Author

Miguel Guhlin

Transforming teaching, learning and leadership through the strategic application of technology has been Miguel Guhlin’s motto. Learn more about his work online at blog.tcea.org, and mguhlin.org. Catch him on Mastodon at @mguhlin@zirk.us

Areas of interest flow from his experiences as a district technology administrator, regional education specialist, and classroom educator in bilingual/ESL situations. Learn more about his credentials online at mguhlin.org.

PhotoAid: Free Easy Photo Enhancing Tools

by Miguel Guhlin July 19, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Fantastic image editing tools abound online. Let me introduce you to a new one, PhotoAid. It offers a stunning amount of solutions on one website through a collection of free, online photo editing tools–14 different tools to be exact. Let’s take a look at my top five PhotoAid tools. And, given the positive response this blog entry has received, you can find contributions from Twitter fans included after Tool #4. Check them out!

The main product of PhotoAiD is the all-in-one passport photo editor, which, thanks to Artificial Intelligence, will transform a simple selfie into a professional passport-style photo. The software we developed is composed of numerous small apps like our remove-shadows-from-photo app. We have figured out the smaller tools may be beneficial to plenty of people on their own, hence in order to give back to the society, we made this tool completely free of charge.

Tool #1: Background Remover

BackdropSplat removes photo, white, and colored backgrounds right in your browser. Prepare transparent graphics for slides, classroom projects, websites, and documents. Images stay on your device; photo removal downloads a model on first use.

Features

Photo cutouts: Choose Fast or Best quality, with automatic fallback on unsupported devices.
White background removal: Clear white around a subject or inside lettering and logos.
Color removal: Pick or sample a background color, then adjust tolerance and soft edges.
Selective matching: Remove border-connected areas or every matching pixel.
Preview controls: Compare the original and result, and zoom to inspect edges.
Batch processing: Process multiple images and download them together as a ZIP.
Flexible exports: Save full-resolution PNG or JPEG with transparent, white, or custom backgrounds.
ImageSplat integration: Apply cutouts directly to selected image layers, with one Undo to restore them.
Local processing: White and color removal require no model downloads or external connections.

Pretty nifty, huh? BackdropSplat does offer an additional feature that still makes it a winner if you need it. That is, after removing the background, you can add a new one. The new background can be one of the six plus scenes or you upload one of your own. It’s also multilingual with support for seven different languages.

Tool #2: Free Round Cropping Tool

Find yourself dropping images into Powerpoint or Google Slides for cropping? Stop. Instead of using those juggernaut tools for cropping an image to a circle, use this one from PhotoAid. It’s quick and gives you a nice result, as you can see below:

Once you have adjusted the cropping tool (the blue circle), download your image. It will look something like this (although not as dashing as my Bitmoji, of course):

TIP: Remember if you need to crop images into other shapes, you can also use IMGonline.

Tool #3: Free Photo Blurring Tool

Need to blur a portion or all of your photo? There are several tools you can use. For example, one of my favorite photo blurring tools is Irfanview. It’s a no-cost, Windows-only program (look at the shareware Graphic Converter for a Mac alternative) that offers a host of features. One of those features is the ability to blur images. The reason I like it is that I can apply a wide variety of effects via a simple interface to a photo selection. That is, blur the face of one person in a group rather than the whole group.

For a browser-based tool, you can try LunaPic would let you. A tool like LunaPic would let you be more selective about which portion of the image you might want to blur, like Irfanview.

If you need to blur an entire photo, then PhotoAid’s Free Photo Blurring Tool works quite well.

It’s a question of how selective you want to be. A general-purpose blurring tool can be helpful to have.

Tool #4: Shadow Remover

Now this is a tool I haven’t seen much. It allows you to lighten an image by removing shadows. Here’s a picture of me in my new Fiesta hat:

What if I want to remove the shadow cast by the brim of the hat? Here’s the resulting image; you decide as to the quality:

This might work great for removing circles under a person’s eyes, but I’m not sure about shadows cast by a hat brim. Here’s another example. The picture on the left is the original, and the one on the right is enhanced.

Hold On, I Want To Share Some Other Tools, too!

Thanks to feedback from the Twitterverse, I’m adding a few more tools other readers want to see included. Special thanks to TCEA Member John Bimmerle for sharing IMGCandy. If you haven’t seen it yet, it offers a ton of features as well, similar to PhotoAid. Give it a looksee!

Tool #5: Image Enlarger

Have a thumbnail image that you wish were…well…larger? You can do that with the image enlarger tool. The idea is that you can “upscale your pictures without losing quality.”

For this test, I took a small image and ran it through the enlarger.

Here’s the original thumbnail image:

Here’s the enlarged image:

The pixel resolution doubled. What do you think of the quality of the image?

Additional PhotoAid Tools

I’ve shared a few of my most often used tools through PhotoAid’s site. But there are nine more to try. Find them all online here. The ones I didn’t mention but that you may find useful include:

Photo Darkening Tool
Photo Inverter
Photo Cropper
Color Eyedropper Tool
Black and White Photo Editor
Photo Flipper
Photo Brightener
Colorize Photo Tool
Photo Rotator

Additional Articles on Photo Editing

If you’re a first time visitor, you may be wondering what other TCEA blog entries address photo editing and enhancing. Here is a short list you can explore later.

Become a PhotoDroid: Image Editing on Android
iPhoneography: Image Editing on the Go (with any device)
[Converting PDFs/Images to Digital Worksheets](CONVERTING PDFS/IMAGES TO DIGITAL WORKSHEETS)
Vector Images: Make Magic with Two Free Tools
Powerful Photo Editing for All Devices
Fix Your Grumpy sELF: How to Change Your Bitmoji Expressions
How to Edit Emoji and Icon Colors using Google
Shape Word Clouds Made Easy
Five Fantastic Browser-Based Digital Tools

Give them a try. There’s bound to be some awesomeness you can use with your existing images.

Feature Image Source

Screenshot by author.

July 19, 2022 0 comments

Productivity

Mobile File Management Made Easy, Part Two

by Miguel Guhlin July 11, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Wish you had a file viewer for that video or digital document on your smartphone? Or do you have to work on different devices but hate having to remember a dozen passwords? Let’s take a look at some answers to these and more questions.

In part one of this series on Mobile File Management Made Easy, I shared some quick solutions you can use. In part two, you will learn the following:

My Best Picks for File Viewers on iOS and Android
Tracking Your Usernames and Passwords across devices

Collection #1: File Viewers

Let’s take a moment to provide some context for each of these tools. We’ll dive into some short, real-life scenarios with my recommended solutions.

Tool #1: Cross-Platform PDF Viewer and Editor

Standing at the luggage pickup carousel at the airport, I received a critical email. The email itself wasn’t so important, but the attached file was. It was a PDF that required my signature. I needed to send the signed PDF back to the insurance company. I was on vacation here, and I had to sign a document with only my smartphone.

To solve that problem, I reached for the Xodo app. I’ve featured Xodo in other blog entries. Whether you are an iOS or Android user, Xodo works great. Xodo’s website now boasts even more features due to a recent acquisition. On a Chromebook or laptop, try their website. It offers thirty different distinct functions or tools.

Get it: Xodo for Android or iOS

Tool #2: Video/Audio Viewer and Player

Work with video much, and you will find yourself working with the MP4 format. There are many video file formats. Wouldn’t it be neat to have a tool that could view them all when you are on the go? Let’s look at a few tools based on device.

Android

While you can find a host of video players on Android, many have ads and/or in-app purchases. These can be a bit of a let-down because who wants to wade through advertisements or pay for more features? The question is, “What offers the most features at no cost?” There are several great recommendations for your consideration.

The first is mpv-android. This minimalist video player, which has a desktop counterpart, provides comprehensive support. That is, it plays everything, including MKV video formats. Keep it in your device for those weird, unfamiliar or regular formats.

The second is an old-time favorite, VLC for Android (you must be logged out of Google for Education or logged in to your personal gmail account to access this link). You can’t go wrong with Videolabs video and audio player. Although they have a cone for their icon, it should really be a multi-tool. It lets you play videos, audio files, and stream content (such as from radio stations). It also has a desktop option for your Mac or Windows device.

Get it: mpv-android | VLC for Android

iOS – iPhone, iPad, and M1

While iOS users have great support built into their device, consider getting Readdle’s Documents. It offers a wealth of support for various file formats, including videos. What’s more, you can watch videos with subtitles. That can be a game-changer for some folks. Also, Documents works on Macbooks with the M1 chip.

Video formats: .avi, .mkv, .flv, .ogg, .mpg, .mpeg, .ts.
Subtitle formats: .srt, .sub, .ssa, .ass, .pjs, .rt, .smi, .stl subtitle formats.
Audio formats: mp3, .aac, .m4a, .m4b, .m4p, .m4r, .amr, .ac3 formats.

Learn more online here about the support Documents offers and get step-by-step instructions.

Get it: Readdle Documents for iOS/M1

Tool #3: Office Documents

Work in the Google cloud? You may want to rely on Google Drive’s built-in ability to interact and view documents. Or, if you have Microsoft 365, you can use that instead. Each comes with an army of helper apps you have to install. I have problems with both ecosystems, helper apps aside.

They can intrude on your privacy, track your information, and report it to the cloud. Or course, they can also work in the background to slow your device down. This might happen as they phone in to their respective motherships. That said, they can also be quite useful.

Get one of these apps if you are on a personal device and want to open a document and then throw it away. They are low-impact, and you don’t have to worry that you’re committing to joining an ecosystem.

OnlyOffice Documents, like Readdle’s Documents, offers many features. While Readdle’s Documents works on iOS devices, OnlyOffice Documents offers a slimmer alternative. Only Office Documents works on Android and iOS and offers a free “pocket” office suite. You can open all MS Office formats and export them to various formats (e.g., PDF, POTX, OTP).

Here are formats it’s compatible with:

DOCX, XLSX, PPTX
DOC, XLS, PPT
ODT, ODS, ODP, DOTX

You can also view PDF files, TXT, CSV, and HTML and save documents to the cloud. You can open documents there, too. It works well with Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, and other cloud storage. This makes this tool a swiss army knife for various ecosystems, but it’s only one app, not an army of helper apps.

Get it: OnlyOffice Documents for Android or iOS

Collection #2: Track Passwords Across Devices

Work on many devices? Have lots of usernames and passwords to remember? A second-grade teacher colleague aspires to keep track of fewer usernames and passwords. It is impossible to keep track of everything with a paper notebook, much less one’s memory.

I asked her to inventory her logins to help her appreciate the need for a password manager. She came up with a formidable list. here it is in no particular order:

Gmail Personal and Work
Microsoft 365 Email
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Words with Friends
Teacher Retirement System
Bank
Cable television
Mobile Service Provider
Uber
Fandango
Amazon
Hulu
Netflix
Paramount Plus
Amazon Prime
HBO Max
Social Security Administration
TxT
CashApp
LabCorp Patient
Car Insurance

And there are still many more. Trying to keep track of this many logins and passwords is frightening. You need a single sign-on (SSO) solution. When I switched my smartphone from Android to iPhone (I switch every few years), I was in for a surprise. The iPhone has a built-in password manager. Google announced their browser would also come with a password manager. Don’t trust these password managers. Replace them with something else. You can do that in your Settings->Passwords->Autofill Passwords.

You need something secure. I recommend Keepass for the most paranoid, or if you prefer, use Bitwarden. It’s a free password manager, and it allows you to add notes to each entry. It tracks websites, usernames, and passwords. Moreover, it works on all devices like Android, iOS, Chromebook, and anything with a web browser.

Bitwarden fully encrypts all of your data before it ever leaves your device, and only you have access to it. Even the Bitwarden team cannot unlock your protected data. Bitwarden seals your sensitive information with end-to-end AES-256 bit encryption. Also, salted hashing, and PBKDF2 SHA-256. (source)

This makes it a powerful memory aid that guards your back. And while it’s free, you can pay a whopping $10 if you want more security. Free, you get unlimited passwords and all its core features on unlimited devices. It works on any device, including computers.

Get it: Bitwarden for your Android or iOS device

Want to try Keepass? T y KyPass ($6.99) on iOS or MacOS. For Android, use theKeePassDroid app.

July 11, 2022 0 comments

Coding/Computer Science Windows

Build Block Worlds with Minetest

by Miguel Guhlin July 5, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Want to launch virtual gaming to support critical thinking at your school but find it cost-prohibitive to go with the mainstream solution? Maybe you want to avoid paying a per student cost. If that’s the case, this blog entry is worth a read. You can now deploy a block-based crafting environment with Luanti (f.k.a. Minetest)– a solution that offers a block environment, simple circuit-switching features, and visual bots.

Benefits of Virtual Reality to Children

Virtual reality offers a way to encourage creativity in children. A few of the ways it does that are highlighted in this AR article:

Removes geographical boundaries. It’s important that children have open-ended spaces to build and explore. Virtual reality worlds make that possible.
Empowers students. Allowing children to become heroes of a story they create with others is powerful. The immersive environment of virtual reality worlds engages children and hones their storytelling skills.
Supports visualization. Visualization makes it easier to understand complex concepts. If you can build it, you can better understand it.
Stimulates critical thinking. Games that allow for creative production foster players’ abilities for creative expression.

For many schools, playing, crafting, and learning have been limited to one solution that costs money, even if it offers extra benefits. But what if you could find an alternate creative space as a free, open-source solution? A solution that would be available at no cost to anyone who wanted it? That’s where Minetest comes in.

That means you can create and adapt it for your use in schools, and give it away for free to your students to take home. Isn’t that amazing? Don’t take my word for it. Michelle Wendt, in SmartBrief, writes (amended slightly for readability) the following about these virtual environments:

This collaborative sandbox game works well with open-ended projects where students construct their understanding and create their own adventures. For example, a middle-school teacher assigned students a pre-history project, asking them to learn about that period’s culture, lifestyle, and historical limitations and assets. The students next had to build an entire pre-history village using only the materials that would have been available during that time.
…Students…demonstrate creativity and showcase evidence of learning through self-created resources.
[Students discuss] the authenticity of their creations with their team, defending their choices as they construct this world together.
The teacher facilitates a rich debate on the types of building blocks, smelting techniques and sustainable materials in their designs.

Did You Know?

Sign up now for TCEA’s Virtual World Builder course and learn more about game-based learning (GBL), design thinking, and more. See how evidence-based instructional strategies, the ISTE Standards for Students and GBL align. Learn more now.

As Michelle Wendt further points out:

“Virtual reality can be incorporated into classroom lessons in so many ways now…I can use any number of tech tools to ignite my students’ curiosity, inspire them to work together and frame their learning in a way that turns them into subject-matter experts.”

Isn’t that what we are all working for?

Did You Know?

Minetest is 100% free, open source. There’s no licensing fee, allows for scripting through the Lua API. What’s more, there are no limits to customization you can do if you want to.

Note the video above is an excellent comparison of the free, open source Minetest and Microsoft’s Minecraft in Spanish. Want something in English? Here are also two tutorial videos (Part 1 and Part 2).

Introducing Minetest

Based on a free software game engine, voxel, Minetest offers access to a cube world. The cubes, like in another popular virtual world-building game, are the building blocks of the world. You can navigate the world, collect items, and make or craft items.

Minetest offers built-in modding capability.

These mods enhance the power of Minetest and what you can do in it. In the video below (credit to u/iketsj), you can see how Mesecons mod can be used to create a decoder. For those who are familiar with Minecraft’s redstone, mesecons are similar.

If you’re looking for visual programming opportunities, Minetest also has Visual Bots (or vbots for short). These are single, block, “turtle” style bots. You can program them, as you can see in the screenshot below. The interface shown works on Android.

You can find a list of a few mods worth starting with towards the end of this blog entry.

Nifty Features for Players and Developers

Minetest also enjoys features for both players and developers. Here’s a short list:

Features for Players

Many games to choose from. There are many games to choose from. You could survive in a harsh environment, build creatively, or fight other players.
Huge maps. With 62,000 × 62,000 × 62,000 blocks, there’s no running out of space. You can mine 31,000 blocks down, or build 31,000 blocks up.
Map generators. There is a wide variety of options to generate maps. The maps generated are stunning and can be shared. There are ways to convert existing Minecraft maps to Minetest, although it will require GNU/Linux access.
Multiplayer support. Play by yourself, locally with your friends, or online with dozens of players on a server.
Texture packs. There is a huge collection of textures for your maps.
Add sensors, lamps, and circuits. Use Mesecons to add all kinds of sensors, switches, solar panels, detectors, pistons, lamps, and sound blocks to advanced digital circuitry like logic gates and programmable blocks.

Features for Developers

Game coding. Create your own voxel game using the Lua API. Write scripts to add items and control game play.
Design content. Publish your creations to an online gallery.
Over 1100 mods available. You can use, adapt, or learn from mods others have created and they are all free, open source.

Get Minetest for Windows, Mac, GNU/Linux, and Android. It’s available in a portable format, making it a great addition to your USB flash drive. (I can see technology directors rolling their eyes at that. Imagine students walking in with their USB flash drive version of Minetest. They are ready to plug in on a school machine and begin worldbuilding).

Creative Mode: Be a World-builder

Minetest enjoys a Creative Mode, which allows for the creation of new worlds you can use. You can add a wide variety of themes and mods to a new world, as well as access seeds from others that can give birth to a new world.

Minetest for Education

“It would be great for a classroom environment to play and teach with as well!” says Clayton Errington. He goes on to say:

“I always like the FOSS programs and saw Minetest was free and thought to give it a try. Much impressed with similarities and ease of use.”

If you’re thinking, “How might this work in the classroom?” You are not alone. While Microsoft’s Minecraft: Education Edition offers a lot of lesson ideas, look again. Minetest has its own education servers as well if you’re not running it in your computer lab. It wouldn’t be difficult to set Minetest up to run as a server in a school district environment. This would enable students to access a school Minetest server from home.

FraMinetest.org offers one vision of an education gaming learning experience. Based in France, they describe themselves in this way:

Framinetest Edu is a sandbox game world Minetest (world of blocks to edit) dedicated to education, pedagogical activities and the serious gaming. (source)

They even offer a guide for server installation (GNU/Linux) you can follow.

CERN offers Craft the Web. This describes an event that took place in November 2019. The goal was to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the World Wide Web. CERN members and the Minetest community co-designed “Craft the Web.” This was an open-source gaming experience. It let players re-enact the invention of the Web. The game was played in a classroom setting. An instructor guided students on their journey. You can see a press release online.

Escape the Castle at the Inside the Box server

At Inside the Box, you can solve and create puzzles. If you are into digital breakouts, then this is your Minetest server to explore. It comes with extensive tutorials and information.

Of course, you can always set Minetest up for use in your own computer lab, or district server.

Preventing Online Server Access

Want to prevent access to online servers in Minetest? Edit the minetest.conf file in the Minetest folder. Add this line without a hashtag (#) in front of it. The folks at Minetest suggest you set the IP address for serverlist_url to empty. This will prevent access to external servers:

serverlist_url=

You may need to put a # in front of the line that says “address = ctf.rubenwardy.com”

Classroom Tools

One of the big add-ons that captured people’s attention with Minecraft was the Classroom Mode component. This allowed the teacher to view a map of student locations, limit player damage and use of TNT (explosives), cycle day and night, and the game’s difficulty settings. Minetest offers a similar tool.

Minetest’s Classroom mod offers teachers the ability to…

…move players, grant/revoke privs, and more. A list of built-in actions can be found in the readme, but you can add more actions using the API for this mod.

Actions available include:

Bring Teleports users to your position
Look Rotates the users to look at the teacher
Mute/Unmute Grants or revokes the ability to use chat
Fly/No fly Grants or revokes the ability to fly (key: K)
Kick Remove from the server
Ban Permanently exclude from the server
Audience Move to the crosshair location, spread out and facing you

You can get the Minetest Classroom mod and learn more about it.

Minetest Mods To Get

Stuck in a cave without a torch?

Wondering what are some mods worth getting and adding to Minetest? Here are a few I’ve tele-gathered after a bit of searching (fortunately, not in a cave without a torch). To be honest, there are MANY fantastic mods you can add once you open the game. It’s mind-boggling. My exploration only took me 27 screens in of the over 300 available.

Advanced Trains: build elaborate railways. You will need to get Basic trains, Moretrains, and dlxtrains mods as well.
Awards: This mod adds achievements to Minetest. Use the inventory tab or /awards to see your awards.
Basic Machines: in-game automation.
Basic Robot: programmable in-game robots.
Classroom: An easy way to manage students in-game, with support for bulk actions and macros.
Digilines: Allows in-game programmable controllers to talk to each other.
Farming_Redo: Comes with many new crops. New foods need only be planted on tilled soil, so no seeds are required.
GlowTest: This mod adds a glowing forest biome and decorative crystals to Minetest.
Mapfix: Fix some map errors (light and flow problems) simply by typing “/mapfix <radius>”.
Mesecons: Electronics mod, create electronic circuits.
Mobs_Redo: Mob API for mods to add monsters, animals, and more.
Unified_Inventory: An extensible inventory mod that allows searching crafting and browsing for recipes in the same dialogue.
WorldEdit: An in-game world editor. Use it to repair griefing, or just create awesome buildings in seconds. X-Decor: It adds a bunch of cute cubes, various mechanisms, and stuff for cutting, enchanting, cooking, etc.

Want to learn more about modding? You may want to read the Minetest Modding Book:

Here’s a quick overview of what is covered in the book:

In Minetest, a game is a collection of modules which work together. They provide the content and behaviour of a game. A module, known as a mod, is a collection of scripts and resources. It’s possible to make a game using only one mod, but this is rarely done. The reason why is that it reduces the ease by which parts of the game are adjusted and replaced independent of others. This book will cover the main parts of the Minetest API, and is applicable for both game developers and modders.

The Modding Book explains about Lua scripts that can be used to create mods:

Minetest uses Lua scripts to provide modding support. This book aims to teach you how to create your own mods, starting from the basics. Each chapter focuses on a particular part of the API, and will soon get you making your own mods.

Want to learn more about programming with Lua? Check out this video for beginners. Tutorials for creating Lua scripts for Minetest are also available.

Need Help? Read the Wiki and Follow the Hashtags

You can find quite a bit of information in Minetest’s wiki. Minetest also has an active presence on social media networks. You can find a wealth of educators and others discussing #MineTestEdu and #MineTest.

This image and others below are courtesy of Olm-e.

These conversations are taking place on two popular social media networks. Find links below to see what others are crafting:

The Fediverse (a.k.a. Mastodon)

#MineTest – For the latest on Minetest information.
@Minetest – Follow this account to get regular updates.
@nathansalapat – Check this account to see video tutorials.
@illunaminetest – See details on the world-building project.

Twitter

Minetest WorldBuilding

Can’t afford Minecraft EDU for your school or lab? Check Minetest as an alternative. You can add Mineclone to Minetest via mods, and get a Minecraft-like experience. What’s more, you can take advantage of some powerful project ideas shared in the past. And, while you are unable to use Minecraft world seeds in Minetest, you can adapt some of the lesson and project ideas on Minecraft’s education site.

Feature Image Source

Image credit: https://mastodon.uy/@jorge/108153430975562511

July 5, 2022 0 comments

Android Chromebooks iOS Tips and Tricks

Mobile File Management Made Easy, Part One

by Miguel Guhlin June 28, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Working with a new device this summer? Whether it’s a phone or tablet, or a Chromebook tablet, you may be looking for some easy ways to manage content. For many, managing content on these devices is a nightmare. Allow me to dis-spell those file and folder management nightmares.

What’s the Problem?

It’s not a single problem that vexes users new to these devices, but a multitude of problems, such as:

Moving files/folders around on your iPhone or Android device
Removing files/folders on iOS and/or Chrome/Android tablets
Viewing a variety of files on Android/Chrome or iOS devices
Tracking your usernames and passwords across devices
Getting bookmarks to sync across devices

If you’ve thrown up your hands in despair about one of these problems, then you’re not alone. It’s one of the reasons I avoid recommending tablets to low-tech users. Even experienced users may find themselves wondering about a simple question: “How do I get these tasks done on a device so unlike my computer?”

Let’s take a stab a responding. Of course, your success may vary depending on how much you know about file management on any device.

Note: Many file transfer solutions you find online (e.g. PushBullet, AirDroid) cost money. The solutions I’ll feature here are available at no extra cost.

File Management Made Simple

File management involves learning that everything we use on a device is a file or a folder. To view files, you need the right viewer software or application (app for short). Let’s use ebooks as an example, a common file people want to put on their devices for on-the-go reading.

Getting Familiar with File Formats

For example, if you have digital books, you may need a third-party ebook reader. One of my favorite sources of ebooks is Baen’s Free Books collection. There you can get books in all sorts of file formats.

Some common file formats you will encounter include:

ePub
Mobi
PDF
RTF

You can get free books or documents on your computer, then transfer them. You would transfer them to your Android/Chromebook/iOS device. How do you get that done?

Transferring Via the Cloud

For any device, you can often rely on cloud storage. That includes solutions like Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, and Dropbox.

You can copy your files to the cloud, then open them on your device using an installed app (e.g. Google Drive). You can see what that looks like below:

After opening Google Drive on your Chromebook, you can copy the file to your Local storage so you have access to it. You can then use other apps to interact with that file.

Here’s what that looks like on an iOS phone:

Transferring via an App or WiFi

If transferring files via the cloud isn’t desirable, you can always transfer direct

Tool #1: Readdle Documents for iOS Devices

Another approach for iOS devices (e.g. iPhones, iPads, Macs) is DocsTransfer.com. If you are an iOS user, you can get the Readdle Documents app (free). Then, use DocsTransfer.com to copy files to and from your device.

Another neat feature of the Documents app? It includes support for reading ebooks. And, you can also play multimedia files (e.g. MP3, MP4). Here’s a short tutorial.

On Android and Chromebook, transfer files using one of these options:

Tool #2: Cx File Explorer for Android and Chromebook Devices

This no-cost file explorer works great on Android and Chromebooks that support Android. This means you can learn to use ONE tool for both types of devices, then take advantage of them.

What’s great about Cx File Explorer is that you can do a few things that make it easy to work with:

Files and folders anywhere on your device, although you may need to grant additional permissions
Access files on your local network or via FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, or WiFi service

This last option, access the network via WiFi service, makes Cx File Explorer quite useful.

Once you have enabled the WiFi service, you can enter an FTP address on your computer’s browser. Then, you enter your password and now you can copy files to your Android device.

More to Come

In part two, I’ll share responses to these common obstacles:

My Best Picks for File Viewers on iOS and Android
Tracking Your Usernames and Passwords across devices
Getting Bookmarks to sync across devices

Be sure to read part two in this series.

Feature Image Source

Photo by Joshua Sortino on Unsplash

June 28, 2022 0 comments

Educational Research Leadership

Three Simple Steps to Innovative Learning

by Miguel Guhlin June 24, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

“The largest and easiest gains in knowledge work come from redefining the task. They involve eliminating what need not be done,” says Peter Drucker. Didn’t get the results you want? Prune the unnecessary. Stop doing anything and everything that fails to move you towards those results. Are you a principal focused on achieving innovative learning? How you get there varies.

Getting to Innovation

Some leaders hope to accomplish innovation with technology. They want to achieve it through various strategies. Expensive options can include:

Increased access
More professional development
Grabbing attention with media-catching projects

Today, leaders task themselves with a question to answer. That question is simple but tough to achieve. It is “How can you make meaningful growth happen with digital technology?” Here are a few ways to do that.

1. Close The Learning Gap

Close the learning gap, one implemented strategy at a time. You do it through the juxtaposition of technology and evidence-based, instructional strategies. Some focus on technical changes, but instead, they should focus on culture changes. Without culture change, instructional strategies and digital tools both fail.

Tina Peji (@TinaPeji_21) does a great job sharing instructional strategies that work in this video:

Given years of pandemic teaching and learning, we know this type of first-order change doesn’t work well. It leaves learners behind and decimates the ranks of educators. Both teachers and students get stuck. The mud at their feet? The jumble of best practices and digital tools dumped on them all at once.

A better approach to closing the learning gap? Transform the culture. Leverage social-emotional learning (SEL) activities. Embed those SEL practices in the context of a school culture that varies from campus to campus. Make changes consistent and incremental at the building level.

This requires relationship-savvy leaders. To begin, combine context-sensitive culture change with coaching. Include technology as an amplifier for teachers and learners. The preferred approach is the one that impacts attitudes and beliefs. This is a second-order change that can close the learning gap in the long run.

Using technology to measure student progress might be a first-order change. Second-order changes focus on attitudes and beliefs. Second-order goes to the heart of cultural norms and people’s shared values. It’s time to move beyond first-order issues to second-order. The smart leaders have done so. It’s the only way to close the learning gap and to build a bridge from where students and staff are now to where they need to be.

2. Enhance Cultural Competence.

To enhance cultural competence in schools, a way of valuing diversity among students and staff, take advantage of students’ cultures and abilities. Focus on amplifying positive experiences students have in school.

Juxtapose real-life events with technologies that amplify positive experiences. Use technology to create a rich platform for celebrating and sharing student success. Adopt the #TxEdTuesday approach of Tell It, Tag It, Share It. Not familiar with that approach or how to get started?

Explore specific strategies on how to showcase your school’s success online:

The National Education Agency (NEA) recommends valuing diversity. To achieve this, highlight the advantages of students’ culture and abilities. The resources above can assist you in celebrating diverse backgrounds that support instructional practices.

3. Embrace Scaffolded Inquiry-Based Learning with Evidence-Based Strategies.

Build up student stamina for learning with evidence-based instructional strategies. These strategies are research-based. They rely on how current science shows the brain works. Strategies like The Jigsaw Method, Vocabulary Programs, Note Taking, Outlining and Summarizing, Classroom Discussion, and Retrieval Practice support foundational learning experiences. Get students to build foundational knowledge, filling in missing knowledge. With that, students can then start applying knowledge to new situations. Juxtapose real-world problems with digital solution-making. Use design thinking approaches (source) to perceive the world in new ways.

Here are specific steps aligned to evidence-based strategies via Mike Bell’s Evidence-Based Teachers Network (EBTN):

Go digital with collaborative, inquiry-based projects. Real-world learning works for students. It empowers learners to be hands-on, social problem-solvers as media-makers. Digital media, team-building, real-world problem solving work well. Team-building in small groups can lead to scaffolds that support instruction. This explicit, focused instruction aligns to student needs (source). Another approach relies on digital tools. Use technology to drive teamwork. Rely on one-on-one connections via culturally responsive teaching to support a student’s learning.

“Stop Doing” List

As Drucker says, redefining tasks and eliminating the unnecessary can yield the greatest gains. What this means in the classroom is simple. It can be fraught with angst and anxiety. We must identify what we do in the classroom. Then, with kindness, examine and discard only what fails to align with research. A great compendium of research to look at is Mike Bells’ six steps. Get a primer here.

June 24, 2022 0 comments

Content Areas Educational Research Math

Jigsaw Your Math Classroom

by Miguel Guhlin June 21, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

“How does the jigsaw method work in my mathematics class?” asked Jessica. I was standing at the left side of the room. I had asked session participants for questions. The participants had been reading about various evidence-based strategies. That question made my mind go blank. “What did I know about using jigsaw method in a mathematics classroom?” While I could extrapolate its application, I didn’t have specific examples for math like I did for science or history.

How Should I Have Responded?

When you get a tough question you’re not prepared for, it’s an opportunity to invite further discussion and learn more. While I had a response that appeared to satisfy the questioner, I felt like I had responded with less than 100% certainty. For me, the response should have had these three components:

A quick overview of the jigsaw method, perhaps with a hands-on activity
A specific example of how a teacher could implement the jigsaw method in their classroom, no matter the grade level.
Stories from those who had put the jigsaw method into action in a math classroom

In this situation, I didn’t have the second two. So, I wrote this blog entry to deepen my learning. Let’s explore these three specific response components.

Component #1 – An Overview of The Jigsaw Method

On the website, Jigsaw Your Mathematics Classroom, the author shares several goals:

Learn the jigsaw method and how to implement it in a mathematics classroom.
Design a jigsaw lesson that can be used in your mathematics classroom.
Develop an assessment that appropriately evaluates student understanding after the completion of a jigsaw lesson.

“The jigsaw technique is a simple, well-structured cooperative learning structure that emphasizes both individual accountability and achievement of group goals, both of which are critical for improved student learning in cooperative settings.” (Source: On the Cutting Edge course design workshops)

You could walk people through a jigsaw activity, or have them watch “The Gummy Bear” video.

The Gummy Bear Jigsaw

Take a moment to watch this gummy bear video featuring The Jigsaw Classroom:

Then, reflect on these questions:

What is the significance of the color of the gummy bears?
What are the gummy bears expected to do?
What is the difference between the groups before and after they switch around? Why is this important? What did they do after they switched groups?
What does the teacher do while the gummy bears are working? What suggestions could you make about the teacher’s role during this activity?

What a fun way to introduce students and/or educators to the jigsaw method. Let’s study it a bit more.

How the Jigsaw Method Works

There are multiple types of jigsaw methods. The main problems with incomplete jigsaws techniques appear below:

Less effective readers share misinformation with the group. Everyone gets the misinformation, interfering with understanding.
A failure to see how their assigned part fits within the whole
Critical thinking that results from analysis and synthesis doesn’t happen (Source: ASCD’s Let’s Get Jigsaw Right).

The successful jigsaw method takes these steps:

Home group splits up into expert groups to explore a specific aspect of a topic.
Regroup into home groups to discuss findings from each expert group.
Split into expert groups to consider the whole in light of home group insights.

In step one, students focus on exploring the information offered. In step two, students engage in summarizing, questioning, and clarifying content with others. In step three, students bring their insights from the home group back to their expert groups. A critical part of the third step is meta-cognition, synthesis, and analysis. This results from conversations with others in the group.

You can see how this works in this 2011 video featuring Elliot Aronson, credited with the jigsaw method. You can find a bank of activities that rely on the jigsaw method online. Let’s take a look at the structure of one activity,

Why the Jigsaw Method Works

Wondering why the jigsaw method works? Here’s a bit of background on this powerful instructional strategy:

The jigsaw technique is a method of organizing classroom activity that makes students dependent on each other to succeed. It breaks classes into groups and chunks assignments into pieces that the group assembles to complete the (jigsaw) puzzle. The Jigsaw Method enjoys an effect size of 1.20. This makes it one of the most effective instructional strategies you can use.

This effective strategy can accelerate student growth up to three years in one academic year. In fact, the jigsaw method involves students reading new information. They discuss it with others who have read the same information. This allows them to extend their learning. Then, students move to new groups where they teach their peers about what they read. They also learn new information from group members (Source: John Hattie, Keynote address, TCEA 2022 Convention and Exposition).

Other Benefits of the Jigsaw Method

Wondering if there are other benefits to the jigsaw method? There are. Here are a few:

Direct engagement by the students with the material. Instead of having material presented to them, they are able to interact with the material directly, which fosters depth of understanding.
Practice in self-teaching. This is one of the most valuable skills we can help them learn.
Practice in peer teaching. This skill requires students to understand the material at a deeper level than simply asking to produce on an exam.
Improvement in social-emotional learning. This includes increased feelings of autonomy, competence, and intrinsic motivation (Hänze & Berger, 2007).
Speaking the language of the discipline. The jigsaw method helps students become more fluent in the use of discipline-based terminology
Team-building. Students contribute to the group and take ownership of the work.
Encouraging cooperation, active learning, and promoting the valuing of all students’ contributions (source)

Now that you know a little about the jigsaw method, let’s dig into specific examples for mathematics.

Component #2 – Specific Examples for Math

Many of the examples you will find online for the jigsaw method focus on science, history, and/or nonfiction texts. But what about mathematics? Is the jigsaw method only for literacy? Let’s take a look.

Below, you will find two examples. You may find that certain grade levels and types of activities may lend themselves to the use of the jigsaw method. The key is in how you set up the expert group organizers.

Example One: Transformations and Symmetry

jigsaw math — Source: Lindsey Cain, Literacy Strategies for the Math Classroom

As you can see in the example above, Lindsey’s effort employs jigsaw to support a mathematics lesson. The jigsaw method organizer that students rely on differs from the one you might use in a science or history classroom. The questions, as you will see below, are more focused. Sentence stems include:

What is…
In your own words…
Look…translate…
Draw your own example

Each organizer specific to an expert group is customized to a specific action that students must take. Each expert group engages in a transformation and symmetry activity.

Example Two: Algebra II

While a lot of time is spent on “organizing a jigsaw,” it’s a lot less time than you might think. Katie Elder, an instructional coach, describes how a colleague led an Algebra II class (edited for brevity):

Preparation

-On the day of the lesson, the teacher shared the learning objective and reviewed the academic vocabulary with students.

-Each student received their own organizer with one problem on it, the problem that their expert
group would solve.

-The students worked in an independent way, without interaction with peers, on their problems.

Expert Group

-They students met together in their pre-assigned expert groups.

-Working together, they discussed the problem, shared their responses, and looked for errors in their work.

-After five minutes, each student felt sure that they could explain the procedure for solving the problem to their home groups.

Home Group

Students returned to their home groups to share how they solved the problem.

After students listen to problem-solving approaches in their home group, they jot down any insights.

Expert Group

Students return to their expert group to share insights other students in their home group may have shared.

After all students have shared insights gleaned from the home group, students leave the expert group and return to home group one last time or engage in a shared activity (e.g. Flipgrid).

The Teacher’s Role

The teacher walked from group to group, paying special attention to the groups who had received the lowest-level problem, but answering questions and guiding all students toward correct solutions.

When students moved again, this time into home groups, each student took a turn using a small whiteboard to write out their problem, wait while the other students copied it onto their organizer, and then “worked the problem” on the board, discussing each step. To lower anxiety and increase confidence, the students considered low in their groups went first (students were grouped into X, Y, and Z expert groups, so these were X students). Then Y students taught their problem, and then Z students. Again, the teacher visited each table, listening to explanations, offering suggestions, and answering questions.

“The lesson went well. Students responded positively, and there was 100% engagement in each of the classes. Although we have not had time to check in with the teachers to look at test score data, the math teachers whose classes we worked with both commented on how glad they were to see some of their low students speak with added confidence and some of their quiet students speak at all! One teacher even commented on how a student who perpetually “checks out” was working well beyond his normal contribution.” (Source: Katie Elder guest post)

Component #3 – Jigsaw in the Math Classroom

Student inactivity in a math classroom can cause low interest in mathematics. One strategy that increases students’ activity is the jigsaw method (Source: Adopting Jigsaw Instructional Strategy for Improving Students’ Interest in Mathematics). One question the researcher in the aforementioned study asked:

“Do students differ in interest towards mathematics when taught using jigsaw, Individual Personalization and Conventional Strategies?”

Compared to other approaches, jigsaw enjoyed the highest interest of the three approaches explored. Findings suggested these conclusions:

Mathematics teachers should embrace the use of the jigsaw method, along with traditional methods of teaching math.
Teachers should not discriminate among students with high, average, or low socioeconomic status.

Another study focused on high school students revealed these findings:

Teachers should design activities through the jigsaw technique to promote mathematics understanding.
Students should practice, solve, manipulate, reason, and perform via the jigsaw technique.
The jigsaw technique helps students make connections across mathematical skills and concepts, and other disciplines.
After using the jigsaw technique, students should have time to discuss how they perform in solving mathematical activities.

Addendum: My Approach to the Jigsaw Method

Here are the steps I use when relying on the jigsaw method. I put them together after reviewing how others organize their jigsaw activities. You may want to review my steps, as well as how others approach them, then write your own.

Reminder: Don’t cut out those final steps that includes experts returning to and from home groups to analzye and share findings from discussions. The more discussion about insights and additions, the more learning that happens.

In Your Home Group (5-10 minutes)

Students are divided into groups of three to six people each. This is your home group.
Number off from one to x so that each person in the group has a number.
Each member of the home group will be responsible for learning and teaching one “chunk” of content to your peers. Each content chunk corresponds to your assigned number.
Take a look at your content chunk. Spend about 8 minutes reviewing it (teacher adjusts timing as needed). Jot down the big takeaways or key points in this jigsaw notes organizer.
When time is up, go join your expert group, the people who have the same number as you, to begin the activity.

Expert Group (5-10 minutes)

Introduce yourself (1-2 minutes).
Share your takeaways with each other, with each learner, adding something not previously mentioned.
Discuss your insights and why you think those takeaways are important.
Return to your home group when time is up.

Home Group for Reporting (10 minutes)

You now have just two minutes each to teach the others in your group what you learned in your expert group.
Use the resources/notes you created as you share.

Expert Group for Reflection

Take one minute each to share your Home Group’s insights
What do those insights mean in light of what you know as Experts? Discuss.

Feature Image Source

Photo by Hans-Peter Gauster on Unsplash

June 21, 2022 2 comments

laptop with Gmail icon displayed center screen

Google Tips and Tricks

Five Gmail Add-Ons: Make Gmail Simple

by Miguel Guhlin June 13, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Google continues to change the look and feel of Gmail on the web. While some folks may embrace these changes to the interface, others may not. I’d like to share a few ways you can simplify and enhance the look and feel of Gmail.

Less Is More

Many software developers add complexity in the name of enhanced features. In his book, “Life is Simple,” the author Johnjoe McFadden highlights Ockham’s Razor. He tells the story of William of Ockham, a Franciscan monk in medieval times.

Created by author with elements from Wikimedia – https://tinyurl.com/ydb2fnhl

It can all boil down to simplicity in design. Antoine de Saint-Exupery says it this way:

“When there is nothing left to take away, you achieve perfection.”

Software like Sumatra PDF/ePub reader, and MPV video player, offer this simplicity. With the right add-on to Gmail, you can simplify the interface.

The Problem

For some folks, the sidebars that appear in Gmail’s web version aren’t an issue. But for others, they constrain the composition window, as shown below.

You can turn off Meet and Chat (the right-side panel) in your Gmail Settings:

But what about the left side panel? For that, let’s take a look at the first add-on I have for you.

Add-On #1: Simple Gmail Screen

Need a way to remove those pesky panels? Sometimes, you have MORE information than you want in Gmail. You can streamline the look of your Gmail inbox by removing extraneous content. Keep it simple.

Simplify Gmail screen, make the sidebar and top bar auto-hide.

This extension hides the top menu bar and left sidebar of Gmail. The hidden menus could then be re-activated via moving your mouse cursor to the edge of screen.

Here’s a video overview:

Get your preferred version: Chrome | Firefox

Add-On #2: Row Highlighter

Once you’ve removed the unnecessary, how can you improve what remains? One way is to rely on the Row Highlighter add-on. It does the following:

Highlights Gmail and Inbox rows on mouse over with nice and shiny colors.

Get your preferred version: Chrome | Firefox

Add-On #3: Trimless image:clip6

Tired of clicking the three little dots that appear at the bottom of an email message to see what’s come before? I know I do. Gmail represents expanded email content in a threaded discussion as three dots:

You can use the Trimless for Google Mail add-on to auto-expand the content. This can be a click-saver if you’re involved in many back-n-forth conversations. You can see it below, although I have blurred the content for privacy.

Get your preferred version: Chrome | Firefox

Add-On #4: Gmail Reverse Conversation

Getting lost in a threaded discussion? Wish you could see the latest message in a threaded email discussion at the top, rather than the bottom? Gmail Reverse Conversation can make that happen.

What’s more, this add-on also puts your Gmail-provided responses at the top so you can respond faster.

Get your preferred version: Chrome | Firefox

Add-On #5: Convert Gmail to PDF

Want to save your Gmail as a PDF? Sure, you could PRINT TO PDF, but there might be an easier approach. Use the Convert Gmail to PDF (locally) to save emails as PDFs. You get two buttons to work with and using them is easy. Click them to bring up a PDF document.

Here’s an explanation from the website:

“Convert to PDF Format” extensions aim to provide one-click PDF conversion for well-known services such as Gmail. In oppose to the other similar extensions, there is no server-side PDF conversion to protect user privacy.

There are two methods to convert the current page into PDF document. Either you can use the “simple” mode or the “print” mode. In the simple mode, the jsPDF library is used to convert your HTML document into PDF format.

Five Gmail Add-Ons

These are only five of the many Gmail add-ons you can add to simplify your Gmail experience. Try them out and see if you like less complexity.

Feature Image Source

Photo by Solen Feyissa on Unsplash

June 13, 2022 0 comments

Educational Research

Adapting Stoic Techniques: Critical Thinking, Part 2

by Miguel Guhlin June 8, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Ready to adapt more Stoic techniques to evidence-based strategies? Applying reason to and thinking deeply about life lies at the core of Stoic philosophy. Yet, the application of reason, also known as critical thinking, can be difficult. Let’s look at heuristics that can help.

It’s easy to think we’ve mastered critical thinking in a modern age. But it’s a process each person must learn and practice daily. In spite of past efforts, it remains important that educators show their students how to think critically.

…critical thinking appears among necessary outcomes at educational institutions. Yet, “it is not supported and taught…in daily instructions.” Why? “Teachers are not educated in critical thinking” (Source: Improve with Metacognition)

How can we better educate teachers on how to think so they can model this for students? One way might be to study evidence-based instructional strategies that work. Analysis of written evidence can prepare our minds. The diagram below might serve as one frame for analyzing what information is worthwhile.

If you’re an educator, you’re going to base your classwork on filtered information about what works. But analyzing research can be tough and not easy to do. And you can’t expect students to do this right away. First, they need to learn how to think.

Learning How to Think

When you improve how you think, you create an approach that promotes the following:

Learning a little, trying a little (through experience or study)
Reflecting on progress and mistakes
Making course adjustments based on this reflection
Trying again

One way to learn to think is through writing. As we write, we restructure what we know and seek to convey. This improves our higher-order thinking, says Robert Marzano.

Here’s what one research study had to say about it:

As an instructional method, writing has long been perceived as a way to improve critical thinking. Results indicated that the writing group significantly improved critical thinking skills. The nonwriting group did not. (source)

As a blogger, I often write list articles. That is, you make a list of points or highlight ideas. Then, you work through them one at a time, arranging them in a sequence that makes sense. It’s powerful and facilitates clearer thinking.

What’s exciting is when I come back a few days or weeks later, and ask myself, “Does this make sense? Did I explain this in the best way?” It’s exciting because my perception of what I shared has changed. That is, I’ve learned new information or had an experience. This has deepened my understanding.

Critical Thinking Processes

Being someone who thinks is hard. There are some situations that don’t need a lot of thinking to make a decision (System 1 thinking), while others do. The latter is System 2 thinking. Daniel Kahneman referred to these as fast or slow, respectively:

“System 1 operates automatically and quickly. It works with little or no effort and no sense of voluntary control”

“System 2 allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it. It includes complex computations” (as cited in source)

When writing, you experience slow thinking. We follow a checklist or list of steps that involve adding items to our memory. New information, mixed with long-term memory, finds a place in our minds. We leverage what we know to explain what we don’t fully comprehend. The more we experience, the more sense it makes.

Efrat Furst has a wonderful diagram that captures this:

Want to take advantage of writing as a way to enhance higher-order thinking skills (analysis, evaluation, creation)? Then don’t be afraid to give students a heuristic or checklist. I like to think of these as “formula writing.”

My Favorite Critical Thinking Heuristics

At the core of any educational experience is a need for philosophy, scientific thinking. And, of course, critical thinking processes. Go online, read social media, you will soon be awash in infographics. Each infographic will explore how to become a critical thinker. You can find some nice visuals in these resources:

The checklists I lean towards include the following:

Source: Wikimedia, George Polya’s Four Steps to Solving a Problem

Or, you might prefer this version:

Polya was a mathematician. That means the problem gets translated into a mathematical problem. Then, that problem is solved. The mathematical solution is translated back into an answer for the original problem. If you’re wondering how to do that, you and I have something in common. This site might help with that.

A Simple Problem

For example, I have to fly to three different places to attend an event. That will involve staying at hotels, renting a car, and packing clothes. How might I go about solving that problem? I’ll probably start with gathering some information, using Google’s new travel tool, Google Flights.

Or if you prefer a more math-oriented concern. You’ve found you need to retile or redo the linoleum in your kitchen. If I were to write out the steps to do that, that would involve critical thinking. Fortunately, someone else already has gone through the process.

Have your own problem and solution? Apply Polya’s approach and share your solution in the comments.

Translating Thinking into Writing

Translating Polya’s critical thinking steps into a writing might be fun. You can easily make a listicle out of the process. I’ll have to do that in my next blog entry. In the meantime, do what you can to teach students to learn how to think better. You’ll profit from the process, as well. I know I have in writing this blog entry.

Feature Image Source

Photo by Juan Rumimpunu on Unsplash

June 8, 2022 0 comments

Educational Research

Adapting Stoic Techniques to Evidence-Based Strategies, Part 1

by Miguel Guhlin May 25, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Like Leonardo Da Vinci, we must base our practice on sound theory. When we don’t, we fail to improve the thinking that underlies our efforts. How can educators find research shown to work in practice?

“Practice must always be founded on sound theory. Those who are in love with practice without theoretical knowledge are like the sailor who goes onto a ship without rudder or compass and who never can be certain wither he is going” (Source: Leonardo Da Vinci, 1510, as cited).

In the article the Da Vinci quote appears in, the author suggests five techniques to think better. Let’s explore the first in light of evidence-based, instructional strategies. This may provide some insight into why they work so well.

Technique #1 – Practice Negative Visualization

This is an approach where you imagine the effects of poor teaching. The goal is to develop more detailed plans that take into account what could go right as well as what might go wrong.

An Example of Negative Visualization

I am often reminded of when I first became aware of this technique. The principal at my elementary school in a small urban, inner-city district introduced me to it. “Let’s take a moment to write down everything that could go wrong.” At the time, we were planning on networking a computer lab with AppleTalk.

After a few minutes of brainstorming and throwing ideas at the wall, we had a list of possible problems. We then spent some time adjusting our plans to include workarounds or solutions. I later came to see this as a list of roadblocks and detours. Over the years, I’ve often listed roadblocks to spotlight obstacles. Then, brainstormed with the team on how to solve them.

Why Thinking Is So Hard

“That’s not going to happen,” I would sometimes hear from my team. This often resulted when a team member’s enthusiasm (or mine) interfered with thinking. We anticipated desirable results with little evidence about what would happen. We had visualized success and the benefits. We had a story about how great things would be. We were counting our chickens before the eggs hatched. “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm,” says Ralph Waldo Emerson. We must also plan for the unexpected.

Planning for the Unexpected

Adopting negative visualization was hard for me as a leader because I’m a “get it done” type of person. It meant planning for the unwanted and the unexpected. I don’t want to meditate long or deal with the conflict of figuring out why things won’t work. That’s a problem, right? I end up like the sailor in Da Vinci’s quote.

A process one can follow includes:

Identify projects you are wanting to start or are working on.
List the goals for each project.
Write down roadblocks to achieving each project’s goals.
Spend time asking yourself, “What detour could I put in place to circumvent this roadblock?” Write down the answer.
Decide what you might do if your detour is unsuccessful. How would that change the trajectory of your project?

Implementing negative visualization can improve your project management. It’s also a technique students can adopt.

“Nothing happens to the wise man against his expectation,” he wrote to a friend. “. . . nor do all things turn out for him as he wished but as he reckoned. And, above all he reckoned that something could block his plans.” (Source: Seneca, as cited)

What’s amazing, is that I overcome roadblocks through dumb brute persistence when learning. What if I took the time to get improve my thinking when learning? Over time, by improving how I approach learning new things, I can cut the pain of learning out. Or at the very least, realize that the process I am going through is normal. This eliminates the painful suffering that results from thinking, “I am inept. I am stupid. I am an imposter.” Instead, I find that I can plan for failure during learning.

Connecting Negative Visualization to Research

One evidence-based strategy that is powerful for students is Self-Reported Grades. Why is this is such a powerful instructional strategy? It puts the power of predicting progress towards meeting set goals in students’ hands. But it also gives you, as the teacher, the ability to encourage thinking improvement.

Encouraging Thinking Improvement

For students, there’s a certain power in negative visualization. Sure, they externalize their thinking, making it open for you to tinker with. It also has them stepping back from their goal(s) to do some cogitating. If you engage in negative visualization, you do the following:

Think and reflect about your goal, whether it’s the right goal.
List out what you are going to do to achieve that goal.
Ask yourself how it is possible to achieve it.
Reflect on your steps and afterward.
Collect data through your own efforts and from others.
Draw conclusions and then apply them to your efforts to become more successful.

No doubt, the strategy of Self-Regulation (d=0.54) is also relevant here. The Visible Learning Meta X database defines it in this way:

Self-regulated learner requires motivation (for instance, to attempt to solve a math problem), cognition (to think through the problem), and metacognition (to review whether they are performing the task correctly).

Get students to engage in negative visualization about their learning goals. When you can see what students are learning, you can push their learning. As students engage in prediction about how well they are going to do, they learn to self-regulate.

Rubrics for Self-Assessment

You may already be familiar with how well checklists and rubrics work, and why. I like Atul Gawande’s The Checklist Manifesto. Watch this summary for how to put checklists in place in your own life.

When students create a rubric, they are creating a checklist for success. Tools abound to make this process easier. Take the time to do the following:

Identify the learning goal
List key steps (with support from the teacher) to achieve it
Identify what may go wrong and
Write down your plan for overcoming roadblocks with detours

Find Your Way

This blog entry is the first in several applying popular techniques. These techniques come from philosophy and lend themselves to alignment with evidence-based teaching. Knowing the strategies that work in the classroom can provide a compass and help you find your way.

Feature Image Source

Created by author

May 25, 2022 0 comments

Content Creation

How to Encourage Digital Accessibility

by Miguel Guhlin May 18, 2022

written by Miguel Guhlin

Supporting digital accessibility remains a key priority for schools and organizations. As a blogger and website designer, I often despaired of my efforts in the area of digital accessibility. What actions should I take to make content more accessible for others? How could I better optimize my text for screen readers?

When I began working as a school district technology director, I was able to address the issue, and I’ll share several digital accessibility rubrics.

Did You Know about WAVE?
WAVE is suite of tools to help web you make your web content more accessible. Use the form at https://wave.webaim.org/, enter the web page address of your page and submit the form. You can find Firefox and Chrome extensions for evaluating pages. You can also find site-wide WAVE tools for evaluating pages. Learn More.

Why Make Content Accessible

For me, the answer is simple. When I don’t make content accessible, there is a world of people who are cut off from the content. As Kaitlyn Nielsen points out, accessible content improves access for all. She says:

Content is a critical part of your accessibility strategy. It improves the web experience for all users, not just people with disabilities.

In 2020, Raymond Rose, a TCEA member, wrote this as a comment on a previous blog entry:

“I wish that you’d include some information about making the website fully accessible (WCAG 2.1 AA). A survey of some 6k LEA websites a year ago found that only ~60% passed the webAim WAVE review.

We know that tool does not pick up all the accessibility issues. If teachers are doing websites for communications, they should be communicating with everyone.”

As you might surmise, there are a wealth of tools available to content creators. The question I have: How can we leverage these tools to improve digital accessibility? It’s an important question, and one that I can’t take credit for asking.

The Need for a Simple Rubric

In a recent TCEA Community chat, Raymond made an assertion I had to respond to.

“It would be nice if there were a simple rubric to assess digital accessibility,” said Raymond Rose. He then said, “Unfortunately, that doesn’t exist.” How could I resist the challenge of trying to make a simple rubric?

The rubric I curated and adapted addresses some key areas that Raymond identifies as important, as well as others. In his TCEA Community remarks, he highlights the United States Department of Justice. The US DOJ says:

…businesses “can currently choose how they will ensure” web accessibility. DOJ identifies the “Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and the Section 508 Standards. The federal government uses these for its own websites… (Source: Morgan Lewis)

Keep in mind that creating a simple rubric can be difficult. The topics are tough and can be technical. It’s important to have some way to assess the tools we use as educators.

I wish that you’d also include a comment about the accessibility or lack of accessibility for students with disabilities for each tool you review. Teachers should not be using a tool if it is not fully accessible. Source: Raymond Rose

It’s easy to get lost in the weeds, especially with a holistic or analytic rubric. To avoid confusion, I decided to use a single point rubric format.

The Single Point Rubric

Mary Dietz (2000) created the single point rubric. As Jennifer Gonzalez (Cult of Pedagogy) points out:

For teachers, they are easier and faster to create. Why? You don’t have to spend time thinking up ways people can fail to achieve the ideal.
For students, they are simpler to understand and process.

You can also use them to focus users on reflection, as you will see in my version of the single point rubric. It’s simple! The header has three columns:

Glows: How do you address this in your work?
Outcome(s): Identify intended outcome
Grows: How can you get better at this in your work?

When I first started, I had more complex column headers. I stripped out unnecessary words. The rest of the rubric tries to do the same. Give it a try, either for your organization or for your content and resources.

View complete rubric | Get a copy of the Google Doc

Reading and reflecting on the Grows question for my own work, I could see there might be room for growth. How would such indicators and questions cause your organization to grow?

More Rubrics and Resources

What? You wish there were more rubrics? You wish the rubric above addressed more areas? You may be longing for more complexity. If you’d like to see other examples, explore this Wakelet Collection.

View Wakelet Collection

Feature Image Source

Screenshot by author

May 18, 2022 0 comments

Newer Posts

Older Posts