From the Source, the Potential of Personal Digital Learning
Earlier this month, the Pacific Research Institute released a video that showcased the power of personal digital learning and the challenges that the parents, students and educators face in realizing its full potential. The following video, directed by Nick Tucker and produced by Lur Films and Ozymandias Media, looks at the tools that are generating the tipping point in an educational technology revolution.
Getting Smart Podcast | Shared Leadership for Deeper Learning
In this podcast, Unite LA president David Rattray chats with Tom about workforce readiness, the need for continued lifelong learning and how schools must adapt to prepare young people for a new economy and a changing world.
Q&A: Student Leverages Website & Facebook to Save Civil War History
Twelve-year-old Andrew Druart is likely the world’s youngest Civil War enthusiast and activist. Druart has raised more than $10,000 for the Civil War Trust through a “Donate for Andrew’s Cause” button on the website. In return, the Civil War Trust awarded Druart a junior preservation award for his hard work in fundraising and awareness for Civil War battlegrounds – the organization’s first-ever award to go to a child.
What I’m Seeing: Coding Schools
This is the fourth post in a series of ten on categories where I’m seeing strong edtech startup activity. We’ve looked at productive post-sec, informal learning, and credentialing. A specific subset and application of the trends discussed so far is the rush to coding. The rash of coding startups suggests that everyone wants to learn to write computer code.
Staff Picks: Political Leadership, TFA, SXSWedu
Tom picks political leadership, Karen picks Teach for America in Washington, and Sarah picks SXSWedu.
Local shorts: FWPS & NCLB, King Co screw up
1. The Federal Way Mirror, my home town paper, published a great piece explaining why the district (where I was superintendent 94-99) failed to make Adequate Yearly Progress. On one hand, Superintendent Murphy is lauded by EdTrust as a gap closer and consistently posts results higher than…
Utah Proves to be Innovative National Leader
Utah has shown a strong commitment to Digital Learning Now’s 10 Elements of High Quality Digital Learning. By allowing students to have choice down to the course level, families are able to make the best decision for every student’s academic success.
New Open Content Partnership Will Save Schools Money, Boost Personalization
K-12 OER Collaborative, led by a group of eleven states and a group of nonprofit partners organized by The Learning Accelerator (TLA), announced their intent to sponsor development of comprehensive, high-quality, standards-aligned with K-12 mathematics and English language arts content.
Share Student Voices & Gather Audiences With 10+ Tech Tools
Once the essays were written, students used my shared Symbaloo webmix, “Creative Gallery,” to locate an appropriate technology tool to showcase their essays. Although the majority chose Blogger, students also used Wix, Weebly, Storybird, Google Docs, Windows Movie Maker Live and YouTube to share their viewpoints. Furthermore, students were encouraged to suggest any mode of sharing their essays, whether it be an unknown app, website, or some overlooked traditional method. Take a look at my "Creative Gallery" webmix below.
Rocketlist Inspires Students In Entrepreneurship
Kuato Studios recently launched Rocketlist, a website created to inspire students to harness creativity and learn real world skills such as coding, engineering, or design. Rocketlist showcases a series of inspirational videos featuring the connections, skills, and path of successful, young entrepreneurs today.