Teaching, Collaboration,Google Apps, and Plagiarism

So, you have a class set of chromebooks. You are having kids write, collaborate, create, and publish their work. You are happy. You are proud of saving trees. You are astonished by the amount of work kids are willing to create using technology. Collaboration is off the charts. Then, it happens. It always happens. Kids try to figure out ways to beat the system.
"Why should I do the all the work myself," she mumbled, thinking about all of the things she wished she was doing instead of writing something for school. Then she turns to her friend.
"Hey, share your essay with me."
"Okay." He says. . .

Draftback Extension

I think you might know the rest of the story. Plagiarism. It has been happening since the first caveman copied another caveman's Paleolithic etching and called it his own. It happened way before digital technology and it will happen long into the future. I am frequently asked how to deal with this in the Chrombook era (#seewhatididthere). I don't pretend to have all of the answers, and, quite frankly, I would rather be thinking about more creative things we could be doing with technology, but I understand how this concern could lead to fear, which could lead to mistrust, which could lead us back to paper and pencil. In an attempt keep out momentum moving in a positive direction, I am offering advice on two tools you can use to help  you monitor the awesome collaboration that is occurring in our classroom and might just be the tool to ensure each kid is doing her own work. I offer the Google Apps revision history and an amazing new Chrome extension, Draftback. Enjoy!


Be Awesome, jeff

Yeah, About that Google Cloud Printer

As we approach almost complete 1:1 chromebook integration into JCCS, we need to begin to ensure we are comfortable with all of the accompanying tech. This includes the Google Cloud Printers we have purchased from Dell. While we have printed instructions, which can be found in the JCCStech folder on the right sidebar of this blog, I thought you all might benefit from a short video that explains the process. Here you go:


Please let me know if you have any questions about this or anything else!
Be Awesome, jeff

Is My Student Enrolled in GAFE. . .

I receive many calls and emails asking me to reset student passwords or to help a teacher find a student in Hapara, or help with a student who cannot log in to the chromebook, etc. Well, I do have some job aids/tutorials that exist in the JCCStech Folder linked on the right-side of this blog, but I still receive many requests. In an attempt to make all of this easier, I have created a quick, 3-minute tutorial around finding students in the Google Admin Panel, ensuring they are enrolled in YOUR program, and how to reset a student password. Please let me know if you have any questions!
You will notice a quick "blur" message in the middle of the video. I did this to hid any actual student data that might have shown.

Be Awesome,
jeff

Have You Met My Maps?

For those of you who are already loving the use of GAFE in your classrooms, I want to ensure that you know about one of the newest features of the Google Drive family: My  Maps. Since chromebooks do not support Google Earth, many of you may have thought you couldn't do cool things with maps. . . Well, now you can.
My Maps uses Google Maps ecosystem to allow users to create really cool maps, with added layers for complexity, and the ability to add images, text, or video to a map marker. You can also share your maps publicly for other to view. Also, just like all other Google Drive apps, it is collaborative. You can share a map just like you would share a Google Doc. Sound cool?

Chech out this quick screencast I created for instructions on how to use Google Forms, Sheets, and My Maps for a fun classroom project. This is a fun way to get started. Please let me know if you have any questions or would like help designing a lesson using these tools in your class!

Be Awesome,

jeff

I Wish I Knew How to. . .I Would Love to Share about . . .

As we move to almost a complete 1:1 chromebook environment, it's time to take inventory of where we are and think about where we want to go as an organization. It's one thing to have a 1:1 computer to student ratio, it's another to be an organization that leverages the technology to transform student learning. Most of you have taken LEC or Digital Literacies; however, just taking the course doesn't ensure you are ready to integrate the technology in ways that truly transform student learning. What's next? That is the topic of this week's blog.

The title of this post is essentially a starting point. Let me give you some background on how I have spent the beginning of the school year. I have spent the better part of the last two months configuring and managing our current technology: Chromebooks/chromebook distribution, Hapara, GoGuardian, Haiku, etc.  In the last month, we have delivered approximately ten chromebook carts to teachers. Working closely with IT, we are still sending out carts and have ordered more chromebooks and carts. We will continue to distribute carts and chromebooks as they come in. I would like to spend the rest of the year working on effectively using all of this technology. To that end, I am going to request some input and assistance.
If you are one of the teachers who has recently received your chromebooks, or have had them awhile and would like to improve your skill, I would love to know what you need in terms of effectively using the chromebooks? If it is a small request, please complete the JCCS Tech Request Form on this blog. I can send you instructions or create a screencast that gives you step-by-step instructions. There is also a folder of resources on this blog, JCCStech Folder, that I am starting to populate with job aids and other resources. For those recently receiving your chromebooks, there will be a two-day training soon. I wanted to get the devices in techer/student hands as quickly as possible. My hope is that by experiencing the chromebooks in the classroom environment, you will come to the training with questions and a strong desire to learn more.

For those who are already effectively using technology in your classrooms, I need your awesome. As I am basically, technology party of one, it would be great to tap into the amazing resources that JCCS currently has, you! What are your passionate about? What technology would you love to share if we had our own mini tech summit? What would you love to talk about in a Google Hangout on Air that we could share with all teachers? Please, please, complete the I Would Love to Share form. I will then communicate with you to discuss ways in which we can share your awesome with your peers.

Be Awesome,
jeff

Hapara Happenings . . .

If you have been using your chromebooks, I hope you have also benefitted from the use of Hapara to help you organize your students' Google Apps experience and the "Interact" feature to help you monitor student Internet use? If you have chromebooks and have not been using Hapara, please let me know if I can support you to effectively utilize this tool. If you have, you may be noticing some changes coming. With the introduction of Google Classroom, Hapara has definitely upped its game. Two features I want to discuss are Hapara Highlights, which we just began beta testing, and Hapara Workspace, an amazing new differentiation tool that allows you to create learning experiences for your students.

Hapara Interact allowed you to view the student browser tabs, close them if need by, and to get a look at the screen the student was currently using (with up to a 5-min lag, which could be overridden by refreshing the Interact screen). You were also able to send the students to a link, which opened a new tab on their chrome browser, and send the student, or the entire class a message. The new "Highlights" public beta test we are currently participating in allows us to test some awesome new features. The most exciting one for me (and you, I hope) is the ability to limit the browsing to sites or URLs that open in the student browser. You can limit them to only those pages for as little as 5 or as long as 50 minutes. You can do this for the entire class, groups, or individual students. I believe I can hear my Hapara power users screaming in excitement. Here is a quick glimpse of what it can look like. Please let me know how you like it!

Another very exciting feature is Hapara Workspace. Workspace allows you differentiate your instructional delivery using their new interface. This can be an individual assignment or an entire unit! The components are: Learning Objectives, Resources, Tasks, and Assessment Criteria. Teachers create the workspaces and the students will then have view access to their assigned workspace! Instead of trying to type a lengthy explanation, I have compiled a list of Hapara Workspace video tutorials and put in in the link section of this blog (upper-right sidebar). I have also scheduled a webinar/virtual PD from our Hapara rep, Allison Winston. It will occur on Monday, October 26, at 4pm. I scheduled it at 4pm so teachers could get home and watch the webinar from the comfort of their couch or favorite chair without any distraction.

Please let me know if you are interested in attending the webinar and I will check in with you the day of the event to remind you!

Be Awesome,

jeff

So, How do I. . . .

I cannot tell you how excited I am to see all of the awesome work being done by our JCCS teachers in terms of technology integration. However, with so many new systems and tools in JCCS, there are often times that I receive emails or texts requesting support. I always do my best to get back to everyone in a timely manner, but I know I could do better. That is the topic of this week's blog post.

My personal goal this year is to go beyond using technology at the substitution level of tech integration (hello SAMR Model) and work to leverage technology to transform student learning. Great idea, right? But I understand that to do that we need to ensure that all of your supporting tools works as advertised. With that in mind, I am also going to work on getting support to teachers for the mundane tasks of ensuring students can log into their GAFE (Google Apps for Education) accounts, that teachers can use Hapara, Haiku, and GoGuardian seamlessly in their classrooms. While each of these tools offers a robust support library, it is often better to see the support from within our own systems.

I have started a folder on this blog, the JCCS Tech Folder linked on the right column of this blog), which will contain job aids for how to accomplish specific functions with the tools that we have. I am also including a Google Form (see image on the left) on the blog where you can request a job aid or to meet with me to discuss technology integration, your student GAFE accounts, tool support, or tech planning in your classroom. Once you complete the form, I will do my best to get back to you within 24/48 hrs. I can usually get back to you sooner, but I do not want to over-commit myself and have some frustrated colleagues. I hope to add many more job aids to the folder and to continue to offer classroom support for you this year!




To end this week's blog, I have to share a picture from last weekend's GAFE Summit Bakersfield. I have been fortunate enough to work as a featured speaker for EdTechTeam at many of their summits around the country. Last summer, I asked Cheryl Lynch and Natalie Priester to present at the GAFE Summit Riverside to share some of the English and Math work they have done with JCCS students. I am proud to report that this is now Natalie's third GAFE Summit event and Cheryl's second event as presenters. I couldn't be prouder of our teachers and the work they do with a very needy population. If you see them, please ask about their experience. I would love to see more JCCS teachers sharing their great work with a larger audience!
Be Awesome,
jeff

Welcome to Your New Source for JCCS Tech News and Information

As we begin our new school year, I must admit I am very excited to work with everyone in our organization to spread the love of all things tech and learning!

For the last few years, we have been working on making JCCS a 1:1 chromebook environment. We are getting close to this realization. While this journey has been long, I think it will ultimately make our students better prepared for a tech-infused world. Now that we have the tools, it's time to use them to transform student learning and connect students to a diverse global society. 

Speaking of the world, I had the incredible opportunity to take my family to Europe this summer. As part of this trip, I visited the Google offices in Amsterdam and participated in a Moonshot Summit. It was a gathering of 50 global educators with the desire to change the world of education. If left there energized and hopeful. I hope you are all as excited as I am for the new school year. 

I have spent the better part of the last two weeks getting all of the tech structures in place. I am very close to having Hapara, GoGuardian, and Haiku at full capacity. I have communicated with many of you over the last two weeks and you have been very helpful with feedback on how the systems are working. Please continue to communicate with me as we work to make the back end tech seamless and functional.

Changes have been plentiful, but it is important that you know where to go and who to talk to to get your tech needs met. To this end, I have worked with Jacquie Mallard, Rodney Gast, Stephanie Austin, Aaron Jacobson, Wendell Callahan, Erica Balakian, and Sean Morrill to give you a list of who to call based on your tech needs. You will find the flow chart at the top if this blog and it's in the JCCS Tech folder linked on the right.

Please feel free to leave a comment on this blog post if you have any questions or would like to connect with me in the near future. I plan to update this blog on a weekly basis to share the awesome work I see in my travels and to share cool ideas I discover through my personal learning network (PLN).

Be Awesome,

jeff