Digital Differentiation
Technology is a tool that can be used to help teachers facilitate learning experiences that address the diverse learning needs of all students and help them develop 21st Century Skills. At it's most basic level, digital tools can be used to help students find, understand and use information. When combined with student-driven learning experiences fueled by Essential Questions offering flexible learning paths, it can be the ticket to success.
Are Teachers of Tomorrow Prepared to Use Innovative Tech?
Getty Images With a new generation of teachers coming into the work force, there’s a discrepancy between what principals expect of teachers-in-training and what they’re actually learning in school. A new Project Tomorrow report surveying principals concluded that they want to hire new teachers with creative ideas about how technology can be leveraged to create authentic and differentiated learning experiences. But student-teachers report that their tech training focuses only on simple management tools. At the same time, the report concludes that those who have the biggest influence on new teachers — veteran educators — don’t always embrace new ways of using technology to engage students. Only half of current working teachers believe they can use technology to motivate students to learn, compared to 75 percent of incoming teachers.
How Do We Know When Students Are Engaged?
(Updated 11/2013) Educational author and former teacher, Dr. Michael Schmoker shares in his book, Results Now, a study that found of 1,500 classrooms visited, 85 percent of them had engaged less than 50 percent of the students. In other words, only 15 percent of the classrooms had more than half of the class at least paying attention to the lesson. So, how do they know if a student is engaged? What do "engaged" students look like?
Using Technology in the Early Childhood Classroom
By Kimberly Moore Kneas, Ph.D. and Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D. Early Childhood Today: Are young children's brains (ages three through six) well suited to the use of technology? (We define technology as children using cameras, computers, tape recorders and video cameras in classroom projects.) If so, how?
The Differentiator
Try Respondo! → ← Back to Byrdseed.com The Differentiator The Differentiator is based on Bloom's Taxonomy, Kaplan and Gould's Depth and Complexity, and David Chung's product menu. Try It In: French Dutch • Tweet It • Like Byrdseed • Pin It
15+ Readiness Resources for Driving Student Success
Learning how to drive is an exhilarating experience, unless you're the parent sitting in the passenger seat. My son passed driver's ed, and he needs to clock hours driving with a parent -- that would be me. I plan those driving experiences based on his readiness, such as empty parking lots, neighborhood streets, light and heavy traffic, highway, and night driving. (The latter two may be more an issue of my comfort level.) With each planned experience, his confidence grows toward passing his driving exam. In education, all students must be successful, yet for various reasons, classrooms everywhere fall short of this objective.
Reading Comprehension Worksheets
"Your reading comprehension materials are the best I've found on the web. They are so thorough and comprehensive! My students and I have learned a lot from them. Thanks so much!" -- Susan B., Carter, KY. 03/21/12 Like these materials?
4 Benefits of having mobile technology in the classroom
If you’ve been thinking about bringing mobile technology in the classroom, my advice to you is to do it! More k-12 and higher education institutions are participating in the “mobile revolution” than ever. There are so many benefits your students are missing out on if you don’t. Today’s students are tech-savvy. They get more engaged and really thrive when they are using mobile devices in the classroom. Regardless of the method whether you do it through BYOD (bring your own device), a 1:1 iPad initiative, or any other method make sure you get that mobile technology in the classroom.
Centers: Effective Structures for Differentiation
Photo by Woodley Wonder Works This article is written by Katie Haydon, founder of Ignite Creative Learning Studio. Learn more about Ignite at IgniteCreativeLearning.com or the Ignite Facebook page. Do you use centers in your primary classroom? If yes, you love them and can’t imagine life without them. If no, you can’t imagine how you could possibly trust your 30 to 35 students to work independently, nor can you figure out where you’d get the time to set them up.
Learner Interest Matters: Strategies for Empowering Student Choice
A parent shared with me that she struggled motivating her son to build a model of a Frank Lloyd Wright home for a presentation. This was part of a social studies unit in which he studied the architect. Her son had no interest in building the model or researching Frank Lloyd Wright. I asked what her son liked to do outside of school. Tops on his list was playing Minecraft, a game where players construct buildings, grow harvests, care for livestock, and do many other things in an unstructured sandbox world.
Inspirational Quotes to Live By
Good quotes are often powerful words of wisdom that inspire, educate and even motivate a person to take action. They usually share common themes such as: Positive thinking leads to positive outcomesFailure is a stepping stone to successHelp yourself by helping othersDetermination, initiative and persistence are the foundation of success And yet these lessons of life are typically condensed into 1-2 lines.
Use of Technology in Teaching and Learning
Technology ushers in fundamental structural changes that can be integral to achieving significant improvements in productivity. Used to support both teaching and learning, technology infuses classrooms with digital learning tools, such as computers and hand held devices; expands course offerings, experiences, and learning materials; supports learning 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; builds 21st century skills; increases student engagement and motivation; and accelerates learning. Technology also has the power to transform teaching by ushering in a new model of connected teaching. This model links teachers to their students and to professional content, resources, and systems to help them improve their own instruction and personalize learning. The links on this page are provided for users convenience and are not an endorsement. See full disclaimer.
