Educational Technology Ray Schroeder, editor, OTEL - University of Illinois at Springfield |
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News, Techniques and Theories of Effective Use of Technology in Education 
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Saturday, May 08, 2004
Bookshare.org offers 17,000 royalty-free texts - Corey Murray, eSchool News
For special-education teachers, providing required reading for blind and learning-disabled students is a significant challenge. Now, thanks to the aid of Bookshare.org, a non-profit digital book service based in Palo Alto, Calif., educators have access to a library of thousands of titles they can download and reproduce for use on screen readers or as MP3 files. Bookshare is made possible by a narrow exception to U.S. copyright law, which enables students with certain physical and learning disabilities to obtain copyrighted materials without paying royalty fees. The program currently offers access to more than 17,000 titles, running the gamut from chart-topping best sellers and legal thrillers to classic Hemingway novels and sixth-grade biology textbooks, says Alison Lingane, senior product manager for Bookshare. (0) comments
Digital Cameras for Learning - Gayle Rubenstein, techLearning
For the past several years, the Upper Saddle River School District (K-8) has been using digital cameras, both still and video, to enhance learning, provide motivation, and as a convenient tool to empower both students and teachers. Such cameras are becoming easier to use, smaller, cheaper and yet more powerful. Thus our teachers and students can now readily produce and use digital images with ease in any learning area. They have the freedom to experiment with photos that encourage a willingness to learn. They can view their pictures immediately and erase those they don't want. They can produce high quality prints from inkjet printers, order prints online, get them printed at a one-hour lab, send them via Email, or post images on the district Web site. For this to happen, the district has made an effort to obtain equipment, provide staff development and incorporate digital cameras into the curriculum. (0) comments Friday, May 07, 2004
Nearly 100 Utah High Schools Deploy Online Courses and Web Delivery System for Classroom Instruction
LearnKey, an online learning systems provider, today announced nearly 100 high schools across Utah have successfully deployed the company's OnlineExpert(R) Web-based learning platform and are delivering courses via the Internet to more than 11,000 secondary students statewide. Utah high school students and teachers have logged more than 26,000 hours of instruction on the system. Students use the online courses to learn computing and Internet fundamentals to meet the Utah computer literacy requirement for all graduating high school seniors. (0) comments
Wyoming ranks high in use of technology in the classroom - Associated Press
A study by Education Week shows that Wyoming is one of only two states with 100 percent of its schools connected to the Web. Delaware is the other. The analysis also found that Wyoming had the second-best mark of students per instructional computer. The state is one of 33 that has incorporated technology into its state standards for administrators. It is one of ten states that require technology training or a technology test for teacher recertification. And Wyoming is one of 12 states that offer professional or financial incentives for teachers to become skilled in technology. (0) comments Thursday, May 06, 2004
Florence students engage in debate with Virginians - MARK COWLING, Tri-Valley Dispatch
"The kids asked each other what seniors anywhere ask each other," Veilleux said. But when they met for the second time last week, the mood was more businesslike and the questions and comments somewhat thornier. A girl wearing a greenish-yellow "Woodson Soccer" shirt in the front row in Fairfax argued, "We didn't go there (to Iraq) to build a democracy. We went there because of an imminent threat and to get rid of weapons of mass destruction. Democracy was an afterthought." Over in the back row in Florence, Carl Monize shot back, "It's our democracy that lets us choose to go there. ... How many people have enlisted so we can fight for our democracy? We're fighting for our own protection." The two classes, some 2,300 miles apart, talked face-to-face through the magic of Internet video and audio technology in their respective schools' distance learning classrooms. (0) comments
Choices in education: Distance Learning Labs offer alternative learning - Pat Sellon, Monroe Times
The walls are virtually disappearing from area schools. At least they are in the sense that students are no longer confined to just the classes and teachers offered in their own school buildings. Distance Learning Labs (DLL), now possible through computer technology, can bring a world of education unimagined just a decade ago. But the DLL revolution comes at a cost of not only money, but also time. (0) comments Wednesday, May 05, 2004
Professional Development Anytime, Anywhere - Keith Restine, Martha Peet, John Rice and Louise Keeton; techLearning
Teachers can now engage in anytime, anywhere technology-related professional development with Texas STARgate, an online professional development portal that delivers a variety of courses, resources, and tools for teachers in several different ways. Texas teachers can access technology-related professional development whenever they wish from the comfort of their own homes or in more structured learning environments. The Texas Center for Educational Technology at the University of North Texas, in collaboration with Classroom Connect, developed STARgate to give Texas teachers the opportunity to learn more about the Technology Applications TEKS and how to use technology effectively in the classroom. (0) comments
Report: U.S. Schools Lead World in Computer Access But Lag Behind in Internet Availability & Computer Use
The United States is among the leaders in the world in providing access to school computers, but it lags behind other countries in frequency of school computer use and Internet availability at school, according to Education Week's seventh annual report on school technology which includes an in-depth look at school technology in the U.S. and in countries around the world. The study - to be released on Thursday, May 6 - shows that while the United States leads most nations in the number of computers per student, the United States falls far behind other nations in the percentage of computers connected to the Internet, with some nations reporting twice as many Internet-connected computers as the United States. The United States also is outpaced by several countries in the percentage of 15-year-olds who use computers at school several times a week, according to the report. (0) comments Tuesday, May 04, 2004
Education, business leaders push ed tech as campaign issue - Corey Murray, eSchool News
As another election season heats up, a longstanding consortium of educational technology advocates has unveiled a new initiative meant to spark a national conversation about the importance of computers in schools. Organizers say they're looking for ed tech to become a central issue in campaigns from the local school board all the way to the presidency. The National Coalition for Technology in Education and Training (NCTET) is a 10-year-old nonpartisan organization that examines and supports the use of technology to improve education and training in America. (0) comments
Virtual schools cause real concerns - AMANDA PAULSON, THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
....Some 40,000 to 50,000 students in 37 states are enrolled in virtual schools, according to the US Department of Education. That's a pretty broad category, though. The term can refer to anything from the occasional specialized class taken online by a traditional high school student to all-day charter schools like the one in which the Magnors are enrolled. Advocates of virtual learning say it opens new horizons, particularly for students in rural communities where choices are limited, or for those with special needs due to illness or serious involvement with athletics. But critics worry about the lack of face-to-face interaction. Even more contentious, particularly with all-day virtual schools, is the difficulty of providing good oversight, and the question of giving state money to an outside district or charter school. (0) comments Monday, May 03, 2004
What Network? - Darrin Woods, techLearning
Regardless of what fancy, new-fangled services you've added to your network, without the proper infrastructure, you might as well throw your money out the window. Many times, network infrastructure get left behind or forgotten when new equipment and services are added to the network. Having the latest computers and streaming video in your labs is nice, but when you try to use them on a 10BaseT network, you may as well be using smoke signals, spelling S.O.S. The first thing to look at is the physical wiring. If your school is utilizing anything less than Category 5 wiring for the network connections, plan on a big wire replacement party. Some networks may even have 10Base-2 coaxial cable connecting systems, especially those that have been on the network from its inception. (0) comments
How To: Use an E-Mail List - Jeffrey Branzburg, techLearning
E-mail lists (also known as LISTSERVS(tm)) represent the inherent democratic nature of the Internet, a vehicle through which people can quickly and easily engage in the free exchange of ideas, information, and opinions. Here are some tips for getting up to speed. E-mail lists are organized by topic of interest, such as the "Foreign Language Teaching Forum" or the "Elementary Education List." People with an interest in the topic can subscribe to the list to receive periodic e-mails. Some lists are read-only and similar to newsletters; others give subscribers the option to post to the list, which sends an e-mail that automatically goes out to all other subscribers. (0) comments Sunday, May 02, 2004
Poll: Student cheating prevalent - Associated Press
More than seven in 10 teen-agers say students in their school cheat on tests, and almost as many say cheating on homework is widespread, too, a national poll finds. Almost a third of students admit to cheating, according to the ABC News Primetime poll of kids ages 12 to 17. The vast majority of students said they know cheaters lose out in the long run, and that their parents would rather have them do their best work — regardless of grades — than cheat. Yet just a third of students said they’ve had a serious talk with their parents about cheating. And most of those polled said cheaters in their school don’t get caught. (0) comments
Music industry sues more students for illegal file-sharing - eSchool News
The recording industry sued 477 more computer users April 28, including dozens of college students at schools in 11 states, accusing them of illegally sharing music across the internet. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the trade group for the largest labels, praised efforts by colleges and universities to use technology and school policies to crack down on music piracy on their own. But it said the most egregious offenders on campus deserved to be sued. (0) comments Educational Technology News Blog Archives OTEL - Ray's Home Page - Notebook - UIS Online - U of I Online - UIS Home Fair Use |
