Career & Technical Ed
future of learning
Personalized Learning
Despite Bad News, Progress is Possible
I have a hard time watching evening news--especially in the last few weeks--the headlines are hard to swallow. You can’t help but assume that things are getting worse. It’s depressing. But the news doesn’t give you an accurate picture of the long term trends that are making life better for more people on this planet.
Leadership
Good Work: Considering Life in Cities
Geoffrey West studies cities. He found economies of scale—in mammals and cities—the bigger you get the less energy you need. Cities offer about a 15% savings on infrastructure. But he also found that human population growth and resource use is unstable. We share his interest and launched a review of how cities produce and share innovations in learning.
Personalized Learning
Blended Learning Decision: Enterprise or Portfolio
For many districts, the most important strategy decision will be whether to build a common district plan or encouraging schools to develop their own plans.
Personalized Learning
The Virtues of Daydreaming & 30 Other Surprising (& Controversial) Research Findings About How Students Learn
Have you checked your assumptions about student learning at the door? People in general, hold onto beliefs that are shaped by early experiences, the media, and faulty influences. The following list is a compilation of research that may surprise you. Video games, e-books, playtime, and music are all a part of an educator’s repertoire. Read on, and be prepared to put your traditional beliefs aside as science points to innovative methods that indicate future success.
Personalized Learning
Good Schools Start With Good Goals
Good schools start with good goals. I really like the goal statements from Danville Schools, a small district south of Lexington.
EdTech
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.
Personalized Learning
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.
Personalized Learning
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.
Leadership
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.
EdTech
Getting Smart Connects Digital Learning & Deeper Learning In Latest White Paper
Getting Smart® today launches “How Digital Learning Contributes to Deeper Learning,” a white paper that examines how key aspects of personal digital learning - common standards, next-generation assessments, blended learning, and affordable devices - can provide deeper learning opportunities for students.