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We just missed it, but right now we're in the midst of MobiMOOC, a MOOC organized by educators to teach other educators about mobile learning. Kind of a neat concept, I think! But one of the keys is how good is the instruction in helping educators integrate in mobile learning with good pedagogy instead of just showcasing mobile technologies...probably one of the common dangers with these types of initiatives.

Actually, ASSISTments is not a tutor, but it draws on insights from artificial intelligence and tutoring. It's a good example of going to scale that we will reference later in the course.

Hi Prof. Dede, it struck me at the end of the article that while the title said '...Computerized Tutors...', what the creator was really struggling with was 'Humanizing computers'. It might never be possible, but the value is really in the journey. Thank you for sharing this with us!

An conversation with Tom Vander Ark, author of "Getting Smart: How DIgital Learning is Changing the World". " It confirms what we discussed in class - technology is an amplifier, "technology amplifies parenting: good parents manage it and make the most of it, but less well supported students sit in front of screens in unsupervised and unproductive activities for far too long. "

Opinion on Educationnext

Online schools benefit who? children or taxpayers, or a company that thrives by squeezing profits from public schools by raising enrollment , increasing teacher load, and lowering standards?

How young is too young to use a smartphone? In a growing number of families across the country, infants and toddlers are deftly swiping and tapping away even as they wobble toward their first steps.

This article shows the dark underbelly of the educational policy world as it relates to technology. As schools are increasingly adopting online learning models in classes, companies are predictably lining up to get money from the movement. However, there are many companies who are taking it a step further and lobbying for policies that do not have children's best interests in mind and which operate under the simplistic and misguided assumption that "schools will not need teachers once computers become good enough." It should give us pause to consider what needs to be done in these early stages to prevent the edTech movement from falling into the wrong hands and killing our schools.

A good collection of interesting articles on educational technologies in 2011, including Twitter, Stanford, Apple, Clayton Christensen, OLPC, etc. Worth a bookmark.

Good article highlighting the tension created by Idaho's push to incorporate online-learning and computers into state education. 

Great article James! THey show the full range of teachers' reachtion to top down directives. I wonder what their reaction would be if the directive was NOT about technology but rather a requirement to customize instruction. Customization is too hard to do as an individual teacher. You would have to rely on technology to get it done. I love the teacher who insists that she teaches kids "how to think" by using her lecture style. Oh Boy!

What makes good instructional design in the real world? These are the 2011 winners of the Blackboard Exemplary Course Program. Anyone interested in entering the instructional design field would probably be interested in watching some of these videos.

"Children spend five times as much time outside the classroom as they do in school, and our country has 30 million parents or caregivers who are not good readers themselves, so they pass illiteracy down to their children."

"Good teaching was not defined by test results. Instead, its attributes were identified on a nine-item scale, which included student appraisals of how well the teacher organized material, used class time, explained directions, and reviewed the subject matter."

This article weighs in both side of flipping classrooms. "Good teaching, regardless of discipline, should always limit passive transfer of knowledge in class, and promote learning environments built on the tenants of inquiry, collaboration and critical thinking."

The U.S. Departments of Education and Defense are launching "Learning Registry," an open source community that will allow educator share information and learning resources, with a price tag of $2.6m. ""Learning Registry addresses a real problem in education, by bridging the silos that prevent educators from sharing valuable information and resources," said Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "The Registry also allows content developers, curriculum coordinators, principals, counselors, and everyone else who supports good teaching in the classroom to benefit from the combined knowledge of the field.""

Cable companies, as part of a new FCC initiative, will be offering broadband internet to homes with children who are elgible for free school lunches.  The initiative is called "Connect-to-Compete". While having broadband at the home isn't the same as always on, mobile internet available wirelessly for students wherever they are on any device they happen to have on them, this is a good start to lessen digital exclusion for these groups

The school I am interning at (The Carroll School) is using this in their middle school math classes. Small class sizes typically (4-8 kids /  class), and it's a 1:1 school where every child has a laptop. But - it's working well for designated independent work time in the math classes I've observed- where each kid is asked to play the game for 15 minutes on their own. Kids have their own profiles- and there are several different math mini games they can play, each game focusing on different math skills. Each mini game involves different game mechanics and art styles. But all games involve using arithmetic skills and math concepts to solve problems that progress them in the game. Good performance gives the kids in-game credits/money that they can use to customize their in-gam avatar. 

A good collection of eBooks for teachers. This list continues to grow.

A good list for new teachers.