Week 8: Efficiency, Interconnectivity, and Globally

Efficiency, Interconnectivity, and Globally

As I went through the readings and videos of this course, I definitely received a good history and outlook of technology. As I have stated in previous posts, I can’t remember a time when I was not able to use the Internet for a report. I have had the Internet since I was in elementary school and was curious as to how this class would help me become a better leader. I admit, I am not a person that really appreciates the “drive” but more the “destination.” I am usually not interested in how we got somewhere, as long as we got there. I did however enjoy learning about how today’s technology all came about and the differences it has made across the globe. As a leader, this class has helped me appreciate the drive a little bit more. Through reading Friedman’s book I have come to see how several smaller events have made such a huge impact on technology. I would have never connected Friedman’s ten flatteners together as being technology advances, but now it all makes sense. The interconnectivity and global awareness Friedman’s book has pinpointed has greatly opened my eyes. It makes me very happy to think about how the entire world could be and is connected. The competition for new technologies is actually bringing people, cities, and countries together more than it ever has before. It is providing a chance for every person, no matter his or her ethnicity, education, or physical appearance, to be a part of something bigger.

In his video, Kelley discussed the idea of “accessing” becoming bigger and more important than “owning” in the future. I think this is going to be an incredibly important concept for leaders to embrace in this digital world. As leaders we need to accept others’ ideas and use them to build off of and create the right balance/product for our companies. The access we have to material is immense and lends itself to creativity within our own realms. This class has shown the different uses of technology for each of our different companies. For instance, while we do not “own” Skype, we each have access to it. While we do not use it for the same purpose, we each benefit from it. This access and sharing of information is what we, as leaders, need to embrace in order to improve our own companies. We have moved the hierarchical nature of leadership and with that, the knowledge base has flattened and several more people have access to it all. Leaders need to embrace this and guide their employees through the information rather than hide it from them.

 I think the biggest thing I am taking from this class goes along with interconnectivity and access. I went into the EdD program thinking along the lines of education and school as a workplace. As I read others blogs and learned about the other business realms outside of the school setting, I was able to stretch my ideas and thoughts on technology much further. I remember thinking in May, why are these people getting a doctorate in Educational Leadership if they are business owners? I have come to refer to the degree as Educated Leadership instead. Thanks to all of my classmates, I have realized how technology is a benefit across platforms. I am thankful for all of the different insights and new technologies I have learned about from my classmates as well as the thought provoking questions we asked each other about their blogs. Being interconnected with business people has made me look at my own school from a business owner’s perspective. Even though I am a teacher, when viewing my students as employees it has helped me think of different ideas to use within my classroom and how to make my classroom more efficient, interconnected, and global.

It is through these three, I am going to try and enhance my classroom as a leader. Classrooms are often thought of as dictatorships. (I have stated in my classroom before that I am the Queen and my students are in my Queendom.) There are so many new technologies to help me change this idea and hopefully change this idea for other teachers as well. The first area, efficiency, is something every teacher strives to get better with. I think in order to do this; I need to embrace and use the technology students have in their hands. The number of students with smart phones in my classes is over seventy percent. I aim to put this to use in the next school year. As a leader, I intend to show my students the proper way to use technology in school and where to access the necessary information. They should know where to get a graphing calculator online if they can’t afford to buy one. They should know where all of their online materials are and what they have access to for tools. By having this knowledge, the time wasted each day referring to where these things are located or what it is I am looking for should be eliminated. Thus providing more time for the teaching of the lesson.

The second area, interconnected, is an area I hope to show other teachers as well. By connecting information across different disciplines, students will be able to better remember and associate the information. Technology will be a huge help with this. I hope to spearhead a project and/or movement within our school bringing different subject areas together. Using Podcasts and videos our different classes will be able to make connections. The graphs shown in history classrooms could relate to the graphs shown in math. The biology information in dealing with the human body could relate to the information shown in P.E. classes. It is through these connections, made possible by technology, the students will be able to better understand the material being presented.

The final area I hope to improve my leadership with is globally. Our school system is very self-sufficient and I think at times this is a downfall. The things we could learn from schools across the nation and the globe are huge. I have discussed having videoconferences with other schools before, but have never actually done it. After going through this class however, I think it is important for me as a teacher and leader for my students to show my students and fellow teachers the vast world there is out there.  This combined with interconnectivity and efficiency can make a teacher’s world so much better. By opening up ourselves as classrooms and businesses to the idea that others can help us out and we don’t have to face things on our own, we are opening ourselves up to the creative world. Who knows what inventions could spur from connecting different disciplines and students? Hopefully I will be able to facilitate this type of creation and guide my students and fellow teachers along the paths to becoming an independent educated leaders as well. 

Week 7: Leaders and Consultants

Leaders and Consultants

With all of the amazing new technology we saw on the videos, I can’t help but think that our role as leaders is going to be finding what is needed within our company and for our employees. Sure there are amazing things being invented and coming out by several different companies, but we as leaders need to look at it all and see what is really useful and important within our own area. It is not necessarily that the leaders themselves need to sort through the information. Rather, I can see technology consultants becoming a very large business within the next twenty years. The role of these consultants would be to look at a business or a company and see what would help them become more productive, efficient, and/or better serve their customers.

As leaders, it is our responsibility to keep up to date with the technology and information being produced. As we have discussed earlier in this course however, there is too much out there for one person to be able to handle. That is where the consultants and employees need to come in and be heard. I know in the school setting we are asked nearly every year if there are materials, supplies, or software we would like to order for the following year and as teachers we are able to put in our ideas and proposals as to what we think would help us as teachers. I am not sure if other companies run this way, but I think it is a good idea. This provides the leaders an opportunity to stay current and it provides the employees a sense of ownership in the company. With the employees coming up with the ideas, they become vested in the company a little bit more.

It is also one of our roles to make sure we hire these consultants and ask our employees about the new technology at regular intervals. With the speed technology changes and improves it is important that an evaluation of technology happens at least every two years. While there may not be major changes for a company to make, sometimes it is the smaller changes that can make a big difference. Updated operating systems and basic technologies similar to that can help in everyday functions within the office or classroom.

Leaders as delegators are going to go hand in hand in the future. We need to stay up to date with the technology in our business and asking others to help us do that will be vital. There are definitely some amazing technologies emerging, but we need to truly take a look at our specific needs within our companies and see which would best suit our needs before jumping on the bandwagon.

Week 6: Mobile Security & Eavesdropping

Mobile Security & Eavesdropping

There is an ever growing sense of security and lack of questioning happening with the increased use of technology. People are much less likely to question sources and programs when there are so many available. The thought of having programs and applications so easily accessible is helping to create a generation of people that are download happy. These technologies have been around for long enough now that people do not even give a second glance at filling out surveys, questionnaires, or allowing a file to download in order to access a website or gain information. It is with this idea that people have such great power to gain any information they are looking for, but still need to remember that they have a specific responsibility to themselves to protect their security and personal information. There is now a major infestation of malware for cell phones and one of the newest threats of information stealing has become cell phone spyware.

In October of 2008, the National Institute of Science and Technology published a paper on the Guidelines on Cell Phone and PDA Security. Within this paper, they highlight some of the major threats presented to cell phone and PDA users. Some of these threats include malware, eavesdropping, and location tracking services. Each of these three threats seems to pose some of the largest ethical issues for cell phones today. They define malware as being “often disguised as a game, device patch, utility, or other useful third-party application available for download … malware can initiate a wide range of attacks and spread itself onto other devices.” This common and well-known issue among computer users has not been given as much thought among cell phone users. With the ever-increasing use of smart phones, people need to realize they have a computer on their phone now and they too are at risk for malware.  This malware can be a large privacy issue depending on the program it is running. There may be programs deleting your much-needed files and/or accounts. They can also prevent the use of the phone at all. Malware of this type definitely has ethical issues. However, if users continue to not take responsibility for researching their downloads, they may end up with a virus on their phone that may eventually spread to other phones and/or computers.

The next security threat out there for cell phones is eavesdropping. While people are often aware of virus programs coming from some hacker they don’t know, they should also be wary of companies placing eavesdropping programs on your phone. As stated in the Guidelines on Cell Phone and PDA Security,

“Electronic eavesdropping on phone calls, messages, and other wirelessly transmitted information is possible through various techniques. Installing spy software on a device to collect and forward data elsewhere, including conversations captured via a built-in microphone, is perhaps the most direct means, but other components of a communications network, including the airwaves, are possible avenues for exploitation.”

Often times, companies place these programs in the phones without the users knowledge in order to track specific information about their customers and claim the information is used to create solutions to common problems and better serve their customers. It is becoming even more of an issue with cell phone companies selling their user information to police and law enforcement agencies. This user information can range anywhere from the basic information to playing back recorded phone calls and showing text messages that have been sent or received.

  While digital eavesdropping is not exactly illegal, it brings about several ethical and moral dilemmas. The advancements in technology make it no longer necessary to come into physical contact with the cell phones in order to place the eavesdropping device. There are programs that use “… a notebook computer to impersonate a legitimate access point for a public wireless hot spot, such as a coffee shop or an airport first-class lounge, [allowing] client connections to be attracted and sensitive data captured from unsuspected patrons” (Guidelines). These programs are able to find contact lists, pictures, text messages, bank information, or anything else that you have on your phone. They are also able to take a legitimate domain name the user frequents and reroute the user to a malicious website. The advancements in technology are also allowing people to use their phones as a method of payment now since these phones can be connected to bank accounts.  This poses a whole new privacy issue and threat possibility. The ability to track where people shop, how much they spend, and where their account is linked leads to my next major privacy issue today of digital eavesdropping; tracking.

Electronic tracking is basically like having a GPS in your phone at all times. This GPS is a location finder for you though. It tells others where you are and can track where you have been. Often times these programs are advertised for parents to keep track of their children and for business managers to keep track of their employees during office hours (Guidelines). Some of the programs send a message to the user that requires authentication while others never inform the user they’re being tracked. It is up to the parents and business owners to be honest with their trackees. There is an app now as well that people are downloading which lets them see where their friends and contacts are (Trackster). This is a willing app people choose to have and allow others to see them. These programs are being utilized by law enforcement as well.

These cell phone security issues clearly have ethical and moral issues within them. The main one being privacy and another being users not giving consent. Is it ethical to "spy" on someone and listen to their conversations? This is a question that cannot be easily answered. Parents may say that yes it is ok since they are checking on their kids and making sure they are not getting into trouble. Some spouses may say it's all right as well because they are seeing if their spouse is cheating on them. This seems to me to be a large intrusion on privacy and huge lack of trust. We need to get back to talking to each other and discussing issues instead of just assuming and taking drastic measures. Whatever problems were there before I think will only be escalated. These programs are like most other programs out there where they are good programs, but it is the users that make them bad. There are several precautions to take to avoid these things, but I think that is another blog. The nice thing to think about is how useful these programs can be. Each of the initial programs began with a good and positive thought in mind. It was when people modified them and the wrong people got a hold of them that they were being used for the wrong purposes.

Other sources used:

New York Times: Police Usage

Plato: Computer and Information Ethics

Mobile Spyware: Ethical and Legal

Discovery: Cell Phone Spying

CNN: Mobile Phone Security

Government Darknets

Challenges, Opportunities, and Shock

There were three main opportunities I thought of when reading Madden’s article and Friedman’s final chapters. The first opportunity is one that we have discussed several times, online collaboration. By having networked workers, companies are able to hold staff meetings while away from the office or in separate business rooms. It is no longer a necessity for everyone to be in the same area. This provides the service of employers being able to meet with their networked employees in different areas of the state, country, or world.

The second opportunity I think networked workers bring to an organization is conformity. When all employees are networked, employers are better able to pass along messages, protocol, and information. With this opportunity, organizations can then ensure that all of their business partners are “in the know” as far as new things developing within the organization. This also brings about conformity by having everyone on the same page. There is no longer an excuse of “I didn’t get the memo” when all of the employees are networked.

This also leads into my third opportunity of a broader knowledge base. Of course being networked allows employees the ability to look up and gather information, but it also allows the CEOs and managers the ability to share knowledge within the company. They are able to pass along information as well as delegate responsibilities to their employees to gather information. With this, the leaders of the organizations can have a vast amount of knowledge not only in their employee’s hands, but in their own hands as well.

There were two challenges I thought of for networked employees. The first was an obvious one of lack of focus and/or production. By having access to a network at all times, employees have access to several other non-work related arenas. As Madden listed in the article, the number of people participating in non-work activities while at work is increasing. I can see this as being a hindrance in the workplace. When employees are not focused on work, they are not being as productive as they could be. However, I think by companies allowing this to happen on occasion, or at least not cause a large issue, they are keeping their employees happy and actually allowing them to focus better. In the education area we are always trying to find attention getters and ways to keep our students interested in the lesson. When I look into a classroom of teenagers and they are glassy-eyed or I can’t even see their eyes because they have their head on their desk, I know I need to do something to bring their attention back. I have even resorted to making them do calisthenics in the classroom! I can imagine the same thing happens in the business world. I cannot really see how people sit at a computer all day. However, if employees are allowed to do the occasional shopping, social networking, or game playing, then they get a break from the hum-drum of work. You hear and read about the amazing concourses some companies work in like Google, Yahoo, and Pixar. Each of these companies allow for creativity to flow by providing physical areas for employees to stretch their legs and get out of their office, but some companies are not able to provide these escapes to the same level. It is with this in mind that I think by having these online breaks, companies are able to help their employees by allowing at least some sort of release. It also allows for employees to get some personal satisfaction depending on what it is they are doing online. They can stay connected to their lives outside of the workplace. This in turn helps employees refocus upon their return to their task and be more productive.

The other challenge I see is having employees connected at all times and required to check their email or messages on their weekends and holiday. I think this leads to a dimmed line of expectations for workers and their employers. What is to stop an employee from saying they read the message too late, or they didn’t have internet service where they were? This lends to a gray area of who is responsible and can an employer really expect their employees to be networked 24-7 with so many different variables out there? Spinning this to a positive would be having the ability to collaborate when the need calls. This would allow companies to be proactive when approaching a situation and hopefully solve problems before they blow out of proportion. It also allows companies to keep a 24-7 mentality for its customers. They are able to provide their services whenever it is convenient for them. By having employees networked at all times, customers can then be networked at all times.

Madden’s Pew Internet and American Life Project

I have to add in how shocked I was to read how many people have never done some of the activities listed in the chart. Almost one-fourth of Americans have never bought anything online! The number just goes up from there. To think that almost half of all Americans have never used or watched a video on a video-sharing site is not only amazing, but a little disheartening to me. There is so much out there for people to enjoy, learn from, and participate it. I realize there are several factors affecting these numbers, but it is still hard for me to accept. A part of me wonders how many people don’t realize what they are seeing and/or using sometimes. A bit like when people talk to customer services on the phone and don’t exactly realize they are talking to a person in another country. Maybe the people in this study don’t realize they are reading another person’s journal or blog when they are surfing the internet for information. I wonder if the study would have looked at what people’s everyday habits were if we would see a difference in numbers. I also know that I am of a different generation, but I am still surprised and somewhat frustrated by the number of people not connected to the flat world.