3 Ways One School Is Integrating Technology Source: GeekLover As we look ahead to 2013, educators are developing ways for their schools to adapt in our rapidly-changing technological world to ensure the best skill sets and success for their students. Beaver Country Day School , a leading, independent school for grades 6-12 just outside of Boston, lists the top 3 ways the school utilizes technology to improve student learning experiences: Screen time has its perks. In a 1:1 laptop environment for all students and teachers, web 2.0 skills and related computer projects are integrated throughout daily curriculum and across all subjects. Trained teachers, called “Technology Integration Specialists,” guide teachers to de-emphasize the specialization of computer technology and improve students’ collaboration, analytical and research skills. Remove the Facebook firewall. Teach for the future.
3 Alternative Ways To Pay For A College Education Paying for college seems overwhelming and stressful when you’re getting started. College tuition is one the rise each year it seems. There are ways to pay for college without you having to pay out-of-pocket. Some of the ways to pay will have to be repaid after you graduate while others will not. If you wish to go to college there is a way to pay for it and get the degree you are after. One way to go to school is with a scholarship. Another way to pay for school is with a grant from your state or with federal aid. One final way you can look into is getting a private student loan. 4 Educational Social Networks You're Not Yet Using We’ve heard about Learnist, Lore, Edmodo, and the many other educational social networks . But what else is out there? If you’re an early adopter or simply like being the ‘cool’ teacher in the lounge … then make sure you know about these relatively new offerings. There’s a pantload of other social networks out there and we do our best to showcase them when the time is right. eduClipper A take-off on Pinterest, eduClipper is one of the newest entries to the ‘educational social network’ foray and seems like a worthwhile place to pull in some hard-to-find information. TeachAde Similar to parts of Edutopia and the WordPress Buddypress plugin, TeachAde hosts a number of useful discussion groups and offers plenty of free education resources. Diipo Billed as an “education 2.0 social network for your class,” Diipo reminds me more of Edmodo and some Blackboard applications rather than Pinterest or your standard social network. Twiducate
The Best Education Tools: A Crowdsourced Guide We showcase the best education tools which consist of a myriad of apps, tools, and other resources on a daily basis on Edudemic. It’s what we do. It’s fun, useful, and lets us help connect you with interesting new ways to do things. But what if you miss some posts because you’re off having a life, on vacation, or just don’t check Edudemic every minute of every day. That’s why we (Jeff and Katie) built “ The Best Education Tools For Teachers ” area of the site. How It Works First, head over to this page and then read through the introduction. To add to a list, just use the big pink ‘Add To List’ button and follow the instructions. If you want to just browse, no need to sign in. Now comes the fun part. So that’s about it. Click Here To View The Best Education Tools For Teachers
5 iPhone Apps for Students With Disabilities Photo Credit: smh.com.au You may not realize it, but people with disabilities are also at a disadvantage when it comes to education. Studies show that 54 million Americans have disabilities. 28% of those with disabilities aged 25 and above barely even finished high school. More than 16 million people in America have a mental illness or a cognitive function problem while 3 million people have difficulty with speech communication, thus hindering them from learning independently. However, learning can be facilitated, even for people with disabilities, through the help of mobile devices like the iPhone. If you’re a parent of a disabled child or a teacher for disabled students, you can make learning more interesting for them with the help of these apps! ArtikPix One of the best learning methods for children is the use of pictures and graphics, one thing that modern technology such as the iPhone can now offer for free. In My Dreams ADHD Angel TapToTalk Learn Braille Alphabet
8 Ways To Show Your Support For Newtown getty images “Newtown, you are not alone.” –President Obama People all over the world continue to send an outpouring of support to the community of Newtown, CT. Lemonade Stand : Have a lemonade stand or bake sale and donate all the proceeds to the Sandy Hook School Support Fund. Write your local U.S. CNN iReport : What are your thoughts following the Newtown tragedy? Wall of love : Submit a message to the Wall of Love. Make a Card and Send it to Sandy Hook Elementary School: Even young children can make and create cards to support the Newtown community. Sandy Hook Elementary School 12 Dickenson Drive Sandy Hook, CT 06482 Wear Green and White: Talk to your school principal and set up a fundraiser at school.
How To Find A Classroom To Skype With Have you ever wanted to try out Skype in the classroom but didn’t know where to start? We’ve published numerous guides filled with tips and tricks but there’s a glaring problem: how do you find a partner classroom to Skype with? Until now, you had to do Google searches, Twitter hashtag searches, and generally spend a lot of time searching. Wouldn’t that time be better spent actually finding and speaking to your new digital pen pals? So I figured, hey why not create a simple spreadsheet that lets all the classrooms around the world share their contact info, availability, and what they’d like to talk about … in a simple spreadsheet. Want to add your name / classroom to the list? Click here to ADD your classroom to the Global Skype Directory For Classrooms Want to find a classroom to Skype with? Click here to VIEW the directory.
12 Digital Tools To Implement Exit Slips This year our district implemented the use of exit slips to assess student daily learning. So, what are exit slips? Quite simply, exit slips are used to help students reflect on their learning and express their ideas and learning about a topic. The Exit Slip strategy also provides the teacher with the opportunity to integrate writing into the classroom. Exit Slips can serve as 2 purpose: (1) It can be used to document student’s understanding of a lesson, (2) as an informal assessment, and (3) the effectiveness of the teacher’s instruction. At first, I was not excited about doing one more thing in my class. The 3 Categories There are three categories of exit slips (Fisher & Frey, 2004): Prompts that document learning, (Example: Write one thing you learned today, Discuss how today’s lesson could be used in the real world.) Prompts that emphasize the process of learning (Example: I didn’t understand…, Write one question you have about today’s lesson.) Other exit prompts include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Why Education Matters. 5 Ways Schools Are Already Using 3D Printing 7.77K Views 0 Likes We've already looked at MOOCs, tablet computing, gamification, and learning analytics. For the first part of the 'third horizon', (or entering mainstream use in four to five years), 3D printing tops the list. 4 Free Ways To Start Your Own Blog 6.67K Views 0 Likes Blogging is a digital skill that every teacher and student should have. 6 Technologies That Will Change Higher Education 6.28K Views 0 Likes The New Media Consortium and EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI) have jointly released the tenth NMC Horizon Report > 2013 Higher Education Edition.
25 Ways To Use Tablets In The Classroom When I was a kid, I dreamt about our school desks as computer screens. How cool would it have been to be able to draw, write, and learn directly onto my own computer? As the years went on, people theorized that laptops would take over the classroom, but the price of these devices was too high for a 1 to 1 ratio. It never quite caught on in lower grade schools. See Also: 25 Ways To Use iPads In The Classroom by Degree of Difficulty Now, it is the age of the tablet. Yet, some educators are still skeptical. 1. In a subject like art, people might think, “How could a tablet be useful? It is, but what about an app that helps with color matching and combination, or tools for interior design where the child can map out their project in concept before getting to work? When they are done, they can share in galleries with other students for critique and encouragement. 2. App developers have continually surprised the public with the complexity of tools they are able to create for tablets. 3. 4. 5. 6.
How Important Is Accountability In Your Classroom? In 2009, the Obama administration announced it would focus on “cultivating a new culture of accountability in America’s schools.” Looking back over the last four years, “accountability” has been the central tenant for the education community, and politically charged. School performance data is too often associated with failure, but it is a powerful tool that can improve teaching and outcomes for students. “Accountability” should be synonymous with opportunity – the opportunity to build a positive culture of performance in our schools. The Importance Of Accountability Teachers are already adopting this approach and seeing that it gets them results in the classroom. They shared successes and areas for improvement, creating a culture of trust between classrooms. Her principal recognized this as an opportunity, and assigned Melinda to a new task this year, as data coach. Why I Left Teaching Teachers simply need leadership and the right tools to view accountability as an opportunity.
10 Ways The Internet Is Bad For You Do you sometimes feel fatigued and worn out after prolonged Internet usage? Do you think looking up medical answers is making you healthier? A new infographic might be a bit alarming for you. See Also: How To Avoid The Dangers Of Sitting For Long Periods If you’re a connected educator or student, you already know that sitting for extended periods is bad for your health, your eyes can suffer from being strained, and more. But what about the long-term side effects of using the Internet? Source: Insurance.com How To Know If You're Correctly Integrating Technology A common question that we hear from teachers about integrating technology into their classrooms is, “how do I know if I’m doing it right?” We love to hear this question because that tells us that the teacher is starting to analyze and evaluate how they are integrating technology and are looking for a way to gauge their effectiveness. We feel that the Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) best addresses the question of “doing it right.” According to the Arizona K-12 Center at Northern Arizona University , “the TIM is designed to assist schools and districts in evaluating the level of technology integration in classrooms and to provide teachers with models of how technology can be integrated throughout instruction in meaningful ways.” What is The Technology Integration Matrix? The Arizona K12 Center at Northern Arizona University does an excellent job of articulating the characteristics and various levels of technology integration. Download PDF of the Technology Integration Matrix
A Quick Look At The History Of Education Technology The Importance Of The Evolution Of Education 6.37K Views 0 Likes Over the past century, the modes of both imparting and receiving education have undergone a paradigm shift. Why TED Talks Have Become So Popular 5.67K Views 0 Likes TED talks are useful and free ways to bring high-level thinking and through-provoking ideas into the classroom and your home. 5 Things To Know About SXSWedu 5.65K Views 0 Likes The real story for anyone reading this is SXSWedu, the education-oriented version of the conference that's turning into a force of nature.