ELO: Dr. Hallowell's CrazyBusy

Dr. Edward Hallowell's book CrazyBusy: Overstretched, Overbooked, and About to Snap discusses strategies for handling a fast paced life, specifically how to gain back control of your life. 

Dr. Hallowell discusses how our world has changed fundamentally and that we are now going faster than ever before while asking our brains to store and interpret more data points. While reading the excerpt of Dr. Hallowell’s book I felt like I could relate to exactly what he was saying. What graduate student wouldn’t agree to feeling “busier now than they have ever felt before” and “wondering if you can keep up this pace much longer?” It seems as though this is what our generation has become, a fast-paced lifestyle in which you will get left behind unless you jump on board and take part in it like everyone else. I agreed with Dr. Hallowell’s statement that “In order to make this crazy world work for you and not against you, you must decide what matters to you most and focus your attention on that.” This is something that relates to both teaching our students and managing our professional workload. There will always be times when things do not go as planned, anxiety takes over and you go into panic mode. However, we must remember that allowing our frantic and panicked selves take over is not always the best answer. If we are flexible both in our classrooms and in our professional lives we will be able to accept things for what they are, including this fast-paced world, and it will help us realize that we in fact are not superheros and sometimes we cannot accomplish everything at once. Dr. Hallowell went on to discuss how being stuck in this lifestyle becomes a habit, similar to what was mentioned in the prezi about the automatic and addictive nature that comes with the technological world. He referred to this as moving from C-state to F-state, which is depicted below. 

Moving from C-state to F-state:

C-state	F-state
Clear, calm, cool, collected, consistent, concentrated, convivial, careful, curious, creative, courteous, and coordinated.	Fractures focus, frenzied, feckless, failing, fearful, forgetful, flustered, furious, fractious, feverish, and frantic.
* In the C-state you have found your rhythm	* In the F-state you have lost it

While reading about the change from the the C-state to the F-state, I thought about how many people go through this transformation on a daily basis. It is important that we actively try to stay in our own C-state, helping us to avoid the consequences of the F-state.

Potential Ramifications of a Crazy Busy Lifestyle: 

- Increase in toxic stress 

- Sickness 

- Prone to making accidents and errors 

- Turns otherwise polite people rude 

- Reduces the general happiness of the population 

- Greatest damage: keeping a person away from what's most important 

Dr. Hallowell's Solutions/Strategies: 

- One of the most important words you can say is "no."

- Everything will get better if you slow down. By slowing down you will get "more done better."

- The better organized you become the easier it is to reach your goals, leading you to a more balanced lifestyle.

- Must learn how to put on the breaks. In order to successfully cope with the daunting demands of everyday life and the information overload, a person must be able to effectively stop and think.

As stated by Dr. Hallowell:

"Life is a powerful accelerator these days; what separates the successful from the frustrated is the quality of their brakes and their ability to use them." 

Digital Minds

 While watching the prezi I found myself contemplating an issue that I have thought about many times before; what are the consequences of our technologically dependent world? Throughout the prezi presentation there were many potential consequences that were discussed pertaining to our unlimited, ever-changing, and expanding digital world. Nicholas Carr discussed the high impact of the digital world on our brains and how people now take part in an intensive way of training our minds to perform technologically. Carr emphasized that there is no encouragement or reward for the more attentive modes of thought, such as deep reading, reflection, introspection, and critical analysis. I believe this should be of critical concern. Many of us 'soon to be teachers' were taught in a way that not only allowed for such thinking but promoted it. So what has changed in this current generation to prevent this type of thinking from becoming a priority?

Questions: 

How do we avoid the costs of a pervasive digital environment in the classroom in the presence of adaptive and instructional technology? 

I think that this is an extremely complex question and that there is not just one right answer. To begin to tackle such a complicated obstacle, a teacher must take the time to truly understand the individual needs of each of her students. Adaptive and instructional technology should be used in any instance necessary, but with that said, there are some skills that are better taught in the absence of technology. As discussed in the prezi, a highly digital environment does not provide much practice in face-to face fluency, such as body language, eye contact, and understanding of facial expressions. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the teacher to create an environment that promotes such social interaction, whether technological devices are involved or not. This is especially important for students that struggle with socialization and general social cues. 

How do we prepare students with good strategies for using technology in their “outside” lives?

I believe the AARP and Conon videos brought up crucial points in terms of providing our students with good strategies for using technology in their "outside" lives. Technology is a huge part of all of our lives, including our students'. However, we must teach them appropriate ways to utilize such technology and remind them of the importance of not taking advantage of such technology or to take it for granted. Just the way we may have to remind ourselves of the importance of quality time with friends and family, we must encourage our students to do the same. As teachers we can work with parents to monitor how technology is being used in our students' lives and keep track of the amount of time it is used each day. It was discussed in the prezi how using technology can become addictive and automatic, which is something we should encourage our students to avoid. I believe that as teachers we are important role models for our students, especially those at younger ages. If we are able to model appropriate usage of technology in our classroom there is an increased chance that the students will generalize this behavior to their home environment. Staying up to date on the latest technology and interests of your students will help ease this process. Lastly, it is important to make parents aware of the pros and cons of using technology in the home. Parents should be encouraged to spend quality time with their children without technology whenever possible. 

What about in your professional practice? 

As we have learned throughout the semester, there are many advantages of using adaptive and instructional technology in the classroom. Nevertheless, I believe there needs to be a balance between the use of technological devices and the traditional ways of teaching, also known as the "old-school" form of instruction. This does not include instances in which children rely on technology for communication purposes, physical movement or any other form of necessary assistive technology. I hope that I am able to encourage my students to learn in ways that incorporate technology when needed    and without technology when it is not necessary. By finding a middle ground between the two teaching methods, I believe that students will have a better chance of increasing the skills needed for more attentive modes of thought. This will help my future students and myself from being victims to cognitive overload.

"Cool Things"

This weeks class about "cool things" and ergonomics was extremely informative and enjoyable. I loved how we were introduced to simple objects that many of us had never considered using as an adaptive device. A few of the items that stood out to me were the book opener, formally known as "thumbthing", the condiments fork (which really stumped my group!), and the siftables. When we were informed of the use of the thumbthing, I attempted to try it out with one of my books. I was pleasantly surprised to see how useful and effective it actually was. It surprised me how such a simple, small item could be such an efficient adaptation. The next cooking adaptation that my group and I spent a long time pondering over was the condiment fork. Although it may sound silly, I am sure that many people could benefit from this relatively simple adaptative device. Who hasn't had a hard time trying to get a pickle out of a jar? 

   

The next form of technology that I enjoyed learning about was the siftables. Compared to the other items presented, this would probably be considered a form of instructional technology. However, this technology could be extremely useful and beneficial for classrooms that utilize any type of group instruction. Having the chance to try using the siftables showed how interactive and fun they are to use. I was amazed to see how quickly the cubes were able to interact together to form the write mathematical equation or whatever they were programmed at the time to do. With that said, I do believe that the siftables were sometimes difficult to use due to the screen sensitivity. It was sometimes difficult to move the cursor on the tiny screen in order to select a choice or correct answer which may cause issues for children that struggle with fine motor skills. 

The last item that was touched upon was using the tennis ball as a pointer for the SmartBoard. Although we had discussed this form of adaptation I was glad to see it was brought up again. This is just another example of how there are so many inexpensive and ordinary objects in our environment that could be utilized to assist a child with special needs. This brought me back to our first few classes on problem-solving skills and how we must learn to think creatively and outside of the box. Sometimes the best answer is right in front of us, we just haven't given it a chance yet. 

Test Access and Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

   The Test Access and Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Guide provides information and tools to assist professionals or parents involved in making appropriate decisions for determining necessary testing accommodations for students with disabilities. This manual also provides information on implementing such testing accommodations in the classroom and during districtwide and State assessments. It is a well organized manual and a necessary resource for any professional that is working with students with disabilities.
   A common mistake seen in the field of special education is the interchangeable use of the terms accommodation and modification, (something I am also guilty of). The Test Access and Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Guide does a great job of defining these terms and explicitly stating the differences. As described in the guide:

• Testing accommodations are "changes made in the administration of the test in order to remove obstacles to the test-taking process that are presented by the disability without changing the constructs being tested." 
• Examples include: flexibility in scheduling/timing, changes in the method of presentation and changes in method of response.
• Testing modifications are "changes made to the testing process or to the content of the assessment itself, or provision of certain adaptive technologies or services,  that affect the constructs being tested."
• Examples include: simplification of test questions, reading items designed to test reading skills, use of a calculator on a test for computational skills.

   Another part of the guide that addresses misconceptions that I had is the section about Decision Makers, which discusses who is responsible for providing permission for a student to use an accommodation. The Committee on Special Education or Committee on Preschool Education is responsible for identifying and documenting the appropriate testing accommodations for an individual with a disability. However, I was unaware that Multidisciplinary Team is responsible for determining the appropriate testing accommodations for individuals classified as having a disability under Section 504. In addition, I was unaware that the principal may grant access to test accommodations for general education students within 30 days before the administration of State assessments. This decision making responsibility is important information that every teacher should be knowledgeable about. 


Reflection: Before reading this manual, there were many considerations and guidelines that I was unaware of in terms of test access and accommodations for students with disabilities. I have heard of this document prior to the assignment but I have never seen it before, which is surprising because I feel as though every classroom that educates students with disabilities should have a copy of it on hand. I believe this document is very well organized and is a great resource since it provides many examples of accommodations and modifications, as well as how they should be implemented. In terms of my own experience, I have worked with students that are provided with test accommodations or alternative testing options, but I have never been involved in or observed the process in which this is decided upon. After reading this manual I have realized now more than ever how integral this decision process is in the life of a student with a disability. I also realize that although this document is a wonderful reference, the test accommodation decision process involves more than simply reading over these guidelines. It is a complex and time-consuming process that requires input from all professionals involved, including the student himself/herself.