Is the iPad still a thing for teaching and learning?

 

Produced by Chatgpt

The iPad was set to reshape the landscape of personal computing when it was first introduced by Apple on January 27, 2010, and its market release in April of the same year. Conceived by Steve Jobs and his team as a middle ground between the iPhone and Macbook, the iPad aimed to fill the gap for a portable computing device that was more capable than a smartphone but more accessible and user-friendly than a laptop. I remember the day it was introduced and the subsequent juvenile jokes about its name, "pad". Like many other Apple products, the initial release failed to realize its full potential. I was all in on the iPad during the day of its release and got one that August. 

Since then, I have been a faithful user of iPads and a frequent podcaster about using iPads in the classroom. However, my personal use of the iPad has transformed over time. My personal use is about 75% entertainment. Looking at the Graph below I can show that most of the use is over the weekend and for entertainment. I use the iPad for work-related social media (in fact, almost all of my social media is work-related). I use the iPad as an extra screen in places I do not have availability or if I need a third screen, and occasionally, I use my iPad to grade student assignments. However, the device that used to be my favorite is now my fourth most used Apple device after the phone, laptop, and watch. In some ways, Apple missed the potential in the educational market, which they finally ceded to Google and Chromebooks. 

Despite these considerations, I remain a strong proponent of using iPads in early childhood education, extending through to third grade. The iPad stands out as the most user-friendly and accessible device for young learners, thanks to its intuitive design and interface that graciously accommodates developing fine motor skills. Additionally, the iPad distinguishes itself in the realm of the arts. Its capabilities for music composition and creation, alongside digital visual arts, are truly remarkable, making it an invaluable tool for fostering creativity and artistic expression in students.

Motivation for Tech Careers a Reflection

I have loved science fiction for as long as I can remember. I have a vague memory of going to the neighborhood bookstore Doron and purchasing my first book, Asimov's Foundation. Science fiction primed me to be incredibly curious about computers. Four years later, my father went on sabbatical to Boston and we all came with. In the summer of 1982 we landed in Newton Massachusetts. For the first two months, we lived in the house of the Alroys, who were spending the summer in Switzerland. This part is unclear to me but their neighbour and friend a mathematician asked for help watering the plants and in return he let me use the Atari 400 (in today's dollars a $2000 investment). I remember my utter delight in programming simple Basic programs I learned to create. It started a life-long obsession with technology and that first encounter with a well designed technology and the delight in what it could never really went away.

Reading Kara Swisher's memoir/ history/ critique of Silicone Valley and the big tech companies it feels like I was not the only one. A whole generation of us on the dividing line between the baby boom and Generation X grew up and matured with the tech industry and loved it deeply. I am wondering if the generation emerging now has that sense about any technology? As we work hard to get students excited about technology I am finding that the sense of wonder and excitement is rarely there. Have we become less optimistic? Do they need to feel that they are rising up with new ideas (say AI, for example)? To better recruit teachers and students and increase diversity in tech, we must understand what motivates them and what they most like to be part of. At the same time, we must think about ways to get them excited and feel that they are at the beginning of something great.
 

Art TEAMS Learning Compost(ing)* Activity

 Today, as part of Art TEAMS, we looked through our journals and tried to reflect on our journey with text and an art piece.  My simple work in progress focuses on a wave as a key metaphor emerging from this process.

1. I decide too early on a direction and detail in a way that limits my creativity. I have learned that I need to slow down and let ideas percolate. My metaphor of a wave reminds me that I need to let creativity explode but then iterate.

2. I am creative (self talk here) and should let my juices lead me where I need. 

3. Art is an emotional connection; creating with and next to others creates community and emotion.

4. Movement is magic, and I am grateful to Maggie Bertche for opening this idea in wonderful ways.

5. In this work, I positioned myself as a full participant, and as a learner, I am all in creating, making, and reflecting all the time.

From Chat GPT:

Wave on sandpaper created with Adobe Firefly

Expanding on your reflections and ideas from the Art TEAMS session, here are some deeper insights and extensions to each point:

1. Embracing the Fluidity of Creativity: Your metaphor of a wave is powerful. It suggests the ebb and flow of ideas, much like the ocean's waves. Consider exploring art that is more fluid and less structured, perhaps abstract forms that evolve as you work on them. Think of each stroke or element as a part of a larger, ever-changing seascape, where the final form is not predetermined but is a result of continuous interaction and adjustment.

2. 
   

3. Following Creative Instincts: Trusting your creative instincts is vital. You might explore spontaneous art forms like improvisational

4. 
   

1. 

   Three-dimensional wave created with Adobe Firefly

   sketching, where each line or color choice is led by intuition rather than a fixed plan. This approach can lead to unexpected and often more emotionally resonant artworks, as they directly reflect your inner state and creativity at that moment.

2. Art as a Medium of Emotional Connectivity and Community: Reflect on how your art can be a means of connecting with others. This could be through collaborative projects, where multiple artists contribute to a single piece, or through art that invites viewer interaction and interpretation. The emotional resonance of a piece can be enhanced when it becomes a shared experience, creating a sense of community and collective emotional expression.

3. Exploring Movement in Art: Inspired by Maggie Bertche's influence on the concept of movement, you could experiment with art that literally or metaphorically incorporates motion. This could be kinetic art that physically moves or static art that captures the illusion of movement through clever use of lines, shapes, and colors. The idea is to make the viewer feel the dynamism as if the artwork itself is alive and in motion.

4. 
   

5. Fully Immersed Learning and Creating: Positioning yourself as both a participant and a learner in art-making is a profound approach. It suggests a perpetual cycle of creation, reflection, and growth. To embody this, you might consider projects that document your journey - art that evolves over time, where you add elements or transform it as you gain new insights, skills, and inspirations. This ongoing project could become a visual diary of your artistic journey, showcasing your creativity and your evolution as an artist and a learner.

These ideas can form the basis of a varied and deeply personal artistic exploration, reflecting your skills and your journey, emotions, and connections with the world around you.

* The term composting comes from Gretchen Larsen, who shared with me:

Dufva, T. (2018). Art education in the post-digital era-Experiential construction of knowledge through creative coding. Aalto University.

Haraway, D. J. (2016). Staying with the trouble: Making kin in the Chthulucene. Duke University Press.

Riding the Tiger- AI and Teaching in Higher Education

 Recently, I was part of a panel on AI in academia. This is just part of the way I re-orient myself in my work. AI is demanding that we pay attention, or we become obsolete. My metaphor is riding the tiger, and with the help of two AI generators (Dall-E and Firefly), I created two images imagining it.

The metaphor is connected to a few crucial concepts. First, we are not being asked whether the tiger (AI) should be introduced into our lives. It has already been released, and it has now become our problem. We cannot ignore it because the tiger can and will harm us. What is left for us is to try to ride it. I am not certain that we will survive, but I am positive that I will enjoy the process. That I will enjoy the process.hat I will enjoy the process.hat I will enjoy the process.

Second, I believe that we should take an AI pause, not from development but instead from teaching. Pause and dedicate time to think through what AI means for our teaching domain. To guide such work, we should have "worked examples" (Gee, 2010) produced by instructors that are being thoughtful and comprehensive in their incorporation of AI.

 

Generative AI and the Science of Reading

Learning to read requires excellent texts that are carefully constructed to combine a few elements, interest, introduction of new vocabulary, and control over the level of difficulty, including the use of specific phonological and orthographic patterns for early readers. This has always been a source of difficulty, book publishers have done a reasonable job, but the costs for schools and classrooms have been prohibitive, especially when considering the need to send students home with texts to practice reading.

TextProject from Elfrieda Hiebert has been producing such balanced texts and making them available for free.

Generative AI presents the opportunity to create such texts readily.

for example I asked chatGPT to create a first grade level text about dogs:

All About Dogs

Dogs are fun friends to have. Some are big and some are small. Some dogs have long hair and others have short hair.

Dogs love to play. They like to run, jump, and fetch balls. Some dogs like to swim in water, while others prefer to stay dry.

They have wet noses and wagging tails. When a dog wags its tail, it is often happy. If a dog shows its teeth, it might be scared or upset.

Dogs can hear very well. They also have a good sense of smell. This is why some dogs are used by police to find things.

It's important to be gentle with dogs. We should give them food, water, and a cozy place to sleep. In return, dogs give us lots of love and joy.

Dogs are not just pets; they are part of the family!

I followed up with a request to make it rhyme.

**Doggie Delight** Dogs are friends, both big and small, With furry coats, short and tall. They love to jump, run and play, Fetching balls and barking away. Some love the splash, some stay neat, With wagging tails and tiny feet. When tails wag, they're feeling glad, But bared teeth mean they're somewhat mad. With ears so sharp, they hear a pin, And noses that sense where they've been. Police dogs with a sense they hone, Find things hidden, all on their own. Treat them right, with food and rest, For as our pals, they are the best. Not just a pet, but family too, Dogs bring joy in all they do!

You will notice that the vocabulary is no longer as simple as in the original text. 

Finally I asked for a rewrite using short vowels:

Pups at Play

Dogs are pals, big and small, With fur that's short, or long and tall.

They jump and run, and play all day, With a ball to toss and fetch their way.

Some dogs swim, some sit and nap, With a wagging tail and a little yap.

With ears to hear and a nose to sniff, They find a scent, then off they zip!

Feed them well and give them a bed, Pet their head, and they're so well-fed.

Dogs are fun, they make us glad, Best little pals we've ever had!

In carefully examining the results, it is clear that ChatGPT can do some of the work for us, BUT we need to make sure that the text is consistently doing what we actually need. Right now, even with prompting, the results need "massaging" depending on what we are teaching. S teachers use but beware!

AI and Academic Publishing

 Like many others, I have been playing with generative AI for the past few months. I am an author of scientific papers and, even more so a frequent reviewer. I have been elated by the potential of generative AI to bridge the gap between English knowledge and conducting high-quality research, especially for international scholars whose first language is not English. This is an opportunity to level the playing field and allow equal access to academic publishing, which is predominantly conducted in English. Many times I have reviewed articles with good ideas but really hard-to-understand language that required many rounds of review and editing before it was publishable.

On the other hand, generative AI is quite as capable of generating data that isn't there (often referred to as hallucinating). For example, after being asked about my publications Chat GPT 3.5 spit out this list: None of the publications are real! This will require our publication engines to allow us to track every in-text reference with quick access so reviewers can check the veracity of such claims that may be "halucinated".

Even more challenging is generative AI's ability to "hallucinate" research studies. In a manner of a few minutes, I was able to have Chat GPT generate two potential studies about reading instruction (synthetic phonics and reading recovery) with ANOVA designs, including result tables. I even got Chat GPT to design and execute a study about the impact of a Wind Surfing intervention on Math achievement of second graders. For example, examine this paragraph generated after I requested a qualitative study instead:

"As this study focuses on qualitative exploration, the quantitative results will not be the primary focus. However, to provide a broader context for the qualitative findings, basic descriptive statistics of math achievement scores may be reported for both the windsurfing instruction group and the control group. These scores will be collected through pre- and post-intervention math assessments administered to all participants. The quantitative results will be used to complement and contextualize the qualitative findings, providing a broader perspective on students' math achievement in relation to their windsurfing experiences."

I am sure that generative AI will create an increase of papers submitted for publication. To prevent science from being overwhelmed and suspicious we may need to write new rules and accelerate existing trends.

1. Demand researchers pre-register their research.

2. Ask that each paper submitted will include a statement about the use of generative AI and will include the transcripts of their use.

3. Create ethical standards for AI use in scientific publishing AND teach about it in graduate schools.

4. Create reviewing mechanisms that allow easy tracking of citations to the source.

Tech EDGE Art TEAMS - Exhibitions of Learning

Here is our latest [podcats from Art TEAMS

Let's Chat about GPT event at UNL

 

Tech EDGE, Teaching World Language with Technology - Introduction

It has been a delight to start a new series on using technology in the World Language Classroom. I believe that podcasting is one of the best ways to disseminate knowledge.

Exhibitions and Celebrations of Learning

One of the elements of the Art TEAMS approach is for each learning cycle to end in an exhibition (or celebration) of learning. The exhibition of learning is an opportunity for the learning community to celebrate achievement get positive feedback, and encourage students to start thinking about their development in thinking and making. I recently visited one of our schools, exploring how exhibitions of learning worked in an elementary classroom. 

The teacher organized the tables in a circle (in a tight space, I might add). Each student organized the products they wanted to display across their desk. Some chose EVERYTHING and had very little space, others chose their favorite exemplars, and finally, one innovative student had many learning artifacts but chose to include an arrow pointing to her favorite artifact saying: "You have to read THIS!" 

All students had a stack of feedback notes and went around the room examining other students learning artifacts and leaving positive feedback based on sentence frames projected on the board. 

A debrief after such an event can help students process a portfolio approach and consider what is the most effective approach, not just as the creator but also as the consumer. 

The exhibition of learning gives the students sense of accomplishment and motivation. It can be a great source of metacognition as well. The same can be said for the teacher, a look at the variety and creativity gives the teacher a sense of accomplishment but also a tool to reflect on what could be better next time and what missed opportunities can be seized on in the next inquiry cycle or in subsequent years. 

As an observer in the classroom, the excitement and pride of the students were palpable. Students were smiling, engaged, and proud. I highly recommend creating these moments for students and bringing in administrators and, when possible, parents and guardians to celebrate reaching complex learning goals.

Art TEAMs is made possible a grant from the US Department of Education and by the emergent, collaborative interactions between many individuals. A deep gratitude is extended to all who participated in the experience of teaching (and learning) with emerging media and arts, including teachers (Sarah Holz, Kate Gracie, Maggie Elsner, Matt Auch Moedy, Sarah Gabelhouse, Amy Spilker, Megan Pitrat, Andrew (Mark) James, Jessi Wiltshire, Jessica Davis, Ryan Margheim, Sarah Kroenke, Katie Samson, Melissa Sellers, Casey Sorenson) for embracing ambiguity and vulnerability and expanding into new ways of seeing; administrators (Dr. Lynn Fuller) for holding space and having conversations about new ideas; museum educators (Laura Huntimer) for offering valuable educational resources; teaching artists (Cayleen Green, Fernando Montejano, Angel Geller, and Isabella Meier) for sharing their creative processes; the advisory board (Megan Elliott, Dr. Jorge Lucero, and Dr. Diana Cornejo-Sanchez) for shepherding the design and development of the program; and the research team (HyeonJin Yoon, Carrie Bohmer, Maggie Bertsche, Lorinda Rice, Mackayla Kelsey, Dr. Guy Trainin, Gretchen Larsen, Joelle Tangen, and Kimberley D’Adamo) for weaving together the many pedagogic and curricular threads of a complex tapestry. 

High Quality Professional Learning (Part2)

This is an update on last week's post on High-Quality Instructional Materials. The meeting in Nashville was a true exchange of ideas and strategies. What I appreciated the most was the move from an emphasis on the materials to an emphasis on Professional Learning. State engaged in the work explained in detail how they went about using the materials as a first step, but the magic and success were completely dependent on the ways that professional learning happened and the expectation and support for that learning to happen.

As one of the speakers started with: you must communicate clearly that this is HARD work. Because it is hard, it is imperative that school administration and resources are there to support teachers across a few years of professional growth.

In sum, I am more encouraged by the direction the work is taking, but I am still wondering about the balance between resources divided between materials, and professional learning and worried that some places will never get to professional learning. 

In Art TEAMS, we focus on student inquiry and the processes that help teachers design better student experiences. In many senses, we provide High-Quality Professional Learning that maps back to teachers' existing curricula. I am now wondering how much better the result would be if the curriculum was more uniformly better. 

High Quality Materials and Teacher Learning

 The Nebraska Department of Education invited me to the IMPD network conference. I am always happy to participate and see if I can learn and contribute. At the same time, I have to admit that I am somewhat skeptical. I do not doubt that high-quality materials are helpful and more useful than low-quality materials. However, I think about it in an 80/20 split. High-quality materials will contribute to better instruction, but that represents a contribution of about 20% of total improvement. The 80% is in teacher professional learning and development that will raise efficacy and skill. 

The upside of High-Quality materials includes teacher confidence in the curriculum and reducing the need to scrounge for resources late at night. This confidence reduces the pressure on teachers' out-of-school time and gives breathing room for thinking about differentiation and accommodation of different learners. From an information processing perspective, we are reducing teacher cognitive load to enable more effective instructional procedures. 

From this perspective, High-quality materials are a no-brainer; bring it on, and engage with the process. Let's do it! The challenge, however, can be articulated at the individual teacher and system levels.

The cognitive load question can play an opposite role at the individual teacher level. A teacher is using a familiar curriculum is able to be creative around it and differentiate for her students. The familiarity reduces the load, an effect I have seen in reverse every time a district adapts a new curriculum. As a teacher educator, I have placed students in classrooms every semester for the past 20 years. Every time our district decides on a new reading curriculum, teachers reduce the number of preservice teachers they will host, disallow any creative deviation from the curriculum, and be fairly stressed. After about two years, the familiarity once again allows for more adaptation. So the question becomes, does the new curriculum adapted is such an improvement on the old one that it justifies the change. If you accept the 80/20 idea, the bar for improvement is quite high. This effect can be mitigated if you use curriculum change for significant professional learning. Then it becomes a leverage point for growth.

This is when the systemic effect presents with a second challenge; since schools invest significant attention into the process and money into materials, little is left for meaningful professional learning. The danger is that by the time materials are selected, bought, and introduced, everyone is exhausted and does not pay attention to the professional learning required to make it work. The calls for fidelity and making sure spending is justified clash with the individual needs of teachers and students. Moreover, school administration often projects implicitly or explicitly a conformity message that constrains teachers from acting in their best professional judgment.

In the context of our professional learning in Art TEAMS,
we are working very much on the 80% side of teacher professional learning. We acknowledge curriculum and work with teachers to develop ways to differentiate and deepen using metacognitive strategies (such as the creative inquiry process (Marshall and D'Adamo, 2011)) pedagogic moves, and collaborative learning opportunities. It would be interesting to see how teachers change their use of the strategies as the curriculum shifts.