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By Ferris Jabr "How exactly does the technology we use to read change the way we read? How reading on screens differs from reading on paper is relevant not just to the youngest among us, but to just about everyone who reads—to anyone who routinely switches between working long hours in front of a computer at the office and leisurely reading paper magazines and books at home; to people who have embraced e-readers for their convenience and portability, but admit that for some reason they still prefer reading on paper; and to those who have already vowed to forgo tree pulp entirely. As digital texts and technologies become more prevalent, we gain new and more mobile ways of reading—but are we still reading as attentively and thoroughly? How do our brains respond differently to onscreen text than to words on paper? Should we be worried about dividing our attention between pixels and ink or is the validity of such concerns paper-thin?"
Via Jim Lerman
Most writers are easily distracted; trying out just one more app often sounds better than slogging through your manuscript.
Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)
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Must-have teacher apps for smartphones and tablets.
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iPads – A Tool, Not Alchemy, for Education. by Björn Jeffery April 25, 2013. toca boca. Photo Courtesy of Toca Boca. The topic of kids and technology is a hot topic again. This would normally be a good thing, if the questions that are being ...
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At under $300 a device, Chromebooks are an attractive alternative to pricier laptops and tablets. Learn everything you need to know about deploying them from two districts who have taken the plunge.
iBooks Author is a fantastic way to get students involved in their own learning. If you're dedicated to providing engaging lessons for your students then creating interactive textbooks needs to go ...
Via Felix Jacomino
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Hannach Rupprecht will be one of almost 130 seventh-graders who will carry an iPad to school every day next year at Westminster Christian Academy.
By Kati Lapi "Getting younger students to tell stories can promote a variety of different language arts skills in a way that is a lot more fun than doing grammar drills. From learning the parts of speech and sentence and paragraph structure to vocabulary, there is a lot of hidden teaching material in storytelling, which interactive storytelling apps can enhance. Since we all know that kids LOVE to tell stories (check out this blog post by a teacher who had to limit how many stories each student could tell per day), there is a lot of potential in this activity. Bringing in digital tools can make the process even more robust. Check out the web tools and apps that we’ve explored below for a few options that might be useful in your classroom."
Via Jim Lerman
Get Robots for iPad on the App Store. See screenshots and ratings, and read customer reviews.
Via Gordon Shupe
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Get Phonics and Reading With McGuffey on the App Store. See screenshots and ratings, and read customer reviews.
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Teacher Neil Virani was fed up with the sad reality special education students faced and began to change his student’s lives with technology.
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As more schools integrate digital games into learning, programs are evolving to turn students into video-game designers.
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Textbooks aren't available for e-readers, and the children's literature that is available generally can't be searched by reading level.
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Preview and download the course iTunes U: A Course Creation Guide for Educators on iTunes U. (RT @sjunkins: An iTunes U Course on How to Create an iTunes U Course from the brilliant mind of @TresslerTech.
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When you think about integrating an iPad in schools, what is the goal? Patrick Larkin recalls his 1:1 integration and if he might do things differently now.
Read the directions and directly you will be directed in the right direction. -Lewis Carroll I know there are a million jokes about a certain gender *ahem* not wanting to stop and ask directions. ...
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Are you and your students really getting the most out of the iPad? FETC speaker Luis Perez lists 12 little-known tips, tricks, and settings to supercharge your iPad use.
Hey, teacher! Got an iPad? Then you've got a toolbox that you can fill to help you be an even better teacher! Spend some time with this infographic to discover how your iPad can be your handy assistant.
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Boston, MA (PRWEB) April 18, 2013 Collaboratively produced, an iPad writing app dubbed ‘Outline Pro’ by creators Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart and IT Launchpad, lets writers create detailed outlines and makes it easy to organize their...
By Katie Lapi "For anyone who has ever had to write a paper, you know that getting the ideas down when they come to you is important. And for those of us who are (ahem) procrastinators (*looks away innocently*) getting the ideas down and the writing done when you’re inspired is key. For those of us who were educated in the dark ages before smartphones and tablets, if you wanted to write on the go you were pretty much out of luck. Now, there are a host of options for organizing your writing and writing on the go with different apps and web tools. Take a look at some of the various writing apps for students below:"
Via Jim Lerman
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Nine universities are testing technology that allows them to track their students’ progress with digital textbooks.
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This week I got the itch to go beyond anecdotal stories about iPads in the classroom and look for some more substantial research and writing on the topic. Below are some of the reports that I’ve been reading through this week.
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Ever since I was a kid, I loathed back to school commercials. They always showed parents gleefully skipping through aisles of pencils and notebooks as the kids, sullen and dejected, sluggishly follow
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If you use rubrics to grade student work you have to try ForAllRubrics! Once you set up your class list, this website allows users to import rubrics they’ve already made, or easily create new ones. Open the site on your iPad and with a few taps you’ll have projects graded in no time. It’s easy to access previous grades, print out data, and it’s free for teachers!
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I will admit it, I have yet to read an entire novel or non-fiction book (of over a 100 pages) on an electronic device. But that is partly because I don't typically read novels and the non-fiction topics that I am interested in are not yet available in electronic form.
But I have read (and do read) comprehend and 'know' a small library's worth of information over the last few years in smaller chunks from the screen of my various devices.
I agree with the research and acknowledge the continued need for printed reading skills and materials. But I would also point out that these two formats should not be mutually exclusive, but rather are complimentary.
Reading, managing, recalling, citing, validating digital text is quite different from printed text. It may be that printed text is preferable given a certain history/experience/purpose/ or skill set. But there are just as many advantages to electronic texts, and maybe we need to address them as two different important literacies as educators.
It reminded me of comments I made when the iPad first came out: http://www.shupester.com/files/iPadDifferent.php
iOS / iPad not 'better' but 'good different'?I loved the part about mind mapping and the meta-cognitive things we do before we start reading. Great article with research-based facts.