Monthly Archives: May 2007

Handy online file converter

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Now that Microsoft has released a new version of Office with a different default file format, we’re starting to have kids show up at school unable to open a document that they created at home. The version we have at school is now one generation behind, and with the cost of buying new licenses and the training necessary to get our staff up to speed on the new interface, it’s going to stay that way for a while.

We’ve identified a couple solutions. First, the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack will add compatibility with the new format to the older versions of Office programs on Windows. It also patches the Microsoft “Viewer” applications.

Another approach, and one that works for Macs, is to use Zamzar. Zamzar is a really cool online file conversion utility for dozens of document, image, music, and video formats. To use the site, you upload your file, select what format you’d like to have it converted to, and wait for them to email the new file to you. It really works.

Strategies for handling simultaneous edits

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Here’s part of an email I received recently:

I’m trying to find a way to work with a wiki with my students. We’re trying to do some collaborative writing type activities. I want them to work in real time in the same document so a wiki seemed perfect. However, because we don’t allow email access I need them to do it without registering as a user of the wiki (the only way I know would require an email address to register). I tried it with several different types of wikis, but every time some peoples’ work was lost. It seemed like when someone saved what they had entered, it deleted what someone else had typed. I thought working in a table might help since they would have a specific place to type and not actually be entering in the same space, but that didn’t show any real improvement. Unfortunately, we don’t have Moodle at this time – maybe next year – since that would probably eliminate our registration problems.

My strategy has alway been to divide up the wiki editing into smaller chunks of content on multiple wiki pages to reduce the chances of editing collisions. It’s far from a perfect solution. Google Docs would work, but the lack of student email accounts would prevent that.

Is there a better solution out there? Is there a wiki engine that support simultaneous edits gracefully? I’m all ears.

Tricking administrators into using technology

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HirePodder screenshot

I’m a pretty sneaky guy, and I believe in the power of leaders leading with technology. So when our Director of H.R. asked me if I had any ideas about how we could streamline the process of recording applicant interviews, I thought it was a great opportunity to get the rest of the administrators podcasting.

So we bought a bunch of 30GB iPods with Griffin iTalk microphones for the principals and district administrators. We use a very structured interview process which ensures that the administrators can trust one another’s evaluations. That means that one elementary principal can interview a candidate and put that person’s interview recording into a pool that all the other elementary schools can draw from. The whole process goes like this:

  1. Record (it’s a one-click operation with the iTalk)
  2. Connect the iPod to the computer and transfer the WAV file
  3. Compress the interview to MP3 format
  4. Upload the file to a special area of one of our servers
  5. Subscribe to a podcast feed that delivers all of the interviews for a given licensure area

No more sending cassette tapes around the district. Everything is password protected to ensure that only authorized people can upload or subscribe to interview podcast feeds.

I told my colleagues that I was treating this like a gateway drug to get them hooked on podcasting and digital media in general. How cool would it be for principals to be the ones on the frontier leading the charge for innovative uses of technology in the classroom? With a totally new web site going live in the fall (more on that later), I’ve challenged each of them to blog and podcast regularly next year. And wouldn’t you know that the iPod and iTalk mic each of them has makes a perfect little podcast recording platform. Sneaky aren’t I?

The danger of impatience

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If there’s a distinguishing characteristic of educational reform, and reform efforts in general, it’s the lack of patience in sustaining difficult effort over time. We criticize students who can’t seem to exercise delayed gratification, but don’t seem to notice that educators, government officials, and the general public aren’t any better.

Reference: Taylor, Sharon, and Ivor Macfarlane. ITIL Small-scale Implementation. London: TSO, 2005.

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