Why I Fail.

Have you ever had a day when everything went right and you just patted yourself on the back when it was over?

Yeah, those days are few and far between. Often, if you are like me, your days are filled with a roller coaster of emotion as you hit each peak and valley. Some hours are filled with elation and you reach a goal and hit your mark, while others are filled with dread and contempt. 

Yesterday, I experienced something that I had not felt in a long time. FAILURE. 

Here is the set up: 

I was trying to teach a group of fifth graders about two software programs on iPads. One was a cloud service that enables classrooms to go paperless. The other, well, is Google Apps. I have prepared and I know my stuff, or at least I thought I did. As a teacher for over five years, I knew how to interact with students and help them out but for some reason, the wheels came off.

The kids got the tech, knew how to use the iPads, but when I tried to open a document in one app from the other, it stalled and they couldn't edit it. The kids lost it. Rather, I lost the kids at this point. Well, that was the whole point of the process. I saw the teachers face and after a bunch of kids tried and it wouldn't work, she pulled the plug and decided to do it with pencil and paper. As a sullenly walked about to my office, I felt something that I hadn't felt in sometime - utter FAILURE.

This failure felt like a jab in the stomach. I saw the teacher later, apologized that it didn't go as planned and thanked her for letting me try. I know why she puled the plug, and I don't blame her one bit. This was the second time she tried it. It didn't go well both times.

Teachers today don't have time to experiment and fail. They have SGO's they need to hit. The have new standards that need to be taught and mastered. They have new tests to get their students prepared for. They have 1001 things they are working on that to deviate from the plan and try things is hard. There is just no time at times and many districts don't allow for that flexibility because there is so much pressure on testing.

My failure to make that tech work or to make that class period successful was painful but I am determined not to give up. Real learning happens when you buckle down, figure out what went wrong, and TRY AGAIN. If Edison had given up on making the light bulb, well then I guess we would be reading this blogs in candlelight.

I saw that teacher in the hallway today and let her know that while that tech and ideas maybe didn't work, that she shouldn't give up faith on Google Apps and Ebackpack individually yet. They are great products that can really save you time. I let her know that I will work hard to find something that works well in her class and for her students. And you know what? She came back to me at the end of the day and let me know that she wanted some iPads in her room to help with leaning.

Why do I fail?

I fail because I love to succeed.

I fail because I know that it is the FIRST ACTION IN LEARNING.

I fail because I am human.

Check up time - First two weeks

Well. That was a whirlwind. 

The fact that two weeks of school are already over is mind boggling. I feel as if I just read 10000 books back to back to back. 

In any event, it has been an up and down few weeks. While the students and teachers are learning, we are hard at work, keeping the infrastructure up-to-date and making sure everyone has what they need. Even when we do room checks over the summer, there are always a bunch of little things that we need to fix - and that is okay with us. 

The media centers are bustling with students at all times of the day. Since our office resides right in one of the media centers, we get to hear and listen to the learning and excitement that is going on. We have over 50 iPads in the Media Center and students are always using them. They are using them to take Accelerated Reader quizzes, access their Ebackpacks, check out information, or just play a game or two. It is really quite something and it makes me feel great that we are going to embark on a BYOD initiative pilot program later on this year (but more on that later).

We held two, really great training's this week for our staff as well. One for OnCourse and the other for E-Backpack, which has been in our district for now going on three years. 

I love the team over at https://www.ebackpack.com/ . They are helpful and always willing to lend a hand when it comes to how to use the program. 

Our students love using the iPads with eBackpack and the integration with Google Drive and Dropbox make it so that students can truly access their items anywhere, at anytime. 

Finally, there are some really good conferences (or unconferences) coming up. One such is:

This PD event will be held on October 12th - more information can be found at http://www.edtechnj.com/

Check it out! Really great keynotes by +Jeffrey Bradbury of Teachercast and +Angela Maiers of the Passion Driven classroom are planned, so make it a priority to come!

The return of the blog! (2013 Edition)

After taking the summer off to relax and work on other projects (such as grad courses, raising baby, and you know, going to the beach), the blog is back and better than ever.

School started two weeks ago now (wow, where did the time go) and thinks have gotten off to a heinous pace. After a rocky start in which some things went down the night before the first day of school - because really, why wouldn't they - we rebounded and are making sure the students, teachers, and classrooms have what they need to succeed.

Another year under the belt means something else to me though - knowledge. Last year, we were working in new territory. We understood what needed to get done but not necessarily the best way to do it. Somethings we got it done quickly, other times it was a pain. But we learned. We failed. We grew.

I am happy to report that we have grown a lot. So much so, that we are rolling out a lot of new projects and products this year. Not only are we going to pilot a Bring your own Device initiative at our 5-8 Middle School, but we are also going to prepare for a PARCC test pilot, 1:1 pilot at the lower grades, and an expanded network to handle the load. It is going to be a crazy year.

That is why I came up with the GBTPS Technology Institute for the 2013-2014 school year.
I will be running, with hopefully many special guests from within and outside our district, a bunch of great workshops that are aimed at truly bridging the gap for EDTECH in our schools.

GBTPS Technology Institute 2013-2014

Take a look and let me know what you all think! If you want to be a part of a day, I would love to have you be a part of it and share what you do in your classrooms or schools. Please hit me up here or on twitter @MrCsays

Until next time, Carpe Diem folks.

App-O-Da-Week #6

Back by popular demand.... it's the App-O-Da-Week!

Thanks to all those who have been supporting this great movement over the last month and a half. It makes writing this and bring apps to you folks fantastic!

Again, because of the demand, we are bringing you not one, but TWO apps. One paid. One free.


Starting with the PAID, let's focus on an app that is breaking waves in education. It's allowing students to explain, well, basically everything. And wouldn't you know it, the app is called "Explain Everything," and for $2.99, it certainly does much more than that.

Folks are calling this one a game changer. Explain Everything allow a student to annotate, create, screencast, and share everything from anywhere. When they are done, they have the ability to upload it to one of many services we currently have, including E-Backpack or Google Drive. 

For those who want a more "techie" answer about what this app does, just look to what the maker, MorrisCooke, says about it:

"Explain Everything is an easy-to-use design tool that lets you annotate, animate, and narrate explanations and presentations. You can create dynamic interactive lessons, activities, assessments, and tutorials using Explain Everything's flexible and integrated design. Use Explain Everything as an interactive whiteboard using the iPad2 video display. Explain Everything records on-screen drawing, annotation, object movement and captures audio via the iPad microphone.  Import Photos, PDF, PPT, and Keynote from Dropbox, Evernote, Email, iPad photo roll and iPad2 camera. Export MP4 movie files, PNG image files, and share the .XPL project file with others for collaboration."








WOW - that's alot. It means that students aren't only creating, they are redefining and sharing what they have learned with others in a way that was never before possible. When looking at the SAMR scale of technology use in classrooms, this app is way up there at the top.

Eventually, students will be able to use this app to create fantastic screencasts of their work, share it with their teacher (who in turn will give feedback and give it back to the student) all in one fell swoop. No computer necessary!

With Common Core become law, there a ton of technological aspects in here that can be used to your advantage. Remember, Common Core has a lot to do with technology and assessments and wouldn't you know it, students can actually use this app as an assessment tool. Teachers can record their lesson plans, activities, and even them reading to the class all in this app.

There aren't many killer apps out there but if there is one that needs to be purchased right away, this one is it.

New Tech for the Break!

Over the past few weeks, our students have been taught about E-Backpack. As we move through the spring months, all students in grades 4-8 will learn about and be able to use this great service.

So what is ebackpack? Check out their site http://ebackpack.com to get a better idea! It's basically a way to teach, learn, and educate while not in the classroom. It gives our students a chance to participate and complete assignments electronically.

Here are some of our goals for this great service:

To increase student/teacher collaboration:
eBackpack makes it easy to share files with classes, clubs, and groups. Assignments are simple. Send students messages. Plus with online commenting, file viewing, and homework drop boxes it is easy to turn in homework, review it, and return it to the student.

To enhance the dynamic of our Parent Connection:
Enhance the home/school connection with visibility in your children's accounts. Parents can easily create an account and add their children. See their assignments, grades, turned in work, and more! Schools always maintain full control.

To give students a lasting E-Portfolio (digital portfolio) of work that will stay with them in GBTPS:
Quickly & easily set aside special files to create an online digital portfolio of your student's work! Track progress over time. Portfolio files stay with you year over year so that you can easily look back. Plus, digital portfolios are proven to increase student engagement!