Tech Coordinator

©Roberto A Sanchez iStockphoto.com

This is not a post specifically about the iPad or iPad2, this post is about brand names and the power they have in the choice of technology for education.

When a teacher tells me they want an iPad is that what they really want or is that what others call a tablet computer?  Or do they think they want an iPad because that is the name they hear and see  all the time?  Or do they truly want a iPad brand tablet device manufactured by Apple?

Why did they even mention an iPad?  Did they hear it from students or maybe at a meeting?  Did they see an ad or have a friend recommend one?  When I talk about the iPad I could substitute several different products.  For example, Smart Boards for interactive white board or Elmo for document camera.  The concept is the same, do teachers really want or need brand name items?  This phenomena is not restricted to education.  I grew up thinking that a Crescent wrench or Vice Grips were just types of tools and not brand names.

This leads to a two part question  Do people really want  the brand name tool or do they just want the tool?  Second who decides if they get the brand name tool?  We will talk about the second part in another post.

The Power of Brands

Modern marketing strategy is all about branding.  Marketers don’t sell products, they create brands.  Apple has been fantastic about creating a brand, and they have had good products to go along with that brand.  Many companies don’t worry about the products, they focus on the brand.

If you ask most people what browser they use, they won’t have an answer.  But if you ask if they use Internet Explorer, Firefox or Chrome, they will know right away.  They know the brand not the tool.  The brand name has become synonymous with the tool.  Like my example above, it is no longer a adjustable wrench you need, it’s a Crescent Wrench.  It’s no longer a interactive white board(IWB) you want for your room, it’s a Smart Board.

We had a sale representative from Eno IWB’s come and give a demo of their board.  Teachers all ohhed and ahhed, as they tried the different functions.  I loved the fact that there were no wires to the board, and installation was simple and easy.  Even after spending 4 hours with the Eno, I had teachers ask me for “one of those Smart Boards”.  I explained that our district had decided to standardize on Eno’s they complained that we had a ‘Smart Board’ salesman in and that was the one they wanted.  Of course they were talking about our Eno salesman.

Who is to blame for this misunderstanding?  Is there anyone to blame?  Is there any blame?  In today’s society people are too quick to blame others for any misfortune or inconvenience.  I don’t want to fall into that trap.  I feel blame is too strong of a word.  It implies negativity, something is wrong and someone must pay mentality.  Even responsible is a bit too negative.  Instead of blame, I want to talk about the reason for this misunderstanding.

But not today.  I have given you enough to think about for now.  In a few days I will be back with another post on this topic of brands and their impact on ed-tech.

Finally, I have uploaded the next tutorial.  No more promises about when the next one will be done.  This video is about using the built in resume feature in Mahara, the software that runs our ePortfolio.  Let me know what you think about these tutorials.  This time I have not included a downloadable file, just the embedded video.  Let me know if you would like a copy of the file.  Remeber all of my content on this site is released under the Creative Commons Attribution License.  Basically that means you are free to use the content in ant way you need and freely distribute it.  All I ask is that you credit me and my web site.

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stock photo from dreamstime.com

It took longer than I expected but I am finally ready to upload the first techcoordinator.org video tutorial.  In Video 1 – The Basics I show you how to sign up for the ePortfolio, how to log in the first time and how to create your profile.  The next video (release date Tuesday 4/19) will show you how to fill in the ePortfollio resume section.  I hope to release a new tutorial each week for the next several weeks on topics such as: how to upload and organize your files, how to create views, and other site features.  Let me know if you want a video on any other subject.  The video is an MP4 file.  I recommend using VLC , a free media player that can play just about any format.  The video will also work in iTunes.  (Down load high quality video Video 1 – The Basics )

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You may be asking why would I need a ePortfolio.  I’m happy in my job, or I just got this job so I’m not looking for a new job.  Well congratulations if you have a new job.  Are you sure you will be at that job forever?  The same for those you are happy at their job.  Things change.  We change.  What satisfies us today may not next year or five years down the road, or maybe tomorrow.

You should not think of an ePortfolio as only for job searching.  An ePortfolio is like a professional scrapbook.  You can put stuff in there to remember it, or to show it to others.  Others may be a prospective employer, your current employer (they document their version of what you do, why not document your version), your biographer or anyone.  OK most of won’t have a biographer but we will have current and prospective employers.

You should start your ePortfolio now and add to it as you go forward.  Even if you never plan to change jobs, it will become a permanent record of your accomplishments.  So next time you spend two weeks on that report for your boss, save it to your ePortfolio or when an article appears in the school newsletter about you or your job, in it goes.  You get the idea.

I wish I had taken my own advice years ago, of course there may not have been ePortfolios years ago, but you get the idea.  Trying to gather documents now that highlight my past work is difficult.  It is so much easier to add as you go.  Let me sound like one of those infomercial guys.  How much would you pay for this service?  $25 per month?  No not $25, or $10 or even $1.  It’s FREE.

Now with Techcoordinator.org and our free ePortfolio you have no excuses not to start one today.  My next post will begin a series of tutorials on using the ePorfolio, so stay tuned.  Click on the register link and sign up for an account today.