Group items tagged

"Computational thinking is the thought processes involved in formulating a problem and expressing its solution(s) in such a way that a computer - human or machine - can effectively carry out. Informally, computational thinking describes the mental activity in formulating a problem to admit a computational solution.  The solution can be carried out by a human or machine. This latter point is important.  First, humans compute.  Second, people can learn computational thinking without a machine.  Also, computational thinking is not just about problem solving, but also about problem formulation.1 The Digital Careers organisation says that students need experience and skills in computational thinking and computer programming (coding) to be successful in their future careers.2 The NSW syllabuses provide a range of opportunities to develop students' understanding of computational thinking and coding. This guide draws out the areas where computational thinking can be applied within the existing NSW K-8 syllabuses. Like the syllabuses, it is organised into stages of learning and subdivided into learning areas, with suggested activities and links to online resources. Not all resources and activities listed in this guide refer to coding explicitly, but they do aim to develop algorithmic and computational thinking skills to better enable students and teachers to reach a coding goal."

"Every January, Glassdoor publishes its list of the best jobs of the year. For the second year in a row, the top spot goes to data scientist.  "This report reinforces that the best jobs are highly-skilled and are staying ahead of the growing trend toward workplace automation," Dr. Andrew Chamberlain, Glassdoor's chief economist, tells Business Insider. He explains that the skills helping workers stay ahead of automation are creativity, judgment, and flexibility."

"The SAMR Model for integrating technology into teaching, developed by Dr. Ruben Puentedura, has gained a good deal of exposure in recent years. "SAMR" is an acronym that stands for Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition. The SAMR model provides a technique for moving through degrees of technology adoption to find more meaningful uses of technology in teaching and move away from simply using "tech for tech's sake". We recently discussed the SAMR model during an Academic Technology Work Group meeting at The College of Westchester. We examined the video, SAMR in 120 Seconds. One thing that really struck me is how much the example helped, so I made it a point to gather and/or create some more examples."

"Even the maximum volume on the iPad can sometimes seem a little quiet, which has prompted many of us to perform thet tried-and-true 'cup your hand over the speaker' trick that gets us a little more sound -which works really well for a quick video clip but isn't terribly practical or comfortable for more than a few seconds."

"The TeachMe: series by 24x7digital is an extremely popular suite of educational apps which have sound content for toddlers and preschoolers through second grade. These apps are great teaching tools for helping early learners build a strong foundation. "

"As I've moved into the second half of my 20's and noticed my metabolism slowing down I've begun to pay more attention to my health. MyFitnessPal HD is a free app touted as one of the best for keeping track of your daily calorie intake and exercise regimen. "

"This is the second year that our 4th graders have created superhero posters with QR code audio stories attached. This project is a perfect blend of art, technology, and writing. Our 4th graders remembered listening to these stories last year, so they were highly motivated to create interesting characters, attractive posters, and clever stories."

"Last Wednesday I did my second class of my new iPad Rock Star Boot Camp with my students in fourth and fifth grade and I wanted to give you a brief update. "

"SloPro (app link) is a fun iPhone and iPad video-making app that allows you to slow down your videos without losing any image quality. When you shoot a video within this app, it will shoot it in 60fps (frames per second), as opposed to the usual 30fps.* This will allow the resulting video to be smooth and not pixelated, like when you slow down video in various movie making software."

You have 60 seconds to write about the word that appears on the screen.

"Many people wouldn't take a second look at the $29 iPad Camera Connection Kit because they could simply transfer photos and videos from their computer via iTunes. But, this little unsuspecting accessory has hidden powers, with which comes great responsibility. "

"I've started a list of educational iPad game apps for parents. I've got a special affinity for these games as I originally started my career in technology as a first generation educational software designer. The list contains casual, fun games to use at home. They don't necessarily help you master long division or prepare for an upcoming geography test. The accent is primarily on having fun. If your child isn't going to enjoy playing then the app won't make the list. The second important criterion is that time spent playing is productive and that something of value is learned while playing the game."