Tuesday 20 February 2018

Do passwords drive you insane?



Over the last 3 weeks, I think I've reset 37 passwords.

That, quite frankly, is being conservative. People simply can't do ALL the right things when it comes to creating strong passwords AND remember them. Somewhere something has got to give. Passwords are fast becoming the bane of my life and the sooner we can get to a place where we no longer need them, the better.

Until that time arrives though, the best way to prevent this problem is to use a password manager. Using a password manager will not only help you remember your passwords, but it will also:
  • Allow you to create stronger, longer and more secure passwords (because you no longer need to remember them!!!)
  • Reduce the need for corporates to have users change their passwords so often (because their passwords can now be much more complex)
  • Remove the problem of using the same password more than once (DANGER!)
  • Avoid the issue where people simply use a variation of the same password (password1, password2, password3...)
Over the last few years I have been using Keepass, an open source password manager that lets you store your passwords in an encrypted local file or your favorite cloud storage. It is, however,  a little bit too “geeky” for the average teacher and therefore I started recommending LastPass. This happened when the free version started allowing you to access your passwords across multiple passwords devices.

Unfortunately their takeover by Logmein has caused a little bit concern in the tech world and after doing some research I no longer recommend Lastpass. Adding and removing features from different tiers causes confusion and as much as I know it’s a good service, most South African teachers would not fork out the $24 annual subscription.

My search for a replacement has led me to Bitwarden and to be honest, so far I am very very impressed. So much so that I’ve actually moved away from my beloved Keepass and now use Bitwarden across all of all my devices. It’s open source, which means the code is available to anyone and their openness about security gives me immense peace of mind.
Bitwarden lets you access all your passwords with the click of a button and installs as an app on iOS or Android devices, and as an extension in the Chrome browser.

I could go on and on, but why don't you rather check it out for yourself? Here is a handy How-To guide to get you going. Please leave a comment below to let me know if you like it.



TTT

Thursday 1 February 2018

Professional development that works

While sitting aboard a flight on my way to London last week, it allowed me some time to reflect on the start of this year and the effect that handing out 55 iPad Pro's to teachers have had.



Seeing their faces when they unboxed their brand new devices, complete with apple pencils and smart keyboards, will tell you most of what you need to know. Excitement was definitely in the air and people are so keen to see how these devices can change the way they work on a day-to-day basis.

This year, we have planned our professional development around fortnightly sessions in small groups of 2/3 with people of similar technological ability, and the feedback has been incredible. Teachers are asking more questions and beginning to experiment, not only with their new device, but also ways to enhance the content they need to ”deliver”. Our focus is on changing pedagogy and how technology can enhance the learning for students, moving away from the traditional spoon-feeding approach to something...else.

Being able to sit down with teachers on a regular basis is truly a privilege. I am hoping to get to know them better; each with their unique teaching style and to be there on their tech learning journey should be exciting! I absolutely love the fact that everyone has their own needs and are at different levels - doing the same thing week after week would kill me...

Kill me now...

I am very interested to find out how others go about their PD in schools. What do your schools do to allocate time for developing professionally? Leave a comment below.

Till next time.

TTT