Connected educator

This book offers a unique insight into what students and teachers need to know in the 21stcentury classroom," says Michaelsen. "I'm extremely proud of what my English learners have accomplished and shared in this remarkable example of project learning."

Concern about young people’s use of technology is nothing new, of course. ButRosen’s study, published in the May issue ofComputers in Human Behavior, is part of a growing body of research focused on a very particular use of technology: media multitaskingwhile learning. Attending to multiple streams of information and entertainment while studying, doing homework, or even sitting in class has become common behavior among young people—so common that many of them rarely write a paper or complete a problem set any other way.

So now I'm quite certain 21st-century learning is good teaching -- teaching that allows students to be autonomous, is authentic and allows students to take action. It will involve new technologies just as much as we use the old analogue ones, such as pencils and glue (which I still love to use.)

Learning and teaching in this century are not about preparing kids for a technological future, but simply about teaching kids how to think deeply about concepts and then apply this new knowledge, something we have been doing since the dawn of education.

Perhaps the ancient Greeks need some royalties from contemporary edu-preneurs.

My first thought when I saw VideoNotes was that it would be a great tool for students to use to take notes, ask questions, and answer questions while watching "flipped" instruction videos. You could assign a video for homework and have your students ask and or answer questions using VideoNotes. Have students share their notes with you so that you can see their questions which in turn can influence how you structure your next lesson plan.

“Some people worry that young children should not be online because they cannot be safe. Instead, I worry that young children who are isolated from social technologies will not learn HOW to be safe online. In our increasingly connected world, it is important for even five and six year olds to begin to learn what is appropriate when using technology to connect.”

TED Talks Education will present one hour of electric, emotional and thought-provoking television. The speaker program is curated by TED curator Chris Anderson, in the interest of teachers, educational administrators, parents, and students.

They know when students are skipping pages, failing to highlight significant passages, not bothering to take notes — or simply not opening the book at all.

“It’s Big Brother, sort of, but with a good intent,” said Tracy Hurley, the dean of the school of business.

The faculty members here are neither clairvoyant nor peering over shoulders. They, along with colleagues at eight other colleges, are testing technology from a Silicon Valley start-up, CourseSmart, that allows them to track their students’ progress with digital textbooks.

This revolution is orchestrated by frustrated educators who believe the current school system must be torn down to the studs and rebuilt in order to keep up with the enormous cultural shift wrought by technology and the Internet. And though their own Twitter universe is ablaze with new ideas and practices – check out all the blogs, Tweets and voices on #edchat – it’s happening piecemeal, and under the radar of most teachers.

I have never given my students a test. I'm struggling to see the value, particularly in my course where the intent is to provide students an overview of the way technology can be used to support learning and the way in which it's influencing learning in 2012. ;

The Smithsonian's History Explorer is packed with lesson plans, interactive media, and reference pages for teachers and students. Using the search tools teachers can find lesson plans for every K-12 grade aligned to national standards for U.S. History. Teachers can search for lesson plans and other materials by grade level, resource type, historical era, and cross-curricular connections.

 But through this process, I’ve come to realize that there are three things that really crucial to the success of a teacher, any teacher, regardless of experience:  classroom management, pedagogy & content knowledge. And because I moved so far outside of what I knew, I had none of these anymore.

Additionally,  I knew my content well. I’d been teaching it for years.  Because of these two things, I was able to play with my pedagogy a lot. We could experiment with PBL & inquiry, problem based learning & student teaching.  We could succeed & fail because I had strength in the other two pillars.

I see how the  Yokahama International Middle School  (Grades 6-8), has laid the foundation with their student blogs for a CONTINUOUS effort to document, reflect and assess their students progress ACROSS time. My current school, Martin J Gottlieb Day School also has an opportunity to implement student blogfolios across ALL grade levels (K-8) and build on skills from year to year. George Couros on The Principal of Change blog wrote in a post titled 5 Reasons your Students Should Blog about his school division and effort to developing blogs as portfolios with their students. They are bringing blogs to approximately 10,000 students!