The Smartest Pen In The Class

Remember the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup commercial? "You got your chocolate in my peanut butter!" - "You got your peanut butter on my chocolate!" If Livescribe, the company that invented the Pulse smartpen, were to resurrect this ad campaign, it might sound something like this: "You got your ballpoint pen in my digital voice recorder!" - "You got your digital voice recorder in my pen!" Encased in a sleek, aluminum body with an anodized finish, it kinda feels like it could have been designed by the boys at Apple. It's a unique device and literally exists in a category all its own. Judge it as a pen, and it writes as well as any ballpoint, but it's no MontBlanc. Judge it as a digital voice recorder, and it plays back hours of high quality audio as well as you'd expect any voice recorder to do -- but come on- you can get a decent voice recorder for a third of the price. But here's the deal: Judge it as a smartpen, and you have a device that has defined its own category. If your pen had a brain, it would behave like this pen. It's like having a computer in a pen. The Pulse smartpen is by no means a replacement for your PC. You can't surf the net or send and receive e-mails - yet... Ultimately, what you have is the world's coolest pen ever made. Period. It's a device that will link whatever is written to what is spoken. In a word: whoa.

From prehistoric cave walls to the modern tablet PC, the human need for self-expression through drawing and writing has endured. However, paper and pen usage presents serious limitations in an increasingly digital world. Paper documents are static and difficult to share broadly without the use of flat bed scanners. Written notes can be easily lost or damaged. They suffer an inherent lack of connectivity; despite how rich the content on a piece of paper is, it is physically bound and limited. What’s missing is a way to maximize the freedom of expression and rich context afforded by pen and paper while delivering the connectivity, archiving system and “capture” capability of a computer. Enter, the Pulse smartpen by Livescribe, a device that attempts to bridge the gap between traditional pen-and-paper and 21st Century digital technology.

Users can write something (anything) down on Livescribe's proprietary micro-dot paper, and the pen will record its movement and link it to whatever sound it was recording at that precise moment. If I had only had this pen during my college Chemistry class, I might have actually passed the first time -- My professor talked so fast I couldn't keep up! With the Pulse smartpen, students can rest assured that no matter how much (or little) notes they take, they can still take the entire lecture home with them. 

Livescribe dot paper is regular paper printed with a unique pattern of tiny micro-dots. Livescribe’s unique patented dot-positioning system enables the Pulse smartpen to precisely track everything it writes on paper. Livescribe offers a variety of dot paper products, including college-sized notebooks, journals, and note pads. Customers can also print their own dot paper using certified laser-jet printers. In addition, Livescribe Desktop allows you to digitally transfer your notes and recordings from your Pulse smartpen to your PC or Mac. It's especially fun to watch your notes animate when you play back your recordings.

One of the Pulse smartpen's "wow-factor" features is its piano and rhythm app. You literally draw vertical and horizontal bars on micro-dot paper, and the piano you just drew will behave like a tiny piano. Tap the "keys" and you can make melodies and then add an accompanying drum track. I also like the English to Spanish dictionary. Simply write a word in English (or vice versa), tap it, and it translates it into Spanish. This app is available in the Livescribe Online Store.

Right now, in the online store, there are currently 64 unique applications available. In the spirit of  Apple's App Store for iPod touch and iPhone, and most recently, iPad, most apps are about one to three bucks, such as games like Blackjack and Hangman. Some are free, like "Classical Music Snippets." With a few taps of your smartpen, you can listen to short snippets of the most famous moments from a selection of classical tunes and learn interesting facts about each masterpiece, or test your classical music knowledge with the Music Quiz. The one exception to the relatively inexpensive app line up is an app designed to help kids study the Torah for their Bar or Bat Mitzah, called "Magic Yad." You use it with Torah passages printed on Livescribe's micro-dot paper. This app costs $119.

But for all its bells and whistles, this is a device that shines brightest when its in the hand of a student with a longwinded teacher. Students can have unlimited access to their teacher's instruction any time and anywhere. The Pulse smartpen is not for elementary students whose teachers assign a lot of group projects or organize cooperative learning environments. Therefore, I recommend it to Jr High students on up. Of course, a case can be made that the Pulse smartpen has its place in elementary schools, as well. For example, each day, as a sixth grade teacher, I assign one student the task of "notetaker." It's a great way to motivate students to take notes, and a fantastic way to build interest in note taking, because kids simply love the novelty of getting to write with the Pulse smartpen. Furthermore, English language learners can speed up, slow down, or replay a lecture's audio to more effectively develop both oral and written skills.

The Pulse smartpen is useful in meetings, too. I recently took it with me in a business meeting, and recorded the entire discussion. I only cared about a few minutes of the content, which happened to be near the end of the meeting. Thanks to this innovative solution, I was able to "tap" on the my hand-written notes at the precise part of the meeting I wanted to hear back. The pen began to play back the audio from that exact moment and I was able to clarify an important point in the conversation.

Users can upload their "pencasts" online with the Livescribe Community for everyone to see, hear, and play. Pencasts are like "podcasts" (only since they're recorded with the Pulse smartpen, they're dubbed "pencasts").  You can share your notes, drawings, and recordings online as Flash movies or PDF files with a vibrant online community of people who upload their own audio recordings, linked with their written notes. For example, at a recent Comic-Con, (Annual Comic Book Convention in New York) some attendees interview popular comic book artists, but instead of merely asking questions, the interviewer simply hands the artist a piece of the special Livescribe paper, presses "record," and asks the artist questions while he or she sketches his or her favorite, or trademarked, character. When you watch/listen to the interview unfold online, you hear the conversation while you actually watch exactly what the artist was drawing as he or she was talking. Because each penstroke links with the sound, it makes for a compelling visual and auditory experience.

Livescribe has developed a full Java-based development environment for professional developers to write their own smartpen application code using the Livescribe APIs, which became available in Q2 2009. Over 5,000 developers have signed up to write apps for the store, so look for more apps in the future. The SDK includes an Eclipse-based integrated development environment (IDE) with custom plug-ins, a suite of APIs, sample code and documentation.

Where can you get one?

Target, Best Buy, Amazon, Apple, and Online.

Cost:

2GB (Titanium)  $149.95

4GB (Titanium) $169.95

4GB Pro Pack: (Black) $229.95 Includes a matching desktop Pro Charging Cradle. Also included are a premium leather case to protect your Pulse smarten and a download code for a full version of MyScript for Livescribe transcription software.

Students Click Their Way To Success

"Thumbs up - Thumbs down" is a widely used way to informally check whether or not your students understand what you’ve taught them. But who actually counts kids' thumbs? And aren't most student responses held suspect because they are so worried about feeling judged by their peers? They look around to see who has their thumb up or down before they respond... Now, imagine if your students could send you their responses privately, with the click of a button. What if their responses could be tallied and displayed immediately in a bar graph or pie chart on an interactive whiteboard or projection screen. Wouldn't that be much more accurate? Wouldn't that be cool? Let me assure you: it is.

What are they?

Most people call them "Clickers." They look like little TV remote control units, and they work in sort of the same way. Generally speaking, they all do roughly the same thing: provide a direct wireless connection between a teacher and his or her students. Student response systems include a radio frequency (RF) remote for each student in a given class, a central receiver, software, and some form of assessment software, which tallies student responses, records attendance, posts test results and provides individual feedback. 

Enhances Interactive Teaching and Learning

The brand of student response system I've been testing for the last few months is the Senteo interactive response system. Like all student responders, they're designed to enhance interactive teaching and learning. It starts when the teacher either displays or speaks a prepared or ad hoc question. Students can then anonymously key in answers with their remote.  Responses are tallied and displayed on a projection screen or interactive whiteboard instantaneously.

Variety of Question Types

To assess student understanding, you can use a variety of question types, including true or false, multiple choice, numeric response and more-than-one-right-answer. Decimals, fractions and negative numbers can also be incorporated into questions and answers. 

Immediate Feedback

Student response systems provide immediate feedback to students, teachers, and even parents. Once a student completes a test, his or her score is revealed directly on their own responder. This eliminates the typical wait-time a student normally endures after a test. It used to take me an hour to grade a math test and sometimes it took me a few days before I even sat down to grade it. Now, I can spend that time designing lessons to remediate the ones who performed poorly. Furthermore, students are afforded time, right then and there, to analyze their own results: noting which problems they missed and correcting their own mistakes. 

Export to Spreadsheet

From a record-keeping stand point, nothing beats the "export to spreadsheet" feature. These scores can be easily imported into your existing electronic gradebook system (if it supports the "import" feature) or printed out and integrated into a paper-based system. There is even an option to send an e-mail to each student's parents the moment the test is over. (When I told my students I intend to enable this feature in the coming weeks, they looked as if they'd just walked out of a horror movie).

All in all, student responders are effective tools that should be in every teacher's tool box. But as with all technology, the price tag can be prohibitive. The Senteo Response System 32 Pack goes for about $2K. But if integrating technology is a priority for your district, then it's an investment that can lead to an enhanced learning and teaching experience for everyone involved. To read more about the topic of Clickers, check out "7 things you should know about clickers."

http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7002.pdf

More Tech, Please...

If your public school is anything like my public school, then you need more funding for technology-related purchases, not less. Unless you work at a brand new school that's decked out with all the latest high-tech gear, then you probably have to beg and borrow to attain anything more than you presently have. You may even feel like Oliver Twist asking for more porridge when you consider the state of technology at your school. Unfortunately, funding for technology is limited, so we have to be very creative about acquiring more than our ration of computers and tech tools. Here are three ways to build your classroom's technology inventory.

1) Ask. A couple years ago, I asked my principal if we could purchase an iMac for our school's video production program. That year, a certain amount of money happened to be ear-marked specifically for technology purchases. If I had not asked, that money may have gone unspent because in education: if you don't use it, you lose it. Some administrators are not aware of the specific tools you need until you ask. It's equally possible that your principal may be waiting for you to show some initiative; the last thing any principal wants to see is a large sum of money wasted on technology that collects dust in a closet because no one really wanted it in the first place. So ask! The worst thing that can happen is they say no. It's more likely they'll say, "Not yet." If that happens, be sure to ask the following year.

2) Write grants. A quick Google search for education grants will reveal a variety of funding agencies and organizations eager to fund innovative projects written and submitted by creative teachers like yourself. If your idea doesn't have a direct technology focus, keep at it. Work with your proposal until it includes some kind of technology component. You must have a technology element to justify your need for technology-related items. A word of caution: You'll most likely lose more grants than you'll win, so be prepared for disappointment. When you eventually win one, it's an amazing feeling of accomplishment. Then, go out and purchase those tech items for your class!

3) Donate. A wise boss once taught me that I could cover at least 10 more sandwiches with mayo if I would simply scrape the mayo jar with a rubber spatula instead of a metal knife. I had been wasting company money! Now, whenever I upgrade a piece of technology in my personal life (whether it be a tech gadget, computer, mouse, whatever...) I slip it into the classroom ecosystem. For example, my old iMac G3 is now an extra word processor. My old Palm IIIc runs math games that some students use to improve their basic math skills. I recently bought a new Kodak all-in-one printer and promptly donated my old Lexmark printer/scanner to the classroom. I plan to use this to scan and ultimately upload student work to my students' ePortfolios. Of course, donations are also a tax write-off. So go on, breathe life into your old, unwanted gear.

How are you expanding your classroom's technology inventory? Share your thoughts!

Teachers, Jump on this Grant Opportunity!

How many times have you thought to yourself, "If money was no object, I'd buy my students..." Grants are one way we as teachers can attain the resources we know will benefit our students in an outside-the-box manner. This grant is very easy to enter: it's an on-line essay with a 100 word limit. Anyone can enter! Read contest rules carefully - if a student under 18 enters, the parent must have an email address. Entries are open now. Contest will run until August 31, 2008. Read this selection from the grant's website:

Each year the program challenges students, teachers, parents or anyone who knows of a school in need to write an essay regarding the importance of technology in education, and how it can benefit a school in their community. Essays are evaluated by an independent judging committee, and winners earn various awards of Samsung products for their designated school. In the four years since its inception, the program has awarded more than 250 U.S. schools with over $7,000,000 in Samsung electronics and Microsoft software. In 2008, the top winner receives a grand prize of over $200,000 worth of Samsung technology, Microsoft software and cash grants from DIRECTV, as well as the SCHOOL CHOICE® educational television programming package.

Click Here to read more about this grant and to enter. Forward this post to your students and parents. Consider offering the essay topic as a writing prompt or as a "homework challenge." Good luck!