K-12

Educators move beyond the hype over Skype

On 02/09/2011, in expectations, K-12 related, languages and translation, tools, videoconferencing, virtual field trips, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

Educators move beyond the hype over Skype — from Digital Directions by Ian Quillen

Olivia Flick, a 3rd grader at Washington Street Elementary School in Brewer Maine,
shares facts about her state via Skype with students in South Dakota.

—Carl D. Walsh_Digital Directions

Educators are now using the videoconferencing tool to connect foreign-language students to native speakers, hold virtual field trips and host conversations with scientists and other experts

…

While conceding the potential for frivolous use of Skype, its advocates say the tool can be particularly valuable for connecting foreign-language students to native speakers, holding virtual field trips, and visiting with real-world subject experts while saving precious funds and preventing logistical headaches. In many cases, teachers are reporting that aspects of video communication actually make teaching and learning more effective than the comparable in-person experiences.

Also see:

Framing a Skype Learning Experience — from Langwitches blog by Silvia Tolisano

Tagged with: K-12 • languages • Skype • student expectations • tools • videoconferencing • virtual field trips • web-based collaboration

Report shows U.S. schools can’t meet technology demands of teachers, students

On 02/09/2011, in budgets, digital learning, education technology, expectations, K-12 related, legislatures / government / legal, by Daniel Christian

Report shows U.S. schools can’t meet technology demands of teachers, students— from The Journal by Scott Aronowitz

Few people will be surprised to learn of research that shows K-12 institutions throughout the United States have become heavily dependent on technology, and that this dependency continues to increase with each passing year. What may surprise even the most jaded among us, however, is that, given that many view this a “good” dependency with a wealth of immediate and long-term benefits for teachers, students, and staff, we’re doing an inadequate job of feeding the habit.

At the FETC 2011 show in Orlando, FL, PBS and research firm Grunwald Associates released a national research report on digital media usage among educators entitled “Deepening Commitment: Teachers Increasingly Rely on Media and Technology.” The report is based on a survey conducted in August 2010 of 1,401 preK-12 teachers from various regions and demographics throughout the United States. Its primary conclusions are:

Teachers are, owing to both interest and circumstance, increasing their use and knowledge of technology in the classroom; and

U.S. schools provide an insufficient capacity of computing devices and technology infrastructure to support teachers’ Internet-based instruction needs.

Tagged with: budgetary • digital learning • K-12 • pooling resources • student expectations

Google Teacher Academy London 2010 Video: Motivation and Learning

On 02/08/2011, in K-12 related, learning, love of learning, motivation, passions, by Daniel Christian

Tagged with: K-12 • learning • love of learning • motivation • passions

Digital Media and Technology in Afterschool Programs, Libraries, and Museums

On 02/07/2011, in digital audio, digital learning, digital video, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, library / librarians, multimedia, by Daniel Christian

Digital Media and Technology in Afterschool Programs, Libraries, and Museums
Becky Herr-Stephenson, Diana Rhoten, Dan Perkel, and Christo Sims — with contributions from Anne Balsamo, Maura Klosterman, and Susana Smith Bautista
© 2011 Massachusetts Institute of Technology | The MIT Press | Cambridge, Massachusetts | London, England

Excerpt:

This report synthesizes research and examples of the diverse ways in which organizations approach and integrate digital media and technology into their youth programs, practices, and philosophies. We aim to clarify a framework for understanding organizational efforts related to digital media and technology and to establish a foundation for future research in this area. Our guiding questions for this report are:

How have digital media and technology been incorporated into youth programs within educational, civic, and cultural organizations, including afterschool programs, libraries, and museums?
What types of participation and learning do digital media and technology support and/or complicate within these organizations?
How can research in the area of digital media and learning contribute to better integration of technology within individual organizations and better coordination via technology among organizations?

Tagged with: digital audio • digital citizenship • digital video • K-12 • learning ecosystem • library / librarians • multimedia • new media literacies

The Kennedy Center’s ArtsEdge

On 02/04/2011, in art, ideas, K-12 related, social learning / networks, teachers, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

Tagged with: art • connect • Connectivism • ideas • K-12 • teachers • teaching & learning

NetSmartz.org

On 02/03/2011, in K-12 related, relationships, social learning / networks, the downsides of how people use tech, by Daniel Christian

.Mission

NetSmartz Workshop is an interactive, educational program of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children^® (NCMEC) that provides age-appropriate resources to help teach children how to be safer on- and offline. The program is designed for children ages 5-17, parents and guardians, educators, and law enforcement. With resources such as videos, games, activity cards, and presentations, NetSmartz entertains while it educates.

Goals

Educate children on how to recognize potential Internet risks
Engage children and adults in a two-way conversation about on- and offline risks
Empower children to help prevent themselves from being exploited and to report victimization to a trusted adult

Tagged with: digital citizenship • K-12 • social learning • social networking • the downsides of technology

Reconnecting Students in Alternative Education

On 02/03/2011, in education technology, engagement / engaging students, K-12 related, videoconferencing, by Daniel Christian

Reconnecting Students in Alternative Education — from The Journal by Chris Riedel

In an effort to reduce truancies and tardiness among alternative education students, Kingsville ISD in Texas has started using videoconferencing to reconnect those students to their original classrooms. The results from the initial pilot have included improved attendance and, for the district, $200,000 in annual savings.

When Jennifer Kent, chief academic officer for Kingsville Independent School District in Kingsville, TX, joined the district 18 months ago, she was faced with some daunting challenges.

In a district of approximately 4,000 students, 82 percent were receiving free or reduced lunch; less than 75 percent of students were completing high school in five years; enrollment was on the decline; achievement in special education classes was below state standards; and the district’s middle schools were struggling to maintain an “acceptable” rating by the Texas Education Agency (TEA).

Speaking to several dozen teachers and administrators at the FETC 2011 conference in Orlando, FL Wednesday, Kent acknowledged “something had to be done.” And it had to start with the way the district handled its Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP).

Tagged with: educational technology • engagement • engaging students • K-12 • videoconferencing

Tagged with: K-12 • student-related • teachers • teaching & learning

Wyse Technology and Pearson Digital Learning Join Forces to Cut Technology Costs for Schools

On 01/29/2011, in budgets, education technology, K-12 related, new business models, publishing, by Daniel Christian

Wyse Technology and Pearson Digital Learning Join Forces to Cut Technology Costs for Schools

Tagged with: budgetary • educational technology • IT • K-12 • new business models • pooling resources • publishing

Mangahigh Math — example of adaptive learning using educational games

On 01/29/2011, in digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital video, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, K-12 related, mathematics, personalized/customized learning, by Daniel Christian

.
“Every Prodigi ® lesson begins with Easy questions that review prerequisite concepts and get students warmed up. Based on student performance, questions increase in difficulty to Medium, and then to Hard (examination level), and finally Extreme (recreational). Not only that, but students have live access to hints and worked solutions to plug any gaps in their knowledge”

Tagged with: digital audio • digital storytelling • digital video • e-learning • educational gaming • engagement • engaging students • K-12 • Keeping students engaged • math

Tagged with: blended learning • hybrid learning • K-12 • trends

2011 Market Trends: Brain Candy

On 01/26/2011, in Augmented Reality (AR), creativity, digital storytelling, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, K-12 related, personalized/customized learning, by Daniel Christian

2011 Market Trends: Brain Candy — from sparxoo.com by Ethan Lyon

Innovative companies are leveraging augmented reality to teach astronomy, combining food with learning, developing adaptive algorithms that understand individual learning preferences and expanding upon Mrs. Frizzle’s Magic Schoolbus. New education initiatives are helping children, high-schoolers, college students and graduates learn in ways that are most conducive their individual learning patterns. It’s about injecting creativity into education, whether manifested in technology or more traditional, person-to-person environments.

Tagged with: augmented reality • creativity • digital storytelling • emerging technologies • engaging students • K-12 • personalized learning

Tagged with: education • K-12

Tagged with: higher education • K-12 • new business models in he • online learning

Our Puppet Shows, Published

On 01/24/2011, in creativity, digital audio, digital video, drama/theater, K-12 related, play, storytelling, by Daniel Christian

Our Puppet Shows, Published — from Kevin’s Meadering Mind

All 22 of the collaborative puppet shows have now been published at our Puppet Shows of Norris School website. Just a reminder: these are original plays planned out and written collaboratively, with original puppets made by students, and performed behind a puppet theater made by sixth graders about 10 years ago.

The Puppet Show Website

I have to say that for the most part, the stories were pretty cohesive and followed a story arc with protagonists and antagonists and most were able to get a moral or theme into the writing. These are the writing skills that I was going after, plus the exploration of the genre of script writing.

Tagged with: creativity • digital audio • digital video • drama/theater • K-12 • play • storytelling

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