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"For readers who heretofore have been spared exposure to this little concatenation of capital letters, or who have, quite understandably, misconstrued its meaning, STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, supposedly the major food groups of a comprehensive science education."

ABSTRACT This article outlines a learning intervention which the authors call Learning by Design. The goal of this intervention is classroom and curriculum transformation, and the professional learning of teachers. The experiment involves the practical application of the learning theory to everyday classroom practice. Its ideas are grounded in pedagogical principles originally articulated in the Multiliteracies project, an approach to teaching and learning that addresses literacy and learning in the context of new media and the globalizing knowledge economy. The need for a new approach to learning arises from a complex range of factors - among them, changes in society and the economy; the potential for new forms of communication made possible by emerging technologies; and rising expectations amongst learners that education will maximize their potential for personal fulfillment, civic participation and access to work. The authors first brought together the Learning by Design team of researchers and teachers in 2003 in order to reflect upon and create new and dynamic learning environments. A series of research and development activities were embarked upon in Australia and, more recently, in the United States, exploring the potentials of new pedagogical approaches, assisted by digital technologies, to transform today's learning environments and create learning for the future - learning environments which could be more relevant to a changing world, more effective in meeting community expectations and which manage educational resources more efficiently. One of the key challenges was to create learning environments which engaged the sensibilities of learners who are increasingly immersed in digital and global lifestyles - from the entertainment sources they choose to the way they work and learn. It was also about enabling teachers to explicitly track and be aware of the relationship between their pedagogical choices and their students' learning outcomes.

Great Article via Ali F. The lecture has its place. Asking students to close their laptops has its place. But, failing to explore new possibilities for education prompted by emerging technologies does not serve the interests of either group.

"Parents: Reject Technology Shame The advantages of helping kids learn to navigate the digital world, rather than shielding them from it"

"In order for mobile technologies to be effective in the classroom, teachers and administrators will need to let go of the reins and let students take the lead, according to University of Michigan professor and researcher Elliot Soloway. "Kids are the experts on the technology," Soloway says. "Teachers are the experts not on the content but on the pedagogy and classroom management. The two have to live together. They have to learn together.""

"In fact, the focus of the framework rests on a much larger concept of the ways in which humans have altered and continue to alter the "natural world" with the goal of fulfilling "needs and desires." Technology is much bigger and more complex than a single device or site."

As mobile technology continues to permeate every facet of society, the mantra of today's youth seems to be "Make it Mobile!" With this influx of technology it will be interesting to see how the classroom looks 5, 10, 15 years down the road. Do you have any predictions?

The question of how to use technology in the classroom can often divide a school. Some teachers will embrace what's available to them, designing innovative multimedia projects which use all the gadgets at hand. Others, perhaps as a reaction to the first group, will resolve to do things the way they've always done, at best sending students to the computer lab to type up a final paper. Technology is present, but it's tokenized. The digital divide continues to thrive, not just across geographic and socio-economic boundaries, but from one classroom to the next.

"Teacher Kelly Finn, left, works with students Rachel Mathews, center, and Sarah Xu during a writer's workshop at The Barstow School in Kansas City, Mo." - Photo to the right of the article.  Article advocating tech use in schools. One school is doing writer's workshop and using technology as part of the process. Not much detail on how they are doing that exactly, but interesting to see how schools are forging tech & writers workshop together

The 2011 Horizon report identified six new technologies that will affect teaching and learning in the K-12 education community over the next five years.  

"Economically disadvantaged students, who often use the computer for remediation and basic skills, learn to do what the computer tells them, while more affluent students, who use it to learn programming and tool applications, learn to tell the computer what to do. Those who cannot claim computers as their own tool for exploring the world never grasp the power of technology...They are controlled by technology as adults--just as drill-and-practice routines controlled them as students."Source: Toward Digital Equity: Bridging the Divide in Education

Jen Smith found this one, good find Jen!

Reading for our MOOC on instructional technology coaching.

Article on kids, technology, multi-tasking, and attention.... refers to recent research in cognitive science re children and digital device use

"McLeod, S., & Lehmann, C. (Eds.). (in press). What school administrators need to know about digital technologies and social media."

interesting perspective - thanks KDa for the link

Interesting blog post from Jeff Utecht