edutech ventures with Annelise

Moved Blog Site & New Address

2008-06-07T21:14:00.001-04:00

Moving blog

2008-05-25T07:46:00.002-04:00

I have decided to move my blog. I will post that url as soon as I get it up and settled. I will be using annelisewojo in my professional online community and woitulewicz for my personal online community. Since I tied this blog to the email address I will be using for personal use, I will be moving. It makes sense in my head. I think this will help me keep my accounts straight, not only for blogging, but email, flickr, and everything else out there. I really do see the two worlds as separate.

New blog url coming soon! Toodles.

Whose thoughts are these?

2008-05-15T00:05:00.002-04:00

Whose thoughts are they anyway? What thoughts? Everyone's. Where are the original ideas? Who is writing authentic original ideas? As I continue my journey and learning path led by blogs and twitter I am now wondering what ideas are my own and which ones are merely ideas of others. As we learn, do the ideas become our own as we express them, or are they only ideas of others we pass on? Maybe it doesn't even matter anymore. Do I care if it is my idea or someone else’s?

I think about these things lately as I am trying to find my own place, with my own identity, thoughts and passions out here in the blogosphere. I am certainly very passionate about my job as a technology director in K12 education. I am passionate about making a difference in the lives of children and doing everything I can to help them receive the education they need for success. My excitement is compounded with each new blog and set of ideas I read. I want to share with the world, but the only world I have yet to share with is out here……in the blogosphere world of the edutech…social media variety. The others aren’t quite ready for it. Many aren’t there yet. They just don’t get it yet. This is where I want to shout to the world, my friends, neighbors, and most of all educators I work with how much they have to soon get it or be left behind!

So now I wonder, when I do start shouting………whose ideas will they be and does it matter?

Learning=Addictive=Desktop Chaos

2008-05-11T12:37:00.007-04:00

The tools and information out here are never ending. I have not yet figured out best methods for managing the amount of input coming at me when I am surfing. I start with a simple peek at Twitter. I only have 50 people listed that I follow, many of whom appear to be well known bloggers in the edutech realm. Everyone has their own blog loaded with information. So now one click leads to another and another. I open in a new window because I want to be sure I go back and finish reading the content on the original page. Within a very short time I end up with 10-15-20 open windows. It's my way of managing (or shall I call it lack of managing) doing something with the open window content. This might include absorbing it, filing it, emailing info to staff at my school, posting to twitter something I find, adding to my own blog, or bookmarking. Or, worse yet, leaving them open and then finally needing to clean up my desktop and all the open windows by closing them all to start over.

I need to find a better way to manage the overwhelming amount of content, ideas, blogs, website, tips, thoughts, tools and data that I am trying to make my way through. I have only recently started developing an online presence. It is addictive. I am learning constantly. I need to learn to better manage sifting through content so that my screen isn't always looking like this picture not so long after logging on. A quick peek at Twitter ends up looking like the above. Is this a good thing? If so, why does my brain feel so full but unfed? It feels like I'm eating with a hole in my stomach. I'm never satiated. I want more more more. I want to know it all. I want to read and view thoughts of everyone. I want to keep filling up. Too bad we need to sleep.

I'm going to take this bottomless pit of a brain out to my hot tub to try to get out of learning mode, for at least a couple of hours. Until I decide to take a quick peek at Twitter.....and so the saga will then continue.

Only One Online Personality

2008-05-06T08:52:00.004-04:00

Just watched this video on the Bamboo Project site. I've been trying to figure out how to make my way in this web world and best distinguish between my professional and personal presence. This video makes the claim there there is no difference and we now have one personality in the online world. Everything one does is part of this record and one needs to be careful. Some very good points he makes here and further good resource links with information on managing one's online reputation.

We need to be sure kids are being taught how critical it is to manage their online social life in an appropriate manner. I don't think it is yet something they are considering enough. That is evident when you look at some of the things you can find out there on social networking sites, utube, etc. I think it will be important that we are teaching this very concept to our students, and even more so that teachers and administrators are acting as good role models with their online presence.

Shirkey's Cognitive Surplus

2008-05-02T09:36:00.003-04:00

When everybody comes, I want to be there! I'm looking forward to getting the book by Clay Shirkey that I have read about on many posts, Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations. It should be waiting for me when I get home from my work break. That is a break from doing everyday work, to working on my own professional development. I've had the time to think, reflect, read, contribute, publish, and formulate ideas that will help guide my decisions in my role as technology director.

I know I have been guilty myself of wondering where everyone finds the time to make meaningful contributions to their blogs, tweets, websites, video uploads, photo libraries and pod casts. After watching this short video clip of Clay Shirkey, I realize I was off-track in my thinking. His talk is about cognitive surplus and relates it to time that in the past was spent on watching TV. We all need to become more than consumers. Thought provoking talk. Take a listen.......

I won't be giving up TV watching but it's a good reminder about the time that can be soaked up in doing so. He says, "It's better to do something, than nothing." How many times have you watched an entire show and said to yourself, "why did I just waste my time?!" I know I have definitely done that and wish I could go back in time. I wonder if in 10 years from now, I'll be saying the same thing about mindless posts, publications and creations.......or is there not such a thing as mindless.......?

Personal versus Professional

2008-05-01T09:45:00.005-04:00

Today I am trying to decide where the line is between one's personal and professional web presence. With so many of these tools tying together between accounts, what is the best way to separate the two? Should I keep a separate accounts for Picaso, Flickr, uTube, Blogger, and many more? Or do they all intermingle? What are best practices here? How does one balance this web presence between family/friends and professionally related publishing?

Advice anyone?

If I don't get advice, then I'll have to start posting silly pictures like this slideshow i put together for my husband on my week away in solitude. Maybe getting a bit photobooth slaphappy.

Working in Virginia Beach

2008-04-29T18:17:00.000-04:00

I haven't exactly gotten off to a screaming start with my blog. Instead I've found myself very distracted with Twitter and following link after link of good edutech talk. I can't yet figure out how so many of you out there have time to keep up with the amount of information that is dished out in blogs and tweets. I would love an extra 8 hours in my day to investigate and explore all the amazing sites, programs, blogs and videos that I read about. I feel like I have barely touched the tip of the iceberg with Web 2.0, social networking and 21st century skills I am so eagerly trying to immerse myself into. This week I am giving myself that time on a bit of a work hiatus, if there is such a thing.

I've booked a week in Virginia Beach as a working vacation. I've had one LONG busy school year preparing, researching and rolling out a one-to-one laptop program for our 5-th 8th graders this year. A project that was merely a thought at the start of the school year. I spent the fall researching and the winter preparing. This project has been one of the biggest undertakings I have yet taken in my career, especially in such a short time, but has been well worth the journey. I will share more on this journey in another post. This week, and now I am staying at Ocean Point Beach Club on the 16th floor in a ocean front room with wireless Internet.

I have three goals this week. Create a base for technology plan revision. Complete tech budget for 08-09 school year. Educate myself and make time to explore web2.0 tools. Okay, a fourth goal is definately to take some good walks on the beach, relax and unwind my brain.

My first goal this week is to work on our school technology plan. Our plan has been a bit neglected in light of the changes this school year in our programming. I haven't had (or made) time for the Technology Plan Committee to come together and start our revision which is due in June. There are so many changes I want to make and hope to have a draft with some good ideas in writing by the end of this week. I need to really revamp some of our old plan. I want to be sure to include the new NETS-S, change the vision to include the 1-1 programming, and .......well......I guess I'd better get to work to figure out what else is needed on the revision. Our team meets next week so I'd better have a base for us to work off of to make the day a success.

My second goal this week is to complete the dreaded technology budget for next school year. Why can't we have an unlimited pot of gold to use for our needs as they arise? Wouldn't that be a dream come true? Reality of it is that it takes much planning to assure all costs associated with continued successful operation of all technology needs is met. So I will dredge through my budget spreadsheets, planning quotes, and do my best to spread our dollars for another successful year of technology in our schools.

My third goal is the one I am having the most fun doing! What is voicethread? How do I make this blog look nice? Check out Ning. Flikr. Pageflakes. iGoogle, Del.icio.us, Diigo, Toondo, Slideshare, Zoho Notebook, Ustream, Digg, Flat Classroom, Spokeo, Jott.com, and on and on and on the list goes.

While trying to jog my memory of some of the other tools I want to check out, I accidentally found another blog that sidetracked me, again. It was Barry Dahl's. Never ending stay up all night edumacating (quite the fun word, eh?) myself. So again..........how does one do it? How do I balance immersion into where I need to be so that I can be a good leader with the rest of my life?

Which brings me to that last goal of my working vacation. A bit of resting, relaxing and walks on the beach. Yesterday it rained but it didn't stop me from three short walks in the rain. Today I managed one medium walk and took a nap out by the ocean (bundled in my sweats with a towel over me). It was awesome! I absolutely love LOVE love Love the ocean. I love the smell and the sound of the ocean. I love the feel of the warm sand on my feet. I love the ocean breeze and the sunshine (when it's there). I love my view from my room. What makes the ocean so therapeutic?

I think I have much to get busy with here. So until next time, farewell.

March 16th

2008-03-16T12:55:00.000-04:00

Hello World,

I've tried blogging a few times but each time I have fizzled out and not kept up with it. I'm not sure if life gets in the way or just simply that it wasn't really a priority for me. Three and half years ago I attended a blogging session by Rob Bobeldyk from Calvin College and was saw the value in education. Three years ago I had him come speak to our school about the advantages of blogging and how it can be a great tool in the classroom. I don't know that we have had teachers latch on to the idea since that time. I am not in the classroom but am in a position where I should be leading the way. It is time for me to lead by example and catch up to my peers.

I once worried about typos, privacy, and who the heck really cares about what I write. I don't know who will read this, nor will that be a consideration in my blogging experience. My goal is to familiarize myself with the plethora of web2.0 tools out here and change the way I live by using them in a way that helps me better understand the value and how these tools can enhance learning in the classrooms. I'm starting here and with Twitter. Find me at http://twitter.com/annelisewojo. ..........................Right after I complete my spring state reporting! Back to work for me on this Sunday afternoon.