Gary Ackerman @garyackerman@qoto.org

“Beneath the surface of grandeur was deception.” Words that described the situation just before the depression in 1893.

Competition can be good… especially if it is groups working to solve important problems. When it become pettiness (which it often does) problems are unsolvable.

“Technologies have autonomy and agency?” Really? Sometimes it seems they do, but I don’t think so.

“Bending, breaking, blending.” Anthony Brandt’s the B’s of creativity. Sure seems to capture the essence of how we create.

Another strategy for making “data-driven” leaders stare at you blankly: “Your data are interesting. What do you think is missing?”

I don’t care what you teach, or to whom you teach it… if ethics is not part of your course, you are not doing your job.

If students do not question their teachers, they aren’t doing their job.

In this sentence, "they" includes both the teachers and the students.

A blog post, now with audio, that differentiated how we solve problems in technology and science
https://www.hackscience.education/comparing-it-and-education/

A blog post on Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations, now with audio:
https://www.hackscience.education/everett-rogers-diffusion-of-innovations-theory-a-comprehensive-overview/

When folks post “science discoveries” that are were newsworthy, but have since been rejected… I usually don’t respond as that is all I would ever have time to do.

“Understanding is the first step…decisions made out of fear are often based on assumptions related to the worst possible outcomes. Learn about the things that scare you—they’re usually not the monsters you believe them to be.”

I used to be an amateur vexillologist… now I see the purpose of flags.

Thanks for sharing the IT tool you like. You have figured out how to use it to meet your needs. Perfect.

That does not mean it is appropriate for everyone. That does not mean I (the #edtech guy) know how to fix your problems. It’s very likely I tested it and was unimpressed.

Whenever I'm asked "is this a good tool" for my online students/ courses, I check to see if it works on mobile devices. If tools aren't built for mobile, we cannot include them in our online teaching. Like it or not, that's what students access their courses with.

“I taught it, but they didn’t learn it.” Yeah… don’t be one of those teachers.

Maybe “back to school lists” be experiences:
Help someone.
Read a book someone recommends.
Learn a new game.
Make something with sticks.

Because “learning” is conflated with “work” in a industrial production sense. If widgets aren’t being produced, then the factory fails. If facts aren’t being memorized, then the school fails.

It’s mass dissolution.

“Learning about” and “experiencing” are different things. What is experienced is learned (our brains and bodies are designed for it), what we learn about is forgotten… even if we score well on the test.

I just heard a news report suggesting there is a bill recently passed to reduce chronic absenteeism in schools by expelling the students. Really?

“Punishment.” This is the theoretical foundation of much pedagogy and school decision-making.