Paul Alex Briseno

mguhlin:

Source: http://www.the-techbox.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Google-Privacy1.jpg

Vicki “CoolCatTeacher” Davis recently wrote a blog post, _Why Schools Shouldn’t Use GoogleDocs for Anything Private,_ as well as responded via Facebook to this topic. I won’t spend much time on the…

“ own your learning or you are prey”

kbkonnected:

Excellent!!! Poster My Wall - Cool poster making tool with lots of available customizations.

#elemchat #spedchat #edtech #posters

Kid will love using this tool to create posters for all kinds of projects. Teachers will love it too!

You can use their backgrounds/clip art or upload your own. Very nice selection.

Your posters are free to save and print. No registration required!

I am always on the lookout for a tool like “Poster My Wall” and think this is a definite keeper. One of the best in my book.

Included in 

  Paint/Draw/Create Online  under the new tab “Poster Makers”.

You may also like…

AutoMotivator

ASCll Poster (uses #’s and letters, neat

Mini Motivation

Easily created a poster within minutes and allows you to share via email, facebook, and twitter.  Will definitely share this with our teachers and librarians.

revolutionizeed:

Many ideas in this article about how technology is changing the classroom.  Even some great tips for those school districts really worried about budgets but still want to offer some sort of technology integration!

Really good article on iPads, iPods, technology integration, and schools on tight budgets.  Some quotes that I really liked:

computer literacy should be taught alongside other subjects rather than confined to a lab

gradually introduce the iPad rather than rushing in.

technology is not a cure-all. Until society addresses the larger problems facing schools, introducing tablets and laptops into packed classrooms with overworked teachers is like putting a band-aid on a broken femur.

rather than adding technology to existing ones….focuses on providing personalized instruction that moves at the pace of each student. Technology only comes into play insofar as it advances that personalized instruction.

kicksandgiggles:

Lest there be any doubt that females with public Facebook profiles are in constant peril, here is a thorough discussion of Girls Around Me, an iPhone app that allows users to push a button and see the Facebook profiles of every female in walking distance, according to FourSquare and plotted on a Google Map.

WUT.

UPDATE: FourSquare offers a statement:

This is a violation of our API policy, so we’ve reached out to the developer and shut off their API access.

Carl Hooker is the Director of Instructional Technology at Eanes ISD, a school district just south of Austin, where he provides some very innovative ideas and programs for the district.  I really enjoyed his blog post about his title and others who hold similar titles in school districts.  Below is an excerpt from that blog just to get you started.

I’ve discovered that being Director of Instructional Technology means a lot of different things to people but mostly they focus on the last word in that title:Technology. I get asked all sorts of questions about switches, ports, access points, bandwidth, throughput, and—my favorite—“What does your back-end look like?”

Hmmm, lets see…

• Father went to college
• Father finished college
• Mother went to college
• Mother finished college
• Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
• Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
• Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
• Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
• Were read children’s books by a parent
• Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18 
• Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
• The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
• Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
• Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
• Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs 
• Went to a private high school
• Went to summer camp
• Had a private tutor before you turned 18
• Family vacations involved staying at hotels
• Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18 (most of it, not all)
• Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them  
• There was original art in your house when you were a child
• Had a phone in your room before you turned 18
• You and your family lived in a single family house 
• Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
• You had your own room as a child (when I turned 12 I did)
• Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course
• Had your own TV in your room in High School (yes, used one that I bought at a yard sale for $20 my freshman year; also bought a computer my senior year; all from money I earned cutting grass, farming, and fixing cars with my dad)
• Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
• Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16
• Went on a cruise with your family
• Went on more than one cruise with your family
• Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
• You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family

Not very many but as I kid growing up I didn’t feel like I was “underprivileged” and led a very happy life for the most part.  I remember not having a TV until I was about 7 and listening to a small used radio at nights.  I remember playing outside a lot and my dad making me “toys” to play with.

However, once I got to high school I did start noticing that some of my friends had a lot more things than I did and they also talked about vacations they took, places they would go, but really didnt think much of it because I knew my parents did the best they could with what they had.  For example, I was involved in many extra-curricular activities from K-12; t-ball, flag football, basketball, track, science fairs, marching band, jazz band, concert band, drama club, science club, national honor society, UIL, etc.  My parents spent a lot of money for me to be able to do those things; so it was a give or take kind of situation.

GWALP makes a lot of good points on her post as well coming from a “privileged” life style growing up.  I think its up to the individual to do what it takes to get to where they want to go whether its easy or difficult; life isn’t fair for anyone.