Ed Tech from the Ground Up
MAY 14, 2015
A handful of ed-tech startups won $140,000 from the Milken-Penn GSE Education Business Plan Competition Wednesday. Click the headline to read the full post. Questions? Email websupport@epe.org.
The CoolCatTeacher
MAY 9, 2015
An Interview with Every Classroom Matters Guest, Rae Pica Rae Pica is joining a cacophony of voices calling the US national standards for kindergarteners as “developmentally inappropriate” and “unrealistic.” In her new book, What If Everybody Understood Child Development?: Straight Talk About Bettering Education and Children’s Lives , Rae shares a composite of opinions and research that gives voice to the children being pushed to learn.
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EdTech Magazine
MAY 12, 2015
By D. Frank Smith Those who missed Google Education on Air when it was streaming last week can still catch all of the sessions.
A Principal's Reflections
MAY 11, 2015
The following is a sponsored blog post by imakiku. Student engagement that leads to actual learning is the goal of any pedagogically sound lesson. With that in mind have you ever pondered the following questions? What do the students think while in class? What are students interested in now？ How do I know if they are actually learning? These questions are a major concern for many teachers, as they want to know what the students think while in class.
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Doug Levin
MAY 12, 2015
I have a confession to make. I work in K-12 education in the U.S., and I am merely a fan – not a fanboy – of open educational resources (OER).** I suspect that some will claim that this is a difference without a distinction. Others surely see me as some sort of OER fanatic. I beg to disagree. Image credits. After all, I’ve advocated for federal support for the development, use, and adaptation of OER (see, e.g. , the May 5 Education Week story by Sean Cavanagh, “ ‘Op
The CoolCatTeacher
MAY 14, 2015
The Every Classroom Matters Show: Matthew Farber, Expert on Gaming in the Classroom Matthew Farber does a masterful job of explaining game mechanics, Bartle’s player types, and how to use gaming in the classroom. In Episode #144 of Every Classroom Matters, Matt also talks about game design as it relates to the classroom and how he uses questions to level up his classroom design.
EdTech Update brings together the best content for education technology professionals from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
A Principal's Reflections
MAY 10, 2015
Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to have an article published in the digital version of ASCD's Educational Leadership. The title of the article was Transforming Your School with Digital Communication. As technology continues to evolve it will continue to become an even more embedded component of society. With that being said it is important for school leaders to meet their stakeholders where they are at and engage them in two-way communications.
Dangerously Irrelevant
MAY 9, 2015
Jordan Shapiro said: The majority of [learning] games fail because they attempt to teach skills rather than thinking. They focus on retention rather than understanding. They miss the whole reason we should be excited about game-based learning in the first place: because it offers the potential to change the common way we approach teaching and learning.
The CoolCatTeacher
MAY 13, 2015
Understand the Future of the Classroom, sponsored by Intel On May 20, we will get a glimpse into the future. Many education leaders complain about the difficulty of long-term planning when we don’t have a clue what the future will look like in the classroom. Now we can have some insight. “Technology alone will not make our kids smarter.” says futurist, Brian David Johnson.
Tom Murray
MAY 10, 2015
From Atlanta, Georgia to Vancouver, Washington, I've had the opportunity to travel and work with over a thousand district leaders over the past year. Regardless of which region of the country the conversation takes place, a number of concerns arise regarding a district's digital tranformation. These concerns are real and are often roadblocks for school leadership teams.
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.
Brilliant or Insane
MAY 10, 2015
Brilliant or Insane. One of my favorite education blogs, TeachThought, posted an excellent article that sparked some inspiring conversation on providing feedback for learning at the Facebook group, Teachers Throwing Out Grades. While the TeachThought post included mostly great ideas for making feedback useful, there were a few tips that provoked reflection about the kinds of feedback that are counterproductive to learning.
Dangerously Irrelevant
MAY 11, 2015
I loved hearing Will Richardson say at the Iowa Association of School Boards conference last November that ‘ curriculum is a strategy.’ Because he’s right. Standards are a strategy. Bell schedules are a strategy. Bubble-sheet testing of low-level recall is a strategy. School calendars, grade levels, siloed content areas, instructional methods, grading systems, discipline policies, and sit-and-get, one-and-done professional development sessions are all strategies.
Ditch That Textbook
MAY 14, 2015
Technology isn’t the genius in education, but it can be the catalyst for amazing things. It was a given that the Education on Air Conference, put on by Google for Education, would produce a long list of great ideas and tools that can be leveraged for impressive learning experiences. Right after the conference happened on [.].
Ask a Tech Teacher
MAY 15, 2015
As a passionate Economics major in college (which grew into an MBA), I find Econ at the root of much of the world around us. It starts with counting coins in first grade and grows up to a peek into NASDAQ and other adult subjects in middle school. These websites cover kindergarten (counting money) through elementary (economics for youngers) through Middle School: Coins and Counting Money.
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.
Brilliant or Insane
MAY 13, 2015
Brilliant or Insane. You know the drill: each fall and (if we’re lucky) every spring, parents are invited into the classroom to visit with teachers and discuss the strengths and the needs of their children. Experiences vary, but not enough in my opinion. In general, this is what often happens: Parents are provided grades or other quantitative data, which […].
Dangerously Irrelevant
MAY 14, 2015
Using social media to share with your community? It’s a start, but it’s not enough. Using social media to connect with other educators? That’s awesome, but that’s not enough either. Using what you’ve learned from social media to significantly change the day-to-day learning experiences of students (and teachers)? Now you’re getting somewhere… In other words, the branding and the PLN work is great.
Battelle for Kids
MAY 11, 2015
May 12, 2015, Volume 2, Issue 6, Number 6. Driving Question: How do we forge and sustain healthy relationships between school systems and communities? Let's talk frankly. Most relationships between the school systems and their communities are dysfunctional - like a bad marriage. Each has suffered deeply crushed expectations.
User Generated Education
MAY 15, 2015
Yesterday I was one of several speakers at a mini-conference sponsored by a New Mexico agency whose sole purpose is to raise the reading achievement scores of the student body of low performing skills. My piece was to present on the Growth Mindset (the interest of the agency in Growth Mindsets was due to its potential to raise test scores – e.g., see https://www.mindsetworks.com/page/increase-students-motivation-grades-and-achievement-test-scores.aspx ).
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Managing a K-12 campus with constant pressure to meet performance metrics is challenging. And tardiness can significantly limit a school from reaching these goals. Learn more about why chronic lateness matters, and key strategies to address the following impacts: Data errors caused by manual processes Low attendance and graduation rates that affect a school’s reputation Classroom disruption, which leads to poor academic performance High staff attrition and “The Teacher Exodus” Unmet LCAP goals t
Brilliant or Insane
MAY 10, 2015
Brilliant or Insane. Last week, I had the good fortune to be in schools that did a commendable job of helping teachers feel very much appreciated. I watched as friends were honored at various luncheons, as they received clever gifts, and as their eyes watered up in response to kindnesses their students extended. The year isn’t quite over […]. The post 30 Ways to Thank a Teacher for a Great Year of Learning appeared first on Brilliant or Insane.
Dangerously Irrelevant
MAY 15, 2015
Andreas Schleicher said: there is no shortcut to improved learning outcomes in a post-2015 world economy where knowledge and skills have become the global currency, the key to better jobs and better lives. And there is no central bank that prints this currency. We cannot inherit this currency, and we cannot produce it through speculation; we can only develop it through sustained effort and investment in people. . via [link].
EdTech Magazine
MAY 13, 2015
By D. Frank Smith An update to Whispercast guides schools through the digital leap.
Battelle for Kids
MAY 10, 2015
May 11, 2015, Volume 2, Issue 6, Number 5. Driving Question: How can community partnerships help poor and minority students bridge the success gap? As a high school educator for 30 years, I have long understood the value of community partnerships, beginning with the development of my first medical pathway program in Illinois three decades ago. It was a 'no-brainer' for me, as I had been a nurse before I became a teacher.
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.
Brilliant or Insane
MAY 15, 2015
Brilliant or Insane. Walt Disney gave us the storyboard: a set of images or illustrations that help designers visualize, experiment with, and sequence critical shots in a narrative. Defining key scenes, taking the time to flesh them out, and considering the influence of order on meaning serves filmmakers, artists, novelists, software designers, and animators well.
Dangerously Irrelevant
MAY 13, 2015
Dog-and-pony every day, please (not just when someone visits). Should students’ best learning experiences only be during formal observations? Download this slide: png.jpg.key.pptx. See also my other slides , my Pinterest collection , and the Great Quotes About Learning and Change Flickr pool. Related Posts. 5 great slides about technology, learning, and change.
Ask a Tech Teacher
MAY 13, 2015
Dear Otto is an occasional column where I answer questions I get from readers about teaching tech. If you have a question, please contact me at askatechteacher at gmail dot com and I’ll answer it here. For your privacy, I use only first names. Here’s a great question I got from Sandy: I am a computer teacher for Elementary as well as for preschoolers…ages 3 and 4.
Ditch That Textbook
MAY 11, 2015
When Google decides to put on a free online conference, it’s a huge event. The 2015 Education on Air conference featured tens of thousands of registered educators from 185 countries. They had more than 100 sessions to choose from in the two-day event. I was fortunate to present “Ditch your textbooks with Google Apps” to [.].
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.
Digital Promise
MAY 15, 2015
While the main focus for education investment is the K-12 market, millions of American adults too need and want opportunities to learn. For low-skill adults in particular, technology could provide an ideal way for them to build the skills needed to improve their job prospects, and most importantly, their families’ well-being. For developers, this population represents an estimated $55 billion dollar hidden market.
Brilliant or Insane
MAY 14, 2015
Brilliant or Insane. Yearlong projects are a central piece of the Results Only Learning Environment–a student-centered, workshop-type classroom. Obviously, project-based assessment is not new. Yearlong projects in the ROLE, though, are different in a few ways. They help fan students’ intrinsic motivation, leading them to embrace learning rather than grades.
Ask a Tech Teacher
MAY 12, 2015
As a working technology teacher, I get hundreds of questions from parents about their home computers, how to do stuff, how to solve problems. Each Tuesday, I’ll share one of those with you. They’re always brief and always focused. Enjoy! Q: I have a video on my classroom computer I want to use on my iPad. How do I do that? A: There are ways to do that–email it to your iPad, open through DropBox–but those have issues: emailing requires extra steps and time you may not have. many email
Educational Technology Guy
MAY 12, 2015
Filechat is a new, free service that allows you to collaborate on documents, photos and videos in Dropbox or Google Drive. Instead of just commenting on a document or file, users can chat, like and vote on any of their files in Drive or Dropbox. You can even have multiple conversations with different teams or groups. It adds more "social" features to collaborate with others in a tailored caht room that is based in a file or folder.
This whitepaper explores integrating the PowerTeaching pedagogical approach within a HyFlex (Hybrid Flexible) educational model, focusing on employing cooperative learning strategies and efficient classroom management techniques.
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