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"It's no secret that Google Docs has made teachers more effective at teaching writing. After making a full Google Docs integration this year in my history classroom, I will never go back. My students are required to write every paper in Google Docs. This way, I can help with the process and not just the finished product. In this post, I will talk about using Google Docs and the need for a chrome browser extension called WatchDoc that allows for the most efficient, effective teaching with Google Docs."

Professional Development for me used to be about going to sessions on specific days and then trying to 'bring back' what I've learned and incorporate it into my daily practice. Sometimes this was very challenging, I would get inundated with new information and find it very hard to apply what I learned into what I did on a day-to-day basis. Often my notes would be filed away, not to be seen again.

Many doubters think the tablet is nothing more than a gimmick to help boost sales. I was one of those doubters for quite some time. But after using tablets enough, I have come around to seeing just how incredibly helpful that technology is. Here are some reasons why I believe tablets will replace the laptop as the mobile device of choice.

"There is one iOS "tip" that I keep hearing and it is wrong. Worse, I keep hearing it from supposedly authoritative sources. I have even heard it from the lips of Apple "Geniuses" in stores. Here is the advice - and remember it is wrong: All those apps in the multitasking bar on your iOS device are currently active and slowing it down, filling the device's memory or using up your battery. To maximise performance and battery life, you should kill them all manually. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. There are caveats to this but anyone dispensing the advice above is clearly uninformed enough that they will certainly not be aware of these subtleties."

Post fron Richard Byrne "Both Diigo and Jing have been written about on numerous occasions here at the Free Technology for Teachers blog, but I wanted to share my experiences using both tools when grading assignments. I teach an information literacy course for the college where I work as a librarian"

I visited Eric's High School on February 24th to observe Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and his implementation of a contemporary learning environment.  I was impressed.  I was most impressed at Eric's reflection that he was once part of the problem, banning devices from his school rather then embracing the use of the technology.  That has changed and Eric trusts his students to interact responsibly with media and communication tools.  These expectations are being met by staff and students. 

"Privacy issues are a very hot topic for anyone using social media. As educators, I believe it is our responsibility to teach our students the ins and outs of how to responsibly use social media. ...... I believe social media is important for educators and students. But I also believe it must be used responsibly and that cannot be accomplished without knowing the intricacies of social media privacy. Take a look at this infographic from MDG about the sad state of social media privacy."

If someone were to tell you that you could test a modern, standards-compliant website for accessibility using 20-year old web browser technology, you might think they were crazy. This crazy idea is something that I thought up a few weeks ago when I was sleep deprived, but as it turns out, I might actually be on to something.

"The SAMR model was developed by as a framework to integrate technology into the curriculum.  I believe it can also serve as a model to establish and assess if and how technology is being used to reinforce an old, often archaic Education 1.0 or being used to promote and facilitate what many are calling 21st century skills, i.e., creativity, innovation, problem-solving, critical thinking; those skills characteristic of Education 3.0.  Many look at SAMR as the stages of technology integration.  I propose that it should be a model for educators to focus on Modification and Redefinition areas of technology integration.  Why should educators spend their time recreating Education 1.0 using technology at the substitution and augmentation levels when there are tools, techniques, and opportunities to modify and redefine technology integration for a richer, more engaging Education 2.0 or 3.0?"

Tomorrow at the NCTIES 2014 conference I am facilitating a workshop on creating videos with mobile apps. I designed the workshop to accommodate users of iOS and Android devices. In preparation for the workshop I created this chart that compares the features and costs of eleven mobile video creation apps.

"With more and more schools launching, 'Bring Your Own Technology' or 'Bringing Your Own Device' (BYOT/BYOD) I created a symbaloo of all apps and web tools that work on all devices to help educators get started. Even though I am a firm believe, it doesn't matter what site/app the students use to show mastery of a concept, some educators need a starting place and many have loved this symbaloo so I, of course, want to pass it along."

"I went to the homepage of EdcampHome and saw four amazing educators: David Theriault, Karl Lindgren-Streicher, Kelly Kermode, and Shawn White troubleshooting, discussing and working diligently to put this together via a Google Hangout being streamed live through YouTube and simultaneously embedded on the front page of the website. Tweets were flying and being used to communicate issues, compliments, and questions from educators all over the world who have never met face-to-face. It felt as if I was getting the opportunity to be behind the scenes at NASA during a space launch! I hope you take the time to watch even a few minutes of the amazing collaboration between them. The lengthy video is still on the homepage for viewing for now."

"Welcome to my computing resources. Click on the CS Planning link for a selection of computer science resources suitable for primary pupils. If you are planning digital literacy you can find primary schemes of work in the DL Planning section. You can find out information about me from the Phil Bagge link. There is a sample KS2 schemes of work here. You can find out why I think computing is important for primary pupils in my recent article. If you want to see samples of pupils work from the schools I teach at you can view my blog. I use twitter to publicise new planning, articles and pupils work samples. "

"I was asked by a colleague in another school the other day if I could give her a snapshot into what I actually do, and what the role of an ICT Integrator actually looks like (from my perspective anyway). Apparently she wants to talk to her school leaders about having an integrator on their staff and was trying to get an idea of what the role would entail from someone who does it..." A great read from Chris Betcher continuing on with the theme of what does an ICT and an e-Learning coordinator do.

How often have we sat in a Staff Meeting or Professional Development day and listened to the talk turn into a complaint session with no real solutions being offered? I have one suggestion, join Twitter and start tweeting. This has been an invaluable tool for me. I started about a month ago professionally, meaning before …

How often have we sat in a Staff Meeting or Professional Development day and listened to the talk turn into a complaint session with no real solutions being offered? I have one suggestion, join Twitter and start tweeting. This has been an invaluable tool for me. I started about a month ago professionally, meaning before …

"I'm Dr. Keith Devlin, a mathematician at Stanford University. In fall 2012, I gave my first free, open, online math course. I repeated it in spring 2013, then in fall 2013, and in February I am giving it a fourth time, each time with changes. This blog chronicles my experiences as they happen"

There are three main players in the online 'office' apps department - Google, Microsoft and Apple. I have been using Google Apps as my secondary 'office' suite for some time now, and have watched i...

There are three main players in the online 'office' apps department - Google, Microsoft and Apple. I have been using Google Apps as my secondary 'office' suite for some time now, and have watched i...

"Have you read The Paperless Classroom with Google Docs by Eric Curts? If not, you should. It is a great way for Google schools to harness the power of Google for sharing documents, and establishing a workflow for students to turn in work for teachers to grade and return in a paperless environment. I love it. In fact, I liked it so much that I decided to pay homage to it with a version that is dedicated to doing the very same thing on the iPad using just the Google Drive app."

"Welcome to another post that is a new entry in my Googal In Google Series. In fact, I was ecstatic about the enthusiastic responses from my Ten Items All Should Know When Using Google Basic Search… Far From Basic posting. (If you didn't see it, give it a click.) In this first of a three part posting I will cover some great things to know about Google Advanced Search. I will even try to convince you that perhaps you will increase student understanding by teaching them to search with the Advanced Search Page! As always, feel free to subscribe to this Blog by RSS or email, follow me on twitter at (@mjgormans), and also discover some great resources at my 21centuryedtech Wiki! You will also find my other postings at Tech and Learning Magazine. Now let's take a moment and advance to some of the advanced search strategies using Google Advanced Search! - Have a great week - Mike"

"We've been stalking people in english class. Wanting to teach the kids in my class about concepts of digital footprint and online safety, I used three people well known from the edusphere as examples: Will Richardson, Jabiz Raisdana and Jeff Utecht. I introduced these three friends to the students in my class by giving them only a photo and a name. I simply told the kids in my class: find out all you can about these three guys." Clarence Fisher's great project on looking at digital footprints.