No one has been a stronger or louder advocate of the iPad than me. It’s a revolutionary tool that causes us to rethink what a computer should look like. It’s not an overgrown phone–what an uneducated stereotype that moniker has become!

The iPad is a computer on which documents can be produced, photos can be edited, spreadsheets can be created, presentation material can be produced and books can be written, read, annotated and cherished. It is the perfect travel companion, providing maps, podcasts, historical information and other pertinent information to make travel smooth as silk.

In the classroom, the iPad allows teachers to move around the room with the world in her hands, allowing for digital writing conferences, sharing of personal assessment information, and engaging the troops with relevant tie-ins germane to content being studied.

However, the drawback of the iPad (at this point in time) is getting information off of the iPad and into print. Though there are ways to do this at home, or in a small closed network, in my current job I have to print observations of lessons taught by student teachers in a number of different schools. To access (often) closed networks containing a variety of printers is nearly an impossible task. Yes, I could email the notes to the preservice teachers observed, but in many schools they are not able to access “outside” email servers, much less print a document. The next generation iPad will likely contain a USB port through which one can take information from the iPad and transfer it to a computer. Or, the print capacity will be far more wide-ranging and include a native ability to interact with hundreds of print drivers. But for now, I took the plunge and bought a MacBook Air, also known as AirNana.

After only four weeks of lugging my MacBookPro (MacNana) this semester, along with other teaching materials, my shoulder is begging for mercy. Rather than wait for the next generation iPad and undergo certain pain and torture from extensive Physical Therapy, I caved. The 11 inch MacBookAir weighs just over two pounds, as compared to the MacNana at 5.6. I know that doesn’t sound like a great deal of difference in weight, but even with a lightweight and stylish Vera Bradley bag, those three pounds are quite noticeable.

AirNana has two USB ports which allow me to use a thumb drive to transfer my observation notes to a computer in the library of any school and print the notes on the spot for a post-observation conference.

Would I take AirNana on a trip? Probably not. The battery life is not as good as that of the iPad, and though VERY light, it weighs about twice as much as my iPad. My eBook library is on my iPad and I don’t care to move everything over to a new machine at this point in time.

However, AirNana is a good machine for me to use here and now to get information from point A to point B on restricted networks with minimal hassle. It may be obsolete in two years, but isn’t that the game we play with emerging technologies?

From the Spring, 2010 edition of  The American Scholar, this essay has consumed my thinking since I read it last weekend.

Teachers, by nature of their jobs, are allotted almost no solitude during the school year. Professional development time normally consists of a topic selected by administrators and delivered via direct instruction, either in large groups or small, with little time built in for reflection. It may also consist of completing a task–a curriculum document, a textbook evaluation or a common assessment, something that can be shared with the school board as proof that the time granted was “worthy” from a budgetary standpoint.

One exception to this model is the Boothbay Literacy Retreat, sponsored by Heinemann. Time alone to reflect and think about new learning is an implicit part of the daily schedule. It is an extremely effective professional development model. The time to concentrate and construct one’s own learning based on new information is invaluable. Time is also set aside for sharing and discussion which aids in the processing of finding new ideas and creative solutions to difficult situations. In addition, because I drove to Maine from my home, I was afforded an additional 1,350 miles to ponder and concentrate and create ways to apply what I learned.

Deresiewicz delineates the need for time and solitude and reflection in order to develop new and original thinking. For leaders to be creative in their problem solving, they need time to sort through options and strategies. What a marvelous school reform strategy it would be to give teachers Solitude Days. This is a lengthy piece, but a very worthy one. The magazine cover contains the link to the article.

It’s cold and dark and gloomy these days. Another storm is on the way. Pretty soon, people will begin whining about the woes of February. More on that later. Want to lift that gloom? Want to hear your heart sing with goodness and joy? Want to see a feel-good movie that will make you laugh and cry? Then hurry on out to see The King’s Speech. You know the story–there’s no surprise there, but Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush bring the characters alive in such a tender-hearted way that you’ll want to stay for the next showing and relive the story all over again. It took me a while, but once you get over thinking of Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange, you will enjoy her performance immensely, too. I’m rooting for this little movie all the way.

Will the glorious sound of those two words ever cease being a thrill to hear? Though this upsets the apple cart known as my class syllabus, it’s a beautiful snowy morning and a glorious blank slate of a day. Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal contained a very useful graphic regarding efficient ways to remove snow from the driveway. For your shoveling pleasure:

My students listened raptly to this RSA Animate of Sir Ken Robinson. With his lovely, lilting language, complimented by the engaging RSA Animate technology, Sir Ken explains the need to change educational paradigms. Sounds pretty dry, right? Not for students of today.  They have lived the situation he outlines. They relate to the disenchantment and frustration described by Sir Ken as they have been subjected for most of their lives  to the the following out-dated educational model: information is delivered to large groups of people in a linear fashion, most of whom are sorted solely by their “date of manufacture.” How many years will it take until we see systemic and meaningful change?

The iPad has turned into my sole platform for reading. I haven’t held a book in my hands since last April. The only problem with this scenario, aside from the horror expressed by my physical book loving friends, is the beating my budget takes from having to buy all of my own books. Last spring I tried to download an eBook from a local library, but due to the lack of Flash on iPad, it was not possible. Assuming the change would happen sooner or later, I waited. This past weekend, sure enough, I was able to download an ePub book.

At this point in time, an App called Overdrive Media (currently only native for iPhone and iTouch, but compatible with iPad) allows for reading ePub text on the iPad. There is an update coming out soon which is supposed to allow for the reading ePDF books, as well. There are only a few drawbacks at this point. The libraries don’t have very many digital copies of each title to loan. Once a book is checked out, it’s out. Just like a physical book, you must put the title on hold and wait for it to return to the library. Availability will be better when the new App comes out and ePDFs can be checked out, as well. The other problem an upgrade will solve is the slightly pixelated look of the text that comes from using an iPhone App on iPad.

As one who take great joy in all things digital, this turn of events is exciting. Digital media will surely become easier to access as the demand for eBooks increase.

Why is it sometimes so hard to take a first step in the right direction? Every morning, I walk downstairs and have a choice–open the frig, grab a Diet Coke, and sit at the table reading newspapers and working crosswords, or walk one step further, head down to the basement, strap on the walking shoes and hit the treadmill. Once I take that extra step, it’s all good. The iPad occupies the next forty minutes, and time on the treadmill passes quickly. The impact that one step has on my day is fairly significant. Here’s hoping this new year begins with a series of first steps in the right direction for you.

Today’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch contains this front page article: “Colleges find college freshmen unready.” Some of the schools listed on the “best schools” chart are very solid institutions, but find up to 26% of their former students in remedial classes during their first two years of college. Are high schools trying to do so much that they aren’t able to do enough?

While serving as a Department Chair at a school considered to be rigorous, I was approached several times a year about the high number of Fs in our department. The teachers in our department are not hard-nosed, stick to the bell curve kind of people. Their greatest desire is to see all students succeed. They move heaven and earth to help students who struggle. Systemically, we have multiple supports in place for kids who need more personal or intensive assistance. Yet, some kids do not pass, often times because they have not chosen to do the hard work necessary to demonstrate even low levels of achievement. However, the pressure exists to make sure all kids are “on target” to graduate in four years.

Does this push to pass every student through high school in four years do a disservice to some students? Would it be possible to allow some kids to slow down, take fewer classes each year and allow for more depth in learning? Could we ever get over the stigma that the five year plan would impose on students? Would another year really help?

Happy New Year, and thank you for stopping by my little corner of the world. It is my hope that this site will provide a collection of  professional resources, an original thought or two, and a look into the exciting life of a modern-day Nana.