Smithsonian Launches Learning Lab to Create, Share Resource Collections

The Learning Lab offers tools for creativity, personalization and publishing, and will eventually evolve with user input.

The Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access (SCLDA) announced the launch of Learning Lab, an online toolkit that allows users to find, customize and share museum resources with others.

With more than a million resources available, Learning Lab allows users to organize content as well as incorporate notes and tags, “hotspot” annotations, quizzes, assignments and other activities. Users can create personal collections that can be kept private or shared with anyone to use or adapt. Learning Lab aims to be a collaborative community for teachers and students in K­–12 and higher education.

“Not everyone can come to the Smithsonian, but they can visit the Learning Lab to inspire and design their own digital learning experiences,” said Stephanie Norby, director of the center, in a prepared statement. “Teachers can use trusted, authentic resources and interactive tools to make lessons more relevant and compelling to students while meeting curriculum standards and fostering higher-order thinking skills.”

Learning Lab was piloted at Allegheny Intermediate Unit in Pennsylvania for several months before its launch. Further information about the toolkit is available on the Learning Lab site.

About the Author

Sri Ravipati is Web producer for THE Journal and Campus Technology. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Stylized illustration showing cybersecurity elements like shields, padlocks, and secure cloud icons on a neutral, minimalist digital background

    Microsoft Announces Host of Security Advancements

    Microsoft has announced major cybersecurity advancements across its product portfolio and practices. The work is part of its Secure Future Initiative (SFI), a multiyear cybersecurity transformation the company calls the largest engineering project in company history.

  • reDesign Future9 report

    ReDesign Updates 9 Essential Competencies for K-12 Students

    ReDesign, a provider of support and resources for competency-based education, has updated its Future9 Competency Framework to reflect the essential skills K-12 students need today to thrive in their education and workforce journeys.

  • augmented reality goggles on a desk in a dark, shut-down production lab with neon accents and scattered tools

    Microsoft Transitioning Away from HoloLens Mixed Reality Hardware

    Microsoft has confirmed that hardware development for its HoloLens mixed reality headset has officially come to an end.

  • horizontal stack of U.S. dollar bills breaking in half

    ED Abruptly Cancels ESSER Funding Extensions

    The Department of Education has moved to close the door on COVID relief funding for schools, declaring that "extending deadlines for COVID-related grants, which are in fact taxpayer funds, years after the COVID pandemic ended is not consistent with the Department’s priorities and thus not a worthwhile exercise of its discretion."