MyNotes - Google Pushes Education Software

Pick your poison...Microsoft or GoogleApps. In the long run, which is the more benevolent?

From: Google Pushes Education Software Through App Store - BusinessWeek

Google Pushes Education Software Through App Store

Software sales for U.S. schools and colleges this year should surpass the 2009 total of $4.6 billion, according to Parthenon Group LLC. That could provide a new growth stream for Google, which gets...

"A teacher logs into a Google Apps account and they can access anything in the marketplace," said Birchfield, who is known by colleagues as the "Google guru." "It gives you a one-stop-shop kind of ...

Aviary Education, one of the first education apps offered on the site, is a free Web-based tool that lets students edit images and audio recordings in a private environment that can be monitored by...

Using Aviary's software, seventh graders at Harwich Middle School created presentations on women's issues in the Middle East, pairing images with narrations and sound effects. Google made the softw...

Providing "more apps for the education vertical helps them to basically acquire a customer for their whole portfolio of products early on," Aggarwal said. Apple Inc. and Microsoft Corp. have offere...

Google is plotting toward a future where it's the broker of all new technology adopted by a school, said Salman Khan, the founder of the nonprofit educational video series Khan Academy.

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Embracing Innovation - FOSS in Schools @neisd

Thanks to Ken Task's email for pointing out the following about Josh Beck in NorthEast ISD schools:

At iMAK we presently have 2 computer labs outfitted with dual boot systems running Ubuntu/Gutsy - Windows XP.  We believe the system we've developed is unique and may serve as a model for educators interested in offering students a diverse, in-depth educational experience in their technology classes. We wish to share our ideas with teachers and IT professionals who are interested in offering open-source alternatives without sacrificing the comfort zone many feel is offered by Microsoft's Windows XP.

Our goal is to offer students an experience that will allow them to advance in high-school and succeed globally. We are constantly striving to stay on top of current technology trends and find creative ways to teach these trends to 12, 13, and 14-year-old students.  

Read more online

You can watch video of Mr. Beck's class online. Students are using Blender to create a catapult....



Students are using a dual-boot machine with UbuntuLinux and Windows XP. I love this account of how he got the change going at a Technology magnet school...note the focus is on bringing innovative experiences to students rather than making it easier for District Technology Department staff to do their job, which unfortunately, is what keeps GNU/Linux out of many school districts:

A few weeks after dropping that first vanilla install into my classroom, I got the notion to go ahead and see if I couldn't integrate 10 or so into the classroom on a permanent basis. Of course, in a district as big as mine this was dangerous territory. These computers essentially belonged to the district and I was deleting thousands of dollars in propietary software in favor of free alternatives. I informed my immediate supervisor before taking any action, and we both agreed that this kind of innovation would be good for our program. After all, we were a chartered technology magnet program. It was in our mandate to do things differently. 

Students are event creating Android apps:

http://linuxclassroom.com/androidpic/article.jpg

Pretty amazing! Keep up the great work, Josh!

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Post Apocalypse

Watching The Book of Eli, I was struck by the use of an old iPod powered by a portable battery. It seemed so out of place, which is why it appeared there. As I consider the eReaders, netbooks available to many today, the demise of print is a foregone conclusion.

Since I began reading my Nook a few months ago, I haven't read ANY books--except for maybe the crucial conversations/confrontations books--in print. I find myself accumulating books and articles in digital format and wonder how I read before, stumbling from one island of paper to another. It all seems so inefficient now.

Yet, today, as I drove my kids to Half-Price Books, I allowed myself to be seduced by the magic of print. I held a few books in my hands, hoping the love of a well-told tale would grab me...I must confess that I felt nothing for awhile. Like a lion sated on a fresh kill, I had no desire for a book. Yet, finally, after waiting for an hour as my children visited with old friends in the stacks, a book found its way into my hands...$1.00, a bargain during 20% off sale.

I may read it...in the meantime, I find myself wanting to adapt this quote:

"A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day."

--Emily Dickinson

Note: Poster created with WigFlip's AutoMotivator

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Paycheck Leadership

"Remember that piece of paper that comes in the mail at the end of the month?" remarked one big boss to his underlings about their paychecks. "If you don't like what's happening, before you complain, remember that."

Defining "Paycheck leadership" - Although others define it differently, as I see it, this is "paycheck leadership." It's the kind of leadership that people in positions of authority engage in when they have 1) Have their own private agenda and care not a whit for involving stakeholders in decision-making; 2) Fail to communicate their expectations, agenda; 3) Don't even pretend to care about their stakeholders', the job they are about so long as their agenda gets met; 4) Use the paycheck as a whip to crack when performance lags.

Those words, the tone they were delivered in, sent chills down the backs of the people present who later related the story to me. I couldn't help but feel their pain. Somehow, we find ourselves in jobs where a monthly paycheck keeps us showing up in body, but not in spirit. I like how Kathy Larson describes this kind of false leadership, this "paycheck power:"

As an employer, you inherit “paycheck power”-- the power to write paychecks, to hire and fire, to make the rules, and to enforce them. Paycheck power says, “I pay people, so they should do what I want. I should be successful, and they should work hard.”

How do you recapture the enthusiasm for your job when the only motivator that counts, according to the boss, is the one you get in the mail or the payment you get via direct deposit? That kind of attitude is demoralizing and tears at one's spirit.

‎"No corporation ever achieved greatness by demoralizing its employees. No corporation ever successfully sustained organizational change without the buy-in from those on the front lines expected to implement that change!" (Source: Rita Solnet, Huffington Post)

Now that education faces massive cuts, after the illusion of surviving a bad economy, what motivation will the big boss in the scenario above appeal to get the most out of the people who need to bring about change, implement innovative approaches to get the job done with less cost?

Who cares? If I were inclined to curse, I'd use stronger words to say "Screw 'em." That kind of "leader" doesn't get anything done, and, in fact, isn't worth one's time...they have temporal authority but no influence.

Here's what I see the leader's responsibility is:

1. Identify the needs of the organization and the people it serves.
2. Work with stakeholders to articulate those into strategic goals and objectives.
3. Provide financial support, freedom, and encouragement for them to come up with their own solutions and get the work done.
4. Help clarify expectations and hold people accountable for what they said they would do.
5. Care for the people you are responsible for.

Larson describes it as "the power of service and success." Yes, that's it exactly. 

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@EdCampPlano - Texas unConference #edcamp #edcampplano

http://edcampplano.wikispaces.com/

Edcamp Plano is completely free, with all refreshments and other amenities provide solely through sponsorship and donation. With the possibility of hundreds of attendees, the organizers are looking for local businesses who may be interested in being featured in the conference literature. Those interested in being a sponsor can make donations and/or contact the organizers on the website http://edcampplano.wikispaces.com/.


Site:Sockwell Center for Professional Development6301 Chapel Hill Blvd

Plano, Texas 75093

Date:
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Registration Opens - Friday, April 1, 2011

You can help us spread the word!
If you are on Twitter, please use hashtag #edcamp and #edcampplano to share the message!
Find us on Twitter @edcampplano
Become a fan of our Facebook Page and share it with friends by posting the link to your wall.


About the unConference

Come enjoy a day with colleagues from North Texas and beyond. Arrive with an idea for a session that you would like to lead or with the anticipation of a full day of learning. A session might explore a technology tool, a discussion about best practices, or a collaborative presentation with multiple facilitators.  


During the first hour, you will have time to meet other educators over coffee. There will be an empty session board where you and all attendees can post session titles. Over the course of the day, you will have the opportunity to attend up to four sessions. The rule of the unconference is to “vote with your feet”. If a session doesn’t meet your needs, simply get up and move to another room.  


You will learn something new, maybe make a new friend, and receive information that you can 
immediately apply in your classroom and professional life! We will not be providing certificates 
for the professional development hours you receive.  

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Transition to #Moodle 2.0 @moodlerific

Image source: 

http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=152299

A colleague recently wrote to ask the following:

Did you upgrade from 1.9 or did you just install 2.0 (or both)?

The answer? I've done both. The only way to move a 1.9 site to 2.0--or so I've found--is to upgrade the Moodle instance from 1.9 to 2.0, upgrading all the courses in that Moodle instance. That is, upgrade the PHP/MySQL to meet Moodle 2.0 requirements, convert MySQL databases to INNODB and then do the standard upgrade process.

Melissa at Moodlerific.org asks some great questions worth considering, and which I'll reflect on at the end of this blog entry:

1. When to upgrade?
2. How much training will users need?
3. How do I go about telling users about the change that is coming?
4. How do I make the “change” be a good thing to our users and not another hurdle and “another thing to learn”?
5. All themes are new – should I remove all old ones?
6. Make a pilot group for Moodle 2.0?
7. What about modules users currently use that aren’t in Moodle 2.0?
8. I’m not familiar with the real use of the Gradebook and Quiz – are there big differences?
9. Where to go for help?

Stepping through it, I backed up my Moodle 1.9 instances, then transitioned the server to a new version of PHP/MySQL, made adjustments, then used phpMyAdmin to import the Moodle 1.9 instances as databases.

Once that was done, I converted all the Moodle 1.9 databases from MyISAM to INNODB, as described in the tip listed here.

Then, I wiped out the contents of the Moodle folder with all the php files that connect to the database, leaving the config.php file intact. I copied in Moodle 2.0 replacement files into the Moodle folder.

Once that was done, I accessed the Moodle admin page at http://servername/moodle/admin and began the upgrade for the Moodle instance. The upgrade converts all the courses.

That pretty much was the process.

In regards to Melissa's questions, wow, where to start? I don't have easy answers for these...I suspect that upgrading Moodle will be much easier than switching folks who have grown comfortable with Moodle 1.9 to Moodle 2.0. So, for now, allow me to share my response...I will certainly discuss these answers with my team of awesome professionals, as well as solicit feedback from the Moodle-ing teachers in my situation:


When to upgrade?
This question isn't hard to figure out the answer to in a K-12 school setting. When would upgrading be easiest, assuming complete disaster were to occur during the attempt such as a server failure and restoring from backup on a fresh machine, and least inconvenience users? The answer is Summer, 2011 during the month of June. This has already been decided upon in my setting after reflection and we've begun letting everyone know that Moodle will be inaccessible. We're also inviting folks to try out Moodle 2.0 in a sandbox with the understanding that the sandbox can't handle LARGE classes of students all at once.

How much training will users need?
Starting in July, 2011 we'll offer training on Moodle as we always do, and upgrade our professional learning materials. Fortunately, Mary Cooch's book on Moodle 2.0 - Teaching 7-14 Year olds will be out to replace the Moodle 1.9 version of that book (at least, that's what we're counting on!). For those who have to make the transition from Moodle 1.9 to 2.0, we've all reviewed 2.0 and don't think the changes are THAT drastic. But we'll offer a few classes to bridge the gap between the two Moodle versions.

How do I go about telling users about the change that is coming?
Again, I would offer any NEW classes on teaching online using Moodle 2.0 and not look back. For those that would like to see the differences between the two Moodles, offer them scaffolded sandbox professional learning opportunities so they can play. Also, make announcements reassuring folks that their Moodle 1.9 courses will be upgraded to the new version...and that no data will be lost during the upgrade, although the "look-n-feel" will change. I expect that theme development for 2.0 will be easier, so we won't lose our distinctive look.

How do I make the “change” be a good thing to our users and not another hurdle and “another thing to learn”?
Attitudes towards change and lifelong learning are something we all have control over individually. I would focus on the benefits Moodle 2.0 brings and share those via monthly Moodle webinars or video walkthroughs. We haven't done that yet, and I'm hoping that a new communication plan will get folks focused on what they can do.

All themes are new – should I remove all old ones?
If by this one means that we should throw out all the Moodle 1.9 themes, well, probably but I'd focus on maintaining a consistent look to minimize the appearance of change.

Make a pilot group for Moodle 2.0?
What a great idea! Have a small number of regular Moodlers embrace Moodle 2.0 and then have them create the short video walkthroughs or tutorials for moodle. Of course, you can't do this unless you have a sandbox running with Moodle 2.0 and that may not be possible for you until you upgrade.

What about modules users currently use that aren’t in Moodle 2.0?
There's no reason that you can't run Moodle 1.9 and 2.0 concurrently on the same server provided you have upgraded your MySQL/PHP installation. However, I'd be clear about Moodle 2.0 and the timeline for upgrades to non-standard modules/blocks in use. For example, my list of favorite Moodle blocks/modules IS the standard in my Moodle installation. I'm hoping these items will have been upgraded to work with Moodle 2.0 by June, 2011 when the transition is made.

As to other questions, it wouldn't do to try and answer all of them today, now, would it?
;->

For now, join MoodleMayhem.org and participate online at MoodleMayhem @ Facebook

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21 Points of Lights

A conversation starter....

and while many agreed with Shelly Blake-Plock's points about 21 Things That Will Become Obsolete, I found the list a bit long. I felt like a potential jurist waiting for the opposing lawyer to object to a jurist because of his beliefs, his words, or whatever inspires objections.

One of the responses to Shelly's points included this one, which I've anonymized:

Interesting, not sure our districts will have the funding to support some of these initiatives. Plus I would hate to see us cut back on the number of teachers we have in the classroom. For years, as a board member, I fought for lower class sizes at the Secondary level and now our legislators are going to raise the size of the Elementary classes. What are they thinking? Plus they are going to be making much larger cuts in budgets than anticipated??? Part of training for them to be a legislator should be at least two weeks in a classroom (with no help), let them do the modifications, teach the curriculum and deal with over 22 kids in a class. Maybe then they would understand what our teachers and administrators do. To all the Administrators, Teachers and All the other Much Needed Staff thank you for what you do and have a very Happy New Year!!!

This is a traditional response to anyone who criticizes teachers, isn't it? It's the "Walk a mile in my shoes before you complain about how I'm doing my job." In truth, it's not a bad approach and often sends the message home. I still recall when one technology administrator that I had the good fortune to know, who rabidly criticized teachers for their lack of innovation, decided to teach for a day in high-heeled shoes. Perhaps, she missed the key point of exchanging shoes with the teacher who taught their...SAS comfortable shoes.

The experience transformed her attitude...so much so, I wondered if she'd been brainwashed. Benjamin Disraeli's words lend a bit of wisdom and insight in these situations....

A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.

Having taught in K-12 schools, as well as provided support, I understand the many must-attend-to-NOW distractions teachers face. To expect them to transform the "system," the ecology of indoctrination that characterize our schools, alone is foolish. While the criticism is apparent for legislators, it is also there for technology administrators who fail them. What we are looking for isn't the illusion of safety, but the opportunity to make mistakes with a support network. I want the risks that give learning its distinctive edge, that engage me...not the placid pool of patient parley that delay my use of Read/Write Web tools and other emerging technologies lauded by my Professional Learning Network (PLN).

Thanks for sharing. If I may respond....

Many teachers lack the time and comfort level to innovate successfully with technology. Their failure to employ technology reflects on administrators who have 1) blocked emerging technologies in their districts; 2) failed to engage the community in reciprocal dialogue about technology usage; and 3) not bothered to use the technology themselves. 

These 3 actions prevent teachers' development of Professional Learning Networks (PLNs), the exploration of rich content on YouTube (Khan Academy is but one example), and employing social media tools to tell the story of teaching, learning and leading in K-12 schools. We sacrifice learning daily upon the altar of political correctness...teaching digital citizenship/cybersafety often means referring to resources inaccessible in schools, like the boogeyman that haunts the ignorant in the dark.

As to lack of funding, here's a quick summary of what Texas is facing:

http://www.mguhlin.org/2010/12/summarizing-tx-education-finance-news.html

Isn't it time we abandoned buying a server for every app and moved into cloud computing, used free open source software solutions to strategically replace recurring licenses for Microsoft and other products that are used at but a mere 70% of their capabilities? (yes, I made that number up)

As to your points about lower class sizes, Clayton Christiansen's points out in "Disrupting Class" online learning has great potential. Many Texas districts are using free open source course management system (e.g. Moodle, Sakai) to make online learning a reality. Others are burying their heads in the sand and hoping Texas Virtual School Network (TxVSN) has no accountability for implementation (it IS law). When will teachers in today's schools have the support--in-house using free, open source tools now available--to transform teaching and learning through blended instruction? Blended learning--a hybrid of face to face and online learning--has already been shown in the research to be better than either F2F or online. More on virtual schooling in Texas:

http://www.mguhlin.org/2009/06/txcto09-virtual-schooling-in-texas.html

And, citing research, consider the lack of adoption of problem-based learning. Ill-structured problems enable learners to develop solutions that are complicated. And, yet, in spite of that, PBL is seldom used in schools as we rush through curriculum, dancing from one tip of the iceberg to the other. Read Zakaria's article on "How to Restore the American Dream" and you realize how unappetizing cookie-cutter curriculum efforts are for building a globally competitive, or more importantly, collaborative, workforce:

http://www.mguhlin.org/2010/12/mynotes-how-to-restore-american-dream.html

Thanks for reading and sharing. Only through dialogue can we better achieve understanding among all stakeholders.

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Software GiveAway - Picture Collage Maker Pro

Image Attribution at bottom of blog post

Thanks to Pearl Mountain Software's Shelley for making 20 copies of Picture Collage Maker Pro ($39.90 per copy) available for free! You can read my review (and full disclosure) of Picture Collage Maker Pro (for Windows) online here, and either enter the drawing for the license giveaway by clicking this link or filling out the form embedded in this blog entry.

Here's what will happen:

1. You fill out the form between now and December 31st.
2. On January 1, 2011, twenty entries will be drawn at random from those submitted prior to midnight 12/31/2010...
   
   
3. ...then the list of winners will be shared in a blog entry here at Around the Corner. Winners will also receive an email with the license code and download link.
4. If you want to get started early, Picture Collage Maker Pro has a 15-day trial you can download.

Best of luck, and, yes, please do share this with friends and family. Although you can only win once, wouldn't it be neat if someone in your family or circle of friends (or PLN) had the opportunity to win, too?






Image Attribution
Original image: 'Falcon flying' 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/54587723@N00/244104021
by: Alexander Kuchar

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Product Review - Picture Collage Maker

More at http://www.picturecollagesoftware.com/

Update: Participate in the Software GiveAway of Picture Collage Maker Pro ($39.90) prior to January 1, 2011! 20 license codes will be given away for free!

Right before the holiday break, a colleague asked me, "Do you know of a photo collage maker? I want to gift someone with a program like that." At the time, I really had nothing in mind...I don't often make photo collages...and, if I thought I needed to make a collage, my first instinct would be to find something online for free, maybe at BigHugeLabs. Fortunately, one software company sent me a free copy of Picture Collage Maker for Windows and offered to do a give-away.

THE NO-COST COMPETITION

Before reviewing Picture Collage Maker, I thought I might take a quick look at what you can do for free on the Web with photo collage tools. If you are aware of one that I don't mention here, please share it in the comments!

One of the first photo collage makers available for free via the Web that I ran across--aside from BigHugeLabs.com--was PhotoVisi. Here's what I created in about two seconds:

I didn't like this background above, more suited to a wedding or something a bit more "girly" than History Day, which is where the images above came from. There are some other options you can try for free (or purchase), such as Shape Collage (free with limited options, or $25 for a multi-platform tool (e.g. Mac, Win, GNU/Linux). Shape Collage worked quite well, producing this output:

Of course, these two examples enabled me to create a simple photo collage...and both came with watermarks. I also read about a way to use the no-cost Google's Picasa to create photo collages. There are tons of approaches for creating photo collages and working with images these days, some of which interface with Yahoo's Flickr (dump them) and Facebook (which is more useful these days). 

So, while some solutions are free, what would paying for one of these solutions mean to my photo collage? Alas, I don't know. Only one vendor sent me a free license code, which means, I'd probably be using the free stuff anyways!

;->

NOTE: You can find my complete list of photo collage makers and related links here, or subscribe to the RSS feed to keep up to date with future additions.

PICTURE COLLAGE MAKER

Via email, I received a free license code to evaluate Picture Collage Maker, which comes for Windows. In the interests of full disclosure, here is the invitation I received:

This is Shelley from Pearl Mountain Software, we have been focusing on your website which is really very useful and helpful to all the people.

We developed Picture Collage Maker Pro. It is an easy-to-use program that can turn ordinary photos and pictures into stunning photo collage, scrapbook and cards to share with family and friends, whether you are a green hand or high talented computer user.

I’m pleased to invite you to try our software and present you with a personal license worth $ 39.90, you can test it first.

If you are satisfied with our product, we hope you could recommend our Picture Collage Maker Pro 2.4.6 on your website and help us to do some giveaway, we prepared some giveaway license code for users or visitors of your website. Please contact us to get the license codes. We’re sure that your web visitors would like it and it could help your readers.

Of course, I had to test the software and see if it was worthwhile. Of course, it was...lots of additional options not even covered in some of the other tools I looked at, even when you paid for them.


Some of the features this software for Windows had include the following:

• you can create collages, scrapbooks, posters, invitations, calendars, and greeting cards.
• Picture Collage Maker comes with a library of professionally-drawn templates that offer you a wide variety of photo layouts and backgrounds for your collage. You have complete control over paper size and orientation.
• Simply drag and drop pictures onto your background. It's simple to resize each picture, move it to exactly where you want it, and tilt it a little or a lot, for added impact. You can choose from a large selection of special effects to fine-tune each individual picture, from adjusting hue and brightness, to applying artistic effects.
• Picture Collage Maker comes with a large collection of beautiful picture frames that you can add to any of your photos. In addition to traditional frames, the program also has masks that you can apply to each individual picture, allowing you to change the shape of each image.
• It's easy to add text, in any color or size, anywhere on your collage. You can further personalize your creation by adding clipart, from team mascots and company logos, to holiday images.
• With Picture Collage Maker, you can build a greeting card in seconds or spend more time

Some of the neat features I noticed right off upon installation included a link to tutorials, tips and tricks for using the software. This was helpful to me because I hadn't used this kind of tool before...

Starting out, you can see a few screenshots....

Not having played with the program much, I chose to take advantage of the Template Collage Wizard, which presented some fascinating options:

Creating the collage was easy after that...there were tons of choices...here are a few:

Lots of other customization options available in Picture Collage Maker:

What else would I have liked to see?


As nice a product as Picture Collage Maker Pro is, the price is pretty high. I'm not sure I'd want to pay $40 for a product, even one that had so many neat features. Of course, if I made photo collages every day or had a special need to make one, I wouldn't see this as a big expenditure.

Some neat features that appear in Shape Collage but weren't in Picture Collage Maker Pro is the ability to easily export images and place them in online storage sites, such as PicasaWeb, Flickr, as well as share via social media tools like Facebook, Plurk and Twitter. I would definitely have liked to see these capabilities within the program. Of course, creating collages is also possible using other tools like Glogster, which allow for multimedia collages. The question is, does Picture Collage Maker Pro remain a viable product in the face of online competitors? Yes, if your focus is on designing print-outs and digital images to share via the Web. Quick sharing via social media tools would make Picture Collage Maker Pro really versatile and enduring.

Aside from that, Picture Collage Maker Pro came across as an easy to use program to create photo collages and generally do quite a bit with your photos. It's ease of use reminded me of my time with Print Shop type programs where you didn't have to be an expert to create ornate arrangements and you could easily "Wow!" folks with your print-outs. Fortunately, digital images are finding expression online and Picture Collage Maker Pro is a nice digital image development tool.

Stay tuned for future give-aways of Picture Collage Maker Pro for Windows!

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