The journey begins again...

After a few months off  for the summer break, I am back on track with the program.  I am also looking forward to applying some of the great knowledge I have aquired at ISTE 2012 and the 2012 Google Summit. 

To supplement this blog and to provide a place to apply some of the great tools that I have found, I created a new website called www.EdTechQuickTips.org   Here we will provide links to great tools and resources along with a video blog of QuickTips for teachers who are trying to incorporate technology into their classrooms. 

ISTE 2012 Rocked!

I just got back from San Diego... I really wish I could have stayed all week!  I have been going to conferences and expos for more than 3 decades but I have never been to a conference that was so packed with useful information.  I was only able to go to three sessions but all three were power packed and full of great ideas and resources.  I feel so enriched from the short weekend. 

I went to seminars on Emerging Technologies in the classroom,  Starting an Online Program, and Grant Writing for your classroom and school.  All three were dynamite and kept us rivited for the 3 hours of each session. 

I can't wait for next year and I have already decided that my wife, a teacher, and I are going to spend the entire week in San Antonio!

PC Maintenance

We have an interesting module to accomplish this week and it had to do with PC Maintenance and Security.  Now I have been in the IT field for 25+ years, but I actually found some information that was interesting to me. 

I was intrigued by three workshops... The first was a module in a software program that I use all the time... Spybot Search & Destroy.  This is a great program for finding and eradicating spyware and malware.  I use the Immunization function and the scan functions.  I have see the Tea Timer function for years and never took the time to investigate what it does.  Tea Timer is a real-time memory and malware scanner.  It watches your front door and warns you if something tries to get in that could be harmful.  Very cool little add-on that I will now use.

The Second workshop that I wandered into was the great tools available on KarenWare.com.  The specific tool that caught my eye was the Replicator.  This little program is basically an automated backup system.  You can specify that a folder or file is backed up at a particular time to either a local drive, network drive or to the cloud somewhere.  You can basically copy your whole My Documents folder to a secure location and then each night the program only updates anything that changed or was added since the last update.  Great little free utility.  As someone who has lost files during a HD crash or a laptop failure, I think this is great protection.

Last utility that I learned about was called MailWasher.  This is a FREE utility that allows you to clean up some or most of the SPAM that hits your inbox every day.  I receive upwards of 200 spam messags a day and I am very glad to utilize this program to help me stop the craziness. 

Three great utilites... I guess you can still teach an old dog new tricks... lol

Are Smartboards worth the money?

I have read alot of articles this week about Smartboards.  Most touting them as the next revolution in classroom instruction.  Some though, describe them as glorifed projection screens.  So many schools throw Smartboards into the classroom as a way to 'address' their technology gap.  Sometimes it is because they have been able to secure grant funding for the technology and sometimes it is a first step into a total technology upgrade.  The problem is that the Smartboard in and of itself never taught a single lesson... and most teachers did not have any instruction on the use of a Smartboard or how to incorporate them into their curriculum.  The technology is only as good as the implementation.  If you are going to invest in this technology you need to research the software behind it and what curriculum aids are available.  Second, a teacher training program needs to be developed to instruct classroom teachers in the use of the technology and more important, how to use the software to their advantage.  Food for thought...

ISTE 2012 in San Diego, CA

I just registerd for ISTE 2012!  I am so excited to be attending this valuable conference.  The workshops and seminars available are incredible coupled with the chance to network with other educators interested in incorporating Technology into the classroom will be sensational.  If you are interested in attending, check out the link below.

Creating a Personal Learning Network

Another new experience this week.  Creating or more accurately, identifying my PLN... Personal Learning Network.  I have been networking for years with other educators and with business professionals.  Trying to par down the list of contacts to the most influential players in my educational world is a challenge but one worth embarking on.

I choose to use Glogster EDU as my platform for visualizing my PLN... you can take a look at it and tell me what you think.  It is a work in progress.... so bear with me.

http://masterramblings.edu.glogster.com/craigs-pln/

Making the most of technology spending

Came across another interesting article related to budget spending on technology.  It really makes me think that it needs to start early with a plan for implementation that one can get their school board to sign-off on.  Get them to agree to the need for technology upgrades for infrastructure, classroom hardware and training for teachers to be able to effectively manage and use the new tech goodies.  The board needs to see the big picture and then layout an implementation schedule that makes the  most of the dollars that are available. 

Check out this article...  http://www.zdnet.com/blog/education/its-that-time-of-year-again-where-should-you-be-allocating-your-budget/4835