Group items tagged

This is a great article about the need to integrate mobile learning into mathematics learning. The article claims that right now there is a divide between personal experiences and mathematical problem solving that students learn in school. The article suggests much work and opportunity in using mobile technology to bridge the divide of formal and informal math learning, putting math learning into personal contexts. The article sheds light on how this will help students see mathematics as a discipline they will use outside of school. It is a very good, comprehensive look at the role technology can play in teaching math the "right" way.

more about assessing blended learning

This page has a link to a compilation of articles on different types of blended models, including blended teacher PD. That article is particularly interesting, because it discusses modeling for teachers what they should be doing in classrooms. You can download the entire digital edition by hitting the link. Otherwise, you cannot access individual articles because there is a fee.

There were two recent articles in NYTimes on use of technology with opposing view. While one article proposes replacing textbooks with laptops, the other school "doesn't compute." This article takes a middle path, a balanced used of technology in our schools. The author argues that computer cannot replace books, technology cannot replace a teacher, writing, or discussion. Technology is a tool to enrich the material and agument a curriculum.

This article is about students running help desks. This is becoming more common, as students are often better versed in technology than many teachers. The article identifies a relevant curriculum and discusses the dynamic shift from students supporting technology to technology supporting students. This also goes along with the Burlington High School help desk link I shared.

This is a Slashdot article that points to a research paper (unfinished) that analyzes which elements are most important in the success/failure of a game. The abstract and conclusion sections of the article are succinct and accessible. The results are quite telling. One wonders if the results are consistent across game genres/audiences/distribution methods.

An article from TheApple.com about 5 ways to provide virtual field trips for students, including augmented reality and a class trip to the moon.

Good share, Diana. This article is particularly interesting for the issues it chooses to raise and the way in which various arguments are presented. One quote struck me, "We have Smart Boards in every classroom but not enough money to buy copy paper, pencils and hand sanitizer," said Nicole Cates, a co-president of the Parent Teacher Organization at Kyrene de la Colina, an elementary school. "You don't go buy a new outfit when you don't have enough dinner to eat." But she loves the fact that her two children, a fourth-grader and first-grader, are learning technology, including PowerPoint and educational games (Page 5)". How can we work to harmonize these two? This reminds me an article I read in the Boston Globe this morning regarding teachers going out-of-pocket to equip their classrooms with enough supplies for an increasing number of students. The article suggests that budget cuts that make this necessary save teacher positions. There has to be a better way. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2011/09/05/budgets_cut_teachers_dig_deeper_for_supplies/

MassCue article about the effectiveness of Student Response Systems by a tech consultant / researcher for vendor Turning Response Systems (who sells the clickers that HGSE uses). I'm interested in comparing these systems with the FREE adhoc web-based system offered by Socrative.com, co-founded by HGSE TIE grad Ben Berté.

James- very interesting article about Student Response Systems. The clickers are a great tool to facilitate student participation in a teacher-centered classroom, and many of us have seen the Turning Point clickers in action. And they really do help with engaging everyone in the audience. Remember that diversity seminar during orientation week? The rich discussion that ensued in a crowd of 650 was really made possible because of the opening survey questions, the clicker interactivity, and the discussions that sprung up at each individual table which then mushroomed out to the rest of the crowd. I never thought a diversity seminar could be that engaging, and the clickers were definitely a key part of that. My only criticism of the article is that it seems to be pushing hardware capabilities over sound pedagogy, which is always a danger in learning about emerging technologies. Question though: is Socrative not entirely free? it seems like a great tool with many interactive capabilities, ideal for many classroom settings and activities.

Steve I agree the article did have a strong sense of hardware pushing. It was written by a research on the the vendor's payroll. I've changed "free" to FREE; I intended the quotes to be for emphasis, not skepticism. Socrative is indeed free.

Interesting Forbes article about Sal Khan's journey. Mentions his recently published book "The One World Schoolhouse".  Highlights of his views reported in the article: "Khan would like to re-create the once common mixed-age classrooms that he believes encourage older kids to take responsibility for younger ones. He wants multiteacher classrooms to provide students with different perspectives. He would abolish summer vacation.... And he would eliminate letter grades altogether, preferring a more qualitative approach to assessment..."

Thanks for sharing Malik. Sal has done some nice work, and I'm wondering whether his mode of instruction can be used in other subject areas especially the arts and music. I'm guessing that it can, but his assessment mode would need to change from MCQs to something more qualitative.

This article discusses successful blended curriculum. Interestingly, the article directs notice to the fact that the success is a cause of factors beyond just technology. One such factor is flex scheduling.

In follow-up to previously posted video, this full article details MIT's Media Lab research on monitoring electrodermal activity (EDA), a measure of sympathetic arousal, and on advancing autism communication through 4 active research areas.

This article further details the research behind the video I previously posted relating to emerging technology related to autism emotion and communication.

This article outlines 3 trademarks of excellent teaching. This article seems relevant following our discussions today re: technology supplementing - not replacing - good teaching.

Summer Davos happened this week. A quick highlight from there that is related to our field. Nothing much new in the article itself but WEF is connecting the importance of improving current education with youth employment issue. the word AR is also used within this article. 

full disclosure: classmate Alex Schoenfeld first shared this with the us in the TIE facebook group :). But it brings an interesting trend in the adoption and pricing of mobile apps: Article outlining what lots of us know when it comes to moblie apps and pricing - free, $1, and $2 are the price-points that sell, and allow us to try out an app with minimal regret. But with the rise of more and more high-quailty, high-profile, and high-budget educatioanl apps, will the pricing structure change? Will parents and educators be willing to spend the prices of traditional computer software ($50 or more?) for really great mobile apps? The article brings up an interesting model that seems to already be coming to life looking at how apps are being sold and updated lately: "Donahoo and Russell propose there's a better way: subscriptions and content expansion packs.  Launchpad Toys follows the latter tact. The initial price the Toontastic app for $3 (though it's currently free). Users can use that fully functioning app, or choose to add additional characters and themes with $.99 expansion packs. This way, they contend, costs are controlled; it's cheap for parents and children to evaluate an app, and the model encourages regular updates."

"Sometimes, it takes a longer article to illuminate something as complex as education in America. Here are nine articles from 2013, covering everything from public policy to teaching practice. Many of the lessons highlighted by these writers will remain relevant in 2014 and beyond."

Here's an example of one person who excelled in a MOOC. While everyone may not have the drive of this student, this is a good example of how an online technology facilitated a social learning group. Also - yet another example of how online resources can benefit people across the country who do not otherwise have access.

A friend just sent me this same article, Molly! However, my takeaway was much different. Whenever I read articles about young people doing extraordinary things with limited resources and technology, my first thought is always "how is this possible??" The article addresses my question directly: "The answer has to do with Battushig's extraordinary abilities, of course, but also with the ambitions of his high-school principal." The principal, also a graduate of MIT, was focused on developing more skilled engineers in Mongolia, and made it his mission to bring science and tech labs to his students; while MOOCs, the government's heavy investment in IT infrastructure, and the ubiquity of a 3G network made it possible to extend and enhance learning opportunities, the students may have never been exposed to engineering were it not for the encouragement of the principal. This human component, combined with technology, was what nurtured Battushig's drive and talent. This path will not work for just any student. If most homes in Mongolia have an Internet connection and even nomads cell phones, why have more people not found success with MOOCs? The author of the article summed it up best when she said, "Battushig's success also showed that schools could use MOOCs to find exceptional students all over the globe." Battushig is exceptional, just as elevated learning through MOOCs is still the "exception" and not the rule. MOOCs still lack a certain (perhaps human?) element that can move them from producing the anomaly of one "boy genius" to a more widespread level of learning.

Hi Laura - That's a good point about the principal. The principal and the student were both exceptional. While I do not think that MOOCs, as they are right now, can work for everyone, I do think that this example of educating an exceptional student is heartening. Maybe this exceptional student can learn a lot and then in turn, help others in his community. As undemocratic as it is, many advances in society are made by individuals or small groups of people. Overall though, I agree that MOOCs lack, as you said maybe a human element, to promote widespread education.

Sebastian Thrun, CEO of Udacity, has openly admitted that his company's MOOC courses are a lousy replacement for actual university class and instead will be taking his company to focus more on corporate training. I personally will reserve further judgement until after I finish the readings for next week.

Grif - where did the Stephen Downes quote come from ? I read the Rebecca Schuman article and don't really agree with her. To expand on the Schuman quote you posted - it's really interesting how she says the massive lecture format doesn't work but then provides two examples of massive technology that do work - texting and World of Warcraft. This relates directly to some of what we talked about earlier this semester. I don't think it's the 'massive,' as Schuman implies, that causes the failure of a MOOC. It's part of the design. Once the design is better and more engaging, then MOOCs may find that they have higher retention rates. Schuman: Successful education needs personal interaction and accountability, period. This is, in fact, the same reason students feel annoyed, alienated, and anonymous in large lecture halls and thus justified in sexting and playing World of Warcraft during class-and why the answer is not the MOOC, but the tiny, for-credit, in-person seminar that has neither a sexy acronym nor a potential for huge corporate partnerships.

The Downes quote was from OLDaily, which is a daily listserve of his that I subscribe too. I think the difference between texting/WoW and MOOCs is that, while both have many many users, the former two have means in which those groups are disaggregated into smaller units that are largely responsible for the UX/individual growth that goes on. I agree with you that massive is not necessarily the failure, in fact, I think it's the best thing they have going for them. However, until the design can leverage meaningful collaboration, like WoW and texting, the massive will remain a burden.

Some Chinese school officials have gone against the wishes of the national government and removed Internet filtering software becuase it "has strong conflicts with teaching software we need for normal work." On the other hand, many public schools in the US not only tolerate draconian filtering policies, but elect to implement such policies on the local level! Why are we willing to sacrifice educational opportunities for some imagined sense of security about our children? If you haven't looked over the "Unmasking the Digital Truth" Wiki, I highly recommend that you do so. It discusses some of the common misconceptions about Internet filtering in schools and associated laws. (http://unmaskdigitaltruth.pbworks.com/)

Article about how some schools in China have uninstalled the controversial Internet filter (Green Dam), which was required to be installed on all public systems by mandate of the Chinese government.

An article about a great thinker in urban education.

Great Article about a Pioneer in Urban Education.