Firehose Funnel

When it coms to digital tools there is literally a world wide web full of them.  As I started putting together a "digital toolbox" I was more an more overwhelmed.  The analogy of drinking from a firehose is a good one.  In my case I felt rather washed away by the stream of possibilities and was trying to grasp anything I could grab onto.  That is until I realized I did not have to re-invent the wheel.  There are many other teachers who are much more "tech-savy" than I am, and have had a great deal more experience wading through the seas of digital tools.  Thanks to the magic of networking I can tap into their knowledge.  I found web pages like EdSurge and the OER Commons to be especially helpful.  These sites were the funnel I needed to begin drinking from the firehose of information and digital resources available.  This is, of course, why personal and professional networks are so powerful and that was more concrete than ever with this lesson.

I was also reminded why it is so important for us to teach our students about these tools and also about discernment, collaboration, critical thinking, and all those other skills we have been discussing.  If this is overwhelming for us ad we have some idea what we are looking for how much more overwhelming would it be to students if we just send them into the internet without some tools.  I found that a site like symballo is very helpful in rounding some things up and presenting them to others (perhaps even students).  This is a tool I will definitely continue to use as I come across more tools I want to keep in my toolbox of ideas.  I may even encourage my students to create their own symballo pages to gather resources as learn. 

Check out my symbaloo toolbox!

It can also be helpful to use a rubric or other framework to discern what tools will be useful in your classroom.  Here is one I put together.  I call it the SANTA framework.

Students, Accessibility, Networking/Share-ability, Teaching and learning, Assessment

Questions	Y	N	N/A	Notes to add
Students         Are the students familiar with this tool?
Can students learn to use this tool with ease?
Does this tool pose an unnecessary risk or            danger to students or the school?
Will students be inspired by/enjoy using this tool?
Accessibility         Can students and teacher access this tool at school?
Can students and teacher access this tool at home?
Will this tool require additional costs?
Can this tool be adjusted to be accessible for         students with special needs/language
Is the time required for learning and using this tool             reasonable within the context of this class/lesson?
Networking         Is this tool conducive with student interaction?
Can this tool be used to publicly share students         learning?
Does this tool allow for monitoring/filtering         negative networking?
Is this tool useful to encourage the students digital         citizenship?
Teaching and Learning         Does this tool support the learning outcomes of         this project?
Does this tool support developing 21st century skills?
Are students involved in real, relevant, and           important work?
Can the teacher navigate this tool with ease and         understanding in an effective way?
Can content information be incorporated with this tool?
Assessment         Can authentic teaching and learning be          demonstrated?
Can this tool be used to demonstrate mastery of skills?
Can teachers use this tool to assess student learning?
Can students use this tool to assess their own learning?

Fear and Freedom

Digital citizenship, more than any other thing that we have discussed thus far, is the topic that I am the most overwhelmed by.    The idea of exposing my children (both my students and my own offspring) to the black hole of endless danger, misinformation, and corruption is downright frightening.  My intuition is to surround and protect not expose and release.   I would not consider myself an overprotective parent, except when it comes to the internet.  This is probably rooted most in my own lack of knowledge of and skill in navigating the vast network.    I know that this is not good for my kids.   The more I understand and experience the amazing possibilities of the internet, and digital technologies, the more I realize that I simply cannot control and protect if I want them to experience the power as well.  However, there are things I can do to prepare them to be safe, smart, and positive digital citizens.

I suppose this is true, and always has been, of all parenting (and perhaps teaching).  Our job is to equip, empower, and prepare children for a whole new world than the one we grew up in.  We are tasked with teaching and modeling how to be good citizens in all aspect of life, and then releasing our children and students into the world to live it out.  Sure, we will continue to be there to guide and encourage, but our goal should be to give them the foundation they need to navigate on their own.   There is power in freedom, and in the words of Spiderman, “With great power come great responsibility”.   It is our job to instill that responsibility.   I have also learned that, as with all things, as I gain new knowledge and skill in technology it becomes less and less “scary”.  I begin to see that while there will always be enormous and unknown dangers lurking all over the world wide web, with the proper preparation my children and student can harness many of those dangers and experience the freedom to tap into an amazing source of learning, growing, connecting, and discovering.  I am still scared, scared now that I will fail, that I will not adequately prepare them.  But I am determined to continue to grow and learn and fly with them.  It is a whole new world and we cannot afford to let our fear hinder our freedom or prevent them from being prepared for theirs.

To the end of preparing and equipping we (a colleague and fellow parent, Kyle Maddox, and I) have put together a few thoughts on how schools can work to inform teachers, students, and parents about how to be safe online.  Check out our presentation below:

Digital Citizenship Presentation