/2012/07/05/how-curation-tools-can-enhance-academic-practice/

Ning’s new mobile version (for smartphones)

• http://creators.ning.com/forum/topics/ning-mobile-a-new-interface-designed-for-modern-smartphones

Science Communication

This video addresses a number of things I really believe in: the importance of science communication, kids learning the things they decide are relevant, the use of media to communicate, combining creativity with factual information, education provided in a loving manner……

Watch Alan Alda’s ‘Flame Challenge’ Aims to Communicate Science on PBS. See more from PBS NewsHour.

Thank You Alan Alda!

Generations

Over the past seven or eight years, as “homestay mom” to over a dozen high school kids (from Japan, China, Taiwan, Mexico, Thailand and Korea), and with kids of my own — I have been to a lot of graduation ceremonies. Bus service is good from where we live, so these kids have attended four different secondary schools in our city. Each school is a large urban facility and the graduating class sizes are always around 300 kids – sometimes more. The shortest grad ceremony I’ve been to was three hours long; the longest was close to five hours. I’ve had time to think about what these mean. And the “recognition ceremony” personality is different for the different schools.

I don’t like to generalize too much, but I’d say the overall public perception of these four schools is:

School A: an inner city school with a focus on arts and trades, not regarded as an ideal school (my own son went there and we LOVE it – but some of our friends questioned his decision)
School B: a very academically-oriented school known as one of the best in the province; as well as academics, it has a focus on arts and athletics (our daughter went here briefly, then she was home-schooled, and then she went to music college)
School C: an “edge of the city” school with a decent academic reputation as well as being recognized for athletics and environmental sustainability
School D: a school near the city’s university with a well-rounded program and lots of athletics

I’ve been able to compare the values that leap out in these schools and again, without generalizing too much, there is a noticeable difference in several things but one in particular is the ratio of how much the kids take charge of the final ceremonies. In some schools the teachers do it all but in others it’s almost completely up to the students. To me it seems that the two schools where students more or less completely planned and ran the ceremony were the schools “best-loved” by the kids I know. And one of the schools where the grad is much more teacher-organized happens to be a school that two of my kids didn’t like, in fact they transferred away from it, in spite of its great reputation. One is just making that choice and I suspect he’ll do well once he makes the change. The other was several years ago and he did do just fine – now happily at college. Obviously this is highly anecdotal, but I know which ceremonies I have enjoyed the most (never the teacher-planned ones).

I suspect it’s about the notion of perfection. Some schools have a philosophy that allows for more experimentation and more mistakes and they’re even willing to present themselves that way to the huge auditorium of parents and grandparents at the final ceremony. I think these are hidden values that are passed down. And of course here, in this city, the school you attend isn’t just based on where you live — it’s possible to choose a school outside of your catchment area. So a school with a specific reputation will attract different students. The perfectionist kids may well end up at the perfectionist school and they may be quite happy to not take the “risk” of a student-run grad. As always, education is a complex topic and there is no one “best” way.

But we do move through the generations passing along a set of values about learning, competitiveness versus collaboration and even the role of compassion. My bias is towards giving kids the opportunity to make mistakes even if they don’t present something perfect to the world. It’s how innovation occurs. At the same time, I want zero slip-ups when I’m at the dentist, so perhaps I’m not giving a completely consistent point of view here….. but I do hope my dentist has a hobby where he can make a mess and enjoy it! It may be about balance.

And, in a different but related train of thought, it is amazing how a human mind can protect itself by re-framing events. I was astonished to receive the gift of these dolls. They mean something that the giver may truly not understand at a conscious level and yet, from her, they are the most perfect gift possible (Vicky you know what I mean here! I can’t wait to tell you everything!)

SOPA and PIPA and random thoughts

I probably can’t — and don’t want to — change the world. The very nicest thing I’ve been told in a long time is that I influence others in a quiet way that often becomes apparent to them some time later. “Quiet” doesn’t equal high-profile world changer but it is definitely a mode of being that suits my personality. And I do want to actively participate as much as possible in the good change I see happening all around me so that’s why I’ve spent a career in education. I’m especially interested in the technology/communication advances related to social media.

I want to share
WordPress asks its 60 million users to help stop SOPA and PIPA

because I’m passionate about not losing the important freedom of expression we’ve recently acquired by being able to blog, tweet, share photos, videos, etc. We can use this responsibly without the being shackled by the harshness of proposed legislation. My childhood piano teacher (who I thank for giving me a view of education that was astonishingly progressive for a woman who was 60 years older than me) said “the freedom to swing your arm ends at the other person’s nose”. I get that we shouldn’t use the new communication tools, or any other tools, to hurt others. But let’s not tip in the opposite direction and lose all the potential for great sharing and learning.

Clay Shirky, as always, describes it very well:

And, keeping with the “what-impact-do-I-really-have” motif, here are three separate comments from the instructor evaluation in the most recent course I taught:

- She has a talent to pull student’s out of their comfort zone and to “think outside the box”. This was not a negative attribute in a Master’s level instructor and facilitator.

- I like the approach of letting us figure out things ourselves. My sense from the group is the majority don’t like that approach. The social constructivist approach to learning works for me.

- I wouldn’t let her train my Cocker Spaniel.

I guess I have the ability to make some of my students think and make others get angry. Of course I think the first student completely understood what I was trying to do and the second one I appreciate for being honest enough to let me know that he or she saw others in the group who did NOT want the opportunity to learn by doing. To that ‘Cocker Spaniel’ commenter, I just have to say that grad students shouldn’t require ‘training’. If I’m there it’s for another purpose altogether. My belief system is strongly oriented towards encouraging people to learn how to learn. That’s not generally what you do with dogs and it’s why grad school is not obedience school. I have never wanted to spoon-feed educational content to anyone.

Mynna, born, I believe, in 1895, would be close to 117 years old. She lived into her 90s.

Back to my childhood piano teacher…. she told me that the word education came from the Latin “educa” which she translated as “to draw out”. Nothing about cramming in facts! Thank you Mynna! You were a quiet influence that is still apparent to me all these years later.

Work / Life

One of the instructional skills workshop participants I’ve been working with blogged on the topic of work/life balance by saying the following:

“Do we find what we do to make money so onerous that we wish to compartmentalize it away from who we are? Is work the way to make money and life what we use the money for? Is work so strenuous that what we call our life must consist of recovery, recuperation and preparation for the next onslaught of anguish/work?” http://thedarkcorridor.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/iswo-blog-5/

These are compelling questions, and I think they say a lot about our workplace and our attitude. I’m not quite sure who I mean here when I say “our”– but I think it might be anyone who works in an industrialized setting.

Where do I stand on this? I’m someone who’s about to take an early retirement and by February of next year (that’s just a few weeks away) I’ll be “free”. I love education and want to continue working in the field and for me, taking the pension offers the chance to be more selective about the work I do. I hate to say it but a lot of my time right now in my instructional designer role is spent nagging because courses have start dates and things need to be in place on time. Contract work (at least the kind I have lined up) is much different.

Overall, once retired I may actually work *more* — and some of that work will be a new focus related to glass. the hobby that I’ve tried to cultivate over the past several years as part of my own “work-life balance.” So my vision is for lots of variety. That too, may be part of the real secret to work/life balance. It seems to me that the workplace benefits when workers have a range of paths and can choose to grow when they’re ready.

And I believe that through social media I’ll be able to continue growing, keeping up with and contributing to the world of education. Contract work is one thing but I will almost certainly want to explore areas that I’m not “contracted” to do. And I’ll have the opportunity. Unencumbered! Willingly!

I think the whole concept is closely related to what Clay Shirky sees when he talks about cognitive surplus.

One of my favourite quotes of Shirky’s

“We have lived in this world where little things are done for love and big things for money. Now we have Wikipedia. Suddenly big things can be done for love.”

http://elizabethtweets.wordpress.com/2011/05/07/what-is-the-value-of-openness/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_Surplus

(and my son is 19 today…. Happy Birthday to a fresh new grown-up person!)

Standardized Testing

When an adult took standardized tests forced on kids

@johnathanfields tweeted “Successful, educated adult gets crushed by standardized test for kids” when referring to this article, written by Marion Brady:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/when-an-adult-took-standardized-tests-forced-on-kids/2011/12/05/gIQApTDuUO_blog.html

It’s about a school board member, someone with “a bachelor of science degree, two masters degrees, and 15 credit hours toward a doctorate,” who could only guess 10 out of 60 questions in the math section, and got a “D” on the reading section of a test that is used for Grade 10 students.

He is quoted as saying “I have a wide circle of friends in various professions. Since taking the test, I’ve detailed its contents as best I can to many of them, particularly the math section, which does more than its share of shoving students in our system out of school and on to the street. Not a single one of them said that the math I described was necessary in their profession.”

Horrifying to think that a hugely funded education system has its focus on something that compels a huge number of students to leave the education system feeling like failures rather than supporting them towards lifelong learning.

Another blog post about the article:
http://journalofeducationalcontroversy.blogspot.com/2011/12/when-adult-took-standardized-tests.html

Josh Sternberg article on social Media

I found a lot to think about in this article from The Atlantic:

Social Media’s Slow Slog Into the Ivory Towers of Academia

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/09/social-medias-slow-slog-into-the-ivory-towers-of-academia/244483/

Here’s a quote (I love the concept of an information ecosystem):

“In communications, business, psychology, anthropology, sociology, and information technology departments across the nation, theories of social media — and how to teach it — are becoming more prevalent. Sarah Smith-Robbins, professor and Director of Emerging Technologies at the Kelly School of Business at Indiana University, teaches a course called “Social and Digital Marketing.” “We go over the theories behind social media: why do things go viral, the social theories of how people act and how they communicate to a network, or one person at a time, and why do certain tools work they way they do for us,” she says. With an obvious slant towards the professional, these theoretical questions help students grasp the fundamentals of social media, outside of posting personal status updates on Facebook or Twitter. Instead of understanding social media as products, students are encouraged to treat status updates as part of a larger information ecosystem.”

Note that among other things, the article addresses whether digital natives actually exist or not, it looks at those in academia who are opposed to social media and it concludes “that teaching social media through a traditional mode will not suffice.”

Educating the Heart and Mind

I wish I was in Vancouver today to hear Sir Ken Robinson again (I went to a session at UBC about two years ago and LOVED seeing him in person.)

His topic today will be ‘Educating the Heart and Mind’. I think this article gives what is probably a pretty good outline:

http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2011/08/23/tips-for-teachers-from-sir-ken-robinson/

and includes a quote from Sir Ken that I like a lot:

“…teachers have to take care of their own creativity. They have to enjoy what they do. It’s like any job – if you enjoy it, then you’ll overcome all kinds of obstacles. But if you feel it’s drudgery to start with, then you’re probably better not doing it. So my second suggestion is, are you sure you’re doing the right thing? Is this the life you want? Is this the job you want? Some people love it and some people don’t. People who don’t love it are often not terribly good at it in the long run. They’re not bad people, they’re just not good teachers. They should do something else. But if you are interested, then treat your art form seriously. Take time to study techniques of teaching, look at other teachers, be prepared to have people come and look at you, and do what people in other fields do: Be open to criticism and be open to learning and growing. If you’re a writer, you spend time reading other people’s work, you’re in the public domain, people will comment and you’ll be self-critical. It’s true if you’re a musician or a scientist. Often teachers end up living in their own world because that’s how schools work, so open yourself up to collaboration and be prepared to learn and take risks and challenges.”