According to Fullan every effective leader has a moral purpose (2014).  My mighty purpose as a teacher is to create the spark for further knowledge.  My drive originated from my past experiences both as a student and teacher.  In my life I been blessed to have had leaders and teachers who have motivated and pushed me to grow.  I’ve seen my students come alive with curiosity and imagination.  I’ve seen students fall in love with learning and it gives me strength.
In my constructionist, learner centered classroom you can see my moral purpose through various themes such as maker movement, game-based learning, project/problems based learning projects, etc.  I also use a variety of strategies to support my moral purpose such as: instilling a growth mindset, coaching/facilitating learning, modeling & fostering curiosity and imagination.  Authors Martinez & Stager, reminds educators that “one of the responsibilities of being a teacher is to translate the mandates of the educational system to something that helps children understand their world” (2013).  My moral aspect is not limited to walls of the classroom.
21st Century learning requires students to think for themselves.  They need to take control over their learning. Students need to be the center of their education experience to prepare themselves for their future.   In today’s digital age the teacher is no longer the keeper of knowledge.   Their role has shifted to the encourager and facilitator of learning.  Likewise the role of the student has also changed.  Traditional passive learning has been replaced by active learners making informed decisions and thinking for themselves.  
In my classroom learning is fueled by curiosity.  Amanda Lang, author of the book “The Power of Why” states, “Curious kids learn how to learn, and how to enjoy it – and that, more than any specific body of knowledge, is what they will need to have in the future”  (Wright 2013).  Educational activist Alfie Kohn notes “great teaching isn’t just about content but motivation and empowerment: Real learning gives you the mental habits, practice, and confidence to know that, in a crisis, you can count on yourself to learn something new.” (Davidison 2012)
I don’t want my students to leave my classroom just being good at “school” or being good at jumping through hoops.  My classroom environment must engage learning.  I foster creativity and curiosity. They learn how to fail and succeed.  They learn how to collaborated and communicate in this global world.  These strategies and overarching themes supports my moral purpose as an educator.
 
Mentor Project –
I am loving my mentor project but it is challenging.  My mentor and I laid out a schedule but we ran into a schedule conflict on the 15th so we tried to double up and simplify a lesson and we ran into some issues.   As a result students had some difficulty using the coordinate system in the Klondike World.  My mentee said that she will go back and present a little lesson on how the coordinates work in Minecraft.  The students are enjoying their time in Minecraft.  They are really having difficulty understanding team work, which is kind of surprising.  I guess the big overall issue is time. 
As part of my mentor project I created a website www.MinecraftIntheClassroom.com  I created the website for my mentee and others who might want to learn more about Minecraft in the classroom.  On my site I have link to guides & lessons, my gamer quiz and ideas about how I have used MinecraftEdu in my class. 
This week I presented about using Minecraft in the classroom at the State Math and Science Conference.  It was standing room only.  I was blessed to have Chris Bryner’s help during the presentation – thank you Chris.  I created a Sway presentation on the overview of MinecraftEdu and game-based learning.  My mentee attended as well. 
 

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References:
Davidson, Cathy. "Why Flip The Classroom When We Can Make It Do Cartwheels?" Co.Exist. N.p., 09 May 2012. <http://www.fastcoexist.com/1679807/why-flip-the-classroom-when-we-can-make-it-do-cartwheels>.
Fullan, M. (2014). Leading in a Culture of Change. Somerset, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com

Martinez, S., & Stager, G. (2013). Invent to learn: Making, tinkering, and engineering in the classroom. Constructing Modern Knowledge Press.

Park, Hyu-Yong. "Tensions between Teacher's and Students' Discourses in the Classroom." The Journal of Classroom Interaction 43.1 (2008): n. page. Eric.Ed.Gov. <http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ829005.pdf>.

Wright, Shelly. "Academic Teaching Doesn’t Prepare Students for Life." Powerful Learning Practice. N.p., 07 Nov. 2013. Web. <http://plpnetwork.com/2013/11/07/obsession-academic-teaching-preparing-kids-life/>.

There are five components of leadership that author Michael Fullan said are necessary for success in leading through change.  These components are interwoven and together create a framework for leadership.  If you remove any of the components you will have a less stable structure for positive change.  In my life I can clearly see how all 5 components of leadership work together.

According to Fullan every effective leader has a moral purpose (2014).  My mighty purpose as a teacher is to create the spark for further knowledge.  As a technology leader my moral purpose is the same.  I want to get teachers excited about new possibilities for their students. When I am sharing with others about new technology it is my moral purpose that drives me.

The other four components of leadership are also necessary for successful leadership.  I understand change and I am flexible to change. I use relationships to foster collaborative learning.  I realize that as a tech leader its not enough to just share information technology, I have to create the context for sharing and creating knowledge. I also know that I need to encourage change but with a clear sense of direction diminishing stress that often accompanies change.  In addition to the five key components I also understand the importance of commitment and the 3 personality characteristics: enthusiasm, hope and energy.

Fullen said that “Change is a double-edged sword.  Its relentless pace these days runs us off our feet.  Yet when things are unsettled, we find new ways to move ahead and to create breakthroughs not possible in stagnant societies” (2014).  The very nature of change means that it can be a very hard thing to lead others through. 

The component that I am probably the most comfortable with is “knowledge creation & sharing”.  However it all ties back to commitment and the other components. I need to believe I am trying to make a positive difference.  I need to be real and balance creativity with common sense. 
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The area that I need to work on the most is “Coherence Making”.  When I share with others my enthusiasm sometimes gets the best of me and I go too fast or skip a step or two.  This is where relationships help because good relationships can help make up for weaknesses in other areas. Unfortunately it goes both ways; without good relationships the whole frame work is weakened.  I am sure when we think about success leaders in our lives who have helped us navigate change we can find all 5 framework components. 
 
 

Resources

Fullan, M. (2014). Leading in a Culture of Change. Somerset, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com

McCluskey, Alan. "Leading in Complex Situations." Leadership. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2015. <http://www.connected.org/learn/leadership.html>.

"Michael Fullan - Motion Leadership Author and Systems Change Expert." Michael Fullan, OC. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.michaelfullan.ca/>.

Webster, Martin. "Models for Leading Change." Leadership Thoughts. N.p., 23 Jan. 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2015. <http://www.leadershipthoughts.com/models-for-leading-change/>.

​Twentieth century education was defined by the “what”, the passing of knowledge from a content expert to a novice learner.  The focus was on the content.  “When an education is content-based, the primary skill being practiced is memorization: you learn it, you repeat it, and you've shown mastery of the information” (Pahomov).  The “what” is easily assessed; you either know it or you don’t.

In the twenty-first century, learning has become more complex. With unlimited knowledge at our finger tips, knowledge is “less a question of “What is the information?” and more of a “Where is the information?”” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, Loc 1260). Shifting content from “what” to “where” and “how” changes the focus of learning.  “When students are liberated from the monotony of memorization, they have time to learn the deeper frameworks and contexts that give facts and figures meaning. Then they can apply these understandings to any content they encounter in the future. The skills that they learn become the enduring understandings of their education.” (Pahomov).

The biggest challenge in shifting content from “what” to “where” and “how” is our human resistance to change. Our schools and philosophies are stuck in the industrialized era of schooling.  Schools have been teaching and assessing the “what” for so long that it is hard to move away from it.  Traditionally, education has been defined by the passing of knowledge from a content expert (teacher) to a novice learner (student) and it is hard to change. There can often be resistance and pressure from those outside of education too because they expect education to look the same as when they were in school.

Most traditional educational instruction overlooks the constructionist approach.  Hands on, making and playing are important to the new culture of learning but that looks different then traditional education.  “When we build, we do more than create content” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, Loc 1313). Yong Zhao, author of “World Class Learners”, writes that we need to prepare our students for the globalized world and that is not something the traditional classroom is good at (Zhao 2012).   By shifting the focus of the content we can cultivate independent thinkers who think creatively and foster the engineering that is in all humans.

If we understand the power of “where” and “how” then we can help students develop a deeper understanding about the content.   “The shift to “where” alone is significant, but perhaps more vital is the fact that it also opens up the other two dimensions that emerge as cornerstones of the new culture of learning” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, Loc 1277).
 
Resources
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Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). Chapters 1-2. In A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Lexington, KY: CreateSpace

Pahomov, Larissa. "Education for the Information Age”. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2015. <http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/115009/chapters/Education-for-the-Information-Age.aspx>.

Robinson, Sir Ken. "Changing Education Paradigms." YouTube. RSA, 14 Oct. 2010. Web. 09 Oct. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U>.

Zhao, Yong. World Class Learners: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Corwin Press, a Joint Publication with the National Association of Elementary School Principals, 2012. Print.

This week the essential question was about play and how play helps people embrace change. Play helps us face new challenges in our life. People often think of play as an early childhood activity with no purpose. We learned this week that play has a purpose and is not limited to childhood but can be found in all stages of life.



The week I received confirmation that I will be presenting at the Alaska Math and Science Conference that will be held in Sitka. I will be presenting on how to make math irresistible with game-based learning. I will be focusing on using Minecraft to teach math concepts and skills. I am still unsure how I am going to fit this into my already busy, busy life but I feel it is important to share what others have taken the time to teach me. I am motivated to get others excited about game-based learning. Last week alone I met with 3 teachers who want to learn about MinecraftEdu. I also met with a teacher from another school about incorporating programing into our classrooms. People see the students in my class excited about learning in Minecraft and it is catching peoples’ attention. In my mentorship project this week, my mentee and I brainstormed more about the cool project that she will be doing with her class that combines play and learning. It is going to be such a powerful way to teach about the Klondike. My challenge right now is to make sure I’m helping and not taking it over (its just so cool I just want to jump in and do it too).


​Another piece of exciting news regarding play this week – this summer I connected through Twitter with a teacher in the Midwest who teaches high school English. She and I share ideas and information about making and various tech ed related things. Several weeks ago she asked me how I use my Makey Makey. Sadly I told her that I hadn’t used it in class yet. She totally inspired me this week she used and presented on using a Makey Makey as an exit ticket. I was so proud and inspired when I saw her project had been retweeted by Makey Makey. Her project was an awesome way to incorporate play.

The world is constantly changing.  Technology is changing at exponential rates.  Fifty years ago Gordon Moore made a successful prediction about the pace of the digital revolution.  Based on data and trends, Moore projected that computing would increase in power while decreasing in cost at an exponential rate. Known today as Moore’s Law, it is a clear illustration of the rate of change we have experienced in technology (Shankland, 2012).  Futurist, Ray Kurzweil, said “We won’t experience 100 years of progress in the 21st century it will be more like 20,000 years of progress at today’s rate ("Big Idea: Technology Grows Exponentially," 2011). 

Educational technology is not immune to this exponential rate of change.   Technology is shaping the way teachers teach and students learn.  Technology in education is necessary to prepare students to compete, succeed and live in the 21st century but technology can also help motivate and engage students in high quality learning. Teachers wishing to enhance engagement and motivations should implement technology as much as possible to support instruction (Godzicki, Godzicki, Krofel, & Michaels, 2013).  How do we as educators embrace new technologies especially when they are evolving so fast?

In general children seem to embrace change better than adults especially in the area of technology.   In the book “A New Culture of Learning” the authors point out that “Children use play and imagination as the primary mechanisms for making sense of their new, rapidly evolving world” (Thomas & Brown, 2011).  Child developmental psychologist Jean Piaget found that most children learn through play (Thomas & Brown, 2011).  Play is a powerful element of learning.   Plato said “Do not keep children to their studies by compulsion but by play.”  It is a necessary part of early childhood education and beyond.   Play is the key to embracing change in adults too.
 
Albert Einstein said “Play is the highest form of research.”  If you hand educators new technology a common phrase you might hear is “I need time to play with it”.  When I think about new technology, I think about getting my hands on it and really experiencing, exploring and understanding it.  This form of play can be very challenging.   Dr. Spock points out that “A child loves his play, not because it is easy, but because it is hard” (Martinez & Stager 2013).  For me, it’s not play for me unless it has some form of challenge.  Educators who aren’t afraid to explore and play with technology have a much easier time with change.  Play allows us to learn new technology without the pressures of success or fear of failures.

One of the ways play and technologies are influencing my profession as an educator is through game-based learning.  Game-based learning is the use of games to enrich the learning process.  Game-based learning has been around for almost a half-century and started gaining in popularity in the 1970s with educational games like “The Oregon Trail” (Isaacs, 2015). MinecraftEdu is a good example of a 21st century game that can be tied to content and learning objectives. Even MinecraftEdu is always changing and improving.  The only way for me to keep up with it, is to play it.  Play makes learning fun.  It’s about tapping into students’ interests, engaging them and making learning and work enjoyable through play.

Understanding Richard Bartle’s Taxonomy of Player Types can help educators differentiate play in their classroom.  When I took Bartle’s Test of Gamer Psychology written by Erwin Andreasen and Brandon Downey it showed that I am an Explorer Gamer who also is an Achiever.  I have had my students take a simplified version I created and it really opened my eyes to the type of play my students are drawn to and enjoy.  I was able to use this information in all kinds of ways in my classroom. 
Embracing 21 century technology changes means we cannot afford to wait until someone teaches us, it means we must make the most out of what is going on around us and get in there and play.

Resources
Big Idea: Technology Grows Exponentially. (2011, March 26). Retrieved from http://bigthink.com/think-tank/big-idea-technology-grows-exponentially

Godzicki, L., Godzicki, N., Krofel, M., & Michaels, R. (2013, May). Increasing Motivations and Engagement in Elementary and Middle School Students Through Technology supported Learning Environments [Scholarly project]. In ERIC. Retrieved September 15, 2015, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED541343.pdf

Isaacs, S. (2015, January 15). The Difference between Gamification and Game-Based Learning. Retrieved September 23, 2015, from http://inservice.ascd.org/the-difference-between-gamification-and-game-based-learning

Martinez, S., & Stager, G. (2013). Invent to learn: Making, tinkering, and engineering in the classroom. Constructing Modern Knowledge Press

Shankland, S. (2012, October 12). Moore's Law: The rule that really matters in tech - CNET. Retrieved from http://www.cnet.com/news/moores-law-the-rule-that-really-matters-in-tech/

​Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). Chapters 3. In A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Lexington, KY: CreateSpace? 
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