On day 2 of the ISTE Leadership Forum, we had a little bit of everything. The bad wasn't all bad and the ugly wasn't all ugly, but that doesn't make for a good title.
We will start with the ugly. I went to a panel discussion on Learning and Teaching:Powered by data use. I was really looking forward to this discussion because of my new position as Coordinator of Assessment, Data, and Grants. Unfortunately, this panel discussion consisted of little more than data talk in the ether without true plans of implementation. As stated in the opening keynote yesterday, vision without a plan is just a hallucination. Some of the good parts of the discussion were the disparity of autopsy vs. diagnostic data. This idea fits in with my idea of where I would like to take the usefulness of my position. There was a decent point made about the speed at which data can be collect and analyzed because of the collection being done in real time. The best message discussed was the role of the data coach to improve the communication between teachers and leaders. That makes the difference between assessment of learning and assessment for learning. What made this session ugly was the fact that is was a covert Pearson sales pitch with a panel including a Pearson employee and her former boss from CPS who is now a consultant. At least with the required industry meet-ups, you knew what you were getting into...I did have good conversations with some educators from Bloomington, Indiana who shared some of their data solutions and plans for implementation with me.
The bad was the I have an iPad, now what session. The initial description did not state that this session was for people who did not know how to turn on an iPad...as I learned in the session, you cannot turn it on with wine and soft jazz music! There was a good side conversation that hijacked the session on Airplay and Apple TV. Some very neat things that can be done! I got some beginner information that I can share with people new to the iPad, so that will be a benefit. There were some resources for evaluating apps in order to avoid the Carmen SanDiego Effect. (The CSDE is how in the early 80s teachers would do anything to include the game in their classes, even though it was not grade appropriate nor fitting with the curriculum.) Best comment was first use tends to become the entrenched use...don't fall prey to the razzle dazzle and prevent teachers from trying to twist their curriculum to make Angry Birds fit.
The good was very good! This was a panel discussion about the role and benefit of instructional coaches. Multiple things that I have studied before were reiterated and discussed in greater detail. This panel consisted of a tech director, a superintendent, and an instructional coach trainer. Big things from this discussion included how coaching has a spill over effect. The coach and collaborating teacher set the model for the school and others will see the benefit and want to be included. This build capacity of the building. Another big thing to remember is that the coach MUST be separated from the evaluation. This ensures the ability to make mistakes and learn from them without getting "ding-ed" on an eval. The coach cannot come in as the expert. They are coming in as a collaborator in learning and a questioner of the teacher to help them discover their own path toward better instruction. Most importantly is the role of the administrator in the coaching process: support!
I am looking forward to the last day of the conference for it will be good. I then get to drive from Indy to Springfield for a RT3 meeting...we might see bad and ugly again.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
10 things I have learned in my short time at ISTE's inaugural Leadership Forum
Here we go for about the 4th time of getting started in blogging.
Here 10 things I have learned in my short time at ISTE's inaugural Leadership Forum:
From the address by the board of ISTE:
From @chrislehmann's keynote address:
Here 10 things I have learned in my short time at ISTE's inaugural Leadership Forum:
From the address by the board of ISTE:
- Intelligent people who truly love to learn surround themselves with people from whom they want to learn.
- Intelligent people also correctly say "inaugural" instead of "1st annual".
- "True leadership begins with a commitment to students" -- Brian Lewis, ISTE President
From @chrislehmann's keynote address:
- Students have the ability today to create profound artifacts of learning.
- Students should have the opportunity to reflect on and direct their learning.
- "We NEED kids to be better than we are".
- The three major design influences for schools were factories, prisons, and churches.
- We cannot replace schools with Wall Street. High-stakes, one-shot testing does not meet the original vision of schools. Schools need to represent our Democratic ideals, not those of capitalism.
- Rube Goldberg has a larger influence in schools than imagined. Why do we keep trying to build a better multiple choice test or filmstrip?
- We have several challenges facing us to change schools:
- Leaders need to change the way teachers talk and model this talk. Students should never be the implied object of education.
- We need to ask questions that we do not know that answers to. That is the link between inquiry and care. In the same vane, we need to care about students, not care for them.
- Technology should be used to optimize person to person time. It should unite and connect...not isolate.
- Administrators, in particular, should understand this and remove themselves from their office for an entire day each week. Remember why we got into education in the first place. (See Brian Lewis quote)
- Schools need to be great places of passion: For teachers in guiding the learning and for students being an active participant in the learning.
- Students need to be synthesizers of information. Were current educators trained how to make this happen for students?
- Schools cannot be depositors of information. Learning needs to matter to students.
- True change happens when leadership develops a vision, models that vision for all, and sustains that vision with systems and structures. If you lead by majority rule, it is the best way to build 49% opposition.
- Leaders need to stop trying to fix the broken...we need to evolve.
- And above all, be one school. Don't have a 1 set of rules for students, one for teachers, one for parents, etc.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Oh the weather outside is...
Is it wrong that I have been in education for 14 years and still get excited at the prospect of a snow day?
It used to be the prospect of sleeping in or going back to sleep. Teasing my wife that she still had to go into work. Possible dropping the kids off at daycare and getting a nice quiet day at home...
Of course, now, with the new position, the idea of a snow day takes on a whole new meaning. Phone calls at 3 am from our building foreman giving me updates on snow removal and salting, any leaks in the building, which of his guys called off. Then dealing with initiating phone trees and ensuring that everyone is notified. Then dealing with the people who did not provide their contact information and they send off a nasty gram email because they did not get called and showed up at school and found it was closed.
But now, the snow is happening at the end of the day and we have to deal with cancelling activities, clearing the building, notifying parents, making sure that all students leave safely and orderly. We have cancelled the basketball games, getting everyone out and I get to pick up my kids and take what should be a quick 30 minute trip home and make it into an hour and a half.
I guess what goes around comes around...be safe and warm!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Getting settled in
Change is a challenge...that must be why they share so many letters.
I am starting to feeling like I am getting my sea legs in my new office, position, and school. Our IT guys got me a desktop computer. The phone jack for my desk is now operational. I am starting to learn people's names and quirks, as they are me. All in all, not so bad for week number 2 after starting in semester 2.
The "funny" thing is that I just went through the computer set up about 4 weeks ago in my old office. I was using a machine with what could not have been more than a Pentium 2 processor and after enough begging and pleading, I was given a new machine....after my assistant principal got one...and she didn't ask! But, all that is bygones. I spent the after noon at my old office getting all of the programs reinstalled on my computer, going back and forth with IT about my permissions, printer set-ups, scanners, downloads, etc. Finally got the computer running the way I like it and then I was given the new position at a new school. GREAT OPPORTUNITY, no doubt about that. Since I am staying in the same district, I asked if I would be able to merely move my computer to my new building and office. Since I have spent the morning setting up my new, new computer, that answer was no.
Now, with the newly working phone jack, I no longer have to do a 12 yard dash every time my phone rings. In my old position my phone did not ring that much. Now, it rings constantly and 90 times out of 100, it is because the person on the other end is not happy with something I or someone else did. That is the job and that is part of the change and challenge.
Coming into the new school at the beginning of the 2nd semester is the biggest challenge. Sure my office now has boxes all over the place, papers strewn, half-completed projects from my predecessor that need immediate attention from all sorts of people, but that is part of the fun. The hard part is learning who all of those people are. I feel fortunate that there are some people that I know and know me. There are others who want to tell me how things get done and the way that "we have always done them". It is a tough balance between tradition and stagnation.
I am thinking that my reading in Bolman & Deal will come in handy as I navigate through the 4 frames to maximize the working structures that are in place, fully realize the potential in the human resources, CAREFULLY navigate the political waters, and honor the strong symbols of a good school. But like I said, I am just getting my sea legs. Let's hope that outcome is much better that that Italian cruise ship.
I am starting to feeling like I am getting my sea legs in my new office, position, and school. Our IT guys got me a desktop computer. The phone jack for my desk is now operational. I am starting to learn people's names and quirks, as they are me. All in all, not so bad for week number 2 after starting in semester 2.
The "funny" thing is that I just went through the computer set up about 4 weeks ago in my old office. I was using a machine with what could not have been more than a Pentium 2 processor and after enough begging and pleading, I was given a new machine....after my assistant principal got one...and she didn't ask! But, all that is bygones. I spent the after noon at my old office getting all of the programs reinstalled on my computer, going back and forth with IT about my permissions, printer set-ups, scanners, downloads, etc. Finally got the computer running the way I like it and then I was given the new position at a new school. GREAT OPPORTUNITY, no doubt about that. Since I am staying in the same district, I asked if I would be able to merely move my computer to my new building and office. Since I have spent the morning setting up my new, new computer, that answer was no.
Now, with the newly working phone jack, I no longer have to do a 12 yard dash every time my phone rings. In my old position my phone did not ring that much. Now, it rings constantly and 90 times out of 100, it is because the person on the other end is not happy with something I or someone else did. That is the job and that is part of the change and challenge.
Coming into the new school at the beginning of the 2nd semester is the biggest challenge. Sure my office now has boxes all over the place, papers strewn, half-completed projects from my predecessor that need immediate attention from all sorts of people, but that is part of the fun. The hard part is learning who all of those people are. I feel fortunate that there are some people that I know and know me. There are others who want to tell me how things get done and the way that "we have always done them". It is a tough balance between tradition and stagnation.
I am thinking that my reading in Bolman & Deal will come in handy as I navigate through the 4 frames to maximize the working structures that are in place, fully realize the potential in the human resources, CAREFULLY navigate the political waters, and honor the strong symbols of a good school. But like I said, I am just getting my sea legs. Let's hope that outcome is much better that that Italian cruise ship.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Standardized Testing...the new game show?
Today was a bit of a tough day. I had a good day at my new campus and spent the second half of the day cleaning out my office in my old campus. While I do not have computer in my new office yet, I do not get the chance to do my digital learning during the day. So, I came home today from my first week in my new position and had a chance to read contributions to my learning from my PLN. Vicki Davis shared this video on Google+:
If you watch the video, the contestant admits that it is challenging to "do math sitting here [in the hot seat]". Having been on a televised game show myself, I can be sympathetic to the "hot seat" phenomenon. Having said that, it reminds me of the high pressure situation that we put our students in late April for our NCLB mandated test, the Prairie State Achievement Exam.
For those of you not familiar with the Illinois test, it is a two day test comprised of the ACT (day 1) and the Work Keys plus and Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) developed Science assessment. The scores from these two days of testing are mysteriously calculated into cuts scores to determine if juniors in high school meet or exceed state standards. Amazingly, Illinois uses a test (the ACT) for NCLB that is DESIGNED to sort students and leave some behind. But I digress...we can discuss standardized assessment at a later date.
It seems that NCLB gives schools 1 chance to "hit it big", like on a game show. The trouble is that as schools have to play the game to get students ready make it through the test the mathematics for this question is reduced to a trivia fact. There is no thought about Pythagoras and the 3-4-5 triangle that could generate a great discussion about mathematics and numeracy. I hope that as the CCSS take effect and change mathematics teaching in the early grades, there will be deeper understanding of the mathematics and we can change the game show created by NCLB.
Will high school math classes change form Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2/Trig to Math 1, 2, 3 and 4 with thoroughly integrated topics? Will students come into high school with better understanding of the fundamentals of math to spur deeper understanding in high school? Will there be better assessments that come with PARC?
We will have to wait and see. Until then...BIG BUCKS, NO WHAMMIES!
If you watch the video, the contestant admits that it is challenging to "do math sitting here [in the hot seat]". Having been on a televised game show myself, I can be sympathetic to the "hot seat" phenomenon. Having said that, it reminds me of the high pressure situation that we put our students in late April for our NCLB mandated test, the Prairie State Achievement Exam.
For those of you not familiar with the Illinois test, it is a two day test comprised of the ACT (day 1) and the Work Keys plus and Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) developed Science assessment. The scores from these two days of testing are mysteriously calculated into cuts scores to determine if juniors in high school meet or exceed state standards. Amazingly, Illinois uses a test (the ACT) for NCLB that is DESIGNED to sort students and leave some behind. But I digress...we can discuss standardized assessment at a later date.
It seems that NCLB gives schools 1 chance to "hit it big", like on a game show. The trouble is that as schools have to play the game to get students ready make it through the test the mathematics for this question is reduced to a trivia fact. There is no thought about Pythagoras and the 3-4-5 triangle that could generate a great discussion about mathematics and numeracy. I hope that as the CCSS take effect and change mathematics teaching in the early grades, there will be deeper understanding of the mathematics and we can change the game show created by NCLB.
Will high school math classes change form Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2/Trig to Math 1, 2, 3 and 4 with thoroughly integrated topics? Will students come into high school with better understanding of the fundamentals of math to spur deeper understanding in high school? Will there be better assessments that come with PARC?
We will have to wait and see. Until then...BIG BUCKS, NO WHAMMIES!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Copiers -- Possibly the new bane of my existence
As I am getting to know the staff at my new building, it is fortunate that there are some people that I know. One of these people is very friendly. As I was in her office, I noticed a stack of final exams and textbook samples. Jokingly, I said to her that with my new position, I do not have to worry about those things anymore and my life got much simpler with my new job. As I was having a good laugh near her expense, she said “Bob, I have 1 word for you…copiers”. And that is when something hit the fan.
For anyone who has ever worked in a school, you know that the one thing that breaks the most is the photocopier. Machines purchased for the school are typically smaller than what is needed and cannot process the volume or sheer abuse that faculty can dish out. People will try to copy pictures that are mostly dark and wonder why the fuser will overheat from too much toner trying to be processed. Staples jam in the machine. Colored paper is in the wrong drawer and a sheet of green or pink will randomly be inserted into your test. Staff members will begin a copy job and when the machine jams, leave it for the next person. The list goes on and on…and right on to my desk.
We have two machines in the copy room (and a few others, but those are not for general consumption). One machine in the copy room is for anyone to use; the other is strictly for our copy person. We are fortunate to have part-time person in the copy room. Her job is to process copy jobs for the teaching staff. This is meant to increase efficient use of time by the teachers so they do not have to wait for copies. All a teacher has to do is drop off the master and then pick up the final product the next day. The part-time person also has access to her own machine so this will hopefully reduce the havoc wreaked on the machines. She has had training and can handle most minor hiccups that others would leave for “someone else” to fix.
This system is a well oiled machine that has been in place for a number of years…long before I arrived. At the start of the semester the principal received a few emails about “problems” in the copy room and asked me to look into it. I found the copy room, met the copy lady, asked some questions and found that the problem was with our network printers and that issue had been resolved (I can talk about that one at a later date). After I met who I needed to meet and saw what I needed to saw, I sent out a carefully crafted email thanking everyone for my warm welcome and explain how copies should continue to run.
Then the emails came to me, directly. I guess I was asking for it by describing policies and procedures. Teachers asked if the 2nd machine would have the lock removed to they could use it all day. Teachers grumbled that they like to make their copies their way and need to make sure it is done correctly. Teachers just wanted to moan that machines are ALWAYS broken. I listened and carefully responded. Then watched the replies to my reply come in and respond carefully again. Some people stopped by the office…not to say hi or welcome, but to discuss the copiers.
One question…can I go back to exams and textbooks?
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
A new beginning
I know, I know…every year I look at my blog and say this is the year that I will take it head on. History repeats itself again, but with a twist. I was just appointed to a new position as Associate Principal for Operations. I am excited about this opportunity but this is a far cry from my experiences in the teaching and learning side of education. I was trained as a classroom instructor. I taught for a number of years and then became the Instructional Leader, dealing with the oversight of curriculum, budget, staffing, etc. Now I am responsible for oversight on the master schedule, counselors, deans, and the rest of the PPS department. Additionally, I oversee maintenance, security, kitchen staff, and my favorite…other duties as assigned.
This new position has come in the middle of the year to assist another campus in my district who had an administrator leave to pursue an opportunity of a principal-ship. I was flattered and grateful for this opportunity that the new campus and the district administration felt that I am ready for, and I am…this will be a big learning curve and I am ready to learn.
In the following weeks (not months) our district will face a new bell schedule (due to a decrease is class periods because of a necessary $10 Million budget cut due to a charter school), Illinois Senate Bill 7 and its implications on staffing and retention of staff, losses in funding, changing enrollments, new course offerings, completely rebuilding the master schedule (due to the reasons above) and much more. I will have to handle all of this in addition to meeting a new staff, balancing my way of doing things with the ever dreaded “this is the way we get things done here”, evaluating PPS, operating the building, being the sounding board for my principal, supporting all staff, handling crisis management (1st day back to school), and of course…other duties as assigned.
In those immortal words…Let’s get ready to rumble! With all of the challenges come opportunities, so it is going to be a GREAT year!
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Top Tools for Learning in 2011
Colette Cassinelli has been compiling a list of the Top 100 Tools for learning for the past 5 years. It is now time to contribute again. Please use the link above or the web address: http://www.c4lpt.co.uk/recommended/2011.html to add your thoughts and recommendations to the list. Below are my contributions. Do you agree with my top picks?
Top 10: (These are in no particular order)
Diigo - the ability to access and catalog valued web-based resources and file from anywhere with a connection is invaluable. Plus, the groups allow for targeted sharing and researching.
Plurk - I know that everyone loves Twitter, but Plurk is just as powerful, if not more, because you can follow a true thread of thought. More people should look into Plurk as a microblog.
Google+ - You want emerging...this is exploding. I firmly believe that G+ will make Facebook into the new MySpace (passe and over the hill). Plus, if G+ is included in Google Apps for educators, schools can run their own social network that is monitored for safety and provide some read education and experience in NETS regarding social networking.
Animoto - Such a great tool to introduce digital storytelling and one of the best ways to reinforce the concept of pre-writing!
VoiceThread - Collaborate on presentations, gather input, let students voices be heard!
Wikispaces - Easy to use, infinite in possibilities. The discussions tab provides an opportunity for sharing that thought development and the History tab can take care of any "accidental" deletions
Skype - Connect, collaborate...all for free! Great classroom resource to connect your students with the rest of the world!
Dropbox - File sharing and data backup that is easy as pie. Plus, the more people you get involved, the more storage you get for free.
Wordsift - Very similar to Wordle, but what I like is the linkage to visual images and a thesaurus for better vocabulary development. It emulates what our reading specialists are talking about.
iPad - Come on...iTunes University, Facetime, Digital reader/annotator, the list goes on and on...hopefully, when BYOD becomes SOP, iPad will have only gotten better.
Continue to share and contribute because we will learn together and change education to what it can be.
Top 10: (These are in no particular order)
Diigo - the ability to access and catalog valued web-based resources and file from anywhere with a connection is invaluable. Plus, the groups allow for targeted sharing and researching.
Plurk - I know that everyone loves Twitter, but Plurk is just as powerful, if not more, because you can follow a true thread of thought. More people should look into Plurk as a microblog.
Google+ - You want emerging...this is exploding. I firmly believe that G+ will make Facebook into the new MySpace (passe and over the hill). Plus, if G+ is included in Google Apps for educators, schools can run their own social network that is monitored for safety and provide some read education and experience in NETS regarding social networking.
Animoto - Such a great tool to introduce digital storytelling and one of the best ways to reinforce the concept of pre-writing!
VoiceThread - Collaborate on presentations, gather input, let students voices be heard!
Wikispaces - Easy to use, infinite in possibilities. The discussions tab provides an opportunity for sharing that thought development and the History tab can take care of any "accidental" deletions
Skype - Connect, collaborate...all for free! Great classroom resource to connect your students with the rest of the world!
Dropbox - File sharing and data backup that is easy as pie. Plus, the more people you get involved, the more storage you get for free.
Wordsift - Very similar to Wordle, but what I like is the linkage to visual images and a thesaurus for better vocabulary development. It emulates what our reading specialists are talking about.
iPad - Come on...iTunes University, Facetime, Digital reader/annotator, the list goes on and on...hopefully, when BYOD becomes SOP, iPad will have only gotten better.
Continue to share and contribute because we will learn together and change education to what it can be.
Wednesday, May 04, 2011
C&I 579 Reflection 3
Typically, when preparing for a PD session, I have a PPT plan in mind. I create the PPT with links and questions embedded. With this task, it was a lot more involved than originally thought. This session was developed by brainstorming an outline of what to present and how to educate and entertain. I developed a wiki with a multitude of resources and difference methods of presenting information. I made some presentations with Google Docs and had to solve me lack of animation problems. Additionally, I learned a new application, Jing, to do some screen casts.
My intent of the project was to introduce my participants to some of the ways that learning and the capacity of teachers can be increased. I think that my project meets the intent. What I have learned throughout this class and though my other classes in examining professional development is that true change takes a long time and even a four hour session can only introduce material.
While I was trying to demonstrate multiple techniques, I would probably try to be a little more uniform in presentation styles. Additionally, if I were presenting this information in person, for a live audience, I would be able to utilize some of the features of PowerPoint that are unavailable in Google Docs. Additionally, a lot of the presentation is emphasized by the enthusiasm and experience of the presenter. Just as in the classroom for students, there is the art of teaching that is just as important as the science (Marzano, 2003). I am satisfied with the information that my participants would be exposed to and begin to integrate into their instruction. Even with the voice over screen cast, there is the human element missing in this session.
My intent of the project was to introduce my participants to some of the ways that learning and the capacity of teachers can be increased. I think that my project meets the intent. What I have learned throughout this class and though my other classes in examining professional development is that true change takes a long time and even a four hour session can only introduce material.
While I was trying to demonstrate multiple techniques, I would probably try to be a little more uniform in presentation styles. Additionally, if I were presenting this information in person, for a live audience, I would be able to utilize some of the features of PowerPoint that are unavailable in Google Docs. Additionally, a lot of the presentation is emphasized by the enthusiasm and experience of the presenter. Just as in the classroom for students, there is the art of teaching that is just as important as the science (Marzano, 2003). I am satisfied with the information that my participants would be exposed to and begin to integrate into their instruction. Even with the voice over screen cast, there is the human element missing in this session.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
C&I 579 Blogpost 4
I love Dilbert Cartoons and my daily calendar always has an eerie coincidental alignment of topics to what is going on in my life. The above cartoon is no exception. I saw this cartoon after reading a blog post that hits "closer to home", as the author of the blog is my professor for C&I 579, Dr. Cheri Toledo. As she has endeavored to create a Tuesday Tool blog post, one of the items posted was the "How Millennial Are You" quiz.
I was surprised with my results on the quiz. Below is the comment that I made on her blog:
I got a 31 this time. I have found that it is because my parents were married for most of my life, I have no tattoos or piercings, and I did not receive a text message in the past 24 hours. When I took the quiz the first time I had received a text message (we don’t have a txt plan with my Blackberry) and I scored a 71. The quiz employs interesting metrics to determine the generation to which you belong. I think that this quiz might make an interesting introduction to a PD session.
If you would like to take the quiz, here is the link: http://pewresearch.org/millennials/quiz/intro.php
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| Direct Link: http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2008-04-09/ |
I was surprised with my results on the quiz. Below is the comment that I made on her blog:
I got a 31 this time. I have found that it is because my parents were married for most of my life, I have no tattoos or piercings, and I did not receive a text message in the past 24 hours. When I took the quiz the first time I had received a text message (we don’t have a txt plan with my Blackberry) and I scored a 71. The quiz employs interesting metrics to determine the generation to which you belong. I think that this quiz might make an interesting introduction to a PD session.
If you would like to take the quiz, here is the link: http://pewresearch.org/millennials/quiz/intro.php
Monday, March 28, 2011
C&I 579 Reflection 2
Up to this point in the class, I have been reinvigorated to increasing my PLN and seeking out new people with whom to collaborate. The Author C/C project got me reading some specifics on education with technology and the presentations by my classmates have gotten me intrigued to continue reading. I have continued to explore online resources and the shared links that people have submitted via Diigo have been helpful.
One of the things that I will not forget tomorrow is from the collaboration that I have had with my PLN and classmates. This communication has lead me to develop Google Forms that not only grade themselves, but also email the results to the taker with suggestions on how to do better the next time. I have shared this with my teachers and they are very excited to begin exploring and using this capability. I have further inquired to my PLN how to modify the java script to make the results a little more user friendly from the teacher side. If you are interested in seeing this form in action, here is the link. Don’t worry about the answers to the questions; just make sure that you have a correct email address so you can get your results.
With what I have learned in class, I will continue to share with my teachers and challenge them to examine their practices in their classroom. I want my teachers to continually find new ways to do new things while still exploring the content as prescribed by the district/state/Common Core State Standards. I hope that my teachers get as excited as I do when I learn about the new and changing resources that are available.
One of the things that I will not forget tomorrow is from the collaboration that I have had with my PLN and classmates. This communication has lead me to develop Google Forms that not only grade themselves, but also email the results to the taker with suggestions on how to do better the next time. I have shared this with my teachers and they are very excited to begin exploring and using this capability. I have further inquired to my PLN how to modify the java script to make the results a little more user friendly from the teacher side. If you are interested in seeing this form in action, here is the link. Don’t worry about the answers to the questions; just make sure that you have a correct email address so you can get your results.
With what I have learned in class, I will continue to share with my teachers and challenge them to examine their practices in their classroom. I want my teachers to continually find new ways to do new things while still exploring the content as prescribed by the district/state/Common Core State Standards. I hope that my teachers get as excited as I do when I learn about the new and changing resources that are available.
Friday, March 18, 2011
C&I 579 Blog Post 3
As I was reading through my Twitter feed, I found the article called "21 Things That Will Be Obsolete by 2020". The article was written by Tina Barseghian in the KQED Mind/Shift blog. After working through our project on creating a technology enriched learning environment, the list was quite intriguing.
My comment: I read your article after finding it on Twitter. There are some major, heavily anchored concepts and paradigms of schools that will have to be broken before these changes can take place. Won't it be wonderful when it happens? We should all try to imagine a time when students can have access to their "pocket computers" (smart phones) and perform research anytime they want. With that increase in access of information, imagine how the teaching would have to change! A movement away from facts and figures to creating and collaborating! Live the dream.
My comment: I read your article after finding it on Twitter. There are some major, heavily anchored concepts and paradigms of schools that will have to be broken before these changes can take place. Won't it be wonderful when it happens? We should all try to imagine a time when students can have access to their "pocket computers" (smart phones) and perform research anytime they want. With that increase in access of information, imagine how the teaching would have to change! A movement away from facts and figures to creating and collaborating! Live the dream.
Tuesday, March 08, 2011
Update to C&I 579 Blog Post 2
In a blog post based on an article about the death of blogging, I had a conversation continuer...
I received a comment by the author of the blog that I read:
Tim Holt said...
Thank you for keeping the conversation going. And thank you for visiting my blog out here in little ol El Paso
Based on the article and blog post, one of the challenges to blogging is the limited capacity for conversation. The use of comments can help continue concepts and connections of ideas. When commenting on a blog, make sure that you include a post to your blog website to begin gaining connections to authors. It is REALLY neat to have your blog referenced by someone that you do not personally know! See one of my references: (http://dangross.wordpress.com/2008/09/30/coming-home-and-inspiring-success/)
I received a comment by the author of the blog that I read:
Tim Holt said...
Thank you for keeping the conversation going. And thank you for visiting my blog out here in little ol El Paso
Based on the article and blog post, one of the challenges to blogging is the limited capacity for conversation. The use of comments can help continue concepts and connections of ideas. When commenting on a blog, make sure that you include a post to your blog website to begin gaining connections to authors. It is REALLY neat to have your blog referenced by someone that you do not personally know! See one of my references: (http://dangross.wordpress.com/2008/09/30/coming-home-and-inspiring-success/)
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
C&I 579 Blog 2
The blog that I read for this post was, strangely enough, about the death of blogging. Are U reading a Dinosaur? by Tim Holt in El Paso, TX and it was based on an article from the NY Times.
My comment that I posted was:
The article is an interesting point that as we "evolve" in our electronic communication, we now have students who view email as too slow of a method of communication. Twitter, which I value, and Facebook, which I use for personal communication, offer instant communication and collaboration opportunities. The blog, as a "slower" version of communication, may be on the same pathway as print media. We are looking at being able to edit and collaborate and develop ideas in a hyper-paced life style and while comments on blogs are interesting to read, they are not interactive like Twitter or wikis.
It is strange to know that we have a generation of students who have been so hyper-connected that blogging and email is viewed as too slow of a method of communication. Students today txt message and tweet to get instant feedback. Non-dynamic text does not stimulate students as books did for older generations. As educators, we will need to find ways to bring in more methods of quick feedback to maintain engagement.
My comment that I posted was:
The article is an interesting point that as we "evolve" in our electronic communication, we now have students who view email as too slow of a method of communication. Twitter, which I value, and Facebook, which I use for personal communication, offer instant communication and collaboration opportunities. The blog, as a "slower" version of communication, may be on the same pathway as print media. We are looking at being able to edit and collaborate and develop ideas in a hyper-paced life style and while comments on blogs are interesting to read, they are not interactive like Twitter or wikis.
It is strange to know that we have a generation of students who have been so hyper-connected that blogging and email is viewed as too slow of a method of communication. Students today txt message and tweet to get instant feedback. Non-dynamic text does not stimulate students as books did for older generations. As educators, we will need to find ways to bring in more methods of quick feedback to maintain engagement.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
C&I 579 Reflection 1
So far in the class, I have not had a change in attitude. I have been a large proponent of building professional learning networks as a new method of learning and discovery. When I started in teaching, I had made some websites and was familiar with instant messaging and online chat. Fortunately, I attended an administrator academy that reinvigorated my interest and drive in technology integration. Many of the early topics discussed in this class were topics with which I was familiar. I have enjoyed the opportunity to work with other educators, learning with them and exploring topics in more detail.
I selected C&I 579 for the specific reason of finding more of the academic research base that supports the integration of technology into instruction as a method of improving student achievement. The largest concept that has been thought-altering has been the exposure to TPACK. Being in the EAF doctoral program, I want to explore how the leadership of the school can develop this. I was excited when I began reading about this as a potential theoretical framework to my research. As I develop my dissertation topic more fully, I would like to discover how TPACK can serve as a model for leaders to follow.
As I continue in the course, I will continue my reading into the academic basis for technology integration, including 21st century learning and the NETS standards, as it relates to student achievement and the leadership needed to support those efforts.
I selected C&I 579 for the specific reason of finding more of the academic research base that supports the integration of technology into instruction as a method of improving student achievement. The largest concept that has been thought-altering has been the exposure to TPACK. Being in the EAF doctoral program, I want to explore how the leadership of the school can develop this. I was excited when I began reading about this as a potential theoretical framework to my research. As I develop my dissertation topic more fully, I would like to discover how TPACK can serve as a model for leaders to follow.
As I continue in the course, I will continue my reading into the academic basis for technology integration, including 21st century learning and the NETS standards, as it relates to student achievement and the leadership needed to support those efforts.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
C&I 579 Blogpost 1
I am currently taking an instructional technology course as a part of my doctoral work at Illinois State University. While I have blogged before (sporadically), one of my current assignments is to review blogs of other educational technologists, comment, and reflect.
The blog I read was by Richard Byrne and discussed http://backchan.nl/.
The section of the blog that grabbed my interest was this: Backchan.nl is an open-source backchannel tool developed at the MIT Media Lab. Using Backchan.nl you can create an online forum through which users can exchange messages in response to a presentation they're watching. There are a lot of free services that do the same thing, but there are a couple of things that make Backchan.nl different. Backchan.nl allows you to select a start and end time for your backchannel. As the administrator of a Backchan.nl account you can create and manage multiple backchannels and schedule them to go live at different times. Backchan.nl also includes voting tools that participants can use to vote messages up or down.
My comment on the blog was: Thank you for this resource. In the past I have used Chatzy when I have done workshops or presentations. The polling option is a nice way that educators can gauge the level of understanding by students or the audience. Have you run into any major firewall problems? The chance to have the audience or students interact as a part of presentation really hits the 4 C's of 21st century learning.
While I have used other back channel utilities before, Backchan.nl presents some wonderful opportunities to educators as well as presenters. The benefits include polling options and more user controlled timing with start and stop times. When I have presented a backchat to a workshop group before, they were hesitant and questioning the attention span of themselves and their students. Once they realized that they could discuss unique aspects of my presentation, ask questions, follow related tangents, etc., they found that they were actual participants in my presentation and were actively learning, collaborating, and communicating without missing my message. It presents a powerful avenue for students to express opinions and find their voice within your class.
The blog I read was by Richard Byrne and discussed http://backchan.nl/.
The section of the blog that grabbed my interest was this: Backchan.nl is an open-source backchannel tool developed at the MIT Media Lab. Using Backchan.nl you can create an online forum through which users can exchange messages in response to a presentation they're watching. There are a lot of free services that do the same thing, but there are a couple of things that make Backchan.nl different. Backchan.nl allows you to select a start and end time for your backchannel. As the administrator of a Backchan.nl account you can create and manage multiple backchannels and schedule them to go live at different times. Backchan.nl also includes voting tools that participants can use to vote messages up or down.
My comment on the blog was: Thank you for this resource. In the past I have used Chatzy when I have done workshops or presentations. The polling option is a nice way that educators can gauge the level of understanding by students or the audience. Have you run into any major firewall problems? The chance to have the audience or students interact as a part of presentation really hits the 4 C's of 21st century learning.
While I have used other back channel utilities before, Backchan.nl presents some wonderful opportunities to educators as well as presenters. The benefits include polling options and more user controlled timing with start and stop times. When I have presented a backchat to a workshop group before, they were hesitant and questioning the attention span of themselves and their students. Once they realized that they could discuss unique aspects of my presentation, ask questions, follow related tangents, etc., they found that they were actual participants in my presentation and were actively learning, collaborating, and communicating without missing my message. It presents a powerful avenue for students to express opinions and find their voice within your class.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Change is challenging
The world's first tech support or, for community relations, bringing people into your transformation idea... (from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRBIVRwvUeE)
When I saw this video, I began to think, how do we get people to make changes? The old addage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" seems to be a working model for a lot of people with whom we may come in contact. For those of us who have been in the teaching profession for a while, we can remember a time when attendance and grades were always done by hand. (Possibly only the geeky math or computer teacher would do something using a spreadsheet...). Where you in the profession when the transition was made to electronic attendance and gradebooks? How much resistance was there? How many times did you hear the question, why do I have the change the way I am doing this? Or even better, I am retiring in 2 years, I am not going to change...
As I look at increasing community engagement, changing the public image of a district, or even incorporating technology into the classroom on a daily basis, there are some of the questions that I will have to address. It is funny that there are people out there that deny that evolution occurs and these are the same people who don't want to change with the times. Take a lesson from biology, species that fail to adapt to changing environments go extinct!
When I saw this video, I began to think, how do we get people to make changes? The old addage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" seems to be a working model for a lot of people with whom we may come in contact. For those of us who have been in the teaching profession for a while, we can remember a time when attendance and grades were always done by hand. (Possibly only the geeky math or computer teacher would do something using a spreadsheet...). Where you in the profession when the transition was made to electronic attendance and gradebooks? How much resistance was there? How many times did you hear the question, why do I have the change the way I am doing this? Or even better, I am retiring in 2 years, I am not going to change...
As I look at increasing community engagement, changing the public image of a district, or even incorporating technology into the classroom on a daily basis, there are some of the questions that I will have to address. It is funny that there are people out there that deny that evolution occurs and these are the same people who don't want to change with the times. Take a lesson from biology, species that fail to adapt to changing environments go extinct!
Monday, September 27, 2010
Getting back into the game...
My last blog post was on January 22nd of this year. At that point, I was trying to really get going with posting to the blog on a regular basis. Unfortunately, tragedy struck on Jan. 29 when my father passed away. After that happened, I just had some other things to deal with. While I miss Dad everyday, I have come to terms with the loss and think of him fondly.
One of the classes that I am taking for my Doctorate of Education is a seminar in Community Relations. Oddly enough, one of our weekly assignments is to post to the class blog on a topic of interest. This has got my blogging "juices" flowing again and I will be back in the swing of things.
If you read the blog, thank you to all 6 of you! Please pass it on and share. If you don't read the blog...this really doesn't apply to you then.
One of the classes that I am taking for my Doctorate of Education is a seminar in Community Relations. Oddly enough, one of our weekly assignments is to post to the class blog on a topic of interest. This has got my blogging "juices" flowing again and I will be back in the swing of things.
If you read the blog, thank you to all 6 of you! Please pass it on and share. If you don't read the blog...this really doesn't apply to you then.
Friday, January 22, 2010
US Supreme Court kills Democracy
Everyone should mark this day on their calendars and make reference to this day in the upcoming years in their history classes and on the news with a moment of silence. In a Court decision reported on January 22, 2010, century old campaign finance reform laws were over-turned. Quoted from the Chicago Tribune: “The basics of the Supreme Court's landmark decision on campaign finance:
OVERTURNED
—A 63-year-old law, and two of its own decisions, that barred corporations and unions from spending money directly from their treasuries on ads that advocate electing or defeating candidates for president or Congress but are produced independently and not coordinated with the candidate's campaign.
—The prohibition in the McCain-Feingold Act that since 2002 had barred issue-oriented ads paid for by corporations or unions 30 days before a primary and 60 days before a general election.
LEFT IN PLACE
—The century-old ban on donations by corporations from their treasuries directly to candidates.
—The ability of corporations, unions or individuals to set up political action committees that can contribute directly to candidates but can only accept voluntary contributions from employees, members and others and cannot use money directly from corporate or union treasuries.
—The McCain-Feingold provision that anyone spending money on political ads must disclose the names of contributors.”
(http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-ap-us-campaign-finance-glance,0,7496875.story, accessed Jan. 22, 2010).
So what does this mean? Extrapolating the effects of this decision our a few years, we will no longer have red and blue states. We will now have red and blue corporations; stores will have political ads running for the candidate that their parent corporation supports. We will see political candidates wear suits that are no longer maid by Armani, but by the same company that manufactures that coveralls worn by NASCAR drivers.
Just picture it, in the next presidential election it may not be a democratic candidate versus a republican, but a candidate sponsored by Target versus the candidate sponsored by Walmart. Can you picture the big emblems and patches on their new suits? What will this mean for news corporations? Why they have endorsed a candidate in the past, they certainly never placed a PSA that slung mud at the other candidate. Now, they can have the opportunity.
The new proper "Running Attire"
(http://www.sportscardforum.com/photoplog/images/21935/medium/1_Jimmy-Johnson-Lowes-Racing.jpg)
Even with McCain-Feingold (2002) still in place, the idea of stating who the ad is by at its end to “identify the bias” is like having something stricken from the record during a jury trial. Once the idea is out there and people have heard it, it becomes a little difficult to remove it from their memory. Having ads created by any corporation will not only put forth their interests into the political area, but will also serve as a source of more ad time.
It seems that the Cold War was about just this. Communist countries, while not big on the idea of letting all of the people have a say and being represented, did not want the people to be overrun by corporations and greed. Look at what just happened!
I see mock elections occurring for the next few cycles and then welcome to the plutocracy!
Now, while congressmen and other political figures have received endorsements before, there is a new wrinkle that gets added in…in Illinois, we elect judges. Now, the impartiality of the courts comes into question! “Your Honor, while I was speeding, please know that I spend over $30,000 a year at Target, which is a big supporter of yours, for various personal and corporate purchases. Do you really want to lose my vote?” How doe we get an anti-tobacco lawsuit now when big tobacco will be a major contributor to election campaigns? Which brand of cigarettes did the President quit? Did he just lose potentially a major contributor to his re-election fund?
With the influence of corporations now able to directly affect the outcomes of elections, democracy has just been killed. An individual no longer has a true voice in the country. Our representatives will now be jockeying for corporate sponsorships instead of talking the issues (which they barely do now). How can someone without the backing of a major corporation get equal exposure? How can the candidates represent our interests when they owe their seat to a big corporation? January 22, 2010 marks the death of our representative government, of the people, by the people, and for the people, and capitalism has clearly taken over.
On a positive note, clairvoyance has been proven to truly exist. Want to see the future? Look here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387808/ (Rent it, it is a good one, and eerily prophetic now)
OVERTURNED
—A 63-year-old law, and two of its own decisions, that barred corporations and unions from spending money directly from their treasuries on ads that advocate electing or defeating candidates for president or Congress but are produced independently and not coordinated with the candidate's campaign.
—The prohibition in the McCain-Feingold Act that since 2002 had barred issue-oriented ads paid for by corporations or unions 30 days before a primary and 60 days before a general election.
LEFT IN PLACE
—The century-old ban on donations by corporations from their treasuries directly to candidates.
—The ability of corporations, unions or individuals to set up political action committees that can contribute directly to candidates but can only accept voluntary contributions from employees, members and others and cannot use money directly from corporate or union treasuries.
—The McCain-Feingold provision that anyone spending money on political ads must disclose the names of contributors.”
(http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-ap-us-campaign-finance-glance,0,7496875.story, accessed Jan. 22, 2010).
So what does this mean? Extrapolating the effects of this decision our a few years, we will no longer have red and blue states. We will now have red and blue corporations; stores will have political ads running for the candidate that their parent corporation supports. We will see political candidates wear suits that are no longer maid by Armani, but by the same company that manufactures that coveralls worn by NASCAR drivers.
Just picture it, in the next presidential election it may not be a democratic candidate versus a republican, but a candidate sponsored by Target versus the candidate sponsored by Walmart. Can you picture the big emblems and patches on their new suits? What will this mean for news corporations? Why they have endorsed a candidate in the past, they certainly never placed a PSA that slung mud at the other candidate. Now, they can have the opportunity.The new proper "Running Attire"
(http://www.sportscardforum.com/photoplog/images/21935/medium/1_Jimmy-Johnson-Lowes-Racing.jpg)
Even with McCain-Feingold (2002) still in place, the idea of stating who the ad is by at its end to “identify the bias” is like having something stricken from the record during a jury trial. Once the idea is out there and people have heard it, it becomes a little difficult to remove it from their memory. Having ads created by any corporation will not only put forth their interests into the political area, but will also serve as a source of more ad time.
It seems that the Cold War was about just this. Communist countries, while not big on the idea of letting all of the people have a say and being represented, did not want the people to be overrun by corporations and greed. Look at what just happened!
I see mock elections occurring for the next few cycles and then welcome to the plutocracy!
Now, while congressmen and other political figures have received endorsements before, there is a new wrinkle that gets added in…in Illinois, we elect judges. Now, the impartiality of the courts comes into question! “Your Honor, while I was speeding, please know that I spend over $30,000 a year at Target, which is a big supporter of yours, for various personal and corporate purchases. Do you really want to lose my vote?” How doe we get an anti-tobacco lawsuit now when big tobacco will be a major contributor to election campaigns? Which brand of cigarettes did the President quit? Did he just lose potentially a major contributor to his re-election fund?
With the influence of corporations now able to directly affect the outcomes of elections, democracy has just been killed. An individual no longer has a true voice in the country. Our representatives will now be jockeying for corporate sponsorships instead of talking the issues (which they barely do now). How can someone without the backing of a major corporation get equal exposure? How can the candidates represent our interests when they owe their seat to a big corporation? January 22, 2010 marks the death of our representative government, of the people, by the people, and for the people, and capitalism has clearly taken over.
On a positive note, clairvoyance has been proven to truly exist. Want to see the future? Look here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387808/ (Rent it, it is a good one, and eerily prophetic now)
Friday, April 24, 2009
A challenge to you!
Today, I am at the Tech Forum conference. I really enjoy the instructional technology conferences because I am exposed to multiple experts, get to meet people face-to-face from my Professional Learning Network, gather new online Web 2.0 tools, although with what Clarence Fisher stated in his keynote address, we need to improve our pedagogy and curriculum and not focus on the individual tools, and just generally get invigorated about what can be done.
In one of the sessions, Beyond the Web 2.0 Hype, multiple questions were brought: Are there new literacies that connective technologies create? Or, do these tools afford the attainment of literacy in a different way? David Warlick: People want schools to be better, but not different. Do you believe this true? How does web 2.0 make schools better? Should ask what does it mean to be well educated in the 21st century? Are we teaching kids to communicate in the new methods?
These questions were challenging. Some of the answers were difficult to hear in terms of what we are doing compared to what could be done.
How can we bring the outside world into our classroom? It is with this question that I write this blog post...a challenge of mine own to the 4 people that read this.
For the people that read this, you are probably up to date (or more so than I am) on the newer things out there to increase student engagement in the classroom. I know that you share things. Here is the trick, how many people that you share things with will share with other people?
If you share and the idea doesn't go anywhere, it is like asking a question when teaching and getting the answer. Sure, it is nice, but it is better when you hear that your student went home and described how to answer the question to their parents of someone else in the class. That is when your knowledge has been passed and, in some way, provided you with a legacy. Your passion and knowledge have been passed to someone you have never met!
The challenge to you with your Internet knowledge. How many people have you reached outside of your direct contact? When you share your knowledge with someone, ask them with who are they going to share it? Let your knowledge become viral. Keep the SOCIAL in social networking and bookmarking!
In one of the sessions, Beyond the Web 2.0 Hype, multiple questions were brought: Are there new literacies that connective technologies create? Or, do these tools afford the attainment of literacy in a different way? David Warlick: People want schools to be better, but not different. Do you believe this true? How does web 2.0 make schools better? Should ask what does it mean to be well educated in the 21st century? Are we teaching kids to communicate in the new methods?
These questions were challenging. Some of the answers were difficult to hear in terms of what we are doing compared to what could be done.
How can we bring the outside world into our classroom? It is with this question that I write this blog post...a challenge of mine own to the 4 people that read this.
For the people that read this, you are probably up to date (or more so than I am) on the newer things out there to increase student engagement in the classroom. I know that you share things. Here is the trick, how many people that you share things with will share with other people?
If you share and the idea doesn't go anywhere, it is like asking a question when teaching and getting the answer. Sure, it is nice, but it is better when you hear that your student went home and described how to answer the question to their parents of someone else in the class. That is when your knowledge has been passed and, in some way, provided you with a legacy. Your passion and knowledge have been passed to someone you have never met!
The challenge to you with your Internet knowledge. How many people have you reached outside of your direct contact? When you share your knowledge with someone, ask them with who are they going to share it? Let your knowledge become viral. Keep the SOCIAL in social networking and bookmarking!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Save Men's Glee
I know that it has been a while since I posted to the blog. To be honest fatherhood, doctorate program and my job were keeping me pretty busy.
I have recently learned of a disturbing situation with an organization at the University of Illinois that is near to my heart, the Varsity Men's Glee Club. For anyone that knows me personally, they know that music has been a big part of my academic career and personal life. Recently, there have been changes to the audition policies of the School of Music that have "demoted" the VMGC to a third tier choir.
Please check out http://www.savemensglee.com to get the full details. If you are in central Illinois, please attend the concert at Foellinger Great Hall in the Krannert Center for Performing Arts on the U of I campus on April 25 at 7:30 pm. If you happen to be a VMGC alum, please get your voice heard through a letter, phone call or other communique. If you, the alum, can make it to the concert, think about attending the meeting at 3 pm with Dr. Coleman and Dr. Kramer to discuss the current state of the VMGC. You can also hear Jim Turpin discuss this matter on 1400 AM.
Below of the letter that I wrote. Please help in any way that you can.
Greetings,
My name is Robert Abrams and I am an alumnus of the class of 1998 of the University of Illinois. Currently, I am the Instructional Leader of Science at Rich East High School in Park Forest, Illinois and pursuing a Doctorate of Education. My students often ask me questions about where I attended college and what I did when I was there. If they are in my office when these questions are posed, I proudly point to my U of I flag hanging on my office wall.
Some of my best memories from my time at the University of Illinois came from being a proud member of the oldest organizations in the history of the University, the Varsity Men's Glee Club. Being a member and executive board member of the VMGC provided me with the opportunity to make some amazing friends from across the campus, proudly represent the University as an ambassador when performing around the state of Illinois and across the Midwest, gain valued leadership skills, and make some inspiring music that I still sing today.
As a new father, I was looking forward to my son attending the U of I and sharing in my experiences as a part of the VMGC. I imagine the experience of sitting in Foellinger and eagerly awaiting the chance to go up on stage and perform the Big Ten Medley and Illinois Loyalty and perform with old friends, a great director, Dr. Barrington Coleman, and my son. I am disheartened about some of the recent changes in the School of Music’s policies and the lowering of the VMGC to the third tier of performance opportunities availed to the general populous of the University.
VMGC is more than just a School of Music course. It is an institution open to university-wide participation by students of every college and department at Illinois with 123 years of grand tradition. VMGC, although a proud unit of the School Music committed to the highest performance standards, also has important constituencies among the Alumni Association and a rich tradition of service to the University at large. Music majors, while being required to get broad experience in all different kinds of choral ensembles, should not be prevented or discouraged from remaining in VMGC in addition to any other coursework, if they wish to do so. Non-music majors, as I was, should be exempt from the arbitrary assignment policy and should be allowed to try out specifically for Glee Club, if they wish. They should not be subject to being reassigned to a different choir because they are “too good for Glee Club.” The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign should not set out to have a “first-tier” mixed voice ensemble and a “third-tier” male chorus in its School of Music, any more than the university should aspire to have a “first-class” football team and a “third-rate” track team.
Tradition and Honor are two values that I learned to fully comprehend while I was at the U of I. I learned about these values as a member of 123 year old organization. There was a history of excellence that I knew I had to live up to. Especially as a non-music major, I was honored to don the tuxedo tails and represent the University wherever we performed. The Glee Club should be restored to its position and reputation as one of the leading collegiate male choruses in the United States. The Glee Club director should be able to hold campus-wide auditions, to augment the ranks of VMGC with talented non-music majors, in addition to taking any music majors assigned to VMGC by the mandatory panel auditions of the School of Music.
It is an insult to the honor, talent, and history of the VMGC, beginning as the Apollo Club in 1886, to allow this policy to demote this grand and historical organization. Allow the wonderful history that Mr. William Olson built and Dr. Barrington Coleman supports to continue to teach and inspire through quality music and performance without mandatorily siphoning off the talent to other University groups. Allow the Brothers in Song to flourish. Please let me know how I can help in this matter.
Respectfully,
Robert Abrams
Class of 1998
VMGC member 1994-1998
VMGC Secretary 1996-1997
I have recently learned of a disturbing situation with an organization at the University of Illinois that is near to my heart, the Varsity Men's Glee Club. For anyone that knows me personally, they know that music has been a big part of my academic career and personal life. Recently, there have been changes to the audition policies of the School of Music that have "demoted" the VMGC to a third tier choir.
Please check out http://www.savemensglee.com to get the full details. If you are in central Illinois, please attend the concert at Foellinger Great Hall in the Krannert Center for Performing Arts on the U of I campus on April 25 at 7:30 pm. If you happen to be a VMGC alum, please get your voice heard through a letter, phone call or other communique. If you, the alum, can make it to the concert, think about attending the meeting at 3 pm with Dr. Coleman and Dr. Kramer to discuss the current state of the VMGC. You can also hear Jim Turpin discuss this matter on 1400 AM.
Below of the letter that I wrote. Please help in any way that you can.
Greetings,
My name is Robert Abrams and I am an alumnus of the class of 1998 of the University of Illinois. Currently, I am the Instructional Leader of Science at Rich East High School in Park Forest, Illinois and pursuing a Doctorate of Education. My students often ask me questions about where I attended college and what I did when I was there. If they are in my office when these questions are posed, I proudly point to my U of I flag hanging on my office wall.
Some of my best memories from my time at the University of Illinois came from being a proud member of the oldest organizations in the history of the University, the Varsity Men's Glee Club. Being a member and executive board member of the VMGC provided me with the opportunity to make some amazing friends from across the campus, proudly represent the University as an ambassador when performing around the state of Illinois and across the Midwest, gain valued leadership skills, and make some inspiring music that I still sing today.
As a new father, I was looking forward to my son attending the U of I and sharing in my experiences as a part of the VMGC. I imagine the experience of sitting in Foellinger and eagerly awaiting the chance to go up on stage and perform the Big Ten Medley and Illinois Loyalty and perform with old friends, a great director, Dr. Barrington Coleman, and my son. I am disheartened about some of the recent changes in the School of Music’s policies and the lowering of the VMGC to the third tier of performance opportunities availed to the general populous of the University.
VMGC is more than just a School of Music course. It is an institution open to university-wide participation by students of every college and department at Illinois with 123 years of grand tradition. VMGC, although a proud unit of the School Music committed to the highest performance standards, also has important constituencies among the Alumni Association and a rich tradition of service to the University at large. Music majors, while being required to get broad experience in all different kinds of choral ensembles, should not be prevented or discouraged from remaining in VMGC in addition to any other coursework, if they wish to do so. Non-music majors, as I was, should be exempt from the arbitrary assignment policy and should be allowed to try out specifically for Glee Club, if they wish. They should not be subject to being reassigned to a different choir because they are “too good for Glee Club.” The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign should not set out to have a “first-tier” mixed voice ensemble and a “third-tier” male chorus in its School of Music, any more than the university should aspire to have a “first-class” football team and a “third-rate” track team.
Tradition and Honor are two values that I learned to fully comprehend while I was at the U of I. I learned about these values as a member of 123 year old organization. There was a history of excellence that I knew I had to live up to. Especially as a non-music major, I was honored to don the tuxedo tails and represent the University wherever we performed. The Glee Club should be restored to its position and reputation as one of the leading collegiate male choruses in the United States. The Glee Club director should be able to hold campus-wide auditions, to augment the ranks of VMGC with talented non-music majors, in addition to taking any music majors assigned to VMGC by the mandatory panel auditions of the School of Music.
It is an insult to the honor, talent, and history of the VMGC, beginning as the Apollo Club in 1886, to allow this policy to demote this grand and historical organization. Allow the wonderful history that Mr. William Olson built and Dr. Barrington Coleman supports to continue to teach and inspire through quality music and performance without mandatorily siphoning off the talent to other University groups. Allow the Brothers in Song to flourish. Please let me know how I can help in this matter.
Respectfully,
Robert Abrams
Class of 1998
VMGC member 1994-1998
VMGC Secretary 1996-1997
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Biggest Loser's Club
We have some great people at my school. They have taken it upon themselves to motivate others to work out and be healthier. They have created the Biggest Loser's club at Rich East. Here is the deal...
$10 entry fee. Everybody weighs in with the school nurse (who is the only one who will know people's weight for those of us who are shy) every Thursday. Today was the official weigh in.
If you lose weight for the week, you pay nothing else.
If you maintain your weight, you pay 50 cents.
If you gain weight, you have to pay $1 per pound.
As the saying goes, I am in for a penny and in for a pound (or at least losing pounds)
My wife approved (yes, that is what I said and meant) for me to get a Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit. I have been on and working towards my goals that I have set.
Is it a problem that the Wii Fit sighs and says "Oh!" when I step on the balance board?
This club is going to be supportive and even though there can only be 2 winners (60% goes to 1st place and 40% goes to 2nd), even if people lose...they will win.
Here begins the journey.
$10 entry fee. Everybody weighs in with the school nurse (who is the only one who will know people's weight for those of us who are shy) every Thursday. Today was the official weigh in.
If you lose weight for the week, you pay nothing else.
If you maintain your weight, you pay 50 cents.
If you gain weight, you have to pay $1 per pound.
As the saying goes, I am in for a penny and in for a pound (or at least losing pounds)
My wife approved (yes, that is what I said and meant) for me to get a Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit. I have been on and working towards my goals that I have set.
Is it a problem that the Wii Fit sighs and says "Oh!" when I step on the balance board?
This club is going to be supportive and even though there can only be 2 winners (60% goes to 1st place and 40% goes to 2nd), even if people lose...they will win.
Here begins the journey.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Not really a snow day
To quote someone that I know from high school..."Today isn't really a snow day for you. It is more like a don't freeze your butt off day".
As the air temperature climbed to a balmy -14 degrees Fahrenheit I had one thought echo in my head... MAN THAT IS COLD!
What were you thinking it was going to be? Something profound? At that temperature the synapses in my brain don't all work. It was more of a survival mode out there.
Since it is not really a snow day, do I really have to get things done around the house? I was able to use my new Blu-Ray player which is cool, but I could not watch anything else since Dish Network sucks and somehow has sent us 3 defective receivers. They will be able to get someone out to us on Saturday. (We called about this problem on Sunday) How's that for customer service?
But I digress...since it is a limbo sort of day, I cannot get myself to really do anything productive. Is that bad?
That is it. You have inspired me. I will make sure that laundry gets done to help out the wife. I will pick up around the house. It won't be spotless, but things will get done.
Thank you for your help. (Of course, all of this is to help me avoid the paper that I have to write, but that is a different issue.)
Enjoy the "Don't freeze your butt off day"!
As the air temperature climbed to a balmy -14 degrees Fahrenheit I had one thought echo in my head... MAN THAT IS COLD!
What were you thinking it was going to be? Something profound? At that temperature the synapses in my brain don't all work. It was more of a survival mode out there.
Since it is not really a snow day, do I really have to get things done around the house? I was able to use my new Blu-Ray player which is cool, but I could not watch anything else since Dish Network sucks and somehow has sent us 3 defective receivers. They will be able to get someone out to us on Saturday. (We called about this problem on Sunday) How's that for customer service?
But I digress...since it is a limbo sort of day, I cannot get myself to really do anything productive. Is that bad?
That is it. You have inspired me. I will make sure that laundry gets done to help out the wife. I will pick up around the house. It won't be spotless, but things will get done.
Thank you for your help. (Of course, all of this is to help me avoid the paper that I have to write, but that is a different issue.)
Enjoy the "Don't freeze your butt off day"!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Happy New Year!
Here we are in 2009. I know that many posts in the past have dealt with the concept of change. I can easily say that 2008 was the year of change! New principal, new baby, working on a new degree, new responsibilities...the list goes on.
Let me tell you, the idea that there is a little person for whom I am completely responsible has affected me deeply. I read books. I talked with friends who are parents. I have been in education for over 10 years. I have been some one's child for almost 33 years. Nothing could have possibly prepared me for everything that has happened. I know it is cliche, but I guess I finally get it.
I guess that is all anyone can ask of someone else, to just get it.
In education, working with students, the number of times I have spoken to students about responsibility and accountability for ones actions is somewhere on the magnitude of 10^8 (and that is just counting from the first 5 years). When I was in the classroom, I used to joke that part of a type 75 certification program involved a frontal lobotomy that removed the "Get it" part of the brain. There were times when I wondered where could these decisions be coming from? What was the hypothesis? Where was the data that pointed to the conclusion that was arrived at?
So, when I became an administrator, I wanted to avoid those jokes being told of me. I was going to be different, an agent of change. I would always remember what it was like to be a classroom teacher and make sure that every decision was going to take the teacher's point of view and empower them in the classrooms.
Do I fall into the lobotomy category sometimes? Of course I do. As I continue in this path of administration I have noticed that I make mistakes, but I learn from them.
Case in point, we are providing an opportunity for every student and faculty member to watch the inauguration address on January 20th. What does this entail? We need to modify the bell schedule to account for the "assembly", we need to prepare our kitchen staff for the adjustment in their work day, we need to arrange for the video feed and locations in our building to house our populations to view the address, along with other logistical details. My responsibility...alter the bell schedule and class times.
This should be easy. (Ever said that to yourself and then kicked yourself?)
The first option presented to me was to have half of our students eat, then everyone watches the address, and then the other half eats. That just became a space nightmare for the lunch rooms and for the people who teach during one of those lunches. I altered the idea to have the bell schedule more closely follow our early dismissal schedule.
I liked this idea. It is something familiar, less changes needed, etc. But, I would have to remove a class from the day to account for the time in the assembly. I picked 8th hour. It is last, why shouldn't it be cut?
Here is where I got smart. I asked some teachers who walked by my office what they thought. They offered their opinion, understood why a class had to be removed and generally liked the idea. Some objections included that 8th hour usually gets cut, shortened class periods for the other classes make for some difficulties, etc. I told them that would take their suggestions into account when I presented the idea to the rest of our building administrative team.
I presented the questions that were brought to me. (I had even gotten thank yous from the teachers for including them). Our administrative team thought the idea was great. The schedule minimized disruptions and I even found a way to have all of the classes meet.
Long story short, in a told that some of our building admin were at, an edict was passed down that the other 2 buildings had created a schedule and the district admin could see no reason why our school should do anything different. (Putting aside the differences in our student populations, our cafeteria size, SES issues in our building...)
The idea that had gathered input from various stakeholders was now defunct and we were going along with the rest because we were told to.
My hope is continued...I hope that someday, people will get it.
Let me tell you, the idea that there is a little person for whom I am completely responsible has affected me deeply. I read books. I talked with friends who are parents. I have been in education for over 10 years. I have been some one's child for almost 33 years. Nothing could have possibly prepared me for everything that has happened. I know it is cliche, but I guess I finally get it.
I guess that is all anyone can ask of someone else, to just get it.
In education, working with students, the number of times I have spoken to students about responsibility and accountability for ones actions is somewhere on the magnitude of 10^8 (and that is just counting from the first 5 years). When I was in the classroom, I used to joke that part of a type 75 certification program involved a frontal lobotomy that removed the "Get it" part of the brain. There were times when I wondered where could these decisions be coming from? What was the hypothesis? Where was the data that pointed to the conclusion that was arrived at?
So, when I became an administrator, I wanted to avoid those jokes being told of me. I was going to be different, an agent of change. I would always remember what it was like to be a classroom teacher and make sure that every decision was going to take the teacher's point of view and empower them in the classrooms.
Do I fall into the lobotomy category sometimes? Of course I do. As I continue in this path of administration I have noticed that I make mistakes, but I learn from them.
Case in point, we are providing an opportunity for every student and faculty member to watch the inauguration address on January 20th. What does this entail? We need to modify the bell schedule to account for the "assembly", we need to prepare our kitchen staff for the adjustment in their work day, we need to arrange for the video feed and locations in our building to house our populations to view the address, along with other logistical details. My responsibility...alter the bell schedule and class times.
This should be easy. (Ever said that to yourself and then kicked yourself?)
The first option presented to me was to have half of our students eat, then everyone watches the address, and then the other half eats. That just became a space nightmare for the lunch rooms and for the people who teach during one of those lunches. I altered the idea to have the bell schedule more closely follow our early dismissal schedule.
I liked this idea. It is something familiar, less changes needed, etc. But, I would have to remove a class from the day to account for the time in the assembly. I picked 8th hour. It is last, why shouldn't it be cut?
Here is where I got smart. I asked some teachers who walked by my office what they thought. They offered their opinion, understood why a class had to be removed and generally liked the idea. Some objections included that 8th hour usually gets cut, shortened class periods for the other classes make for some difficulties, etc. I told them that would take their suggestions into account when I presented the idea to the rest of our building administrative team.
I presented the questions that were brought to me. (I had even gotten thank yous from the teachers for including them). Our administrative team thought the idea was great. The schedule minimized disruptions and I even found a way to have all of the classes meet.
Long story short, in a told that some of our building admin were at, an edict was passed down that the other 2 buildings had created a schedule and the district admin could see no reason why our school should do anything different. (Putting aside the differences in our student populations, our cafeteria size, SES issues in our building...)
The idea that had gathered input from various stakeholders was now defunct and we were going along with the rest because we were told to.
My hope is continued...I hope that someday, people will get it.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
When will we learn?!
As the fall weather slowly creeps up on us, we begin to notice slight changes in our student population. Yesterday, all of our students came to school in their pajamas. Today, we had clowns, kids with their clothes inside-out, cross dressers. Tomorrow, if I were to make a prediction, I would bet that a majority of our students will be wearing sports jerseys of some sort. Odd behavior isn't it?
That's right, loyal readers (all 3 of you), it is Homecoming Spirit Week. That crazy time of year when the student council begs us to let the student body do crazy dress up days. Each year we say that it will be fine. Usually, it is OK. We are still in the honeymoon period of the beginning of school and think the best of our students.
When will we learn???
I must say that 90-95% of our students do exactly what they are asked to do. While some of that 90-95% will push boundaries, when the guidelines are clearly set they will follow requests of the staff, faculty and administration. But it is that blasted 10% that think, hey, it is homecoming week...I can do whatever the @#$%^#&* I want!
Do modern day students even know that Homecoming is not for them!? They are already at home.
This week should about inviting alumni back (former students COMING HOME, hence the name) and showing current students how successful they have become with hard work, perseverance, and some times learning the hard way. As a school, we should be showing off our best and brightest, our hardest workers, students who were on the edge of failure and fought long and hard for many years to make a decent, respectable, honest living. Homecoming week should be a beacon for our students showing them that it is possible to achieve their dream. Any alumni reading this, please contact me to get this going. This idea of homecoming should be inspirational!
I am not sure how that gets interpreted to our starting football players wearing ballerina tutus.
That's right, loyal readers (all 3 of you), it is Homecoming Spirit Week. That crazy time of year when the student council begs us to let the student body do crazy dress up days. Each year we say that it will be fine. Usually, it is OK. We are still in the honeymoon period of the beginning of school and think the best of our students.
When will we learn???
I must say that 90-95% of our students do exactly what they are asked to do. While some of that 90-95% will push boundaries, when the guidelines are clearly set they will follow requests of the staff, faculty and administration. But it is that blasted 10% that think, hey, it is homecoming week...I can do whatever the @#$%^#&* I want!
Do modern day students even know that Homecoming is not for them!? They are already at home.
This week should about inviting alumni back (former students COMING HOME, hence the name) and showing current students how successful they have become with hard work, perseverance, and some times learning the hard way. As a school, we should be showing off our best and brightest, our hardest workers, students who were on the edge of failure and fought long and hard for many years to make a decent, respectable, honest living. Homecoming week should be a beacon for our students showing them that it is possible to achieve their dream. Any alumni reading this, please contact me to get this going. This idea of homecoming should be inspirational!
I am not sure how that gets interpreted to our starting football players wearing ballerina tutus.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Sleep is for Wussies!
For some, or most (how many of YOU are out there reading this?), you may not be aware that on September 9th, my wife gave birth to our first child! We are ecstatic about his arrival. He is perfect and the cutest baby around. So, I will introduce you to Logan.
Logan is getting better at eating and is a decent sleeper. In general, he does not cry or scream. The only times he does is when he is hungry and when we lay him down to change his diaper. As soon as we pick him up, he is quiet and smiley.
When I was in college, I would pull all-nighters all of the time. Working on 2-3 hours sleep was no big deal; happened probably 1-2 times a week. I would be able to study all night, go take an exam, score well on it and then go out to celebrate that night. That is when I came up with the theory that Sleep is for Wussies!
To quote Barenaked Ladies, "Who needs sleep?". While I have not been up since the second world war, the amount of sleep that I have received in the past 15 days has been comparable to those wonderful college days. Logan is up and feeding about every 2 hours. My wife is amazing and really supports my theory. I have done some considerable research on this topic and had some favorable data to support my hypothesis.
I have recently gone back to work to add another challenge and variable to the experiment. I must say that the first day back was very odd. It was as if I had never worked before. I sat at my desk, stared at my computer, had multiple conversations about the delivery, showed pictures of Logan to anyone who I could walk faster than; but all in all, I could not really focus on projects that needed to be completed, or even think about what my responsibilities are.
But still, I had data to support my theory. I have been successful before on minimal amounts of sleep. I can handle it! I will persevere. I must! After all, have you seen how cute my child is?!
A good scientist and educator is one who is reflective. They must examine the current data and observations, and continue to evaluate the current situations. With that in mind, I have reached a conclusion based on my 15 years of research!
I am a wuss.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Be the pig
I am coming upon one of the longest nights in creation...the night of our school's Open House. I really love to put in 15 hours days! Of course, I could make tire skid marks as I race the teachers to get out of school as the bell rings, so I can run home, while my wife is still at work and do nothing for about an hour and then turn right around...but considering that it would be about an hour's worth of drive time round trip...I think not.
As I normally drive home, I turn on ESPN 1000, the Mac. Jurko and Harry show. As I am driving home, I hear the following parable in a commercial that I cannot remember about commitment. Please enjoy:
As you sit down to a breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon, take the time to think about it...sure, the chicken was involved, but the pig was committed!
I am a firm believer that there are some things that I can change and there are some things that I cannot. If it is something that I can change, I will work on improving a situation. If it is something I cannot change, I simply need to roll with the punches. Open house can sometimes be a right cross.
I need to be the pig about Open House. It really is nice to have the parents in the building for an enjoyable evening of meeting the teachers and seeing the building. I have to recognize that I need to commit to this night and accept it for the positive and hope-filled evening that it can be!
I will be the pig...but let's hope my fate is a little better that old Wilbur who "donated" to the breakfast!
As I normally drive home, I turn on ESPN 1000, the Mac. Jurko and Harry show. As I am driving home, I hear the following parable in a commercial that I cannot remember about commitment. Please enjoy:
As you sit down to a breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon, take the time to think about it...sure, the chicken was involved, but the pig was committed!
I am a firm believer that there are some things that I can change and there are some things that I cannot. If it is something that I can change, I will work on improving a situation. If it is something I cannot change, I simply need to roll with the punches. Open house can sometimes be a right cross.
I need to be the pig about Open House. It really is nice to have the parents in the building for an enjoyable evening of meeting the teachers and seeing the building. I have to recognize that I need to commit to this night and accept it for the positive and hope-filled evening that it can be!
I will be the pig...but let's hope my fate is a little better that old Wilbur who "donated" to the breakfast!
Monday, August 25, 2008
The Perfect time of year and $23
It is that time of year again…right before the leaves change color, the occasionally crisp day intermixed with blazing heat and suffocating humidity, and the teachers still have the glow of optimism of the new year, yes, it is the time for Fire Drills!
We always work to get the fire drills completed early in the year to make sure that students and teachers, and we administrators, out in a rain storm or blizzard. There are the standard complaints issued about why can we [the teachers] not be told about this to adjust our plans accordingly? The response of that a fire doesn’t let you know when it is going to ignite is never a good enough answer.
Last year, we had our 2 fire drills very early in the year. As a school, we wanted to get a good reading on how our escape time would improve with practice. How can you accomplish this?! We had them on consecutive days.
Please keep in mind that while we are calling these drills of last year “drills”, we did not know that at the time.
The first alarm was triggered by one of our chemistry teachers. While performing the classroom rendition of the Hindenburg (which is a normal demonstration), this teacher managed to set off the smoke detector in room because they used powdered zinc instead of mossy zinc. When the balloon burst, the zinc powder that clung to the inside of the balloon was released into the air and thus the smoke detector began ringing.
The second “drill” of last year, the day after the first one, was set off by…drum roll, please, the same chemistry teacher. The teacher is so talented that they found a whole NEW way of setting off the alarm. (This time is was a Sodium and water reaction).
So, now we arrive back at this year. At 8:48 am, the alarm signals. Students, teachers, police liaisons, and administrators move in concert to get our students out of the building. I run down to the chemistry lab. I am happy to report that, this time, it was not the chemistry teacher’s fault!
The fire department arrives, we get the “ALL CLEAR” signal at 9:01 and we being herding students back to their classes. I note the times to record in the crisis plan log and begin gathering my personal effects for my Admin Team meeting that was slated to start at 9 am. (Normally, if you are late, you owe a dollar for every minute tardy, but thankfully, we were excused from this penalty for this day).
You remember how I previously mentioned that “As a school, we wanted to get a good reading on how our escape time would improve with practice. How can you accomplish this?!” Well, always wanting to improve the process, we did not want to wait an ENTIRE day to have another fire drill.
The alarm went off again at 9:06.
We evacuated yet again; the fire department didn’t even have the opportunity to leave our building yet. We received the 2nd all clear at 9:23. We found the culprit (it was steam from a dishwasher).
All in all, we have 2 drills down in the books, the students and staff improved their time from the 1st drill to the 2nd drill and I didn’t end up owing $23 for being late to an Admin Team meeting.
We always work to get the fire drills completed early in the year to make sure that students and teachers, and we administrators, out in a rain storm or blizzard. There are the standard complaints issued about why can we [the teachers] not be told about this to adjust our plans accordingly? The response of that a fire doesn’t let you know when it is going to ignite is never a good enough answer.
Last year, we had our 2 fire drills very early in the year. As a school, we wanted to get a good reading on how our escape time would improve with practice. How can you accomplish this?! We had them on consecutive days.
Please keep in mind that while we are calling these drills of last year “drills”, we did not know that at the time.
The first alarm was triggered by one of our chemistry teachers. While performing the classroom rendition of the Hindenburg (which is a normal demonstration), this teacher managed to set off the smoke detector in room because they used powdered zinc instead of mossy zinc. When the balloon burst, the zinc powder that clung to the inside of the balloon was released into the air and thus the smoke detector began ringing.
The second “drill” of last year, the day after the first one, was set off by…drum roll, please, the same chemistry teacher. The teacher is so talented that they found a whole NEW way of setting off the alarm. (This time is was a Sodium and water reaction).
So, now we arrive back at this year. At 8:48 am, the alarm signals. Students, teachers, police liaisons, and administrators move in concert to get our students out of the building. I run down to the chemistry lab. I am happy to report that, this time, it was not the chemistry teacher’s fault!
The fire department arrives, we get the “ALL CLEAR” signal at 9:01 and we being herding students back to their classes. I note the times to record in the crisis plan log and begin gathering my personal effects for my Admin Team meeting that was slated to start at 9 am. (Normally, if you are late, you owe a dollar for every minute tardy, but thankfully, we were excused from this penalty for this day).
You remember how I previously mentioned that “As a school, we wanted to get a good reading on how our escape time would improve with practice. How can you accomplish this?!” Well, always wanting to improve the process, we did not want to wait an ENTIRE day to have another fire drill.
The alarm went off again at 9:06.
We evacuated yet again; the fire department didn’t even have the opportunity to leave our building yet. We received the 2nd all clear at 9:23. We found the culprit (it was steam from a dishwasher).
All in all, we have 2 drills down in the books, the students and staff improved their time from the 1st drill to the 2nd drill and I didn’t end up owing $23 for being late to an Admin Team meeting.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
The Olympics are killing me!
I look forward every year to the beginning of a new school year. There is the excitement of hearing about all the interesting things teachers and students did over the summer, getting to know the new students to the building, and just the general hope and honeymoon phase happiness of the new school year.
I have none of that this year...reason being...the 29th Olympiad.
I generally love the Olympics. The sense of national pride, the competition, the women's beach volleyball...all spectacular parts of the Olympics. The issue I am having is that I have to stay up until 11 or 11:30 at night to get the results and watch the actual competitions and I am not in my 20's anymore.
I have a pregnant wife at home and when she cannot sleep, neither can I. Combine that with me HAVING to stay up later to watch the Olympics and the results that we get are me eating late a night and being a zombie morning. Increased weight gain, little sleep and high blood pressure...the Olympics are going to kill me!
If it was just the Olympics or just the pregnant wife, I think I could deal with it. But put together...I am very close to losing it.
AND...it is ruining my start to the school year. This is such a great time of year full of hope and optimism. New students excited to start school again; New teachers eager to influence children for the better...I have to keep the good feelings going.
Thank goodness that the Olympics are only going to last until the 24th!
I have none of that this year...reason being...the 29th Olympiad.
I generally love the Olympics. The sense of national pride, the competition, the women's beach volleyball...all spectacular parts of the Olympics. The issue I am having is that I have to stay up until 11 or 11:30 at night to get the results and watch the actual competitions and I am not in my 20's anymore.
I have a pregnant wife at home and when she cannot sleep, neither can I. Combine that with me HAVING to stay up later to watch the Olympics and the results that we get are me eating late a night and being a zombie morning. Increased weight gain, little sleep and high blood pressure...the Olympics are going to kill me!
If it was just the Olympics or just the pregnant wife, I think I could deal with it. But put together...I am very close to losing it.
AND...it is ruining my start to the school year. This is such a great time of year full of hope and optimism. New students excited to start school again; New teachers eager to influence children for the better...I have to keep the good feelings going.
Thank goodness that the Olympics are only going to last until the 24th!
Monday, August 11, 2008
Carrots, Eggs, and Coffee
No, this is not my order for breakfast.
This is an anecdote that I recently heard that fits well for the beginning of the school. I wish I had the reference to provide and give credit to its author. This is a little more "touchy-feely" than I normally prefer to get, but I liked the story. I am learning that when things don't go the way that you want, look in the mirror first, before placing blame on others.
A mother and daughter were having a "strenuous" discussion about how effective she is warming the bench on her soccer team. The daughter wanted to quit the team because she felt that she was not doing anything.
The mother then, without conversation, took out 3 identical pots, filled them with equal amounts of water and placed them on the stove top and set the burners to the same level of heat.
In the first pot, the girl's mother placed a carrot, in the second an egg, and in the third she placed some fresh ground coffee. The mother let the pots and their contents sit on the stove for 30 minutes. During this time, she said nothing and her daughter look at this activity with wonder and a puzzled look, still upset about her situation regarding the soccer team.
When the half hour passed, the mother removed the pots from the stove. Her daughter moved over to the pots and asked what was the meaning of this demonstration. The mother ask her daughter to describe the carrot before and after the time in the pot. The daughter replied that the carrot was firm and crisp before being placed in the pot and it was mushy and limp.
The mother then asked the daughter to describe the egg before and after the time in the pot. The daughter said that it looked the same. The mother then asked, what if she cracked the egg on the table? The daughter then said that before the pot the egg would have been liquidy and dripped all over the table and floor, but after the pot, the egg was solid and unyielding.
The mother then strained the contents of the 3rd pot and had the daughter take a sip. The daughter enjoyed the full, rich flavor that the coffee had.
Before the daughter could say a word, her mother said the following, you can let a situation defeat you and you become mushy like the carrot. You could also let a situation harden you and make you unyielding to other possibilities. Or, you can be like the coffee grounds.
The daughter asked, but what did the coffee grounds do? Her mother replied, they changed the water. She then asked her daughter if there was a reason she was on the bench. could her daughter try harder? Practice more? Listen to and learn from the coach? The daughter smiled and realized that she could change her own situation.
With the new school year upon us, how can we do things to change the water? When students are not performing as well as I would like, I know that I used to say that the kids were just not trying. While that may be true in some instances, how many different approaches did I try? Did I call home enough to get encouragement for the student on 2 ends? Did I make the student come in for extra help or just give them a flimsy option of attending? Did I make it easier for the child to succeed or continue to fail?
This is an anecdote that I recently heard that fits well for the beginning of the school. I wish I had the reference to provide and give credit to its author. This is a little more "touchy-feely" than I normally prefer to get, but I liked the story. I am learning that when things don't go the way that you want, look in the mirror first, before placing blame on others.
A mother and daughter were having a "strenuous" discussion about how effective she is warming the bench on her soccer team. The daughter wanted to quit the team because she felt that she was not doing anything.
The mother then, without conversation, took out 3 identical pots, filled them with equal amounts of water and placed them on the stove top and set the burners to the same level of heat.
In the first pot, the girl's mother placed a carrot, in the second an egg, and in the third she placed some fresh ground coffee. The mother let the pots and their contents sit on the stove for 30 minutes. During this time, she said nothing and her daughter look at this activity with wonder and a puzzled look, still upset about her situation regarding the soccer team.
When the half hour passed, the mother removed the pots from the stove. Her daughter moved over to the pots and asked what was the meaning of this demonstration. The mother ask her daughter to describe the carrot before and after the time in the pot. The daughter replied that the carrot was firm and crisp before being placed in the pot and it was mushy and limp.
The mother then asked the daughter to describe the egg before and after the time in the pot. The daughter said that it looked the same. The mother then asked, what if she cracked the egg on the table? The daughter then said that before the pot the egg would have been liquidy and dripped all over the table and floor, but after the pot, the egg was solid and unyielding.
The mother then strained the contents of the 3rd pot and had the daughter take a sip. The daughter enjoyed the full, rich flavor that the coffee had.
Before the daughter could say a word, her mother said the following, you can let a situation defeat you and you become mushy like the carrot. You could also let a situation harden you and make you unyielding to other possibilities. Or, you can be like the coffee grounds.
The daughter asked, but what did the coffee grounds do? Her mother replied, they changed the water. She then asked her daughter if there was a reason she was on the bench. could her daughter try harder? Practice more? Listen to and learn from the coach? The daughter smiled and realized that she could change her own situation.
With the new school year upon us, how can we do things to change the water? When students are not performing as well as I would like, I know that I used to say that the kids were just not trying. While that may be true in some instances, how many different approaches did I try? Did I call home enough to get encouragement for the student on 2 ends? Did I make the student come in for extra help or just give them a flimsy option of attending? Did I make it easier for the child to succeed or continue to fail?
Friday, August 01, 2008
Kids today...
As I was looking through my PLN on Plurk, I came across a link to this poster. (Thank you to kmulford for bringing it to my attention.)
It really got me thinking about the students that we encounter in our schools today. Students are more fluent in computer applications than many of their teachers. I challenge you, as the reader, to identify each of the objects represented by the letter in the box. Many of us are more familiar with this style of the poster. I know that I had trouble with the "E" and the "H", any help would be greatly appreciated. :)
As we finish up the registration processes, new teacher orientations, back to school institute days, and first days of school, how can we educate our teachers about the new tools available with all of the stress on standardized test results, NCLB, etc.?
As I have begun to explore Web 2.0 tools, I am sharing them with everyone that I know in school. As the exposure begins to grow, the ideas will start to flow. (Honestly, it is a little late and a lack of sleep caused that rhyme. It was unintentional, sorry)
My first attempt at creating an interest is creating a Ning site for my department. I am also working with the admin team on the benfits of google documents.
As we, as a school, continue our work on curricular alignment and improvements and the incorporation of data to drive our decision making process, we will need to incorporate these tools. We need to meet our students who are learning their ABC's by Apple Computers, Bluetooth, and Core Duo Processors.
On a quick side note...as I looked at the poster and the alternative ways of looking at teaching our basics, I was reminded of the book, Q is for Duck. As we re-examine our teaching methods, can you determine why A is for zoo, B is for dog, and C is for Hen?
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Keeping your word
I am a big proponent of making sure that when I say that I will do something, then I will get it done. That is how I maintain my integrity and the teachers in my department, and even others, know that they can come to me and get results.
That being said, it bothers me to no end when I am dependant upon other people, especially a member of my team, doesn't follow through. I hate it when I am made to look like a jacka$$ because I can no longer live up to my word. I can make myself look foolish all on my own, I don't need other people helping me.
So, we resubmitted and it was going to be piggybacked onto another request. Again, it did not go through. Please keep in mind that we were told that this was already approved, especially since we walked around with the sales reps and they took our order.
So now we arrive at the point where I ask a member of my team, who is overseeing the construction, where we are at in the ordering process. That team member told me that we needed to prioritize the requests because not everything was going to be fulfilled. I said fine. We sat down, discussed what was going to be used by the students and that is what was going to be ordered. Team member said that it was now taken care of and I had nothing to worry about. More incorrect words could not have been spoken.
The next day, I spoke with our building Foreman who asked me about furniture. I thought that I would going to have to apologize for my disbelief. Unfortunately, he was discussing some other furniture and knew nothing of my order. So I went back to the team member who again stated, it's done. I did it yesterday. We looked at what was sent and only 1/10th of what was requested (after prioritizing) was going to get ordered. Team member stated that the other stuff (student seating) was not approved and we would just have to make do.
To make this extremely long story a little shorter, after an upsetting conversation with team member & my new principal, messages to the assistant to the director of buildings and grounds and the director (multiple times) the sales people are coming back on Monday.
Moral of the story: Know when you can make promises and that they will be fulfilled so you can keep your word. To maintain personal integrity, I must realize what I can control and recognize that other people may not be as "into" keeping their word as I am.
That being said, it bothers me to no end when I am dependant upon other people, especially a member of my team, doesn't follow through. I hate it when I am made to look like a jacka$$ because I can no longer live up to my word. I can make myself look foolish all on my own, I don't need other people helping me.
If you do not have a lot of time, here is the end of my blog post. Feel free to read the abridged account of what transpired.
Moral of the story: Know when you can make promises and that they will be fulfilled so you can keep your word. To maintain personal integrity, I must realize what I can control and recognize that other people may not be as "into" keeping their word as I am.
And now for the abridged account: What began this tirade is science classroom furniture. Before the end of last year and before the former principal left, I walked around with the construction team, building Foreman, and sales people, sometimes interrupting classes to take measurements and get teachers opinions on furniture options to get my science classrooms into the 20th century. (No, that is NOT a typo). I was told that this furniture and equipment would be here for the next school year.
My request was placed with the other furniture requests for our building and submitted. Our team is very efficient and usually get our requests submitted first, before any of the other buildings. This was no exception. The requests go to the Board of Ed and they get approved...for the other 2 schools in the district. Our request was mysteriously lost. (And we wonder why we think of ourselves as the red-headed stepchild!)So, we resubmitted and it was going to be piggybacked onto another request. Again, it did not go through. Please keep in mind that we were told that this was already approved, especially since we walked around with the sales reps and they took our order.
So now we arrive at the point where I ask a member of my team, who is overseeing the construction, where we are at in the ordering process. That team member told me that we needed to prioritize the requests because not everything was going to be fulfilled. I said fine. We sat down, discussed what was going to be used by the students and that is what was going to be ordered. Team member said that it was now taken care of and I had nothing to worry about. More incorrect words could not have been spoken.
The next day, I spoke with our building Foreman who asked me about furniture. I thought that I would going to have to apologize for my disbelief. Unfortunately, he was discussing some other furniture and knew nothing of my order. So I went back to the team member who again stated, it's done. I did it yesterday. We looked at what was sent and only 1/10th of what was requested (after prioritizing) was going to get ordered. Team member stated that the other stuff (student seating) was not approved and we would just have to make do.
To make this extremely long story a little shorter, after an upsetting conversation with team member & my new principal, messages to the assistant to the director of buildings and grounds and the director (multiple times) the sales people are coming back on Monday.
Moral of the story: Know when you can make promises and that they will be fulfilled so you can keep your word. To maintain personal integrity, I must realize what I can control and recognize that other people may not be as "into" keeping their word as I am.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Change is neccesary for survival
As a biology teacher, I have discussed the concepts of evolution to high school students for year. I have discussed the scientific evidence for evolution, had very careful conversations with classes when they wanted to discuss religious beliefs and not scientific theory, presented the evolution of evolutionary theories over the past few centuries (my personal favorite is a newer "theory": The Flying Spaghetti Monster) and even discussed how equilibrium could occur within a population and how if it did, that population would be doomed, should there be a change to their environment. The one statement that I repeat over and over is that those species who fail to adapt are doomed for extinction. In other words, Change is necessary for survival!
People rarely look at it from the organism's perspective. What if they like what they do and where they are...and if you have ever talked to a teenager, they will be the first to tell you that you cannot tell them what to do or how to be. To quote Office Space, "Why should I change my name? He's the one who sucks!"
Change occurs to you and you can either adapt and flourish or cling to the olden days and be stuck in the past. So, let's take a look at the change that is happening to me:
People rarely look at it from the organism's perspective. What if they like what they do and where they are...and if you have ever talked to a teenager, they will be the first to tell you that you cannot tell them what to do or how to be. To quote Office Space, "Why should I change my name? He's the one who sucks!"
Change occurs to you and you can either adapt and flourish or cling to the olden days and be stuck in the past. So, let's take a look at the change that is happening to me:
- Biggest Change: First baby is on the way
- New Principal for my school
- Friends and colleagues leaving for various new positions
- Hiring of new teachers for my school
Many, many others that I cannot go into right now...So let's take a look at what we have to adapt to.
#1. The new baby
I have to say, while I am nervous, scared, and whatever other words that are out there to describe the malestrom (GRE word) of emotions that are occurring, my wife and I are EXTREMELY excited about this! We have been incredibly fortunate (knock on wood) with the pregnancy being easy.
Please note: I say we...I mean my wife; she is incredible. She is adapting to many more changes that I think I could handle at one time. Changes in body, emotions, hormones, sleep patterns etc. and yet she still does everything that she did before. Every day she impresses me over and over again.
I have the distinct pleasure of getting the nursery set up. I painted the ceiling 2 weeks ago and a buddy is coming over to help me finish painting the room. We are ging with a yellow and green classic Winnie the Pooh theme. I am excited to contribute in this process any way that can.
No matter how excited we are, we must examine how much change is going to arrive when the baby is born. We read books, friends and family tell about what to expect, but I think that this will be the biggest test of our ability to adapt.
#2 New Principal
I feel good about this one. I was a part of the focus and interview committee. The committee looked at all of the candidates and I feel that we selected the best one. Best of all, our opinion was listened to. The hard part about this is not referring back to the past.
When I made the transistion to my 2nd teaching position, it was pointed out to me that I would CONSTANTLY refer to my former school. I need to avoid making this mistake again. While history and tradition need to be recognized and upheld, I must not expect things to be the same. I must expect that there will be some differences and learn about my new principal.
#3 Friends and colleagues leaving for various new positions
Since we have a new principal, our old one, no wait...former prinicipal (he hates the old jokes), has moved on to a new opportunity. I know that we wish him the best of luck, but he leaves a vacancy (filled by #2) This seems to be a completely different type of change to adjust to. Of course, as the new school year starts, there are other colleagues of mine who have decided to persue opportunities elsewhere and for various reasons. I wish them all the best and hope to continue learning from them and talking to them. Hopefully, they will find things like twitter and plurk to stay in touch.
This leads to...
#4 Hiring of new teachers for my school
While I do not like to have to fill positions of valued colleagues, one of the favorite parts of my job is meeting new teachers and finding people who would make a valued new addition to our team. I had the opportunity to attend some job fairs in Central Illinois, representing my district. Although I had a fever of about 102, I enjoyed meeting a lot of candidates and many of them were hired by my district. I feel like I did a good job.
Overall, there is going to be a lot of change coming up in my life. I tend to be flexible and pretty well adaptable to new situation. I know that somethings will come easy and others will be more arduous (more GRE words).
I look forward to the challenge of adapting, changing, and evolving. The alternative is not so good. ;)
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
This Couldn't Wait until tomorrow -- Blood Donations Needed!
The following is about my cousin, Corey. He will be going in for open heart surgery and blood (type A+ or A-) needs to be donated. If you are in the Chicago area and want to donate in his name, please contact me: misterabrams@misterabrams.com so I can let his father know your name and that a donation was made for Corey.
If you donate on a regular basis, thank you! Each donation saves up to three lives. If you have never donated, it is COMPLETELY safe, it is nearly painless, it costs you nothing and you can literally be a Life Saver!
Thank you in advance. The email is below:
Friends & family members:
I once again must apologize for the impersonal nature of this email, but as you can imagine it is impossible to contact everyone individually and we wanted to let everyone know what’s going on. As some of you already know, Corey is scheduled for his fourth open heart surgery on Wednesday, August 6, 2008. His last surgery was slightly more than two years ago, and while there are no guarantees in life and we knew this day was inevitable, it certainly arrived much sooner than we had hoped.
Because of the defect with which he was born, Corey’s aortic valve allows too much blood to flow back into the heart once it has been pumped out, causing the heart to work harder than it should and possibly resulting in an enlarged heart, which can lead to further complications in the future. We are very fortunate that to date his condition has not affected his development in any way or limited his activities. He is very tall for his age and as far as his doctors can tell, it does not appear any damage has been done to his heart. He is very active in sports and just completed two successful (and chaotic) seasons playing both baseball and soccer, making the respective baseball All-Star and soccer traveling teams. He does, however, tire more easily than your typical 7-year-old, and we notice a marked change in his demeanor and attitude when he does not get enough sleep. As you would expect, his doctors want to be proactive and deal with the situation to prevent any lasting damage to his heart.
Unlike his previous three surgeries, this procedure will be much more invasive and involved, as his doctors will be implanting a replacement valve in his heart. It is expected that he will undergo what is known as a Ross Procedure, wherein they remove his heart’s aortic valve, relocate Corey’s pulmonary valve to the aortic side, and insert either a cow or pig valve on his pulmonary side. The theory behind this procedure, which first came into practice only 15 years ago or so, is that it is better to have his aortic valve – which pumps the blood from his heart and is much more active than the pulmonary valve, which acts as a funnel for blood back into his heart – be an “original part” and be comprised of his genetic material so that it grows with him as he grows. The risk is that the pulmonary valve, which is not built to withstand the rigorous activity performed by the aortic valve, will fail and then he will have two replacement valves.
By its very nature, this is a very complex procedure that requires upwards of 15 hours in surgery and a hospital stay of one week, followed by another week of recuperation at home. He is missing the final week of camp, and our hope is that if all goes well, he will be able to start school on time later in August. I joke that after this surgery is performed, his replacement valve means he will no longer be Kosher, only because I can’t bear to think of him lying open on the operating table for that long.
With a Ross Procedure, Corey will be on a regular course of surgeries; because the replacement valve does not grow, as his heart grows the valve will have to be replaced. However, he will NOT have to be on any blood thinners such as Coumadin, which for a child (especially one like him) is extremely difficult as it limits them from any type of physical activity whatsoever. Once he reaches his late teens and his heart stops growing, his doctors can implant a replacement valve that could last him 10-15 years. Who knows, with the rapid advances in medicine, by that time they may even be able to generate a new valve or two from his genetic material.
Corey’s surgeon, Dr. Michel Ilbawi, is one of the leading pediatric cardiac surgeons in the world. We are very fortunate to have him located so close to home, as we have met many families who have come from across the globe to have him operate on their children. Having him in our corner certainly eases our concerns, but as with any surgery nothing is a given. We have the utmost confidence in Dr. Ilbawi and feel he is in the best possible hands.
All we ask from you is this: 1) that you keep him in your thoughts and prayers; and 2) that if possible, please donate blood in his honor to your local blood bank. His doctors have set up a direct donation program through LifeSource, and you can reach their Direct Donations department at 847-299-7386 to get screened and schedule a donation. We are required to have a certain amount of directed donors for his surgery, and Corey’s blood type is A+. Although several other blood types are compatible with his, Dr. Ilbawi only uses A+ or A- for the surgery. As I am an exact match, I will be the first and primary surgical donor, but others are needed as well.
Because he is a minor, LifeSource requires that Cheryl and I consent to any donation given in his name. If you can find it in your heart (pun absolutely intended) to donate, please let me know so that I can provide LifeSource with your name. They will be accepting donations in his name from July 23 through August 2, and you can give blood at any local LifeSource facility.
As I mentioned above, we are required to have a certain amount of directed donors for his surgery; through the love and caring of each and every one of you, we have always greatly exceeded that requirement. Even if your blood type is not a match, you can still donate in Corey’s name. Even if you live outside the Chicago area and do not have access to LifeSource, I ask and encourage you to donate as there is still a shortage of blood donations around the country and the world, and there are many other children like Corey who are not as fortunate to have the support and care that he does.
I apologize for the length of this email; you can have read the entire Wall Street Journal in a shorter amount of time. However, we wanted to let you know what is happening and ask for your assistance. We will let everyone know his progress at the first opportunity, and I promise the emails will be shorter. Each of you is special to us, and we hope all is well with everyone.
Love,
Cheryl, Russ, Max & Corey (& Maddie, lest we not forget the driving dog)
If you donate on a regular basis, thank you! Each donation saves up to three lives. If you have never donated, it is COMPLETELY safe, it is nearly painless, it costs you nothing and you can literally be a Life Saver!
Thank you in advance. The email is below:
Friends & family members:
I once again must apologize for the impersonal nature of this email, but as you can imagine it is impossible to contact everyone individually and we wanted to let everyone know what’s going on. As some of you already know, Corey is scheduled for his fourth open heart surgery on Wednesday, August 6, 2008. His last surgery was slightly more than two years ago, and while there are no guarantees in life and we knew this day was inevitable, it certainly arrived much sooner than we had hoped.
Because of the defect with which he was born, Corey’s aortic valve allows too much blood to flow back into the heart once it has been pumped out, causing the heart to work harder than it should and possibly resulting in an enlarged heart, which can lead to further complications in the future. We are very fortunate that to date his condition has not affected his development in any way or limited his activities. He is very tall for his age and as far as his doctors can tell, it does not appear any damage has been done to his heart. He is very active in sports and just completed two successful (and chaotic) seasons playing both baseball and soccer, making the respective baseball All-Star and soccer traveling teams. He does, however, tire more easily than your typical 7-year-old, and we notice a marked change in his demeanor and attitude when he does not get enough sleep. As you would expect, his doctors want to be proactive and deal with the situation to prevent any lasting damage to his heart.
Unlike his previous three surgeries, this procedure will be much more invasive and involved, as his doctors will be implanting a replacement valve in his heart. It is expected that he will undergo what is known as a Ross Procedure, wherein they remove his heart’s aortic valve, relocate Corey’s pulmonary valve to the aortic side, and insert either a cow or pig valve on his pulmonary side. The theory behind this procedure, which first came into practice only 15 years ago or so, is that it is better to have his aortic valve – which pumps the blood from his heart and is much more active than the pulmonary valve, which acts as a funnel for blood back into his heart – be an “original part” and be comprised of his genetic material so that it grows with him as he grows. The risk is that the pulmonary valve, which is not built to withstand the rigorous activity performed by the aortic valve, will fail and then he will have two replacement valves.
By its very nature, this is a very complex procedure that requires upwards of 15 hours in surgery and a hospital stay of one week, followed by another week of recuperation at home. He is missing the final week of camp, and our hope is that if all goes well, he will be able to start school on time later in August. I joke that after this surgery is performed, his replacement valve means he will no longer be Kosher, only because I can’t bear to think of him lying open on the operating table for that long.
With a Ross Procedure, Corey will be on a regular course of surgeries; because the replacement valve does not grow, as his heart grows the valve will have to be replaced. However, he will NOT have to be on any blood thinners such as Coumadin, which for a child (especially one like him) is extremely difficult as it limits them from any type of physical activity whatsoever. Once he reaches his late teens and his heart stops growing, his doctors can implant a replacement valve that could last him 10-15 years. Who knows, with the rapid advances in medicine, by that time they may even be able to generate a new valve or two from his genetic material.
Corey’s surgeon, Dr. Michel Ilbawi, is one of the leading pediatric cardiac surgeons in the world. We are very fortunate to have him located so close to home, as we have met many families who have come from across the globe to have him operate on their children. Having him in our corner certainly eases our concerns, but as with any surgery nothing is a given. We have the utmost confidence in Dr. Ilbawi and feel he is in the best possible hands.
All we ask from you is this: 1) that you keep him in your thoughts and prayers; and 2) that if possible, please donate blood in his honor to your local blood bank. His doctors have set up a direct donation program through LifeSource, and you can reach their Direct Donations department at 847-299-7386 to get screened and schedule a donation. We are required to have a certain amount of directed donors for his surgery, and Corey’s blood type is A+. Although several other blood types are compatible with his, Dr. Ilbawi only uses A+ or A- for the surgery. As I am an exact match, I will be the first and primary surgical donor, but others are needed as well.
Because he is a minor, LifeSource requires that Cheryl and I consent to any donation given in his name. If you can find it in your heart (pun absolutely intended) to donate, please let me know so that I can provide LifeSource with your name. They will be accepting donations in his name from July 23 through August 2, and you can give blood at any local LifeSource facility.
As I mentioned above, we are required to have a certain amount of directed donors for his surgery; through the love and caring of each and every one of you, we have always greatly exceeded that requirement. Even if your blood type is not a match, you can still donate in Corey’s name. Even if you live outside the Chicago area and do not have access to LifeSource, I ask and encourage you to donate as there is still a shortage of blood donations around the country and the world, and there are many other children like Corey who are not as fortunate to have the support and care that he does.
I apologize for the length of this email; you can have read the entire Wall Street Journal in a shorter amount of time. However, we wanted to let you know what is happening and ask for your assistance. We will let everyone know his progress at the first opportunity, and I promise the emails will be shorter. Each of you is special to us, and we hope all is well with everyone.
Love,
Cheryl, Russ, Max & Corey (& Maddie, lest we not forget the driving dog)
Starting a new
About me:
I am a science educator and school administrator. I am currently learning about Web 2.0 tools and creating PLC's. I am also trying to encourage my teachers to being working with our Ning site. You can find me on Twitter, Skype, Plurk and LinkedIn.
My wife and I are expecting our first child in September and we are both very excited. I am sure that pictures will be posted to beat out the paparazzi. :)
This is going to be my first blog: Summer Vacation
I became an administrator during this past school year. I started the year with 1 section of Honors Chemistry and at the semester break I no longer had a class to teach. While I miss the fun and excitement of being in the classroom, I did know that I was not able to give my usual 110% to my kids; that disappointed me.
With the transition to the office, I was signed a 211 day contract. Literally, I was supposed to work 211 days, as opposed to the 180+ days of the teaching contract. If I followed that to the letter of the law, I would have been finished on May 23. The usual interpretation is that 211 day employees would from July 15 - June 15 (on or about).
So, I continued to do the work that needed to be done. For my "month off" from work, I was in at least 80% of my days off. Things that I accomplished in this time: worked with a committee to hire our new school principal, who everyone on the committee was very pleased to get, participated in writing a grant for close to $500k, examined the proposed enrollment of every student in Chemistry and Physics to make sure that pre-requisites were being followed and the that proper credits had been earned, worked on our Advisory program curriculum, supervised summer curriculum projects as well as various and sundry other activities that needed my attention.
Some of the "fun activities" I did get to do: Painted the ceiling in the nursery to be, took my 7 month pregnant wife to Atlanta for a wedding (on our 3rd anniversary, with all of my in-laws, in the middle of the PeachTree Trot (the worlds largest 10k) and Atlanta's Gay pride celebration), learned more about some Professional Learning Communities (Ning, EduBlogger, etc.), took the GRE, applied to a Doctoral Program with Illinois State University (and still waiting to hear about it!) and my ABSOLUTE favorite, reading with my wife in our baby book every night when she gets home.
All in all, although I worked through my vacation and got to enjoy the heat, humidity, and various communities of Atlanta, it wasn't so bad.
I look forward to blogging more and all of the excitement in the school year to come.
I am a science educator and school administrator. I am currently learning about Web 2.0 tools and creating PLC's. I am also trying to encourage my teachers to being working with our Ning site. You can find me on Twitter, Skype, Plurk and LinkedIn.
My wife and I are expecting our first child in September and we are both very excited. I am sure that pictures will be posted to beat out the paparazzi. :)
This is going to be my first blog: Summer Vacation
I became an administrator during this past school year. I started the year with 1 section of Honors Chemistry and at the semester break I no longer had a class to teach. While I miss the fun and excitement of being in the classroom, I did know that I was not able to give my usual 110% to my kids; that disappointed me.
With the transition to the office, I was signed a 211 day contract. Literally, I was supposed to work 211 days, as opposed to the 180+ days of the teaching contract. If I followed that to the letter of the law, I would have been finished on May 23. The usual interpretation is that 211 day employees would from July 15 - June 15 (on or about).
So, I continued to do the work that needed to be done. For my "month off" from work, I was in at least 80% of my days off. Things that I accomplished in this time: worked with a committee to hire our new school principal, who everyone on the committee was very pleased to get, participated in writing a grant for close to $500k, examined the proposed enrollment of every student in Chemistry and Physics to make sure that pre-requisites were being followed and the that proper credits had been earned, worked on our Advisory program curriculum, supervised summer curriculum projects as well as various and sundry other activities that needed my attention.
Some of the "fun activities" I did get to do: Painted the ceiling in the nursery to be, took my 7 month pregnant wife to Atlanta for a wedding (on our 3rd anniversary, with all of my in-laws, in the middle of the PeachTree Trot (the worlds largest 10k) and Atlanta's Gay pride celebration), learned more about some Professional Learning Communities (Ning, EduBlogger, etc.), took the GRE, applied to a Doctoral Program with Illinois State University (and still waiting to hear about it!) and my ABSOLUTE favorite, reading with my wife in our baby book every night when she gets home.
All in all, although I worked through my vacation and got to enjoy the heat, humidity, and various communities of Atlanta, it wasn't so bad.
I look forward to blogging more and all of the excitement in the school year to come.
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