An Exercise in Fact Finding

When I saw the headlines that Donald Trump was rescued from an elevator in Colorado Springs, I didn't think much about it.  But, then I saw the following Facebook post that my cousin reacted to:

After reading through the article, I thought this might be a great opportunity to seek out some facts before coming to any conclusions.  So, I wanted to know: 

• What did Donald Trump actually say about the fire marshall?  Were his words taken out of context? (The article above had very little of what Mr. Trump actually said.)
• What was the actual listing of the location for this event?  Did it include the room?
• If the room was identified in the listing, is there a public posting (preferably online) of the capacity of the room? (The article does state a capacity, but I wanted a primary source.)
• How many tickets were given to the event?  Were they limited to the size of the room?

An Example for Close Reading: Trump/Stephanopoulos Interview

After observing the news about what Donald Trump said in an interview with George Stephanopoulus when asked what he would say to Khizr Kahn, I was exposed to an interesting claim on CNN by Scottie Hughes.  She claimed that, in the interview, Mr. Trump said that he was sorry for their family's loss and we honor his service (prior to responding to the question, "What would you say to that father?").

Since this claim was based on the transcript of the interview (full text transcript and introduction by Mr. Trump's campaign below), I quickly thought, "What a great chance to examine someone's claim about a non-fiction text!  This is what I might consider an opportunity to practice close reading myself." (NOTE: I am no expert on close reading, so please correct me if I am wrong.)

I found the transcript of the interview on Mr. Trump's website (full text of introduction and interview below).  After reading the web page, I noticed the text contained another claim about the interview that states, "As shown in the full transcript, Mr. Trump doesn’t compare his sacrifices to anybody else’s, and in fact praises Mr. Khan and wishes him well."  Now there are two claims to investigate, so off I went to reading the interview...searching for evidence of each of these claims.

The Process of Learning through a Project

“Give the pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking; learning naturally results.”

― John Dewey

After working on this post for some time, I realized it would be best to break it up into a series of posts as it is getting quite long.  To start, I will explain my project and share the final product (actually a modified product for sharing purposes).  I will then share several posts that explain how I developed solutions to each part of the project and the learning that occurred.

Defining the Project
With data being the priority for so many decisions, my team was tasked with collecting numerous ratings from others.  The data included criterion-based ratings on a scale of 1-4 as well as we wanted to collect additional information gathered from check boxes and open-ended responses.  Because this data collection was important for us (but may not be as important to those inputting), we wanted to make it as user-friendly as possible.  Additionally, we wanted the end-users to be able to reference prior ratings (when possible) so they could be more informed while making current ratings as well as see trends.

What is Personalized Learning?

Caveat: I am focusing more on secondary education within this post as I am beginning to realize that primary education can vary greatly from secondary education.

Because I don't have a subscription, I am unable to leave a comment at the bottom of the article: What Is 'Personalized Learning'? Educators Seek Clarity by Sean Cavanagh.  So, I will write a short post instead, but I suggest you read the article to better understand this response

Microsoft buys Mojang (and Minecraft)...what about Minecraftedu?

I don't pay too close attention to some of the business side of education and technology, but the news that Microsoft bought Mojang, the company responsible for Minecraft, sure got my attention.  Admittedly, I don't play Minecraft much but that does not mean that I (1) do not see and understand it's appeal and (2) recognize its potentially HUGE impact on education.

I was first introduced to Minecraft about four years ago while teaching computer programming.  It was my students who showed it to me...and I dabbled with it.  I also let some of my students (who had to create an individual final project) use Minecraft as their final project platform.  This choice (as it almost always does) provided the students with much more motivation and drive to complete a project as it was something they wanted to do.  Since then, I have observed the development and explosion of Minecraft as an educational tool/environment used in a variety of ways (like promoting teamwork as @HikariKishi has done and to truly push students to think critically and creatively like @dkiang...both who presented at Kukulu Kaiaaulu 2014: Building Global Communities).  From these examples as well as the numerous resources at the Minecraftedu.com website, it is clear that Minecraft has supported learning in powerful ways and can continue to do so.

Therefore, I am definitely interested in this change as it relates to both the gamer and education realms (of course, my heart lies with the the educational realm more).  I am curious how the creators of the educational version (Teacher Gaming) are going deal with the change in ownership...which has its critics among the gamers.  What is very notable about the change in owners is the fact that the founders of Mojang (Notch, Carl, and Jakob) are LEAVING the company.  This is somewhat scary because it is clear that the educational version is supported by Mojang.

I am curious what others say.  Let the discussion begin and hopefully Teacher Gaming can have some input before anything too troubling happens.  Please share your thoughts!

NOTE: Keep in mind that Minecraft is not a panacea.  It has limitations and can even be implemented poorly, just like any other tool used for education.  Here is nice discussion of the pros and cons of Minecraft in Education.

[polldaddy poll=8309770]

Guns, guns, and more guns...in school even

I cannot resist to not just laugh at but I have to comment about the craziest ideas that are implemented to keep us safe.

So, I didn't realize the extend that people want to carry guns until I read this an article.  Most notably, the article states:

Missouri school boards already have the power to allow employees with concealed gun permits to carry weapons on their campuses. The new law requires the state Department of Public Safety to establish training guidelines for schools wanting to designate a teacher or administrator as a "school protection officer" authorized to carry a concealed gun or self-defense spray.

Give an A: Is It Entitlement...or Just Caring Too Much?

Last summer I had the privilege of attending the MIT-Lemelson EurekaFest as an Excite Award Recipient.  It was an amazing opportunity and experience that I will need to address at another time.  So why do I bring up this event?  Simple...it was the first time I heard that college professors were being contacted by students' parents who questioned (and possibly demanded higher) grades for their children.

As a high school teacher, I have see this such situation more and more (parents almost demanding higher grades for their children because it will affect their GPA)...but IN COLLEGE?  My first thought tends toward the negative: We (Americans) believe we are entitled to our success.  Success is not dependent on our accomplishments.  My child said she did the work and deserves the best grade.  

Of course, the first reason that pops into one's head isn't always accurate (or at least the only explanation).  So, I decided to find more information about this new phenomenon.  I definitely found that my first assumption about the motive behind parental involvement is not completely wrong as they could  be called "lawn-mower parents."  These parents are similar to what has been called "helicopter parents" but will "mow down whatever stands in the way of their child's success" (from the same article).

On the other hand, others had a more neutral rationale.  One article about this issue at the University of Florida noted that many Baby Boomers are parents now and have become very protective of their children.  The author recollects the "Baby on Board" signs that started in the 80s and parents requiring their children always wear bicycle helmets.  These parents wanted to ensure their children would never feel pain.  Another article had a similar take on the issue and quotes Dr. Sears, who says, "The protector instinct in all parents makes us want to rush and rescue the stuck baby."  So, maybe this intent is not necessarily about entitlement as much as it might be about protecting my child from any harm.

Unfortunately, this parental behavior, as all the articles note, does not help these young adults (and yes they are adults by 18 years of age) develop into competent adults.  They never learn how to handle these challenges on their own or how to solve the problem.  Of course, it is not necessarily clear if the child asks the parent to intervene or the parent is overly involved...but in either case, these young people really need to learn to deal with the issues themselves.  The student should be the one contacting the professor and trying to improve their grade, while parents can (and should) be available to counsel their college-age children.  An interesting view about extended childhood has been made by John Taylor Gatto.  In this audio clip, Mr. Gatto notes how childish our (American) society has become when even parents need a lesson on how to behave at their child's baseball game.

So, whatever the motive (entitlement, protection, or other reasons) parents should take the advice of the articles linked above and allow their adult-age children to learn and grow and even fail...because real learning cannot happen without real failure.