Digital Collaborative Blog

Photo taken by me in Lalibela, Ethiopia

I just got back from an amazing two weeks in Ethiopia and Djibouti where I managed to stay disconnected from electronic devices for two weeks! No emails, text messages, Facebook or Twitter.   It was an amazing trip on so many levels– too much of an adventure to cover in a single blog post, but one of the things I appreciated most about the trip was that not only did it allow me an escape from being connected, it also allowed me an escape from the heavy consumer culture of Western Society.  One of the things I found surprising about Ethiopia was the absolute absence of American corporations…not even a McDonalds or a Starbucks anywhere.  It was refreshing to go to cafes in Addis Ababa and see people engrossed in real conversation over a macchiato instead of a table of people all texting  that is so common at restaurants here in the U.S.   No big mega malls or Walmart.   Even when you went to stores or to markets, there wasn’t the pressure to buy that is so common even in many other third world countries.   Although everyone has a cell phone, they use them for just that…as a phone.  Far less texting and all the other varied tasks we use our smart phones for in the western world.  Yet  the access to connectivity was incredible.  We went to some of the most remote places in Ethiopia and were amazed to see that our guide had reception everywhere!  I had heard that cell phone usage and coverage in Africa far exceeded that in the United States…now I believe it!  It was neat as well to see solar power being used in innovative ways in the most remote places such as to power a water well.  Yet the most pervasive symbol throughout the two countries were the bright yellow square containers used to get water from distant places.  And still throughout the country there was a sense of hope and optimism.  The economy is growing and people’s lives are improving and yet the Ethiopian people seem to hold on tightly to some of their most important birth rights–a strong sense of community, culture, and belief.  I was fortunate to get away, unplug and experience this other world and have come back to my world refreshed!  Click here to view photos and video of my trip:  https://sites.google.com/site/ethiopiavacation/

Yvonne Caples, world champion boxer

I heard an interview on NPR with Doug Lemov about 8 months ago as I was driving to work, and as a former professional world champion in boxing, I was intrigued by the title of his book, Teach Like a Champion, as it immediately made me wonder what the parallels were between being a champion  in boxing and in teaching.  The term champion is usually used to refer to winning a sport or competition, so using it in the context of teaching might strike some as odd, but for me it seemed like a very important accolade to give top teachers–champion teachers.  They are able to win over the hearts and minds of students to help them be successful in academics.  Finally, this summer I had the opportunity to read the book and watch the clips from the accompanying DVD.  The subtitle of the book, 49 Techniques that Put Students on the Path to College is central to what Lemov means by  “teaching like a champion.”  Lemov argues that we need to teach students how to be scholarly and demand that they be scholars, and that there are specific, concrete,  and actionable techniques that one can follow to do just that.  Lemov differentiates between a technique and a strategy as follows:  “…a strategy is a generalized approach to problems, a way to inform decisions.  A technique is a thing you say or do in a particular way.  If you are a sprinter, your strategy might be to get out of the blocks fast and run from the front;  your technique would be to incline your body forward at about five degrees as you drive your legs up and out ahead of you” (Lemov, p. 4-5).   For Lemov, these techniques are actions you practice and rehearse over and over again so that you become a master of holding students accountable for learning what it is you have to teach them.  The book does an excellent job of laying out 49 techniques that champion teachers use giving specific examples from a variety of  disciplines and grade levels.  He divides the book into two parts.  In the first part he talks about the techniques in regards to larger themes that are important to teaching:

1. Setting High Academic Expectations
2. Planning that Ensures Academic Achievement
3. Structuring and Delivering Your Lessons
4. Engaging Students in Your Lessons
5. Creating a Strong Classroom Culture
6. Setting and Maintaining High Behavioral Expectations
7. Building Character and Trust
8. Improving the Pace
9. Challenging Students to Think Critically

Each section covers 5-7 techniques related to each of the themes. The second part of the book focuses on reading.  As Lemov states:  “Reading is the skill.  Teaching students to unlock the full meaning of the texts they read is the single most important outcome a teacher can foster.  If  your students can read well, they can essentially do anything”(Lemov, p. 249).  I’ve always felt this way and why I spent my first 10 years of teaching as an English teacher.  Yet even now, as a Computer Applications teacher, I still feel this is an important part of my job.  This book is exactly what I was looking for in terms of focusing on how I want to improve as a teacher next year.  I worked really hard this past year to develop an innovative and challenging curriculum, now this year I am really going to focus on the details and routines to help students get the most out of the curriculum I have developed.  What’s especially great about this book is the accompanying DVD that shows clips of champion teachers performing these techniques in highly engaged classrooms.  I highly recommend this book to experienced and newbies alike.   Although, I feel like I do already perform many of the techniques in the book, I can’t wait to hone my skills and incorporate new ones that I haven’t yet tried before.  It is just like in boxing where you practice and practice again and rehearse in your mind what you will do.

References:

Lemov, D. (2010). Teach like a champion: 49 techniques that put students on the path to college. San Francisco: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

image source: http://amazon.com

I recently read Dan Schawbel’s book, Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success.  It is a book geared toward those in the twenty-something age range who are just out of college and are looking to make a presence in the competitive world of work.  Schawbel argues that just like corporations, individuals now need to develop a brand that sets them apart.  He identifies 3 key elements of effective personal branding:

1. A strong personal value statement (what you stand for)
2. A plan to differentiate your brand from that of the competition
3. A powerful marketing strategy

He then sets out to show individuals how to create a personal brand by following this 4 step process:  discover your brand, create your brand, communicate your brand and maintain your brand.  The book does a good job of providing useful tips to utilize a web presence to build your personal brand and also lays out explicitly how to successfully follow the 4 step process.   I think having a discussion with students about personal branding and having them create a personal brand is a good way to get them start taking control of the digital footprints they are creating and relay the importance of creating a positive web presence for oneself.   I am going to incorporate this notion as part of their digital portfolio building process.

My students participated in 2 video conferences with students in Haiti on February 8th and 9th. The video conferences are part of a program called Students Rebuild sponsored by Architecture for Humanity and the Bezos Foundation to connect North American students with students in Haiti who lost their school in the devastating 2010 earthquake. The goal is to get the North American students involved in fundraising to help rebuild the schools. Our school was paired up with students at Ecole Baptiste Bon Bergere in Pele a school within the neighborhood of Cite Soleil, one pf Port Au Prince’s slum neighborhoods. In addition, the video conference included 3 other U.S. Schools in Virginia, New York, and Florida. We have two Haitian students at our school, so we started the conference with a welcome/introduction from them in Haitian Creole. The first day of conferencing was meant to be a cultural exchange. One of the best questions asked by my students that really opened up the exchange was, “What music expresses your culture the best? Can you demonstrate?” This ignited a talent showcase…the Haitian students demonstrated Kompa, a Haitian musical form and the dance that accompanies it and a Haitian Creole rap battle. The American students were also eager to showcase their talents with songs and rap. One of the highlights was when one of our students played the ukelele and sang a very touching song. On the second day of video conferencing the topic was a bit more serious: Emergency Education. But our students were eager to listen as they all huddled in closer together to view and experience the dialogue. Students in Haiti shared their concerns. One of my students asked the following: “We learned that 90% of the universities were destroyed in the earthquake, how does that loss impact your society and your written history?” In a very poignant moment one of the students responded that it made him very sad and with the loss of human capital that universities produce it would be a major loss for years to come. Another touching moment was when a student in New York shared how he felt after 9/11 and then he and the students in Haiti shared what they did to heal. At the end of the conference my students shared their thoughts about the conference. It made them appreciate all that they have here at our school and eager to get involved to help the students of Ecole Baptiste rebuild their school. In the next couple of months we will be working to raise money for the school and get all the freshman class involved. Here is a link to the rebuild plans for the school: http://studentsrebuild.org/designs-progress-haiti

Below is a video of previous conferences from the Fall of 2010 that will give you a sense of what the video conference was all about.

“Continuing to look for entrepreneurial innovation enables us to find better and better solutions to extremely complex problems.”  Jacqueline Novogratz, The Blue Sweater

I recently read the book, The Blue Sweater:  Bridging the Gap between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World by Jacqueline Novogratz.  The book details her life as a social entreprenuer who works in third world countries to provide funding for innovative projects and programs.  While in Rwanda, Novogratz, saw a young boy wearing a blue sweater that she once owned as a teen that was donated to Goodwill.  Seeing the boy in her old sweater made her realize how connected we are and is a powerful symbol for giving back as well as where the title of her book came from.  The first half of the book details the struggles and successes she and other made to provide aid and assistance in third world countries.  It is an honest portrayal of her naivety and arrogance in bringing her first world business “expertise” to places and people that often resented her efforts and the lessons in humility she learned as a result of these encounters.  One of her first big successes is helping the women of a small bakery in Rwanda painted a bright blue turn their grant supported bakery into a profitable business that the women of the bakery took ownership in.   The most powerful part of the book is the latter half where she details her work with the Acumen Fund and with what she calls Patient Capital, which boils down to long-term investment in sustainable, scalable innovative institutions and projects that may take a long time to see a return or profit, but build a strong foundation to improve the lives of people in impoverished regions.  Although her early work was primarily in Africa, most recently she has spent a lot of her efforts in Pakistan and India.  She highlights some of the amazing local entreprenuers she has helped to support such as Dr. Govindappa Venkataswamy, founder of the Aravind Eye Hospital which has found a way to make treating cataracts of the poor of India, an efficient, profitable business.  Then there’s Satyan Mishra, whose foundation Drishtee helps to bring connect India’s rural areas with Tele-kiosks.  In Pakistan, she details the efforts of Tasneem Siddiqui Saiban to make owning homes possible for many through incremental housing loans.   It is a book worth reading to understand the complexities of helping the world’s poor in a way that supports sustainable change.  Here is a video about Jacqueline.  The Acumen Fund website is another great resource to learn about the book and how Patient Capital works.