A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 6, 2011

'This is the million dollar question! Like most educators in the blogging world I see the inherit value in educational technology. Combined with sound pedagogical practices, the effective integration of technology has the ability to engage learners in a variety of ways. The other day I came across this article where interactive whiteboards (IWB''s) were touted as the most effective piece of classroom technology followed by individual netbooks for each student (these were being used predominately

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Poll Everywhere Technology Classroom Mobile Learning 254

The Web20Classroom

JANUARY 11, 2011

'Epic. #snOMG Snowageddon Just a few of the terms I have heard on my local/national media and have seen on Twitter to describe the recent Winter Weather here in the souther United States. From Texas across the Gulf Coast and up the Eastern Seaboard, many students have not been in school since Jan 7. (Some before then.) Today is the second day in a row all of the districts in my area are out.

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Edmodo Facebook Twitter Online Learning 152

The 21st Century Principal

JANUARY 6, 2011

'Let’s face the truth. There’s no reason to spend another dime on purchasing licenses and software for Microsoft’s Office Suite of programs. School systems have too many much cheaper options (like free or almost free) rather than continuing to purchase the popular office suite that most often includes MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel, MS Access, MS Publisher, and MS Outlook.

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Microsoft Technology Software Google 94

The Electric Educator

JANUARY 14, 2011

'Two ideas have inspired me to try something radically different in my classroom. The first is Google''s 20% time. If you''re not familiar with the idea, Google requires (they don''t suggest or encourage, they require!) every employee to spend 20% of their working time doing something other than what they were hired to do. Some employees spend their 20% time aiding charitable causes, help organize internal parties and events, or join a local club or organization.

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Wiki Survey Google Software 90

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SpeechTechie

JANUARY 6, 2011

'and so far I am a little underwhelmed by what it has to offer. But let''s give it time. For those who were not waiting with bated breath like I was for this release, the Mac App Store is a new functionality of Mac laptops and desktops whereby you can access an App Store on your computer and download "Apps" (you must be running Snow Leopard 10.6 and then perform a Software Update-click on the Apple in the upper left corner- to access the App Store).

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iPhone Software Mobility Android 81

The Learning Revolution Has Begun

JANUARY 17, 2011

'Join me for a live and interactive FutureofEducation.com webinar with Karen Cator, the Director of the Office of Education Technology , on education, technology, and the 2010 National Education Technology Plan. Date : Monday, January 31st, 2011 Time : 3pm Pacific / 6pm Eastern / 11pm GMT ( international times here ) Duration : 1 hour Location : In Elluminate.

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Technology Advocacy Education Industry 69

The Web20Classroom

JANUARY 26, 2011

'Last weekend I had the honor and pleasure of giving a keynote at TeachMeet Georgia to a wonderful group of educators from all over the southeast. It was a great day of learning and I was glad I was able to make it down. My keynote centered on how educators can move from just teachers to teacher-leaders. A video of my keynote is below. It begins with a great intro from Cybrary Man , Jerry Blumegarten.

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The 21st Century Principal

JANUARY 26, 2011

'Recently, I began reading Carl Sagan’s book The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. At the beginning he writes of his school experiences. When I began reading that part of the book, I expected a tribute to some teacher who inspired him to the great heights he reached in science achievement. Instead he writes: “I wish I could tell you about inspirational teachers in science from my elementary or junior high or high school days.

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Classroom Learning Elementary Study 89

The Electric Educator

JANUARY 17, 2011

'Note: This is the first of my series "5 things to watch in 2011" Future installments will include: Five people to follow in 2011 Five trends to watch in 2011 Five technologies to watch in 2011 Five blogs to read in 2011 The folks over at Prezi continue to make their presentation product more and more compelling. When I first learned about Prezi I was impressed by the fundamental change it brought to the art of presentations.

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Company CMS Camtasia Blackboard 71

SpeechTechie

JANUARY 26, 2011

'I''ve been receiving a lot of requests lately about lists of apps for various purposes, and a recent discussion on Twitter centered around a need for a list. The SLP Apps List is a new resource for anyone interested in apps for mobile devices (iOS- iPad/iPhone/iPod, Android or BlackBerry) that have clinical applications. This is a collaborative document housed in Google Docs, and all can access or edit it, with the idea being that it will grow with everyone''s contributions (so I am not really

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iPhone Guidelines Android iPad 79

Speaker: Andrew Cohen, Founder & CEO of Brainscape

The instructor’s PPT slides are brilliant. You’ve splurged on the expensive interactive courseware. Student engagement is stellar. So… why are half of your students still forgetting everything they learned in just a matter of weeks? It's likely a matter of cognitive science! With so much material to "teach" these days, we often forget to incorporate key proven principles into our curricula — namely active recall, metacognition, spaced repetition, and interleaving practice.

Training

The Learning Revolution Has Begun

JANUARY 17, 2011

'Join me Wednesday, January 19th, for a live and interactive webinar with Yong Zhao on the Chinese education system, international test scores, and "Tiger Moms." Professor Zhao has been a previous guest on the show to discuss his book Catching Up or Leading the Way: American Education in the Age of Globalization and we revisit those themes in light of current educational discussions.

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Handbook Education Software Study 67

A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 30, 2011

'Educon was an amazing experience for me both professionally and personally. It provided me with an opportunity to put a face and voice to so many educators from across that country and Canada that have inspired, motivated, supported, and challenged me ever since I discovered this vibrant, connected community of learners in March of 2009. As I have written numerous times, I have grown and learned more in this short period of time than from any other professional development opportunity.

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Groups Google System Resources 234

The Web20Classroom

JANUARY 12, 2011

'Last night on #edchat our conversation centered around Professional Development. Specifically, what are some of the roadblocks that prevent teachers and administrators from engaging in PD. Pretty deep huh? There are lots of ideas out there as to why teachers don''t want to engage in PD. Many times the PD, when it is required, isn''t meaningful. When I was in the classroom I was part of a team that helped to decide the direction our PD at the school level would take.

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Learning Social Media Training Tools 102

The 21st Century Principal

JANUARY 22, 2011

'I have repeatedly tried to sell Twitter to my fellow administrators, but it is an uphill battle. Mention the words “social media, blogging, or Twitter” and it seems they either want to race on to the next topic, or their eyes glaze over and I’m fairly sure they’re not hearing what I’m saying. I’ve been tweeting for almost three years now, and I am continually amazed by what it allows me to do.

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Twitter Social Media Policies Resources 85

This white paper examines and proposes revisions to the "Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education" introduced by Arthur Chickering and Zelda Gamson in 1987 for today's technology-driven world.

Technology

The Electric Educator

JANUARY 27, 2011

'This past Monday I was surprised to find a square box on my doorstep. Inside was a gift from Google-- a brand new CR48 Netbook. If you are unfamiliar with the CR48 I would recommend reading about the netbook and Chrome OS directly from Google. I''ve been using the CR48 off and on for the past few days and am ready to put down my first impressions. First, what I like: 1.

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SpeechTechie

JANUARY 18, 2011

'Noddy Fun Time is a nicely-designed and fun site from the UK that would be great for early learners. The five activities on the site can be used to target basic concepts and categories: Pop Pop Balloons- choose a balloon color and shape and hold down the mouse to blow it up. The longer you hold, the larger the balloon will be. Tessie''s Garden- Plant seeds of various kinds and create patterns in a garden.

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Connecting 2 the World

JANUARY 28, 2011

Okay, so I'm not claiming to be a genius. Let's start there. However, two things happened yesterday to trigger this post. First, I met with my dissertation adviser. He is very good in terms of focusing my work. However, I'm always so depressed after speaking with him as I feel I will never complete this process. I had sent him drafts of chapters (one of which I found out later was the wrong file.not the 71 page completed draft but rather a 3 page draft).

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A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 12, 2011

'Hopefully the title of this post grabbed your attention. As I was walking out of an eighth period class on Monday that is what I heard one student tell her friend. As a Principal it was an amazing way to end the day. I too sat in the same class as those students engaging in that conversation and am still in awe of how a little bit of technology could dramatically transform the learning experiences for our students.

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Course Policies Student Engagement Meeting 205

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The Web20Classroom

JANUARY 20, 2011

'A colleague and I were doing a workshop at a school today. I was filling in for someone who had been out and the content were we covering, I thought, would be better if we taught it together. And that also allowed one of us to teach while the other floated around the room to help teachers who got behind or need a little extra encouragement. The workshop was just like any other.

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Meeting Technology Groups Tools 100

The 21st Century Principal

JANUARY 23, 2011

'Earlier, I posted 4 of my own reasons why school administrators need to get connected to Twitter. Once they are connected, the next question is how to help them engage in its use? Sometimes, this is not an easy task because so many believe that once you have a Twitter account established, then the job is finished. This is simply not true. To foster the development of a Twitter PLN and connections to others, there is more work to do.

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Twitter Conference Professional Learning Resources 81

The Electric Educator

JANUARY 24, 2011

'Note: This is the second of my series "5 things to watch in 2011" Future installments will include: Five companies to watch in 2011 Five people to follow in 2011 Five technologies to watch in 2011 Five blogs to read in 201 Reverse Instruction is an innovative instructional strategy that was originally used by chemistry teachers Aaron Sams and Jon Bergman.

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Trends Broadband Mobility Android 58

SpeechTechie

JANUARY 16, 2011

'I may be seeming to be going off-format by sharing a movie review, but technology is a broad term, and one that certainly plays a part in The King''s Speech. There is not a lot in pop culture that is so explicitly about communication disorders, which may be just one reason why our profession is not well understood, and I think we should be very grateful for The King''s Speech.

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Technology How To Learning 70

Speaker: Chris Paxton McMillin, President of D3 Training Solutions

There are plenty of great authoring tools for developing eLearning, but the one you select could directly impact your course's outcomes. Depending upon your learners’ needs and your organization’s performance goals, you could be overlooking considerations that impact the both effectiveness of your courses and how long it takes to finish them. From general capabilities to specific workflow structures, some aspects are critical when it comes to learning objectives and deadlines.

Comparison

The Daring Librarian

JANUARY 9, 2011

'a long graphic for a long post. fitting. I had a great time over break having a lovely Tweetup Lunch with some of my favourite Maryland iPad experts! As I''m still an iPad newbie I thought it only fitting to put it to them: What are Coolest iPad techniques, tips & tricks and most loved and must have APPS!?? Guest bloggers Donna Anderson the Digital Librarian21 @digilibrarian21 Joquetta Johnson, the Digital Diva @accordin2jo and Selena Ward the Tech Tiger @thetechtiger 3 educators who are am

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iPad Twitter Facebook Libraries 62

A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 21, 2011

'The past two weeks at NMHS have been extremely exciting. Students and staff have engaged in many innovative activities that have showcased what the school has to offer, illustrated the potential of our learners, and made it clear that all voices matter in order to change the educational culture. Here is a quick snapshot: Elective course in Holocaust/Genocide Studies Skypes with a Holocaust survivor, who''s diary is featured in a book, entitled “Savaged Pages”.

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Meeting Study Course Learning 193

The Web20Classroom

JANUARY 19, 2011

'Last week I had the pleasure of talking to Senior Technology Editor for Scholastic Ken Royal on an episode of BlogTalk Radio. It was a great conversation that covered everything from how I got started with Twitter to some of my favorite tools. If you get a chance, go down to the widget and click Episode 2-Best Classroom Web 2.0 and give it a listen.

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Twitter Tools Technology Classroom 100

The 21st Century Principal

JANUARY 4, 2011

'I stumbled across an article entitled “Singapore Looks at Strengthening School System Further.” The country’s prime minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, states in the article that while his country performed reasonably well on the latest PISA assessments, they must keep up the efforts of continual educational improvement. Interestingly, he cited the reasons for this was because of stiff competition from “European countries like Finland and Asian giants such as Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and S

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Education Instructional Materials Secondary System 79

Speaker: Amanda Davis, Chief Experience Officer and Liam O'Malley, VP of Association Solutions

The "new normal" is now a little less new, a little more normal. Does that mean your current LMS strategy is in need of a refresh? Is your organization or association leaning into the always-evolving eLearning environment to ensure you have the tools and content to remain relevant through all this change? There are many complex decision-making processes within your learning & development strategy and LMS lifecycle management, including: Selection.

LMS

The Electric Educator

JANUARY 5, 2011

'If you can edit the header.php file in a wordpress template, hunt down the path of an image in html, keep track of hundreds of logins for students and staff, know the difference between between gadgets, widgets, and apps, and are the first one to discover great new web-based tools for the classroom, you are an Edutech Geek. "With great power comes great responsibility.

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Training Google Twitter Technology 56

SpeechTechie

JANUARY 3, 2011

'CAST is a Massachusetts-based organization promoting UDL, or Universal Design for Learning. I first saw their Book Builder presented at a conference a few years ago, and must say it has improved greatly in selection and ease of use. The UDL Book Builder is designed to present books created by educators in a way that is accessible to all, with a screen-reader and skill-building helpers built into the site.

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UDL Conference Strategy Accessibility 68

wwwatanabe

JANUARY 8, 2011

'1/3 Cup Standards-Based Task 1/4 Cup 21st Century Thinking 1/4 Cup Problem-Based or Project-Based Task 2 Tablespoons Choice 6 Tablespoons Purpose 3 Tablespoons Audience 1/3 Cup Authentic Assessment Combine Standards-Based Task with 21st Century Skills. With mixer running, add Problem-Based or Project-Based Task. Add 2 Tablespoons student choice for technology that best suits their needs in order to complete the task.

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Technology Learning Assessment 55

A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 14, 2011

'The following is a guest post by Linda Keesing, the Media Specialist at New Milford High School. Below are her thoughts on the recent revisions to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Feel free to comment below and she will respond. Linda can be contacted directly at lkeesing@newmilfordschools.org In February, there will be a new edition of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn , minus any appearance of the "N" word.

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Learning 189

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