Category: General

I have always enjoyed operating my own server. This situation is not a necessity for me or for most others with an interest in exploring Internet services, but it is fun and it is a way to develop a little better understanding of how things actually work (or frequently what “issues” can cause problems). I have the advantage of working at a university which provides me the opportunity to gain access to the Internet AND to attach servers to the Internet.

This blog runs on WordPress software. For WordPress to work, the server must also provide access to MySQL (a database). I use a Macintosh computer (which means I am taking advantage of the UNIX components built into the Mac operating system – this includes the Apache server software). A Mac server is very easy to operate. MySQL and WordPress are open source resources that can be downloaded. I have installed both several times. Sometimes the process is easy and sometimes it takes me a lot of trial and error. One of the problems of not spending huge amounts of time operating servers is that I rely heavily on trial and error to get things to work and because the time span between doing the same thing can be lengthy (e.g., upgrading WordPress), I do not seem to get better at it. Perhaps this challenge could be overcome by keeping notes on my efforts, but I tend to believe things continue to change (new operating systems, small changes in the applications) and the process is always slightly different.

WordPress has released a nice documentation site that may provide potential hosts the insights they need to get started.

Lately, I seem to be running into a major technology problem each day. Today, all my Microsoft applications refused to open unless I paid money. It took me a little while to identify the problem. Evidently near the end of 2004, someone (this typically means I am blaming my wife) loaded “Office 2004 Test Drive” on my Mac. Evidently, today was the first time I opened a file created with a Microsoft product on this particular machine in the new year.

I do not use the Office 2004 Test Drive applications but the installation of this product must have somehow modified my Office v.X applications (or supporting files). I removed the Office 2004 Test Drive file and this turned out to be a mistake. I should have run an uninstall program in the “Test Drive” folder to remove Test Drive and the altered Office v.X and then reinstalled my Office v.X files (luckily I could find the installation disk or I would have been forced to pay a ransom to Redmond).

In case, you encounter a similar problem you can download a copy of “Test Drive” (DO NOT INSTALL) and run the uninstall program. I have no suggestions if you cannot locate your original install disk.

If you make frequent visits to this blog, you probably noticed that several weeks worth of posts disappeared. This was my fault. I operate several servers and took a short cut when setting up a new machine. I copied a version of my database administration tool from one machine to another. For some reason when I returned from vacation it looked like I had also copied the databases. So – I deleted the databases on the new machine. It turns out that the config files sets a virtual host path and I was actually deleting the databases from the original machine. This meant that I eliminated all of my blog entries.

I do back up my material (evidently on Dec. 7). The problem with my backup technique is that the tool I use assumes the database structure still exists and all the tool needs to do is reload the data. There is probably a lesson here. My favorite technology commentator (Leo Laporte) recently discussed the down side of specialized backup software in comparison to simply copying key parts of the hard drive to an external disk. The file created by the specialized software may not be readable by any other application. This was similar to my situation. Luckily, I had saved my database information (mysql) out as an sql file (a text file containing the data and file structure information) several months ago. I was able to use this old information to recreate the database and then use my specialized software to reload everything to the point of my last backup.

Anyway, I will attempt to recreate some of the missing posts within the next week or so.

New Year’s resolution – backup!

My wife returned last night from TIES, the Minnesota K-12 technology conference, and said that attendance was down. I know the same thing has happened with the similar conference in North Dakota and that there is a possibility that if attendance does not rebound this coming year the stand alone conference may be discontinued. I remember attending MECC (the “original” Minnesota Educational Computing Conference) back in my Apple 2e days – while I attended national conferences in my discipline, MECC was probably the most exciting conference of the year.

I wonder if this is unique to our area, a temporary situation in our area, or a trend of a more general nature. So, if this trend is real, I wonder why this is happening and if it is a good thing. Here are some thoughts (completely without data).

Perhaps individual districts or regions (in ND we have some regional training programs sponsored through the state) have increased tech professional development to the point that further exposure is not needed.

Even if this is true, I think district programs tend to be idiosyncratic and listening only to yourself limits creativity and innovation.

Perhaps “integration” has happened on all levels. Maybe the discussion of teachering with technology has become integrated within more general local and regional conferences. Hence, more technology topics are included at the state teachers convention. In my case, more technology topics might be included at the American Educational Research Association Convention.

Again, while I think this may be the case and this may be fine for those educators with general interests, I still like the opportunity to go to a conference to concentrate on a specific topic.

Some more negative thoughts:

There has been some money spent in recent years on professional development. When money is easy (for example, when grants are available), teachers are paid for participating in professional development. Perhaps this generates expectations that are not feasible in leaner times. Perhaps the idea of individuals paying to become educated is dead.

Perhaps NCLB has caused a loss of interest in technology-supported education or caused priorities to shift to other topics of professional development.

Please check out the following site – Work-Learning Research.

This link provides information related to claims made regarding the benefits of “learning by doing.”

The source cited in the diagram above by Wiman and Meierhenry (1969) is a book of edited chapters. Though two of the chapters (Harrison, 1969; Stewart, 1969) mention Dale’s Cone of Experience, neither of them includes the percentages. In other words, the diagram above is citing a book that does not include the diagram and does not include the percentages indicated in the diagram.

If you follow some of the same discussions I do, it is interesting to note how such claims originate. There must be an important lesson in this situation for educators. ALWAYS question and spend some time with primary sources.

Don Lemon, a faculty colleague sent me an email indicating:

The Dale being referred to is, I believe, Edgar Dale, a UND graduate from Rugby, ND. His writings in education were popular in the 1930s — 1950s. It seems I recall that he had a “Cone of Experience.”

Tom Hoffman from ed-tech insider continues the discussion (my earlier post) concerning teen interest in dangerous sites and services. His post notes the inadequacy of the assumption that training will control abuse. The comparison to drivers education and teen driving made sense to me.

I have been following for a week or more an “intense” discussion that appears to span several different listservs and blog sites concerning the damage that can be done by student blogs.

For example, Diana Clarke offers the following comment on WWWEDU

I encourage every responsible blogging educator on this list to go NOW to xanga.com and myspace.com and run a search for their local high school or middle school to learn how students are already using blogs. This is the image of blogging that many adults have in some schools. Blogging means bullying or violence and leads to suicide or attempted suicide in some cases. Newspapers are beginning to report on this with greater frequency.

Also, see a typical news piece from the Star Telegram on the topic.

This is good advice and I must say we have been concerned because we have children too and we know adolescents and young adults use these sites.

I think Diana’s point (I have the advantage of reading the entire post) is not that educational blogs are bad, but parents are very concerned when an educators takes the plunge and involves students in blogging because of what she describes as the public image of blogs. Maybe so. Perhaps it would even be fair to say that some citizens have a similar view of the Internet in general.

So are teachers asking for some calls from parents should they take the plunge and initiate a classroom blogging project? Sure. What would I suggest the teacher say to these parents?
– Help parents understand the distinction between blogs as they will be used in the classroom and some of the blogs parents are concerned about.
a) The sites that concern parents will exist whether or not the class blogs. Students are aware of these sites and pass this information among themselves.
b) The school blocks access to thess sites (I am guessing here).
c) Students will access such sites outside of the school. As a parent you also need to be aware that such sites exist.
d) Someone needs to talk with students about such issues. Teachers who make use of blogs will take the opportunity of such activities to discuss related issues. Educators will take some responsibility for discussing Internet safety and Internet abuse.
e) Parents must also educate themselves and address such issues. Abuses are most likely to occur through use outside of the school.

Schools may consider use of a protected blog environment such as
Landmark Project Blogmeister.

I am not certain what I think of all the concerns raised by the “lawyer types.” Some concern (I would prefer to use the term “awareness”) is necessary. Those of us who prepare teachers directly or through our written products make what I think is a reasonable effort to do this. It really comes down to issues of time and focus. How much time should be devoted to “concerns” in contrast to opportunities? Those whose expertise is in identifying concerns also need to take some responsibility for evaluating the impact of their tone and the consequences their message. More time devoted to the study of legal issues can mean less time devoted to pedagogical issues. So, the endless discussion of legal issues is OK as a method of exploration, but what we need are the experts in the fields focused on such concerns to prioritize. We need a little more risk assessment and a little less hypothetical thinking.

I think it would be extremely sad if educators back away from productive opportunities because of things that might theoretically go wrong. Teachers need a reasonable awareness of potential dangers and should take reasonable precautions. So should parents. I am on the side of everyone taking a little more responsibility. Teachers and administrators need to do this, but so do parents and students. The real world is out there whether you like it or not. Students already take it on during their “free time.” Sooner or later, they will be living in it without your guidance.

Some suggestions from Bud The Teacher.