home

media type="custom" key="8604518"

@http://modernlearners.blogspot.co.nz/
 * //Have had a job change... and moved to a different school. 1:1 school, with netbooks, laptops and chromebooks...//**
 * //New website address....//**

**Student spending too much time on digital devices??**
Are digital devices plugging our children into experiences that actually fuel their creativity and make them consider the world beyond their neighborhood or are they robbing our children of some of the joys of childhood? A rewarding childhood should include experiences like climbing trees, playing tag, selling lemonade and daydreaming. Shouldn't it?? – or perhaps this thinking is based on our adult, childhood valued experiences? And are these still quintessential experiences for many of today’s youth or are they too glued to their small screens to partake in these types of activities?

There are many pro's and con's for adults to limit a student's time on electronic devices. I view the most beneficial aspect of this digital age is the practise children have with their own personality. Students get to 'try out' how they are perceived by others using social media. If some of their views or ideas are not well received by the public, then they then don't need to voice them in the physical world.

Surely technology opens up an amazing world of learning and productivity to today’s young students, but there are clearly dangers and legitimate concerns surrounding the use of these tools, and what constitutes too much use (if there is such a thing). It will probably be years before we start to really understand the impact of some of these drawbacks and potential issues. In the meanwhile, these tools are here to stay for the near term, so we need to have a vision for the future, and monitor their use so we can educate students on how to use them wisely.

=**Will the internet and eLearning replace schools??**= I recently read an article about the world’s largest school. 45,000 students!! In this case, we’re talking not about virtual users on a website, but thousands upon thousands of loud, excitable school kids. Its a [|City Montessori School] in India.

This got me thinking. Is this the future of education?? After a while I decided no... I think not. And let me tell you why.

I believe that the future of education will be both online and offline. That there is no such thing as a one­-size-­fits-­all school and education system. The great power of teaching online is **not** that it will suddenly replace our schools, nothing would be worse. I see the Internet as supplementing, and improving the more traditional education system. Why shouldn’t you learn math from the greatest educators in the world? Why shouldn’t you hear literature taught by the most esteemed professors and critics?

If I were to be involved in creating a single vision of the future of education, it would be this: A combination of learning materials with the many great benefits of the Internet age, and including the social and personal components of a physical classroom.

=What is the key to a good school?=

=
- Can we use this for education? By that i don't mean get students to play games for learning, although that would be pretty cool if the games were relavent and powerful learning tools... I mean how can we get students engaged at school as much as they are on the PC's and consoles?======

=
1. **Fair Grading:** Games give participants the ability to watch their progress slowly but surely creep along in infinitesimal increments. . . like a bar graph, but somehow how the gamer is doing overall is clearly displayed and communicated. Most importantly the gamer knows what they need to to do be successful. The system of grading doesn't change! ======

Now, some of these points sound like what schools are doing.. Grading and Goals have school written all over them. But is the current grading system fair? Are the goals clearly defined, and do students get immediate feedback when they do something right or wrong? Over here in New Zealand students are graded against the entire nation, using one format. This system expects every single student to be at the same level at the same age. This may work for some students, but certainly not all. Classroom teachers have to cater for individual needs of students in their classes, but when it comes to assessments it all goes out the window and they are all assessed the same way. In my view this needs to change.

Goals and feedback? Students want **immediate** feedback. Not later that day, they want it now! Students want to reflect on immediate success or failure, so they can make changes and adapt straight away. Gaming offers that and unfortunately schools do not. Thoughts?? Post below...

media type="custom" key="11456606"

= =

Being mobile while using an electronic device is awesome! I don't think anyone would argue that its not. But while this technology is helping remove boundaries of learning, it’s not an exact science. There are so many 2.4ghz devices running, that it often causes conflicts. The same frequency has a null effect and often your connection gets dropped or in our case stops working all together!
 * Wireless**

Using different channels is a good way to counter this interference, however at our school we have a total of 24 'external' wireless signals! Some parts of our school are experiencing zero connectivity, despite having over 80% signal strength.

To combat this we have boosted the output strength of our wireless, and have also changed the channels of the wireless access points. e.g. Channels range from 1-13. So if a neighbouring wireless device is broadcasting at between 1-4 then our channel needs to be between 5-8.

It seems to be working so far, but I'm not sure how long our WAP's will last at their current power output!

media type="custom" key="11198420"

As we start the end of term 4, 2013 budgets are all spent. Reviews are completed by staff and management about what has worked (what budgets will increase) and what has not (what budgets will be cut). With this process happening in New Zealand schools right about now, it opens up a fantastic debate with regards to eLearning. Teachers discussing what is 'too hard' to implement in their classroom, about not having enough hardware to do it properly, as well as the effectiveness of eLearning compared to 'traditional' classroom learning.

I think this is concerning... What is a traditional classroom? Should we go right back to chalk and slate to define this? Perhaps a little further forward to charcoal and paper? We also expect students to put more effort in if learning becomes hard, so should teachers not as well?? So I think before we look at budget cuts or increases, we need to keep in mind:

- what do students __want__ to use? - what __will__ students be using when they leave school?

For me it is clear that students want to use digital media to both create, and absorb content. Students want to learn using the latest devices, and learn about the latest problems. So while we think about our budgets for 2014, I think we need to remind ourselves about the relevance this expenditure has for our schools. Will the money we spend prepare our teachers and students for the future??

media type="custom" key="11028838"

media type="youtube" key="dgbO8cVcquw?rel=0" height="480" width="640" align="right"

__**End of term News Beat**__

My students have made a clip of what they have learn't over the last few weeks. Pretty good little presentation

Well... Term 3 is almost over. Next term is going to pretty full on. Assessments in week 3 & 4, with AsTTle writing sample and moderation due the following week. Also due in week 5 are all results on our electronic mark book and then reports to go home week 6. I have to be honest. Thats insane!! Is there anytime for learning in there? Seems that the start and end of school are places of assessment and reporting to parents.

It seems I do have the time... I found a blog concerning 'Things obsolete by 2020' This is my version, but condensed and more current.. Very exciting if it all falls true!

Things Obsolete by 2020
The 21st century does not fit neatly into rows. Neither should your students. Allow the network-based concepts of flow, collaboration, and dynamism help you rearrange your room for authentic 21st century learning.
 * 1. DESKS **

Ok, so this is a trick answer. More precisely this one should read: ‘Our concept of what a computer is’. Because computing has gone mobile and over the next decade we’re going to see the full fury of individualized computing via handhelds come to the fore. Can’t wait!
 * 2. **** COMPUTERS **

Books were nice. In ten years’ time, all reading will be via digital means. And yes, I know, you like the ‘feel’ of paper. Well, in ten years’ time you’ll hardly tell the difference as ‘paper’ itself becomes digitized.
 * 3 . PAPERBACKS **

Ok, so this is another trick answer. More subtly put: IT Departments as we currently know them. Cloud computing and a decade’s worth of increased wifi and satellite access will make some of the traditional roles of IT — software, security, and connectivity — a thing of the past. What will IT professionals do with all their free time? Innovate. Look to tech departments to instigate real change in the function of schools over the next twenty years.
 * 4 . **** I.T. DEPARTMENTS **

Education over the next ten years will become more individualized, leaving the bulk of 'year' learning in the past. Students will form peer groups by interest and these interest groups will petition for specialized learning. The structure of Years 1-13/ K-12 will be fundamentally altered.
 * 5 . ORGANISATION OF EDUCATION **

This is actually one that could occur over the next five years. Universities have to realize that if schools are to remain relevant, they are going to have to demand that 21st century tech integration be modeled by the very professors who are supposed to be preparing our teachers.
 * 6. UNIVERSITIES THAT FAIL TO INTEGRATE TECHNOLOGY **

Ongoing parent-teacher relations in virtual reality will make parent-teacher conference nights seem quaint. Over the next ten years, parents and teachers will become closer than ever as a result of virtual communication opportunities. And parents will drive schools to become ever more tech integrated.
 * 7 . PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCE NIGHT **

You need a website/brochure/promo/etc.? Well, for goodness sake just let your kids do it! By the end of the decade — in the best of schools — they will be.
 * 8. OUTSOURCED GRAPHIC DESIGN AND WEB DESIGN **

In ten years’ time, schools will decrease their paper consumption by no less than 90%. And the printing industry and the copier industry and the paper industry itself will either adjust or perish.
 * 9. PAPER **

//Part 1//

As Term 3 comes to a close, teachers are starting to think about next term. How to make the topic/ inquiry of work, fun! As an e-learner, e-learning developer, and e-learning educator, I am constantly looking for ways to develop a unit around the tools of IT. This is a lot different from simply writing a unit and then add a couple of sentences about how we 'could' use I.T within that unit.

Well.. thats all from me this time. Have lots of testing data to work through.

Right... Now my class started the iPod touch project 10 weeks ago. It started just after I tested my students using a reading observation, behaviour evaluation of comprehension. (PROBE test) So this was my benchmark testing data, as I wanted to have something to compare to for the following term. Results: So in the **// blue //** we have what is expected for a term. Essentially a student should follow their chronological age. One term of just under 3 months the student should follow this and increase 3 months. (Hopefully a student will increase more than this if they are below where they should be)

In the //** red **// we have the results from last term. Students increased just under 5 months in this term. (Some students went up a year, while one student didn’t move at all)

//So overall Room 25 did slightly better than what is expected..//

But... in the //** green **// we have this terms result. Each student using an iPod touch to work through inquiry and literacy.


 * // An average increase of 1.4 years in reading! //**
 * // That’s almost 3x the increase because of iPods!! //**

Each student’s results were added up, and then divided by the total. This gave me the average increase for my class.

What was amazing is that 2 students in particular increased 3 years in their reading comprehension over the 10-week period. Their instructional reading age had actually moved up 3 years! Now, I was hoping for some excellent results to report to the Board of Trusties, but these results have blown me away! I believe there is no doubt that this data proves, that using technology like the iPod touch throughout the teaching and learning in a classroom, has a massive improvement. What im not sure about is if this is enthusiasm or the type of applications that the students have been using. But regardless..... the proof is in the pie graph!

Since putting the previous post up, and the video, I have had a lot of questions regarding the iPods and how my implementation of a 1:1 classroom is working. I need to go back a year or two to start this.. Keep reading.. but Im not really going to tell you how its working... I will tell you something more exciting..

For a start, It really depends on the system you use. One computer per student? No thanks... Computers are gone.. move on... One mobile or portable device per student... now you're talking. Almost every single device coming out now can link to the other. VoIP, Skype, email, instant messages. Collaboration is essential in learning, and each member of a group using their own device to compete their task works so well.

A couple of years ago educators were saying that 1:1 was a waste of resources. Students need to work in groups to complete work, so it would be a waste of money having resources allocated to each student. Yuck! I have never been a fan of having the whole group huddling around a computer. One person takes charge and the rest sit there. The others may say a word or two, but there is only ever one person in the driving seat. Which is why I am a fan of each student being in charge of their own learning. So 1:1 is the only option at this stage. The key words here are **'AT THIS STAGE'**. No one knows what the future will bring, and while gesture technology is coming along, and the prospect of having many students using and collaborating on one system sounds fantastic, the technology is currently not realistic in education. A multitouch/ multi-gesture user interface would be fantastic. Able to research, produce and present in real time, all on one system and as a group all working cooperatively sounds tasty. But even that wont be the end to I.T.

So.. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that 1:1 is not an endgame solution to I.T. Technology is on a never ending continuum. We can see the direction it's heading, but we dont know, and simply cant imagine what it will be like in 50, even 10 years. 1:1 is far better than 1:4... but better and bigger things are close at hand.



Just a little clip of this weeks work using the iPods... media type="custom" key="10341226"

Below is a small clip of the race... media type="custom" key="10305703"

QR codes are nothing new. I know of a scavenger hunt, or the like that some groups have been doing using these codes. So have decided to put a few hours into my own. Its around Katikati Primary so may not be too usefull for you and your school, but may give you some ideas. Students will be in teams of two, and each team will be given a different QR code in an envelope. Each team will use their iPods camera to scan the code and be directed to a webpage with directions on where they should head to next. At their next point another QR code will be found that will direct them to another website, etc, etc //(Of course this only works if your school is wireless)// The group must also take a picture of the location, while having their stop watch run in the background timing their progress. Sound fun? I think so!!

Would be good to implement a GPS or compas into this as well, but unfortunately the iPod is not quite up to it yet..

Click the image, or scan the QR code...

Let me put my point across about schools purchasing I.T. equipment. Schools that plan to use PCs for 3 years (as our school currently does) understand that the PCs will be used just under 200 days per school year so thats 600 school days for a cycle. //Obviously sometimes the systems are left on over night, and hours clock.. so this data is approximate.// If most schools are using enterprise level mobile PCs, meaning that they are average spec'd systems/ not top of the range, it reasonable to expect them to be totally out of date after 3 years.

In my view, every system in the school thats older than 3 years needs to go! Not go into another classroom for 'internet access', they need to leave the school full stop!! No one wants to use a system thats painfully slow... and I certainly dont want a student becoming switched off as their experience with IT has been negative. So this then becomes a constant cycle of new replacing the old.. But this doesn't work. Its not cost effective, infact it leaves schools scratching their heads about how they can spend money on IT equipment effectively. The solution is **"They can't!"**

I believe that schools need to stop purchasing IT equipment and put money into their infrastructure. Build up a fibre network within the school, and too the school. Maintain a ultrafast network for teachers and students to access their information when ever and where ever while on campas. Actually that brings up another question. What about a network that encompasses the whole community. Schools only use their internet connection 2/3rds of the day, so this would put it to 100% use. Maybe each MAC address of their personal devices can be logged to only allow students of the school to use the internet... anyway...

Allow students to bring their equipment to school... right.. The students are already familiar with their devices so there is no need to learn how to use these tools, and they can continue to work at home. The school can then use their limited equipment to substitute students that are unable to bring personal equipment to school. The obvious draw back is that they can not then take the schools equipment home.

I know this is turning slightly the way of a 'user pays' system, but to maintain the best quality and cost effective education purchases, I think this will become inevitable. The price of an ipod over 6 years during primary school, works out at $58 a year, or $1.21 per week!! I'm sure thats worth the advantage it provides.

Was on my way back to class after lunch, and someone asked me how the iPods were going and how often I was using them. I said, really well. Student love them, they make everything far more exciting, and they probably use them for about 25% of the day. This is what they said, and i quote: "I'll have to come and have a look and see what they are actually learning. But be careful not to use them too much. You dont want to over do it, pretty soon your students wont want to use them any more" I just smiled and carried on my way. What I should have said in reply was this... "Would you ever tell a student not to use a pen too much? Would you say, you better stop reading that book! It may be fun but you may get sick of it?" I don't think they get it...

I dont consider myself as forward thinking. I just try to give students the opportunities to use tools that help them learn faster, and have fun while doing it. But I bet that there are many teachers in positions of power that hinder teachers like me because they dont understand I.T. and the huge opportunities it opens up for learning.

An iPod is purely a tool that one uses for learning. It reminds me of a swiss army knife. 12-40 different tools in one device. Pull open the knife but hmm.. no I want a saw. So you open that up and use it...

If you have any comments click on 'discussion'. I'd like to know what you think.

Have created a new page to my blogg. I think its a great idea for teachers that use an iDevice in their class to give some examples of what apps work well in an education setting. So here is my list. iApp reviews. Each time i discover an app, or my students recommend an app i will add it to this list... Hope you find this valuable. Additionally if you have an app that you use please let me know. Thanks.



I have a problem that I can not solve. On our media suite computer we have Visual Communicator 3. Its a powerful piece of software and works wonders when integrating a green screen. But the problem is that the audio is speed up. It sounds like chipmunks are speaking. Has anyone come across this before? I had found some Adobe questions and answers with quite a few solutions to this ?common? problem. But nothing worked. Recording in windows 7 sounds fine, its just with communicator 3.

First week back after two weeks on holiday, and on Monday I was bombarded with questions and asks for help. Exciting times! haha... It may seem weird that I think this, but it means that the staff are trying more things. That the staff are moving with technology and are using IT more. Very exciting! Have 10 laptops coming in next week for the TELA roll over. Have a lot of backing up and data migrating to do!

Well... its been pretty full on in room 25 this week. Teaching and learning about the new features and capabilities of the iPod. Safari and google have made a significant improvement. You can now log into google apps for education accounts. Each student has a room 25 account, and within that account the students have they own file. There is also Pages on the ipod (purchased) but the work is then locked on that individual device. Cloud services like google apps is great for mobile devices. Graphic novels are also a big hit the the students. In fact any learning the students do on the iPods are seen as fun.



//iTouch update:// Today I issued the ipods to each student. Pretty exciting times for kids these days! Wish I had this kind of technology at my disposal as a student.

Room 25 and their iTouch units...

//iTouch update:// Went over to The Mount today and picked up the 33 iPod Touch units. Spent the best part of a day unboxing and applying the screen protectors, then configuring one iPod, which then served as my master image.

Prior to this day I played around with photoshop and have made 33 different wallpapers for each of the units. They are numbered from G4 01 to G4 33. Reason for this is so we can keep track of which unit has been used by various students, also giving them a G4 infront will let us know that its a generation 4 unit, so subsequent units will be G5, G6, etc...

Not the best way to spend a Sunday... But I'm looking forward to seeing my students faces when i turn up to school tomorrow and open the case.

//iTouch update:// 33 chargers and 33 gel cases arrived this morning. Just waiting for the grant to be signed off, and then should have the iPods in few days after that... Its going to take a long time to set each iPod up, but i'm thinking that once I have one configured to my likings, I will save the image of that iPod, and then restore every additional iPod with the same image... Pretty good... Should save time.

//iTouch update:// //**$$Ching ching$$** **Money is in the bank!** // Have sent off the purchase order for 33x iPod Touch 4th generation. Harvey Norman have provided us with a fantastic deal ordering these in bulk. I have also sent off the purchase approval to T.E.C.T. as they are paying for 50% of the project. The two other main contributors are Katikati Lions, and Triodent (a local business that manufactures dental equipment)

Other than the iPod units, I have also ordered 33x AC chargers and 33x gel cases. These units will be charged each night in a locked cupboard and will remain in their gel case for protection. As this is totally new to me there will be a lot of trial and error. Syncing will be an issue as i can only sync 2 iPod's at a time. Have had a look at the **// PARASYNC //**multisync system, which can sync 20 units at a time. But they are pretty expensive, so at the moment I feel its better to get as many iPod's into the classroom as possible. Syncing will only need to be done once a term, or perhaps to add new software. Perhaps next year if the project is deemed a success, and when my IT budget improves, the school can look at purchasing one of these docks.. .

//iTouch Project update:// Anyone following my blog will know that I am passionate about mobile technology. I see these mobile devices (not necessarily mobile phones) having excellent educational capabilities. My project is looking at the iTouch on a 1:1 scale for my classroom. Fundraising has been completed and my class now await the funds being deposited so I can make the purchase. Hopefully this should be done by the end of this week and I can then purchase 33 iTouch's and commence installing the updates and applications that will make it an educational tool.

//Well... I was going to wait until the iPhone 5 came out this year... But i have a feeling that iOS 5 is the only new development// //that apple will share with us until 2nd or even 3rd quarter 2012. (September seems to be their key month for new technologies)// //So... I didn't want to wait another year for a new phone as my 3Gs was just a dog when i updated to 4.3 iOS.//

//Quick review of the iPhone 4// Retna display?? Steve Jobs said the iPhone 4’s display had a pixel density of 326 pixels per inch. He went on to claim that this resolution exceeds the limit of the human retina. (Which Jobs said was 300 pixels per inch for a display about a foot away) This is total rubbish. The eye actually has an angular resolution of 50 cycles per degree. So this would be just over 400 pixels per inch at a foot away. Now... I like apple products, but just don't get some of their marketing strategy. Why lie? - The display is certainly better than the pervious versions. Compared to my 3Gs the display is impressive; Fonts look clean and sharp, images are crisp.. iPhone 3Gs iPhone 4

The stainless steel body serves as an antenna. Saving space perhaps but also creating issues when you hold it in your hand. Apple wont issue a recall thats just not their style. Solution is to wrap it in a gel case, or like i have done a 3M sticky cover. Looks like carbon fibre, so retains the nice shape and fixes the antenna problem.

The 4th generation of the iPhone is a marked improvement, and I am happy with the purchase. But if most of the rumours are true, I will still look at upgrading next year to the 5th version of the iPhone...



Alright. Week 4 is almost over and the media room is once again nearing completion. DeJa Vu!! Pipes have been fixed, concrete has been repaired. Unfortunately when the 'contractors' came in to cut the concrete, they didn't move any of the computers... Not even the server! Fortunately the server was off and in its cupboard so dust contamination was minimal. But I have had to pull apart the media computer and clean it to get all of the concrete dust out... to no avail : ( You will be missed ' \KKPS_Meida01 '



But... from the ashes comes a new Pheonix system... ' \KKPS_Media02 ' Have built a new system out of our old server. It has 2x 3.60 Ghz intel D processors, 4 GB of 1333 ram, and 4x 1TB hard drives (Who knows we may have a lot of movies that need storage) If there is one thing I've learnt, it's not to put a time frame on when systems and/ or hardware will be repaired. It always takes longer than one would think.

Well... over the holidays we had a slight problem... Plumbing issues under the server/ media room!! Unfortunately its still not fixed. Contractors should be in this week to finish the job, and then we can finally go live. The server has gone in and has been raised incase of flooding, and the IT suite is working fantastically! Teacher laptops are another problem as the domain has been totally changed and is fresh, meaning the laptops need to have their login's etc modified. But its all good. Its a new term, and despite having slightly more issues than I was expecting, this time next week we should be all go!!



Last week of the term... and I'm exhausted!! I knew being a classroom teacher and having to manage the IT systems within the school would be difficult, but man!! The hardest thing is when something goes wrong. I'd love to stop what I'm doing and help the teacher out, but my classroom and my students come first. Term 1 review: The big picture is in sight... the school is ticking along nicely now, and the buzz around the school along with the students learning using IT makes me smile. Google apps is awesome! Sharing documents and teacher lesson plans on the calendar is so easy. Wireless makes it easier to access information for students and teachers. The server is going in over the 2 week break, and the media room is on track to go live very soon! Looking back there has been so much that has been done in 10 weeks... If we keep this up, Katikati Primary School may start to design liquid nitrogen propulsion systems! ha-ha!

The camera, boom mic and green screen are set up. Just working with our property manager to hang a monitor from the roof for the teleprompter. Had a bit of difficulity setting up the green screen using MS communicator. But then we put some lights up which made the distinction between human figures and the backdrop easer for the computer to process. It looked awesome! It seems that lighting is a huge factor. Will soon have a day of play, and then look to set up the first practice news broadcast. After some tutorials the students will be managing themselves... (Hopefully) I'll add a couple of pictures of the setup soon. So far it has cost under $200 for everything. Half of that was the video card which was necessary.



Have found a duel core 2.66 intel system within the school. Have purchased a Gigabyte GV-R465D2-1GI video card for this system. 600mhz core speed, with 500hz of DDR2 memory, it has 3 outputs so we can have a teleprompter hooked up on one screen for the presenters to read from. Another TV output for the producers to view, as well as a monitor output for the system. Its a bit overkill, but for under $100, with 3 outputs and with the speed this can render video and export video files, we will be using it for a good 5 years from now. Boom! (You may have noticed the AGP slot. Yep, I think this card will be the last of the AGP's)

Purchased some rechargible AA batteries for the wireless mice/ keyboards/ cameras. www.trademe.co.nz is a great resource as you can get 12x 3000 mAh batteries for about $10. Everything we purchase this year has to go back to the 3 year strategic plan. If it’s not a long term necessity then we don't buy it. Rechargeable batteries are far cheaper in the long run. Good times!!

The new media room is clear! It has been split by three tall storage units, which allows the room to be multi purpose... Have a PC system in there which will manage the teleprompter live streaming and green screen. Two eMac's as well which will sought out the iMovie footage (Import/Export). Currently sourcing some old TV's so students will know what is going live and what is being managed by the producer. Still need a 720p camera and tripod. Shouldn't be too difficult to pick these up cheap!

Well its been a full on term so far. Tomorrow i'll be in the server room getting rid of unwanted eWaste and prepping the room for the conversion to a media suite. Green screen, teleprompters, cameras and news desk will eventually arrive later in the year. Also finalising quotes for the server. Everything we are doing this year is actually costing us very little.

It seems that its a problem with multipul google accounts. Each member of staff that is having issues logging in has their own gMail account. So after I reset cache of their browser / and deleted the 'cookies' their G'apps account worked fine. Hope this helps some of you that are having the same problem. I'm sure its a common issue which google don't seem to have an answer for.

Having a few issues with teachers logging into Google apps. G'apps is starting to refuse access and saying that the account and domain has been reserved. Google have told me to check out the trouble shooting section, but unfortunately there is nothing on there about this issue. Other than these two teachers, everything else is going fine...

= = = =



It has been a week now since we switched over to Google apps for education. Wow! What a dream! eMail is now managed through google servers, which now creates more pressure on our internet access, but gives our server a rest. All staff are using web based email clients, and have found the 'chat' feature very useful... So far everything is working well!! Fingers crossed!

Heaps of newsletters sent home... check out this page 'Notices' if you have misplaced them, and need to print them off. Have set up a new class on study ladder An excellent site for students to work on Literacy and Math. Progress is shown, and students can spend points on their characters... Teachers can set specific tasks for each individual student, or for all students. Fantastic resource, and students love it!

First day at school. Had a great day with my new students. They are a great bunch and I know we are going to have an awesome time! Homework has been issued. It is pretty simple this week as I don't want to blow your minds just yet...

With school all but over (one week to go) have been spending most nights researching eLearning, and how other schools have gone with their eLearning decisions. KKPS are having issues with their servers, updating staff latops to the OS windows7 have made things really difficult this past month also. One more reason to go back to mac!!!! arhagaaaaaa!!

But... I have been thinking about going 'cloud' for a while now, and with the new Xserver upgrade coming soon, I think its due time we scrapped the 'intranet' as well as the email server, and moved to Google Apps for Education. Hopefully this will free up some money as e-mail hosting will all be done through google. email client software will no longer be an issue either. But, I've got a bit of work that needs to be done over the summer break to roll this out, so hopefully that will mean less work for me during the year. Especially as I'm a classroom teacher and don't get release time...



Just finished making my fiance (Hollie) new blog. Can see it here. =Here=

//03/12/2010// Week 8 at school is over. Have revised the ICT strategic plan, and KKPS looks set to move into a new direction for 2011. **'MOBILE LARNING'** Looking forward to my classroom being the pilot class next year. Almost all of my year 5 students are coming back for year 6... they are all pretty excited too!



= = = =

Contact: hamishm@katikati.school.nz