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Articles based on the latest research and trends in education including teaching with technology.

How could you take this journalism idea and translate it (no pun intended) to a language class activity?

"You have no idea what people will do to reach the United States - until you hear their stories". (From reviewed tool NPR Borderline Stories)

Some free classes for teachers about tech - designing presentations, making media for classroom use, and others.

Interesting look into the future.

There was a hyperlink to an article about whether we should still teach cursive. Apparently high schools are not doing it any more. My son stopped cursive in about the 5th grade and didn't have to use it and now he is struggling at the university because he can't read when the professor uses cursive in anything, like comments on his papers. I have to print when I leave him a note. Wow, technology is wiping out one of the long-standing activities that took humans decades to develop.

I like the balanced way this piece presents some of the pros and cons of technology in education. Just this week I had a conversation with another educator who has encountered recent studies suggesting a link between handwriting (of any kind) and certain cognitive development. Some schools are now emphasizing handwriting instruction because it helps boost students' academic achievement.

My daughter is 8 years old and she started learning cursive this year. So it must be back! I'm not sure if will help boost her achievement or not, but I'm glad she is learning it. I think the article made a good point about how students today have a short attention span and easily get off track. If they are typing a paper on the computer, for example, they can open a browser and start surfing the web. They don't necessarily stay focused on the task at hand. It is even hard for me sometimes. If I don't ignore email (just put it off until later, I mean), I would never get anything done!

MindShift explores the future of learning in all its dimensions. We examine how learning is being impacted by technology, discoveries about how the brain works, poverty and inequities, social and emotional practices, assessments, digital games, design thinking and music, among many other topics.

Facebook is blocked at my school, and an educator there (not me, thank heavens) just had their (sorry about this pronoun) FB page hacked w/a very graphic sex video seen by all the kids and parents who were person's friend, but nonetheless there are reasons to use it with students.

From the article:  The new teachers site is part one of two big initiatives on the part of YouTube geared towards educators. In the next couple of weeks, a bigger announcement will be made about huge changes that will address many of the concerns teachers have had about using YouTube videos (you know what they are). Stay tuned for more news in two weeks.

The author discusses how teachers are using facebook and twitter and how Google + might affect that usage.

Enterprising educators are using Twitter in creative ways, to engage students inside and outside of class, to stay on top of education news, and keep in touch with peers and students. A recent post by Best Online Colleges enumerates 28 ways to use Twitter in class.

You don't need to have a Chromebook to use these apps - just the Chrome web browser.