Can we still interact with other human beings?

I've been thinking quite a lot about human interaction and its current state in this technology rich world. When I was matriculating at the University of MN doing graduate work, I studied computer-human interaction and I've spent the better part of my adult life working with people and computers (and often both at the same time).

Today, I see people (sometimes myself included) walking around with their heads down and thumbs rapidly moving across virtual keyboards on tiny computers. How we don't have more sidewalk crashes and injuries, I'll never know. We certainly know about the risks of doing this while driving. Additionally, when I am out to eat, I am amazed at how many people I see with their faces in their smartphones when they are sitting across from or with other people. Have we lost the ability to interact face-to-face with other human beings? I hope not!

Recently, an article from the Minneapolis StarTribune was brought to my attention that addresses this issue to some degree. The author, Nathan Eklund, discusses the need to close his mental tabs before he is able to fully interact with humans after a day spent assimilated into the technology that is now part of our everyday lives. A very interesting read if you have an extra three minutes or so!

If it takes that kind of effort to actually engage in a meaningful conversation with our friends or loved ones, I'm worried!

I did also find an interesting new product introduced this weekend at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. You remember the boom boxes of the early 80's, right? It was the way people shared music at the time. People, most often kids, actually gathered together to listen to music and share experiences (of all kinds!!) Today, the kids walk around with earbuds stuck in their ears and sometimes share a playlist without any face-to-face interaction at all. Maybe this is OK, but it just doesn't seem right to me.

Enter TDK, a company I remember for their cassette tapes. They have released a 21st century version of the boombox that allows users to plug in an mp3 player or other USB device. I'm not sure it will catch on, but I'm glad to see someone still trying to support real human interaction.

TIES 2010 Conference Reflection

High time I get back to this blog and give it a little TLC. And, there's nothing like a good education technology conference to get the "geek" blood flowing again. TIES 2010 was a very good conference this year and I commend all of the TIES staff, presenters and others who worked to put it together.

I also was very pleased that it had a decidedly education focus this year. I know that doesn't sit well with everyone, but I take this opportunity to point out that everyone working in a school needs to understand that the kids are why we are here and we all need to be concerned about the education of our children (whether ours literally, or figuratively).

Sir Ken Robinson, a best selling author and internationally recognized expert on creativity, was the keynote speaker. He advocates creating an environment in schools where students' creativity can flourish and they can find their passions.  He points out that we have been stuck in a 19th century model of education. We have tweaked the process but certainly not transformed it.

I believe that technology must play a role in the transformation of education. We live in the 21st century with technology all around us. It can't be simply a tool to modify the same content we've always provided, nor can it be only a modern method for assessment. It needs to unlock a student's creativity and prepare them for a productive existence in the connected world in which they live. I also believe that we will make nary a dent in the system until we change the way we assess students. The reliance on high stakes tests that focus on 19th century skills is akin to stomping on the dreams of every child in a public school. The fact that we hold teachers accountable for students' performance on these assessments forces them to put aside any efforts to foster a child's passions and help them grow for the sake of covering what is "on the test." This may ultimately be the demise of our society. We must find a way to teach and assess 21st century skills for a global society.

All that said, take a look at the notes and materials from the many sessions at TIES 2010, and watch the following two talks by Sir Ken Robinson. I think you'll find it a thought-provoking and worthwhile experience.

Enjoy!

TIES 2010 Wiki

Sir Ken Robinson - 2006 TED Talk



Sir Ken Robinson - 2010 TED Talk

Technology TIPS done right!

I recently received a message from a Minnesota instructional technology group list that originated with Shawn Brandt, a technology integration specialist for New Prague Area Schools. He was describing some aspects of Picasa, an online, free image management tool. In the message, he shared his website that includes well organized lists and descriptions of technology integration tools, news, a few instructional videos and best of all, tip sheets for using many of the tools. This is a very nice resource that Shawn has created, assembled and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.

Technology integration folks out there, take a look at this resource. This is a great example of putting wonderful resources and easy to use guidance right in front of your users' eyes. Well done! Here is a link to his "TIP Sheets" page, you can easily navigate the rest of the site from there...

http://www.np.k12.mn.us/TechIntegration/?page_id=47

Thanks for sharing this resource, Shawn!!

Marc Johnson

YouTube vids without ads and suggestions

There is no doubt that YouTube has some pretty strange stuff. At times, very inappropriate for a classroom or any educational setting. However, there is plenty of very good, educationally sound material on YouTube as well. There are a number of reputable news outlets that utilize YouTube for posting their stories. Additionally, as we enter the mid-term election cycle, there will be a bevy of political content available as well (which could be good or bad!).

A member in the Verizon Thinkfinity Community suggested a website that will allow the user to enter the URL to a YouTube video and it will return a substitute URL (kind of like Tiny URL if you know how that works) that you can set a link to, email to yourself (or others), post to your blog (or other social networking site) and display the video without ANY of the ads or alternative content or suggestions.

It is called "Safeshare" - I've tried it and it seems to work quite well. I was able to paste the URL of a YouTube video into the box and voila' I had a new URL that opened in my browser and played the YouTube video without any of the extras - that can often be a deterrent to showing the videos in a classroom. Here is an example.

http://www.safeshare.tv/v/WvCIv5KCbeE

I have not tried this behind a firewall that blocks YouTube, so I don't know if it will bypass a filter. I am NOT an advocate of bypassing a filter anyway. However, if your school does allow YouTube, this is still a very useful utility to prevent any questionable content from accidentally being displayed when you want to use a YouTube video in your classroom, or, perhaps include it in a distance learning environment.