Disrupting Class

Explain Christensen's Theory of Disruption

To fully understand Christensen's argument in Disrupting Class, it is important to know that the context for a disruptive innovation in any system is an untapped or underutilized market.  Basically, the organization implementing a disruptive innovation has no competition.  Christensen gives several examples of a disruptive innovation from the business world.  One such innovation was the introduction of the transition radio.  Although these radios were not very good, they filled a gap in the market because there were no other portable radios.  Consumers were willing to "put up" with inferior quality because the product filled a gap or void in the market.  Of course, these transistor radios improved greatly within a short period of time.

In education, Christensen argues, a huge void exists for students.  Education has been monolithic.  For the most part, all students are taught in the same way from the same materials using similar pedagogy.  Not much has changed since formal education began in the United States.  Computer education has not dramatically changed how students learn.  Many teachers use computers like electronic worksheets.  The only difference between using a computer and using a pencil and paper is the tool that students are using.  Christensen sees this as an under utilization of a technology that can truly revolutionize education.

Christensen paints an optomistic picture of what education could look like if technology were used to its fullest potential.  Students would have a very wide variety of courses from which to choose.  The courses would be fully integrated with other subjects.  Most importantly, the curriculum would be individualized for each student.  Based on the student's responses, the projectory of the course would change.  (Some of this technology will be used in the Next Generation Assessments that are part of Common Core Standards.)  Most importantly, the coursework would even allow students to participate in science labs and to simulate activities like building a brick wall.  These innovations will not take place overnight, but improvements will happen quickly based on market demands. 

Can you identify where this photo was taken?           

Invictus

The Leadership Lesson from Nelson Mandela that resonated most with me was the following:

Forgive and forget. When Mandela first took office, he noticed that the white staff are packing their stuff because they thought a black president would not want white staff in the office. Mandela hold a staff meeting immediately and told all his staff, “What past, past.” He added, “we need your help…we want your help…” Note that the white South African imprisoned Mandela for 27 years. So it took an extraordinary effort from Mandela to “forgive and forget.” and yet he had done it effortlessly and sincerely (at least that’s how the movie portrayed him to be).
http://roanyong.com/2010/09/07/10-teamwork-lessons-from-invictus/

I think that this lesson holds true not just for leaders, but for everyone.  If we refuse to forgive someone, it is almost impossible to move on with our own lives.  I often say that if a person holds on to grudges and to resentments, the only one who he is hurting is himself.  Why use your energy in this way?  Isn't it better to, at the very least, accept what has happened and then move on?  Right before I began this assignment, I an article that Gabrielle Gifford, through her husband Mark Kelly, told her shooter, Loughner, that she was finished thinking about him.  Wow, what an inspiring comment.  Gabrielle is basically free herself from the horrible experience that she went through.  She was a victim once, but she refuses to continue to be a victim.  She is allowing herself to go on with her life.  What would it be like for her if she decided to hold on to what happened and not forget it?  It takes a big person to move on and not to allow hate and resentment to take over.  This is true for Mandela also.  After spending 27 years in prison, you would think that he would want revenge on his oppressors ... but no!Gifford Story I believe that he found it in his heart to forgive and to move on.  If Mandela and Gifford can do this despite the horror that they experienced, we should be able to do the same. 


Gifford Story  Go to this link. 

CAPEA

CAPEA Reflection

My initial thought about CAPEA was that I was surprised that an organization of professors of educational administration even existed.  The more I thought about it, the less surprised I became.  I started to realize that it made sense for these professors to form a tribe to discuss issues that are relevant to their profession.  I thought that the conversation that took place was positive and represented a variety viewpoints.  Some people were a bit taken back by some of the comments that were made by members of CAPEA, but I wasn't.  I think that it is good to be open to the ideas of others and to give them proper consideration.

I was impressed by the work that some of the CAPEA officers had done during the year to improve the status and credibility of their programs.  Finally, the discussion on Ed.D and Ph.D programs was lively and interesting.  I shared a link on Edmodo about Ed.D and Ph.D programs that I hope that you had time to read.  My question is "What is the most widely accepted description of the difference between these two programs?"  Is it that the holder of a Ph.D is more research driven and the holder of the Ed.D is more likely to use his/her skills in a more practical way?  I'd really like to hear your thoughts on this question.
Peace Out,
Beto

PS  You can probably guess what the photo is of, but do you know the history of the subject of the photo?

A Different Spin on the SDCUE Conference

Many cohort members may be writing about the great sessions that they attended at the SDCUE conference.    They may be writing about how they are going to apply a great app that was demonstrated.  Some may even write about the great food and snacks that were made available to conferences attendees.  While these are all great topics, I am going to write about something that you can't feel or touch or probably even see.  I am referring to the social networking that took place at the conference.  Through their attendance at this conference, people were given the opportunity to connect and reflect with one another.  These relationships that were built will allow the for the fluid transfer of knowledge and even the creation of new and innovative ideas between and among these educators.  The power of these relationships may carry some folks through difficult or challenging times with the technologies that they are learning. An added benefit to this conference is something that Jeff spoke about in class.  Attendees, because of the technologies that are available to us, will continue to grow relationships related to this conference through twitter and other social networking applications.  Gone are the days when the conference ends when the last vendor leaves the exhibition hall.  Happily, the learning can go on and on.  There is no limit to the possibilities for collaboration.  The sky is the limit.    

What is a culture of generosity and how can it be used to improve education? What does it mean to say, "Free cultures get what they celebrate?" How can you as a leader affect what your celebrate?

A media blackout in Kenya resulted in a blogging.  There was too much information on the blogs.  Two programmers launched "ushahidi."They aggregated information on a map and made it public - crisis mapping.  They made it an open source platform.  It is deployed in other places as well - US, Haiti, and Mexico. Digital technology combined with  human generosity = cognitive surplus.
Free time and talent (over a trillion hours per year) + creating and sharing.  = new design resources.
LOL cats are also part of the abundant media landscape.  They are a creative act.  This might not be the best work, but the gap is between doing nothing and doing something.  Freedom to experiment is a good thing.  Erotic novels came before scientific journals with the advent of the printing press.
Design for curiosity is a big new theme.  Intrinsic motivation is important (See Drive).
 
Instances of late pick-ups at the day care centers.  Control group, late pick-ups = a ten shekel fine - late pick-ups went way up.  The fine broke the culture.  By adding the fine, parents understood that any guilt for picking up their kids late was gone.  Social constraints are sometimes more generous than contractual ones.  The culture that got broken by the fines, stayed broken.  Try to design for generosity. 

Cognitive research rests on the idea that people like to create and share.  Communal value is everywhere.  Ushahidi has civic value - to make life better for society.

There are a trillion hours of participatory value up for grabs.  Organizations designed around a culture of generosity have great possibilities.  Free cultures get what they celebrate.

A culture of generosity definitely exists in education, especially with the emergence of Common Core State Standards (CCSS).  Now more than ever, districts around the country are sharing their work on the implementation of CCSS.  There are quality sites, too numerous to mention, that offer a "virtual" myriad of resources for students, parents, teachers, and administrators.  When I think back to a time before computers were part of our everyday lives, it was very difficult to share curriculum with other teachers.  Teachers seem very willing now to share lesson plans with others through teacher-established websites and blogs. 

Platforms such as Safari Montage are great for storing digital information and for sharing curriculum with other teachers.  In SDUSD teachers can design lessons, share them with other teachers and rate the lessons.  This is an example of how a school district can get what they celebrate.  We celebrate the accomplishments of teachers through Safari and we get more content with higher quality to share with more and more teachers. 

As a leader, the first step in this process of teaching teachers to celebrate a culture of technology is to give them the tools that they need to take part.  We need to give teachers computers that are up-to-date,  we need to allocate resources to trouble-shoot our technology when something goes wrong, and we need to provide quality professional development that teaches our teachers how best to use all the information on the Internet to improve and accelerate student achievement.    

This video is a few years old, but it does a great job explaining the algorithmic ways in which information on the Internet is personalized for us. . .is this good or bad? What do you think about this?

The video is well worth the time. . .please respond in a blog post

Facebook and google edit out search results based on what users choose to link to.  Other factors are used as well to determine what google links users to.  Different users get different results based on the algorithms that facebook and google use.  Yahoo news, Huffington Post and others use these algorithms also.  The Internet tailors results for individuals.  A "filter bubble" is the user's unique world of information.  Users don't know what else is available out there.  Netflex is an example of how these algorithms are operationalized in a better way.  The best editing gives us a better information diet.  We are going from human gatekeepers to algorithmic ones.  Algorithms have no ethics.  We need sites like TED that show both sides of an issue.  We need the new gatekeepers to encode a sense of civic responsibility into them.  Users need to have some control over what gets through and what doesn't.  We need to be connected to new people and new ideas.  We should not be isolated into a web of one.

I completely understand the point that is being made in this TED Talk.  Isn't there a simple solution like allowing users to check a box in order to get "Wildcard" results for a search?  I know that this video is a couple of years old.  I wonder what has changed since then?  I don't see any evil intent behind using the alorithms.  I think that it is just the programers way of making search results more relevant.  Nonetheless, users should be able to get results that are not tailored or personalized for individuals without having the option to see more. 

By the way, have you noticed that if you do an Internet search for some type of product, you get a million emails from companies trying to sell you that product?  Also, you get a bunch of ads related to the product that I searched for!  This is very annoying.  Can I turn that function off?   
 

Drive Questions From Mr. Nelson

Discuss a time when you’ve seen one of the seven deadly flaws of carrots and sticks in action. What lessons might you or others learn from the experience? Have you seen instances when carrots and sticks have been effective.

As you think about your own best work, what aspect of autonomy has been most important to you? Autonomy over what you do (task), when you do it (time), how you do it (technique), or with whom you do it (team)?...