Quick background: Our class (well … group) is in the middle of (re)designing our room. We have come up with a design, we’ve found and from today already have a large, lovely second-hand corner couch in the class, we have changed desks around so we can easily shift them around or put them away to suit what people are doing, we are creating murals for the walls to transform a boring off-white wall to something that is ours and pleasing to see and (importantly) maintain and more. I’m directing traffic a little, the rest is done by my students. More on the project and the pictures another time.

‘Steve’ (not his real name) is the quietest, most reserved and shy member of our group of nine. Confidence to do things at school had been shot well and truly in the past of his schooling and much meets the resistance and reluctance to give things a go.

A couple of days ago, he started sketching a drawing. Soon, a sketch became a lovely picture of the Road Runner against a landscape. He decided he wanted the whole thing as a class mural … big! This by a kid who’d rather hide and fly under the radar most of the times, suddenly expressing himself.

We found some large boards and he sketched the painting in pencil. Today, he started painting it. Patiently, slowly, precisely, totally immersed even at the recess break. This plus we know that the finished mural is going to look awesome.

Today, a couple of kids from our class were hanging around Steve before lunch. I asked Steve if he would like them to help him with the painting. “If they want to!” was a curt reply.

“OK …” I backed off, issuing no instructions just stepping back a few steps.

Next thing, the two boys, now joined by another, quietly picked up the brushes and started talking to Steve how he wanted things done. Steve directed them with a couple of purposeful instructions and away they went, all painting, creating, helping Steve and each other with no fuss.

Magic !

Small thing? Yeah, it may look and sound like to a remote observer who’d probably miss the intrinsic value of all this, particularly if not knowing the kids in question.

Our deputy principal walked past and could not believe her eyes how these four boys and another one from our class also working on his mural, worked well, perfectly content and happy to be there, purposefully helping Steve and one another. This for a class of, *ahm*, notorious for ‘behaviour problems’ (and they do have their moments and sometimes entire days, trust me ).

I don’t know exactly how Steve felt today, but this shy, barely ‘literate’ and so often ‘good for nothing’ 14 year old kid got an important lesson, so to speak, of the hidden curriculum at our school – you matter, others can and DO care.

None of this will see the light of day on school report cards, league tables, NAPLAN, pollie and other pundit speeches, performance reviews, ‘merit pay’ and the likes. But it was spine tingling to see, a moment to savour and just enjoy for its beauty.

It reminded me strongly of Evaluate that! And I mean it too …

And what did I, a teacher, do in all this? I did nothing. The kids did it all themselves.

Update:

Well, today we finished the job with the help of a few talented artists from a couple of neighbouring classes. Take a look of the whole process …

And going back to ‘Steve’ – he asked me today: “Will we be able to take these home at the end of the year?” He is PROUD of his effort, something he had thought of, planned and saw it to a great conclusion while including others too.

And that my friends, in the parlance of a popular ad:

Materials … $150

Artists … 7

Days … 2

Feeling of confidence in one’s efforts … priceless

                          

'Mysterious Globe, http://www.flickr.com/photos/sudhamshu/2991718957/

“Hello World” is a simple game I often play with my 4 year old son (‘Mr 4’). We fire up Twitter, say ‘hello’ from Fremantle, Western Australia, get a globe or an atlas (old school, I know, but it is wonderfully tactile) and wait to see where people are saying hello to us from.

Within minutes, we get at least ten replies. Some come from around the corner, many from around the world. We look each of the places up, we talk about the person who said hello, what language people speak there, what the weather is like there now, time of the day, what sort of things people eat there and so on.

Yesterday, we got replies from Fremantle, Perth, Northam, Sydney, Hobart (Australia), Elgin (Scotland), Birmingham, Leek, Ringwood, London, Lichfield (England), Johannesburg (South Africa) Grand Rapids, Detroit (United States). The range and number of replies depends only on the time of the day we play “Hello World”.

Mr 4 and I love the game.

Now, I am not some pushy parent who wants their child to do things like memorising countries of the world by heart (Mr 4 might do that anyway, whether I want it or not). But I do want my child to see that there is a big, diverse, exciting world out there waiting to be ‘discovered’ today and any other day.

In the parlance of a classic TV ad:

• Twitter followers: 1378
• Replies to our “hello”: 14
• Worlds: 1
• Sense of wonder about the world: priceless

PS. Dedicated to those who think nurturing connections online with Twitter is a waste of time…

Like

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I am still messing around with layout, pages etc. but all in its good time.

To celebrate the occasion at the end of an amazing year I sat in a pub one long afternoon, racked my brain and came up with a list of people I have either connected with for the first time this year, extended a face-to-face or online relationship in 2009. Symbolically, the list is 140 ‘characters’ long to represent that 2009 was a sort of “The Year of Twitter” for me.

This list is awfully unfair to MANY people whom I don’t mention below but with whom I have learned, laughed, argued, annoyed, had my stuff passed on by (re-tweet) etc over the year. The 140 names below also isn’t some sort of ranking of all-important leaders with thousands of followers (many of these guys have only a handful of followers!). If your name is NOT on the list .. please don’t shoot but let’s strengthen this amazing web of people.

I am going to show this to anyone who doubts ‘social media’ and its potential. This is investing in the best possible resource there is – PEOPLE!

Have a safe and merry Christmas and a great New Year 2010!

And now, my longest ever Christmas card (a #follow2010 of a kind) … Enjoy

The Locals (Western Australia)

Sue Waters (suewaters) – Thank you Sue for being an incredible helper and good fun to hang around with. Addicted to iPhone (but ) one of the kindest, hardest-working people I have met. I leave Edublogs with heavy heart not because of the brand but because of you. Sorry, this ‘mamma WordPress’ is pretty cool and she has been calling for a looong time. Best wishes to you and your family in 2010, have a great Chrissy.

Sue Hickton (evilsue) – The ‘other’ Sue. Only crazy water polo players talk s**t like we do sometimes. Oh, I have enjoyed the planning for a joint project – I hope we pull it off in 2010 (well, at least you). I will not forget Natanui’s hair in a downpour while kicking a goal in a hurry.

Jo Hart (johart) – Really got to know each other this year, sure we will actually see each other in 2010. Apart from tones of really useful stuff, our ‘chores of suburbia’ vs chores of a farm series were a treasure. Thank you for all your help with Web 2.0 Expo and your time, really appreciated.

Phil Hart (philhart) – Thanks for the above too and your amazing energy to sustain the passion for quality education (and the smiles ) Yes, Jo was a good catch was she not? Looking forward to a visit in 2010.

Bryn Jones (freoman) – Thanks for all the beers, chats, calls, quirks, wonders, laughs and wisdom this and every other year. PD at LC !? Have a great 2010.

Simon Carabetta (sicar)– Mate, if you are not a legend yet, you are one in the making. I am in awe of what you have done this year at school and how well the future is looking up. Your energy is contagious among the staff and kids alike. Oh, and marriage? A fine institution.

Russell Montgomerry (montgorp) – thanks for all your timely, quick replies and a mutual understanding of ‘the way things are in our edu-landscape’ so many times. Yes, I love Gravity J

Elise Randall (meelup) – You may only have tweeted once so far and have a handful of followers but in my eyes you are one of the best teachers I have seen in schools. This social networking caper will give you (further) wings, no doubt. I plead with you to share with the world the gift you have. I’ll miss our ‘chats’ at the new school but will stay in touch. Have a great Xmas and a wonderful 2010. You deserve it.

Veronica Emery (mrsemery)– You are wiser than a bunch of professors put together. You common sense is impeccable, your heart in the right place and my goodness can you do some good work with ‘the proletariat’. Love your guest post this year. You see, all these people were once total strangers to me too, look now ;D

Jaeik Jeong (jaeik) – Better late than never hey. I really wish we had ‘hit it off’ earlier than we had, still might have to tap you on the shoulder for those promised Apple goodies.

Suzette Irvine (suzettei)– After all that excitement, the Hale House dynamic duo just wasn’t to be. Never mind, we’ll get Moodle & more going.

Martin Dougiamas (moodler) – Mate, I respected you in spades even before you accepted my dare to change your Twitter profile pic . I hope your words about work at Moodle come true one day (soon!). Have a great 2010 and happy travels ( and happier returns!). You have started something amazing.

Shane Elliot (ikawhero) – This may have a been a ‘hi, good to meet you’ year but I reckon we’ll hit the straps in 2010. I for one look forward to it. Best for 2010!

Matt Ferrinda (mferrinda) – I always thought of you as Sue Waters’ ‘protégé’ (and she does mention you too!). Hope your trip to Indonesia was valuable, look forward to perhaps meeting in 2010.

Jean Anning (janning) – Ah Jean, how do you do it? You must have bitten your tongue, rolled you eyes and sighed so many times working for the certain illustrious employer. Your friendship and attempt(s) to cheer me up at several low points at different times of the year were legendary and well received. Thank you.

Kathryn Greenhill (sirexkathryn) – Never got to have that coffee at Murdoch but change of jobs seems like it has worked for you well. Still got those boots from USA?

Jane Lowe (janelowe) – Hey Blogmeister. More get togethers in 2010? Thanks for the pile of RT and kind words over the year.

Paul Reid (paulreid) – Has Charlie bitten your finger yet? It’s always a pleasure to bump into each other, ever since the SLICT heydays. ECAWA conference was fun!

Paul Fuller (paulfuller75)– Your golden touch with tech & kids is something MANY of us should look up to. Glad to have finally met this year too! Best wishes and have a great holiday.

Penny Coutas (pcoutas) – The French have 3 words for it: procrastination, procrastination, procrastination. Tried QR a cat yet? Great to meet, Blend soon?

Janine Tate (janinesensei) – Here is to a micro-local-meet-up at Blend some time soon. Up for it?

Danielle Horne (kukukukuku) – You may have a funny Twitter nick but you are one of the best local ‘finds’ of 2009. All the best in 2010 Danielle, coming to our next meet up?

Frances (developit) – Thank you for some cool links over the year (love some of the Twitter tools you pointed). Good to meet you at Bar Camp this year, have a restful festive season.

Peter Spicer-Wensley (pspicerwensley) – Ain’t we fighting the good fight! Best wishes to you & Allison and “I-know-I-am-not-going-to-spell-it-correctly” daughter Hope your Japan trip is as good as your kewl iPhone apps.

Kim Flintoff (kimbowa) – When you ‘expand’ on echalk or other places, people listen and learn. I know I have this year, a lot from you. Fatherhood is a wonderful thing too, isn’t it?

“Ex-students at BCC“– I am going to mention these guys in a group: they are my fantastic, funny, occasionally-swearing-their-heads-off (not all of them) on Twitter, but thoughtful ex-students from Belmont City College. Wherever the road takes you guys, we are only a few keystrokes away. Thank you aelita_poole, seanecoffey, torethard, jamiejenkins87, eton_dreamer, justmadson, farzy17,

Sarah Mitchell (globalcopywrite) – Here is to another local with many nice and useful exchanges. I wonder how your ‘life in Perth’ campaign went?

Vic Gecas (vgecas) – for all the times we bump into each other and keep in touch. Hope Dhaka IBO venture is working out well, think of you many times when Perth gets humid and sticky.

Australasia

Darcy Moore (darcy1968) – Here is to our wonderful friendship and turning-legendary exchanges of dinosaur-quokka-aeroplane-abstract dancing clips. Have a great Chrissy with your beloved girls!

Tony Searl (tonysearl) – A tough year that last one for Mr Searl but aren’t we all glad to have you back on deck lucid as ever. I won’t pop the age question, promise Have a great one my friend.

Julian Ridden (moodleman) – Mr Moodle Google, after your brief and long awaited Perth visit you now have another admirer in Perth – Mr4 says you are “really cool”. Thank you & family for wonderful hospitality in May this year, hope we can repay one day soon.

Rhys Moult (rhysatwork) – The Connector from Adelaide. With a range of talents like yours, I am sure 2010 is shaping up good already. Thanks for traveling along this crazy Road 2.0 since my very starts.

John Larkin (john_larkin)– You just make it to Perth JL and I will tell you in person. Thank you for your friendship, advice, resources and wit shared over the year(s).

Simon Borgert (simonborgert)– I knew we’re onto something when we early in the year we exchanged pics of Lego our kids built. One of the fastest and sharpest @repliers out there with a wicked sense of humour. Never lose it!

Stu Hasic (stuhasic) – Ah, the sense of the ridiculous when dealing with ‘certain employers of a kind’ is something quite comforting to share. We’ve done that many times this year, loved it.

Chris Betcher (betchaboy) – Great to have met in person (geez, you are a tall bugger too). I’d strap a pile of teachers to your blog to read it. Keep feeding that bee under the bonnet and thanks for all your comments & RTs over the year. If coming to Perth, you know what to do, right?

Rob Abbey (roadster5555)– I may not be Mr Rhizome as you called me earlier this year (working on it), but I absolutely loved our sometimes deeper exchanges about this crazy edu-business of ours. A tumultuous year ending for you, hoping 2010 is a bit calmer. First Wave is always first, thanks for the invite & great to meet this year in person!

Mark Drechsler (markdrechsler) – We need to go for a beer one day Mark, I reckon we won’t stop talking for a while. Great to have connected this year, still kicking myself about the Moot but that ain’t the last of us sure.

Kerry Johnson (kerryank) – Loved the inclusion of my bad hair in SICTAS video, thank you. I would love to expand on some of your more random and questioning tweets one day “explain postmodernism…” Hmm, over Twitter? OK: WTF. Have a good break.

Dean Groom (deangroom, sorry, can’t find Palatino, 14 pt ) – Still not sure if your deliberately disappeared after the Sydney symposium going for a beer? Great to have hooked up this year, some classic posts on your blog. School of Air in Oz? Yeah, bring it on.

Judy O’Connel (heyjudeonline) – The master who is just funny and wise. Loved sharing a few days in Sydney in May, here is to more !

Jenny Luca (jennyluca) – Done your reports Jenny? Me too! Some very kind words spoken each other’s way this year, I reckon all true too. Have a great break and please continue to inspire.

Kellie McGraw (kmcg2375) – Oh, you English types. I described you to a colleague who wanted to connect with you over Twitter as ‘one cool chick’. Howzat for English and study of context? Thanks for all your kind words, quick exchanges and encouragement over the year. Hope to meet in 2010, bugger about that Perth conference date L

Roger Pryor (pryorcommitment)– “From school planning to planning school”. You have no idea Roger how much sense this made to me when I saw you tweet it. Thank you so much for all your help with our Vietnam War project and your story too, much appreciated.

Yvonne Murtagh (southoz) – Big thanks for the help with the Vietnam War project earlier this year, kind comments on 2 Minute Moodles Vimeo channel and a bunch of RTs over the year.

‘Cpaterso’ (cpaterso)– If I ever need Indochina specialist I know where to find a great one. I had an interesting chat with a history teacher after reading your ‘un-official’ bio of Uncle Ho. Fascinating stuff, hope we stay in touch. Thanks for your help with the Vietnam project.

Jen Millea (girtbysea)– Canberra may not be girt by sea but I’d love to catch up if I am heading that way in 2010. Thank you for fishing me out from the wilderness and involvement with the SICTAS project. An eye opener of many kinds.

Rob Rankin (robinoz) – Used that Twitter workshop yet? Thank you for your RTs and a recent entry on our Expo Etherpad. Much appreciated.

Charlie O’Sullivan (primaryschoolau) – I sincerely hope you got Moodle off the ground and running. Thank you for all our little exchanges over the year and your recommendation of my resources – I just hope they came handy.

Lauren O’Grady (lillylauren)– So good to see you back where you belong – in the mix with kids! Enjoy 2010 and glad to have re-connected (mea culpa :-/ )

John Pearce (mrpbps)– Thank you John for dropping in to our Expo, plus your words of encouragement at the low points of the year plus some fantastic work you are doing and sharing with others. Best wishes!

Pru Mitchell (pru) – Thank you for giving me a chance to present for EDNA in Perth earlier this year, loved the experience and getting the locals ‘into it’.

Kerrie Smith (smik09)– We (my class and their crazy teacher) may have disturbed you one morning with a Skype call but it was an eye opener to many things we had done later on. Thanks for agreeing to be my referee to a position I had applied earlier this year.

Alison Hall (alihall)– That Moodle Whiz! I’ve never seen anyone move faster than you (and well too) on features of Moodle at a workshop. You had them flying a half an hour! Well done, no doubt not the last we have seen each other this year.

Kim Yeomans (kimyeo) – Thank you Kim for all your kind words, RTs, questions and interest this year. Had to chuckle at ‘your magic Tomaz’ tweet last week it came when we had a network crash and no magic was going to restore it in a hurry. Still, glad to have stirred a bit. Have a nice break.

Keith Lyons (520507) – So glad we have re-connected this year. I still do look forward to the suggested ‘fellowship of the ring” earlier this year. Sport and social media have enormous potential!

Michael Rees (mrees) – How could I not be glad to have connected with a (one of the leading) Aussie tweeting academics? Thank you for some great questions over the year, RTs, comments and some intriguing posts this year.

Brendan Brooks (hyperbrendan)– After so many RTs, it would be hard not to say thank you at the end of the year. Cheers mate and have a great 2010.

Alex Finlayson (mrafinlayson) – The man I have to go DM with to say hello J Nah, not really. Some inspirational stuff, you ARE DOING THE BEST THING my friend. Sorry about your stoush with ‘certain institutions’, strengthened many people along. Enjoy a warm Xmas!

Tabitha Roder (tabitharoder) – The OLPC whiz from across The Ditch (how that is pronounced is of course open to interpretation). Yes, I do read your blog (just another lurker…), love the OLPC stuff. Magic! Have a fantastic year Tabitha. How is the new car going?

Roland Gesthuizen (rgesthuizen)– Out of so many things, won’t forget our exchange about ‘responsibility’ and your case of a kid living in a car and doing well. Yes and here is to resilience and realization of some of the things you/we have been on about for years. Ah, teachers …

Zaid Ali Alsagoff (zaidlearn)– Zaid, very honoured to have put me on the ‘juicy professional list’ . Love your resources and your excellent reflection on Finnish education system (compared). Best wishes and I hope I drag my butt one day to Malaysia. We have some friends there and we have been promising and promising to them…so I won’t get you in the same loop. But I will look you up, if you don’t mind.

Patrick Truchon (ptruchon) – Patrick, thank you for all your intriguing questions and a stack of RTs over the year. Really grateful.

Andrea Hall (ajh432)- Thank you so much Andrea for your speedy ‘reference reply’ for the certain (possible) PhD supervisor. The power (and tentacles) of Twitter hey. Best wishes in the coming year and a happy festive season.

Clay Burrell (cburell) – “M.Jackson peaked at 5, puberty killed him” … I know we often remember the funniest and the outlandish (hmm, maybe not so much there) … appreciate the randomness of your tweets and lucidity of thought. Thanks for RTs, have a great 2010.

Ariellah (ariellah)– I know South Africa isn’t exactly Australasia but then we’re all neighbours in this e-world anyway. Many thanks for the kind words, followfridays and RTs over the year. They have not gone unnoticed!

America (building links …)

Ira Socol (irasocol)– Oh man, I am so going to hold you to that ‘we’re coming next year’ line. Found a friend for life this year. Thank you, have a great Xmas… don’t know about the Gunners title with your leg out now?

Deven Black (spedteacher) – Care to be cloned Deven? You bring life to education and wonderfully grounded view on things. I trust your mainstream classroom this year is just as exciting (in many senses of the word) as your SpEd classes. Best wishes and thank you for some great exchanges, comments and conversations.

Sherryl Nussbaum-Beach (snbeach) – Are we going to bring PLP to Perth or what? When you/we do – count me in! Love your passion and no-bull ways of getting (to) people. Ever since your last presentation in Perth I have been intrigued by the differences between a community and network. The more I look at it, the bigger the difference [will actually write a shoot from the hip post on that, got one brewing]. You rock and here is you(r family) and to many get togethers in the future.

Steve Hargadon (stevehargadon) – There probably ain’t many people who would treat Steve H. as a child…well, unless you are stuck in a car with a child lock Steve, loved our conversation(s), thank you for all the amazing work you do connecting people around this crazy world of ours.

Joseph Thibault (globalclassroom) – I have recommended Global Classroom to many people over the year(s0 and for a bloody good reason too – you  guys are doing a good thing, love the community aspect. Hope to meet one day too, love a passionate moodler.

Milton Ramirez (tonnet) – How could I miss the man who got some of the juiciest, coolest, most serendipitous links I bookmarked this year. Best wishes for 2010.

Tom Whitby (tomwhitby) – The Master Tweet Connector! Thanks for all your support, RTs and the PLN Ning (must be keeping you busy that beast too with so many members…)

Chad Ratliff (chadratliff) – 140 chars just doesn’t do justice to some very interesting twitter-sations we had this year. I sincerely hope we bump into each one day in person soon. Merry Christmas.

Monika Hardy (monk51295) – You will never know the amount of swearing over 12 seconds TV and school network block I stuffed around with when contributing to your awesome VoiceTHread Have a great holiday & 2010 and thanks so much for the pile of RTs and funny moments we shared this year.

Melissa Techman (mtechman) – We must be breathing the same ‘care for kids’ air across the oceans Thank you for all your support over the year and some very, very kind words. On a bad day, they hold things together. Best wishes!

Michael Kaechele (concretekax)– They say an RT is a form of flattery… I’ll take it as a positive my friend and THANK you for passing my (sometimes) nonsense on on so many occasions. Coming from a fellow teacher is a special honour.

Steven Anderson (web20classroom) – Geez, you must getting every realtor, lifestyle consultant, fake nail salon and sticker-business wanting to follow you now with your Tweeter of The Year fame Well deserved. Thank you for all your tireless efforts with #edchat and so many other bits and pieces over the year.

Louise Mockford (lmockford) – If you had a dollar (Australian is rising in value too ;-P) for every RT of mine I’d say you’d be able to come to Australian sun a bit in these days of winter chills… THANK YOU Louise for some lovely tweetersations over the year & best wishes for your study too.

Alec Couros (courosa) – Caught the glimpse of the Bolivian assassin yet? Thank you Alec for the stuff we shared this year, been an honour. Here is to the kick-ass open international school. It’s when, not if.

Dean Shareski (shareski) – Yes, you do some cool ed-tech stuff but the clips of amazing hockey goals is what I REALLY appreciated this year Great to connect Dean, hope to go to a hockey game one day together and save the world afterwards. BTW, showed your ‘just tell me what to do’ post to a few raised eyebrows… at home too!

Dave Cormier (davecormier) – Man, you qualify as an honourary Aussie. Your ‘see how we go with this, throw it out there’ style is contagious, loved some of your ideas over the year(s) [yeah, just don’t ask me which ones I didn’t ;-P]. The first one to write ‘Deleuze for Dummies’ wins?

Diana Dell (dianadell) –Diana, thanks for all your support this year. I treasured our Skype chats, even though they dried up a little in the late 09. Ah well, as they say ‘a friend is like the sun – always there, even if unseen.’ Beach house, beach house, beach house…  Happy holidays!

Larry Ferlazzo (larryferlazzo) – I want to be in your class Mr Ferlazzo. And then I want to hang around a bit more because you’ve got the positive energy that few people have. Visiting Perth soon?

Dan McGuire (sabier) – Dan, have a I told you’re a bloody legend! Thank you for all your comments, contributions, RTs and stories to help to me and my students over 2009. Best wishes to you and your family in 2010.

Charlie Roy (caroy) – You know when a bunch of kids from my class who have rarely gone a few block from school know where Peoria is you made a dent in their lives. And mine! Thank you for all your assistance with our class/school projects, comments (“oh, this guy is good Sir…”) and stuff we shared over the year. Merry Christmas and best wishes in 2010!

Bri Brewer (edu4u)– Thank you Bri for your help with our school Web 2.0 expo. Kids teaching teachers is not a new idea but it is one of the most powerful ones going around. Here is to that!

Patrick Malley (ptrkmkl) – Honoured to be put on list of ‘moodlers to follow’, hardly justified the inclusion with some of may random stuff. You are responsible that I don’t (well, usually) start tweets with a . [dot]. Pet hate still? Take care mate & all the best.

Paula White (paulawhite) – Yours was one of the first profiles I showed to my mum when she said ‘Twitter is all for young people’. She was… impressed. Here is to some more of great sharing across the oceans in 2010!

Hadley Ferguson – Thanks for your insights, comments, quips, RTs, encouragement, virtual drop in to our Web 2.0 expo and reminders over the year, very glad to have connected. Best wishes in the coming 2010, here is to more of what we started this year.

‘Learnteachtech’ – Another one of the people I have connected over Twitter this year and with whom the 140 character limit just doesn’t help sometimes. Thanks for your support and conversations this year.

Phyllis Zimbler-Miller – Huge ‘thank you’ for your help with the Vietnam War project. It was just so stunningly easy to collaborate across the continents and times. Glimpse of the common future perhaps. Best wishes!

Miguel Guhlin – Moodlers are generally an awesomely open and communal lot but this amigo from Texas is one of the best. Thank you Miguel for getting me into the Classroom 2.0 LIVE pickle and all your support, good humour and awesome links this year. When in Perth…you know what to do, right? (well, let me know before of course )

Kim Caise & Peggy George – The friendly Classroom 2.0 Live crew that put me at ease before the Classroom 2.0 LIVE show in March this year. You guys are doing some fantastic work. Did you know that? Best wishes to you and your families.

Jerrid Kruse – Love reading your eloquent insights and the occasional rapid-fire tweets on topics that can’t be done justice in 140 characters. Your ‘dangers of online education as the cheap option’ was a helluva memorable piece. Keep pushing, probing, asking, arguing. Best wishes!

David Britten – So moving to do some PD here are you David? With some kids at the front (or rather in the middle)? Glad to have connected this year. Thank you for stuff we shared this year and your RTs.

‘UrbanEducation’ – We share so many views and experiences, but what I would really like to share one day is a piece of fairy bread Made it? Thank you for wonderful insights over the year. Merry Christmas.

Kyle Pace – Yes, you know that 1000 tweet is going to haunt you. The invitation to Perth stands! To a great 2010.

Glen Westbroek – I have blown up the green “Think! … solve problems” sign you shared this year to 12 x A4 sheets and stuck it on the wall of my class. Kids got the idea real fast! Best wishes Glen.

Andrew Wetzel – Still looking for that business model of being paid for sharing freely… Thank you for all those rapid-fire exchanges this year & Merry Christmas.

Venus Evans-Winters – For all the fake an injust roles people have to ‘perform’ these days thanks to someone like you to at least point them out, consistently. Some fights are worth fighting for…and you’ve got yourself a fellow in the fight right here in Oz. Best wishes for the festive season and 2010 on.

Jon Becker – How is the Family 2.0? Thanks for your insights and banter at sometimes oddest of times. Happy holidays (and stay healthy).

Jon Cullen – Gotta like a man who can ask some questions! Thanks for the teasers, replies and some handy links this year. Appreciated.

Allisun (allisunelearns) – Thank you for all you RTs of Moodle stuff and other bits and pieces over the year. With so many shared interests, I look forward to a good 2010, even though oceans separate us. Meh, what’s an ocean these days… Best wishes !

Skip Zilla – To the skeptics and respectful atheists among us! Thank you for all your support this year, much appreciated.

Laura Buxton – Ah, families. We are both educators right but the funny parenting stories just kept coming this year. May 2010 be just as good! Best wishes to all of you.

‘Weemoseus’ – It’s so good when teachers share with teachers, sometimes the more mundane and silly the stories the better. We had a few of those this year and I for one liked them all. Thank you for support this year and here is to more in 2010!

Kelly Hines – We connected over Nings and a spot of matchmaking on my part and never looked back. Thanks Kelly for your awesome cupboard of resources – shown and used many times.

Dianne Duff – The one about the rut, public schools and innovation is still ringing with me… Thank you for all your RTs, peer RT is one of the nicest things (and geez we need those sometimes in the places we work). Regards!

Lianne (prairies) – I have kept thinking about the exchange year since our brief chat a few  months ago. Never know, never know… Thank you for stirring with that one and your support over the year.

Ryan Stanley – I still owe you that chat on social networking my friend. Best to maybe Skype one day? If you ever get sick of cold Alaska in winter and want some sunshine in December .. look me up please, will you? Best wishes.

Katje Lehman – After we shared that poster on innovation [something about your boss ?? ] I actually printed it off for the whole team at school to see. It’s been blown up and laminated since ,D All the best in 2010!

Europe (links to come…)

Drew Buddie – For the love of ski flying, football, gigs and digital serendipity with (almost) reckless abandon. Here is to us maybe bumping into each other in 2010?

Patricia Donaghy – I may have told you this before but you kicked off this blogging thing for me by posting the first comment on the good old (Edublogs) Human in 2008. “Wow, a total stranger read it!” [me, then] Not a stranger anymore but I do hope we perhaps meet one day.

Ian Usher – My 2009 escapade to UK did not come about in the end but thanks for your advice and (advance) help, much appreciated. I bet there is a MoodleMoot just waiting for us to happen and say hello to each other in the flesh. Happy holidays!

Tim Hunt – We may not have kept our ‘sure we will catch up’ after Twizza (that was fun, wasn’t it?) but surely ain’t the last time we share a ligh live. BTW, still have not been to a Moot! Can you believe it? Take care & best wishes.

Russel Tarr – Where the hell do you find time and space to post all these amazing links? Thank you so much for starting that #evaluatethat Twitter club (not very active now, but …), your fantastic resources on Classroomtools and your support. All the best.

Laura Walker – Geez, those (now famous) 9 Things post of yours fit like a glove inside the Twitter Handbook for Teachers. Thank you for your support (“he explains it all…” line from a peer is great to hear) and here is to more serendipity in 2010. Cheers!

Tom Barret – What’s it like when you have thousands of people following you through a job application process? Thank you Tom for some excellent, hands-on idea for the place where the rubber meets the road – the classroom. One can tell in a glance where your heart and mind are. You’re a bloody inspiration! Have a great 2010 and a Merry Christmas.

Nick Dennis – Many thanks for your advice in (the unrealised) move to UK. Hevn’t closed the idea on that completely either…  A school administrator who ‘gets’ this ed-tech stuff looks like is not easy to find, you are a fine [if rare] species

Rodd Lucier – Thanks for the swift inclusion of my stuff on Twitter for Teachers wiki. Every time I show the wiki to educators new to Twitter may heads turn and say [if silently]: “Really? All these teachers? Around the world? Hmmm…”

Shelly Terell – Hey Shelly. Thanks for your help (Web 2.0 expo), RTs, energy and passion in 2009, let’s keep the #edchat going strong in 2010.

Maria Joao – Dear Maria, you said such a nice thing about me this year that it is hard to match. And yes, people do come ‘clear as water’ in this medium over time. Thank you for all your insights, links, comments and support in 2009. Have a lovely Christmas and a great 2010.

Arjana Blazic – See you in Zagreb on June next year, Glogster-whiz. Hvala i sretne blagdane!

Ales Cerin & Danilo Kozoderc The Slovenian innovators par excellence! Thank you for your lines, links and insights into how my homeland is breathing these days in terms of things we seem to be jointly passionate about. See you in June 2010.

Janez Dolinar – How could I not mention my first family member on Twitter and THE open source champion from waaaay back. Fatherhood is a wonderful thing (but not digital ) Srecno!

David Barnes – We may have iced the book for now but I have learned an awful lot from your insights through our chats and your Posterous. Yes, you are obsessed with ‘clear and simple’ and it looks like you have passed it on well. Cheers & best wishes to you and your partner in 2010.

Mary Cooch – For all those shared moments of doubt, laughs, support on things from Moodle to parenting (and the stuffed-up Twitter chat) – thank you! Love your book, your What can Moodle do For You clip you shared this year and your always helpful suggestions in Moodle Forums too. Oh yes, we will meet one day too, I know it. How is that ‘saving the money to come in 2010’ campaign going? Best wishes

Helen Foster – Moodlers are simply one of the best communities to be a part of and to have connected with someone who kinds ‘looks after it’ this year has been a highlight. Thank you Helen for all your support, I am hoping to perhaps work formally with Moodle in the coming year(s)… wink, wink, cross fingers…

Martin Hawksey – Just don’t mention the haggis… Thank you Martin for our recorded chat mid-year, an invitation to Edinburgh (one day, one day) and some good matchmaking over the year.

Berni Wall – Thank you Berni for connecting this year. Loved our conversation about the ‘adversarial education’. Those kinds of insights are invaluable when trying to articulate a position before/when/after going ‘to the trenches’ of schools, classes and parents. Looking forward to a fruitful 2010, thanks for the RTs too, appreciated.

Alja Sulcic – The first Twitter follower from my home land and a great moodler – I just can’t miss to mention someone like you in this ‘Christmas special’. Thank you for those cool clips and  ‘it’s snowing’ tweets when we’re cooking on 42+ Celsius here in Perth. My dream is attend a Slovenia Moot!

AND MANY MORE PEOPLE NOT MENTIONED HERE … (Can somebody please count if I got 140 ?!…)

I end with my oft-repeated ‘sign-off’ line at the end of a (Twitter) day: Kiss your kids and tell them you love them. Often.

Happy 2010 to all!

Tomaz ‘Human’ Lasic (@lasic)

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When Tomaz asked me to write this blog entry I thought what I always think when he suggests that I, ‘get online’. Who cares what I think? Why would anyone want to know what I have to say? I thought it when he showed me Facebook, I thought it when he showed me Moodle and I was still thinking it, when he introduced me to Twitter. For a middle aged, computer illiterate teacher, these things seemed like a lot of time and effort with a presumption that total strangers are interested in my life or my ideas. I referred to it as vanity on the net.  But as this is the world which my students inhabit, I was determined to have some form of active participation in it.

So with the encouragement of my good friend, I began to check out my options. Facebook required way too much; uploading of photos, status updates and tracking of so called friends for my skills. Moodle would expose my computer skills to way too much critique from work colleagues and students alike. A blog of my own design, I don’t think so! Twitter?! Now here was something; no uploading, no pressure from live chat, no need for groovy photos and linking to others, only having to think in blocks of 140 characters and a choice as to whom I wish to ‘follow’.  This, I could have a go at.

Once I realised that the only people ‘following’ me, also had a choice, it helped calm my nerves about who would be reading what I had to say and who wouldn’t. So Tomaz helped me to sign up and showed me the basics. This was great. I could read other peoples ‘tweets’ without needing to reply, just think about what they were doing and how they were doing it. Too easy! No pressure and no requirement to put my own doings out there.

After three weeks of voyeuristic cyber life, I got brave enough to take my own groovy photo (just the one), and send out a few tentative ‘tweets’. After six weeks I had found; Barrack Obama, Kevin Rudd and the NASA Mars probe. Hey! Maybe there were some teachers on line as well. Sure enough, some great practitioners doing some really cool things in their classrooms, sharing their ideas and projects with the world. ‘How great is this?!’ I thought. After nine weeks, I read a tweet from Paige who runs a world-wide pen pals program for classrooms. I was curious enough to send my first direct tweet to the person I feared most on the net. A total stranger!!  Before I knew it, we had exchanged lots of information about her pen pal program and the way it operates and I was beginning to get very excited about the possibilities for my own students. Could this be a way to connect my classroom with another classroom on the other side of the world? The potential seemed endless.

Now, some four months after signing onto Twitter, my class and the classes of five colleagues have joined this program and are in touch with classrooms of same aged students in Romania, Hawaii and Canada. For students who have not, on the whole, had the opportunity to travel outside of their own suburb, this contact has provided a chance to connect with real people in real time about the issues, ideas, fears, changes and worries which are universal to all teenagers. I nearly cried when one of my least interested students began asking me for spelling and grammar tips because she didn’t want her new pen friend to think she was a ‘moron’. “Plus we’re probably the first Australians that they’ve met aren’t we Miss?” she said. I agreed that this was probably the case. When she replied “So we best make a good impression huh?!” I think I may have actually shed a tear or two.

So, I’m still no expert but the kids laugh with me rather than at me now, when I ask them questions about computers and the net. The best thing for me at the moment is that I am ‘out there’ and I don’t care what anybody thinks. How cool is that.

Veronica Emery (Teacher, Mother, Chief Cook and Bottle Washer)

Thank you Veronica, great story! If you would like to follow @mrsemery on Twitter – http://twitter.com/mrsemery or drop a comment for her below.

Another Evaluate that! moment…

                          

This morning, the student and his classmate partly responsible for the incident, came to our office 10 minutes before the first bell to see me. They looked me in the eye and simply apologised for their actions. Very sincerely and in hushed tones. Nobody sent them to apologise – they came completely on their own steam. For a 14 year old ADHD-diagnosed boy that is huge. The matter ended right there, no further procedures, charges etc. but the feeling of trust between us leapt up a couple of storeys – right there.

The media, politicians and pundits will have you thinking that education is all about ‘improved performance’. One we can declare ‘important’ and measurable. But how do you measure things I have just described above? Things that truly matter to me as a teacher and the student as a growing young man. Will he remember the (failed) test or birth/growth of respect by and for adults in his life?

I sent out a tweet this morning about this little teaching vignette and the response was wonderful. My dear transoceanic colleague Ira Socol (my [co]nspirator in promoting the phrase Evaluate that! – see why) and I simultaneously had an idea – let’s start collecting REAL, insightful moments of teaching and learning NOT measured (even measurable) by school. I started the Twitter tag #evaluatethat , sent out an invitation and provided a few starting examples.

Within just a few minutes, we had half a dozen insightful snaps of reality that make teaching such a human and unbelievably important task! And they keep coming…

And here it is to you, dear reader, and those who you know:

Whether you are a teacher, student, parent, administrator… tell us, in a brief sentence or two, YOUR moments of teaching or learning (yours or someone else’s) that was never formally measured but made an impression on you. These ‘bites’ of reality do not have to be all gloriously positive, the only criteria – true, real and not measured (no hypotheticals please).

We are collecting these via Twitter by using #evaluatethat hashtag in each relevant tweet. This will ensure all of these are kept in one place and can be easily seen by all.

What if I don’t have or want a Twitter account?

That’s fine. If you want one, here is a well-received Twitter Handbook for Teachers that has all you need to get started. If you don’t want to bother with Twitter, just leave a comment below.

Passing this on will make the collection richer for things that matter the most, but you know that already…

To watch a child grow – privilege of a parent. To watch a class grow – privilege of a teacher.

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Do you know the story of Anne Frank, a Jewish teenager caught in the horrible rip of history called World War 2? Have you ever wondered what would happen if Twitter was around then and you could receive her updates? Would you pass on (or ‘retweet’ in Twitter lingo – RT) her most thoughtful, most dramatic tweets on. What if she (not some boring pop star) had 1 million followers? All passing on her messages?

“Jazzalujah” (don’t know his real name) is 21, lives in the US and he wonders just that. And thanks to him and the post on the Lost Liberty Cafe, you may (again) think about the human potential of social media to – change the course of history.

Need more examples of ‘what if?’

How about soldiers or civilians sending updates during the Vietnam War? What would that do to the public opinion? Would the madman Kim Jong Il of North Korea be so daringly and dangerously powerful if millions could photograph the starving children in his country and send the pictures around the world? Would the Berlin Wall have fallen any earlier if STASI couldn’t block a thing called Twitter? Of course, you can add a few of your own…

Think about these every time someone tells you social media is a “complete waste of time”. It can be. It can also be a beacon of humanity like we have never had in history.

PS Please note that Anne Frank I refer to above was a real person who died in Auschwitz in 1944. She is not the ‘Anne Frank’ on Twitter, who bears the photo of the real Anne Frank and updates her status regulalry.

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While the leftover pizza from Twizza (Twitter & pizza) is cooling nicely in the school fridge, I can’t thank enough to all the people who came and/or “tweeted-in” to our gathering this afternoon. An informal meeting of a few teachers turned out to be a wonderfully relaxed, very positive and productive introduction to Twitter for many of my colleagues at the school.

The place was like the United Nations of Twitter – we got tweet-ins from around Australia, Europe, UK, USA,  a ‘real’ visitor from New Zealand, even a person from Czech Republic who has used my 2 Minute Moodles with her teachers happened to be in town and dropped by. As Tim Hunt, software developer from the UK working at Moodle HQ here in Perth, walked in I said: “Here is an example of the power of Twitter – I am seeing this person for the first time in my life yet he walks in as an old friend.”

A large number of real, human connections were made in the space of just a couple of hours (even Sue Waters’ funny looking tweets could not stop all that ) Once again, the 70:20:10 principle I have touched on many times in my writing, was so obvious and wonderful to watch during the event as my colleagues helped each other, handbook and laptop in hand, to have a crack at Twitter (thank you Simon, you are a bloody legend!).

We got about ten new teacher signups, polished a few bottles of wine, had about four family-sized pizzas and shared some great conversations. Best of all, we have experienced a number of those “a-ha!” moments that make Twitter, educational technology and the whole behemoth of education go – human ideas, creativity and willingness to learn. If we did not have these we are in the wrong business, sending the wrong messages to our students. Thinking and learning is vital, just “Keep It Simple SMART“.

It is amazing what a change of the last word can achieve.

Before I go and digest that last slice of pizza, I would like to offer you a free copy of “Twitter handbook for teachers” created for this event (hence the name). This was a well received document, why not share…

Below the document, you will find the Twitter names of my teaching colleagues who have just signed up with Twitter – feel free to follow and share the serendipity of Twitter with them, they will appreciate it.

Twitter Handbook for Teachers

Created by Tomaz Lasic (@lasic, http://human.edublogs.org)

Here is a list of people who attended Twizza and their Twitter names (most of them brand spanking new so please excuse lack of profile). Connect today

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If you are in or around Perth that afternoon, consider joining us for a chat (and pizza!) and perhaps learn what Twitter is, how it works and why would you use it. To answer this last question (which should really be the first question), I have put together a little presentation you can see below. There is also a video clip version with some lovely background tweeting (real birds too) for those interested.

For more information about Twizza, feel free to contact me through EVICTS , tweet me @lasic or via comments below. The little birdie tells me that even the great Edublogger Sue Waters may make an appearance (we”ll get some chocolate ready).

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There are dozens of stories of missing the loved ones, survival, reunions, hopes, uncertainty coming through the ‘conventional’ mass media. But driving to work this morning I heard a powerful story on the local ABC Radio how social networking sites, and particularly Twitter, kept people informed and in touch with each other during the worst.

While the circumstances in which the usefulness of Twitter has come forward here are awfully sad and disturbing, it is another (eg. the recent China earthquake) great example of the power of the immediate, raw, human communication Twitter and social networking sites can provide.

Enough writing, have a listen to the story. And while you are at it, please consider donating to the Red Cross appeal for the victims of the Victorian bushfires.

Go people – dig deep in and help!

Yours truly @lasic

PS. Twitter community does not just help bushfire victims. See what Twestival is all about – a fantastic worldwide charity event indeed.

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