EdTech
6 Top Free eBooks for English Literature Students
It’s becoming increasingly straightforward for English Literature students to read and make notes on their set texts through eBooks and devices. Books can be downloaded and read on tablets, or even on smartphones, while PDFs and computer readers mean that students can make notes and highlight particular passages when revising.
How MOOCs Already Changed Higher Ed in 2012
As we all know, cost is the major reason that students drop out of college, with the two highest cost factors being tuition and textbooks. In 2012, we have talked a lot of the potential of MOOCs to make higher education more open, more affordable and more responsive to employers’ needs than the traditional university structure.
Hackathons Spawn New Ed Tech Tools
Let’s face it; if you are serious about jumping into the edtech world and you are lucky enough to live around a tech hub, then it’s likely you’ve heard of hackathons. These events offer an opportunity to meet hungry programmers and enthusiasts of all sorts. One thing's for sure, whether you’re a Web guru, a backend ninja, or educator looking to bring a bright new idea to life, it’s best to show up knowing what to expect.
SMARTtech Top 10: Change Urgency
As we head into the holidays and think about the New Year, edtech happenings are in full speed ahead. At the Excellence in Action summit leaders spoke urgency to change for the economic demand of the future. News this week reflected a shift toward competency-based learning, common standards, literacy rates, and more.
More than Words Alone Can Say: Writing with Images in the Digital Age
Last week, on the day before Thanksgiving vacation, several of my fifth-graders voluntarily stayed after school with me to work on a project for which they would receive no grade: producing calendars based on poems and illustrations they had created for a class project.
Google Presentation for Collaborative Learning
One of my professional goals is to help teachers use technology as an efficient and effective tool for student learning instead of using it as an add on to the end of a traditional unit of study. The Google Docs Presentation is well-suited for use as a starting point to help teachers begin to break the barriers of traditional methods of tech integration and design student driven learning experiences that require students to construct knowledge as they create, an idea supported by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).
Kickboard Launches Free Starter Account For K-12 Educators
Kickboard, a school analytics platform for comprehensive student performance profiles, today launched free "Starter Accounts" for K-12 educators. Individuals or teams up to three teachers can create Kickboard accounts to manage classrooms at no charge.
Reading Curriculum: Critical Thinking & Creativity for Understanding
As teachers, we struggle with the mundane repetition of the reading process that we involve our students in given many of the current curricula that are available. In some instances, we may supplement that curriculum with a book that we believe our students will enjoy, many of which are recommended by the students or that we see them reading every day once their “work” is done. We then give the students a study guide and assign a chapter to read each day, and may even give them the option to complete a few short answer questions in their reading journal.
Tools to Boost Creativity, Critical Thinking, Community, Communication & Character
Good schools have a common intellectual mission. They prioritize, encourage, measure, and discuss important outcomes. This week we had the privilege of spending time with educators at Valley Christian Schools in Cerritos, California. At VCS, the 5Cs translate their mission into practice.
30 of the Best Educational iPad Games: Kid’s Edition
Parents and teachers who trust little Muffy and Junior with their shiny iPads don’t have to worry about how access to shoot-‘em-up video games will rot their precious little gifted and talented program minds. Instead, they can download some of the following alternatives to help them build up their brilliant brains that will totally go on to win Nobel Prizes someday.