Group items tagged

"many benefits students receive when immersed in learning environments that combine solid pedagogical techniques with web 2.0/digital resources."

"Report: Students in Interactive Class Are Nearly Twice as Engaged as Counterparts in Traditional Class."

7 over-arching tensions, these being: 1. The tension between the global and the local. 2. The tension between the universal and the individual. 3. The tension between tradition and modernity. 4. The tension between long term and short term considerations. 5. The tension between competition and concern for equality of opportunity. 6. The tension between expansion of knowledge and our capacity to assimilate it. 7. The tension between the spiritual and the material.

"Quizdini is a free tool for creating online quizzes. The best feature of Quizdini is that you can create explanations of the correct answer for your students to view immediately after trying each question in your quiz. Your explanation can include text and or links to online resources like videos and images. Quizdini quizzes can be created in a traditional linear format or in a matching format that asks students to pair answers to terms."

"So it's no surprise that we found the following Bloom's taxonomy poster (located on one of Erin Klein's pinterest boards) interesting. It features a simple grid column layout with easy-to-understand language, vivid colors, and even traditional Bloom's power verbs for each category."

"art of rethinking learning means rethinking the -which is what makes the following chart we spotted over at connectedprincipals compelling. Rather than simply a list of alternatives to homework, it instead contextualizes the need for work at home (or, "homework"). It does this by taking typical classroom situations-the introduction of new material, demonstrating a procedure, etc.), and offering alternatives to traditional homework assignments. In fact, most of them are alternatives to homework altogether, including group brainstorming, modeling/think-alouds, or even the iconic pop-quiz. Nothing ground-breaking, but food for thought, yes?"

"Learning to read can be difficult. And teaching a group of students to read and write can be a daunting task - especially taking into consideration that each student may learn differently, and at a very different pace. Some students may have trouble matching sounds with letters and words, some with writing mechanics, others may have trouble concentrating in a traditional classroom setting. Having a few extra tools in the arsenal to have students using either in class or out of class can help to bring everyone up to speed or help any student to get a bit ahead."

"The iPad app "Explain Everything" is an extremely versatile and flexible tool and has so many applications in the classroom. It is a screencasting app which allows narrated recordings of the iPad screen to be exported and shared as videos. The potential for this is huge. This example describes how the app has been used in an Early Years Foundation Setting to allow children to retell and act out traditional stories."

"Literacy is changing-not at its core necessarily, but certainly at its edges as it expands to include new kinds of "reading." Digital media is quickly replacing traditional media forms as those most accessible to most 21st century learners. The impact of this change is extraordinarily broad, but for now we'll narrow it down to changes in how learners respond to the media they consume."

"It can be fun when a teacher decides to shake things up in the classroom. Truth be told, some of my best classes were ones where the teachers' teaching methods were anything but traditional. In fact, I had numerous teachers and professors that completely relied upon creativity and inspiration as the guiding forces in their teachings."

"Technology is all around us. In the ever-expanding digital age, we are inundated with tools, websites, and devices. While it can seem overwhelming, especially when we are used to a traditional way of learning and teaching, technology has made many aspects of a teacher's job easier. Soon we will get to a day where we can't remember how we ever taught without a computer! The latest and greatest technology in the classroom is the iPad. The slim, sleek, shiny tool is not only good for slinging disgruntled birds across the screen, but also for making our jobs as teachers easier. Here's a summary of some of the FREE apps that I can't live without:"

"Creating is important. In the West, traditional education has concentrated mainly on our heads, on filling them with knowledge. Little time and effort has been put into teaching students to be creative, to think widely (or often, deeply for that matter). In the past few decades, as our societies have advanced technologically, we have somehow arrived at the point where an education that places at least some emphasis on making actual real things with our hands and our minds is seen as second class, as "vocational." This is a mistake."

"The drive to increase technology use in classrooms has many asking whether the investment is more fizzle than bang, and whether it's too early to tell how wisely the money is being spent. Education author Peg Tyre has investigated the use of iPads, one of the most popular classroom additions, in TakePart. She concludes that iPads may assist in some new classroom techniques, but by themselves, they may not be better than traditional, cheaper methods."

"Learning, and thinking, are deeply social activities. This is not the traditional view (Rodin's iconic sculpture, "The Thinker," is conspicuously alone in his chin-on-fist musings), but it's the view that is emerging out of several decades of social science research. Our minds often work best in interaction with other people's minds, and there are particular kinds of relationships that are especially good at evoking our intelligence."

"Now that the social media landscape has been enriched with powerful sites in the calibre of Twitter and Facebook, nobody can ever expect where this social revolution is heading to. To finsih up this succinct synopsis on social media, let me share with you this beautiful graphic which is a vintage image od social networking between the past and the present."

"Stories bring us together, encourage us to understand and empathize, and help us to communicate. Long before paper and books were common and affordable, information passed from generation to generation through this oral tradition of storytelling. Consider Digital Storytelling as the 21st Century version of the age-old art of storytelling with a twist: digital tools now make it possible for anyone to create a story and share it with the world."

"I recently read Why School? by Will Richardson, a great book looking towards the future of education and I thought I would put together a quick review of my thoughts on it. If you are anything like me, you are hoping that we are on the precipice of major change in education. I am hoping that we can break free from many of the traditions we have continued for far too long. Of course I am not bright enough to point us in the right direction, but I am ready and waiting to be a foot soldier for the cause."