Sat.Jan 30, 2016 - Fri.Feb 05, 2016

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Differentiate Reading with Rewordify

Catlin Tucker

In an earlier post titled How Challenging Is that Online Text ? , I shared the Readability tool that can help educators determine how hard an online text is to see if it is a good match for their students. Then in a training last week, someone asked me if there was a tool that could make a challenging text simpler. Yes, there is! Rewordify allows the user to: Simplify the wording of a text for improved comprehension.

Software 318
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100+ Great Google Classroom Resources for Educators

The CoolCatTeacher

The easy tool educators are using every day From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis Follow @coolcatteacher on Twitter. Google Classroom allows teachers to easily manage student work and teaching with Google Docs, Google Forms, Google Spreadsheets and anything Google. This handy tool has opened up the doors of blended learning and collaborative classrooms like never before.

Google 270
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Reinventing Curriculum: The Underlying Challenge to Moving Education Forward

The Journal

This blog post kicks off a new blog theme: Reinventing Curriculum. Like teacher and pedagogy, curriculum is one of the keys to a successful learning experience. Due to three trends, we will argue, curriculum – its development, its distribution, and its use — is in a state of real turbulence. The educational community, in general, and educational technology, in particular, needs to focus on the “next turn of the crank” in curriculum!

Trends 247
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The 5 Strategies States Should Pursue Now to Make the Most of Future EdTech Investments in ESSA

Doug Levin

The glasses have been raised. The speeches made, and press releases issued. It’s now time to get down to brass tacks and figure out how the implementation of the Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA) can best be leveraged by state and local officials to improve educational outcomes for children and youth. To that end, I recently had the pleasure of addressing a cross-section of state board of education members from across the nation – working together under the umbrella of the National

Strategy 231
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Quickly Create Personalized Learning Experiences that Work

How can we actively engage learners 24/7, on their level and according to their interests, while respecting their learning styles? It’s not impossible. In this guide: Explore how to transform traditional, one-way videos into two-way interactive learning experiences Understand different types of artificial intelligence (AI), including - Generative vs.

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TCEA 2016: Crowdfunding Pioneer Inspires Giving for School Projects

EdTech Magazine

By Jena Passut TCEA 2016's opening session keynote was an inspirational message from the CEO of DonorsChoose.org.

Classroom 232
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You Matter: Before You Help Students, You Must Help Yourself

The CoolCatTeacher

Every Classroom Matters episode 211 From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis Follow @coolcatteacher on Twitter. Stress caused me to lose half my hair and gain weight. Stress put Angela in the hospital three times in a year. As much as we love caring for children, we’ve learned very hard lessons that mattering starts with loving yourself enough to take care of yourself.

Exercises 231

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Practical Applications to Individualize and Personalize Learning

A Principal's Reflections

Possibly one of the most important shifts needed in schools is to provide individualized and personalized learning experiences to students. Learning has fundamentally changed with the evolution of the Internet and other technologies that allow for ubiquitous access to information and knowledge. Digital leadership focuses on transforming learning environments through online course offerings (synchronous and asynchronous), independent studies, and use of OpenCourseWare to provide students with con

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TCEA 2016: Panelists Debate the Hottest K–12 Technologies

EdTech Magazine

By Jena Passut Notebooks, video conferencing and makerspaces top the list.

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Teacher PD Is Still Broken, These 3 Steps Can Fix It

The CoolCatTeacher

Every Classroom Matters episode 212 From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis Follow @coolcatteacher on Twitter. Many teachers feel like teacher professional development is a waste. Dan Brown shares the three research-based ways to make teacher PD better. What is more hypocritical than a lecture on differentiated instruction or project based learning?

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How to become a teacher who innovates

Ditch That Textbook

Have you ever thought to yourself, “I’m just not one of those innovative teachers. Creative ideas don’t just pop into my head.”? This post and this video are for you. (Know someone who thinks that? Maybe you can pass this along to him/her.) I’ve felt this way most often at teaching conferences. I’ll sit in [.].

How To 179
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Can Brain Science Actually Help Make Your Training & Teaching Stick?

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.

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3 Favorite Classroom Apps

Ask a Tech Teacher

Here’s an excellent collection of great apps for your classroom — to cover writing, research, and assessment. You can even use all three on one project: Storyboard That. Free; fee for education accounts . Storyboard That is a leader among online digital storytelling tools thanks to its comic-based themes, clean layout, vast collection of story pieces, varied strip layouts, and intuitive drag-and-drop interface.

Classroom 159
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Visions of Education Futures Floating Around in My Head

User Generated Education

Walk into a classroom in any part of the United States, even the world, and you most likely will scratch your head in disbelief asking yourself questions such as: Why do the classrooms look pretty much like the ones in which I, my parents, and my grandparents learned? Many students (of all ages) own computers in the form of their cell phones that are more powerful than all of the computer power of NASA back in 1969, when it placed two astronauts on the moon.

Education 156
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Edusketching: A Tool to Help Students Understand Complex Concepts

The CoolCatTeacher

Every Classroom Matters Episode 213 From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis Follow @coolcatteacher on Twitter. Your recall of information is up to 55% greater with the use of a picture linked to the content, according to edusketch expert and National Board Certified Teacher, Wendy Pillars. Wendy coined the term edusketch and authored the book Visual NoteTaking for Educators: A Teacher’s Guide to Student Creativity.

Tools 208
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Can learning be addictive?

Neo LMS

The internet can be addicting. People would a quick search on an interesting topic, read on and find themselves reading more and more topics totally different from the topic which piqued their interest. It’s like playing a video game and most of us can relate to that. Once we start playing the first few stages of the game, we progressing and finally finish the story of the game.

Learning 154
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Reimagining Chickering & Gamson's Principles Post-Pandemic: Technology's Central Role in Modern Edu

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.

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What to Look for in Your K–12 Technology Leadership

EdTech Magazine

By David Andrade Effective leaders are those who take a comprehensive approach to technology integration, prioritizing training and infrastructure upgrades.

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Schools as Learning Playgrounds! 20 Ideas & Resources

Teacher Reboot Camp

“Play is our brain’s favorite way of learning.” – Diane Ackerman. In Chapter 26, Goal: Encourage Play, of The 30 Goals for Teachers , I talk about the importance of play for our learning, development, creativity, and mental wellness. With so much standardized testing and stress on data, play is being taken away. Children are being tested as early as Kindergarten.

Resources 152
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Merging Classrooms: How I Shared My Students with a Class in Egypt

The CoolCatTeacher

Every Classroom Matters episode 214 From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis Follow @coolcatteacher on Twitter. Talking about ISIS and Arab Spring online with kids from the US and Egypt. Did teacher Adam Jones really do that? Yes he did. He merged his classroom with a colleague in Egypt with incredible results. Listen now. Essential Questions: Merging Classrooms: How I Shared My Students with a Class in Egypt.

Classroom 180
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In the News: On Technology, Testing, and Equity

Doug Levin

As quoted in: Herold, Benjamin. “ Comparing Paper-Pencil and Computer Test Scores: 7 Key Research Studies.” Education Week. 4 February 2016. “Students who had greater access to technology in and out of school, and had teachers that required its use for school assignments, used technology in more powerful ways and scored significantly higher on the NAEP writing achievement test. “Such clear and direct relationships are few and far between in education—and these findings raise many imp

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Behind the Bell: The Underlying Impact of Tardiness in K-12 Schools

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

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Dear Otto: How Do Students Access Twitter in the Classroom

Ask a Tech Teacher

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 Paul: We are considering the appropriate role for Twitter in schools and as part of my research I read your article “ 13 Reasons to Use Twitter in the Classroom.” While I understand the points that

Twitter 150
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Success with Online High School Courses: From Probation to Graduation for More Than 600 Students

FuelEd

Contributor: Amanda Cunningham Thursday, February 4, 2016 - 9:15am In its new series, “Research: Outcomes of Blended/Online Learning Programs,” the Evergreen Education Group takes an in-depth look at successful blended and online programs across the nation to examine the best practices that have created tangible results. We are pleased to share with you some highlights from the Marshall Metropolitan High School study.

Course 148
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Top Blog Posts of January 2016

The CoolCatTeacher

The Cool Cat Teacher Blog From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis Follow @coolcatteacher on Twitter. Wow! January 2016 was an epic month here with a reach of over 200,000 views between this blog, my blogspot blog, and vickidavis.me. Add to it a great month for Every Classroom Matters and all of you who share and reshare on Facebook and Twitter and you’re looking at more than a million educators reached through the network built around this blog.

Twitter 156
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The Maker as a Reflective Practitioner

User Generated Education

This coming year, I am doing several keynotes and workshops on the reflecting on the making process. Two elements from my training as educator lead me to really embrace this topic: Background in Experiential Education. Studying the Reflective Practitioner During Graduate School. Experiential Learning. Experiential learning is the process of learning through experience, and is more specifically defined as “learning through reflection on doing.” Experiential learning is distinct from r

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The Battle of the Authoring Tools: A 10-Point Comparison for Picking the Right One

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.

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Tech Tip #123: Quick Search for Plagiarized Images

Ask a Tech Teacher

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’m teaching a class on internet forensics–to drive home the point that the internet is a scary place for the uninformed.

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The Third C: Communication in the 21st Century

Battelle for Kids

Volume 3, Issue 2, Number 2. Driving Question: What's So Critical About Communication in the 21st Century? In 10 seconds, how many ways to communicate can you name? Yes, just stop reading for a minute and try it out? Done? Ok, so how many related to technology? Did speaking come in the top ten? Did listening come in the top ten? If we were to collect data regarding types of communication, I wonder how the data would break down?

Data 146
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There is genius around us – and within us

Dangerously Irrelevant

A. O. Scott said: The incentives not to think – to be one of the many available varieties of stupid – are powerful. But there is also genius around us, and within us. via [link]. Are we unlocking genius in our classrooms? Related Posts. Students will lean into the wind if given a chance. The educative effect is greater when students do something than when something is done to them.

Classroom 144
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Make Your Classroom Truly Global

The Web20Classroom

This post is sponsored by Samsung. All thoughts and opinions are my own. One of the great things about being a connected educator is the conversations that happen on a regular basis with colleagues and learners from across the globe. Being connected means that educators can think and learn, grow and reflect with not just those directly around us but also those in the far reaches of the globe.

Classroom 142
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The Roses and Thorns of an LMS Strategy: How to Flourish with the Right LMS

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.

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Subscriber Special: February

Ask a Tech Teacher

Every month, subscribers to Ask a Tech Teacher get a free/discounted resource to help their tech teaching. This month: If you donate to my blog drive, I’ll send you FREE. The 57-page K-8 Hour of Code Bundle –everything you need to kickstart coding with your students. We could sell ads, but we don’t want to clutter the pages. That’s distracting as you search out resources for your classroom.

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How Collaboration Could Win Your School $50K

EdTech Magazine

By D. Frank Smith CDW•G and eSchool News partner for the second Collaboration Nation contest.

Classroom 181
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What We Can Learn from Family Dinner

Hapara

A recent broadcast on San Francisco’s Public Radio, KQED, reviewed the studied benefits that regular family dinner offers to children.

Learning 167
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Old English Teachers Never Fade Away

Battelle for Kids

Volume 3, Issue 2, Number 1. When I was a boy several centuries back, the historic words "Old Soldiers Never Die, They Just Fade Away" flowed out of my family's sole radio. Over the years, I have uncovered many meanings in General MacArthur's retirement speech. Today, whenever I engage in discussion about the Common Core Standards, I end up thinking about what he said.

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Enhancing HyFlex Education through the PowerTeaching Framework

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.