Last weekend I had the chance for my first D&D experience. This was arranged and run by my daughter. It was an interesting and fun activity.
Hazel
Hazel’s been a bit under the weather lately. She’s been on some medication (pink eye and probably a virus). Just like a toddler, send her to “school” and she comes home with the crud. She’s also working on walking without being afraid of noises and activities. Rm is doing a terrific job with her.
Beers with(out) Beards
Saturday was a chance to experience Beers With(out) Beards via an invitation from my eldest daughter and a friend of hers. This was a neat experience revolving around, well, Beers. Essentially, this is an event that celebrates Women in Beer. There were a wide variety of Beers to sample. There were breweries from around the country in attendance.
Being the driver meant prudence with the number of beers sampled. However, I was able to try quite a few. It was the first real event that I’ve attended without a mask in a while. I had a wonderful time and would surely go again.
Sea Dogs
Rm and I also went to our first Portland Sea Dogs game on Sunday. Although it was not a winning day for the home team, the weather was beautiful. The stadium is interesting (as are most AA stadiums). We’ll definitely be going back (and hope that the team learns to catch pop-ups).
I had a neat conversation about things that we can do. One example that I shared was when I had overheard a teacher state “This week is going to be tough. I’ve got to read the test all week”. I asked “Why is that?” (I knew the answer, but I really wanted the teacher to process this.). “Well, lots of kids have an IEP or accommodation where they have the test read to them.” So, I asked, “Why not read the test once?” The teacher, “That would be awesome.” Me: “In Moodle, you can read it once, record it and be done.” Teacher: “Tell me more.” So I showed the teacher how it would work. The teacher went and recorded everything (the test was already in Moodle, so it was even more streamlined). The teacher, who was a Special Education teacher by the way, then showed the cooperating teacher. The cooperating teacher was a bit hesitant. “Would all the students be able to listen to the test?” Me: “Yep” Teacher 2: “Hm. I’m not sure about that.” Me: “How come? What is your concern? Look, honestly, the students who don’t need the test read aren’t going to listen. Also, do you have students who could use the test to be read, but don’t have anything officially documented?” Teacher 2: “Yea. I’ve got quite a few. Let me think about it and get back to you.” The teacher got back to me and stated that we were good to go. See, this was just a change. This leveled the playing field. The students who needed the test read didn’t have to be pulled out of class. All the students were told that they could listen to the test. End result: All of the students were treated with grace. Those that needed the test read, could listen. They didn’t have to be pulled aside, they could stay with their peers. Those that really didn’t need the test read, didn’t have to listen. Plus, we reduced the unconscious bias in reading the test out loud. The Special Education teacher could do work that was more in line with their skills and talents rather than reading a test over and over for a week. The cooperating teacher ended up wanting to read the test. We set him up with the very little bit of training needed and now he reads all the tests for the kids.
There was some interest in this process in my new position. I’m not sure that everyone is ready for the yet, but once they are….
Moose
I’m still working on the MOOSE project. I have a few things that need to get done, but we are still working through the background parts of the project.
House of Cards
I was a fan of House of Cards on Netflix. Who knew just how accurate the show really was. It is now apparent that we have lots of legislators who only care about staying in power. They don’t care about the citizens, what is right, democracy, or justice. They just want to stay in power.
Flow charts
So, this week I learned that you can do flowcharts in markdown. Well, technically, not markdown, but markdown like. Even better, flowcharts are built-in to Joplin through Mermaid integration. I was able to create a quick flowchart, but I need to learn how to style them a bit.
This chart is created with the following code:
” ““`mermaid graph TD A[Flowchart] –>|Learn| B(Types) B –> C{Graphs} C –>|Possibility| D[Gantt] C –>|Possibility| E[Flowchart] C –>|Possibility| F[Left to Right]
I got to attend this weeks photo group. This week was sharing member photos. I’m enjoying listening to the rating and thoughts of others about pictures. I need to develop my eye.
I’m continuing to read Barn 8. I didn’t get as much reading time this week. I’ve had some mixed feelings about the book, but the story is picking up. I’m concerned about it becoming too “preachy” without enough story to hold my interest.
Podcast
Once again, Shawn was terrific on our podcast (Middle School Matters). We chatted about PD and how much of that will be in person.
RmMade
Rosemarie had a wonderful show at the Vault in Manchester. Lots of Friends found lovely new homes., There were lots of positive vibes and wonderful feedback. So many people had the same reaction, “Wow, they each have their own personality”.
If you are looking for a special gift, she makes custom orders as well.
Video Editing
I’ve been editing some videos for work. I kind of enjoy that.
Summer Training
I had a discussion (or two) about offering summer training. This led me to think about past summer trainings. We hosted several Moodle Moots in the summer.
One additional thing was the food. Fatoush salads, hummus, and chicken shawarma sandwiches (from Sahara). Now I really want a good chicken shawarma sandwich from Sahara (and, yes, I’ll fight anyone who says lettuce and tomato belong on the sandwich). Wonderful food.
Mud Season
Interestingly, Mud Season seems to be a thing here in Maine. I’ve gotten several emails about dealing with the mud (e.g. from our trash service about if you don’t want them going on your driveway during mud season) and it’s been in the papers. I have to admit, I never worried about Mud Season when I lived in Dearborn.
Power of the Dog
Rm and I watched “The Power of the Dog”. I’m not seeing why this was in the running for Best Picture. It wasn’t bad, but I didn’t feel that it was a great movie either. The film stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Phil. He is a very enigmatic character. Benedict Cumberbatch does an excellent job of bringing Phil to life. However, the full story leaves me unfulfilled.
Toby Price
One of the things that I’ve been following is the saga of Toby Price. Basically, he was fired for reading “I Need a New Butt” to second graders. When I first heard the story, via Twitter, it seemed too fantastical to be true. The district is limited in what it can say. So, we get one side of the story. Thus, I wondered what the “rest of the story” (hat tip to Paul Harvey). It seems now though that there is no “rest of the story”. It’s seeming like Toby Price really was fired for reading “I Need a New Butt”. Let that sink in.
This is potentially a canary in the coal mine of restriction, control, book banning, information control, and suppression. This will not be the last example of this type of control.
Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is in the news for two reasons:
The nomination of Judge Jackson
Clarence Thomas’ voting and his wife’s tweets
Ketanji Brown Jackson hs been nominated to be the next Supreme Court Justice (replacing Justice Breyer). Judge Jackson is the first black woman to be nominated for the Supreme Court. The hearings have been an example of political partisianship pandering for “TV”. She has handled many inane questions with such grace and skill. Several Republicans have announced that they won’t support her (even though they supported her in the past). Republicans are constantly throwing up the false flag of CRT (Critical Race Theory).
The other Supreme Court news revolves around a bunch of text messages from Ginni Thomas (Virginia Thomas), who is the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Ginni Thomas sent a variety of text messages to Mark Meadows (who was the White House Chief of Staff). Let’s take a look at a few of the text messages:
Biden crime family & ballot fraud co-conspirators (elected officials, bureaucrats, social media censorship mongers, fake stream media reporters, etc) are being arrested & detained for ballot fraud right now & over coming days, & will be living in barges off GITMO to face military tribunals for sedition.
The majority knows Biden and the Left is attempting the greatest Heist of our History.
Sounds like Sidney and her team are getting inundated with evidence of fraud. Make a plan. Release the Kraken and save us from the left taking America down.
Help This Great President stand firm, Mark!!!…You are the leader, with him, who is standing for America’s constitutional governance at the precipice. The majority knows Biden and the Left is attempting the greatest Heist of our History,
Evil always looks like the victor until the King of Kings triumphs. Do not grow weary in well doing. The fight continues. I have staked my career on it. Well at least my time in DC on it.
“Make a plan,Release the Kraken and save us from the left taking America down.”
Now spouses can certainly have their own opinions. They can have their own job, beliefs, etc. What makes this troubling is Justice Thomas ruling on anything around the attempted insurrection on January 6th, 2021. Justice Thomas had the lone dissenting opinion on releasing material to the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. Given the revelation of the texts from his wife to those who tried to overthrow the United States Government, at the very least he should’ve recused himself.
Those messages aren’t just crazy, those are beyond “bat shit crazy”. Yet, many hold similar beliefs right now. Most of those aren’t married to a Supreme Court Justice who can rule in a way to protect them.
The weather has been mostly beautiful. Spring has sprung (and officially on Sunday).
MOOSE
I’ve been doing some work for MOOSE. This is the open-source project through Maine. I’ve participated in three of the training sessions and completed several of the training resources courses. I’m excited to be participating in the project. I’m on the Computer Science track, so there will be some learning for me. I’m excited to get the opportunity to create some materials. I hope to “cross-create” as well.
Baseball
Baseball is back. I’ve renewed my MLB subscription. I’ve watched at least parts of a couple of spring training games.
I also picked up some tickets to the Portland Sea Dogs game in April.
Book
I’ve started reading Barn 8. The book so far focuses on a “what if” scenario. A young, adopted girl decides that she wants to visit her dad (she just found out that she is adopted and her father is alive). It doesn’t go well. Before she can return home, her mother is killed in a car crash. She meets up with a woman who knew her mother. Together, they start hatching a plan.
Tech Integrators
Podcast
The Podcast last week, Sap Risin’ Time, was a bit shorter than usual; under an hour. It’s always great to chat with Shawn.
Hazel
Our new puppy went off to daycare for the first time. Of course, she was put in “time out”. Apparently, she was basically herding many of the other dogs. She continues to do well.
Events
World events continue to be frustrating. Russia is trying to take over Ukraine but is being met with heroic resistance. Frustrating that these conditions are still going on throughout the world. Make no mistake, this is not the only place with so much strife, but it is the one getting the news cycles.
Some of the January 6th traitors are now in the judicial system. I hate to say it, but the penalties seem really small for trying to overthrow the government.
Judge Jackson has been nominated for the Supreme Court. It is frustrating to listen to politicians who pushed through the nomination of another Judge (Amy Coney Barrett) push against the nomination of Judge Jackson. Instead of being a country of ideals, partisanship is obviously present. Now, I know that has always been the case. And I’m optimistic enough to hope that we shall rise above that partisanship in the end.
Social Studies is so important to our country. We’ve abused and lessened that importance in school and are now paying the price. We need rational, critical thinkers. This is more important than ever as corporations have gotten even better at manipulation.
Well, once again, I’ve fallen off the Weekly Note wagon. Let’s jump back on, shall we?
Week of Feb 21, 2022
Last week was a break from work. With the week off, I did some work around the house. Specifically, this week was the dining room.
I cut and installed some beadboard. The girls helped do the actual installation part. The beadboard and trim has been painted (white), while the top of the walls are Tostada (kind of a cafe au lait color). I still need to do a second color coat and paint the inside of the bookcases. Oh, and the beadboard cap will be installed after the second color coat.
Rm and I did take a day to head over to Norway, Maine. With Hazel in tow, it was a wonderful day. We visited Fiber and Vine and several other shops.
Week of Feb 28, 2022
Back to work. Lots to do and catch up on. One of the meetings was on changing from required masks to masks being optional. There was lots of discussion and perspectives on this.
Finished up much of the dining room. Everything was put back in place (with the exception of things on the bookshelf). Sunday was bookshelf painting day. One coat paint was actually one coat paint. Now to let it dry for a few days and then replace the treasures. (Only one bookshelf was painted.)
Also got a permanent crown installed. The procedure was quick and easy. I think of the generation of my parents. Both of my parents had dentures by this point in their life. Glad to not have to deal with that (at least yet).
My wife has been hard at work preparing for a vendor show at the end of March. She does such wonderful work. The things that she creates are truly unique and special.
*Warning, what follows may not be the most efficient or elegant solution to the problem noted. However, it is a solution.
In education, we frequently want to look at multiple data points for a single student. Often these are standardized tests. Looking at the data from a single vendor for a single assessment is usually quite easy. The vendor creates tons of reports. However, combining different results is usually a bit harder.
My first “go-to” is usually a pivot table. Pivot tables will provide great flexibility. However, the end-users (here administrators and teachers) aren’t always comfortable manipulating pivot tables. It can be more confusing rather than enlightening.
So, let’s take a look at what the educators are looking for. Basically, a sheet with a student name, then different assessment results on one line.
I started by exporting a copy of student data with the fields that I need (Student State ID, Student Number, Student Last, Student First Name, Teacher, Grade Level). (This is the information identified as necessary by the school as the end-user. They want teachers to be able to see their students. I added the Student State ID field as an identifier that was common amongst the reporting spreadsheets). I named this Student Data Example. Then I renamed the tab DataView (skipping spaces makes formulas easier).
Next, I added the assessments that we are going to look at (as determined by the school). I also color-coded the assessments.
Now we’re ready for some data.
I’ve exported the NWEA data as a csv file (spreadsheet). Then I looked at the NWEA data. I moved the State ID field to be the first field on the spreadsheet. This is necessary to match the records through a VLOOKUP.
I copied the data to a new tab on the Student Data Example spreadsheet. (*I could’ve done an IMPORTRANGE – which would automatically copy the data, but maybe later). Now I’ve got a spreadsheet with two tabs: DataView (the tab that users will look at) and Fall_NWEA (where I’ve copied the NWEA results for Fall).
Normally, this would be a simple VLOOKUP. However, NWEA has multiple tests per student. That is, a student has probably taken three tests. Each one is a row. Using VLOOKUP would grab the first result and move on. Thus, I couldn’t get the reading score in the reading box for sure. What I need is just the Reading (just the Math, and just the Language) scores on one table.
I created a new tab on the spreadsheet and titled it Fall_NWEA_Reading. I copied the header row (only A through N as those are the columns with data that I need). Then in cell A2 I wrote the following formula:
=FILTER(Fall_NWEA!A1:N, Fall_NWEA!G1:G=”Reading”)
What this formula does is to copy the data from the Fall_NWEA tab where the information in Column G is “Reading”. This means that I get one result per student that is their Reading score. This is exactly what I need.
Next I duplicate that tab, change the name to Fall_NWEA_Math. Then I click in cell A2 and change the formula from:
=FILTER(Fall_NWEA!A1:N, Fall_NWEA!G1:G=”Reading”) To:
=FILTER(Fall_NWEA!A1:N, Fall_NWEA!G1:G=”Math”)
Now this tab will pull all the data from the Fall_NWEA tab that has the word Math in column G.
Then I repeat that process (duplicate the tab, rename to Fall_NWEA_Language, and change “Reading” to “Language”). Now I have a discrete cell that I can reference on the Student Data sheet.
Back to DataView tab. Under each of the tests, I can now reference a specific cell through VLOOKUP. For example, in the Fall NWEA Math Test Percentile column, I can add the following formula:
=VLOOKUP(A2,Fall_NWEA_Math!$A$2:$M,13, FALSE)
Here are the guts:
VLOOKUP is the command.
A2 references the cell to compare
Fall_NWEA_Math!$A$2:$M- this is the tab to look at (remember it will use the first column on the tab to compare – the $ signs are necessary to lock the formula so that it will search all the way down
Column 13 is the column (M) with the data that I want.
Essentially, this looks at the information in cell A2 on the DataView sheet. Then it looks through the first column of the tab Fall_NWEA_Math for a matching result. If it finds one, it can use the data from that row (A through M because that is where I told it look). The next part of the formula (13) says put the data in the cell here. The FALSE means look for an exact match.
Now you can fill that formula down to all the rest of the rows.
Next we’ll grab the Fall NWEA Math Test AchievementQuartile. In the next column, we’ll pretty much copy that formula, but adjust for the appropriate column were the results that we want are. Since I want the data that is in column N, I have to expand two parts – I need to pull data from A-N and I want column 14. Thus:
=VLOOKUP(A2,Fall_NWEA_Math!$A$2:$N,14, FALSE)
That’s it. Now that I have clean usable data, I can repeat this basic process. Next, we’ll use conditional formatting to highlight the scores per colum, but that’s another post.
Now that technology purchasing season is upon us, I’ve been thinking a lot about pragmatism and possibilities.
Pragmatism – “an approach that assesses the truth of meaning of theories or beliefs in terms of the success of their practical application.”
I’m using pragmatism to stand for how something will really, actually, in the real world be used.
Technology purchases (and really, lots of purchases) will be made based on the possibilities of the product. The salesforce will highlight the wonderful things that the product can do. Purchasers will focus in the possibilities that a product provides. Decisions will be generated on the great possibilities of the products. Comparisons will be made. The fact that one product can (at least theoretically) do something may tip the balance and cause that product to be purchased.
Once the products are purchased, the real issue becomes how it is actually used. No matter the best intention, rarely is anything used to its maximum. I would argue that technology in education is a prime example of that. Educators are kind, optimistic, wonderful people. They truly want kids to learn. They have the world’s greatest intention. But, you know what they say about good intentions….
One example of this, which isn’t super contentious, is the Swivl. The Swivl is a base device into which a teacher places an iPad or iPhone (technically an Android phone would work too, but come on 😀 ). The teacher then can wear a pendant, and the iPad would follow the teacher. This system allows for the teacher to record what is going on in class. This could be used to spotlight the students as well. The idea being that the teacher could record instruction, small group work, student responses, etc.
I remember seeing this making the rounds. I ended up purchasing one, trying it out, and giving it to my Tech Coaches, and having them try it out. Our verdict: Cool, but ultimately no one is going to use it. Oh, we had some additional teachers try it out as well. Specifically, we had some instructional coaches try it with teachers that they were working in. Their verdict, “no thank you”.
See, the idea was fine enough. In reality, though, few teachers want to be recorded. Even those that do, don’t want to put a lot of time, energy, or effort into the process. Let’s be honest, dealing with video requires editing. Anyway, no one really wanted to work with the Swivl.
Then….
A couple of my bosses went to a gee-whiz, bang-up presentation at our ISD (Intermediate School District – the level between the local district and the State). They came back excited!
Them: “Have you seen the Swivl”? Me: Yes. Them: We need to buy a bunch of them. Me: We have one. How about I let you try it out? Them: How much are they? When can we get more? Me: I’ll loan you the one that we have. Try it out. Have some teachers try it out.
So, I sent them off with the Swivl to try it out with some teachers. (Hint: we didn’t buy any more.)
There’s no blame here. The sales pitch was solid. The possibilities were terrific. The shiny factor is high. Who doesn’t want to be able to review their teaching? Who doesn’t want the coaches to have deep discussions with the teachers that working with? Heck, one of my teacher friends even spent his/her/their very own money to purchase one. Again, the possibilities were terrific. However, pragmatically? Pragmatically, these end up in the closet. ( *Side note, time to create the Closet of Great Intentions?)
Another example of possibilities versus pragmatic selection seems to be the adoption of a Learning Management System (LMS). I’ve seen the selection of an LMS (by several districts) end up being decided upon by a good sales pitch. In reality, much of the use of an LMS is extremely limited. So, districts end up deciding whether to adopt LMS A or LMS B based on a sales pitch of possibilities (almost none of which educators will use).
One final example. I was chatting about this with a friend from another district. He smiled stated that they ended up selecting an EL program based on 27 things, but they only end up using 1% of the program. (The conversation was also about the money that districts spend for curriculum resources (and how those come to be viewed as the curriculum), but that’s another post.)
This seems to be deeply ingrained into the technology and technology selection. I’ve heard this from a plethora of people in technology.
I keep track of the books that I read on this site. However, I rarely make an individual post. I should.
Focused on the development of air warfare, specifically bombers, this one tickled my love of history. I was fascinated by how the development of bombers was predicated on how things were “going to be” and not how they were.
Mr. Gladwell bases the story on two generals, Gen. Hansell & Gen. LeMay. General Hansell was a believer in precision bombing with the idea of saving civilians’ lives while quickly and effectively winning a war. General LeMay was a pragmatist who ends up using Napalm on 67 cities in Japan (with devastating results).
There are no easy answers here. What is “right” when it comes to war?
I end up comparing things to education and did so again with this. Is Technology just not quite ready yet? Will technology in education eventually become highly targeted in the future? And will that bring additional challenges?
This was designed as an audiobook first and then converted to a convention book. Get the audiobook on this one.”
I came across an article on every teacher being a reading teacher (by Releah Lent) that argues reading skills need to be taught not universally across all subjects, but rather as disciplinary literacy. That is, different subject areas should teach not just reading, but specific reading strategies that align with that discipline. For example, in history, students should be taught to read (i.e. think) like a historian. That is different than reading in math, or science.
This struck me as a much more nuanced and effective perspective than “every teacher needs to teach reading” (or the “every teacher is a reading teacher” line).
The article points out that we’ve done tons of professional development around teaching reading strategies. Teachers remarked on the amount of professional development focused on strategies:
Utilizing K-W-L charts? Been to that inservice so many times, I could teach it. Close reading strategies? I can do that one too.
The article goes on to argue that reading needs to be taught as a discplinary skill, not a general one. The argument is that different disciplines require different reading skills. Through focusing on reading skills need by a discipline, the skill becomes authentic and useful.
I got to thinking about how this relates to technology. For many teachers, technology remains a separate curriculum, done by someone else. Or, technology has institutionalized via a similar “everyone is a technology teacher” pitch that doesn’t have real meaning. This has led to us being in a situation where technology coaches are frustrated because they are asked by teachers to come into classes and teach the kids technology. Since the teachers don’t really learn the skill (or even more importantly the “WHY” of the skill), no substantive change happens. Technology does not become embedded and lead to change possibilities but continues to be an outside/extra thing.
It’s time to make technology part of our expected skill set. Maybe focusing on the technology per specific discipline can help speed up that process.
