Staff Picks: Hawaii, Digital Classrooms, Free Schools

Tom Picks “Building a Thoughtful Blend”

Tom says, “I spent Thursday and Friday with blended learning champions Bob Wise, Susan Patrick, and Michael Horn and several platform providers. While the tool set isn’t quite where we’d like, it’s getting better fast.  This blog provides a high level look at a few options.

Karen Picks “Pressure Mounts on Hawaii Race to the Top”

Karen says, “Heading off to Hawaii thought I’d check in on Hawaii’s Race To the Top status.  Sounds like they still need to get on the bus and perhaps the money should go back to Colorado or Louisiana who many wondered why they did not receive the RttT funding in the first place … Aloha!”

Caroline Picks “SETDA’s Levin: Digital Classrooms Sooner Than Later”

Caroline says, “My pick this week is SETDA’s Levin: Digital Classrooms Sooner Rather Than Later. It was great to see a strong leader like Doug Levin on CNN. He’s been one of the passionate advocates at the fore-front of the digital learning revolution. He is leading the way for tech directors nation wide to make strong changes that will impact and shape the lives on American students.”

Sarah Picks Approaching the Elephant

Sarah says, “I really enjoyed talking with filmmaker Amanda Wilder this week about her documentary Approaching the Elephant. The documentary, which takes a look at free schools, explored a concept that wasn’t hugely familiar to me. While seemingly ‘out of this world,’ I enjoyed pondering the concept of schools without bounds where students explored interest all on their own. After all, the real world we’re preparing students for doesn’t have a curriculum, standardized test, or grade to mark success. Could we find ways to give students more of a voice in education today?”