CommonThreads in NYC

About Jason Shiroff

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I teach fourth and fifth grade at The Odyssey School in Denver, Colorado. This is an amazing Expeditionary Learning school. I also serve as the Technology Liaison at the Denver Writing Project.

Pages from Paige's Blog

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On the Eve of the Workshop

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Tech Terms and Resources

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About Blogs

To Matt Huggin's "55 Essential Articles Every Serious Blogger Should Read"
To SupportBlogging
As "an opportunity for students, teachers, administrators, parents, and others to help promote an understanding of the benefits of educational blogging," SupportBlogging! is an invaluable resource offering linked lists of blogs, bloggers, and blog builders.
To Drupal
"Drupal is a free software package that allows an individual or a community of users to easily publish, manage and organize a wide variety of content on a website. Tens of thousands of people and organizations have used Drupal to power scores of different web sites, including community web portals, discussion sites, corporate web sites, intranet applications, personal web sites or blogs, aficionado sites, E-commerce applications, resource directories, and social networking sites."
To Edublogs
Edublogs "host[s] tens of thousands of blogs, provide[s] an enterprise blogging solution for schools and other educational institutions, and continue[s] to develop and support what [they] hope is the best blogging platform and community for educators, anywhere." The favorite platform of many, many NWP bloggers.
To Blogger
Blogger is "a small . . . team in Google focusing on helping people have their own voice on the web and organizing the world's information from the personal perspective. Which has pretty much always been [their] whole deal." Tracy's favorite blogging platform to date.

About Digital Storytelling

About Podcasting

To Phillip Terrone's "What Is Podcasting"

About Wikis

About Other Resources

To Lunarpages: low-cost web hosting
To SurveyMonkey: free and fee-ed online survey building, administrating, and analyzing platform
To Skype: free and fee-ed online communication platform providing IM, video conferencing, and telephone / long-distance calling services

RWP: Across the Network: Something Brilliant Here

2007-11-12T12:22:00.003-08:00

Please follow this link to download Tracy's PowerPoint presentation.

Tracy's Tech-Leadership Turmoil at Tech Matters 2006 (from a writing activity asking us why we attended TM06 and how we would use those resources to build site capacity)
How do I gather a Tech Team? The thing I really want to write is how can I get out of the way responsibly? How can I recapture the joy of discovery in such a way as to include others in that joy and to get them to want to include others? What does RWP's TM07 look like? I need it on the HSU campus. One week. How long are the days? Let's find good reading and post it and read it and respond to it. Let's develop workshops. Let's begin with what we know. Let's think about how we learn. Let's think about what questions we have. Let's plan the year-long (semester-long?) inservice. Let's sell it to schools. Let's coach each other. Let's ask for help before we practice our workshops. Let's find out who is good at what. Let's each commit to try one new thing. It's got to be a time for play, for experimentation, for development that helps us and our future audience.

Recruiting and Nurturing a Site Tech Team
The Redwood Writing Project sponsored a site leadership retreat, and a night away in a Garberville hotel brought junior and senior TCs into the leadership fold.

A Tech Team Is Born

Fortified by a modest stipend, our intrepid foursome signed on for a year and began developing individual tech projects. We know that before we can preach, we must practice. We met monthly to share tech readings, successes, challenges, suggestions, dreams, and questions. By January, we were ready to start planning the First Annual Redwood Writing Project Advanced Technology Institute. Following advice shared at the previous year's Annual Meeting, the Tech Team agreed to eschew event publicity, opting, instead, to hand pick our participants. That was the easy part. The hard part involved shaping the ATI itself.

A Tech Institute Is Born--and Reborn--and Born Again

Iteration #1: One week-long summer session with monthly school-year f2f follow-up sessions; one workshop delivery per participant.
Iteration #2: Two three-day summer sessions (June and August) with monthly school-year virtual follow-up eSessions; one workshop delivery per participant.
Iteration #3: The One That Stuck

Two three-day summer sessions (June and August): June for the tech smorgasbord and August for tech project planning.
Monthly participant-generated writing prompts.
One workshop coaching session per participant.
One in-house practice workshop delivery.
One "public" workshop delivery: school-site, Spring Conference, Summer Institute, ATI2008, or inservice delivery.

Sample Tech Projects
Follow this link to Vicki's BritLit Blog; Harriet's Digital Story Blog; Mauro's Family of Moodles, Wikis, and Blogs; and Tracy's Wiki Project.

On the Horizon
One day, we hope to have gathered enough experience and information for a tech workshop coaching brochure / webpage. In the meantime, the RWP Tech Team has re-upped for another year. And planning for ATI2008 has begun. Stay tuned. . . .

MBWP: With a Little Help from My Friends

2007-11-12T12:22:00.001-08:00

So, as I reflect upon the strength of "Common Threads," I can't help but think of the Beatles tune: I Get By With a Little Help from my Friends. Actually it was a LOT of help from my friends Cynthia, Tracy, and Jason.

We are presenting at the 2007 NWP Meeting because we have been and are doing work across sites, across the network, and for our individual sites. Although the work that we are doing at our local sites is significant and important, it is the work we're doing amongst ourselves, our collaboration as colleagues and friends that strengthens us ; and this significantly impacts our own sites.

~Paige

DWP: Tongue Tied and Knotted up

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AWP: When the Thread Unravels, Darn!

2007-11-12T12:21:00.001-08:00

What happens when the best laid plans really do go astray? That's the question I had to ponder many times this year as I struggled to implement the plans outlined in my mini-grant proposal. My goal was to begin to help the TC's of the Alcorn Writing Project become more technology literate while at the same time infuse technology into all areas of our site work. I soon learned that, while my vision was shared by the other members of our leadership team, it was difficult to bring them out of their comfort zone as far as technology is concerned. Our journey was a long one, fraught with many knots and holes. However, we persevered. One important lesson I would like to share with you is this one: Don't give up. When the thread unravels--darn!

Introduction

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Come travel with Common Threads--Cynthia, Jason, Paige, and Tracy-- as we unravel for you the journey we've made from the Tech Matters 06 Institute to the 2007 National Writing Project Annual Conference. Re-live our ups and downs, our heartbreaks and successes, our frustrations and rewards as we worked to build technology leadership capacity in our respective writing project sites. See how our design all comes together.

Mauro Staiano's Family of Moodles, Wikis, and Blogs

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Eureka High School English Department Wiki

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Mauro Staiano's CaliforniaLearn Moodle Pages

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British Literature: Seniors 2008

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New DWP Website

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The DWP decided to move from a static HTML-based website to a Content Management System. Our new website enables site leaders to add and change the content of the website directly. This cuts out some work for the webmaster and keeps the site more dynamic. We can also add functionality (such as blogging, forums, videos, etc) much easier.

Our new website is build on Drupal.

Here is our new website: denverwritingproject.org

Paige Baggett

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Paige Baggett is the technology liaison and new director for the Mobile Bay Writing Project in Alabama. Paige is an assistant professor in the College of Education at the University of South Alabama where she is also assistant director of an Arts in Education grant. In addition to promoting writing as a vital form of literacy, Paige teaches undergraduate and graduate art education courses for elementary education majors. Check out her ART TALK Wiki!

Paige can be reached at pbaggett@usouthal.edu or 251-380-2862.

Jason Shiroff

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Cynthia Calvert

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Cynthia Calvert is the Technology Liaison for Alcorn Writing Project in southwest Mississippi. She teaches English, Oral Communication, and Written Communication at Wilkinson County Christian Academy.

She can be reached at cynthia_calvert@yahoo.com or at 601.888.6855.

Tracy Duckart

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Tracy is the Technology Co-Director for the Redwood Writing Project in Northern California. She also teaches undergraduate composition and serves as the Acting Composition Director for the English Department at Humboldt State University.

She can be reached at tdd2@humboldt.edu or 707.826.5958. Follow this link to visit her website.

Alcorn Writing Project

2007-11-04T19:04:00.000-08:00

Technology Survey
The Three Techies
AWP TC News
AWP Classroom Discussion
AWP's Six Word Stories
AWP Rubrics
Proposed Agenda for AWP Technology Institute

Google Docs

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CommonThreads at TM06

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Listen to our Tech Matters 06 Podcast.

Technology Survey

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Our Technology Team developed this survey collaboratively using a Google Doc. Click this link to view the Technology Survey http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dgvs3dwx_4fm57xx

Tracy's Minigrant Proposal and Final Report

2007-11-04T12:14:00.000-08:00

Advancing Technology: Building Capacity, Initiating Inservice, and Sharing the Love at the Redwood Writing Project

Summary
This minigrant proposes to share the joys and responsibilities of site leadership with Redwood Writing Project TCs who revel in the technological. “Advancing Technology” is a multi-staged project, one that builds incrementally upon structures currently in place—an established leadership team, a revamped website, a functional blog, and a nascent wiki—to create ever-widening support structures for continuity, inservice delivery, and site administration. It is a plan for an advanced technology institute that empowers a tech cadre and that eventuates in ongoing technology inservice for classroom teachers, and it is supported by collaboration with three other Writing Project sites initiated at Tech Matters 2006.

Project Description
Radical site budget cuts forced radical site staffing cuts which forced radical site leadership restructuring which took a lot longer than it should have and which heaved us, blinking and breathless, into an NWP-sanctioned reorganization year. From those birth pangs, however, has emerged an amazing six-person Leadership Team: experienced and new TCs working side by side to learn the business and resurrect the site. From those birth pangs, we have learned that no one person has to accomplish everything on her own, that others are available, eager, and able to shoulder responsibilities. We are now committed to building leadership capacity so the work we do is not limited by either our number or our imagination.

To that end, the Leadership Team has scheduled a retreat to which each of us will bring two TCs interested in lending their expertise to more specialized tasks. For instance, I am recruiting two tech-savvy TCs who will form RWP’s new Tech Team. Ultimately, this Tech Team will plan and implement a week-long invitational on the Humboldt State University campus (with its free facilities access) during which techie TCs can share what they know, learn from each other, reflect on their practice, and develop workshops for sharing their best tech practices with other teachers—all the elements of our Summer Institute model. During this Advanced Tech Institute, we will begin with what we know. We will think about how we learn. We will think about what questions we have. We will find good reading and post it and read it and respond to it. We will each commit to trying one new thing. We will develop workshops. We will coach each other. We will plan a year-long inservice series and determine how best to sell it to schools. We will send two or three of our best workshops to the Summer Invitational Institute. We will post our workshop materials to the site blog, and we will contribute to the site wiki.

How the Project Meets Grant Criteria
Furthering Site Core Work and Priorities
The proposed project infuses technology into three of the four core areas:

• Summer Invitational Institute: Advanced Tech Institute fellows will support the SII in both form and content by presenting demonstration workshops that address technology-supported instruction. In addition, technology content can serve as a recruitment tool: enticing applicants with new content and with opportunities to meet California state standards for teacher and student technology proficiency.

• Continuity: The Tech Team and the Advanced Tech Institutes will provide both new and long-standing TCs with an opportunity to continue to enjoy the support of the Writing Project.

• Inservice: The Advanced Tech Institute will not only fuel TCs; it will also become the basis for a subsequent year-long inservice series focused on technology. The series will offer much-needed quality professional development delivered to teachers by teachers, and, again, it will provide a vehicle to achieve California technology-education standards.

• Technology Liaison as Site Leader
My role in site leadership has never been tenuous: I have long served on advisory boards, event-planning and continuity-coordination teams, and institute leadership. The proposed project provides an opportunity to expand technology leadership capacity; it will also insure that both administrative and inservice technology needs are met.

• Broadening Technology Liaison Network Knowledge Base
While attending Tech Matters 2006, Paige Baggett (Mobile Bay Writing Project, AL), Cynthia Calvert (Alcorn Writing Project, MI), Jason Shiroff (Denver Writing Project, CO), and I (Redwood Writing Project, CA) formed a networking group we dubbed Common Threads. In addition to supporting each other as we embark upon similar projects, we are looking forward to sharing the fruits of our collaboration by going public: we have already scheduled several Skype sessions for developing a proposal to NWP’s 2007 Annual Meeting and for penning a subsequent article (for The Voice, The Quarterly, the TM06 blog, or local site venues). Writely will serve as the platform for that collaboration—a platform to which other TLs have access. Common Threads humbly suggests that given the recent TLN attention to tech teams, other TLs might find some useful information, inspiration, and/or cautionary clues in our work.

Participants in RWP’s Advanced Tech Institutes will also post their workshop materials—including bibliographies—to our site blog, effectively forming an eLibrary to serve teachers and TLs alike and to entice RWP members to their site’s blog.

Timeline
Please note that I am committed to play an active role in each of the teams listed below. As the Tech Team evolves, individual members will assume primary responsibility for emerging tasks—brochure design, blog management, and the like—and that evolving responsibility will be reflected in the Three-Month Progress Report.

Activities	Responsible Individuals	Anticipated Completion Date
Begin Leadership Retreat Planning	RWP Leadership Team	August 3, 2006
Finalize Leadership Retreat Planning	RWP Leadership Team	October 4, 2006
Leadership Retreat	RWP Leadership Team, Tech Team, and Inservice Teams	October 21-22, 2006
Advanced Tech Institute Planning Session	RWP Tech Team	November 2006
Common Threads Meeting in Nashville	Common Threads	November 17, 2006
Advanced Tech Institute Planning Session (Including Needs Assessment)	RWP Tech Team	January 2007
Three-Month Progress Report	RWP Tech Team	January 31, 2007
Advanced Tech Institute Planning Session (Including Nominations and Promotional Materials)	RWP Tech Team	February 2007
Skype Conversations with Common Threads Team	Common Threads	March 2007
Advanced Tech Institute Planning Session	RWP Tech Team	April 2007
Leadership Mini-Retreat	RWP Leadership Team, Tech Team, and Inservice Teams	May 2007
Skype Conversations with Common Threads Team	Common Threads	June 2007
Advanced Tech Institute	RWP Tech Team	June 2007
Advanced Tech Institute Debriefing	RWP Tech Team	June 2007
Selected Demonstration Workshops for Summer Invitational Institute	Advanced Tech Institute Fellows	July 2007
Technology Inservice Menu Brochure Production	RWP Tech Team and Advanced Tech Institute Fellows	July 2007
Final Report	RWP Tech Team	September 1, 2007
Publish Workshop Materials and Annotated Bibliographies to RWP Blog	RWP Tech Team and Advanced Tech Institute Fellows	Academic Year 2007-2008
Technology Inservice Series	RWP Tech Team and Advanced Tech Institute Fellows	Academic Year 2007-2008
Skype Conversations with Common Threads Team	Common Threads	September 2007
Skype Conversations with Common Threads Team	Common Threads	October 2007
Present at NWP Annual Meeting	Common Threads	November 2007
Publish Article	Common Threads	December 2007

Dissemination Plan
In addition to the delivery systems described above—making collaboration sessions public, presenting an Annual Meeting session, publishing an article, and establishing an eLibrary on the RWP blog—the proposed project provides for local dissemination via SII workshops, an RWP technology inservice brochure (electronic and print), and event descriptions on the RWP website. Finally, the RWP Tech Team and Advanced Tech Institute fellows will continue the work begun at TM06 on Geek Goodies, a wiki devoted to celebrating all things techie, nudging it ever closer to the rich national resource it can be.

Final Report

Briefly describe the proposed plan of work. Please restate the goals your site had for this work and describe the progress you have made in accomplishing them during this period of time. Attach any documents, materials and resource links that have been developed or distributed that might help to illustrate your work.

This minigrant proposed to share the joys and responsibilities of site leadership with Redwood Writing Project TCs who revel in the technological. I envisioned “Advancing Technology” as a multi-staged project, one that would build incrementally upon structures then in place—an established leadership team, a revamped website, a functional blog, and a nascent wiki —to create ever-widening support structures for continuity, inservice delivery, and site administration. I envisioned an advanced technology institute that would empower a tech cadre and that would eventuate in ongoing technology inservice for classroom teachers. I also knew I could rely on the supportive collaboration initiated at Tech Matters 2006 among three other Writing Project sites.

Goals		Progress
G.1 Recruit, nurture, and sustain a site Tech Team		Mission accomplished. RWP’s Tech Team is four strong, and I am confident that several of this year’s ATI participants will join the ranks, organically, as a result of the follow-through eSessions and workshop presentation opportunities/requirements in their future.
G.2 Plan and implement a week-long Advanced Technology Institute (ATI)		Mission accomplished. Eight TCs--four participants, three facilitator-participants, and I—all spent three days in June and three days in August enjoying RWP’s first ATI. Follow-through eSessions and dissemination requirements will follow.
G.3 Support the Invitational Summer Institute and develop a tech-focused inservice series with workshops developed during the ATI		Mission marginally accomplished; progress ongoing. Two Tech Team members presented a workshop at our ISI’s Guest Day, and ATI folks are slated for two tech sessions during the ISI’s Spring Conference, but this is the current extent of our intersection with our core program. ATI facilitators and participants alike have committed to presenting a tech workshop at a venue of their choice—a baby step we anticipate will grow into a full-blown inservice series as well as to future ATIs and increased ISI integration.
G.4 Develop a library of tech-focused information on the site blog		Mission not accomplished. We learned quickly that the blog is not the best venue for the eLibrary. We are using the wiki and the ATI blog instead and reserving our site blog for its original purpose: the ISI’s eAnthology.
G.5 Grow the site wiki		Mission marginally accomplished; progress ongoing. GeekGoodies has become the repository for the resources ATI participants are collecting for their tech projects as well as a narrative that will evolve into a tips section.
G.6 Continue collaboration with CommonThreads colleagues and publish the results of our collaboration		Mission accomplished. Without these wonderful people and their frequent encouragement and inspiration, insights and contributions, the RWP Tech Team would never have accomplished its goals. CommonThreads have accepted a flattering invitation to present at the 2007 Annual Meeting, and we have been keeping a record of our progress on GoogleDocs with an eye to eventual publication.

We know that unexpected challenges and circumstances occur in our work. We are interested in learning about the struggles, challenges, and questions that have developed from your site’s minigrant project. What changes, if any, to the original proposal were made? What have you learned or how has your thinking been affected as a result? How might these insights affect future work?

C.1 A Less-than-Tech-Savvy Tech Team
I had hoped to recruit tech-savvy TCs to the RWP Tech Team, but while the folks who accepted the invitation are admittedly tech curious, they initially functioned more as a leadership team than a tech cadre. Consequently, the ATI became by necessity The Tracy Show; at the same time, the team was invaluable in shaping the experience. I got to focus on setting up the blog and writing GoogleDocs directions and the like because the team nurtured the Big Picture and made sure I didn’t pummel participants with technology. They also performed a surprise metacognitive function: helping us all to learn more about how to learn more about teaching teachers to teach with technology.

C.2 Recruitment
I was astonished when inveterate techie TCs, people I know personally and with whom I have happily worked in the past, refused the invitation to join the Tech Team; I was shocked when these very same smart, capable, friendly people even refused to return phone calls and email messages. I need to find out what I’m doing wrong on that front. . . . Fortunately, their unavailability made the current, wonderful Tech Team possible, so I am more than happy. (I would still like to find out what I did incorrectly, though.)

Following the advice a presenter offered at NWP’s 2006 Annual Meeting, I decided to hand select participants for the inaugural ATI, and I decided to keep the participant cap low, at 6. I was also adamant about selecting those participants from our TC pool: I wanted to focus on teaching with technology with folks who had already benefited from the Invitational Summer Institute. In May, we had a full complement from the full grade-level spectrum. Unfortunately, two succumbed quickly to overobligationitius, but four was a good number for us this year: our Tech Team facilitators needed almost as much support as our participants, and we could offer one-on-one support.

Several non-TCs in our service area were interested in the ATI, at least one of whom participated in the ISI this summer. This new TC has a guaranteed spot in the 2008 ATI, but the challenge now is how to keep her hooked and how to support non-TCs and/or non-ATI participants without simply offering a watered-down version of the ATI. Site directors, Tech Team members, and I are working on this “good problem” (NetHeads, for instance, and maybe a tech strand).

C.3 Configuring the Institute
Initially the Tech Team envisioned a week-long session in June for our ATI, but once we developed our goals (outlined at the end of our Advancing Technology Workspace GoogleDoc), we discovered that vision’s impracticality. Five consecutive days works beautifully for tech-junkie TLs at a Tech Matters Institute, but RWP’s less experienced, less confident participants needed an introduction to the Wide World of Technology and gentle, friendly immersion followed by time for personal research/practice before developing a tech project to launch with their students in the fall.

So instead of one week-long session, we realized that we needed three days in June for the Tech Team to offer its workshops based on our own tech projects and to ready participants for conceptualizing their own projects, for a baptism-by-fire episode wherein we threw participants into the deep end of the tech pool, sharing lots of tech resources and supporting them as they learned how to use most of those tech goodies. Then we needed three days in August, after participants had reflected and researched and practiced on their own, to help them shape the projects they want to run during the fall 2007 semester, effectively guiding them through the process the Tech Team experienced:

Between October 2006 and June 2007, team members planned and launched a modest tech project for application during the spring semester of 2007. One team member and I launched wiki projects. Another team member, who runs a writing center during the school year but teaches a writing class during the summer session, planned a new tech application to launch in June. Our fourth member experienced difficulty isolating a project and, ultimately, shared a collection of tech-related instructional strategies from her current repertoire (PowerPoint, Microsoft Word tools, etc.). We supported each other during our respective testing phases during our monthly meetings, and we each developed a workshop based upon that project for the June portion of the ATI. In that way, we modeled both the project itself--wikis, online peer response, blogging--as well as the making/doing project process.

So during the first ATI phase, team members helped ATI participants to embrace some new technology and to research their own projects.

During the August session, we helped participants plan their own projects, which they will pilot during the fall semester of 2007. During the spring semester of 2007, the Tech Team will help participants to develop and deliver their own workshops based on those projects (delivering their workshops is part of the contract they signed to get their stipends). In short, we will recreate for ATI participants the Tech Team's own process/progress. Ideally, those workshops will become the basis of the ATI 2008. We'll blend participant and Tech Team workshops into a year-long technology inservice menu and start the process all over again (with appropriate modifications, of course, learning from our mistakes and miracles).

One of my concerns is continued funding for the ATI and for the Tech Team. Perhaps in the future, without a TM minigrant to supplement site funding, we can present the ATI—without stipends—as a prerequisite for membership on the Tech Team, and team members can pull a stipend. I am in negotiation with RWP directors and Tech Team members to find creative solutions to the money shortage.

C.4 Vast Range of Tech Knowledge among Participants
One of our ATI participants is exceptionally experienced. I think his umbilical cord came equipped with a mouse port. For much of the institute, he was a blessing, and he cheerfully supported his fellow participants when I couldn’t respond to the raised hands quickly enough. We were all quite grateful for him, but I worried that the ATI was little more than a reiteration of what he already knew—with a stipend. Happily, I was wrong. At its most fundamental level, the ATI gave Mr. Tech Groovy valuable, concentrated opportunities to develop the tech projects he’d long longed for—the greatest gift a Writing Project event offers, in my opinion. I was also surprised when he latched on to the one team-member project I was convinced would scare everyone off (a valuable lesson in humility for me). Another participant, someone fresh from two digital storytelling workshops, is so tech clumsy, she can barely navigate email. She is an exceptionally talented teacher and author, but she has trouble locating the big, red switch on the computer. She gamely tried on all the technology we sent her way in June, but for someone whose email attempts are only 50% successful, our first three days together left her tense and, sometimes, defensive.

Fortunately, this wide range—the Do-All and the Dread-All and everyone in between—helped us all to consider audience and the ways in which we can fashion workshops interesting, applicable, and available to all abilities ranges.

C.5 My Own Tech Shortcomings
Two participants are interested in digital storytelling—a subject about which I know little—and we learned early that these women need to find their support elsewhere, not with me. They have both attended workshops and created digital stories, but their learning curve is still quite steep, and added to the pressure of their own interest is the hunger from other participants to craft their own dStories, to learn more about this medium. Instead of castigating myself for my own lack of knowledge and scrambling towards the nearest crash course, as I am wont to do, I suggested an Expert Export to the CommonThreads contingent, promising that if one of their techies could support my digital storytellers, I would support one of their techies with a project with which I am conversant. That eTrade is currently in the works.

C.6 Tech Project Development
(I should know better, but) I am surprised at the number of revisions required to launch a successful tech project. In the fall of 2006, I offered a wiki-project option to my critical writing students (for information about the most current iteration of this project, please follow this link); three students accepted the challenge and crafted their Critical Writing Wiki. While I was proud of their product, I was disappointed at the wiki’s scope: it offered a distillation of our course text, not a compilation and synthesis of information available outside our bindings. That was my fault, I know, because I wanted to see what would happen if I abdicated control, so I didn’t establish a strong enough platform from which the students with whom I work could leap.

For the spring of 2007, I platformed the heck out a wiki project for my first-year composition students—a project that started out mandatory and became optional, a transformation about which I will spare you the details. I established guidelines, followed them myself (Tracy's Dangling Participles Page), revised the guidelines, and set my students lose. (Follow this link to see what they accomplished.) Once again, I was both contented and concerned. These wiki pages functioned as wiki pages: annotated compilations of related sites. Unfortunately, they look remarkably like my sample page. They met the minimum criteria I set only because I insisted that they do so, and no pages exceeded those minimum criteria. This semester, in its third iteration, the wiki project for my first-year composition students is tied to their definition essay. I haven’t completed the assignment/project yet, but when I do, I will post it here. By December, the wiki page associated with this newest project will be available by following this link to wikiDic.

With all this in mind, I do not think we paid enough attention to help participants to fashion their own tech projects in the August ATI session. Instead of distributing a (very helpful) handout and explaining its purpose, I think we need to devote an entire morning or afternoon to completing the worksheet—that or distribute the worksheet sections throughout the August session. Perhaps, too, we can make the completed worksheet the first follow-through assignment. I will consult with the Tech Team on this issue. We are using GeekGoodies: A Collection of Technology Tools for Teachers by Teachers that I first launched at TM06 in Chico to collect our research and resources and to record our progress. This platform will eventually serve as a specialized eLibrary.

C.7 Budget Changes
Our reduced number of participants and the remaining participants’ interest in purchasing texts to support their progress (even though the Net is bulging with online texts!) suggested a reconfiguring of the stipends proposed in the original budget. Each participant and Tech Team member received a $50 supplement. We devoted a portion of our budget to supplies, coffee mugs, gum, and key chains that functioned as a combination door prize and let’s-keep-this-green-and-liquids-out-of-the-computer-labs deal. (I am proud to announce that everyone brought her/his mug to every session.) I also drew a bit of a stipend to reflect a percentage of the additional time I devoted to this inaugural session. Finally, we offset processing fees.

C.8 Configuring Tech Worskhops
Early Tech Team meetings were spent determining what, if any, differences exist between a tech workshop and a traditional 90-minute ISI-style workshop. Some team members insisted that a best practice is a best practice, whether it includes technology or not, and that it is more dangerous to send out an undertrained response-group facilitator, for instance, than an underexperienced blogger. Others, myself included, maintained that a tech workshop is a special animal, one that requires all the elements of a successful ISI-style workshop as well as ample time to become conversant with the technology. Experienced teachers already know classroom-management and essay-response practices; they do not necessarily already know how to launch and manage a wiki.

After I consulted with TM06 and CommonThreads colleagues, I was able to share their collected wisdom with the Tech Team, at which time we determined that tech workshops require a minimum of two hours, are best delivered in a computer lab, and must include time for participants to practice the technology.

Then, in July, one Tech Team member and I presented a 75-minute blogging workshop for the ISI’s Guest Day. Already you can see that we broke all three of our cardinal rules. While the workshop was marginally successful, it fulfilled only one of our goals: sharing the uses of blogging. Based upon post-presentation reflection and participant feedback from the blogging workshop, the Tech Team is beginning to draft a tech workshop manual of sorts: a guide to crafting successful tech workshops. It takes more than one workshop to author a manual, of course, so we’ve adopted this as a long-term project.

In what venue(s) can you imagine sharing what has been learned through your minigrant project (i.e. conference, workshop, publication, discussion forum, other)?

The CommonThreads cadre and the RWP Tech Team have been collecting our progress and our reflections on GoogleDocs; at some point, we can make this information public. CommonThreads have accepted a flattering invitation to present at the 2007 Annual Meeting, and we plan to pen an article.

In time, GeekGoodies will function both as a repository of resources for those interested in technology-aided instruction and as a library of suggestions from those who have undertaken the technology described there. Finally, the RWP Tech Team plans to offer a how-to guide for delivering technology workshops available for adoption and/or revision to other NWP sites.

Discuss future plans to complete, follow up, or build on the work of your minigrant project. We are especially interested in hearing about the ways in which this project helped to increase capacity and build leadership at your site.

In many ways, I feel we have only just begun; at the same time, I am proud of the progress the RWP Tech Team has made this year. We conceptualized and accomplished our first tech institute, we brought some latent leaders back into happily active duty, and we revitalized some resistant TCs back into the fold and into leadership roles. Already, new TCs are lined up for ATI 2008.

RWP site leadership has been extremely supportive. We meet Thursday to discuss the best way(s) to spend the limited funds directors have earmarked for tech endeavors, and ISI directors have made room for us in their spring conference—an event that will serve as combination recruitment tool, inservice delivery, and presentation practice.

I am absolutely confident that the momentum we generated this past year will carry us well into the future. One of the many benefits of any tech project is the trail it leaves: the availability of that trail and the foundation that trail lends to future projects. The ATI 2007 blog stands as both record and as draft for ATI 2008. GeekGoodies continues to grow (albeit slowly); GoogleDocs allows us to ruminate and to share those ruminations.

When I arrived at TM06 last July, I was a wilting ball of desperate, guilty resentment (and that was before I stepped off the plane into the Chico heat!). I felt responsible for tech EVERYthing at RWP and capable of so very, very little. When TM06 facilitators asked participants to craft their inquiry question, I wrote “How do I keep track of all the new stuff? How do I filter? How do I try everything? Isn't this a full-time job? I still can't get the RWP blog working like a blog should! . . . The thing I really want to write is how can I get out of the way responsibly? How can I recapture the joy of discovery in such a way as to include others in that joy and to get them to want to include others?” Now, fourteen months later, I look around and smile because I am learning the answers to most of those questions. You all gave me the time and support to do what I knew needed to be done, what I wanted to do—the greatest gift a Writing Project event bestows. You gave me CommonThreads (the amazing group of TLs who gave me the courage to step aside and the strength to step up), and you gave me a bunch of very cool tech tools.

You made the TL role fun again. I can never thank you enough.

Paige's Minigrant Proposal and Final Report

2007-11-04T12:13:00.002-08:00

Mobile Bay Writing Project: Leadership Unites and Ignites to Explore and Expand the Potential of the Digital Read/Write Web

The purpose and intent of the work facilitated by the minigrant was to strengthen the technological knowledge and expand utilization among the current leadership of the Mobile Bay Writing Project (MBWP) through intensive training, analysis, and reflection using open source technologies. A retreat among the leadership was attended to unite the leadership and ignite the initiative, followed by technology supported communication and continuity meetings that focused on utilization and dissemination of new technological knowledge and abilities and preparation of future Teacher Consultants. Additionally, collaboration with the technology liaisons from Writing Projects across the United States has occurred to share ideas and strategies for building technological prowess among leadership; increasing advocacy and dispersion of knowledge of technologies that facilitate and amplify communication through writing.

This minigrant strengthened the technological knowledge and utilization among the current leadership of the Mobile Bay Writing Project (MBWP). The retreat united the leadership and was followed by technology supported communication and continuity meetings that focused on utilization and dissemination of new technological knowledge and abilities. This grant supported the leadership of the MBWP and their efforts to understand the current digital landscape and more effectively prepare future Teacher Consultants to adapt to the stance of being an explorer of the changing technological landscape. Specifically it allowed site leadership during the retreat to consider strategic applications of technologies in the work of the site.

Collaboration with the technology liaisons from the Alcorn Writing Project, Denver Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project to share ideas and strategies for building technological prowess among leadership; increasing advocacy and dispersion of knowledge of technologies that facilitate and amplify communication through writing is also an ongoing result.

The goals and corresponding activities of this proposal were threefold:

First, promotion and facilitation of collaboration and communication among the MBWP leadership team; specifically about technology and its increasingly important role in what it means to become literate in an environment and context conducive to professional development through a retreat.

Secondly, the goal was to provide an intensive opportunity, with resources, to engage in training, and knowledge acquisition related to new open source technologies available on the read/write web. Aiming to allow MBWP leadership to increase awareness and competencies specifically with blogging (with images), wikis, podcasting, , and social networking; serving to introduce the leadership team to the use of collaborative technology-mediated communication as a genuine, purposeful practice that they may wish use in their own classroom practices as well as integrated with future professional development and site priorities, such as integration into the Invitational Summer Institute.

The third aspect of the goal of uniting and igniting educators to strengthen their technological awareness involved collaborating regularly with the technology liaisons from the Alcorn Writing Project, Denver Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project (Common Threads) to share ideas and strategies for building technological prowess among leadership. This network is currently reflecting upon the actions taken; comparing and contrasting ideas and outcomes, and preparing to present results at the 2007 NWP Conference.

Goals, Progress, Challenges, and Changes:

Goals
Projected Date
Progress, Challenges, and Changes

Contact MBWP Leadership and coordinate dates
September 15, 2006
accomplished

Technology Liaison meets with director to organize and plan for Technology Leadership Retreat
September 15, 2006
The original fall retreat planning was problematic due to schedule conflicts

Skype Conversation with Common Threads
October 15, 2006
This conversation took place on October 29th, 2006 (see Google Doc)

Technology Leadership Retreat: Unite & Ignite (attended by the MBWP Leadership)
November 2006
The retreat did not occur in November and was postponed until Spring

Online collaboration with MBWP Leadership to follow-up on personal and professional utilization of technologies explored at the Technology Leadership Retreat
November 2006—August 2007
This occurred following the spring retreat

Tech Talk

Newsletter Meeting
November, 2006
The paper version newsletter idea was abandoned and the website is in progress

Common Threads Meeting in Nashville
November 17, 2006
accomplished

Leadership meeting—continue work on Tech Integration of new tools; begin work on Tech SI ideas
December 2006
Due to interest among MBWP leadership, digital storytelling was explored. Professional development ideas from NWP threaded discussion inquiries were pursued. Based on this pursuit, I wrote an award proposal offered through the university and was awarded additional technology resources for digital storytelling. I am in the process of ordering a LCD projector and will have funds to attend the SITE conference in Las Vegas!

Skype Conversation with Common Threads
December 2006
I was not able to make this conversation for personal reasons

As with all of our writing project pursuits, we shared our mini grant progress reports prior to submitting to NWP. This practice has been supportive, comforting, and educational as we each have had the advantage of comparing and contrasting our perceptions and experiences.

Tech team meeting—draft technology SI plans

January 2007
Accomplished – to my delight, it was decided the SI theme would be an exploration and inquiry of how the web 2.0 facilitates writing, communication, and collaboration

Tech team meeting—continue technology SI plans

February 2007
Accomplished – we decided each day would include a “tech talk time.” This was very productive and gave TC’s a scheduled chance to inquire as they explored the tech together. Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms by Dr Will Richardson as well as Teaching and Learning Multiliteracies: Changing Times, Changing Literacies by Michèle Anstey and Geoff Bull, as I suggested, were chosen as SI readings. These books were purchased for each SI TC.

Skype Conversation with Common Threads
March 2007
We “met” Thursday, February 15th

(see Google Doc)

Tech Talk

Newsletter Meeting
March, 2006
The newsletter idea was abandoned due to lack of interest. The website is in progress.

Tech Team Meeting—finalize SI technology plans
May, 2007
The May meeting was cancelled - We met at the retreat in June to finalize SI plans. On June 21st, I met with the MBWP director and co-director at the Grand Hotel in Point Clear, AL. We finalized our vision for SI and plans for the next day’s retreat with the team leaders. On June 22nd our 5 team leaders met with us in a beautiful conference room over-looking the water at the Point Clear Resort. We spent the day exploring ideas for the presentation of web 2.0 for writing at SI. Team leaders were provided with copies of the tech readings and we continued our planning through lunch and the afternoon. I feel that the resources from the mini grant that allowed me to offer this retreat elevated my status as a leader in the project and the technology focus

Skype Conversation with Common Threads
June, 2007
We “met” April 1, 2007 (see Google Docs). As indicated by a comparison of projected dates and documentation, I think it is interesting to note that our Common Threads Skype conversations occurred more often than originally scheduled; an indication of the support and mutual learning that occurred through our interaction!

Summer Institute
July, 2007
Of the four years I have been involved, best SI yet! This is also the perception of our co-director.

Tech Team Meeting
August, 2007
This meeting did not occur due to scheduling conflicts.

Skype Conversation with Common Threads
September, 2007
In lieu of this conversation, we developed and shared our Final Mini Grant Reports

(Google Docs were shared by each Common Threads member)

Plan NWP Annual Meeting presentation and Article Planning
September - October, 2007
Our presentation plans our in progress…

Present at NWP meeting
November 2007
This is in the planning stage

Publish Common Threads article
December 2007
TBA

Venues for Sharing, Future Work & Follow-Up

The in-progress MBWP website will include teacher consultant professional development resources including digital storytelling, and podcasting samples and teaching/learning ideas. These will be shared across the school district through inservice facilitated by our TC’s.

The Common Threads will continue their collaboration beyond the NWP 2007 Annual Meeting through Skype and Google Docs.

A digital story representing MBWP is currently being developed for SI advocacy by a new teacher consultant.

As a result of the work initiated with the NWP Technology minigrant, an additional university award was earned to attend and present at the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education (SITE) International Conference.

Pre-and Post Data representing TC experience with and attitudes toward the web 2.0 applications explored during SI was collected through a questionnaire. Results are being analyzed and an article proposal for e-Voice is in progress.

Cynthia's Minigrant Proposal and Final Report

2007-11-04T12:13:00.001-08:00

Technology Matters Minigrant 2006-2007

Alcorn Writing Project

Cynthia Calvert, Technology Liaison

Title: Alcorn Writing Project: Awareness Initiative for Increasing Technology Leadership Capacity

Summary: This minigrant proposes to build a strong technology leadership team at Alcorn Writing Project (AWP) whose focus will be twofold: first, to foster awareness of the open source technology available on the read/write web through AWP’s continuity meetings, through a Technology Mini-institute, and through our Summer Writing Camps; and second, to provide in-service opportunities not only for our TC’s but also for the teachers in the school districts of our service area. This grant will support our site’s efforts to become more technology literate and provide funding for our technology leadership team to develop a series of technology professional development workshops. The AWP technology liaison will network with the technology liaisons from the Denver Writing Project, Mobile Bay Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project to share ideas and strategies for integrating technology into all aspects of our writing project work.

Description of Project:

Inquiry Question: What will happen at Alcorn Writing Project if we form a technology leadership team to study the technology needs of our TC’s and, based on these needs, develop a series of technology professional workshops for them? How will our site also be able to market the professional development workshops as in-service programs for the teachers in the school districts of our service area?

Background: Along with many other writing projects across the nation, Alcorn Writing Project struggles with this question: how do we keep our TC’s involved in continuity beyond Summer Institute? As a result, the AWP director, co-directors, and other members of our leadership team constantly look for ways to provide opportunities to involve more TC’s in our site work and as a result, build leadership capacity. The one area we all feel we need to focus on is technology awareness. At the present time our site is technology poor; we have no computer, printer, or other hardware to call our own or use in our site work. We do have TC’s who are technology savvy and who are willing to share their “tech talents” with others at our site, but we have not had an avenue for this sharing. With the help of this minigrant, AWP can build a technology leadership team whose goals will be three-fold:

Develop a Technology Awareness plan to help our TC’s become aware of the open source technology available to them on the read/write web and to build a technology comfort zone by guiding them as they utilize these sources in both their site work and in their classrooms; and implement this plan through Tech Awareness Moments in continuity meetings and Tech Awareness Corner in both our newsletter and e-mail correspondence.

Develop a series of technology professional development in-service workshops to present to the school districts in our service area.

Train TC’s as presenters of these technology in-service workshops.

Activities: The activities that fall under this minigrant include the following:

Build a site technology leadership team (TLT) consisting of the technology liaison and two other tech savvy TC’s.
Support the growth and work of the TLT through regular contact and stipends.
Generate a survey to determine how our TC’s already use technology, what they want/need to learn, what they fear about using technology, etc. Use the survey results in the development of the Technology Awareness Plan.
Build the teaching technology capacity of the TLT through their individual and group work with following: wikis, blogs, social networking, podcasting, digital storytelling, etc.
Demonstrate teaching technologies through Technology Awareness Moments at each continuity meeting. Support TC’s through online discussions, blogs, wikis, etc., as they implement these technologies in their classrooms and AWP site work.
Publish a Tech Awareness Corner in both our newsletter and e-mail correspondence.
Work with AWP’s leadership team as they plan Summer Institute and Summer Writing Camps to include these technologies.
Develop a series of technology professional development in-service workshops.
Hold a technology mini-institute to train interested TC’s as in-service presenters.
Market the technology professional development workshops to school districts in our coverage area.
Network with technology liaisons from the Denver Writing Project, Mobile Bay Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project who are also working to build site technology leadership capacity.

How the Project Meets Grant Criteria:

Furthering Core Work and Priorities: The technology awareness initiative builds on our site’s core work: continuity, building leadership capacity, young writer’s camps, professional development, and technology. The minigrant will help us continue working to improve the quality and quantity of the services that we already offer, while at the same time provide new opportunities for technology integration into all our work.

Technology Liaison as Leader: This minigrant will allow the technology liaison to assume a more prominent leadership role at AWP as facilitator and key planner of the technology awareness initiative. The technology liaison will guide the technology leadership team, act as liaison between the TLT and the directors, co-directors, and other leadership team members, collaborate with the TL’s from the Denver Writing Project, Mobile Bay Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project, and co-ordinate the Tech-Mini Institute and other technology related activities of AWP.

Broadening the National Knowledge Base: The Common Threads Group consisting of TL’s from the Alcorn Writing Project, the Denver Writing Project, Mobile Bay Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project was formed at Tech Matters 06 is working to build site technology leadership teams. The members of Common Threads are Paige Baggett, Tracy Duckart, Jason Shiroff, and Cynthia Calvert. Through regular contact with each other by the use of various technologies such as Skype, e-mail, wikis, and blogs to work through difficulties, provide support, and celebrate successes, we anticipate a broadening of our knowledge base that will definitely impact not only the work we are doing but also intersect with the work of other members of the Technology Liaison Network. In addition, the Common Threads group plans to submit a proposal for a session to share our journey at the NWP Annual Meeting in 2007. This session will introduce strategies to other TL’s as they work to build leadership capacity in their sites. The group plans to publish an article about our experiences for the NWP. We feel this article will help us reach not only TL’s who did not attend our session, but also a wider, non-TL audience.

Timeline and Division of Responsibilities:

Activity	Anticipated Date of Completion	Person Responsible
Contact TCs and form tech team	September 1, 2006	Cynthia Calvert
Tech team meets with director, co-directors, and other leadership team members to discuss Technology Awareness Initiative	September 16, 2006	Cynthia Calvert
Tech team meeting (survey and plan development)	October 7, 2006	Cynthia Calvert
Skype Conversation with Common Threads	October 15, 2006	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Online collaboration with AWP tech team to develop Tech Awareness Plan and Technology Professional Development workshops	September 2006—August 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Team
Tech Awareness Moment—Continuity Meeting; Tech Corner e-mail and newsletter	October 2006	Cynthia Calvert and Team
*Tech team meeting—continue work on Tech Awareness Plan; begin work on Tech workshop series	October 2006	Cynthia Calvert and team
Common Threads Meeting in Nashville	November 17, 2006	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Tech Awareness Moment—Continuity Meeting; Tech Corner e-mail and newsletter	November 2006	Cynthia Calvert and team
Skype Conversation with Common Threads	December 2006	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Tech Awareness Moment—Continuity Meeting; Tech Corner e-mail and newsletter	December 2006	Cynthia Calvert and team
Tech team meeting—draft technology professional development workshop plans	January 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Tech Awareness Moment—Continuity Meeting; Tech Corner e-mail and newsletter	February 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Begin planning Tech Mini-Institute	February 2007	Cynthia Calvert, AWP director and co-directors
Present tech professional workshop plan to AWP leadership team; revise if necessary	February 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Skype Conversation with Common Threads	March 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Tech Awareness Moment—Continuity Meeting; Tech Corner e-mail and newsletter	March 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Tech team meeting—Work on Tech Mini-Institute plan	March 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Market tech professional workshops to school districts	March 2006	Cynthia Calvert and AWP leadership team
Summer programs planning meeting—technology integration	March 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Continuity Meeting with prospective TC’s	April 2007	AWP leadership team
Tech Team Meeting—finalize Tech Mini-Institute plans with AWP leadership team	May 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Summer Institute	June 2007	SI leadership team
Tech Mini-Institute	June 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Skype Conversation with Common Threads	June 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Tech Team Meeting	August 2007	Cynthia Calvert and team
Skype Conversation with Common Threads	September 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Plan NWP Annual Meeting presentation and Article Planning	October 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Present at NWP meeting	November 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads
Publish Common Threads article	December 2007	Cynthia Calvert and Common Threads

*Some of these tech team meetings will be online meetings and collaborations.

Dissemination Plan:

On the local level, we will use our continuity meetings, e-mail correspondence, blogs, wikis, and newsletter as the vehicles for dissemination of the work and progress of the Technology Awareness Initiative. While this is not in our initiative plan, we hope to work with the webmaster at Alcorn State University this year to develop a webpage for AWP. When that comes to fruition, we will also be able to use is in our dissemination plan.

On a national lever, Common Threads has a website that tracks the communications of the TL’s from these writing project sites: Alcorn, Denver Writing, Mobile Bay, and Redwood South Central. This website can be accessed at http://groups.google.com/group/commonthreads. In addition, Common Threads is planning a joint presentation at the NWP 2007 Annual Meeting and plans to publish an NWP article about our journey and experiences as we all work to build technology leadership capacity in our sites.

Site Director’s Statement of Support

Southwest Mississippi is a technologically poor sector within a technologically poor state. Although the federal E-rate program is beginning to bring Internet access to children and adults of the area and the Gates Foundation is beginning to provide the computers and related equipment necessary to allow for acquiring essential skills, there is a great paucity of technological know-how to help citizens of the region make use of these programs. This is especially true in the school systems in an area where most teachers themselves grew up and were educated without access to computers or the Internet. The grant proposed herein is aimed directly at this lack of technological skills and knowledge. The plan to build a technology leadership team to train TC’s and thereby train inservice teachers, in combination with the provision of professional development workshops in area schools, lies at the heart of the proposal and will undoubtedly go a long way in addressing the educational needs of teachers and students alike. The proposal has my fullest support.

Technology Matters Minigrant 2006—2007

Alcorn Writing Project

Cynthia Calvert, Technology Liaison

Proposed Plan of Work

To provide new opportunities, especially in the area of technology awareness, to involve more TC’s in the site work of Alcorn Writing Project, and as a result, build leadership capacity.

Goals

Develop a Technology Awareness plan to help our TC’s become aware of the open source technology available to them on the read/write web and building a technology comfort zone by guiding them as they utilize these sources in both their site work and in their classrooms. Implement this plan through Tech Awareness Moments in continuity meetings and Tech Awareness Corner in both our newsletter and e-mail correspondence.

Develop a series of technology professional development in-service workshops to market to the school districts in our service area.

Train TC’s as presenters of these technology in-service workshops.

Planned Activities to Implement Goals

Activity

On Going

To Be Done

Build a site technology leadership team (TLT) consisting of the technology liaison and two other tech savvy TC’s.

Support the growth and work of the TLT through regular contact and stipends.

Generate a survey to determine how our TC’s already use technology, what they want/need to learn, what they fear about using technology, etc. Use the survey results in the development of the Technology Awareness Plan.

Build the teaching technology capacity of the TLT through their individual and group work with following: wikis, blogs, social networking, podcasting, digital storytelling, etc.

Demonstrate teaching technologies through Technology Awareness Moments at each continuity meeting. Support TC’s through online discussions, blogs, wikis, etc., as they implement these technologies in their classrooms and AWP site work.

Publish a Tech Awareness Corner in both our newsletter and e-mail correspondence.

Work with AWP’s leadership team as they plan Summer Institute

and

Summer Writing Camps to include these technologies.

Develop a series of technology professional development in-service workshops.

Hold a technology mini-institute to train interested TC’s as in-service presenters.

Market the technology professional development workshops to school districts in our coverage area.

Network with technology liaisons from the Denver Writing Project, Mobile Bay Writing Project, and Redwood South Central Writing Project who are also working to build site technology leadership capacity.

Successes

Formed the AWP Technology Leadership Team (TLT)

· Met with the AWP Leadership in September, presented my proposal, and was given the go-ahead to begin implementing the goals of the minigrant. One member of the TLT was also present, and at that time seemed eager to begin working with the team.

· Used Google Docs, Google Groups, and Wikis as one way of communicating with the TLT. See links in Resources list.

· $400.00 stipends were paid to the TLT members; 800.00 to the facilitator (TL) of the TLT.

· One member of the TLT created a webpage design for AWP and progress is being made for its placement on ASU’s website.

· Set up Alcorn Writing Project e-mail account for continuity and communication

· Published a monthly AWP E-newsletter to update TC’s about site work, continuity meetings, opportunities, and general news, plus hyperlinks for open source technology available on Read/Write Web, how-to’s for use of technology in the classroom, and inexpensive technology hardware.

· Published Tech Awareness Corner in every AWP e-newsletter.

· Replaced inactive member of TLT with one who is eager to learn and contribute.

Set up four wiki sites for dissemination of the following: Tech ideas, AWP TC news, AWP classroom discussion, AWP rubrics, and practice and experience using wikis.

· There were 359 hits to the Wiki pages and 120 visitors; however, many of these were mine checking to see who was checking us out.

Posted Technology Survey on Survey Monkey. 14 TC’s responded to survey which was better response that expected based on previous experience.

Collaborated with Common Threads Group

· We held six SKYPE tele-conferences.

· Jason set up a Common Threads Google Group for communication purposes between our SKYPE sessions.

· We also used Google Docs to archive our conversations and our work, which has definitely been a success as we have worked on this final report. Everything was right at our fingertips.

· We offered each other support, comfort, strength, encouragement, empowerment, confidence, and friendship.

· We’ve formed a life-long professional and personal collaboration. Thank you to whoever put us together. I’m blessed to have worked with this group.

Began working on Plan for Technology Professional Development Inservice Workshops

· Field tested the Technology lessons at my school when I facilitated a 20 hour Technology Literacy Professional Development Workshop Series for Southwest Mississippi Community College Workforce program. The teachers received 2 CEU’s for participating.

· On a personal note, SMCC asked me to teach Computer Literacy classes for their Workforce program in our community where I do give credit to both National Writing Project, and Alcorn Writing Project for preparing me to teach these classes.

Held Summer Tech Institute

· A mini-tech institute was held during the month of June as part of our Summer Institute in the computer lab at ASU’s Business School, Natchez campus. We were allotted 16 hours of SI time for the institute.

· One of the SI fellows asked to join our TLT.

· Co-directors were active participants in the TI.

Challenges

The three biggest challenges we have at Alcorn Writing Project are distance, communication, and maintaining continuity. This affects all the work we do. In addition to these three challenges others specific to the Tech Matters Minigrant are the following:

Lack of timely response to any correspondence—e-mail, Google Groups--from the other members of the TLT and the inability to schedule face-to-face meetings with the entire team. This led to many of the problems we encountered—failure to post the technology survey in a timely manner, failure to complete the Technology Professional Development Workshop Plan, failure to train the TLT to present at the Tech Institute.

The Three Techies Google Groups was supposed to be a venue for a three-way conversation/dialogue when we were unable to meet. I was hoping the other members would use it to initiate conversations about technology rather than just respond to my messages.

While I am disappointed in the way the TLT worked and while it would be easy to blame someone else, as TL and leader of the TLT, I take full responsibility for any of the shortcomings we encountered.

Inability to recruit for the Tech Institute because of miscommunication with the university co-director which led to the TI becoming part of Summer Institute, not an independent entity.

I began asking in January for help in locating a computer lab and determining a time to hold the Tech Institute before I could begin to recruit; I didn’t feel I could recruit without a definite place and time so those interested could make time in a busy summer to attend. She thought I just didn’t recruit, and so the directors decided to make the Tech Institute part of SI, allotting 16 hours of SI time for 8 tech workshop sessions.
The other members of the TLT were unable to commit to the full sixteen hours—having previous commitments. They said they were unaware that we were going to spend this much time training TC’s. I thought I had been very clear from the beginning that we would culminate our minigrant activities with a weeklong Tech Institute in which all three of us would present and train. Another case of miscommunication.
We met only 9 of the 16 allotted hours; there were many unexpected conflicts.

Lack of response to E-newsletter, Tech Awareness Corner, Continuity meeting attendance, and participation or exploration of wiki sites

We were hoping that the E-newsletter would generate interest in our continuity meetings. However, this was not the case.

What I Learned

While we did not really change our original goals, we did not accomplish all of them as fully as planned. However, I do feel that progress has been made toward making the Alcorn Writing Project TC’s more aware of what technology can do both in our site and in our classrooms. Some of our TC’s are eager to become more comfortable in working with technology. We put in place 9 of the 11 activities listed in our proposal. We held a tech institute, just not in the way we had originally perceived. We networked with three other writing project sites this past year as we all worked on building site technology leadership capacity. We have a Tech Leadership Team; it is still a small group, but we will continue to grow it.

I personally learned I have no control over adults who don’t always live up to expectations; communication or lack of communication, distance, and maintaining continuity are three of AWP’s biggest challenges. I wanted too much too fast and should have taken more baby steps.

So, while we were not as successful as I had hoped to be, we were successful. We learned from our mistakes. We are building on our strengths. We will continue to work to infuse technology in all aspects of our site work.

Venues for Sharing

Our Common Threads group has been asked to present our work at the National Writing Project Annual Conference in New York City in November. Here is a brief look at what we will be discussing:

"Common Threads: The Story of Four TLs Networking Globally to Build Locally"

In this workshop, four technology liaisons from across the United States will share their leadership-building stories, from Tech Matters '06 to mini-grant development and implementation. The TLs will share methods and results of their collaborations including Skype conversations, Google Tools, tech institute agendas, and resources. Attendees--everyone from the tech curious to the tech savvy--will be invited to participate in an analysis of the variables that led to the success of the collaboration through questions, discussion, and small-group interaction.

I also hope to continue to share what I have learned with my Mississippi TL colleagues and their teams through our Mississippi State Tech Liaison Network.

Future plans

In no particular order:

Require contracts stating requirements, responsibilities, expectations, one of which will be attending continuity meetings, that must be fulfilled before stipends are paid.
Continue to use E-newsletter as a means of disseminating information about technology.
Continue Tech Awareness Moments at continuity meetings.
Continue to grow Tech Leadership Team.
Hold tech institute separate from SI. Determine place in early spring and recruit from TC database.
Continue work on the Technology Professional Development Plan and publish it in time for leadership team to use in selling AWP’s professional development to our school districts. The plans have been field tested; teachers enjoyed the lessons; we feel they will be effective in promoting technology awareness and competency.
Take baby steps!

Resources Links

Wiki Sites:

The Three Techies:

http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/the_three_techies/the_three_techies.htm?isloggingout=true

AWP’s Six Word Stories:

http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/the_three_techies/the_three_techies.htm?isloggingout=true

AWP TC News:

http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/the_three_techies/awp_tc_news?t&usermessage=&CFID=2738593&CFTOKEN=27494858&jsessionid=c230662581162760964172

AWP Classroom Discussion:

http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/the_three_techies/awp_classroom_discussion_page?t&usermessage=&CFID=2738593&CFTOKEN=27494858&jsessionid=c230823331167783469296

AWP Rubrics:

http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/the_three_techies/awp_rubrics?wpid=811906

Google Docs:

AWP Technology Survey Draft

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dfz5vskf_5g45gt4&hl=en

AWP Technology Mini-Institute

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dfz5vskf_11dfzcd2&hl=en

Here are the ideas, etc. for our Tech Institute

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dfz5vskf_10d4svqx&hl=en

Agenda or AWP tech institute

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dfz5vskf_7cf3w45&hl=en

Google Groups:

The Three Techies Google Group

http://groups.google.com/group/the_three_techies?lnk=li&hl=en

E-mail Address:

awptcgroup@yahoo.com

Survey Monkey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=1jVQsy6pd6ZFF_2fT5vOt7Hg_3d_3d

Jason's Minigrant Proposal and Final Report

2007-11-04T12:12:00.002-08:00

Here is a link to Jason's Minigrant Proposal.

This link will take you to Jason's Final Report.

References

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Photo Credits

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AW. Thread Rainbow. 2006. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/livinginmonrovia/522499812/.

Hisgett, Tony. Thread. 2007. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/hisgett/504393075/.

Lu, Kenneth. Green Thread. 2007. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/toasty/472330111/. (Card Photo)

McPhee, Nic. Cotton Thread. 2005. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicmcphee/90045658/. (Banner Photo)

Melton, Andy. Coate's & Clark's Thread. 2006. flickr. 13 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/trekkyandy/159749331/.

Reynolds, Leo. Thread. 2005. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/64578975/.

---. Threaded Pipes. 2005. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/95697404/.

Rose, Adam. Needle and Thread. 2007. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/awrose/372464208/.

Ramberg, Marcus. Thread. 2006. flickr. 11 Nov. 2007. http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=173543567&size=s.

Sally. Thread. 2005. flickr. 13 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/sallypics/60610759/.

Waldman, Nancy. Silk Thread / Wooden Spools. 2005. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/nuanc/47231230/.

Watkin, Ben. Needle thru Thread. 2007. flickr. 4 Nov. 2007 http://www.flickr.com/photos/falcifer/488544292/.

RWP's Tech Team at Work

2007-11-04T11:26:00.001-08:00

Click image to enlarge.

TM06 Minigrant Proposals and Final Reports

2007-11-04T11:25:00.000-08:00

Cynthia at the Alcorn Writing Project

Jason at the Denver Writing Project

Paige at the Mobile Bay Writing Project

Tracy at the Redwood Writing Project

Workshop Materials

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Introduction
When the Thread Unravels, Darn!
Tongue Tied and Knotted up
With a Little Help from My Friends
Across the Network: Something Brilliant Here

Denver Writing Project

2007-11-03T19:05:00.001-07:00

New DWP Website
DWP Technology Survey

Mobile Bay Writing Project

2007-11-02T19:05:00.000-07:00

The Mobile Bay Writing Project, a National Writing Project site, is sponsored by the University of South Alabama, the College of Education, and supported by the South Alabama Research and Inservice Center (SARIC). MBWP is a place to share images, information, and thoughts with the fellows, teacher consultants, and friends of the Mobile Bay Writing Project.

http://mbwp.blogspot.com/

Redwood Writing Project

2007-11-01T19:06:00.000-07:00

This (lengthy) page offers links to a variety of site and individual tech projects. Please scroll with abandon! Thank you.

RWP's Tech Team at Work

Advancing Technology 2007: The Redwood Writing Project's Advanced Technology Institute
This blog served as the repository for ATI2007's agendas, writing prompts and participant responses to those prompts, readings, directions for using the technology, resources, and links to the tech projects we launched. This month's writing prompt will provide the first entries to our annotated tech bibliography.
Practicing Technology Step by Step
This visually stunning blog, created by Tech Team member and ATI2007 facilitator Catherine Arnold, serves as our unofficial eYearbook. The project is still under construction, but the pictorial is in place.
GeekGoodies: A Collection of Technology Tools by Teachers for Teachers
When I launched this wiki at Tech Matters 2006, I envisioned a platform for the exchange of tech knowledge. In fact, here's how I billed it on RWP's website: "Technology aficionados and amateurs alike are welcome to visit our wiki: a collectio n of technology tools by teachers for teachers. Have you recently researched digital cameras before making a purchase? Share your findings with others. Curious about social bookmarking? Gather some wiki wisdom. As a website where anyone can add, change, or delete content, our wiki is the epitome of socially constructed knowledge." The "wiki" entry comes closest to what I envisioned; at the moment, however, GeekGoodies is serving as both as a place for ATI2007 fellows to practice wiki-ing and as a place to collect resources for our tech projects. (If you're after more information about how ATI2007 is using the site's wiki, please follow this link. Thank you.)
RWP BlogStart: Keep on Blogging in the Real World
This blog served as the ePlatform for a blogging workshop delivered at RWP's Summer Institute Guest Day and includes the workshop's agenda, notes from the whole-group discussion, blogging resources, links to sample blogs, and even a picture taken mid-workshop. One of the most interesting lessons presenters learned involved participants' request for a bibliography. We delivered a generous link list; they looked for a piece of paper in MLA format. Interesting. . . .

Digital Storytelling: Harriet's Story Blog
Harriet Watson came to the ATI2007 fresh from a digital storytelling workshop, and she built upon that work by creating new dStories, a blog to share related passions, and the digital storytelling page on GeekGoodies. People are already lining up to take Harriet's workshop.
British Literature: Seniors 2008
Tech Team member and ATI 2007 facilitator Vicki Kurtz has posted this description of her blog: "This is a year-long college prep course. Literature will be chronologically arranged from 500BC to approximately 1950AD. This is where some classroom discussion will take place and assignments will be posted." Because this is a closed blog, we are offering only screenshots of the work Vicki and her students have produced.
CompWiki: Spring 2007
This wiki represents my tech project's second iteration. It began as a requirement in two of her first-year composition courses; ultimately, however, it became one of three options available for fulfilling a course requirement.
wikiDic: Towards Defining Definitions (A Project by Composition Students at Humboldt State University)
This wiki represents my tech project's third iteration. This time, it has remained a requirement--even though some of us (including the instructor!) are a bit behind on the project. . . . Follow this link to the complete project directions.
Mauro Staiano's Family of Moodles, Wikis, and Blogs
Mauro came to the ATI2007 already tech proficient (we lovingly call him our tech savant), and he used institute time and resources both to try his hand at the few things he didn't already know but mostly to develop the projects he'd been itching to launch. Please follow this link to a sampling of his work.
Sightings: Steller's Jays
Tech Team member and ATI 2007 facilitator Catherine Arnold combined her love of Stellar's Jays and her commitment to trying new tech things by launching this generous array of stunning photos and sightings logs. Catherine knows that before she can teach, she must learn--and that she learns best when she's having fun.
Cleo and Me
RWP Director Emeritus Susan Bennett attended a blogging workshop; within a week, she invited a veteran blogger to lunch--and insisted upon help launching her own blog before she would feed her guest.
Between the Stars
RWP Associate Director Nikola Hobbel attended the same blogging workshop. She, too, has built and is maintaining the blog inspired by that works hop.