Budgets Cutting our Future

It has often been asserted that illiteracy rates can predict the size of future prison populations.  While Gary Romano will tell you that this is an urban legend, it is plausible enough to be repeated without a source or fact checking.  According to Gary, this easily refuted legend distracts from the proven correlation between literacy rates among the poor and high school drop out rates.  Dropping out of high school, in turn, severely limits both the student and society at large.

If literacy, and education as a whole, is so important, why are libraries, both public and in the schools, being attacked by budget cuts?  In these lean times, we must cut where we don't want to - but is it really necessary to cut our future?  Joyce Valenza quotes articles from around the country, each proclaiming another blow to their libraries.  The Common Core curriculum repeatedly emphasizes the need for students to become technologically savvy.  The Core requires that students learn how to select reputable information from a variety of sources, including online resources.  Traditionally, if a family doesn't have access to a computer at home, they could go to the library to use one - but what happens when the library and its resources are cut?

Once upon a time, while I was working for the public library, we were confident that the oncoming bad economy wouldn't hurt us too badly.  Our branch manager said that they'd keep us open and operating, because we provided computer access and shelter to the public.  In hard times, when our public finds it increasingly difficult to have these things at home, we'd become even more essential.  We'd be helping adults with resumes, children with homework, cool air in the summer and heat in the winter.  Our branch manager was wrong - and the sad thing is, it's the communities that need these services the most who are being hit the hardest.

Not all the library systems have been hit.  In Joyce's blog post (linked above), she tells us that, while both public and school libraries have been decimated by cuts in near by Philadelphia (for example, she's heard that there are no certified librarians left in Philadelphia's high schools), her library is still providing a wide range of services.

Access to libraries and librarians isn't the entirety of the issue either.  Doug Johnson's Blue Skunk Blog addressed another issue in his Tech and Trust post.  He discusses how some school systems are teaching students to be technologically responsible, while others are restricting access - both with the goal of keeping students safe.  The first group is learning how to think for themselves, and make mistakes in a relatively safe environment.  The second group is learning what's handed to them, and most of their problem solving revolves around defeating the restrictions placed upon them.  They must fail on their own time - which means that there is unlikely to be a safety net to limit the repercussions of their mistakes.

So, with the Common Core telling us things like:

"Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others."

... And the Census reporting that roughly a quarter of American households don't have access to a computer and Internet at home, it seems to be the height of irresponsibility to cut public access in order to save a little money.  In doing so, we are limiting the opportunities for the poor to gain the skills necessary to break into the middle class, which then could make it possible to move into a more affluent area with better services.

With one group of students struggling to have access to the technology needed to meet Common Core standards, or having access to technology that has been filtered to the point that they don't have to learn responsible use practices - and another group of students learning to select and use appropriate technologies for a variety of tasks... I think I know which group will generate more leaders.

Meaningful Learning with Technology, by Howland, et al, gives readers many ideas for using technology to create a meaningful learning environment for students.  With video conferencing (in chapter 5), we can visit other countries without leaving home.  Chapter 2 discusses safe ways to learn online without falling into traps laid by disreputable information sources, and becoming more responsible online citizens.  Chapter 6 speaks to ways to build up the community at large.... but the value of all these lovely ideas and capabilities is limited when access to the technology is restricted.

The information age offers many opportunities to those who have access to it.  When budget cuts necessitate limitations to public access, we are not only limiting the futures of many students, but lowering our own future tax base.  On the whole, better educated adults earn more, spend more, and pay more in taxes than those who dropped out of school.

By failing to ensure access to information for ALL Americans (which means computers, Intranet, and librarians) we are creating a trickle-up economy of failure.  Fewer opportunities lead to lower pay, leading to less tax money to fund services & jobs (and less spending, reducing the number of private sector jobs).  Fewer jobs leads to more people needing public assistance despite less money being available to pay for it... and there you have a downward spiral that is very difficult to break out of.  If, on the other hand, schools and libraries have the funding they need to engage learners, ensuring access for all, I am confidant that we can reverse the spiral into a cycle of success.

Slide Rules on Starships

Once upon a time, my parents were snuggled up on the couch, eating popcorn and oranges, and watching a sci-fi movie.  I'm not sure what they were watching, but apparently the starship had to jump into hyperdrive so the crew had to quickly calculate their destination -- a fairly common scenario, until the navigator pulled out a slide rule.  What?!  My parents were taught how to use slide rules, but my generation stands a reasonable chance of never having seen one in person and my kids have probably never even heard of them.  I understand that they are a very fast and accurate way of doing math - if you know how to use it - but the point is, they're so obsolete that its silly to find them on a starship.

I'm telling you this because I ran into a (debatably) similar situation last week.  I'm currently taking two classes, one at the graduate level, and one in undergraduate territory.  The fact that I vastly prefer grad school territory has nothing to do with the midterms and finals that undergrads need to take, but that's another story.  (Ask me in the comments area if you really want to hear it.)  So anyway... 

Once upon a time, last week, I was attending a class whose entire topic was reviewing the previous weeks' classes and preparing for the midterm.  Toward the end of class, I raised my hand, "Excuse me, but at the risk of showing my age, what format will the test be?  Bluebook?  Worksheet?  Scantron?"  I threw in the last as a joke, looking for a laugh from the teacher while risking the ridicule of my classmates for seriously considering such an old test-taking method.  When the confirmed that it would be Scantron, I thought he was joking - then I felt insulted.

Why did I feel insulted by being asked to take a Scantron?  Maybe it is because Scantron is older than I am, and I'd thought we'd left it in the dust.

It is only a slight exaggeration to say that this was my first Scantron test in 20 years.  I know I took them in high school, and I'll maybe attend my 20 year reunion in 2015.  While I might have done a Scantron in college (graduated almost 15 years ago), I'm only remembering bluebook and short answer on worksheets.  In my senior year, I took the GRE (the graduate school version of an SAT) and was among the first groups of people taking the test on a computer.  I don't remember any Scantron tests in grad school, ten years ago, but grads tend not to do midterms or finals - we do projects, papers, and presentations (the 3 P's of advanced education).  So, with my last brush with Scantron being 15 years ago, when I was given a choice between Scantron or computer... is it any wonder that I thought that the testing method had gone the way of the slide rule?

After I put a county line between me and my teacher, I was quite vocal in my indignation over being asked to take a Scantron test - and got a mixed response.  Some folks agreed with me - shocked surprise that anyone was still using that stone age technology, and I should brush up on my Cuneiform just in case the teacher used it while writing the test.  Other folks were surprised at my response - Scantron tests were quite normal - used all the time in fact.  Sure its an older technology, but we still use books, don't we?

My old roommate from Undergrad is a substitute teacher in Harford County's middle schools.  She heard me out, then told me that Scantron was used frequently in her schools because they were easier to grade and very time efficient from the teacher's point of view.  I suppose another benefit of the Scantron, as opposed to a more computer based solution, is that they already have the Scantron infrastructure set up.  My old roommate has told me about how many of the students attending her school come from disadvantaged homes - homes where academics need to take a back seat because the students weren't sure if they had food for dinner or a safe place to sleep that night.  Maybe she was exaggerating, and maybe she wasn't - but her kids aren't likely to be able to participate in any BYOD programs their school starts.

BYOD?  What's that got to do with Scantrons?

I firmly believe that it isn't enough to complain about things that bother you - you need to also offer suggestions for how to improve the situation.  Thinking back to my earlier post about Howard County's BYOD pilot program and my computerized GRE test 15 years ago, why can't computerized tests replace Scantrons?  The test can be presented using software that is readable by students' BYOD devices, and laptops can be distributed to students who either don't have a device, or who don't feel that their screen is large enough for comfortable test taking.  Maybe the teacher only uploads the test on the morning of the test, and the software prevents the use of other windows/tabs, which could be used for cheating.  If such a scenario were to take place, multiple choice tests could be graded instantly (as my GRE was) and short answer/essay questions could be integrated into the test and graded manually.

Its an idea anyway.  All the benefits of Scantron, with even faster grading and an opportunity to evolve.  Think about it - if YOU were to make a hyperspace jump, would you rather the navigator use a slide rule, or something a bit more up to date?

One More Thing About the BYOD Pilot

When I was discussing Howard County's new pilot program for BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) earlier today, I forgot to mention another aspect of the program being tested.  While I read about the BYOD program, I kept thinking about how UDL it all sounded.  UDL is Universal Design for Learning, and made me think of it was a quote in the CBS Baltimore article I read:

“They can fit what’s their style the best, and the comfort in the technology they have,” said Scott Ruehl, principal.

We learned about UDL in class a few weeks back, and its attempts to appeal to all learning types really makes me think of the Special Ed classes I was in while growing up - only rather than giving me tips and techniques to leverage my strengths into the mainstream, it is giving the bag of tricks to the mainstream for everyone to play with.  Not a bad idea, if you can make it work.

With this as my background, it is understandable that I keep thinking of BYOD as a way to not only get tech into the hands of more students, allowing them to learn by doing rather than watching, but also as a way to meet IEP in a fairly discrete manner.  A hard of hearing student may have a program loaded on their device that will translate the teacher's speech into text, which can be saved as a data file.  Students with poor eyesight can increase the font size on their screens, rather than hunching over a magnifying glass as one of my high school classmates needed to do.  Dyslexic students can have apps downloaded to their device, allowing the device to read to them through a set of earbuds.  Technology can't solve every learning challenge - but its tool box is diverse enough to accommodate most learning challenges and preferences.

One thing that I discovered, returning to this subject this evening, is that Howard County is not the first school system to try the BYOD program - it is just the first that I've heard of.  A Google search for "BYOD" comes up with a wide array of results, mostly from businesses or providing definitions and evaluations.  Refining the search to "BYOD in schools" cuts the results in half, but with around 836,000 hits - there's still plenty to choose from.  Just reading my results list, I understand that many school systems across the country are trying BYOD programs in their schools, and that there is a lively debate about whether or not this is a good thing.

At this point, I believe that BYOD has spread far enough into the worlds of business and education that the question isn't "are we going to adopt this?" but rather, "how are we going to adopt this?".   So, on that note, I'll simply leave you with links to two sites where you can find some excellent videos on BYOD: Hanover Public Schools in Pennsylvania, and Long Reach High School in Howard County, Maryland.

Howard County's New Pilot Program: May it Fly High & Far

As I mentioned in my first entry, I started this blog as part of a schoolwork assignment.  I've had a fun time writing it, but now that I've a project due date looming, I've had to sit down and evaluate whether or not I've met the blogging project's goals thus far.  Thank goodness for that!  Had it not been for this assignment, I might have missed reading about Howard County's new BYOD Pilot Program!  Seriously folks, this was like sitting down to do homework, and finding King Midas sitting across the study table from me.  (No sir - I'll get my own drink - I prefer mine to be liquid, not gold.)

So... what is this BYOD Pilot?  According to CBS Baltimore, three high schools in Howard County, Maryland are now allowing students to bring their own internet ready devices to school for use during class time.  The full details of this pilot can be found on the Howard County Public School System's website.  Included on that page are links to the guidelines that students and teachers must abide by, and a copy of the agreement that students and their parents must sign to participate.  Not only has Howard County laid out the responsibilities and consequences of bringing in personal devices, but according to CBS Baltimore's article, students are abiding by the agreements and using their technology responsibly.

I find this idea to be ultra cool both as a mother and as a future Library Media Specialist.  To fully explain why I feel this way, lets imagine that this program catches on and is rolled out county wide.  My daughter is in elementary school, and that is where I hope to land as a Media Specialist, so lets look at how this program works at the elementary school level.

Looking at the School Media curriculum, particularly for grades PreK-1, I find that locating and evaluating resources, as well as generating, recording, and organizing data, are important features of a curriculum that specifically mentions online and multimedia resources.  The BYOD program would allow more students to actively participate in the learning process without the teacher needing to reserve the computer lab or one of the mobile labs.  As they construct keyword searches, or conduct simulations in other classes, they can compare their results to what they wanted - discovering ways to become more efficient or reliable.  By breaking down larger tasks into smaller steps that they record into a todo list, using as app on their own device, or creating a research plan, the students can plan with intent in a format that they can take with them.  Most importantly, student research becomes more authentic because students are learning to use tools, hardware and software, that they can access outside of school - learning skills and approaches that they can apply to any challenge life throws at them.  The CBS Baltimore article also specifically mentions that students are working cooperatively  in the BYOD program, working in teams to compensate for not everyone having a web enabled device.

So why, your distracted mind asks, have I typed five words in bold font?  Howland, Jonassen & Marra, in their textbook Meaningful Learning with Technology, assert that these five elements (active, intentional, constructive, authentic & cooperative) are characteristics of meaningful learning.  As an introvert, I object to "cooperative" being one of these elements - but this is my class textbook, so I'll run with it for the duration of the class.  Howland et al have until Christmas to change my mind.

Despite my quibbling over one aspect of what is or is not meaningful learning, I do believe the BYOD program will promote meaningful learning with technology without creating a financial drain on the school system.  Without mucking about with keywords, BYOD allows students to use technology themselves, not just watching someone use it, discovering and solving problems using tools that they'll actually have access to outside the classroom.  The same device that helps Bridget discover the capital of Brazil can help her discover when The Little Mermaid comes out on DVD (and Mommy, can we please buy it?  Please please please???!).

As a mother, how can I not be happy when I see my kids learn to use tools to answer their own questions?  (Ok, so not the "can we buy The Little Mermaid?" question, but maybe "why is the sky blue?" or "why can't I Skype Uncle Stewart (in Japan) during lunch?")  As a Library Media Specialist, how can I not get excited at the prospect of a more hands on, interactive, approach to the online and multimedia resources that it will be my responsibility to teach?  

Many many years ago, I remember playing Where in the World is Carmen Sanediego? as part of my elementary school media class time - our teacher used it as a way to learn how to use the Card Catalog and other library tools.  Now I have visions of a classroom using their mobile devices and library resources to solve Mystery Skype challenges.  Same idea - but much cooler.

When push comes to shove, I think the only thing I'm not 100% sold on is the idea of putting an iPad into my daughter's pink, sparkly, glitter encrusted backpack and sending it to school.  I love the idea of her using one... but I guess this is something I should just learn to get comfortable with because I know that it's a good idea.  But still - first grade?!  Did you not see the pile of backpacks at the bus stop as the kids ran races while waiting for the bus this morning?  I'll just have to reimagine that iPad to have thick (pink) bumpers and other protections to guard against drops, scrapes, and other consequences of childhood use - not the sleek black case that mine has.  Ahh... that's better.

And maybe BYOD won't reach the elementary schools at all - starting in middle school perhaps.  Such a limitation would be as smart as it is unfortunate.  But for it to get there, the pilot must be successful.  For now, it appears to be doing well - let us hope it continues to fly high.