Ed Tech Lady

Adding Off-the-Shelf Games into Classes

2011-12-05T15:35:00.001-05:00

Event: Webinar

Date: Monday, December 12, 2011
Starts: 4:00 pm (GMT-5) Eastern Time (US)

To participate in the webinar, go to http://www.instantpresenter.com/edweb3 on December 12. (No pre-registration required.)

The best educational curriculum seamlessly integrates content, interaction, and assessment into meaningful learning experiences built upon inquiry-based, student-centered, and authentic problem-solving instructional strategies. As it happens, that is exactly what many commercial games do, making their use for education an obvious choice. But this is easier said than done. In our community’s next webinar, the University of North Dakota’s Richard Van Eck will provide a practical overview of how to integrate commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) games into the classroom. Richard will provide an overview of the NTeQ technology integration model, which is compatible with inquiry-based curriculum that COTS games. He will discuss how this model has been used by elementary, middle, and high school teachers to integrate games into the curriculum while meeting the requirements of real-world classrooms. Join Richard for an interactive, one-hour webinar on December 12th for this model and other practical tips for integrating COTS games into the classroom.

"Bring Your Own (BYO)" Webinar

2011-12-03T08:08:00.001-05:00

The Impact on Pedagogy and Professional Development

December 8, 2011

1:00 EST

High School Teachers Make Gaming Academic

2011-11-10T19:11:00.001-05:00

High School Teachers Make Gaming Academic
(US News & World Report, Nov 1, 2011)

Many parents are concerned that their children are spending way too much time on video games as it is. What happens when those video games are brought into the classroom? Many parents have expressed objections. "I don't send my kids to school to play video games," says Sara Sroka, who has three video-game loving boys in her Iowa home. "There are better ways to learn."

However,research is showing that videos games in the classroom open many opportunities for reaching today's digital student. Katie Salen, professor of design and technology at Parsons the New School for Design and executive director of the Institute of Play, talked about many positive social aspects of gaming, just like Snehal did in the webinar entitled "How Can Games Create Social Learning Opportunities for Students? presented by edWeb.net. She noted that "The trick to using gaming in the classroom is not forcing a lesson into the game, but drawing from the natural lessons the game offers."

[Read four tech tips for parents to embrace digital education.]

Games-Based Learning

2011-10-19T07:00:00.000-04:00

Educational Games/Serious Games

Games are becoming a pervasive part of everyday life, and our notions of what constitutes a game are changing as fast as the applications of games themselves. These games have defined learning outcomes. Generally they are designed in order to balance the subject matter with the game play and the ability of the player to retain and apply the subject matter in the real world.

Online games for single users are also popular, though access to them is often blocked in the K12 environment. There are many free games designed for K-12 students that are accessible via a web browser and require no installation, such as The Potato Story (http://www.thepotatostory.co.uk), a UK-based game that teaches kids where food comes from

Open-ended, collaborative games also play out as alternate reality games (ARGs), in which players find clues and solve puzzles in experiences that blur the boundary between the game and real life. Recent examples of large-scale ARGs include the educational games World Without Oil and Superstruct, and the promotional game I Love Bees. The Tower of Babel, an ARG designed by the European ARGuing Project, was used in schools as well as by learners of all ages. It was developed to engage students in learning languages other than their own.

According to the 2010 Horizon Report: K12 Edition, another promising area is the development of educational Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games. As yet, there are few examples of these games designed specifically for education. Early efforts include Mithril, a multiplayer online role-playing game developed by students at Stanford University. Mithril draws on the look and feel of MMOs but is math-based. Students must master mathematical concepts in order to cast spells, defeat foes, and progress in the game.

Software in corporate training and higher education

According to there website, "In a Virtual Heroes world, textbooks and lectures are replaced with complete interactivity, excitement and serious fun! Our Advanced Learning Technology (A.L.T.) platform has re-invented the way medical, military and corporate professionals can enhance performance and unleash potential. Our technology facilitates the linkage of learning objectives to measurable performance outcomes."

Founded in 1998, BreakAway, Ltd. is a leading developer of entertainment games and game-based technology products. We create entertainment experiences that enable people to master skills and concepts in virtual worlds, and transfer this expertise to develop tools that provide game-based solutions for real world problems. Their platform, the mōsbē™ desktop development studio, is a strategy-based platform designed to enable military, homeland security, medical, and corporate customers solve real-world problems with the situational realism and experiential engagement of game-based simulation.

Edutainment

The term "edutainment" describes an intentional merger of computer games and educational software into a single product. The term describes educational software whose primary focus entertainment, but can be used for educational purposes as well. "Software of this kind is not structured towards school curricula, does not normally involve educational advisors, and does not focus on core skills such as literacy and numeracy" (Wikipedia).

These are games which were originally developed for adults or older children and which have potential learning implications. For the most part, these games provide simulations of different kinds of human activities or historical recreations, allowing players to explore a variety of social, historical and economic processes.

For example:

City-building games such as the SimCity series (1989–2003) and Caesar (video game) (1993–2006) invite players to explore the social, practical and economic processes involved in city management;
Empire-building games such as the Civilization (video game) series (1991–2005) and the Europa Universalis series (2000–2007) help players to learn about history and its political, economic and military aspects;
Railroad management games such as Railroad Tycoon (1990–2003) and Rails Across America (2001) illuminate the history, engineering and economics of railroad management.
Geography games such as PlaceSpotting (2008–2009) help players to find locations on earth according to some hints.

Google and Pearson Announce New LMS Option

2011-10-18T12:37:00.000-04:00

Last week Google and Pearson announced that they were entering the learning management system marketplace with a totally innovative product stating, "OpenClass is a new kind of learning environment that goes beyond the LMS, stimulating social learning and the free exchange of content. It’s open to everyone, easy to use, and completely free." There is no hardware to install, no licensing fees, and no hosting costs. That right there would make it a totally new way of approaching how we look at online education. However, Pearson and Google weren't content to stop there. They wanted to reinvent course interactions and activities to reflect the modern world.

The following is the description from the Google Apps Marketplace:

OpenClass integrates seamlessly with Google Apps for Education, enabling easy setup and single sign-on and includes tools that support the automatic import of content from external sources. Users can launch OpenClass directly from within their Google Apps experience and access their Google applications through OpenClass.

Features

Collaborative spaces for students to interact with coursework
Ability to create and edit course content directly from within the platform
Deep integration to Gmail, Google Docs and Calendar

Data access requirements

Calendar (Read/Write)
Docs (Read/Write)
Email, new messages (Read only)
User Provisioning (Read only)

Just the beginning

Out of the box, OpenClass has all the LMS functionality needed to manage courses. But that’s just the beginning. OpenClass actually advances education by leveraging modern social technology to encourage collaboration and communication for students, faculty, institutions, and administrators around the world.

Encourage Learning

2011-10-15T08:59:00.000-04:00

The following are tidbits I pulled from Tom Kuhlmann's Blog post: 9 Ways to Encourage Adult E-Learning. I too have written about learning being an iterative process and that we need alternate ways of demonstrating learning.

Recently I spent the day at the beach watching people learning to surf. One of the people learning to surf was a blind girl. It was very inspiring as she learned to balance on the board. She probably fell off of the surfboard a few dozen times before she successfully stood and balanced on it. And when she finally succeeded she let out a cry of joy.

Learning is a funny thing. It’s not something that can always be neatly packaged. Real learning isn’t a one-time event (like many elearning courses) where it’s just a matter of getting new information. Instead it’s an iterative process where you do something, get feedback to evaluate, make adjustments, and do it again.

Adult Learners Don’t Like to Fail

As learners, our culture conditions us to avoid failure. Typically our grading systems reward successful test taking more than successful learning. Because of this, we’re motivated to pass tests and getting good scores and not always focused on the learning process.

Going back to the blind surfer, it takes a lot to fall down and continue getting up. I saw plenty of other surfers give up after a few tries. Few people like to fail and then do so publicly. This is especially true of adult learners. The blind surfer was motivated to learn and willing to risk failure as she kept falling of the surf board. She might not have been as inclined to do so if she was only allowed two attempts and then notified that she failed.

The main point in all of this is that elearning presents a unique opportunity to compress time and offer repeatable events where people can practice and get feedback. But we need to craft an environment that encourages learning (which is not the same as exposure to information).

Seven Principles of Learning

2011-10-12T12:22:00.001-04:00

Summary of Seven Principles of Learning
(Based on the Cognitive Science of How People Learn)
National Research Council

1.   Learning with understanding is facilitated when new and existing knowledge is structured around the major concepts and principles of the discipline. Knowing disconnected facts is insufficient to produce deep learning or develop expertise. Expert strategies for thinking and problem-solving are linked to the expert’s understanding of important core concepts of “big ideas”. This suggests that courses should be organized around helping students understand these big concepts and instructors should focus on helping students understand, explain, and apply these concepts rather than focusing on memorizing large amounts of content.

2.   Learners use what they already know to construct new understandings. Learners construct interpretations of new information and problems in ways that agree with their own prior knowledge and misunderstandings. Effective teaching involves engaging what learners already know about a subject and finding ways to build on that knowledge. It also involves detecting student misconceptions and addressing them.

3.   Learning is facilitated through the use of metacognitive strategies that identify, monitor, and regulate cognitive processes. Metacognitive strategies include: a) connecting new information to former knowledge, b) selecting thinking strategies deliberately; and c) planning, monitoring and evaluating one’s own thinking processes. Students need to reflect on what they already know and what they need to know for situations. They must consider both factual knowledge and strategic knowledge (how and when to use what procedures to solve the problem). Instructors should provide explicit instruction in the use of such skills and opportunities for students to observe others solving problems (including experts) and by making their thinking available to observers.

4.   Learners have different strategies, approaches, patterns of abilities, and learning styles that are a function of the interaction between their heredity and their prior experiences. Useful concepts here include Gardner’s model of Multiple Intelligences, different learning styles, deep vs. surface approaches to learning, etc. One size does not fit all. Some students respond favorably to one approach, others to another. Educators should be alert to these differences and match curricular material to students’ developing abilities, knowledge bases, preferences, and styles. Students with different learning styles need a range of ways to demonstrate their knowledge and skills. One form of assessment will advantage some students and disadvantage others; multiple measures of learning will provide a better picture of how well individual students are learning what is expected of them.

5.   Learners’ motivation to learn and sense of self affect what is learned, how much is learned, and how much effort will be put into the learning process. Internal and external factors motivate people to learn. Learners’ level of motivation strongly affects their willingness to persist in learning difficult material or challenging assignments. When students perceive learning tasks as interesting and personally meaningful, and presented at an appropriate level of learning, they develop intrinsic motivation. Tasks too difficult are frustrating; tasks that are too easy are boring. There are strong connections between learners’ beliefs about their own abilities in a subject area and their success in that area [attribution theory]. Instructional strategies should encourage conceptual understanding; this tends to increase students’ interest and enhance their confidence about their abilities to learn.

6.   The practices and activities in which people engage while learning shape what is learned. The way people learn a particular area of knowledge and skills and the context in which they learn it becomes a fundamental part of what is learned. This means that when students learn a subject in a limited or narrow context, they often miss seeing the applicability of using that information to solve new problems encountered in other situations. Course assignments and tasks that ask students to encounter the same concept in various situations, help students develop a deeper understanding of the material. Coursework should engage students in learning experiences that draw on real-world applications or exercises that foster problem-solving skills and strategies that are used in real situations. Two examples of this approach are problem-based and case-based learning strategies.

7.   Learning is enhanced through socially supported interactions. Learning is enhanced when students can interact and collaborate with others on learning tasks. Learning environments that encourage collaboration, similar to those of real-world scientific, mathematical, clinical, or business work, gives students the chance to test their ideas and learn by observing others. By providing opportunities for students to express their ideas to their peers and hear and discuss others’ ideas, learning can become particularly effective. Social interaction is also critical to development of expertise, metacognitive skills, and enhancing the learner’s sense of self.

Summarized by the Utah Valley University Faculty Center from:
National Research Council (2003). Evaluating and Improving Undergraduate Teaching: In Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. The National Academies Press: Washington, DC.

Lessons Learned

2011-10-11T09:00:00.004-04:00

As I reviewed my EDU 271 course as well as other courses that I have developed, I started writing down my reflections. I've posted some of the more cogent lessons below. I would welcome comments and other reflections.

I have learned that my students are not as technologically literate and savvy as we might think. One student commented that she had never thought to evaluate the information that she found on the Internet until she had an assignment to do so in my class.
We need to provide more technology "how-to" support (within the course) if we want to have students utilize Web 2.0 and other emerging technologies to demonstrate knowledge. Several students were still not even familiar with the basic Office Suite of programs--much less blogs and wikis. If we assign technology related projects, then we need to make sure that we provide handouts, videos, tutorials, etc. to help students learn the technology as well. We also need to consider that the students are also learning the technology as well as demonstrating their understanding of the concept/topic.
A single course is not enough time to not only expose students (and faculty) to new technologies but to also help them learn how to use the technology and then develop activities and assignments that utilize that technology. Breaking the course into several courses has been suggested; however, the technology component needs to be incorporated across the curriculum. Right now, the students seem to get a smattering of technology depending on who they have as instructors. Therefore, their exposure is uneven.
I have also learned that not only do we have to change our teaching paradigm, we need to get students to change their learning paradigm. All too often they expect to be spoon-fed the information (as in lectures) and then to simply regurgitate it on an exam. They have no expectations of ever using the information--even when they are studying to become teachers.
Finally, we need to evaluate how we are teaching our teachers to teach. If we expect them to integrate technology in their teaching practices, if we expect them to use collaborative learning in their classrooms, if we expect them to teach their students how to become digital citizens--then shouldn't we be modeling this type of teaching?

Early Education and Technology for Children Conference

2011-10-11T08:06:00.001-04:00

March 14–16, 2012
Salt Lake City, Utah

Early Education and Technology for Children (EETC) is an annual conference that brings researchers, policy makers, administrators, educators, and practitioners together to present and discuss research and applications in the areas of preschool through elementary education. EETC welcomes visitors from around the globe who come to learn from other’s expertise and share their own insights on applications that will help make a difference in the education of young children.

Teachers Using Twitter for Professional Development

2011-10-07T10:11:00.000-04:00

Teachers are increasingly using Twitter for professional development and collaboration, according to the New York Times blog post by Kathleen Schulten. Each week, thousands of teachers participate in scheduled Twitter “chats” around a particular subject area or type of student. Math teachers meet on Mondays, for instance, while science discussions happen on Tuesdays, new teachers gather on Wednesdays and teachers working with sixth graders meet Thursdays. (Jerry Blumengarten, Twitter’s @cybraryman1, posts this helpful list of educational chats.)

By using hashtags — that is, words or phrases preceded by the # symbol, like “#Scichat” for science educators — users can organize, search and find messages on a particular topic all in one place.

Anyone can participate, and joining is easy: just go to Twitter, search for the hashtag of the chat that appeals to you, and start to read the stream of messages. When you’re ready to add your own thoughts or share resources, just append that same hashtag to your Twitter message. (For more tips, visit The Times' “Nuts and Bolts” and “Resources” lists.)

The blog post also features an interview with the founders of the Edchat, SSchat and Engchat Twitter streams, who talk about the power of the medium.

Goodbye, Steve

2011-10-06T07:44:00.001-04:00

Steve Jobs, the mastermind behind Apple's iPhone, iPad, iPod, iMac and iTunes, has died at the age of 56 after an 8 year battle with pancreatic cancer. In 2005, Jobs provided the following comments to the graduating class at Stanford.

Goodbye, Steve. Your creativity and vision will be missed.

From “Sage on the Stage” to “Guide on the Side”

2011-09-29T07:00:00.000-04:00

Online instructors and course developers face the challenge of reflecting on a philosophical and methodological shift from behavioral to cognitive perspectives and then from objectivist to constructivist perspectives.

The familiar teaching paradigm primarily derived from objectivist and behaviorist learning perspectives considers learning as a passive process in which the teacher’s expert knowledge is transferred to the students, who are empty vessels waiting to be filled. This view assumes that being knowledgeable is determined by the accumulation of a large number of facts. Students are classified by grade levels and then sorted into ability groups. The standard classroom features the teacher at the front of the room with her back to the class, writing information on the chalkboard. The students are arranged in straight rows and work individually to complete worksheets and questions from the textbook. They are to sit silently, passive and in competition with each other. Another scenario has the teacher, again standing at the front of the class, yet this time he is pontificating and dispensing his vast knowledge base to his students. The assumption is that anyone with expertise in his/her field can teach. Standardized tests with multiple choice, short answer, and true/false options provide quantitative measures of learning.

Research into how the brain works and theories which state that we construct knowledge from our social interactions and experiences challenge the traditional approach. The constructivist paradigm represents a student-centered approach that entails a shift in roles both for the teacher and for the student. Knowledge is actively constructed, discovered, transformed, and extended by the students. According to Piaget, learning is more than the accumulation of content; learning involves different kinds of activity to help learners construct links between new content and their prior knowledge. The teacher’s role is to support and develop students’ competencies and talents. Vygotsky asserted the importance of social interactions in learning—engaging and dialogue with others and gaining assistance from others. Instead of impersonal relationships among students and between teachers and students, education should be a personal transaction among students and between students and teachers as they work together. Instead of an individualistic and competitive learning environment, cooperative learning in the classroom and cooperative teams among faculty should be the norm. Learners construct their own knowledge by being actively immersed in a situation that provides social interactions, tools, content, and other information allowing them to explore, invent, create, and synthesize in an increasingly autonomous manner. Therefore, assignments represent more authentic, real-world applications such as case studies, problem-based or project-based learning, simulations, and cognitive apprenticeships. There is acknowledgment that teaching is a complex application of theory and research that requires considerable training and continuous refinement of skills and procedures.

Strategies for Designing Courses for Adult Learners

2011-09-28T07:00:00.000-04:00

The rewards and challenges of teaching adult learners are similar to those of teaching traditional students; however, the adult learners' needs in an online environment may vary slightly due to age, life experiences, and technology skill set. Effective instructors initiate and maintain a positive student-teacher relationship and seek ways to present course content that is meaningful to all learners. In the words of Daniel Willingham, Professor of Psychology at the University of Virginia, "Good teaching is teaching." Adult learners may need a little more consideration, especially in the online learning environment, in order to be academically successful and to achieve their academic goals.

Present information in chunks instead of one entire piece. Chunking reduces cognitive load and allows the learner to process the information more efficiently.
Make sure students can move through the material at their own pace. Remember, adult learners like to feel that they are controlling the education process.
Students need access to past materials so they can review on a regular basis. Therefore, don’t limit access to prior week’s modules and materials.
Students may not always see the "big picture," so help them understand how each chunk will help them progress toward their overall goal.
Provide timely feedback. Let the adult learner know what is being done correctly, as well as what needs improving. Grade assignments in a timely manner so the adult student receives feedback before the next assignment is due. This will give them an opportunity to make any needed corrections or ask questions.
State each assignment's purpose and its relevance to the course. If you can relate an assignment to a job the student may have when she graduates, even better!
Give the learners options and flexibility in assignments.
Keep the course requirements in perspective. Remember, adult learners have commitments outside your course. Make sure each activity is used to judge fulfillment of a course objective.
Make sure the adult student has the necessary technical skills to succeed in the course. Include detailed instructions related to any technology-related tasks. These same instructions can be used in other classes, as well.
Bend the rules when necessary. Empathize with the adult learner.
Make sure you demonstrate clarity and articulate well with adult learners. They have high expectations, and you will lose credibility if you communicate with slang.
Remember, adult learners sometimes have physical limitations. Use easy to read fonts and a clear organizational structure. Sans serif fonts such as Ariel and Tahoma are easier to read on the computer. Serif fonts such as Times Roman are easier to read in printed materials.
Use a variety of strategies to present concepts, such as graphic organizers. For more information on graphic organizers visit this Web site: Write Design Online
When possible, present the material in different formats to accommodate different learning styles. These modes can include text, graphics, audio, and/or video.

Additional Resources:
The Ultimate Educator: Achieving Maximum Adult Learning Through Training and Instruction
Adult Learners
Characteristics of Adult Learners
Building A Bridge: Supporting Online Adult Learners (YouTube video)
Spotlight on Malcolm Knowles (Youtube video)

Profile of Adult Learners

2011-09-27T17:18:00.001-04:00

As the economy worsens, and employers concern about the lack of skilled workers increases, adult learners are flocking to community colleges. Most of these adults were taught in a traditional and passive classroom, and the online learning environment is a new realm for them to explore. They can be successful but need your help.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, “nontraditional” students have several traits in common. These traits can include:

Attend college part time
Work full time even while taking college classes
Are financially independent
Have a family and other commitments
May be a single parent
Lack standard high school education
Delayed enrollment into college

Even though most adult learners are voluntarily entering the education process, their responsibilities (families and jobs) and situations (transportation, child care, and the need to earn an income) can create obstacles in their progress. The aging process itself may present another obstacle for the adult learner. Psychomotor skills are acquired more slowly than younger students. It may be harder for the adult student to manipulate the mouse or to spend time reading material online. Images and text may be more difficult to see on the computer screen. The adult learner may also have emotional barriers to online education. Many adult learners did not grow up with computers, so the technology is new and different, which presents an added obstacle to learning the actual content of the course. However, it isn’t all gloom and doom! Most adult learners are highly motivated and task-orientated which helps them overcome some of these obstacles.

Pedagogy vs. Andragogy or Directed vs. Facilitative Learning

Most of us have heard the term pedagogy, the art or science of teaching. More specifically, pedagogy refers to the art or science of teaching children. However, the techniques and strategies used to teach children do not always lend themselves to teaching adults. Therefore, we employ the term andragogy, the methods or techniques used to teach adults.

Tailoring Teaching Style to Learner's Needs

2011-09-23T07:00:00.001-04:00

As you plan to meet your learners’ needs and educational objectives you will broaden the range of teaching methods and learning strategies that you can offer them. In considering which teaching method to use, you will be asking yourself the following questions:

What am I trying to achieve, what are my objectives?
What are the learners’ objectives?
Is this the best way of achieving them?
What other ways are there of achieving them?
What are the strengths of the way I have chosen?
What are the potential weaknesses that I will have to be on the guard for as facilitator?
How will I know that this way is the most appropriate way – for me and my learners?
How will I assess whether the objectives have been achieved?

Some teaching styles fit better than others with the various approaches to teaching and methods of learning.

Although you may initially build the class around the techniques that you have determined best fit your teaching and learning styles, you are never committed to using just those styles. If you determine that your students are not responding well to your style, then don’t be afraid to try something new. Remember the best teaching style is one that accommodates the student’s needs and makes them successful learners.

2011-09-22T07:00:00.000-04:00

According to Anthony Grasha, there are five primary teaching styles that describe the prevalent approaches in the classroom.

Expert – This style is common known as the “Sage on the Stage” model. The expert possesses knowledge and expertise that the students need. This style of teacher seeks to maintain his status as expert with his students. He is primarily concerned with disseminating knowledge and making sure that the students are well-prepared.

As with the Formal Authority style of teaching, the Expert has little inclination to develop relationships with his students. He is more interested in maintain his status as experts with his students. He also does not feel that developing relationships among his students is necessary to their acquisition of the knowledge he is transmitting.

Advantage: The information, knowledge, and skills such individuals possess.
Disadvantages: If overused, the display of knowledge can be intimidating to less experienced students. May not always show the underlying though processes that produced answers.

Formal Authority – The formal authority style of teaching is also teacher-centered and focuses heavily on content. Teachers using this teaching method are more concerned with providing and controlling the flow of content than interacting with their students. These teachers are concerned with providing positive and negative feedback and the structure they need to learn. They emphasize learning goals, expectations, rules of conduct, and correct/acceptable ways to do things.

Teachers using this teaching style are not as concerned about having relationships with their students or building relationships between students. These teachers rarely require student participation in class.

Advantage: The focus on clear expectations and acceptable ways of doing things.
Disadvantages: A strong investment in this style can lead to rigid, standardized, and less flexible ways of managing students and their concerns.

Demonstrator –The demonstrator’s class is also teacher-centered. The demonstrator believes in “teaching by personal example.” Teachers using this method see themselves as role models and will demonstrate the skills needed to complete the learning objective(s). This teaching style puts emphasis on demonstrations or providing models. When helping the student to learn the new skills, they will coach or guide students in developing or applying the required skills. Their focus is on showing the student how to master the skill and encouraging the students to participate in the learning process.

Although this style is still teacher-centered, instructors with this style encourage student participation and adapt their presentation to address different learning styles. The demonstrator expects students to take responsibility for learning what they need to know and to seek assistance when they don’t understand something.

Advantage: An emphasis on direct observation and following a role model.
Disadvantage: Some teachers may believe their approach is the best way leading some students to feel inadequate if they cannot live up to such expectations and standards.

Facilitator – This student-centered style of teaching emphasizes the personal nature of teacher-student interactions. She guides and directs students by asking questions, exploring options, suggesting alternatives, and encouraging students to develop criteria to make informed choices. This teacher focuses on activities with more of the responsibility for learning is placed on the student. The teacher often develops group learning activities which require active learning, student-to-student collaboration, and problem solving. The activities designed by the teacher often require the student to apply the course content in an original way to solve the required activity. The goal of the teacher is to develop in students the capacity for independent action, initiative, and responsibility. The teacher’s role is to provide as much support and encouragement as possible.

Advantage: The personal flexibility, the focus on students' needs and goals, and the willingness to explore options and alternative courses of action.
Disadvantage: Style is often time consuming.

Delegator – In the delegator’s classroom, the primary responsibility for learning is placed on the students. The goal of the teacher is to develop the students’ capacity to function autonomously. The teacher often creates a project and then gives the students choices in the design and implementation of the learning activity needed to complete the required activity. Student may work independently or in groups. This style requires that students be able to maintain motivation and focus for complex projects as well have the necessary interpersonal skills to work in group situation. The delegator’s style is to act as a consultant or resource person, providing direction only at the request of the students.

Advantage: Helps students to perceive themselves as independent learners.
Disadvantage: May misread student's readiness for independent work. Some students may become anxious when given autonomy.

Grasha-Riechmann Teaching Style Survey Do you know what style you prefer? If you know what your preferred teaching style is, you should be more aware as to whether it suits the learning style and needs of your learners. Then you should be able to adapt your teaching style to engage with them more effectively.

Teaching Styles

2011-09-21T07:00:00.000-04:00

Although there is no one “right way” to teach our students, we do determine how we will facilitate and what we believe are best practices for teaching based on how we view our students. So, what do teaching and learning styles have to do with it? Our personal teaching and learning styles influence the way we facilitate our courses although most of us adjust our styles depending on the instructional environment.

What has helped us develop our attitudes about learning and teaching? How are our attitudes made evident in the way we teach? Why do we teach the way we do? Apart from the learning environment, the students, and our teaching styles, can we still accommodate the various learning styles of our students?

Have you ever had students in your class who seem to be uncomfortable, who demonstrate problems in learning, or who do not want to participate? Could it be that your teaching style has an impact on the students' ability to learn? Although we don't realize it, we have a tendency to prefer a particular teaching style which may also reflect our own learning style. If we limit our teaching to fit our own learning style, we may inadvertently alienate students with a different learning style. By recognizing our preferences in teaching and learning, we can work toward creating more effective learning opportunities for our students.

We all have preferences for how we teach and learn. But based on the situation, these preferences can be modified and adapted to produce a better outcome. It is important for you to understand your teaching style and how that may affect your students’ learning before you go into the classroom or begin an online class. Furthermore, understanding your style will help you to adapt to the learning needs of your students.

How we were taught is often reflected in how we teach. But no matter how engrained our preferences, they can be modified based on our teaching successes. The successes influence our attitudes toward teaching and the methods we embrace when seeking information and attempting to identifying our personal skill level. Just as with teachers, these methods also vary significantly among learners. Luckily, just as teachers can adapt their teaching style, students can adapt their learning style. Therefore, the first step is to identify both your teaching and learning styles.

Multiple Intelligences

2011-09-20T07:00:00.000-04:00

In additional to understanding your students and your own learning styles, it is helpful to be aware of current research related to multiples intelligences. Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences Theory is a relatively recent influence on education. Traditional views of intelligence favored particular cognitive processes, including certain types of problem solving (mathematical-logical intelligence) and language abilities (linguistic intelligence). According to Gardner (1983), however, these are just two types of intelligence. Five other intelligences—musical, visual-spatial, bodily kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal—must be considered. Gardner later added two additional intelligences, naturalist and existential.

The following definitions describe each intelligence and the related occupations and directions an intelligence might take. These are by no means the only examples, nor does the development of any one intelligence suggest the exclusion of others. All healthy people possess all the intelligences, which they blend in various ways when they create products or perform meaningful roles or tasks. Gardner also asserted that although each individual possesses all eight intelligences, she may excel in some areas and struggle in others. Gardner identified cultural and gender differences in the expression of the intelligences. Therefore, teachers should plan activities that address all areas of learning so that each student has an opportunity to show his or her abilities.

Verbal-Linguistic intelligence—This intelligence type is one of the most favored in schools. Linguistic intelligence involves the ability to communicate and use language in a variety of ways—through speaking, writing, and reading. They are also fond of rhymes and have an enhanced sensitivity to sounds. Solving word puzzles, role playing and storytelling are also a favorite pastime activity. These learners learn best when saying, hearing, seeing words. Students who enjoy playing with language, telling stories, and who quickly acquire foreign languages exhibit linguistic intelligence. People with this intelligence type often seek out careers such as editors, journalists, politicians, teachers, writers, or actors.

Logical-Mathematical intelligence—Schools also favor this intelligence type. Logical-mathematical intelligence is involved when we order objects, assess their quantity, and make statements about the relationships among them. Logical-mathematical learners use reason, logic, and numbers to make connections with information. These learners are inquisitive and will use experimentation to arrive at the answer. They are problem-solvers who can work through abstract concepts to categorize and classify information. Performing mathematical calculations and arranging geometric shapes helps them to figure out the relationships between information. Scientists, mathematicians, and philosophers all display strength in these areas. You can observe this intelligence in students who can carry out complex calculations in their heads, enjoy finding patterns in shapes and numbers, and excel at making logical arguments. Career paths for these people include computer programmers, scientist, researchers, engineers, and accountants.

Musical intelligence—We put into practice musical intelligence when we create and perceive sound patterns. These learners understand and process patterns and relationships between sounds. They are very aware of pitch, tone, melody, rhythm and other auditory information. They may be heard humming, singing, or taping their foot to a beat. These learners learn best through spoken instruction and other auditory means. They may use jingles or rhymes to help them remember information. Students who sing well, enjoy making rhythmic sounds, and can distinguish between notes are displaying musical intelligence. Composers, singers, conductors, and musicians exhibit this intelligence, as do poets and others who use word sounds and rhythms in their writing.

Spatial/Visual intelligence—We use spatial intelligence when we perceive a form or object (either visually or through touch), when we remember visual or spatial information, and when we recognize and imagine objects from different angles (Gardner, 1985). Spatial ability is often assessed by having people copy shapes or match one visual image with another. Spatially intelligent learners excel at reading maps, completing jigsaw puzzles, repairing machinery, and drawing diagrams. These learners often have good visual memory for details and are good at visual problem solving. Spatial intelligence can be observed in students who understand and can create visual images of their understanding— like charts, diagrams, or maps—as well as students who are drawn to the visual arts. Architects, mechanics, and engineers possess strong spatial abilities.

Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence—Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is visible when people use their bodies to create products or solve problems. Students strong in bodily-kinesthetic abilities show good coordination and gross motor skill—on the stage or playing field—or the fine motor skills involved in making models or sculptures. They learn best by using their tactile sense and movement as part of the learning process. They prefer direct contact with what they are learning rather than reading about the process. These learners remember more of what they are exposed to when they can use it in an active way. Athletes, surgeons, dancers, choreographers, and craftspeople display competency in this area.

Interpersonal intelligence—People exhibit interpersonal intelligence when they display an awareness or sensitivity to others’ feelings and intentions. Students exhibit this intelligence when they collaborate well, when they show thoughtfulness and sensitivity toward their friends, and when they interact with ease with others of all ages. They learn best when using their people skills as part of the learning process. Interaction with others through committees, group projects, and other interpersonal communication is preferred by the interpersonal learner. Teachers, parents, politicians, psychologists, and salespeople rely on interpersonal intelligence in their work.

Intrapersonal intelligence—Intrapersonal intelligence helps individuals to “distinguish among their own feelings, to build accurate mental models of themselves, and to draw on these models to make decisions about their lives” (Kreshevsky & Siedel, 1998). Self starters, independent workers, inwardly focused, and following their on instincts is a good description of this learner. Students who understand their strengths and weaknesses have an awareness of their own emotional states, and are thoughtful when they make decisions about their lives are displaying intrapersonal intelligence. The learning environment that best engages this intelligence style uses tutorials; self paced courses; and interactive computer games. They enjoy self-reflection, higher order reasoning, and are good at analyzing their own strengths and weaknesses. Therapists, philosophers, poets, and religious leaders may exhibit strength in this intelligence.

Naturalistic intelligence—Naturalistic intelligence allows people to recognize and classify species and other aspects of their environment. These learners have keen sensory skills that keep them more in touch with the natural world. They have the ability to notice things in the environment that others may miss. Their interest focuses around plants and animals and they often keep scrapbooks and journals about what they have observed around them. They enjoy observing nature and find it easy to learn and remember characteristics and names of animals and plants. They learn best when they are actively involved with plants and animals. Farmers, veterinarians, gardeners, botanists, geologists, florists, and archaeologists all exhibit this intelligence.

Existential Intelligence – These learners look at life’s “big picture,” focusing on the meaning of life and questioning who else may live in the galaxy. They focus on their existence and how to make their lives meaningful. “Does God exist?” and “Is there life after death?” would be some of the questions that you would hear these learners ask. These learners learn best when they can manage their own learning. They work well independently, and are good at evaluating their own performance. They will sometimes have difficulty accepting their mistakes and adapting to others expectations. Psychiatrists, philosophers, ministers, and counselors all exhibit this intelligence.

Multiple intelligences theory shows promise in developing appropriate instructional strategies for students who do not fit the traditional mold or do not excel in the math or linguistic areas. This theory also provides insight into how we can better meet the different learning styles of the Net Generation.

Effective Professional Development and Assessment Using Digital Content and Web-Based Tools

2011-09-19T12:30:00.000-04:00

Technology, Learning and Change: A Webinar Series

This webinar series, based on the new book Technology for Learning: A Guidebook for Change, provides information about the process of creating effective, robust technology initiatives based on real-life practitioners’ successes. The three webinars will focus on the issues that help educators to transform today’s schools into thriving digital learning environments. The goal is to help you to identify and plan for key success factors and strategies that will help you get started, expand your existing program, or take your program to the next level.

2nd in three-part series
Tuesday September 27, 2011 | 1 pm PST / 4 pm EST

Click here to register for this free webinar

Using digital media and web-based content has tremendous potential to transform teaching and learning. It offers students engaging learning opportunities that provide the right level of challenge. In order to get do this effectively, teachers need ongoing, collaborative, and integrated professional development that builds their capacity to transform classrooms, raise student achievement and create high performing schools. As part of the process, educators must assess student performance carefully and adjust instruction to meet learning needs. When all elements are in place, the result is a transformation in teaching and learning. This webinar will focus on using digital content and web-based tools, providing effective professional development, and assessing the impact of change. Leaders from districts that have shown success will discuss how they got to this point and where they intend to take their strategy in the future.

Presenters
Marianthe Williams, Director of Technology, River Dell Regional School District, NJ
Leslie Wilson, CEO, One-to-One Institute

Learning Styles

2011-09-19T12:16:00.002-04:00

Most people develop their learning styles as children and continue to prefer that style as adults. An assessment of a person’s learning style will give us, as teachers, clues as to how that person will best take in information. Understanding a person’s learning style helps to identify the best conditions for that person to achieve an optimal learning outcome. Additionally, learning styles describe how a person will best process information and the most effective way for them to retain that information.

As with teaching styles, there is no “best” learning style. Most people use a combination of learning styles although they may prefer one style over another. Different approaches to learning are personal and it becomes a part of who that person is. When teaching, it is important for the teacher to understand a student’s learning style. Understanding how a student best processes information allows the teacher to capitalize on that student’s strengths rather than focusing on weaknesses. A person’s learning styles just identifies their various learning habits.

It has been suggested that teachers should assess their students learning styles and then adjust their teaching methods to best fit those styles. Although not all authorities agree that this is important, a large number of studies do suggest that teaching to a student’s style is beneficial. If a student is not being taught using his/her preferred style, she/he may not perform at the optimum level and could be mistakenly labeled as an underachiever. The majority of learners typically possess portions of all three learning styles. To engage the largest number of students, a multi-sensory approach works best most of the time.

According to the VAK Model, there are three basic learning styles; Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic.

Visual learners are learners who need to see what they are learning.These students need pictures, charts, and other visual images to help them comprehend what they are studying. These students relate to words such as see, observe, and imagine and may use a phrase such as “I see it this way.” To help visual learners retain what they learn, the instructor will need to help them create mental images of the information. The visual learner needs written instructions to help them master the required skills. By reading and following directions and by using charts, diagrams, and other visual images, visual learners are able to be successful in their studies.

Auditory learners need to hear the information.These learners prefer to hear a lecture or have someone talk them through the steps needed to complete a science lab. They are often associated with phrases such as “I hear you or I hear what you are saying.” It is not uncommon for auditory learners to talk to themselves as they go through the steps to complete a task. Auditory learners prefer to do the task themselves while having someone else read the instructions to them.

Kinesthetic learners are hands-on learners.They prefer to do something to aid in their learning.These learners learn through movement and often do well as performers or athletes. The kinesthetic learner is associated with phrases that incorporate the word “feel.” They work well with their hands and are typically well coordinated and have a strong sense of timing. They prefer learning a physical skill or doing something that requires practice. Simulations, lab sessions, and outside fieldwork allow kinesthetic learners to work with the material.

Much research supports the idea that when students’ learning preferences match their instructor’s teaching style, student motivation and achievement usually improves. David Kolb, who is credited with initiating the learning style movement, notes that it is more effective to design curriculum so that there is some way for learners of every learning style to engage with the topic, so that every type of learner has an initial way to connect with the material, and then begin to stretch his or her learning capability in other learning modes.

Valve Offers Portal for Free

2011-09-18T19:16:00.002-04:00

According to Valve, "One of the biggest challenges in teaching science, technology, engineering, and math is capturing the students’ imaginations long enough for them to see all of the possibilities that lie ahead. Using interactive tools like the Portal series to draw them in makes physics, math, logic, spatial reasoning, probability, and problem-solving interesting, cool, and fun which gets us one step closer to our goal—engaged, thoughtful kids!"

Valve is offering the Mac and PC versions of Portal, the 2007 physics-based puzzle game that took the world by storm, for free via Steam until September 20. Valve is giving the game away in honor of its Learn with Portals program. The educational program hopes to leverage the way video games are increasingly playing a role in education by using Portal and Portal 2 to teach physics and critical thinking skills to students.

Free Webinar Series: Improve Your PowerPoint Presentations

2011-09-07T07:54:00.002-04:00

Ellen Finkelstein is hosting a free webinar series--learn how to eliminate Death by PowerPoint and make your presentations come to life. Listen to guest experts share their best techniques and answer your questions!

There will be seven sessions on Wednesdays at 11am PT/2pm ET beginning today, September 6, 2011 and running through October 26^th(no session on September 21^st). Each webinar lasts 1 hour but may run over slightly. Each webinar will be recorded so you can view it later (up to 2 weeks after the session). Register for the webinars now! You must register, even to view the recordings.

Each week, you'll hear from an amazing lineup of guest speakers who will reveal their secrets and strategies on presenting and speaking effectively. Visit the PowerPoint blog to see the list of speakers. Or visit the OutstandingPresentationsWorkshops.com website.

Register here.

Second Annual Global Education Conference Call for Proposals

2011-09-05T12:14:00.001-04:00

The second annual Global Education Conference, a week-long event bringing together educators and innovators from around the world, will be held Monday, November 14 through Friday, November 18, 2011. The entire conference will be broadcast online for free using the Blackboard Collaborate platform (formerly known as Elluminate/Wimba).

The Global Education Conference, a collaborative and world-wide community effort organized by the Global Education Collaborative and Classroom2.0, is aimed at increasing opportunities for globally-connecting education activities and initiatives. Last year’s conference featured 387 sessions and 60 keynote addresses from 62 countries with over 15,000 participant logins.

Sessions were held in multiple time zones and multiple languages over the five days, and are currently archived as a standing educational resource at http://globaledcon.weebly.com/recordings.html.

The Call for Proposals for the 2011 event is now open at http://globaleducation.ning.com/page/call-for-proposals. Presenters can submit proposals for general sessions focused on one of four possible tracks: Teacher Track; Student Track; Curricular Track; and Policy and Leadership Track. Proposals should focus on ideas, projects, and initiatives that promote global understanding and collaboration. The deadline for submissions is October 15 and participants will be notified of acceptance by October 30. Keynote presentations are by invitation only.

Session proposals are to be non-commercial. Interest in commercial sponsorship or presentations should be directed to Steve Hargadon at steve@hargadon.com.

For further information, please join our network at http://globaleducationconference.com and follow us on Twitter (@GlobalEdCon) and using the hashtag #GlobalEd11.

Follow-Up Course Design for Learning

2011-09-05T12:00:00.003-04:00

I am currently participating in a discussion with the ISTE LinkedIn Group. The discussion started out with asking for ideas for integrating Google Maps into Learning Activities; however, a side discussion lead to a conversation regarding designing learning activities/courses. The following is my response, which references my previous post/presentation Course Design for Learning.

All too often I've seen Education faculty require their students to create lesson plans and/or activities out of context. However, when the students get into the "real world" they will need to consider a lot more. I like to have my students essentially develop a case study scenario in which they define the state standards and learner characteristics for their classroom--then build a thematic unit plan (rather than a series of individual learning activities) so they see how to integrate technology (and multiple disciplines) throughout the unit.

I'm a great believer in metacognition--understanding WHY you do something. Therefore, I see the course design process as a reflective process. What I try to get my students (and faculty) to understand is that your goals and objectives drive the activities and ultimately assessment. You have to think through which concepts need to be "covered" and what you want the students to be able to do/understand first. That means you have to know what your state/county/district wants you to teach as well as what your students know/don't know. (The ISTE standards (NETS) are another consideration.) Knowing your students is as important as knowing your objectives. You also have to consider your learning environment--what kinds of technology do your students have access to--at school and at home? What kind of support will they need--you provide? Then you need to consider the teaching and learning process--teacher-centered/student-centered or a combination. Teachers need to have a toolbox of instructional strategies that fit their teaching philosophy and think about the materials/resources that can support those strategies (be they low tech or high tech or no tech).

NOTE: Course design is an iterative--not linear--process. Although I listed assessment last, it actually needs to be considered throughout the process (formative vs. summative).

The following related Chronicle of Higher Education article was recently shared on LinkedIn Updates: Planning a Class with Backward Design Mark Sample referenced the book, Understanding by Design, by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTigh. Wiggins and McTigh call the process of designing courses around learning goals “the backward design process.” They offered a three-stage diagram of the backward design process:

Identify desired results (What should students know, understand, and be able to do? What is worthy of understanding? What enduring understandings are desired?
Determine Acceptable Evidence (How will we know if students have achieved the desired results and met the standards? What will we accept as evidence of student understanding and proficiency?)
Plan Learning Experiences (With clearly identified results (enduring understandings) and appropriate evidence of understanding in mind, educators can now plan instructional activities.)

Just as I outlined in my LinkedIn post, during the first stage, consider your goals, examine established content standards (national, state, and district), and review curriculum expectations. Imagine the first stage as a series of concentric circles or nested rings. The first stage allows us to prioritize what you need to teach. The outer ring represents knowledge “worth being familiar with” for students. This area represents the field of possible content (topics, skills, and resources) that might be examined during the unit or course. The middle ring encapsulates knowledge and skills “important to know and do.” In this area, we begin to set priorities by identifying important knowledge (facts, concepts, and principles) and skills (processes, strategies, and methods) that are essential for students to master. Another way of looking at this area is this is where we specify the prerequisite knowledge and skills needed for students to successfully accomplish key performances. Finally, the smallest ring, the inner ring, represents “enduring understandings”—the fundamental, "big" ideas you want students to remember days and months and years later, even after they’ve forgotten the details of the course. These understandings should anchor the course or unit.

ALPS, Active Learning Practice for Schools, developed by the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Project Zero defines the enduring understandings as Throughlines. Throughlines are overarching describe the most important understandings that students should develop during an entire course. The understanding goals for particular units should be closely related to one or more of the throughlines of the course.

The enduring understandings, the throughlines, should be the target for developing our course/unit/learning activity. In developing the enduring understanding goals, ask yourself, "When my students leave my class at the end of the course, what are the most important things I want them to take away with them?" You may have to review several learning units to find common themes or skills/knowledge that seem to resurface each time you teach. Sometimes it is easier to phrase the overarching goals as questions rather than statements.

Course Design for Learning

2011-08-25T14:22:00.001-04:00

I recently uploaded a presentation I created as an overview of the course design process--iterative steps/considerations (to both authorSTREAM and to SlideShare.) The authorSTREAM version below maintains the custom animations.

Course Design for Learning

More PowerPoint presentations from Gayla S Keesee

Learning to Change--Changing to Learn

2011-08-25T13:59:00.003-04:00

Research the Mendeley Way

2011-08-22T14:52:00.001-04:00

According to their website, "Mendeley is a free reference manager and academic social network that can help you organize your research, collaborate with others online, and discover the latest research." Here’s some background from Wikipedia:

Mendeley was founded in November 2007 and is based in London. The first public beta version was released in August 2008. The team comprises researchers, graduates, and open source developers from a variety of academic institutions. The company’s investors include the former executive chairman of Last.fm, the former founding engineers of Skype, and the former Head of Digital Strategy at Warner Music Group, as well as academics from Cambridge and Johns Hopkins University.

Mendeley is a free desktop tool that indexes and organizes all of your PDF documents and research papers into your own personal digital library. Import from your computer, EndNote™, Papers, or Zotero. Mendeley also looks up PubMed, CrossRef, DOIs and other related document details automatically, importing papers quickly and easily from resources such as Google Scholar, ACM, IEEE and many more at the click of a button.

Mendeley gathers document details from your PDFs allowing you to effortlessly search, organize and cite. Generate citations and bibliographies in Microsoft Word, Open Office, and LaTeX. You can capture your thoughts with highlighting and annotations using sticky notes. You can then share your papers, thoughts, and annotations with your colleagues.

Mendeley (Lite) for the iPhone and iPad syncs seamlessly with your Mendeley research collection. This means that you can now carry your personal digital library with you wherever you go. The iPhone app keeps your documents organized in just the same way as your online collection, with easy access to all your collections, recently added items and favorites. Combined with search over titles and abstracts you can get to the paper you need quickly. If there is a paper that you want to let your colleagues know about, you can share the citation to that paper from within the app via email. No more copying and pasting citations, it all gets taken care of at the touch of a button. You can even download a paper and read it offline later. NOTE: To use the Mendeley (Lite) for iPhone you need to have an account with Mendeley Web, and you need to add to your library either through Mendeley Web or via Mendeley Desktop.

Learn Central Webinar (if you miss the session, it is archived)
Fri August 26, 2011, 2:30am-4:00am, US/Eastern

Designing Effective Writing and Research Assignments

2011-08-19T13:32:00.000-04:00

In a perfect world, first-year students would arrive on campus with a solid foundation of research and writing skills that you get to build upon with true college-level assignments. Unfortunately, that's often not the case.

As a result, writing assignments are time consuming and, at times, frustrating to grade. Of course, they also are vital to furthering student learning and an important part of the academic experience. In other words, they're not going away anytime soon.

Download Keys to Designing Effective Writing and Research Assignments »

This Faculty Focus special report was created to provide instructors with fresh perspectives and proven strategies for designing more effective writing assignments, including how to thwart "cut and paste" plagiarism.

Here are just some of the articles you will find in this report:

Revising the Freshman Research Assignment

Writing an Analytical Paper in Chunks

Designing Assignments to Minimize Cyber-Cheating

Chapter Essays as a Teaching Tool

Writing (Even a Little Bit) Facilitates Learning

How to Conduct a ‘Paper Slam’

Followers Missing

2011-08-16T08:21:00.001-04:00

All my followers seem to have disappeared. I have a heading by no bright, shining faces. I noticed that several bloggers commented way back in May that they were having problems, but this is now August. Anyone have any suggestions?

Game Based Learning - An Introduction

2011-08-15T11:53:00.002-04:00

During this webinar, Patrick will be introducing the concept of Game-based Learning, explain how it can be employed in instructional settings, and provide practical information on how to harness this engaging medium.
This is the first in a planned series of webinars from partners, MissionV Education Limited, a not for profit organisation specialising in the use of virtual worlds technology for the support of primary and post primary students and iGBL (Game -Based Learning Research Group) based in Waterford Institute of Technology.
iGBL organised a highly successful Symposium on Game-Based Learning (GBL) in Waterford Institute of Technology in May 2011. This symposium brought together teachers, lecturers, students and researchers, and provided insights from different perspectives such as educational psychology, sociology, Human Computer Interaction (HCI), Artificial Intelligence, Game Design, or Instructional Design.

AuthorSTREAM

2011-08-12T08:49:00.000-04:00

I generally upload my PowerPoint presentations to SlideShare; however, I recently found the AuthorSTREAM site which allows more flexibility for uploading my presentations and inserting YouTube videos into my PowerPoint presentations straight from the desktop (using a free plug-in). The presentations also maintain the animations and custom transitions when I upload them.

You can also create your own channels in order to categorize your presentations. I created the Technology in Education Channel in which I plan to include presentations designed to support faculty and student integration of technology to enhance teaching and learning. I added my first presentation, Wake Up to the Wonderful World of Wikis and Blogs, today.

Wake Up to the Wonderful World of Wikis and Blogs

More PowerPoint presentations from Gayla Keesee

Effective Webinars: Some Tips

2011-08-10T10:55:00.000-04:00

A webinar allows a presenter or a group to conduct live presentations over the Internet via a web-conferencing software such as Adobe Connect or Blackboard Collaborate (Elluminate). Webinars can include many features, but generally include a series of PowerPoint slides. The audience members can ask questions and often interact in the chat window provided. Audio is usually received via phone lines or through the computer speakers. Webinars are often recorded and can be accessed later for just-in-time viewing and review. Although Webinars may not be as effective as a face-to-face session, with today's economic climate, they allow organizations to save time and money while still meeting the needs of their faculty.

I just found this blog post by Maria Anderson in which she references an article she wrote for eLearn Magazine called Tips for Effective Webinars. She goes through a “Before, During, and After” set of tips for giving a good, effective, and engaging webinar. Unfortunately, because the article has been archived, many of the examples and images did not come through. The suggestions, however, are very helpful.

Here’s topics list for the tips that appear in the article:

Recording and distribution
Presentation design
Engage often
Animation
Hyperlinks
Video clips
Trial run
Arrive early
Clear directions
Desktop sharing
Webcam sharing
The echo
After the Webinar

Additional related articles:

How to Give a Webinar (and Not Look Like an Idiot)

What makes a webinar great? — a Q-and-A with Ann Handley

The Webinar Blog: Tips

5 Surefire Tips For Running An Effective And Engaging Webinar

Educational Uses for Animoto

2011-08-02T15:53:00.001-04:00

I've been playing around with several new online tools over the summer and experimenting with how to use them in the classroom. This post highlights the online tool, Animoto.

Animoto provides a unique way to incorporate images, video clips, music, and text into a short video which you can share via E-mail, blog/website, YouTube, or downloaded to a computer for use in presentations. You don’t have to know much about technology: simply upload your pictures and movie clips, chose a soundtrack, and Animoto does the rest.

Educators can apply for a free Animoto Plus account for use in the classroom. The Animoto Plus account expands the features available for educators and students--one being that you are not limited to only 30 second productions.

Andrew Marcinek at Classroom 2.0 provides a number of ideas for using Animoto in his Language Arts classroom to help students understand themes, characterizations, setting, and symbolism. As Andrew points out, Animoto uses an "MTV style" of editing the clips and images to match the music selection, so it is perfect for highlighting main elements in a novel or chapter.

Both the teacher and the students can utilize this technology. You can introduce a topic, vocabulary words, period in history, study skills. You can also have your students demonstrate understanding by creating a video or review for finals or midterms by producing a video. You could show the videos on the first day of class next year/semester to get a new batch of students excited about what you will be doing in class.

Teach Web 2.0 provides a SWOT analysis for using Animoto in the classroom as well as a variety of ideas for how to use Animoto.

Animoto are showcasing many of these great uses on their own website to try and inspire creativity in their members. Click here to see examples of how teachers are using Animoto in the classroom today. Scroll down to the bottom of the page.

Response to Families and Technology

2011-07-22T08:35:00.001-04:00

David Elkind, in his article "Societal Change and the Growing Divide between Knowing and Understanding," from the special 200th issue of Exchange states,

"...What technology has done, particularly for young people, is to widen the gap between what they know and what they can understand....

"Today, children fly radio-controlled planes, or sail radio-controlled boats, which they know how to operate but do not really understand how radio controls work.... And this is true not only for children’s toys, but for all facets of children’s worlds, from television to computers, to cell phones, microwaves, and much more.

"There are, I believe several possible negative consequences to this growing divide between what children know and what they understand. One of these consequences is that it can discourage, if not kill, curiosity. When it is really impossible to understand how something works, this discourages any sense of wonder at what is happening or any questioning of why it is happening....

"A second related concern is children’s willingness to accept things on faith and without questioning them. Jean Piaget once wrote that the aim of education was to create children 'who think for themselves and do not accept the first idea that is presented to them.'

"Yet children today have to accept that much of their world, which is in large measure technological, is beyond their understanding. They know how to watch television, use a computer, and play on a computer or talk and text on a cell phone. Yet they have little, if any, understanding of the technology that makes what they are doing possible. This is bad enough for those of us who have not grown up with this technology, but it poses a threat of intellectual passivity in those who have."

Familes and Technology

2011-06-24T09:48:00.000-04:00

Exchange Every Day Newsletter reports: A recent report from the Sesame Workshop, "Families Matter: Designing Media for a Digital Age, documents how digital technology is changing the rhythm of family life. The report finds that families are in a transition period, one in which parents recognize the importance of technology in their children’s learning and future success, but don’t always grant them access to the newer forms of media transforming their own adult lives.

The report offers recommendations to bolster the development of media content that can support learning and encourage adult-child interactions:

Tailor media platforms for children — Many media platforms are designed for adult use. Media producers should examine how the features of new platforms (e.g., 3-D, touch screens) relate to children’s developing cognitive, social, and physical capabilities.

Investigate co-viewing for new media — Research shows that children learn more from television programs when they watch with a parent. Co-participation should be explored for video games, e-books, tablet devices, and other media that will encourage adults to engage with children in activities to further enhance their learning.

Foster teamwork — Digital media are often faulted for children spending less time socializing face-to-face with peers and family. Producers should design content that drives participants to interact and play together.

Design for healthy development— Adults are concerned that digital media are superseding activities including outdoor exercise, imaginative play, and socializing. Media producers should look to use technology to get children involved in these foundational activities.

Perspectives on Online Learning

2011-05-27T09:02:00.000-04:00

photo courtesy Microsoft

Sara Bernard interviewed online teachers, a curriculum provider, the mother of two online students, as well as the students themselves, about what is and isn't working in online education, and offers five surprising insights. Among them, students may, in fact, receive more attention in online schools compared with traditional schools, and many online programs provide a framework for learning that may be suitable for students who are undermotivated or who have special needs.

Microsoft Acquires Skype

2011-05-13T14:56:00.003-04:00

Last week it wasrumored to be Google and Facebook, but it seems that Microsoft has outbid thecompetition. Marking the largest acquisition in Microsoft's history, thecompany announced that it has agreed to acquire Skype for $8.5 billion. Skyperuns the giant global videoconferencing and voice communication network thathas 170 million subscribers and logged 207 billion minutes of conversationslast year, according to the company. The service is free, although the companyoffers premium services such as establishing multipoint conferences andcommunications with non-Skype users for a fee.

Microsoft plans to runSkype out of a totally new division headed up by current Skype CEO, Tony Bates.Bates said he anticipates Skype's user base growing from millions to billionsof subscribers saying, "We believe that this is a platform and a set ofservices that can reach everyone on the planet."

What does this meanfor education? Will Skype remain free? Why did Microsoft wantSkype? Didn’t Skype just open a fantastic educator network? Like Scott Mesch, I worry that Microsoft willlose the understanding and impact of Skype as a free resource for theclassroom. Check out TechBuzz's discussion.

eduTecher is a hub for exploring free web resources

2011-05-08T08:37:00.000-04:00

eSchoolNews highlighted eduTeacher this week as its Site of the Week.

Created by Adam Bellow, director of educational technology for the College Board Schools, eduTecher.net is a no-cost resource for finding and sharing free web tools with educators and students around the world. The website includes short-and-sweet reviews of free web tools and resources, as well as video clips showing certain tools in action and explaining how teachers can integrate these into the classroom. The site recently has been revamped to allow for more social media interaction.

“We’re not only creating a more social environment that’s conducive to sharing tips, ideas, and resources among our users, but also … inviting every user to ‘Become an eduTecher,’” Bellow says. “You can now save favorite links, capture private notes, create your very own educational blog, and connect with like-minded colleagues to form a personal learning network, with whom you can share messages, your lists of favorites, have a live chat, and more. This new approach lets eduTecher users explore, share, and contribute to educational technology in a whole new way.”

Assessing Project-Based Lessons

2011-03-26T09:14:00.000-04:00

Education writer Suzie Boss considers the importance of effective assessments and how they can be used to measure student learning on project-based lessons. A new classroom guide developed by Edutopia, Top Ten Tips for Project-Based Learning Assessment, offers tips and resources for assessing learning at each stage of a project-based lesson, from project planning to a culminating event when students present their conclusions. Susi Boss' Blog/Edutopia.org

Kindle Used to Motivate Young Readers

2011-03-08T07:55:00.000-05:00

Dalzell Grade School, a grade school in Illinois is using Kindle e-readers to help encourage students of all levels to get excited about reading. The devices' dictionary feature has allowed students in fifth and sixth grade to better understand Washington Irving's "Rip Van Winkle," and the highlighting feature is being used to help kindergarten students sound out new words. Each device can hold up to 3,500 titles, a feature that educators say helps make up for their school's lack of sufficient library space. News-Tribune (La Salle, Ill.) (3/5)

Student Engagement on the Go

2011-03-03T13:36:00.000-05:00

"This is my 3-year old daughter the day the iPad came out," said Patrick McGee as he displayed a movie of a young girl sitting at a kitchen counter, gripping an iPad in both hands. The audience watched as the little girl found, launched, and began to use a Dr. Seuss app; all without intervention or explanation from an adult. "Kids know--intuitively--how these things work; even at 3," he said. "We need to use that."

The key reason to implement mobile computing technologies as the iPad and iPod Touch in the classroom is student engagement, says McGee, the assistant principal of a Florida school. He says the technology can be used to increase productivity or involve students in activities that were uninteresting to them as a pen-and-paper process. McGee's experience includes piloting programs for both the iPad and the iPod touch. "We have used them at the elementary level" to enhance reading, improve comprehension, and measure fluency. At the secondary level, the focus of these devices has been on math, science, and for use as a powerful reference tool. "One of the really great things about the iBooks app is that each book comes with a built in dictionary." That's pretty powerful, he said.

McGee also pointed out the many productivity uses of the devices, listing several apps that he deploys regularly, including iBooks, e-mail, LogMeIn, KeyNote, and Pages; many available for both devices. T.H.E. Journal (3/2)

Learning in a Virtual World--Whyville

2011-03-03T12:12:00.001-05:00

Whyville is an educational virtual world created for kids, which launched in 1999. It was one of the first solely for children and pre-teens and remains one of the few whose purpose is purely educational. Players earn "clams"—the currency of Whyville—by engaging in various games and role-playing scenarios. Players do everything from helping to publish the community's newspaper, The Whyville Times to running the power grid for Whyville to even taking out loans to buy big-ticket items such as cars. It is quite literally a self-organized community of kids that has been up and running for more than a decade.

Whyville has received a number of awards from independent parent groups for its educational value and safety--and is reported to be one of the most popular virtual worlds (Wikipedia)

InterroBang: Example of Game-Based Learning

2011-02-25T08:06:00.000-05:00

I was on Facebook this morning poking my sister back and noticed an ad on the side for the game InterroBang. So, I decided to check it out. InterroBang is a game in which students complete real-world missions to win prizes, learn problem solving and connect with others to change the world. Gameplay is open to students in grades 6-12. In order to be eligible for prizes, students must register through their teachers or parents.

Missions are the central way that InterroBang is played. The missions are divided into four categories, or areas of inquiry:

   1. Culture
   2. Creativity
   3. Exploration
   4. Science

Each mission has a point value ranging from 10 points for an easy mission to 40 points for a difficult one. Students can complete missions by themselves or in groups. Every individual in a group receives the points from completing a mission. Students can add collaborators on the Play page from their class and even from their friends.

Student compete to win prizes including Xboxes and Flip cameras. To make InterroBang as fair as possible, the players are divided into 3 leagues: middle school, high school, and high school honors students. Students only compete against players in their League. Before prizes are awarded, the InterroBang team will contact teachers and schools to verify student status.

InterroBang was created and designed by Nuvana, with Founding Partner Microsoft Partners in Learning, with support from Exploratorium, Learn and Serve America, and ePals.

Interrobang Intro from Nuvana on Vimeo.

Blackboard Offers Free Hosted Online Course System

2011-02-23T09:21:00.001-05:00

Fully Hosted Online Course System for Instructors

By Blackboard Inc.

Blackboard Inc. announced the launch of CourseSites by Blackboard, a free, fully hosted and supported online course system featuring the Company’s latest teaching and learning technologies. The offering gives individual K-12 and higher education instructors an innovative, high quality cloud-based option to host online courses or add a Web-based component to traditional ones. The simple, easy to use system gives educators greater choice and flexibility for online courses in a system with cutting edge features that encourage experimentation. CourseSites is designed to support instructors who may not have access to a learning management system at their institution or school, or who may have access to an older platform system from Blackboard or a competing course management provider. There is no license fee, no hosting fee and no additional setup required for instructors to get started.

Integrating Technology in the Elementary Classroom

2011-02-20T09:25:00.002-05:00

An assignment in my Educational Technology course has students search YouTube to find a video that demonstrates or highlights how technology can be used in the classroom. They are to embed the video in their blog as I have done here. Once they have embedded the video, they are to explain why they chose it and summarize what they learned from it that they could use in developing their unit plan. They should also discuss possible obstacles they might face using YouTube in their classroom.

The following video demonstrates how one third grade teacher integrates technology in her classroom using learning centers. A learning center is a self-contained section of the classroom in which students engage in independent and self-directed learning activities. They can also be used for small-group activities. Learning centers allow students to focus on a particular area of study. Centers area great way to integrate technology as well as parent volunteers.

TeacherVision provides additional information on learning and literacy centers.

Why teachers should embrace Wikipedia

2011-02-02T17:03:00.001-05:00

Teachers should stop banning students from using Wikipedia for class work and instead use the site as a tool to teach students how to effectively use Internet resources, according to education-technology blogger Christopher Dawson. Dawson argues that students -- and adults -- already are using Wikipedia, so teachers should show students how to verify what they learn there. Dawson also writes that Wikipedia can be used as a source for class assignments, just as traditional encyclopedias. ZDNet/ZDNet Education blog

Technology and Early Childhood Education

2011-01-31T18:33:00.001-05:00

I was asked earlier in the semester by one of my Educational Technology students how learning about technology applied to toddlers and really young children. I provide a picture of me nephew--age 3--as case in point. Truitt has been exposed to the computer and the Internet essentially from birth. It is a part of is daily life.

As technology becomes easier to use, educational software online educational programs will proliferate. Therefore, it is the responsibility of early childhood educators and parents as well to critically examine the impact of technology on children and be prepared to use technology to benefit children. Research has shown that used appropriately, technology can enhance children's cognitive and social abilities. As educators, we must be prepared to integrate technology into our teaching practices, providing equitable access by all children. We must be aware of research-based practices that will support children's learning. For example, research has shown that when working on a computer, young children prefer working with one or two partners over working alone. They seek help from each other and seem to prefer seeking help from their peers over seeking help from the teacher. They engage in different forms and levels of communication and interaction when using the computer as opposed to traditional activities such as blocks and puzzles. They display greater cooperation and turn-taking at the computer. Beyond the primary grades, the computer extends the classroom environment beyond the four walls of the school. Children have the opportunity to collaborate with children in other classrooms, cities, states, and even countries. They may even have a chance to converse with a favorite author.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is currently revising its position statement on Technology and Young Children--Ages 3 through 8; however, here is the link to the current statement.

Notes from an Accidential Teacher

2011-01-25T12:39:00.002-05:00

It was by chance that educator Carol Ann Tomlinson first entered the classroom, but this fortunate accident blossomed into a career that has spanned several decades. In a recent Educational Leadership article, Tomlinson reflects on her professional experience and shares the five principles and components of effective teaching that became the pillars of her career. Read the full article.

Teaching Philosophy 2011

2011-01-17T09:47:00.000-05:00

This week I ask my EDU 271 students to develop their philosophy of teaching. Therefore, I decided to post my philosophy as well. In looking back over the documents that I have developed over the years, I realize that my philosophy has been an ever-changing document--incorporating new ideas and experiences as I create new understandings of how we learn and my role in that process.

First of all, I am a facilitator, a coach, a guide, aco-learner. I embrace teaching as anopportunity to inspire and empower. In my view, teaching is not aboutinstructing or imparting information to students as if their minds were waitingto be filled with my knowledge. Rather, teaching is igniting transformativelearning; empowering students to take responsibility for their learning,inspiring courage to grow intellectually, cultivating curiosity, providingopportunities for developing relationships, clarifying values, uplifting thespirit and igniting action. Ideally, Iwant students to feel personally changed by their participation in a course. Transformativelearning is most likely to occur when students become personally engaged withthe material and perceive the subject matter to be directly relevant to theirown lives. Learning,then, is experiential.

Furthermore, the student should be thefocus—not the teacher. While the process of reading examples andcompleting exercises in textbooks and from handouts is valuable, the reallearning comes through the student’s own efforts at solving problems. Learning is also a social endeavor; therefore,I facilitate learning through group work and student-leddiscussions; problem-solving through student inquiries and debate; writingthrough peer review; and computer literacy through research and discussionsboard participation.

Generally, I believe the role of a teacher is to be afacilitator. We should work to be flexible, adapting our approaches accordingto the needs of the learners, the subject matter, and the setting. Teaching isa process of encouraging students to make connections between their experiencesand the subject matter. We must work to create bridges between the classroomand the world because learning has not actually occurred until the studentmakes a connection between prior knowledge and new knowledge—understands areason for remembering the data. As teachers, we should enable our students tobecome responsible for their own learning. We should vary our teaching stylesand should expect students to participate in a mixture of lecture, discussion,and collaborative activities.

Ibelieve that teachers and students must be part of the constantly changingtechnological landscape. I believe that we should not only teach withtechnology but about technology as well, providing students with the skills tocritically evaluate how they use and access technology. To do so, technology must be carefully integrated and shouldcomplement the course goals, objectives, and content matter. Onlineinteractions and Web 2.0 tools allow our students not only to interact morewith the instructor and with one another, but also to become activeparticipants in a community larger than the classroom itself. Technology allows us to create more authenticlearning environments and assessments.

Itis crucial that teachers recognize the power inherent in their role and areself-reflective about their actions. In my teaching, I work to be mindful of myposition as a role model of the kind of learning I strive to promote amongstudents. Transformative learning is a reciprocally educative endeavor—informativeand uplifting for teachers and students alike. It is about “opening hearts andminds...” and changing lives for all those involved in the process.

Online Education Grows by almost a Million Students

2011-01-14T09:42:00.000-05:00

Eighth Annual Sloan Survey of Online Education Shows Economy Still Driving Growth

The 2010 Sloan Survey of Online Learning reveals that enrollment rose by almost one million students from a year earlier. The survey of more than 2,500 colleges and universities nationwide finds approximately 5.6 million students were enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2009, the most recent term for which figures are available.

10 of the Best Apps for Education

2011-01-11T10:10:00.000-05:00

A list of 10 notable educational apps available for the iPad, iPhone and iPod has been assembled by eSchool News. Recommended apps include the free app Molecules, which allows students to view and manipulate 3-D molecule models. Another free app allows students and teachers access to Blackboard from Apple devices, while the $5.99 Essay Grader helps teachers speed up their essay grading process. The free Today in History app lists historical events that took place that day, and Math Ref Free offers 600 formulas, figures and math tips. eSchool News

Essays on Teaching Excellence available online, free of charge

2011-01-08T09:42:00.001-05:00

As per the Professional and Organizational Development Network Core Committee's approval, all of POD's Essays on Teaching Excellence are now available online, free of charge, including Volume 21, the newest collection. These essays are available to all; POD membership is not required. The essays present innovative viewpoints on college and university instruction. Written in concise and non-technical language, and supported by research, the essays seek to assist instructors in reflecting upon and refining their practice of teaching to achieve the results they seek - students learning to the best of their abilities.

The eight titles and authors of Volume 21 are listed below. Look for Volume 22 in late spring.

Essays on Teaching Excellence | VOLUME 21

Facilitating Group Discussions: Understanding Group Development and Dynamics
Kathy Takayama, Brown University

Transparent Alignment and Integrated Course Design
David W. Concepción, Ball State University

Multiple-Choice Questions You Wouldn’t Put on a Test: Promoting Deep Learning Using Clickers
Derek Bruff, Vanderbilt University

Engaging Students, Assessing Learning—Just a Click Away
Linda C. Hodges, Loyola University Maryland

Research-Based Strategies to Promote Academic Integrity
Michele DiPietro, Kennesaw State University

Using Undergraduate Students as Teaching Assistants
Joseph “Mick” La Lopa, Purdue University

The Value of the Narrative Teaching Observation
Niki Young, Western Oregon University

Deep/Surface Approaches To Learning In Higher Education: A Research Update

Cell phones are becoming more accepted as classroom tools

2011-01-03T12:50:00.000-05:00

More Chicago-area schools are allowing cell phones in school, and some are using them in the classroom. One high-school teacher had his students researching political candidates in government class using only their cell phones, with students working in groups to include those who did not have a phone. "It's one of those things -- if you can't beat them, join them," one principal said. Chicago Tribune (10/11)

Using YouTube and Music Lyrics to Help Students Learn

2011-01-03T12:04:00.003-05:00

From "SchoolHouse Rock" to YouTube: How video in schools has changed teaching
School-technology specialist Patrick Ledesma reflects in this blog post how the use of video in schools has changed in the past four decades. Ledesma looks back at the "SchoolHouse Rock" videos from the 1970s and 1980s, the evolution from the VCR to DVDs and the Internet in the early 2000s. Ledesma writes that today's students have many educational videos -- posted on YouTube and across the Internet -- at their disposal. The changes offer teachers the opportunity to act as facilitators for learning, rather than gatekeepers. Teacher Magazine/Leading from the Classroom blog

Teacher uses YouTube as venue for singing science lessons

A junior-high school teacher in Illinois is singing science lessons set to popular music and posting the recorded lessons on YouTube. Doug Edmonds rewrites the lyrics to popular songs such as ABBA's "Dancing Queen" with lessons on chemical bonds and other science concepts. He also holds diagrams and flash cards to accompany the songs. "If I'm ever struggling on a quiz, I'll just sort of sing them to myself," one student said. "People are going around singing them in the hallways. They're actually really catchy." TribLocal.com (Chicago)/Northbrook, Ill.

How Lady Gaga is helping students learn about the French Revolution

Two teachers in Hawaii are using technology to engage students in history lessons, says this blog post by education writer Valerie Strauss. The teachers set lessons to popular music and create videos they then post on YouTube. The French Revolution is taught with Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance," and students learn other lessons through tunes from popular artists. One of the teachers writes that the videos offer a great introduction to or a recap of lessons, and have inspired students to create their own videos. The Washington Post/The Answer Sheet blog

Teacher-n-Teacher Connecting Classrooms

2011-01-02T08:30:00.000-05:00

LearnCentral Web Event
Event Creator: Kimberly Lightle
Thu 6 Jan 08:00PM New York / Fri 7 Jan 01:00AM GMT / Fri 7 Jan 12:00PM Sydney

Detail Description:
Innovative classrooms today create opportunities for students tocollaborate locally, nationally, or globally and empower them to forgenew, purposeful academic relationships. This presentation provideseducators with a framework that supports student learning communitiesaround STEM concepts. Learn how to involve students in relevant,project-based learning with authentic audiences, nurture criticalthinking, and facilitate the development of interpersonal and global communication skills.

Create Your Own Comic Book

2010-12-13T14:48:00.000-05:00

If you have ever dreamed of creating your own superhero comic, now's your chance. With Thursday's release of "Comic Life 2," Plasq is giving comic book geeks the tools to build their own comics with the ability to import photos and upload the finished product to Facebook. The new version includes "smart shape" and free-form drawing tools, as well as a slew of new templates that users can customize at will. According to the manufacturer's website, "With a comprehensive set of features, Comic Life 2 gives you numerous ways to explore your creativity - liven up holiday snaps, tell a story, even create how-to guides!"

At $29.95, the program is a steal. For a special time, they're offering a $9.95 upgrade and a free trial if you're new to the program. NOTE: Requires Mac OS X 10.4+

Improve Classroom Technology Use

2010-12-13T14:40:00.001-05:00

According to a recent article in eSchool News, during a recent Consortium for School Networking webinar on technology in schools education leaders were encouraged to hire technology-integration specialists who could help teachers use classroom technology to improve teaching and learning. The webinar, entitled “Bridging the Chasm Between Curriculum & Technology,” featured a panel of four superintendents and educational technology directors from across the country who shed light on what adding more technology in the classroom has done for their students. Panelists also encouraged educators to use various digital resources -- such as Facebook, Twitter and blogs -- and to include education-technology directors in curriculum planning.

IUP Takes Students on Virtual Archaeology Dig

2010-12-12T13:19:00.000-05:00

Indiana University of Pennsylvania has carved out a virtual dig for its archaeology students in Second Life. Archaeology Island is the creation of Beverly Chiarulli, associate professor and director of IUP Archaeological Services, and Scott Moore, associate professor of history. In the IUP Second Life world, students can explore accurate re-creations of a Mayan pyramid, a Native American village, ruins in Cyprus and a sunken ship. Students can see re-created versions of what structures that are now in ruins once looked like. Images of artifacts have been scanned and can be viewed in 3-D. They can even take a virtual dive around the shipwreck.

iPad Projects in Higher Education

2010-12-09T10:07:00.000-05:00

iPad pilots are permeating higher education. Two of the latest announcements involve institutions in Texas and Canada, both of which are running tests projects that put the Apple tablet devices into the hands of their students.

At CDI College, a career college with several locations in Canada, both nursing and business students have been equipped with iPads that hold electronic course textbooks and a suite of educational Web-based instructional portals. In a statement the college explained that it targeted those students for the initiative especially because the program will help them develop their skills for using technology in the workplace.

"The iPads have WiFi capabilities that allow learners to study, take e-notes, and review course materials not only in the classroom and on campus, but anywhere, any time," said Bohdan Bilan, vice president of academics. "As a result, students will become comfortable and familiar with technology as a tool for education and healthcare services."

Review of Portfolios in Higher Education

2010-12-09T08:08:00.001-05:00

An article in Campus Technology reports that the Association for Authentic, Experiential and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL.org) conducted a survey of its 100 institutional members in five countries this year regarding their use of portfolios. A portfolio is (almost always, now) a digital repository that is used to develop reflective and integrative critical thinking skills. The organization found 61 distinct uses of portfolios among the 20 institutions that responded. When so many people become this inventive with a technology, we can assume the technology has been institutionalized. At the same time, the number of vendors providing portfolio products is now at 30-40 world wide, a large number for a technology and market that is not yet mature and may not be for years to come.

Many of the reported uses stressed the value of students learning to communicate in writing about their work. One chemistry major program required all undergraduate majors use portfolios to demonstrate their research skills by collecting evidence of their work in the portfolio and analyzing results in writing within the portfolio. A program in social geography uses its portfolio requirement to develop project-working skills in its students. Another program in fashion apparel design use portfolios in a more traditional way: collecting photos of various stages of the design.

Many of the institutions reported adding a course in portfolio course specifically tasked with integrating knowledge from the various courses in the program. Others introduced a capstone or culminating portfolio requirement, encouraging students to integrate and synthesize their work over the full program.

Project-based Learning in the Classroom

2010-12-07T15:14:00.001-05:00

With employers looking for graduates who can communicate effectively, think critically, and solve problems in collaboration with other team members, more and more schools are looking to project-based learning as a way to better prepare students for these demands. Besides helping students develop the same 21st-century skills that employers covet, project-based learning also helps students retain the information they learn, proponents of the approach say--and it engages students' interest and motivates them to learn.

With the generous support of The Alan Sitomer BookJam published by Recorded Books K-12, eSchool News has assembled a collection of stories from their archives that exemplify how teachers are implementing project-based learning effectively in their classrooms.

Time to Apply for Projects: Flat Classroom, Digiteen, NetGenEd

2010-12-02T04:40:00.000-05:00

Cool Cat Teacher (Vicki Davis) posted the following on November 29:

For those of you who follow these projects and may want to participate. Here are the upcoming deadlines for applications. If you apply - watch your email because part of the acceptance process is to see that you are responsive and involved - otherwise you're not ready for this yet.

NCATE Panel Calls for Turning Teacher Education "Upside Down"

2010-11-28T15:13:00.000-05:00

A national blue ribbon panel convened last year by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) last week called for teacher education to be "turned upside down" by revamping programs to make clinical practice the centerpiece of the curriculum. The panel also recommended that teacher education institutions and school districts partner and make teacher education more of a shared responsibility. Eight states—California, Colorado, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Oregon, and Tennessee—have already agreed to implement the panel’s recommendations and will work with national experts to pilot approaches to implementation and bring new models of clinical preparation to scale.

“The new approaches will involve significant policy and procedural changes in both the state higher education and P–12 education systems and entail revamping longstanding policies and practices that are no longer suited to today's needs. The changes called for will require state higher education officials, governors, and state P–12 commissioner leadership working together to remove policy barriers and create policy supports for the new vision of teacher education,” says the NCATE press release on the panel’s recommendations.

Read the recommendations of the NCATE Blue Ribbon Panel on Clinical Preparation and Partnerships for Improved Student Learning.

Using Web 2.0 in Your Classroom

2010-11-28T14:57:00.007-05:00

I've written a number of posts on the use of Web 2.0 tools such as blogs, wikis, and Facebook in education. Despite many IT barriers, usage tends to be greater in the K-12 arena, but higher education has also seen a rise in use.

One particularly useful resource is the Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools and the companion book, Web 2.0 How-to for Educators, published by International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). The first is more of an overview and best-practices manual, whereas the second is a directed guide on how to use the tools in your classroom. Both are written by a professor of education and a technology in education specialist.

From the ISTE website:

What can Web 2.0 tools offer educators? Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools provides a comprehensive overview of the emerging Web 2.0 technologies and their use in the classroom and in professional development. Topics include blogging as a natural tool for writing instruction, wikis and their role in project collaboration, podcasting as a useful means of presenting information and ideas, and how to use Web 2.0 tools for professional development. Also included are a discussion of Web 2.0 safety and security issues and a look toward the future of the Web 2.0 movement. Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools is essential reading for teachers, administrators, technology coordinators, and teacher educators.

Table of Contents
Read excerpt

And regarding Web 2.0 How-to for Educators,

Web 2.0 How-To for Educators explores the very best online collaborative tools available today (including blogs, wikis, and social networking) and Web 2.0 applications (Skype, Google Earth, Wordle, and more) that make a difference in education. Using a simple formula for each concept, the book describes what the tool is, when teachers should use it, why it is useful, who is using it, how you can use the tool, and where you can find additional resources. Practical examples from educators around the world offer an abundance of ideas, and the recommendations for further information and comprehensive lists of Web 2.0 tools and applications will be valuable resources as you integrate Web 2.0 technology in your classroom.

Table of Contents
Read excerpt

Social Media as Teaching Tool

2010-11-24T09:30:00.001-05:00

A Chicago-area English teacher is using social media to help interest his high-school students in literature and reading. Chuck Moore uses PBworks and edmodo, which both offer free social networks for students to collaborate and discuss assignments. Moore's students use the Internet to further their understanding of books and social networking to discuss books online. "It's like what they're used to doing when they socialize with each other," Moore said. The SouthtownStar (Chicago)

Integrating wikis into lessons to improve learning

2010-11-23T15:08:00.000-05:00

High-school technology-integration specialist Andrew Marcinek offers suggestions in this blog post for reviving students' interest in learning. Marcinek set up a wiki for his English 101 class and outlined a new set of classroom expectations that included reminding students to have fun with assignments and encouraging them to collaborate, share and not be afraid to make mistakes along the way. Edutopia.org/Andrew Marcinek's blog

Embedding of YouTube Video in a SlideShare Presentation

2010-11-18T08:05:00.002-05:00

How to add Youtube Videos to SlideShare Presentations

View more presentations from Amit Ranjan.

Middle School Students Share What Learned in Blogs

2010-11-17T08:55:00.001-05:00

Students at a Pittsburgh-area middle school are blogging about what they learn during lessons in science, art and other subjects as part of an effort to make 21st-century skills part of the classroom. "The power of classroom blogging is that students are not merely writing to their teachers, what they think the teacher wants to read, and only for a grade," one educational consultant said. "They are writing with the knowledge that at least their classmates will be reading what they are writing and responding to what they are writing." Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

The Child-driven Education TED talk

2010-11-16T09:49:00.000-05:00

In 1999, Sugata Mitra and his colleagues dug a hole in a wall bordering an urban slum in New Delhi, installed an Internet-connected PC, and left it there (with a hidden camera filming the area). What they saw was kids from the slum playing around with the computer and in the process learning how to use it and how to go online, and then teaching each other.

In the following years they replicated the experiment in other parts of India, urban and rural, with similar results, challenging some of the key assumptions of formal education. The "Hole in the Wall" project demonstrates that, even in the absence of any direct input from a teacher, an environment that stimulates curiosity can cause learning through self-instruction and peer-shared knowledge. Mitra, who's now a professor of educational technology at Newcastle University (UK), calls it "minimally invasive education."

"Education-as-usual assumes that kids are empty vessels who need to be sat down in a room and filled with curricular content. Dr. Mitra's experiments prove that wrong." Linux Journal

Notes from my iPad

2010-11-15T17:31:00.002-05:00

I am trying something new. To celebrate my finishing my dissertation and earning my Ph.D., my husband bought me an iPad. Today I am stuck in the doctor's office, so I'm using the time to explore the possibilities. Since I don't have a smartphone, I'm still learning to use the keyboard, but so far it is really user-friendly. It is so much better than my husband's Blackberry keyboard. I typed my notes for this post and then e-mailed them to me. Worked great!

I can see several uses in the classroom already. My nephew has trouble writing on paper and currently carries around a special device that let's him type out his answers. It is limited in that it only types one line at a time and he can't write long responses or see what he has written previously. But using the iPAd, he could do so much more. The portability is another plus. The iPad actually weighs less and easily fits into his book bag. It looks just like one of his books, which helps him fit in. I can see how his teacher might be able to upload his worksheets to Google Docs or Zoho so he could complete the actual worksheet and turn it in.

The notes app would allow students to type their notes in class rather than writing them on notebook paper. Many kids type faster on their phones than they write. They could access the Internet to find information to supplement class discussions. They could use different educational apps to help them learn a new concept or to practice/reinforce what they learn. I found one iPhone app developed by eduweb called SpaceWalking that allows you to walk through the solar system.

What you should know to write a winning technology grant

2010-11-11T18:44:00.001-05:00

A successful grant writer for four Alabama districts provides six tips for successfully securing technology grants. Lana Bellew suggests avoiding grants that might not be useful for the school or district, researching available grants and finding ones that match schools' needs, studying those who have won the grants in the past, creating a calendar to keep track of upcoming grants, taking a grant-writing class and understanding that it could take several months to write a grant proposal and receive a response. T.H.E. Journal

Are schools' firewalls too restrictive of Internet content?

2010-11-11T18:42:00.000-05:00

Many teachers say they are frustrated by school firewalls that limit the Internet content available to students and educators. John Norton, co-founder of the Teacher Leaders Network, posted portions of a recent online discussion in which educators said firewalls have prevented them from accessing useful teaching resources and learning tools, such as Skype, Twitter and YouTube. However, one administrator also noted that the firewalls are there for a reason -- to protect students. Teacher Magazine

New technology plan released for the nation's schools

2010-11-10T15:50:00.002-05:00

Education Secretary Arne Duncan released the final version of the National Education Technology Plan. The plan, which emphasizes the role of the department as a facilitator, is focused on enhancing academic instruction through Internet-based learning, a decreased emphasis on "seat time" and a preference for more flexibility. The document also includes plans to fund the creation of open-source resources for schools and online professional learning communities for teachers, among other initiatives. Education Week (premium article access compliments of EdWeek.org) (11/9) , T.H.E. Journal

Mashpee High uses computer wizardry to teach technology

2010-11-10T15:42:00.001-05:00

Students in Sal Nocella's gaming design class are learning about 3D animation and creating video games in high-tech classes that focus on STEM fields. "The best way to say it is that we're taking theory and applying it," one teacher said. For example, in a 3D animation class, students must first measure objects and use math to create 3D computer images. Though the ultimate goal is creating a fun distraction, inherent in the game are somewhat complicated equations and calculations. In this case, students used an X and Y axis to graph the robot's movements, while in other applications they might use equations to calculate the size of an object they want to turn into a 3D computer image. An added bonus to using the state-of-the-art software Nocella provides his students is that, come college or career, they'll already be entrenched in a field that's exploding in Massachusetts and elsewhere. "This is where the jobs are," he said. "This is how to compete with the global economy." Cape Cod Times (Mass.)

Use wikis to enhance students' vocabulary

2010-11-09T15:30:00.000-05:00

Wikis can be used to improve students' vocabulary, educator and technology specialist Patrick Ledesma writes in this blog post. He suggests having students research and write definitions on a class wiki in a way that will be "understandable to their friends" instead of simply rewriting definitions. Students can also include graphics and pictures to illustrate their understanding of the terms. He also says teachers can allow students to develop a wiki with common class vocabulary words that students can reference for review and practice for standardized tests. Teachers can also give students practice with synonyms by having them tag the pages. Finally, he suggests that teachers have students use graphic organizers to help them design their vocabulary pages. Teacher Magazine/Leading from the Classroom blog

'Stealth Assessment' Turns to Video Games to Measure Thinking Skills

2010-11-09T15:09:00.000-05:00

An article in The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that researchers at Florida State University are using video games to test students without them knowing as a way to administer so-called "stealth assessments." Officials say the games are a low-pressure way for educators to observe students and gather information about how they learn and what higher-order thinking skills they have. "The idea of stealth assessment is really to make it merge into the fabric of the learning environment," one researcher said.

Example of Embedding Zoho Document in Blog

2010-11-09T09:02:00.000-05:00

This is an example of a table I created using Zoho Writer and then embedded into a blog post.

Learning better on 3D "patients"

2010-11-08T16:14:00.000-05:00

Medical teaching software (such as iMedic,a program program creates a 3D X-ray that allows doctors to examine the body from every angle) exemplifies how the video gaming industry has penetrated academia. The Washington Post reported that several video game companies have switched from the entertainment industry to focus solely on what they call "serious games." Breakaway Games, just outside of Baltimore, has been developing training games for the last three years. Their clients include the University of Maryland, Johns Hopkins, and the Medical College of Georgia.

"The sentiment to use games in learning has always existed," said Ben Sawyer, president of Digitalmill and co-founder of the Serious Games Initiative and one of its offshoots, the Games for Health Project. Flight simulators, computerized war games and practice space stations have been used for decades to train pilots, soldiers and astronauts. "What's changing drastically now is the capability to inject much more robust and usable applications in the form of video games and computer simulations into these environments like never before."

At the University of Maryland Medical Center, Gyusung Lee, assistant professor of surgery, oversees a research project with similar goals but different means. In the lab where iMedic is run, Lee employs motion-capture technology -- used to create "Madden Football" and "The Lord of the Rings"-- to study the movements of experienced surgeons. A platform that functions like a large Wii Fit board captures a surgeon's every move. A vest and motion sensors are attached to the surgeon's body and arms. Video game developers use this method to record the movements of football and basketball players in creating a library of motions from which gamers can choose.

First Graders Using Facebook as a Learning Tool

2010-11-08T15:16:00.004-05:00

A first-grade teacher in Iowa is using Facebook as a teaching tool and a way to update parents about what students are doing in school. The class has its own Facebook page and, after a lesson, a student posts a status update on what students have "learned and why it's important," a fellow teacher said. The class updates its status two to three times a day, and parents and other students often respond to the posts. The Daily Nonpareil (Council Bluffs, Iowa)

Does collaborative work offer students an opportunity for bullying?

2010-11-02T13:05:00.002-04:00

Group work in the classroom teaches students to collaborate, but some say it may offer a prime opportunity for bullying, education blogger Sarah Garland writes in this post. In a recent interview, Williams College professor Susan Engel argued in favor of collaborative learning, which she says helps prepare students for projects in the workplace. Author Katharine Beals disagreed, arguing that group activities -- especially those that lack constant supervision -- offer a venue for bullies to target vulnerable students. The Hechinger Report/EarlyStories blog

New iPhone app is designed to teach fractions through motion

2010-10-28T13:54:00.000-04:00

A new iPhone app called Motion Math is aimed at helping elementary-school students better understand fractions through a game that uses the phone's motion sensors. Motion Math is based on the notion of embodied cognition, which the developers say will help students develop a visceral understanding of fractions. The Wall Street Journal/Digits blog

Are you not maximizing your Interactive Whiteboard?

2010-10-27T11:52:00.002-04:00

According to teacher Patrick Ledesma, many educators are not be using their interactive whiteboards to their full potential. To make the most of the technology, he suggests writing important class notes on an interactive whiteboard and using its software to convert notes to a PDF that can be shared online and elsewhere. This system will allow teachers and students greater access to the material, and teachers can share the notes with peers. Finally, Ledesma suggests that teachers use their whiteboards to create videos of their lessons. Teacher Magazine/Leading from the Classroom blog

Blogging helps students transition to middle school

2010-10-27T11:46:00.002-04:00

A New York school is helping sixth-graders transition to middle school and relieve anxiety by allowing them to blog and take photos of their experiences. The blogging is part of a new documentary class, which allows them to share their thoughts on the first day of school, tests and more. The class culminates with a video message from the students to the next group of sixth-graders. Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (N.Y.)

7 social-media sites for teachers

2010-10-19T15:00:00.000-04:00

Mashable is recommending seven free social-media tools for teachers, including EDU 2.0, which is similar to Blackboard and Moodle, and an organizational tool called SymbalooEDU that allows teachers to store their work and share it with others. Two recommended blogging sites are Edublogs, which allows students and teachers to create blogs, and Kidblog, which is a simple platform that is good for younger users. Mashable (10/16)

More Learning Resources from Mashable:

- The Case For Social Media in Schools
- HOW TO: Help Your Child Set Up a Blog
- 5 Fun and Safe Social Networks for Children
- Social Media Parenting: Raising the Digital Generation
- 10 Essential Tips for Building Your Small Biz Team

Goals for EDU271

2010-10-17T17:20:00.001-04:00

Reflective teaching means looking at what we do in the classroom (either f2f or online), thinking about why we do it, and thinking about whether it works and why or why not. It is a process of self-observation and self-evaluation. By collecting information about what goes on in the classroom and by analyzing and evaluating this information, we can identify and explore our own practices and underlying beliefs. This may then lead to changes and improvements in our teaching.

I began teaching an online course in Educational Technology last week. One of the assignments is to maintain a reflective blog. My students are required to post a minimum of four times/week. Their first post is to include their goals for this course. Since this is the first time I have taught this course, I feel that the reflective practice will also help me as a teacher. Therefore, I intend to follow the blogging assignment I have given my students.

My goals for this course:

To provide the information my students need to develop an understanding of how technology fits into their teaching practice.
To help my students develop the skills necessary to apply this information and knowledge when it is needed.
To allow my students the freedom to find things out for themselves.
To guide my students to gain a better understanding of themselves and the world they live in.

How I want my students to interact

I want my students to collaborate as often as possible. I want them to be able to ask each other questions and make demands on each others' thinking. I want my them to not only challenge but also support each other in their educational journey. I also want them to have an open mind when it comes to their peers' opinions and feedback. I want my students to question--to ask why? and how? I want my students not to be afraid to take risks--to understand that failure is not "bad". I want my students to persevere and not give up in the face of adversity. I want them to examine themselves and their assumptions about teaching and learning. I want them to enjoy this course.

Purdue Develops New App Syncs Students in Facebook

2010-10-07T13:10:00.000-04:00

A team at Purdue University has developed a new application that lets its students create online study groups and participate in them within Facebook. The program also lets users sync and share documents via Dropbox. Mixable was created by some of the same people who released HotSeat last year, an application that lets students text during their class and have their messages viewed by other participants in that class.

How to Overcome Glitches When Teaching with Technology

2010-10-05T10:37:00.000-04:00

Technical glitches such as frozen computers and unsaved or lost work are among the inevitable frustrations of integrating technology into the classroom, high-school technology-integration specialist Andrew Marcinek writes in this blog post. Some "technology fails" can be prevented with careful planning, but others must just be overcome by perseverance and a willingness to adapt, adjust and learn through trial and error, he writes.

Educators Learn About Benefits of Technology

2010-10-05T10:35:00.001-04:00

Over 400 educators and administrators from schools across the country, including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, attended a conference Saturday in New Jersey to help them learn hands-on skills for incorporating social media and other technology into classroom lessons and lesson planning. "I used to be the principal that banned everything, blocked everything, and the change for me was when I became educated on how different people were using technology effectively," one administrator said. The Record (Hackensack, N.J.) (10/3)

Students create, collaborate using Google Apps for Education

2010-09-29T09:10:00.004-04:00

A Colorado teacher is using Google Apps for Education to allow her students to create online portfolios and complete projects online. The program also allows students and teachers to view students' work and provide feedback. "I just talked to a kindergarten teacher yesterday who's ready to get kids on Google Apps," the district education-technology specialist said. "The demand is huge, and it seems to be meeting a need in this 21st-century learning environment."

Overcoming Glitches When Teaching With Technology

2010-09-27T13:27:00.001-04:00

Communication Tools for Online Teachers

2010-09-24T15:17:00.000-04:00

Online teachers say that students view e-mail as archaic, and although it is still a good way for teachers to communicate, many virtual students prefer instant messaging, videoconferencing and social networking. Experts say calling or texting students is often the best way to communicate with students. "The phone is all about delivering the message that I care about you [the student], and let's learn together, and let me facilitate learning your way," one teacher said. Virtual teachers also are making use of blogs and wikis, but experts say those methods have the potential to be ineffective when it comes to reaching out to students. Education Week (9/22)

Readin' and writin' and iPads

2010-09-02T14:12:00.002-04:00

The principal of a Pennsylvania middle school is proposing a two-year pilot program that would have six teachers and about 120 students using iPad tablet computers in the classroom. "With the iPad, our students would be able to jump on at any point to do a quick search or even use apps pertinent to what they are learning," Principal David Muench said, adding that the devices could also cut classroom-material costs. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

DimensionM

2010-08-23T11:02:00.000-04:00

DimensionM is an immersive video game world that engages students in the instruction and learning of mathematics. Important learning objectives are covered through a series of missions that bring math into a world that today's students understand. Students become so captivated in solving problems that they forget they're learning but they don't forget what they've learned. Research with demonstrates how well these programs align with the way today's students learn and how naturally immersed students become in their learning. The result is increased student motivation, increased time on task, and the application of learning to real world situations.

Calculation Nation

2010-08-23T09:38:00.000-04:00

Calculation Nation is a free, easy to use, mathematics game site, offering Serious Games for most K-12 students. Calculation Nation offers students the opportunity to practice their mathematics skills individually or in a head-to-head format playing against other students. For parents and teachers, Calculation Nation offers suggestions for using Calculation Nation.

Calculation Nation™ uses the power of the Web to let students challenge opponents from anywhere in the world. At the same time, students are able to challenge themselves by investigating significant mathematical content and practicing fundamental skills. The element of competition adds an extra layer of excitement.

The National Council of Teacher’s of Mathematics (NCTM) hired Interactive Knowledge (IK) to design a system for middle school students to play math-related online games against live opponents. The site features five online games and a customized game room where thousands of students can challenge one another to test their math skills. Before going live, Calculation Nation was tested by hundreds of math teacher’s during NCTM’s annual conference held in April 2009.

Teacher Uses Web 2.0 Tools to Manage AP English Assignments

2010-07-28T16:39:00.000-04:00

Andrew Marcinek, a high-school teacher is using Google, wikispaces, blogs and other tools to help track the progress of his Advanced Placement English students as they read a novel (1 Dead in Attic by Chris Rose), answer questions and keep a journal over the summer. In his blog post, Marcinek writes that he had his students create blogs on the Wikispace, and he was able to post assignments onto the wiki using Google Calendar. Students respond to the assignments on their blogs. Edutopia.org/Andrew Marcinek's blog (7/26)

Tools

Google Voice
Google Calendar
Blogger
Wikispaces Process

Interactive lecture: How to Engage Students and Deepen Comprehension

2010-07-27T08:44:00.000-04:00

Harvey F. Silver and Matthew J. Perini, joint authors of best-selling books on education, have recently developed a new Strategic Teacher PLC Guide focused on the Interactive Lecture. Their latest professional-development tool teaches educators how to improve their students' abilities to think actively about the content of a lecture and lock the critical information in their memories. It explores how teachers can plan and evaluate lessons, as well as review and utilize the student work that results.

Read sample chapters.

Learn about the authors.

iPad as Educational Tool

2010-06-10T12:52:00.000-04:00

Envision Schools founder Bob Lenz, fresh from a conference on innovation and technology in education, considers in this blog post the role the iPad and other new technology will play in the future of student learning. Lenz sees the iPad -- in perhaps its next generation -- as a low-cost way to expand student access to books, research and other media and envisions a time when teachers may create apps instead of paper handouts or assignments posted on the Web.

Elluminate Wins Silver for Best Advance in Technology for Virtual Classroom, Training, or Conferencing

2010-05-20T08:01:00.001-04:00

Elluminate, Inc., the leading provider of web, audio, video, and social networking solutions for 21^st century education and training, won a coveted Brandon Hall silver award for technology excellence in the Best Advance in Technology for Virtual Classroom, Training, or Conferencing category. Elluminate’s win was announced on Thursday, April 29. For a complete list of winners, visit www.brandon-hall.com.

The Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Technology Awards are presented by Brandon Hall Research, one of the leading research firms in training and development. The Learning Technology Awards program showcases innovations in the products in the marketplace for creating and managing learning, talent, and performance. The entries were evaluated by independent judges around the world.

Flagship product Elluminate Live!® was evaluated on the basis of features and functionality, ease of use, and unique differentiators. A virtual environment optimized for learning, Elluminate Live! enables teachers and learners to interact and collaborate in real time to add synchronous content to asynchronous distance learning or combine blended online/onsite learning activities, all while reducing travel-related costs.

“These outstanding tools and systems propel the learning profession forward,” said Brandon Hall, Ph.D., chairman of the Awards program. “These innovative products let customers make learning faster, better, and easier.”

“Receiving this prestigious award validates Elluminate’s strengths in the eLearning, online collaboration, and web conferencing arena,” said Elluminate President Maurice Heiblum. “For almost a decade, Elluminate has focused on the needs of educators and learners. Our unique approach facilitates instant communication, continuous collaboration, and learning that is accessible, personal, and meaningful.”

About Brandon Hall Research
Brandon Hall, Ph.D. is the CEO of Brandon Hall Research and author of the ground-breaking “Web-Based Training Cookbook.” Since 1992, Brandon Hall Research (www.brandon-hall.com) has been providing independent research reports and expert advice on using technology in learning. Brandon Hall Research conducts Awards programs each year to recognize the best in innovative learning.

VenueGEN offers 3D virtual meetings

2010-05-14T09:43:00.000-04:00

For those of us looking at replicating the feel of a face-to-face meeting as much as possible, VenueGEN’s new app might be the key. Instead of focusing on shared content—as with current web-conferencing apps such as Elluminate and Adobe Connect—VenueGEN seeks to develop immersive, engaging shared experiences. The controls are aimed at replicating the real-world experience of sitting in a meeting room along with the unique online experience of sharing onscreen presentations and having private back-channel conversations while watching a public presentation. According to Rafe Needham from CNET, “Webex features include screen-sharing, markup tools, text chatting, and the like. Virtual screens (movie screens, TVs, and laptops) in the virtual space are used for sharing computer imagery.”

The program is built on a gaming platform but is definitely not a game or a virtual world like Second Life. VenueGen is a world of 3D rooms including a coffee shop table with 5 seats or even a university lecture hall with 46 seats. inhabited by human-appearing avatars with photo-mapped faces of you and other meeting participants. There are no cameras involved. The 3D avatars automatically start moving their lips when participants talk and participants can set their mood (which controls body language and facial expressions). Positional audio give clues as to where other participants are located and the system tracks where everyone is so your avatar is pointed and “looking” at another person when talking.

VenueGEN boasts a low learning curve for participants—just click on the link in the e-mail. Needham concurred that learning to use the app was simple and fun. However, he also indicated that one of the drawbacks of the program was that setup was tedious and that users have to upload three plain photos of their faces from different angles to get the avatar to resemble them accurately.

VenueGEN is currently only available for the PC—no Mac or mobile versions yet. VenueGEN says they are in development. Not sure what kind of PC is required for a smooth virtual experience since I use a pretty up-to-date machine.

Right now VenueGEN is offering a 30-day free trial. Subscriptions are based on number of participants in each meeting.

Play Games That Give to fight hunger!

2010-05-04T08:57:00.004-04:00

Games That Give^TM are now available on The Hunger Site. Play fun, free, classic games and fight hunger at the same time. The more you play, the more funds you raise for the charity partners to help the hungry. There are currently more than 20 games available.

How does it work? Games that Give^TM provide some of the most popular "casual games" of all time. The games contain sponsor advertising, and 70% of that advertising is donated to fight hunger.

Everybody wins! The Hunger Site's charity partners get funding to help the hungry, sponsors get good advertising, and you get to play fantastic classics like Solitaire, Gems, Snake, Memory, Sudoku, and more.

Check it out: play to fight hunger today! Don't forget to also click everyday to help fight hunger.

Ed Tech Lady

Adding Off-the-Shelf Games into Classes

"Bring Your Own (BYO)" Webinar

High School Teachers Make Gaming Academic

Games-Based Learning

Google and Pearson Announce New LMS Option

Encourage Learning

Seven Principles of Learning

Lessons Learned

Early Education and Technology for Children Conference

March 14–16, 2012Salt Lake City, Utah

Teachers Using Twitter for Professional Development

Goodbye, Steve

From “Sage on the Stage” to “Guide on the Side”

Strategies for Designing Courses for Adult Learners

Profile of Adult Learners

Tailoring Teaching Style to Learner's Needs

Teaching Styles

Multiple Intelligences

Effective Professional Development and Assessment Using Digital Content and Web-Based Tools

Learning Styles

Valve Offers Portal for Free

Free Webinar Series: Improve Your PowerPoint Presentations

Second Annual Global Education Conference Call for Proposals

Follow-Up Course Design for Learning

Course Design for Learning

Course Design for Learning

Learning to Change--Changing to Learn

Research the Mendeley Way

Designing Effective Writing and Research Assignments

Followers Missing

Game Based Learning - An Introduction

AuthorSTREAM

Wake Up to the Wonderful World of Wikis and Blogs

Effective Webinars: Some Tips

Educational Uses for Animoto

Response to Families and Technology

Familes and Technology

Perspectives on Online Learning

Microsoft Acquires Skype

eduTecher is a hub for exploring free web resources

Assessing Project-Based Lessons

Kindle Used to Motivate Young Readers

Student Engagement on the Go

Learning in a Virtual World--Whyville

InterroBang: Example of Game-Based Learning

Blackboard Offers Free Hosted Online Course System

Fully Hosted Online Course System for Instructors

Integrating Technology in the Elementary Classroom

Why teachers should embrace Wikipedia

Technology and Early Childhood Education

Notes from an Accidential Teacher

Teaching Philosophy 2011

Online Education Grows by almost a Million Students

10 of the Best Apps for Education

Essays on Teaching Excellence available online, free of charge

Cell phones are becoming more accepted as classroom tools

Using YouTube and Music Lyrics to Help Students Learn

Teacher-n-Teacher Connecting Classrooms

Create Your Own Comic Book

Improve Classroom Technology Use

IUP Takes Students on Virtual Archaeology Dig

iPad Projects in Higher Education

Review of Portfolios in Higher Education

Project-based Learning in the Classroom

Time to Apply for Projects: Flat Classroom, Digiteen, NetGenEd

NCATE Panel Calls for Turning Teacher Education "Upside Down"

Using Web 2.0 in Your Classroom

Social Media as Teaching Tool

Integrating wikis into lessons to improve learning

Embedding of YouTube Video in a SlideShare Presentation

Middle School Students Share What Learned in Blogs

The Child-driven Education TED talk

Notes from my iPad

What you should know to write a winning technology grant

Are schools' firewalls too restrictive of Internet content?

New technology plan released for the nation's schools

Mashpee High uses computer wizardry to teach technology

Use wikis to enhance students' vocabulary

'Stealth Assessment' Turns to Video Games to Measure Thinking Skills

March 14–16, 2012
Salt Lake City, Utah