Gary Ackerman @garyackerman@qoto.org

If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.

—Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

“Jargon is a curse; it permits professional groups to turn upon themselves....”

“We are not handing out loaner devices. We need to teach students a lesson.” Any #edtech professional who adopts this stance needs to stop.

“This is not optional....” these words suggest a #leader can not justify a decision or can not respond effectively to challenges. It makes for a weak leader. #leadership

"We are not just stamped by our genes but also by the socialization through which are are in a position to gain access to our world and the traditions in which we exit." - Gadamer

Just because your data are abundant and available does not mean the data are good.

“At any given time, an individual holds multiple goals related to achievement, belongingness, identity, autonomy, and sense of competence that are deeply personal, cultural, and subjective.” From How People Learn 2 #teaching #learning #education

Hand-written notes are associated with greater retention of information compared to those who take notes by typing.

Hey #edtech vendors, I know the difference between marketing materials and research. Please don’t waste my time as a reviewer giving feedback on your “proposals” for presentations at conferences. Just buy a booth to exhibit and make some vendor presentations.

“Skepticism is not arrogance.” -Guy P. Harrison

But some folks sure act like skeptical people are.

Reading a book on social effects of technology... the stethoscope was originally viewed with derision... wait... what? #technology #technologyinnovation #innovation

Theories lead to oversimplification by those who do not understand them.

Claiming no responsibility for the consequences of the systems in which you work is untenable... especially for #teachers and #edleaders.

Inert information is organized in no way, interpreted with no theory, places in no context. It really had no purpose. #data

"To a man with a computer, everything looks like data." Yeah , Neil Postman seems to have been correct with this in 1992. #technology #data #datascience #DataDriven #education #leadership

“Tools have a way of intruding on even the most unified set of cultural beliefs.” Neil Postman seems accurate in this observation of #technology too.

I find it very peculiar when English teachers speak of students “getting a 79 on a paper.” Can we really quantify writing in that way? Can you really differentiate that paper from one that “gets” an 80?

Competence with new #technology should not be confused with wisdom or authority.

Those who design #technology rarely understand how it will be used. To conclude “technology does what it was designed to do” seems inaccurate.

Every #technology both benefits and burdens society.