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The U.S. Department of Education is developing a new National Educational Technology Plan to provide a vision for how information and communication technologies can help transform American education. The plan will provide a set of concrete goals that can inform state and local educational technology plans as well as inspire research, development, and innovation. A draft plan is expected in early 2010.

The U.S. Department of Education is developing a new National Educational Technology Plan to provide a vision for how information and communication technologies can help transform American education. The plan will provide a set of concrete goals that can inform state and local educational technology plans as well as inspire research, development, and innovation. A draft plan is expected in early 2010.

Effective Professional Development, PD standards, 21st-century student achievement

Two business men who are creating education apps and supporting students who are creating education apps have begun "The App Evaluation Program for Schools" which allows teachers to test educational apps for kids for free. "The apps, which cover everything from math, spelling, and reading to language learning, storyboard building, and puzzles, are provided by developers around the world and sent to teachers two or three times per month. Teachers receive a questionnaire after testing the app as a way to help developers improve, but Larsson stresses they are not required to fill it out."

Seems like a nice way for teachers to get new iPad educational apps free to evaluate and then use if they find them valuable

"What does the iPad have to teach educational technology about how a phenomenon becomes popular and adopted? Quite a bit. First, acceptance is high, with a half-million units sold in the first week of release. Six weeks later, Apple was selling twice as many iPads per week as Mac computers. Given some recent history, this should be surprising-the idea of a tablet device has been around for at least a decade or two, but most such devices have not experienced anything close to wide adoption. However, some specific factors have paved the way for the iPad's adoption. And these factors harbor advice that educational technology would do well to heed. Prime the technology pump. The iPhone, direct predecessor to the iPad, came onto the market amid a wave of technology that permitted small packages to deliver powerful computing. This hardware, including GPS location sensors, fast and efficient microprocessors, and the evolution of touch screen technology was a necessary condition for the emergence and success of both the iPhone and the iPad generation of devices. Define (and answer) the problem. The hugely popular mobile smartphones had an equally huge problem. People hated their interfaces. A decade of frustration with labyrinthian voicemail menus and inscrutable settings had created an army of frustrated mobile phone users with enough pent-up rage to fuel a revolution. By providing a device that was easy to use, the iPhone had identified a core problem and set a new bar for its solution, one that was quickly taken up by many others. Whet undiscovered appetites. The explosion of mobile devices also created for millions the idea of constant, away-from-home connectivity. The iPhone upped the ante significantly by providing a full browsing and even computing experience, giving consumers the expectation that they should be only inches away from powerful, networked computing at all times. Provide the practice. The iPhone defined a new set of touch-based interactions. Whi

These are some highly developed digital citizenship units. Take a look to support the development of your projects.

Simply a comment from an educator, and their spelling is appalling! However he/she makes a good point about web-based PD.

Two in this series. Great read good webinars

A collection of 50+ resources covering a wide variety of aspects of literacy, with an emphasis on vocabulary development. Each one has an indication as to grades covered and a brief description of the content.

From MIT: "To use App Inventor, you do not need to be a professional developer. This is because instead of writing code, you visually design the way the app looks and use blocks to specify the app's behavior."

Excellent resources and slide deck for facilitating effective professional development.

Love the cartoon. Lots to consider here. Excellent questions to pose.

Thanks for sharing this--Peter Pappas always has such practical tips. And yes, the cartoon is perfect. :-)

LAN stands for "Learning at Night" and is an excellent model for breathing new life into professional development sessions.

Blended Model Must Have: 1) Development of Cohesive Learning Communities - early & recurring face-to-face must occur - Initial meetings must emphasize "reflective dialogues" and "interactive activities" for bonding & buy-in. - participants must effective use early sessions for "curriculum planning" and "new pedagogical techniques." - Large Video Conferencing Does Not Work! (- but a webinar can engaged many people with buddy groups.) 2) Project Portal Must be Reliable and Simple - video conferencing is OK 3) Administrative Support is Crucial. 4) Facilitators are Essential. 5) Critical Component is the Ongoing Monitoring of Participant's Needs. - through surveys, evaluations, informal feedback, etc... 6) Successful Practices Structure Opportunities to Share and Discuss Teaching Practices. 7) Teacher "Risk-Taking" can be Increased - - for trying new technologies in the context of curriculum writing, 8) Effective Initiatives Build a A Critical Mass 9) True Transformation Requires Time

"Developing systems and strategies that will help educators use assessment data to improve student learning;"

Some great ideas for developing an IWB lesson.

Some great ideas for developing an IWB lesson.

Regarding what's missing from the Core Common Standards -- new texts, new media, viewing...  Where does "complexity" of new media text get taught? How will teachers learn to parse it?  Is new media analysis and production a discipline?  Yes in my opinion.  Is it interdisciplinary? Yes.  Media related to various content areas have their own criteria.  Video, photography, blogs, social networks and the systems that deliver them are, in a way, their own languages. They are increasingly dominating how our society functions, informs and represents itself.  HOW can this still be an afterthought for educators?  Fear?  Uncertainty on how to proceed?  Because it's not tested? The text landscape is more complex than the textbook.  

the Department of Education is engaging more actively in education internationally and has developed its first-ever, fully-integrated international strategy, Succeeding Globally Through International Education and Engagement, to guide our work.

Article presents compelling arguments that 1. student achievement increases when students use mobile devices consistently (inside and outside of class) 50% - 75% of day 2. need for professional development when implementing a one-to-one iPad initiative.

This comprehensive set of resources will be extremely helpful in the development of an online learning community with an emphasis on virtual and blended modes of learning.

Interesting tool that allows teachers to pull articles from the web and develop automated/customized lesson plans.