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Week #1 fall semester AR - Lesser, Donna

Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I have been able to stay on the same AR topic for over a week now so I think I am committed. My action research question is:

Will the incorporation of wikis as a teaching methodology increase students’ knowledge and ability to critically think?

I have been busy this week starting a literature review. At this point, I'm trying to find as much evidence on the effectiveness (and limiations?) of collabrative learning with the emphasis on wikis. I'm happy to have been able to find quite a bit of research on this. (I see that Dan has chosen Wikis as will and will be sharing my resources with him).

Today, I am at Panera Bakery with Miki and we are going to set up RefWorks - Sonja cadre gift. I believe this will be a huge help for me as I try to organize my references. This coming week will be more literature reviewing and presenting my thoughts to "key" people at my work to get their thoughts on my AR project.

Goodbye Summer...Hello Fall! - Johnson, Maria

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

So it's Saturday night and I find myself at home... so I thought I should blog. It is amazing to me how much my life has changed since July 15 (I'm at home on a Saturday night for one). I find myself constantly thinking about OMET. I see it everywhere. I over hear random people talking about technology and I can't help but listen. It has changed the way I view the world. I find myself being even more patient with people, considering they are still "in process". I am looking to see how I can make little changes at home, my workplace and daily life. I absolutely love it. I am also feeling very overwhelmed as I am sure others are. The summer went by very quickly! It also did not end as I had hoped due to a very sad event in my family. I finished the assignments, but I was not as thrilled with the work that I did as I think I could have been. I definitely know I was distracted. I have decided not to dwell on it and look forward to this new semester. I'm having a hard time remembering to look at all the different sites we have to go to. It was definitely easier when everything was in Blackboard. I know I will get the hang of it soon; we're only about a week in. I feel like Gary's class is hard to follow in Google groups because I do not feel that the posts are organized. If someone replies to a post, it does not go underneath the post it goes to the very last post. I feel like I jump around a lot and sometimes miss posts. I'll be sure to ask others how they are organizing the posts or if they have any hints. I'm STILL waiting for my books to be delivered and I'm anticipating how much reading I will have to do to catch up. I am looking forward to it though. I have never enjoyed learning this much in my life! It should be interesting to see how things smooth out this week!

Action Research - Question Formulation - Wood, Dan

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I am in the process of writing my Action Research question, realizing that some of the action has begun, but that there is much more data to gather and ongoing action to take.

Here is my first pass at formalizing my research question:

If I encourage collaboration through the use of Wikis to develop and maintain employee learning materials will it:

Reduce redundancy
Increase efficiency
Improve quality
Reduce development time
Improve Learning and Development team collaboration

I am wondering if I have the right results identified, are there too many, or too few? Are all of these specific and measurable enough to be valid for my research? Will there be enough supporting evidence to fully appreciate statistical data around these areas?

I am looking forward to input on whether I am at the right level with this question. I also find myself eager to begin collecting data and interviewing my colleagues at work to get their impressions of where we are currently at in our new processes with Wikis. All of the casual conversations that I have had in the past two or three weeks indicate a general excitement about how the use of the Wikis has already positively changed our approach to our work. The initial learning events that have used the Wiki also have had positive feedback from learners and facilitators.

The Man Who Cracked the Code to Everthing by Steve Levy - Benjamin, Dijlah

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

After reading this article about Wolfram's book "new kind of science"
few thoughts came to my mind. I don't know why but I kept on thinking of the movie the "Matrix" and the computer generated codes,
in reference to Wolfram's theory that there is a single rule at the
heart of everything -a single simple algorithm that in effect generate all the rules of physics. how everything in this world can be explained by codes.

the book sound very interesting , lots of time was dedicated to it, I
am not in the field of science but I can see how Wolfram's encourages anyone in his book to view nature from a different angle.
He is using simple programs to answer any questions and help
understand things about nature. This article made me think of the use of technology and how much it impacted our lives in every aspect. Simple example would be the internet use (technology) I can learn about any topic using my computer and accessing the internet.
I found the book on the internet by the way if any one is interested to read it, I know I will dedicate time to explore it's chapters:

http://www.wolframscience.com/nksonline/toc.html

It's Good to be King - Benjamin, Dijlah

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

This article reminded me of Second Life - is about role playing and
social interactions I think Role playing in virtual environments impacts relationship formation.
each user decides which form of advancement they will pursue, what
role they play, and eventually
will connect with one another will work together to resolve conflicts
or achieve common goals. In a relaxed social setting like this,
the learning experience is rewarding and motivating.
People are free to apply their skills and share their knowledge.

This was my initial posting on Google Discussion - then Gary Stager made me think of this - Gary Wrote "Perhaps the difference between micronations and Second life is that the people in the micronations are doing something :-)

That's when I realized how I was looking at SL and Micronation from a role playing point of view and did not further understand the difference - so I looked up the definetion from http://www.micronations.net/ and this is what I found:

What is a micronation?

Apart from a few serious secessionist movements, most micronations are
essentially nation-state simulations, with varying degrees of
seriousness. Unlike role-playing games, micronations have real people
who compete for fame, fortune and power, and engage in lively debate
and entertainment. Many nations incorporate popular sports and
economic simulations.

Altogether, they are an ideal environment for those who are interested
in politics and communities to experiment with and experience
different types of government, and to meet a diverse range of
interesting people. It's a whole world unto itself...

On Being a Teacher by Johnathan Kozol - Benjamin, Dijlah

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I might sound redundant since my cadre members have expressed their
thoughts on this reading, this is what I gathered from this Jonathan
Kozol is writing from an educators perspective, he is talking about
how much public schools need improvement, and his article speaks to
every reader not just teachers. What I like about it he is encouraging
teachers to be more passionate about their teaching and he is offering
guidance to help with issues like, motivating students to learn,
dealing with parent's expectations and how to communicate is the
bottom line.

I enjoyed this reading, I come from a corporate world where decisions
are made and following policies and procedures are required. reading
this was refreshing for a change. This thought came to mind - Where do
we draw the line between expressing true emotions and respect to one
another?

What I Did On My Three Summer Vacations - Viltz, Malika

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

What I Did On My Three Summer Vacations

by Brian Silverman

http://malikaviltz.com/PDfs/maze.pdf

This was a nice read and intriguing, I’ve tried similar mazes, so I can relate. I would like to apply the “simple rules” when trying to navigate a maze, I wonder if that would really work.

Using new programming and computers to take on the maze challenge was a great idea. What Brian Silverman did not highlight is he was helping pioneer some of the earlier Logo and LEGO computer technology and programming. By creating a new challenge to be solved, he did a little User Acceptance Testing (UAT), and could report back data on how to enhance the blocks.

Having their first run take one hour and twenty minutes is not too bad, but to go back and complete it in twenty two minutes following their rules is great. That’s without technology.

Skipping ahead to the end result and going through the process of video recording and using the blocks, Brian and his MIT friends were able to map out a time conducive plan to complete the maze and they did a great job.

When they started using technology to solve the problem I felt as if they were cheating a little bit, but I justified that by stating, they are taking a technology approach to the maze. When I read the last part of the article, where the time keeper implied that they must have cheated in order to get the task complete in eleven minutes, I smiled. Not only at his comment but with Brian’s thoughts, as that’s similar to the way I justified it. I believe that using technology as an enablement tools is fabulous and of course I’m pro technology, but to a point. In this case I think it would be great for the maze people to have two time champions displayed, one for non technology and one for technology. And lets face it, it wasn’t all technology, they also used some human interaction (passing the cards through the wall) to reduce time. What would’ve have been interesting is the time it would have taken had they not done that. If they can complete the maze in twenty minutes without the technology, using technology (in theory) should allow them to complete the maze faster, without breaking through the walls and breaking into groups.

I’m still a firm believer in using both, but I think its imperative that students don’t completely rely on technology nor should teachers, or anyone else, the technology is a tool. If we take the tool away we should still have a general / fundamental understanding on how to solve problems.

The Man Who Cracked The Code To Everything - Viltz, Malika

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The Man Who Cracked The Code To Everything…

By Steven Levy

<a href='http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.06/wolfram_pr.html' >The Man Who Cracked The Code To Everything</a>

What was interesting about this article was learning the background to the Software Company and person who created Mathematica. I recall this software from years ago from a friend’s older brother who talked about at University of IL and my dad’s former IBM colleagues at dinner events.

I’ve come to know it because it paved the way for many software companies alike. SPSS which creates a lot of statistical software and McGraw-Hill with their new math software, which is based on algorithms and equations. Which I guess Stephen would disagree with the way the software is developed as he states “the algorithm is mightier than the equation.”

The article is the conversation Steven had with Stephen early on and how he did not value his mother or fathers line of work nor their opinion, and yet later on he found himself referencing one of his mothers books in order to assist him in writing A New Kind of Science.

The article was not easy to follow; there’s a gap for me as it pertains to programming and the complexity involved with the software development or the science and research for his book. Would like to read the book at some point, to me I leave “Wolfram law” as more theories.

Action Research Reflection - Wikis Away! - Wood, Dan

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Concrete Experience:

Wikis are going wild in my team - amazing! Today one of my colleagues and I discussed the concept of the "Tipping Point" as Malcolm Gladwell has written. I have not read his book, but my friend has and thought this might be an example of that type of phenomena.

Essentially what we are seeing is rapid, massive adoption and application of Wikis as a method of developing, hosting, and allowing collaboration and distributed learning with our curriculum. Currently there is very little opposing force and I must say I find myself holding my breath and 'waiting for the other shoe to drop'.

Another colleague joined into the conversation and we reflected how several other teams have been using Wikis for up to two years now, and that even our team has had a Wiki for at least a year that two members of the team have tried to get others to use. What may be the difference is the way in which the Wiki was being recommended for use. In our case the Learning and Development (L&D) team was using it just a little to hold reference information. Recently I had used it to host some quasi learning materials, but what were more communication oriented than anything.

The interesting thing is that another team, that were not specifically designated as "L&D" has been using Wikis to host their learning content for some time. We had a great little discussion of some of the forces that may have originally held us back and those that are propelling us rapidly forward now.

Reflection:

Today's discussion was a nice opportunity to recognize that our team has moved into a new place in accepting and applying technology to improve efficiencies. We also acknowledged, even in a small group, that the work of that other team had been out in front of much of what we were doing with our 'traditional methods' of curriculum design and publication. In the past this other team has been considered somewhat 'maverick' in their ways and methods. One of the comments made about that was perhaps the baby was thrown out with the bathwater, as we were very aware of how they managed their curriculum and I would argue that due to our own belief that we are the L&D professionals our methods are right and this other work was in some way lesser... It is easy to see the limitations of that type of thinking.

Conceptualization:

I am feeling very invigorated by the positive energy around the use of not only Wikis, but collaborative methods in general. Everyone that I have interacted with seems to be seeing a new type of ease in design, delivery and updating even in just a short time. We have begun sharing this new approach with business leaders and also have applied it to several learning events with positive results - although these are early, qualitative findings. I am very interested in seeing what type of quantitative measures we can use as well.

I am withholding a little bit of enthusiasm - as mentioned above with the shoe comment. There are still some forces on my team that may be opposed and have just not been present this week. My current hypothesis is that my team needed a change and this came at the right time. I foresee some resistance ahead and the opportunity to be a leader in demonstrating the value of new, more collaborative methods of working, including Wikis.

Here's the positivity - Smith, Anne

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I just have to share this out. I received this from a colleague on the western slope here in Colorado. She recieved it from some friends in Dallas. Here is what she sent:

... this video of a fifth-grader from the Dallas Independent School District delivering a back-to-school keynote to Dallas ISD employees is worth, in my opinion, eight minutes of your time.

You can find it two ways:

The Dallas ISD web site
YouTube

For the Dallas ISD communications team, Dalton Sherman, their "mystery keynote speaker," has spurred a phenomenal response and brought home the fact that we're living in an era of new media. What started as a local inspiration now has the power to reach across North America and around the world.

You can read more about the story here. "

here is the positivity....

Where's the positivity? - Smith, Anne

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

“ The right to ignore anything that doesn’t make sense is a crucial element of any child’s learning- and the first right children are likely to lose when they get to the controlled learning environment of school” (Smith 19).

Lately it seems that no matter where I am at or what I am doing, reading, listening to, I am confronted with the unpopular images associated with schooling. It is really hard not to take these things personally. Our Google Group discussions for Gary’s class have been looking at how traditional school kills the idea of studying, that school has made studying a “bad thing.” Listening to the Republican and Democratic National Convention speeches regarding schooling, they are trying to diminish any positive light of public schools. Our readings about learning, about make believe lands students have created because school has provided that outlet, all seem to portray school as nothing more than a place to destroy children’s hopes and dreams. If you haven’t seen it, check out Sir Ken Robinson’s talk to TED about schools killing the creativity out of kids. I guess what I am trying to write about while reading all these things, is where is the positivity in school? Why aren’t we talking about all the good things? Why are we focusing on the negative? I understand the importance of examining the problems with our current education system, but for once, can someone stand up and talk about the good. I am the first to say that usually with blogging and especially with reflective blogging that I tend to focus on the questions, the problems, and my frustration. I find that I don’t often celebrate the good long enough or remember it for long enough. If I played a psychologist on TV I would say that means that I am always looking for more, trying to do more, that I am not satisfied with the results of the past. But, I think if what Smith is saying in “The Book of Learning and Forgetting” is right, than we as educators, are becoming our own worst enemy. We are showing society and our students that through our grumbles that school is bad. It doesn’t serve them well. And these students learn from our actions and words. When I sit down at home to grade papers and my kids here how much I hate/loathe/would rather do anything than grade a set of papers, I am contributing to their understanding about school and learning.

Here’s my disclaimer to all I am writing: I love my job. I can’t imagine doing anything other than what I am doing. I wake-up pretty much everyday of school ready and excited to see my students. I actually miss them when I am not with them, I love to watch and hear them learn. I love to see them grow over time into wonderfully, conscientious, educated citizens who feel like they can change the world. I love challenging them, working with them side by side, sharing my life with them, and with all of this, I am always excited to do more. To expose them to more, to show them there are endless possibilities for them. I guess I just want my kids and myself to change the world. And that all starts with me….

Learning about Learning - Smith, Karen

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I am currently at a Workforce Development Conference in Birmingham, AL. Because of the hurricane Gustav many evacuees from Louisiana have come here. I am staying at the Sheraton and there are about 600 evacuees that have checked in at this hotel alone. As I study behavior in the brain and learning processes it hurts me to see so many people not take advantage of the state educational programs available to them. I have been able to catch up on my reading here I finished the Cognitive Style of Power Point: Pitching Out Corrupts Within, I will never look at a Power Point presentation the same. I like the points brought out by Tufte, that state, “Power Points’s convenience for some presenters is costly to the content and the audience. Power Point comes with a big attitude. Other than video games, not many computer programs have attitudes.” To end the book with a Power Point presentation of the Gettysburg Power Point Presentation was hilarious. I am reading the articles for the second life class my favorite was Learning Theory by Mark Smith. That one for me was personal have a 3rd grader I want him to learn, not just know. I will finish Experience and Education tonight, that one looks very interesting. All of this reading and theory is new to me, but I see how everything I do relates to my new point of view.

Crafting my AR Questions - Smart, Colby

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I have spent much time contemplating the issues I would like to take action on from consolidating campus trainers to integrating resources to collecting more relevent data surrounding training needs on campus.

For the first part the AR project I would like to focus on the creation of training paths based on job responsibilies in order to deliver more effective and efficient training and professional development opportunities that will in turn make the university operate more effectively.

So using the AR question model Margaret proposed here goes. Mind you this is only a short beginning to what will become an exaustive analyisis and implementation. Like Wolfram, bringing it down to a few lines of code.

Question: If I develop training paths for university employees in my division based on training patterns and historical metrics can ....

a. I be able to develop a new model for training develivery that can be applied in a larger university context?

b. I streamline the process by which new employees receive the training they need to be successful in their jobs?

c. I help decrease or eliminate the political silos that many now operate in by approaching training and professional development within an institutional framework rather than a departmental or divisional one?

AR Journal, Field Forces - Chavez, Edgar

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

So far yesterday’s class regarding our force field analysis with Paul was very insightful. I think I benefited greatly from the feedback the class expressed over my action research project. I kind of used a general issue in my workplace and I was hoping to use that as my main focus of my action research project. Although after thinking about it and taking in the feedback from the group, I noticed I’m focusing on a subject that is too broad, or rather overly simplified. Like in my past action research reflections I described my focus of my project, but now it has completely gone in another direction. I initially thought I had a good topic and I still think it can work, but it must revamped. The cohort actually made me see that I’m not trying to change the use of equipment, but rather the belief or mindset. In other words I must see how my action research evolves from “I want to blah, blah, blah,” to needing to understand what exactly I’m trying to change. Well actually not change because that would be too forceful and a no no in action research. I need to take more action and see what my actions can influence, and then try to build my action can research around that, as I have seen with my other cohort members.

As far as the force field analysis goes, I pretty much understood what the negative and positive forces are in my workplace are. The issues I did have were how the forces really affect my research project. I mostly see the negative, it’s a little pessimistic, but technology is often overlooked and takes a back to other three hundred other things going on in the entire school. Although I see that the small size the schools makes some of the aspects of collecting or rather formulating an action research question that can work (for me at least). I need to find a tool that administrators, teachers, and students can be exposed to and actually like it. I’m still trying figure that part out, but for the most part it is difficult. Like Josephine mentioned during yesterday’s class that she herself is not in a classroom and finding her focus for her action research project was somewhat difficult. When she said that, I realized that I’m in the same boat as her. I deal with administrators and teachers on a daily basis, hardly with students, but never about curriculum, or anything of the sort. The comforting thing is that I’m not the only one in the same predicament. All I can say is that so far yesterday’s class was very helpful in presenting issues my action research has and how I still need to dive deeper into its development.

Force Field Analysis Reflection - Lepori, Kathleen

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

In last night’s class, Paul asked each attendee if there was anything specific we wanted to talk about regarding our Force Field Analysis. I had plenty of time to reflect on my response, as I was one of the last students to take the microphone. Recently, I have been reading additional articles and books about Action Research Projects and, in particular, how to avoid or deal with anticipated pitfalls. When my turn came, I spoke of an oversight, a bulleted item that should have been on my Forces Against Change list. It didn’t even occur to me, when crafting the negative forces, which action research participants might be leery of being involved in my project because it might expose a weakness and therefore be considered less than effective by our organization. I will have to factor this in as a possible objection, assigning a rating of one on a one-to-five scale. Although this could be a threat in the back of someone’s mind, it is highly unlikely that WestEd would chastise an employee for trying to improve his or her work performance.

It’s hard to admit, but I wasn’t looking forward to doing this assignment, in fact, I put it off as long as I possibly could. What value could doing this routine analysis help me gain insight into my intended project? As it turns out, the activity was extremely helpful in taking an honest look at whether this project had any chance of success. It was an excellent exercise that enabled me to think through the process in order to determine if my action research would be a worthy endeavor. The Force Field Analysis template brought back some special childhood (and young adult) memories for me. Whenever I had to make an important decision, my mother would always tell me to make a list of pros and cons and which ever was the longest would end up being the deciding factor. In much the very same way, I followed the familiar format with my potential action research project. I made a list of pressures to aid me in understanding the forces for and against change, weighing each bulleted entry with points instead of length to help determine the outcome.

As a result of this activity, I have (hopefully) developed a fairly good idea of what kinds of opposition I might encounter as my action research project unfolds.

Assessment versus motivation - Smith, Anne

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Assessment versus motivation

I am at the point with my action research that I need to start narrowing down my topic and I am really struggling in doing so. I like the ideas that both assessment and motivation entail. I am intrigued with the idea of students creating their own rubric, holding myself and themselves accountable to this rubric. Now I don’t think the rubric they created is the end all by any means, but I do think it provided them with a lot of structure and guidance into grading. It provided them with some control that many have never felt over their grade. And with the idea of kids having control over their grade, would that grade then be a better reflection of their learning and understanding? I mean they have set the standard that they need to achieve so there seems to be no mystery behind the grading.

With the idea of motivation, I think this ties in so well with the assessment piece. If kids have to motivation to succeed as a result of having control of something in the classroom, then how can the two not go hand in hand? I understand that I just won’t have time to study both. Also, I want their motivation to succeed to continue and so I want kids to have the opportunity to redo assignments until they have achieved their desired grade. But I worry about this with grading. How do I keep up while encouraging them to keep going? Margaret commented early that grad school is like a race. If you stay on top of things, you will be able to stop for rest breaks and an occasional drink of water; if you fall behind, you just have to do that much more to catch –up. I think both my students and I can live by this idea by not letting their work or mine (whether grading or grad school) to get far behind.

When deciding whether to pursue motivation or assessment, I am still torn. The spirit behind NCLB is definitely something to look into when considering the issue of motivation so that none of my students are left behind without demonstrating their true understanding or learning. When they leave my classroom, they are intrinsically motivated to succeed knowing that they have control over their learning. On the other side, after spending a few years on our grading pilot committee with our school district, I am intrigued with the prospect of assessment and grades being true reflections of students’ learning. If they kids create the rubric that measures their learning, is that assessment a better reflection of their learning and understanding. Also, if students have the opportunity to redo their work to better demonstrate their learning, then is their new grade a better measurement of their learning as well. Looking forward, it seems like I need to start researching the two areas of motivation in learning versus assessment and see what tips the scales.

Action Research Reflection - Context and Forces - Wood, Dan

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Note: This information was originally posted in Blackboard on 8/20/08. I am placeing it here as well to keep my AR work in one location.

Action Research Context and Forces

For my action research project I will be working with adults in a corporate setting. Within the corporation there are multiple business units which my team supports in terms of learning and development. I will be working with both direct colleagues - other members of my learning and development team - as well as various business leaders and employees at all levels of the organization. One interesting aspect of my context will be the involvement of corporate partners with whom my company contracts for most of our ‘front-line’ support positions. The actions that I have will involve and impact all of these populations in some way.

My current plan is to focus on collaboration techniques that I can apply to my work and increase productivity, reduce redundancy, improve quality, and introduce a level of transparency to my work that I believe will have a positive impact on my work environment. Many individuals on my team have expressed a frustration with many of these areas and a desire for a change. In particular I want to explore how the use of Wikis can reduce much of the redundancy within our process for developing learning materials for support representatives.

While Wikis are very simple and there are certainly more advanced tools for creating engaging and interactive learning I feel strongly that much of our time is spent writing and rewriting documents for instructor-lead training (ILT) only to need to update them a few weeks later. A Wiki is a live document that can contain links, widgets, and media. It can also be updated by any user as appropriate. This can carry a risk, but I feel the rewards far outweigh the risks. I will get more into risks and rewards in the future.

For the most part I will have a strong partnership with most of the teams and individuals that I have included above. My belief in this support stems for the positive long-term relationships that I have forged with most of the individuals that I interact with in these teams. That being said I am also aware of forces within many of the teams that will, as Margaret mentioned during our TI session this week, “need convincing” or in some extreme cases actually be outspoken against my actions.

This week alone I have had the opportunity to engage with at least two individuals in my organization that need convincing and it was a great experience. The resistance that they provided during our conversations created a structure for our discussion and allowed for deeper thinking about how the use of Wikis would impact our team and those whom we work with and support. I also lead sales training for my company from time to time and liken this to resistance within a sales conversation. If there is no resistance in the conversation it is difficult to know where to take the discussion and what is important to the customer. Resistance can be a very positive force in driving and shaping a process.

I have at least one individual that I work with that is very resistant to my ideas in general and has already expressed a dislike of the idea of using Wikis. This person is also resistant to the ideas of others and overall will need to be shown the advantage to the plan before agreeing that it has any value. I am intrigued to work more closely with this individual and in terms of those whom I will invite to be a part of the process I will be certain to reach out specifically to this individual. While much of the work falls outside of what they may perceive to be their role, I see where they could be a great resource to enhancing the work and bring a life to it that it would otherwise lack. In this way I am hoping to see this individual feel some ownership in the process and not feel as if it is being ‘done to’ them or ‘done without’ their input and ideas.

In terms of permission I will need to work closely with both my direct and next-level manager. In both of these cases I have strong support and guidance for my efforts. I anticipate encouragement from these individuals as well as thoughtful questions to assist in guiding my process. This is an area of my work for the past three years that I have felt is amazing - it is one of the first places I have worked that is extremely open to new ideas and to pushing to innovate and improve processes. There are certain cases where failure is desperately avoided, and at the same time we are always encouraged to try something new and learn from both failures and success equally. There is not a stigma attached to admitting failure and sharing the learning from that experience.

I will continue to reflect on my context and the forces within my research setting and the groups with which I will interact. I am planning to also create a graphical representation of the forces as well. Overall I am happy with the openness that exists within the context of my research and I am looking forward to moving further into the project.

AR Reflections on Approach - wood, sonja

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

After completing my force field chart, it helped me to have clarified vision of what I will need to take action on initially.

When I first envisioned my project, the concept of action research as a modality to start the project was unwittingly built in. Though I had heard the term action research, I had not defined it as thoroughly as I/we now have.

The idea of bring to fruition a project that would benefit society and required the collaboration of those who found merit or benefit in the project was compelling and has imbedded benefits. Some of those benefits might be reduced restriction, reduced start time and shared benefits/onus in the outcomes.

I was deterred from the traditional path of project development as this path might restrict how and when we might start. A traditional path might be to seek private or government capital investment to develop and start the project. Some of the pitfalls of start up monies from these traditional sources is that the oversight comes from an entity who’s focus in not on the project success but the protection of the funds, even at the cost of project failure. While some of the applied restrictions may show fiduciary responsibility, the contradiction is that the success of the project should insure the integrity of the funds. So, the buy in, and the oversight should be diligently applied to both the project and funding management.

In some instances the funding oversight might direct the project in an entirely different direction, ending in a project that was not originally planned for.

The pros and cons were revealed further when we completed a Grant Research Opportunity Report (GRO). This does not mean that we might not use grant money. However, there are litany of great projects that have not been brought to fruition because they do not fulfill the stipulations outlined by the funding groups, and so they fail to start. So, in bringing this project to fruition without traditional lenders may help establish new methods of project launching.

Force Field Analysis - Viltz, Malika

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500

http://malikaviltz.com/PDfs/Force_Field_Analysis.pdf

1/3 Closer..... - Smith, Karen

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

I am amazed to see how far I have come, as I close this summer session. It seems ironic, you think life will go one way and then it completely changes course. First of all, in my mind, I thought I would be starting school in the fall and I would have the summer off to complete some projects. Virtcamp changed that… Wow, Virtcamp changed everything… swooooosh…. Learning Blackboard, Distributed Learning, Distributed Cognation, Second Life, Action Research, and Ethics in Research. While listening to the online course regarding ethics and research and I wondered why this is important to me, in educational technology? Then I realized the importance of data collection, ethics and respecting others privacy. Well, fall semester starts tomorrow. It is hard to believe that I am already 1/3 closer to receiving my Master Degree in Educational Technology. I am looking forward to what my instructors will place before me this semester.

Pepperdine University, Bastion of Servant Leadership - wood, sonja

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

My contribution to DC/DL was to edit the reference page. This project turned out to be a better opportunity than I thought for us. The corrections where not easily rectified nor sources easily found, but this made for a robust learning opportunity. Janet, the librarian at the Irvine campus was able to spend an uninterrupted three hours guiding me through the correcting of the reference links. Janet did comment that the correcting process was very difficult and required patience, patience which she had lots of. I have not yet finished all the corrections and will let the cadre know when I have. Moreover, I was able to share jing with the librarian and she was thrilled.

Next, I plan to contact the Writing Support Center (once all the links are corrected/leading to their articles) to help me correct any APA non-compliances.

I will conduct this process with the reference lists for both of our collaborative documents, as part of my contribution.

After speaking with the librarians, there is a possibility that we will use jing to present an overview of the corrections to the reference page and some of the things we discovered about library searches. This way what I had the opportunity to discover/learn may benefit others in the cadre in regards to their future writings.

As I was unable to determine who's references belonged to whom, I noted in red next the two references that the librarian suggested may have been references from another writing's reference list. We found some possible sources for links to the full text for these two, but the PU library does not subscribe to the databases that contain the articles. Hence, we could not access the doc/link without membership/fees. However, the person who submitted the reference may have access to the database(s).

Once I have completed the correction to the reference pages I plan to add to the content in addition to monitoring and tweeking the reference pages.

In reflection, through the assistance of the PU resourses staff I have also had a major learning experience. Moreover, I have discovered as many of you may have that the PU staff are as gracious as they are skilled. (Servant Leaders!)

A Whole New Mind Thoughts - Berg, Erin

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0500

So, I picked up my copy of A Whole New Mind, on Friday afternoon on my way home from work. I figured I would get a jumpstart on this semester's reading considering I am world's slowest reader. And I probably have some form of adult ADD because I get bored really quickly when I am reading books. Don't get me wrong, I love to read, but I struggle because I can't focus.

Anyway, I was realy exited about this book because I had read a little about it and it was on my list of books to read. I finished the book last night after only 2 days. I could have finished it sooner, but grocery shopping got in the way of my reading. I couldn't put it down. It was intriguing... I have already recommended this book to 3 of my friends and had extensive conversation about the content of the book. I think this is a must-read for EVERYONE... no matter what their profession or where their career path is headed.

Here are some of the things I found intriguing:

The explanation of why some languages are read right-to-left and others left-to-right.
The process that the brain goes through during interpretation (the left intreprets logical, sequential, and literal ideas, whereas the right interprets the "big" pictures, fills in the blanks and picks up on all things figurative)
The Conceptual Age and the idea of a WHOLE new mind. The subtitle "Why Right-Brainers Will Rule in the Future" may be slightly deceiving. I don't think it is the purely right-brainers that will rule in the future, and part of me thinks that the book doesn't present that arguement that right-brainers will. The title itself and a sentence straight from the book suggest otherwise. It is those who work to develop a marriage of both their right and left brains working together- thus explaining the whole in A Whole New Mind.
Each of the 6 senses was fanscinating. Here are a few examples from my own life that demonstrate evidence of these sense and how they are influential.
- Design: So true... I think about my website experiences. I refuse to shop on a website that is poorly designed. Even if the product is nice and the price is right. If the website looks like crap, I instantly click the back button and go back to find somewhere else to get my product. (Love the toaster example)
- Story: I am a sucker for story telling. I must admit that I am not an avid news watcher or reader- well at least not your typical morning and afternoon news programs. But, I love to watch 20/20 or Dateline. I don't like listening to the facts as much as I love the story behind the facts.
- Symphony: I feel like I am a boundary crosser. It is my nature to be good at alot of "stuff". I would rather be good at alot of things, rather than to be expert in one thing. I am a teacher as my day job, but I love photography, website design, french, scrapbooking, and outdoor sports. I think there are many things I am really good at and I enjoy developing those skills. I have found the greater range of my skills, the more marketable I become. I also have a dyslexic brother who is one of the most creative people I know. He is 22 and completely remodeled his house that he bought, designs cars and is an amazing pencil artist. Completely right-brained.
- Empathy: As I was reading about empathy in health-care, I was thinking about my own experiences. One weekend, I noticed my eyelids were swelling up. I had no idea what was going on, but I knew I had to see a doctor. I drove to the ER and sat down in the room waiting to be examined. The doctor came in and listened to what was wrong with me, hardly took a history, and without even coming close to me, diagnosed me with pink eye, and gave me a Rx for some pink eye meds. After $50 copay (and $200 visit after insurance) and $150 in meds, I realized the meds weren't working. I went to another doctor (not the ER) and the doctor listened to my story, asked many questions, and determined that my eye makeup remover was causing me to have an allergic reaction. After the correct diagnosis... I was healed and continue going back to that doctor. (For those of you wondering about the ER visit, I wrote up a complaint letter with an earfull to the Head of ER and got all my money back).
- Play: I am all about Play and sense of humor. It makes what could potentially be a bad day at work or the dull and drugery of day to day work... it makes it fun and exciting. The people I enjoy working with are those full of life and excitment. They are happy and have a great sense of humor. My students relate to me most and learn most is when I bring humor into the classroom.
- Meaning: I am a very religious individual. I could not make it through each day with all the trials and tribulations throw at me, without my faith that there is something "greater than myself". I find myself happy and enjoy my self-searching.

I loved reading this book and discovering where I fit in. I think I am a very well-rounded person, but still have much to let go as far as my type-A, left-brained side. I need to work on empathy. That is something with which I have always struggled. Love love love this book!

The Forces - Johnson, Maria

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500

There are so many forces around me right now. Those that are saying, go out and have fun, stay in a save money, finish your work and just do it, enjoy the process and do it right... So as you can see I stayed in and finished my Force Field Analysis. I used gliffy to create the structure. This was my first time working with this tool and I liked it. I was really frustrated at times because I felt like I didn't have a good view of the top of the page or I would pick up things I didn't mean to. I kept reminding myself that it was the process and to think about all I was learning in that moment. I finished and am happy to say that I think all of the negative forces can be worked on. Also, all of the positive forces are very encouraging and exciting. School is starting this week and I can't wait to meet all of the new students! It is going to be a really fun and exciting year this year, I can just feel it! I have a few blogs I need to post that I wrote on my other computer in Word. I was out of town the last few days due to my 16 year old cousins funeral and I didn't have internet access, so I'll post those as soon as I can. I'm looking forward to our classes this coming fall and am so ever thankful for the wonderful experience I have had so far.

Action Research - Martin, Brett

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500

While the exact project I'm going to undertake hasn't been completely refined yet, I believe that the method has. In reading through the texts, the method that aligns best with my workplace and values is that of appreciative inquiry. I like how it simultaneously attempts to build upon that which is already successful, while also bypassing many of the force fields that might arise from another approach. My rationale here is that by starting something off in a positive manner it won't be perceived as a threat, and will help people to be more inclined to take part, which to me, is the spirit of the endeavor. If in the course of conducting the appreciative inquiry we inevitably come across problems which need to be addressed, than at least they've been uncovered collaboratively, and they're not just one person's "cause." This certainly doesn't work in all situations, but it seems a great one for mine in particular since I very much believe that there are incredible thing going on, and that appreciative inquiry may be the right vehicle to bring things to an even greater level.