DISQUS

I'm going to do break my own rule and say 'great graphic' without offering anything to the conversation about your content. Sorry.

"The reasons for the practice have much to do with social control techniques, and little to do with learning."

As is the case with many other educational practices. Well said, that man!

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@Una Great anecdote. Thanks for sharing.

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Great post, as ever, and I support your arguments. On the first point, may I add that in some countries, school education is not and never has been age-based. Children do not progress from grade to grade as they age. They progress on the basis of demonstration of competency. Or this is the theory, anyway. In practice it's about passing exams... and I've made my feelings about the appropriateness of the exam system known before.

Also, in some countries, people may take time out of school to work the fields, start a family or fight in a revolution... and then return. And when they do, they pick up where they have left off. See this story, for example: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3394707...

So teachers in developing countries have always had to deal with multiple generations in a classroom. Perhaps this is one situation in which we should ask them for advice instead of always feeling that we are in a position to give it to them.

Just a thought.

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I know you probably disagree, but it sounds to me as if what we have here is a good idea poorly implemented.

Well, Dougsdadbensgrandpa I think you can be justifiably proud of what your son is doing for his profession! I confess that I am not a teacher, so my observation comes from outside the field. But I can't help wondering whether being a teacher and being in management are not perhaps two different skill sets.

Let's look at an analogy: In commerce, one of the massive problems is in sales departments. People who are great at sales usually suck at people management. But time after time they put the best salesperson in as sales manager. I have seen this happen on so many occasions and it is such a bad idea.

In the US, as I understand it (and I may be wrong) being a school head is a different path from being a teacher. My heart aches when we see yet another gifted practitioner moving out of the classroom and into the office. And a school doesn't have to be very large before the demands of managing a team and running the school become too great to allow that person any classroom time any more. With the potential that he has, Doug is likely to find himself in the same position... and what a loss that would be!

Hospitals are not run by doctors. They are run by administrators. Doctors practice medicine. Isn't this perhaps a better option for schools, too? That teachers teach, leaving all the administration malarkey to an administrator?

Just wonderin'

Oh, oh, oh. You done opened a can of worms here!

Did you see the video embedded in my post yesterday? For me, that pretty much sums it up. You hit the nail on the head pointing out that pens and paper are technology. As are desks, classrooms, school buildings, traditional whiteboards.... In fact, perhaps it could even be argued that the intangible methodology is technology.

As Heppell says in the video, these days we can make technology do whatever we want. The question is: WHAT DO WE WANT TO DO? That is the right conversation. The right question. How can we use technology is the wrong question. It will be answered ipso facto when the right question is answered.

There are just so many points here from which to start a conversation, but I'll pick up on just one point. That about technology not doing the presentation for you. One of the greatest regrets I have is that PowerPoint data files were ever named 'presentations'. They are NOT presentations. They are the visual (and sometimes audiovisual) aids to a presentation, which is delivered by a living, breathing human being. Why do perfectly useful people turn themselves into voice-overs for PowerPoint slides? And what an insult so many of those slides are to the intelligence of the audience. Just dump the content of your presentation onto a series of slides in bullet point form and read them to your audience. That'll do the trick. But, of course, we can always add a little zing and pizzazz with a few pie charts (as your Dilbert strip illustrates).

My own view is that these people could be doing so many other things. And yet, here they are, taking time out to hear what I have to say. They deserve cogent reasoning, illustrated - where appropriate - with relevant graphics and or images that help them to process the information or give them a mental hook to hang it on.

If I can't take the time to put together a kick-ass presentation, why should they take time to attend it?

It seems to me that, while you haven't stated it in as many words, you share my concern that personalising learning seems to be more about tailoring each individual child to fit the curriculum, rather than vice versa. Your opening quote pretty much says that, at any rate.

Having been one of those kids who was ill-suited to the traditional education model, I was labelled an under-achiever. I won't hijack your space by describing some of the methods that were used to try to reshape me to fit the round hole, but they failed spectacularly and left me feeling scarred and inadequate into the bargain.

I was identified as being a candidate for a school that was sometimes said to be for 'gifted' kids, but was just as often called a for misfits. The whole model was different and was designed to address each child's strengths, weaknesses and interests. I wish I could tell you more about it, but even with the grant on offer, we couldn't manage the fees associated with private education.

Do you think that tutor-supported project based learning could be a way to go here?

I suspect that these blind spots are par for the course. In their teens, these kids are demonstrating a perfectly normal degree of self involvement and thoughtlessness. They tend to be somewhat denialist and 'it'll never happen to me'.

It's probably related to the whole frontal lobe thing. Apparently the frontal lobe, which is the area of the brain used to make judgement calls, doesn't mature until about age 25. Hence the tendency to daredevil acts of monumentally stupidity... and unprotected sex (been there, done that, got the maternity T-shirt).

They'll grow out of it. But it is good that you hold up a mirror every now and again to cause them to reflect on a course of action they have chosen.

Facebook didn't get them evicted. They behaved like eejits. If they hadn't posted the pictures on FB, the lady would still have discovered the damage at some point, and they would still have been held accountable. What got them evicted was their lack of respect for property, for their neighbours, for the landlady, for one another and even (it's gotta be said) for themselves.

Vicki, in Stephen's defence, I would like to say that, most of the time, his criticisms are well-thought out. I think we both know him well enough by now not to expect him to couch his thoughts in gentle phrases. He says what he thinks needs to be said. Your feelings - for him - probably don't come into it. You don't always (ever?) have to agree with them, as you know, but it is well-worth taking a deep breath and trying to consider his suggestions as objectively as possible. Not easy when he is talking about a project that consumes so much of your life and into which you pour so much of yourself. Like me, you wear your heart on your sleeve and you're as much about your feelings as you are about your thoughts.

I haven't had to deal with the level of criticism you face. I simply don't command the public attention that you do, and, unfortunately, criticism is par for the course when you are pushing the envelope the way you do. The problem for people like us, is compartmentalising the criticism, and dealing with it in a detached way, instead of internalising it. I do know that Stephen - at least - has great respect for your efforts and what he sees as your shared big picture goals in terms of education. He has said so more than once.

And of course, as I have said more than once: I wish my sons had a teacher like you!

I've been here recently, too! See here. And the forgiving and moving on part, although hard, releases me too. When I hold a grudge against someone, the other end of the grudge holds me prisoner.

@swards Do you really think that self-promotion is only th province of that small group of people?

When you apply for a job, do you not try to give the impression in your application that you are the best person for the job? When you get to an interview - assuming you really want the job - do you not try to persuade the interviewer that you are a better bet than any of the other people they are interviewing for the post?

When the man/woman of your dreams appears on your radar, do you not try to prove to them how worthy a person you are? Someone they should notice, spend time with, fall in love with, spend the rest of their lives with?

When you play a sport, do you not do everything in your power to play as well as you can so that the selectors pick you for the team?

Self promotion is part and parcel of life - professional and social. If you sat quietly in a little corner, never making an attempt to get yourself noticed, you'd never get any job at all and you'd live a very solitary existence.

@Gary Do you have any idea how much that sounds like "In my day..."?

Things are very different now from 1967. The way people relate to one another has changed. The skills people need in the workplace have changed. The way we deliver learning and development has changed (although in some places, not enough!).

A recruiter needs to acknowledge that social media form a valid part of a person's work practice or run the risk of losing relevance.

@Boris I'm no longer in the market for an employer. I set up my own independent consultancy last year. But you are absolutely right. As far as I am concerned *any* job interview is a two-way street. No-one should ever feel that they go cap in hand to a recruiter to beg for a job. Both they and the organisation have something they need and something they offer. The interview should be a way to explore whether or not they are a good fit. They should be approaching the interview on an equal footing. Too many recruiters seem to forget that.

Glad you put that out in the public domain. (a) No member of any of my communities of practice would be interested in being hired by someone with your views, which, I'm afraid to say, is your very great loss and (b) your catchment pool is going to shrink exponentially over the next few years. Twitter has already gone mainstream. Even Obama uses it to conduct national meetings.

I have never encountered a recruiter who has bothered to check me out online, even though I always supply links to all my urls. I was interviewed by one guy who was a bit miffed that I had googled him and knew so much about him. He seemed to feel that I had somehow overstepped the mark. I couldn't help feeling that a guy who was looking for an elearning specialist ought to have taken advantage of the opportunity to get some insight into the person behind the CV.

It might have been me, in that case. I have posted about it before. So glad it paid off!

I also used the 'stick stuff all over the walls' approach at an interview. Rather cheekily, I had left the pictures all over the walls after the interview, so they were left surrounded by, well, me. I didn't accept the job, but when they recalled me for another interview several months later after a re-org, everyone remembered my preso. One woman who hadn't even been on the staff during the previous interview had heard all about it, too, and was keen to meet me.

I also made the point about appropriate use of technology and that technology should be the invisible means to an end, not an end in itself.

Great minds and all that... ;o)

Wow! I find myself in such illustrious company. It never for a moment occurred to me, when we took on the challenge to blog about notable women in technology, that anyone would mention my name. I am humbled. Thank you.

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I suspect that the plan might result in a few surprises. We might find a few people who discover a talent and a love for teaching, but I predict that they will be in the minority.

Like Foxy, I am more concerned about the learners than the teachers (not that I am unconcerned about the teachers). But my worry is that many of the people who may be inclined to go this route will do so because it provides them with a way to keep earning until the economy turns the corner and they can go back to their 'real' jobs. For the kids, this effectively means that they will have some teachers who always have one eye out the window to see if there isn't anything more interesting going on outside.

I have often wondered out loud what the archeologists and social anthropologists of another civilisation would make of the remains of our society. Here is a man who kicks a bag of wind around a field and gets paid £100K/week. Here is another man - looks as if his name was Dug Balshew ;o) - who was a dedicated teacher, preparing the young people of society to take their place as the captains of industry, leaders of commerce, doctors, lawyers, political figures... and, yes, teachers. And he earned, what? £35K/year?

What kind of a society are we that we pay critical people like nurses, teachers, police officers, paramedics, firefighters barely a living wage, while our entertainers earn top dollar?

Don't leave teaching, Doug. I understand how you feel, but keep your eye on the kids. They're going to need you even more if this plan comes into being.

Oh dear. I'm not trying to stir up a hornet's nest here. But being okay with a photo being taken is a long way from agreeing to have it published for all the world to see. For example, I once published (to my FB page) a photo taken at a barbecue at my home, in which some of our closest friends appeared. The wife contacted me and asked me to take it down. She was offended that I had not asked her permission to post a photo in which she appeared and considered it a betrayal of trust. She knew I had taken the photo and had no problem with that, it was the public airing she took exception to.

The 'children in bathing suits' reference is completely lost on me, I'm afraid. If it refers to perverts ogling pictures of children, and fuelling their sick fantasies, that is not at all where I was heading. It is quite evident that this picture is not of that sort. There is no argument that it is a picture that is both beautiful and innocent. That is not at issue.

Branden has said he sees 'no harm in this', but (and I mean no offence here) it isn't really up to him... or to me. It is up to the mother of the child. And she wasn't consulted (granted this was due to a language barrier, but the fact remains.)

Let me provide a little context. I sometimes design elearning resources for an educational body. In these we include photos of children to illustrate a point or to add interest to a page. In every case, unless there has been signed release from the parents of every single child in the picture, we may not use the image (in every case, the children are fully clothed, so the question of decency does not come into it).

When you upload images to iStock, you have to declare that you have obtained a release from the 'models' to use the picture.

When you publish a photo on Facebook, you have to declare that you have the right to distribute the image.

It is my understanding that no such release was given here. And this is the point that makes me raise the question.

Branden makes the argument that society has become over protective. That is a personal opinion (and possibly a valid one - this is not the place to have that debate), but the data protection act in the UK would probably prohibit the use of this image without parental release. Whether you, Branden or I disagree with the provisions of this act, it doesn't give us the right to ignore it as an inconvenience. Instead, if (as Branden seems to indicate) he considers it unnecessarily stringent, he should use the machinations at his disposal to agitate for change.

Apologies for the lengthy comment. I hope I have clarified my stance with no ill-feeling on either side.

It's a beautiful photo, but I'm concerned about ethics... Sorry - don't mean to be negative, but if I discovered someone had posted a photo of my toddler on a public website without my permission, I would be incensed.

Hulu is not available outside of the USA :o(