TLDR 49
Too Long; Didn't Read Issue 49
Published: 2016-06-10 β’ π§ Newsletter
Welcome to issue 49 of the TL;DR Newsletter. This week we think about the challenge and structure of impossible problems.
I've been wondering about the design of this newsletter recently. One of the big questions that I have is about the use of images as opposed to just a text-based newsletter. Having a lot of images provides some "eye candy" but it also may cause email providers to mark it as spam and hide it. How would you feel if I provided a text only version of TL;DR? Please send me an email by clicking the reply button and let me know what works best for you.
This week I worked on the following:
- Four Questions For Tom Liam Lynch about coding, programming, and computational thinking/participation - I conducted this interview with Tom a couple of months ago as a supplement to our piece in JAAL on coding & programming. You can also access the audio in the Four Questions For podcast.
- Four Questions For James Willis about ethics in education and technology - This week I spent a half hour with James talking about ethics and challenges in uses of educational technologies. This was a lead in to the awesome BadgeChain community call. If you've been thinking about the role of ethics in learning, or working with technologies, this is a good starting point. The audio is also available on the Four Questions For podcast.
- Getting started with podcasts: Creating cover art and editing tags - As I've been building up my own podcast series, I've been documenting the steps involved. This latest post talks about a very important step in the process. I've had fun working on my podcast, and I think you should consider starting up your own series. Yes...you. :)
- Fostering online research and discussion using Hypothes.is - Hypothes.is is a great, open source annotation tool that I've talked about many times here in TL;DR. I put together this post as a tutorial for using the tool in your personal and professional lives. Please join in and help create a social, annotated layer on the Internet.
- BadgeChain Reads: Bitcoin - A peer-to-peer electronic cash system - As a member of Team BadgeChain, we're investigating the possibilities of blockchain technologies in education. One of the problems is that it can be a challenge to wrap your head around this complex, new technology. To address this challenge, we started up a collaborative reading program in the community using Hypothes.is as I've indicated above. If you're interested in learning more about blockchain...or you're a literacy educator and want to see new ways to possibly scaffold comprehension and synthesis online...this might be interesting to you. :)
Whew...now let's get to the fun stuff.
π Key Takeaways
- Yes...You: I've had fun working on my podcast, and I think you should consider starting up your own series. Yes...you. :)
- I Thoroughly Recommend: I thoroughly recommend watching this video to see how these artists structure their work, and celebrate/extend the work of others.
- My Fear: My fear is that American culture doesn't really accept the story that Bruner told about teaching.
- What Muhammad Ali Did: What Muhammad Ali did was redefine what it meant to be tough and collectivize the very idea of courage.
- This Makes Me Wonder: Work presented in this format makes me wonder what types of scaffolds are possible to support learners across these different modes. I'm also keenly aware of the roles that music, passion, and entertainment play in teaching and motivating an audience.
πΊ Watch
Rapping, deconstructed: The best rhymers of all time (12:43)
I'm a huge music fan, and more specifically a fan of old school hip hop. I also regularly bring hip hop and rap into classes to discuss literacy practices and larger issues.
This video from Vox deconstructs the beats, rhymes, and poetry involved in rap. I thoroughly recommend watching this video to see how these artists structure their work, and celebrate/extend the work of others.
Please be advised that there are some NSFW words in the video as they are conducting a textual analysis of hip hop lyrics in situ.
π Read
An unfinished quest in education
Jerome Bruner passed away this week at the age of 100.
The post above comes from The Atlantic and discusses the challenges that schools still face in embracing Bruner's ideas. Specifically they address the concept known as "cognitive psychology," and children making sense of the world by constructing knowledge.
My fear is that American culture doesn't really accept the story that Bruner told about teaching.
'I just wanted to be free': The radical reverberations of Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali passed away this week at the age of 74.
The post shared above comes from The Nation and reminds us of his struggles against some of the times in which he lived. In this we possibly gain some insight into the challenges we face today.
What Muhammad Ali didβin a culture that worships sports and violence as well as a culture that idolizes black athletes while criminalizing black skinβwas redefine what it meant to be tough and collectivize the very idea of courage. Through the Champ's words on the streets and deeds in the ring, bravery was not only standing up to Sonny Liston. It was speaking truth to power, no matter the cost. He was a boxer whose very presence and persona taught a simple and dangerous lesson: "real men" fight for peace and "real women" raise their voices and join the fray. Or as Bryant Gumbel said years ago, "Muhammad Ali refused to be afraid. And being that way, he gave other people courage."
How to change white teachers' lenses
Good post from Vanessa Romo at the Tomorrow's Test section of Slate discussing the challenges educators have in becoming "culturally competent." Romo defines this as understanding where (literally and metaphorically) your students are coming from.
Teacher education and development programs are increasingly trying to figure out how to address the challenges of a workforce that is more than 80 percent white working in schools in which more than half of students are identified as a minority.
The post discusses initiatives underway to support educators and recognize they need more than desire.
Becoming a culturally competent white teacher takes more than a plucky attitude and tireless will to buck the system.
What doesn't work: Literacy practices we should abandon
Post from Nell Duke in Edutopia detailing some of the errors educators make as they focus on literacy practices in instruction.
The post identifies five "less than optimal practices" that should be avoided:
- "Look up the list" vocab instruction - having students simply look up the words in the dictionary and write a sentence.
- Giving prizes for reading - awarding prizes for reading may be detrimental to reading motivation now and in their futures.
- Weekly spelling tests - the problem is that not all lists are good for all students. Different word sets, as well as a focus on analyzing/using words fits best.
- Unsupported independent reading - to foster independent reading, there needs to be a link to instruction and coaching occurring in class time and feedback/discussion from other students.
- Taking away recess as punishment - there is a growing body of research connecting physical activity to academic learning. This break and inclusion of physical activity may provide time/space for students to decompress and think.
How does 'Hamilton' the non stop, hip-hop Broadway sensation tap rap's master rhymes to blur musical lines?
I have not seen Hamilton yet, but have heard a never ending discussion about how incredible it is. What is interesting is that most of these incredible reviews come from tech blogs and podcasts.
This post from The Wall Street Journal uses algorithms, text, images, and embedded sound clips to deconstruct the rhymes and raps that fuel this production.
The presentation of these items in the post provides an intriguing visualization of syllables, rhymes, and beats. For those of us that enjoy the art and creativity in the performance...but are not super skilled musically....this is very helpful.
Work presented in this format makes me wonder what types of scaffolds are possible to support learners across these different modes. I'm also keenly aware of the roles that music, passion, and entertainment play in teaching and motivating an audience.
π¨ Do
Website visualizes grammatical structure of any sentence
The Sentence Tree web app by Fox Type is super cool. As you type any sentence in to the app it will deconstruct the words and phrases to identify their role in the structure of the sentence.
I'm sure that app is not 100% correct, but it is interesting to see how they tool unpacks as you write. Fox Type is beginning to fold these technologies into other uses. I'm testing out the plugin for gMail to see what it does to my emails.
π€ Consider
"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing." β Muhammad Ali
This week: impossible problems.
Four Questions For interviews with Tom Liam Lynch on coding and James Willis on ethics. Podcasting series continues - yes, you should start your own. Hypothes.is tutorial for social annotated layer. BadgeChain blockchain reading using collaborative annotation. Vox deconstructing rap - I thoroughly recommend watching. Jerome Bruner passed at 100 - my fear is American culture doesn't accept his story about teaching. Muhammad Ali passed at 74 - redefined courage and gave people bravery. White teachers need more than plucky attitude for cultural competence. Nell Duke on five literacy practices to abandon including unsupported independent reading. Hamilton musical rhyme analysis makes me wonder about scaffolds across modes. Sentence Tree grammar visualization.
Impossible is nothing.
π Navigation
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π± Connected Concepts:
- Podcasts β Four Questions For with Tom Liam Lynch on coding and James Willis on ethics, yes you should start your own.
- Hypothes.is β Tutorial for fostering online research and discussion, social annotated layer on Internet.
- Blockchain β BadgeChain collaborative reading using Hypothes.is to scaffold comprehension and synthesis.
- Hip Hop β Vox deconstructing rap beats rhymes and poetry, Hamilton musical rhyme analysis.
- Jerome Bruner β Passed at 100, cognitive psychology and constructing knowledge, American culture doesn't accept his story.
- Muhammad Ali β Passed at 74, redefined courage as speaking truth to power, gave people bravery.
- Cultural Competence β White teachers need more than plucky attitude, understanding where students come from.
- Literacy β Nell Duke on five practices to abandon, Sentence Tree grammar visualization tool.
Part of the π§ Newsletter archive documenting digital literacy and technology.