Week 4 Wimba Post

I am very grateful for my reviews. David looked at my presentation when it was a very rough draft and offered some great feedback that helped shape the tweaking of the final. Donald viewed the draft in it's near final form and also reminded me to pay attention to the specific assignment details, saving me from turning in a presentation which far exceeded the suggested word limit. I enjoyed reviewing their projects as well and am anxious to see them in the final form, as it seems as though we will be working with them again in our final month. 

Leadership project commentary from David Stossmeister:

Nikki,

   I've looked and read through it once now. You mentioned it's pretty rough and I agree that it could use some refinement. You have the talking points you need in there but at the moment you have ALL the talking points. Remember that even though we're turning this in for a grade in class, it's ultimately meant to be a live lecture at a conference which typically have 30-60 minute sessions. I'm sure you're already aware of this as you mentioned it was a rough draft. I mention it because I'm pretty bad at always preparing too much information and ending up having to pick up the pace to get through it. The conference website should hopefully say somewhere what the session length is.

The way I've been practicing to get better (and maybe it'll be of use to you) is to approach it from a bit of a different mindset. Think of your favorite novel or movie and imagine you had to condense all of that story down into a 5 minute verbal synopsis, what would you include? what would you leave out? This exercise has helped me get quite a bit better at it--though I still have a long ways to go :D Kinda silly and I'm not sure if it'll help you but figured I'd throw it out there just in case.

As you do your revisions and start weeding out the extra information and getting rid of the kind of sterile, academic formatting of our CBR website treat it like it's a bed-time story for your kids and write it from that perspective. You are the storyteller meant to entertain the audience at the conference :D

The design looks great, the images are awesome. The only real recommendation I have right now is to transcribe the narration from the video in your conclusion slide and put that in your speakers notes and plan on speaking it at the conference. Might feel a little weird playing a video of yourself to a room when you're standing right there. Unless what you were trying to go for is showing the audience your reactions at the time you were actually doing the CBR instead of retroactively discussing it live.

I know alot of what I said may have been "no duh, I'm just not at that point in the revisions yet" but figured I'd put it in just in case any of it was helpful.

I'm gonna crash out but should be up fairly early tomorrow morning and I'll come back to the presentation and dig in and see if I can come up with any specific helpful tidbits about what I think might be good to keep or what may be able to be cut without losing the message.

-David

Leadership project commentary from Donald Buchanan: 

Nikki, I liked the addition of your trailer it is a good connection into what you are doing. The sound audio on some of your videos is poor. I had to put my earphones on and turn the volume all the way up on one of them in order to hear. Check your word count to make sure you are not exceeding the limit. Overall, good job.

Week 4 Reading Response to John Hutchinson

Chapter 12:

(Benjamin Zander conducted Beethoven's 5th)

In this chapter all the anecdotes related to the symphonies and classical music really made sense.  The Symphony is possibly the best metaphor for the "WE" story.  Actually, the relationship between conductor / symphony is a great metaphor the message of the entire book.  I think this is obvious and clear from many of the stories in the book, but watching this clip now after reading the book really helped tie all the lessons together.

My response:

nikkiFeb 26, 2012 05:09 PM

What a great change of pace for the blogs, Hutch. I don't often think of symphonies, but completely agree with your comment about WE being akin to one. I guess there are other illustrations of the concept, but none perhaps as obviously constructed of different parts as a symphony. I think that I'll think of it every time I try to explain the phenomenon of interdependence. Thanks. :-)

Week 4 Reading Response to Cricket Johnson

Wk 4 Reading

So this week's reading to me was really powerful. The section where Zander speaks of the couple going through therapy and the woman is yelling “you don’t love me” and he yells back “who could love you when you act like this!” and then directed her to see that it was emotions running her and she needed to find the cause.  So many times I will be arguing with my husband and the argument goes off on some crazy tangent and even as I am flinging comments I am thinking to myself “this isn’t even what this is about”, “what is it about him that makes me act that way? I love him and I can still say the meanest, nastiest things to him. It is sometimes like an out of body experience. I once saw a quote that the difference between love and friendship is how much you can hurt each other. Most of the arguments we get into are based off of the root cause of expecting a certain response or action from that person we love and then get upset when they don’t live up to that….how does this tie into leadership? 

Last week I heard a teacher moaning and groaning about an administrator who they felt didn’t give a student they had written up – enough of a punishment. I asked the teacher “Did you tell him what you expected/wanted?” The teacher responded with “no”…”then how can you expect him to live up to your standard?” The teacher just stared at me. “Go tell him what you would like to see occur – then if he still doesn’t handle it – you can complain all you want.”  This situation is really something similar as above. We can’t hold people to expectations if we don’t make it clear to them what they are.

My Response:

nikkiFeb 26, 2012 05:00 PM

I learned in a Political Science course back in undergrad, a millennium ago, the word "promulgate," as used in a legal context. If you don't know, essentially it means that we cannot hold people accountable for expectations (laws) that they do not know exist. Sometimes I find myself expecting that people think the same way that I do, so don't understand when they just don't do the things that I want them to do. After all, the things I think and do just make sense, don't they???? :-)

WK4 Leadership Project Blog Post

My Leadership project is a presentation of my 11 month long Challenge Based Research Project. Within this presentation, audience members will learn how the project began, how it was shaped, the details of each phase implemented, the results of the solutions, and the conclusions drawn. I would like to share this at the SOPHE conference as it brings together people interested in improving the health, and thus, the quality of life of all students in our educational system. 

I have already submitted my abstract. Wish me luck! ;-)

Week 1 Leadership Post

Week 2 Leadership Post

Week 3 Leadership Post

Leadership Project

Week 4 Reading Post

I love, love, love this book! I so want to buy up copies and distribute them for gifts. The unfortunate thing is that the people I know who would benefit most from reading it have already had their sparks go out and would poo poo it as psychobabble and most likely not give it a chance. Oh well, it's worth a try. If only there was a way to make it mandatory reading for them?!?!? ;-)

I particularly like the way the last chapter ties everything together. WE! This chapter ties together the concept of the book nicely. We are INTERDEPENDENT! What we do and say affects others, having impact beyond our wildest imaginations. It is important to act mindfully, so that our impact is a positive one.  I liked the reminder of ember boxes. It has prompted me to carry my own figurative box for those times the spark has dimmed...and perhaps a spare to help someone else to see their way. :-)

Week 3 Wimba Post

I really enjoyed the discussion about Art of the Possibilities. I have greatly enjoyed reading this book and thank you for introducing it to us. It makes me desperately wish I could participate in the live Wimba's. While many of the themes are revisiting  "The Power of Positive Thinking" and "The Secret,"but it never hurts to be reminded of the power our mind has and to hear vital principles in different ways. What resonates with one person, doesn't necessarily with the next. Anyway, I  hope to not "lose faith" as you say. :-)

I also appreciate the focus on what is expected during week 4 in regard to our Leadership Project and how it is connected as we go further. Thanks for walking us through the two possible approaches to our presentation/publication, i.e. recapping our entire CBR or looking at it through a "what would I do if I were to do it again" point of view. I came away with some good ideas and a clearer idea of how I will go about delivering the information I have collected.

Week 3 Reading Response #1 to Sonja Sprague

Week 3 Reading - The Art of Possibility 5-8

Joan Brink Young Children Services is always willing to try something new without any other reward than to have a video to show her students.

Everyone is responsible for the team; one person does not lead it. This is not what I am use to. I have in the past been given a direction and I do it. This idea gives everyone the responsibility and the reward. I like it.

You can either try to plan to succeed by scheming, which is unfulfilling or live without a pattern of strategies or alternate objectives. Instead living with real compassion and honest expression will let you live free.

We have to be able to see how things are, but also how they could be without our assumptions or feelings but to look at the facts of where we’ve been and where we could be. Do not speak anything that excludes possibilities.

Let go of anything that is holding you back and participate fully.

I am writing these notes from Art of Possibility as notes to self. These ideas will help me resolve a lot of issues I am fighting in my own mind that deals with the changes at work. I think our assistant superintendent read the book and is practicing this with us. I just wish everyone else would read it too. There are a lot of staff who will not open up to creating educational videos in their classroom because it is not how they use to do it. They are always coming up with many reasons why it cannot be. This makes many hurdles for me to do my job. Some teachers are willing and able.

nikkiFeb 19, 2012 11:04 AM

Sunny,

That must be frustrating for you. It always confounds me when team members are willing to spend tireless energy fighting change, when if they would put 1/2 of that energy into giving the proposed change a chance they might find that a tool is being proposed that could actually prove beneficial to their students and selves. :-/

Week 3 Reading Response #1 to Vivian Tejedor

Week 3 Reading Reflexion "How Fascinating!"-Benjamin Zanders

Photograph taken by: Vivian Tejedor, 

collecting seeds from, heliconia bloom.

Lighting a spark, as I struggle with the thought of sometimes taking myself  too seriously.  I can’t help but feel sad for the opportunities I might have missed to light a spark in my students when caught in a downward spiral to cover a lesson or worried about classroom management. I keep repeating to myself, try not to miss another opportunity to light a spark, I imagine a burning coal in my pocket, hoping I won’t forget.

As I finish this week reading, I realized that what I call my escape to a lush exuberant nature is not an escape but my passion.  I never called it a passion before because it has always been a special space for me to get lost. The space I am talking about is a heliconia farm, my father and I have been conduits to its transformation. We have collected and nursed seeds from every place possible to the point of risking malaria. In this space I allow myself to apply all the habits proposed by the authors’ in the art of possibilities without a second thought. This is the space where I am most at peace. I still find myself resistant to apply the habits proposed by the authors’ in the art of possibilities outside of my safe space.  I propose, to myself, I am going to stop taking myself so seriously outside of my safe space. I know I will fail from time to time, well  “How fascinating!”

Week 3 Leadership Post

My CBR Project focuses on the benefits of implementing a physical activity regimen in the classroom. I have chosen to submit my proposal to present at: SOPHE's 63rd Annual Meeting in San Francisco, California. SOPHE is an organization that promotes healthy behaviors, healthy communities, and healthy environments with members who work in elementary/secondary schools, universities, voluntary organizations, health care settings, worksites, and local/state/federal government agencies. 

I have already submitted my abstract in hopes of presenting at the conference. I look forward to receiving a response. 

The second conference I am submitting my presentation to is the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, otherwise known as AAHPERD. AAHPERD is the largest organization of professionals supporting and assisting professionals involved in physical education, recreation, fitness, sport, coaching, dance, and health education. Their final schedule is already set and they are not accepting any more submissions for the 2012 conference, however I intend to submit for next year;s annual conference. 

Wk 3 reading - Rule #7

Nagle_Nikki_Wimba_Week2

Week 2 Leadership Post

To present or publish?  That is the question.

I am definitely leaning toward presenting. The reason for this decision is due in large part to realizing that my CBR project has some of the same issues I found that many researchers have had when tackling the same issue. While I feel that some great quantitative and qualitative data was collected, I am not able to prove that the results were based on the incorporation of a physical activity regimen alone. Therefore, I have some questions about how seriously it would be taken by an academic journal. I do, however, feel that the information, whether scientifically valid, is relevant and important and I am excited to share our experience.

Upon first glance, I am thinking of submitting to the EDUCAUSE conference, as this seems on the surface to be the one that my project would fit into best. My project did not rely too heavily upon technology, as the challenge was physical activity, therefore many of the journals and conferences would seem to be ill-fitted for my research.

Response to Vivian's Week 2 Reading Post

Week 2 Reading Reflexion

Earth from space, image by NASA, Public Domain.

"The meanings of our minds construct may be widely shared and sustaining for us, but they may have little to do with the world itself. Furthermore, how would we know?” The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander

After reading these lines in The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander I was skeptical.  To me not being able to trust your mind is the definition of madness. But what the authors were suggesting was to get rid of preconceived limiting notions of the world to make room for a new vision of a world full of possibilities by eliminating non-real but believed as truth limiting conditions.  

As I read the chapters I keep thinking about how my world is so easily limited by space, my classroom, the roads I drive everyday to and from work, my family needs. I find it so easy to forget there is so much more out there.  Because, I am consumed by everyday tasks, this passive acceptance makes me angry.  Not because I was not aware of it but I let it be that way, I have accepted it as life.  Then the authors remind me is really just about choice. I have the power to choose differently.

Time to step into a world of possibilities. A world of possibilities and scarcity thinking just don’t work together. I am enjoying this view of a world without self imposed limits. Now the most difficult part, giving an A, I am taking this A as an A for acceptance by eliminating negative judgment.  What a great way of shifting competition from one person against another and turning competition into personal growth. The possibility of letting go of limiting mental gauges, fear and failure among others is the road to being a contribution. To be a contributor that A has to come from within. The possibilities of a paradigm shift.

Nikki's Response:

It's amazing the things you can accomplish when you change your way of thinking and believe you can. I happened upon this personal discovery during this program actually. I entered the program as a wife, mother of 3, and a teacher and was trepidatious. My world was busy, but stable and supportive of the undertaking. I questioned whether I would be able to fit graduate school in, but decided to give it a go. In the third month, when I learned I was no longer going to be a wife and discovered the implications of that reality: taking care of kids by myself, losing the house, financial duress, grieving process, etc., I was certain I would not be able to continue in the program. There was something inside urging me on however and I have since discovered that the more that is asked of me, the more I am capable of doing. As cliché as it may sound, we really are capable of anything! :-)

Response to Smitty's Week 2 Reading Post

Wk2 Reading: Infinite Possibility

Once I started looking for ideas beyond my expectations and ways for seeing beyond limitations, the second chapter of the text put things into better perspective. As a Marine I am trained to be objective oriented and focus on being as economical as possible in the pursuit of the objective. Fewest necessary resources, shortest possible time. The result has been a very serious and officious teacher and honestly man. I am softening as my experience broadens to allow for civilian frailty, but too often, I work on the assumption that everything I do is being measured and evaluated by the standards of the Corps. Following these revelations I intend to try to live in the moment and realize when I need to be in which world. I know I can't live in both worlds all the time, but being able to open myself up to the possibilities will serve to improve my demeanor with students and parents

Nikki's Response:

nikkiFeb 10, 2012 10:44 PM

This is a great revelation and I applaud you for taking the time for reflection. As you know, I too have had personal military experience, however some of my greatest insights into the military mindset come from my father and grandfather, both of whom made it their career. While their penchant for expeditious execution, resourcefulness, extraordinary self discipline, and unparalleled work ethic are/were to be greatly admired, their ability to see other perspectives and "forgive" those who did not operate in the same manner definitely needed some improving. Situations in the military call for decisive action, you must be well-trained and there often time any room for questioning. If you go "outside of the box" on a mission, without promulgating and training your troops accordingly, you'll likely sacrifice men. Luckily, I think, the civilian world allows for a little more contemplation and creativity. :-)

wk2 reading - Mind Games

I really enjoy reading the book, The Art of Possibilities. There are so many things that resonate with me as I read, but the thing that I connected with most in the first four chapters was the letter that students had to write to themselves explained in chapter 3. I recently attended my 20 year high school reunion. When we sat down to dinner, each of the alumni had an envelope propped up against their water glass. When I looked at mine, I immediately recognized the handwriting on the envelope as my own, just a little more loopy than it's present form. :-) It suddenly dawned on me that we had written letters to ourselves before our graduation, 20 years prior. I opened mine expecting a big laugh, but instead found that where I said would be in 20 years, is actually remarkably close to where I am. When I initially read the letter, I concluded that I must have been far more in touch with who I was than I remember being, however after reading The Art of Possibilities, I wonder if there was more to it than that. What if I achieved my dreams because I stated my intention, believed it was possible, and actually wrote it down? Hmmm.

Nagle_Nikki_Wimba_Week1

Nagle_Nikki_LeadershipPost_Week1

Response to Drew's Week 1 Reading Blog EMDT:MAC - Copyrights

Drew's Blog
 

This tiny bird lives in the remote regions of Australia and is very difficult to photograph. I went to a lot of trouble and expense to make this image, so why should someone be able to use it for free?

Working as a professional photographer, copyright is often at the forefront of my mind and often involved with my daily tasks.  My perspective on copyright has almost always come as the copyright holder, trying to figure out ways to prevent others from using my images without compensation.  After all, I do make my living through the creation and publication of my photographs.  This is a huge issue in the photographic world these days and something that people struggle with on a daily basis.  Image theft is rampant and the internet only makes it easier.
The thing about violating copyright that drives me nuts is that people do it without a second thought because most people know that they won’t get caught, or it isn’t worth the time of the copyright holder to prosecute the offender.  After all, there isn’t a police force out there that protects copyright holders (unless you are dealing with major movie/music/product piracy and then it is the FBI).  For the most part, someone like me would have to hire a lawyer, get a cease and desist order written, and then send it to the offender.  This is not a cheap endeavor and likely won’t result in any returns.  The reality is, if that person had just asked, they might have been given permission.  Instead, the culture is “better to ask for forgiveness than permission” and it drives me crazy.
One of the interesting things I found by watching these videos as they were primarily from the perspective of the user rather than the creator.  What makes it even more interesting is that a number of those people (primarily the documentary folks) are using the copyrighted material to create commercial products (documentaries) that they then copyright.  I find that when these discussions come up people want to use the work created by other people but they don’t want other people to use their work.
For a couple decades now, Internet users have had the expectation of getting things for free but this is a false premise.  We can see this transformation coming in the world of journalism where places like the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have finally started charging subscription fees for the content they provide online.  After all, people used to pay for the print version and they weren’t paying to simply have the physical newspaper in their hands, they were paying for the content.  Because the internet isn’t a physical object, people think it doesn’t have costs associated with it, but that is far form the truth.  The content still needs to be produced regardless of whether it is printed on your screen or printed on newsprint.  The value is the content and until we start to accurately assess this value, it is going to be difficult to regulate copyright violation in this new digital world.  I think we are headed that way, but we aren’t there yet.

Nikki's Response:

Drew,
I really appreciate your voice on this topic, as it lends a different perspective than the majority of us as educators. Your frustration with this issue comes through clearly and is valid. I know with many of the photos that are returned from my searches come with a watermark that cannot be removed unless the photo is paid for. Is this something that you are able to do? Please forgive my naiveté as I am not in the industry, but it seems like a viable solution providing it is not too expensive and easily removed by those more tech savvy than myself.
I recently read a blog that helped to shape my perspective on the current SOPA legislation and may be of interest to you: http://paulocoelhoblog.com/2012/01/20/welcome-to-pirate-my-books/
Thanks again for your forthright perspective. I’d love to see some of your work.

Response to Sunny Spraue's Week 1 Reading Blog EMDT:MAC - Copyrights

Week 1 Reading Blog EMDT:MAC - Copyrights

Being the producer of the educational access channel, administrator of our digital library and duplication center, I currently am the “Copyright Police Officer” at work. I do hate the task yet; I enjoy educating others on how to use it appropriately. I have heard the myths by almost everyone who doesn’t fully understand how easy it is to simply ask permissions. When we do ask permissions, we are normally granted. After many many classes, I still refer to our attorney prior to saying yes or no.

I despise when the tech staff decides to give their opinion as fact of the subject to our instructors or when they decide to duplicate a DVD that is owned by the library for a classroom. Then they respond, “She just didn’t want to duplicate it for you”. It drives me crazy. I would prefer to simply explain how to go about it properly.

Since the law has so many grey areas that can be interpreted differently, each area of the school or type of media has different Fair Use rules that are spelled out in our use policy. There are no grey areas. It is nicely posted at my front door. This is where I am thankful for our attorneys and our board members.

Unfortunately, the use policy does not yet cover Creative Commons. People cannot understand copyrights or Fair Use of copyrights; why not throw in Creative commons too. Fortunately each creator spells out creative commons and publisher so there is not question of what can and cannot be done.

However, the most interesting in this lesson for me as a broadcast producer of an educational access channel is the bulleted list the video provided for the Film maker’s statement for best practices in Fair Use.

Statute
1. Quoting for critique
2. Quoting pop culture to make a point

3. Capturing incidental material

4. Using historical material to make a point

Centerforsocialmedia.org/fairuse


I am taking this and the website to my public relations coordinator first thing in the morning. With these four practices in mind, we could change our scripts to include materials to reference our point. I am very excited. There are many events we cannot capture because of the copyright materials at the events. I love documentaries even more now.

Nikki's Response:

I can't imagine having to deal with this issue on a constant basis, of course, that would probably be the best remedy for my spinning head. :-) I agree that the bulleted list makes fair use far more comprehensible. It's simple and does not contain the confounding jargon that seems common for many other rules based in law.

Sometimes I wish the only law was the "Golden Rule." As far as I see it, if credit is given and the use is not intended to make a profit, take others' use of your material as flattery and free advertising... :-)

Wk1 Reading Blog EDMT:MAC

Wk1 Reading Blog EDMT:MAC

I have been giving a lot of thought lately to copyright laws as my 11 year-old aspiring writer, director, rapper, actor, musician, and all around digi-nerd son, will not stop talking about the travesty that will befall us all if we allow our congress to pass SOPA. His passion regarding this subject prompted me to do some digging. I did not just read the bill (not in it's entirety. It's a monster), but I went out looking for interpretations and insights on the subject at hand: piracy (directly correlating to the topic of copyright).

When I set out, I really had no strong opinion on the subject, but could generally say that I was of the "well, if you make it and own it you should be able to  profit from it" mindset. I still am, I just now have a different perspective on how best to profit from it. When I mentioned SOPA to a friend of mine, she gave me a link to a blog that she reads regularly: Paulo Coelho Blog, and I began to look at this issue from a different perspective. 

Paul Coelho is an author who became famous largely because his books were pirated during a time of a "severe paper shortage" in Russia. His blog post dedicated to his thoughts on SOPA tell of a story of pirated maifestos that helped to change the Soviet government and culminates in a cry to pirate everything he's ever done. Why? Quite simply, he wants his name and his art known to as many people as possible, because he loves to write AND the more people who know of him the more possible revenue streams.

After reading Paul's blog, I began to reflect on all of the things that I have been exposed to and later purchased because of possible initial copyright infringement: music, poetry, visual art, academic works, and movies, to name a few. I can guarantee that the creators have made more money off of me becoming aware of their works than they lost by my viewing or listening to their product once in an unauthorized fashion.

While Paul's blog got me to see that piracy or copyright infringement really isn't the end of artists livelihood, it was Larry Lessig's TED talk, Laws that Choke Creativity, that spoke to me as a teacher and someone just generally invested in today's youth. We, as educators and those associated with schools in this country, know full well about the demand to have our students' achieve on standardized tests. There is more of an emphasis placed on how well students do on answering multiple choice questions than there is on what they can create. Creation takes time and isn't subjective. It's hard to quantify progress via student made media or art, but it doesn't make it any less important. What is important, is that we don't handicap our students and their imaginations by limiting their exposure to great works because we fear that we will lose our modern day vocal chords due to today's "talking machine." 

See Lessig's more recent talk: Re-Examining the Remix