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Results of recent studies about Web 2.0 teaching and learning in Europe show that existing pilot projects at schools are often driven by single, motivated teachers in grass-root approaches and that apart from support by the school basic knowledge, motivation and inspiration of teachers are necessary for realization of Web 2.0-related innovation. The te@ch.us project sets up a web-based learning community for teachers who are novices in Web 2.0 and connects them to experts and experienced teachers for exchange of concepts, experiences and learning materials.

This report shows that two actions are at the heart of the drive to make MST studies and professions more popular option for young learners: the development of effective and attractive MST curricula and teaching methods, and improved teacher education and professional development. Some countries (the Netherlands, Norway, Ireland, Israel, Switzerland, and Italy), have implemented national strategies and others have set up dedicated national, regional, or local centres (Norway, Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Spain, and Ireland). These centres aim to improve the quality of MST teaching, and sometimes more particularly, to increase science and technology's popularity (also achieved through campaigns and competitions). This holistic approach usually includes all MST subjects, covers the lifelong learning span and involves the government, educational sector and industry. Public-private partnerships are an important feature of these all-encompassing approaches, aimed at developing a sustainable scientific culture which is deep-rooted in society. Other common approaches are to establish networks of teachers and teacher trainers, as well as other relevant stakeholders, and to implement curricular reform and initiatives favouring inquiry-based learning (e.g. cross-disciplinary, thematic or project work). In some countries, extra time, funding and smaller student groups enable more handson MST activities in laboratories and outdoors.

New technologies are central to modern life and sensitive topics are often discussed on the internet rather than face to face. However, this could be potentially damaging, especially for young people. The European project Virtual Stages Against Violence (VSAV) discovers possible risks concerning the use of new technologies  and offers teaching and learning pathways for a sensible use of the internet and new technologies. The project has started in March 2011 and the project team has already developed innovative products for teachers, students, schools, youth organisations and so on.

"De afgelopen jaren werden veel onderzoeksprojecten uitgevoerd naar een zinvolle integratie van ICT-instrumenten in het onderwijs. Deze projecten mondden uit in publicaties over digitale didactiek waarin theoretische modellen en praktijkvoorbeelden werden geanalyseerd. Er is redelijk wat know-how over digitale didactiek voorhanden. Vreemd genoeg heeft tot op heden niemand een omvattende cursus over digitale didactiek uitgewerkt voor lerarenopleidingen in Vlaanderen.   Met dit project beogen we de ontwikkeling van een omvattende cursus over digitale didactiek. Deze cursus kan in elke lerarenopleiding in Vlaanderen (bij uitbereiding in Nederland) worden aangewend om de studenten/cursisten digitale didactische inzichten bij te brengen en ICT-instrumenten op een doordachte manier aan te wenden in een onderwijsleerproces. "

Twitter is an online social networking tool in which users post 140 character updates of what is going on in their lives along with links to things they think are interesting, funny, or useful to their followers ("following" being essentially what "friending" is on other sites). People use twitter in many ways, some as a newsfeed by following prominent people or networks, some as a pseudo-chatroom by limiting their followers and whom they follow to close friends and family, and some as a microblog for updating people about the work they are doing and their personal lives.

"Free and easy-to-use tool for interaction with your audience Mentimeter allows you to use mobile phones or tablets to vote on any question you specify. Our vision is to improve the meeting between a presenter and an audience."

Educaplay enables you to create activities and then embed in your blog or wiki. You need to set up an account. The default settings are Spanish, so make sure you select English. Ways to use this in a classroom: - spelling word activities - topic word activities - shared book activities (as shown below) - making crosswords about topics or books - specific grammatical activities like changing tense, adding endings, plurals etc - Comprehension activities

April 08, 2009 By Jennifer Williamson , Distance-Education.org Columnist | Home-schooling your kids? Check out these free online resources for parents and kids of all ages-including lesson plans, activities, educational online games, test prep, online high schools, forums and support groups.

It's good to be a kid these days. Or rather, it's better to be a teenager now than it was 30 years ago. That's the essential argument made in an infographic from Besteducationdegrees.com. Today's teens make more money in their crummy jobs, enjoy PlayStation instead of Coleco Vision, and have cell phones on which they listen to their music.

That's a very nice infographic. How can we use it in the classroom?

a series exploring mobile learning

If you're not an avid follower of #edchat on Twitter, you may be missing out on a great opportunity to learn about some new Web 2.0 tools that are currently being used in classrooms around the world. That's because @chickensaltash posed a simple question to the PLN and there has been a huge swell of support as hundreds of people have jumped in to answer the question about which 5 Web 2.0 tools teachers are using in classrooms.

The Web 2.0ERC European Union funded project is designed to help educators who find ICT confusing to have a simple and secure environment to use ICT in their work and in their classes. The project project has built a simple web platform that includes the most popular tools (Wikis, Blogs, communications, Social Networking etc.) with clear guides on: How to use the toolsHow they can be used in educationThe platform is currently undergoing final piloting and adjustments, and will be available soon. The project has also looked at other Web 2.0 tools that can be used to create content, share the content and communicate. Members of the Web2.0ERC Community of Practice have contributed to the repository of tools.All the work of the project has been piloted with the target groups of the project and the resources produced adapted based on the piloting.

Driven by passionate innovators engaged in the proverbial "thinking outside the box," disruptive innovation creates new values and new networks...something institutions find, at best, difficult to accommodate, at worst something to fear and repress. What, then, does disruptive innovation look like inside the educational institution? What do innovative educators do with--and demand from--their students? From flipping the classroom and mobile learning to social media and students as creators, let's examine some real-life educational innovations, try out some interesting technologies, share from our own experiences, and brainstorm ways to move forward despite institutional lethargy and the chorus of nay-sayers who claim innovation is impossible.

The easiest way to create and broadcast Live audio on the Internet and mobile...