Joyce Valenza’s Neverending Search

Back in 1996, when I started my Philadelphia Inquirer column, the Web was an infant.  In more than ten years, techlife@school allowed (sometimes forced) me to reach, to learn, and to share with readers–in this region and beyond–the excitement of watching that baby grow. 

It was cool to be a columnist with a laboratory.  When I reviewed applications and websites, I watched my learners, and my children, use them.  When I talked about issues, I asked my students, my children, fellow educators, and fellow parents how they felt. 

Along the way, I met, and interviewed. and had drinks with, and danced with many of the heroes of the ed tech world.  I won’t list their names, but those conversations inspired me, rocked my world, and pushed me as an educator. 

I tried to convey the excitement I regularly feel about the kind of learning that happens when technology is used thoughtfully and creatively and when we as teachers learn to incorporate relevant, emerging tools in our practice.

My section editor called yesterday to explain the Knight-Ridder cutbacks and to gently let me know that techlife@school was one of the columns to go. 

On the down side, I will miss the opportunities the column provided for me to grow and learn. 

On the up side, this blog provides an alternate forum.  My words here do not have the benefit of the touch of my dear, long-time editor, Rhonda, but they can be a little bit looser and they will no longer be strapped to weekly or bi-monthly deadlines.

And with those deadlines out of the way, I should be able to devote time to dissertation writing.