Goodbye 2008!

2008 was a good year.  I can’t believe I’ve written 52 blog articles this year…my first year blogging.  I proclaimed in blog #1 that 2008 would be the “Year of Jeff” and I did my best to make it a self-fulfilling prophecy.  While I don’t think I’ll get added to any Chinese placemats (I was always fond of the Year of the Rat), it was a pretty good year anyway.  (Warning – this blog is ALL about me, my life, my family, etc.  If that’s too much information that really doesn’t interest you…come back in ’09!)

Professionally, my year started with high hopes and a twinge of uncertainty.  I was asked to speak to the US Congress about education and my company had recently been purchased by a billion dollar conglomerate.  I launched a website to showcase my consulting business while trying very hard to earn the respect of my new leaders.  I guess if I were rating the business experience, it would have to be 8 out of 10.  Let me dissect:  I started the year hoping to really make a splash with my speaking / consulting business.  I typically bring in 2-3 “extra” jobs per year.  In 2008, I had 6!  I was a keynote speaker, led workshops, and (as mentioned) spoke to some Education Committee members of the Senate.  All in all, a pretty good experience.

Of course, the culmination of my professional life in 2008 happened in early December.  I was promoted to Senior Director of Teaching & Learning!  I now report directly to the President of the company and have a role on the executive team.  As exciting as the promotion was, the implications mean more to me though.  I am in a position to guide our company in terms of aligning an academic message with our products, services, and technology.  I now get to explain how curriculum integration can happen online.  I am poised to teach our sales and marketing teams about learning outcomes and authentic assessment as we reach further into the education pool.  It’s the marriage of two great things (to me): education and technology!

But as exciting as my life was professionally, 2008 will always be remembered for the things that went on in my (our) personal life.  Keena and I had a big year…about as big as I can remember.  Other than Addie’s birth in 2007, 2008 was a major year for our little family.

Addie grew like crazy.  I know you expect that, but our “little” sugar plum fairy is in the 90^th percentile for height, while only being in the 45^th percentile for weight.  She’s almost as tall as her 2 ½ year old cousin!  Not only did she grow physically, but she met every major milestone about 6 months early.  She started walking at 9 months, has a vocabulary of 50+ words, and uses sign language better than I do.  (Ok, in fairness, I don’t get to watch Baby Einstein videos with the signs every day.)  Out little baby isn’t a baby anymore.  In 2008, she officially became a “kid”!

Of course, most of you followed the story of Keena closely in 2008.  In October it became obvious that the Crohn’s was not going to be beaten by traditional medicine.  Keena had a year that was mostly “downs” and she was getting worse by the month.  So, in October, we decided to have the major surgery that I blogged about throughout December.  November 24^th Keena became “Colon Free” as her new t-shirt says.  (Yes, we seriously have a t-shirt that says Colon Free Since ‘08, although she only wears it to sleep in.  If you can’t keep your sense of humor about an ileostomy, you’ll go nuts!) 

But the greatest part about that choice for ’08 is the possibility of what it brings us in ’09.  We should have our life back.  Keena is already feeling tremendous relief and energy with a renewed sense of spirit and purpose.  Sure, there will be hurdles and issues, but all in all, she’s doing REALLY well.  As I have told her for months now, 2009 will be the Year of Keena!

So, our little family has a lot to look forward to in ’09.  We plan to travel a LOT – might as well use all of these miles, hotel points, and car rental credits, eh?  We have plans for Addie – she is going to a kids gym, we’ll do some hiking and biking, etc.  We might look for the final house that Addie will grow up in – somebody has to stimulate the economy, right?  (Heard an interesting quote on NPR yesterday.  A business owner said, “95% of the country has exactly the same money they had last year at this time.  I wish they would spend it like they did last year…”)  I’m also hoping to get back into disc golf next summer – I miss it!

I hope you can look forward to a new year as we are.  I know the economy is scary and a new administration is taking over our nation.  But remember that change doesn’t have to be a bad thing!  I’m actually quite hopeful for the changes coming…I think time will prove them to be a good thing.  Here is to a good thing!  Cheers.  See you in 2009!

Need someone to talk to your group about education, technology, or communication? Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Christmas Future

I want to spend a few minutes talking about vision.  It’s been on my mind a lot lately.  I think you’ll see the tie in to Christmas, New Years, and the preparation for a new Presidential Administration on the horizon…you tell me.

So, as you look around for presents, do you have anything you really want?  Maybe it’s that place in life where I find myself, but there isn’t anything (that anyone realistically can afford) that I want.  And it’s driving my wife nuts this Christmas.  (Speaking of Keena, she’s doing GREAT this Christmas!)  Oh, there’s the usual suspects – shirts for work, sporting events tickets, and iTunes downloads for my trips.  But there isn’t anything like I had when I was younger.   Nothing like a new trumpet or guitar is on this year’s list.  No disc golf bag made the cut.  I don’t even want a new truck…I got a new truck last year and I still love it!  (Thanks Toyota)  But I don’t blame my place in life…I blame the lack of vision of companies that you and I know and love.  I blame Microsoft and Mac.  I blame Brookstone and Hammacher Schlemmer.  I blame “innovative” companies who are afraid to truly innovate.

Case in point.  Let me give you a brief vision of my “iPod” world.  Keep in mind this isn’t the 30 year off vision, this is the vision of what life could be…no, SHOULD be today with my iPod.  (I LOVE my iPod Touch by the way…)  So, my wife and I have a Bose docking station for the iPod.  (Love that too)  You just set the iPod in the dock and listen to rich music while the iPod charges, making changes with the handy remote.  Love it.  But, then I go downstairs.  The speaker is plugged into a troublesome outlet, so the Bose stays upstairs.  But I want to listen to my iPod with my home stereo.  Ok…now, I have to add a headphone jack into my stereo.  So while I can listen to music, I drain my iPod battery and dealing with volume and changing tracks is a pain.  But then I want to go to my car and continue listening.  Hmmm…even more difficult.  Why can’t I just slide the iPod into my truck’s stereo and have the same effect as the Bose?  Including all controls on my radio?  Because it doesn’t exist today.  (At least not in any catalogue I’ve ever seen!)  Sure, I can use a radio frequency to podcast to my stereo.  If I can find one that’s available…and if it’s working…and if…

Then, say I want to come home and watch my downloaded movies on my tv.  Well, of course that’s possible too –if you have all of the right equipment, cords, and adapters.  Ugh.  My VISION of an iPod word is simple.  Docking stations on the tv, the stereo receiver, and my car stereo.  Boom, I’m now carrying my DVD player, Radio (with Pandora thanks to the cool Apps), and CD player in my hand at all times.  Not to mention my date book, phone (iPhone), and email.  1 tool for almost every electronic need I have. 

Yes, my longer term vision of this iPod world includes doing all of this wirelessly / remotely, but I’m looking for a quicker solution.  Is this possible today?  Technically yes (except the car part).  Of course, my wife won’t let me spend the thousands of dollars I would have to in order to make it come true, plus it doesn’t work perfectly. 

My frustration with the lack of iPodness I experience today is what parents / educators / students experience every day too as far as school is concerned.  Nuts.  How fantastic would it be to give students of every level and every age the ability to learn whenever, wherever they wanted with utter strategic thinking and intentional learning assets?  Imagine this kind of world…

A 12 year old gets sick and needs to spend 2 months at home, but is still capable of learning.  The problem is that this 12 year old has some learning deficiencies.  So, he needs to go online to take classes.  But, that online system should be able to help ascertain his deficiencies and pull in new pieces of content for him that would help.  The system should also adapt to his learning style for some (NOT ALL) of the pieces so as to help him learn how to make use of his learning style in non-learning style centric cases. 

A 25 year old administrative assistant realizes that she doesn’t want to do this anymore.  She wants to take classes at night and on weekends so as to take care of her family from more than an accredited ITT type of school.  She wants to get a degree from her local University that she loves and is loyal to so she can wear the cool “Bears” sweatshirts with pride.

4 doctors want to get education around a new procedure from the “guru” in the field.  She is in Egypt and they are in New Jersey.  Unfortunately it won’t work to fly to Africa and she only has a day or two free here and there.  So, they need a class using three dimensional holograms that show how to cut, cauterize, search, etc.  This class would allow these images to be blown up, rotated, and split into parts.

Perhaps you see my dilemma.  Very much like my wish for an iPod world, this educational model is technically possible to some degree.  However, the road blocks are substantial.  Forget about the cost for a moment…there are other issues at play here.

Our 12 year old who needs specific instruction with help from an online system is out of luck.  Yes, it’s possible to create what is described here, but it doesn’t exist today.  Not in a usable form for multiple subjects at various levels.  True, holistic adaptive learning is a great idea, but not much more today.  Plus, the time it takes to create these learning paths is tremendous. 

Our 25 year old probably can’t get her degree in the fashion she would like.  See, there are still accrediting agencies out there who have a “50% rule” – this means that students must complete 50% of their course work in person, not online.  The schools who don’t have that rule to comply with, don’t often get buy-in from their full time faculty.  Most online teachers are adjuncts (and some are truly better than their full time counterparts by the way…) because tenured profs don’t care to learn a new way to teach.   Plus, not all traditional schools offer every class a person needs to complete their degree at night and on weekends.  Then there is Congress who just passed the Higher Education Act.  This act requires an institution to know the person at the end of the computer is who they say they are. (Of course, technically that’s impossible and realistically the rule is ridiculous…if you’d like to debate the point, I can show you dozens of examples of in-person cheating and fraud that are not policed at all by Universities or the Government as well as several acceptable methods to secure user credibility.)  And if she did find the courses to take and a school that works, the quality of the classes is going to be hit or miss every single time…

How about our doctors?  What can they do in order to stay current and helpful?  Nothing more than they do today.  This technology exists, but the cost factor is outrageous.  Plus, hooking up the SME (Subject Matter Expert) with an organization that presents content this way is very difficult. 

In other words, my vision for the education future that could be today is hard too.  But I have hope!  I do believe it’s not only possible…but it’s coming!  A landscape where Web 2.0 tools are merged into general curriculum and thinking without just being the ‘cool’ factor of blogs and wikis.  (Conference speakers PLEASE help teachers understand that!)  I see a future where interaction with multiple points are used to educate more effectively – interaction with tools, with peers, with content, with assessments, and with the instructor should be used to paint a realistic portrait of the learner.   I see a time when objectives and outcomes actually mean something to the school, the teacher, and the learner.  I picture technology bridging gaps in all classrooms.  And I also see a United States education system that is once again on top of the world. 

So…Steve Jobs, I hope you read this.  Secretary Spellings, head of the Department of Education, I pray you do too.  My entertainment vision isn’t important to anyone but me.  My education dream is important to everyone in the world. 

Merry Christmas everyone.  But more importantly, may we all have a vision inspired New Year.

Looking for a conference speaker who can help you find vision?  Need someone to talk to your group about education, technology, or communication? Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Things every teacher should know…

There are some things that I think every teacher should know.  I realize that most professors were never given any educational training, the assumption being that if they know their subject matter well enough to get an M.A. or PhD, they can teach.  Unfortunately, that’s one of the big problems with higher ed (in my opinion).  One of my best friends is an amazing juggler.  There is NO way he could teach anyone how to do it – he’s start them with an axe, a saw, and a bowling ball.  It would go down hill from there!  Good teachers know teaching principles – they know learning theory, brain research, and they apply it.  The following 7 things are concepts that I hope every teacher knows.  Even if you don’t know the technical name – it’s important to know the concepts!!!

1.  Transformative Learning.  Mezirow (2000) suggests that all learning begins with a disorienting dilemma.  This perspective transformation can start with something as simple as a question or as serious as losing a job.  The catalyst is then reflected on, researched, discussed, and experimented with until a new paradigm is created.  Many researchers believe this should be called “Human Learning.”
2.  Curriculum Integration.  Curriculum integration is a philosophy of teaching in which content is drawn from several subject areas to focus on a particular topic or theme. Rather than studying math or social studies in isolation, for example, a class might study a unit called The Sea, using math to calculate pressure at certain depths and social studies to understand why coastal and inland populations have different livelihoods (McBrien and Brandt, 1997).
3.  Authentic Assessment.  According to Mueller (2003), authentic assessment is a form of measurement in which students are asked to perform real-world tasks that demonstrate meaningful application of essential knowledge and skills.  Sometimes referred to as competency based instruction, student performance on a task is typically scored on a rubric to determine how successfully the student has met specific standards, outcomes, or objectives.
4.  Diversity.  Education in a multicultural society strives for equity of opportunity to learn, largely through the convergence of three practices: heterogeneous grouping, highly interactive instruction that appeals to a wide variety of learning styles, and inclusive curricula. A constructivist understanding of education, in which learners are active architects of meaning, permeates this collaborative vision of education (Shaw, 1993).
5.  Varied Learning.  “By definition, differentiation is wary of approaches to teaching and learning that standardize. Standard-issue students are rare, and educational approaches that ignore academic diversity in favor of standardization are likely to be counterproductive in reaching the full range of learners (Tomlinson, 2006).”  Regardless of prior knowledge, attention span, retention capacity, or comprehension ability, students have varied needs in terms of delivery, interaction, and assessment.
6.  Backward Design.  “Backward design begins with the end in mind: What enduring understandings do I want my students to develop (McTighe, 2001)?”  Essentially, the backward (sometimes called universal) design model applies three steps: 1) Identification of desired results; 2) Determination of acceptable evidence; and 3) Planning learning experiences / instruction.  Once you teach with the objectives in mind, the student paths to get there emerge!
7.  Collaborative Learning. Rothwell (2006) suggests that workers are in groups (teams) more than 70% of the time while students are in groups less than 7% of the time.  With the uprising of corporate universities, some private sector and governmental leaders suggest that education is not meeting the needs of today’s workforce, sending under-prepared and uninformed graduates into society.

There is some overlap in and among these principles.  And of course there are more than 7 things – but 7 seems like a nice number for this kind of list   Like any complex system, an educational model has independent and interdependent components.  Some educators think of these elements as a safety net or a puzzle.  I like to think of them as inter-locking bricks of a foundation to an educational pyramid.  The top elements of teaching, student services, curriculum, program quality, etc., are supported by this foundation to make the educational experience effective at all levels: student, teacher, and administrator.  Student understanding can be the mortar that holds these pieces in place, allowing schools to deliver effective, timely, and differentiated instruction. 

Looking for a faculty inservice speaker?  Need someone to talk education in both a theoretical AND (more importantly) practical sense at your conference? Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Work-Life Balance

Before starting and while I know it sounds like a broken record, let me say thanks again for all the emails and support with Keena.  She came home yesterday and is doing pretty well considering… She’s got a lot of pain, but thanks to some nice meds, she’s not feeling everything she should.  She’s happy as anything to be at home finally and is looking forward to getting better day after day after day for the rest of her life! 

While Keena is recouping nicely, I’m tired as I’ve ever been.  Between Keena, Addie, running errands, cooking, cleaning, getting up with whichever is having the current problem, I’m just beat.  I took “vacation” for this time…but to call this a vacation would be like calling Long John Silvers a gourmet seafood restaurant.  This does, however lead me to my blog this week.

Work / Life balance has been talked about for decades.  The first time I really remember thinking about it was after reading Jack Welch’s book.  The former GE CEO makes the point that this is a manager’s toughest trial throughout the year.  People more and more are being selfish with their time, not wanting to spend any extra time at work if at all possible.  Interestingly, he also mentions that managers and executives who want to do anything with their careers need to be exactly the opposite.  They need to take work home every night to get a jump on the next day, the next week, the next project, the next…whatever.

I can say as a manager, I realize this is very true.  About 75% of my employees are overly eager to head home, leave early, and never worry about a thing over the weekends.  (And you should see the empty spaces in front of my desk around the holidays…I’ve got most of my team saving up their two weeks for Christmas time leaving few or nobody to handle issues and work that comes up!)

At the same time, I work my tail off for eCollege.  I’m putting in 50-70 hours a week PLUS my doctoral work PLUS my adjunct teaching load.  My days are spent at work until 5pm when I rush home to get some quality time with Addie & Keena before my little girl goes to bed at 7:30.  Then, it’s on to my computer to teach classes and write mostly meaningless papers for my doctoral program (I’ll do a blog about academic hazing later).  Finally, I check my work email one more time only to find fifty to one hundred new emails to get through before bed.  (I get about 600 emails per day.)  Work / Life balance?  What balance?

As much as I love technology, I do have to admit that it’s created the ability to work from home WAY too easy.  Madeleine Bunting in her book, “Willing Slaves – How the Overwork Culture is Ruling our Lives”,  says that from 1977 to 1997 Americans working full time have increased their average working hours from 43.6 hours to 47.1 hours each week. (Not including time required to travel to and from work).

I believe this.  Although I didn’t always.  When I was a college professor, I really didn’t have to worry much about work / life balance.  I realize people don’t like to talk about it, but college professors have it pretty easy when it comes to time.  I had worked my way into a coordinator position, so I could choose from a MWF or TTH schedule.  I could choose late afternoons or early mornings to suit my tastes.  Sure, I had some advising and some office hours, but if I wanted to, I didn’t have to be on campus but 20 hours any given week.  Sure, I graded papers at home, but when all was said and done, I can say that my balance of work and life was just golden!

Of course, my bank account showed this as well.  And there is the rub, right?  I’m making 3 times as much now as I did then, plus bonuses (that don’t exist in a college system) and with every promotion / raise, comes the expectation of more time and responsibility taken away from home.  Ugh.  (Try this work – life balance calculator!)

Yes, I know the studies that show how employees who actually take time off are more productive.  I know that companies who help employees manage their personal lives effectively are consistently rated in the top 100 companies for both satisfaction AND productivity.  But I also know that 99% of Presidents and CEOs don’t buy any of it.  The majority of HR studies that show the effectiveness of working less never even make it to their desks.  After all, these executives are Type A personalities who don’t need extra motivation to work 60 hours a week…why should anyone else?  (Hopefully this sarcasm translated…)

So, here I am – left with some major decisions in my life.  Do I work like a dog now and reap the benefits later with a solid retirement and nice home and the ability to do nice things for my family.  Or, do I go back to teaching, spend a lot more quality time with my family now, but not really have the ability to provide like I want to?  I have to say, I used to be the guy who did the latter and it came back to bite me several times.  When Keena first got sick, we didn’t really have any “extra” to work with.  I didn’t make enough to really go on nice vacations or buy special things for anyone just because.  The purchase of a car was a major life consideration and I could never really afford what I wanted, having to settle for what I could afford.  That’s not how we live now…

Please hear me!  I have talked this over with Keena several times.  We both have goals for our family and we both understand (most of the time) the sacrifices it takes now.  I realize there are plenty of husbands out there who work their tails off including as much travel as possible so they don’t have to be near their families.  I have worked with a few in my time.  But I’m not that guy – I actually like my wife and enjoy my daughter.  I’m the ultimate family man who happens to be lucky enough and (hopefully) good enough at what I do that my services are in demand but unfortunate enough that it means working like I do. 

So, until an agent or publisher actually takes a chance and reads my novel (which should easily become a screenplay…come on – it’s silly to get the same form letters back saying you’re not currently accepting new authors!), I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing.  I do enjoy it and it suits me.  And as long as people keep telling me that I’m good at it, there’s no other reason to quit!  Maybe technology will begin to actually help us NOT work so much!  Now there’s the web 2.0 site that I want to be a part of!

Are you a publisher looking for the next best seller?  Are you an agent needing to find the next Lee Child, Stephen Hunter, or Greg Iles?  You HAVE to contact Jeff Borden and ask to read the first 3 chapters of Judge & Jury!  Remember, Jeff gives seminars on effective storytelling…Check out this query:

Judge & Jury :  When a vigilante violently takes the law into his own hands, Detective Paden Campbell is tasked with his capture.  But as the citizens of Denver, Colorado start to embrace and replicate the practices of the “Judge and Jury” killer, Paden is forced to come to terms with his own sense of justice.  In a race against time, Detective Campbell must stop the killer before the city tears itself apart.