I´ve always been a big proponent of examples. I think they help us grasp direction, and are the basis of collaboration. In my earlier post last week I mentioned creating art in reference to Seth Godin´s quote. I would like to clarify more what he means by that.
He states, "I don´t believe that you are born to do a certain kind of art, mainly because your genes have no idea what technology is going to be available to you. Cave painters, stone carvers, playwrights, chemists, quantum-mechanic mechanics - people do their art where they find it, not the other way around. The art that you do when you interact with a customer (student), or when you create a new use of a traditional system or technology - it´s still art. Our society has reorganized so that the answer to the question "where should I do art?" is now a long booklet, not a simple checklist of a few choices (Godin, 2010)."
Let me provide you with an example. The Cedars School of Excellence in Greenock Scotland was one of the first schools in the world to pilot a 1:1 environment for the ipad k-12. Here is what Fraser Speirs (@fraserspeirs) who is the Head of Computing and IT at Cedars and also develops iOS apps for Connected Flow had to say about the first phase of their ipad deployment.
"We've done something that's not often tried – we brought in technology and didn't tell people how to use it". Instead of thinking of the iPad as a digital textbook, it's become a research and creativity tool across all subjects; because of this, minds are being expanded and experiences broadened, not restricted. Once, the school focused on iWork, iLife and Safari, but now pupils access dozens of varied apps (Speirs, 2010)."
If you´re looking for inspiration, I highly recommend visiting Cedars website. I teach fourth grade, and have been searching all summer for more inspiration on Project Based Learning for my upcoming students. I love examples, they are art, and they allow me to see the tools that are available to do my art. Godin states, "Shakespeare didn´t invent plays, he used them. Salinger didn´t invent the novel, he wrote a few. The technology existed before they got there (Godin, 2010)."
The Cedars 4/5 group recently published and sold a book at a local bookstore. They created the content and art using their ipads. Talk about a fundraiser! These types of projects are what being remarkable is all about.
