There has been a few versions of using The Pencil Metaphor in eLearning and #pencilchat in Twitter going around the the past two months.
I thought I would aggregate them here in one place as a handy resource for any Professional Development sessions I might run. The resources below are handy icebreakers which can really start a discussion. So the resources here are not original, but what you do with them could well be.
The Pencil Metaphor surfaced in early January, describing six cohorts of teachers and their uptake of eLearning as the different parts of the pencil. From the leaders being at the pointy end of the pencil to the Hangers On and the Erasers being at the other end [ i.e. the blockers]
http://rhul-lt.blogspot.com/2012/01/e-learning-and-pencil-metaphor.html
Now I really liked this and was amazed when I found that pencil metaphor had been around for quite a while.
http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/lindy/pencil/pencil.htm
If that is the case, then we haven't really moved as fast as should be expected expected. Is there still dead wood, erasers and hangers in your school?
The other pencil metaphor was #pencilchat on Twitter. In tweets the words desktop, notebook, netbook, iPad etc were replaced with the word pencil. That is the name of one tool [ computer / device etc] was replaced with that of another [pencil]. Eg. "I'm not using these pencils until I get professional development in how to use them". or "Students might use these pencils to write words that they aren't supposed too!'
This tweets where put together by MiddleLevelEd using a xtranormal using a great animation.
http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/12783558/ode-to-pencilchat-technology-integration-in-the-classroom
It is great viewing, really useful for Professional Development. Watch here
The pencil manufacturer in the images has nothing to do with the content of this article
