This document provides an overview of Vicki Davis and her work as an educational influencer and advocate for connected, collaborative, and project-based learning. It lists her blog, websites, and resources that promote connecting classrooms globally using Web 2.0 tools and flat classroom models. Davis discusses overcoming fears of new ideas and technologies, and outlines seven vital behaviors for flattening the classroom through connection, communication, contribution, choice, creation, and celebration.
10. TEAMS “ Working with people across the world has challenged me.” “ The majority of my partners wanted to contribute something meaningful to the project.” Horizon Project Students http://horizonproject.wikispaces.com
20. “ You cannot step in the same river twice.” Heraclitus
21. “ We are better at coping than exerting influence.” Kerry Patterson et al, Influencer: The Power to Change Anything , p 8
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23. ITEMIZED BILL For placing “x” on gauge $ 1.00 For knowing which gauge to place the “x” on $9,999.00 Brian Tracey, Focal Point: A Proven System to Simplify Your Life, Double Your Production and Achieve All Your Goals , p 8
24. “ Discover a few vital behaviors, change those, and problems – no matter their size – topple like a house of cards.” Kerry Patterson et al, Influencer: The Power to Change Anything , p 28
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28. Mirror Neurons: Giacomo Rizzolatti et al., “Premotor Cortex and the Recognition of Motor Actions,” Cognitive Behavior Resdearch, 3 (1996) 131-141.
29. Self Control is Contagious University of Georgia Website, Michelle van Dellen, Physorg.com 1/14/2010 9:10 am
Today, we are going to discuss what it means to be a 21 st century influencer. Hi, my name is Vicki Davis and I’m coming to you from the small town of Camilla, Georgia where I’ve been a teacher for 8 years.
During that time, in December 2005, I began blogging at the Cool Cat Teacher blog and used my experience from the business world as a general manager as well as my teaching, professional development teaching I’ve done for adults in technology at the college level, and my experience as IT director for my school to this blog. But you see, I still view myself as the
, the ”poster child for the beginner” Like my youngest son, who has just learned to read, I’m a relative newcomer to these technologies. In November 2005, I attended the
Georgia Educators Technology Conference in Atlanta with a commission from my curriculum director to bring technologies back to my classroom that would enable me to better facilitiate
Research based best practices such as cooperative learning, authentic assessment, and project based learning and
This is how I felt!
But since that time, I’ve co-founded the Flat Classroom Projects with Julie Lindsay, a teacher who is now located in Beijing China and every single course I teach at my school now has a global collaborative piece included in the instruction.
This includes participation in a global debate project called the Eracism project for the 8 th graders, the digiteen Project which studies Digital Citizenship for the 9 th graders, the Flat Classroom Project and NetGenEd project with Don Tapscott for the 10 th grade Computer Science course, the Flint River Project which is an immersive week and a half experience for our entire high school that uses technology to share and display their findings about the Flint River and
when I take students to the Flat Classroom Conference in Qatar last year and in Mumbai, India in two weeks, grades 2-8 will travel with us virtual and connect with those who are going via skype, voicethreads, and our blogs to learn about and immerse in India.
So, literally, you can see my student Casey here who graduated from Westwood being able to say that she served as project manager for a group of students from China, Australia, and Qatar in a global collaborative team experience. This is where we need to go in all of our schools… but how do we get there.
Let’s go back to my irrational fear of sharks. I live in Camilla, Georgia – and let me tell you, we don’t have sharks in Camilla!
But we’re dealing with different phobias here, perhaps, which the biggest of which is Techno-phobia. You’ve got a lot of teachers to lead, how do we apply current research on promoting change AND what needs to happen with 21 st century skills in your classrooms to help move your schools forward.
Let’s look at the research on phobias as discussed with Kerry Patterson’s book Influencer: the Power to Change Anything. On your pencil or piece of paper, I want you to jott down, how long do you think it took researchers to help someone overcome a fear of snakes?
Well, what the researchers have found is that lectures don’t work. You can talk to someone all day, however, it will not change them. Additionally, when someone has a phobia, you CANNOT, I repeat CANNOT just force them to do it. They respond with such fear that they become dysfunctional. The only way to help a person overcome a phobia is through Vicarious experience. A vicarious experience is when someone watches another person do the thing in which they fear. So,
Back to our question. How long does it take to overcome a phobia of snakes? The researcher Albert Bandura proved that this only took
An average of 3 hours! Three hours!!! First the person watched someone through the glass and then were allowed to get closer and closer, until finally, they were sitting in a chair with a snake across their lap, petting the snake! We can do the same with technology! We must empower key teachers to pilot programs and experience technology transformation in schools and allow other teachers who may be techno-phobic to learn vicariously.
This is also the transformation that allowed this picture to happen last year – with these five students from four different continents including one from my school, one from the Middle East, another from Africa, and a fourth from Australia.
Global collaborative projects aren’t just about feeling good and meeting new people – they are about intense, deep learning experiences where a topic is learned thoroughly and well and higher order thinking is our goal.
But here, we’re also talking about a higher order of living and that, to me, is the most important take away.
In today’s society everything changes except the law of change… As Heraclitus said, “you cannot step in the same river twice.” Once you’ve stepped in the river, your simple stirring of the mud at the bottom has changed the nature of the river itself. We must be careful and realize that each of us has a different story. Each of your districts and schools will have their own story of change if you are an effective leader, you will foster an environment that allows that to happen… but here is the problem.
We are better with coping with problems than exerting influence to change them. Last January, I was the heaviest I’ve ever been in my life and decided to change. In July, I took up running, now I’m almost 20 pounds lighter. It was a struggle, but what I was doing before was just buying larger clothes, moving my seat back in the car – I was coping – but when I started exerting influence and self control that was when positive change happened.
Brian Tracy in his book, Focal Point, tells the story of a nuclear power plant that was having trouble. Something was wrong in the control room, but they couldn’t figure out what. So, they called for a consultant. The consultant spent three days observing and scribbling notes on a clipboard. Then, he asked for a step stool and stood up high on the stool, pulled out a piece of chalk, and drew an “x” on one knob. He gets down from the stool and turns to the control room manager and says “replace that knob” and strolls out. The next week, the plant manager received a bill the next week for $10,000. The plant manager called the consultant and questioned the bill, asking for an itemized list of expenses, and this is the bill he got…
For placing x on gague $1.00 – for knowing which gague to place an “x” upon - $9,999. Knowing where to put the “x” in each part of your life is the critical determination. Additionally, according to influence research, you must find the vital behaviors – the few things that you place an “x” upon to work to change.
Researcher Kerry Patterson says, “discover a few vital behaviors, change those, and problems –no matter their size- topple like a house of cards.”
We’re looking for high leverage behaviors - -the things that you can encourage that change a whole school and notice this – DO NOT confuse outcome with behavior. Last night, my team, Georgia Tech lost to FSU because they missed a foulshot – the outcome was they lost the game –the behavior was the player didn’t do what it took to learn to ring all of his foul shots! What is the behavior. Before we move on, I’d like to share what the
Research of Dr. Ethna Reid showed as the vital behaviors for the best teachers. She found 2 behaviors that could literally predict the best teachers: Number 1 – The use praise and reward positive behavior far more frequently. Note, however, that these teachers didn’t praise for poor behavior – it was honest genuine praise for the things that the teacher wanted to happen in their classroom – the critical behaviors that make for good learning. The focal point! Number 2 – The teacher rapidly alternates between teaching, questioning, and testing to make immediate corrections. This is why
One of the most powerful tools according to educational researchers for teachers to use is the “ticket to leave” – a critical question asked that summarizes the days learning – students complete this before leaving class – the teacher looks at the one question and determines where to start the next day. Well, here is your ticket to leave – your assignment for today’s conversation. To look for vital behaviors, you should: #1 Find people who should be failing but aren’t #2 Find people who know how to get back on track after making mistakes
Here is why that is so important just as Albert Bandura demonstrated that humans are influenced by watching the behaviors of others,” giacomo Rizoolatti and Leanoardo Fogassi were studying a monkey’s brain when an accident happened. Fogassi reached for a banana and the neuron’s in the monkey’s brain fired not as expected – the neurons that fired were those that fire as if the monkey was reaching for the banana himself. They called these MIRROR neurons. Our brains fire and imitate those we see and who is around us!
Researchers from the University of Georgia had people list friends and family in 2 lists: those with self control and those without. Then, they had the subjects take a computerized test to measure self control. The name of a person flashed on the screen in 10 milliseconds – this was enough time to go into their subliminal mind but not slow enough to be read. What they found is that Those who saw the name of a person in their subconcious mind who had self control showed more self control and those who saw the name of one without had less. They found self control is contagious – that is why many overweight people report losing weight after watching things like the biggest loser. But how does this relate to technology and change – it relates heavily.
At my school, we move to empower the engaged. If a person asks for something, we work hard to make it happen for them. But if they receive it, they have to share with others – this empowers the vicarious learning experience.
But right now, we’re talking about empowering change – what are the things you can do? Last week, I spent some time with some educators in New York, and have two examples for you – Ed Hallisey has a 1:1 program in New York and before he did anything – he, a person who isn’t very good with technology said that he researched things for about a year before taking them to his teachers. Jody Kennedy who has her students collaborating with people from around the world said that she experienced the power of global collaboration and it spread – a vicarious learning experience.
But understand this – there is only one person you can control in your district and that person, my friends is YOU!
But here is the deal… you’ve got to be real!
These are the stats from Ed’s School that I quoted a moment a go – they are in the 5 th year of the project and all of the students grades 6 through 12 have laptops – several thousand and here are the stats for his school. How did he do this?
He got past the technology to the human emotions of what they were feeling. Ed told me: “I supported them until they felt cared for and understood. Now they are described by others as ‘fearless users of technology.’” He’s not a technology geek but he goes to all the classes with them – he leads by learning. He leads by caring about their emotions. We’re dealing with pyschology here, not just about technology and those people who realize that are those who are enacting change in powerful ways.
Patterson says “People become far less willing to believe what you have to say, the moment they realize your goal is convince them of something.” This is why you and your people on staff should present and be part of the sales process AND NOT vendors. You don’t have to know a lot about the technology but they should trust you and believe in what you’re saying.
So, what are the vital behaviors you need to encourage?
Julie Lindsay and I like to break these down into 6 areas – let’s charge through them.
Flattening your classroom is connecting yourself. And the first step is to connect yourselves to others. Your teachers should also connect themselves. Have an RSS reader, join the diigo educators group, listen to the current conversations at edtechtalk – join Twitter and follow at least 50 educators before you make your call on it – watch videos at the free k12 online conference and encourage networking in organizations like the Google teacher Academy, Discovery Educators, Flat Classrooms Ning.
There is too much information and you need to rely on your friends as your filter. Additionally, this isn’t just about lifelong learning but about lifelong renewal – we have to keep relearning or we FORGET!! As Socrates said, “we lose the remembrance of them.” Additionally,
We must also remember that we become like those we surround ourselves with. Schools are toxic. In order to stay positive, we must surround ourselves with good people because “vicious company corrupts the mind” – the very future of your school system depends upon who you listen to and surround yourself with.
Programs like the 23 things are SO effective for teachers and librarians because it allows them to embed their professional development. Take time during the week.
How do you eat a watermelon?
If you eat it whole, you’ll choke.
No, the way you eat a watermelon is one bit at a time.
And that is what I suggest for you to do today. Your assignment for this webinar today is to come up with your “Big Three” at the end of the webinar. Pick three things – start there!
Do the things that sit at hand like Thomas Carlyle said. “Our job is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.” Investigate your next three things. The problem is …
Our professional development looks like this – we put so much into 10 hours that they cannot digest it all. It is too much and overloads them.
Instead your professional development should be in small succulent bites – on a weekly basis through these global connections – reading our RSS reader. In fact,
If you look at change – Kaizen as advocated by the japanese is the best method of change – slow and steady
So, I embed my learning and take 15 minutes 2-3 times a week to learn and explore new technologies and this, has been the thing that has led to the complete transformation of my classroom! But you don’t have time – you say.
“ Every day is a new day to a wise man.” Start now.
You must realize that you are what you do – make sure you have LIVED TODAY!! “Happy is the man, and happy he alone. He, who can call today his own: He who, secure within can say: ‘Tomorrow do thy worst, for I have lived today.” Pick your big three and let me suggest that among those three should be to set up your RSS reader using Google reader or Net Vibes – start learning and connecting and making up your own mind.
After connecting yourself, you must connect teachers and administration on any new technologies you’ll use in the classroom – what are the rules – what are the things you think will happen, how WILL you handle discipline problems that arise because THEY WILL ARISE. Just as if two students bump up against each other in the hall, you’ll have trouble – this is an online space full of STUDENTS and there WILL BE DISCIPLINARY ISSUES. Period. THERE WILL BE ISSUES. If you think it will be a perfect place, you are wrong. But you can anticipate these issues and prepare ahead of time for how you’ll deal with those.
When you look at your policies realize this – if you want to get technology into the classroom, you need the teacher on board. But if the teacher wants to get out to the world - -they need YOU!
The way I see it, administrators have two choices – to remove the obstacle or to be the obstacle – that is it!
Successful technology implementation includes people – the people are on board, you have a plan, but most of all you have a purpose!! You have to be careful about gadget lust!
Beware of trendy, make sure what you’re planning to do includes improving your academics! Let’s look back in time for an example,
In the 1920’s and 30’s radioactivity was “all the rage” and everyone assumed because springwater was radioactive that it must be good for you – so here comes the revigator. This revigator cured all kinds of things including arthritis, flatulence, senility, and poisoning. Over 200,000 people bought this clay pot lined with radioactive clay.
However when a team of researchers studied this, they found toxic levels of many chemicals including arsenic and lead from the pure lead spout!
After reading Socrates on my Kindle where he told a young man not to look long at the lips of the person he desired, I wrote this on the plane: “do not look too long at the gleam of the monitor, nor glow of humming hard drive, lest you spend your money on gadgets that do not fulfill a need, draw dust in the corner and make everyone feel like a failure.” So, when you select your tools, be wise. Finally,
After you connect yourself and your teachers to the greater world of educational knowledge out there and you make the connection between administrators and teachers, now, you’re ready to connect your students. Start by having students collaborate within their classrooms on blogs and wikis, then connect within school districts. You should be able to connect all fifth grade history students using the same book, for example. Then, you’re ready for a managed global connection, things like ePals, iEearn, Eracism Project. Phase four is the Flat Classroom project and Digiteen projects and students work together while teachers manage and help things progress. Finally, you want students to work and manage their own teams as they collaborate and work together. These take progression, especially the first time you’ve done this.
Secondly, you want to encourage the communication methods that allow you to link with the world.
There are two types of communication methods that our students need to understand to have effective techno-personal skills: synchronous and asychronous communications.
Synchronous means doing things at the same time and in the same place such as these synchronized swimmers. The classroom is a synchronous environment – we are synchronized and all inhabiting that classroom in the same time and space. We are together. Schools are already good at enriching our synchronous classroom environment using tools like video conferencing, webinars, and live broadcasts from around the world. However, synchronous is no longer enough.
Asynchronous means NOT at the same time – for example this famous statue by Rodin was created by him over 100 years a go and we enjoy it now. We did not get to enjoy it or interact with him while he worked.
The traditional classrooms is also separated by time. This has made classroom to classroom cooperation between the continents difficult if not impossible because while one set of students is in class, another is at home eating dinner or asleep. This has made it difficult to videoconference and communicate directly, however
is unified by internet tools like wikis, blogs, social networks (which I prefer to call educational networks) and cooperating teachers. The classrooms may then cooperate with objectives, projects, and assignments created on these common platforms.
Likewise students may write a group report together using a wiki as shown by the history of this wiki page from the Flat Classroom 2007 project. - http://flatclassroomproject.wikispaces.com/page/history/Connecting+the+World+Online?o=20
Students also need to know how to communicate in synchronous spaces like Elluminate because most of them will distance learn at some point in their lives. They need to know how to effectively participate in these spaces.
Third we have to teach citizenship. In fact, digital citizenship education is required by new e-rate funding requirements – but here is the issue
Humans are required to interpret the material on the internet – we are the ultimate processor of information. The greatest filter ever created is between the ears of our students. We cannot rely entirely on filters and must teach students how to effectively navigate these online spaces. That being said, while my student collaborate with dozens of countries, I believe
We never gample with what we cannot afford to lose – and that includes
Did you know that you are here because of Web 2.0?
Her and also includes
Him.
But, remember just as this child is climbing a very high rock climbing wall – that there are safe ways to do what some consider dangerous. This is being done. Get past the fear and learn vicariously through others by reading their blogs and watching their videos at the k12 online conference to let them prove it to you. If you’re a technology phobic person remember that you become like who you hang around – start letting yourself learn from what others are doing to move forward your creativity – you may also find that you’ll save money!
Then, we want students (and teachers) to contribute and collaborate.
The beautiful thing about wikis and blogs, is that, if they are set up correctly, that you can have collaboration with individual student contribution because
Every student has their own id.
This is the editing page of a wiki called the wiki history page and you can see that it tracks the date and time and contribution of each student. You no longer have a group project where one student does all the work – you can have them work together and contribute individually in a measurable, assessable way.
Additionally, students can collaborate and communicate as shown in this Ning discussion as they work out problems and discuss how to best tackle a project.
Fifth – we want students to have choice.
I’d like to ask you if Helen Keller were in your school today, would she become Helen Keller? It took one of the greatest teacherpreneurs of all time, Anne Sullivan, to reach and unlock this student!
Excellent schools differentiate and realize that
They can use tools to reach all the learning styles of their students. I did a presentation at the CUE conference two years a go on this topic and I believe it is archived on their site if you want to know more.
6 th – students and teachers need to create
If we look at Blooms revised taxonomy – true creation is the top level of thinking – we need to get there – the creation of original artifacts and the addition of those to a digital portfolio is one of the most powerful gifts you can give to your students in their future. But be careful about thinking that you’re talking about
Some sort of field of dreams. Some states are building networks for their teachers and finding that the teachers are rebelling and don’t want to go there. In fact, I know of one organization that build a ntework for their IT directors and the IT directors built their own and refused to let the administrators in! Instead,
You must engage students and teachers in reflection of what you’re doing and re-creation of how it will work next year. One of the last things I do each year is a survey of my students and a survey of teachers – let them reflect and share and be part of the creation and re-creation of what you’re doing with technology. This is an ESSENTIAL behavior for promoting ongoing change – the Kaizen that we talked bout earlier.
Finally – step 7 is that we celebrate.
With all of our projects we host a student summit and awards ceremony. Some districts have awards shows like the Oscars for their video competitions. Think big, and fun, and engaging, but also inexpensive and humorous. Chris Lehman, principal of Science Leadership Academy says that the “paper plate awards” they give at their school in which every student gets a funny paper plate recognition of something that makes them special is one of the most motivational things that they do!
In Dale Carnegie’s book How to Stop Worrying and Start Living , he interviewed a woman with cancer who said “My doctors later told me there are two kinds of people when it comes to cancer: transmitters and transformers. Transmitters take the negative experience and transmit the negativity to everyone around them.
Transformers turn the negativity into something positive.”
Like Jody Kennedy, teacher in New York – she’s found that they are saving money and using free online tools because of budget cuts. It is giving them an excuse to change. But when you have those budget cuts, let me remind you something about motivating people.
You must realize that the only difference between sacrifice and punishment is choice! Give people a choice – when you do, and you empower people to be part of the solution and part of the discussion they will make sacrifices. Because
But the thing about change is you only have two choices – you can be the victim or the victor. Victims are the ones that have people force change on them – the victors, or winners become PART of change.
In Patterson’s book, Influencer: The Power to Change Anything , he found positive change leaders spent an unusual amount of time with formal leaders and opinion leaders because you need to realize that
You don’t have to influence veryone at once –the formal leaders are easy to find – the opinion leaders are a little tougher, but if you ask around, you know who they are. Work on them when you are promoting acceptance of technology. And here is one thing about influencing them.
When Dr. Everett Rogers studied trends that actually take hold, he found that you find out who the innovators are – AND AVOID THEM. These are the innovators who don’t fit in – who are on the fringes – who don’t influence change. Their advocacy can kill a project – instead – he found the early adopters – people who watched a trend and sat back but were opinion leaders. In Malcolm Gladwell’s book The Tipping Point , he calls them the Mavens. Because you see,
People died for 200 years from Scurvy – the English were called Limeys during that time because their sailors ate limes to ward off scurvy but the problem was – the REST OF THE WORLD DIDN’T LIKE OR TRUST THE ENGLISH. So, thousands of sailors died and had their teeth rot out because of the wrong messenger.
When you’re looking to promote these vital behaviors, remember that the selection of the messenger is vital as they found when the carter center worked to eradicate the Guinea worm – they had ot use tribal shaaman instead of their researchers to deliver the message because the tribesmen and women wouldn’t listen to the researchers!
Find your change leaders – ask.
Opinion leaders have three characteristics – they are knowledgeable, trustworthy, and generous with their time to others! The best thing is to become an opinion leader yourself! And Remember
When you hire – look for these characteristics in a person – “first rate men hire first rate men and second rate men hire third rate men.” Look for people who promote change.
My husband always says that the only people who like change are babies with dirty diapers and even then, they cry the whole time
So, remember that teacherprenaurs and educapreneurs who customize their classrooms and connect their students to other places do not fly alone
They find others to connect with – they create cohorts and connections.
Also, it is not about what you’re keeping out, but
What are you bringing in.
Now, as we get ready to discuss and take feedback, I’ll post some tools to explore here on the screen.
So, when I came back to Camilla, I started using wikis with my students immediately and sat down in my classroom to begin blogging. I turned to a student and said, “I have to create a blog and I have to name the thing – what should I name it?” The students sitting there said, “Well, Mrs. Vicki, you’re cool and we’re the wildcats, so, why don’t you call it the cool Cat teacher blog