Group items tagged

Please go to this site and add the digital resources you couldn't do without. The ones you really love, the tried and tested sites that really bring about learning. This could be an amazing resource for us all. Once on the site double click on the wall, give your resource a short title and paste the URL after clicking on the link icon.

As iPads proliferate in schools around the world, and students as well as teachers create more and more content, questions about what to do with all of those learning objects have arisen. In other words, how can we curate this content into portfolios for assessment as well as reflection.

When Sugata Mitra installed a computer in a slum wall in India, he had no idea it would later win him $US1 million to build a school on the internet that could spur an education revolution. Dr Mitra, 61, was last week awarded the top TED Prize to pursue the promise of building virtual schools on the internet, where young minds can learn, unfettered by adult teachers.

"As an educator my life revolves around learning, organisation, workflow and school requirements. Lessons are delivered, work is assessed and data is recorded. Thankfully new technologies are providing ways of coping with the increasing demands. Explain Everything is central my current workflow."

"We recommend discussing explicitly the purpose, associated practices, and changed roles that the use of Essential Questions entails. Here are some examples of key ideas framed as sentences to be spoken in class to prepare students for the changes: "There's not a single correct answer for this question. Life is about the consideration of plausible and imperfect alternatives." "Coming to understand important ideas is like fitness: it takes practice over time." "When a question is posted on the wall, it means that we are going to consider it again and again." "Inquiry is not a spectator sport: each of you needs to listen actively and participate." "Everyone is fair game. I won't only call on people who raise their hands." "If and when I or others challenge your comment, it doesn't mean we don't like you or don't value your contribution." "Making mistakes is an expected part of learning. If you never take a risk of making a mistake, you're not likely to improve." "You may find that you are re-considering things that you thought you understood. That is normal - even desirable." Like the care of seedlings, the new rules will require patience, careful nurturing, and constant reminders. Overtime, they will become the norms, allowing big ideas to take root and mature understandings to blossom."

device, I'm concerned that most one-to-one implementation strategies are based on the new tool as the focus of the program. Unless we break out of this limited vision that one-to-one computing is about the device, we are doomed to waste our resources.

"The Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) illustrates how teachers can use technology to enhance learning for K-12 students"

If you haven't heard of 20% time in the classroom, the premise is simple: Give your students 20% of their class time to learn what they want. Yes, that's it. Below is a list of the 10 reasons you should consider 20% time in your school, and you will not regret making that choice!"

"direct my energy and attention on what worked, what went well, and what I feel was successful. I've discovered that this strategy is critical to build my emotional resilience. One of the only things in life that I have control over is how I tell my story -- how I interpret my experiences and make sense of them. If I create a story that is one of learning, growth, and empowerment, I feel better. So how are you telling the story of this school year? "

"About three years ago, I began inviting my student-led, peer-evaluated, collaboratively structured classes to think about the shape of a course: what defined it, what its participants could do to describe and circumscribe its practices, how a group of strangers, all enrolled in the same institutional experience of a "course," could come together as a community of choice, mission, shared purpose, and mutually beneficial learning. "

"Jennifer Symington, the Leader of Pedagogy at at the All Saints Catholic Girls College in Liverpool (Sydney), Australia. Teaching 12-16 year old students geography, English, math, history, and science, Jennifer has used Schoology for two years in her integrated studies course where she blends all the aforementioned subjects. Her video is a shining example of the incredible power of technology to foster global learning."

Part of rethinking learning means rethinking the -which is what makes the following chart we spotted over at connectedprincipals compelling. Rather than simply a list of alternatives to homework, it instead contextualizes the need for work at home (or, "homework"). It does this by taking typical classroom situations-the introduction of new material, demonstrating a procedure, etc.), and offering alternatives to traditional homework assignments. In fact, most of them are alternatives to homework altogether, including group brainstorming, modeling/think-alouds, or even the iconic pop-quiz.

When incorporated into a lesson, formative assessment provides the teacher with a snapshot of the teaching and learning while it is still happening.

"Publishing student thinking can be among the most powerful ways to improve learning. There are a variety of reasons for this, but the biggest reason is that the "threat" of publishing moves the lodestone from the classroom to the "real world." This, of course, changes everything."

"20 Google Docs Secrets every teacher and student should know. Google Docs has revolutionized the way we create and edit content on the web. It is a genuine collaboration tool like nothing that has come before it. Up to 50 people can simultaneously edit a spreadsheet, presentation or document at no expense, and it is available on all mobile and desktop platforms. Today we are going to look at 20 great tips every teacher and student should be using to get the most of the collaborative learning opportunities Google Doc's offers."

"This is the fifth guide I created in a series of several posts on how to tap into the educational potential of Google services. Today's topic is Google Images."

"Digital citizenship is " the norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology use."It is the combination of technical and social skills that enable a person to be successful and safe in the information age. Just like literacy and numeracy initiatives which provide people with the skills to ' participate in the work force, digital literacy has become an essential skill to be a confident, connected, and actively involved life long learner.'"

"Have you ever Googled yourself ? Have you ever checked your virtual identity? Do you know that you leave a digital footprint every time you get online? Do you know that whatever you do online is accumulated into a digital dossier traceable by others ? These and several other similar questions are but the emerging tip of the sinking iceberg.One that is packed full of concerns related to issues of our online identity and privacy issues."