The Curmudgeon Speaks

We are in the midst of an epic cold snap (according to the weather folks). Those of us living in the upper midwest are experienced in cold and become annoyed when other folks promote their experiences with the cold. Perhaps this is unfair. If you are not prepared and equipped, modest temperatures are cold.

I was supposed to be on my way back to work today. I am not. Minnesota and North Dakota are pretty much shut down and road conditions are dangerous. Sliding of the road would not be a good. Despite national attention, today is not as bad as several days this past week. It was only -24 this morning and we had several days when the thermometer read -27 when I first checked in the morning.

It could be worse, the view out the window is pretty “cool”.

This instructional material has been prepared for those of you who think 40 degrees Fahrenheit is cold.

An ice dam typically forms at the edge of a roof when some of the snow in the roof melts and the water runs beneath the blanket of snow. Snow may melt even on very cold days if a roof has not been well insulated. The water trickles down toward the gutter as it does in warm weather. Often the gutter is filled with snow or blocked in some way creating slush. When the temperature goes back down, the slush freezes forming ice. Ice may also form when water moves past the heated part of a roof onto eaves that extend beyond the heated room below. When more water forms and drains down the slope of the roof it encounters the dam of ice formed previously and puddles up. The dam grows in size and more water collects behind it.

This puddled water can cause serious damage to a roof. It may seep under shingles and when it freezes pop the shingles up. It may find an opening through the shingles and drip into the house. Significant damage can occur if the problem is not addressed. It can be one of those pay me now or pay me later deals.

The photo shows the snow pack on our house. This situation developed from several heavy snows without wind. A warm day or two and the snow hardened up so that it would no longer blow off the building. If you look closely, you should be able to see the ice forming at the edge of the roof.

Sometimes homeowners purchase special aluminum rakes (snow rakes) that allow them to remove the snow along the edge of a roof. This becomes difficult to do when the snow hardens and not possible with a roof like ours which is 2 ½ stories in some sections. Someone has to go up there to get rid of the snow. This is a job for someone who knows what they are doing and who is significantly younger than me. The idea is to get rid of as much snow as possible and salt the ice dams so the ice melts. This is an expensive proposition – it takes some time and is difficult and dangerous work. Home ownership can involve such unexpected costs.

Happy New Year! My son calls this a “first world problem” and I agree.

I must admit I missed this story when it originally broke, but I follow Slate (a site focused on long form posts) and picked up the story just a few days ago.

Evidently, back in September, the Chronicle of Higher Education published a description of a University of Kansas professor being suspended for a tweet that targeted the NRA following a massed shooting. You might wonder how much trouble you can get into given a limit of 140 characters. Evidently, a good deal. The tweet indicated that “blood was on the hands of the NRA” which probably by itself would not be too objectionable, but then went on to say “Next time, let it be YOUR sons and daughters.”

The tweet evidently was noticed and likely frequently retweeted and in reaction the Kansas chancellor, Bernadette Gray-Little, directed KU to place Dr. Guth on leave.

Reading about this action caused me to think back on what I may have said in response to similar events. I did comment on the school shootings, the NRA, and also on the vote of a  newly elected North Dakota senator I had supported financially. My comments were in a longer form and more carefully worded. I believe comments that over the top lose any possible effectiveness the sentiments expressed might have. One can express contempt for a policy – the lack of a defensible need for high capacity ammunition magazines or the lack of a response to the need for background checks that address mental illness – without wishing ill on the children of those holding such flawed beliefs or taking such stands in response to political pressure.

Still, private irrational and indefensible comments are everywhere. College professors are actually probably even less inclined to “lose it” and make inappropriate comments than are politicians or titans of public (stock supported) companies. Such comments, however, are inevitable and now with our willingness to share thoughts online more visible and permanent. There are two issues here – who is allowed to express their displeasure and what should be the consequences for an inappropriate comment. In both cases, I am assuming the situations involve comments made as personal opinions and not as a representative of any organization (such as is the case with this post). Dr. Gust did not promote his comment as the position of the University and could not have done so in 140 characters.

It does make you wonder. Does anyone recognize that I am a college prof. when reading my posts or tweets? Does anyone know which institution employs me? Does anyone believe my comments somehow carry the stamp of approval of my employer? Does anyone believe my personal position on important issues should be silenced because I work for the people of North Dakota?

The President of the University of Kansas did eventually respond to the intertwined issues of responsibility, free speech, and academic freedom. The comment from KU President are difficult to interpret (administrator speak), but I think he says that we support different views and believe in academic freedom. I hope so anyway.

This situation generated so much attention because the initial comments were online and because the actions taken were also evaluated online. I keep hoping that online comments give everyone of us an opportunity to comment and engage. Being civil is certainly to be expected, but we all become frustrated when positions we clearly see to be wrong are somehow protected with flawed logic.

Further analysis can be found at the American Center for Civil Liberty site (read the extended discussion).

A change of pace – happy holiday to all. A photo from the forest trail near our second home.

There are plenty of technology legends. Sometimes legends are self proclaimed and sometimes status is achieved through deeds.

I think my wife falls into the second category. This has been the case since the mid-80s, but sometimes being experienced can be held against you. Being female and “older” could lead to some false assumptions. In appreciating talent, it is often better to watch than listen.

We arrived at the cabin for a holiday break and found that our television would not work. It seemed likely that the problem was the large accumulation of snow that buried the  dish on our roof. Cindy is more social than I so she called the provider to ask for a suggestion. I am guessing that the support person in Florida could not fully appreciate the nature of the problem, but evidently you cannot get a technician to evaluate your situation until it is clear that some sort of obstacle is not the problem. Snow is an obstacle. The fact that the dish is on a pitched roof 2 1/2 stories above the ground is evidently great for reception, but not access and maintenance.

I would have been comfortable exploring “cord cutting” until one of my kids made his/her way to the lake. Cindy had shows to watch.

What to do when a ladder cannot reach? Climb through one of the windows in the loft (I would not fit) and fix the problem.

Sure enough, the television works. I think I would have crawled back inside at this point and had a cup of coffee.

Cindy decided the view was pretty nice and had me get her iPhone so she could create a panorama. A Christmas card picture for you.

Somewhere along the way I picked up a concept I continue to find useful and I am certain quite likely annoys others. It concerns recognition of those who are “the talent”. I think this is a phrase I first heard my son use. He works in video and the phrase refers to the actors/people who are in front of the camera rather than the people who are behind the camera. What I like about the phrase is that it identifies those who in the final analysis make something work. All contribute, but some support and some must deliver.

I thought it was an important perspective while I worked as an administrator and I think it is an important perspective in the work I do now developing and supporting the skills teachers rely on in engaging students with technology. Ideas have little value until put into practice.

Perhaps it is important to identify who is not “the talent”. Administrators are not the talent. Your “vision” (one of those words I hate) is only as good as the willingness and skills of those who actually do the work. Administrators are in a support role – find good people, find the resources they need, defend them when necessary, allow those who execute to be recognized for their accomplishments.

I think tech people need to take this same perspective. I do not care if you promote each other as rock stars or as one super hero or another. You too are support personnel. You are only successful when “the talent” executes.

The problem from my perspective is that those who must actually make ideas work are not in positions that are visible and find it difficult to self promote. Too often, those in support positions have better opportunities to promote themselves and each other. So, if you have time for promotion and believe it is necessary, perhaps it would be more productive to use some of this time and skills to promote “the talent”.

I must say that I am frustrated with the topics my education colleagues address via social media. They seem unaware or uncaring when it comes to major issues that shape and control the context within which education functions. I had such high hopes for social media because I thought it provided a vehicle for each of us to voice our perspectives on important issues. We seem to have the time to discuss a few topics with like minded individuals resulting in very little change in anyone. Don’t we have the time to attempt to use the tools for broader impact? Shouldn’t we attempt to model the notion that every citizen’s view matters for our students?

Let me explain this as a researcher might. If this were a regression equation accounting for educational outcomes, too many comment and discuss the variables that account for a trivial proportion of the variability in performance. Why debate whether direct instruction or project based learning works best when neither functions work well when children and their parents have no health care and a low income? Equity issues wash out most variables when included in our equation. The method of experiencing information matters little in comparison. This was Maslow’s basic contribution. He called certain sources of motivation deficiency needs.

Maybe your local context does not expose you to these very real problems. Educators need to be more aware of big issues even if they are not personally influenced. To me, educators need to model the importance of a broad perspective. Read a major newspaper once in a while. Know how your representatives vote and offer your reaction.

I am not discouraging your personal interests in technology. I am encouraging you to use it to address more issues that matter. I am not egotistical enough to assume my perspective on various issues must be correct, but I am willing to say that taking the time to make my perspective known is an important thing for me to do.