"Without a doubt the connections and learning that is possible within Twitter is simply second to none.
However even with all of the amazing benefits many teachers new to Twitter sign up, tweet once or twice, miss the benefit and let their accounts fade to oblivion.
So to assist with the goal of helping teachers unlock the potential, I have designed a 14 day twitter challenge. Follow it and reap the benefits of powerful connections."
"In a sixth-grade classroom in Greensboro, N.C., a dozen middle-school social-studies teachers were getting their second of three days of training on tablets that had been presented to them as a transformative educational tool. Every student and teacher in 18 of Guilford County's 24 middle schools would receive one, 15,450 in all, to be used for class work, homework, educational games - just about everything, eventually." This article from the New York TImes looks at the Amplify Tablet
Grovo.com is the leading Internet training platform that sharpens your Internet skills with 60-second, personalized videos. Featuring 3,500+ video lessons covering 100+ Internet tools and cloud services - and 15 lessons added daily - Grovo is the fastest and easiest way to become a better Internet user.
"Twitter users often make the decision of whether or not to follow someone in seconds, meaning that you have very little time to impress. We looked into why people chose not to follow profiles on Twitter, and crowdsourced a variety of reasons that users give for not hitting that "Follow" button."
"Animoto is an excellent tool for creating audio slideshows. But there are some limitations to it that some teachers don't like. Most notable of those limitations is the time limit (30 seconds unless you get an Animoto for Education account), lack of space for text, and that students have to remember a username and password to use it. The YouTube slideshow tool provides a tool for creating audio slideshows without those three limitations of Animoto."
"Over the last month or so EmergingEdTech ran a survey seeking input from educators like you. The goal was to make sure we understand what you want to know about education and instructional technology, and what your biggest challenges are as an educator. The survey received nearly 160 responses (thank you!). Results are being shared results in two parts. This first post deals with the technology-specific questions, and a second shorter post will follow that focuses on the your most significant professional challenges."
"1. Assessment as and for learning - Formative Assessment How may assessment guide teaching and learning? Cameron Paterson" Lecture for second-year Master of Teaching students, March 2015
"Two quotes about schooling particularly resonate with me. The first is from John Dewey's Experience and Education (1938): "What avail is it to win prescribed amounts of information about geography and history, to win the ability to read and write, if in the process the individual loses his own soul?" (p. 49). If the experience of "doing school" destroys children's spirit to learn, their sense of wonder, their curiosity about the world, and their willingness to care for the human condition, have we succeeded as educators, no matter how well our students do on standardized tests?
The second quote comes from John Goodlad's A Place Called School (1984). After finding an "extraordinary sameness" in our schools, Goodlad wrote, "Boredom is a disease of epidemic proportions. … Why are our schools not places of joy?" (p. 242). Now, a generation later, if you were to ask students for a list of adjectives that describe school, I doubt that joyful would make the list. The hearts and minds of children and young adults are wide open to the wonders of learning and the fascinating complexities of life. But school still manages to turn that into a joyless experience."
Wait a few seconds for Patatap to download then start to hit the keys on your keyboard to "create" a soundscape. Team it up with a screencasting option such as Screencast-o-matic and you can record your composition as a movie.
"As I shared last week, Photos for Class is now available as an Edmodo app. With Photos for Class installed in your Edmodo group your students can search for Creative Commons licensed images and download them with citations attached to them. In the video embedded below I provide a demonstration of how to install Photos for Class. The second half of the video demonstrates a students' perspective of using Photos for Class within Edmodo."
"In many schools/organizations, we have the tail wagging the dog and our technology departments are often dictating the type of learning that can happen in the classrooms. I am not saying that this is an issue with the departments, but often with leadership that has seen technology as an "extra", as opposed to an essential. Focusing on learning and relationships first, often helps us to make much better decisions about what we are doing with technology. It shouldn't be the other way around."
"What does it mean for a classroom or school to "go Google"? Learn all about Chromebooks, Google Apps for Education and Tablets with Google Play for Education and how together these powerful tools can transform teaching and learning."