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"As a learning strategy, inquiry-based learning is all about learners constructing their own understanding and knowledge through asking questions. Inquiry-based learning is essentially student-centered. It starts with posing questions and directly involves students in challenging hands-on activities that drive students to ask more questions and explore different learning paths. This post has assembled a collection of some useful web tools and apps that support the ethos of inquiry-based learning.  Using these tools will enable students to engage in a wide range of learning tasks that are all driven by a sense of inquiry and questioning."

"Emerging Practice in a Digital Age explores how colleges and universities are embracing innovation and using emerging technologies to enhance learning in a climate of economic pressure, changing social circumstances and rapid technological change. Aimed at those in further and higher education who design and support learning, the guide draws on recent JISC reports and case studies to investigate how the emergence of new and more powerful technologies together with an increase in personal ownership of these technologies are changing the way we connect, communicate and collaborate, and how these changes can benefit learning. The focus of this guide is on emerging practice rather than emerging technology."

These technologies, with impacts ranging from immediate to future, have big K-12 implications horizon-technologyMuch of technology's potential remains untapped in today's classrooms, but the more stakeholders know about how technology tools can transform learning, the more those technologies can truly influence education. Larry Johnson, founder of the Horizon Project, outlined the emerging technologies that will impact education in one to five years, as included in the 2014 Horizon Report K-12 Edition, set for release this summer.

These technologies, with impacts ranging from immediate to future, have big K-12 implications horizon-technologyMuch of technology's potential remains untapped in today's classrooms, but the more stakeholders know about how technology tools can transform learning, the more those technologies can truly influence education. Larry Johnson, founder of the Horizon Project, outlined the emerging technologies that will impact education in one to five years, as included in the 2014 Horizon Report K-12 Edition, set for release this summer.

As digital transactions become the definitive method of purchasing goods and services, leading eCommerce firms are exploring how AI can enhance brand competitiveness and customer loyalty. Artificial Intelligence is set to be a game-changer to shape the next stage of the e-commerce evolution. Artificial intelligence provides passel of opportunities to the e-commerce industry where retailers compete to provide the maximum customer convenience, by providing the ultimate shopping experience. With continuous advances in digital voice technology, AI tools such as Alexa, Cortana, and Watson, are gracing headlines almost daily, hinting at the wide scope of opportunities it has to revolutionize eCommerce stores. Here we show 6 amazing applications to use Artificial Intelligence in eCommerce. * Create customer-centric search- By implementing Artificial intelligence in Magento creates purchase assistants that target the right users, with the right messages at the right time.AI programs can rely on self-learning algorithms to deconstruct Bigdata of thousands of customers and create targeted user experiences, hence ruling out any human-bias or error. * Context-based search- Product Search functionality is an integral part of a Magento store as the shopping process begins with the search for relevant products. If Magento individualizes some impressive extensions, they might be nothing as compared to the effectiveness of AI-powered searches. Here usual searches rely on the Keywords entered by the user and only when there is a correct match, your searches will dish out the right search results. But AI-powered product searches will look for the context of the search, utilize the capability of Natural Language Process to generate context-based search terms rather than typical keywords. * Facilitate Purchase Decisions- Purchase Assistants are something that is still not fully released. Using the concept of virtual Purchase assistant we can cut down the time spent by shoppers

"Students can experience new cultures, history, and understand the world in better ways with virtual reality, augmented reality, and wearables. Teachers are using these technologies to send learners on virtual field trips or getting students to keep track of their steps, cardio, and health with fitness bands. These technologies help engage learners by providing sensory learning and sparking curiosity and imagination. For your next classes, go beyond getting students to read and learn only from worksheets and books. Integrate virtual reality, augmented reality, or wearables to create meaningful learning experiments for students. This post has a slide presentation (free to download) followed by bookmarks filled with activities and resources."

"Can ICT redefine the way we learn in the Networked Society? Technology has enabled us to interact, innovate and share in whole new ways. This dynamic shift in mindset is creating profound change throughout our society. The Future of Learning looks at one part of that change, the potential to redefine how we learn and educate. Watch as we talk with world renowned experts and educators about its potential to shift away from traditional methods of learning based on memorization and repetition to more holistic approaches that focus on individual students' needs and self expression."

"The idea of students sitting in front of PCs learning how to use Word is as dead as the proverbial dead parrot. It is already an antiquated model of learning - like chalk or fountain pens with ink-wells; it has a whiff of the twentieth century about it, rather than preparing our students for the future. Whilst the DfE dithers about what they should do with technology (Mr Gove clearly wants to reboot the chalk and talk bygone age), schools are left with a rapidly changing world, where budgets are at a premium and ICT often stretches what budgets now allow. All the while, students are learning on their iPads, Android tablets and smart phones, writing more in texts and tweets daily than in their collective writing experience during the school week. We aren't harnessing this expertise, never mind guiding it to a place of higher learning!"

"With support from the Governor 's Productivity Investment Fund and the Virginia Department of Education, Radford University and participating schools in southwestern Virginia are exploring how the iPod Touch can be used to enhance effective teaching and learning. The last several years have seen an explosion in the amount of young people playing video games as well as the number of children and adolescents using mobile handheld technologies, such as portable music players, gaming platforms, and smart phones. As school systems struggle with how best to deal with this cultural and technological shift, it is highly likely that the technology will continue to progress towards more powerful, wireless handheld computers that can deliver high quality, multimedia, computer processing power. Viewing this phenomenon as neither a panacea nor a plague, the iLearn team is exploring if and how these technologies can be leveraged for enhanced learning. "

This project seeks to empower the worldwide population of self-motivated learners who use digital media to connect with each other, to co-construct knowledge, to co-learn. Co-learning is ancient; the capacity for learning by imitation and more, to teach others what we know, is the essence of human culture. We are human because we learn together. Today, however, the advent of digital production media and distribution/communication networks has raised the power and potential of co-learning to a new level.

"Today's education system is evolving to take full advantage of the potential of mobile technology devices to inspire learning and create independent, critical thinkers. However, with tight budgets, many schools are hoping to bring technology into the classroom without the costly burden of purchasing a device for each student. One potential solution that is being explored is BYOD, or Bring Your Own Device. This allows students to bring their personal laptops, tablets, and smartphones from home and use them for educational applications in the classroom. At a time when budgets are shrinking, school districts are considering BYOD programs to integrate cost-effective technology into their educational programs. It's a promising idea, especially for schools that lack sufficient technology budgets. BYOD takes advantage of the technology that students already own and are familiar with. However, BYOD programs have been met with some criticism from staff and administrators who believe the challenges outweigh the perceived benefits. Continue reading..."

When it comes to using technology in school, the tension between what students and parents want and what schools allow is becoming more apparent - and more divisive. Students want more control over how they use technology in school, but many classrooms are still making it difficult. That's according to the most recent Speak Up 2011 report, "Mapping a Personalized Learning Journey," which reflects the views of more than 416,000 K-12 students, parents, and educators nationwide surveyed on how technology can enhance the learning environment.

"An assistive technology: a technology used by an individual with a disability to perform a function that might otherwise be difficult or impossible." Samantha Thomas, a student, future librarian, and educator at Kutztown University, created this handy collection of assistive technologies that you may find helpful. Some are commonly used with special needs individuals, such as augmentative & alternative communication apps and others are general consumer apps. Listed alongside each app is her assessment of its value as an assistive technology."

"The role of technology in learning isn't entirely clear-or rather, is subjective. While it clearly is able to provide access to peers, audiences, resources, and data, it also can be awkward, problematic, distracting, performing more strongly as a barrier to understand than anything else. Why this happens also isn't clear, but there are some common patterns and missteps to look for while designing or evaluating a learning process."

"The post looks at the top 5 big trends in e-learning and education technology that could change the teaching-learning in 2016 and beyond. There are some key ideas here for online educators as well as for teach-preneurs in E-learning and educational technology."

"In order to get impact with technology in the classroom, for me it's really quite simple and involves three easy to remember elements; technology for learning shouldn't be about bells and whistles, it's about what works"

Links to many useful forms for teachers to facilitate the use of technology with students. Templates include: questionnaires, permission forms, preparation sheets, outlines, reflection, self-assessment, guideline contracts. From Ed Tech & Mobile Learning

In 2012 Musgrave Hill SS is entering a new phase in learning as we begin an Apple trial to investigate the effectiveness of iPads for all students, in particular special needs students in mainstream classrooms. We have three target classrooms working with iPads 1:2 with students and two sets of six iPads available for all classes to borrow for use inteaching and learning. The classes in the 1:2 project have several special needs students and a teams of teachers and aides who will support the students, their learning and the project. We will document the iPad Project and provide data that we hope will substantiate our belief that iPads and many other digital technologies are essential to support teaching and learning at our school in the 21st Century.

As the world of mobile apps is expanding beyond comprehension, demand for better and faster apps shoot up. We need applications that perform easily, have a magnificent look, simple to create, and can be implemented rapidly. All these necessities are difficult to satisfy as high performance, related to native apps, set aside enough time for the advancement. Then again, faster deployment, related with cross-platform applications, trade-off, no less than a bit, on performance. Therefore, aching for better languages, tools that help top-notch hybrid apps development, and frameworks keep developers on their toes. One such resolution, which quickly changing the universe of versatile applications is Facebook's React Native. It is a JavaScript library to assemble a UI that enables you to make versatile mobile applications and work easily as native apps. It even gives you a chance to reuse the code over the web and mobile platforms. You don't have to develop for Android and iOS, independently, as one code is sufficient for both the platforms, saving money and time. Let's look at some reasons that point towards React Native taking the center stage in the future. Supports Both iOS & Android - 'Supportive' Because of the two different operating systems which are majorly being used by the customers across the world, the primary challenge for the mobile app development companies is to choose one ahead of the other. But Facebook made it easy by introducing React Native. It supports both iOS and Android making it convenient for the app developers to use the same code for both the platforms without writing it from the scratch. Reusability for better development What makes us to state that REACTS is the eventual fate of application development? It is the reusability of the components. You don't have the Web view components anymore for hybrid apps with React native. The essential code for this framework will easily be reused within the native apps, and you'll easily compile it

"Mobile learning is seen by many as a disruptive technology. This is because it has been identified as a technology which holds great potential to transform the learning and teaching within a classroom. What follows is a mash up presented at the NSWDEC 5th biennial equity conference in 2011 which explains some of the issues."

"Quick Makes is about giving the chance to tinker with a range of applications and programs, each with their own constraints, to discover that creating, making and engaging with technology is not only easy but can be fun, especially when we are focused. From mashing up a website with Mozilla Thimble to creating your own visual with Google Draw, spend a few minutes exploring the potential for technology to make giving a voice to learning more doable."