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"Netiquette ( net + etiquette) is the code of proper conduct applied to virtual online spaces. This code is dictated by common sense rules ( manners ) and social conventions. Teaching students about netiquette is just as important as teaching them to use technology in their learning. Crafting a netiquette memo for your class and informing your students about the importance of these rules will definitely help you create an engaging, respectful, and meaningful learning environment where collaboration and diversity of opinions are celebrated."

"For the last two years, everyone's been talking about learning to code. From Google chairman Eric Schmidt, to will.i.am and Barack Obama. But what is coding and why is it important for our kids to learn to do it? Coding, also known as programming, is giving a computer instructions to follow in a language that it understands. It can be as simple as programming a short sequence of instructions into a robot to make it move, or as complex as creating an app using a language called Objective-C. Political leaders and technologists believe it is important for the current generation to learn to code, so that in the future we have people with the necessary skills to create the new technologies we will need. This is going to be great for our economy in the future, but there is much more to it than this: it's also empowering, creative, social and great for developing problem solving skills."

"I've been a fan of Glogster since its beginning back in 2007.  A couple of weeks back the Glogster app launched. Built specifically for iPad and for Glogster EDU users, the interface is easy and elegant and allows for simple placement and linking of media objects on an intuitive drag-and-drop Glog canvas. Especially nice is the app's handy interaction with your camera (to shoot images and video), your camera roll (for easy import), and your microphone.  You can record your own audio and video, import content from your libraries, or from YouTube, Google Images, Google Video, Khan Academy and Wikipedia."

"In a post earlier this evening I shared Josh Wanner's video about the important role of music in video projects. Just as with images, it is important to have students use music and sound effects that they have permission to use. The following resources offer music and sound effects that students can use for free in multimedia projects."

"As the director of a maker lab at Castilleja School, an independent all-girls school for grades 6-12, I, along with my team, have witnessed dramatic changes in skills and confidence that can occur when we give young women not only the opportunity but also a safe space to make, build, tinker, and create. In line with multiple articles calling for empowering a more diverse and inclusive community of makers, we strongly believe that maker programs and inclusive maker spaces are particularly important in girls' education."

"In response to the question of what one actually learns from 3D printing, I thought more deeply about the work we do in our school. While I know conceiving an idea and shepherding it into a tangible form is significant, it is important to be able to articulate its value within an educational setting. It's also important to reveal the many stages in digital fabrication, especially illuminating the often hidden design process where much of the learning takes place."

"Forming and supporting professional learning groups can be particularly important in maker-centered contexts, as maker-based activities often occupy a precarious space in the structure and curriculum of traditional schools. That maker education is not yet a formal discipline and does not have the backing of a professional and organized network makes it especially important to develop learning communities that scaffold and connect educators who often work in isolated siloes."

"Traditionally as students come back to school, it is important to establish a positive classroom culture. Today, more and more districts are following the lead of places like New York City where schools are empowered to support students in the responsible use of cell phones and social media. That means that not only must we support the establishment of a positive classroom and school culture, but we must also ensure our students are engaging positively and responsibly as digital citizens.  While students are all familiar with the "social" aspect of social media, teachers have an important new role. That is to help students consider the "power" of social media for academic and career success. If our students want to run for office, run a business, or change the way things are run where you live, work, or play they must be savvy in the use of social media. "

"Let's face it. All teachers talk, but not all teachers listen. I know, I know. You are probably thinking, "Well, students talk all the time, but they don't all listen." Granted, you may have a point there. But perhaps the root of the problem, a lack of honest and transparent conversations between teachers and students, can be discovered when Holmes' famous quotation is crossed with The RSA's animated video covering Daniel Pink's Drive. What results is a dry-erase animated video that took two sophomore students from Studio 113 and East Hall High School six hours to plan, draw, and fully articulate their concerns about the following educational concerns: Teachers' view versus students' view of school schedules. School systems' expectations of students versus students' own expectations of themselves. Purpose, application, and importance of certain curricula. The practice of not asking the most important people of all…the students. Ignoring successful educational models, such as Finland. Care to listen? The wise teachers already know it is the "privilege of wisdom" to click "play.""

"For subjects like math and foreign language, which are traditionally taught in a linear and highly structured context, using more open-ended inquiry-based models can be challenging. Teachers of these subjects may find it hard to break out of linear teaching style because the assumption is that students can't move to more complicated skills before mastering basic ones. But inquiry learning is based on the premise that, with a little bit of structure and guidance, teachers can support students to ask questions that lead them to learn those same important skills - in ways that are meaningful to them."

"Google Forms is a powerful tool with huge educational potential for teachers and educators. Besides being free and easy to use, Forms works across different devices and is seamlessly integrated with other Drive services such as Docs and Spreadsheets. As a teacher, you can use Forms for a variety of purposes including: planning an event, making surveys and polls, creating quizzes, collecting feedback and other information from students and many more. We have already posted a step by step guide on how to create a form from scratch but since then Google Forms has witnessed some major updates with the addition of some amazing features most important of which is the last update a few days ago. Therefore, we deemed it important to revisit this guide and update you on the different features you can use to create a form in the Google Forms."

"I've been traveling the country speaking on the power of a student's voice in his or her own educational experience along with the need for transforming learning spaces in today's schools.  Both topics are very important to me not only for my own passion as an educator, but as a parent of two children.  I've personally seen the impact a learning space can have on a child's experience within the classroom.  Additionally, I've been fortunate to have my children surrounded by caring educators who value the importance listening to students.  This week I have the pleasure of speaking at Blackboard World in D.C.  When I arrived at Blackboard World, I knew the first stop I had to make, the student maker space.  Blackboard invited students from all ages to participate in a day of creating their ideal learning environments.  The company partnered with the Smithsonian to provide resources and guides to help facilitate the activities.  Children would rotate between 5 stations throughout the day - each station lasting roughly thirty minutes.  "

This community is devoted to providing an opportunity for those who care about education to share their voices and ideas with others. It's a place for thoughtful discussion on an incredibly important topic. Right now we're in pre-launch phase in order to answer the "Carol Broos" questions! The official launch will be at the end of January

I'd really love your help to demonstrate the importance of personal learning networks so I'm hoping you will help me with my presentation by sharing your thoughts. Check out the reader comments for some great PLN uses.

"With iMovie '11 (v9.0.4 and later) on your Mac, you can import an iMovie for iOS project from your iOS device to your computer."

"Computer science skills are becoming more and more important to success in today's economy, and this importance is highlighted during the annual Hour of Code. A number of resources on Code.org and other sites can help students of all ages and skill levels develop coding skills."

"Please join the Alliance for Excellent Education for another webinar in its Project 24 leadership series. Project 24 is a systemic planning framework around the effective use of technology and digital learning to achieve the goal of college and career readiness for all students. This webinar will focus on one of the most important aspects of school transformation: personalized professional learning. For years, the top-down, one-size-fits-all approach to professional learning has been prevalent in schools across the nation. Educators are often brought into large group rooms and a "sit and get" model of professional learning is utilized. Quite often, educators are left feeling frustrated and districts wonder why there is little evidence of impact in a traditional model. In recent years, the concept of educators being empowered to take charge of their own professional learning has gained momentum. During this webinar, Tom Murray, Steven Anderson, and Kyle Pace will discuss the importance of personalized, professional learning; the ability for educators to connect globally and take charge of their own learning; and professional learning in a Future Ready School."

"Since this year's WWDC keynote ended, the focus of any analysis on iOS 8 has been its features - things like Continuity, Extensions, and iCloud Drive. This is, of course, expected: iOS is the operating system that drives Apple's most important (and most profitable) products, so it's natural that the limelight be shone on the new features for the mass market. As I've written, however, the Accessibility features that Apple includes in iOS are nonetheless just as important and innovative as the A-list features that Craig Federighi demoed on stage at Moscone. Indeed, Apple is to be lauded for their year-over-year commitment to improving iOS's Accessibility feature set, and they continue that trend with iOS 8. Here, I run down what's new in Accessibility in iOS 8, and explain briefly how each feature works."

"There is a lot of talk about the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) in education. Schools, governments, and businesses are hoping that today's STEM students can solve tomorrow's global issues. The importance of a quality education has not been lost on me. I've gone from a liberal arts university to some highly-technical professions and back (and forth). This has left me with a well-rounded amount of experience in all the STEM subjects. But there's more to education than getting a STEM job. A lot more. That's why a new term is gaining *ahem* steam. It's called STEAM and it's the idea of incorporating arts into a STEM-based curriculum. In other words, let's help students think more creatively and better understand the problems they're already working to solve"