Archive: 2012
Out of My Element: Forming Bonds Between Science and Language Arts
I’ve always considered myself a willing and even eager collaborator with teachers of almost any discipline. As someone who tends to see the big picture, intentionally or not, I notice connections among disciplines so often it almost feels second nature to me. Yet in my practice, I have mostly integrated subject areas within my own classes and under my own control.
Powering the Real Revolution in Higher Education
We've heard a lot about Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) -- the breakout trend of the year -- but it's still a fringe concept feeding what Clayton Christensen calls non-consumption. The real story is how the diverse web of nearly 5,000 institutions (broadly speaking) of higher learning in the U.S. are responding to cost pressure, calls for higher completion rates and better job preparation, and student demands for relevance.
SMARTtech Top 10: Happy Holidays
Wow, it was a big week in education news. During this busy (most wonderful) time of the year, we’re helping to save you time by pulling together the Top 10 stories from this week, wrapping them up and tying them with a big red bow. Just for you. Enjoy!
Big History: An Organizing Principle for a Compelling Class, Block or School
After Bill Gates saw a series of lectures by David Christian on big history Gates said, "He really blew me away. Here's a guy who's read across the sciences, humanities, and social sciences and brought it together in a single framework. It made me wish that I could have taken big history when I was young, because it would have given me a way to think about all of the school work and reading that followed. In particular, it really put the sciences in an interesting historical context and explained how they apply to a lot of contemporary concerns."
Blended Learning Philanthropy
What’s been on my mind: new learning models, role of philanthropy, practice and policy (including new accountability)… all student-centered.
5 Ways to Use Google Docs in the Classroom
Google Docs is a user friendly suite of online collaborative tools that come with tremendous potential for use in the classroom. Last year all of the students in our school received Google Docs accounts and I was kept quite busy getting students and teachers up and running with the new tools, then discovering innovative ways to use them as effective tools for learning. Here are some of the favorites.
How Digital Learning Contributes to Deeper Learning
Here at Getting Smart, we spend a lot of time thinking about how to improve learning. We advocate for tools and schools that work better for students and teachers. We love to see and share stories about engaged learners producing quality products.
Math Game Transforms Classrooms in 3 Critical Ways
Recently, Colorado Springs School District 11 was honored to receive the Rising Star Award from MIND Research Institute for our implementation of Spatial Temporal Math (ST Math or “JiJi Math”). Our experience of leveraging JiJi Math across 36 elementary schools for our 13,000 students has proven to be a valuable opportunity for systems learning, and our partnership with MIND is a story of improvement by the numbers.
Extreme Learning and the University Professor
In part 2 of our sereis on Dr. Curtis Bonk’s extreme learning research, we look at ways to integrate the best practices of fieldwork into your curriculum.
10 Things Next Gen Districts Will Do Well
What will next generation districts do well? In the last week I've had the opportunity to discuss that question with hundreds of school board members and superintendents.