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"Introducing kids to coding is the hot new thing. Even President Obama is promoting it. By teaching children how to write code, we enhance their understanding about how computer science makes so many things work. Using their new coding skills, budding programmers can create their own games and solve problems, while also practicing logical thinking, math and reading skills. Here are some of the best free ways to start kids down the path of coding."

"According to Code.org, 90 percent of U.S. schools are not teaching any computer science. Eyebrows were raised in 2013 as the U.K. passed a plan to educate every child how to code. In 2014, Barack Obama made history as the first U.S. president to program a computer. Yet critics claim that often only the more affluent schools offer computer science courses, thus denying minorities potential to learn the skills required by the 1.4 million new jobs that will be created during the next ten years. In my opinion, parents of every student in every school at every level should demand that all students be taught how to code. They don't need this skill because they'll all go into it as a career -- that isn't realistic -- but because it impacts every career in the 21st century world. Any country recognizing that will benefit in the long term. Here's how you can start. With the following resources, you can teach programming with every student and every age."

"With each presidency come new reforms and initiatives aimed at enhancing education. The new policies, programs, and funding lay the foundation for various innovations and trends to build momentum and transform the way we teach and learn. Before you go back to school, get the skinny on seven big disruptors in education. These seven transformative tools are part of the growing movement to get students creating and problem-solving with technology, which has been supported by the Obama administration's Educate to Innovate initiative."

Online classes may be a relatively young instructional practice for K-12 schools, but experts already generally agree on one point: Research shows that virtual schooling can be as good as, or better than, classes taught in person in brick-and-mortar schools.

Tony Stead is an Australian educator who has taught in elementary schools and lectured at the University of Melbourne. He is the past president of the Melbourne Chapter of the Australian Reading Association and the author of many publications. His latest include Is That a Fact?: Teaching Nonfiction Writing and the video series Time For Nonfiction. which highlights his recent work with several teachers at the Manhattan New School.

"Little children are big news this week, as the White House holds a summit on early childhood education December 10. The President wants every four year old to go to preschool, but the new Congress is unlikely to foot that bill. Since last year, more than 30 states have expanded access to preschool. But there's still a lack of evidence about exactly what kinds of interventions are most effective in those crucial early years. In New York City, an ambitious, $25 million dollar study is collecting evidence on the best way to raise outcomes for kids in poverty. Their hunch is that it may begin with math."

"The first day of school is upon us. It's a time for everyone to frantically pack up their pencils, books, and iPads. Whether you're a teacher, student, or an administrator, this pep talk is for you. It's from the self-proclaimed 'Kid President' and he lays out exactly why you should be inspired to be in the world of education right now. He has a special message for all the people who want to make the world a better place, too:"

" "Even young kids have gotten very adept at Minecraft, so it can be quite intimidating for teachers," said Jason Schmidt, an instructional technologist for Bennington Public Schools who will teach the four-week MinecraftEdu MOOC, in a prepared statement. "If I can help get teachers over that hump, imagine how delighted students will be to have a learning environment tailored to their interests for a change." The other, Minecraft for Educators, "is a course for teachers who are wishing to gamify their learning experiences and deliver a unique pedagogy that will engage, enthuse and keep learners coming back for more," according to information released by the company. Both MOOCs are available through the Canvas Network. Minecraft for Educators will start January 26, 2015 and run through March 9. The company has also released a Minecraft app to allow students to submit assignments to the Canvas learning management system from within the game. Using the app, students can tag what they've made in the game for their teachers to visit, upload books they've written in game directly to the speed grader or use the game's circuitry tool to complete assignments that will be automatically graded. A video demonstration of the app is available at YouTube. Other MOOCs for teachers in the suite include: Digital Literacies 1; Digital Literacies 2; Five Habits of Highly Effective Teachers; Teachers without Borders: Educating Girls; and Tinker, Make and Learn. Among the other MOOC offerings in the new suite is a course designed specifically for parents, Parenting in the Digital Age, which aims to help them address issues such as cyberbullying, digital citizenship, exposure to inappropriate content, media literacy and screentime. Taught by Andrew Swickheimer, director of technology at Noblesville Schools, the self-paced course opens September 22. "Parental involvement in K-12 education has one of the biggest impacts on a child's commitment to learning," said Jared Stein, vice pres

"A new tool developed by Disney Research and Carnegie Mellon University could let you 3D print your very own walking robot. "Progress in rapid manufacturing technology is making it easier and easier to build customised robots, but designing a functioning robot remains a difficult challenge that requires an experienced engineer," said Markus Gross, vice president at Disney Research. "Our new design system can bridge this gap and should be of great interest to technology enthusiasts and the maker community at large.""

"In the last few years, the "maker movement" has become a marvel in American schools through Maker Faires featuring homemade robots to after-school programs that teach kids to code - to entire schools geared around the art of tinkering. Maker-centered education, so the narrative often goes, could have profound benefits for students hoping to find work in a STEM-related job. Even President Obama has touted the economic benefits the maker movement could have on efforts to reinvigorate American manufacturing. But for teachers who use making in their classrooms, the movement is about something much bigger - something that enhances educational experiences for all kids. They argue this learning-by-doing approach is an effective way to teach students how to develop character and purpose."

"The choices we make during the first hour or so of our morning often determine what the rest of the day will look like. Will your morning routine grant you a day full of productivity and peace of mind? Or will you be looking at an eight-hour stretch of haphazard work? Over the past five years I've interviewed more than 300 successful people about their morning routines. Through talking with business leaders and university presidents to Olympians, fashion models and artists, I've learned that while there isn't one "best" morning routine that works for everyone, there are best practices that some of the most successful people I spoke with follow every day. Here are some of the most common morning routines I've found among successful people."

"A spike in blood pressure. A racing heart rate. Sweaty palms. For many adults, this is what they feel when faced with difficult math. But for kids, math anxiety isn't just a feeling, it can affect their ability to do well in school. This fear tends to creep up on students when performance matters the most, like during exams or while speaking in class. One reason for a kid's math anxiety? How their parents feel about the subject. "A parent might say, 'oh I'm not a math person, it's okay if you're not good at math either,' " Sian Beilock, cognitive scientist and President of Barnard College, says. "It can send a signal to kids about whether they can succeed." But new research from Beilock and her team shows that parents don't have to overcome their fear of math to help their child succeed, as long they changed their attitudes about the subject."

"Since its humble beginnings as a crank newspaper put out by college students in 1988, satirical news source The Onion has been cracking Americans up with headlines like "Kitten Thinks of Nothing but Murder All Day" and "Black Man Given Nation's Worst Job" (to mark the inauguration of President Obama). How has it managed to come up with so many hilarious headlines for so many years? According to fascinating recent TED Ideas post by ex-Onion staffer Brian Janosch, the answer is a really, really good brainstorming technique -- one you can totally steal."

""Pope Francis Shocks World, Endorses Donald Trump for President"; "ISIS Leader Calls for American Muslim Voters to Support Hillary Clinton." These examples of fake news are from the 2016 presidential election campaign. Such highly partisan fabricated stories designed to look like real reporting probably played a bigger role in that bitter election than in any previous American election cycle. The fabrications spread on social media and into traditional news sources in a way that tarnished both major candidates' characters. Sometimes the stories intentionally damage a candidate; sometimes the authors are driven only by dollar signs. Questions about how and why voters across the political spectrum fell for such disinformation have nagged at social scientists since early in the 2016 race. The authors of a new study address these questions with cognitive experiments on familiarity and belief."

"For the more than 3,000 students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Wednesday's mass shooting was terrifying and life-changing. But what of the tens of millions of other children, in schools across the country, who have since heard about what happened and now struggle with their own feelings of fear, confusion and uncertainty? For their parents and teachers, we've put together a quick primer with help from the National Association of School Psychologists and Melissa Reeves, a former NASP president and co-author of its PREPaRE School Crisis Prevention and Intervention curriculum."

"The digital revolution, globalisation and demographic changes are transforming labour markets at a time when policy makers are also struggling with persistently slow productivity and wage growth and high levels of income inequality. The new OECD Jobs Strategy provides a comprehensive framework and detailed policy analysis and recommendations to help countries promote not only strong job creation but also foster job quality and inclusiveness as central policy priorities, while emphasising the importance of resilience and adaptability for good economic and labour market performance in a rapidly changing world of work. The key message is that flexibility-enhancing policies in product and labour markets are necessary but not sufficient. Policies and institutions that protect workers, foster inclusiveness and allow workers and firms to make the most of ongoing changes are also needed to promote good and sustainable outcomes. "The OECD's latest Jobs Strategy is a smart and sensible updating and rethinking of how countries should advance the goal of shared prosperity. I hope policymakers around the world not only read it but take its important advice." Jason Furman, Professor Harvard Kennedy School and former Chairman of President Obama's Council of Economic Advisers   "Inequality, economic insecurity, economic exclusion, are making the headlines.  Anger is high, populist rhetoric is on the rise.   What can be done?  What strategies to adopt?  These are the challenging questions taken up by the new OECD Jobs Strategy report.  I hope the report triggers the very serious discussions these issues deserve."    Olivier Blanchard, Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute, Emeritus Professor at MIT and former Chief Economist of the IMF "

"It's clear coding and computer science have become key priorities in K-12 education. From Code.org's massive round of funding and the formulation of the Computer Science Coalition to President Obama's Computer Science For All initiative to big school districts, like the San Francisco Unified School District, building K-12 computer science curriculum - there's indications that this is more than a passing fad. Many educators are excited about the opportunities coding and computer science offer students, but with these new curricular priorities come the major practical, pedagogical challenges of building a scope and sequence and then transforming it into units and lessons (not to mention, you know, teaching). Given the problems computer science has had meeting the needs of all students - especially early on - there's some tough challenges ahead for school leaders and educators to make sure computer science for all doesn't fall flat."