BPS Blog Update and Blogger Tip (Edition 2)

On By Patrick LarkinIn Burlington blog updateLeave a comment
The post below is actually a copy of an e-mail that I sent our teachers today to promote our Burlington Public Schools Blog and also share the great work of their colleagues. It is the second post in a series that I will continue throughout the school year.

The number of Burlington Public Schools blogs and websites that have been shared with me is up to 73! You can check out the entire list here if you are interested. If you haven’t had a chance to share yours, then please enter it here on this Google form when you have a chance. If you have been thinking about starting a classroom blog or website and feel intimidated then please reach out to me or one of the members of our technology team for support. 

Here are the posts that appeared on the blog over the last five school days…
Only 169 more posts to go…Please feel free to e-mail me something directly that you would like to share. We also welcome original posts from staff or students if you have something that you would like to share.
Blogger tip for the Week

One of the best parts of following all of your blogs is seeing the pictures of your students and the things they are creating! In my opinion, the easiest way to add pictures is to blog from your iPhone or iPad. The blogger app is free and very easy to use! 
When you click on save in the upper right corner it gives you the option of saving as a draft or publishing right from your mobile device.  Saving as a draft will allow you to check out your post on a computer before publishing.

The final point I want to make about posting pictures on your blog is that you can resize them by clicking on the photo before you publish. If you want to make sure that a photo is not too large for the margins on your blog the you can click on the preview button before publishing.

My Weekly Diigo Bookmarks (September 14, 2014)

On By Patrick LarkinIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Sharing The Happenings Around Burlington Public Schools (Edition 1)

On By Patrick LarkinIn Burlington blog update, Burlington Public Schools BlogLeave a comment

The post below is actually a copy of an e-mail that I sent our teachers today to promote our Burlington Public Schools Blog and also share the great work of their colleagues. My goal is to send a similar post weekly.

Thanks to all of you who shared the links to your class websites and blogs with me. If you have not had a chance to do so here is the link where you can share with me.

It is awesome to follow along with what is happening in so many classrooms across the district!  It is also a great way to support Standard 3 (Family and Community Engagement) and keep parents “in the know” about the latest happenings in your classroom and promote ongoing conversations between you and parents as well as parents and their students.
Here are the posts that appeared on the blog so far…
Only 174 more to go…Please feel free to e-mail me something directly that you would like to share. We also welcome original posts from staff or students if you have something that you would like to share.
Blogger Tip for this week

If your blogging platform is blogger add the translation option in the top right hand corner of your blog. With the growing number of homes in Burlington that have multiple languages spoken, this is a great resource for families. Follow the steps below to do this:

Choose the Google Translate Button

My Weekly Diigo Bookmarks (September 7, 2014)

On By Patrick LarkinIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

My Weekly Diigo Bookmarks (August 31, 2014)

On By Patrick LarkinIn UncategorizedLeave a comment
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Keep Up To Date With Burlington Public Schools in 2014-2015

On By Patrick LarkinIn BPS News, Burlington Public SchoolsLeave a comment

As we prepare for the start of another school year, we want to remind our Burlington Public Schools families how to keep up with all of the latest happenings from our school system.  One of the best ways to stay on top of what is happening is following the district and school blogs.  One way to follow our blogs is to enter your e-mail address into the box on a specific blog from which you would like to receive updates. Activating this option will set you up to receive an e-mail any time there is a new post published on that particular blog.  In addition each e-mail that you receive will allow you the option of stopping the e-mails from that blog at any time. 



If you are following a number of blogs, I encourage you to look at an RSS feed service such as Feedly. This will allow you to see posts from all of these blogs in one place.

A few blogs that you may want to follow to get started


Other ways to stay up to date with BPS


Burlington Public Schools Instagram Account
Burlington Public Schools Facebook Page


 

Please let us know if there are any other social media resources that you would like to see Burlington Public Schools access to share information!

My Weekly Diigo Bookmarks (August 24, 2014)

On By Patrick LarkinIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Another Defensive Post About e-Reading

On By Patrick LarkinIn e-reading, Kindle, Washington PostLeave a comment

various e-book readers. From right to left iPa...
various e-book readers. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Disclaimer: As an administrator in a district where we have provided iPads for all students, I always feel a bit defensive about articles and research studies that are quick to dismiss e-reading in lieu of traditional books. This is especially true when I am quoted in one of the articles.

Caitlin Dewey produced another take on the merits of e-reading in yesterday’s Washington Post in her article titled “Why you might want to ditch your e-reader and go back to traditional books.”  Dewey’s piece highlights a study out of Italy that was highlighted in the Guardian this week where 50 people were asked to read a short story, half of the group on a Kindle and the other half out of a book. The findings here were that the overwhelming majority of the participants who read on the Kindle remembered less of the story than those who read it from a book.

As is usually the case with these types of studies, I have some questions I need answered to help me understand the findings of this study:

  • How many of these Kindle readers had done reading electronically before?
  • What was the mindset of these people about reading electronically?
The fact of the matter is that only two of the Kindle readers had experience reading on the Kindle, a fact that this story seemed comfortable glossing over. I am a bit at a loss as to how such a significant matter can be considered insignificant. It seems straightforward to me that people tend to perform better in an environment in which they are more comfortable.  I am wondering when I will see a study done with a group of people who consider themselves strong e-readers and face them off with a group of “luddites.”

Here’s my key takeaway from this article:

“Anne Mangen, the lead author of the new Kindle study, says more research will be needed to determine which devices should be used for what content and which populations benefit from each. It’s also unclear to what extent readers’ own attitudes affect their comprehension; one line of research posits that, as iPads and Kindles become more mainstream, people will approach text on those devices a little more thoughtfully.”

I am left with the same conclusion that I had back in April when I wrote A Rant On Reading Online vs. Reading Paper.

Why is it that as we seek the best way to accomplish a task, we cling to the false belief that we are going to find one right answer? Personally, I love reading online and the fact that I can click on hyperlinks, bookmark key points/articles, and interact with others interested in the same topic/novel. Am I distracted or adding a level of interaction to this task that was not possible for previous generations of readers?  

Of course, the answer here is that sometimes I am distracted and less productive and other times I am able to utilize the online resources in a way that adds greater depth to my experience.  My main problem with the alarmists who would prefer that all students read paperbound texts is that they deny these students opportunities to experience the power of Interactive reading, as well as the chance to find their own individual sense of balance in this area.  We need to embrace the struggle that is part of this and have meaningful conversations to guide our own learning and the learning of our children.

Denying these opportunities benefits no one! 

Related articles

My Weekly Diigo Bookmarks (August 17, 2014)

On By Patrick LarkinIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

The Most Important Story In Our Country This This Week is #Ferguson…#LeadershipDay14

On By Patrick LarkinIn Current Events, Ferguson, Michael BrownLeave a comment

I am most appreciative of Scott McLeod’s annual call for leaders to discuss what it means “to prepare students for the digital, global world in which we now live.” I thoroughly enjoy scrolling through the wonderful posts under the hashtag #LeadershipDay2014 on Twitter to see all of the great ideas being shared by school leaders across the globe.


This week, however, I am a bit distracted by the horrible news coming out of Ferguson, Missouri and in spite of the sickness I feel in the pit of my stomach over the actions of those in law enforcement, I feel fortunate to live in a time where are there are forms of media that allow the public to see firsthand accounts of those in the middle of such events. We have the ability to look beyond press releases and the sometimes misleading accounts of those in authority and push action and accountability if we so choose. 

So for my #LeadershipDay2014 post, I will share some of the stories, headlines, and perspectives that have caught my attention from the unfortunate events in Ferguson.  It is important that ALL of our students know how to access and navigate the endless streams of news at their fingertips so that they can see all sides of a particular issue and build accurate representations of the truth.  

“(Mike Brown’s death) must remind us that we are nowhere near being the country we need to be for our citizens of color — and, therefore, for all of us.”   Chris Lehmann