Place Based Education
SEL
Personalized Learning
The Surprising Social Side of Online Teaching
Currently, I have 35 online middle school students, 33 of whom I have met in person. Like Vygotsky posited, we learn through social interactions with mentors and teachers in our Zones of Proximal Development. But nowhere in his Theory of Cognitive Development did he say anything about having to go to a brick-and-mortar school to successfully do that. Apparently, my students and I are proving just that.
EdTech
An App that Teaches Kids Self-Regulation
Zones of Regulation app is a useful addition to a therapeutic program focusing on social and emotional skills, and it provides a quick and engaging way for players to learn about the Zones program. 
EdTech
OpenClass Leverages Open Content & Social Learning
A year ago, Pearson moved, “Beyond the LMS,” and launched OpenClass, a learning environment that is open, easy, and free. At ISTE, Pearson highlighted the OpenClass Exchange, “Where educators can trade in open digital experiences from courses to components,” as Matt Leavy explained.
Leadership
Good Work: Inhabited By a Question
For 35 years, Roger Weissberg has been inhabited by a question: How do schools, parents, and communities come together to promote positive behavioral outcomes in young people? CASEL launched the Collaborating Districts Initiative aimed at supporting district-wide SEL efforts in Anchorage, Austin, Chicago, Cleveland, Nashville, Oakland, Reno, and Sacramento. Each district is improving SEL leadership, strengthen instruction, and building a culture connections and continuous improvement.
EdTech
GlassLab and Beyond: Who’s the Designer and Who’s the Learner of the Next-Gen Game-Based Ed-Tech
By: Dr. Idit Harel Caperton The so called “gamification of education” has taken on multiple forms as computers and tablets become more common in the classroom and as games are becoming a dominant media in our lives. At the root of all “game-based learning” is the unique opportunity to engage students in learning where they want to be: inside video games. The ESA reports 32% of gamers are under 18 years old, and the industry only continues to grow.
Personalized Learning
6 Innovations in Social Emotional Learning
Social emotional learning "teaches the skills we all need to handle ourselves, our relationships, and our work, effectively and ethically," says Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL). CASEL was formed almost two decades ago started by CEO Roger P. Weissberg who is also professor at UIC. In addition to Weissberg, CASEL's agenda has been influenced by Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence.
EdTech
51 Essential EdTech Tools By Category
Technology and education are pretty intertwined these days and nearly every teacher has a few favorite tech tools that make doing his or her job and connecting with students a little bit easier and more fun for all involved. Yet as with anything related to technology, new tools are hitting the market constantly and older ones rising to prominence, broadening their scope, or just adding new features that make them better matches for education, which can make it hard to keep up with the newest and most useful tools even for the most tech-savvy teachers.
Personalized Learning
ClassDojo: Going Beyond Good Test Scores to Build Good People
What’s the single biggest indicator of lifetime outcomes and success, as early as age three? (I’ll give you a few hints. It’s not IQ. It’s not socioeconomic status. Give up yet?) It’s self control - and a whole slew of other behavioral management skills.
Personalized Learning
Deeper Learning: Engaging Students Across the Humanities
Personalized math products are becoming more common in classrooms from kindergarten to college. These tools are really promising for building math skills and fluency. But I hear a growing number of people that compartmentalize learning technologies to skill building. Since raising my kids on Dr Brain, Oregon Trail, and Sim…
Personalized Learning
Halverson: Rethinking Education in the Age of Technology
Rich Halverson, co-author of Rethinking Education in the Age of Technology and prof at UW-Madison, kicked off the SREB EdTech meeting in Atlanta today with a provocative discussion about the difference between technology for learning (testing and data systems) and technology for learners (phone, twitter, facebook, games).