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"If the most recent U.S. Election has taught us anything it's that we live in an era of fake news and sites. With accusations flying of manipulation of stories, the media and voters, it's truly hard to know if what we read on blogs, social media and other sites is actually the truth or a tale spun to generate clicks. To further compound the problem a recent study from Stanford shows that the vast majority of students can't determine it what they read on websites is true or baloney. The study showed More than two out of three middle-schoolers couldn't see any valid reason to mistrust a post written by a bank executive arguing that young adults need more financial-planning help. And nearly four in 10 high-school students believed, based on the headline, that a photo of deformed daisies on a photo-sharing site provided strong evidence of toxic conditions near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, even though no source or location was given for the photo. With many schools and districts rolling out 1:1 initiatives and a push to digitize learning, helping students understand where their information comes from, and if it is reliable and accurate are critical skills, not just for learning for but life as well."

""AI won't obliterate jobs, but it will transform jobs," said Daniel Pink, author of Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. Pink said he's told his own kids to "think about what you can do to augment what AI does-work that only humans can do that smart machines cannot." That includes: creativity; dealing with ambiguity, nuance and poorly defined problems; understanding other's emotions and point of view; Developing expertise and sense making; and Identifying reliable sources. "

"Fake news, unreliable websites, viral posts-you would think students who have grown up with the internet would easily navigate it all, but according to a study done by Stanford researchers, that couldn't be further from the truth. Researchers describe the results of the study done on middle school, high school and college students across the country as "bleak." Students were asked to judge advertisements, social media, video and photographic evidence, news reports and websites. Though researchers thought they were giving students simple tasks, they say that "in every case and at every level, we were taken aback by students' lack of preparation." As if that weren't bad enough, researchers go on to say, "At present, we worry that democracy is threatened by the ease at which disinformation about civic issues is allowed to spread and flourish." So what can educators do about the spread of fake news and our students' inability to recognize when they have been fooled? Lesson plans that explicitly address the new media literacy and task students to be responsible consumers and disseminators of news are a good place to start. Here are eight things that students need to know about fake news and the new media literacy:"

"Too often teachers are passive recipients of professional development rather than being active agents of their own development and change. Several recent reports have indicated that teacher professional development, as it is being implemented in most schools, is ineffective and a waste of time and money. Several studies over the past few years that have found professional development to be largely ineffective or unhelpful for teachers. Only 30 percent of teachers improve substantially with the help of district-led professional development, even though districts spend an average of $18,000 on development for each teacher per year, according to a new report. Most professional development today is ineffective. It neither changes teacher practice nor improves student learning. The hard truth is that the help most schools give their teachers isn't helping all that much. When it comes to teaching, real improvement is a lot harder to achieve-and we know much less about how to make it happen-than most of us would like to admit. (New report reveals that teacher professional development is costly and ineffective)"

"Physics and Mathematics are extremely important subjects. Actually, that's a bit of an understatement. Physics and Mathematics allow us to peer out into the cosmos and understand the inner workings of the universe. At once, they show us our  insignificance and our remarkable potential; they give us a hint of the vast possibilities that exist-of what we could (and may) one day accomplish. They allow us to see the world and to see ourselves anew. That begins to scratch the surface of these subjects. No one can deny their importance; however, it is also a fact that many people don't know where to begin investigating these topics…what books to study, what themes to begin with. On top of this, many feel intimidated by physics and math-they seem to think that they are things which only the sharpest individuals are able to understand. But nothing could be farther from the truth. True, these subject areas might not be the easiest that you will ever happen across, but they are far from impossible. So. If you want to be a physicist or a mathematician,  or if you just want to understand the subjects, here's where to start. Huge thanks to the wonderful Moinak Banerjee for his work on this."

"Make no bones about it, the use of the word completed couldn't be further from the truth. My advice to anyone else undertaking an iPad trial, be more than prepared."

"In a time where the future of the subject I teach and the moniker I use here on my blog and on Twitter seems to be under constant attack (that's ICT if you hadn't worked it out) you'd think I'd find it difficult to find reasons to be cheerful. What's the future of ICT as a subject? Where's it all going? What on earth are the Government doing with education? Are the goalposts moving every day? (it seems so sometimes)… The truth is though, I've literally never been so excited to be a teacher than I am at the moment…"

"Every teacher seems to fully acknowledge how quickly and comfortably the average student adopts new technology. The truth is, students learn how to have fun on an iPad pretty quickly, but they don't always learn how to trouble shoot, be safe, and learn effectively right off the bat. Having a team of students that are well trained in iPad support can help build leadership amongst your students, and will help alleviate the stress on both students and teachers as they learn to adopt this new technology."

"Everybody is talking about 21st Century skills and preparing students for a whole different world. The truth is that our students have become digital and there are a whole lot of educators around the world who are still "analog". That is why I would like to share my work with my two secondary school groups with as many teachers as possible. Internet and Technology in the Classroom have made a huge change in my daily teaching experience."

"If I told you your child's teacher was constantly on Twitter, you might, without thinking, react negatively. What a waste of precious time. Aren't there better things you could be doing? How dare you troll around on social media instead of planning my child's next thrilling Common Core lesson. The truth is much the opposite. There is an amazing world out there on Twitter, and for educators, there is much to find and benefit from."

"Say what you will about who is on Google Plus, there are two truths about it: it has the potential to be one of the most important social networks for publishers and it is somewhat difficult to get started. This infographic offers some pragmatic tips to get started on G+."

"So your district or school is planning or in the process of implementing some sort of 1:1 device initiative. Seeing as these are all the rage, seems like it's a given that your deployment will be a smashing success, right? Here's the truth…. …it will fail. It may not be monumental failure, but parts of your deployment will not work. Whether it be the MDM that manages them or the rising stack of parent concerns, you will be faced with a choice as a district: retreat or carry on. In the wake of the LAUSD story and the recent Ft. Bend ISD news here in Texas about 're-evaluating' their deployments, I thought it'd be a good time to reflect on why some deployments work and some don't work. I'll let you know that our deployment was far from flawless, as I've listed here, but we had tools in place to overcome issues before they became an "Implementation Killer"."

"Web connected classrooms provide opportunities for students and teachers to read original material, discuss current events, and analyze multiple perspectives in search of truth. There are numerous ways in which readers can access news. Here are five free apps that can bring a steady stream of news, and information to the connected learner."

"There is a certain magic found in rolling up your sleeves and tackling a project head on, an undeniable sense of empowerment that results from solving problems and manifesting big ideas. In essence, that's the soul of the maker movement - creative individuals from all walks of life united by an insatiable desire to improve the world around them. Although synonymous with 3D Printing, it extends far beyond a single technology or buzzword. Truth be told, the maker movement represents the instinctual drive of our species to ascend ever upwards: to innovate, design, and construct a better tomorrow. "

"What motivates people to work? Most people would say money, and those people would only be partially correct. In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, author Daniel Pink writes about radical practices implemented by Australian software company Atlassian and search engine giant Google that have taught us a lot about what really motivates human beings to work. Hint: it is not the proverbial carrot on a stick."