Thursday, May 22, 2014

Tech Ed Hiatus

Posting from Josh on Google Glass.

http://goo.gl/vcZWrJ

Again, thanks Josh for taking a chance and willingness to look to the future of education and evaluate its usefulness.

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

"Field" Glass

Day 2 with Glass- feeling a LOT more comfortable using them today. Thought  today would be the perfect opportunity to try them out in the "field" as we were completing the dropping portion of the Egg Drop Lab with my physical science classes. Had a student volunteer to wear them and record video as each student dropped their Egg Drop Device- just downloaded the videos- AMAZING!! I can use these very clear, precise videos to point out differences in air resistance, acceleration due to gravity, etc. as I now have a video "record" of each dropped device. One of the higher level skills we work on in physical science is data analysis- what a perfect way to point out differences in velocity due to shape differences, etc. - very impressive. I had often thought of videoing the "drops" but a video camera was cumbersome- this fits perfectly- on to more opportunities in the "field" with glass- Hydrorockets here we come!!

Monday, May 19, 2014

Don't Break the Google Glass!!

Wow- what a day- have finally had some time to sit and reflect on using Glass. Students were beyond fascinated with them and several asked to try them on- of course I obliged but was also a little nervous of freshman and something breakable in the same room! I have fantastic students and if they can be trusted to light a bunsen burner I was pretty sure they could be trusted to try them on for a spin. It is definitely a learning curve. I guess I felt a little "distracted" while wearing them but by 5th period did not really notice they were there and felt comfortable enough to take some video and pictures of the students with their Egg Drop creations. The question remains- how can I use them to increase student learning or show a concept in more detail? I am tumbling through the Looking "Glass"- who knows where it will lead me!!

Google SiO2

Well, I got Glass back on Friday and then, before I made it back to my room, pawned it off on another teacher.  For Josh's most recent blog, click here.

  As I walked the scant 50 yards from Josh's room I had plenty of time to think about all the things I would try, new ideas I had . . . and then I walked by the science wing and I heard Jenni Nickel's voice booming from her room.

Jenni has been a shining star in our 1:1 program this year.  She's embraced the concept, worked hard to adapt to the environment and definitely geeked-out on all the tech.

I gave her Glass to use for a few weeks.  It's a nice way to round out the year, she's going to put it to good use and, besides, they're making trebuchets.

Stay tuned for her posts.




Wednesday, May 14, 2014

The Future of Glass

Been a while since I posted and, considering I'll be getting Glass back some time in the next week, I figured it was time to put down a few thoughts about where I'm heading in the future.

To start with, I want to thank both Josh and Ann for their work with me on the NPSD Glass project.  It's challenging and exciting to take a new piece of technology and evaluate it for its effectiveness in education.  On top of getting used to how it functions, they've had to evaluate their own classrooms and teaching and think about a use for the device.  I want to emphasize use for the device.  In education it's not just about how tech functions, but rather how it's functional.  Without the focus of "Are my students learning?" we're just putting more stuff in front of them and it becomes cumbersome.

For example, I loved my motorcycle and it was extremely fun and useful but it would serve no purpose in my classroom.  Josh, however, may find it extremely useful in Tech Ed.

So, the future:

  • Continue to connect with other educators around the country that are using Glass and communicate
  • Present our experiences at conferences (TIES)
  • Explore apps that will specifically connect with and apply to education
  • Connect with Google and try to establish a pilot program at Pines for Glass with kids
  • Find a trustworthy student to use Glass for a period of time and evaluate its usefulness in education

I've noticed more and more groups in education popping up that use Glass and are excited to share experiences and collaborate.  Specifically, through Google+, there's a strong group growing and meeting regularly about Glass through a hangout.  So far I have not attended one of these meetings, but I've also been without Glass for 6 weeks.

I'm once again excited to get Glass back.  Not the same excited as I was when I first got it, but excited that I can move to the next stage.

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Giving it the Glass

Another post from Josh and his experiences with Google Glass.

http://goo.gl/ZRmJAo

I'm hearing echoes of many of the thoughts I've already had regarding Glass in education.