Activity Reflection #2 - Productivity Software

♥ ♥ ♥ Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥ ♥ ♥

One of my biggest life lessons happened one day in front of a class of 6^th graders.  I was teaching elementary music, and my third graders were doing a mini-performance that day for a kindergarten class.  I had forgotten my script at home, and so, in desperation, I called my father and asked him if he’d go over to my house, get the script, and bring it to my work for me.  He was able, and about 30 minutes later, he was in my classroom with the forgotten script.  As he handed me the book, he kissed me, I thanked him, and we each said, “I love you”.  Remember, I had a class of 6^th graders watching this exchange.  After we said, “I love you,” the entire class burst out in groans and giggles, “ewwww!  Miss Scheirer!!!”  My father, who was turning to leave, turned back to face those snickering 12-year-olds.  Having just lost his wife, my mother, several months prior, he looked tired and worn.  He opened his eyes wide and leaned towards the class, and said, in a serious tone, “Never be afraid to tell the ones you love that you love them.”

There was dead silence for a moment, and the children sat motionless for a moment while they processed what he had said.  I thanked him again, and he left.  After a moment, the class burst out, “ewwww!” even louder, but this time they weren’t laughing.   Their moan was more about them being uncomfortable with the “love” word, rather than their silly mocking of someone showing obvious love for her parent and the parent for his child.  I never forgot that day, and I doubt that many of them did as well.  In fact, on one of my former student’s Facebook pages, one of her quotes is “Always tell your loved ones that you love them.”  My dad would like that.

I got a lot of my traits from my father – my gift of the gab, my curiosity for the world, my musical ability, my sense of humor, my writing style, my disorganized desk, my procrastination…  Most of these traits I am grateful for – for the last two, however, I am not.  My father, a former minister, saved everything, and now, after his death, we are trying to sort through almost 80 years worth of papers.  Mixed in with bills from 1973 are shopping lists and sermon notes from 1980 and my homework assignments from kindergarten and his camp counselor rosters from 1967.  He had been retired for almost 20 years and he didn’t go through any of this stuff – AND he moved these papers from house to house at least 4 times! 
  

… All this prompts me to want to go through every single paper in my house and get rid of everything.  But, I have my dad’s organizational style (or lack of it) and my files are pretty much set up the same way.  The task is too overwhelming and so I procrastinate….

This leads me to our topic in my graduate class this week: productivity software.  While I agree that productivity software is great and can make life easier, nothing can make me more productive if I procrastinate.  However, there is an App for that!  I actually have downloaded an App from the Apple App Store that sends me alarms to remind me to do things so that I am not late.  Setting goals for assignments also helps me get them done on time.  So this week, I set my sights on getting my assignments done early, because this week’s due date falls on my birthday.  

We were given a grade book assignment for Excel, complete with a class list, grades, and a list of things that we need to do to update the file.  I’ve had a lot of experience using Excel, and I was able to complete the spreadsheet within 15 minutes or so.  I took two Microcomputer Applications courses in the past, and I have sequestered all of that knowledge into the back of my head, but nothing really taught me more about Excel than my real-life experiences.  I work for a college, and I am often assigned projects that require complicated formulas to process the results of interviews, surveys, and other data generated to track the trends and success of our students.  Then I take all that data and make pretty charts and graphs with it.  For me, it is not an issue of learning the software – that is the easy part – it is the issue of learning the language of what the results need to be that trips me up.  I can figure out the formula as long as I can figure out how to work the problem out (which comes down to my lack of skills in the math and statistics area).

Recently, I earned two certificates in multimedia and graphic design.  During the course of earning my certificates, I learned all sorts of cool multimedia programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, Quark, InDesign, and Avid DV Free.  Just recently I updated my resumé in which I listed all the different programs that I have learned in the past 5 years, and the list was exhaustive:  Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, InDesign, Quark, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, GIMP, Illustrator, Paint, Camtasia, Avid DV Free, Premiere Pro, Flash, Professional Composer, Nightingale, Noteflight, Audacity, Contribute, PhotoStory, Movie Maker, etc. etc. etc.  I am sure I forgot some.  As an educator, I feel I have the world at my fingertips now.  Now, if I need something, I just create it myself.  It may take me a little more time, but I don’t have to worry about copyright and I can fine-tune whatever it is to suit my needs.  It may not be as convenient as pulling something off of the web, but in the long run, it is better for my students.

So what does it mean – productivity?  I used to think productivity was paralleled to “getting something done quickly,” and if I know how to use the appropriate application software programs correctly, I will be more productive overall.  Our text defines the same concept as “Productivity software is designed to make people more effective and efficient while performing daily activities” (Shelly, 144).  So, in a way, I am on the right track. 

However, software changes all the time. It can be overwhelming to try to keep up with technology.  Steve Pavlina, on his website, Ask Steve, writes, “Things are indeed changing very quickly, so I figured the best way to stay on top of it was to turn growth into my actual career.  Perhaps I cheated then. I take in lots of new information every day just in the field of personal development.  I read a book or two every week.  I read tons of articles.  I talk to people in the field.  I have plenty of “eyes” out there who email me anything that might be significant.  Authors and publishers send me their latest books to review.  But there’s still no way I can keep up with all of it.  New information is being created at a far faster rate than I can absorb it” (Pavlina).  Here is a man who makes change and growth his career, and HE feels that it is overwhelming….  So what is the ordinary person to do?  In a way, I feel the ever-changing wealth of information available makes me feel like I am treading water:  I have to keep kicking to keep current.  In other ways, it is incredibly exciting to be in such a field that is so varied and ever-changing.  Have I set myself up for failure by learning so many programs that I could not possibly keep with, or have I done a good job of educating myself to the best of my ability in order to share the most of my skills with my students?

I guess that question can only be answered over time.  

But, then again, while I feel I have a pretty good hold on application and multimedia software, I do not have a lot of Web 2.0 experience – like Google docs, SkyDrive, and the like.  Today, I tried to upload two documents to Google Docs, just to see what it was all about.  Both documents (one a Word doc and another an Excel doc) were rejected by the server, so I don't think I will be using that service any time in the near future.  I wasn't impressed.  I did have some fun with Primary Pad and it's sister site, Primary Paint, and can see how both sites could be utilized in the classroom for collaborative projects.  I could see myself using these simple sites in my classroom.  However, I have been warned by several people - beware of all these free sites offering free services like file sharing and file storing.  They are under no obligation to continue their services to you, and they could stop at any time.  So, we shouldn't rely on them too much, I've been told, because one day they could be gone.

Before I enrolled in grad school, I hadn’t even heard of the term Web 2.0.  I know that I can’t possibly learn everything, and while I am not currently teaching, I can only do my best at keeping current with what I need for my classes, I guess. I had never ever read a blog before last term, and here I am writing one!  So, I guess the most important thing is that I am OPEN to new things, new possibilities, new ways of thinking and doing… 

Until next time, keep on lovin’!

~ Christi S



References:

Pavlina, S. (2006).  Keeping up with accelerated change. Retrieved from http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/07/ask-steve-keeping-up-with-accelerating-change/ 

Shelly, G.B., Gunter, G.A., & Gunter, R.E. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Course Technology.