Before Reading or Watching Videos, Students Should Experiment First The researchers drew on data gathered from students using the BrainExplorer, a tabletop tool that simulates how the human brain processes visual images. By David Plotnikoff A new study from the Stanford Graduate School of Education flips upside down the notion that students learn best by first independently reading texts or watching online videos before coming to class to engage in hands-on projects. Studying a particular lesson, the Stanford researchers showed that when the order was reversed, students’ performances improved substantially. While the study has broad implications about how best to employ interactive learning technologies, it also focuses specifically on the teaching of neuroscience and underscores the effectiveness of a new interactive tabletop learning environment, called BrainExplorer, which was developed by Stanford GSE researchers to enhance neuroscience instruction. The findings were featured in the April-June issue of IEEE Transactions on Learning Technologies.
What You Need to Be an Innovative Educator Photo credit: iStockPhoto Innovation isn't a matter of will. Like most things worth creating, critical ingredients pre-exist the product. In the case of innovation in education, many of those necessary ingredients are simpler and more accessible than they might seem -- which is, of course, good news to an industry already up to its nostrils in oh my gosh for the kids we must have this for the kids yesterday for the kids admonishments. Whether you're innovating a curriculum, an app, a social media platform for learning, an existing instructional strategy, or something else entirely, innovation in education is a significant catalyst for change in education. If our data is correct, you're probably a teacher. And if you're a teacher, you're probably interested in innovation in the classroom, so let's start there -- with project-based learning, for example. Project-based learning is an example of innovation, but probably not the way you'd expect. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Skolverket: kompetens och fortbildning Din undervisning är nyckeln till att varje elev ska kunna nå målen i skolan. Därför är det viktigt att du har rätt behörighet för den undervisning du bedriver och de betyg du sätter. Genom Lärarlyftet kan du komplettera din legitimation med fler behörigheter. Genom vår befattningsutbildning får du bra förutsättningar för att leda och styra din verksamhet. Kompetenta ledare gynnar också skolans kvalitet i kommunen eller den fristående skolan. Efter befattningsutbildningen kan rektorer fördjupa sig ytterligare i pedagogiskt ledarskap. Rektorsprogrammet Befattningsutbildning som syftar till ett professionellt skolledarskap. För vem? Skolledare som har anställning som rektor, förskolechef, biträdande rektor eller annan personal med motsvarande ledningsfunktion. Du utbildar morgondagens och dagens vuxna och din insats gör skillnad för många. Apl-handledarutbildning Apl-handledarutbildning Utbildningen är webbaserad och förbereder dig att handleda elever på en arbetsplats. Apl-handledarutbildning
Tech Writing Handbook - Dozuki That rule applies doubly if you’re writing for the internet. Chrome, Safari, and Firefox are all called web browsers instead of web readers for a reason. People don’t read web pages. They scan, hunting and pecking for words and phrases that they find pertinent. The average person spends just seconds on a web page, reading only about 20% of the text. The more concise you are, the more information readers actually read. Even paper manuals aren’t “well read,” in the classic sense. Check out this example of an actual warranty statement from an actual kitchen appliance: Example 1: We suggest you complete and return the enclosed product registration card promptly to facilitate verification of the date of original purchase. It’s only three sentences, but it’s dense, impersonal, and wordy. Example 2: Please return your completed product registration card so we can verify your purchase date. Isn’t that better? How to make paragraphs more concise Check your word count: Example 1 has 76 words.
Why we need more visual texts in our teaching and learning Found this fantastic infographic touting the success of infographics. Reading it ( or more correctly, viewing it) immediately focused my thoughts on the use of visual texts in classrooms today. Click on the screenshot above to view the animated, interactive info graphic that presents 13 reasons why we should use infographics ( or visual texts in general). Unlike other infographics I link to on Mr G Online, I’m not going to discuss the specific points presented – that would be contradictory to the message of the infographic. I’ll let you get your own meaning from it. If we take at face value the research this infographic is based on, human beings are, at heart, visual learners. I in no way want to devalue the importance of reading. Having said that, though, Literacy Education has been dominated by the written word, and to a lesser extent, spoken word in the form schooling has taken over the 100-200 years of formal education as we know it.
Modern Lessons Welcome to the new online learning platform for the Global Education Database! It’s a free, simple, and quick way to learn new skills, find new education resources, and figure out how to do just about anything a modern teacher or student needs. Take as many courses as you like – they’re free and all you need to do is sign up to get started. Register To Start Learning Free View More Courses 50 Must-Have Educational Apps It’s time for holiday road trips and you know what that means: driving, flying, cranky kids, and… teaching opportunities! What’s that, you say? Well, there is so much downtime during the holidays where kids and adults spend hours just passing the time… why not try out some new apps on your phone? Many of these apps were found by The Teaching Palette, be sure to check out their fantastic site for more helpful resources! From learning the ABCs to doodling, there’s plenty of terrific apps out there that will pass the time but also educate. If you have other apps you want added to this list, just add them in the comments. *Most of the links below are to the iTunes store which will open another window and/or iTunes. Great Apps For Kids (And Adults) Alphabet Animals Perfect for your talented toddler, this game is packed with colorful animations, animal sounds, and tons of tips for learning their letters. Mad Libs Just as goofy and fun as your remember. SmackTalk Annoying? Super Why! Plants Vs.
Refocusing Students: How to Get Their Attention Back Did you know that when reading, one's mind will wander 20 to 40 percent of the time while perusing a text, regardless of whether it is a book, blog, email, narrative, essay, or anything else? This is one of many fascinating findings reported in Dan Goleman's new book, Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence and it calls us to remember that students can't learn what they are not paying attention to. As we enter the Common Core era, it's clear that students are going to have to read more deeply and carefully than ever if they are going to grasp the depth of meaning of the text. Reading experts will confirm that to get most out of reading, we need to immerse completely in the full context of the material -- we picture it, we integrate it with our experiences, and create a cognitive representation of the material that becomes a guide to how we understand and act in the world. Focusing Activity Ask them when it's important to them, in their lives, to pay careful attention. Refocusing Activity
2 Basic Ways How To Add Technology To Your Curriculum We know that many of our readers are already integrating a lot of technology into their classrooms. We hear from a lot of readers who are doing awesome stuff, along with a slew of people who are offering innovative products and classroom technology solutions. But using technology in the classroom is not easy or second nature for everyone. Some educators face the funding and accessibility issue – having to work with less technology than they’d like, while others are simply in a great comfort zone doing what they’ve been doing for many years in their classrooms. We’ve been talking with a number of teachers who are headed back for a new school year, and have come up with the two easiest, most basic ways to start integrating technology into your classroom. Build Off Your Existing Lesson Plans What is the number one, easiest way to add some technology into an otherwise tech-barren educational landscape? Get Started With Social Media We think that Twitter is a great place to start.
5 BYOD Education Issues To Consider 5 BYOD Education Issues To Consider Posted by Derrick Rowe on Fri, Jun 21, 2013 @ 01:39 PM Another school year finally comes to its end. Soon, if not already, schools are beginning to plan for what is in store for the following year. Within this planning, the topic of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) has most likely been touched upon. Some main areas to focus on when looking to prepare your school wireless network for BYOD implementation are: Network CapabilitiesSecurityManagementPolicyRole Based Access Control Network Capabilities The growth of BYOD in education means more mobile devices. Security BYOD security is important in any industry, and education is no exception. Management While your wireless network grows to a more complex system to support the growth of BYOD, it is best to have a centralized management system. Also as mentioned above, MDM (mobile device management) is essential to maintaining tight security. Role Based Access Control Policy
Digital Storytelling in the Classroom: New Media Pathways to Literacy, Learning, and Creativity: Jason B. Ohler: 9781452268255: Amazon.com: Books Top 8 Web Tools for Teacher's Professional Development I have been recently posting about teacher's professional development using web technologies and each time I do I would get emails asking for the tools I use personally. I compiled a list of the top 8 platforms I use almost daily for expanding my knowledge and staying updated about the topics that interest me the most. Being a graduate researcher in the field of educational technology and from my own experience of several years blogging in Educational Technology and Mobile Learning, I highly recommend the tools below and I personally view them as the most important platforms for growing professionally.
4 Phases of Inquiry-Based Learning: A Guide For Teachers According to Indiana University Bloomington, Inquiry-based learning is an “instructional model that centers learning on a solving a particular problem or answering a central question. There are several different inquiry-based learning models, but most have several general elements in common: Learning focuses around a meaningful, ill-structured problem that demands consideration of diverse perspectivesAcademic content-learning occurs as a natural part of the process as students work towards finding solutionsLearners, working collaboratively, assume an active role in the learning processTeachers provide learners with learning supports and rich multiple media sources of information to assist students in successfully finding solutionsLearners share and defend solutions publicly in some manner” The process itself can be broken down into stages, or phases, that help teachers frame instruction. 4 Phases of Inquiry-Based Learning: A Guide For Teachers 1. Student-to-material. 2. 3. 4.
20 Questions To Guide Inquiry-Based Learning 20 Questions To Guide Inquiry-Based Learning Recently we took at look at the phases of inquiry-based learning through a framework, and even apps that were conducive to inquiry-based learning on the iPad. During our research for the phases framework, we stumbled across the following breakdown of the inquiry process for learning on 21stcenturyhsie.weebly.com (who offer the references that appear below the graphic). Most helpfully, it offers 20 questions that can guide student research at any stage, including: What do I want to know about this topic? These stages have some overlap with self-directed learning. References Cross, M. (1996). Kuhlthau, C., Maniotes, L., & Caspari, A. (2007).