No subject
Sat Apr 5 06:27:57 EDT 2008
f the school is accepted, EVERY child in the school (or grade or group of c=
lassrooms) would get a laptop. What isn't clear to me is WHO decides what t=
ype of computer is purchased. Will it be the State Board of Education or th=
e individual schools?
=20
>Or will they understand that the XO hardware and software are designed for=
the mission?
=20
Let's keep in mind that this bill is NOT the "XO/OLPC Laptop Act". I attend=
ed a House committee meeting for this bill, and the Asus Eee and Classmate =
PC were on display along with the XO. Frankly, although I am a strong advoc=
ate for the XO and OLPC, I would like to see there be a mixture of machines=
purchased. After all, even OLPC states this is "an education project, not =
a laptop project." The bill provides for the acceptance of up to 300 school=
s into this pilot. Wouldn't it be preferable, especially in a pilot, to see=
a wide variety of approaches and see what works best?
=20
>Of course, they could buy every child a 1G or 2G thumb drive, on some scie=
ntific>instruments, or something. Do they even know that this is possible? =
Is>it possible under the terms of the bill?
=20
I don't see that being possible under the definition of "Low-cost laptop" l=
isted above.
>Furthermore the bill explicitly provides incorrect criteria for>evaluating=
the project.>>3 The report must include the>4 =
project's effect on:>5 (1) academic progress of stud=
ents who are>6 participating in the pilot project, as mea=
sured by>7 performance on assessment instruments;>8 =
(2) student progress in schools or classrooms>9 =
participating in the pilot project as compared with student>10 =
progress in schools or classrooms not participating;>11 =
(3) student performance on assessment instruments>12 =
required by the State Board;>>Items 1 and 3 specify the use of st=
andard tests for evaluating the>program.
=20
Yes, items 1 and 3 make me cringe - but in the age of "No Child Left Behind=
" (ack!), do you think any bill could be passed without that criteria?
=20
>If this bill becomes law, the education authorities will be>prohibited fro=
m evaluating the children's interest in learning,>whatever they learn outsi=
de the curriculum, or their progress in>collaboration, independent learning=
, discovery, creativity, or>problem-solving.
=20
I think your use of the word "prohibited" is too strong. The bill's wording=
says "The report must include the project's effect on...", it does NOT say=
"The report can ONLY include the project's effect on...". I won't digress =
into how nuts items 1 and 3 in the required criteria make me, but I agree w=
ith your sentiment that what truly needs to be measured are the improvement=
s in "children's interest in learning, whatever they learn outside the curr=
iculum, or their progress in collaboration, independent learning, discovery=
, creativity, or problem-solving." Successful pilots (in my opinion) would =
absolutely need to cause improvements in the areas you list!
=20
Just today, I saw an interesting article titled "Bloom's Taxonomy Blooms Di=
gitally" at techlearning.com (http://techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php=
?articleID=3D196605124). Toward the bottom of the article, it lists a new d=
igital taxonomy map that contains "new digital verbs". My strong hope is th=
at all pilots would have many elements focusing on the Creating, Evaluating=
, and Analysing portion of the taxonomy. The question then, one that I urge=
you and anyone else reading to help me answer, is what assessment methods =
and evaluation criteria would we use to determine if a project has been suc=
cessful on these levels? Even if the bill passes with the criteria listed, =
we would want to challenge schools to look for evidence of strong improveme=
nt in their students' performances in these areas. You will see below that =
I have an immediate need for a good list of assessment methods and evaluati=
on criteria for improvements in these higher order thinking skills.
=20
>We also have to be prepared for the>naysayers who will come up with every =
excuse not to look.
=20
Agreed, agreed, agreed. :-)
=20
>Calling or writing is easy. Building a movement is actual work. Who's>up f=
or it? Ask your children who have tried XOs how much of a>difference it wou=
ld make to them to have XOs in school before you make>up your mind. Don't f=
orget that the children can volunteer in this>project.
=20
Count me in for heavy lifting on building a movement! In the grand scheme o=
f things, passing the bill may be the easy part... I have purchased an XO f=
or myself, my wife, and (most importantly) my two children who are 6 and 8 =
years old. We have had our "oldest" XO for about six weeks now and the last=
one arrived early this week. During that time, I have already:
=20
- demonstrated to the principal at my children's school
- demonstrated to the technology instructor at their school
- demonstrated to the technology committee at the school
- loaned my XO to three other people who wanted to show it around to people=
at their elementary schools
- loaned my XO to three other parents who wanted their children to play wit=
h it
- given three presentations on the XO, OLPC, and Constructionism at Learnin=
g College Day at the community college where I teach
- recruited other college faculty to participate in the OLPC initiative
- taken my children and their XOs to the playland at a local fast food rest=
aurant (a crowd of children and parents gathers every time - while my kids =
demo for everyone)
- taken my children and their XOs to the local library (an interested crowd=
gathered there too)
- conducted three informal meetups at my community college to help support =
the fledgling OLPC community in the Chicago area (with others to come in Ap=
ril and May)
- conducted one mini repair jam
- presented on XO, OLPC, and Constructionism to students in a "Technology f=
or Educators" course
- proposed the creation of a laptop pilot project to the VP of Academic Aff=
airs and two deans at my college
- helped form a steering committee which will define up to four pilots at t=
he college for this fall (which was the outcome of the meeting with the VP =
and Deans - these pilots are where I need assistance coming up with good ev=
aluation criteria...)
=20
The best is yet to come! My son (6 years old) came up with the idea that he=
would like to have an XO at every station in his classroom one day soon (t=
hey have 6 stations). I am working with the kindergarten teacher to make th=
is happen - hopefully this week or the week after. My son played with a lot=
of the downloadable activities this week to help determine which activitie=
s they should have at the 6 stations. I hope to do something similar with m=
y daughter's 2nd grade class. My next goal after that is to try to get at l=
east one teacher from each grade level (K-8) to use these in their classroo=
m before the end of this school year. Ultimately, I would like to convince =
the school to purchase a low-cost laptop for every child in the school. My =
motto is "One child at a time, one teacher at a time, one parent at a time,=
one administrator at a time." I know, it's a long motto... ;-)
=20
My bigger goal is to work to establish a "center" at my community college w=
here we can support schools in our district with 1:1 laptop initiatives. I =
also hope what we do will be reproducible at other community colleges throu=
ghout Illinois. I am VERY concerned about the many issues you raised. My pl=
an is to be there to help schools if/when they decide to proceed with lapto=
p projects. I don't (yet) have official backing from the college, but I wil=
l work tirelessly to help any individual or group that wants to explore how=
education can be radically enhanced when every child has a laptop. I have =
a separate document listing my personal objectives for that center - I'm ha=
ppy to share a copy with anyone who is interested.
=20
I apologize if any/all of the above sounds like I am "beating my own drum".=
That isn't my intention. I simply want to show that one person can make a =
difference! The XO generates a LOT of excitement. However, we must demonstr=
ate "prudent haste" when translating that excitement into action. It is eas=
y for the momentum to get away from you, resulting in nothing more than "co=
mputerizing" the same old curriculum.
=20
We must work to define projects that produce valuable new ways to educate. =
Anyone proposing an OLPC-inspired laptop project should challenge themselve=
s with the following question:=20
=20
What can/will you do (educationally) WITH the laptops that you could not=
have otherwise done without them?
=20
If the answers generated for that question result in demonstrably more effe=
ctive ways for students to be better at analysing, evaluating, and creating=
then you have a great project!
=20
I'm sorry, I know I'm getting away from talking about the bill. My overall =
point is that there needs to be money to have laptops to have OLPC pilots. =
This bill provides that. If we can get the bill passed, then the really tou=
gh work is just beginning! The bill doesn't buy laptops, it provides an opp=
ortunity for schools to apply for funding to participate in a pilot. It wil=
l be up to US to be highly active in working with your local schools to dev=
elop successful proposals. We will also need to help teachers utilize the l=
aptops effectively after they get them and to help parents/administrators/s=
chool boards understand what "effective" is. Trying to load provisions for =
all of that into the bill could kill it.
=20
Best Regards,Larry
_________________________________________________________________
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<DIV>Hi Edward,</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I read your analysis of the Illinois Children's Low-Cost Laptop A=
ct and the scripted letter supporting it with great interest. From what you=
wrote, it seems you and I are in agreement on the end goals we are seeking=
. As a matter of fact, your thoughts seem to mesh with mine enough that I'd=
like to figure out how we can collaborate to achieve our shared objec=
tives. Before I comment on the other parts of your message, there was =
one part that disturbed me:</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face=3D"Times New =
Roman" color=3D#000000 size=3D3>>If we want to make this program happen,=
we have to learn how education<BR>>using the XO is supposed to work, te=
ach a bit of it to the legislature<BR>>and the public, and then make sur=
e that that understanding informs any<BR>>bill on the subject. This mean=
s that group members will have to learn<BR>>to demonstrate the process w=
ith real children, and show the process to<BR>>everybody who will pay at=
tention.</FONT></P>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </P></DIV>
<DIV>The point of HB 5000 is to establish a pilot project in Illinois for u=
p to 300 schools to provide every child in those schools (or a subset defin=
ed in the school's application) with a low-cost laptop. It would seem =
to me a pilot program is a necessary first step toward what you s=
eek - it is hard to show how education is suppose to work when ev=
ery child has a laptop UNTIL pilots have been run where every child HAS a l=
aptop. Your message seemed to imply a bill shouldn't be passed until all of=
this is understood. The point of the bill seems to be to fund a large-scal=
e pilot to get the answers you seek.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>You make MANY more points that I completely agree with. It is EXTREMEL=
Y important that the right criteria be established for project evaluation a=
nd proper training needs to be provided on multiple levels. However, there =
are also political realities in getting a bill passed that must be acknowle=
dged. Getting funding for a sizeable 1:1 low-cost laptop project would seem=
to be a critical first step toward everything else we care about. A large =
number of special interests are affected by a bill like this. Perhaps I am =
too pessimistic, but I don't think that the State Legislature could (or sho=
uld) force educational philosophies upon a school. The really hard and impo=
rtant work to instill Constructionism will be at the school level - school =
by school, administrator by administor, teacher by teacher, etc.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>You raised some questions:</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face=3D"Times New =
Roman" color=3D#000000 size=3D3>As usual, the Devil is in the details. This=
says nothing about how to<BR>choose the laptops. Will the authorities deci=
de to buy as much<BR>hardware as they can for $400 per unit?</FONT></P></DI=
V>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Three points from the bill seem to answer this question:</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>"A school or district may apply to the State Board for the establ=
ishment of a low-cost laptop pilot project grant for an entire school&=
nbsp;or for a particular grade or group of classrooms in a school."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>"The dramatic expansion of low-cost computing options and the wor=
ldwide reliance on computer technology for commerce, education, inform=
ation, and social interaction makes it ever more important to introduc=
e computing skills to students at an early age. Accordingly, the State=
Board of Education shall establish a pilot project to provide a low-c=
ost laptop computer to each student, teacher, and relevant administrat=
or in a participating elementary school and implement the use of educa=
tional software and computer skills training in order to improve acade=
mic achievement and the progress measures listed in subsection (a) of =
Section 20 in this Act."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>"'Low-cost laptop' means a portable personal computer suitable fo=
r use among elementary school-aged children, under $400 in initial cos=
t."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>From these points, it seems to me that schools apply for a project gra=
nt. If the school is accepted, EVERY child in the school (or grade or group=
of classrooms) would get a laptop. What isn't clear to me is WHO decides w=
hat type of computer is purchased. Will it be the State Board of Education =
or the individual schools?</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face=3D"Times New =
Roman" color=3D#000000 size=3D3>>Or will they understand that the XO har=
dware and software are designed for the mission?</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Let's keep in mind that this bill is NOT the "XO/OLPC Laptop Act"=
. I attended a House committee meeting for this bill, and the Asus Eee and =
Classmate PC were on display along with the XO. Frankly, although I am a st=
rong advocate for the XO and OLPC, I would like to see there be a mixture o=
f machines purchased. After all, even OLPC states this is "an education pro=
ject, not a laptop project." The bill provides for the acceptance of up to =
300 schools into this pilot. Wouldn't it be preferable, especially in =
a pilot, to see a wide variety of approaches and see what works best?</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face=3D"Times New =
Roman" color=3D#000000 size=3D3>>Of course, they could buy every child a=
1G or 2G thumb drive, on some scientific<BR>>instruments, or something.=
Do they even know that this is possible? Is<BR>>it possible under the t=
erms of the bill?</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I don't see that being possible under the definition of "Low-cost lapt=
op" listed above.</DIV>
<DIV><BR>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face=3D"Times New =
Roman" color=3D#000000 size=3D3>>Furthermore the bill explicitly provide=
s incorrect criteria for<BR>>evaluating the project.<BR>><BR>>3&nb=
sp; =
The report must include the<BR>>4 &n=
bsp; project's effect=
on:<BR>>5 &n=
bsp; (1) =
academic progress of students who are<BR>>6  =
; &n=
bsp; participating in the pilot project, as measured by<BR>>7  =
; &n=
bsp; performance on assessment instruments;<BR>>8 =
; &n=
bsp; (2) student progress i=
n schools or classrooms<BR>>9 &=
nbsp; participa=
ting in the pilot project as compared with student<BR>>10 &nb=
sp; =
progress in schools or classrooms not participating;<BR>>11=
&nb=
sp; (3) student performance=
on assessment instruments<BR>>12 &nb=
sp; required by=
the State Board;<BR>><BR>>Items 1 and 3 specify the use of standard =
tests for evaluating the<BR>>program.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Yes, items 1 and 3 make me cringe - but in the age of "No Child Left B=
ehind" (ack!), do you think any bill could be passed without that criteria?=
</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT face=3D"Times New =
Roman" color=3D#000000 size=3D3>>If this bill becomes law, the education=
authorities will be<BR>>prohibited from evaluating the children's inter=
est in learning,<BR>>whatever they learn outside the curriculum, or thei=
r progress in<BR>>collaboration, independent learning, discovery, creati=
vity, or<BR>>problem-solving.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I think your use of the word "prohibited" is too strong. The bill's wo=
rding says "The report must include the project's effect on...", it does NO=
T say "The report can ONLY include the project's effect on...". I=
won't digress into how nuts items 1 and 3 in the required criteria make me=
, but I agree with your sentiment that what truly needs to be measured are =
the improvements in "children's interest in learning, whatever they learn o=
utside the curriculum, or their progress in collaboration, independent lear=
ning, discovery, creativity, or problem-solving." Successful pilots (in my =
opinion) would absolutely need to cause improvements in the areas you list!=
</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Just today, I saw an interesting article titled "Bloom's Taxonomy Bloo=
ms Digitally" at techlearning.com (<A href=3D"http://techlearning.com/story=
/showArticle.php?articleID=3D196605124">http://techlearning.com/story/showA=
rticle.php?articleID=3D196605124</A>). Toward the bottom of the article, it=
lists a new digital taxonomy map that contains "new digital verbs". My str=
ong hope is that all pilots would have many elements focusing on the Creati=
ng, Evaluating, and Analysing portion of the taxonomy. The question then, o=
ne that I urge you and anyone else reading to help me answer, is what asses=
sment methods and evaluation criteria would we use to determine if a projec=
t has been successful on these levels? Even if the bill passes with the cri=
teria listed, we would want to challenge schools to look for evidence of st=
rong improvement in their students' performances in these areas. You w=
ill see below that I have an immediate need for a good list of assessm=
ent methods and evaluation criteria for improvements in these higher order =
thinking skills.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fa=
reast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast=
-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT color=3D#000000>>We al=
so have to be prepared for the<BR>>naysayers who will come up with every=
excuse not to look.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Agreed, agreed, agreed. :-)</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fa=
reast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast=
-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT color=3D#000000>>Calli=
ng or writing is easy. Building a movement is actual work. Who's<BR>>up =
for it? Ask your children who have tried XOs how much of a<BR>>differenc=
e it would make to them to have XOs in school before you make<BR>>up you=
r mind. Don't forget that the children can volunteer in this<BR>>project=
.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Count me in for heavy lifting on building a movement! In the grand sch=
eme of things, passing the bill may be the easy part... I have purchased an=
XO for myself, my wife, and (most importantly) my two children who are 6 a=
nd 8 years old. We have had our "oldest" XO for about six weeks now and the=
last one arrived early this week. During that time, I have already:</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>- demonstrated to the principal at my children's school</DIV>
<DIV>- demonstrated to the technology instructor at their school</DIV>
<DIV>- demonstrated to the technology committee at the school</DIV>
<DIV>- loaned my XO to three other people who wanted to show it around to p=
eople at their elementary schools</DIV>
<DIV>- loaned my XO to three other parents who wanted their children to pla=
y with it</DIV>
<DIV>- given three presentations on the XO, OLPC, and Constructionism =
at Learning College Day at the community college where I teach</DIV>
<DIV>- recruited other college faculty to participate in the OLPC initiativ=
e</DIV>
<DIV>- taken my children and their XOs to the playland at a local fast food=
restaurant (a crowd of children and parents gathers every time - while my =
kids demo for everyone)</DIV>
<DIV>- taken my children and their XOs to the local library (an interested =
crowd gathered there too)</DIV>
<DIV>- conducted three informal meetups at my community college to help sup=
port the fledgling OLPC community in the Chicago area (with others to come =
in April and May)</DIV>
<DIV>- conducted one mini repair jam</DIV>
<DIV>- presented on XO, OLPC, and Constructionism to students in a "Technol=
ogy for Educators" course</DIV>
<DIV>- proposed the creation of a laptop pilot project to the VP of Ac=
ademic Affairs and two deans at my college</DIV>
<DIV>- helped form a steering committee which will define up to four p=
ilots at the college for this fall (which was the outcome of the meeting wi=
th the VP and Deans - these pilots are where I need assistance coming up wi=
th good evaluation criteria...)</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>The best is yet to come! My son (6 years old) came up with the idea th=
at he would like to have an XO at every station in his classroom one day so=
on (they have 6 stations). I am working with the kindergarten teacher to ma=
ke this happen - hopefully this week or the week after. My son played with =
a lot of the downloadable activities this week to help determine which acti=
vities they should have at the 6 stations. I hope to do something similar w=
ith my daughter's 2nd grade class. My next goal after that is to try to get=
at least one teacher from each grade level (K-8) to use these in their cla=
ssroom before the end of this school year. Ultimately, I would like to conv=
ince the school to purchase a low-cost laptop for every child in the school=
. My motto is "One child at a time, one teacher at a time, one parent at a =
time, one administrator at a time." I know, it's a long motto... ;-)</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>My bigger goal is to work to establish a "center" at my community coll=
ege where we can support schools in our district with 1:1 laptop initiative=
s. I also hope what we do will be reproducible at other community colleges =
throughout Illinois. I am VERY concerned about the many issues you raised. =
My plan is to be there to help schools if/when they decide to proceed with =
laptop projects. I don't (yet) have official backing from the college, but =
I will work tirelessly to help any individual or group that wants to explor=
e how education can be radically enhanced when every child has a laptop. I =
have a separate document listing my personal objectives for that center - I=
'm happy to share a copy with anyone who is interested.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I apologize if any/all of the above sounds like I am "beating my own d=
rum". That isn't my intention. I simply want to show that one person can ma=
ke a difference! The XO generates a LOT of excitement. However, we must dem=
onstrate "prudent haste" when translating that excitement into action.=
It is easy for the momentum to get away from you, resulting in nothing mor=
e than "computerizing" the same old curriculum.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>We must work to define projects that produce valuable new ways to=
educate. Anyone proposing an OLPC-inspired laptop project should=
challenge themselves with the following question: </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> <STRONG>What can/will you do (educationally) WITH the lap=
tops that you could not have otherwise done without them?</STRONG></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>If the answers generated for that question result in demonstrably=
more effective ways for students to be better at analysing, evaluating, an=
d creating then you have a great project!</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I'm sorry, I know I'm getting away from talking about the bill. My ove=
rall point is that there needs to be money to have laptops to have OLPC pil=
ots. This bill provides that. If we can get the bill passed, then the reall=
y tough work is just beginning! The bill doesn't buy laptops, it provides a=
n opportunity for schools to apply for funding to participate in a pilot. I=
t will be up to US to be highly active in working with your local schools t=
o develop successful proposals. We will also need to help teachers uti=
lize the laptops effectively after they get them and to help parents/admini=
strators/school boards understand what "effective" is. Trying to load =
provisions for all of that into the bill could kill it.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Best Regards,<BR>Larry<BR></DIV><br /><hr />Going green? <a href=3D'ht=
tp://green.msn.com/galleries/photos/photos.aspx?gid=3D164&ocid=3DT003MSN51N=
1653A' target=3D'_new'>See the top 12 foods to eat organic.</a></body>
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