Comments for twelchconsulting.com Blog

Comment on Technology as a Connection, not a Solution by Perry Martin

Perry Martin — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:41:18 +0000

I am a graduate student in adult education and training. A couple of things I would like to say. #1: University of Phoenix requires students to work in teams, some major colleges condem team work as they see it as cheating. Your “whiteboard of ideas” being monitored by educators but not interfering with them makes students a)Step up and say something about what they know or don’t know, and b) allows others to step up when someone is wrong; instead of letting the wrongness continue. #2: Outside of the box is where I live. I have a 140 IQ and when tested on standard personality test I score way out of the norm 95%. I have been told that I actually see the world different and much faster then others. This is a problem if you live in the box and want out. I hate the box!!!! Thanks for your blog.

Comment on American Education — Race to the Top in a K-Car by betting football

betting football — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 04:18:13 +0000

I like the first point you made there, but I am not sure I could reasonably apply that in a contructive way.

Comment on Why Schools Can’t Be “Fixed” or What the Dewey Decimal System tells us about the Future of School by Benedict Swerdloff

Benedict Swerdloff — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 21:31:23 +0000

great post, I am really enjoying your site

Comment on Why Schools Can’t Be “Fixed” or What the Dewey Decimal System tells us about the Future of School by Troy Penquite

Troy Penquite — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 07:54:51 +0000

interesting read, if you get a chance check out my site.

Comment on Why Schools Can’t Be “Fixed” or What the Dewey Decimal System tells us about the Future of School by Eugene Balford

Eugene Balford — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 03:53:28 +0000

I couldn’t agree more, thanks for writing.

Comment on Technology as a Connection, not a Solution by Kay Endriss

Kay Endriss — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 03:07:47 +0000

Hi there.
I originally found you through a Latin teacher (I’m a math teacher) who connected with me through a ning, and through my blog, which he cited on his blog. Due to this connection, I’ve been reading your blog off and on for the past month or two.
Tonight, I was typing very similar words with almost the same sentiment, that technology needs to shift from a technical focus to a social focus. The idea is expressed in the document, “The Future of Learning Agents and Disruptive Innovation” from the KnowledgeWorks Foundation and the Institute for the Future. If you haven’t yet connected with this document, I think its ideas would resonate with you, and it is available online. Let me know what you think!

Comment on “Time Warp” thinking in Education by Lynn Fulton-Archer

Lynn Fulton-Archer — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:22:10 +0000

Here, here, Tom! Unfortunately I am living in one of those districts… and how appropriate that John was the one to comment before me! At the beginning of the year I tried to help out a friend’s son with finishing his second year of German. He moved to my town from another state and had taken one year of German… and loved it! He was super motivated to continue but our district doesn’t offer German at the high school level, nor through our state virtual school.

No problem, I thought. I thought “outside the box” and suggested KET as an option. I offered to facilitate the course and the father offered to pay all the fees. The guidance counselor at the school said it all sounded fine but the whole thing got shut down by district administrators! What was the rationale? “Ms. Fulton is not a teacher at the high school” (never mind that my certificate is K-12 and I’m a lead teacher in the district) “The course doesn’t meet our standards” (last time I checked, the KY language standards were based on the national standards, just like in SC)…

I know that there are teachers who are thinking outside the box and understand that learning occurs everywhere. In my district, at least, the problem lies with the higher ups. I’m continue to “fight the good fight”.. but it can be exhausting!

Comment on “Time Warp” thinking in Education by John Krueger

John Krueger — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 23:10:27 +0000

Excellent call to action, Tom! I’m with you that the students and parents need to make demands for change to happen. Therefore I think that we as teachers not only have to document learning which is a GIANT first step (or leap) in the right direction –but we also have to get the word out: 1) to other teachers (so that they see that they can make their work more relevant and enriching to students) and 2) to potential learners so that they are aware of the exciting opportunities out there for them to navigate and monitor their own progress.

As far as teachers go, everybody is working so hard…and a lot of time and energy seems to get swallowed up just dealing with the system as it is, that sometimes we don’t take the steps that we need to to change things for the better.

As an example: this year I began with good intentions of integrating the LinguaFolio into a new DL course here at KET. Well, the framework is there– and I’m proud of that– but other pressing duties related to the course creation have taken me away from monitoring things like I need to in order to get things where they should be.

I have heard from fellow educators that I shouldn’t be discouraged, that ‘baby steps’ in the beginning are so important (rather than no steps at all) and I know that they are right…. Still–though many of us know what direction we need to go in (and your writing here has really helped remind me of it! Thanks! )–it is taking some time.

Comment on Measuring “Teacher Effectiveness” — A Blast From The Past by Morgan Emrich

Morgan Emrich — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 03:07:58 +0000

When my principal (at the large urban middle school where I taught for 10 years) observed me for “effectiveness” his tools were interesting to say the least.

We were judged on placement, neatness, and size of posted, written learning objectives. How many students were on-task, raised their hands, and asked probing questions seemed to be important as was how far up Bloom’s taxonomy my questions were. In other words, everything had to do with how I was running the show, pulling the strings and intellectually manipulating the students.

What the kids wanted to learn didn’t matter, how fast they could learn it didn’t matter, their different learning styles didn’t matter, their desire or lack thereof to get information from a 39 year old adult male didn’t matter, the fact that many of them already had the material down cold didn’t matter.

Maybe it’s time to consider the fact that most public school teachers can be almost totally irrelevant and possibly a deterrent to serious learning. If that’s the case, what does that say about the purpose of “Instructional Leaders”/administrators in our schools?

Comment on Measuring “Teacher Effectiveness” — A Blast From The Past by Eric Brewer

Eric Brewer — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:25:27 +0000

Fantastic. I am very glad you do what you do, Tom.
I had a discussion the other day about the purpose of School. I have mixed feelings about it to say the least.
I attended college for 4 & 1/2 years but ultimately grew disillusioned with the whole thing and quit.
I now own a pharmacy, am happily married with two kids, happy and healthy and doing well.
I discovered that I could learn anything I wanted to learn without going to class. If I just stayed home and studied on my own terms I’d understand the subject better and I’d score higher on exams.

I think it was Mark Twain who said, “I’ve always enjoyed learning, but I haven’t always enjoyed being taught.”

I love what you’re doing, Tom. Long may you run!