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"Among teachers in a 1:1 or BYOD classroom, 15% use subject-specific content tools every week. 37% use information and reference tools every week. 18% of these teachers use teacher tools on a weekly basis. 20% of those surveyed use digital curricula weekly."

A new report focussed on students' research skills identifies some major teaching and learning gaps in the use of digital technologies. Teachers are strongly of the view that the use of digital technologies is positive although research skills need to be expanded beyond just the use of search engines. Teachers also indicated that there are some disadvantages to using online technologies and some barriers that impede their use. However, today's students have fundamentally different cognitive skills, state teachers, and so inclusion of digital technologies with learning activities and programs is essential to develop sound research skills.

A recent research report of the take-up of laptops in a Sydney region of 14 secondary schools is very informative. The research examined the take up and use of laptops by 47 science teachers and 1245 students. The DER provided the laptops for the students whereas the schools provided the laptops for the teachers. The research developed a misalignment index that indicated differences between the use of laptops by teachers and by students that had implications for learning.

How can you get the best out of your teachers and improve student learning? Edutopia's research analyst explains some of the best practices found by researchers to help ensure educator growth and success.

This week DERN reviews an outstanding study about teacher's views of school practices that reveals the powerful effects of professional collaboration among teachers, with support from the Principal. The study surveyed 2,404 educators in schools across the US. Most of the respondents were experienced classroom teachers and specialist staff in public schools at all levels (elementary, middle, high) of schooling. The findings are reported in a 37 page very readable and ground breaking report.

More administrators say they are leading by example by encouraging educators to use more digital technology in the classroom. They say this type of leadership will become increasingly important as districts work to implement the Common Core State Standards. "Modeling is crucial. If you want your kids and teachers to be users of 21st-century tools, ... you have to show that you can do it too," said Spike Cook, principal of an elementary school in Millville, N.J. "It shows that I'm still a teacher -- I can still instruct and still learn."

"In order for teachers to better guide themselves in their learning, they need to know what it is that they need to know. They need relevant questions about relevant changes. Being connected to other educators, who are practicing these changes already, is a great first step. Using technology to do that is the best way to develop these Professional Learning Networks. Connected educators are relevant educators. That is how we can begin to change the culture and move forward to real education reform."

why ed research need new perspectives

"Technology offers an opportunity to improve students' learning within a context of authentic, challenging, and complex tasks. Schools throughout the world are making strides in accomplishing this common goal. However, it is important to recognise that it takes more than dedicated teachers to really implement change in any educational environment - it takes everyone working to achieve the same vision - technology-enhanced teaching and learning to prepare students for work and life in the 21st century."

Dr Willis talked about her research as a neurologist and a teacher and explained what she believes transforms inputs into learning.

The learning needs of today's students no longer fit the traditional model. Rather than simply learning facts and basic skills, they need to acquire more complex skills in conceptualisation and problem solving. They need affective and metacognitive skills, and the capacity to work collaboratively and to work across disciplines. They need the dispositions required to pursue such learning. They also need learning experiences of the kind of tasks that they may expect to meet in adult life. Such learning requires authentic assessment, designed to demonstrate their grasp of the skills and competencies needed to address real-life problems, and formative assessment, or assessment for learning, designed to provide learners with feedback on their progress to inform their development. The article discusses the application of higher-level questioning, marking and feedback strategies, the establishment of shared learning goals between teacher and student, and peer- and self-assessment.

Great teachers, stable families and a school's location have long been said to be key to student success. But a new study out of the United Kingdom suggests that a school's physical design can improve or worsen children's academic performance by as much as 25 percent in early years. The year-long study by the University of Salford's School of the Built Environment and British architecture firm Nightingale Associates examined 751 students in 34 classrooms across seven primary schools for the 2011-2012 academic year. Students were assessed at the beginning and end of the year for academic performance in math, reading and writing, and classrooms were rated on environmental qualities like classroom orientation, natural light, acoustics, temperature, air quality and color. The researchers found that classroom architecture and design significantly affected academic performance: Environmental factors studied affected 73 percent of the changes in student scores. "It has long been known that various aspects of the built environment impact on people in buildings, but this is the first time a holistic assessment has been made that successfully links the overall impact directly to learning rates in schools," Peter Barrett, a professor at the University of Salford, said in a statement. "The impact identified is in fact greater than we imagined and the Salford team is looking forward to building on these clear results." The study will continue for another 18 months across an additional 20 schools in the U.K. Researchers seek to apply their findings to help schools "maximize their investment in the learning environment."

"This educational consultant advises teachers to keep brain science in mind when figuring out how to help their students learn."

"So the truth of the matter is that research studies that show positive effects of technology hardly matter. Occasional studies that do show promising results for new technologies are dragged in to cover the near nakedness of research, much like a fig leaf, to justify the high costs of these new devices in the face of little evidence. The fact remains that no one knows for sure whether the new hardware and software appearing in schools works. They are all beta versions with glitches that teachers and students end up discovering."

important perspective looking backwards and at the bureaucracy

Have you asked your students about their perceptions of the learning environment in your class? It may be time, suggests ASCD author Muriel Rand in a recent ASCD EDge blog post. Reflecting on a recent conference on assessment, Rand shares ideas from keynote speaker Ronald Ferguson's research on the seven Cs that make a difference in the learning environment -- "caring" and "challenging" among them. Rand also points to findings about the reliability of surveying students on teacher effectiveness