Do you Chrome?

You've probably seen the commercials about the amazing things people do with Chrome.  This is another one except I don't do anything amazing with Chrome; I'm just generally less frustrated and more productive.  If you know me maybe you think that IS amazing.

Why Chrome?  Chrome is one of the most customizable browsers I've ever met...and it syncs seamlessly between computers when linked with an Apps Account.  So my home computer and my work computer have the same extensions and bookmarks all the time.  Plus it makes Google Docs....I mean SPPS Apps...work like a charm.

The customization works thru little add-ons called extensions.  They do everything from make your browser pretty to send webpages to your kindle; translate webpages to shorten URL's (Twitter here I come!).  Browse the store for hundreds of options.  Here are some of my favorites:

1. Kindle: Push web articles to my Kindle (or Kindle app on my laptop) for reading later
2. Announcify:  Reads the content to you in a relatively pleasant voice
3. Google Translate:  Translates content with one click
4. dotEPub:  Cleans up webpages and converts the text to an ePub file for reading on a Kindle, Nook, or iPad all in one click
5. goo.gl URL Shortener:  One click to make that long Google Form address 11 characters long!

How to get it?  If it isn't on your SPPS computer already you can get it through the self-service application on your computer.  If you're trying to get it on your personal computer, go to www.google.com/chrome.

What do Starbucks and Classrooms have in common?

When you walk into a Starbucks they customize your experience in a myriad of ways..... which makes sense, right?  Some people need a double shot of caffeine and others are really there to get their daily dose of calcium from a latte, no caffeine needed.  Skinny?  2 pumps hazelnut flavor?  No sleeve - I'm going green and can handle the heat! Room for cream, please.     

The miracle here isn't "getting it your way"  - Burger King has been allowing us to "have it your way" for years.  The miracle is getting the exact drink you want in a short amount of time and at a similar cost to the standard version.

This idea of mass customization is pervasive everywhere....except in our schools.  Our school system was designed in the age of the assembly line not in the age of Starbucks.  While we've recognized the need to differentiate the learning experience for years it is hard to pull off within a one-size-fits all system.  This need and the technologies available to us have collided at just the right moment - just in time to help educators pull off mass customization.

We look at Starbucks, Amazon, iTunes, and many of the other giants in the world of mass customizing and see that it is possible.  We just need to learn how to let their systems walk across the tracks to education's systems.

This is the idea behind the book Inevitable: Mass Customized Learning by Charles Schwahn & Beatrice McGarvey.  It is a reader friendly book worth a look; it's the direction St. Paul Public Schools is headed. Maybe you could buy it online from Amazon.  Or download an ebook to your Kindle, where you can change the size of the font (if you choose).  Or maybe you want to pick it up at your local book seller.  Perhaps you are an auditory learner so the audiobook is for you.  Whatever works best for you...