Educational Technology Ray Schroeder, editor, COLRS - University of Illinois at Springfield Educational Technology - a blog published daily since 2002 by Ray Schroeder, Professor Emeritus, University of Illinois at Springfield |
|
|
News, Techniques and Theories of Effective Use of Technology in Education Times and Dates Coordinated Universal Time
Search Educational Technology Blog ArchivesSubscribe to Educational Technology by Email
|
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
TEL.A.VISION White Paper Validates Neuroplasticity is key to Drop Out Prevention - Sue Hanson, eSchool News
TEL.A.VISION, the proven Web 2.0 online curriculum that inspires youth to create and share visions of hope and possibility through personal “vision videos” released a white paper that documents the — importance of “neuroplasticity,” that thoughts can rewire the brain. This demonstrates the need to promote positive thoughts and eliminate negative thinking. When students envision hope and possibilities it attributes to them staying in school and graduating. (0) comments
Digital Resources: The National Science Digital Library - Shonda Brisco, School Library Journal
As budgets get tighter and educational requirements grow broader, it's become more difficult to find science and math databases that won't devour the entire library budget. However, there's one digital database that provides standards-based instructional resources, K-12 lesson plans, digital downloads, streaming video, and 2.0 collaborative tools for math and science and, best of all, it's free. NATIONAL SCIENCE DIGITAL LIBRARY http://nsdl.org (0) comments
A recommended reading list on 2.0 and its impact on education - Steve Hargadon, School Library Journal
I love books, especially the actual physical ones. I madly scribble notes in the margins, and stuff them with related articles as if they were file folders. I can think of no better afternoon than one spent indulging in the discovery of ideas within a library or bookstore. Here are some titles that I think significantly inform the conversation about Web 2.0 in education, along with their accompanying blog or Web site, where readers can continue the conversation. Upcoming or recorded interviews with these authors are available on my FutureofEducation.com site. (0) comments Monday, February 08, 2010
Surrattsville High's computer class taught without computers - Michael Birnbaum, Washington Post
Every day, students file into a computer class at Surrattsville High School that is taught without computers, without enough textbooks and with no permanent teacher. The struggle to find a qualified computer teacher at the Prince George's County school, just a dozen miles from an education department that is investing millions in science and technology education, shows the basic problems that schools face even as reform rhetoric increases. A teacher who was supposed to teach the computer technology class has been on extended medical leave, and the school system has had trouble finding a substitute with an adequate technology background, school officials said. Some of the 150 students in the course's six sections say they've had to teach themselves out of the book, but the classroom doesn't have enough books to go around. (0) comments
Students use iPods, iPhones to grade Obama’s address - Dennis Carter, eSchool News
Abilene Christian students answered 50 questions on their iPhones and iPods during Obama's address. It’s the stuff that makes political pollsters salivate: 30 Abilene Christian University students used iPhones and iPod Touches to respond to President Obama’s Jan. 27 State of the Union address in real time, and a campus technology official said the exercise offered insight into boosting student participation. (0) comments
Laptop Buying Guide: Making Sense of the Specifications - Jason Cross, PCWorld
Once you figure out which category of laptop best suits your needs, it's time to examine the specifications. You'll have to choose from among a host of options for the processor, RAM, graphics, display, and other features. Deciding what you need and what you can live without is difficult, but it's essential to selecting a laptop you love at a price you can afford. If you don't understand the specs, you could save money but miss out on the features and performance you require, or you could spend too much for things you don't really need. (0) comments Sunday, February 07, 2010
Is $99 too much for Office 2010? - Christopher Dawson, ZDnet
Have you used the beta of Office 2010? I have. It’s incredibly slick, well-done software. I really like Office 2007, but 2010, even in beta form (much as Windows 7 beta was to Vista) is a real leap ahead. The interface is polished and it has everything a power user could want, from Access to Word. Microsoft announced pricing for it today and, while volume licensing hasn’t been hammered out, the academic version of Office 2010 Professional looks to be running $99 a pop. (0) comments
Why is cyberbullying different? - Christopher Dawson, ZDnet
To some extent, I think we can credit a generally increased sensitivity to the needs and struggles of our students. However, cyberbullying adds an entirely new dimension of permanence, public humiliation, and viral propagation to bullying. When threats and insults are posted on a social network for all to see (or at least the circle of acquaintances that matter to students), the effect can be fundamentally different than passing insults in the halls or the aggression of bullies in the locker room. It is inescapable. (0) comments
Apple's new iPad 'underwhelming' - Larry Magid, Mercury News
Had Apple called this device the "iPod touch 2," I would have praised it as a really good follow-up to an excellent product. It's great to innovate, it's great to introduce new ideas to the market and it's great to "throw it against the wall and see if it sticks." After all, experimentation, including experiments that fail, are an important part of what drives innovation. But this was more than just experimenting with a new concept. To begin with, the concept isn't new. There have been dozens of tablets or slate computers and none of them has been able to attract more than a niche audience (0) comments Saturday, February 06, 2010
Google Expands Social Search Test - Juan Carlos Perez, IDG News Service
Google's Social Search service, which includes public content from users' social networks in search results, is getting promoted to Google.com from the company's Labs site, meaning it is no longer considered an early prototype. In the coming days, Google will let English-language users of its search engine see relevant links to items their social-networking contacts have posted publicly on the Web. Social Search results will also appear in the Google Images engine, the company said in a blog post Wednesday. (0) comments
Professors File Petition Against Google Books Settlement - Allie Bidwell and Emma Anderson, Daily Cal
From UC Berkeley to Cornell University, more than 80 professors have signed a petition against a pending settlement agreement between Google Inc. and authors and publishers. The petition calls into question provisions within the settlement which, although providing authors and publishers with some monetary compensation, allows Google to have a "de facto monopoly" over books scanned in a digital library project, among other provisions. (0) comments
Technology changing how we work, play, shop - ROY WENZL, The Wichita Eagle
Our avatars are coming. Those mobile and 3-D and interactive technologies being created around us are about to beam us into a new world, filled with workday holograms, avatars and stuff we called magic only a few years ago. Some of the new magic is being created in Wichita. It’s going to enrich and disrupt our lives. It’s going to delight us and plague us. (0) comments Friday, February 05, 2010
Measuring the iPad's Potential for Education - Bridget McCrea, Educational Technology
Thanks to the fact that Pinellas County high schools release early on Wednesdays, Catherine Nothstein didn't even have to skip school to watch the live feed of the Apple iPad announcement on her home laptop. While the iPad's capabilities wowed Nothstein, a long-time iPod and MacBook fan, her initial feedback came with a hint of disappointment: "I can't believe they made this without a camera," said Nothstein, who recovered quickly after watching Steve Jobs point out all of the device's functionalities. "But oh well, the apps and the touch screen look pretty cool." (0) comments
IPhone users can now make Internet-based calls - David Sarno, LA Times
Users of Apple Inc.'s popular iPhone may now be able to save money by making Internet-based phone calls over AT&T Inc.'s cellular network. Apple this week allowed new versions of several Voice over Internet Protocol services to begin working on the iPhone, according to those services. Previously, iPhone users needed a wireless Internet connection to make such calls, but the change will allow calls from anywhere that receives a strong enough 3G cellular signal. By using VoIP applications to sidestep the phone's normal calling software, iPhone owners could avoid using up their monthly allocation of minutes from AT&T, potentially allowing them to choose cheaper plans. (0) comments
Using Technology to Keep Kids from Skipping School - Steve Simon, KIAH
In a Montgomery County courtroom, you'll see a number of teens who should be in school instead of in front of a judge. Justice Of The Peace James Metts is giving 15,16 and 17-year-olds a lesson in what happens when you skip class. Those who miss out on A's B's and C's--now get to know about GPS. "It works, it just works." Metts said. (1) comments Thursday, February 04, 2010
Future of eReading might not be iPad, but Blio - Meris Stansbury, eSchool News
Blio's makers say it will allow students to interact with textbooks in full color. Despite all the buzz about Apple’s iPad tablet and how it could be useful for reading electronic textbooks, a new software program on the way might hold even more promise for education. Blio, a free eReader program that is expected to be available in February, reportedly will allow users to read more than a million electronic books on nearly any computer or portable device, with the ability to highlight and annotate text, hear the text read aloud, and more. (0) comments
Apple's iPad Falls Short of Expectations - Mauneel Desai, Seeking Alpha
This After years of wait, speculation and euphoria, Apple Inc.’s (AAPL) CEO, Mr. Steve Jobs finally unveiled the Apple iPad. I was one of the people eagerly looking forward to the launch. So, what’s the verdict? Well, the iPad is a pretty nice mobile device. It fits Apple product line between the MacBook Pro and the iPhone. It has many of the rumored features but it does falls short of expectations. It's certainly not Apple’s most revolutionary product yet and most certainly not the best thing that Steve Jobs has done to date. (0) comments
Doyle declares Data Privacy Day in Wisconsin - Joe Campana, Examiner
Governor Jim Doyle proclaimed January 28, 2010 Data Privacy Day in Wisconsin. Wisconsin joins North Carolina, Arkansas, Washington, Maryland, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, West Virginia and other states in celebrating the dignity of the individual expressed through personal information. A special focus of the awareness education surrounding International Data Privacy Day is on children andteen use of social networking and related Web 2.0 applications such as photo and video sharing as well as text messaging and sharing of personal and photographic information through the wide variety of digital devices that young people have on hand. (See National Data Privacy Day—teen social networking and each of the short educational videos cited in the article). Many adults and employees can also learn from the basic principles of safe social networking. (0) comments Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Educators intrigued by Apple’s iPad - Dennis Carter, eSchool News
The web-enabled Apple iPad starts at $499. Apple’s new tablet computer, the iPad, could push other companies to bring more color-capable eReaders to the market in a move that could make digital books more commonplace on school campuses, educators said after the long-awaited release of the technology giant’s latest product. Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad Jan. 27, calling it a new third category of mobile device that is neither smart phone nor laptop, but something in between. (0) comments
Obama calls for more school funding - eSchool News
Education was a key part of President Obama's State of the Union address. Education is one of the few areas of the federal budget that would not see a spending freeze, if President Barack Obama gets his way this year. In his State of the Union speech on Jan. 27, Obama said his administration will work with Congress to expand school improvements across the country, saying the success of children cannot depend on where they live. As he prepares to ask Congress for billions of dollars in new spending for education, the president said the nation’s students need to be inspired to succeed in math and science, and that failing schools need to be turned around. (0) comments
Meet 10 of the nation’s techno-savviest supes - eSchool News
Tech-Savvy Superintendent Award winners bring technology know-how to their districts. One-to-one computing programs that are turning classrooms into student-centered learning labs and raising achievement; a technology incentive program that is reducing the dropout rate and closing the digital divide; live streaming of school board meetings online, and other efforts to engage stakeholders in school district activities; and the creation of an online-learning program that has solved the challenge of declining student enrollment: These are some of the many education technology accomplishments of the winners of our 10th annual Tech-Savvy Superintendent Awards. (0) comments Educational Technology News Blog Archives OTEL - Ray's Home Page - Notebook - UIS Online - U of I Online - UIS Home Fair Use |
