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I worked in Newport News, VA and around that time the current governor was huge with technology initiatives and this school district benefited greatly from this. I see now that they are still being used for projects like this. My concern with Virginia is that they will gladly try technology in schools, but the use of the technology is not always practical. If a person goes on the VDOE website, they will see the state touting their advances in the use of technology. They are calling themselves a leader in online testing, for example, but their 'bragging' points all reflect how the technology has made life easier for all the adults and not necessarily the children. It is the exact same thing that was on paper now on the computer screen: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/online_testing/index.shtml

This is an editorial discussing how emerging technologies can help eliminate the need for annual standardized testing of students by tracking their progress constantly throughout the year through technology use. IPads, Khan Academy, data analysis, KIPP schools, the achievement gap, online courses and their innovations through emerging technologies are discussed.

NYTimes article critical of the current push for technology in schools.  Raises questions about lack of improvement in test scores, budget tensions between $$ for teachers vs technology, and dearth of research showing  improved engagement.  Features comments by Larry Cuban.

Isabel, Chris M., Stephen B., and I are at MassCUE today watching Yong Zhao's keynote.  You can find a copy of his presentation here at this website.

I saw Zhao speak yesterday at the MassCUE conference (with James, Chris McEnroe and Isabel Schwartzman). His message was provocative: the United States did not do well on the TIMSS test, but the US has never done well on this type of testing even way back to the 1950s. Therefore, Zhao thinks that these tests are not good indicators of educational quality, but that the things that the US does right are fostering creativity, building in tolerance and forgiveness into the educational system, and stressing problem-solving and collaborative learning.

This relates to part of the discussion in class today. I've seen him speak about the irony that Chinese schools, which are outperforming US schools on PISA and TIMMS, are actually trying to model their systems more on US pedagogy. See his latest book or look for him on TED.

Hm...so Samsung invested in smart whiteboard and tablet technology in a Memphis school as part of their "market research" into the US education market. I'm not sure if this is a good thing? Hopefully the teachers at this school got some sort of professional development on how to use this technology with good pedagogy, and aren't just going to use the technology in the traditional ways...

Very interesting article. "iREAD (Impact on Reading of E-Readers And Digital content) Ghana Pilot Study" Another example showing us the traditional standardized test doesnt seem to be a suitable type of assessment here. But in addition to that there are many interesting findings related to IT literacy, benefits of the teachers and increased access to learning materials. (never really thought a simple hardware such as e-reader itself will be this 'transformational' to certain countries across the world) 

One approach to personalization. I am on their advisory board...

Not sure what the virtual world adds to this

Game Developers recognizing learning opportunities within their games and building a platform that allows students to create their own worlds and test them.

"A new, federally funded project will test students' ability to learn fractions on mobile apps through the theory of "embodied cognition"-or, to put it in non-science speak, manipulating and moving images and information on screens with their fingers."

Interesting graphic on video games and ed; purports kids who learned by playing an ed game improved their standardized test scores by 50% (no reference however)

nice podcast this morning. 'teaching character skills more imp than raising test scores'. Not really about technology but relates to several classes i shopped (and i liked) yesterday. fyi. 

Testing centers and MOOCs and universities are partnering in an effort to offer credit for students who complete online courses. 

Taking the next step towards credentialing through MOOC's and establishing greater value for these online classes.

Interesting decision to address a number of common criticisms of online learning: the potential for cheating, the failure of enrollees to complete the course and the lack of certification.

This article depicts a school district where the use of mobile technology has been a big success. It gives a detailed account of how this is true.

Great overview on current efforts to improve assessment, particularly the idea of "stealth assessment". Strongly emphasizes the role of technology in building assessments that track the entire problem solving process - and how these tools can evaluate both hard and soft skills. Last sentence nails it: "That's the promise of a better test: By drawing a map that more accurately reflects our world, we may discover far more promising paths to get where we want to go." Chris Dede gets a big shout out!

I'd say this is the best piece of writing on education and technology for a general-readership that's been posted thus far. (Thanks for tracking it down, Harvey.) It made me think that someone needs to write the education world's version of "Moneyball"--who will be our Billy Beane?

Ipad app that teaches fractions

I tend to agree with Professor Cuban - "IPads are marvelous tools to engage kids, but then the novelty wears off and you get into hard-core issues of teaching and learning." The real challenge is to convert the initial excitement and performance improvement into sustained progress. The key may be in leveraging the increased self-efficacy of students.

This article makes me wonder about the novelty bump you get when you try anything new. In EcoMuve, they researched the effectiveness of EcoMuve vs a new ecology classroom based activity. This tactic is measuring the effectiveness of the technology. However in these studies, if they had kids using a computer game to practice fractions, did the control group practice fractions using a classroom based activity? 15% growth is not much to get excited about.

New Jersey's hybrid Charter schools test out new model by combining online and classroom instructions in the toughest cities.