Tech Director Chat

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

After last week's episode in which we talked about "locking it down," we dive into another hot button issue around how Tech Directors and other IT professionals make users feel about their technological competency. We chat about improving our own skills, when we actually record this podcast, and we introduce everyone to "Mr. Microphone!"

Timestamps for this week's questions:

0:53 What has Pete been up to today?

2:35 Jonathan asks, what skills are you having to develop to provide a quality service to your district?

4:00 Ben asks, do you think people feel “dumb” about technology, or do stereotypical attitudes of IT professionals makes them feel “dumb?”

6:05 Would you rather have a tech support staff that is highly skilled in repair skills with poor people skills, or great customer service with very little technical skills?

8:50 Rachelle wants to know, why is the answer “no,” instead of “no, but….?”

11:16 Jennifer asks, do you know “Mr. Microphone?”

12:50 Nancy wants to know, when and where is your band playing this holiday break?

13:50 Is this podcast done during school hours?

16:11 Stump Pete!

16:54 There’s a machine that was built to lick Tootsie Pops?

18:20 Ben asks, what is the most valuable guitar ever created by Gibson?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

We're back! After taking a week off for Thanksgiving, we get a question from Ian that sets up one of the BIGGEST questions that Tech Directors always have to wrestle it, "why do things have to be locked down?!" The answers isn't always the most well received, but it can shed light on what sort of trials, tribulations, and headaches a Tech Director is willing to endure in order to maintain a vision. In addition to addressing the big questions about control, Paul sets us up for another deep conversation about "whole technology learning" vs. "smaller task learning." We touch on updates to our district's teacher laptops, and finish up with an age old question about Tootsie Pops.

Timestamps for this week's questions:

0:50 How was Thanksgiving break?

1:10 What’s your favorite Thanksgiving leftover?

1:46 What has Pete been up to today?

2:07 What kind of bond financial tool requires a day to create?

4:02 When are we as a district updating to Mac OS X Yosemite?

6:06 How do we handle getting everyone upgraded to Mac OS X Yosemite?

6:54 Ian from Twitter asks, why would a school district not allow you to administer your teacher laptop?

8:36 Why do Tech Directors like to look everything down?

10:27 Ian from Twitter asks, does super strict control over technology to keep old people from breaking it, or students from using it?

13:08 Why would a school district block cameras on devices?

14:53 So some things get blocked because Tech Directors just don’t want students using them?

15:30 Paul wants to know, how do you teach older folks to use a computer?

12:37 So basically, Pete wants to teach people entire technology systems, and Ben wants to teach people the smaller pieces of technology?

12:23 Stump Pete! Scott asks, how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

This week sees a small turn of events, with Pete posing a question to Ben, and giving him a chance to feel what it's like in the hot seat! Pete answers questions about "big picture" use of technology in a teacher's classroom, what a new ideal elementary building would look like, and more issues about filtering pop up in this episode. Deep questions about whether most technology use in the classroom will ever move passed substitution for paper and pencil activities have Ben scrambling to put on his "future glasses" and Pete gets a break from his weekly musical trivia to share his opinion on possibly a divisive issue; who should be bestowed the "grandfather" of rock and roll, Chuck Berry or Jerry Lee Lewis?

Timestamps for this week's questions:

0:56 What has Pete been up to?

2:21 What does an exploding projector bulb sounds like?

3:00 Ben has opened the flood gate of questions by sending the podcast to all district employees.

4:16 JW asks, what is the big picture goal for teacher technology use in the classroom?

7:32 Pete asks Ben, how long do you think it will take until a majority of people are using technology for more than simple substitution?

11:20 John asks, why do some wifi routers behave differently for filtering?

14:50 John wants to know, can he have an Apple TV?

16:40 Kathleen asks, what would your ideal new elementary building look like?

20:45 Paul from Twitter asks, why are URL shorteners blocked by filters?

22:18 Stump Pete!

24:11 Kathleen asks, who was more influential to early Rock and Roll?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

In this week's episode, Ben gets a little carried away with his technology metaphors, in an attempt to translate Pete's technobabble into regular English for the rest of us. We spend a lot of time talking about being behind the "8" ball with Help Tickets this Fall, and why we really can't do much to improve bandwidth for students (or teachers) at the moment for our school district. We compare the internet to a pasta dish, potential plans for a "one size fits all" technology solution for classrooms, and we stump Pete once again!

Timestamps for this week's questions:

1:11 We didn’t have a snow day today?

1:34 Does Ben know how to read a calendar?

2:30 What’s our normal Help Ticket load at the start of the school year?

3:15 Why has it taken us longer to get ahead on the Help Tickets this year?

4:40 What has Pete been doing today?

5:22 JW asks about the plans to add technology to existing buildings.

8:15 What is the plan for upgrading our wireless infrastructure?

9:20 Pete describes what AP means in the technology world.

10:07 Ben attempts to explain basic networking for non techies.

11:04 Is it possible with our current wireless to increase bandwidth for students?

14:05 If we had all the money in the world, would we still have internet problems?

14:40 Is the Internet really a cloud, or more like a giant bowl of spaghetti?

15:15 JW wants to know if we have a “one size fits all” package for classroom technology?

20:05 Stump Pete: What was James Brown always talking to his band about?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

We passed the bond! Our community came together and said "yes, we want to build some amazing new learning spaces for our students!" This week we're a bit excited about the new possibilities that the bond will afford, but we keep things in check with questions about 1:1 computing, new buildings, and projects that have been "on hold" for the past few years as we grew our stable of laptop carts throughout the district. Nicole checks in from Twitter with a great question regarding students' abilities to weigh in on blocked sites and apps, while Jeff and Angie both contribute some great questions about new buildings and life, the universe, and everything!

Timestamps for this week's questions:

1:17 We passed both our bonds? YAY!

1:53 What has Pete been up to today?

2:58 Did Pete bring anything back from Prague for us?

3:48 Does the passing of the bond mean that we will have 1:1 computing?

4:55 Can you give us an example of a project that’s been put “on hold” as we’ve been building up laptops?

7:30 Jeff asks, what does the passing of the bond mean for each building?

8:54 What are the plans for the architects and bond consultants for getting input from teachers and the community?

10:10 Wait, we have to hire a technology consultant for the bond? Isn’t that Pete’s job?

12:45 Nicole from Twitter asks, how do you get more students involved with requesting apps and websites for being unblocked?

17:44 Angie asks, if you could ask Stephen Hawking anything, what would you ask him?

19:43 Stump Pete! Jeff asks, what was the first major sound innovation after “Rock and Roll?”

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

This week we follow Pete as he jets sets around to globe to Prague, where he is attending an Institute for Innovation in Education Gathering (iiE for short). We talk about potential changes to lighting, presentation technology, and other "wish list" items that teachers have regarding technology in their classroom, and touch briefly on why Pete doesn't listen to a podcast that he participates in weekly! Thanks to an excellent question from Joe via Twitter, Ben and Pete both share their thoughts on the definition of "21st Century Classrooms" and Ben even goes so far to share his more luddite-friendly version of "21 Things Every 21st Century Teachers Should Do and Keep Their Sanity" based on Carl Hooker's tech-heavy blog post of the same theme. And of course, listeners attempt to stump Pete, and almost come away with it in this episode!

Timestamps for this week's questions:

1:17 What is Pete doing in Prague, and what is the iiE?

3:13 What is Pete's role with the iiE?

4:50 A high school student helped plan an international conference?

6:20 When our bond passes, will there be money to change the lighting in the high school?

7:45 Will we be getting better projectors in the district?

8:40 Wait, Pete doesn't listen to this podcast?

9:25 Is it possible that we might have new dimmer lighting or other enhanced lighting?

10:43 In 60 seconds or less, why does restarting your computer resolve a lot of problems?

12:05 What do you think a 21st Century classroom looks like?

17:18 Stump Pete! Who wrote the album, "Numbers?"

18:20 We were featured as a "New & Noteworthy" podcast in iTunes for Educational Technology, wahoo!

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

This week's episode involves questions of a philosophic nature about whether technology is truly necessary in the classroom, and we wrestle with the scourge of every educator trying to install good digital citizenship habits within their students, the Yik Yak App. We answer a few questions about our bond issue, Ben sends some early Halloween shivers down your spine, and we introduce our very first regular segment, "Stump Pete!"

Timestamps for this week's questions:

:48 How's it going today?

:59 What's up with this Yik Yak App that hit the district last week?

4:50 When the bond passes, will each new classroom have some type of interactive whiteboard and a sound system?

7:50 Does Ben sound too creepy when whispering into the microphone?

8:41 Do school districts send home manuals for devices that students use?

10:25 If we were to pursue a 1:1 program, how could you see the program being embodied in our school district?

12:15 Does anyone really want clones of Ben?

12:52 Is it vital for students to have access to technology? Why or why not?

17:00 The Waldorf School doesn't believe in technology?

19:09 In the 1970s hit song, "The Night Chicago Died" where was "Daddy" a cop, and when?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

This week we focused entirely on questions from our school district, including some seriously geeky responses from Pete about RAM, cache, and how to best avoid the "beachball of death". We even make a recommendation for Memory Clean, a Mac App that will help you regain some "snap" in your Mac's step. Once Ben gets Pete back on track we attempt to tackle some big questions about the direction of technology in our school district, and Pete is completely stumped by a musical trivia question about the Beatles.

Timestamps for this week's questions:

1:30 What has Pete been doing at his big conference?

2:03 So this conference you were at is seriously techie?

4:30 Any tips for people to get their Macs to run faster?

5:28 For non techies, what does Cache or RAM stand for?

5:58 Does Ben’s desktop analogy work for understanding RAM?

7:50 What can teachers do to help free up space in RAM?

13:20 Did we really just spend six minutes being geeks about RAM, hard drives, and caches?

14:00 How does Pete see his job changing when our bond passes next month?

16:30 What’s your big picture for technology in Mattawan Schools?

20:06 What is the only Beatles’ song that none of the four band members play instruments on?

21:05 Ben questions whether Pete can really call himself a musician

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

We have a record number of questions this week; seven! I know, I know, that seems pretty low, but for a podcast that one day hopes to be under 20 minutes, that's a lot to cram into one episode! Pete answers some tough questions about whether Tech Director's have the ability to say "yes" and answers some burning questions about the quality of paper that regularly jams up the photocopiers. We also had some great questions from Twitter! Thanks to Sherri, Rob, and MASSP for asking some tough questions that I'm sure aren't always the same in every school district.

Timestamps for this week's questions:

:49 What has Pete been up to?

1:15 Why did Pete's day go sideways?

2:30 Seven questions is a lot for us?

3:02 Why do the printers keep breaking down, and can we remedy the situation?

7:38 Are we any closer on the Apple TV situation?

8:51 Why can't we move an interactive whiteboard out of a special education classroom into a regular education classroom?

10:40 Are we going to run out of time on this episode?

11:04 Why am I trusted with people's most prized posession, but not the technology and the internet?

14:24 Why do you always approach a request from a place of "no" rather than a place of "yes"?

17:20 Would you say that a Tech Director from the IT world might be apprehensive to opening up technology to help solve problems creatively?

19:02 Why do teachers often get so little input in the technology purchasing  decisions?

22:56 We've gone hopelessly past the 20 minute mark.

23:04 What does a Tech Director do for fun and to decompress?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.

A weekly chat tackling the issue of educational technology from both sides. Ben Rimes, a former teacher turned educational technologist, chats with Pete Poggione, an Information Technology Professional from the private sector turned School IT Director.

In this episode Pete and Ben talk about some of the "fun" projects that he gets to be involved with, as well as confronting the reality of dealing with vendors, sales people, and others hoping to offer a solution to school's technology problems. We also address a number of questions from teachers including local network issues with our Apple TVs and tackle a question from Sarah on Twitter about the biggest obstacles to bringing new technology into a school or classroom.

Timestamps for this weeks questions:

:40 Pete isn’t certain about who he is anymore

1:26 What has Pete been doing today?

2:14 Why was Pete on the roof of the high school?

3:19 What sort of projects are you working on most of the time?

4:40 What is a wireless survey and why are we doing it?

5:40 When will the Apple TVs be fixed so they don’t drop the connection, and why are we having this issue?

10:34 What’s one thing that really gets your blood boiling in regards to technology?

12:08 Are sales people in the technology sector not entirely honest about their wares?

13:15 What’s the biggest obstacle to bringing new technology into the school district?

You can talk about the show or continue the conversations on Twitter using the hashtag #TechDirectorChat or chatting up Ben (@techsavvyed) or Pete (@ppoggione) on Twitter.