The Tools

I was working with a middle school resource room teacher trying to find meaningful ways to collect data about her students as well as engage them in remedial instruction. I began by asking her what she wanted to accomplish and what she saw in her mind as an end product. I always ask this question first, whether in designing a new student project or developing a fully integrated technological system, as in this case. The end result is typically the same and a couple of things inevitably happen.

1. There is a moment of staring off into the distance which gives the illusion of contemplative thought
2. Tears begin to well up in their eyes and the sense of bewilderment seizes control of their features.
3. There is the ever so subtle cod like movement of their jaw as they try to deal with the fear of their idea being 'out there' on the 'web'.
4. And finally the answer of "I want it to work and be easy to use. Oh....and I want it to look cool!"

This series of reactions happens so quickly that the untrained eye can barely register them. In that moment my heart went out to this teacher. She was overwhelmed, confused, and frustrated... Worse there was no need to be.

We are often mesmerized by the 'magic' that technology seems to create. We are spellbound like the inhabitants of mythical Oz. We believe those that are adept and skilled in its use have a clue that we missed out on. How many times have we heard or used the phrase ' I'm not technological' or ' if I go near a computer I'll break it' ? Here' the big secret... there is no 'wizard', folks. Barring heinous use of the hardware or a magic wand it is nigh impossible to 'break' technology. You may lose files or end up somewhere you didn't intend, but break it? Not likely.

This brings me to the idea of 'tools'. Often I am asked to give a list of some useful tools for emerging technologist. Here's what I give them:
1) A healthy sense of adventure
2) Enough curiosity to choke a cat
3) an unapologetic boldness and reckless abandon
4) Some amount of patience and time
5) The ability to problem solve
6) a clear idea of what you want to accomplish
7) the number of a 'Computer Geek' friend ( just in case, it couldn't hurt!)

That's it. That's the only list of tools I can provide you with. That's what our students use and ultimately they are the experts. That's Guerilla Philosophy, pure, simple, and unrefined. It's simple because things that work often are.

I can hear you now. "What about cool websites? What about neat tricks? What about the one, universal thing that I can't live without? I'm calling shenanigans, Dean!" The truth is... I don't have it or haven't found it yet, but I haven't given up looking. Why don't you get 'Guerilla' and help me? It's a big Internet out there just begging for us to help define it and guide others.

MATCEI Presentation

Below is the Prezis I presented at the  MATCEI (Michigan Association of Teachers of Children with Emotional Impairments) conference at the end of April. The prezi addresses the 3 core Ideologies of Guerilla teaching UDL (Universal Design for Learning), Flow Theory pioneered by Mihály Csíkszentmihályi and its relation to classrooms, and finally the rationale for technology and our need to find free resources our learners are already using. Feel free to download it and use as you need to. 

Please click on the 'more'option and make the presentation fullscreen. It had to be shrunk 
to fit the post.


Don't forget to post your comments or questions either here or on my Facebook page Bryan Dean: Guerilla Teacher/UDL Coach

Guerilla Teaching on Prezi

Link to download: http://prezi.com/lvwiq2si8-0w/guerilla-teaching/

The Philosophy

I am a Guerilla Teacher. I fight against apathy and attrition everyday. I use whatever resources I can find. I teach for a higher purpose. My students have become disenfranchised, disillusioned, and disconnected. I strive to bring them back, I strive to guide them. My resources are dwindiling and rarely replenished. Yet, I believe in what I do. I believe I was made to be a teacher.

I am a Guerilla Teacher. I meet my students in their world, the world they have derived meaning from. A world where information flows freely. Never has a time existed when information and knowledge have been so readily accessed as it does now. Never have we had the oppurtunity to be so interconnected. This changes things, teachers are not threshhold guardians of knowledge anymore. We are not gatekeepers, the gate has been forgotten and the wall has been breached. I am excited and invigorated by this shift. I see limitless vistas of possibilities.

This is not a revolution of technology. It is instead, a revolution of philosophy. This is a call to arms. Make no mistake,my fellow educators, we are at war. It is not a war we haven't fought before and it is not a war where the stakes are higher. It is a war where the rules have changed, the roles have changed. We are now the ones in survival mode. The societal perception of our value and worth is under scrutiny. Out of this scrutiny we can be reborn as something different. We can be reborn as educators who understand and employ new techniques, innovative of learning. All that is needed is a change in philosophy. Join me and become a Guerilla Teacher.