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Khan Academy is videos of lectures. This is nothing new. They are boring and do not allow the student to interact with the lecturer. They also focus on solving a math or science problem through basic steps, but do not focus on the actual theory behind the problem. The student may be able to solve that problem, but can they apply the concept to other problems and situations?

But a lecture is a lecture. The teaching limitations of delivered information are inherent and familiar to all experienced teachers who pay attention. Flipping classrooms will hardly make a dent in education's most intractable problems. The idea doesn't even come close to meriting the over-the-top head that Time's editors gave the article: "Reboot the School." Intractable educational problems will begin to disappear when learners' rear ends are gotten off school furniture and allowed out where life is being lived, when learners' eyes are lifted from reference works passed off as textbooks and directed to the real world, when learners' minds are respected too much to treat them as mere storage units for secondhand, bureaucratically selected information. Intractable problems in education will begin to disappear when kids are not just allowed to chart their own course, but are encouraged to do so, and given means to that end. Too bad there are no policymakers willing to promote that idea, and no rich philanthropists willing to put up encouragement money.

Collaboration Our primary goal at this point is to prove or disprove the effectiveness of puzzles as a learning strategy. If you are a teacher who would like to experiment with these ideas in your classroom please contact us. We'd love to work with you. In fact, regardless of who you are, if these ideas seem promising and you'd like to help or try them out, please contact us. We're very open with our work and are interested in collaborating with anyone we can, within the constraints of our very limited resources. You can reach us at info@puzzleschool.com Our Mission The Puzzle School was started with the mission of creating educational environments that will inspire a greater love of learning. We strongly believe that learning is something people truly love to do when it is presented in a way that gives the learner a sense of progress toward their learning goals. We focus on puzzles as they provide one of the most effective ways of creating a learning environment that is interactive, giving students an immediate sense of progress as they try to "figure out" the material they are learning. The methods we use at The Puzzle School mimic the learning environments that children thrive in while learning how to walk and talk. This model can best be summed up as hypothesis and error driven learning, where students develop a hypothesis toward solving a problem and are able to test that hypothesis using feedback loops, learning from a success or failure as they move closer to a solution. This model has been used successfully in thousands of schools around the world, most notably Montessori Schools. We simply want to highlight this method and make it so that all students have access to environments where they can learn in this way. We believe this will encourage a love of learning in all students.

"Don't use Google forms for anything somewhat private This is a problem and although no one is talking about it, we need to start. Every day we ask for parent permission. We ask for addresses, we ask for phone numbers, and we ask for emails. If Google will randomly scan our work and also will not define for us what constitutes "private information" then Google forms is NOT a suitable alternative for collecting information for schools."

You should read this, it could happen to any of us unless google apps has a different version of the terms of service. I am going to have to download all my spreadsheets with users and passwords on then asap and suggest you consider doing the same.

Thus, the competition places a particular emphasis on higher order thinking skills, problem solving and creativity. Students working collaboratively in teams are highly stimulated by competing in tasks that encompass engineering, mathematics, code breaking, games of strategy, art and poetry, Science, English and forensic sleuthing.

" These "recipe cards" for Project/Problem Based Learning are intended for teachers to use with K12 students in groups, as well as individual students. Each card creates student learning categorized as TimeTravelers, Artists & Inventors, Historian Challenges, StoryTellers, ProblemSolvers, Scientist Challenges, Career & Tech Ed."

Sometimes teachers and administrators need a kick in the pants to see what they perceive as problems re-framed in a different way. Adam S. Bellow, author of The Tech Commandments, and founder of eduTecher, spoke to a roomful of receptive teachers at the recent ISTE 2011 conference, and demonstrated some of the ironies and contradictions the education system is mired in. And he had some advice.

"Can playing video games make you more productive? Gabe Zichermann shows how games are making kids better problem-solvers, and will make us better at everything from driving to multi-tasking. "

"The success and popularity of Minecraft in and out of classrooms is no surprise. It's one of the best examples of the potential of learning with games because it embraces exploration, discovery, creation, collaboration, and problem-solving while allowing teachers to shepherd play toward any subject area. But Minecraft is not the only game of this kind. Take a look at some of these"

" "Helping Students Motivate Themselves: Practical Answers To Classroom Problems," was published in the Spring of 2011. You can read many free excerpts to it here Look for its sequel in early 2013! MY BOOK ON TEACHING ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS "

smartboard issues with snow leaopard fixes due in the first quarter of 2010

check out you mac's compatibility with applications-relevant for those of us running snow leopard. Name of apps, (long list) explanations of problems as well as whether or not the developers are planning fixes.

" These days, college students are burdened by higher costs than ever before. Tuition is at an all-time high and continues to skyrocket, making it more and more difficult to get a diploma without incurring serious debt. The incredibly unaffordable cost of textbooks just adds insult to injury. With textbook publishers holding a virtual monopoly in the market, students often have little choice in the matter. Luckily, a new paradigm is beginning to emerge: open textbooks. Giving the students the option of print or free digital copies, costs drop precipitously. The only problem: textbook companies don't want them on the market."

" Companies: Use challenges as a way to connect with and identify top student candidates"