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78% of K-12 teachers believe technology in the classroom makes a positive difference; however, 17% believe it does not make a difference. Students today spent a majority of their day using 21st century technologies and if teachers put them in a 19th century classroom settings, they will have a significant disconnect with their students. Technology can raise students enthusiasm for learning, as well as amplify a teacher's strengths or weaknesses.

If a teacher isn't invested or prepared, technology can definitely spotlight a teacher's weaknesses.

Founded in 1943, ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development) is an educational leadership organization dedicated to advancing best practices and policies for the success of each learner. Our 175,000 members in 119 countries are professional educators from all levels and subject areas--superintendents, supervisors, principals, teachers, professors of education, and school board members. This article discusses the advantages to using mobile devices classroom; it is stated that laptops create a wall while kids enjoy working together on their cell phones. In survery teachers and admininstrators use at home or classroom argue should be used in the 21st century classroom.

This is a great find. Glad someone is sharing this as a resource for other to check out. ASCD is a great resource and always offers great curriculum and technology resources as well.

This article looks at two different structures in place at different school systems to investigate and introduce new technology into the classroom. In the first example, the school district has invested in a full time administrator whose job it is to find new technologies and uses in the classroom and then provide the information to the teachers. The second case study involves a more traditional approach where the classroom teacher collaborated with other teachers and developed an program in Kindergarten through 3rd grade to introduce the children into inquiry into technology by dismantling robots and other forms of technology, solely to awaken a sense of discovery within the students.

More and more school districts are hiring integration specialists/technology coaches/21st Century Learning Coaches. Both case studies reveal important ideas for how technology can and should be used.

This article discusses the use of free web 2.0 tools that can be used in the classroom to help promote 21st century skills. They highlight four web tools, Jing, Wix, Google Sites, and Blogger, that can be integrated in school environments. The article provides specific classroom examples from four teachers, on how they were able to use these tools with their students.

This was a great article for class. We will talk about about some of the tools listed.

In this article, Bill Tolley describes what blended learning is and what it might look like in a classroom. It discusses how teachers can combine face-to-face learning with online learning and why it is necessary in the 21st century to do so. It talks about the shift from teacher as gatekeeper to coach/tutor for students as we move toward a more democratic learning style that incorporates technology.

Nice find on blended learning. The state of Nebraska is investing a lot in the idea of blended learning and supporting blended classrooms.